Zhang Chen glanced at Fox Fairy Nannan and mocked, "Cultivate for a year? Think again!"
He could only stay in this mysterious world for two hours a day. Staying any longer would affect his cultivation.
"Zhang Chen, the next time you come to the Spiritual World, can you take me with you? The elements of this Mysterious World are really important to me. Think about it, if I break through my cultivation, won’t I be able to steal more things for you? I could even steal the highest secrets of the Yellow Heaven Dao for you." Fox Fairy Nannan widened her eyes and looked at him expectantly.
"You can break through?" Zhang Chen looked at the Fox Spirit with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
After all, the Fox Spirit was now his skill; he’d never heard of a skill leveling up on its own!
A thought suddenly struck Zhang Chen: She had become a mature skill, knowing how to cultivate on her own.
"I have merged with Dragon Qi. As my strength grows, so does the strength of Dragon Qi, and it will benefit you too. This move will be all gain and no loss for you. It might even speed up your Dragon Transformation, allowing you to collect True Dragon Fortune ahead of others and transform into a Supreme True Dragon." Fox Fairy Nannan pleaded with Zhang Chen.
Zhang Chen glanced at Fox Fairy Nannan without objection. The Fox Spirit had already become part of his Essence, Qi, and Spirit, so she couldn’t play any tricks.
The two trained in the Spiritual World for two hours. After opening his eyes, Zhang Chen regained his Magical Power, restored his tired spirit with the help of a Treasure Vase, and then fell back into deep sleep.
Days passed, and on the morning of the third day, while drinking porridge, Xiaodouding mysteriously approached Zhang Chen with a bowl of porridge, "Did you hear? Something big happened down the mountain."
"What happened?" Zhang Chen asked curiously.
"The woman who caused trouble before has died, and even the child in her womb was cut out. It is said she encountered a fierce beast. Not only did she die, but her family was also killed by the beast. Wei Yingwu has set up a spirit hall in a corner of the Daoist Temple, and it’s said he cried all afternoon yesterday. Despite the elder’s persuasion, he refused to get up, insisting on keeping vigil for the woman for seven days," Chengyu whispered.
Zhang Chen was stunned at the news and saw Xiaodouding winking at him. He couldn’t help but take a deep breath, "How ruthless! Wei Yingwu kills without blinking and still gets a good reputation, showing a sense of responsibility. Even the elders’ impressions of him have improved suddenly."
"That woman was innocent. I want to seek justice for her," Chengyu looked at Zhang Chen with determined eyes.
Zhang Chen shook his head, "Impossible! That’s Elder Chuan Wu, at least at the level of Sitting Cross-legged and Embracing the Core. How can you oppose him? Besides, we owe nothing to that woman. She wasn’t impregnated by any of us. She misjudged a man herself, fascinated by Wei Yingwu’s good looks and wealth. It’s no concern of ours." Zhang Chen quickly advised Xiaodouding.
"I’m saying, this incident is an opportunity! In the name of justice, we should break one of Wei Yingwu’s legs. Then if you compete for rankings with him, your chances of winning will greatly increase!" Xiaodouding winked at Zhang Chen.
Hearing Chengyu’s words, Zhang Chen shook his head, "Impossible! That Elder Chuan Wu is not to be trifled with. Don’t worry about me; if I take action, I have my own means to secure victory."
"You have no means!" Xiaodouding rolled her eyes. Given her understanding of Zhang Chen, how could she not know his progress in martial arts?
A month has passed, and his arms haven’t even been fully trained to proper strength. He’s practically useless.
The two finished their porridge with heavy hearts and went to clean the temple hall. As they passed a secluded path, a heart-wrenching cry suddenly reached them, causing them to pause.
"Let’s go and see! This sound is very familiar, it must be that Wei Yingwu pretending," Xiaodouding tugged at Zhang Chen’s sleeve and followed the sound. Not long after, they circled around the garden to see that in a remote corner, a grass hut had been set up, adorned with white cloth and banners, with six coffins laid out in front of it roasting under the hot sun.
Wei Yingwu was kneeling in front of the coffins at this time, crying out with heart-wrenching grief, his voice full of sorrow.
"If I didn’t know the plan beforehand, I’d really think Wei Yingwu is a deeply sentimental person!" Zhang Chen muttered.
"Hypocrite!" Xiaodouding said bitterly, "But Wei Yingwu’s heart is truly malicious, he annihilated his wife’s entire family."
Zhang Chen’s eyes turned to the coffins, and suddenly a golden light flashed in his eyes. His pupils shrank, and on the central coffin, a black Qi was circulating. Even with the blazing sun overhead, it refused to dissipate, persistently gathering.
"What is that?" Zhang Chen was taken aback by the sight of the black Qi, "What kind of aura is that? It’s filled with coldness, venom, and resentment. The hatred seems to spiral within the black Qi."
"Mysterious? Is Wei Yingwu’s wife mysterious?" Zhang Chen felt a bit dazed, then slapped his forehead, "How is that mysterious? She died with grievances, her resentment refusing to disperse, seemingly forming a trend."
Zhang Chen felt he might have become a fool from cultivating.
"Can such a situation also form something mysterious?" Zhang Chen pondered, "Something’s off, the black Qi is tottering under the blazing sun, though stubbornly resisting, it seems like a flame on the Infinite Sea, ready to be extinguished at any moment."
"I wonder if the black Qi can overcome this hurdle. If it does, would it evolve into a ghost? Directly form a phenomena?" Zhang Chen contemplated with interest; witnessing the birth of something mysterious would also be an opportunity to gain a clearer understanding of the essence of the mysterious.
"Though the black Qi is gathering, it cannot form," Zhang Chen observed for a while without intervening, having already drawn conclusions in his mind.
"Let’s go!" Zhang Chen held Chengyu’s hand and walked away.
"What a scumbag!" Chengyu cursed angrily.
Zhang Chen remained silent as he cleaned the temple hall. Once he finished, the two went back to practice Martial Dao.
But Zhang Chen found that Xiaodouding’s practice of Martial Dao today had an added air of deadly sternness. Each movement seemed to carry a Thunder Qi, as if fighting a life-and-death battle, even breaking the wooden dummy.
At this time, Zhang Chen followed Xiaodouding in practicing martial arts. After an hour of practice, Xiaodouding suddenly stopped, taking a long sigh filled with lamentation.
"What’s wrong?" Zhang Chen asked the sighing Xiaodouding.
"My mind is not clear!" Xiaodouding said sadly, placing her hands behind her back as she walked upstairs, not even touching her favorite snacks today.
Zhang Chen watched Xiaodouding’s retreating figure and shook his head, "Still just a child!"
Then Zhang Chen sat cross-legged on the Yellow Sand and began to practice the talisman.
"Hey, do you know what it means when black Qi lingers around a deceased person?" Zhang Chen summoned the Fox Spirit and asked.
The Fox Spirit was taken aback, "That’s resentment and obsession. It’s because the person had an unfinished business in their heart, so the resentment doesn’t dissipate. But such cases are extremely rare, as it’s uncommon for someone to die with such powerful resentment, not to mention it requires a very particular Life Chart to have even the slightest chance."
"Can it form anomalies?" Zhang Chen asked.
"Barring accidents, no matter how strong the obsession, it will dissipate in seven days. But if it gains Fortune, then anything is possible!" said the Fox Spirit.
Zhang Chen was stunned, questioning, "So, what exactly is Fortune?"