Chapter 29: Traces of the Malevolent Spirit

The sun set in a hazy, dim glow. The medicinal herb fields of Lingyun Peak were sparsely populated, as most had already left for their evening meal. To avoid drawing attention, Yun Xin had changed into a simple, ash-gray cloud-silk outer robe.

She sat cross-legged on a thick branch of a chinaberry tree, her arms folded across her chest. Having cast a concealment barrier and quieted her breathing, she had sat in meditation for an hour without anyone noticing her. Over the years, as she traveled the Northern Territories and the Eastern Peaks, she had eliminated many vicious beasts and crushed countless malevolent spirits with her own hands, yet she had also discovered something unsettling.

When faced with encirclement by cultivators, these creatures, which should have been utterly destroyed, would instead unite to fight back. They showed no fear of spiritual annihilation, attacking with a frantic, puppet-like coordination—all to inflict grievous harm upon the human race. This phenomenon was particularly severe in the Eastern Peaks, where malevolent spirits controlled spirit beasts to slaughter villages, towns, and even cities with relentless hostility. Recently, this trend had begun to surface in a few nations within the Northern Territories, yet the major sects seemed entirely unaware.

When she had reported this to her grandmaster, she never expected to find a trace of it within her own sect.

Lingdan Peak, Mu Lin—you had better be innocent!

Yun Xin’s eyes narrowed, a flash of cold severity crossing her gaze as crackling lightning flickered between her fingertips. Gathering her thoughts, she glanced at the sky; it was now as dark as spilled ink. The person she had been waiting for had not appeared; it was time to leave. With a flick of her robes, Yun Xin departed on her sword, merging into the night.

About half an hour later, Ji Ning walked into the herb valley, pulling her cloak tight. The mountain night wind was biting; she had kept her spiritual energy circulating to protect herself throughout the journey, yet her cheeks remained flushed from the cold. As the loose strands of hair fluttered before her forehead, Ji Ning felt unsettled. She had come to the valley this late to resolve her cultivation troubles, not to freeze on purpose.

She had been practicing the "Five Elements Canon" for about two months. Aside from the Wood Spirit Art and the Flame Fire Art, she had yet to grasp the other three, and even the Flame Fire Art was only at the introductory level. Ji Ning was not in a hurry; achieving the best results in cultivation required the right time, place, and conditions. Her progress with the Wood Spirit Art, at least, was inseparable from the decade she had spent tending plants in her two lifetimes.

Earlier that day, while practicing in her hut, she had faintly sensed the threshold of the second level of the Wood Spirit Art. However, her mind was chaotic, and her spiritual energy had stagnated, failing to flow smoothly through her meridians. She hadn't noticed the blockage until a sharp, venomous itching in her heart meridian—like insects gnawing at her soul—preceded a trickle of warmth from her nose, forcing her to cough up blood and break her focus. She was soaked in sweat, her consciousness throbbing with pain. She understood the theory that an unstable Dao heart and distracting thoughts could lead to cultivation deviation, but she wondered if that was truly the only cause. Thus, she had decided to try practicing in the herb valley.

The herb valley was rich in wood-elemental energy, making it the optimal place to practice the Wood Spirit Art. She sat in meditation, guiding the energy into her body. As the technique circulated, the energy flowed into her Dantian, forming a vortex. All her spiritual energy converted into wood-elemental power, filling her Dantian before flowing back into her meridians like a surging tide, cleansing her channels and purging the distracting thoughts from her mind.

After a long while, her meridians were saturated with wood energy. Seemingly unsatisfied, much of it began to seep into her flesh and consciousness. Ji Ning felt her body and soul aching simultaneously; as the energy gnawed at her inch by inch, the pain intensified. Within half a cup of tea’s time, the agony reached its peak, and her teeth left bloody marks on her lips. Enduring the pain, she forced the Wood Spirit Art to circulate once more. The rampant energy seemed to receive a command, retreating back into her Dantian and calming into a colorless sea of energy.

As her consciousness relaxed, a wisp of black mist struggled out from the top of Ji Ning’s head and darted rapidly into the night sky. But before it had fled even a few meters, a small cage of flames materialized out of thin air, instantly binding the mist. The black mist collided with the bars, and upon feeling the soul-searing torture of the flames, it trembled and huddled in the center, distraught. It had just escaped the relentless purging of the Wood Spirit Art, only to fall into another trap. Having exhausted its essence through the day’s consumption, it feared its end was near.

A hand reached out, and the fire cage returned to its owner.

This commotion naturally caught Ji Ning’s attention. Her body was numb and immobile with pain; she tilted her head back, feeling a sensation like a broken neck, which made her wince. Even so, the second level of the art remained elusive. She began to suspect that the purpose of this level was to purge all impurities from her body and reshape this mortal vessel.

Of course, that was not the priority. The priority was the cultivator in the air and the cage in her hand. Ji Ning squinted; the cage seemed to be trapping something.

The night was dark, the moon dim. Yun Xin’s eyes were like stars, her dark hair held by a jade pin and draped over her shoulders. She descended before Ji Ning like an ethereal immortal. Her face was as lovely as a peach blossom, her lips like vermilion, yet her eyes held a chilling, murderous intent, and her presence was cold and rigid.

She had left a talisman before leaving; it would alert her if anyone entered this area. After returning to Lingjian Peak, she had only just begun to brew tea—her seat barely warm—when the talisman’s signal forced her to return by sword. Though sword flight was fast, the two peaks were far apart. She had arrived fuming, but at least this trip had yielded results, and the frustration in her chest had finally dissipated.

Yun Xin did not sheath her sword; it hovered beside her. Her light-colored eyes locked onto Ji Ning’s expression. She asked coldly, "Do you know what this is?"

She dimmed the flames of the cage to allow Ji Ning to see. The wisp of black mist seemed conscious; having already tasted the power of the cage, it cowered in fear.

With her consciousness blocked, Ji Ning could only observe the struggling black mist with her naked eyes. She shook her head and met Yun Xin’s gaze. "I’ve never seen it before. I don't know."

Her answer was neither servile nor overbearing, her expression devoid of any flaws. The woman stared at her for a long time, then asked, "And why are you here in the middle of the night?"

Ji Ning felt impatient. This cultivator was incredibly rude; they had just met, yet she was already acting like an interrogator. Where she went was her own business—what did it have to do with her? However, constrained by the woman’s superior strength, she hid her irritation and replied obediently, "Practicing. There are too many people during the day, which makes it difficult to clear my mind."

Could cultivation really force a fragment of a malevolent spirit out of one’s body? Yun Xin was skeptical, but her consciousness had thoroughly checked Ji Ning’s entire body, and no trace of the spirit remained. The aura had vanished once the black mist was expelled. Could it be that many people on Lingyun Peak were hiding these spirit fragments within them? If so, who was behind it? Was it the Spirit Beast Peak or the Lingdan Peak? Or were both involved?

Yun Xin’s eyes were dark and unreadable. As for Ji Ning, once the woman’s gaze shifted, she began to meditate and regulate her breathing. As her spiritual energy nourished her, the pain in her body subsided significantly, though her consciousness would need a few days to recover.

After completing a cycle of energy circulation, she opened her eyes to find the ethereal cultivator sitting cross-legged on the ground beside her. The fire cage and the black mist were gone, leaving only those cold eyes staring intently at her, which made Ji Ning’s skin crawl. What was this person trying to do? Puzzled and fearing the woman might draw her sword, Ji Ning abandoned any thought of escape and decided to break the silence.

After a moment’s hesitation, Ji Ning asked, feigning a relaxed tone, "I am Ji Ning, a servant disciple of Lingyun Peak. May I ask which peak you hail from, and what is your name?"

"Lingjian Peak. As for my name, the less you know, the better."

Ji Ning nodded like a chicken pecking at grain. She looked obedient, but her heart was filled with suspicion—did she have some sort of ill-fated connection with Lingjian Peak?

Before she could respond, Yun Xin asked, "Where have you been recently? Have you encountered any strange people or strange things? Tell me everything."