FVN Chapter 46 Wandering in the Void
Chapter 46 Wandering in the Void
Chapter 46 Wandering in the Void
[Refining Level 2 +1]
[Refining Level 2 +1]
[Second Level of Spirit Refinement: 87/200]
If one were to rely on ordinary, arduous practice, it would take about eight and a half days to accumulate approximately 3 points of progress.
This single Qi-Nourishing Pill eliminates the need for those eight and a half days.
He opened his eyes.
The tent was dimly lit, with only a sliver of white light from a bright talisman filtering through the gaps in the curtain, vaguely outlining the tent's contours.
There are also three Qi-Nourishing Pills.
But today he first cultivated with Han Mu, then drew a purification talisman, and only then did he take pills to refine this batch of energy. His meridians were already exhausted.
Taking another pill would be a waste of precious resources.
Fang Shi sat cross-legged and waited for a while.
At this time of day, Qi Xueyi would usually appear. She would first cast a dust-repelling spell to wash away the dust and fatigue they had accumulated during the day, and then curl up in his arms like a cat that had found its nest, quietly closing her eyes.
But tonight, there was no movement inside the tent.
That slender figure did not appear for a long time.
Fang Shi waited for a while longer.
Outside the tent, only the occasional rustling of the night wind lifting the curtain and the faint voices coming from a distant tent could be heard.
He suddenly felt that something was wrong.
Even if refining the Qi-Nourishing Pill caused a delay, Qi Xueyi should still have shown up.
She has always been by his side, never missing a single event, and tonight should be no exception.
Fang opened his mouth to call out, but the sound stopped.
What should it be called?
He suddenly realized a very simple yet absurd fact: he had never called Qi Xueyi by her name.
In every conversation, he addressed her directly, using "you" as a pronoun, and sometimes he even omitted the pronoun altogether, speaking directly to her face to face.
As for the word "wife," it was never uttered.
But the people around her, Zhao Hu called her "Sister-in-law Qi", Han Mu called her "Immortal Master Qi", and even that crazy woman called her "Sister-in-law Qi".
Fang Shi thought to himself: Knowing her temperament, if he called her "Qi Xueyi" tonight, she definitely wouldn't let it go easily. But if he called her "Wife," it would be too...
He quickly dismissed this tedious thought.
Why think so much?
She was a person within this illusion.
What difference would it make if I called out?
Fang Shi took a deep breath, about to speak, when a pale blue figure stood quietly outside the curtain.
The white light of the Bright Light Talisman shone from behind her, coating her outline with a thin layer of silver, but the expression on her face was hidden in the shadows, neither clear nor distinct.
Fang swallowed back the words he was about to say, and instead asked, "Aren't you going to rest tonight?"
Qi Xueyi did not answer, but walked outside.
Fang Shi should have let her have her way, since she was a free person and could go wherever she wanted.
Besides, he had no reason to stop her in the first place.
However, he inexplicably followed along.
[Minor Concealment Technique Proficiency - 1]
[Minor Concealment Technique Proficiency - 1]
【————】
[Minor Concealment Technique Proficiency - 1]
Fang Shi had become indifferent to this; it was part of his and Qi Xueyi's daily routine, as long as they recovered on time.
But after a while, he realized something was wrong.
The number jumped too fast; the Minor Concealment Technique, which had originally reached 72 points, dropped all the way down to 10 points.
Moreover, Qi Xueyi left at an unusually fast speed, and he found himself involuntarily taking steps, which were also unusually fast.
Even Xu Xing Shou Zhong, which he had deliberately stuck at the beginner level, has seen its proficiency increase, and not just a little bit, but has actually reached [Xu Xing Shou Zhong (Proficiency): 5/200].
What's going on? Why are my hallucinations so intense and severe right now?
And is this area designated as Zone 1B?
It was not the "Y" zone that Fang Shi and others repaired and rebuilt, but the "Y" zone that the Sanpan Temple cultivators instantly rebuilt using great magic power on the first day after the earth vein explosion.
It was also the area where more than 3,000 people from Qiyuan Town were imprisoned.
The number of spirit-locking arrays repaired by array masters like Fang Shi was naturally more than just those hundred-odd people—but from beginning to end, only those hundred-odd people invited Fang Shi and his group.
Everyone who has ever invited Chen San Tai is here.
And he never came out again.
[Minor Concealment Technique Proficiency +1]
[Minor Concealment Technique Proficiency +1]
【————】
[Minor Concealment Technique Proficiency +1]
[Minor Breath Concealment Technique (Beginner): 72/100]
"My husband has actually woken up."
Qi Xueyi stood at the entrance of Zone B, her light blue shirt fluttering gently in the night breeze, the hem of her dress fluttering like a butterfly, the gardenias embroidered on her collar trembling slightly, just like real flowers.
The pale light of the Bright Light Talisman shone on her face, blurring her features as if they were veiled in a thin mist.
Fang Shi only then noticed that the eerily quiet Zone B was now filled with sounds of clashing swords, roars, and screams.
Fang Shi asked, "What is this?"
Qi Xueyi said, "I originally planned to spend more time with my husband, but in the end I couldn't stay any longer."
Fang Shi asked, "What exactly is it?"
Qi Xueyi said, "Husband, you once said that obsessions become water when they enter a river, and wine when they enter a cup. Whether it's water or wine, it will eventually flow away. What flows away doesn't need to stay in your heart."
Her voice lowered a few decibels as she said, "But some things can't be taken away."
Fang Shidao asked, "What do you mean!"
Qi Xueyi continued, "In the Luofu Mountain region, there lived twin orphans. The older sister was named Chaolu, and the younger sister was named Wanxia. They depended on each other since childhood. The older sister gathered herbs, and the younger sister made medicine. Although life was hard, they managed to get by. Later, when the older sister went into the mountains to gather herbs, she fell off a cliff. Wanxia held her sister's body and cried for three days and three nights. Finally, she made a decision—she would cultivate immortality until she could reverse life and death and bring her sister back."
"Wanxia was exceptionally talented and was taken in as a disciple by a Taoist priest from Mount Luofu. After a hundred years of arduous cultivation, she finally found the method of resurrection."
She gathered her sister's scattered soul fragments, reconstructed her body, and exhausted her cultivation to finally make her sister open her eyes again. When Chaolu awoke, she was exactly the same as before—she could laugh, talk, wipe her sweat, and tuck her in at night. Wanxia felt that there could be nothing more perfect in the world.
"But gradually, she noticed something was wrong. Her sister remembered everything from their childhood—what herbs grew on which mountain, that she was afraid of the dark, that she loved sweet cakes. But she couldn't remember one thing: the fall off the cliff. The evening glow asked her, 'Sister, do you remember how you fell?' The morning dew tilted her head, thought for a long time, and said, 'I didn't fall. I've always been by your side.'"
"Wanxia finally understood: her sister's soul had long since dissipated. The fragments she collected were simply her obsessions."
"But that was just delusion. Delusion cannot be dispelled; it is like stagnant water, accumulating in the depths of the evening glow's heart, growing thicker and thicker until it overflows. She began to lose sight of the morning dew before her—was it her sister, or a demon formed from her own obsession? Yet, she ultimately wanted to resurrect her sister, and that obsession grew stronger, gradually taking shape, taking root, sprouting, and blossoming. That flower was multicolored, called the Five Aggregates—form, feeling, perception, mental formations, and consciousness; each aggregate is a demon, each demon an obstacle."
"Lust blinds her eyes, making her see her sister as if she were the real person; demonic possession makes her touch her sister as if she were touching flesh and blood; demonic thoughts make her think of her sister as if she were thinking of the past; demonic actions make her willing to suffer countless calamities for her sister; and demonic understanding makes her no longer able to distinguish whether her sister is her obsession or herself."
97
"My husband, do you know what happened to the sunset in the end?"
Fang Shi wanted to say that he didn't care at all about this strange thing—he had never even heard of Mount Luofu.
This is the first time Qi Xueyi has brought it up today, and this is only the second time.
Not to mention the fate of the sunset.
But he also understood that he had to listen no matter what.
He asked, "What's wrong with the sunset?"
Qi Xueyi said, "She has reached the Foundation Establishment stage."
Fang swore, "What?!"
Before Fang Shi could ask any further questions, Qi Xueyi suddenly flicked her sleeve.
The wind swirled like a tidal wave, engulfing Fang Shi completely, leaving him no room to struggle, and pushing him deep into the "B" zone.
Strangely, the area that should have been illuminated as brightly as day by the Bright Light Talisman turned into a thick darkness the moment Fang Shi was pushed in.
Only the sounds of clashing swords and galloping horses, along with screams and cries of agony, became incredibly clear in the darkness.
The market is in a downtrend.
Li Zhengyuan and Zhang Yuanqi stood suspended in mid-air, the night wind blowing from the depths of Sanpan Mountain, making their robes flutter.
They had been standing here for countless hours, their gazes fixed on the turbid air churning around the four towns.
The dark aura was even thicker than it had been a few days ago.
In the direction of Qiyuan Town, the dark, turbid column of air had grown to more than three times its original thickness, like a giant python emerging from the ground, slowly twisting its body and tightly binding the entire town.
The black aura in the three towns of Taoyuan, Qingshi, and Songyuan is also spreading. Although it is not as intense as that in Qiyuan Town, it is gradually eroding the moonlight.
However, both of them remained calm and showed no sign of panic.
Because within that thick black mist, more and more red dots are emerging.
Especially in the direction of Qiyuan Town, the red dots are so densely packed that they resemble a cluster of lanterns.
Looking at the red dots, Li Zhengyuan said, "The demonic consciousness has been forced to the brink of manifestation. As long as we eliminate these hosts one by one and reseal the earth veins, this leakage of demonic energy will be considered over."
Zhang Yuanqi hummed in response, without saying anything more.
The two remained silent for a while.
Li Zhengyuan suddenly asked, "Junior Brother Zhang, do you know why the temple uses the Yin Immortal Foundation as the foundation of the Heavenly Origin Nine Mountains Purification Array?"
Zhang Yuanqi glanced at him but didn't reply.
Li Zhengyuan wasn't in a hurry. He slowly said, "If you answer, I will tell you who disturbed your refining of the Qi Cultivation Pill in Shangyuan Blessed Land."
Zhang Yuanqi's gaze sharpened slightly.
He stared at Li Zhengyuan for a moment before finally speaking: "Heaven and earth are divided into yin and yang. The pure qi of heaven rises to become yang, and the turbid qi of earth descends to become yin."
"In the Great Wilderness, turbid and pure qi are mixed, yin and yang are indistinguishable, and the five elements are disordered. Ordinary yang immortal foundations cannot be maintained for long in such an environment. Only by using yin immortal foundations as a stabilizing force, using turbid qi to absorb turbid qi, and using yin qi to draw yin qi in, can the turbid qi surging in the earth veins be absorbed into the formation, and then slowly dissolved by the power of the great formation."
"This is how land reclamation is done: first, establish a yin foundation to absorb the turbid air. Once the turbid air is gone and the pure air returns, then change to a yang foundation, and that becomes a habitable place."
Li Zhengyuan said, "Well said. The foundation of immortality is constant and indestructible. This is both an advantage and a problem."
"As long as the immortal foundation remains intact, those demons that parasitize it will not be easy to eradicate. In particular, the Five Yin Demons, which are a mixture of reality and illusion, are impossible to completely eliminate and are a hundred times more troublesome than ordinary demons."
Zhang Yuanqi said, "No matter how troublesome it is, it is still an inanimate object. If the temple hadn't wanted to reduce casualties, it would have been wiped out long ago with swift and decisive measures."
Li Zhengyuan smiled and said, "Yes, it was resolved a long time ago."
Suddenly, he changed the subject, saying, "Junior Brother Zhang, do you still remember the news about the Frost Grass in Cold Mist Valley? Where did you first learn about it?"
Zhang Yuanqi was slightly taken aback.
He suddenly felt something was wrong; Li Zhengyuan hadn't called him "Junior Brother Zhang" in a long time.
Over the years, as the competition for immortality within the temple intensified, Li Zhengyuan had been addressing him by his given name.
Seeing that he did not answer, Li Zhengyuan said again, "If you tell me, I will tell you who disturbed your alchemy at Shangyuan Blessed Land."
Zhang Yuanqi sneered and said, "You really are not a man of your word. You haven't fulfilled your promise yet when you asked me about the Yin Immortal Foundation, and now you're adding to it again."
Lee Jung-won smiled noncommittally.
Zhang Yuanqi remained silent for a moment.
To be honest, there's nothing to hide about the source of the information about Frost Grass; in fact, Li Zhengyuan himself is well aware of it.
He simply didn't understand why Li Zhengyuan would ask this question at this time and in this way.
He said, "Of course I heard it from you. That day in the Scripture Pavilion, you told me that there was a hundred-year-old Frost Grass deep in the Cold Mist Ravine, so I went to investigate. What, you've forgotten?"
Li Zhengyuan gazed at the thick darkness of Qiyuan Town and said, "Yes, I heard it from here. So, the Cold Mist Ravine was originally mine."
Zhang Yuanqi wanted to say, "Absurd!"
Cold Mist Ravine is located on the edge of the jurisdiction of Sanpan Temple, and has been unclaimed land since ancient times. How can it be considered "your" property?
Li Zhengyuan continued, "Just like that 'Wandering in the Void,' it originally belonged to me, didn't it?"
Clang!
A flash of cold light suddenly exploded before my eyes.
A thin sword had appeared in Li Zhengyuan's hand at some point. The blade was as thin as a cicada's wing and pure white, like a sliver of moonlight suspended in the air.
Zhang Yuanqi's pupils shrank, but he was not afraid. The two were both at the eighth level of Qi Refining, and they had fought several times, with the outcome always being close.
Although the sword strike came suddenly, it might not necessarily harm him.
However, just as he was about to use his magic, a violent dizziness suddenly struck him.
For some reason, he suddenly thought of his deceased mother.
In that instant, a cold, sharp pain shot through my chest.
Li Zhengyuan's sword had pierced his heart.
"Senior Brother Li! Senior Brother Zhang!"
A childish voice came from below.
Junior Brother Ye flew up from the center of the market and said urgently, "Something's wrong! Master has discovered another clone of the Five Elements Hermit in the Cold Mist Ravine, and is now following the earth's veins..."
His words came to an abrupt end.
He saw it; Li Zhengyuan's sword was protruding from Zhang Yuanqi's back, warm blood dripping from the tip in the night wind.
Lee Jung-won turned his head, looked at him, and a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Junior Brother Ye, why have you stopped talking?"