"My husband," before Ding Wanyan could descend into deep sorrow, she was suddenly overwhelmed with immense joy. To say Ding Wanyan hadn't worried about Lei Dongchuan these past few months would be a pure fabrication. However, the confidence Lei Dong had consistently given her, coupled with the realization of all the unbelievable things her husband had done, made her faith in him incredibly strong.

In Ding Wanyan’s understanding, it seemed her husband was the most unique person in the world; not only had he reincarnated with memories from a past life, but he had also inexplicably inherited the legacy of the ancient Demon Emperor Sect, along with the mysterious Soul Devouring Pagoda. If he were to simply vanish now, Ding Wanyan would be the first to refuse to believe it.

"Little brat Lei, you aren't dead?" The Heavenly Ghost Emperor was greatly astonished as his divine sense swept over the newcomer. Seeing that it was indeed Lei Dong, whom he had struck into the Nether Vortex months ago, the pupils of his eyes contracted sharply. If this were the Heavenly Ghost Emperor at his peak, the Nether Vortex would be nothing to fear. But as he was now, he judged that being sucked into it, even if he miraculously survived, would cost him dearly. A mere early-stage Golden Core cultivator? Hmm? This boy's aura seems a bit off?

"Mid-stage Golden Core?" The corners of the Heavenly Ghost Emperor’s mouth twitched beneath his mask several times. This brat, after being thrown into the Nether Vortex, not only survived but seemingly benefited from the disaster?

Lei Dong stood suspended in mid-air with his hands clasped behind his back. Following his long, serene breaths, his body rose and fell slightly, his expression calm as he glanced at the Heavenly Ghost Emperor and chuckled lightly, "This is all thanks to the predecessor's grace. Your junior has managed to break through the bottleneck in one leap, advancing to the mid-stage Golden Core."

Truthfully, Lei Dong had indeed faced a near-death experience this time. If it weren't for the Nether Ghost Emperor valuing him and the successor intervening at the critical moment to rescue him; if it weren't for Little You sacrificing herself at the last instant to pull him back from the brink of explosive death—Lei Dong would have already died twice. Describing it as benefiting from a disaster was the most fitting term. Now, after Lei Dong's body had been tempered with the majority of the Nether Essence, it was far more than just breaking through to the mid-stage Golden Core. On the contrary, the advancement was merely a side effect. Most importantly, under the effect of the Nether King Body Tempering Art, Lei Dong’s physique had completely transformed into the legendary Nether Physique—a physique that, if not world-shattering, was certainly exceptionally rare.

From this point forward, Lei Dong’s cultivation of Nether-series spells would be effortless and their power doubled.

"Little brat Lei, aren't you being a bit too arrogant?" The Heavenly Ghost Emperor, having regained his composure, let out a disdainful snort. "So what if you’ve advanced to the mid-stage Golden Core? In my eyes, there is absolutely no difference between early-stage and mid-stage Golden Core."

As these final, contemptuous words left his mouth, the Heavenly Ghost Emperor abruptly hurled a punch at Lei Dong. The force of the blow was overwhelming, the momentum extraordinary, and it even concealed a trace of spatial rule power, making the heart pound with terror. An ordinary Golden Core cultivator, even if they managed to withstand this domineering strike without dying, would lose half their life force.

However, Lei Dong remained with his hands behind his back, not even blinking once.

In the dark, abyssal void, the space rippled. First, a small hand, pale-skinned and seemingly boneless, appeared out of thin air, casually drawing a circle as if nothing mattered. A miraculous thing happened: directly in front of Lei Dong, a black hole, dark and bottomless, materialized with eerie precision.

It seemed everything was timed perfectly. The Heavenly Ghost Emperor’s punch arrived just then, but it struck into that black hole. Not even a sound escaped; only ripples agitated the air. In that instant, all the power of the punch vanished without a trace, as if devoured by the black hole itself.

It was at this moment that Little You’s figure fully appeared beside Lei Dong. Wearing a thin veil and walking barefoot on her delicate jade feet, she was as beautiful as an elf in the deepest night. She softly exhaled from her cherry lips, "Old man Heavenly Ghost, your opponent is me." After everything they had endured, Little You’s original respect and adoration for the Heavenly Ghost Emperor had completely vanished, replaced by intense disgust and hatred.

"Little You?" The Heavenly Ghost Emperor was hesitant to believe his eyes. The delicate yet noble and utterly imposing woman in the distance was actually the ghost servant Little You, who had recently behaved like Lei Dong's mere attendant. What shocked him even more was the short time that had passed. Little You had actually broken through from the Ghost General level to the Ghost King level! Although she was only an early-stage Ghost King, her aura and the pressure she exerted on the Heavenly Ghost Emperor were fundamentally different.

This turn of events was, in part, Little You's fortune. Initially, Little You intended to let Lei Dong absorb all the rare treasures—the Nether Essence—to temper his body. However, what she hadn't anticipated was that at the final critical moment of cultivating the Nether King Body Tempering Art, Lei Dong had encountered a mishap, losing control and ravenously absorbing the remaining Nether Essence. While the Nether Essence was a supreme treasure rarely found in heaven and earth, any substance, when consumed in excess, becomes a deadly poison. The massive influx of Nether Essence instantly threatened to cause him to explode and die.

It was fortunate that Little You unleashed her innate Soul Sealing Art, which not only rescued Lei Dong but also allowed both the human and the ghost to benefit greatly. Lei Dong finally refined the Nether Physique and advanced to the mid-stage Golden Core. Similarly, Little You's spirit body received a substantial improvement, making her superior to an ordinary Celestial Spirit Ghost by half a step, and she smoothly advanced to Ghost King status.

Little You's successful promotion also caused a qualitative change in Lei Dong's own strength.

The Heavenly Ghost Emperor was severely wounded, his strength barely reaching one or two tenths of his peak. Aside from the power of the spatial laws, he was barely equivalent to a mid-stage Ghost King. Little You, however, was a genuine early-stage Ghost King now, and the tempering effect of the Nether Essence on her physique made her stronger than an average early-stage Ghost King. Moreover, Little You had already gained a preliminary understanding of spatial laws during her time as a Ghost General. Now that she was a Ghost King, her comprehension of spatial laws had naturally ascended to a whole new level, making her in no way inferior to the Heavenly Ghost Emperor.

Seeing the earth-shattering transformation in both master and servant, even the Heavenly Ghost Emperor, using common sense, could guess they must have absorbed the Nether Essence. This item, which he had considered already in his grasp and intended to enjoy after dealing with the Nether Ghost Emperor, now filled him with such suffocating frustration! It was as disgusting as swallowing a fly while eating a delicious banquet. What made him even more unwilling to accept this was that after being injured by over a hundred Yin Fiend Heavenly Thunders, he hadn't had a chance to quietly heal these past few months. Otherwise, even if Little You had advanced to an early-stage Ghost King, he wouldn't have given her a second glance. Curse it, one wrong step leads to the loss of the whole game!

"I will remember this against you both," the Heavenly Ghost Emperor, despite his nausea, knew the situation was irreversible. With Little You’s assistance and numerous allies, she probably wouldn't be easy to handle. He made a swift decision, instantly teleporting backward, leaving behind a lingering threat: "When my soul body recovers from its injuries, that will be your day of reckoning."

"Hmph, trying to run? Too late."

Little You's understanding of spatial rules had far exceeded the Heavenly Ghost Emperor's expectations. As she stepped into the void, she executed the Great Nether Art, causing ghost energy to surge to the heavens.

Countless streams of Nether Ghost Qi, under the effect of her spell, transformed into solid, taut 'threads,' instantly weaving into a massive net-like cage.

This net miraculously ensnared the Heavenly Ghost Emperor, forcibly dragging him out from the spatial rift.

This technique was developed by Lei Dong when he was utterly bored in Zhaozhou, consuming considerable time and energy, mostly borrowing from Qing Niangzi's Needle-Threading Magic. It was usually used to control enemies and often yielded surprising results. After Little You learned the Great Nether Art, Lei Dong naturally passed this technique on to her. Unexpectedly, Little You managed to execute this art to such a degree, integrating elements of spatial laws, that the unprepared Heavenly Ghost Emperor fell victim to this trap.

Unable to escape, the Heavenly Ghost Emperor erupted in enraged fury, unleashing a sharp wave of ghost energy that tore the 'net' into shreds, making it vanish into nothingness. He then engaged Little You in a fierce battle. One side relied on seasoned experience and sheer power; the other relied on innate intelligence, combining various spells in ingenious ways that often generated considerable force.

For a short time, Little You managed to keep the Heavenly Ghost Emperor from breaking free. Seeing this, how could Lei Dong miss such an opportunity? He summoned the high-ranking Ghost Generals Ah Chou and Shadow Tiger, along with a flood of cannon-fodder vengeful spirits, charging forward to aid Little You. Wanyan, Dongfang Fu, and Qi Feifei, who had all suffered under the Heavenly Ghost Emperor's tyranny, also followed Lei Dong's command, unleashing their full power and swarming forward.

Wanyan’s elusive Yin Fiend Heavenly Thunders, Dongfang Fu’s snowstorms, and the endless army of vengeful spirits and elite Ghost General war pets placed immense pressure on the Heavenly Ghost Emperor. Every time he attempted to counterattack and eliminate one of them, he was entangled and blocked by Little You.

The mighty Heavenly Ghost Emperor, choked with frustration, gradually began to lose ground. He wanted to flee, but he couldn't—both Little You and Lei Dong understood spatial laws. He could only roar repeatedly, fighting back with all his might.

This brutal battle raged for dozens of hours. The Heavenly Ghost Emperor, finally like a tiger brought low on the plains, was slowly worn down and killed amidst a final, unwilling roar. When the Heavenly Ghost Emperor completely dissolved into a column of black flame, those who had fought fiercely for so long were nearly collapsing. Especially Little You, who had borne the brunt of the fighting, her form flickering in and out of existence, clearly severely depleted of vital energy.

Yet, an intense feeling of satisfaction permeated the heart of every person and ghost present. This time, they hadn't killed some nameless nobody, but a Ghost Emperor-level powerhouse!

"Crack," Lei Dong used almost the last of his strength, manipulating a wisp of ghost energy to seize a jade pendant-like object. Amidst his joy, he felt that even if this single item was all he gained from this trip to the Nether Domain, it was utterly worthwhile.