Secret Art

Qing Lin's figure completely disappeared into the Inheritance Passage, and the Myriad Beast Hall returned to deathly silence. Only the remaining energy fragments on the stone pillars drifted down slowly like fireflies, illuminating the solemn faces of Lin Ming and the other two.

The Remnant Soul of Yu Cang, the Beast Taming Sect Master, had completely dissipated. In order to open this last Gate of Hope, he burned away the last trace of his existence in the world.

However, just when Lin Ming thought everything had settled down and was preparing to calmly guard and wait, another unexpected event occurred!

Above, in that void that should have completely vanished, a faint, almost imperceptible glow of soul light flickered stubbornly, like the last spark in the ashes. Then, a transparent figure, more ethereal than ever before, as if it would shatter at any moment, struggled to re-form.

It is indeed the Yu Cang!

But at this moment, he was no longer Remnant Soul; he was more like an echo of a will about to be completely annihilated, his outline blurred and his aura so weak that it was as if he did not exist.

"Senior?"

Lin Ming's pupils contracted, his heart filled with shock. He hadn't expected that Yu Cang could actually forcefully condense this last wisp of willpower; what incredible willpower that required!

The blurry, illusory image of consciousness slowly cast its "gaze" toward Lin Ming. That gaze was filled with endless weariness, yet also carried a trace of final persistence and complex, unfathomable emotions.

"Young man..." Yu Cang's voice was barely audible, yet it resonated deep within Lin Ming's soul, as if it might break at any moment, "That girl Qing Lin has already obtained the sect's rightful place... I... have no more attachments. But... seeing you... a soul at the Spirit Realm Grand Perfection ... I... ultimately... cannot find peace..."

He seemed to be gathering his last strength, his words coming out in broken sentences.

"I... can no longer unlock the Beast Taming Inheritance for you... but... in my life... besides the Beast Taming Technique... there is something else... that I created uniquely... and it is also... the root cause that led my Beast Taming Sect... to incur the wrath of the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix... and ultimately to its destruction..."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ming, Zi Yan, and Xiong Zhan were all deeply shaken! The root cause of the Beast Taming Sect's destruction was not a simple power struggle, but rather stemmed from a unique secret technique?

"This technique... I call it... <Turbid Lotus Spirit Quenching Art>."

Yu Cang's thoughts rippled with an indescribable sense of vicissitude and bitterness. "It... is not a traditional soul Cultivation Method... but rather an... extremely dangerous... soul secret art!"

"The principle... is to visualize one's own soul... as a... pure Lotus Seed... and then... actively introduce the myriad evil thoughts, Remnant Soul, and lingering resentment of the world... transforming them into filthy mud... and burying the Lotus Seed... deeply within it..."

Lin Ming's eyes narrowed, his heart churning with shock. Actively inviting evil thoughts into one's soul? This was utterly unheard of, utterly inconceivable! The soul is the most fundamental and vulnerable part of a cultivator; they would avoid evil spirits like the plague, how could they actively invite them?

"The Malice Mud... constantly erodes, grinds, and pollutes... the Soul Lotus Seed... if one can hold fast to True Heart... keeping a spark of clarity Spirit Platform one's mind... then like a true lotus... emerging from the mud unsullied... drawing nourishment from the darkest and most filthy... enduring extreme pain and trials... finally... blooming with the splendor of Purified... achieving the Soul Essence... a leap and Nirvana!"

Nirvana?! Lin Ming caught this key word.

"Not bad... Nirvana..."

A trace of former fervor and pride flickered in Yu Cang's mind. "I... have merged with... the primordial mystery of the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix Clan's... Nirvana... through rebirth... using evil as fuel... to temper my soul... and achieve a soul Qualitative Change similar to... Nirvana!"

I see!

Lin Ming instantly understood. No wonder it had provoked the wrath of the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix Clan! Nirvana was the core taboo of the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan and its ancestor, the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix. How could others be allowed to covet or even imitate it? This Sect Master Yu Cang was truly audacious, yet also possessed astonishing talent!

"However... evil thoughts are still evil thoughts..." Yu Cang's thoughts suddenly became low and painful.

"This method... is extremely dangerous... ten thousand times more dangerous than ordinary Soul Cultivation! The slightest carelessness... and the loss of one's spiritual Spirit Platform... will result in the soul being corrupted and assimilated by endless evil thoughts... at best, one will go insane... becoming a monster who only knows how to kill... at worst... one's soul will be scattered... and never be reincarnated..."

"Our sect... in the past, several exceptionally talented individuals... tried this method... but all... failed... and instead suffered backlash... causing great calamity... coupled with the wrath of the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix Clan's thunder... that's why... alas..."

A long sigh conveyed endless regret and helplessness. This unique secret technique, which he was so proud of, ultimately became the fuse that buried the entire sect.

"This technique... in principle... should have been completely annihilated along with me... and should not have reappeared in the world..."

Yu Cang's consciousness focused on Lin Ming, his blurry "gaze" seemingly piercing his soul. "But... seeing you... Spirit Realm Grand Perfection... a solid foundation... a resilient spirit... far surpassing any genius I've ever seen... I... still harbored a trace of... unwillingness and a sliver of hope..."

"Now... I will place the choice... in your hands." His thoughts became incredibly solemn, carrying with them a final sliver of relief. "Do you... wish to inherit this technique? To accept this... opportunity and destruction coexisting... <Turbid Lotus Spirit Quenching Art>?"

As the sound faded, the Myriad Beast Hall so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Zi Yan and Xiong Zhan held their breath, watching Lin Ming nervously. Although they didn't fully understand, the words "caused the destruction of the sect," "extremely dangerous," "soul contamination," and "madness" were enough for them to understand the terrifying nature of this secret technique.

Lin Ming fell silent.

A fierce internal struggle was raging within him. His soul, having Spirit Realm Grand Perfection, made him more aware than anyone else of the difficulties and dangers of Soul Cultivation.

To deliberately invite evil thoughts to temper one's soul is tantamount to walking a tightrope over an abyss; one wrong step and it's all over. The failure of the Beast Taming Sect's predecessors and the sect's destruction serve as a bloody lesson.

However... words like "Nirvana" and "Qualitative Change of the soul" held a fatal attraction for him!

He wasn't Xiao Yan, who had Old Ancestor, Xiao Xuan, who, even if he died outside, could still help Xiao Yan elevate his soul to the Emperor Realm within the Heaven Tomb. He had no ancestors to rely on. And to become an Emperor, he had to first elevate his soul to the Emperor Realm.

Let alone the Emperor Realm, he currently has no way to even reach the Heavenly Realm. Although he possesses two soul Cultivation Method, their maximum potential is only to elevate the soul to the Spirit Realm Grand Perfection. Lin Ming has clearly already reached that level. Therefore, he has no way to further enhance his soul.

But now, an opportunity has arisen. Although extremely dangerous, the potential rewards are equally enormous.

Looking back on my journey, how could I have reached the summit if I had been so hesitant and timid?

Moreover, he could sense the expectation and unwillingness in the last thoughts of the Yu Cang Sect Master. Before completely dissipating, this extraordinary ancient Sect Master wanted to find a possible successor for his most proud and most regretful creation, a hope to prove that it was not entirely a dead end!

After a long silence, Lin Ming slowly raised his head, all hesitation gone, replaced by a rock-solid determination and an indomitable spirit. He solemnly clasped his hands in a fist salute to the fading phantom of his consciousness and said in a deep voice:

"Senior, I, Lin Ming, am willing to inherit this skill!"

The voice was resounding, echoing in the deathly silent hall, carrying an unquestionable determination.

The blurry, illusory image seemed to tremble slightly, and then an extremely complex emotional fluctuation spread out, including relief, liberation, and worry, ultimately turning into an almost inaudible sigh filled with endless emotion.

"Okay... okay... okay..."

Three consecutive "good"s said it all.

The next moment, the illusory image of his will, which was about to be completely annihilated, suddenly burst forth with its last glimmer of light! Yu Cang burned and sacrificed the last bit of power he had left in the world without reservation!

He didn't transmit any more information. Instead, he transformed all his insights, experiences, tips, and even the painful lessons he learned about the <Turbid Lotus Spirit Quenching Art> into a pure stream of Soul Imprint light, which shot directly into Lin Ming's brow Consciousness Sea!

Boom!

A massive influx of information flooded in instantly, and Lin Ming felt as if his head was about to explode. Countless profound and obscure runes, visualization diagrams, soul power circulation routes, and warnings of various dangerous checkpoints were imprinted on the depths of his soul like a tidal wave! It was the complete inheritance of the <Turbid Lotus Spirit Quenching Art>!

At the same time, as Yu Cang's last will was completely burned and sacrificed, the stone pillars in the center of the Myriad Beast Hall underwent another change!

The runes on the surface of the stone pillar no longer emitted a gentle, inherited light, but suddenly became dark and profound! A chilling, violent, and terrifying aura filled with countless negative emotions emanated from the bottom of the stone pillar! At the center of the stone pillar, where the Qing Lin had disappeared, Space Distortion, and a pitch-black pool, constantly churning with viscous bubbles, slowly emerged!

This pool of water is not a physical object, but rather a pool of evil spirits—a mixture of countless chaotic, violent, resentful, greedy, and fearful thoughts, along with the resentful power of countless Fierce Beasts beast Remnant Soul collected and suppressed by the Beast Taming Sect over the past ten thousand years. It even includes the resentful Remnant Soul of the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix that was forcibly pulled, crushed, and merged into it by Yu Cang's last power.

The pool water churned, and countless twisted beast shadows could be vaguely seen struggling and howling within it, with the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix's unwilling roar being particularly piercing! Merely getting close was enough to make one's soul tremble and one's mind waver!

This is the "mud" required by the <Turbid Lotus Spirit Quenching Art>!

In order to open this final trial ground for Lin Ming, the Sect Master of Yu Cang, this giant from ancient times, completely burned everything, his body and soul perished, leaving no trace in the world.

Lin Ming sensed the profound and dangerous secret technique within his Consciousness Sea consciousness, and looking at the soul pool churning with endless evil thoughts before him, his heart was filled with respect and gratitude for that Sect Master. He straightened his robes, faced the stone pillar, and bowed deeply in the direction where Yu Cang had vanished.

This bow is a tribute to his talent, his sense of responsibility, and also to the final act of kindness that allowed him to fulfill his wish.

After bowing, Lin Ming straightened up, his eyes now calm and still. He cast a reassuring glance at Zi Yan and Xiong Zhan beside him, whose faces were full of worry.

"Protector me!"

After giving a brief explanation, he no longer hesitated. He sat cross-legged beside the Malice Soul Pool and, following the method of the newly acquired <Turbid Lotus Spirit Quenching Art>, focused his mind and calmed his Spirit Platform.

The next moment, a flash of light appeared between Lin Ming's brows, and an extremely solid Soul Body, radiating the fluctuations of the Spirit Realm Grand Perfection, took a step forward and then, without hesitation, leaped into the pitch-black soul pool that was churning with endless evil thoughts and Fierce Soul!

"Thump!"

Like a pebble falling into a mud pit, Lin Ming's Soul Body was instantly swallowed by the viscous, icy Malice Pool Water filled with countless negative emotions!

The instant he entered, the entire Malice Soul Pool erupted as if a red-hot iron had been thrown into it, boiling violently! Countless Beast Soul Remnants, the vengeance of the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix, and the most filthy evil thoughts in the world, like sharks smelling blood, surged madly towards his Soul Body, tearing, corroding, and polluting...

The extreme torment emanating from the soul, far surpassing the physical pain, instantly overwhelmed Lin Ming's consciousness!

The tempering process has begun.

Will it be Nirvana like a lotus, or will it be completely swallowed and assimilated by this endless mire? The answer can only be revealed in this extreme pain and darkness.