Both of them had been heavily damaged during the previous battles and although the Soul Devouring Bird had originally recovered to some extent, in real battle... it was very useless.
Now, sensing the rich spirit energy flowing into Grey's body, they immediately began devouring it to repair themselves.
Grey did not stop them.
Instead, he carefully observed the process.
He quickly noticed that their recovery speed was astonishing.
The spirit energy seemed to be extremely compatible with their existence.
Within moments, the previously weakened Life Demon Phantom which had been in a critical condition and unable to even manifest properly, began to stabilize.
Then suddenly
It appeared.
Inside Grey's Sea of Consciousness, the phantom slowly formed once again.
Its long hair hung down and completely covered its face, hiding its eyes and expression. Its arms drooped unnaturally long, its fingertips almost touching the dark ground beneath it.
The moment Grey saw this scene inside his mind,
The Life Demon Phantom suddenly erupted with terrifying power.
Intense purple flames exploded from its body as if it intended to burn the entire world to ashes. It began absorbing the spirit energy even faster than Grey himself.
Even the Soul Devouring Bird could not compete with it.
Grey was stunned for a brief moment before immediately issuing a command.
"Stop."
The Life Demon Phantom instantly obeyed and halted its absorption.
Grey's mind rapidly analyzed what he had just witnessed.
'The spirit energy inside the white crystal is extremely potent and unusually pure.'
'It also seems to have a stronger effect on the Life Demon Phantom.'
Grey narrowed his eyes slightly as he continued thinking.
'They may share a similar origin…'
'Or perhaps this spirit energy was extracted through methods similar to how the Life Demon Art plunders life force.'
After the Life Demon Phantom finished recovering, Grey quickly estimated the remaining amount of energy.
Approximately sixty percent of the original spirit energy still remained.
Soon, the Soul Devouring Everlasting Bird also let out a satisfied screech.
Its aura surged explosively within Grey's Sea of Consciousness.
The third feather on its tail began glowing with an even brighter light, radiating an ancient and mysterious aura.
The bird had also reached its limit.
Now, only Grey himself remained.
However, instead of continuing to use the spirit energy to heal himself, Grey made another decision.
He redirected the spirit energy toward his Spirit Perforations.
He wanted to see if he could break open more of them.
After all, the white crystal was still in his possession, and only a small amount of time had passed since he began cultivating.
When Grey began using the spirit energy to strike at his spirit perforations, the effect was immediate.
The fifty-second spirit perforation shattered like fragile glass.
Not long after...
The fifty-third followed.
Then the fifty-fourth.
And finally the fifty-fifth.
Within only twenty minutes, Grey had broken open four spirit perforations, raising the total number from fifty-one to fifty-five.
This speed was completely unprecedented.
Even Grey himself was shocked.
Excitement flickered in his eyes.
'The spirit energy is far denser than anything I've absorbed before.'
'Using energy of this quality to break open my future perforations will make the process much easier.'
Grey's gaze slowly shifted toward the spot where the pile of ash still lay on the battlefield.
'This energy likely came from a cultivator far above the Foundation Establishment realm.'
This red land had no concept of clouds.