When the two came to the Myriad Beast Hell, the place finally started lighting up. There was a darkness formation in the very depths of the place, sealing it off entirely. When light appeared within the formation, one could see the densely packed beasts, avians, insects, and fish. All of them had stars in their eyes, which meant they were intelligent lifebound beasts. There were just far too many of them there.
Even as large as Myriad Beast Hell was, it was stuffed to the brim, and as a result the beasts fought each other. The more they fought, the closer they grew to despair. Eventually, they didn't dare to keep fighting and huddled together to await their deaths; until today, that is, when two people came and looked at the seven million plus beasts from above.
"These are captives from Pentaphase. Their beastmasters were all tossed into the Blood Cauldron to refine your Regal Specterbeast Physique. Those that remain will be your food," Zi Xiao said.
"Food…." Jiang Wuxin looked at the lifebound beasts with bloodlust in his eyes. His teeth began chattering as his two hands shook.
"Who are you?!"
"Let us out of here!"
"Quick! If we take them down, we might yet escape! There’s only two of them!"
Most of the seven million beasts had fewer than a hundred stars, but they still charged toward that ray of hope for survival.
"Jiang Wuxin, unleash your body and utilize the talent of your Regal Specter Bloodline to the maximum! Go!" Zi Xiao pushed him into the horde of beasts. He seemed immediately swarmed, but he was far from a goner.
"Aaagh! Aaaaah!" He let out gutwrenching shrieks as the black patterns snaked about on his body, causing it to expand. Soon, he lost his human form. There was only a blob of black flesh in front of Zi Xiao, devoid of any limbs. It looked a little like Qing Ming’s greenwater ghoul and had a diameter of about ten meters. It continued to morph and change into hundreds of squid-like tentacles. Right after that, a huge bloody mouth cracked and formed, taking up a third of the blob's surface area. The sight of someone turning into an eldritch monstrosity like that made Zi Xiao feel a little numb. But when he saw the tentacles throwing the lifebound beasts into its mouth, swallowing them whole, and continuing to grow at a rate visible to the naked eye, he smiled.
"This is the true form of the specter race! It's royalty, too! This brat is truly lucky to have inherited the blood of the Nonahall Specter. However, he's not a true specter, so the Regal Specter Physique only made him a wild beast, albeit one we can control. Of the bloodlines left behind by the specter race on the Flameyellow Continent, only one royal bloodline was produced: that of the Nonahall Specter. Back then, he relied on his bloodline to easily ascend to godhood. It's a shame that he died so early. The Kilostar Domain was impenetrable back then and the Xuanyuan house was in hiding, so he wasn't able to undo the Blooddragon Sealing Formation and the Skysource Hellshaker Formation within the Ninefold Hell to let the specters return to the human realm.
"But now the sealing formation is gone and the Ninefold Hell has returned to the human realm. As long as we properly guide the specters, destroy Great Emperor Xuanyuan's divine body, and crush the Skysource Hellshaker Formation, the specters will return! I, Zi Xiao, am not a specter like the other two. But when they return, I'll definitely be given the bloodline of a specter and have my lifespan extended! It's a shame Xua Yi, Si Ling, and our other siblings left before we could complete our grand design. The tragedy of it all!" He fell into a fit of zealous frenzy as he passionately watched the black blob's actions. Jiang Wuxin's terror made him even more convinced of his decision.
"The specter race was meant to enslave humanity. Two hundred millennia ago, humanity was merely livestock and the specters used lifebound beasts to strengthen their own bodies. It was said that symbiotic cultivation was taught to humans by the specters so that they would produce stronger lifebound beasts for them to feast on, yet Great Emperor Xuanyuan managed to use such a plain technique to change history. In the end, he was credited with the creation of symbiotic cultivation instead.
"Come to think of it, I'm also a human. But once I become a specter, I'll gain a far longer lifespan and stand a chance of becoming a god. I don't have to struggle painfully like them. There's no downside at all! Then again, how did Great Emperor Xuanyuan manage to single-handedly go against the entire specter establishment that had existed for millions of years and allow lowly humans to rise?"
That period was far too long ago, and many secrets and mysteries had faded into the sands of time. Either way, Zi Xiao's only wish right now was to cast away his human form and inherit the blood of the specters, becoming a higher-order lifeform.
"According to legend, specters are terrific physical fighters, and the royal bloodline was even unmatched among all who hadn't reached the realm of god! The original plan was to conquer Archaion so that corpse puppets could be made and Jiang Wuxin could be nurtured by the flesh of all those lifebound beasts, but that was ruined. All we have now are these seven million beasts… I really hope he can get strong enough from this. If we want more, we'll have to get them from Taiji Peak Lake.
"We don't have the luxury of a corpse puppet army now, so we might have to pay a huge price to take down the Ninefold Formation. We've already missed the best window of opportunity, so there's no turning back. I only hope Jian Wuyi can finally show his usefulness. Then again, no matter the price we have to pay, even if everyone of the Nonahall Divine Realm has to die, they're just humans. Those two wouldn't mind at all, and neither would the specter race! And once the Ninefold Formation falls, I’ll no longer be human anyway. The Nonahall Divine Realm will no longer be my concern. Jiang Wuxin is ready, and all we need now is to communicate the right time for the specter race to attack the Skysource Hellshaker Formation from within while we bombard it from without! The final battle is about to start."
Zi Xiao could no longer contain his excitement as he watched Jiang Wuxin devouring the seven million lifebound beasts. While he was rather slow initially, he grew bigger and bigger as he devoured away and was now eating at a really fast rate. The number of lifebound beasts began dwindling to the point he was able to toss a thousand beasts into his mouth using his tentacles at once and chow down on them. His body had grown from ten meters in diameter to seven hundred, making it look even larger than the slender thousand-meter-long nightmare soulworm.
"Is this how a true specter feeds? With their natural strength, there's no need at all for complicated things like gaining insight into heavenly will. They’re no doubt higher-order lifeforms! The Regal Specter Bloodline can grow stronger than anyone who isn't a god just by eating and growing. How terrifying! It’s truly the pinnacle of life!" Zi Xiao was moved to tears by the sight. Though he was human like any other, he fully considered himself one of the specter race. In the end, Jiang Wuxin consumed all seven million beasts without spitting out even a single bone.
"This brat really lucked out by inheriting the drop of the Nonahall Specter’s blood. It's said that this royal bloodline is rare even among those in Ninefold Hell. Then again, losing his reason like this doesn't seem conducive at all."
Zi Xiao flew down as the blob began shrinking. "That's just his feasting form. His actual combat form is like before! Only by shrinking can his body truly grow powerful."
The black blob snapped audibly as it shrank, as if countless bones were being broken. Eventually, it reached a hundred meters in diameter and still continued shrinking. Zi Xiao could feel the blob growing ever stronger throughout the process. It didn't stop until Jiang Wuxin resumed his humanoid form. Though his gaze was blank, he was like a gigantic, heaven-devouring beast. His every movement seemed to reflect the struggle of millions of beasts.
"This aura is far too strong!" If Zi Xiao were being honest, even he would want the royal bloodline if it didn't come with the side effect of becoming essentially mentally invalid.
"Come, give me a punch," he said.
"Yes, Master." Jiang Wuxin's body flashed as he appeared in front of Zi Xiao and struck him. Zi Xiao made a simple effort to block with his capabilities as an eleventh-level death samsaran, only to be slammed against the ceiling of the formation. He coughed and held his hand behind his back, but it still shook from the force.
"Jiang Wuxin!"
"Yes, Master?"
"You’re the only piece of good news we've received today. It only took seven million beasts for your power to grow close to mine. I can't wait to give you fifty million more! Child, you’ll be the nightmare of the human race."
He descended and hugged Jiang Wuxin as a father would, giving him pats on the back.
All of a sudden, Jiang Wuxin looked up and saw that the formation was opening up. He seemed to see two girls in the blinding light and felt like his heart was being scorched by fire.
……
When Tianming and the rest returned to Taiji Peak Lake, they were given a dramatic welcome. All the way to Tribulation Peak, everyone who saw them shot worshipful gazes at him and Yi Xingyin, the latter in particular. He was the star of Tribulation Peak and a true powerhouse that wasn't from the three great houses. He had made those of Tribulation Peak proud.
