Chapter 1417: Who Cares If You Know!? (2/2)

It was at this point that the Sect Leader began to speak.

“Fellow Daoist, I don’t care who you are, but it's safe to assume you’re Meng Hao from the Mountain and Sea Realm. Although I can’t tell where your discarnate soul is hiding, nor do I have any proof of its actual existence...

“I still believe that your arrival was far too coincidental!

“You just so happened to come in the exact moment when we needed a corpse?

“Perhaps it really was a coincidence. Perhaps it was even a coincidence that you consumed a vast amount of precious materials belonging to the Vast Expanse School. However, it strikes me that there’s too little of your soul left, and it put up too little of a struggle. This, of course, might just be a coincidence due to the severe injuries you sustained, which caused you to be so weak.

“It’s possible that you heard my discussions with my fellow sect members here, and that was why you never revealed any traces of your presence. Of course, there is another possibility, and that is that your soul truly has dispersed in all aspects.

“However, the presence of so many coincidences all at the same time is too suspicious. Perhaps I’m being a bit paranoid, but I believe that there is a high likelihood that your soul has not, in fact, dispersed!

“You have been waiting for this very moment to wipe out the Vast Expanse School's Ninth Paragon, and take his place!

“Therefore, we came prepared. That ninth altar you are on also serves as a suppressor of souls, and is effective on any soul that does not cultivate the magic of the Vast Expanse School!

“Regardless of whether or not you are still there inside your body, and regardless of whether or not I'm paranoid, now that the seal has been activated, I can rest at ease.” As the old Sect Leader’s voice echoed out, the combined effort of the eight Paragons caused the power of the Soulseal Formation to crush down. That in turn allowed the violet eye to take root inside of Meng Hao, to spread tendril-like soul strands throughout his body.

At the same time, a violet mark could be seen on his forehead. It began to open up, taking control of everything, revealing... a violet eye!

Almost as soon as it appeared, a fierce gleam could be seen in the eye. Then, it closed, and even more soul strands went into Meng Hao, filling his qi passageways, his heart, his mind, his everything.

Inside the bronze lamp, Meng Hao’s soul frowned. He watched coldly as all of this happened, and could feel the effects of the soul sealing carried out by the Sect Leader and the others.

“So, they were ready for me,” he thought, eyes flickering. However, he didn't seem very surprised. After all, people who practiced cultivation all the way to the 9-Essences level were sure to be extraordinary in terms of wisdom and foresight.

“Well, in that case... I’ll just have to go with my backup plan. If it turns out I can’t erase this other soul, then I’ll... consume it!”

Meng Hao’s eyes glittered as the bronze lamp suddenly flared with light and then... a crack opened up on its surface. In the instant that the crack appeared, the soul strands of the Ninth Paragon tried to force their way in. Meanwhile, the faces of the Sect Leader and the other Paragons flickered.

Although they had had their suspicions, they hadn’t dared to make a determination as to whether or not Meng Hao was truly still in his body. After all, the most rigorous inspections hadn’t turned up the slightest evidence of that.

But now that the bronze lamp had opened up a bit, and the soul strands of the Ninth Paragon shot toward it, the eight Paragons could sense what was happening.

“So, he really is still around!” Cold, grim expressions appeared on their faces, and they sent their divine sense pouring toward Meng Hao's body to help the Ninth Paragon suppress Meng Hao’s soul.

However, before their streams of divine sense could enter Meng Hao’s body, the bronze lamp flashed, and a power of expulsion erupted out, blocking the eight streams of divine sense outside of the body!

Their faces fell. As for Meng Hao, he now had a bit of extra time. His soul unhesitatingly shot out toward the soul strands belonging to the Ninth Paragon. Instantly, the two intertwined, and began to try to consume each other.

At the same time, Meng Hao’s Demonic qi erupted out, and his soul transformed. The multifariousness of the Demon caused his own soul to be indistinguishably mixed with the soul strands. That in turn caused his ability to consume them to increase dramatically!

The soul strands could sense the incredible danger, and tried to fight back. However, it was impossible to tell which were which!

The Sect Leader and the other eight Paragons had grim faces as they looked on. They could sense that the souls of Meng Hao and the Ninth Paragon were intermixed, but there was nothing they could do to intervene.

“How could this be happening!?!?”

“Dammit!!” Gleams of rage appeared in their eyes. The Sect Leader looked extremely grim, and yet, couldn’t help but sigh with a bit of admiration.

“No wonder this Meng Hao was able to tangle with the Immortal God Continent and the Devil Realm.... He used his own body as bait for our Vast Expanse School. He set up a sinister scheme, and even anticipated that he would be discovered by us. I was simply too self-confident.

“This is a battle between souls, and one will end up consuming the other. We cannot interfere. Victory will be decided by which among their souls is the strongest.”