Zhang Yuanqing immediately beamed with joy. The Lei Shen Set held an extremely high status, likely to be utilized at the eighth or even ninth level. Since he had only recently become a Spirit Realm Traveler, he lacked the depth of experience that senior Masters could gain through cultivation—his relatively shallow "experience" was his greatest weakness. Therefore, gathering premium items was the most effective way to compensate for this shortcoming. Once the quality and quantity of Yin Shi improved, he could assign his Purple Golden Set and Sacrificial Heaven Set to the Yin Shi, while reserving the Lei Shen Set for himself. With one person serving as three Masters, and if he could also summon additional duplicates, he simply couldn’t think of anything beyond shouting, "I want to fight ten!" "Let’s set the Set matter aside for now, Uncle. I’ve encountered a problem," Zhang Yuanqing suppressed his joy and honestly relayed the details of the seed matter to his uncle. Your uncle glanced subtly at the living room, quietly closed the door, and sighed, "Chess depends on talent and experience. You have a strong ability to break through, though your strategic planning is a bit weaker. But having you face Ling Tu in such a match truly tests you. However, being strong at breaking through but weak at planning is actually good for you—it better suits the Sun Sovereign, who is all about straightforward action, much like the Fire Master." Like the Fire Master? I've ended up becoming the very thing I've always looked down upon! Zhang Yuanqing was thoroughly frustrated. The uncle walked over to his nephew and gave him a hearty shoulder pat, "Hey, don't be afraid! Don't worry about the Yuan pieces that aren't doing much—your uncle is your external brain, your intelligence backup!" "Uncle, haven't you even managed to get the single-stake right lately?" "Pay no attention to such details. Rap is about mindset and spirit, not about single or double rhymes—those are just surface-level things, hey!" "Show me the Thunder God set." Zhang Yuanqing had no patience for small talk—he was eager to see the new gear right away. "A bit hot! Got it!" His uncle reached out with his right hand, summoning a brilliant lightning spear from the void. The spear was formed of condensed lightning, pulsing with crackling arcs of electricity. Even without being a lightning mage, Zhang Yuanqing clearly sensed a dramatic surge of electrical spiritual energy throughout the room. As he took the spear, his hair instantly stood on end, and he felt intense pain in his palms—his flesh turned red, began to tear, and gradually carbonized. Night-Wanderer’s powerful healing ability activated instantly, repairing the wounds and regenerating cells, while the carbonized flesh transformed into a fine layer of ash that adhered to his palms. Zhang Yuanqing gasped. Compared to the "Armor of Lightning" and the "Lightning Gauntlets," this spear’s heat was far more intense. Even with Night-Wanderer’s healing, if he held it for over a minute, his arms would likely carbonize. A few seconds later, the item's properties appeared: 【Name: Thunder Spear】 【Type: Weapon】 【Function: Piercing】 【Description: Crafted from the core of an entity whose nature cannot be described, this item possesses powerful offensive capabilities. Piercing: When thrown at an enemy, there is a 50% chance to ignore physical defense. The enemy struck will be scorched by electricity.】 【Note 1: It is one of the components of the Thunder God's armor. The remaining four pieces are: gauntlets, boots, helmet, and robe. Collecting all five pieces forms a complete set, granting the power of the Thunder God.】 【Note 2: It is quite hot to the touch.】 【Note 3: Unless its owner dies, it will not be picked up by enemies.】 As expected, this is a master-tier item. Zhang Yuanqing placed the Thunder Spear into his inventory and then retrieved it again, instantly understanding its cost—this item is designed to be thrown, and each throw will char one arm. Normally, by sacrificing both arms, one can fully penetrate the enemy and secure a kill. "This is perfect for Yeyou Shen— I can throw the Yin corpses, since the enemies can't pick them up anyway. Just toss them freely." Zhang Yuanqing was highly satisfied with the spear's damage potential. Then, he retrieved the "Thunder Armor" and "Thunder Gauntlets," activating the set's effects. Instantly, his entire body radiated a bright blue glow, his eyes filled with lightning, and his hair shimmered with electric currents—exactly like the thunder god wielding a long spear. The trio's skill had upgraded to "Thunderstorm," summoning a widespread area of lightning for all-encompassing, undifferentiated attacks. The strength remained unknown, as it had yet to be tested. At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing felt his cells rapidly dying, his organs showing signs of failure, so he immediately deactivated the thunder god set. "The gear is excellent, but it's quite demanding on my hands..." Zhang Yuanqing turned to his uncle and said, "I'll be entering the guild dungeon tonight. For now, I'm just waiting for the materials from the Lady." After slaying the seven elders of the Southern Sect, he obtained the core materials for crafting spiritual servants through Fu Qingyang from the Five Elements Alliance's warehouse. However, he still lacked one primary material and three auxiliary materials. With no personal ties to the Taiyuan Sect, he entered the guild's quest to summon the Lady of Three Mountain Peaks, hoping she would assist his young disciple in gathering materials for Lady Yin Yao's promotion. Initially, the Lady declined, asserting that she should not overly interfere in her disciples' growth—she had always been a reserved, hands-off kind of master. But Zhang Yuanqing bowed deeply, weeping and pleading passionately, declaring: "The demonic path is rampant, while the righteous path is weakening. Master is trapped within the spiritual realm, and I wish to uphold justice under your name. Yet, with my humble status and limited strength, I am unable to make a significant impact. If you could lend me your support, it would be a great service to the entire righteous cause—indeed, an immense merit. Moreover, I am your late-born son, still in the early stages of cultivation. How could I possibly compete with the demonic path's elite if you do not assist me?" This was a skill that Lady Yin Yao The Lady of San Dao Mountain found the late disciple's argument convincing and agreed. Her uncle nodded, "After entering the realm, you should make steady progress—once you step out, that momentum will fade. Take Fu Qingyang, for instance; without you, he probably wouldn't have entered the clan's realm again." Zhang Yuanqing nodded in agreement. This setback had spurred him to eager improvement, and he no longer wanted to be manipulated at will by Ling Tu. "Lady Yin Yao stepped back slightly, following suit: "Respectfully, I greet my Master." The Lady of San Dao nodded: "I have already gathered all the materials for Lady Yin Yao's promotion, as well as the materials you used to craft your spiritual servant. Yuan Qing, shall you proceed tonight, or would you prefer to wait a little longer?" Zhang Yuanqing was overjoyed and declared with great enthusiasm: "I wish to craft my spiritual servant under my Master's watchful eye and guidance, for without my Master's presence, I lack confidence. His insights are absolutely essential." Truly remarkable... Lady Yin Yao added in agreement: "Only when my Master is closely observing me do I feel secure. Without her, I would never advance." What a nuisance—this disciple is now encroaching on my territory! Zhang Yuanqing silently chided the women of the old Zhu family. The Lady of San Dao smiled warmly at her troublesome disciple: "You have certainly made progress in your studies under Master Yuan Shi." With that, her broad sleeve suddenly swelled, releasing one after another of materials—some veiled in lingering shadows, others shimmering with radiant starlight—totaling no less than forty pieces Zhang Yuanqing and Princess Yin Yao stared at the materials, their eyes fixed, and swallowed hard. The Lady of San Dao said, "Yin Yao, I hope you take the Taiyin as your foundation and also cultivate the stars. In that way, while you will still be vulnerable to the Dayou Shen, you will truly become a sovereign." Princess Yin Yao: "Yes!" This was precisely why she had refused to be 'revived.' Yuan Shǐ Tian Zun had privately asked her whether she would like to shed her shadow body and return to a living form, but she had declined. Once, she might have thought so, but now she no longer does. To regain a living body, she would still need several to ten years of cultivation before reaching the sovereign stage—after all, she wasn't a Lingjing traveler. To advance further, she would have to return to the Lingjing realm and gradually accumulate her cultivation through the ancient, slow-paced practices. But by maintaining her shadow body, she could simply remain passive. The Lady of San Dao then turned her gaze to Zhang Yuanqing: "These materials are extremely rare and will not be available again in the near future, so you have only one chance Refining a sovereign-level Yin corpse is highly challenging, involving intricate steps—without exception, the current-day Day Traveling Deities have gradually discovered the correct method through repeated trials and errors. "I may not know their specific techniques, but I will impart to you the pure Yang Sect's refining array diagram. Listen carefully..." Thereafter, the Three Mountain Lady provided a detailed explanation of the process for refining Silver Yao. First, the disciple's clothing must be removed, and both the Gathering Yin Array and the Star Array must be drawn upon her body to assist in absorbing nine auxiliary materials derived from the Taiyin and the Stars. The most difficult aspect of this step lies in the perfect alignment of the Star Array and the Taiyin Array—when these two arrays merge into one, if the Taiyin and Star energies are not harmonious during absorption, a "circuit explosion" occurs, resulting in total failure. This phase is known as consolidating the foundation. Once the foundation is firmly established, the next step involves shaping Silver Yao's Taiyin body, using two primary materials: a jade orb-shaped stone called "Hooking-Soul Jade" and a black liquid known as "Yellow Springs." The Huanqin Jade is taken internally, while the Yellow Springs Jade serves as a supplementary material, ground into ink, used to inscribe the spiritual scroll array upon Lady Yiniao’s body to aid her in digesting the Huanqin Jade. Finally, a grand spiritual scroll array is inscribed, incorporating the remaining materials of Taiyin and Stars into her body. After understanding the steps, Zhang Yuanqing spoke with confidence: “Master, you may now provide the diagrams.” From within the sleeve of the Lady of the Three Peaks, three scrolls were gracefully unfurled, and upon unfolding them, Zhang Yuanqing felt a mental vertigo—not physical, but spiritual. He felt as though a struggling student were gazing at fighter jet blueprints. Lady Yiniao approached, only to step back several times, then bowed deeply: “Please, Master, arrange the array for me—I do not have confidence in Yuanshǐ Tianzun.” You’re going to take off my clothes, right? Zhang Yuanqing rolled his eyes. The Lady of the Three Peaks said: “I will teach you how to inscribe the arrays. Until you gain confidence, you may begin with simpler materials.” Only then did Zhang Yuanqing exhale in relief. Three hours later, under his master's guidance, Zhang Yuanqing quickly mastered the three array diagrams. He began to crush materials and mix ink. Lady Xing, the silver-rosy princess, removed her jeans, white knit top, and lace underwear—lying bare on the ground. Her snow-white form lay stretched across the wilderness, creating a striking visual impact. Yet in Zhang Yuanqing's eyes, she was merely a material. His gaze was serious and composed, reflecting the focused concentration of a national-level chess master, as he used his fingers as brushes, dipped them in ink, and began to inscribe the arrays of Gathering Yin and the Starry Arrays. The most challenging aspect lay in the fact that these two array systems were interwoven, not sequentially drawn—one did not first complete the Gathering Yin array before moving on to the Starry Array. Instead, a continuous, seamless flow was required. This meant that as Zhang Yuanqing inscribed the spiritual scroll arrays, he had to constantly shift between the phases of the Taiyin and the Starry arrays. Should the flow of qi falter, the entire array would collapse. Halfway through the array, Zhang Yuanqing was already drenched in sweat, large droplets sliding down his forehead and cheeks. After completing the array with only mild surprise and no mishap, he collapsed to the ground, gasping heavily, feeling as though the Yin and Stellar energies within him had been depleted by half. Lady San Dao of the Mountain was satisfied, nodding approvingly: "Excellent. In just over half an hour, you've fully grasped it. You truly are born for the night-wanderer's role. The spiritual realm's character assignments are based on innate talent—your ability to discern such talent is truly admirable." In her era, it was extremely difficult for a sect to find a disciple of such exceptional talent. A prodigy like Yuan Shǐ Tian Zun might never even have the chance to encounter the path of cultivation throughout his life. After a brief rest, Zhang Yuanqing began the next phase. One hour later, beneath the mountain of the Mo Sect's mechanical city, a surge of powerful Yin energy surged upward, reaching into the clouds and stretching for dozens of miles, transforming the region into a realm of Yin. The plants and trees within the mountains either withered or mutated, while the living villagers Lady Yiniao, clad only in her robes, floated in the air, her eyes pulsing with crimson light, her flowing hair moving without a breeze, and the spiritual scrolls shimmering on her body with starlight and dark radiance, making her appear as if a deity or a demon had descended. Moments later, Lady Yiniao gently descended to the ground, beaming with joy and exclaiming, "Master, I can speak now! I can speak now!" When "life" entered a new realm, she had shed the constraints of the shadow corpse, now able to speak as a living person—this was a hallmark of high-level shadow beings. The Three-Mountain Lady smiled warmly, saying, "The hardships are finally over! Yiniao, as you follow Yuanshǐ, you must take the world as your responsibility, upholding justice and combating the forces of darkness." Bowing deeply, Lady Yiniao replied, "I shall faithfully carry out your commands." Zhang Yuanqing seized the opportunity to add, "Master, I recently met the Pure-Yang Master. He mentioned a killing technique that has been cultivated for a thousand years..." He then reported in detail the events of the past few days. "Do not concern yourself with him." "Master Shanshan of San Dao slightly shook her head: 'With a human immortal protecting him, it would be as difficult to kill him as climbing heaven's peaks. But this rogue will not remain patient forever—he will eventually reveal his true nature. Then, we can strike at his weakness.' Hmph, the old sturdy one truly has confidence. Her cultivation has reached the peak master level—rarely challenged even by those below human immortals—hence her confidence... Zhang Yuanqing nodded. After sending off Zhao Youqing, he began the second round of preparation. He retrieved the materials at hand, used his fingers as a pen, and inscribed the spiritual scroll array on the ground. Half an hour later, the array was complete. He then exhaled a breath of the Taiyin energy, which manifested as a delicate, ethereal woman, her expression filled with disdain and her gaze full of bitterness. The ninth elder, now reappearing, was overwhelmed with resentment, her spiritual scroll array radiating a dense, cold aura that bound her firmly within the array. 'Nine Elder,' Zhang Yuanqing said, 'hand over all the items and materials from your inventory.' She still holds her character card now, but as soon as she becomes a spiritual servant, the Spiritual Realm will automatically declare her deceased and reclaim her character card—her precious items in the inventory will naturally return to the Realm. The Ninth Elder strained her body, realizing she could neither self-exploit nor break free, and then settled into silence, offering a cold smile. "Even if I don’t hand it over, what can you do to me? If you have the strength to kill me, will you really do it?" Zhang Yuanqing remained calm, his tone steady and composed. "You may want to suffer daily abuse and torment from me after becoming a spiritual servant—go on, be stubborn. I don’t mind. After all, your two master artifacts are already in my possession. The transcendent and sage-level artifacts and materials are merely bonuses." The Ninth Elder’s expression shifted slightly, her face changing several times before she, with growing determination, opened her inventory and poured out all her artifacts and materials in one go. Zhang Yuanqing didn’t pause to look at them—he simply stored them in the clan warehouse and began the process of refining the spiritual servant. Half an hour later, the Ninth Elder underwent a complete transformation "Me too, Master, me too..." Lady Yin Yao interjected. The Ninth Elder turned around, bowed low, and said: "At your service, Master." "Such a good pupil," Lady Yin Yao remarked with satisfaction. "I'd also like to craft Yin Sheng and spiritual servants." Exactly. You're a mature Yin Sheng—you must learn to craft your own spiritual servants and Yin Sheng, and go forth to fight on your own! Zhang Yuanqing has always harbored such thoughts. Lady Yin Yao is different from ordinary Yin Sheng; she is capable of independently crafting both Yin Sheng and spiritual servants. In the past, due to limited materials and limited resources, coupled with Lady Yin Yao's carefree attitude, these plans had been put off for a long time. Of course, he wouldn't explicitly state his true intentions. Instead, he spoke warmly and earnestly: "Excellent. It seems you've truly internalized your master's teachings. With such determination, I cannot be stingy—going forward, you may draw materials for crafting Yin Sheng and spiritual servants from me as loans." Lady Yin Yao glanced at him and said: "What's the difference between you and a dog?" ... Zhang Yuanqing returned to reality after a full night's rest in the replica, pulled out his phone, and sent a message to the "The Dead Return" guild group: "I'll enter the replica in half an hour." He then sent a private message to Fu Qingyang, indicating that he was all set. Next, he plugged in the charger, set the phone down, and patiently waited. Half an hour passed quickly, and a sound from the spiritual realm began to play in his ears: 【Ping! The spiritual realm map is loading. You will enter the realm in 60 seconds. This is your current realm: "The Last Sovereign," No. 36.】 【Difficulty Level: A】 【Type: Multiplayer (Death-based)】 【Main Quest: Character Quest.】 【Note: Non-spiritual realm items cannot be brought in.】 【Introduction to Realm No. 36: For over a century, the northern and southern dynasties have been in opposition. In the south, corrupt officials have dominated, leading to deteriorating governance and a steady decline in national strength. Meanwhile, the northern dynasty, having prepared for thirty years, launched a full-scale southern campaign after the autumn harvest, advancing steadily,