Nie Kong was overjoyed. With a mere thought, he pulled the "Chaotic Immortal Spirit" from his soul space and cupped the chubby little body in his hands.

Although he had merged with the little fellow's memories and absorbed its Taiyi realm essence, he had only just advanced. His control over the realm was still clumsy, and with all his attention focused on Chongxu Taizun, he hadn't noticed the anomaly in his own soul until now.

"M-Mom, I... you..."

The little fellow pouted, looking pitifully at Nie Kong, letting out weak whimpers.

"Good, good, I'll get you something to eat right away!"

Nie Kong's eyes darted to Chongxu Taizun. Then, his right claw shot out, plunging into the latter's body and yanking out a fiery red phantom.

This was Chongxu's soul.

Just like his physical form, this soul was also frozen solid.

"Yiya!"

The little fellow instantly became energized upon seeing it, letting out a cheer before latching onto the head of Chongxu's soul and taking a savage bite.

"Little fellow, you aren't allowed to call me Mom anymore, you must call me Dad." Seeing this, Nie Kong was immensely amused and couldn't resist giving the little one's plump backside a pat.

"Yiya, Yini..."

The little fellow cried out while eating, it was unclear if it understood Nie Kong's words.

Nie Kong sighed inwardly. This little creature had given him the Taiyi realm and all its memories. Even if its strength recovered, it would only be a peak Spirit God possessing chaotic power, likely forever barred from advancing to the Taizun realm, let alone reaching the Taiyi state.

But that didn't matter. As long as it lived, that was enough; he simply had gained a son!

In the next moment, Nie Kong's thoughts drifted afar.

What state are things in outside?

The moment this thought surfaced, Nie Kong's expression drastically changed...

Above the Tianling Continent and the Netherworld, the seven-colored auspicious light remained dazzlingly brilliant.

High up in the sky, tens of thousands of meters aloft, inside the array eye of the "Primal Void God Formation"—the Seven-Colored Taizun's face was as pale as paper. Delaying the formation for such a long time had brought him close to the limit of what he could endure. During this period, he too had sought a way to break the formation, but unfortunately, he had found no leads.

Not far away, Pan Ling watched the direction of the Yin Ruins with deep concern. Through the spatial barrier, she could still see the sealed, vase-shaped secret realm entrance.

Only Nie Kong and Chongxu remained inside the secret realm; had they obtained the "Chaotic Immortal Spirit"?

She suspected the odds favored Chongxu!

Although Nie Kong cultivated Chaotic Divine Power, his time as a Taizun was far too short. Chongxu, on the other hand, was already a peak Taizun expert and had refined Pan Zu; perhaps he already had one foot in the Taiyi realm. Once he refined the "Chaotic Immortal Spirit," he would instantly become a "Taiyi Heavenly Venerate."

Fortunately, the "Chaotic Immortal Spirit" was different from Pan Zu, requiring a much longer time to refine.

Her gaze fell upon the Seven-Colored Taizun, and Pan Ling's expression showed a degree of struggle. After a moment, she grit her teeth, her figure flickering, and she instantly appeared beside the Seven-Colored Taizun: "Brother Seven-Colored, you have sustained this for so long. Let me replace you now, and you can take over again once you've recovered."

"That will do."

The two seven-colored glows in the Seven-Colored Taizun's eye sockets were already quite dim. He stopped forcing himself. The seventy-seven forty-nine auras of blue, red, yellow, cyan, green, black, and white retracted like a receding tide, flowing back towards the array eye along the plumes of smoke. The seven-colored neon light enveloping the two continents rapidly dissipated.

In the instant those forty-nine auras were about to leave the smoke plumes and re-enter the Seven-Colored Taizun's body, Pan Ling Taizun's two palms suddenly lifted.

"Boom!"

Those jade-white palms struck the top of the Seven-Colored Taizun's head with lightning speed.

"Pan Ling, you..."

The Seven-Colored Taizun's body trembled violently, spitting blood from his throat. The forty-nine auras, on the verge of re-entry, scattered like beasts breaking free from a cage, plunging into chaos.

The "Primal Void God Formation," suppressed to its absolute limit, rebounded even more fiercely without restraint, sending up earth-shattering buzzing sounds that vibrated across the expanse.

"Brother Seven-Colored, I apologize! Pan Zu commanded that your soul be borrowed for use!"

A flicker of shame crossed Pan Ling's eyes, but her movements showed no pause. Celestial stars glittered between her palms, and dense golden light surged out from her hands like a tide, pouring down along the Seven-Colored Taizun's body. In an instant, his form was completely enveloped.

"Brother Seven-Colored, I didn't wish to act against you," Pan Ling sighed softly. "But aside from Chongxu, you are the strongest Taizun remaining. Only by using your soul as a guide can we forcibly extract the myriad souls gathered by the 'Primal Void God Formation'."

As she spoke, Pan Ling waved her right hand, and the Seven-Colored Taizun's body, pulled by a golden thread, was thrown a few meters directly beneath the "Primal Void God Formation."

That was where the formation's power was most concentrated.

The next moment, Pan Ling sat cross-legged in the array eye of the "Primal Void God Formation." Nine massive celestial stars roared out, and layered phantom images of the stars separated, circling and winding around the Seven-Colored Taizun beneath the array eye.

"Explode!"

Pan Ling muttered softly. First, the nine celestial stars shattered, followed by the layer upon layer of star phantoms around the Seven-Colored Taizun exploding, unleashing terrifying, frenzied force toward him.

At this critical juncture, a furious roar suddenly burst forth across heaven and earth: "Pan Ling, how dare you lay hands on my Master!"

The sound seemed to possess an extremely profound rhythm; every note struck Pan Ling's heart like a giant hammer, each blow feeling strong enough to tear her soul apart. Pan Ling's spirit trembled violently, her face instantly turning pale as paper, blood welling up from the corners of her lips.

The forces rushing toward the Seven-Colored Taizun lost all control, shattered by the reverberating tremor of the "Primal Void God Formation."

Hmph!

A white shadow descended into the array eye.

Before Pan Ling could even clearly see the person's face, she found both herself and the Seven-Colored Taizun floating up. However, the Seven-Colored Taizun was being lifted from beneath the array eye by a single hand, while she herself was being held by the neck and hoisted into the air by another hand.

Pan Ling instinctively gripped that hand and struggled violently, a shock beyond measure rising uncontrollably from the depths of her heart. At this moment, she realized her soul and divine power were firmly bound by an invisible force, as if she were no longer a Taizun, but a helpless, weak woman.

"Uh... Ni... Nie... Nie Kong..."

The Seven-Colored Taizun floated into the array eye, motionless, seemingly unconscious. Pan Ling finally saw the face of the newcomer clearly and was even more horrified; the person was unmistakably Nie Kong. In the next instant, Pan Ling suddenly blurted out several words in a rush: "You, you... have already reached... Tai, Taiyi's Restraint..."

"Since you saw it, then accept your fate!"

Nie Kong's face was icy, his eyes blazing like fire. Had he discovered this a step later, his Master, the Seven-Colored Taizun's soul, might have been completely pulverized.