As Mu Chen fell unconscious, the black arm suddenly seemed to lose its power source, dimming in an instant and returning to its original state. Profound Old Ghost took a deep breath and shook his head. ’How strange. That peculiar Spiritual Liquid should have only restored Xiao Chenzi’s arm to a state that matches his constitution. But why is this arm so bizarre now? It actually possesses such a tyrannical will. And from the ancient Evil Qi it’s releasing, I’m getting a familiar feeling. What could be the reason?’

Profound Old Ghost looked at the peaceful Mu Chen, completely baffled. ’Looks like in the days to come, I’ll have to make Xiao Chenzi subjugate this strange arm. But... first, there’s something else that must be done.’

As soon as he finished speaking, Profound Old Ghost slowly raised his head, a smile of anticipation spreading across his face. ’To think it would be born in a place like this...’

A day gradually passed. The glowing moss inside the cave had been completely incinerated by Mu Chen’s black flames. Left with no other choice, Profound Old Ghost embedded several large Elemental Crystals into the walls for light. Sitting beside Mu Chen, he worried aloud, ’It’s been a whole day. Why hasn’t Xiao Chenzi woken up yet? Could it be that I used too much force?’

Just as Profound Old Ghost finished speaking, Mu Chen’s finger suddenly twitched. A moment later, he let out a soft groan and struggled to open his eyes.

"Ugh... my neck hurts."

Rolling over, Mu Chen looked around at the space, which had become quite a bit larger (in truth, this was because a portion of the stone walls had been incinerated by his terrifying black flames). He asked in confusion, "Master, what happened to me? I think I fell asleep again without realizing it."

Profound Old Ghost rolled his eyes in annoyance and cursed, "Asleep my ass! Yesterday, when you were using the black arm, your mind was completely controlled by its Evil Qi. It’s a good thing I knocked you out, otherwise you would’ve burned down the entire cave."

Mu Chen was stunned. ’Burn down the entire cave? Lost control of my mind? What’s going on?’

Mu Chen had no memory whatsoever of what Profound Old Ghost described. Suddenly, he recalled what he had done to Wan Xian’Er. His heart lurched as a flash of understanding lit up his eyes. ’In that case, does this arm have the power to instantly affect my mind?’

Profound Old Ghost replied, "That’s probably it. But I can’t figure out why this is happening. A mutation, perhaps?"

He then shook his head, dismissing the idea. "No, if it were a mutation, the arm wouldn’t necessarily get stronger. Even if it did, it definitely wouldn’t reach this level of power. However, we can set this issue aside for now. I reckon it has something to do with your Martial Artist Realm. If your cultivation was a bit stronger, the difficulty of controlling this arm would probably be much lower."

"Raise my cultivation level?" Upon hearing this, Mu Chen suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said to Profound Old Ghost, "Master, in this Netherworld Purgatory, I think there’s..."

"An Ultimate Attribute Spirit, right?" Profound Old Ghost finished for him before he could continue. "And a Wood Attribute Ultimate Attribute Spirit, no less."

Mu Chen’s mouth fell open. He stared blankly. "Master, how did you know?"

Profound Old Ghost said, "Of course I know. Don’t forget who told you about Ultimate Attribute Spirits in the first place. Heh heh. Besides, this Extreme Wood Attribute isn’t making any effort to hide from us."

Profound Old Ghost’s eyes flashed as he stared intently at the cave ceiling. "But before that, you need to maximize your gains. The Wood Attribute Ultimate Spirit is the most benevolent of all the Extreme Attributes. As long as your heart is kind and your will is reasonably firm, there is almost no resistance to fusing with it."

"Maximize my gains?" Mu Chen murmured.

"Simply put, it means you should take all the pills you have that can raise your cultivation level. Have you used a Martial Spirit Essence Pill yet?" Profound Old Ghost asked suddenly.

Mu Chen shook his head. "I won’t use a Primordial Pill to advance until I’m about to break through to the next Great Realm. A cultivation level gained through pills is never as pure as one achieved through personal cultivation."

Profound Old Ghost gave Mu Chen an appreciative glance. "Well said. But for now, you can throw that theory out the window. This is the perfect opportunity to raise your cultivation level. Absorbing an Extreme Attribute can not only help you compress your cultivation, it can even instantly and completely solidify your realm. This is a miraculous effect that no other Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures can achieve."

Upon hearing this, Mu Chen had a moment of realization. "So that’s how it is. Now that I think about it, my cultivation level was also instantly solidified when I fused with the Ice Attribute Extreme Spirit."

Profound Old Ghost chuckled. "That’s right. My only worry now is that you didn’t bring any Martial Spirit Essence Pills with you."

Mu Chen grinned. "I actually do have some."

With a flip of his wrist, a small purple vial appeared in Mu Chen’s hand. Inside it lay seven pills, each radiating a soft halo.

Profound Old Ghost recognized them as Martial Spirit Essence Pills with a single glance and couldn’t help but chuckle. "Looks like you’ve done quite well for yourself these past three years."

Mu Chen smiled faintly. ’Done well for myself? I suppose I’ve never been short on money.’ He opened the vial, and a medicinal fragrance wafted out. With a light tap, one of the Martial Spirit Essence Pills landed in his palm.

’I hope this one pill can push my cultivation straight to the Martial King Realm,’ Mu Chen thought in anticipation. After all, he still had an even higher-grade Martial King Essence Pill in his Storage Ring.

Using Introspection, Mu Chen was surprised to find that the two cultivation levels he had broken through when his arm was restored had been thoroughly stabilized. He didn’t know why, but this undoubtedly laid a very solid foundation for his push toward the Martial King Realm.

Profound Old Ghost sat down cross-legged nearby and nodded. "With me standing guard, you can absorb the medicinal power without worry."

Mu Chen’s expression turned serious as he swallowed the pill in one gulp. The act of taking pills had long since become second nature to him. The moment the Martial Spirit Essence Pill entered his mouth, it melted into a sweet liquid that slid down his throat and into his stomach.

His expression relaxed, and Mu Chen slowly exhaled. A warm current surged through his abdomen, and in the next moment, it transformed into immense Primordial Power that merged with his meridians. Having been strengthened countless times, his meridians were exceptionally resilient; even the vast Primoridal Power released by the Martial Spirit Essence Pill caused him no distending pain.

"HHH... HHH..."

With his arm restored, Mu Chen could finally meditate using the Five Hearts Facing the Top technique. He silently recited the Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique, and small vortexes of air began to form over his acupoints. It was as if the Primordial Power from the Martial Spirit Essence Pill wasn’t enough to satisfy his meridians; vast amounts of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi surged into these vortexes. The vortexes were connected to his Dantian, and under his guidance, his Dantian slowly began to fill.

’This is a little slow.’ Mu Chen frowned. With a flick of his will, a small, crimson pill appeared in his hand, and he quickly swallowed it. As the pill digested, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi surging toward him instantly increased more than tenfold, startling even Profound Old Ghost, who was sitting nearby.

"That’s... a Gathering Essence Pill!"

Clearly, Profound Old Ghost recognized the pill. ’I remember this recipe being exclusive to the Ding Palace. How did the kid get his hands on it? Or... did he not tell me everything that happened three years ago?’

Profound Old Ghost exhaled, his gaze suddenly freezing on the black box resting by the edge of the pool. ’That’s...’

It was the Profound Jade Box that Mu Chen had set down before entering the pool. Profound Old Ghost’s hand trembled slightly. With a flick of his wrist, the Profound Jade Box flew into his grasp with a THUD.

"The black box!"

CLANG!

A metallic scraping sound echoed from within the Profound Jade Box. In the next moment, an enormous black fan floated into the air. With a flash of black light, the Giant Fan unfurled on its own and began to slowly circle around Mu Chen.

Profound Old Ghost’s throat felt dry. He was stunned. ’The boy has completely bonded with it! The Nine Spirits Profound Jade Fan actually acknowledged him! Could my guess have been correct? The Nine Spirits Profound Jade Fan and the Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique... is there some kind of intrinsic connection between them?!’

’One hundred thousand years ago, my own cultivation had already reached the pinnacle of the Extreme Martial Continent. Even then, the Nine Spirits Profound Jade Fan had only begrudgingly acknowledged my strength, allowing me to use it with reluctance. And yet now, it has completely acknowledged Mu Chen, who is only a Nine-Ring Martial Spirit! No... when Mu Chen bonded with it, he must have only been in the Martial Master Realm.’

’That must be it. There’s definitely some kind of connection. As for what it is, I’ll eventually find the answer as long as I stay by Xiao Chenzi’s side!’ Profound Old Ghost gently closed the Profound Jade Box and sat down cross-legged once more. A trace of excitement appeared in his eyes as he looked at Mu Chen. At this moment, he felt more and more certain that Mu Chen’s appearance was no accident. It was destiny. He believed that Mu Chen would one day unleash a world-shaking storm.

’The days ahead are looking more and more interesting. Xiao Chenzi, let this old master see what kind of miracles you can create!’

"BANG!"

"A breakthrough!"

As the cracking sound echoed, Mu Chen’s face lit up with joy. The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi surrounding him suddenly surged into his Dantian like tributaries flowing into an ocean. In just a few moments, his Dantian was completely saturated with Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi. At the same time, two beams of intensely bright, differently colored light burst from his back with a FWOOSH.

With a great UNFURLING sound, a pair of broad, elegant Elemental Wings burst from his back. This was the sign of breaking through to the Martial King Realm: Elemental Wings! However, Mu Chen’s wings were truly strange. Not only were they more than twice the size of anyone else’s, but even more strikingly, they were two different colors. One was blue, the other a bizarre black. The jarring contrast was deeply unsettling, yet it was an undeniable reality manifested on Mu Chen’s body.

Profound Old Ghost was past the point of being surprised by such oddities. What pleased him was the cyan Martial Ring flashing with a dazzling light at Mu Chen’s feet... The Martial King Realm!