The remnant soul of the great demon from the past, a mere wisp of soul remaining in the world, had its consciousness completely worn away by the passage of ten thousand years of time.
Now, the massive black snake shadow floating above the ruins of the Water Mirror Pavilion no longer possessed any consciousness; it was merely an empty soul husk.
It was the same as the one Chen Yan would have originally witnessed a year later at the outer court of the Kongshan Sect.
Unity Realm.
Even though it was just an empty soul husk, the remnant soul of this great demon from the past, who once resided in the Dao Union Realm, still maintained strength at or above the Unity Realm.
The Black Flood Dragon Remnant Soul, devoid of consciousness, held no hostility towards anything in the world.
It simply existed there.
It had been the same back at the Kongshan Sect's outer court.
The massive black snake shadow in the sky also bore no hostility towards anything; it merely did not restrain its overly vast spiritual energy.
And this, was only the span of seven breaths.
Chen Yan stood amidst the ruins of the Water Mirror Pavilion, looking up at the massive black snake shadow appearing in the sky.
He could clearly feel the immense pressure on his own meridians and his Martial Spring.
But Chen Yan could withstand it; he would not be like when he was in the Energy Channeling Realm, having his internal organs crushed by the spiritual energy pressure of the Black Flood Dragon Remnant Soul.
For the cultivators of this world, what those in the Lower Three Realms and the Middle Three Realms cultivate, what can flow within their meridians, is true qi.
Because the meridians of cultivators below the Unity Realm are completely insufficient to bear spiritual energy, cultivators use their heart techniques to extract an extremely small portion of true qi from the spiritual energy flowing through the world to cleanse their own meridians.
First, forge the body, then channel energy, then form the Martial Spring, and connect the energy sea.
Then connect with the spirit, cultivate spiritual consciousness, condense innate true energy, and transform the myriad into unity.
This "one" is the strand of spiritual energy condensed from ten thousand strands of innate true energy.
Innate true energy is not refined from external spiritual energy but is completely born from the cultivator's own spiritual consciousness, hence the name "innate true energy."
This strand of spiritual energy, condensed from ten thousand strands of innate true energy, will not cause any damage to the cultivator's own energy sea or meridians. On the contrary, as this strand of spiritual energy flows through their own meridians, it can improve them.
From this moment on, the true qi within the cultivator's body is replaced by spiritual energy.
This is also the greatest distinction between cultivators of the Middle Three Realms and those of the Upper Three Realms.
Returning our gaze to the present.
He Furen stared at the Black Flood Dragon Remnant Soul in the sky, the smile on his face growing increasingly arrogant.
From his palm emerged the sealed soul of Mo Zheng, imprisoned by twelve strands of grayish-black innate true energy. The look in its eyes revealed extreme unwillingness, then suddenly shifted to an expression of sudden realization.
"So that's it, you old thief Huo Mu, this is your goal, isn't it!"
After seeing He Furen kill Lin Xinyang and release the Black Flood Dragon's remnant soul, Mo Zheng seemed to finally understand, roaring out like this.
As for Chen Yan in the ruins, he was still completely in the dark.
Compared to the perspective of such a powerful being, he was still far, far behind.
"It's already too late, Senior Mo."
He Furen laughed, then moved his fingertip.
The strand of innate true energy piercing through Mo Zheng's soul dissipated with his movement.
Fragments of Mo Zheng's soul also scattered with the disappearance of this strand of innate true energy.
The massive black snake shadow in the sky, as if sensing the fragments of Mo Zheng's soul, began to move for the first time.
Its massive head began to lean towards the direction of Mo Zheng's soul.
"Could it be…"
Lin Qifeng beside Chen Yan spoke, his voice trembling slightly:
"So that's it, I understand! No wonder they sealed off the entire Heavenly Summit Mountain, no wonder they want to kill everyone!"
Yet, Chen Yan still did not understand.
Until he saw He Furen throw the ring in his hand towards the massive head of the black snake shadow in the sky.
"I invite Senior Mo to meet his end!"
He Furen roared with maniacal laughter, shouting loudly.
The ring spun through the air, flying towards the direction of the shadow in the sky.
The Black Flood Dragon Remnant Soul opened its bloody maw, large enough to swallow a small mountain, and swallowed the ring into its belly.
Then, the entire world fell into silence.
"This is…"
Qin Qingyu, standing nearby in her pale green gauze dress, also showed a look of astonishment.
Immediately after, in the blink of an eye, heaven and earth underwent a great change.
The entire Heavenly Summit Mountain began to tremble violently.
And the Black Flood Dragon Remnant Soul coiled in mid-air also began to undergo a strange transformation.
Could it be!
Chen Yan stared at the massive head of the black snake coiled in mid-air.
Then, the most unbelievable scene occurred.
He saw the Black Flood Dragon's eye pupils actually move.
This meant…
This great demon from the past had once again developed spiritual consciousness!
And its realm also began to rapidly soar.
From the Unity Realm, it swiftly broke through to the Divine Ability Realm, then to the mid-stage of Divine Ability Realm, late-stage, peak, and finally, the Dao Union Realm!
Now, the massive black snake shadow in mid-air was no longer that wisp of unconscious remnant soul.
It was the genuine soul of a great demon in the Dao Union Realm, both in realm and in spirit!
"Hahahahahaha!"
He Furen was still roaring with laughter. Then, due to excessive excitement, his entire body trembled unsteadily. He knelt down amidst the ruins of the Water Mirror Pavilion and kowtowed towards the Black Flood Dragon soul in the air:
"This unworthy junior, He Furen, pays respects to Senior Black Flood Dragon!"
The Black Flood Dragon slightly lowered its head, gazing at He Furen kneeling on the ground.
As for the group of people nearby, including Lin Qifeng, Qin Qingyu, and Chen Yan, they were completely ignored.
Insects.
No, for a great demon of the Dao Union Realm, beings like Lin Qifeng, Qin Qingyu, and even Chen Yan could only be described as less than insects.
"A cultivator of the Kongshan Sect?"
The Black Flood Dragon in mid-air spoke clearly, its voice quite deep and imposing.
"Yes! This unworthy junior is He Furen, the Dignity Elder of Yuanhua Mountain of the Kongshan Sect. By order of the Supreme Imperial Law Elder of Kongshan Sect, Huo Mu, I have come to pay my respects to Senior Black Flood Dragon!"
He Furen did not even dare to raise his head, answering loudly like this.
"Just some names I've never heard."
The Black Flood Dragon said:
"Young man, how long has it been since I was killed by Kong Yang?"
Kong Yang was the true name of Patriarch Caijun of Qingchan Peak of the Kongshan Sect.
"Reporting to Senior, nine thousand years!"
He Furen answered.
"No wonder, so much time has already passed…"
The Black Flood Dragon in the sky narrowed its eyes slightly.
Far beyond Chen Yan's expectations, the expressions this great demon of the Dao Union Realm could show were actually so human-like.
"So, it was you who released me, and offered the soul of that Divine Ability Realm junior for me to devour, helping me recover my spiritual consciousness?"
The Black Flood Dragon continued to ask He Furen.
"Not at all!"
He Furen kowtowed and said:
"This unworthy junior merely followed the will of heaven!"