When it possessed Shi Yan, seizing control of his consciousness, it remained mute—driven only by the purest instinct of domination.

Shi Yan had initially assumed the Profound Ice Cold Flame possessed only simple mental impulses, lacking the ability for direct mental communication. Now, within the Blood-Patterned Ring, for it to suddenly project its thoughts through consciousness truly startled him.

It was then Shi Yan realized the Profound Ice Cold Flame was not incapable of mental exchange; its prior silence could only mean one thing: it simply hadn't deemed it necessary.

In the Profound Ice Cold Flame's estimation, Shi Yan was pathetically weak, and it believed it could quickly seize his soul, thus rendering any communication utterly beneath it.

This time, upon detecting Shi Yan’s spirit sinking into the Blood-Patterned Ring, the Profound Ice Cold Flame immediately transmitted its thoughts, displaying an intense excitement, clearly drawn by something.

Beneath an ancient tree, Shi Yan maintained a placid expression, yet his spirit delved deep into the Blood-Patterned Ring, his eyes flashing with an unusual light.

“Soul Gathering Bead! There is a Soul Gathering Bead here!” Within the Blood-Patterned Ring, the Profound Ice Cold Flame continued to express its astonishment. Inside the ring, it had condensed into a small flame, gently flickering. “Soul Gathering Bead! I need the Soul Gathering Bead!” Shi Yan frowned, holding his breath and focusing his mind to communicate with the Profound Ice Cold Flame inside the ring.

“You still want a Soul Gathering Bead? Wait until you have the power to get out of this ring first!”

“Kid! How dare you speak to me like that? Believe it or not, when I get out, I’ll freeze your soul until it shatters!”

“Can you get out? Besides, for these three years…” haven’t you been trying the same thing? Have you succeeded?”

“If it weren't for this bizarre ring of yours, I would have already taken over your body! I’m telling you, you’d best let me out soon, or I will absolutely not let you off!”

The Profound Ice Cold Flame seemed habitually arrogant, completely looking down on Shi Yan, constantly issuing threats from within the ring, seemingly oblivious to its own predicament.

“I can’t be bothered with you.” Shi Yan, showing utter disdain, slowly withdrew his spirit from the Blood-Patterned Vessel.

The Blood-Patterned Ring continued to gleam incessantly, and the Profound Ice Cold Flame appeared desperate to speak, struggling within the ring, seeping out waves of icy energy in an attempt to capture Shi Yan’s attention.

Shi Yan ignored it and continued moving south toward Cloud Mist Island.

Along the way, Shi Yan discovered more common folk who had been slaughtered, their corpses piled in various hidden spots—hundreds upon hundreds slain indiscriminately.

Shi Yan’s face darkened; he felt a profound loathing for the Gu family.

The Gu family’s actions surpassed even those of some heretical cults—their methods were cruel and bloody, extinguishing even the most basic tenets of humanity.

In the south of Cloud Mist Island, that intense soul-sucking force persisted for a while before quickly vanishing.

Shi Yan sensed subtly and discovered that before the soul-sucking force disappeared, no more souls were seen flying out near Cloud Mist Island.

This meant that someone in that area must have realized that all the nearby souls had been absorbed and subsequently shut down some kind of evil artifact.

Soul Gathering Bead?

Shi Yan frowned deeply. He had never heard the name before, but the Profound Ice Cold Flame’s reaction upon mentioning it was intensely agitated, suggesting it knew the origin and use of the Soul Gathering Bead.

Shi Yan was eager to learn the bead’s purpose from the Profound Ice Cold Flame, but he also wanted to put it in its place first, lest the entity fail to grasp its situation, continue its arrogance, and still dare to threaten him. The Blood-Patterned Ring kept flashing, and the frequency of the flashes grew even more rapid.

Shi Yan sneered, knowing the Profound Ice Cold Flame inside the ring was likely unable to contain itself any longer.

He continued to disregard it and pressed onward.

Inside the Blood-Patterned Ring, the Profound Ice Cold Flame struggled for a long time. Realizing Shi Yan showed no sign of reinserting his spirit, it gradually seemed to despair and stopped wasting its energy.

Shi Yan watched the Blood-Patterned Ring closely, and a faint smile touched his lips when the flashing finally ceased.

Three hours later, Shi Yan sprang up, clinging to an ancient tree, hiding amidst the dense foliage, before once again sinking his spirit into the Blood-Patterned Ring.

“Can we finally talk properly now?” Shi Yan inquired.

“Yes! Yes!” The Profound Ice Cold Flame responded instantly.

“Very well, tell me about the origin of the Soul Gathering Bead. I need to know what it is, and what it’s used for…”

“The Soul Gathering Bead is the Demon Crystal of the Soul Devouring Beast. The Soul Devouring Beast is one of the most ancient and mysterious demonic beasts between heaven and earth. This beast feeds on the souls of all living things; the more souls it consumes, the faster it evolves and becomes more powerful. The Demon Crystals formed by seventh, eighth, and ninth-tier Soul Devouring Beasts are called Soul Gathering Beads. They can absorb souls and convert them into pure soul power, which is incredibly precious…”

“Is the soul power within the Soul Gathering Bead useful to you?”

“Useful! It is extremely useful to any creature with a soul! If I could obtain the Soul Gathering Bead here, my soul and life essence could evolve, allowing my life form to approach perfection. It’s the same for you; if you could obtain the soul energy from the Soul Gathering Bead, your life essence could also be optimized, and you could even directly form a Sea of Consciousness!” Shi Yan’s heart skipped a beat.

A Sea of Consciousness is what martial artists at the Nirvana Nest Realm form—a boundless ocean of divine sense—after advancing to the Nirvana Realm; its applications are endless.

Unless a martial artist reaches the Nirvana Realm, forming a Sea of Consciousness is nearly impossible. Yet, this Profound Ice Cold Flame was now claiming that merely obtaining the soul energy within a Soul Gathering Bead could improve one’s life essence and directly form a Sea of Consciousness.

If that were true, the Soul Gathering Bead was infinitely more precious and rare than a God-grade elixir.

“Form a Sea of Consciousness? How is that possible?” Shi Yan couldn’t believe it and pressed the Profound Ice Cold Flame for more information.

“The Soul Devouring Beast is the most mysterious demonic beast in the world—it is a miracle of creation itself. The reason I know about the Soul Devouring Beast and the Soul Gathering Bead is that many powerful figures once tried to absorb me. When they attempted to seize my consciousness, I gleaned a wealth of memories and knowledge from their minds. I acquired the origin of the Soul Devouring Beast from the memory of a Divine Realm expert tens of thousands of years ago. By now, perhaps few martial artists even recall the lineage of the Soul Devouring Beast or the value of the Soul Gathering Bead…”

“It really can form a Sea of Consciousness?”

“Of course. The path of cultivation is divided between the physical body and the soul. You martial artists are born with a body, and your initial cultivation starts entirely with the body before slowly transitioning to the cultivation and evolution of the soul. As for beings like me, lacking a physical body, we first cultivate the soul and then gradually seek opportunities to acquire a body.” After a pause, the Profound Ice Cold Flame continued its explanation: “The path of cultivation is about continuously perfecting the flaws in the body and the soul, causing both to evolve constantly. In this world, there are many rare treasures that can accelerate the speed of evolution and refinement for both the body and the soul. The Soul Gathering Bead is a marvelous treasure that enhances life essence. The pure soul power within the Soul Gathering Bead can perfect your soul, allowing you to quickly form a Sea of Consciousness and possess vastly superior soul power compared to martial artists of the same rank!” The Profound Ice Cold Flame, over its long existence, had amassed memories and knowledge from numerous Divine Realm experts. It seemed to understand human martial arts cultivation perfectly. Its explanation was clear, logical, and easy to grasp; after hearing it once, Shi Yan gained a new insight into the profound mysteries of martial artist cultivation.

“The Soul Gathering Bead is that valuable?”

“Of course. The soul power of the Soul Gathering Bead is miraculous. Furthermore, when submerged in water, the Soul Gathering Bead can form a Soul Mirror. Powerful souls from other realms can use the Soul Mirror to descend directly as spirits. A long time ago, there was apparently an evil sect that used the Soul Mirror formed by the Soul Gathering Bead to summon powerful souls from other realms to fight for them. Powerful souls from other realms are constrained by the rules of this world. If they recklessly entered our world, they would suffer severe damage, and even if they forced their way in, they would find it difficult to utilize their full strength. However, if they are summoned using the Soul Mirror formed by the Soul Gathering Bead through secret arts, they are not subject to the constraints of the world’s rules; they won't be weakened and can unleash the maximum extent of their soul power…”

“Soul Mirror? Summoning powerful souls from another dimension?”

Shi Yan murmured, his eyes suddenly lighting up. He recalled the cold, sinister aura he had sensed previously, an aura very similar to that emanating from the Demon Emperor Bó Xún. Could it truly be someone from the Fourth Demonic Domain?

If it was someone from the Fourth Demonic Domain, why would they appear on Cloud Mist Island?

The Gu family massacred the island’s original inhabitants everywhere, causing the souls to gather into the Soul Gathering Bead. Could it be that they were truly trying to summon demons from the Fourth Demonic Domain?

Why summon demons?

To deal with the Yang family!

A chain of thoughts flashed rapidly through his mind, clearing the confusion shrouding Shi Yan’s heart little by little.

Gradually, Shi Yan’s eyes brightened as he connected the dots.

He knew the Gu family intended to confront the Yang family’s Asura Blood Guards.

The enmity between the Yang family and the Fourth Demonic Domain was common knowledge. The existence of the Soul Mirror allowed Divine Realm demonic experts to descend as spirits. If a Divine Realm demonic figure were to descend, benefiting from a level advantage, the soul power generated by a Divine Realm demon could shred the souls of experts at the Heavenly Position Triple Heaven Realm.

Slaughter by soul power is far more terrifying than physical injury; once the soul is extinguished, the martial artist is completely annihilated, with no chance of resurrection.

Shi Yan felt a shock of terror. Through his discussion with the Profound Ice Cold Flame and his careful observations during this period, he realized he had uncovered the Gu family’s astonishing conspiracy.

The Yang family’s three Asura Kings were all at the Heavenly Position Realm. No matter who was summoned this time, if they faced a Divine Realm demonic spirit from the Fourth Demonic Domain, under the disparity in levels, they would all face the doom of soul annihilation.

Shi Yan’s expression shifted constantly, and after a long silence, he transmitted a message back to the Profound Ice Cold Flame in the Blood-Patterned Ring: “Do you have a way to obtain the Soul Gathering Bead?”

“Yes! I have a way!” the Profound Ice Cold Flame immediately responded, its excitement palpable.