Emerald light swirled back into place. The tempering was complete.
Next came the right leg bone.
A surge of dark purple power erupted, and a berserk aura of destruction rampaged through the seams of his bones, like a trapped dragon breaking free and thrashing wildly against his body.
The pain was far more intense than before. It wasn't tearing him apart; it was devouring and crushing him, then slowly reshaping his bones.
Xu Yanli grunted. The veins in his forehead bulged, and cold sweat slid down his cheeks. He gritted his teeth and held on, refusing to lose consciousness for even an instant.
The moment the right leg Soul Bone was detached, insight into the world flooded his mind.
He finally understood the true meaning of destruction.
Destruction was never about slaughter and ruin, never about merciless erasure.
Withered leaves fell so new shoots could grow; old cities crumbled so new ones could rise; corrupt dynasties fell so the people could live in peace again.
Destruction had always been the beginning of rebirth.
Dark purple radiance returned to its place, perfectly forged.
All seven Soul Bones transformed into armor and returned to their places.
Xu Yanli was drenched in sweat. He gasped for breath, but his eyes gleamed with a terrifying brightness.
In the next instant, all seven divine armors burst into light at once.
Emerald at his left leg, chaos at his right, dark purple at his left arm, pitch-black at his right, icy blue across his torso, and a mixture of white and gray at his head.
Six divine hues circulated through his body, connecting his limbs to his torso, and his torso to his head, continuously merging and intertwining.
Life, Destruction, and Judgment—three forces as opposed to one another as could be—balanced and coexisted within him, forming