"Damn it!"

"Why must this lord's hands be so cursed!"

"Why did I have to touch that broken sword!"

Deep within the consciousness space.

Inside a sword prison about ten feet square.

A shadowy figure with an indistinct face stood dumbfounded, staring at the prison before him, his voice filled with despair and regret.

"Now look at this mess!"

"Stuck in this godforsaken place, I have no idea when I'll be able to escape!"

He had tried to break through the sword prison before.

But.

Though the prison seemed ordinary, every time he attempted to break out, a pure Sword Intent would descend, shaving off a portion of his Soul Force.

Previously.

Just a few collisions.

Had cost the remnant soul a full third of its Soul Force, so naturally, he dared not try again lightly.

"Sigh!"

He was filled with regret.

The moment he saw the Sword Intent, he knew.

Forget that he was just a remnant soul, even if his original self were here at his peak, he wouldn't be able to withstand that sword that could almost sever the Great Dao itself!

"Too greedy!"

"If only I had chosen that Gu Tian earlier!"

"Though his talent was terrible and his physical body didn't quite match mine, it would have been much better than being trapped in this place!"

"Could it be..."

After a long while, he sighed dejectedly, his large hand slowly opening to reveal a mysterious Golden Seal lying quietly in his palm.

"Is this thing really not meant for me?"

"Damn that little bastard!"

Seeing the Golden Seal.

He thought of Gu Han.

"Damn it!"

"Despite having such a heaven-defying sword heritage, he ended up in such a state, what a waste! Not only is he a waste, but he's also dragged me down with him!"

While cursing.

He felt some regret.

"It's a pity, his physical body was indeed a great match for me..."

"What's that in your hand?"

Out of the blue.

A cold voice sounded from behind him.

"What is it!"

"Who!"

The shadow's heart chilled, and he quickly turned around, only to see a young man with a stern expression and eyes full of wariness and caution standing outside the sword prison.

Who else could it be but Gu Han?

"It's you!"

Seeing Gu Han.

The shadow's eyes reddened with anger, nearly cursing out loud again.

Little bastard!

You've screwed me over, and you still dare to show up before me!

This lord...

Forget it, endure!

He was well aware of his situation.

Though he hadn't seen the Great Expansion Sword Scripture with his own eyes, just from the sword prison alone, he could tell how terrifying the heritage Gu Han had received was!

No matter how domineering and fierce he was outside, here, he was just a fish on the chopping block for Gu Han.

"Young man."

He stood with his hands behind his back, his voice calm, portraying an image of profound mystery.

"You've finally come!"

"..."

Gu Han looked at him coldly, without speaking.

"How is it?"

The shadow pretended not to notice his expression.

"Are you satisfied with the heritage this lord has given you?"

"You..."

Gu Han finally spoke.

"What exactly are you?"

A thing?

The shadow's form trembled, nearly bursting into curses!

He, the supreme demon lord of the Ninefold Demon Realm, commanding seventy-two demon generals, ruling over countless beings, whose mere stomp could shake the stars, was being insulted by a mere ant?

"Young man!"

He suppressed his anger, his tone unfriendly.

"Speak more politely to your benefactor!"

"Benefactor?"

"Indeed!"

The shadow hummed lightly.

"This lord is the ruler of the Ninefold Demon Realm, the supreme demon lord! Alas, I was ambushed by others and accidentally came to this continent. Seeing you gravely wounded and dying, I specially appeared to grant you a great fortune and heritage. Does that not make me your benefactor?"

"That Great Expansion Sword Scripture, is it yours?"

"What Great... *cough cough*, yes, it is indeed created by me!"

"That Golden Seal in your hand..."

"This is a supreme divine object, within which resides a wisp of my divine soul!"

"I understand now."

Gu Han nodded.

"So, you wanted to seize my body and take over my flesh!"

There was a clink!

The shadow's heart skipped a beat.

"Young man!"

He erupted in anger.

"How dare you twist right and wrong so blatantly! This lord is..."

"No need to pretend!"

Gu Han's tone was unfriendly.

"Just now, from start to finish, I heard every single word, every single letter you said!"

Gu Tian, the Golden Seal, the physical body...

He wasn't a fool; hearing these words, how could he not understand what had happened?

In the world, there are great practitioners whose strength is unmatched, and they can even be reborn from a drop of blood. Even if their physical bodies are completely destroyed, they can entrust a wisp of their remnant soul in various divine objects, waiting to find a suitable body to be reborn and live another life!

This is commonly known as... body seizing!

"..."

The shadow was at a loss for words.

He wished he could slap himself twice.

Cursed hands!

And a cursed mouth!

"What, nothing to say now?"

"Boy!"

The shadow was furious with embarrassment.

"Don't speak so harshly. You were about to die, and your body just happened to be compatible with my soul. What's wrong with me making use of waste?"

Making use of waste?

Gu Han laughed angrily.

Still trapped, yet so arrogant and domineering, truly not a good thing!

In his heart.

A trace of killing intent flashed in an instant!

Buzz!

As if sensing his intention, the sword prison trembled slightly, and a fine Sword Intent suddenly descended, instantly entering the shadow's body!

"Ah!"

With a scream.

A transparent hole the size of a thumb appeared on his body instantly.

Huh?

Gu Han was stunned for a moment.

Could he control this sword prison?

With a thought.

Whoosh!

Another Sword Intent descended!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

One after another, Sword Intents surged out from within the prison, nearly turning the shadow into a sieve!

"Boy!"

The shadow immediately realized something was wrong.

"What are you... what are you doing! Stop... stop it!"

Whoosh!

Gu Han had no intention of listening to him, as another Sword Intent fell!

"This lord orders you to stop, didn't you hear me!"

Whoosh!

"Boy! Don't be ungrateful! If you anger this lord, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Whoosh!

"You damn bastard! This lord will slaughter you... Ah!!"

Whoosh!

...

Gradually.

The shadow's voice grew weaker and his form became more transparent.

On the contrary.

Gu Han felt more and more spirited, his Spiritual Sense sharper, and even his control over his cultivation and physical body far exceeded what it was before!

Unbeknownst to him.

The parts of the shadow that were slashed away were refined by the Sword Intent into streams of extremely pure Soul Force, continuously entering his body!

In the world of cultivation.

There's a principle.

It's easy to cultivate divine abilities and secret techniques, but the hardest is to increase Soul Force!

Aside from a few secret techniques in the world, ordinary cultivators can only slowly nourish their souls with their physical bodies and cultivation, gaining a little improvement.

Even though it was just a remnant soul.

But the shadow's original cultivation was heaven-reaching and earth-penetrating, his soul naturally immensely powerful. Even just a wisp of Soul Force was a great benefit to Gu Han!

At this moment.

The strength of Gu Han's Soul Force was more than double that of an ordinary cultivator!

He had a faint feeling.

Now.

Although his cultivation hadn't increased at all, his control over the cultivation within his body had reached a state of perfection, down to the smallest detail!

If he faced that fat shopkeeper again...

In an instant, he could slay him without injury!

...

Outside.

Not far from the cave where Gu Han was resting.

"Look!"

A Gu family guard pointed at the corpse of a Demonic Beast on the ground.

"Another one!"

"Judging by the wound, it must be Gu Han's doing!"

A trace of joy flashed in the eyes of the guard accompanying him.

"And this Demonic Beast has only been dead for a short while, he must be nearby!"

"You go inform Gu Commander, I'll follow him closely, leaving marks along the way, this time... let him have no escape!"

"Okay!"

...

Back in the consciousness space.

Gu Han was naturally unaware of the events outside.

At this moment, his Soul Force was continuously increasing, and he was gradually becoming immersed in it.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

However, the Sword Intents that were supposed to fall did not miss a single one.

"Wait... wait a minute!"

After a long while.

The shadow finally couldn't hold on and gave in.

At this moment, his form was transparent, his voice weak, and he no longer had the arrogance he had before.

"Young..."

"*Cough cough*, young man, stop for a moment, let's make a deal, okay?"

Whoosh!

Another Sword Intent fell.

Gu Han slowly opened his eyes, showing no intention of sparing him.

"You wanted to seize my body, didn't you?"

"This... it's just a misunderstanding!"

"That Golden Seal's Great Freedom Heavenly Demon Scripture, it harmed my foster father and almost killed me too!"

"..."

The shadow was speechless.

"That Great Freedom Heavenly Demon Scripture, even at the peak of my cultivation, I dared not practice it rashly. You and your foster father, mere ants... *cough cough*, with insufficient cultivation and determination, insisted on forcibly comprehending it. How can you blame this lord?"

"Are you admitting defeat?"

"..."

The shadow fell silent.

A supreme demon lord.

Naturally, he didn't want to yield to an ant like Gu Han, nor did he want to live without dignity.

But.

Faced with that overwhelming grudge.

He could give up anything!

If he didn't avenge this, he... would die with his eyes open!

"Have you submitted?"

"I have... submitted!"

"Do you want to live?"

"I want to live!"

"Why aren't you arrogant anymore?"

Gu Han sneered.

"Actually, I still like your previous unruly appearance. Recover a bit!"

"I..."

The shadow finally completely broke down, cursing non-stop.

"You damn bastard!"

"A man can be killed, but not humiliated!"

"Since I was young, I was a prodigy, undefeated in a lifetime of battles, and even cultivated six Extreme Realms, renowned across the stars! Each of my seventy-two demon generals is formidable, intimidating countless strong beings. Now that I've fallen, I'm being humiliated by a tiny ant like you!"

"You... just kill me!"

After saying that.

He remained motionless, no longer speaking.

Unexpectedly.

The anticipated Sword Intent did not land on him.

"Just now..."

Gu Han frowned slightly, pondering.

"What you mentioned earlier, that Extreme Realm, what exactly is it?"