Awakening：The Infinite Evolution of My Talent as a Low-Level Awakener

Of course, this identity was not without its advantages. Given the immense prestige War Demon held within the Ultimate Evil faction, if he were able to break free from the seal of the Eternal Light World and raise his hand, many Ultimate Evil Beings would undoubtedly be willing to serve him.

If the former Nightmare Legion hadn't been entirely wiped out, it would still be a powerful ally. If used wisely, the advantages might even outweigh the disadvantages.

Moreover, if he could rescue the Ultimate Evil Beings trapped in the Abyssal Prison and find ways to control them, it would be a formidable force.

As for whether these Ultimate Evil beings might turn on him, Sterl was confident in handling them. To deal with Ultimate Evil Beings, one simply needed to use more brutal methods.

He extended his hand, and a nearby cell suddenly shattered, pulling a creature that resembled a grotesque combination of a slime and a goblin toward him.

The sealing shackles that had extended down from the ceiling and pierced its body were pulled straight, the intense pain nearly driving it to unconsciousness.

But the next moment, a pair of deep, penetrating eyes reflected into the creature's soul. In just a few seconds, all of its soul memories were absorbed by Sterl.

He wasn't about to take the Ghost Old Man's words at face value.

After absorbing the creature's memories, Sterl nodded in satisfaction.

It seemed War Demon's influence was truly formidable. The Ghost Old Man's words were indeed accurate. From the memories of this creature, Sterl had confirmed the information and even filled in some gaps.

He tossed the Ultimate Evil Being, now unconscious and dazed, to the side and turned his attention back to the Ghost Old Man kneeling in front of him.

The old man trembled uncontrollably, unable to even look at the prisoner who had been turned into a mindless fool.

He knew that this being, at its peak, had been of similar strength to him—one of the top-tier entities in the second level of the Abyssal Prison.

But in War Demon's hands, it was like an ant being crushed, its soul devoured. Now, the Ghost Old Man had a newfound understanding of War Demon's cruel methods.

Sterl wasn't bothered by such things. The beings imprisoned in the Abyssal Prison were hardly innocent, so killing them was no great loss.

Moreover, absorbing their soul memories didn't kill them—it merely caused them to fall into a period of dormancy. After the effects wore off, their consciousness would slowly start to recover.

But this process was far from pleasant. It was similar to the smaller version of what he had done to Artigas and Tosman.

If their will wasn't strong enough, even if they recovered, it could lead to mental collapse, causing irreversible damage.

Still, Sterl wasn't selecting random targets for this.

Earlier, aside from the Ghost Old Man attempting to distort his consciousness, this ugly creature had also been making some moves. It was just the right time for Sterl to verify a few things, and absorbing this creature's soul memories would also settle the cause and effect.

"You admire me?"

Sterl fixed his gaze on the Ghost Old Man, who trembled in response. A bad feeling surged in his heart, but he didn't dare to say anything more. He simply nodded frantically.

"Good. Since that's the case, from now on, you will be my soldier."

Sterl spoke calmly, his words not phrased as a question.

Upon hearing this, the Ghost Old Man inwardly wailed. Though he had committed many evil deeds and was guilty of countless crimes, facing the infamous War Demon, he felt like a pure, innocent child.

"Yes… yes! I have longed to bask in your glory, Lord War Demon. I humbly thank you."

The Ghost Old Man deeply bowed before Sterl, looking utterly "overcome with emotion."

Sterl paid no attention to the old man's thoughts. Looking at the sealing shackles held by his Law hand, he focused his immense blood power, giving a light squeeze.

Boom!!

Over a thousand unbreakable sealing shackles instantly shattered into countless pieces, scattering across the ground.

The long-suppressed power within the Ghost Old Man began to slowly awaken. However, due to his extreme weakness and being imprisoned for so long, recovering to full strength would require a substantial amount of resources.

"I am War. Those who follow me will prosper; those who oppose me will perish."

After lifting the seals on the Ghost Old Man, Sterl's voice echoed throughout the entire prison.

Immediately afterward, countless starry threads extended outward, and the prison walls that had confined these beings for thousands, even tens of thousands of years, collapsed. The sealing shackles around the Ultimate Evil Beings were all severed by the starry threads.

"You," Sterl directed, looking at the Ghost Old Man, "are responsible for leading these beings. Anyone who disobeys should be killed without hesitation. If I discover any ill intentions on your part, I will devour your soul."

Sterl cast a neutral glance at the Ghost Old Man. His voice was flat, devoid of any threatening tone.

But the Ghost Old Man could feel that Sterl was not speaking lightly. If he made any mistake, War would undoubtedly consume his soul.

Furthermore, he could sense that within his heart and brain, there was a tiny, almost imperceptible presence. With a single thought, that presence would crush his heart and brain into mush in an instant.

"I will obey your command, Lord War Demon."

The Ghost Old Man dared not slack off in the slightest. Even though he was now relatively free, no longer confined by the prison, he did not dare harbor any rebellious thoughts.

This was the method for dealing with Ultimate Evil Beings. When facing such villains, only by being stronger and more evil than them could they be made to respect and fear you.

It was like a vicious dog—when its master is strong, the dog will be obedient and well-behaved. But once the person holding the chain shows weakness, the dog will reveal its fangs and consume everything.

As for controlling these villains with followers' marks? There was no need for that at all.

Doing so would only add a burden to his soul. In comparison, using starry threads to bind them was much more convenient.

Under his control, the starry threads became tiny specks of dust, and with their inherent stealth properties, they could easily enter these villains' bodies through the act of breathing.

This way, with just a thought, the starry threads could effortlessly penetrate their bodies and drain their life force.

After all, Sterl didn't need the loyalty of these Ultimate Evil Beings—he just needed them to be useful to him.

After leaving the task to the Ghost Old Man, Sterl continued to descend deeper.

From the memories he had plundered earlier, he learned that the Abyssal Prison had five levels. With each level down, the Ultimate Evil Beings imprisoned there grew stronger.

There were even many nightmare creatures with immortality traits—similar to the Constant Abyss—who, even if killed, could gradually recover.

Therefore, they had to be sealed in the Abyssal Prison, never allowed to escape.

As for the fifth level, it was where the former Nightmare Overlord, War Demon, and many of the elite and high-ranking members of the Nightmare Legion were sealed.

Sterl's goal was to reach the fifth level and see if he could learn how to break the seal on the Eternal Light World from the Nightmare Overlord.

At the same time, he intended to unseal all the Ultimate Evil Beings trapped in the Abyssal Prison and put them to use for himself.

The passage to the third level was not equipped with the traps and mechanisms of the previous two levels.

From the third level onward, the Dream Spirit Empire no longer cared about the life or death of these Ultimate Evil Beings.

In the first and second levels, every few decades, someone would come to supply them with provisions, ensuring the Ultimate Evil Beings didn't starve to death.

But as for those in the third level, dying in the Abyssal Prison was probably the best choice for them.

Arriving at the third level of the Abyssal Prison, Sterl found it much quieter than the second level. Even without concealing his presence, there was no response or sound at all.

Seeing this, Sterl released his starry threads, spreading them like a spider's web, enveloping the entire prison.

Soon, he discovered that, within the third level, there were only a little over a hundred living beings left.

Even those that still survived had extremely weak auras and had fallen into a deep slumber. As for the other beings imprisoned here, over the years, either they had died of old age or starved to death.

Sterl didn't linger. After unsealing the remaining Ultimate Evil Beings, he sent a message to the Ghost Old Man, instructing him to come and manage them.

As for whether the old man had the ability to handle them, that wasn't Sterl's concern. He trusted that most of the villains from the second level would be more than willing to replace the Ghost Old Man.

When he reached the fourth level, it was even quieter than the third.

The third level at least had a few living beings, but in the hundreds of independent, enclosed cells on the fourth level, there was not a single soul in sight.

The only exception was a single cell, where a half-decayed skeleton remained.

Who knew how long the beings in the fourth level had been trapped here, and the sealing shackles continued to drain their Origin Power.

Moreover, the Eternal Light World Abyssal Prison had existed for an extremely long time, even before the establishment of the Nightmare Legion and the Dream Spirit Empire.

So, no one knew what era the Ultimate Evil Beings imprisoned here came from.

One thing was certain: the deeper one went into Abyssal Prison, the stronger the seals became, increasing exponentially with each layer.

This alone was enough to demonstrate the helplessness the Dream Spirit Empire had felt toward the Nightmare Legion.

It was unclear what kind of cost the Dream Spirit Empire had to bear to succeed in sealing both the Nightmare Overlord and War Demon in the fifth level.

Of course, the Nightmare Overlord's cooperation was a necessity; without it, it would have been impossible to seal both War Demon and the Nightmare Overlord, as well as many of the elite members of the Nightmare Legion, at the same time.

This could only suggest one thing: the Nightmare Overlord was undoubtedly a top-tier strategist. If it had been anyone else, someone less intelligent, they might not have sealed themselves in this way. It was like digging a hole and burying oneself—it made no sense.

Before long, Sterl reached the end of the fourth level.

At the entrance to the fifth level, a heavy stone door stood, completely blocking the way. It separated the fourth and fifth levels of the Abyssal Prison, preventing any beings from entering. Even the Dream Spirit Empire itself would find it difficult to penetrate further.