Da Yan Lingzun remained silent, his expression aloof, it was unclear if he was conceding to Pan Hu’s previous judgment or seeking another way to regain strength sufficient to challenge Pan Hu.

Seeing this, the smile on Pan Hu’s face deepened: “Da Yan, if you had been content, even counting all the Star Gods and Spirit Gods currently in the Supreme Spirit Realm, few would likely match you. It’s a pity your ambition is too vast; you actually dared to aspire to become a Supreme!”

“Since ancient times, among countless Star Gods and Spirit Gods, only three have ever reached the Supreme Realm—and all were human. Not a single aberrant Spirit God achieved it. You, an aberrant Spirit God who achieved sentience from a mere ‘Hui Mou Grass,’ aspiring to such a heaven-defying feat, your courage is indeed commendable.”

“Truthfully, I almost admire you.”

Seeing that Da Yan Lingzun still offered no response, Pan Hu paid it no mind and chuckled to himself, “For thousands of years, by ceaselessly absorbing the power of faith and the insights formed when a Ninth-Tier Black Spirit Master breaks through, you managed to glimpse the threshold of the Supreme Realm. That is truly remarkable. However, to become a true Supreme, you must completely sever yourself from your original form—the Hui Mou Grass—and transform yourself into a genuine human.”

“Da Yan, what I say is correct, is it not?” Pan Hu asked with a squinting smile.

“And if it is correct?” Da Yan Lingzun finally spoke, laughing lightly.

“It seems my guess was not wrong.”

Pan Hu burst into laughter, “You constructed this White Bone Palace in the Ghost Domain, and devised a way to accelerate the proliferation of Nether Beasts, causing the Pluto Sects to continuously dispatch Black Spirit Masters to clear them out. Then, this palace absorbed the residual souls and flesh upon the Nether Beasts’ deaths. After all that painstaking effort, you finally managed to separate the ‘Hui Mou Grass’ from your body. Subsequently, you transformed the human body, which was supposed to be your incarnation, into your true form, and refined the Hui Mou Grass, which was your original form, into your avatar. Once the transformation between the main body and the avatar is successful, and the connection between the two is completely severed—that will be the day you achieve the Supreme Realm.”

Hearing Pan Hu’s words, Nie Kong, who was perched on the edge of the bone wall, felt immensely astonished. For Da Yan Lingzun to separate the main body of the ‘Hui Mou Grass’ from the human form, and then swap the avatar and the main body—Nie Kong had never heard of such methods or divine abilities.

“Da Yan, am I correct?” Pan Hu greatly enjoyed verifying his guesses with Da Yan Lingzun, as if it brought him a profound sense of accomplishment.

“Correct.” Da Yan Lingzun cooperated perfectly.

Pan Hu laughed contentedly, “Haha, for an aberrant Spirit God like you, swapping the main body and avatar is not so simple. However, I must truly thank you. It is precisely this action that caused your cultivation to continuously wane, giving me an opportunity. Otherwise, I could only watch helplessly as you kept feeding Nether Beasts into the Nether Sea, using my very heart as sustenance to mend the rift between your main body and avatar.”

“Of course, I should also thank Zhan Xinzi; the timing he chose to strike was impeccable.”

“At that time, the little bit of power you recovered from absorbing the residual souls and flesh of the Nether Beasts was starting to drain away again. Had you acted to kill Zhan Xinzi, your cultivation would have certainly dropped sharply once more. It was precisely because of this consideration that Zhan Xinzi broke through to the Spirit God realm, his cultivation reaching a level comparable to yours.”

“Zhan Xinzi is worthy of his heritage from the War Clan; he upholds the War Clan’s tradition of being fiercely belligerent. The moment he broke through to Spirit God, he couldn't resist fighting you. As a result, both sides suffered injuries, saving me a great deal of effort.”

Speaking of this, a look of pity crossed Pan Hu’s face, “Da Yan, your greatest mistake was coveting my heart. Had you not done so, I wouldn’t have gone to such lengths to scheme against you, bringing you to this predicament. Of course, it can’t be entirely blamed on you; you can only blame my heart for being too precious. Once you absorb my heart and ascend to the Supreme Realm, you could derive a Pan Star from it! At that time, among all the Supremes, your strength would only be second to the Supreme of my Pan Star Clan. Even the other two might not be your match.”

“Deriving a Pan Star from the heart? What is a Pan Star? That old fellow is quite narcissistic—comparable to Qing Yue,” Nie Kong’s thoughts raced wildly.

“Only a doddering old fool like you would treat your own heart as a treasure!” At this moment, Da Yan Lingzun’s lips curled into a mocking smile, “Pan Hu, let me tell you the truth: in my eyes, your heart is merely a substitute to be used only when absolutely necessary.”

“Hm?”

Pan Hu’s eyes narrowed.

Da Yan Lingzun calmly continued, “When I first began swapping my main body and avatar, I sent a wisp of my spiritual thought out of the Nether Land, traveling to the Heavenly Spirit Continent to seek the ‘Ancestral Heavenly Divine Luo Tree.’ Initially, I didn't hold much hope, but unexpectedly, I actually encountered it. Although the Ancestral Heavenly Divine Luo Tree from ten thousand years ago failed to shed its form and achieve the Spirit God realm, its power was comparable to a Spirit God. Especially its tree heart, which contained an utterly terrifying vitality.”

“Tree heart?” Pan Hu’s eyes flickered.

“I attached my spiritual thought to a descendant of the Ancestral Heavenly Divine Luo Tree’s bloodline and refined three ‘Dark Blood Spirit Worms’ to launch a surprise attack. I thought securing the tree heart would be a sure thing, but I still underestimated the Ancestral Heavenly Divine Luo Tree. At the last moment, it severed the connection between me and my spiritual thought, leading to failure. These many years have passed; that wisp of spiritual thought has surely been destroyed by now,” Da Yan Lingzun sighed softly.

“I didn't expect Da Yan Lingzun’s ambition to seize the Wood Ancestor’s heart was also for the purpose of swapping the main body and avatar. I wonder if it possesses the antidote for the Dark Blood Spirit Worms? But even if it does, with my current strength, I probably couldn't obtain it,” Nie Kong’s mind worked rapidly, feeling somewhat helpless.

“In my eyes, that tree heart is the true treasure; compared to it, your heart is insignificant,” Da Yan Lingzun scoffed.

“Hearing you say that, even I am tempted. What a pity, that tree heart, no matter how precious, is now beyond your reach.”

The smile on Pan Hu’s face suddenly turned ferocious, “Da Yan, the time I gave you has run out. But don't despair, because I’ve changed my mind; I won't kill you. Instead, I will completely cripple your cultivation and keep you by my side.”

“Back then, in the harem of the Supreme Spirit Realm, I had countless women, including four Star Gods and four Spirit Gods, but not a single aberrant Spirit God. When I eventually shatter the Nether Land and return to the Supreme Spirit Realm, you will be my ‘First Star Consort!’”

“At that time, perhaps I will ask the Supreme to restore your cultivation.”

“Oh? So, I should thank you then?”

Da Yan Lingzun suddenly stood up, looking at Pan Hu, who seemed entirely confident. Her beautiful eyes were filled with mockery, “Pan Hu, you wish to take me into your harem, to be your concubine—do you possess the capability?” The instant her words fell, a dazzling blood-red light erupted from her body, and a terrifying aura spread outwards.

“Eh?”

Pan Hu’s expression shifted slightly.

Da Yan Lingzun let out a light, crisp laugh, “Pan Hu, if I didn't need time to draw upon the power of the avatar guarding this palace, do you think I would have had the leisure to waste so much breath talking here? Now, I want to see how you, this doddering old thing, plan to completely cripple my cultivation!”

Nie Kong couldn't help but chuckle internally. This is the consequence of talking too much nonsense! Now, this old thing Pan Hu must be filled with regret. Without even a body, his lust remains undiminished; he wants to seize Da Yan Lingzun. Is he planning to possess my body after successfully taking over hers to enjoy this millennia-old beauty?

Regardless of whether Pan Hu defeated Da Yan Lingzun or Da Yan Lingzun defeated Pan Hu in the end, it posed no pressure on Nie Kong, because victory for either side would present the optimal moment for him to devour Pan Hu’s heart. Once Pan Hu’s heart was dealt with, Nie Kong could leave the Ghost Domain immediately. On the way in, Nie Kong had already instructed Qing Yue to memorize the exit route thoroughly, so there was no worry about getting lost in the white mist illusion.

Furthermore, Nie Kong had a trump card in his pet inventory: the carcass of the Soul Eagle King! Nie Kong had now completely controlled the Soul Eagle King’s soul; as long as he guided the soul back into the physical body, Nie Kong riding upon it might not even be caught by a peak Ninth-Tier expert.

“Da Yan, are you trying to scare me?”

Pan Hu quickly regained his composure, a smile returning to his face, “No matter how fast you recover, you will still be slightly inferior to Zhan Xinzi just now—not enough to pose a threat to me. Crippling your cultivation will only require me to put in a bit more effort.”

“Then you might as well try.”

Da Yan Lingzun smiled enchantingly. As her voice faded, thick scarlet light permeated her body, rushing like a breached dam, like a fierce beast breaking free from its cage, surging madly toward Pan Hu opposite her. In an instant, the entire concave valley was enveloped in the crimson glow.

“Thump! Thump…”

A powerful heartbeat suddenly echoed within the valley. Immediately afterward, a massive, blazing inferno erupted in the blood pool, and an intensely scorching aura rolled outwards like surging waves, causing heaps of skeletons to turn into dust.

Nie Kong swiftly slid down the bone wall and retreated thousands of meters at top speed. Although he could not see the situation inside the valley from there, the booming sounds from that direction were clearly audible.

“Time to start preparing!”

With a thought, Nie Kong sat down cross-legged on the spot.

Gradually, an illusory figure swiftly separated from Nie Kong’s body. Its appearance, stature, attire, and even aura were identical to Nie Kong’s true self.

“Illusory Realization!”

“Spirit Seal!”

As the illusory figure completely separated from his body, Nie Kong executed a skill comprehended from Xiang Xiang and an imprint technique from the ‘War God Star Imprint’ almost simultaneously. In an instant, the illusory figure was no longer merely an illusion but seemed to have transformed into a real entity.

“Medicine King Avatar!”

This was the life-saving measure Nie Kong had concocted using the rare treasure ‘Fire Tree Silver Flower’ near the edge of Pan Hu’s Spirit Marrow. ‘Illusory Realization’ allowed the ‘Medicine King Avatar’ to achieve a state of perfect mimicry, while the ‘Spirit Seal’ from the ‘War God Star Imprint’ completely masked his original body’s aura. Most miraculously, the aura of the Spirit Seal was entirely concealed by the ‘Spiritual Link Battle Robe.’

At this moment, Nie Kong seemed to have vanished from this sea of bones; the only truly existing entity was the ‘Medicine King Avatar,’ completely identical to Nie Kong!