Considering the current Lord of the Abyss, rashly approaching to demand the Hand of Light King through a trade would have slim chances of success. After all, he was fully aware of the monumental secret held by his predecessor.

Should the Hand of Light be even slightly ambitious, he'd never relinquish that person willingly.

Failing in this endeavor would inevitably alert the enemy prematurely and expose their plans. Hence, the current Abyss Lord had sought an accomplice within the Holy Light Domain. Choosing Dawn King as a collaborator likely stemmed from his weak power and overconfidence paired with strategic naivety. Evidently, he didn't want to risk post-success confrontations with someone who could become difficult to handle - otherwise he'd have chosen stronger allies instead.

This approach struck Resonant Thunder with an ironic parallel in tactics. The Hand of Light was evidently the weakest among the Holy Domain's leaders both in strength and resolve, which explained why everyone targeted him - soft targets were always easier to crush.

Poor Abyss Lord had finally found a collaborator only for it all to end in Resonant Thunder's hands.

Now Resonant Thunder hesitated not out of fear of retaliation but over how to seize the artifact from the Abyss Lord. It was clearly something extraordinary, yet held by a man with boundless ambition and ruthless cruelty - an omen that could unleash catastrophic storms across the Six Realms. While he admitted his own ambitions matched this threat's scale, no ambitious soul would tolerate another powerful enemy.

Acquiring that artifact required cooperation, but who to align with? The Abyss Lord or Dawn King? Either choice was perilous, like collaborating with tigers - only comparing which tiger was more fearsome remained.

Analyzing their strength, the Hand of Light undeniably held the upper hand. If the Abyss Lord truly possessed such power, why resort to underhanded schemes instead of directly unifying the Six Realms? His hesitance proved his artifact had severe limitations. Like Resonant Thunder's own Heaven-Devouring Tower and his World-Dwelling Realm - both miraculous treasures constrained by inherent restrictions.

The thought of his Heaven-Devouring Tower filled him with frustration. He'd now confirmed its origins, yet the spirit core fused in the Hell King Temple refused cooperation entirely. Years of negotiations had yielded nothing but cold rejection from this obstinate spirit girl.

At least he'd fully integrated the tower into his soul through cultivation - without that preparation, she might have already taken control even now. But with her sealed inside the tower and rendering it useless, urgency demanded action. The Abyss Lord or Dawn King's faction were both Ghost Emperor-level threats, possibly surpassing them. Strengthening himself was no longer optional.

Without decision-making, Resonant Thunder seized Dawn King's secluded chamber for seclusion, determined to resolve the Heaven-Devouring Tower issue. Sitting on a jade lotus radiating spiritual energy, his consciousness descended into the tower within his core.

The reconstructed Heaven-Devouring Tower now gleamed golden rather than broken as it once was. His spiritual awareness entered another dimension-like space where the tower specialized in soul extraction and ghost cultivation - any poison created here required its own antidote through this artifact alone. Unlike past Ghost Lord's crude methods, the complete artifact produced far more potent effects immune to conventional countermeasures.

The obstinate spirit girl remained sealed inside a small chamber crafted from his spiritual will. This was no ordinary structure but carefully designed containment against her reckless attempts at control. With a thought, the prison dissolved back into him as she emerged in her childlike form, lunging forward with claws extended.

"Deadbeat thing," Resonant Thunder growled, conjuring a massive hammer that crushed her flat. A rope materialized next to bind her tightly. Though merely spirit essence, this girl was resilient enough to survive and shrink in desperation only for the ropes to adjust accordingly - leaving her furious as she unleashed a torrent of curses.

"Right choice," he muttered, his patience finally exhausted. "If you won't cooperate, what use are you?" A blast of hellfire ignited her body while he coldly declared, "I prefer decisive action over empty pleas."

The spirit girl shrieked in terror yet defiance: "You're a bastard! Even if I die, I'd never collaborate with you!"

"Then enjoy your punishment," Resonant Thunder said through gritted teeth as his hellfire intensified. The spirit's screams carried both pain and outrage as she spat the truth about this artifact being King of Hell's masterpiece - something useless without her guidance.

"You think I need you?" he scoffed, unshaken by threats. "I've never cared for things beyond my control." With a final gesture of his fingers, the hellfire consumed her completely. (To be continued)