Attempt

The night was as dark as ink, and all was silent.

In the independent dormitory assigned to Zero Class students at Eastsea Academy, Situ Xuan sat cross-legged on the hard bed, his aura dense and composed.

The bright moonlight filtered through the window lattice, plating him in a layer of cold silver, yet it could not dispel the trace of baleful energy and obsession gathered between his brows.

The hearty slaughter in the Spirit Ascension Platform during the day, the insights gained on the verge of life and death, and the qualitative change brought about by the initial fusion of baleful energy and soul power burned slowly within him like embers, urging him to explore a deeper level of power integration.

In his mind, the execution methods of two vastly different powers were colliding fiercely, attempting to merge.

The first was the profound technique derived from Fist of the North Star: the Dragon-Turning Breathing Method.

This method was deep and mysterious, focusing on using breath to stir the latent energy within the body, communicating with the essence of heaven and earth, turning death into life, and stimulating potential through extreme pressure. It even contained the subtle realm of perceiving opportunities and grasping the location of the "cause."

Its energy flow was like the dragon veins of the earth—majestic, heavy, and endless, leaning toward "righteousness" and "life."

The second was the demonic technique from The Legend of Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit: the mental cultivation method of the Black Heart Evil Palm.

This technique was tyrannical and ruthless, taking an unorthodox path by using extreme emotions to stir up the fierce, baleful, and malevolent energy of heaven and earth, refining it into the body. When a palm was struck, the baleful energy would surge, corroding bones and souls. Its power was astonishing, but it easily backfired on the mind, leaning toward "balefulness" and "death."

During the battle that day, at the moment of life and death, he had inadvertently drawn the baleful energy of heaven and earth to bolster himself, and it had shown signs of initial fusion with the soul power driven by the Dragon-Turning Breathing Method, which was why he had erupted with combat power far exceeding his usual level.

That realization—where yin and yang, movement and stillness, life and death transformed into one another and achieved each other—allowed him to see the possibility of thoroughly integrating these two seemingly opposing powers.

If he could succeed, his strength would surely undergo a qualitative leap!

"Hoo... ha..."

Situ Xuan adjusted his breathing, attempting to use the rhythm of the Dragon-Turning Breathing Method to guide and tame the fierce baleful energy hidden deep within his limbs, bones, and the very source of his soul.

The pale golden soul power brought by the Dragon-Turning Breathing Method flowed like a gentle stream along specific meridians. Wherever it passed, it nourished the minor internal injuries left by the day's fierce battle, bringing a sense of comfort.

However, when he tried to merge a wisp of the pitch-black baleful energy generated by the Black Heart Evil Palm into this pale golden stream, a sudden change occurred!

"Hum—!"

The previously docile pale golden soul power suddenly became restless, as if it had encountered a natural enemy, accelerating on its own to resist the integration of the baleful energy.

The wisp of pitch-black baleful energy was even more unruly. Like thick ink dropped into clear water, it not only refused to merge but churned violently, emitting a cold, dead, and erosive malice, attempting to pollute and assimilate the pale golden soul power in return.

The two forces clashed fiercely in his meridians, like water and fire that could not coexist!

"Ugh!"

Situ Xuan let out a muffled groan, and fine cold sweat instantly beaded on his forehead. A needle-like stinging pain shot through his meridians, and his chest felt as if his blood were surging. A violent and irritable emotion surged uncontrollably into his heart, and visions of mountains of corpses and seas of blood seemed to flash before his eyes.

He forcibly suppressed the discomfort, concentrated his mind, and attempted to reconcile them with an even stronger willpower.

The Dragon-Turning Breathing Method was pushed to the limit, attempting to use the concept of "turning death into life" to encompass and transform the baleful energy.

The pale golden soul light slightly suppressed the restlessness of the baleful energy, but the two remained clearly distinct, like oil and water. They appeared calm, but in reality, they could not truly merge into one.

Every time they approached the critical point of fusion, an invisible barrier would appear. Either the "life" concept of the Dragon-Turning Breathing Method instinctively rejected the "death" of the baleful energy, or the malevolence of the Black Heart Evil Palm stubbornly maintained its own purity and destructiveness.

"Still not working..."

After several failed attempts, Situ Xuan slowly opened his eyes, a trace of fatigue and imperceptible irritability flashing in his deep pupils. He opened his palm, looking at the skin that had turned slightly red and even showed faint traces of blood due to the clash of powers.

Under the moonlight, his complexion appeared somewhat pale.

He recalled the mysterious "pre-emptive" state during the day's battle—that realm of perceiving everything in his heart and grasping the location of the "cause."

Perhaps the problem did not lie in the powers themselves, but in the "heart" and "intent" that wielded them?

At that time, his mind was free of distracting thoughts, filled only with the will to fight and the instinct to survive. In that state of extreme purity, the baleful energy and soul power had instead found a subtle balance, allowing them to coexist briefly and even complement each other.

But now, he was deliberately pursuing fusion, and with "obsession" in his heart, he had instead fallen into a lower state, unable to reproduce that natural, seamless condition.

"The conflict of mental methods—the root may lie in the heart."

Situ Xuan had a sudden realization. The Dragon-Turning Breathing Method required a clear mind and a will like steel; while the Black Heart Evil Palm required a heart filled with malevolence and an aura of baleful intent that pierced the heavens.

How could two completely different states of mind be reconciled at will...

Situ Xuan temporarily suppressed the thought of forced fusion, calmed his mind, and turned his focus to the operation of the Black Heart Evil Palm.

The moment he activated it, unlike the sluggish struggle of his previous attempts, a sense of overwhelming smoothness welled up.

The baleful energy and bloodlust remaining from the day's slaughter, and even the ferocity and fighting spirit stirred deep within his heart, all became the best fuel for this demonic technique.

"Hum—"

The air around him distorted slightly. Wisps of black air, invisible to the naked eye, gathered from the void, carrying a cold and dead aura, and drilled into his body through his pores.

Within his meridians, the soul power that had been somewhat withered by the conflict was now like a violent catalyst, rapidly transforming into pitch-black, highly erosive baleful energy, roaring and surging with a low whistle.

Wherever this baleful energy passed, it did not bring the previous needle-like stinging pain, but rather a sense of unbridled satisfaction.

The minor internal injuries left over from the day's battle were forcibly crushed and covered by this destructive energy, "smoothed out" in a tyrannical way. However, this smoothing carried a sense of near-destruction; if Situ Xuan's physical body had not been tempered multiple times by the Dragon-Turning Breathing Method and soul power, he would likely have been the first to be injured.

His soul power level was rising at a clearly perceptible speed during this smooth operation.

Having been heavily depleted by the great battle, it was not only rapidly replenished but was also faintly launching an assault on the bottleneck of the seventeenth level.

However, accompanying the increase in power was the constant growth of violent, murderous, and destructive impulses deep within his heart.

Before his eyes, the scene of the mountain of corpses and sea of blood in the Spirit Ascension Platform flashed again—the blood mist from the exploding Bloodthirsty Demon Rat, the twisted face of the wailing Earth-Shaking Giant Ape, and the cold vertical pupils of the Seven-Colored Poisonous Miasma Python...