Chapter 761: Claiming Kinship and Building Connections

Chapter 761: Chapter 746: Claiming Kinship and Building Connections

Few people knew of the connection between the War Emperor and the Thousand Soul Hall.

And Ghost Venerable Ye Youming, who had been sealed in the Hungry Ghost Dao since before the War Emperor was even born, certainly knew even less.

It was precisely because the War Emperor had studied the Thousand Soul Hall’s various Cultivation Techniques and Restrictions that Zhuge Xian’Er was saved.

Back when Zhuge Xian’Er was afflicted by the Black Crow Witchcraft, Shen Lang discovered while expelling the poison that someone had used it to place the Thousand Soul Hall’s “Heaven and Earth Seal” Restriction on her.

At the time, Shen Lang had told Zhuge Xian’Er, “The Heaven and Earth Seal is one of the legendary nine ‘Divine Prohibitions,’ a secret of the Thousand Soul Hall that is never taught to outsiders. Its stealth and complexity far surpass ordinary Restrictions. It’s a completely invisible and utterly vicious method of killing.”

It was something the Thousand Soul Hall explicitly forbade the use of; this malicious Restriction was absolutely not to be deployed unless there was no other choice…

If the War Emperor hadn’t also specialized in this Heaven and Earth Seal Restriction, then even if Shen Lang could use the Tai Chi Diagram to absorb the Black Crow Witchcraft, breaking that terrifying Restriction would have been next to impossible.

To prove his special connection to the Thousand Soul Hall, Shen Lang had no choice but to demonstrate the Thousand Soul Hall Secret Skills he had learned to Ye Youming.

As Shen Lang chanted the Heart Method of the “Soul-Devouring Infinite Technique” and, with some difficulty, executed the Secret Skill of the Ghost Emperor, the master of the Thousand Soul Hall, Ye Youming was instantly stunned.

Although Shen Lang’s current execution of the Soul-Devouring Infinite Technique was like a child playing house, its power was abysmally weak…

So weak that he probably couldn’t even handle one or two minor ghosts at the King Martial Realm…

But with Ye Youming’s experience, power, and understanding of the Ghost Emperor’s Secret Skill, seeing the Cultivation Technique Shen Lang performed and hearing the profound, inscrutable, yet complete Heart Method he chanted, how could he not understand… This was the genuine, unadulterated Soul-Devouring Infinite Technique!

A moment later, Shen Lang withdrew his power, panting slightly. Before Ye Youming could speak, he immediately began demonstrating the Secret Skills of the three great Ghost Venerables one by one.

When he got to Ye Youming’s own Secret Skill, the “Ten Directions Demon Prison,” Ye Youming could no longer hold back…

The void trembled, and an old man’s face manifested in the air, immediately starting to curse, “Goddammit, either don’t learn the Thousand Soul Hall’s Cultivation Techniques at all, or don’t be so pathetic after you’ve learned them! Are you trying to drag our reputation into the pits of Hell?”

“If you use that third-rate nonsense out in the world, wouldn’t the Thousand Soul Hall become a laughingstock?”

“My Ten Directions Demon Prison… you haven’t even scratched the surface! Are you performing it like this to tell everyone that my Ten Directions Demon Prison can’t even kill or trap a single ant?”

Shen Lang shrugged. “Well… I have the body of a member of the Human Race. Soul Body Type Cultivation Techniques are inherently difficult to practice. Even after reaching the King Martial Realm, when the Nascent Soul can leave the body, it’s still fraught with difficulties. It’s normal that my Cultivation is slow and I can’t unleash much power.”

“And, in fact, I’ve only just reached the King Martial Realm. I’ve barely had any time to practice at all.”

“…” Ye Youming was so furious he felt like spitting up blood.

After a long moment, Ye Youming spoke again. “Then what was the point of getting your hands on all these peerless Secret Skills? You basically can’t even practice them, so what the hell are you learning them for? Aren’t you just wasting the Thousand Soul Hall’s legendary arts?”

Shen Lang gave an awkward smile. “I was bored, so I figured I’d study them a bit.”

“…” Ye Youming nearly died of anger.

The enormous face in the sky rippled like the surface of water, betraying his turbulent emotions.

‘The peerless Secret Skills of the Thousand Soul Hall’s Ghost Emperor and three great Ghost Venerables… countless people in the Human Realm… countless ghosts… would kill for a chance to practice them, or even just to get a glimpse. And this kid said he was just studying them because he was bored?’

‘Where did this spoiled rich kid come from, wasting such world-shaking techniques like this?’

‘Could he be a descendant of the Soul Ancestor?’

‘How else could he be so outrageously arrogant!’

Ye Youming felt like his head was a chaotic mess. He blinked his eyes, speechless for a long time.

But Ye Youming truly knew nothing about the War Emperor…

When Ye Youming had come to the Yumu Cave Blessed Land, it was over ten thousand years ago, long before the War Emperor was born.

It had only been a little over six thousand years since the War Emperor’s birth. Ye Youming didn’t even know that the War God Hall had changed hands.

And he certainly had no idea that this peerless genius, who had risen like a star, had already fallen more than a decade ago.

The Shen Lang standing before him was the War Emperor, and yet not the War Emperor…

Just then, Shen Lang spoke again. “By the way… Wenxiang Ghost Venerable told me that she would absolutely never tell anyone about you sneaking off to the Divine Capital Nine Palaces to peek at their Palace Master bathing. She said you can rest assured.”

“Ah? Oh, that’s good, that’s good… Shit! She already told you! How is that ‘not telling anyone’?!” Ye Youming almost coughed up a mouthful of old blood.

Shen Lang gave a dry laugh. “Oh, I left a part out. She said you have a perverse and explosive temper, and if I ran into you, you definitely wouldn’t like someone with my personality and might even attack me. So she told me to warn you: absolutely, under no circumstances, are you to touch me. Otherwise, don’t even think about returning to the Thousand Soul Hall. If you do go back, she’ll flay you alive.”

“She’ll announce all your embarrassing secrets to the public, and you can just wait for those women from the Divine Capital Nine Palaces to come hunt you down… oh, I forgot, there’s also that little fox from the Myriad Beasts Mansion. You toyed with her affections and then abandoned her back when you were still alive…”

“Damn it, does she own the Thousand Soul Hall?! I’ll go back if I damn well please! What do you mean, ‘back when I was still alive’? That business with the little fox… wait, hold on, my head’s a mess. This is a lot of information to take in.”

“Kid, what is your relationship with Hai Wenxiang? Why did she tell you about my… ahem, private matters?”

“And what is your connection to the Thousand Soul Hall and His Majesty, the Ghost Emperor?”

Ye Youming’s questions came out in a rapid-fire burst.

The smile that had been playing in Shen Lang’s eyes shifted slightly, and a hint of irrepressible sorrow surfaced.

After a long silence, Shen Lang finally said, “Granny is… my grandmother. She raised me with her own hands, and she was the one who sent me to the War God Hall. She’s the person I’m closest to in this world.”

Strictly speaking, the one Hai Wenxiang had raised was the War Emperor, not Shen Lang.

But the current Shen Lang hadn’t just received the War Emperor’s memories; he had also fused with the War Emperor’s soul. So, much of the time, he was already speaking and acting from the War Emperor’s perspective.

“So that’s how it is… That old woman actually found such a promising talent. It makes me so jealous! Why the hell can’t I ever meet someone like that?” Ye Youming sighed.

Shen Lang said softly, “Senior, when you return this time, if you can, please help me comfort Granny.”

“Comfort her? What do you mean? And why are you so sorrowful?” Ye Youming was a little confused.

“Oh, Granny… she probably thinks I’m dead. I don’t have a chance to go to the Thousand Soul Hall right now, so I can only ask this of you, Senior.”

Shen Lang turned away, as if he didn’t want Ye Youming to see the grief in his eyes.

The matter of the War Emperor’s fall could be hidden from most of the world’s factions, but it likely couldn’t be hidden from the powerhouses of the Thousand Soul Hall and the Myriad Beasts Mansion.

Moreover, the entire War God Hall had vanished… an event of this magnitude was something the Thousand Soul Hall could not possibly be unaware of.

With Granny’s temperament, if the Ghost Emperor wasn’t there to watch over her, it wasn’t impossible that she would march straight to the Demon God Hall to avenge the War Emperor.

As Shen Lang’s soul continued to fuse more deeply with the War Emperor’s, and as his Cultivation increased, continuously undoing some of the seals on his memories, figures with special relationships to the War Emperor—like Chi Lian’Er, Chi Zunxin, and Hai Wenxiang—all began to become known to him.

It all seemed to have been set up by the War Emperor from the very beginning.

He hadn’t flooded Shen Lang’s mind with too much information at once, nor had he forced Shen Lang to accept the War Emperor’s identity in a short time, burdening him with these relatives and everything related to the War God Hall.

As Shen Lang’s Cultivation improved and his fusion with the War Emperor’s soul deepened, all of this began to surface as if it were a matter of course, making it very easy for Shen Lang to accept.

Just like the matter with Ghost Venerable Hai Wenxiang…

When Shen Lang learned of all this, it felt completely like his own experience, not like he was watching a movie.

Ye Youming was one of the three great Ghost Venerables, and his perception of souls far surpassed that of other experts. Although Shen Lang was wearing the Evil Ghost Mask, Ye Youming could clearly sense the aura of emotion emanating from him.

“I don’t know what happened to you, but if there’s nothing special going on, you should go back to the Thousand Soul Hall and take a look. There are many things that are better said to your Granny by you personally, rather than through an old man like me,” Ye Youming said lightly.

Shen Lang nodded. “I understand… Senior, you don’t need to say too much. Just tell her I’ve returned. That will be enough.”

“Also, I hope that Senior will not tell anyone else about me, not even His Majesty the Ghost Emperor. Thank you.”

Ye Youming was silent for a long time before finally letting out a long sigh. “Although I don’t know what you’re up to, you can rest assured… By the way, kid, since you can be considered one of the Thousand Soul Hall’s own, who taught you that terrifying Cultivation Technique that absorbs Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi?”

“You’re only at the King Martial Realm, yet you can unleash such power, leaving the vengeful spirits and Fierce Souls in the Hungry Ghost Dao completely powerless to resist… A Spell like that is truly inconceivable, defying the heavens to the extreme. Even I find it hard to believe!”

Shen Lang grinned. “This is a Cultivation Technique I created myself, the second form of the ‘Nine Revolutions of Life and Death Mysterious Technique.’ It’s called the ‘Star Absorption Technique.’ Unfortunately, it’s still not strong enough.”

“You created it? When you said you were studying the Thousand Soul Hall’s techniques, was it to create techniques like this?” Ye Youming asked, stunned.

“Of course I wasn’t joking. If I were just playing around with them, do you think His Majesty the Ghost Emperor would have been willing to share them?” Shen Lang said, shaking his head.

Although his research into the Secret Skills of major Sect Influences was for the “Five Emperors Dragon Fist” and not the “Nine Revolutions of Life and Death Mysterious Technique,”…

…when Shen Lang created the “Nine Revolutions of Life and Death Mysterious Technique,” it was not only due to the heaven-defying power of the Tai Chi Diagram, but also because the War Emperor had studied countless peerless Secret Skills and gained an unimaginable understanding of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, which ultimately made its creation possible.

So, Shen Lang didn’t explain further.

Ye Youming exclaimed in amazement, “That technique is too heaven-defying, truly unbelievable… And you say it’s not strong enough? If you continue your Cultivation, won’t you be able to devour endless stars and perform Refinement on all things in heaven and earth?”

The word “unbelievable” had already escaped Ye Youming’s lips multiple times, showing just how shaken he was.