I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

Ji Tian glanced down at the Emperor's Banner, his expression unchanged.

"This is not black smoke, it is primordial purple energy."

"……ha?"

"Primordial Purple Qi. The primordial energy at the beginning of heaven and earth, the root of chaos, the source of the Great Dao. It just looks a bit like black smoke."

Lilith stared at the wisp of "Primordial Purple Qi" that twisted and dissipated in the wind, and remained silent for a moment.

The thing was as black as if it had come out of a chimney, with a strange dark green tinge around its edges.

"Master, although I haven't read many books, I've seen quite a few treasures in the Demon Realm. Those treasures emit golden light, silver light, and auspicious seven-colored light... This one is just emitting chimney light. Are you sure it's not some spirit in the banner burning a boiler?"

Ji Tian withdrew his gaze and continued walking deeper into the mountains and forests. "You don't understand. The great Dao is simple. The true source of energy often appears the most inconspicuous. Just like a Golden Core expert, their appearance is no different from that of an ordinary person."

Lilith jogged after her, muttering, "Your 'Primordial Purple Qi' smells burnt. I smelled it just now, like burnt hair mixed with rotten leaves."

"That's a problem with your nose."

"My nose is perfectly fine! I relied entirely on my nose to find food when we were fleeing! I could even smell what kind of bread a bakery three blocks away was baking!"

Ji Tian didn't reply and quickened his pace.

The mountains and forests grew deeper and deeper.

The path beneath my feet changed from gravel to decaying leaves, and then from decaying leaves to damp moss.

The sunlight was fragmented by the layers of tree canopy, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

The air was thick with an increasingly strong stench of decay—a smell heavier and more foul than rotting leaves, as if something had been dead in this forest for a long time but had not yet completely decomposed.

Lilith covered her nose. "Master, it stinks here."

Ji Tian stopped and looked ahead.

An open space.

Or rather, it used to be an open area.

Now the area is overgrown with waist-high weeds, their stems blackened and the edges of their leaves curled.

Scattered among the weeds were several grayish-white bones, not large, probably human leg bones, with jagged cross-sections and clear tooth marks.

Twenty steps ahead is a cave.

The cave entrance is an irregular oval shape, about the height of a person, and the rocks on the edge are worn smooth and shiny, showing that something has been going in and out all year round.

More bones were scattered on the ground around the cave entrance—small ones like rats, large ones like cattle, and some finger bones and ribs that clearly belonged to humans, gleaming pale in the afternoon sun.

The cave was pitch black, with a faint "cooing" sound coming from deep inside.

Ji Tian stood at the cave entrance, not in a hurry to go in.

He raised his head, glanced at the sky above, then looked down at the pile of white bones at his feet.

Those tattered clothes look like those of an adventurer.

Then he put his right hand behind his back, his left hand behind his waist, his back ramrod straight, and adopted the same thunderous stance as Michael Jackson in his previous life, saying, "It wasn't me who ruined you, it was that raiding army from three hundred years ago that ruined you!"

Lilith stood three steps behind him, tilting her head, looking puzzled as if to say, "What's wrong with my master now?"

Ji Tian continued:

"You shouldn't be here, you shouldn't be attacking passing adventurers. Three hundred years ago, the demons brought you to this land, you had no choice. You were born here, grew up here, and will die here—but this land is not your home."

He paused, then shook his head.

"You are an invasive species, but the fault of invasive species does not lie with the species itself, but with the people who brought them here."

Lilith muttered softly from behind, "Master, are you giving these kobolds some kind of end-of-life counseling? Do they even understand human language?"

"Can't understand."

"So you're saying all this to mentally prepare yourself?"

"No," Ji Tian tilted his head slightly, "I'm making it for you."

"Give me?"

"I want you to know that I killed them not because I'm bloodthirsty, but because they shouldn't be here."

Lilith nodded, seemingly understanding, "Alright, Master, please continue."

Ji Tian looked at the cave entrance again.

"Today I will send you on your way. If there is an afterlife, be reborn in the Demon Realm; that will be your home."

He stretched out his hand, palm facing forward, fingers slightly spread.

Then give it a gentle push.

A ripple, almost invisible to the naked eye, emanated from the palm of his hand and spread silently toward the cave entrance.

The moment the ripples touched the cave entrance, it was as if something had torn a hole in the darkness, and everything fell silent.

The "cooing" sound inside the cave stopped.

The wind stopped.

The leaves stopped rustling, the grass stopped swaying, and even the air seemed to freeze.

The silence lasted for less than a second.

Then, a series of muffled "poof" sounds came from inside the cave, as if something was exploding one after another in the darkness.

The sound spread outward from the depths of the cave, getting closer and closer, until it finally resembled a dense drumbeat bouncing back and forth on the cave walls.

Lilith stood on tiptoe and peered into the hole, but couldn't see anything.

But she smelled blood.

A strong, fresh, rusty smell of blood wafted from the cave entrance, mixed with the scent of dirt and gunpowder.

"Master...how many people did you kill with that palm strike just now?"

"I don't know."

"About?"

"A little over a hundred."

Lilith looked down at her hands—fair, slender, and unable to even climb a tree.

"Master, I want to learn this."

"Okay, I'll teach you later."

Ji Tian did not enter the cave.

He stood at the cave entrance, the Emperor's Banner automatically unfurling at his waist, its black surface fluttering in the windless air.

One after another, pale green spirits drifted out from the depths of the cave, like threads being pulled, silently disappearing into the banner.

There were so many souls that Lilith could clearly see the glowing green river flowing out of the dark cave and merging into the black flag.

The stream of soul flowed for about half a cup of tea's time before gradually thinning and becoming sparse, until only a few scattered strands remained.

The runes on the Emperor's Banner lit up several times, each time accompanied by a low hum.

The black soul mark on the edge of the banner deepened, turning from an ink dot into the size of a grain of rice.

Ji Tian frowned.

"Not enough, it seems the efficiency is still too low."

Lilith leaned closer. "A hundred or so isn't enough? Just how many souls does this banner need to feed?"

"Ten thousand souls. There are only six hundred or so now."

Lilith did some mental calculations, and looking at the black banner, her gaze shifted from curiosity to awe.

"Master, are there any other kobold lairs in these mountains?"

"some."

"Shall we continue the search?" After taking a few steps, she suddenly remembered something.

"Master, what you said at the cave entrance just now, the one about 'It wasn't me who harmed you'—will you say it every time you kill a demon from now on?"

"It depends on my mood."

"Could we use a different phrase? For example, 'Today we send you to the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, may you be reborn as good citizens in your next life'?"