The Divine Lotus Flame is an exceedingly rare divine fire in the world.

It merges the Elf Karma Fire and the Taotie Fire, and together, they can melt even the hardest Purple Gold Ore in an instant.

However, refining the Divine Soul is much more difficult than refining ore, requiring the mage’s fire control ability to reach a god-like mastery.

The Karmic Fire burns souls, and the soul of Empress Li let out a sorrowful plea for mercy, but Yun Sheng remained unaffected.

An endless stream of magic power flowed from Yun Sheng’s body.

Once adapted to the temperature of the Karmic Fire, the pleading gradually subsided.

Strands of malice, like black earthworms, flowed out from the soul of Empress Li.

These were the hostility absorbed by Empress Li’s wandering soul while traversing the Netherworld, needing purification before she could regroup.

This purification lasted a full three days and nights.

During these three days and nights, Yun Sheng in the secret chamber refrained from eating or drinking, purifying the soul. Outside the chamber, the Netherworld Ghost King and Gold Coin also remained sleepless for three days.

Initially, neither the person nor the beast spoke a word.

Even though neither of them entered the secret chamber, their hearts were already there.

The two women inside the secret chamber were very important to each of them, and they hoped nothing would happen to either.

It wasn’t until the afternoon of the third day that Ye Beiming suddenly spoke.

"Why would the Empress Dowager be in the Netherworld?"

This question had crossed Ye Beiming’s mind since he first saw Empress Li.

For so many years, he always thought Empress Li had died and was surprised to learn she had been in the Netherworld all along. Though she was merely a residual soul, those who return to the Netherworld must have committed heinous crimes.

Ye Beiming could not understand how a weak woman like Empress Li ended up in the Netherworld, especially crossing paths with the Netherworld Ghost King.

"I met Qingcheng at the West Wei Sect. As for why she was in the Netherworld, you would have to ask Qingcheng herself and the Netherworld God. Regarding why her soul is incomplete, I’ve already investigated. After being cast into the Demon Suppressing Stele, she refused to yield, attempting multiple times to break through, which resulted in the significant damage to her Divine Soul," the Netherworld Ghost King said with apparent indifference.

Every wandering soul or serious offender who arrives in the Netherworld has their deeds recorded by the Underworld God.

The Underworld God determines whether a severe offender should labor, suppressing their Yin Soul within the Demon Suppressing Stele.

Unfortunately, with the Netherworld God gone, whether Empress Li can reunite her Divine Soul remains uncertain, and Ye Beiming had to temporarily shelve his questions.

The Netherworld Ghost King had happened across Empress Li attempting to break through the Demon Suppressing Stele multiple times while passing through West Wei Sect.

Though she was already deceased, and her Divine Soul was captured by the Netherworld, she refused to abide by the Netherworld Laws, fiercely attempting to break through the Barrier.

As just an ordinary weak woman, trying to shatter the powerful Demon Suppressing Stele repeatedly left her Divine Soul severely damaged.

Because of Li Qingcheng’s relentless spirit, she caught the eye of the Netherworld Ghost King.

The Netherworld Ghost King lingered in the West Wei Sect for several days, witnessing Li Qingcheng’s soul left to just one soul and one spirit before taking action to save her.

The Netherworld Ghost King initially rescued Empress Li out of curiosity, unaware that over the following year, he would come to love a wandering soul with just one soul and one spirit, unclear of her identity or background.

Yet, emotions between people are just that subtle.

After being taken back to the Ghost Water Pier, Empress Li spent each day with the Ghost King, unable to speak, simply repeating her past deeds, playing the lute, and daydreaming.

The Netherworld Ghost King even ventured into the Human World to investigate Empress Li’s identity, learning only of her tragic experience as the deposed Empress of Great Zhou.

Later, the Netherworld Ghost King realized he had fallen for Li Qingcheng.

He even built the Ghost King Hall, reminiscent of her palace when she was alive, for Empress Li.

This matter also resulted in a severe clash between the Netherworld Ghost King and the Netherworld God.

Though the Netherworld Ghost King had roamed the Netherworld unchecked for years, he hadn’t directly violated the Netherworld God’s interests until now.

This time, forcibly taking someone from the Demon Suppressing Stele was intolerable for the Netherworld God.

If such a precedent were set, wouldn’t everyone begin seizing people from the Demon Suppressing Stele?

The Netherworld God, alone, confronted the Netherworld Ghost King and demanded he release Li Qingcheng.

The Netherworld Ghost King dismissed this, continuing to reside at the Ghost Water Pier, using extensive resources to build the Ghost King Hall.

Once the Ghost King Hall was completed, the lifeless Empress Li finally smiled.

However, the good days didn’t last long, as the Netherworld Ghost King suddenly noticed Empress Li’s soul becoming increasingly unstable, knowing it was because parts of her soul were missing.

Right within the Ghost Water Pier, a formidable trap was laid, with a Sub-God Level demon beast, the Arrow-tailed War Rhinoceros, stationed outside the Ghost King Cave. Additionally, rumors that the Netherworld Ghost King had perished were spread across the Netherworld.

Had he not wished for Empress Li to be in a better mood upon reuniting with Ye Beiming after regaining her Divine Soul, he wouldn’t have bothered keeping the boy around.

The Netherworld Ghost King couldn’t even articulate his deep dislike for Ye Beiming; perhaps there’s a similar killing aura about Ye Beiming that resonates with him.

This killing aura evokes a territorial instinct in the Netherworld Ghost King, as if a land cannot contain two tigers.

Within the secret chamber, Yun Sheng’s task of reuniting the Divine Soul reached a critical point.

After three days and nights of purification with Karmic Fire, Empress Li’s three ethereal and elusive souls had gradually transformed into golden souls.

The Yin Soul no longer drifted aimlessly, and only the Heart Difficulty Lamp was needed to reunite the Divine Soul.

Despite Yun Sheng having surpassed the Magic God, the immense magic power consumption over three days and nights left her dizzy, but she did not rest, knowing it was the optimal time to reunite the Divine Soul.

Gathering her strength, Yun Sheng summoned the Totem Vermilion Bird.

The Divine Lotus Flame within the Magic Array was dim, but when the Totem Vermilion Bird appeared, it let out a long cry, circled above the Magic Array, and spewed nine streams of golden-red flames.

As the flames infused the Magic Array, the Karmic Fire and Vermilion Bird Fire intertwined, swiftly merging.

Positioned at the core of the Magic Array, the Heart Difficulty Lamp began to change as the flames licked and enveloped it.

From its base, a golden-red Fire Lotus slowly rose, lifting the Heart Difficulty Lamp upward.

As the Fire Lotus blossomed, the lantern-like Heart Difficulty Lamp began to spin. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

The slender tassels transformed into a red silhouette as they twirled, like a beautiful dancer, gracefully dancing.

Spinning faster and faster, the Heart Difficulty Lamp exerted an irresistible pull on Empress Li’s three souls and six spirits.

With several swishing sounds, the Heart Difficulty Lamp absorbed Empress Li’s soul into the lamp.