Chapter 321 - 222: Spirit Stealing in Succession, Effects Burst Forth
Chapter 321: Chapter 222: Spirit Stealing in Succession, Effects Burst Forth
In Outer Lake Cave Mansion No. 98.
"A letter from Zhao Li?"
Lin Changheng’s brow twitched as a guess formed in his mind.
Every time he entered seclusion, he would give his Purple Extreme Sect token to Yan Mingyi to prepare for just this kind of situation.
He had also entrusted her with the task of drawing blood from the Deep Lake Spirit Clam and the Black Armored Earth Turtle.
"That’s right." Yan Mingyi smiled and handed him a letter.
"Where is Deng Changsheng?"
Lin Changheng didn’t open the letter right away, asking Yan Mingyi another question.
Not counting his brief return in the middle, Deng Changsheng had been gone for over five years.
It seemed he had only reported back now because he had finally finished collecting the thousand portions of Muddy Evil Essence Blood.
Meanwhile, the fighting on the Beast Tide front had mostly come to an end. The Cyan Mist Temple had led the Cultivators in pushing the front line back another fifty-some li before reaching a stalemate.
Although hundreds of li of territory were still lost, they had no plans to advance further, and the opposing Beast Tide showed no signs of re-gathering for another assault.
He didn’t know if the rumors were true—that the Core Formation Masters of the Cyan Mist Temple had reached an agreement with the High Tier Demon Beasts of the Wilderness, bringing the conflict to a halt.
But overall, the Cyan Mist Temple had suffered a tremendous loss, and this great Daoist Sect had no choice but to swallow its pride and accept it.
It meant that the trailblazing Cultivators who had died earlier... had died in vain.
This gave Lin Changheng an even deeper understanding of the "man-made disaster" he had heard about before.
...
"He’s rented a courtyard in the Inner City of the Immortal City to stay in. He also gave me a Communication Jade Talisman, so Brother Lin can summon him with it at any time," Yan Mingyi said.
As she spoke, she handed him a Communication Jade Talisman.
"Good! Then summon him for tomorrow."
Lin Changheng nodded in acknowledgment. He inscribed a message into the Jade Talisman with his Divine Sense and sent it flying off. It vanished in the blink of an eye.
"As for tonight, we should enjoy a fine meal."
...
After watching Yan Mingyi leave with a smile, Lin Changheng finally opened the letter in his hand and scanned its contents.
Aside from the usual greetings, Mo Zhaoli mentioned two things.
First, after returning from delivering the Ice Pool Jade Spring, she had to complete an urgent, mandatory Sect mission before she could return to her cave mansion and begin her breakthrough.
Before the year’s end, she had finally broken through to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment.
She had then spent some time stabilizing her Cultivation before coming out of seclusion and writing this letter. By the time it reached him, it was probably a year later.
The timing was indeed about what she had predicted.
In other words, Mo Zhaoli had only reached the Middle Stage a year before Lin Changheng.
Lin Changheng had basically caught up to her.
Second, the senior from the Sect who owned the Red-eyed Fire Demon had gone back on his word, even after they had reached an excellent agreement.
He had sold the Mountain and Marsh Spirit to someone else.
Even a saint has their limits. Mo Zhaoli was furious, immediately having a falling out with the man and cutting off all contact.
Reading this, Lin Changheng felt an inexplicable anger brewing, and his face darkened.
’Is he toying with us?!’
’If I ever run into this person, I’ll have to "ask" him for an explanation!’
He immediately wrote back to congratulate Mo Zhaoli on her breakthrough. He also comforted her, saying it was a small matter to him and no great loss if it didn’t work out. However, he expressed great regret that Li’Er’s time had been wasted.
...
That evening, after filling up on the main courses and relaxing with the lighter dishes meant to soothe their fatigue, Lin Changheng suddenly remembered something else.
"Where is the blood that the two Spirit Beasts have offered up during this time?"
Yan Mingyi, rousing from the afterglow, finally remembered. She stretched her graceful waist and untied a Storage Bag from the sash of her dress, which lay scattered on the floor.
She took out a Wooden Box sealed with a Spirit-Sealing Talisman.
"Brother Lin, all the Essence Blood taken from Xiaohai and Xiaobai is in here."
As Lin Changheng took it, he couldn’t help but look at Yan Mingyi in surprise. "Why didn’t you call me that just now?"
"Ah?"
Yan Mingyi froze, then seemed to remember something. A blush crept up her lovely face, and she stammered, "I..."
Lin Changheng just chuckled, then got up and left.
He went straight to his Secluded Meditation Chamber.
Looking at the dazzling array of Luminous Essence Blood inside the opened Wooden Box, Lin Changheng’s eyes lit up.
The azure-blue blood came from the Deep Lake Spirit Clam, while the earthy-yellow blood was from the Black Armored Earth Turtle.
He took out the portions he had drawn previously, bringing the total for each to about one hundred portions.
First, he gathered the Essence Blood of the Deep Lake Spirit Clam to perform Spirit Stealing.
BUZZ!
The Primordial Cauldron trembled slightly. All the Essence Blood was drawn in at once, and a blue light gathered at the cauldron’s mouth, gestating within a cyan mist.
[Deep Lake Spirit Clam Treasure Seed·First Layer]
[Spirit Stealing: 100/100]
The blue Treasure Seed trembled, having already taken form. When Lin Changheng touched it, he received feedback.
[Deep Lake Spirit Clam Treasure Seed·Second Layer]
[Can further Refine into Demon Race Lifebound Talent: Nourishing Spirit]
With a thought, the Treasure Seed flew from the cauldron’s mouth and settled inside his body. A feeling of pure bliss washed over Lin Changheng’s body and soul as an unprecedented, profound warmth spread through him.
[Obtained: Nourishing Spirit Anomaly Technique: Spiritual]
Within Lin Changheng’s body, the cluster of azure radiance already existed.
It remained smoke-like and ethereal, without a solid form, intangible yet real.
But the moment the Nourishing Spirit Anomaly Technique: Spiritual merged with it, it was as if it had been injected with brand new vitality.
Its volume suddenly expanded by a small margin, growing larger than the size of his palm.
Its color also deepened, shifting from a clear blue to a more profound, abyssal blue, making it appear even more mysterious and unfathomable.
Moreover, the speed at which the radiance flowed clearly quickened. It was no longer a scattered, misty shape, but had faintly taken on a semi-solid, viscous texture, like liquid energy.
Though still impossible to touch, its "substantiality" had greatly increased, as if it now possessed some kind of weight.
With a slight stir of his thoughts, Lin Changheng began to carefully perceive the changes to the Treasure Talisman within the transformed azure radiance.