Upon hearing King Erl's explanation, Hao Yun immediately understood why his misfortune level was higher than that of the Mastanians and other Eternal Longing warriors who had been transformed into puppet forms. It was because they had only been influenced by the Mold Spirit's released energy, while King Erl himself had been physically invaded by the Mold Spirit's energy.

Seeing Hao Yun's alert expression, King Erl hurriedly continued, "Yes. However, Lord Hao, rest assured that we have not merged into one, but are in a state of confrontation. This is also why I just mentioned that the Mastanians' transformation of me was stopped here. First, it was because my divine power erupted at a critical moment and helped me resist further erosion from Mastanian toxins. Second, it was because the Mold Spirit energy that entered my body along with the toxins sensed my uniqueness through the divine power hidden within me. Therefore, it actively helped me eliminate the remaining Mastanian toxins and prevented my body from being completely transformed into a puppet form. The Mold Spirit energy didn't want to hand over my body to the Destroyer's Black Gate; instead, it wanted to possess my body alone."

"Oh, I also discovered something else during the confrontation with that Mold Spirit energy that merged with the Destroyer," King Erl added, as if recalling something.

"What do you mean?" Hao Yun asked.

"Well, although that Mold Spirit energy has already merged with the Destroyer, it seems quite peculiar. It appears to possess a split personality trait. That's why after encountering me, a part of the Mold Spirit energy that was originally merged with the Destroyer chose to leave voluntarily and entered my body. This is because the idea of seeking a higher fusion body comes from this part of the Mold Spirit energy," King Erl replied.

"Are you saying that the Mold Spirit energy within the Destroyer not only has two distinct personalities but these two personalities have completely separated and now occupy your and the Destroyer's bodies respectively?" Hao Yun said.

"It is currently contending with me for control of my body and has not yet succeeded," King Erl corrected first.

Then he continued, "Due to the Mold Spirit energy entering my body, it has created a unique intersection between me and the Destroyer. Now, he can read my thoughts, and I can glimpse into his mind. From this, I understand that although these two thoughts of the Mold Spirit energy have always had differences, they have always prioritized the overall situation and worked together toward the same goal. However, with my appearance, they found a perfect way to separate from each other. This has led them to both choose to establish their own independence, but the contradictions between them have become increasingly irreconcilable."

"So, what is the current situation of the Mold Spirit energy in your body and in the Destroyer's body?" Hao Yun asked.

"The part of the Mold Spirit energy that still wants to merge with the Destroyer believes in solving everything through simple and brutal slaughter. It is relatively conservative in its thinking and believes that changing bodies is unnecessary. After all, whoever it is, they will eventually be destroyed by the Mastanians under its command," King Erl explained.

"As for the other part of the Mold Spirit energy, since it has not completely broken through my defenses and devoured everything of mine, I don't know much about it. All I know is that its revenge is far more than just endless killing and destruction; it seems to have greater ambitions. However, as long as it cannot obtain my body, no matter how grand its ambitions are, they will only be empty talk!" King Erl answered with a mocking tone towards the Mold Spirit energy invading his body.

"Of course, I am not a saint of the upper realm, nor am I a divine officer of the pantheon. I am just a mortal who has had the fortune of possessing divine power. Therefore, my absolute strength is not powerful. This is also why the Mold Spirit energy within me continues to confront me and wants to forcibly merge with me," King Erl continued.

"It doesn't really want you; it wants the divine power within you. But is this really feasible? From what I know, divine power inherently has a repelling effect on evil forces like Mold Spirit energy. Isn't what it's doing just a fool's dream?" Hao Yun expressed his profound confusion about the Mold Spirit energy's actions.

"I thought so at first as well. After all, this is Mold Spirit energy that split from the Destroyer's body, and its strength must have been greatly weakened during the separation. In this case, its insistence on devouring me not only has the possibility of failure but also risks being destroyed by the divine power within me. It was precisely because of this that I intentionally opened the door to let it enter my body and then attempted to suppress it using the divine power within me," King Erl explained.

"However, as time passed, I realized I was wrong; I was too naive. After all, I am not a true divine officer, and my body has been damaged by Mastanian toxins. This caused the divine power passed down to me by Lady Anatalia to become extremely unstable, and I could no longer actively wield its power effectively. In addition, due to the influence of the chaotic flow of black hole energy, this divine power had also lost the protection of the pantheon. Therefore, when I now try to activate the divine power within me, I feel a very helpless feeling, as if—" King Erl struggled to find words to describe his situation, eventually falling into contemplation.

"It's like—like a software. Originally, this software was functioning normally while connected to the main server. But now that the connection between the software and the main server has been severed, it can only operate offline, causing many online functions to become unusable, thus drastically reducing its utility," Hao Yun attempted to vividly illustrate his point with a metaphor. However, since the metaphor he used was too far removed from King Erl's life experience, King Erl could only vaguely understand and nod in agreement with the general idea.

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"Alas! Back then, I thought the divine power within me could suppress the Mould Spirit's energy, leading to a lapse in vigilance due to blind optimism. This allowed it the opportunity to counterattack, successfully eroding some of my divine power. That sensation... it felt as though a piece of my soul had been bitten off, that chilling, piercing feeling truly made me understand the meaning of heart-wrenching pain," lamented King Earl, deeply remorseful.

"Fortunately, my divine power was still substantial, and Lady Wife had taught me many methods to manipulate divine power. Moreover, the strength of the Mould Spirit's energy itself was greatly diminished in its division, enabling me to continue resisting it despite numerous disadvantages. However, I am acutely aware of the vast gap between us. Regardless, I cannot withstand the onslaught of the Mould Spirit's energy and am forced to endure its erosion. The day it arrives will truly mark the irreversible doom of Eternal Star," King Earl expressed with great concern. Clearly, his worry was not for the imminent death approaching but rather for the catastrophe it would bring upon the subjects still stranded on Eternal Star after his demise.

Hao Yun deeply understood King Earl's concern but knew now was not the time for such worries. Thus, he spoke up again, "Then, during our first meeting, why were you in such poor condition? Could it be that you were—"

Before Hao Yun could finish, King Earl interjected, "Exactly. I was fending off another one of its attacks at that time. Your sudden assault genuinely startled me. Any significant fluctuations in my thoughts and emotions provide it with opportunities."

Hao Yun finally understood why King Earl's expression had been so complex back then, and why he had refused to leave. Any major action could disrupt his resolve, allowing the Mould Spirit's energy to exploit vulnerabilities and breach his defenses. Reflecting on this, Hao Yun couldn't help but feel relieved that he and Dao Lao had not insisted on forcibly removing King Earl, as the consequences would have been unthinkable.

"Alas! I am different from it. Although its strength has been weakened, I can feel it absorbing negative energy from its surroundings to enhance its power. After my divine power was damaged, too much negative energy has already been infused into my body. It makes me deeply uneasy and feels like I'm falling into corruption. This feeling is truly unbearable," King Earl expressed with deep concern.

Hao Yun nodded in understanding. This was one way the Mould Spirit's energy acquired energy. Moreover, with the Mastanians occupying Eternal Star, the place was saturated with negative energy. For that Mould Spirit's energy, it was like being at a sumptuous feast, indulging in delicacies at any time and place. Perhaps this was why that Mould Spirit's energy dared to confront King Earl's divine power forcefully despite its own weakened state? After all, as it continued to absorb negative energy from its surroundings, its power would eventually crush King Earl's divine power.

Hao Yun couldn't help but sigh, wondering how powerful the Destroyer Hekmon would be before forcibly separating the Mould Spirit's energy within him. Moreover, Hao Yun couldn't help but be curious about Judge Yan, who seemed to be Queen Antanelis. Facing the significantly weakened Destroyer, they could only fight to a draw. This showed just how powerful Judge Yan must be to lead the Eternal Star people in resisting the once complete Destroyer.

Thinking about this, Hao Yun became even more eager to meet Judge Yan. However, before that, he needed to focus on the current predicament. So, Hao Yun set aside his curiosity and continued to inquire, "If everything is as you say, then won't all the content of our current conversation be known to the Mould Spirit's energy within you and transmitted to the Destroyer?"

King Earl smiled and shook his head, "For now, we need not worry about that. Just a moment ago, I mobilized enough divine power once again to suppress its consciousness. So, the Mould Spirit's energy is currently temporarily suppressed and cannot possibly know what is happening now. Moreover, I will also forcibly block this segment of my memory afterward, just in case. Therefore, if I do not remember our conversations after this, Mr. Hao, please don’t think there is any issue."

"Understood," Hao Yun nodded.

During his conversation with King Earl, Hao Yun also took the opportunity to conduct a more detailed examination of his condition. Sure enough, the system showed that King Earl's Mould Fortune level had dropped to four stars, confirming the truthfulness of King Earl's words earlier and giving Hao Yun the idea to continue communicating with him.

“Mould Spirit’s energy is no ordinary troublemaker. Are you sure that doing this won’t anger it further and cause even greater harm to you?” Hao Yun asked cautiously.

“Rest assured. The only thing it can do to harm me the most right now is trying to devour my divine power and completely take over my body. Other than that, I don’t think it can cause any greater harm to me! Moreover, I am currently using the force field generated by this dagger to suppress it. In this situation, unless the energy within the dagger is depleted or I voluntarily withdraw the dagger’s stance, it won’t suddenly interfere with our conversation anymore. Of course, considering if I block it for too long, it might arouse suspicion from the Destroyer. Plus, I can’t afford to waste all the energy on the dagger here. So, we must finish our conversation as quickly as possible,” King Earl replied.

"Your Majesty, is there really no other way?" Tie Ta asked anxiously.

"No. My power comes from Her Majesty, the Queen. Even if there is a possibility, I will never again use her divine power. It would be a waste of resources to entrust this power to me. Because in this situation, only Her Majesty the Queen has the ability to lead you to defeat the Mastanians," King Earl shook his head.

"Sigh! If only we could have gathered more energy earlier and created a celestial shield here, things wouldn't have evolved into this!" Tie Ta said regretfully.

"What are you talking about? What energy are you gathering? Isn't that celestial shield something only Yan Chaoyue can create?" Hao Yun asked in confusion.

Upon hearing this, King Earl and Tie Ta glanced at each other, then fell silent together. It seemed they were hesitating whether to tell Hao Yun about this matter.

"I say, what time is it now? Let's not hide anything from each other! Everyone, let's bring out all the possible solutions and discuss them together. Maybe we can find a reliable solution!" Hao Yun urged anxiously, looking at them both as they seemed to have something to say but were hesitant to say it.