A Demon Neither Thing nor Soul, Born of Thought

Unlike Mortal Realm beings with flesh and blood, ghosts and demons are beings whose physical bodies have been destroyed, leaving only remnants of their souls. Due to the various emotions they experienced in life, they are unable to dissipate and enter the underworld, thus forming a collection of their thoughts.

Heart Demon infiltrates a ghost's body, it actually infiltrates the ghost's consciousness and thoughts, moving with its every thought, as if becoming a thought itself, incorporating the ghost's thinking and reasoning, and thus exerting influence.

Therefore, although the Penniless Hungry Ghost noticed the abnormality in his consciousness and wanted to eradicate it, the Heart Demon directly affected his consciousness. Before he could even change his mind, a fierce wind howled and a foul stench rushed towards him!

With this charge, the Penniless Ghost was sent flying backward. His anger intensified, his mind went blank, and with a howl, he sent copper coins flying as he charged out!

Boom!

The two demons were locked in a fierce battle!

The Underworld Main Hall immediately began to shake, with a series of explosions echoing throughout.

The bronze Copper Furnace, no longer controlled by the two ghosts, continued to burn, relentlessly absorbing the People's Wishes.

However, as time went by, the lingering Three Defilements Qi surrounding the stove diminished...

Call!

As the People's Wishes were poured in, the flames at the furnace mouth grew even stronger, like a fire dragon rising nearly ten zhang (approximately 33 meters) high, already approaching the top of the main hall, and the temperature inside the entire hall continued to rise.

Correspondingly, the solidification and suppression power emanating from the Copper Furnace became increasingly apparent. This power was originally only meant to suppress and solidify the People's Wishes and the various deities, but now that the flames were rising and there was no external force controlling it, it erupted unrestrainedly and quickly spread throughout the entire hall!

The heat surged so much that it even distorted the view inside the main hall!

Finally!

The Three Defilements Qi were almost depleted, and the flames broke free from their restraints and erupted!

In an instant, the entire hall shook violently, and the suppressive force swept across the sky, even suppressing the two demons that were fighting!

Bang! Bang!

With two consecutive thuds, the ghosts landed on the ground as if they were real objects. The force of suppression seeped into their bodies with each impact, isolating the Heart Demon thoughts that were swirling in their minds, and instantly restoring the two mindless ghosts to their senses.

"Not good!"

Once the two ghosts regained consciousness and noticed their surroundings, they immediately realized something was wrong.

Just then, wisps of black smoke drifted out from the two ghosts, condensing into a face in mid-air.

The face was so lifelike, with a faint glint of light in its eyes, it was incredibly vivid. Then, its gaze shifted and landed on the two ghostly figures.

Upon seeing this, both ghosts were startled, with the Wind-Eating Ghost exclaiming in surprise, "Has this Heart Demon gained independent consciousness? Has it become Demon Head?"

Surprised, the two ghosts began to adjust their thinking, rekindling their resolve to contact the World-Troubling Copper Furnace.

In mid-air, within the face formed by the black smoke, a tiny Black Hole was slowly taking shape, and Qiu Yan's consciousness was also expanding and stabilizing.

"Finally! The Mystic Hair have dissolved, refining this Heart Demon and creating my third avatar! I never imagined the structure of Heart Demon would be so wondrous; it's neither a physical object nor a soul, but rather almost a concept. No wonder I could only connect with it through the Mystic Hair and barely control it before."

The origin of this Heart Demon is quite complicated; it was acquired by Qiu Yan when he entered Third Young Master Pan's dream.

The young master of the Pan Household was taught a Supreme Demon-Luring Art by Tang Lai. This technique was originally meant for cultivators to summon Outer Demon to strengthen their hearts and transform their realm. However, it was passed on to an ordinary person, causing Heart Demon to reside in his consciousness. Ultimately, when Qiu Yan entered his dream, it seeped into Qiu Yan's consciousness.

But Qiu Yan quickly noticed the signs, saw through the trick, and extracted the Heart Demon from Tang Lai. He then turned the tables on her, deceiving her instead.

Just then, Yin Xiao'e mentioned the matter of the Demon Mark, and Qiu Yan suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He decided to refine the Heart Demon into a second clone, so he separated a second Mystic Hair and sent it deep into the Heart Demon.

However, Heart Demon are different from ordinary things. They are elusive and uncertain, and are full of negative emotions and strange thoughts. Even Mystic Hair can penetrate them, and they cannot be eliminated in one fell swoop like a scholar's clone. They can only be eliminated slowly and gradually, without being disturbed or affected by negative emotions. They can only be completely refined when Heart Demon finally connect with each other.

Previously, when Qiu Yan fought against Shi Jianhui, Tang Lai and others, he used his Heart Demon, but he did not completely refine them. He only controlled the shadows of the Heart Demon with Mystic Hair, so he was not flexible. Many times, his opponents would notice the clues if they paid a little attention.

"Previously, when facing enemies and using Heart Demon, I could only hide in advance or launch a simple attack. Now that I have completely refined them and made them my second avatar, I realize that the mysteries within are far beyond my imagination. Not only is the form of its existence peculiar, but it is also difficult to extinguish. As long as there is a gap in the thoughts of the surrounding living beings, it can take the opportunity to sneak in. Even if it is dispersed, as long as a tiny bit remains, it can slowly recover by infecting thoughts."

Thinking of this, Qiu Yan had a thought and sensed the tiny Black Hole forming within his Heart Demon Clone.

This Black Hole, like the one within the deity's true form and the scholar's avatar, is a wondrous passage connecting them, though it is not yet fully formed.

As he pondered, his senses enveloped the two ghostly figures.

"Speaking of which, it's all thanks to those two ghosts. They suppressed the Heart Demon, freezing the emotions and thoughts within, making them unable to move. This allowed the Mystic Hair to scatter and spread throughout, accelerating the refining process. Otherwise, I don't know how long it would have taken to truly succeed. However, now that the furnace fire is rising, it's difficult for it to further corrupt the two ghosts' minds. This furnace fire..."

As Qiu Yan's thoughts raced, the Heart Demon demons spread, and his attention shifted to the Copper Furnace.

"The changes in both the Yuan Ning and Yang realms of Yin-Yang were caused by this Copper Furnace. To quell the unrest, the ghosts must not be allowed to regain control of it. However, the Underworld Office is deep underground, and the scholar's avatar cannot come here. We must use other methods. This furnace, of unknown origin, can even refine thoughts into fire. The People's Wishes and the gods of the Underworld Office are suppressed by the fire within the furnace..."

As Qiu Yan pondered this, he simultaneously focused his thoughts on stabilizing the Black Hole within his Heart Demon Clone. But just then, a surging aura suddenly emanated from above, domineering and violent!

"It's that madman!"

The two ghosts' expressions changed drastically as soon as they sensed this aura, realizing something was wrong.

"Things have come to this, we have no choice but to fight!"

The two ghostly thoughts trembled, bursting forth with unwavering will, which was transmitted to the Copper Furnace. The Copper Furnace shook, and the fire inside exploded and scattered with a "bang"!

Whew! Whew! Whew!

Sparks scattered, surging like rain, affecting the shadow of his Heart Demon. Qiu Yan felt excruciating pain as the part of his shadow that was touched by the flames evaporated instantly!

"Such domineering power! Hmm?"

In a daze, Qiu Yan saw figures and pavilions in the flames, as if a world was operating inside. Suddenly, he recalled the scene of the furnace swallowing up the People's Wishes, and a guess arose in his mind.

"Could it be that there really is a monster in this furnace? And a large part of the fire's components are made up of the People's Wishes! No wonder the two ghosts said that with this furnace, they could bypass the Netherworld Underworld Office be reborn! If that's really the case, the significance of this furnace is immense. Not to mention resurrecting ghosts, it would have extraordinary significance even for the original body, and might even allow one to advance to the Fourth Grade rank ahead of time!"

Qiu Yan's true form, as a deity, has already taken charge of a region and has developed ideas about the future of the Divine Path, which he has begun to accumulate. However, if he could obtain this furnace, he could save at least a few years or even a dozen years of effort, which is very attractive to Qiu Yan, who is racing against time.

"However, a common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime. Holding such a treasure in one's hands is a hot potato; one must carefully consider the consequences."

With this thought in mind, the shadow of his Heart Demon surged forward, shifting and moving among the scattered sparks, flying swiftly toward the Copper Furnace!

On the other side, flames scattered and landed on the two ghosts, scorching their bodies and thoughts. They immediately howled, but also used this to break free from their restraints. Then, disregarding everything else, they also rushed towards the World-Troubling Copper Furnace.

Then, the main hall shook, and a person fell from the cracked roof. This person had a leopard's head and round eyes, and his whole body was wrapped in golden light. He was majestic and had a terrifying aura.

As soon as the burly man entered the hall, his gaze swept across the room. He first saw the shadow of his Heart Demon, and his face showed astonishment. Then he discovered two ghostly figures, and his anger surged. Finally, his gaze fell on the Copper Furnace, and his eyes widened in shock.

"This is..."

At that moment, the two ghosts and the Heart Demon rushed to the fireplace.

"This Heart Demon must have developed its own consciousness! But we can't worry about that now. The plan has already failed, but as long as we protect the World-Troubling Copper Furnace, it won't be a complete failure!"

The two ghosts glanced at the Heart Demon, then their ghostly hands moved, forming Method Formula. Their thoughts connected with the Copper Furnace, attempting to forcibly control Copper Furnace. However, the Copper Furnace was so hot that a flicker of firelight from its opening burned and absorbed the two ghosts' thoughts!

"What's going on?!"

The two ghosts let out a miserable cry, their ghostly forms constantly regrouping and dispersing!

"Fool! Though I know not the origin of this Copper Furnace, its dormant spirituality is awakening. How can the aura of the Netherworld restrain it?" Behind him, the burly man who had just landed shook his head, then raised his hand and drew a whip. "To see this is fate. I'll take it and bring it back to the Spirit-Sealing Dao to enrich the Treasure Pagoda!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the whip extended outwards, shimmering with golden light, conveying an image of lashing out at all things, pointing directly at the Copper Furnace!

But before the whip could even reach its destination, the Heart Demon shadow by the furnace suddenly trembled, twisting into a human shape. The Black Hole within had already taken shape and stabilized, and a bit of compressed divine power flowed out.

Immediately afterwards, the Heart Demon figure raised its hand and formed a hand seal.

God Summoning!

Wow!

Divine power unfolded, transforming into a green curtain from which a deity emerged.

The true deity!

The unexpected turn of events surprised not only the two ghosts but also the burly man.

Then, both ghosts and one person muttered to themselves, "Foolish!"

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, the effect of the World-Troubling Copper Furnace suppressing his will erupted, and the body of the deity suddenly stiffened, showing a tendency to solidify, as if he were about to follow in the footsteps of the gods!

In the blink of an eye, the Core Talisman Humanistic Fire Seed the main body vibrated, and a flame shot out from the flame emblem on the forehead.

Boom!

As soon as the flame appeared, the scattered sparks throughout the hall instantly flowed back, converging like weary birds returning to their nests! (To be continued...)

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