Chapter 190: Core Will Compromise

Within his sea of consciousness, the crimson ocean formed from endless resentment and maddened will was pounding against Wang Shan's isolated divine soul island with unprecedented ferocity.

He was like a small skiff in a raging tempest, liable to be completely overturned and crushed at any moment.

Just at this critical juncture, a childish yet incomparably firm voice pierced through the barrier of his divine soul, ringing clearly in his mind.

"Grandpa... I think... I can help you."

It was Zhitao!

Wang Shan's divine soul shook violently.

He "looked" toward the Outside World. Beside his seated physical body, the grandson who had just returned from the gates of hell was watching him with impossibly clear eyes. There was no fear in that gaze, only a certainty that seemed innate.

This kid...

With no time to think it through, the collective will known as the "Progenitor of Ten Thousand Beasts" seemed to have also detected the newly appeared aura of Wang Zhitao, which it found incomparably "delicious" and incomparably "kindred." Its assault instantly grew even more frenzied.

"Roar—"

A soundless roar exploded in Wang Shan's sea of consciousness, as if intent on tearing apart the last shred of his awareness.

"Zhitao! Don't resist. Feel the power in my body with your heart! Treat it... as your own!"

Wang Shan exhausted his last sliver of strength to issue a command at the divine soul level.

He was gambling now! Gambling that the legendary "Devouring Origin Overlord Body" was truly as wondrous as the ancient texts recorded!

Though Wang Zhitao could not understand any divine soul command, he instinctively did as told. He reached out his small hand and gently pressed it against his grandfather's crossed knee.

"Boom!"

A dark-gold energy, far more violent and impure than the Sheng Ming Quan, filled with destructive and devouring desire, surged madly into Wang Zhitao through the skin where grandfather and grandson made contact!

"Ancestor!"

"Young Master!"

Li Hu, Zhang Mei, and the others were frightened out of their wits. Just watching this power from afar made their hearts pound with dread. To pour it so directly into a child's body—wouldn't he instantly burst apart and die?

But a bizarre scene unfolded.

That terrifying energy, enough to burst a Foundation Establishment cultivator, after surging into Wang Zhitao's body, not only caused no harm whatsoever, but instead, like a flood that had found an outlet, began circulating rapidly within him.

Wang Zhitao's small face flushed bright red, his body steaming with heat, yet he showed not the slightest pain. Deep within his body, those golden patterns that had just hidden themselves reemerged, like a precise purification array, rapidly filtering and refining this impure beast-source energy. Then, an incomparably pure energy, even carrying a trace of "kingly" aura, flowed back through his small hand, returning to nourish Wang Shan's body!

"This... this is..."

Wang Shan was stunned.

What surged back into his body was no longer a lethal poison, but a deeply nourishing elixir!

The Counter-Devouring force of the Ten Thousand Beasts Reversal, which had been rampaging through his body and nearly tearing apart his Meridians, now, in the face of this backflowing pure energy, was like a subject encountering a king—instantly becoming utterly docile, easily combed and guided by it, merging into Wang Shan's own Spiritual Power.

As one force waned and the other waxed, the pressure on Wang Shan's divine soul plummeted!

"Good! Good grandson! Again!" A surge of indescribable ecstasy welled up in Wang Shan's heart.

This was no grandson—this was practically a super purifier and power bank delivered right to him, portable and all!

Within the sea of consciousness, the will of the "Progenitor of Ten Thousand Beasts" fell into utter chaos.

It could not understand.

Why had the "poison" it fed to the "vessel," after going full circle, instead become the other party's tonic? What was this newly appeared little creature? Why did the aura on him make it feel even more kindred and yearning than this old fellow who cultivated the Ten Thousand Beasts Reversal?

This far exceeded the comprehension of its chaotic instinct, formed from the convergence of countless resentments.

In the instant of its hesitation, Wang Shan seized the opportunity.

"System! Use that refined Will Fragment Essence on me!"

【Command Confirmation. Now using 'Will Fragment Essence'...】

A cool, pure energy carrying a high-level information stream instantly poured into Wang Shan's divine soul, which was on the verge of shattering.

The sensation was like parched, cracked earth receiving a thorough, satisfying rainfall. The countless cracks on his divine soul began healing at a visible rate, and the once-dim fire of his divine soul grew bright again.

"Get out!"

Wang Shan's divine soul let out a heaven-shaking roar, actively harnessing the power within him that had been purified by his grandson—power that belonged to him—and slammed it viciously into that crimson ocean!

"Howl—"

The "Progenitor of Ten Thousand Beasts" let out a shriek filled with unwillingness, rage, and... fear.

It sensed an unprecedented threat. This "vessel" before it, after weathering round after round of its assaults, had not only failed to collapse but had instead grown even more resilient, even more dangerous!

If this continued, not only would it fail to complete its "Divine Descent," but it might instead have part of its origin devoured by this monster!

Seeking advantage and avoiding harm was the instinct of all living things, and this collective will was no exception.

The crimson ocean receded like an ebbing tide, rapidly withdrawing from Wang Shan's sea of consciousness. But it did not leave entirely. After retreating to the edge of the sea of consciousness, it left behind an imperceptible mental tendril, like a viper lurking in the shadows, fixed dead on Wang Shan, seemingly waiting for the next opportunity.

"Hmph, you want to run?"

Wang Shan gave a cold laugh. He could clearly sense that mental link.

To him, this thing was no longer a threat but had instead become a beacon. One that would let him sense the movements of this "Progenitor of Ten Thousand Beasts" at all times... a radar.

His sea of consciousness regained clarity. Though still turbulent, he had completely reclaimed sovereignty.

In the Outside World, Wang Shan snapped his eyes open, a dark-gold light flashing through the depths of his gaze and vanishing. The beastly scales on his body swiftly receded, returning to normal skin.

"Whoosh..."

He exhaled a long breath of turbid air. The breath hit the ground and actually corroded a sizzling small pit into the hard rock surface.

"Grandpa!" Wang Zhize was the first to throw himself forward.

Wang Zhitao also released his hand. His small face was a bit pale, but his eyes sparkled brightly. He looked at Wang Shan and smiled happily. "Grandpa, you're better."

"Better, all better." Wang Shan patted both grandsons' heads, his heart filled with a thousand emotions.

He looked at Li Hu, Zhang Mei, and the others. Each of them still wore expressions of lingering fright, but seeing Wang Shan restored to normal, they all let out heavy sighs of relief.

"Ancestor, you..." Li Hu stepped forward, but with the words at his lips, he didn't know how to ask.

"I'm fine for now." Wang Shan waved his hand and stood up, feeling the surging power within his body.

The Counter‑Devouring power of Ten Thousand Beasts Reversal, with the help of Wang Zhitao, the "purifier", has already been transformed by about half, becoming part of his own cultivation. He can feel that his mastery of the method has stepped onto an entirely new level.

Moreover, the energy throughout the entire cave seems to have also changed.

As the "Ancestor of Ten Thousand Beasts" temporarily withdrew its will, the previously raging beast source energy became much calmer, and the water of Sheng Ming Quan grew ever clearer, emitting a pure life aura.

"Li Hu, Zhang Mei, you guard with people, do not leave this cave," Wang Shan ordered in a deep voice.

"Yes!" the group replied in unison.

Wang Shan did not begin cultivating immediately; he knew this was only a brief calm. That old monster could resurface at any moment, and outside there were the Wan family's pursuers and the mysterious "Lord".

He walked to the edge of Sheng Ming Quan, sat cross‑legged, and called his two grandsons to his side.

"Zhitao, how did you just manage that?"

Wang Zhitao tilted his head, tried to recall, and said uncertainly, "I… I just felt that the things inside your body, Grandfather, were very familiar, so I thought of making them obey a bit, and then they really obeyed."

His childlike words were unguarded, yet they revealed the essence of the "Devouring Core Overlord Body".

A born rider!

Wang Shan, certain in his heart, looked at Wang Zhize and said, "Zhize, give me the Black Jade Slip."

Wang Zhize obediently handed over the Black Jade Slip that no longer glowed.

Wang Shan grasped the Slip, and his Spiritual Sense probed into it. This time, he encountered no obstruction; chapter after chapter of complete Core Inheritance concerning the Beast Taming Sect—from its rise to its fall, from Ten Thousand Beast Method to Ten Thousand Beasts Reversal, and various secret arts, pill formulas, and array diagrams—flooded his mind like a data stream.

So that's it… so that's it!

His eyes grew ever brighter.

With his grandson as a perfect "container" and "purifier", with this complete inheritance, and combined with his own "Fierce Blade" that can devour all things, many of his previous schemes now have a foundation for realization!

He looked at the two grandsons before him: one with clear eyes, his body harboring a power that even he found startling; the other bewildered, yet the key to unlocking all this inheritance.

"From today onward, you two will cultivate together with me."

Wang Shan's voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable resolve.

He knew that little time remained for them. Only by turning this erroneous "legacy" into a true power belonging to the Wan family before the Ten Thousand Beasts Origin fully erupts would there be a sliver of hope.