Death God Douluo, Ye Xishui

At Feiyan's words, flames of fury instantly ignited in her scarlet eyes. As the Holy Spirit Cult's Third Consecrator, who dared look down on her like this?

The terrifying fluctuations of Soul Power around her were just about to erupt when she suddenly froze.

This voice... why did it sound so familiar?

A fear born of instinct flooded over her like icy water, instantly extinguishing her boiling killing intent.

She turned her gaze with difficulty toward the source of the voice—only to see that, at some unknown point, an incomparably beautiful and graceful figure had silently appeared before Castorice.

The woman wore a simple black gown. Her beauty was peerless, yet her aura was as unfathomable as an abyss. Merely standing there, she seemed to swallow the surrounding light, and even space faintly warped around her.

The instant Feiyan saw her face clearly, fine cold sweat broke out across her forehead. Her petite body even began trembling uncontrollably.

Almost by reflex, she bowed deeply, her voice carrying unprecedented reverence and terror.

"Greetings, Supreme Cult Leader!"

The trembling Holy Spirit Cult members nearby also dropped to their knees one after another, heads lowered in utmost respect.

The newcomer was none other than one of the Holy Spirit Cult's towering pillars and true rulers: the Rank 99 Limit Douluo, the Death God Douluo, Ye Xishui.

Ye Xishui did not even spare Feiyan, still bent at the waist, a glance. Her deep eyes were fixed on Castorice, who was barely standing and still had a trace of blood at the corner of her lips, with an almost gentle scrutiny.

"Child."

Ye Xishui's voice became much softer, utterly different from the soul-shaking majesty from before.

"Tell me, are you willing to take me as your master?"

From Feiyan's deeply respectful form of address and attitude, Castorice instantly understood the identity of the beautiful woman before her.

The Holy Spirit Cult's supreme Supreme Cult Leader, a Limit Douluo standing at the pinnacle of the continent.

Her heart thudded violently in her chest.

Castorice's thoughts raced at lightning speed.

Becoming an Evil Soul Master was never what she wanted, and entering this filthy, dark nest was simply the worst luck imaginable.

But she understood even more clearly what kind of unrefusable will lay behind Ye Xishui's seemingly gentle question.

She might appear amiable now, but if Castorice dared utter even half a word of refusal, her fate would surely be ten thousand times worse than becoming nourishment for an Evil Soul Master.

As far as she knew, the Death God Douluo's temperament had long since transcended ordinary measure. Her current favor was nothing more than an interest in Castorice's talent and that terrifying constitution that killed upon contact.

The wise submitted to the times.

No matter the world, that principle was an iron law of survival.

Even if she became an Evil Soul Master, she did not necessarily have to follow that bloody, cruel path of cultivation, using the souls and flesh of living people as sustenance.

She had her own bottom line, as well as something to rely on—the existence of Ronova, the Archon of Death, and the authority over death represented by Castorice herself. Perhaps they could allow her to forge a different path.

More importantly, the Holy Spirit Cult's influence was deeply entrenched across the continent, with countless powerful experts under its command.

If she could establish herself here as Castorice, or even attain a high position, then she might provide unexpected assistance and intelligence to Yin Chen's true body, who was far away in the Star Luo Empire, of low status, and almost entirely without backing.

After all, aside from seemingly astonishing talent, Yin Chen's true body had almost nothing.

And a genius only deserved to be called a genius if he lived long enough to grow.

All the calculations were completed in an instant.

Castorice raised her pale little face and met Ye Xishui's unfathomable gaze with her amethyst-like eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, she endured the pain caused by the impact within her body and answered respectfully.

"This disciple, Castorice, is willing to take the Supreme Cult Leader as her master."

She bent her knees, preparing to perform the ceremony of becoming a disciple before Ye Xishui.

Seeing Castorice's decisive manner, a genuinely pleased smile appeared on Ye Xishui's peerlessly beautiful face.

She gently raised a hand, and a soft yet irresistible force supported Castorice's descending body.

"Very good."

Ye Xishui's voice was filled with satisfaction.

"From this day onward, you are my final disciple, Ye Xishui's disciple."

Her gaze swept over Feiyan, who still remained bowed and barely dared breathe, as well as the trembling Evil Soul Masters around them. She said blandly, "You may all leave. Feiyan, I took your disciple. You have no objections, do you?"

"Feiyan would never dare."

Feiyan hurriedly lowered her head. How could she dare harbor any resentment? Between a disciple and her life, she knew perfectly well which mattered more.

Ye Xishui said nothing further and gently took Castorice's small hand. She had clearly prepared for this; a faint halo surrounded her pale fingertips, cleverly blocking the terrifying erosion of death.

Clearly, she had seen Feiyan's earlier embarrassment perfectly well and knew to avoid physical contact with Castorice.

Though she was somewhat curious about Castorice's unusual constitution, even if she wanted to test it, it would have to be when no one else was around. If something went wrong, where would her dignity as Supreme Cult Leader be?

"Come with your master."

As the words fell, their figures blurred like Gui Mei. In the next moment, they vanished from where they stood, leaving behind a group of lingeringly terrified Evil Soul Masters and a conflicted Feiyan, unable to calm down for a long while.

Ye Xishui held Castorice's hand and took one step forward. The scenery around them twisted and shifted like rippling water.

The oppressive dark-green hues of the Evil Demon Forest were gone, replaced by a broad yet gloomy passageway that stretched endlessly downward.

Ghostfire stones embedded in the walls emitted dim green or ghastly white light, illuminating the road ahead like the path to the underworld's Yellow Springs.

The air was thick with the scent of blood, the bitterness of medicinal herbs, and faint ripples of resentment, as though countless souls were sobbing softly, sending chills down one's spine.

Along the way, they occasionally encountered Evil Soul Masters in black robes. The instant they saw Ye Xishui, every one of them froze as though encased in ice, bowing their heads deeply and even breathing carefully. Only long after the two had passed did they dare move slightly.

They passed beneath an archway piled from ghastly white bones, crossed trenches filled with dark-red viscous liquid, and finally arrived at an immense underground expanse.

This place resembled an inverted city of demons. Countless bizarre buildings, primarily constructed from obsidian and bones, stood in orderly rows. At the center, a towering black hall loomed like a dormant beast, radiating a pressure that made hearts tremble.

This was the Holy Spirit Cult's true core—its underground headquarters, Nether City.

Ye Xishui did not linger and directly led Castorice into the most magnificent black hall.

The hall's interior was exceedingly vast, with a lofty dome overhead painted with enormous murals depicting death, slaughter, and dark rituals.

On either side stood rows of Evil Soul Masters in varying forms, all possessing powerful, sinister auras. At the far end of the hall, upon a throne carved from an intact earth dragon skull, sat a sinister-looking middle-aged man in a dark-golden robe. Beside him stood a woman dressed in black, alluring in appearance but sharp-eyed.