Chapter 323 - Revisiting the Abyss of Devils Aura (1/2)
Qingluan and Ziyun’er ran in from the outside as soon as they heard the commotion inside the courtyard. When they saw what happened, Ziyun’er hastily propped Xiao Chen up while Qingluan transferred energy to him.
Those inflicted with the Heartless Curse must not become romantically involved. Revisiting old haunts would just worsen the effects of the curse. Practitioners of the Heartless Mystic Skill suffered the same fate. It wasn’t until the darkness of the night engulfed the courtyard that Xiao Chen’s condition finally improved. With cold sweat trailing down his face, he said softly, “I’m fine now…”
Zhiluan was still pacing back and forth in the courtyard. “You’re going to die, going to die. Kid, your curse is worsening. If you don’t remove the curse soon, it’ll end you one day.”
Xiao Chen frowned. Huashang was the only one in the world capable of removing this curse. But he knew that old woman’s temper and he also knew that he wasn’t strong enough to coerce her even if he went to her. Moreover, she would never undo the curse for him. He said, “It’s alright. I’ll be able to remove it myself when my cultivation improves.” He looked at Qingluan and Ziyun’er. “Get some rest, you two. I’m fine now.”
The girls hesitated before replying in unison, “Please take care of yourself, Master.” They excused themselves and headed for their residence outside the courtyard. The dim moonlight reflected the deep worry on Ziyun’er’s face.
“There wouldn’t be heartache without emotion. When his heart stops hurting one day, that’ll be the day he no longer loves her.”
She looked up at Qingluan. “Sister, is love really that terrifying?”
Qingluan was speeding along but paused in her tracks when she heard the question. She fixed a stern gaze at Ziyun’er. “Love is as much a poison as it is a bewitchment. Never mention it again. You should understand our mission…” She turned away and looked in the direction of Xiao Chen’s courtyard.
Shivering all over, Ziyun’er lowered her head and said, “I understand…”
The full moon was as round as a disk in the night filled with stars. Sitting cross-legged inside the courtyard, Xiao Chen focused on meditating with the fourth step of Yaoguang School’s mind cultivation method, the Jade Palace of Frozen Heart. The cultivation method of Yaoguang School was Ling Yin’s creation. There were nine steps in total, with the fourth focused on cultivating the mind. In the past, Xiao Chen barely grasped the basics of the fourth step.
Two hours later, when the moon rose high in the sky and the Big Dipper became the brightest stars among the seven. The star at the tip of Big Dipper, named Yaoguang, began to flicker incessantly. Suddenly flustered, Xiao Chen looked up at the sky and his mind fell into chaos when he saw the flickering Yaoguang star.
Ling Yin lived in Yaoguang Temple atop the Mystic Cyan Mountain in the past, earning her nickname Yaoguang Fairy. With Xiao Chen’s search for his master proving to be fruitless, he had only Yaoguang star to confine his longing in. How could he remain calm after seeing the flickering star?
Moments later, dark clouds abruptly rolled over to obscure the seven stars. Only then did calm return to Xiao Chen’s heart. Even so, his back was damp with cold sweat.
At dawn the next day, everyone gathered outside the City Master’s Manor. This time, the Three Friends of Winter opted out of the trip in favor of staying behind to deal with the infected people. Several quick exchanges of words later, Yu Yifeng maneuvered the Flying-cloud Stone in the southeast direction of the city.
They covered a distance of nearly several hundred miles in an hour. They didn’t go too fast as they wanted to examine the situation. Their observation showed nothing out of the ordinary. Even though many places were still covered in ice and snow, the greenery was nonetheless lush and the air was filled with floral fragrance and the singing of birds.
Ling Fei glanced at Xiao Chen with his hands crossed in front of his chest and sneered. “You made it sound so dire, but it didn’t look that serious to me. Heh, you really know how to scare people with your words. Is that how desperately you want the Immortals’ League to favor you?”
The rest didn’t comment but after seeing nothing strange on their way here, most thought that Xiao Chen had indeed exaggerated.
Xiao Chen ignored him. His Divine Sense was sharper than most, and he could already sense a faint trace of Devil Qi at this moment. Wan Yanyan sneered. “Xiao Chen, don’t tell me you have a motive of your own for trying so hard to get us here…”
“Amitabha…” Xu Gu recited the Buddha’s name. “Please don’t fight among yourselves when we’ve not even reached our destination yet…”
He was midway through his sentence when the Flying-cloud Stone abruptly came to a halt. Everyone was alarmed. “Wh-what’s that?!”
Underneath them was a sea of dark fog that dyed every plant black. Even as they moved another hundred miles, they still saw no end of the fog. It was truly an astonishing sight. Meanwhile, a Devil’s Carnage Qi had pierced the Barrier of the Flying-cloud Stone and was filling the space inside.
Everyone felt a chill down their backs. Xiao Chen asked calmly, “Do you still think I was frightening you with words now?”