Chapter 210: Mind Pollution
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Yan Dequan, that wicked individual, was killed by Brother Chen?
Si Yinan’s heart was filled with disbelief. The person who had pursued them relentlessly, leaving them with no way to escape, had he really died in such a short span of time?
Si Yuanhai’s brow quivered, his emotions too complex to be described in words. He looked at Chen Fei, his back slightly bent as if he was about to express his sincere gratitude to him.
Chen Fei was startled by Si Yuanhai’s gesture and immediately reached out to stop him. Si Yuanhai’s age made him quite delicate, and any misstep might alter their relationship drastically.
Chen Fei didn’t want that to happen.
Si Yuanhai let out a faint sigh, sensing Chen Fei’s determination, and he didn’t insist any further.
Originally cornered by Yan Dequan to leave Immortal Cloud City, with chaos and danger prevailing outside, the future was uncertain and perilous. Si Yuanhai wasn’t afraid for himself, but he was worried about Si Yinan.
Now that Chen Fei had slain Yan Dequan, relieving them from the situation that forced them to leave, Si Yuanhai couldn’t help feeling a bit overwhelmed.
“Brother Chen, thank you!”
Seeing Si Yuanhai’s gesture, Si Yinan also thought about expressing his gratitude by kneeling to Chen Fei.
Upon witnessing Si Yinan’s action, Chen Fei couldn’t help but smile bitterly. He exerted a burst of strength, pushing Si Yinan to sit on the chair behind him.
“There’s no need for such gestures. 1 also have my own motives. When the time comes, I might need your help to activate the Enigmatic Jade,” Chen Fei said with a smile.
“A great favor doesn’t need words of thanks. We’ll remember this kindness forever.”
Recovered from his excited emotions, Si Yuanhai understood Chen Fei’s intention earlier – he didn’t want to jeopardize their relationship.
“I see you’ve packed up all your belongings. How about returning to your previous courtyard now?”
Chen Fei looked at the various bags and packages behind Si Yinan, speaking with a smile.
“Sure, we’ll head back now!”
Si Yuanhai nodded, and on the side, Si Yinan’s face also revealed a long-lost smile.
After an incense stick’s worth of time, Chen Fei and his companions returned to the courtyard they had previously rented. Chi Defeng looked somewhat surprised at Si Yuanhai and Si Yinan. Wasn’t the threat of their enemy eliminated now?
Si Yuanhai returned to the adjacent courtyard, and a commotion suddenly erupted next door. Si Yuanhai and Si Yinan had been absent for several months, and it was unexpected for them to return now.
“I killed Senior Si’s junior brother. Senior Si doesn’t need to leave Immortal Cloud City anymore,” Chen Fei explained with a smile, noticing Chi Defeng’s puzzlement.
Chi Defeng looked at Chen Fei with astonishment on his face. Had they only just met today and already accomplished such a significant feat?
However, Chi Defeng didn’t doubt Chen Fei’s words. After all, Chen Fei was now one of the top ten true transmission disciples of the Primordial Sword Sect. Chi Defeng had been delivering medicinal herbs daily, so he was well aware of this matter.
Si Yuanhai, on the other hand, had been evading around and couldn’t have known about this news.
As for Si Yuanhai’s request to meet Chen Fei and the subsequent events, Chi Defeng hadn’t divulged this information. Chen Fei becoming a true inheritor was his own business, and Chi Defeng wouldn’t spread it around.
Chi Defeng had also considered that Si Yuanhai’s departure from Immortal Cloud City might have been related to Yan Dequan. However, Chi Defeng couldn’t possibly intercede on Chen Fei’s behalf to protect Si Yuanhai from Yan Dequan.
It wasn’t within Chi Defeng’s nature to take advantage of others’ generosity.
But now that Si Yuanhai didn’t need to leave Immortal Cloud City and wasn’t being pursued by Yan Dequan anymore, Chi Defeng genuinely felt relieved. After all, Si Yuanhai had helped Chi Defeng before, but Chi Defeng’s own abilities were limited, preventing him from assisting Si Yuanhai.
In the evening, Si Yuanhai came over alone, and the two of them enjoyed a drink together with Chen Fei.
Several barrels of fine wine were consumed during their lively conversation. From the night until dawn, most of the time it was Si Yuanhai speaking, and Chen Fei and the others listening.
Having lived to their age, Si Yuanhai’s insights undoubtedly surpassed those of Chen Fei and his companions. Especially in the realm of the mystical Illusory art, Si Yuanhai’s experiences appeared quite legendary.
At noon, Chen Fei had already returned to the Primordial Sword Sect.
Soaking in hot springs, standing under waterfalls, and practicing while consuming Clear Frost Pills, Chen Fei wasn’t affected by yesterday’s events. He continued to practice as he usually did.
As for the contents of Yan Dequan’s waist pouch, there wasn’t much of a surprise. There were quite a few silver notes, but not an exorbitant amount, just a few thousand taels.
Apart from the silver notes, there was a peculiar stone. Chen Fei inquired about it with Si Yuanhai and discovered that the stone was a product of the Strange Heart Realm.
This stone had a special function for the Resisting Evil Bloodline. For cultivators, the simplest way to use it was similar to the Strange Heart Stone it could be used to temper one’s mental power.
Chen Fei’s training continued until evening before he concluded it.
He entered the secluded chamber in the courtyard and sat cross-legged, taking out the Enigmatic Jade and the Heart Candle.
The Enigmatic Jade was no longer infused with power by Si Yuanhai. As for the Heart Candle, Chen Fei had obtained some from Si Yuanhai. Of course, Chen Fei had also purchased materials for making Heart Candles, but he hadn’t started crafting them yet.
Igniting the Heart Candle, Chen Fei activated the secret techniques of the Resisting Evil Bloodline. He hadn’t intended to simplify this technique; it was just a method to enter and exit the Strange Heart Realm.
Being unfamiliar or proficient didn’t affect Chen Fei much; the main goal was to activate the Enigmatic Jade.
The Enigmatic Jade began to tremble slightly, emitting a fluctuation. Chen Fei guided this fluctuation to surround his body. In the next moment, a drowsy feeling swept over his mind.
Chen Fei didn’t resist. Following the tug of this sensation, he opened his eyes in the next moment, looking around to see that the environment had dramatically changed.
At this moment, Chen Fei stood atop a hill, gazing into the distance. The terrain here resembled the Primordial Sword Sect in reality, yet it wasn’t an exact replica.
It was hard to explain the relationship between the Strange Heart Realm and the real world. Si Yuanhai couldn’t describe it clearly, and naturally, Chen Fei was even less familiar with it.
The hilltop appeared peaceful, and Chen Fei didn’t sense any danger. However, when he had looked into the distance earlier, he had felt a fleeting sense of horror.
Chen Fei had no intention of leaving this place or exploring the Strange Heart Realm. He had come here solely to temper his mental power.
Sitting down in place, Chen Fei took out the fragments of the Heart Pearl he carried and placed them around him, providing a basic camouflage for his aura.
Although he didn’t feel much danger around, he chose to prioritize safety and take precautions.
The flickering light of the Heart Candle enveloped Chen Fei’s body. He manipulated his mental power, gradually condensing the range of the candle’s light.
The light contracted from several meters in diameter to be close to Chen Fei’s body. A faint whispering began to sound in Chen Fei’s ears.
Listening carefully, these whispers had no discernible logic. You couldn’t even determine if they belonged to a man or a woman. In fact, you couldn’t even distinguish if they were human voices.
These whispers only served to disturb and agitate, breeding a sense of world-weariness and a desire to destroy everything, a compulsion to annihilate the world, pervading the depths of the mind.
This was contamination, an unconscious pollution from the Strange Heart Realm.
Chen Fei guarded his mental state, allowing these whispers to fill him. He observed the changes in his mental power within his mind’s sea.
Starting as a lush, towering tree at first, the leaves gradually turned yellow and black, then withered away.
However, the withered leaves didn’t disappear; instead, they attached themselves to other leaves. Like a terrible contagion, spreading from one to ten, then ten to a hundred, in just a moment, the once verdant leaves of the mental power tree had turned entirely black.
Chen Fei’s expression remained calm as the blackness began to spread toward the branches in his mind. The branches, resistant to this blackness, were undoubtedly stronger, but they couldn’t withstand this relentless invasion.
At some point, the tips of the branches started turning black. Gradually, this blackness crept upwards, turning the branches completely black.
As time passed, the whispers in Chen Fei’s ears transformed from hushed murmurs to meaningless, loud screams – horrifying, despairing sounds that sent shivers down the spine.
Yet Chen Fei’s expression remained unchanged as he observed the changes within his mind’s sea.
When all the branches had turned black, and this blackness began to spread towards the trunk, Chen Fei finally opened his eyes.
In the next moment, the Heart Candle extinguished, and Chen Fei disappeared completely into the Strange Heart Realm.
In the secluded chamber of the True Transmission Peak, Chen Fei suddenly opened his eyes. The whites of his eyes had turned a deep crimson, and even his pupils seemed to be taking on an unusual hue.
“Buzz!”
The suppressed Thousand Origin Technique abruptly activated, and a mighty vitality emanated from the core of Chen Fei’s mental power, spreading in all directions.
The once-remaining trunk of the tree began to tremble slightly, and small fragments of black fell from its branches. Chen Fei forcefully expelled these remnants from his mind’s sea.
The process of expelling and refining was slower than Chen Fei had expected.
The contamination from the Strange Heart Realm was indeed very formidable.
For his first attempt at tempering, Chen Fei didn’t dare to go too far, so he retained the main trunk. Fortunately, this caution paid off; otherwise, the cleansing process might have been even slower or more difficult.
An hour passed, then two, then three. Chen Fei remained in a cross-legged position without moving.
Until a certain moment when Chen Fei slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of relief.
Within his mind’s sea, the maddening blackness had been thoroughly cleansed.
The tree manifested by Chen Fei’s mental power had regained its lush appearance.
Upon closer inspection, one would notice that the leaves seemed even greener than before. The whole tree gave off a sense of stronger vitality as if its life force had grown more vigorous.
“The results are unexpectedly good. With just this one tempering, I can feel that my mental power has become purer. If I continue tempering like this, the growth of my mental power will be quite substantial.”
Chen Fei thought to himself, but he was aware that this tempering couldn’t be continuous; excessive force might lead to breaking. According to Chen Fei’s estimate, around ten days would be just right for another round of tempering.
Time flowed by, like a fleeting moment.
Chen Fei’s life once again became simple. He devoted every moment he could spare to cultivation without a trace of weariness.
In the blink of an eye, thirty-five days had passed. Chen Fei’s cultivation realm was gradually advancing toward the pinnacle of the Visceral Tempering realm.. The Suppressing Dragon Elephant Technique was nearing perfection, and just a step ahead of them, the Qianyuan Sword had finally advanced, becoming a half-spirit Sword!