The words "Bone-eroding Soul-dispersing Incense" had just been spoken.
Everyone in the reception hall gasped.
A sense of despair now crept into Liu Ruyan's previously frightened eyes.
Death itself is not terrifying.
What terrifies is the drawn-out wait before it comes.
The Liu family fled the Chen Mansion in panic.
Chen Junluo hurried after Chen Xiao, who was returning to his room with his dog, trying to block him. He examined his son carefully and finally asked, voice trembling,
"What… what is going on?"
The scene with Ge Yanxia had left him utterly shocked.
One foot had crushed her to death. Chen Xiao had ascended overnight from the third level of Qi Refining to the Foundation Establishment Stage. And he had knocked Liu Ruyan down with a single shoe.
If Chen Xiao hadn't displayed his cultivation, even Chen Junluo wouldn't have known his true strength.
And then there was the Bone-eroding Soul-Dispersing Incense — a rare and terrifying treasure.
Chen Junluo's worry was understandable.
Chen Xiao chuckled mysteriously.
"Dad, I recently became a disciple of a mighty master. Soon, she will come to visit the Chen family."
Chen Junluo's jaw dropped.
"You… you became a disciple?"
Chen Xiao nodded calmly.
"Don't worry. You'll understand when the time comes."
Chen Junluo finally breathed a sigh of relief. Without a proper explanation today, he would never rest easy. He had truly feared that his son had been possessed by some ancient monster.
At that moment, Yun Ranran's voice echoed in Chen Xiao's mind:
"Brother Disciple, come to the Heavenly Tribulation!"
Chen Xiao turned to his father.
"Dad, I have something else to do. I'll leave first."
And with that, he hurried off.
Chen Junluo wanted to question him further but saw him heading toward his room and couldn't help but wonder:
"Could it be… he wasn't sleeping earlier, but receiving the truth in a dream?"
---
Back in his room, Chen Xiao closed the door and sat cross-legged on the bed.
He began practicing the Nine Heavens Thunder Scripture to Control Disasters — the very technique that allowed him to manipulate heavenly tribulations.
Thunder roared in his ears as he entered the realm of heavenly tribulation.
Below him stretched a vast, ancient battlefield.
Broken walls, shattered weapons, piles of bones scattered everywhere. At the center, beneath the calamity cloud, lay a colossal ancient corpse.
Although dead for untold years, the corpse retained a towering, imposing presence. It radiated a murderous aura, clad in bronze armor, clutching a bronze spear tightly.
Most striking of all: a turquoise sword lodged in its chest — the very cause of its death.
"Master?" Chen Xiao asked tentatively.
"I am here," Yun Ranran's voice responded. "What lies below is an opportunity I have found for you."
Chen Xiao looked down.
The corpse… or the sword?
Then his eyes lit up.
"Shadow?"
Next to the corpse stood a pitch-black shadow, its form mirroring the ancient corpse perfectly. Overlook it, and it would vanish into the background.
Yun Ranran's voice carried a hint of amusement:
"Yes, it's the shadow. This shadow has absorbed the battlefield's ferocity, resentment, and the sword's murderous nature. It is about to manifest itself."
This shadow demon, nurtured by the entire battlefield, had condensed into an innate soul — a soul brimming with endless resentment, ferocity, and viciousness. Once born, it would be an extraordinarily deadly creature.
Yun Ranran continued:
"Do you plan to take it in as your younger brother, or refine it into an incarnation?"
Chen Xiao's eyes gleamed.
"Can it be refined into an external incarnation?"
"Of course," Yun Ranran replied. "This shadow demon has not yet formed intelligence. You can refine it into an external incarnation, then transcend the tribulation and transform it into human form. I will now teach you the art of incarnation."
A vague thought entered Chen Xiao's mind. Yun Ranran conveyed the method of refining an external incarnation but did not directly assist.
At this moment, Chen Xiao hovered above the heavenly tribulation. With the ability to control it and blessed by the laws of heaven and earth, he was a small path of heaven himself, even if not the true Way.
Rumble—
Thunder split the sky. Chen Xiao descended beside the shadow demon. Following Yun Ranran's instructions, he refined the shadow demon into his external incarnation.
In the next instant, a torrent of chaotic, destructive thoughts surged into Chen Xiao's mind. The shadow demon's innate soul attempted to assimilate him.
But Chen Xiao, protected by the Way of Heaven and his resistance to heavenly tribulation, shattered the intrusion effortlessly.
He was astonished.
"If anyone else refined this, they would be instantly assimilated and turned into a clone of the Shadow Demon."
The shadow demon was now Chen Xiao's external incarnation — still only a dark shadow, not fully formed.
His real body returned to the heavenly tribulation.
Then the forty-nine thunder tribulations struck.
Moments later, the calamity dissipated. The shadow demon's dark form vanished, reappearing in Chen Xiao's image.
"Nascent Soul Stage… and talent!"
Though not as powerful as the top-grade divine beast Fire Qilin, this shadow clone possessed extraordinary potential: the ability to transform into shadows, appear and vanish mysteriously.
Chen Xiao turned to the ancient corpse.
"This sword, this body, this spear… bury it."
Yun Ranran's voice echoed:
"After so many years, everything here has decayed. If the corpse hadn't been so powerful in life, it would have long turned to dust."
Chen Xiao nodded with mild regret and dug a pit to bury the ancient corpse.
---
When Chen Xiao opened his eyes, he was back in his room. The shadow demon clone had also returned, shrinking into a small shadow and hiding in the darkness.
At this moment, Chen Xiao noticed a scroll floating in his consciousness — the Heavenly Dao Scroll from the night before.
It slowly unfolded.
"This is… what happens next?" Chen Xiao murmured. "It's all connected to the Destiny Villain."
He realized that the opportunity that originally belonged to him — the innate anti-spiritual pill — could have been used to forge immortal spiritual roots. Normally, he would obtain the pill and create an immortal spiritual root.
But the Destiny Villain System had spoiled the script, intercepting the opportunity and stealing the luck meant for him.
Chen Xiao's eyes gleamed with mischief.
"You're stealing my opportunity, huh? Fine, then steal all you want!"