All races revere me as the Heavenly Emperor, solely because of my nine disciples!

"Boom boom boom..."

On this day, the Blood Fiend Heaven-Slaying Array went berserk.

With the Blood Sea Formation broken, Zhou Hai suppressed Chen Xu inside the Soul Suppressing Bell, and then broke through the Corpse Mountain Formation and the Devouring Formation.

Wherever he went, this legendary, almost invincible formation could not stop him in the slightest.

There was no way around it; the Blood Fiend Heaven-Slaying Formation was very powerful, but the formation before them was not the legendary one.

The difference in both the materials used for building the array and the resources accumulated is like night and day. Zhou Hai, who possesses nine imperial artifacts, could almost stroll leisurely here, if not completely at ease.

During the process of breaking the formation, Zhou Hai also thought about many issues.

As he gained the ability to cultivate, he discovered that his conditions were exceptionally good.

His unparalleled blood energy and invincible origin make him far superior to even the ancient emperors of all time.

But that doesn't mean he's powerful.

Cultivation is a gradual process that aims to integrate oneself, achieve unity with the self, forge one's true self, and become invincible in the world.

He was targeted by smugglers several times, and they almost took everything from him. This made him realize his own shortcomings even more.

Ultimately, the conditions were too good, but they failed to achieve unification.

He still needs to rebuild his foundation, establishing all the necessary conditions, and then through further cultivation, he can become a complete and perfect being.

By then, even if the smugglers reappear, they may be powerless to stop them.

"It seems I'll have to rebuild my Foundation Establishment and other cultivation levels sometime!"

After thinking it over, Zhou Hai finally made a decision.

At the same time, he stepped into the Ten Thousand Souls Formation.

"Woooooooo..."

"Ow ooh..."

Upon entering the Ten Thousand Souls Array, a chilling wind swept through the gray and tranquil world, accompanied by the wailing and howling of ghosts. It seemed as if countless evil spirits were roaring and crying.

Even though Zhou Hai was used to all sorts of strange things, he couldn't help but feel a tightness in his chest at this moment.

This dark and terrifying scene was indeed unsettling.

He looked up and saw countless illusory figures flying in from all directions, eventually converging into a supreme ghost king, who was about to take his soul with chains.

The Ghost King wielded a scythe, seemingly poised to reap all living beings in the world.

"break!"

Without uttering any unnecessary words, Zhou Hai unleashed a low roar, unleashing all nine imperial artifacts, instantly shattering the Ghost King and sending it scattering into countless evil spirits that hid in all directions.

"Xi Yao!"

Zhou Hai strolled through the Ten Thousand Souls Formation once more, and before long, he saw Qin Xiyao lying on the ground, as if she had been dead for a long time.

His face changed drastically.

If he weren't so familiar with Qin Xiyao, he would almost have thought that the person lying on the ground was dead, someone who had been dead for a long time.

There was nothing he could do; his dry, white hair resembled weeds. His skin was cracked and parched, clinging tightly to his bones.

She had wrinkled skin and white hair, and her whole body was dull and lifeless. No one who saw her would believe that she was a woman not yet twenty years old.

You know, that should have been the prime of youth, the most beautiful time of one's life, how could it be like this, long since dead?

If it weren't for recognizing her aura, Zhou Hai would never have believed that the other person was Qin Xiyao.

But in fact, this is Qin Xiyao.

"Xi Yao!"

Zhou Hai stepped forward and hugged Qin Xiyao tightly, only to find that her body, including skin and flesh, weighed less than thirty pounds, and she looked like a skeleton.

Her life force was exhausted, her flesh and blood were completely withered, and she was almost unable to breathe, which made Zhou Hai feel an unprecedented tension.

In a daze, he seemed to have lost something very important. To be precise, he had lost a very important person.

At some point, Zhou Hai gradually took on the role of a master, treating his disciples like parents, no longer seeing them as mere employees.

His concern for them had unknowingly been etched into his heart. Seeing Qin Xiyao's face, he felt a nameless panic.

"What's going on? How could this happen?"

"Soul Eater, get out here!"

Zhou Hai's eyes immediately turned red, and he let out a low roar, but there was no response.

Even the nine great imperial artifacts flew far away, as if they dared not approach him.

There's nothing I can do; this master is just too unreasonable. When he's unhappy, even the imperial artifact suffers. And right now, he seems genuinely angry.

Only someone with a screw loose would dare to mess with him at this point.

"Soul Eater, didn't you hear me tell you to come out?"

"You really think I don't know your situation?"

After a long silence, Zhou Hai shouted again.

This time, Qin Xiyao finally showed a reaction.

With a flash of black light, the Soul Devouring Demon Palace flew out from between Qin Xiyao's eyebrows, but immediately retreated more than ten meters away, seemingly watching Zhou Hai warily.

"What the hell?"

"Do I have HIV or syphilis? Why the hell did you come all this way?"

"Does he think I'm the third brother?"

Zhou Hai was furious, and his face instantly turned dark.

Only then did he notice that all the imperial artifacts were avoiding him like the plague, which made him even more annoyed.

"Cough cough... Master, how did you know I was pretending to be asleep?"

Within the Soul-Devouring Demon Palace, the spirit's voice echoed, seemingly somewhat embarrassed, but mostly wary, wary of being mistreated by its master.

"Who the hell are you trying to protect yourself from? Do you really think I'm some kind of big shot?"

Zhou Hai was furious and shouted, "Aren't you going to give me an explanation for this?"

Neither the Soul Devouring Demon Palace nor the Nine Great Imperial Weapons understood the meaning behind Zhou Hai's third brother.

Upon hearing Zhou Hai's words, the Soul Devouring Demon Palace dared not hesitate and focused their attention on Qin Xiyao, saying, "Master, don't worry, I can explain this. She's fine, she's just dying!"

Zhou Hai: "???"

The Nine Imperial Weapons: "???"

"What the hell? She's alright, just dying?"

After a long silence, Zhou Hai finally couldn't hold back and burst into a tirade. Was this the explanation he wanted?

"Yes, that's pretty much it!"

"But don't worry, Master, she's not dead yet!"

The response from the spirit of the Soul Devouring Demon Palace not only made Zhou Hai want to punch someone, but even the nine imperial artifacts behind him couldn't stand it anymore.

"Hey Soul Eater, can you just say it straight? If you want to suffer the consequences and become the latrine, don't drag me down with you!"

Looking at Zhou Hai's face, which turned from white to black, then to bluish-black, and finally to purplish-red, the spirit of the Soul-Suppressing Bell couldn't help but speak.

"Why can't you understand!"

"Here's what happened: Young Master broke into the great formation and snatched the Soul Pearl that controlled it from several Saints, attempting to refine the formation into his body to strengthen himself!"

"I was pretending to be asleep, and I thought it was a great idea, so I didn't stop it!"

"But I never expected that this great formation would be so strange, containing unparalleled power to steal luck."

"My lord has repeatedly tried to control the great formation, but not only have he failed, he has also stolen the power from the formation several times, almost stripping him of everything!"

"Moreover, for the current young master, the power of the great formation is very strong, and with the power of stealing luck, it is almost an invincible existence!"

"But the young master didn't give up, and kept making moves, dying and rising again and again. That's why it's like this today!"

The Soul Devouring Demon Palace seemed to be getting anxious, and even their voices were no longer as clear and bright as before. Instead, they hurriedly offered an explanation.

"So you just watched her ruin herself like this?"

Zhou Hai's eyes were icy cold. He felt that this Soul Devouring Demon Palace was utterly unreliable. Was this something a human could do?

"Why not?"

"Although it was a tragic situation, the benefits for her were obvious!"

“Take a closer look. Has she changed little over the past year?”

The Soul Devouring Demon Palace sounded somewhat aggrieved.

Zhou Hai was so angry he laughed. How could a perfectly normal person not change after almost killing himself?

Look at this skin and bones, as if he has been dead for a long time. Who dares to say that he hasn't changed much?

However, before Zhou Hai could reprimand him, his expression changed.

He did notice the difference.

Qin Xiyao's foundation was so solid and her strength so formidable that it was unheard of and unseen before.

Compared to her, Zhou Hai's other disciples, such as Chen Bei and Sun Buwang, were simply not on the same level as Qin Xiyao, leaving her far behind.

Even Zhou Hai felt that his foundation was like a pile of shit compared to Qin Xiyao's, and he couldn't bear to look at it.

"What a powerful foundation, especially this divine soul, which is almost completely integrated with the physical body!"

"The Dao Palace transforms into talismans, the Purple Mansion transforms into the Dao, returning to the physical body and merging with the divine—is this something a human can do?"

"Even the greatest emperors of the past would probably find it difficult to achieve this."

Zhou Hai was completely stunned. Not only had he never seen such a profound foundation before, but he also couldn't find it even by flipping through books.

"So, Master, do you understand now?"

"It's not that I don't want to save her, it's just that this is such a good opportunity for her to grow. If we don't seize it now, this young mistress will be ruined!"

"Don't underestimate our young mistress just because she's only at the first level of the Saint Realm and her cultivation hasn't improved. Once she gets through this hurdle, she'll be invincible for life. No one among her generation will be her match!"

"This is an incredible opportunity!"

"Furthermore, I have preserved some of your essence. If she were to die completely, I could use that essence to save her at all costs. So she is only going to die, but she will definitely not die. Master, you can rest assured!"

Seeing that Zhou Hai understood Qin Xiyao's situation, the spirit of the Soul Devouring Demon Palace breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said something.

"I see, congratulations, Master!"

"Yes, Master, haven't you been having your disciples rebuild their Dao Fruits lately? Look at this girl's invincible Dao Fruit; even a Great Emperor would be envious. Isn't that wonderful!"

"Master, it seems that this girl is the one who causes you the least trouble among all your disciples. She has perfected her own Dao Fruit without you having to worry about her. This is a great joy!"

This time, before Zhou Hai could speak, the nine imperial artifacts were the first to offer their congratulations.

They also noticed Qin Xiyao's difference; this was simply an unparalleled Dao Fruit, enough to make anyone envious.

"Congratulations my ass! How much suffering must one endure to achieve such a Dao fruit?"

"You guys really know how to watch a show!"

Zhou Hai glared, but could no longer blame the Soul Devouring Demon Palace.

At this moment, he felt mostly ashamed.

Neither the Shattered Halberd nor the Soul-Devouring Demon Palace seemed to think highly of him. To be precise, they looked down on his attitude towards teaching disciples.

In the end, the teacher himself disregarded everything, while two great figures secretly worried themselves sick over their students.

Looking back now, I realize he was a really unreliable mentor.

"Alright, this matter is settled, I don't blame you!"

"Tell me, where did her spirit go?"

Taking a deep breath, Zhou Hai quickly took out all the pills on his body and stuffed them into Qin Xiyao's mouth. He then circulated his internal energy to help her refine them, turning them into pure essence.

However, in an instant, Qin Xiyao's situation underwent a dramatic change.

Her hair gradually changed from dry and brittle to soft and smooth, and from silvery-white to jet-black and shiny.

Her flesh gradually became fuller, her bones vibrated, her heart beat, blood began to flow, and her body began to be rebuilt.

In the end, Qin Xiyao's body emitted a shimmering white halo, with runes faintly visible dancing within.

This is a flawless body; the so-called "ice-like skin and jade-like bones" are simply insignificant compared to her.

Its fair and white flesh exudes a faint fragrance, like the supreme medicine in the world, or the most perfect fruit.

This is the most flawless Dao fruit in the world. Its Daoist aura permeates the air, captivating all who behold it, leaving all the imperial artifacts stunned.

If the limit of an emperor is only that of an emperor, then this woman, as long as there is no limit in the world, her limit may even exceed that of an emperor.

It's amazing.

"Owner!"

The spirit of the Soul Devouring Demon Palace spoke, as if it wanted to say something.

But at that moment, a sudden change occurred. A bead fell from Qin Xiyao's hand, attracting the attention of Zhou Hai and all the imperial artifacts.