Tightening Bands Lock Down the Heart Ape's Thoughts

"... My physical cultivation is at the Soul Tempering Peak, not yet at the Third Realm of cultivators. Even with the Blood-Qi Jade Pendant and the Incense Faith and spiritual energy, I can only unleash my power temporarily. The enemy has a large number of people and is powerful. Even if I exhaust my spiritual energy, it will be useless. But things have come to this, so there's no need to think about a peaceful resolution. I should lie low for now. Underground, I can be concealed by Divine Path aura. If I return to the surface, I will probably be discovered very quickly. The most urgent task is to get my Divine Soul back as soon as possible!"

With a sudden thought, Qiu Yan's Divine Soul trembled, and the nine Divine Sense he released became more and more condensed. More and more distracting thoughts were drawn in, sorted out clearly, and joined the ranks under Qiu Yan's control.

Outside, the giant ape's aura had completely subsided, leaving only the oppressive feeling brought by its massive body. The crack that started from its forehead had dimmed considerably, seemingly showing signs of disappearing.

The Yin Side of the Scholar Forest Ancient Ruins City.

Previously, the entire city had been shaking and making continuous noises because of the giant ape and the white horse, but now, all of this has subsided.

The enormous white horse lay prostrate on the ground, its neck bound by several chains that dug into its flesh, shimmering with starlight.

The white horse exuded an aura of unrestrained freedom and unfettered galloping, as if it could ride as it pleased. However, as the chains tightened, this free and unrestrained spirit grew weaker and weaker, on the verge of disappearing completely.

The source of the chains was Bai Zhaoyuan, who stood upright on the horse's head.

At this moment, Bai Zhaoyuan's thoughts transformed into chains, and he was about to tame the white horse. However, on the other hand, his mind and attention were not entirely focused on the giant horse. He also diverted some of his attention to observe the giant ape standing still, and to calculate and analyze in his mind.

"The control over Heart Ape has likely fallen into Qiu Yan's hands, and it's only a matter of time before he completely subdues it. Even if I manage to tame my Mind Horse faster and then intervene in the Heart Ape, I might not be able to defeat him; on the contrary, it could unleash his ferocity..."

Bai Zhaoyuan mentally compared the two options, weighing their pros and cons.

Just then, the giant ape that had been standing still suddenly jolted, sprang several feet up from the ground, and then landed back down.

Boom!

This fall affected a large portion of Ancient Ruins City.

Centered on the spot where the giant ape landed, a ring of waves rapidly spread across the ground!

The solid stone floor undulates like the surface of water!

"Hmm?" Upon seeing this, Bai Zhaoyuan's eyes flickered slightly, but it did not affect his mind. He waved his hand, grasped the chain formed from his will, and pulled hard, as if pulling on reins. The white horse immediately trembled and stood up from the ground. With this pull, it leaped into the air, dodging the ground tremors.

This giant horse has been subtly taken under Bai Zhaoyuan's control; all that remains is to completely eliminate any lingering thoughts within it.

"If I were to ride the Mind Horse and fight the Heart Ape, I wonder what my chances of winning would be?" Bai Zhaoyuan narrowed his eyes, looking at the giant ape trembling not far away. "However, in terms of ferocity, the Mind Horse is far inferior to the Heart Ape. The two have their own strengths and weaknesses. Even if they were to fight, it would be difficult to determine a winner in a short time."

He was thinking, but his train of thought was interrupted by a roar from the giant ape, and then his thoughts surged forth like a gust of wind.

"What exactly is Qiu Yan planning? Based on the previous situation, if he had just proceeded steadily, he could have completely subdued the Heart Ape in a few days. Why would he make such a fuss?"

Bai Zhaoyuan was naturally puzzled. He knew very well that Qiu Yan and the Heart Ape were fighting for dominance over distracting thoughts. The battle was internal, unrelated to the outside, but the danger was even greater than a physical fight. Of course, there was no need for the giant ape to drive its body. But suddenly, the giant ape made such a move, which was clearly not driven by instinct. There could only be one explanation.

"It was Qiu Yan who released his own thoughts!"

After thinking for a moment, Bai Zhaoyuan raised his hand and pointed. His fingertip landed on the white horse, and the huge white horse suddenly shrank rapidly like a deflated balloon, even leaving a shadow in mid-air as it went from large to small!

In the blink of an eye, a colossal creature that was over thirty feet tall was reduced to the size of an ordinary horse. Bai Zhaoyuan rode on it, gazing at the giant ape. He stretched out two fingers and wiped them over his eyes, his pupils shooting out a sharp light, pointing directly at the giant ape.

A moment later, he closed his eyes to withdraw the light, and when he opened them again, he shook his head. "This Qiu Yan actually intends to finish this quickly. This move is rather risky. Could it be because I was spying on him from the sidelines?"

With that thought, he pulled on the reins, turned his horse around, and headed towards the center of the city.

"Very well, gains and losses are the natural course of Human Path, so let's just let it go..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the horse's hooves kicked up, and with a clattering sound, the man and the horse rode away, disappearing into the distant streets.

As Bai Zhaoyuan departed, numerous houses within a hundred feet of the giant ape collapsed with a deafening roar. Amidst the flying debris, strands of will originating from Qiu Yan rapidly spread out. Under his control, the houses and debris shed their external forms and transformed into pure intention!

These thoughts contain various changes, much like the human heart, being drawn together, colliding and rubbing against each other, quickly turning into balls of fire!

In an instant, flames rose and heat waves rolled, causing a sense of unease to arise in a mind that had been observing the scene.

"Hmm? Why is this boy acting like this? He's a bit too hasty. However, he has managed to perceive the structure of this city in such a short time and even make use of it. He does have some skill. No wonder..." This thought was filled with an ancient aura, originating from the depths of the city.

However, before this thought could even finish, the fireballs suddenly began to rotate and converge towards the enormous giant ape!

Swish! Swish! Swish!

In an instant, flames erupted from Eight Directions, and fireballs crashed into the giant ape, exploding and engulfing its entire body!

A raging ring of fire spread outwards, sweeping across the surroundings!

The explosive intent within the flames impacted the giant ape, causing it to stagger and then roar to the sky. The Heart Ape's instincts, which were originally vying with Qiu Yan for control of distracting thoughts, were diverted by this impact, resulting in a diversion of some of its energy.

In that instant, Qiu Yan's nine Divine Sense exploded simultaneously!

The intent contained within his Divine Sense surged forth like a tsunami, instantly spreading throughout the giant ape's entire body! It took firm root! A thought was transmitted...

"What a pity! I had hoped to use this stalemate to further explore the mysteries of the ancient city, but my physical body is in danger, forcing me to interrupt my comprehension and focus solely on suppressing you!"

At that moment, the giant ape realized the danger and knew it was a matter of life and death. It endured the burning flames, let out a howl, and its will surged throughout its body. Strands of instinct were drawn out and condensed within its body, manifesting as a ferocious ape!

Then, the ape bared its teeth and claws, hissing as it charged towards Qiu Yan's soul! In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of him!

Qiu Yan looked up and immediately saw through the ape's disguise!

"The Heart Ape's true nature has actually materialized into a physical form. However, this materialization means it has completely relinquished control over its distracting thoughts. Even if it defeats me, it will take a long time to re-integrate. This ape has no mind, only instinct. However, it can distinguish between what is important and what is not, knowing that if it loses in this struggle, there will be no other way. So this is tantamount to burning its boats!"

In the blink of an eye, the ape hissed, bared its teeth, and waved its arms, its fingernails sharp and filled with an unruly and rebellious intent, as if it wanted to destroy everything in front of it and was about to pierce Qiu Yan's soul!

"Very well, since that's the case, I, Qiu, will now share with you some lessons I've learned from you and from the city these past few days!"

Although he said he was "speaking," before he could finish speaking, Qiu Yan's hand reached out. His thoughts flowed through his soul, depicting all aspects of life, and finally turned into silent words that fell into the ape's ears. The ape was immediately stunned, and its outstretched claw stopped.

But Qiu Yan did not stop. Several Heart Demon Fragment flew out from the Soul Aperture, landed in his hand, and rapidly changed before he slapped them onto the ape's forehead.

"The heart has two paths, good and evil are naturally distinguished; the heart has a sequence, but the body is one! Heart Ape, oh Heart Ape, you were born of heaven, earth, and man, truly a blessing from creation. In the past, you were ignorant and thus roamed freely, unrestrained, like a person's childhood. But beautiful dreams are short-lived; who can live in the past forever? So come with me on this journey..."

As the words were spoken, Heart Demon Fragment coalesced into a headband, which became stuck on the ape's head.

Suddenly, time seemed to freeze at that moment.

The ape shuddered, as if waking from a deep dream. Then it glanced at Qiu Yan before its entire body disintegrated, breaking into countless tiny fragments that scattered throughout its body.

The next moment, Qiu Yan's nine shattered Divine Sense re-condensed, connecting his consciousness with the giant ape, making them indistinguishable.

Soon, the Unseen intuition arose from the depths of my heart...

Outside, the giant ape stood tall, its body engulfed in flames, its thoughts dancing within the fire.

Suddenly, it opened its mouth and inhaled sharply, the air swirling into a vortex. Its gaping maw, like an abyss, pulled the flames on its body away like a weary bird returning to its forest, only to be swallowed whole.

Then, the giant ape swallowed, actually ingesting the flames.

Boom!

A few breaths later, the giant ape's chest and abdomen swelled and contracted, and it exhaled a few wisps of smoke from its mouth. Then it looked up, and the madness and savagery in its huge eyes were rapidly dissipating, replaced by clarity and calmness.

At the edge of the horizon, high above the ancient city, which was originally shrouded in clouds and mist, Daoist Sect could be vaguely seen, and a sense of mystery emanated from it.

"No wonder Bai Zhaoyuan wanted to subdue the Mind Monkey. Without subduing the Mind Monkey at that exit, it would be impossible to escape. Now that I have subdued the Mind Monkey, it's time to leave. With the Mind Monkey's help, I should be able to fight against the Void Control Dao. But before that..."

As he pondered, Qiu Yan, now in control of the ape's body, manifested his Divine Soul atop the giant ape's head, picked up the small piece of Sage Paper, and looked down to see four characters on it.

Heading into the city.

"You want me to go to the center of the city?" Qiu Yan withdrew his gaze, then shook his head, took a deep breath, and said loudly, "If you are willing to talk to me, don't be mysterious. Just explain things clearly. If I don't see anyone or hear anything after the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, I will leave."

After saying this, he actually sat down cross-legged on the ape's head.

P. S.: Thanks to "Kambos" for the donation and the vote to urge for more updates!