Chapter 106: Incomprehensible
Chapter 106: Incomprehensible
The dull-faced youth gasped and yanked back his right hand. His figure flickered as he spun around, darting toward the grand hall’s exit.
Cheng Lingyu became the third to arrive before the glowing brilliance. The young man in blue had already withdrawn his right hand, shooting Cheng Lingyu a surprised look. It seemed baffling that someone at the True Martial Realm cultivation level had outpaced so many others.
“Guishun Valley’s full of oddities. Weaklings somehow take the lead.”
The young man in blue’s mocking tone dripped with scorn, irritating Cheng Lingyu.
“Mocking yourself or me?”
The blue-clad youth arched an eyebrow. “Bold enough to retort? Name yourself.”
Cheng Lingyu snorted. “What gives you the right to order me around?”
Coldness flashed in the young man’s eyes, vortices swirling in their depths.
“Trash with audacity. Dare act wild before Ji Yaowu? I could squash you like a bug.”
Cheng Lingyu blinked. “Ji Yaowu? What’s your relation to Ji Yaozu?”
“My elder brother. You know him?”
The blue-clad youth studied Cheng Lingyu’s disguised features—unrecognizable to strangers.
“The Ji family of Tianhua City…reverberates like thunder.”
Cheng Lingyu hadn’t expected to meet Ji Yaozu’s kin here. Schemes flickered through his mind.
He eyed the multicolored glow, about to probe it when Lan Xiaozhu tugged his sleeve.
“Use your left.”
Understanding dawned. He shifted Lan Xiaozhu to his right arm and plunged his left hand into the light.
Earlier entrants had used their right hands. Cheng Lingyu’s switch to the left puzzled observers—was there a difference?
There was.
As his left hand penetrated the brilliance, the Fang Tian Bao Yin on his palm quivered. Strands of Spiritual Light wove across his skin, forming a spiritual diagram.
In his mind, a sprout trembled. Light Shadows danced on its twin leaves—chronological imprints replaying the Spirit Hall’s hidden history.
This visual transmission laid bare the hall’s secrets. Outsiders saw nothing, only Cheng Lingyu’s shifting expressions.
Ji Yaowu lingered, demanding, “What did you witness?”
Cheng Lingyu kept silent, absorbing the images’ information.
When the visions faded, he withdrew his left hand. Holding Lan Xiaozhu, he retreated wordlessly. The supergravity field’s pressure had lessened.
The eerie Spirit Hall masked dangers beneath its calm surface.
During his withdrawal, Cheng Lingyu noted hundreds of Soul Martial Realm experts lying dead.
Ji Yaowu seethed. Arrogance made Cheng Lingyu’s disregard intolerable, stoking his hatred.
Cheng Lingyu exited the palace, but the dull-looking youth had already vanished. Instead, he found dozens of cultivators gathered outside, all staring fixedly at him.
Thinking fast, Cheng Lingyu turned to retreat into the palace, only to discover a massive blood mist coalescing above the grand hall, forming a crimson face that glared at him with icy malice.
Cheng Lingyu cursed. The bloody visage radiated killing intent, giving him a dangerous premonition.
Lan Xiaozhu urged, “We can’t go back. We must charge out.”
Cheng Lingyu smiled bitterly. “If we rush out now, we’ll become everyone’s target.”
Around the palace, dozens of cultivators closed in, blocking the exit like hunters waiting at a rabbit’s burrow.
Cheng Lingyu dragged his feet, lingering near the entrance while waiting for Ji Yaowu.
Soon enough, Ji Yaowu appeared at the palace doorway, drawing attention from part of the crowd.
Cheng Lingyu flashed an eerie smile and shouted to Ji Yaowu, “I’ll send word to your elder brother! Don’t forget your promise to reveal the Spirit Hall’s secrets!”
He then grabbed Lan Xiaozhu’s arm and leapt into motion.
Emerging from the palace, Ji Yaowu blinked in confusion at Cheng Lingyu’s baffling declaration.
“What message? Explain yourself!”
Mid-air, Cheng Lingyu bellowed, “I’ll distract them while you follow the palace’s hidden clues to claim the great fortune! Remember to share the spoils!”
Dozens of cultivators immediately swarmed toward Ji Yaowu.
Cheng Lingyu staged mock attacks to “clear the path,” but everyone ignored him, allowing an easy escape with Lan Xiaozhu in tow.
Ji Yaowu soon realized the deception. “You scheming rat! I’ll skin you alive!” he roared.
Cheng Lingyu’s distant voice echoed back: “Stay calm! I’m fetching reinforcements to eliminate them all!”
“Treacherous worm!” Ji Yaowu’s furious roar shook the air as dozens descended upon him, uncaring of his status.
Though formidable, Ji Yaowu became overwhelmed by numbers, fleeing battered and disheveled.
Cheng Lingyu laughed uproariously. “Nothing beats outsmarting fools!”
Lan Xiaozhu chuckled. “Who knew our serious young master was such an accomplished trickster?”
“Blame his arrogance as Ji Yaozu’s brother,” Cheng Lingyu grinned. “Even tigers become stray cats when surrounded.”
After scanning their surroundings, Lan Xiaozhu lowered her voice. “What did you find inside?”
Cheng Lingyu’s smile faded. Through voice transmission, he shared: “That glowing sphere held secrets about Guishun Valley’s origins and its eight Immortal Souls. The Cold Crystal Illusion Flower we saw is one.”
“You learned the valley’s history?”
“Only fragments. Guishun Valley predates even the Tianyang Empire. As for its creation…” He shrugged.
Lan Xiaozhu gasped. “Older than Tianyang? That’s over ten millennia!”
“Of its eight Immortal Souls, most are likely the second type – those severed from fallen geniuses to wander eternally.”
Cheng Lingyu nodded. “The valley’s cultivation suppression comes from ancient restrictions. Flaws in these laws explain the gray-clad expert we saw exceeding Soul Martial limits.”
“What now?” Lan Xiaozhu asked.
Cheng Lingyu hesitated before whispering, “When will your… sunflower blood cycle come?”
Lan Xiaozhu’s cheeks flushed crimson. “What vulgar nonsense!”
“Cold Crystal Illusion Flower, Xuan Yin Kuei blood ritual,” he pressed awkwardly. “The texts said virgin blood in the pool could manifest it for merging.”
“That’s baseless folklore!”
“My research suggests otherwise. Pure yin constitution. Virgin sunflower blood to reveal the Immortal Soul. But…” He trailed off, realizing the paradox.
Lan Xiaozhu softly said, “Even if true, my Second Stage Soul Martial cultivation couldn’t subdue it.”
“We could boost your-”
“I haven’t progressed since fifteen!” she interrupted bitterly. “Without resolving the Dao’s Backlash Power, no spiritual herbs help.”
Cheng Lingyu grimaced. Three irreconcilable conditions: virgin blood for manifestation, sufficient power to merge, and dual cultivation required to break her stagnation – which would void her virginity.
“Forget it,” Lan Xiaozhu sighed. “This chance isn’t meant for me.”
They walked in heavy silence until Cheng Lingyu suddenly grinned. “What’s yours can’t be stolen. We’ll find another way.”
Lan Xiaozhu offered a wan smile, saying nothing.