Meng Meng sat atop a massive rock, waving his hand at the sky.
"I wish I could move heaven and time," he muttered with a faint smile, then turned to return home.
When he arrived, his bed was soaked. He stared at it, his face twisted in anger.
"Who did this?" he asked himself bitterly.
He pulled out a pendant from his pouch — an elixir pendant that could control water. As he activated it, the bed dried instantly.
Sitting down, Meng Meng sighed. I want to control time itself, he thought. Gazing at his palm, he focused, gathering a small amount of spiritual energy. Slowly, the energy grew, forming a concentrated sphere in his hand.
A soft voice echoed in his mind.
"Meng Meng…"
Smiling, he replied aloud, "Meng Ping."
Meng Meng turned toward the door as footsteps approached. The spiritual energy in his palm surged, but before he could act, a figure darted inside.
"What?"
She was flying, evading him easily.
Meng Meng dashed after her and swiftly caught Meng Ping in his arms.
"Bang!"
Ping punched Meng Meng squarely in the face.
"How can you be so annoying?" Meng Meng said, his face tingling from the blow.
Meng smiled warmly. "Hit me as much as you want—I'm all yours."
Her face flushed crimson as he heard those words.
"Don't say such things," she muttered, pinching her cheeks gently.
"They're soft as always," he said quietly.
Ping tilted her head, smiling.
"I'm a qi charging Stage 1 Cultivator. And you?"
"I'm a qi Stage 9 Cultivator," Meng Meng replied proudly.
Suddenly, a voice boomed across the entire Omiva City. It was a terrifying sound that carried an overwhelming pressure, freezing everyone in place.
Meng Meng's eyes widened with fear, but Ping's glowed fiercely.
"Who is that?" she asked.
Meng Meng looked up toward the sky.
"Ping, hide!" he ordered urgently, knowing the situation was grave.
Without hesitation, Ping retreated inside. Meng Meng clenched his fists, his eyes shining as he recognized the approaching threat.
It was Extra Bit — the deputy leader of the Demonic Sect and a 4th Step Moment Soul Cultivator.
A cold breath passed over Meng Meng's forehead as he ground his teeth.
Why is he here?
The air grew thick with tension. The sky darkened ominously as if a calamity had arrived.
Extra Bit opened his hand, revealing two mid-grade luminous stones. He began chanting ancient spells, weaving a massive formation.
Nearby, an old man with gray hair and beard trembled as sweat dripped down his forehead. Extra Bit's oppressive aura intensified, suffocating all resistance.
"kneel!" Extra Bit shouted — the word itself carrying immense pressure.
The old man was sent flying a thousand feet, laughing maliciously even as blood trickled from his mouth. He dropped to his knees, eyes filled with fear.
Meng Meng's eyes blazed with determination as he sensed the deadly aura. He coughed up blood but instead of worrying about himself, he activated the sacred pendant to shield Ping. Blood dripped from his eyes and mouth, but his resolve remained unbroken.
Extra Bit raised his hand again and shouted, "Soul extraction!"
The air grew heavy with deathly light. The entire city was engulfed in a soul-sucking aura. A gigantic projection appeared in the sky, shaped like a giant skeleton's skull.
It opened its mouth, and a beam of white light swept across Omiva City, ripping souls from bodies.
The screams of agony and despair echoed through the streets.
Meng Meng tried to fight back, but the power gap was too vast. He was helpless.
Ping's tears flowed freely as she shouted, "Meng!"
She reached out to him, but could do nothing.
Meng Meng smiled weakly and whispered, "Goodbye."
Extra Bit raised his hand again, forming a deadly seal. The screams ceased abruptly.
What was once a peaceful day in Omiva City had turned into a day of doom.
Among the lifeless corpses, a faint voice echoed, asking,
"Why am I alive?"
At the corner of a street, a young girl stepped forward. Blood mixed with tears dripped from her face as she bowed solemnly.
She was Ping.
Far away, Extra Bit sped through the sky, breaking the sound barrier. Crossing ten thousand feet in seconds was effortless for him.
Ten thousand souls in total, he thought. This should be enough.
All the souls were sealed inside a massive Soul Pearl—except those at the peak of Qi Condensation or beyond, who retained a fragment of their consciousness.
Four days later, Extra Bit arrived at a gigantic skull-shaped fortress. He pointed a finger at the massive bone and said, "Open."
Bright light emitted from the eye sockets as the skull slowly opened its jaw, creating a passage.
A massive amount of death qi poured out, and Extra Bit entered the dark, otherworldly realm inside.
This was a realm unlike any mortal could survive—floating islands drifted through a void filled with death energy.
He flew toward the northern edge of this world, where a small carriage awaited him.
Extra Bit stopped a few feet from the carriage and raised his hand.
"Greetings, Sect Master. I have completed the task."
At first, there was no response. Then a cold voice echoed from within the carriage.
Extra Bit, sweating, placed the Soul Pearl at the center of the carriage respectfully.
"I take my leave now."
He left immediately, his figure vanishing into the shadows.
After a while, a lone figure emerged from the carriage. His eyes were completely black, and his long hair was stained with fresh blood.
He picked up the Soul Pearl and used his five elemental sense to peer inside.
A faint smile curved his lips as his eyes shine brightly. He rubbed his fingers, and a hundred-grade luminous stones appeared.
He sat down to form a massive refinement formation — an ancient technique capable of refining anything using the power of souls.
Thousands of souls were unsealed at once, but they tried to escape.
Thousands of chains manifested from the formation, capturing every single soul.
Among them was a young man with a flicker of consciousness still intact.
It was Meng Meng.
The young man struggled to resist, but all efforts were futile. Slowly, his energy was drained into a strange object.
Meng Meng's consciousness faded…