The moment this group set out, they had already considered collecting some Blood Mist Essence to take back. No wonder their demeanor along the way was so eager. Upon seeing the containers they produced—neither quite jade nor quite metal—it was clear they were special vessels crafted specifically to hold the Blood Mist Essence and prevent its corrosive effects. Lei Dong casually took one, filled it with the essence, and chuckled, "Let's not fight over it. We'll divide everything equally upon return; no one gets more or less."

When traveling outdoors, nothing ruins a team activity faster than an unfair distribution of spoils; such actions often lead to the team's collapse, ensuring no one benefits in the end. Although Lei Dong’s party wasn't strictly a team and had hierarchical differences, Lei Dong’s straightforward and fair approach instantly uplifted everyone’s spirits, earning him their utmost admiration.

Afterward, with everyone working together, their progress was remarkably smooth. Apart from a few surprise attacks from various demonic beasts, no major mishaps occurred. After all, with Lei Long, a Nascent Soul level expert possessing an exceptionally powerful divine sense, the overall safety factor increased significantly. The spoils collected were substantial. The Stygian River was incredibly vast and distant; the area they had searched was merely a drop in the ocean, rarely visited by sentient beings.

Consequently, after dividing the spoils gathered during their month-long journey, everyone stood to gain a considerable fortune. Thanks to the safest routes and coordinates left behind by the Nether Ghost Emperor, they reached the banks of the Stygian River safely and without major incident.

Lei Dong hovered slightly at the edge of the Stygian River, gazing at the churning, reddish-yellow flow that resembled an ocean. The massive, circular vortexes of water columns were truly spectacular. However, the Nether Water was intensely Yin; even with Lei Dong’s Nascent Soul cultivation and a thin protective shield erected, he could feel an incredibly chilling aura washing over him.

The most peculiar aspect of the Stygian River wasn't simply its extreme Yin nature. The surging river seemed to harbor countless resentful spirits. Where they came from, or where they went, was unknown. A giant wave crashed, throwing up a semi-transparent resentful spirit that shrieked sharply, clawing and flailing as it lunged forward, its malice soaring, seemingly intent on dragging the intruders into the river.

"Hmph, seeking death." A Ghost King-level guard stepped forward. His imposing aura surged, radiating power and immense pressure. This forced the resentful spirit to cry out miserably and hastily retreat back into the crimson-orange surge. Yet, within the spray of the waves, there seemed to be quite a number of hidden resentful souls.

"Heh heh, I heard this Stygian River connects heaven and the universe, containing one of the supreme laws of the cosmos. After living beings die, their scattered souls are drawn by an unseen power into the tributaries of the Stygian River, eventually flowing down the main current to the Nether God Temple, where they are reborn?" Lei Dong asked with a subtle smile, entirely unfazed. Lei Dong had long heard this legend, but legends were just legends and shouldn't be taken as absolute truth. Yet, the scene before him made him slightly surprised. What power did this river possess to draw in so many souls, subsequently condensing them into countless resentful spirits?

One had to remember that this stretch of the Stygian River was merely the tip of the iceberg. The Stygian River domain was extremely vast and winding, stretching for unknown distances. No one knew where its end lay. Just in this visible area, so many resentful souls were evident; how many must there be in the entire river?

"Young Master, in the knowledge inherited by Little You, there are indeed some related memories," Xiao You said, a touch of emotion in her voice, speaking softly. "In a way, this is the mother river of our Ghost Clan. My inherited knowledge vaguely suggests that most of the Ghost Clan members are cleansed by the Stygian River—their aggressive energy, resentment, and memories are washed away, allowing them to return to their source and form pure Spirit Ghosts. I also heard Father mention that every ten years, our high-ranking Ghost Clan members hold a grand ceremony to welcome a batch of newly formed Spirit Ghosts."

"Such a strange event?" Lei Dong was also astonished, hearing such a profound secret for the first time. With his eyes half-closed, he seemed deep in thought. Lei Dong always felt some connection between his Soul Devouring Pagoda and the Stygian River.

"Young Master Lei, please do not speak of what the Princess said," the guard leader’s expression grew slightly serious. "This is a secret of our Ghost Clan. Although the higher echelons of various races may have some understanding of our origin and birth, the place where our clan originates is an extreme secret, and the Ghost Emperor personally oversees the reception every time." He showed a hint of apprehension. "To be frank, we were all born from the Sacred Land."

"Please rest assured, gentlemen. The Ghost Clan and I, Lei, are not just allies; we are as close as family," Lei Dong stated solemnly. "The interests of the Ghost Clan are my interests, and I would never betray them."

The guard leader looked a bit embarrassed. "Young Master, I merely spoke out of turn. His Majesty allowing you to come here already shows immense trust in you. I have some understanding of the Stygian River; if you don't mind, allow me to ramble on for a moment."

"Such marvelous and strange tales truly pique my interest. I am all ears," Lei Dong replied with great seriousness.

"In fact, Young Master has some understanding of the Ghost Clan's genesis: they evolve from mortal souls nurtured by the Nether Ghost Qi. The majority originate from humans. Essentially, most of our Spirit Ghosts are formed from human souls," the guard leader spoke fluently. "Just like those Nether Yin Sha locations found across the mortal realms—if a human dies there, the uncultivated soul condenses into a Yin Soul, and those with decent aptitude are called Spirit Ghosts. However, Yin Souls and Spirit Ghosts born this way are considered 'wild' to our clan. The Spirit Ghosts that make up the vast majority of our members originate from our Sacred Land. As you heard, the Stygian River connects to a supreme law of the cosmos, automatically drawing in newly deceased souls from heaven and earth. As they flow and are washed through the river for a long period, most impurities are scoured away, ultimately forming Spirit Ghosts. The resulting Yin Souls are of extremely high quality—most are Spirit Ghosts, with Mid-grade and High-grade Spirit Ghosts being common. We even see a dozen or two Supreme-grade Spirit Ghosts every ten years."

Dozens of Supreme-grade Spirit Ghosts? That meant one or two were born on average each year? Even with the Soul Devouring Pagoda in hand, Lei Dong felt a subtle shock. It was truly remarkable; in a region as large as Kang Prefecture, one might not see a single Supreme-grade Spirit Ghost in several decades—they were things that could only be stumbled upon.

However, this also suggested that the strength of the Ghost Clan in the Nether Domain far exceeded his previous estimations.

"But the Stygian River's purification of souls isn't flawless. Young Master, look at those resentful spirits thrashing in the waves; they are products of some souls being purged of their memories by the river’s rush, evolving directly within it. Because the Stygian Water accumulates a large amount of aggressive, sinister Qi through extensive scouring, those resentful spirits absorb this Qi and gradually transform into beings neither human nor ghost. Over time, these resentful spirits grow ever stronger, treating the Stygian River as their home."

"Hmph, poppycock," a cold snort from the Artifact Spirit echoed directly in Lei Dong's mind. "These Ghost Clan members, thinking themselves the natural product of the universe, conforming to the true laws of heaven and earth—it's self-deception. In my era, anyone with a little insight knew the Ghost Clan was created by the Nether God, and this Stygian River was seemingly formed when that Nether God drew upon the Yellow Spring Celestial Water from beyond the domain. However, that Nether God was indeed an astonishingly powerful being, one even my Master held in high regard. To utilize loopholes between the universal laws, borrowing the power of heaven and earth to integrate his created laws into the cosmos and have them acknowledged by the universal laws—that is truly remarkable. Truly amazing. But his capability was ultimately limited; this set of laws only applies to ordinary humans whose souls are not yet strong. Human cultivators are entirely different, as their souls grow stronger through constant cultivation, forming Divine Souls, Nascent Souls, or even Primordial Spirits. But the Stygian River Law created by the Nether God has been forcibly merged into some cosmic laws. Thus, the Divine Souls of lower-tier cultivators or beast spirits that wander outside without dissipating are also drawn into the Stygian River. The Stygian Water can only wash away their residual memories and reason, but it cannot erode or restore their Divine Souls. Over time, these Divine Souls, stripped of memory and rationality, retaining only instinct, begin devouring each other, evolving instinctively, and thus form Resentful Spirits. This was an outcome the Nether God, who designed and created the Stygian River Law, never anticipated. It's a pity he vanished from the world suddenly before he could amend it, never to be heard from again." The Artifact Spirit sounded slightly regretful at the end, as if disappointed not to have conversed with the Nether God.

Lei Dong was deeply shaken. The Artifact Spirit didn't know why, and perhaps the Ghost Clan didn't either. But Lei Dong, combining some of the previous Demon Emperor's inheritances, vaguely guessed at something. The Nether God created the Ghost Clan naturally to contend against some exceptionally powerful entities—entities that would hardly tolerate the appearance of a rebellion. The Nether God essentially met the same fate as the Demon Emperor.

Yet, he found one thing strange: why didn't those entities wipe out the entire Ghost Clan?

"To return to the point, the Ghost Clan created by the Nether God back then was rather dispensable. Their so-called rare Heavenly Spirit Ghosts, appearing once a millennium, face immense difficulty progressing once they reach the Soul Transformation stage," the Artifact Spirit sighed again. "Such a race was truly fragile at that time. But nothing in the world is absolute; after so many years, with the depletion of spiritual energy, the Ghost Clan has somehow managed to ascend through their innate talents. A miracle, truly a miracle."