Chapter 364: Counterfeit Winnie

"Supremacy of Nine Heavens ()"

Old Wang was torn between laughter and exasperation. Winnie was still chattering away but had already stepped into the room. Old Wang snapped his fingers.

*Snap~*

A faint golden light rippled across the training room floor, and Winnie went rigid, her mind transported to another space...

Winnie felt a sudden shift before her eyes, and the next moment, she found herself in an abyss of darkness.

An all-encompassing sea of darkness and silence surrounded her, broken only by the faint *drip... drip...* of water echoing in the distance. The ground beneath her feet was damp, as if she were standing in shallow puddles... *What the hell? Why do I feel so dizzy? Where is this? What’s going on?*

Her memories felt hazy, and she couldn’t recall what had just happened in the training room. With a slight flick of her left hand—

*Poof!*

A fireball ignited in her palm, instantly illuminating her surroundings.

The fireball wasn’t small, but its light only reached a few dozen meters around her. The space was empty—just flat ground and shallow puddles—while beyond the glow, an endless abyss stretched into infinity.

*A dream?*

"Hey!" Winnie shouted into the distance.

*Hey... hey... hey...*

Her voice echoed outward, dispersing into the void without a single reply. The space was far larger than she had imagined, with no boundaries in sight.

Vast, dark, and endless. Winnie frowned, but suddenly, her instincts flared. She lunged forward several meters before whirling around.

A streak of fire flashed where she had just stood—a Fire Soul Needle—plunging into a puddle and extinguishing with a faint *hiss* before vanishing completely.

Winnie’s expression darkened. The fireball in her hand flared brighter, and from the darkness, a slight figure slowly emerged into view.

That was... *Wait, what?* As the figure became clearer, Winnie’s jaw dropped. It was another Winnie! Slightly different in attire, this "Winnie" had thick black eyeliner, dark lipstick, and eyes brimming with murderous intent.

*Heart demon?*

The term flashed through her mind. Without hesitation, she raised her left hand, flames wreathing her as scores of fireballs materialized in the air. But at the same time, the shadowy doppelgänger mirrored her movement—countless fireballs, identical to hers, except these burned with a sinister black aura, like black hellfire!

*I’ll end you!* Winnie snarled, hurling her fireballs like a storm of arrows while veering left, Fire Soul Needles gripped in her fist. But halfway through her charge, the shadowy doppelgänger intercepted her.

*Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!*

While fireballs collided in the air, the two exchanged a flurry of needle strikes. Winnie took a hit to her calf, stumbling back as her left leg gave way—but her opponent mirrored her injury.

*Ugh, stop copying me!* Winnie gritted her teeth and raised her hand, a Soul Card glowing crimson in her grip. "Come out, Banana-Bear!"

A dark flash answered her. A massive summoning circle, synchronized with hers, unfolded—and from it emerged a hellish demon bear wreathed in black flames, its eye sockets empty pits.

*What the hell—?!* Winnie gaped. *This thing can even copy Banana-Bear?! That damn Old Wang’s word for it—right, a knockoff!*

"Banana-Bear, crush it!"

"ROAR!" Banana-Bear bellowed.

*BOOM!*

The two demon bears collided with terrifying force, their soul power clashing in a deafening shockwave that sent both Winnies tumbling backward...

The training room was dead silent. As soon as the array activated, Winnie stood motionless, like she'd been zoned out.

Outside, Kela watched in shock. "Uh, Captain, Winnie...?"

"Don't worry, leave her be." Old Wang lazily reclined on a lounge chair. His schedule had been completely flipped these past few days, and he still had things to do at night. Yawning, he said, "I'm gonna get some more sleep... Kela, take a break. If you're bored, you can go train with Fantasi. Once Winnie's done, it'll be your turn."

"Ah... okay!" Kela was curious but hesitated before finally asking, "What kind of training is it?"

"Just soul stuff..." Old Wang waved his hand dismissively, making it sound as simple as doing warm-up stretches. "You'll find out once you go in."

Winnie remained in that zoned-out state for a full three to four hours. By the time Old Wang finished his nap and woke up refreshed, she was still standing there.

Her face had turned pale by now, drenched in sweat from her forehead down to her neck and entire body. Her eyes were tightly shut, her brows furrowed, and her breathing had grown rapid. Yet, her willpower held strong—no signs of fainting or breaking down. Instead, her fingers twitched slightly, as if she were struggling to force herself awake from the mental battle.

Old Wang gave her props. Even experts like Qianjue and Mapeier had needed his help to escape such a level of inner demon. Wu Di and Fantasi had only managed because they'd taken the Soul Elixir he provided beforehand. But Winnie had no external aids—if she could wake up on her own, her mental toughness would nearly rival that of Hei Wukai and Long Feixue.

Truth be told, Old Wang had always held high hopes for Winnie's talent. The girl was just too playful and lazy, wasting her potential. If she devoted even half the energy she spent on fun to cultivation, she might even go head-to-head with Hei Wukai.

Shudder... shudder...

Just as he was thinking this, Winnie, who had been standing still, suddenly began trembling violently. Old Wang stood up, while Kela and a guy who just woke up watched nervously.

Soul power gathered at Old Wang's fingertips, ready to pull Winnie out of her tribulation at any moment. But the next second—

*Haaah—*

Winnie's eyes flew open as she took a deep breath...

"Cough! Cough! Cough!" She snapped awake from the nightmare, her legs giving way as she collapsed to her knees, hands braced against the floor. Gasping for air between coughs, she struggled to breathe.

The battle had ended in a stalemate... They knew each other down to the last detail—because the opponent had been *herself*. Every move, every thought, identical. No winner could be decided, only endless fighting until both had exhausted every last drop of soul power and strength, collapsing from sheer exhaustion...

Damn!

Just by looking at her state, Old Wang knew she hadn't fully overcome the tribulation. She had fallen just short, her mental toughness not quite reaching the level of Hei Wukai or Long Feixue.

Old Wang stepped forward, pulling Winnie up as he tilted the bottle of Soul Elixir into her mouth.

Still dazed, Winnie felt as if her head was pounding, her mind foggy.

The details of the illusion had already faded, leaving only a vague memory of an intense battle. Connecting it to her earlier conversation with Old Wang, she weakly pushed the elixir away. "Huh? Who the hell just hit me? Wait, what—what *is* this? I'm not drinking some sketchy brew! Wang Feng, I'm telling you—"

"Chug it, no backtalk!" Old Wang ignored her protests, pinching her cheeks with one hand and forcing the elixir down her throat.

*Gulp... gulp...*

Dazed, Winnie swallowed. Strangely enough, the potion was tangy and sweet, carrying an indescribable freshness that instantly cleared her brain fog. The moment it hit her stomach, her mind snapped back to clarity. Though her soul power felt depleted, her consciousness quickly returned to normal.

Wu Di was green with envy from the side. The same Soul Refining Array and Soul Elixir, yet Winnie woke up immediately after drinking it, while he had to sleep for a full day...

"Whoa, what *is* this stuff?" Winnie licked her lips in surprise. "It's actually pretty tasty! Old Wang, hook me up with two more!"

This was something the soul craved—of course it tasted good!

"One cup of this could cover half a year at the Burj Al Arab, and you want *two more*?" Old Wang rolled his eyes. The ingredients for the Soul Elixir weren't expensive, but his *blood* was priceless! You can’t even put a price on it. "You think this is a smoothie? You didn’t even want to drink it earlier—now it's gone!"

Winnie grinned. Her mind was fully clear now, and though the details of the illusion remained fuzzy, she remembered the broad strokes.

"So, how was it? Can you recall anything from the illusion?" Old Wang asked with a chuckle.

"It felt like fighting a doppelganger." Winnie tilted her head in thought. "Can't remember how it went though."

Wu Di and Fantasy instantly burned with envy. Winnie's talent was clearly on another level. After these past few days experiencing the Soul Refining Array, they'd learned from Old Wang that the clearer one's memories were, the stronger their willpower—and the purer and better the refinement effect would be.

Look at Winnie—it was her first soul refinement, yet she could recall so much. But the two of us... Wu Di and Fantasy exchanged awkward glances. Wu Di still couldn't remember what that giant beast even looked like, and Fantasy wasn't much better.

"How do you feel?" Old Wang was asking about Winnie's experience.

Unlike the others, Winnie had seen the world. This thing—damn, anything involving soul tempering was a treasure.

Damn, this was seriously amazing!

She'd always thought Old Wang was just bragging before, but now Winnie was genuinely impressed. Still, she had to play it cool—if she praised him now, it'd make her and Kela look like fools.

"So-so," Winnie replied lazily. "Just tired, like the usual drills. Nothing much, really!"