It was little wonder the Purgatory Demon King was surprised. A Soul Transformation stage puppet was vastly different from, say, a Nascent Soul puppet; across the Six Domains and Nine Continents combined, there were only a handful in existence. Based on the Purgatory Demon King's intelligence, he knew exactly how many such puppets there were. Yet, here was another one, appearing suddenly. This brat was actually still smelting and repairing a Soul Transformation puppet?

This, however, was not what astonished the Purgatory Demon King the most. While repairing the puppet, the boy had entered a peculiar state. It was as if he stood rooted to the earth, presiding over the entire world—an air of composure and tranquility that even the Purgatory Demon King felt himself slightly lacking. As for true kingly bearing, the Purgatory Demon King had only ever witnessed it in the Netherworld Old Ghost. However, he dismissed the Netherworld Old Ghost's entire demeanor as being overly pretentious, showing it utter disdain.

With Lei Dong’s capabilities, even when solely focused on forging puppet components, his senses extended in all directions. The slightest disturbance could not escape his notice. Although the Purgatory Demon King’s questioning sound was faint, it fell directly into Lei Dong’s perception. Instantly, Lei Dong’s hair stood on end, cold sweat prickling the back of his neck; his heart was filled with absolute terror.

Knowing one's own situation intimately, Lei Dong was perfectly aware that with his level of perception, even a Nascent Soul powerhouse approaching within a hundred feet would never escape his awareness under these circumstances. Moreover, his surroundings were densely packed with countless ghost soldiers, overseen by the peak-level Ghost Stab!

"Who?" Ghost Stab roared back, a mixture of shock and fury in his voice. He swiftly flew to stand before Lei Dong, his sinister ghost eyes seeming to burn with twin green flames, fixed intently on the hazy area in mid-air. It seemed that the moment the unseen entity made the slightest move, Ghost Stab would strike to protect his master, though he understood that whoever had arrived was likely no simple figure.

"Ghost Stab, do not be presumptuous." Lei Dong immediately calmed his mind. Earlier, while repairing the puppet parts, he had discovered that entering the 'Presiding Over the World' state made it easier to control his divine sense and increase repair speed; consequently, he had been maintained in that state. Startled, he hadn't fully emerged from that profound state, allowing him to quickly quiet his spirit and stabilize his emotions. With neither servile nor overbearing, he cupped his hands in salute toward the faint, ethereal mist: "This junior, Lei Dong of the Yin Sha Sect from Kang Province, pays respects to Senior Purgatory Demon King."

"Oh?"

The Purgatory Demon King uttered another surprised "Oh?" slowly revealing his robust and majestic crimson form. His gaze held a faint trace of doubt: "Brat, how did you know it was this King?"

"Replying to Senior," Lei Dong's voice was filled with utmost reverence: "Though this junior is only at the mid-stage of Nascent Soul, I consider my divine sense strong and keen, second only to a Soul Transformation expert. When Senior deliberately exposed your presence, this junior was still unable to penetrate your concealment technique with divine sense. This junior dared not believe a low-stage Soul Transformation expert could achieve this, so with a bit of deduction, I confirmed that Senior must be the supreme powerhouse of the Purgatory Domain—Senior Purgatory Demon King."

"Hmph, what technique are you practicing, brat? How can you maintain such clarity of spirit under these conditions?" The Purgatory Demon King seemed somewhat displeased at having his identity uncovered and questioned in a cold voice.

The wrath of a true powerhouse is a terrifying thing. Because, if they so desired, they could bring about a massacre resulting in millions of corpses. It is also immensely oppressive, for a single burst of anger might leave one’s corpse where they stand.

But Lei Dong showed no hint of fear. Instead, he maintained his composed, respectful attitude toward the powerful figure: "That is because this junior once heard Senior Netherworld Ghost Emperor mention Senior. His exact words were that among all the Six Domains and Nine Continents, while there were many powerhouses comparable to him, those he regarded with both apprehension and respect numbered only two or three. And the Purgatory Old Devil of the Purgatory Domain was one of them. Thus, once this junior deduced it was Senior, I was no longer afraid."

This speech did manage to give the Purgatory Demon King a secret satisfaction. With his abilities, he could certainly gauge the veracity of Lei Dong’s words through the junior’s expression and soul fluctuations. While not a guarantee of one hundred percent certainty, very few could successfully deceive him. After all, he was an ancient demon who had lived for thousands of years, enduring countless hardships, setbacks, conspiracies, and schemes.

Of course, he would not grant Lei Dong clemency based merely on these words. Instead, he sneered: "Lei brat, you killed my Purgatory Demon General and stole my Flame Essence Soul. Yet you meet me without fear? Is the Netherworld Old Ghost backing you? Do you think that on my turf, even mentioning the Netherworld Old Ghost will make me fear you?" Even as he spoke, the Purgatory Demon King felt a deep sense of dread. In the past, he knew his strength was roughly equal to the Netherworld Old Ghost. That meant that in a battle within the ghost-energy-rich Netherworld Ghost Domain, the Purgatory Demon King would likely lose. But