By the time the words left Ji Hongdong’s mouth, the phoenix, formed from the black aura as well as countless discarnate souls, was around twenty to twenty five meters away from him. Suddenly, it began to tremble.

The previously vicious faces of the discarnate souls were suddenly filled with dread and shock, as if they had suddenly encountered something they found terrifying.

The black phoenix emitted a shrill scream, as if it didn’t want to proceed any further forward. It lowered its head, almost like it was bowing to Ji Hongdong.

The expression on Xu Qing’s face immediately changed. She began to tremble, and her eyes filled with disbelief. How could she possibly have predicted that the discarnate souls of the Black Sieve Sect, who were as powerful as the sun at high noon, would prostrate before a Core Formation Cultivator?

“Your bloodline….” Her heart thumped as she suddenly considered the words Ji Hongdong had just spoken.

Ji Hongdong gave a cold harumph, and once again spoke: “Trifling discarnate souls! In front of the bloodline of the Ji Clan, they don’t even count as wild dogs. They’re nothing but insects. When they died, they died under the Heavens of the Ji Clan!” His words were cool, his countenance proud. He never stopped moving forward; as he did, the discarnate souls shrieked. They retreated backward, prostrating, their faces filled with looks of entreaty.

The black phoenix trembled violently as Ji Hongdong approached, and suddenly, a face appeared on its surface.

It was the face of a woman. This was not Xu Qing’s face, but rather the sealed Matriarch Phoenix!

Her eyes were closed, and her expression was one of terror, and even more so, imploring. She wanted to offer an explanation, but it seemed she had lost her power to speak or even open her eyes. Slowly, a bright red sealing mark appeared on her face.

When Ji Hongdong saw the face, he blinked seven times. A bizarre light shone out as he studied her. A strange expression appeared on his face, and then he laughed.

“Interesting,” he said, with a meaningful smile. “I’ve heard of discarnate souls possessing people, but I’ve never heard of a host taking control of the discarnate soul.” He looked at Li Daoyi. “What is her name and Sect?”

“Black Sieve Sect, Xu Qing!” replied Li Daoyi immediately.

“Xu Qing. Interesting,” he said, a wicked smile on his face. “I’m not sure how you did it. You fooled the Black Sieve Sect, as well as the other discarnate souls. You’ve fooled everyone into thinking that you are the discarnate soul. Tell me, if word of this gets out, what would happen to you?” He proceeded forward, laughing loudly. He waved his right hand, and all the discarnate souls retreated, even the black phoenix. Trembling, they didn’t dare to proceed any further forward.

They weren’t necessarily afraid of the young man in particular, but rather the fearsome bloodline of the Ji Clan inside of him!

Xu Qing’s face changed even more, becoming even paler. She well knew that if word spread, she wouldn’t be able to flee far enough. She would be dead without doubt. It wouldn’t just be the Black Sieve Sect that was chasing her, but all the fearsome discarnate souls.

Whether it be the Cultivators who lived on the surface of the Black Sieve Sect, or the discarnate souls beneath, not a single one would let her go free. There would be nowhere to flee to in the entire Southern Domain. All of her resources in the Sect would be purged. No shelter would be found anywhere in the Southern Domain. Besides, even if she fled, she couldn’t physically stay away for very long. The process of fusing with Matriarch Phoenix could only happen within the Black Sieve Sect.

It was only there that she could continue the process. Until Matriarch Phoenix was completely swallowed up, if she stayed away from the Sect for too long at one time, then her Cultivation base would begin to deteriorate. This matter had suddenly turned into a great disaster for her.

Seeing Xu Qing’s change of expression caused Ji Hongdong to laugh. His eyes filled with derision; he loved seeing people like this. It gave him a feeling of power, as if he were a great lord. “And then there’s this seal….” he said. “It’s very interesting. It can help you control the discarnate soul. I think the Sect Patriarchs will be very interested in this.” He laughed as he approached, his face filled with derision, as if everything was under his control.

Xu Qing’s face was pale. Having temporarily lost control of the discarnate souls, and without the power of Matriarch Phoenix, she was just an ordinary Cultivator. Even the power of Core Formation could only be wielded by her with difficulty.

Furthermore, she couldn’t retreat. She suddenly felt a binding around her, holding her in place as if she were being sealed. She couldn’t move even an inch.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to kill you,” said Ji Hongdong. He neared lifting his hand toward Meng Hao to grab him.

Even as his hand closed in, Meng Hao’s eyes snapped open. A frightening power surged out from his Cultivation base. It ripped through the area like an invisible cyclone, causing Ji Hongdong’s face to twist. He retreated backward immediately, nearly thirty meters. His face was dark, and his pupils had constricted.

Next to him, Li Daoyi’s expression was one of astonishment, disbelief and alarm. Body trembling, he stared at Meng Hao’s figure within the cyclone, and a look of venom and shock filled his eyes. He suddenly said, “You’re… you’re… you’re not Fang Mu! You’re Meng Hao!!” His voice was shrill, and his breath came in pants. How could he ever have imagined that the person he had searched in vain for throughout all these years, was actually right in front of him!!

As the words left his mouth, thunderous roars filled the air, and the violent winds surged outward. Meng Hao’s figure seemed to surge upward. He was the nucleus of the cyclone; the terrifying winds were coming out from his body.

Meng Hao’s face suddenly changed. No longer was it Fang Mu’s, but rather, his own face, his original face. An intensely terrifying aura suddenly shot up from within him.

Li Daoyi’s face went pale. His mind was reeling; he just couldn’t believe what was happening. However, how could he not understand that Fang Mu was Meng Hao, and Meng Hao was Fang Mu!

“Violet Fate Sect Legacy Apprentice, Grandmaster Pill Cauldron, Fang Mu, Meng Hao….” He retreated backward, thinking about the pain he had experienced when he lost his arm. It had been restored, but the enmity created in the Blood Immortal Legacy tournament was something he considered to be the greatest humiliation in his entire life.

Surrounding by a violet glow, a profound look filled Meng Hao’s eyes. Other than him, no one could know the reason for why he had just switched to his original appearance….

His eyes glowed with coldness. Within him was a Violet Core, about the size of a child’s fist. It rested in the position once occupied by his Core Sea, floating there, rotating. Every time it spun in a full circle, vast quant.i.ties of violet-colored strands surged out like lightning to every corner of his body.

The violet-colored strands flickered as they surged through his Qi pa.s.sageways, filled with a boundless Cultivation base power that far exceeded Foundation Establishment. This was Core Formation Qi, from a Core Formation Cultivation base!

In fact, this Core Formation Qi was not the type of Qi that would be emitted by a Cultivation base that had just entered the Core Formation stage. This was the explosive power of the pinnacle of the early Core Formation stage.

The violet wind screamed as it spun throughout the area. Even Meng Hao’s long hair was now violet as it whipped around his head. Next to him, Xu Qing sighed; it seemed she had thought of something. Her face changed, and she was about to speak when Meng Hao suddenly interrupted.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” he said, his voice light. He turned, his eyes glowing with a violet light as he looked at Ji Hongdong.

Ji Hongdong’s expession was the same as usual. “Fang Mu? Meng Hao? It seems you have quite a few ident.i.ties. Considering how quickly you entered Core Formation, it also seems that the breath of Immortal Qi really is incredibly valuable. That makes me happy.” He smiled, lifting up his arm and then flicking his sleeve. Suddenly, a field of stars appeared behind him.

The starfield was large, filling the air. It rushed toward Meng Hao, exerting a suppressive force. It was clear that this field of stars was that which s.h.i.+ned above the Southern Domain, including the Western Desert and the Eastern Lands. It was vast and mighty.

As it approached, it enveloped everything, making it impossible for anyone to avoid it.

Meng Hao lifted his head, his expression a bit blank. He was silent, almost as if he didn’t notice the starfield approaching him. As it descended, the blankness on his face disappeared, replaced instead with determination.

As of now, a decision had been made!

He lifted his hand, forming a fist. A red glow suddenly shot out; this was the Blood Death World. It slammed into the starfield.

An explosion filled the air, and Meng Hao tumbled backward like a kite with its string cut.

“Fool! You….” said Ji Hongdong with a cold laugh, his voice filled with contempt. However, before he could finish speaking, Meng Hao’s tumbling body suddenly changed direction. It was with indescribable speed, before anyone could react, that he suddenly appeared directly in front of Li Daoyi. Li Daoyi had been on guard the entire time, but he was still incapable of evading.

Actually, Meng Hao’s initial goal this entire time had been Li Daoyi. After all, he would be the easiest to exterminate, no matter how prepared he was.

Li Daoyi’s pupils constricted; he was about to shoot backward when Meng Hao lifted his right hand and pushed it down onto Li Daoyi’s forehead. A boom filled the air, and an exterminating power poured into Li Daoyi’s body, filling him, crus.h.i.+ng him, mangling him. He was dead instantly.

“Did you pay attention to the face of the person who killed you?” he asked softly, looking at Li Daoyi’s b.l.o.o.d.y corpse. He turned to look at Ji Hongdong.

Meng Hao sighed, then slapped his bag of holding to retrieve his East Pill Division identification medallion. He looked down at it for a long moment, his eyes filled with a complicated, disconsolate look. Finally, determination filled his eyes and he… crushed it.

The instant he crushed the medallion, his Violet Furnace Lord’s robe began to disintegrate. A green robe now covered his body.

As of this moment, he was no longer Fang Mu, Legacy Apprentice of the East Pill Division. Now… he was Meng Hao from Mount Daqing in the State of Zhao!