Chen Zhou carefully observed the reaction of the black spots while controlling the intensity of the Hatred Fire.
It was as he had expected.
Upon contact with the Hatred Fire, the black spots did not simply yield like ordinary flesh. Instead, they writhed frantically, attempting to extinguish the flames.
The two forces clashed violently, cancelling each other out.
While this method could clear the corruption, its efficiency was far too low, and it caused excessive damage to the host.
Judging by the way Chiwei looked—on the verge of fainting from the agony—any more burning would likely result in the fish tail being cooked well before the black spots were fully removed.
Chen Zhou withdrew the Hatred Fire.
Chiwei’s entire body went limp, and he nearly collapsed. He gasped for breath, his eyes glazed and unfocused.
"Can you still go on?" Chen Zhou asked.
"I can... absolutely!"
Chiwei jolted awake, forcing a strained smile.
"Great One, please continue!"
He was certainly a resilient man.
Chen Zhou nodded and released Withering Venom.
This was power condensed from the divinity of venom, a tier higher than the broken divinity of resentment.
As the toxin entered his body, Chiwei’s frame stiffened violently.
If the previous sensation was the agony of boiling oil, this was now the sensation of ten thousand ants devouring his heart.
The lethal poison coursed through his meridians. Everywhere it passed, vitality withered, but it simultaneously enveloped those black spots clinging deep within the flesh.
The divinity of the venom steadily suppressed the black spots.
With layers of venom stacking up, the speed at which the black spots receded was significantly faster than before.
However, it still wasn't fast enough.
At this rate, completely clearing the black spots from Chiwei’s entire body would take at least several days and nights.
Moreover, the damage the venom inflicted on the body was immense; even if cured, the general would likely be half-crippled.
Chen Zhou shook his head and withdrew his power once more.
Looking at Chiwei, who was now rolling his eyes and drooling from the pain, Chen Zhou felt a slight pang of guilt.
"One last try."
Chen Zhou took a deep breath and opened his Ghost Domain.
A greyish-white aura instantly shrouded Chiwei’s lower body.
This was the power belonging to the divinity of filth.
It was also the most complete divinity Chen Zhou currently possessed.
Within the Ghost Domain, everything was under his control.
With a mere thought, the greyish-white defiled earth covered Chiwei’s lower half. Like a steel blade scraping bone, it instantly peeled away large swaths of scales and meat.
The scene was somewhat bloody, causing the surrounding sea demons to watch with racing hearts.
A complete divinity naturally had no trouble suppressing black spots that were equivalent to a broken divinity. As the flesh was scraped away, the black spots were stripped off with it.
The black spots struggled to reform, but they were directly crushed by the divinity of filth. Bony hands reached out, dragging them down to be completely buried within the defiled earth.
The results were immediate.
In just a few breaths, the black spots on Chiwei’s tail were almost entirely cleared away.
Though it looked gory—with a whole layer of flesh missing—the exposed wounds were a healthy, vibrant red.
The experiment was complete.
Chen Zhou retracted his Ghost Domain and slowly stood up.
He glanced at Chiwei on the ground.
The man’s face was deathly pale from the pain. He had bitten his own lips raw, and blood trickled down his chin.
Yet, he hadn't made a single sound throughout the entire process.
Even during that final moment of scraping, he had kept his eyes wide, maintaining his kneeling posture without flinching in the slightest.
He was a ruthless man.
And a loyal servant.
"You did well."
Chen Zhou offered a rare word of praise.
At this moment, Chiwei only felt a fine, dense throbbing at his wounds, so intense he had become somewhat numb.
But that didn't matter. What mattered was that the aura of the black spots—which had deprived him of peace day and night and made him feel as if he were constantly on the verge of madness—had actually vanished!
That long-lost sense of relief made him want to howl at the heavens.
"Great One..."
Chiwei climbed up from the ground, transforming his blood-mangled fish tail into a pair of legs.
Thud!
He knelt heavily once again. "Thank you, Dragon Ancestor, for the grace of rebirth!"
Chiwei was moved to tears, his voice choked with emotion.
He had thought this life was over for him.
Once the black spots entered the body, madness would eventually take the mind. He had expected to become a mindless monster and be cut down by his own comrades, or to die on the battlefield, shedding his last drop of blood for the Eastern Region.
That would have been the best end for him as a garrison general.
But he never expected this.
That before his death, he would be summoned by the legendary Dragon Ancestor.
This was something all sea demons dared not even dream of; it was the greatest honor of his life.
The Dragon Ancestor had recognized his achievements and his bravery.
He had even gone so far as to expend divine power to personally scrape away the poison for him.
He actually had hope to live on. He could continue to serve the Dragon Ancestor and the Eastern Region with a clear mind.
"Great One, that you personally scraped away this rotten flesh and these foul scales is a blessing I could not have earned in ten lifetimes!"
"From the day the black spots invaded, this life of mine was already a wretched thing destined for the gutters."
"Enduring agony day and night, my mind drifting into madness... I was not afraid of death. I only feared eventually turning into a mindless sea beast that would turn on my brothers and defile the Eastern Sea."
"But now that the black spots are gone, though my bones and muscles ache, I feel as if I have been born anew!"
"Great One! I am willing to use this body to be reforged into the sharpest scale-armor and the most loyal fang in your service!"
"I would die ten thousand deaths without hesitation!"
Chiwei’s spirit was more relaxed than it had ever been.
He buried his head deep into the silt, unwilling to lift it for a long time.
The surrounding sea demons, including the Sea Emperor and Cang Che, were also filled with shock.
He was truly cured?
The black spots that had plagued them for a thousand years were solved so easily by the Dragon Ancestor?
Though the process looked somewhat brutal, the results were undeniable!
A miracle!
This was a true miracle!
The Sea Emperor was so moved that old tears streamed down his face. He felt as if the hope for the Eastern Region’s revival was right before his eyes.
Chen Zhou remained indifferent as he looked at the fanatical crowd.
"Rise."
"Since you are willing to bear a body full of scars, you have not failed the blood within your chest."
"The tribulation of the Eastern Sea is like turbid waves; it is also a sifting of the sand."
"Through this battle, the true gold has revealed itself. You have passed the test."
With that, Chen Zhou took out a fifth-stage Flesh-Reconstitution Pill.
Fifth-stage pills were nothing rare to him, but for the current Chiwei, it was a divine medicine that could bolster the foundation, nurture the origin, and cause flesh to regrow rapidly.
"This pill can solidify your foundation and regrow your flesh. Do not engage in combat for three days; live well."
"Go. Tell your comrades, tell every soul in this sea that is still resisting."
Chen Zhou’s voice became distant, resonating with the tides of the vast Eastern Sea.
"The Dragon has never forgotten its sea."
"To all the myriad spirits of this domain: those whose hearts yearn for the azure sea and whose blood has not yet grown cold, you may all return home."
Chiwei’s entire body shook as if an ancient war song had exploded within his bloodline.
"I obey the Dragon Ancestor’s decree!"
He roared, suppressing the lingering attachment brought by his bloodline. He stood up resolutely and retreated.
He was going to carry out the Great One’s command.
Even if he had to stake this life he had just regained, he would make the defenses of the Endless Sea as solid as iron.
"All soldiers, hear my command!"
"The Dragon Ancestor bears witness! From this day forth, wherever the dragon might reaches, that shall be our sea territory!"
"Follow me to cleanse the filth and reclaim our mountains and rivers for our Ancestor!!!"
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