... ... Of course, it wasn't as if consuming and merging the Purgatory Demon's flame talent instantly granted Lei Dong mastery over terrifying flames like the True Sun Fire or the Solar True Fire. In truth, he had merely acquired the potential for such abilities; fully integrating the laws of flame would require a significant investment of time for gradual comprehension, cultivation, and enhancement.

After successively slaying two Void Refinement stage powerhouses, Lei Dong had expended nearly half of his Chaos True Essence. However, his Dantian, located in his abdomen, was filled with a massive reservoir of Chaos Spiritual Qi. Diverting a small portion to cycle through his body immediately replenished his depleted True Essence to its maximum capacity.

Furthermore, this Chaos Spiritual Qi—the very essence of Heaven and Earth’s spiritual energy—had thoroughly cleansed his meridians, resulting in a slight advancement in his cultivation realm.

The surging power filled Lei Dong with an impulse to unleash a savage rampage. With a powerful beat of his Asura Wings, he soared towards the frontline where the battle raged. There, the army under his command was locked in a fierce, back-and-forth struggle with a contingent of demonic soldiers.

These demonic troops were mostly at the Nascent Soul level, with only a few at the Soul Transformation stage, their overall strength varying widely. Lei Dong’s army, however, consisted of the elite among the elite; the weakest among them were at the late Nascent Soul stage, giving them a distinct overall advantage.

The Black Giants and the Green Beings, driven to the brink of desperation and already resigned to taking as many enemies down with them as possible, were astonished when, at their most perilous moment, a formidable relief force appeared.

The cohort of Black Giants belonged to an inherently warlike race. Their morale instantly skyrocketed to its peak as they swung their massive clubs, sweeping aside the enemy ranks. Moreover, a contingent of Green Beings took advantage of the fractured spatial sealing array, utilizing their flickering movement technique to phase into the heart of Lei Dong’s army, employing their potent restorative magic to tend to the wounds of the warriors and commanders from the Submerged Dragon and Fierce Ghost armies.

As a result, Lei Dong's forces fought with even greater zeal; as long as they weren't instantly annihilated, they knew they could immediately retreat to be healed by those compassionate Green Beings. When Lei Dong plunged into the fray, he moved with the ferocity of a tiger entering a wolf pack, sweeping the battlefield with torrents of flame with every wave of his hand.

The grade of this flame was not high—merely the Six Extremes Yang Fire. It was a technique he had just begun to grasp and control after devouring the life factor of the Purgatory Demon's flame talent. Having witnessed the Purgatory Demon King execute it numerous times, Lei Dong possessed a unique and profound understanding of it.

The sky-filling flames burned fiercely, washing over the lower-tiered demonic soldiers. In an instant, the fire spread continuously across hundreds of miles, a truly hellish conflagration that forged a living Purgatory on the ground.

While the Six Extremes Yang Fire was only moderately lethal to Soul Transformation experts, it posed a critical threat to mere Nascent Soul enemies. Once engulfed by the towering inferno, anyone unable to escape within seven or eight breaths would be lost forever.

Beneath the raging inferno, at least a thousand Nascent Soul demonic soldiers were either killed or gravely wounded, literally clearing a swath of the battlefield through combustion. At this moment, Lei Dong’s immense power was fully displayed; even a Purgatory Demon of equivalent rank could not have summoned the Six Extremes Yang Fire with such overwhelming might and scope.

Such a massive spell, covering such an immense area while sustaining itself continuously, naturally demanded a tremendous drain on True Essence. Even a Void Refinement expert would hesitate before squandering their essence in such a manner to clear out low-ranking grunts, fearing a subsequent ambush by superior foes when they were left weakened.

As expected, two Void Refinement powerhouses seemed to spot an opportunity, sneaking in to converge upon Lei Dong from both flanks. Simultaneously, they unleashed their most powerful strikes, intending to instantly obliterate the arrogant intruder.

However, they had severely misjudged Lei Dong’s actual cultivation level. Lei Dong was already a mid-stage Void Refinement expert, but his True Essence was the Chaos True Essence, which was inherently denser and therefore required less expenditure when casting spells compared to ordinary True Essence. This grand spell, which killed or injured over a thousand Nascent Soul demonic soldiers, had only cost him a mere half of his True Essence. Moreover, the vast reserves of pure Chaos Spiritual Qi in his lower Dantian could be circulated at any moment to replenish his True Essence.

The most terrifying aspect was the current strength of Lei Dong’s Spiritual Sense. Now, even if Ji Shuangshuang came to challenge him in a contest of Spiritual Sense, she would likely be unable to suppress him. This indicated that, leaving aside other factors, Lei Dong’s Spiritual Sense had reached the peak of the Void Refinement stage, infinitely close to that of an Integration stage powerhouse.

With his Spiritual Sense operating at this level, it radiated outward, supremely acute and agile. Lei Dong had long detected the two Void Refinement experts sneaking in, plotting to pick up the scraps. He immediately played along, feigning an appearance of exhaustion to lure them into launching their attack first.

With a deafening boom, Lei Dong vanished from his original spot. He instantly materialized behind the single-horned mad demon on the left. First, he unleashed a controlling Netherworld Ghost Claw, followed immediately by a Netherworld Immortal Slaying Finger, which obliterated the horned demon's head.

The Immortal Slaying Finger was already the most powerful technique in Lei Dong’s arsenal, a supreme art inherited from the Demon Emperor, capable of challenging opponents across multiple cultivation ranks. Furthermore, after the third inheritance from the Demon Emperor, Lei Dong's mastery over the Laws of Annihilation and Immortality had progressed from initial glimpses to a relatively profound level of Minor Accomplishment.

Under the Immortal Slaying Finger, streaks of golden filaments mingled with the dark light. Such a devastating surge of finger energy, once it struck the single-horned demon’s head, annihilated it beyond any doubt in that single blow.

The demon’s Primordial Spirit was utterly horrified and attempted to flee its decaying shell. But Lei Dong, fully prepared, uttered a True Word: "I decree, the space is solidified."

The Primordial Spirit, which bore an identical appearance to the single-horned demon, was instantly trapped by the powerful spatial lockdown; no matter how it struggled, escape proved impossible. The might of the True Word technique depended entirely on the strength of the Spiritual Sense, which was Lei Dong’s strongest attribute. At his current cultivation level, the True Word technique manifested through such a powerful Spiritual Sense was naturally incomparable to what he could achieve before.

This chain of devastating actions saw Lei Dong eliminate three Void Refinement stage experts. Ming Ji, the artifact spirit of the Nether King Banner residing within his soul, began to clamor restlessly again: "So satisfying, Master, you are truly mighty! Eat him, devour his Primordial Spirit! Ahhh, this feels so good!"

"Eat your soul-spirit head!" Lei Dong snapped back angrily, capturing the spirit within a Soul Sealing Orb. A Void Refinement stage Primordial Spirit was highly valuable; he could use it later.

"Master, why don't you give this Void Refinement Primordial Spirit to your servant? I will guard it until it is utterly subservient, obeying you like a loyal dog, conquering the world and sweeping across the cosmos for the Master," Ming Ji finally revealed her true colors, gazing at the Soul Sealing Orb with an expression of ravenous desire. "Your servant, your servant hasn't tasted a Void Refinement level Primordial Spirit in ages. Master, you are truly the greatest, decisive in killing, and even devouring souls directly—so much better than that useless Nether King. That Nether King, influenced by that jade-faced vixen Bibo, became a complete coward. He rarely even kills, let alone devours powerful souls."

"Scram. With your current paltry capabilities, giving you this Void Refinement Primordial Spirit would only result in refining some trash at the Soul Transformation level," Lei Dong refused to waste such a precious soul essence, knowing he would gain far more even if he consumed it himself.

"Hmph, isn't that because Master is not firm enough, not potent enough?" Ming Ji retorted with a deeply resentful, widow-like pout. "Master, I desire it. I beg you, just once. I haven't had a good play in so long; I'm parched with need."

Lei Dong was irritated by her persistence and sharply commanded, "Shut your mouth for me. The next Void Refinement stage lizard’s Primordial Spirit will be yours to play with."

Ming Ji immediately trembled with excitement. She flowed out of the Nether King Banner, manifesting into the appearance of a sultry, dangerously charming mature queen: fair-skinned with crimson lips, clad in sexy high-heeled leather attire, and wielding a Soul-Devouring White Bone Whip. She adopted a posture ready to dominate a new slave at any moment, her eyes filled with a rapturous, ravenous hunger—seductive and soul-stirringly beautiful. Fortunately, she kept her word and quieted down; otherwise, she would likely have devolved into a stream of nonsense and moans.

That vision sent a genuine shiver down Lei Dong’s spine, and he couldn't help but feel a touch of pity and sorrow for the other Void Refinement demon general.

This creature resembled a lizard, encased in thick, overlapping scales etched with profound, naturally formed runic patterns. With sharp fangs and jagged teeth, it was clearly a vicious beast. A monster of this caliber, if placed on Lei Dong’s former Earth, could easily trigger an apocalyptic catastrophe.

Yet, at this moment, in its savage eyes shone an expression of extreme terror—the innate reverence and awe that lower-tier beings feel for powerful, high-tier lifeforms. Especially after Lei Dong effortlessly dodged their combined assault and instantly annihilated their comrade, the Black Lizard Monster began to flee in sheer panic.

Unimaginatively, it tore open space and dove into a spatial rift.

However, it was oblivious that Lei Dong’s command over the Laws of Space, while perhaps not that of a Grandmaster, certainly placed him in the league of a seasoned Master. For this creature to attempt escape via spatial transposition before him was akin to showing off one's skills before an expert.

"Jie jie, trying to run? Too late," Lei Dong sneered, his wings giving a beat, and he vanished without a trace. In the next instant, a patch of calm space tens of miles away violently fractured open. The wretched Lizard Monster, spitting blood, clawed its way out of the rupture.

Lei Dong immediately followed, striking with an Immortal Netherworld Claw, seizing the creature and dragging it before him. The Lizard Monster, utterly devoid of backbone, immediately began begging Lei Dong for mercy.

"Hmph," Lei Dong reached out and pressed his hand onto the crown of its head.

... (..) p

.RT