After a sealing symbol appeared on his green heart aperture, Chen Lin stopped refining his other apertures.
Although he had used only a tiny amount of spirit liquid, he wanted to observe things first and make certain nothing was wrong before proceeding. This was his heart, after all; he could not afford the slightest carelessness.
Then.
Chen Lin set Blind Girl down.
Using the Zodiac Secret Art to transmit his voice, he asked, "This spirit liquid benefits you too, doesn't it? Then don't delay. Absorb it as quickly as you can and try to recover soon."
"Master, I really didn't deceive you. I brought you here to help you advance, not for my own sake."
Blind Girl immediately explained herself.
"Heh."
Chen Lin chuckled.
"Why bother saying such things between us? The situation is turbulent, and the Ascension Trial is about to begin. Improving our strength is essential. Your becoming stronger helps me too."
"Then I'll help myself."
Blind Girl swayed, extended her roots into the puddle, and began absorbing and refining the spirit liquid.
Chen Lin observed his heart.
Last time, his purple heart aperture had taken a full thirty years to break through the symbol's seal. He could not possibly wait here that long, especially when those monkeys might come looking for him at any moment.
He needed to find a way to speed up the process.
"How did you get here?"
After studying it for a long time without finding a way to accelerate things, Chen Lin began talking with Blind Girl.
Nourished by the spirit liquid, Blind Girl had visibly grown more energetic.
She explained, "I've recovered some of my memories and learned that I come from a special race in the Heart Realm. This plane is also part of the Heart Realm."
"Over a hundred