An Element Core representing the elemental Dao principles and constantly leaking World Authority, a faint remnant soul, and the faint, lingering aura of immortal cultivation Daoist laws in the surroundings.
This Daoist aura was extremely faint; had Chen Xu not recently visited the Immortal-Yokai Minor Realm, been present on the battlefield, and personally sensed a vast amount of immortal cultivation aura, he wouldn't have been able to identify it immediately.
This scene forced Chen Xu to suspect that this World Lord of the Elemental Spirit Realm had made the same choice as the former Lord of the Undead.
Severing the Corpse Method, severing the Dao principles, and severing the Authority.
And the outcome was exactly the same as that of the former Lord of the Undead.
The Dao principles and Authority were successfully severed, becoming independent entities, but the practitioner had "severed" themselves out of existence.
One had to admit that the Hunyuan Dao Lord really had some skill; two rulers of special worlds had been done in by the Severing the Corpse Method he created. Only the Mother of Hell had seemingly escaped this fate, likely with the help of that Great Sage.
However, Chen Xu was very puzzled. How many years had passed since the Lord of the Undead had committed suicide?
Although the Element Overlord couldn't leave the Elemental Spirit Realm, the Element Monarchs and Element Lords under his command were unaffected. They could travel to the outside world through summoning magic and bring back news.
After so much time, Chen Xu didn't believe the Element Overlord was unaware of the Lord of the Undead's tragic end or the issues with the Severing the Corpse Method.
Unless someone had intentionally blocked all information regarding the elements.
Chen Xu couldn't figure it out, but if he couldn't, he wouldn't dwell on it; he could just ask the Element Overlord directly.
Since this was the level of the world's Dao principles, this remnant soul was exceptionally resilient, retaining a sliver of vitality and refusing to dissipate.
Thus, Chen Xu planned to read the remnant soul while it was still "fresh" to see if he could extract the information he wanted.
Chen Xu grabbed the remnant soul and slowly absorbed it into his body.
In the next second, a sense of profound regret flooded Chen Xu's mind.
But Chen Xu was no longer a novice; refining souls was a path he had long since mastered, even if the remnant soul belonged to a Unique-tier being.
With a thought, Chen Xu released a soul wave of a specific frequency, sweeping away the regret and all other negative emotions, leaving only the useful memories.
Before long, Chen Xu had completely refined the remnant soul. His soul strength, which hadn't increased in a long time, actually grew a fraction stronger.
The remnant soul contained nearly a hundred years of memories, and the memories from just before the Element Overlord's death were particularly vivid.
After reading the Element Overlord's memories, Chen Xu raised an eyebrow, feeling a mix of helplessness and amusement.
"No way... This actually has something to do with me?"
At some point, the Element Overlord had actually resigned himself to his fate. He had accepted the tragic reality that he could never leave the Elemental Spirit Realm and stopped seeking other methods.
Since elemental summoning magic had already spread, elements were being summoned to the outside world almost every moment, bringing back news to their master.
In this way, the Element Overlord could be considered a participant in the workings of the Myriad Worlds, even if only as a one-way receiver of information.
Such a life was far better than the total isolation he had endured before.
The Severing the Corpse Method had been a "gift" brought back by a certain Element Lord.
Knowing the fate of his "Undead brother," the Element Overlord naturally didn't fall for it. Although he studied this Daoist method of transcendence day and night, he never intended to put it into practice.
Life continued peacefully and harmoniously until recently, when a Sea Element Monarch brought him some bad news.
Heaven and the Land of the Undead had allied, and Hell was being beaten into a steady retreat by their joint forces.
This news caused the long-dormant Element Overlord to lose his composure instantly.
Elements could bring him news from the Myriad Worlds, so he was aware of the standoff between Heaven and Hell.
He also knew that the Land of the Undead had recently re-emerged and that the new Lord of the Undead was acting very high-profile.
He even knew about the cooperation between Heaven and the Undead, but he assumed it was merely Heaven providing some benefits to the Undead in exchange for promotional gains.
After all, the Lord of Heaven had created such a massive Heavenly Pantheon; his need for faith was a bottomless pit.
"Even the evil Undead have been touched by the Holy Light"—what a fantastic selling point.
So, at first, the Element Overlord only viewed it as a superficial cooperation that wouldn't lead to anything substantial.
His "elemental brain" couldn't imagine a scene where angels and skeletons fought side-by-side. Even water and fire elements would nearly tear each other apart if they stayed together; Saint Light and the Undead were even more extreme opposites than water and fire, so it was no wonder he didn't believe it.
However, the news brought by the Sea Element Monarch Ousheng personally confirmed that Heaven and the Undead weren't just cooperating superficially; they had truly allied.
They deployed troops together, killed demons together, and suppressed Hell together.
This situation made the Element Overlord panic.
Because not long ago, he had heard that something had happened in the Sea of Spirit. He wasn't sure of the specifics, only that the Sea of Spirit had fallen into the hands of the Lord of Heaven.
In the eyes of this shut-in from the ancient era, Heaven and the Undead were turning on their own kind. They wanted to use their fellow special worlds to achieve some unknown objective.
So, the Element Overlord panicked. This high-and-mighty Unique-tier being, the ruler of the Elemental Spirit Realm, was terrified.
Even though he was within the Elemental Spirit Realm and held the World Authority, he was still afraid.
The past feat of the Mother of Hell taking on multiple Dao Lords alone and forcing them back had made the Element Overlord believe he was equally invincible.
But the fall of the Sea of Spirit left him lost. He believed that Heaven and the Undead had found a way to conquer special worlds.
The Sea of Spirit was the first attempt, Hell was the next target, and after that, it would be his Elemental Spirit Realm and the Blank Zone.
The Element Overlord suffered from his imprisonment; he didn't know the truth about the Sea of Spirit. The elements' information channels couldn't provide him with such high-level secrets.
After all, the Lord of Heaven didn't need to summon elements to fight for him, and the Mother of Hell was the same.
After his meeting with Ousheng ended, the Element Overlord fell into a cycle of internal struggle.
Should he continue to play the turtle and ignore this news, or should he take one last gamble? Should he try to break out of his cage and fight for his freedom and himself once more, just as he had chosen to follow the advice of that astral behemoth and participate in the special world ritual all those years ago?
The Element Overlord's choice was obvious: he took out that Severing the Corpse Method.
The result was the brilliant Element Core in Chen Xu's left hand and the remnant soul he had just absorbed.
Chen Xu closed his fingers, firmly gripping the core that represented the authority of the Elemental Spirit Realm. His mental strength spread out and entered it directly.
Instantly, explosive elemental Dao principles flowed out, following his mental strength and pouring into Chen Xu's soul.
At the same time, a vast amount of world power flooded into Chen Xu's body, continuously remodeling and strengthening his physical form and soul.
This scene was exactly like when Chen Xu had obtained the Supreme Throne of the Land of the Undead.
Elemental energy erupted continuously. Chen Xu's hair was the first to change—red, blue, brown, gold, and even green. Different colors climbed onto his head simultaneously, washing away the original black.
But soon, the elemental tide receded. The necrotic Dao principles began to take effect, helping Chen Xu balance out the explosive elemental Dao principles.
The colors on his head slowly returned to black, and his aura retracted once more.
Chen Xu exhaled, feeling the immense power within him and the thick elemental Dao principles. The corners of his mouth curled up uncontrollably.
"Skyrocketing!"
Rate on N.U.
