Chapter 260

Xu Chen's legs felt a bit weak again. The Black Abyss Beast was a formidable weapon against souls like theirs, primarily due to the Black Abyss Flame on its body, capable of directly burning souls. Seeing the ominous gaze of the Black Abyss Beast, Xu Chen felt like he was its reserve food.

Gu Yao reached out, grabbing the cat cub by its neck, lifting it up, and tapping its little head. "In the future, you can't devour souls without my permission, understand?" Swallowing a soul meant losing the chance for reincarnation.

The cat cub immediately meowed obediently. Gu Yao knew it was pretending, but for now, he couldn't completely rid Xu Chen of the shadow brought by the cat cub.

With the remnant soul gone, Chi Changye smoothly refined the palace. After refining it, he learned from the previous lesson and thoroughly searched every corner of the palace. He didn't overlook any small details, finding a few easily overlooked places where the old ghost's residual soul power lingered. If not completely removed, there was a risk of it causing trouble later on.

In the upcoming time, Chi Changye and Gu Yao work together to organize the memories left by the old ghost Cangyue. The results confirm that Cangyue indeed hails from the same continent as Chi Changye, namely the Wanluo Continent. Fleeing from vengeful enemies, Cangyue sought refuge on the Qianhao Continent. What's crucial is that, to completely escape pursuit, Cangyue destroyed the passage between Wanluo and Qianhao Continents.

Chi Changye realizes, "No wonder I've never heard about Qianhao Continent before. Other cultivators from different continents gained fame, but Qianhao Continent remains unfamiliar. This explains why there's no mention of Nascent Soul cultivators on Qianhao Continent. Perhaps those behind the scenes in the Blood-colored Forest are influenced by this..."

However, he quickly dismisses this thought, recognizing that walking the wrong path, regardless of the initial motive, leads to erroneous methods and outcomes. Those in high positions view lower-level cultivators as insignificant, and how many innocent cultivators lose their lives as a result?

"After we leave, maybe we should have a proper discussion with the Silver Wolf Clan Chief. He might be aware of the situation, and what he said last time may have been withholding some information. After all, our cultivation levels are not at that stage."

Gu Yao agrees with Chi Changye's perspective, acknowledging that some things are simply wrong, and no amount of excuses can conceal that.

Chi Changye lightly taps the table, contemplating many questions. Suddenly, he looks at Xu Chen, who feels a bit uneasy under his gaze. Chi Changye jokingly asks, "Are you planning to develop feelings for me instead of Gu Yao, thinking I'm more ethereal and otherworldly?

Kid, let me tell you, don't entertain such thoughts. You're too green; this alchemist doesn't go for tender shoots."

Gu Yao bursts into laughter.

Chi Changye chuckles and continues to gaze at Xu Chen, saying, "Is Senior Xu so eager to slander me because you're afraid I'll reveal something not so favorable?"

Xu Chen scoffs, "What good things can come out of your mouth?"

Chi Changye continues to laugh, saying, "I come from the Wanluo Continent. I've read many sect collections, and legends about the Spirit Realm have been circulating on Wanluo Continent. However, it's been years since Nascent Soul predecessors could find the path to the Spirit Realm. Therefore, some Nascent Soul powerhouses have to search for relatively weaker spatial nodes, entering them in an attempt to find a way out. However, I think the chances of success are extremely low. The dangers within spatial rifts are immense. Even Nascent Soul powerhouses may struggle to preserve themselves, let alone find the Spirit Realm within."

"Cangyue stirred up enemies on Wanluo Continent, so she fled to Qianhao Continent and conveniently destroyed the passage. Perhaps, in the future, when she has the power, she might restore the passage and return to Wanluo Continent to seek revenge. Senior, did you also incur enemies in the Spirit Realm, leading you to seek refuge in the mortal realm? To ensure safety and prevent your enemies from following, there's only one way..."

Gu Yao widens his eyes, and Xu Chen, without thinking, exclaims, "Nonsense! Am I that kind of person?"

However, in Gu Yao's ears, there was a somewhat intimidating tone. He couldn't help but look at Xu Chen in surprise. Faced with these eyes, even the senior Xu Chen felt a bit overwhelmed, scratching his head and cheeks, saying, "Why are you looking at me like that? It's not like I intentionally destroyed it. It's just... it happened accidentally, and it wasn't solely my doing. The enemy's attack happened to coincide, resulting in the current situation. I've been wanting to find someone to restore the passage, but it's not easy to find someone at the moment..."

His voice grew weaker and less confident. Gu Yao looked at Xu Chen speechlessly, feeling a headache coming on. It seemed like he had taken on an undesirable task, and now Senior Xu Chen was following him. Did this mean he had to clean up this mess for the senior? And the matters on Qianhao Continent weren't resolved yet.

Gu Yao felt the plight of cultivators, as if facing layers of challenges and monsters. Just when you overcome one obstacle, you realize there's more to face, with no clear endpoint in sight.

He quickly rubbed his face, dismissing these thoughts. Compared to ordinary people, cultivators had significantly longer lifespans. Nascent Soul stage alone had around two thousand years, and Nascent Divinity even longer. Ordinary people, in contrast, had a mere hundred years of lifespan, with the maximum being a few hundred in exceptional cases. Ultimately, it was the growing desires of cultivators that sought longer and longer lifespans, aspiring even to longevity matching that of the heavens and earth.

Cangyue's memories proved quite useful. Originally, her cultivation reached the peak of Nascent Soul, just a step away from Nascent Divinity. So, her insights during the Nascent Soul stage were highly valuable for Chi Changye.

When Cangyue first arrived on Qianhao Continent, she suffered severe injuries. Discovering the sparse spiritual energy compared to Wanluo Continent, she searched and found this underwater spiritual vein. Her intention was to heal her injuries here before making further plans.

Initially, she wanted to find a secluded location to avoid intrusion by other cultivators. However, during the healing process, she discovered a deadly toxin lurking in her body. Instead of healing her injuries, the toxin worsened the situation. In the end, she had to abandon her physical body, preserving only her soul, hoping to one day possess a new body and start anew.

Having waited for countless years, even Cangyue herself lost track of time. She was aware of the changes in the seaweed outside, but she didn't pay much attention to a single seaweed. It wasn't until Gu Yao and Chi Changye arrived, triggering the restrictions outside and awakening Cangyue from her slumber. Eager to seize a new body, she failed miserably. If Cangyue hadn't been so self-righteous and willing to invest energy in understanding the seaweed, she might have succeeded long ago. It wouldn't have come to Chi Changye's intervention. Yet, reality refused to turn a blind eye.

The two temporarily stayed underwater. Chi Changye absorbed Cangyue's memories, while Gu Yao continued to subdue the seaweed. Although he left his soul-seed in the seaweed, allowing him some control over its life, commanding it proficiently required continuous adjustment.

Bringing the seaweed into the palace, it was evident that the seaweed possessed strength but lacked precise control. Everything relied on instinct. When it came to how plants cultivated and used their power, Gu Yao sought guidance from Xu Chen. Then, he taught the seaweed, which, in its confused state, took quite a while to grasp the concepts.

The seaweed finally managed to consolidate its power into a dark green whip, replacing the former Blood Dragon Whip. Well, during the process of instructing the seaweed, it accidentally swallowed the Blood Dragon Whip, digesting and absorbing it. The devouring ability was indeed commendable.

Now, without the Blood Dragon Whip, there was the whip transformed from the seaweed. Gu Yao named it "Ink Jade." The seaweed seemed very pleased, often transforming into an Ink Jade belt around Gu Yao's waist. To onlookers, it appeared to be a belt made of jade.

Occasionally, Gu Yao let Ink Jade take him for a swim in the underwater realm. With the profound depth, it was challenging to reach without sufficient cultivation. Hence, there were various treasures, not only aquatic herbs but also special pearls and other underwater spiritual materials. Gu Yao picked up the good ones and even acquired several storage rings, believing they might come in handy.

After digesting Cangyue's insights into cultivation, Gu Yao sensed that Chi Changye's aura had grown significantly, bringing him closer to the Nascent Divinity stage.

Chi Changye retracted the palace, turning it into a jade sphere that flew into his hand. The palace's appearance faintly visible in the center of the sphere. The remaining spiritual vein was also contained within, maintaining the operation of the palace, and the Infant-Nurturing Fruit tree continued to grow inside.

Seizing this opportunity, Chi Changye and Gu Yao collected two more spiritual veins from the seabed. To successfully condense Nascent Divinity, a substantial supply of spiritual energy was indispensable. Of course, they didn't exploit the resources excessively, ensuring it wouldn't affect the growth and reproduction of sea creatures in the area.

"Let's go. We're heading back to the surface," Chi Changye held onto Gu Yao's waist as both were pulled up by Ink Jade. The current appearance of Ink Jade showed no resemblance to its previous ferocious form. The absence of the massive seaweed made the underwater environment much clearer. Otherwise, the overwhelming sight of seaweed would have been astonishing, providing ample space for other sea creatures to grow.

Upon reaching the water's surface, they noticed the sea vessel had experienced several battles. People on board were taking turns recuperating while leaving some on guard. As soon as Gu Yao and Chi Changye surfaced, they were spotted, and a signal was sent. Others immediately emerged from the ship.

"You're finally back," Lou Huaijing exclaimed with joy.

Gu Yao scanned the area and raised an eyebrow, noticing someone was missing.

Lou Huaijing casually mentioned, "I don't know what happened, but we encountered several waves of sea beasts attacking the ship. Unfortunately, Master Ma lost his life to a sea beast in one of the battles."

Observing that no one showed much sadness, Gu Yao and Chi Changye decided to skip over the matter. It spared them the trouble of taking action, as keeping Ma alive would have been a potential hazard sooner or later.

Gathering everyone, Gu Yao explained the process of subduing the seaweed, receiving congratulations from the group. Leaving this underwater realm wouldn't be easy.

"Now, it's certain that there's more than one base like the Blood-colored Forest. The enemy's cruelty exceeds our imagination. So, what's our next move? Should we continue eradicating those places, or return to the mainland to inform other factions?" Although the seaweed's memories were quite blurry, careful examination revealed multiple locations similar to the Blood-colored Forest, concealing their existence using the Ghost Mist Sea's conditions.

Lou Huaijing had considered these questions beforehand. It wasn't possible that there was only one stronghold. He said, "Our previous actions likely alerted the enemy. If we rashly approach now, we might fall into their trap."

Ying Muqing rubbed his chin and added, "Should we go back to the mainland? But will others believe what we say? Plus, we can't find the mastermind behind the scenes. When the real puppeteer escapes blame, they might even secretly target us."

Lou Huaijing looked at Gu Yao and Chi Changye, saying, "We'll follow your arrangements for this matter. Whatever you decide, we'll comply. In fact, Junior Ying and I can't return to Changxian Sect openly. So, if there's anything, feel free to instruct us."

This was essentially a surrender to Gu Yao and Chi Changye. Others mirrored the same expression on their faces. Even if Chi Changye decided to lead them into a known trap, they wouldn't hesitate for a moment.

Chi Changye nodded and said, "Then let's return to the mainland first, see how Changxian Sect reacts now, and try to recruit as many cultivators as possible."

"Alright, we'll follow Friend Chi's lead."

At this point, Gu Yao and Chi Changye had already restored their appearances. The previous looks required spiritual energy support, which dissipated during the underwater battle. However, upon returning to the sea vessel, seeing their current appearance surprised everyone, but no one doubted their identities. This situation pleased Chi Changye.

The sea vessel set sail once again. Lou Huaijing approached Chi Changye and Gu Yao, admitting, "Master Ma was schemed against by me and other fellow cultivators. He harbored ill intentions, and bringing him back to the mainland would have caused trouble sooner or later."

Chi Changye chuckled, "You did well. Originally, Little Yao and I didn't intend to bring him back. Betrayal once is betrayal a hundred times."

Lou Huaijing breathed a sigh of relief. The man surnamed Ma never expected he was orchestrated to die. He thought the situation was genuinely chaotic at the time, and others didn't have the chance to save him. In reality, he was the only one unaware, with others essentially watching as sea beasts tore him apart.

"Will the Ghost Mist in this sea area disappear in the future?" Lou Huaijing inquired, thinking about the incident with the large seaweed.

Gu Yao responded, "It won't completely vanish, but it won't recover for a while. It needs time."

Gu Yao explained the symbiotic relationship between a certain plant and sea creatures in the sea, which he observed while moving around the seabed with Ink Jade. The plants that produced mist hadn't gone extinct, but with the presence of the large seaweed, they couldn't thrive and develop into a significant scale.