Chapter 123 - 122: Spirit Armor, Spirit Coffin

Chapter 123: Chapter 122: Spirit Armor, Spirit CoffinAn Jing found a level with no traces of vagrants and then curled up behind a column, silently starting to circulate his inner qi to recover. Having escaped from the Black Market and finding a place to settle down, his taut nerves and body relaxed. It wasn’t until now that An Jing felt a soreness throughout his body that was hard to endure. Sensing his battered body, he couldn’t help but show a wry smile, "These injuries are no small matter." Mention not the itchiness in his meridians, the exposed skin, aside from burns, had various scrapes and cut wounds that now throbbed with pain. And his chest, which had been kicked by the Fengdu Guards, though it did not suffer broken ribs thanks to the triple protection of the straw raincoat, spirit qi, and jade pendant, now felt a dull ache whenever he took a deep breath, evidently sustaining internal injuries, and he breathed with a strong scent of blood. It was only because of adrenaline that he was able to escape smoothly through the sewers; now with the adrenaline gone, An Jing felt half-dead, unable to breathe evenly. "This won’t do, An Jing." The Sword Spirit, seeing An Jing’s poor condition, bluntly said, "We have about a day left before we have to return to the Embracing the Void realm, facing the Evil Born Demon, you must be at your peak." After pondering for a moment, It decisively said, "Take out the Evergreen Wood’s heart and use its life essence to recover from your injuries." "Waste some if we must, it’s most important to keep you in good condition." Evergreen Wood is a common Spirit Plant of the first and second order, thriving in warm, humid environments. Its material is thick and soft, only the heart of the tree being a bit hard, unsuitable for weapons and as the main material for magic artifacts, but it still remains the most common Spiritual Material extensively cultivated by the Great Sects. No other reason, but for its usefulness alone. Its bark and leaves can be used to make talisman paper, the fruit is sweet enough to rival Spirit Rice, the sap can be used to concoct healing pills and also serve as an agent for rapidly replenishing bodily strength and essence qi, and the heart of the tree is one of the main materials for many ’Life-Healing’ series of talismans and pills. Even some of the special roots and some branches of the right size could serve as ’artificial tendons’ and ’acquired marionette bones,’ extending the path for people with physical disabilities, whether ordinary people or cultivators. Their efficiency was certainly not high, and could only support the Green Wood lineage, but having them was better than not having at all. Even though Evergreen Wood had no direct connection to combat, no one disliked this valuable spirit plant whose whole was precious. In the Tianyuan Realm, Xuanye City, the outskirts of the abandoned urban area. On the seventh floor of an unfinished building, beside a load-bearing column, An Jing sat cross-legged, his palms opposing each other in front of his Qi Sea at his dantian. And between his palms was a deep green, almost black, heart of the Evergreen Wood. The green yuan qi was ceaselessly drawn out from the heart of the Evergreen Wood by An Jing, gradually entering his body as he circulated the Complete Circuit, feeling a thread of the Green Wood’s life essence flowing through the meridians all over his body. It flowed through his limbs, across his chest and abdomen, descending from his spine down to his dantian, rising from his chest cavity up towards the upper dantian. He could feel a stream of pure and gentle life essence carrying a comforting warmth mending his damaged tendons and flesh and blood. It quelled the pain, repaired the nerves, and hastened An Jing’s digestive system in absorbing the nutrients from the Fasting Pill, speeding up his body’s regeneration. An Jing could distinctly perceive his lungs starting to itch, an urge to cough that lingered constantly. After mostly recovered, he coughed violently, channeling his Divine Skill to perform ’Subdue Evil with a Sword’, coughing up a mouthful of black blood streaked with traces of golden qi, which rapidly evaporated into the air, carrying a stench of scorched steel and the lingering smell of a fierce fire’s embers. The breath that he exhaled was also sharp and scorchingly hot, striking the ground and pitting it with small craters. These were not just the injuries caused by the Fengdu Guards. The lungs are associated with metal, and An Jing had not been a cultivator for long yet had repeatedly mobilized the powerful Taibai Fiend Qi for attack and protection. Naturally, this led to lung damage, with hidden injuries that, if not treated promptly, would certainly become future problems. Luckily, the treatment was timely. After coughing, An Jing immediately felt a sense of relief, his chest and lungs feeling incredibly refreshed, and the circulation of Spirit Qi much smoother, "Thankfully, I comprehended the Pathogenic Qi Sword; otherwise, I don’t know how long it would have taken to heal these injuries." "Divine Skills are truly extraordinary and not common. No wonder, as soon as I awakened my Fate Pattern, I obtained a Divine Skill, which excited the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect so much." An hour after absorbing the Life Essence from the Evergreen Tree’s heart, An Jing felt all the scratches and burns on his skin fully heal. There were no scars where the scabs had been, and the Spirit Qi, which was almost depleted, also began to circulate gradually with the ample conversion from Essence Qi. Slowly opening his eyes, An Jing exhaled once more. This time the breath was like a white arrow, extending two feet without the slightest impurity. He was quite pleased, "In just two hours, I’ve already healed all my injuries." "Although the Spirit Qi hasn’t fully recovered yet, I feel in better condition than ever before. With a bit more circulation of the Complete Circuit using Jade Cutting Steel, I’ll restore all my Spirit Qi!" "Of course." The Sword Spirit signaled for An Jing to store away the Evergreen Tree’s heart, which had reduced by a quarter, and remarked, "Your injuries were not severe and didn’t reach the bones or internal organs, so naturally, the recovery was quick." "The Evergreen Tree’s heart can even sustain the life of a person on the brink of death for a short period. With such a Foundation Establishment Spiritual Material consuming a small part of your Life Essence, of course, you could return to your prime." At this point, the Sword Spirit was somewhat puzzled, "Embracing the Void human bodies seem somewhat different from what I knew... An Jing, you harness a Fate Pattern, which gives you a stronger resistance to Evil Qi, but even without the Seven Fiend Heavenly Mandate’s influence, your resistance to Evil Qi is strong." "The human races of Embracing the Void and the Tianyuan Realm ought to share the same origins, but now there’s quite a difference. Healing your body required 30% more Yuan Qi than I had anticipated." Upon hearing this, An Jing also grew interested, "Does this mean the Embracing the Void human race has a stronger physique? Is it the result of years of martial cultivation, or did they choose martial cultivation because of this innate strength?" "They go hand in hand," the Sword Spirit pondered for a moment before shaking its head slightly, "The situation in Embracing the Void is unusual compared to all the worlds I’ve seen afflicted by Demonic Qi. The people of Embracing the Void must also have their peculiarities." "The fact that healing your body required more Spirit Qi doesn’t just imply a better physique, since the body needs material nutrients. It also suggests that the souls of the Embracing the Void human race may be different." At this, the Sword Spirit did not delve deeper, "Fortunately, it didn’t consume too much; there is still a majority of the tree’s heart left, which should suffice." "Oh right, Subdue Evil," speaking of the tree’s heart, An Jing had a slight thought. He curiously asked, "During the fight with the Fengdu Guards, I remember you mentioned something about ’Green Wood and Netherworld Transformation’... How could the Fengdu Guard control two different types of Spirit Qi, Green Wood and Netherworld? Didn’t you say a cultivator could only choose one type of Spirit Qi as their fundamental practice?" "Even with the use of Spirit Armor, they can’t manipulate two types of Spirit Qi so smoothly, can they?" "Indeed, that’s true," the Sword Spirit nodded gently, addressing An Jing’s doubts, "One can only choose one type of Spirit Qi as their fundamental practice. If their natures are similar, perhaps they can influence each other to some extent, but if they’re opposing in nature, coexistence is utterly impossible." "But the Fengdu Guard is different—their core practice is the Green Wood Longevity Skills, which switches them into a state of half-life, half-death, and then they ’bury’ themselves in the Fengdu Armor." "That armor is essentially a ’spirit coffin,’ slowly transforming the occupant into a Ghost Cultivator. The vigorous life force of the Fengdu Guard is transformed into Netherworld Qi of the same origin, and because of their semi-dead state, they can control both Green Wood Qi and Netherworld Qi." "Since both are derived from himself, and are not external Qi, within the Fengdu Armor, the inner Qi of the Fengdu Guard forms a ’mini Tai Chi,’ which, in turn, enhances the cultivation of the Green Wood Longevity Skills— ’through life, Netherworld is conceived; by harboring Nether, life and decay flourish’; it is precisely because of this."