After all, Ye Chen lacked Ghost Stones, and within this Star Fragment, mutual slaughter among contestants was prohibited; naturally, there was no way for him to replenish his Ghost Qi.

Thus, once his Ghost Qi was depleted, it was gone for good. He could only rely on hunting monsters to refill it, but the strength of these beasts was terrifying, and the replenishment they offered was far less than the expenditure.

Ye Chen took no rest, moving directly toward the monster. His eyes glowed faintly. Given the physical bulk of this creature, consuming it would surely boost his physique by several thousand levels!

Ye Chen gripped his Divine Sword, ready to slice off the essence of the monster’s body, when a flicker of movement caught his eye. He glimpsed the creature’s ear, from which a large pool of blood, a faint, inky black, was oozing out, flowing onto the ground and slowly seeping in, corroding a small, four-sided pit.

A jolt went through Ye Chen, and he suddenly snapped awake: "This entire sky is permeated with harmful gases. These monsters, having lived here for ages, must themselves be filled with viruses! Forget eating their flesh; one shouldn't even touch it, or they’ll be infected and become a Lost Soul!"

If the monster’s claw had struck directly against his Holy Flame Armor, the residual virus would have been incinerated by the Holy Fire. If it had made direct contact with Ye Chen’s flesh, he would likely be infected throughout his body by now.

Back on Earth, a mere drop of zombie blood on an ordinary person would seep through the pores, leading to infection and transformation. Ye Chen, constantly fighting on the razor's edge of life and death, had often been smeared with monster blood. However, his physique was stronger than those beasts, so he wasn't afraid of contamination; the anti-toxin within his body would eradicate the virus.

Yet, this monster’s physique was at least thirty thousand levels, and the intensity of its viral load was far beyond what the anti-toxin in Ye Chen’s body could resist.

Ye Chen frowned, his mind racing at top speed. After a few seconds, he decisively chose to abandon the idea of consumption. He thrust out a hand, activating his internal Ghost Art. A wisp of grey-black death energy slowly drifted up from the monster’s corpse and flowed into his body. Through the tearing action of his 'Devouring' physique, the virus within this death energy was shredded and killed, recovering about 1,000 points of Ghost Qi.

There were seven elements in total, each possessing 3,000 talent points.

Devouring, being only second to the premier talent, 'Darkness,' among the dark-aligned abilities, was not something that could be projected for isolated attacks. However, it proved invaluable in many situations, serving as a veritable acceleration booster for cultivation!

His cultivation speed was ten times that of others!

All elemental energies could be devoured!

Since this monster was saturated with viruses and resided in the Ghost God Realm, it could enter Ghost God Mode. This meant that the virus within its body, when injected with Ghost Qi, could also achieve the phased immateriality of Ghost God Mode.

Consequently, this virus, being gaseous, would permeate its entire being even after death. If another cultivator absorbed the death energy from this monster and refined it into Ghost Qi, they would inevitably ingest a small amount of the virus.

But Ye Chen, possessing the Devouring physique, was like a bottomless pit, capable of tearing apart and annihilating all gaseous viruses!

After devouring, Ye Chen waved his hand. The bracelet on his wrist emitted a pale white light that enveloped the entire monster. It extracted the special luminous matter within the creature, shrinking it down and pulling it into Ye Chen’s body, where it was added to the Holy Flame Armor.

As the special luminous matter from the monster replenished the armor, the finger-sized rupture—previously broken open by Samshit’s spear—slowly healed and was finally sealed completely. Of course, this wasn't solely the monster’s contribution; the sacrifices of the several hundred Ghost God Realm powerhouses he had slain in the plaza had also played a part… As the special luminous matter was refined, the monster’s body rapidly withered. Its skin wrinkled, its hair turned yellow and fell out, and it began to rot away.

Ye Chen’s expression remained calm. With a flicker of movement, he turned and departed, unwilling to linger in that place dense with bloody essence.

On a distant tree trunk.

Three figures sat cross-legged, eyes closed, cultivating in silence. The hundreds of Ghost God Realm powerhouses who had originally stood there had long since vanished without a trace.

Although…

Simply surviving for one month in this Star Fragment was enough to pass the assessment! If they stayed near these three demigod-level experts, there was practically no danger.

However, these three absolutely forbade anyone from approaching. Anyone venturing more than a kilometer away would be blasted away.

Thanks to the micro-detectors, these people dared not conceal anything and could only retreat obediently, finding hidden places to reside over a kilometer out.

Some sought refuge in the high branches of trees, others simply dug holes to burrow underground, and the rest hid within the surface foliage, grouping together and keeping watch over each other.

"Hm?" Clad in pitch-black battle armor and a blood-red cloak, You Yue—exceptionally handsome with skin as fair as jade, sharp eyebrows, and starry eyes containing a faint, profound light—slowly opened his eyes, a subtle smile playing on his lips. "There’s movement…"

Nan Tian also opened his eyes and smiled faintly. "You noticed it too?"

"En," You Yue replied with a slight smile. "Though this person is at the peak of the Ghost God Realm, he actually managed to slay that 'Crocodile-Toothed Rat.' His strength is not simple!"

"The technique he used at the end seemed to expend his entire strength to achieve maximum destructive force, yet his Ghost Qi wasn't significantly depleted," Nan Tian remarked. He could clearly see everything within a 100-kilometer radius via the detector, and a glint passed through his eyes. "It must be some kind of high-level secret manual."

When Ye Chen wielded the Nine Absolute Spears, his own power only consumed one-ninth of his might to unleash a full-force strike!

Using ten percent of his Ghost Qi to generate a one-hundred-percent Qi damage output!

Just how precious such a secret manual was could be easily imagined...

Yet, they were unaware that if Ye Chen increased his Ghost Qi by just another fraction, he could unleash terrifying combat power. Once the Nine Absolute Spears was mastered to its peak, a full effort could unleash 900% of his fighting strength!

"A mere Ghost God Realm youngster possessing such a manual—his background must not be simple," You Yue mused with a smile.

Nan Tian closed his eyes, then opened them a moment later, shaking his head. "This person has no significant background. According to the database, he was selected by Elder Chi Yang from the Thunder Roar Plaza. He must be from a newly ascended civilization."

"Then he must have stumbled upon some great treasure on Earth…" You Yue sighed with feeling. "A pity that the Ancient World can only be entered, not exited. If we could open up the ruin spaces across the entire Earth, who knows how many treasures we could acquire! Considering how vast the Ancient World is, gathering countless civilizations—the White Lotus Divine Province alone has several hundred million people!"

"The Divine Provinces of the Ancient World total 3,000! Think how many people that is! Not to mention the Ancient Continent at the center, and the many minor star fragments, whose monsters have been cleared out and occupied by numerous experts, turned into private gardens or staging grounds for their own races."

"And yet."

"All these populations gathered from a single planet, Earth. Every civilization left behind something; pooled together, it represents endless wealth!"

"The entirety of Earth is a massive treasure trove!"

"It's just a shame…" At this point, You Yue let out a heavy sigh, filled with heartache.

If Earth were to appear in the Ancient World now, it would surely incite a frenzy of desperate struggle among countless powerful entities!

Nan Tian nodded slightly. "Civilizations newly ascending from Earth usually bring some small trinkets. Perhaps this kid was lucky and stumbled into some prehistoric civilization, acquiring a high-tier secret manual."

You Yue nodded slightly, then suddenly frowned. "He is moving east, eighty kilometers away from us, and still advancing… He's moving in a straight line, seemingly intending to slip out of our surveillance range."

Nan Tian’s brow furrowed, then he sneered coldly. "This kid must be carrying a major treasure, making him unwilling to display it in front of us, or perhaps he’s overconfident in his strength and wants to venture out on his own…"

You Yue nodded. "Most likely he has something he doesn't want seen. Otherwise, staying within our surveillance range would be safer… Oh, three kilometers ahead of him, there is a 'Lost Soul.' Judging by its appearance, it should belong to the Angelic Civilization…"

Nan Tian sensed it, and his brow tightened slightly. "That 'Lost Soul' is not simple. There’s a faint, flickering divine power fluctuation emanating from it. I fear it’s a Pseudo-Demigod expert!"

A Pseudo-Demigod expert was one whose foot was already across the threshold of the Demigod Realm, poised to break through at any moment!

"Shall I go offer assistance?" You Yue asked quickly. "Looking at the situation, they will encounter each other soon."

Nan Tian shook his head. "We are only responsible for the Demigod powerhouses; we don't need to concern ourselves with the rest. If this person insists on running around instead of wisely staying put, his death is his own fault."

You Yue shook his head helplessly.

"Tell me, what are the chances this person survives?" Nan Tian asked with a smile.

You Yue paused, then pondered for a moment. "No more than fifty percent!"

Nan Tian roared with laughter. "Good, let's make a bet. I bet he dies for certain! You must realize the immense gap between the Ghost God Realm and the Demigod Realm. Even if that 'Lost Soul' is only a Pseudo-Demigod, it cannot be underestimated!"

You Yue frowned slightly. "I have a feeling this person isn't simple; he won't die that easily."

"Then I bet a low-grade Demigod Weapon!" Nan Tian provoked, a hint of teasing in his voice. "Dare to bet?"

You Yue snorted coldly. "A bet is a bet!" He paused, then turned his head toward Bai Yijun, who was clad in snow-white robes. This girl sat on the tree trunk like a pure green lotus, emitting an icy aura. Her exquisite face was flawless, the kind that captivated anyone who glanced at her, making it impossible to look away.

A slight movement stirred deep in You Yue’s eyes as he spoke gently, "Miss Yijun, what odds do you give this person for escaping alive?"

Nan Tian also turned his gaze, a hidden flicker of intense heat passing through his eyes.

After a moment, Bai Yijun slowly opened her eyes, swept a glance over the two of them, and stated coldly, "Thirty percent." With that, she closed her eyes once more.

You Yue and Nan Tian exchanged a look, both forcing a wry smile.

In the midst of the withered jungle, Ye Chen moved like a nimble, agile monkey, leaping through the thicket.

"Once I leave the detection range of those three, I can deploy the Nine Palaces secret technique and crazily hunt the 'Lost Souls' here to accumulate Soul Crystals! The Nine Palaces is too miraculous. If those three learned of it, they might become covetous…" Ye Chen’s thoughts raced, when suddenly his expression changed. He stopped abruptly as an intense aura of danger shot rapidly from the grass ahead, causing every hair on his body to stand on end.