Feng Jin'er wasn't particularly enthusiastic about rescuing Xue Tuan and Ming Feng. Knowing the immense power of the stone wall blocking their path, she was even less inclined to test it. She needed to conserve her strength to escape; it would be too much of a loss to perish here.
Feng Jin'er took a step back imperceptibly.
Yuan Jue, who was stroking his chin and thinking of a solution, did not notice Feng Jin'er's action. Even if he had, he would probably have just laughed it off.
A long time passed, and Yuan Jue tried many methods but failed to open the stone wall. Just as he was frowning in worry, a faint rumbling sound came from the other side of the stone wall.
Yuan Jue's heart stirred, and he immediately pulled Feng Jin'er aside to hide their figures, holding their breath.
The rumbling sound from the opposite side of the stone wall grew louder and louder, threatening to shatter eardrums.
Yuan Jue had no choice but to resist with his spiritual power, while Feng Jin'er was not yet fully familiar with the spiritual power in Feng Fei's body, and was so shocked that blood trickled from her seven orifices.
Yuan Jue was horrified and quickly helped Feng Jin'er withstand the deafening roar. He did intend to deal with the imposter "Feng Fei," but only if the original "Feng Fei" and its internal organs remained unharmed. If they were damaged, even if the original Feng Fei were found, it would prevent the original from advancing further. That would be a net loss, not the outcome he desired.
As the deafening roar drew nearer, the stone wall blocking their path slowly rose, revealing a deep tunnel within.
As the stone wall slowly rose, three figures gradually appeared in Yuan Jue and Feng Jin'er's sight.
However, these three were none of the people Wenrou had seen while sleeping. The three passed through after the stone wall had fully risen, and then the wall slowly descended again. Yuan Jue hesitated briefly, then led Feng Jin'er through the stone wall into the tunnel.
Upon entering the tunnel, Yuanjue could smell the scent of the Thousand-Mile Tracking Incense carried by Mingfeng even more clearly, which greatly invigorated him.
"boom!"
The stone wall finally collapsed, and Yuan Jue subconsciously glanced back, only to discover a strange spot on the wall that shimmered with an eerie light. He could almost feel its pull on him.
After carefully instructing Feng Jin'er, Yuan Jue slowly approached the stone wall.
The strange, eerie light shimmering on the stone wall suddenly detached itself from the wall as Yuan Jue approached and slowly landed on his head. At that moment, Yuan Jue was astonished to find that his body was unable to move. Although it only lasted for a moment, the feeling of powerlessness caused cold sweat to pour down Yuan Jue's forehead.
Fortunately, the eerie light had no intention of harming Yuan Jue. It disappeared shortly after landing on Yuan Jue's head, and an excited smile appeared on Yuan Jue's face. However, this smile was fleeting and did not alert Feng Jin'er.
"What's wrong?" Feng Jin'er asked curiously. She hadn't noticed anything strange about the place, but she knew that Yuan Jue's behavior couldn't have been without reason.
Yuan Jue didn't want to explain, so he shook his head and continued on his way with Feng Jin'er.
However, the journey was not as easy as before.
Along the way, there were all sorts of unpredictable traps, which combined techniques used by ordinary people with cultivation methods, making them difficult to guard against. If it weren't for Feng Jin'er's extremely powerful black seal, the two of them would probably be covered in bruises by now.
Before the two were completely exhausted, Yuanjue finally found where Mingfeng and Xuetuan were.
But Yuan Jue and Feng Jin'er were now filled with terror: What on earth was this place?! It was as grotesque and terrifying as hell described in ancient texts—thick, foul-smelling blood dripped slowly from the walls, and dark red pools on the ground were left by congealed blood. Nearby, there was also some bright red blood, undoubtedly recent. Various instruments of torture were placed around the area, and a faint red glow emanated from the innermost part, emanating a scorching heat. Yuan Jue took a few steps forward and discovered that it was filled with boiling hot oil—it was like a cauldron of boiling oil in hell itself.
Seeing this, Yuan Jue suddenly worried that Ming Feng and Xue Tuan might have encountered some misfortune. At that moment, he suddenly regretted bringing Xue Tuan and Ming Feng along. He knew that children who entered the Gentle Water Village would disappear, but he still brought them. Yet, another voice in his heart told him—Xue Tuan and Ming Feng were not ordinary children; perhaps they were still safe and sound.
Perhaps this reassurance had some effect, and Yuanjue's flustered mind calmed down.
It was precisely because his mind was somewhat calmed that Yuanjue discovered other places he had not noticed before.
Chapter Fifteen: The Mysterious Man
This place doesn't have just one entrance; deep inside, behind various instruments of torture, lies a narrow opening, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. Without a host parasitized by the blood worms, which transforms into nutrients for the Blood Spirit Grass after death, the Blood Spirit Grass cannot grow.
Since there are so many blood worms around, the Spirit Herb must be nearby.
Feng Jin'er was greatly excited, thinking about the effects of the Blood Spirit Grass, and wished she could immediately go and find and collect it.
However, Yuan Jue felt uneasy. Thinking of the missing children and the people in the gentle water town who died every so often, Yuan Jue felt there must be something he hadn't considered. But then he remembered the owner's promise to Wan Niang to send Le Quan back to her hometown, and he felt things might not be as he suspected. Suddenly, Yuan Jue thought of another possibility—the owner was Sui Yu, and Sui Yu and Wan Niang had always been close. Even though the owner they met had a completely different demeanor from Sui Yu, they couldn't completely deny that Sui Yu was the owner—this would explain why Sui Yu, remembering Wan Niang's kindness, made an exception and allowed Wan Niang to take Le Quan's body back to her hometown. This would also explain the fleeting surprise on the faces of Xian Niang, Jin Xiu, and the other two when they heard Sui Yu had agreed to Wan Niang's request.
Although Yuan Jue's mind was racing with calculations, his hands and feet didn't stop for a second. He grabbed Feng Jin'er and darted towards the cave entrance.
Feng Jin'er looked at the blood worms around her with some regret, and couldn't help but sigh, thinking that she could definitely find the Blood Spirit Grass nearby. But now was not the time to act rashly. She could come back again after dealing with Yuan Jue.
Thinking of this, Feng Jin'er felt much more at ease and quickly focused her attention on the cave entrance they were about to enter.
The passage leading to the cave was very short. Soon the two arrived at the end of the passage.
With just one glance, Feng Jin'er was so shocked she almost jumped up!
The blood-red grass growing in the low-lying area in front of her was none other than the Blood Spirit Grass she had been longing for.
His legs instinctively took a step forward, but he pulled back the next moment: many people stood around the area covered with blood spirit grass—some were pale-faced children, some were adults wearing dark masks, but all of them were swaying, as if they would fall over at the slightest breeze.
Feng Jin'er glanced at Yuan Jue, thinking that under the circumstances, it would be better to let Yuan Jue take the lead.
Yuan Jue observed from the shadows, his mind filled with doubt: the scent of the Thousand-Mile Tracking Incense emanating from Ming Feng lingered around this place, yet he couldn't find any trace of Ming Feng. He hadn't even found Xue Tuan. Could there be a secret passage here?
The people around him were all in a daze. After thinking for a moment, Yuan Jue struck another spot with his spiritual energy, creating quite a sound. However, those around the Blood Spirit Grass did not react; they continued to groan or cry out in pain.
There seemed to be no danger. However, Yuan Jue still didn't act rashly. After all, he hadn't yet found a place to take the next step.
Looking at the vast expanse of Blood Spirit Grass, Feng Jin'er's greed grew even stronger. If it weren't for Yuan Jue beside her, she would have already started collecting the Blood Spirit Grass. It was precisely because of this that Feng Jin'er's resentment towards Yuan Jue deepened.
Suddenly, Yuan Jue's gaze sharpened, and the next moment he led Feng Jin'er to a wall.
This wall is different from the surrounding walls. There are fewer people standing around it than in other places, and unlike other places, there are no traces of blood seeping out. The marks on the ground look like they were made recently, and the soil is more moist than in other places.
Yuan Jue suddenly laughed, slamming his right hand against the wall. The space behind them, where the Blood Spirit Grass stood and the people around them distorted instantly. The next moment, the place transformed—as if they had suddenly arrived in a fairyland from hell. The air was filled with an aura that cleansed the soul and spirit, and milky white mist drifted around them. At that moment, Yuan Jue finally found Ming Feng and Xue Tuan.
The two of them sat cross-legged in the clouds. The moment Yuan Jue and Feng Jin'er appeared, they suddenly opened their eyes. A flash of surprise crossed their faces, and the two of them pounced on Yuan Jue.
"You've finally arrived!"
Yuan Jue chuckled and patted Xue Tuan's head, then said to Ming Feng, "I didn't expect that the place we were supposed to come to would be here. By the way, how did you two get here?"
There was no one else here except the four of them. A spring with steaming hot water made the surrounding space look like it was shrouded in white clouds.
"After hearing the song of Jinxiu in the gentle water town, Xue Tuan and I became somewhat dazed. The next moment, two children about our height sneaked into the house. Not knowing what they were going to do, I pulled Xue Tuan along to watch their next move. They easily put Xue Tuan and me into a thin, gauze-like bag, and when we came out, we found ourselves in a place that looked like a boiling oil hell."
"Looking at the instruments of torture in that place, I thought my decision would cost me and Xue Tuan our lives. Just as Xue Tuan and I were about to resist, a mysterious person suddenly appeared. This mysterious person gave me a very strange feeling; I seemed to have seen him before, but I had no recollection of him at all. The mysterious person knocked the two children unconscious and then put Xue Tuan and me into that bag. Then, I felt the mysterious person carrying us quickly, as if something was chasing us from behind. After a while, the mysterious person's movements suddenly stopped, as if he had been injured. I felt a stench of blood spray onto the bag that contained us."
"Before we could figure out what was going on, the mysterious person threw us out, and we must have landed here. When we landed, Xue Tuan and I both passed out. When we woke up, we were already here, but I couldn't find the bag that contained us anywhere, so I suspected that this was where we landed. We tried to leave this place, but no matter what we did, there was no movement. Then Xue Tuan discovered that these clouds and mists had a great effect on our spiritual power cultivation and physical enhancement. I thought that since we couldn't leave here for the time being, we should increase our strength first. Maybe once we were stronger, we could get out."
After listening to Mingfeng's explanation, Yuanjue fell into deep thought.
If his guess was correct, the mysterious person was very likely Shui Yichen. It was Shui Yichen who had told Yuan Jue about this place, and he vividly remembered Shui Yichen insisting that Mingfeng and Xuetuan be brought along, claiming it would bring them immense fortune. He had initially taken Mingfeng and Xuetuan with him, thinking it better to believe it than not, but due to some carelessness, he lost them and forgot Shui Yichen's earlier words.
But who exactly is this Shui Yichen? How could he know the situation here, and why would he tell me about the benefits of this place for no reason? If there's no conspiracy involved, then something fishy is definitely going on.
Thinking of this, Yuanjue asked Mingfeng for more details, but found nothing suspicious.
"Is this the place you mentioned earlier?" Feng Jin'er was full of doubts. Yuan Jue seemed to have no idea how he got here, yet he had somehow ended up here by chance. This couldn't help but make her suspicious.
“Yes, but the way I know we came in isn’t the same way we came from before. I didn’t expect we’d end up here so inexplicably.” At this point, Yuan Jue suddenly changed the subject. “Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore. We can discuss these issues outside. This place should be completely safe. You should be able to feel the surging spiritual energy around you. Hurry up and cultivate. We’ll leave when we can’t make any more progress.”
Feng Jin'er felt uneasy, a restless feeling pounding in her heart, but she could also sense the surging spiritual energy around her. After thinking for a moment, she decided to start cultivating first.
Chapter Sixteen: Dealing with Feng Jin'er
This place is indeed a great place for cultivation where you can achieve twice the results with half the effort!
Feng Jin'er sat cross-legged on the ground, her spiritual energy surging rapidly within her body, marveling at the wonders of this place. However, she still had some doubts: how could Yuan Jue know the location of this place? Even though he was once the revered Master Yue of the White Tiger Kingdom, there was no reason why he would necessarily know its location. Moreover, judging from Yuan Jue's previous reactions, he must have only learned of this secret place after entering the water town.
Despite the turmoil of doubts churning in her mind, Feng Jin'er was still stunned by the terrifying speed of cultivation. She quickly banished the various chaotic thoughts from her mind and focused on cultivation.
Just as Feng Jin'er was immersed in cultivation, Yuan Jue and Ming Feng suddenly opened their eyes.
The two exchanged a knowing glance, and without any visible movement from Yuan Jue, his figure slowly enveloped in wisps of black mist. Meanwhile, Ming Feng transformed into clusters of blazing flames.
It was precisely Mingfeng's extremely high-temperature flames that fiercely scorched and engulfed Feng Jin'er's face.
Feng Jin'er immediately opened her eyes, her gaze filled with fear and panic! When she felt the intense heat emanating from Mingfeng, she tried to move, but found that her body was completely immobile! She couldn't even summon the black seal that she had stored within her body!
At this point, Feng Jin'er finally realized that Yuan Jue and the others must have already guessed that she wasn't Feng Fei, which was why they set such a trap. But did they really not care about Feng Fei's life or death? Were all her previous suspicions about their concerns about Feng Fei just a facade?
Such thoughts swirled and bombarded Feng Jin'er's mind, even bringing a trace of sadness to her heart: Feng Fei was, after all, her daughter, yet she was attacked without restraint by the person she trusted and loved. Poor daughter...
If Yuan Jue could know what Feng Jin'er was thinking, he would surely laugh out loud. This man, who had no regard for his own daughter, had violated her body and then went on to criticize others, even using such a pitying tone to sympathize with Feng Fei.
Seeing that resistance was futile, Feng Jin'er suddenly calmed down.
When did you discover my misbehavior?
"I knew it the moment I saw you." Yuan Jue pondered for a moment, then his deep voice slowly drifted out from the black mist, "Who exactly are you?"
"Who am I? I am Feng Jin'er, the mother of this body, my biological mother!"
Yuan Jue and Ming Feng were both startled. Yuan Jue still restrained Feng Jin'er's body, but the flames Ming Feng wielded stopped after surrounding Feng Jin'er.
Mingfeng secretly communicated with Yuanjue: "So it's Feng Jin'er! No wonder I always felt her aura was very familiar. If it weren't so different from Sister Feifei, I might have overlooked her."
Yuan Jue was naturally quite familiar with Feng Jin'er; she was still in power when he first entered the Vermilion Bird Kingdom's court. Later, Feng Jin'er mysteriously disappeared, and he even sent many people to search for her whereabouts. However, unexpectedly, Feng Jin'er lost her physical body after her disappearance. Now, she has even taken over Feng Fei's body.
But she actually possessed Feng Fei's body!
Thinking of this, Yuan Jue couldn't suppress his anger! A mother shouldn't harm her child! But this Feng Jin'er actually entered Feng Fei's body for his sake! If it weren't for Feng Fei's persistence and the fact that he had undergone some procedures to strengthen his soul, he would probably have been killed by Feng Jin'er long ago! A mother like this is better off without! In that instant, Yuan Jue made a decision for Feng Fei.
"The operation will proceed as planned!" Yuan Jue replied coldly to Ming Feng. "Even if she was once someone you knew, she now disregards Feng Fei's life, and I cannot tolerate it!"
Mingfeng struggled for only a moment before his resolve to rescue Fengfei hardened. His familiarity with Feng Jin'er stemmed from her earlier, less developed state of mind; any feelings he harbored were extremely faint. But unlike Fengfei, it was through Fengfei that he met and became acquainted with Xue Tuan, that he was able to take human form, and that he could witness the full spectrum of human experience… To put it dramatically, without Fengfei, he wouldn't be who he is today.
The flames of Mingfeng instantly and completely enveloped Feng Jin'er.
However, the rulers of the Vermilion Bird Kingdom all practiced fire-based techniques and were extremely familiar with Mingfeng's methods. Therefore, Mingfeng's actions did not cause any trouble for Feng Jin'er.
The snowball had long since turned into a cloud of water vapor. Drifting among the surrounding clouds, it was almost impossible to notice its existence—which was precisely its purpose as water vapor.
Why did you take over Feng Fei's body?
Yuan Jue seemed to want to know more, so he didn't immediately take action to deal with Feng Jin'er, nor did he seem worried about any possible accidents. His confident demeanor surprised Feng Jin'er.
With the intention of stalling for time, Feng Jin'er answered Yuan Jue's question slowly: "Because I want to leave the place that imprisons me, because I want to find someone, because I still have many things to do, because... I want to find... my son..."