The Foundation Establishment cultivator’s face contorted in agony as his mind was directly searched, letting out a shriek.

The two younger cultivators, still resisting, watched their usually formidable uncle become like a helpless ant in the hands of the demonic figure wreathed in black miasma. Their hearts trembled instantly, despair clouding their faces. Surrounded and besieged by countless fierce ghosts, escape seemed impossible no matter how they fled. Soon, their defensive shields and energy barriers shattered in succession. The dense swarm of vengeful spirits surged forward, relentlessly tearing and devouring with frantic bites, the young cultivators' agonizing screams rising in a continuous, unbearable chorus. After what felt like a long while, Lei Dong finally completed the soul search. The Foundation Establishment cultivator, as if utterly drained of vitality, plummeted downward. Lei Dong waved his hand, and the suppressed fierce ghosts immediately howled and dove after him, gleefully tearing at the cultivator's physical body and nascent soul—the flesh of a Foundation Establishment cultivator was an extremely rich tonic for these spirits. Lei Dong usually reserved such sustenance for his Natal Ghost Servants, only rarely feeding it to the general fierce ghosts, naturally inciting their extreme excitement.

After securing the spoils and processing the information gleaned from the soul search.

The intelligence within the Foundation Establishment cultivator's memory was clearly far richer than that of the Qi Refining cultivator. At the very least, it provided a comprehensive overview of the major powers surrounding these so-called Chaotic Isles. As for the region of Zhouzhou to the south, it was a vast expanse comparable to Kangzhou, hosting several top-tier major powers.

Further south of Zhouzhou lay a massive desert region, seemingly boundless, its area at least ten times that of Zhouzhou; even Nascent Soul cultivators dared not venture easily into its center. To the west of Zhouzhou, according to the Foundation Establishment cultivator’s understanding, was a sprawling, unbroken mountain range, known as the Million Great Mountains, stretching for millions of li.

This information caused Lei Dong’s brow to furrow deeply. Like Kangzhou, the area around Zhouzhou seemed to be a semi-independent world, a realm unto itself. In the Foundation Establishment cultivator's memory, although he knew other regions existed besides Zhouzhou, he was utterly ignorant of Kangzhou—he hadn't even heard its name.

Should he resort to soul-searching a Golden Core cultivator? A bitter expression crossed Lei Dong’s lips. Returning home, and he didn't even know the direction of distant lands? Lei Dong inwardly chastised himself for not committing to memory the directions of other provinces earlier; after all, within the Yin Sha Sect, such relevant data would have been readily available. Thus, it seemed imperative to seek out a major sect to see if he could locate a path back to his homeland. However, dealing with these major sects required extreme caution, as Lei Dong himself hailed from a top-tier power—one that devoured others whole, leaving no bone behind.

After making cursory arrangements of the loot, Lei Dong stood airborne above the shore, hands clasped behind his back, watching the turbulent sea crash ceaselessly against the cliffs, and the giant sun in the sky that looked identical no matter where he viewed it. A strange lightness settled over him, and deep within his heart, a string seemed to be gently plucked. This was the precursor to a breakthrough, his current mental state embracing neither joy nor sorrow. He circulated his True Qi, manipulating his movement technique, and drifted down to land upon the cliff face.

Via his divine sense, he remotely summoned the two Ghost Guards currently on patrol and released two puppets alongside the Soul Devouring Shadow Tiger. Thanks to Lei Dong’s meticulous care and a sufficient supply of cultivators' nascent souls, the Shadow Tiger had advanced with startling speed, already reaching the tenth layer of the Foundation Establishment realm in a short time, truly becoming one of Lei Dong’s right and left arms. Its form was now close to twenty zhang tall, magnificent and imposing, loyally guarding Lei Dong as he meditated.

In truth, Lei Dong had reached the peak of the seventh layer of the Foundation Establishment realm over half a year ago, but had been stalled, unable to advance. Unexpectedly, after surviving this life-or-death tribulation, he now felt the subtle stirrings of a breakthrough. He sat cross-legged atop the towering cliff, savoring the slightly damp, salty sea breeze washing over his face. Lei Dong’s mind slowly settled, sinking into a state of selfless immersion. The True Qi within his body circulated rhythmically with his deep breaths, nourishing and tempering every minute meridian within his frame.

Sunset yielded to moonrise, and moonset to starlight. Three full days passed. Lei Dong slowly opened his eyes; what met his gaze was an aura of clarity and purity. The surging ocean waves, the birds soaring and hunting in the sky, the fish that occasionally breached the surface several zhang high—everything appeared exceptionally sharp. Perhaps it was due to his eyes being closed for so long, coupled with the further strengthening of his physical constitution post-breakthrough, but Lei Dong’s vision had significantly improved due to his advancement. Furthermore, the True Qi within him felt even purer than before, and the Dantian felt marginally emptier. He was certain that once he filled it with True Qi, he would become even stronger.

Foundation Establishment Eighth Layer.

A faint tremor of excitement and joy ran through Lei Dong. He had taken another step closer to the goal of the Golden Core realm. Lei Dong knew that the Foundation Establishment stage was merely the first step on the vast path of immortal cultivation. Only upon reaching the Golden Core realm would a true qualitative change occur, allowing one to become a powerhouse commanding a region. Every advance along this path was cause for celebration.

Especially considering his fearful state upon first joining the sect, reaching the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment and on the cusp of the late stage—this gave Lei Dong a profound sense of realization. Time had flown swiftly. Thirty years had passed in the blink of an eye. Lei Dong glanced toward the Mute Girl, held back tens of zhang away by the Ghost Guards, waiting with palpable anxiety, and waved his hand to signal that he was fine.

Sensing the effects of the cleansing and tempering of his body from the latest ascent, he dove into the sea and washed thoroughly, feeling immensely refreshed afterward. Although the transition from the peak of the seventh layer to the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment was just a small step, for Lei Dong, it represented a qualitative leap. Crucially, when he was at the peak of the seventh layer, commanding three twelfth-level Ghost Guards simultaneously felt somewhat taxing; now, it felt effortless. With every layer advanced, his Divine Soul grew stronger proportionately.

For other cultivators, this augmentation might not translate into earth-shattering increases in overall strength. But for Lei Dong, the strengthening of the Divine Soul was more critical than anything else. This particular advancement marked a qualitative leap. Lei Dong had once estimated that upon reaching the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment, given his Divine Soul's current intensity, he might barely be able to command a single Natal Ghost General. This was an achievement many cultivators practicing the Ghost Cultivation Art could not reach even at the twelfth layer of Foundation Establishment. Over the years, in addition to his cultivation, Lei Dong had never ceased tempering his Divine Soul with the Spirit Forging Art, nor had he stopped drinking Bodhi Clear Heart Tea. Coupled with the effect of the early-acquired Heart Washing Fruit, Lei Dong’s Divine Soul far surpassed that of cultivators at the same stage.

The thought of a Ghost General sent waves of agitation through Lei Dong. A Ghost General! While a single one might struggle to defeat a first-layer Golden Core cultivator in a pure one-on-one fight, with Lei Dong himself, his puppets, the Myriad Ghost Banner, and so on, victory would not be impossible. Therefore, for him, possessing a Ghost General meant the difference between heaven and earth. With one, facing a Golden Core cultivator alone, he might actually have a chance to fight back, truly establishing himself as a formidable power. A fervent heat rose in Lei Dong's heart as he began to calculate: should he invest massive resources to elevate one of his existing three superior Ghost Servants into a Ghost General, or should he find a way to cultivate another Natal Ghost Servant to become a General?

Both approaches had merit. If he promoted a superior Ghost Servant to General, he would lose one top-tier Ghost Guard if the General wasn't needed in combat. The latter option, however, was more troublesome and time-consuming. After careful consideration, weighing both sides, Lei Dong leaned toward directly promoting one of his superior Spirit Ghosts, for one simple reason: speed.

This was the Chaotic Isles, not Kangzhou. Without the backing of his sect, everything here demanded extreme caution. Possessing a Ghost General sooner would grant him a greater sense of security sooner. Currently, upon encountering a Golden Core cultivator, his only recourse was flight. But with a Ghost General, he might have a chance to fight; the difference was self-evident.

Moreover, Lei Dong somewhat understood that even if he found a path leading back home, that road would likely not be smooth. If it were easy, inter-province travel would have been common long ago, and the provinces wouldn't have become such isolated territories. Having a Ghost General would make the journey significantly safer.

Lei Dong reviewed his current three top-tier Ghost Guards: the Critical Hit Ghost Guard, the Ice Spirit Ghost Guard, and the Phantom Ghost Guard, each with its own advantages. The Ice and Phantom guards were significantly weaker defensively.

Lei Dong's ideal requirement for a Ghost General was one that could both attack and withstand damage, making the Critical Hit Ghost Guard the optimal choice.

However, while superior Ghost Servants possessed the potential to advance to Ghost General, such an elevation demanded enormous resources. Piling up Foundation Establishment-level nascent souls would be arduous; the best method was undoubtedly using Golden Core-level nascent souls. Five or six Golden Core nascent souls thrown into the process would guarantee its ascent to the Ghost General level.

Another method involved first upgrading the Critical Hit Ghost Guard to an Extreme Grade Spirit Ghost, which would make its subsequent promotion to Ghost General much smoother. But again, this ran into the issue of time. Furthermore, based on the Foundation Establishment cultivator’s memory, there were no nearby islands teeming with stray spirits—it wasn't like the mainland where vast regions of Yin Sha and vengeful ghosts were common. There were, however, faint clues regarding Golden Core-level beast souls in the Foundation Establishment cultivator's memory. Considering all factors, Lei Dong decided to directly invest resources to push the Critical Hit Ghost Guard up to the Ghost General level immediately.