Chapter 21: The Valley

As Lin Chuan’s fingers tightened around the hilt of the black sword, a sudden change occurred!

A crisp "crack" echoed from the crystalline spirit bone, and spiderweb-like fissures appeared across its surface. Immediately, wisps of milky-white spirit energy seeped out from the cracks, coiling around Lin Chuan’s arm as if they were alive.

"This is—"

Before Lin Chuan could react, the spirit energy surged into his meridians like a breached dam.

"Ah!"

Lin Chuan let out a groan that was both painful and pleasurable, his body involuntarily lifting into the air. The spirit energy rampaged through him, yet it followed a mysterious, profound trajectory, circulating through his body on its own. With every cycle, a portion of the energy merged into his flesh and blood, tempering his physique.

"Ninth Level of Body Refining!"

Zhang Lin’s eyes widened as he felt the sudden surge in Lin Chuan’s aura.

But that was only the beginning. The circulation of spirit energy accelerated, and black impurities began to ooze from Lin Chuan’s skin—a sign that his physical form was being further refined. His bones popped like roasted beans, and his muscle fibers tore and rebuilt themselves repeatedly.

"Brea... breaking through?!"

Li Yu covered her mouth, watching the scene in disbelief. Lin Chuan’s aura was shattering the shackles of the Body Refining realm and advancing toward the Spirit Martial realm!

Wang Tiezhu’s jaw nearly hit the ground. "First level of Spirit Martial... peak of the first level... Second level of Spirit Martial?!"

The entire process took only a few dozen breaths, yet it left the three onlookers in a state of unprecedented shock. As the last wisp of spirit energy dissipated, Lin Chuan slowly touched down, his body radiating the unique pressure of a Spirit Martial expert. He opened his eyes, a sharp gleam flickering within them.

"How about that? I didn't lie to you, did I?" Little Pang’s smug voice echoed in his mind. "The previous owner of this sword was at least at the peak of the Sovereign Martial realm. A single trace of residual energy was enough to make you break through several levels in a row!"

Lin Chuan did not answer, instead focusing on the changes within. In his dantian, a spirit energy vortex the size of a pigeon egg rotated slowly—the hallmark of the Spirit Martial realm. He could feel that his strength had increased several times over, and his five senses had become much sharper.

"Brother... Brother Lin..." Wang Tiezhu stammered. "Are... are you still human?"

The expressions of Zhang and his wife were no better; they stared at Lin Chuan as if he were a monster. Zhang Lin, in particular, had spent over a decade of bitter cultivation to reach the second level of Spirit Martial, yet this kid had achieved the same in just a few dozen breaths!

Lin Chuan scratched his head and offered an innocent smile. "I've always had pretty good luck."

"You call this good luck?" Zhang Lin nearly jumped. "You must have stepped in heaven's own dung!"

Li Yu pinched her husband, though her eyes were equally filled with incredulity.

Wang Tiezhu suddenly slapped his thigh, a realization dawning on him. "I get it! Everything written in those storybooks is true!"

The three of them looked at him in unison.

"What storybooks?" Lin Chuan asked curiously.

Wang Tiezhu gestured excitedly. "The ones like 'Legends of the Sword Immortals' and 'Tales of Cultivation'! The protagonist falls off a cliff and either finds a peerless manual or meets a hidden master, and his power skyrockets! I used to think the authors were just making it up, but it really happens!"

Zhang and his wife were stunned for a moment before they couldn't help but laugh. Li Yu covered her mouth to giggle, while Zhang Lin slapped his thigh in amusement. "Hahaha, Wang Tiezhu, you really are a character!"

Lin Chuan couldn't help but laugh as well, and the tense atmosphere eased significantly. He looked down at the black sword in his hand; the blade was dark as ink, yet faint brilliance flowed within it, as if responding to his gaze.

"Don't just stand there grinning like an idiot," Little Pang warned. "This sword is no simple object. It has tasted the blood of more experts than you have drunk water. You must refine it slowly."

Lin Chuan acknowledged this in his mind and then said to the three, "Let's go. We continue forward."

The four regrouped and headed deeper into the Soul-Devouring Abyss. Along the way, Lin Chuan could clearly sense Little Pang’s excitement within the Blood Spirit Ring—the surrounding evil spirits were becoming denser, a veritable feast for Little Pang.

"Three hundred paces to the left, there's a cluster of century-old evil spirits!"
"There's a group hiding in the rock crevice to the front right, don't let them get away!"
"Hahaha, wonderful! This is even more invigorating than taking a potent tonic!"

Little Pang acted like a child who had discovered a candy store, guiding Lin Chuan along a seemingly random path that, in reality, swept up every evil spirit they encountered. Lin Chuan could feel the temperature of the Blood Spirit Ring gradually rising as more spirits were consumed, and Little Pang’s soul fluctuations grew increasingly powerful.

"Brother Lin, are we going off course?" Zhang Lin asked skeptically after walking for about ten miles. "We haven't seen any treasures along the way."

Lin Chuan remained calm. "My intuition tells me there's something good ahead."

In truth, he was following Little Pang’s guidance entirely. Some of the consumed evil spirits retained fragments of their memories, and it was through these fragments that Little Pang pieced together the likely location of the Azure Nether Grass.

After another few miles, the view suddenly opened up. A massive valley stretched out before them, spanning hundreds of acres with mountain walls over a hundred feet high on either side. Above the valley, dark mists churned like boiling black soup, and the shrill wailing of ghosts was relentless. Visible currents of black energy swirled at the valley entrance, each composed of thousands of evil spirits.

"This... just how many evil spirits are there?" Wang Tiezhu’s voice trembled, his legs shaking uncontrollably.

Zhang Lin’s face turned pale. "At least hundreds of thousands... Lin Chuan, should we take a detour?"

Li Yu gripped her husband’s arm tightly, her knuckles turning white. "Yes, our goal is the Azure Nether Grass; there's no need to take this risk..."

The three looked at Lin Chuan in unison, their eyes filled with pleading.

Lin Chuan shook his head and pointed into the valley. "The Azure Nether Grass is in there."

"What?!" the three exclaimed in unison.

"How... how do you know?" Zhang Lin stammered.

Lin Chuan had already prepared his excuse. "That strange book of mine records that the Azure Nether Grass favors dark, soul-gathering places. Look at the yin energy above this valley; it’s ten times denser than anywhere else. It is the ideal environment for it to grow."

"Tsk, tsk, you don't even blush when you lie," Little Pang teased. "But you aren't wrong. The memories of those evil spirits show that there is indeed Azure Nether Grass in the center of the valley."

Wang Tiezhu gulped. "But... with so many evil spirits, even virgin urine wouldn't be enough, right?"

"Theoretically..." Lin Chuan pretended to ponder, "as long as the quantity is sufficient, it remains effective."

Zhang Lin nearly fainted. "Where are we supposed to get that much... you know..."

"Actually..." Lin Chuan smiled mysteriously, "that strange book also records a secret technique that can enhance the effectiveness of virgin urine for a short time."

The three looked at him with skepticism.

"But it requires some preparation time," Lin Chuan added. "You wait here, and I'll go ahead to scout the path."

Before the three could object, Lin Chuan strode toward the valley entrance. As he drew closer, the temperature plummeted, and his breath turned to frost instantly. At the entrance, countless evil spirits sensed the presence of a living human and grew agitated, surging toward him in a black tide!

"Hahaha, come to me!" Little Pang shouted excitedly. "Watch me swallow you all in one gulp!"

Lin Chuan feigned pulling a talisman from his robes (merely for show) while secretly letting Little Pang lift the restrictions. In an instant, the Blood Spirit Ring erupted with terrifying suction. The oncoming evil spirits didn't even have time to shriek before they were pulled into black threads and streamed continuously into the ring.

To Zhang Lin and the others, it looked as if Lin Chuan was holding a glowing talisman that caused the evil spirits to scatter, as magical as Moses parting the sea.

"Is the secret technique from that strange book really that powerful?" Li Yu murmured.

Zhang Lin scratched his head. "Why do I feel like something isn't quite right..."

Wang Tiezhu’s eyes shone. "Brother Lin is truly the Child of Destiny! The storybooks did not deceive me!"

Meanwhile, Lin Chuan had already penetrated a hundred paces into the valley. The density of evil spirits here was beyond imagination, forming almost tangible black fog. Little Pang’s consumption rate could no longer keep up with the influx, and a few stragglers reached Lin Chuan, their sharp claws nearly touching the tip of his nose!

"I can't hold them back! Retreat!" Little Pang shouted urgently.

Lin Chuan made an immediate decision and turned to run. Behind him, tens of thousands of evil spirits formed a black torrent, pursuing him relentlessly!

"Run! Run!" Lin Chuan shouted to the others.

Seeing this, the three didn't hesitate and turned to flee. The four of them ran with all their might for hundreds of yards, stopping only when the evil spirits behind them ceased their pursuit.