Chapter 1

In the realm of souls, amidst a void, surging black flames slowly converged at one point, causing the air to ripple wherever they passed.

The entire process lasted nearly five to six breaths, and the sky full of black flames finally gradually coalesced into a human figure.

"Soul Emperor, what has happened?"

The figure formed by the black flames could not be clearly seen, but his voice was filled with a chilling and murderous aura.

At the same time, a man in a white robe slowly descended from the ninth heaven.

When he saw the person, a fleeting look of panic flashed in his eyes, but he hid it well and the other party did not notice. He feigned nonchalance and said, "It's just a good gift left by Xiao Xuan!"

The man in black flames was silent for a few breaths, then said with a tone of confusion, "Six months ago, you said your injuries had stabilized. Could there be some hidden danger?"

The elegant man called Soul Emperor waved his hand and said, "I have already resolved it. Pass my order to have all soul clan disciples stop their capture missions and return to the soul realm within three days! Those who disobey will die!"

The illusory face shrouded in black flames seemed to struggle for a moment, then asked in confusion, "If we stop capturing, how will my soul reach the Emperor realm? I only need one more part of the soul essence to step into that realm, which would also benefit your plan!"

Soul Emperor stared straight at the other party with a blank expression, "You know my temper, Void. I would never change the plan without absolute certainty!"

This time, the man in black flames did not continue to argue, and grunted, "I understand!"

Immediately, the body of the man in black flames disintegrated into clusters of black flames again, until it dissipated into nothingness, and the wrinkles in the space smoothed out once more.

After the man in black flames left, it took nearly seven to eight breaths before the man in the white robe spread his sweaty palms and sighed, "Thank goodness I studied acting back then!"

"Damn it, it's still dropping. If it keeps going, I'll fall below the Dou Zun realm!"

Feeling the increasingly thinning power within him, Hun Xu couldn't help but curse.

He was not the Soul Emperor at all; he was just a minor character from another dimension, an actor.

He only knew that a few minutes ago, he was still in the production team, studying how to play the role of the villain Soul Emperor in a novel. He just took a short nap, and when he woke up, his surroundings had completely changed.

If he hadn't opened his eyes to find himself hovering thousands of meters in the air, he would have suspected that the production team had already started rigging him with wires.

Being a lover of novels, he quickly recovered from his panic. He must have crossed over, and into the world of "Battle Through the Heavens."

However, the situation was somewhat dire. The villain he had crossed over as was continuously losing power.

The source of the problem seemed to be related to the voice in his head, which was still repeating.

"System notification: Your soul clan disciple XXX is plundering the souls of others x100, your Dou Qi realm has fallen to the middle of the nine-star Dou Sheng!"

"System notification: Your soul clan disciple XXX is plundering the souls of others x100, your Dou Qi realm has fallen to the early stage of the nine-star Dou Sheng!"

"..."

Hearing these notifications, as a fan of the original novel, his mindset almost collapsed.

Given the special identity of his body, he must possess unparalleled power. If his realm continued to decline, he might be in grave danger right after crossing over.

As the greatest villain in the novel, over 90% of the people in this world wanted him dead. Without absolute strength, he would be in a difficult position.

He tried to recall the plot of the novel, gradually piecing together his chaotic thoughts.

Based on his understanding of the plot, he quickly identified the problem.

The reason for his continuous decline in strength was likely related to his subordinates who were committing atrocities outside.

This was why he had the conversation with the man in black flames earlier.

As for his current identity, it was not simple. If revealed, it would shock the strong in his world.

Soul Emperor, one of the eight ancient clans, the leader of the soul clan, and one of the three supreme beings standing at the pinnacle of the world.

With just a thought, mountains could crumble and seas could boil in an instant.

However, no one knew that this formidable figure, deeply feared by countless strong beings, had fallen from the peak of the nine-star Dou Sheng to the three-star Dou Zun in a mere instant.

The difference between the two realms seemed minor, but it was actually vast.

With the former's power, a single breath could reduce the latter to ashes, evaporating them from the world.

However, the truly unbelievable part was not just this.

Even the soul clan's strong beings could not believe that their leader, who possessed the power of heaven and earth, had been possessed by someone else just a moment ago.

If it were just possession, it would be one thing, but more importantly, this body, which contained the power of heaven and earth, was still declining in strength at an alarming rate.

"Phew, it finally stopped. It must be because Void has passed the order down! But, with my current nine-star Dou Zong realm, how the hell am I supposed to survive in this soul clan, which doesn't even spit out bones when it eats people?"

After nearly twenty breaths, the new owner of Soul Emperor's body, who had possessed it, patted his chest in relief.

The soul clan was the most treacherous and vicious race in the entire "Battle Through the Heavens" world, feared and hated by all.

However, due to their unfathomable strength, people dared not speak out.

Even the ancient clan, which was ostensibly on par with them, was wary of them!

Such a race filled with conspiracy theories would make anyone tremble.

Moreover, the current Soul Emperor had been possessed, and the new owner of this body was experiencing a continuous decline in strength due to some mechanism.

By now, he no longer possessed the strength of even a core disciple!

Hun Xu's expression kept changing. Just as he was racking his brain for a solution, a figure quickly darted over from a distance, emitting a powerful aura that made one's heart race.

"Clan leader, due to the order from Lord Void, the clan members are already on their way back. However, what should be done with the captured descendants?"

The newcomer had a gaunt face, looking like an old, frail man, but his eyes were unusually bright, unlike what one would expect at his age.

When Hun Xu saw the newcomer's face, relevant information about him appeared in his mind.

Hun Jin, one of the twelve elders of the soul clan, at the early stage of the six-star Dou Sheng, and also one of Soul Emperor's confidants.

His visit was more about reporting the unusual behavior of Void than asking about the fate of the captured descendants.

In recent years, the soul clan had been capturing the souls of the world's strong to execute a certain plan. Suddenly halting the plan naturally raised questions among the core clan members.

Of course, compared to Void's order, the clan members naturally followed the attitude of their leader, Soul Emperor.

As a confidant of Soul Emperor, it was understandable for him to come and confirm.

After all, to some extent, Void was not entirely aligned with the soul clan.

Although Void was a strange fire controlled by the soul clan, they had not directly refined it.

Or rather, they could not refine it!

Even someone as powerful as Soul Emperor could not restrain it if it wanted to run.

As the second-ranked strange fire on the list, Void had already developed its own consciousness, with a mind no different from a human's.

Moreover, due to its existence for thousands of light years, its mind had reached a level beyond human comprehension.

Since they could not capture and refine it, and did not want it to fall into others' hands, the soul clan eventually reached an agreement with it, forming a mutually beneficial relationship.

Over the years, Void's existence had gradually been recognized by the soul clan, and its status, based on its contributions, was on par with Soul Emperor. No one except Soul Emperor could command it.

Hun Xu originally intended to evade the question, but was suddenly drawn to the anomaly on the newcomer's head.

At the same time, a string of information appeared in his mind: Hun Jin, Goodness Value -23786!

Hun Xu was startled, but he hid it well and feigned calmness, "Lead the way ahead!"

Seeing that the clan leader did not question him, Hun Jin understood that Void's order must have been approved by the clan leader.

Without further ado, he lightly bowed and tore through space, "Yes!"

As soon as the other party left, Hun Xu realized his oversight.

The other party was a Dou Sheng strong, and his movements were not just extremely fast; they were a manifestation of the power of heaven and earth, capable of leaping through space.

He had just raised his head when the other party vanished, which was indeed awkward.

To perform a spatial leap, one needed to be at least at the Dou Zun level, but his realm had fallen to the nine-star Dou Zong, so he couldn't catch up.

Fortunately, his identity was supreme, and no one in the clan dared to probe his strength. As long as he did not act unreasonably, he should not arouse suspicion.

Searching his memory, Hun Xu quickly obtained the information about the destination, awkwardly channeling the Dou Qi within him, and quickly moved in the direction the other person had disappeared.

Goodness Value?

Perhaps if I can figure this out, I can understand the root cause of my declining strength!