Refining the Inner Pearl, the Phantom of the Evil God
Returning to Wuhun City, Chu Tianxiu left the Amethyst Winged Lion King and Ding Jiu'an with Old Lange before hurrying back to the Papal Palace alone. When he arrived, Bibi Dong was reviewing documents at her desk. As she set down her pen to rest, a familiar voice echoed through the hall.
"Sister Dong'er, I'm back!"
She looked up, her face lighting up with surprise and relief at the sight of her disciple. She rose quickly and moved to his side. "Xiao Xiu, you've returned."
Chu Tianxiu offered her a warm, respectful bow. "Sister Dong'er, I missed you."
Bibi Dong reached out and gently straightened his travel-worn collar. "Little Xiu, was your journey to the Star Dou Great Forest successful? Were you injured?" Though her tone remained measured, Chu Tianxiu could feel the deep concern behind her words.
He smiled reassuringly. "Sister Dong'er, don't worry. Everything went smoothly."
A genuine smile touched Bibi Dong's lips. "That is good to hear. I still have some documents to attend to; I will find you later." She seemed to remember something else, a playful glint in her eye. "You should go see your junior sister at the Spirit Academy first. Ever since you left without a proper farewell, she has been pestering me daily for news of you, vowing to give you a piece of her mind upon your return."
Chu Tianxiu chuckled, a little sheepish. After bidding her farewell, he immediately headed for the Spirit Academy. The reunion with Hu Liena was as effusive as expected, filled with relieved scolding and promises to never leave without saying goodbye again. It took considerable reassurance before he could finally extract himself.
The door to Chu Tianxiu's spacious dormitory room closed behind him. Though he hadn't lived there for some time, it was kept immaculately clean. He sat cross-legged on the floor and retrieved the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's inner core from his system space. He recalled reading "Heavenly Pearl Change" in his previous life. After Zhou Weiqing refined a similar core, he gained the bloodline of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger and its six attributes: space, time, darkness, evil, wind, and thunder. 'If he could do it, theoretically, so can I.'
His only concern was the wisp of the Evil God's will he knew resided within the core. The name alone suggested it wasn't a benevolent deity.
However, the system had assured him it could suppress any malicious spiritual attacks within his mindscape. Trusting this, he placed the core on his lap and began the process of absorption.
As time passed, the core slowly diminished until it vanished entirely. Within Chu Tianxiu's spiritual world, a strange black bead, wreathed in the aura of six distinct attributes, floated serenely.
Just as he was about to fully refine it, a massive, sinister gray phantom manifested above the black bead, radiating an aura of absolute dominance. The spiritual pressure it exerted far surpassed anything Chu Tianxiu had felt from Qian Daoliu.
The sinister figure's gaze swept over Chu Tianxiu. "You killed my vessel."
Without hesitation, Chu Tianxiu met its gaze. "If you mean the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, then yes, I did." Internally, he was already communicating with the system, ready to activate its protection at a moment's notice.
Unexpectedly, the Evil God's phantom let out a low, grating laugh. "Bold. To face me without fear. You do not even know who I am, do you?"
Before it could continue its theatrics, Chu Tianxiu preempted it. "Aren't you just a fragment of the Evil God's will?"
Hearing his identity revealed so casually, the phantom's face showed a flash of surprise before settling back into cold arrogance. It decided to drop the pretense. "Since you know, I will be direct. I offer you two choices: First, allow my power to fully corrupt you, making you my new vessel. Second, I will shatter your mindscape now, leaving you a vacant shell."
"I choose neither," Chu Tianxiu stated flatly.
Enraged by the defiance, the Evil God unleashed a devastating spiritual attack with its right hand, a blow that would have instantly obliterated Chu Tianxiu's consciousness.
At the critical moment, a colossal, translucent hand materialized, intercepting the attack with effortless ease. The hand didn't dissipate but instead closed around the Evil God's phantom, holding it fast despite its frantic struggles.
The hand brought the captured deity before Chu Tianxiu. Feeling the immense, unfathomable power constraining it, the Evil God struggled to speak. "You... you have the protection of a God King!"
Chu Tianxiu didn't correct the misconception. He looked at the trapped deity with a mocking expression. "Now, I will give you two choices. First, allow me to fully refine the power within this black bead, and I will spare your divine fragment. If you cooperate, I may even find you a suitable successor in the future. Second, I will have this 'God King's' power annihilate your will right now."
The Evil God was trapped in a terrible dilemma, unable to respond for a long moment. Seeing its hesitation, Chu Tianxiu decided to apply more pressure.
"As expected of a god, your spirit is unyielding. Very well, annihilate it." As soon as he finished speaking, the giant hand tightened its grip.
Feeling his divine will beginning to fracture, the phantom hastily cried out, "I choose the first! I choose the first!"
The hand loosened its grip slightly. Having escaped immediate destruction, the Evil God dared not play any more tricks. It began drawing the corrosive, negative power out from the black bead.
Satisfied, Chu Tianxiu began absorbing the purified energy. Gradually, a dark, potent power enveloped his body, soon forming a large black cocoon that completely encased him.
...
A long while later, the giant black cocoon began to tremble. Cracks appeared, and a bestial paw, entirely gray with black stripes, shattered the shell from within. Chu Tianxiu emerged. His appearance had changed dramatically; he had grown to nearly 1.8 meters tall, with spectral wings on his back and a long, gleaming scorpion tail. A king-shaped black stripe marked his forehead.
But as he willed the transformation to recede, the characteristics of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger slowly faded, and he quickly returned to his normal appearance.
Once back to normal, he summoned the soul imprint of the Nine Nether Demon Chains. The chains appeared, but now, alongside the three solid chains of ice, fire, and earth, six new, semi-transparent, illusory chains hovered around them.
These illusory chains were manifestations of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's six attributes: space, time, darkness, evil, wind, and thunder. As Chu Tianxiu's soul power grew, these chains would gradually solidify into fully realized weapons.
Satisfied, he withdrew his martial soul, changed into fresh clothes, and opened the door to leave.
He planned to spend some time recuperating at the Spirit Hall, enjoying the peaceful moments with his master and his junior sister. The deeper mysteries of the Evil God's power could wait. For now, it was enough to have safely secured this new, formidable strength.