Lin Lei clearly remembered the name 'Reskin'.
Back when he was testing the 'Earth Movement' technique in the Amethyst Mountain Range and ended up in the hands of that purple beast, the beast had announced its title, claiming to be a Lord of the Purgatory, intending to intimidate Lin Lei. Unfortunately, Lin Lei had no idea what the Purgatory was or what the title of Lord entailed.
"Hss, hss." Countless resilient black streams of energy completely restrained Lin Lei. Even with his immense strength, the speed at which he shattered these streams was slower than their regeneration.
"Kid, don't even think about using that drop of a Sovereign's power. It would be a waste." The deep, gentle voice continued speaking.
Lin Lei turned his head in surprise. Fortunately, the black streams hadn't enveloped his head, allowing him to clearly see the red-haired, muscular man clad in ancient-style armor, wielding a heavy hammer, standing in mid-air.
"What do you want?" Lin Lei scoffed. "What, planning to control my soul?"
"You know about that too?" The lord of the Hantis Castle said in surprise.
Though they were conversing, the castle lord had deployed his 'Divine Domain', completely isolating their voices so that none of the distant onlookers could see or hear a thing.
"Come with me. We'll talk properly." The lord then turned and flew downwards.
"Go with him?" Lin Lei paused.
Seeing Lin Lei hadn't moved, the lord glanced back and said with a faint smile, "With your mid-stage Deity level of soul power, you're no match for me. Controlling you would be effortless. There's no need for me to play tricks on you."
"If you have something to say, say it here," Lin Lei insisted.
The castle lord looked at him with momentary astonishment, then smiled and nodded. "Alright, we'll do as you say." It had been many years since anyone had dared speak to him this way. The castle lord then hovered in the air above Hantis Castle and continued talking with Lin Lei.
"First, let me introduce myself. I am Moi Bagshaw! The current lord of Hantis Castle." A faint smile played on the castle lord's lips.
This castle lord was also from the Bagshaw family!
Lin Lei noticed that despite the lord's formidable presence in battle, his voice was deep and gentle, and his smile was amiable, giving no impression of a rough giant. Lin Lei replied, "I am Lin Lei."
"Can you tell me, what is your relationship with Reskin? For him to create a soul defense divine artifact for you," Lord 'Moi' said with a calm smile.
"Reskin... created a soul defense divine artifact for me?" Lin Lei was taken aback.
"Is that not so?" Moi smiled faintly. "I've heard of your exploits – slaying so many high-stage Deities and defeating 'Paslo'. Your soul defense must be formidable. But as a mid-stage Deity, how could your soul defense possibly be so strong? The soul of a mid-stage Deity is vastly inferior to that of a high-stage Deity in 'quality'!"
"Yes, I have a soul defense divine artifact. What about it?" Lin Lei said, not daring to admit he possessed a soul defense Sovereign artifact under any circumstances. Otherwise, this 'Moi' before him might not be able to resist the temptation of greed.
"That settles it," Moi chuckled. "Soul defense divine artifacts are extremely difficult to create. One must first achieve profound understanding of the 'soul'. In all of Hell, there are very few who can forge them. And Reskin is one such person."
"You were able to use his signature technique, 'Amethyst Space'. You must have received his instruction. That's why I say your soul defense divine artifact was forged by him." Moi spoke with great confidence.
Lin Lei shook his head. "It's true I learned this gravity space from him. But my soul defense artifact was not forged by him."
"Oh?" Moi glanced at Lin Lei in surprise, then smiled. "I must say, kid, you're quite mysterious. Your body is so powerful, that's extremely rare even among the Four Great Divine Beast families. And a soul defense artifact, plus a connection to Reskin..."
Lin Lei frowned slightly.
What was this Lord Moi after by discussing so much with him? But from the look of things, the other party didn't seem to have killing intent.
Seeing Lin Lei's expression, Moi smiled reassuringly. "Relax, kid. Even for Reskin's sake, I won't kill you. I just find you rather peculiar and wanted to chat."
Lin Lei felt a slight relief in his heart.
"So it was thanks to that purple beast that I escaped this time." He trusted Lord Moi somewhat. After all, with such strength far beyond his own, the man wouldn't need to lie if he intended to kill him.
"You're that sure I'm only a mid-stage Deity?" Lin Lei countered.
"Hahaha..." Moi burst into laughter. "Kid, forget Hell – across all four Supreme Divine Planes and seven Divine Planes, there are at most ten people whose soul cultivation surpasses mine! And even if they're slightly better, they couldn't completely hide their true strength from me."
Lin Lei was inwardly shocked.
Across four Supreme Divine Planes and seven Divine Planes, fewer than ten people surpassed this man in 'soul' power.
That meant...
In Hell, this Moi ranked in the top three in terms of soul power! Hell had existed for countless eons, home to innumerable experts. The position of 'Asura' had changed hands many times, with countless former Asuras retiring into obscurity.
Experts were as numerous as clouds!
Yet Moi could rank in the top three in soul power. Terrifying!
"There is, of course, one exception," Moi smiled. "Unless you are a Sovereign! Only then could you hide even from me." As he spoke, Moi recalled all the black streams of energy.
Regaining his freedom, Lin Lei felt a newfound respect for Moi. "Lord Moi, may I ask, what is your relationship with Reskin?"
"Him?" A hint of confusion flickered in Moi's eyes, as if recalling many past events. His gaze then steadied, and he sighed. "Reskin and I... we are both Lords of the Purgatory."
"As I thought!" Lin Lei was now absolutely certain that Gan Mengting's 'Lord' referred to Moi!
"What is the Purgatory, and what does it mean to be a Lord of the Purgatory?" Lin Lei asked in confusion.
"What is the Purgatory?" Moi looked at Lin Lei in surprise. "You don't even know that?" In Moi's view, with so many secrets hidden within Lin Lei, the young man should have known about the Purgatory.
Moi answered nonetheless: "The Purgatory is a very special place within Hell. It's teeming with experts. Many retired Asuras and reclusive powerhouses enter the Purgatory... There are far too many strong people in there!"
"And the Lords of the Purgatory?" Lin Lei followed up.
"There are a total of 108 Lords in the Purgatory!" Moi smiled.