ATPnovel #179 - Changes in the Spiritual World
#179 - Changes in the Spiritual World
Chapter 178: Changes in the Spiritual World
Zhang Chen looked at the crying teenager across from him, feeling that the teenager's thinking was too skewed and needed to be corrected; he had to set him straight.
Zhang Chen's eyes swept over the teenager, a dangerous glint appearing in his eyes: "Are you saying that my life is worthless?"
Hearing Zhang Chen's words and seeing his dangerous gaze, the teenager shuddered, even his sobs stopped, and he tentatively said: "Worth a penny?"
"…"
Faced with the teenager's apprehensive gaze, Zhang Chen seemed to feel greatly insulted, but sighed helplessly, feeling somewhat dejected, and silently sat on the ice, saying nothing.
"What's wrong? Why aren't you talking? You're worth a lot, a tael of silver should be enough, right?" At this time, Zhong Xiang had learned his lesson, feeling that it was better to suffer less, and tentatively asked.
Zhang Chen's liver hurt with anger, too lazy to pay attention to him, seeing the other party's expression as if he had already offered a high price, he really couldn't get angry.
"My family can buy a large batch of servants for a hundred copper coins, and some people, just to get a bite to eat, would enter the manor even without pay, and some would even pay to enter my house, so I think a penny is not a low price." Zhong Xiang felt a little uneasy and explained to Zhang Chen, fearing that Zhang Chen would become angry and pee on him.
Seeing that Zhang Chen didn't speak, but just stared at him with his eyes, Zhong Xiang was a little uneasy: "Whatever price you say is fine, is that okay?"
"This time, do you want to be pricked on the left buttock or the right buttock?" Zhang Chen asked.
Regarding this damn world, he didn't know what to say, he could only prick buttocks to vent his hatred!
Zhong Xiang immediately became anxious upon hearing this: "I am a great noble, you can't treat a high-ranking noble like this. We can make a deal, as long as you name your price, whatever cost you want me to pay to let me go, we can talk about it."
"I want your Qilin Heart, are you willing to give it to me?" Zhang Chen asked.
Zhong Xiang's expression froze upon hearing this, then his eyes stared at Zhang Chen, and he explained very seriously: "That Qilin Heart has already been melted into flames and integrated with my essence, energy, and spirit, turning into the energy of essence, energy, and spirit. If I die, the Qilin Heart will also disappear. How can I give you the Qilin Heart?"
This reckless fool in front of him was lawless, if he didn't explain clearly, the other party would really dare to dig it out! Completely disregarding his status!
"Integrated into your essence, energy, and spirit?" Zhang Chen looked Zhong Xiang up and down, pondering the truth of Zhong Xiang's words.
"Actually, the so-called Qilin Heart is just a mysterious and unpredictable flame that can make people immortal. Obtaining it can transform into flames, possessing an energetic body, that's all. With your abilities, why would you care about a mere Qilin Heart?"
Zhong Xiang met Zhang Chen's gaze, sensed the danger, and said in a low voice.
Zhang Chen ignored Zhong Xiang, in any case, he couldn't let Zhong Xiang leave alive. After he excavated the tomb, he would send Zhong Xiang to see the King of Hell.
Zhang Chen stretched out a hand and placed it on Zhong Xiang's head, re-examining the seal, then sat aside and summoned the Fox Fairy Nannan: "Keep an eye on him for me. Remember to wake me up after an hour. I want to meditate and cultivate to restore my essence, energy, and spirit."
The Fox Fairy Nannan nodded upon hearing this, obediently sitting beside Zhang Chen. She knew that Zhang Chen was about to excavate the tomb, and she wanted to get a share of the pie, so she was very ingratiating and obedient.
As for Zhong Xiang, he didn't see the trace of the fox spirit, because the fox spirit's cultivation was higher than his at this time. Zhong Xiang was only a fourth-order cultivator, how could he see the fox spirit's form?
Zhang Chen visualized the "Heavenly Round Earth Square Diagram", and the nameless Taoist appeared in his mind again. The nameless Taoist was pinching a seal with his hands, one hand pointing to the sky, and the other holding a glazed lamp. He couldn't see his specific appearance, only that his clothes were wide and seemed to cover the sun, moon, and stars.
The glazed lamp flickered with silver-white light, receiving the power of the moonlight from the void. Before long, the jade lamp was filled with moonlight, which turned into a pure white liquid and poured onto Zhang Chen's soul.
Zhang Chen's soul trembled upon contact with the liquid, and an indescribable comfort came, as if the soul had sublimated.
Along with the dripping of the moonlight, Zhang Chen's soul, which had been depleted of Qi, was constantly replenished. Then, along with the rise and recovery of his essence, energy, and spirit, a mysterious aura flowed in the void. Zhang Chen only felt a blur before his eyes, and actually entered the first heaven of the spiritual world again.
However, just as he entered the first heaven of the spiritual world, the entire Feng Shui formation seemed to sense something, and the aura suddenly changed. Mysterious and unpredictable auras came from the void and poured into Zhang Chen's body.
That aura was very mysterious, seemingly there and yet not, looming. Even the Fox Fairy Nannan, who was close at hand, did not notice the change.
As the aura of the Feng Shui formation flowed into Zhang Chen's body, Zhang Chen's "Heavenly Round Earth Square Diagram" couldn't help but vibrate slightly. The figures and lines on the scroll wriggled and flowed, as if they had come to life.
"Huh?"
At this moment, Zhang Chen's expression changed, because he found that the first heaven of the spiritual world in front of him had also changed its appearance. The ruins and palaces he used to see were all gone. All that met his eyes was a desolate mountain, and there wasn't a single blade of grass on the desolate mountain. It was all a boundless world of yellow sand.
Zhang Chen was standing in the world of yellow sand, with the scorching sun hanging high above his head, roasting his soul as if it were about to melt.
"No, that's not right! It's not a soul state, I actually have a physical body!" At this moment, Zhang Chen noticed something was wrong, lowered his head and looked down, and found that he actually had a physical body at some point.
"This is the spiritual world, how can I have a physical body?" Zhang Chen raised his hand, his eyes full of disbelief, and found that he did indeed have a physical body.
"Illusion? Could it be that I'm under an illusion in the spiritual world?" Zhang Chen couldn't believe it.
"Where's that palace? What exactly happened?" Zhang Chen was a little confused for a moment.
Looking at the endless yellow sand, a sense of thirst came. Zhang Chen subconsciously activated the Water Control Technique, wanting to extract water from the air. Fortunately, his Water Control Technique was successfully activated, and water vapor gathered in the air of the desert, and underground currents also surged, suspended in front of Zhang Chen.
"That's interesting."
Zhang Chen looked at the water flowing in front of him, and a question popped into his mind: Can you drink water in the spiritual world?
Zhang Chen opened his mouth, and as the water flowed into his stomach, a coolness welled up in his heart, and even the heat of the scorching sun above his head felt a bit cooler.
Zhang Chen proved with facts that even in the spiritual world, you can drink water.
And realizing that all his skills could be used finally gave Zhang Chen a sense of security. Even if the situation was bad, he would have some means to protect himself.
The yellow sand was endless and the sun was scorching, making Zhang Chen's skin ache. In just a moment, it was already a piece of crimson, as if it was about to swell up.
Zhang Chen raised his head to look at the sun in the sky, a hint of curiosity in his eyes: "Isn't this sun a bit too big?"
The sun was as big as a tall building. Zhang Chen could even see the solar storms constantly blowing on the surface of the sun, ravaging the entire surface of the sun.
"This world is not normal."
Zhang Chen didn't dare to stand in the yellow sand for long, nor did he dare to continue walking under the scorching sun. Instead, he directly burrowed into the sand, burying himself completely. The best thing to do at this time was to bury himself in the sand and wait for the night to fall.
"I originally wanted to clear up the ruins of that palace, but who knew I would end up in such a strange place." Zhang Chen buried himself completely in the yellow sand, then summoned clear water to dampen the surrounding sand, finally lowering the temperature around him by a few degrees.
"According to common sense, I should be able to return when my mana is exhausted... Crap, where's my mana?"
Zhang Chen finally realized something was wrong, a look of horror appearing in his eyes as he popped his head out of the sand. Where was the trace of the Azure Lotus above him?
"Where did my Azure Lotus go?" Zhang Chen's heart skipped a beat, and then the ancestral aperture between his eyebrows trembled slightly. The Azure Lotus was projected onto his brow, as if responding to Zhang Chen's call.
"Didn't my mana used to transform into the Azure Lotus and float within the mysterious world? Why has it suddenly returned to my physical body? The most important thing is that my mana doesn't seem to be depleting anymore, which means I can't go back even if my mana is exhausted."
Zhang Chen burrowed his head back into the sand, a look of horror in his eyes. "This shouldn't be happening, how could it be like this?"
Zhang Chen couldn't understand how he had inexplicably arrived in this world full of yellow sand. It was clearly still the palace, so how could not only the environment have changed, but even the way he returned?
Zhang Chen lay prone in the yellow sand, a pensive look on his face.
"It's impossible for me to have come to this world for no reason, there must be a cause and effect. Where is that cause and effect? Is it because I took away the Yellow Spring's spring from the ruins of that palace? That can't be it either, after taking the Yellow Spring and refining it into the Nine Bend Yellow River Talisman Formation, I've entered a meditative state several times and there was nothing unusual."
Zhang Chen quickly rejected this idea, because if it was because he took away the Yellow Spring, then he shouldn't have been able to enter the abandoned palace afterward.
"The last time I sat in meditation and entered a meditative state was in the Yellow Dawn Temple. The only difference between that meditation and this one is that the location has changed. I'm now in the Tomb of the Emperor's Daughter, and I'm also enveloped by a Feng Shui Grand Formation." Zhang Chen quickly analyzed the only difference between the two meditations.
"Could it be that entering the spiritual world through meditation differs depending on the environment and location of the meditative state?" Zhang Chen's heart was filled with doubt.
"The Emperor's Daughter's Feng Shui Grand Formation... If it's because of the Feng Shui Grand Formation, or changing the environment of meditation, that led to the different spiritual world, then that's not right either. If it was just because changing the environment led to entering a different place in the spiritual world, then why would the form of my mana change? How could my spirit be given a physical body?"
Zhang Chen's heart was filled with too many questions, and he couldn't sort things out for a while.
"Then what is the reason I entered this spiritual world?" Zhang Chen's eyes were full of confusion.
After thinking for a long time, Zhang Chen didn't get an answer, and could only obediently lie prostrate under the yellow sand, silently pondering and reflecting.
"As long as I stay here, when the time comes, and Fox Fairy Nannan summons me, I'll be able to return, right?" Zhang Chen made up his mind, and didn't think about it anymore. Since he was here, he might as well stay, that was the only thing he could do.
Time flowed very slowly at this moment. Zhang Chen lay in the yellow sand, feeling stuffy and hot. Finally, as the sun set and only the last ray of afterglow remained in the sky, Zhang Chen quickly crawled out of the yellow sand.
As Zhang Chen got up, all the yellow sand slipped from the gaps in his clothes without any hesitation, falling to the ground.
At this time, the slanting rays of the setting sun scattered down, and stars the size of basketballs twinkled in the sky.
Zhang Chen looked at those stars the size of basketballs, and was completely stunned.
Are these even stars?
People would believe it if you said they were moons.
Question: What does it feel like to have the sky full of moons?
The night was very bright, and the moonlight fell like flowing water, making Zhang Chen's soul feel comfortable, as if he was floating like an immortal.
Zhang Chen walked on the yellow sand, illuminated by the light of countless 'moons,' making the night as bright as if a hundred-watt light bulb had been turned on.
At this time, Zhang Chen was very hungry, and his stomach was rumbling non-stop.
"That's not right, I've often entered the spiritual world before, and I've never heard of being hungry. And I seem to have stayed in this spiritual world for seven or eight hours, right?" Zhang Chen felt a little uneasy, this time the spiritual world he entered seemed to be a bit unusual.
"But how could there be food in the spiritual world? There isn't even a small animal to snack on." Zhang Chen muttered, but before he could walk a few steps, his footsteps stopped, because he saw a living creature.
The creature was very small, only the size of a fingernail. It was a sand worm, walking swiftly in the yellow sand, and then disappearing from Zhang Chen's sight.
"Impossible! How could there be living creatures in the spiritual world?" A look of disbelief appeared in Zhang Chen's eyes, filled with horror.
Is this even a spiritual world?
Not only has he become a real living being, but living creatures have actually appeared in the desert.
"Could it be that I was secretly plotted against by that dog-sh*t Great自在天魔? Taking advantage of my fight with that Bell Elephant, the scorching power shattered the bottle, causing the Great自在天魔 to escape, and then unknowingly plotted against me? After all, when I was fighting with the Bell Elephant before, I didn't dare to waste a single second, and all my mental attention was on the Bell Elephant. If the Great自在天魔 secretly plotted against me when my spirit was tense, it doesn't seem impossible, does it?"
The possibility is not only great, but also very high.
Thinking of this, Zhang Chen felt a little flustered. A golden light flowed in his eyes, and he quickly opened his Dharma Eye. His Righteous God's Light could break all illusions, but after the Righteous God's Light was activated, he didn't see anything wrong. So he quickly activated his Soul Hooking skill to locate it. He wanted to see where the Great自在天魔's true body was, whether it was inside his body, entering the spiritual world with him, or staying outside.
The Soul Hooking skill is a law of cause and effect, and even across billions of worlds, rivers of time, and cosmic wilderness, it cannot hinder the connection between the two sides.
As Zhang Chen's Soul Hooking skill was activated, Zhang Chen clearly felt that his Soul Hooking skill seemed to be stuck, and an indescribable, obscure feeling came from the dark.
One breath...
Five breaths...
Ten breaths...
...
It was seen that after the skill was activated and flashed, it seemed to be stuck, and there was no further reaction.
Seeing this situation, Zhang Chen was scared half to death: "Damn it, how could this happen? This is impossible! I've never heard of my Soul Hooking skill getting stuck? Could it be that the Great自在天魔 has already invaded my essence, energy, and spirit, which is why the spiritual world I entered has changed its location? Causing my Soul Hooking skill to be unable to judge? Because the Great自在天魔 is on me, it's normal for a situation where it can't be judged to occur."
Zhang Chen's heart was filled with suspicion and uncertainty at this time, looking at his spiritual body, that completely solidified flesh and blood body, he felt a little horrified for a moment.