Entering the Innate Realm

Chapter 15: Entering the Innate Realm

"Uncle Luo, someone is following us." The leader of the three mercenaries, a man with a grim expression, said hatefully, "It must be a spy from 'Dark Nether' who left earlier!"

This mercenary was full of heroic spirit, around twenty-five or twenty-six years old, standing at 1.85 meters tall with a sturdy build. He was in the Innate Third Heaven Realm, his eyes sharp and constantly vigilant, clearly a skilled fighter.

"He's not from 'Dark Nether,' just a reckless brat with more guts than sense. Don't mind him," Luo Hao shook his head, frowning. "Let's just speed up and shake him off."

Zhao Xin's face darkened, and he said coldly, "Does he have designs on Miss Mu? Should I stay behind and deal with him?" As he spoke, he glanced with concern at Mu Yu Die, whom Luo Hao was supporting.

"Let's not create unnecessary trouble," Luo Hao shook his head again, then asked softly, "Xiao Die, can you handle it? Should we go faster?"

Mu Yu Die's face was pale, and a faint sheen of sweat dotted her forehead, as white as snow. She chuckled lightly, "Okay, let's go faster. It's better to get rid of that person quickly, otherwise, he might be coincidentally killed by a 'Dark Nether' envoy."

Luo Hao sighed inwardly, feeling a pang of pity, but he nodded obediently. "Xiao Die, don't move any of your Essence. I've got this."

With that, Luo Hao grabbed Mu Yu Die's shoulder and, as if holding a feather, lightly leaped and glided through the forest. When he landed, his robust body slowed down abruptly, his footsteps making no sound. His control over Essence was clearly exquisite.

Shi Yan gritted his teeth, his breathing growing heavier.

The bloodthirsty desire continued to torment him, and his body, severely injured by Kalu, was in agony. Because he had used 'Berserk,' his Essence had been depleted greatly, making it difficult to recover in a short time.

In this state, if he encountered Mo Yan Yu, it would be a dead end. He had to stabilize his body's abnormal condition quickly.

And the maiden's zither music was his hope!

Regardless of whether the maiden disliked him or not, Shi Yan felt he had no choice. Even if he had to be shameless, he had to follow her, just hoping she would play her zither for him again.

Forcibly suppressing the increasingly intense urge to kill, Shi Yan channeled his remaining Essence to his legs. With a grim expression, he followed the group of five at his fastest speed.

As his focus became unprecedentedly sharp, with only the thought of keeping up in his mind, he suddenly felt his footsteps become much lighter.

"Uncle Luo, is that person really only in the Postnatal Realm?" Zhao Xin asked in surprise while moving at high speed.

Luo Hao was also puzzled. Logically, a Martial Artist in the Postnatal Realm shouldn't be able to keep up with their speed. Yet, although Shi Yan was gradually falling behind, he showed remarkable tenacity and hadn't lost them. This made Luo Hao unsure, and he secretly wondered if he had misjudged earlier.

"Uncle Luo, I can manage. You can go faster," Mu Yu Die said, enduring the pain, sweat beading on her forehead.

"No! We can't go any faster!" Luo Hao adamantly refused, frowning. He said sternly, "We don't need to worry about him. If he insists on seeking death, he has only himself to blame."

"Roar!"

Just then, a ferocious, bloodthirsty roar like that of a wild beast came from behind them. Judging by the sound, it clearly came from Shi Yan, but the roar didn't sound human; it was filled with a murderous aura that made one tremble.

"Is this guy even human?" The female mercenary Di Ya Lan's fiery body trembled, and she exclaimed in astonishment, "How can a human make such a terrifying roar? Even a maddened demonic beast wouldn't be like this!"

"The frenzied thoughts within him have flared up," Luo Hao's expression changed, and he said urgently, "Stay away from him. Otherwise, he will attack us madly. Killing him won't be difficult, but if it delays us and allows the 'Dark Nether' envoy to find us, it will be troublesome."

"I'll help him. Otherwise, he'll turn into a monster that only knows how to kill and will go around killing people in the Gloomy Forest," Mu Yu Die pondered for a moment, then suddenly unslung the ancient zither from her back. Before Luo Hao could stop her, she sat down cross-legged and began to play.

Luo Hao stomped his foot fiercely and said angrily, "That damned brat!"

The melodious and clear zither music flowed through the forest like a gentle stream. The music had a strong targeting effect, flying in a line towards Shi Yan's location.

Shi Yan's eyes, which were turning red and on the verge of succumbing to his bloodthirsty desires, heard the melodious zither music drifting towards him. His expression froze, and a flicker of confusion flashed in his frenzied eyes. He suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Wisps of faint mist, mixed with negative emotions like exposure, despair, and fear, swirled out from his body, enveloping him. The vortexes of Essence in his seven hundred and twenty acupoints spun wildly, and a strange energy was tempered and purified again and again.

Shi Yan's crimson eyes gradually returned to normal, and a hint of clarity appeared in his gaze. He realized that the beautiful maiden had, after all, extended a helping hand.

Shi Yan was filled with gratitude and immediately sat down on the spot, immersing his mind in the beautiful and moving zither music, diligently circulating the Essence within him and slowly relaxing his entire body.

In this Gloomy Forest, fraught with danger, he miraculously entered a state of selfless transcendence.

After an unknown amount of time, the faint white mist swirling around Shi Yan was drawn back into his body, guided by him into his acupoints.

Suddenly, streams of strange warm currents overflowed from his seven hundred and twenty acupoints, flowing along his meridians and into the Essence within him.

Shi Yan's body trembled, and he clearly felt the Essence within him becoming richer and more condensed at an incredible speed!

In just ten breaths, his internal Essence had become five to six times more potent!

The suddenly enhanced Essence condensed in his lower abdomen, making him feel an inexhaustible strength throughout his body. Shi Yan was overjoyed and immediately realized that the Essence and Qi he had obtained from Kalu had finally been purified by his acupoints.

Holding his breath and centering his mind, Shi Yan focused all his attention, thinking of nothing else, and circulated his Essence towards the twelve main meridians and eight extraordinary meridians.

The rapidly surging Essence surged through his body like a destructive force. Accompanied by the stinging pain in his meridians, Shi Yan's blocked meridians were broken through one by one, becoming unobstructed.

The Essence, now several times thicker and with boundless potential, flowed slowly through his body along the Great Zhou Tian meridian path like a bursting dam. Each blocked meridian was broken open under this fierce impact.

The sun disappeared, and the bright moon rose in the star-studded night sky.

Suddenly, Shi Yan's body trembled as the last blocked meridian within him was broken through by his Essence. Suppressing the immense joy in his heart, Shi Yan circulated his Essence, completing a full Great Zhou Tian cultivation.

Upon completing this Great Zhou Tian cultivation, he exhaled deeply, awakening from his arduous practice. He looked up at the starry sky, feeling that his hardships had finally borne fruit, and an indescribable sense of comfort washed over him.

With all his meridians unblocked, it meant he had officially entered the Innate Realm!

With the help of Kalu's Essence and Qi, after enduring two near-fatal crises of bloodthirsty madness, he had finally achieved success, purifying Kalu's strength. Using a more potent and purer Essence, he had broken through all his meridians and entered a new realm.

The bloodthirsty and frenzied thoughts in his heart had vanished without a trace after the purification of Kalu's Essence and Qi.

Recalling the previous few instances, Shi Yan reached a conclusion: every time his acupoints absorbed the Essence and Qi of the deceased, and before it was completely purified, a portion of negative emotions would leak out. These negative emotions would trigger the darkest side of his heart, making him uncontrollably violent and frenzied.

Previously, with the few Martial Artists in the Postnatal Realm, their strength wasn't great, so he could still barely control his inner desires.

Kalu was a full realm higher than him, and the negative emotions attached to his Essence were too overwhelming, which was why he couldn't resist and almost lost his mind.

Now that Kalu's Essence had been completely purified, and he had also entered a new realm, he no longer had to worry about backlash.

"Crack crack!"

Stretching his limbs, Shi Yan slowly stood up. The pain in his body was gone, and the shattered bones in his chest seemed to have healed.

After a careful examination, a satisfied smile appeared on Shi Yan's lips.

He understood that the rapid recovery of his injuries was not only related to his realm's advancement but also to the Undying Martial Soul.

Just before he went mad, he clearly felt the cells at the site of his chest injury becoming exceptionally active, already starting to repair the trauma.

After observing his surroundings, Shi Yan realized he was in a completely exposed location. The thought of cultivating so engrossed in such an open area sent a shiver of fear down his spine.

If Mo Yan Yu was still pursuing him, he would surely not have escaped her deadly grasp if he had cultivated in such a place.

The melodious zither music had long since vanished. He remembered it was daytime before he started cultivating, but now the bright moon hung high in the sky. He must have been cultivating for quite some time. He felt grateful towards the beautiful young woman; she had saved him twice. The first time was accidental, but the second was clearly intentional.

From the conversations of those people, Shi Yan knew that someone was still hunting them. Out of gratitude, he decided without much hesitation to continue following the path.

He disliked owing favors. He wanted to repay the woman for saving him twice in his own way.