Authority
Lin Xu glanced around one last time, then rode the cloud back to Azure Cloud Cave Abode. He casually placed the Mountain Lord Seal on the stone bed and resumed his meditation.
Since sweeping through the territory was no longer feasible, he simply let go and allowed his three generals to handle the situation as they saw fit.
The Dharma Protector Evil Eye split into four: three followed the sweeping team, providing real-time battlefield intelligence, while Qiuqiu stayed behind to return to the cave with Lin Xu.
Watching its master enter the cave, the bored Qiuqiu stared wide-eyed, scanning the area around Azure Cloud Mountain.
As its wisdom grew, it gradually developed emotions it had never experienced before, such as curiosity and contemplation.
It seems the master is killing those hideous monsters for the Source Fire Fragment?
When it recalled the smile on Lin Xu's face when the Source Fire Fragment appeared, a kind of thinking called "association" took over its consciousness.
Qiuqiu's gaze swept over the dozen or so corpses killed by the Red-Robed Ghosts, and scattered Source Fire Fragment rose into the air, converging towards their master.
Even Lin Xu didn't realize that this little Evil Eye Dharma Protector had quietly mastered the art of pupil techniques to a high level, to the point that it could even observe the special energy of Source Fire.
Extending a tentacle and touching its smooth forehead, a thought suddenly popped into Qiuqiu's mind, "Master likes Source Fire. Sending out monsters to kill monsters and seize Source Fire, Qiuqiu kills monsters and seizes Source Fire, Master will be happy!"
The logic was established, and a surge of joy welled up within it, causing it to wave its tentacles and happily twirl around in the sky a few times.
Its large eyes narrowed, locking onto five wandering, decaying corpses at the foot of the mountain.
Soul Shock Blast!
"Boom~"
A powerful Mind Blast spread out, instantly sweeping across the five rotting corpses. The bodies fell silently to the ground, never to rise again.
Five tiny Source Fire Fragment were released and quietly disappeared into the depths of Azure Cloud Cave.
"Chirp chirp~"
Clutching its tentacles, tiny bolts of mental lightning crackled as Qiuqiu waved them in celebration. Once its skills cooled down and its mana was restored, its gaze fell upon another swarm of wandering evil creatures.
It is Ghost Spider, a bizarre monster formed from twisted human bodies, born in the dark wilderness of the Spirit Realm, capable of growing by absorbing fear.
"Boom~"
Another Mind Shock Blast, and just as the Ghost Spider locked onto the source of their gaze, a violent Mind Blast spread out, tearing several of the eerie creatures apart.
Those who survived were quickly eliminated by beams of shock, until all the strange creatures were destroyed.
Along with the Source Fire, a wooden treasure chest also appeared.
Qiuqiu stared blankly at the unexpected reward, remembering the expectant expression on its owner's face when it saw the treasure chest. It slowly flew above the treasure chest, used its telekinetic power to pick it up, and then returned to the entrance of the cave to put it down.
"Chirp chirp~"
Having completed another sweep, it began its search once more.
Experience has shown that sending patrol teams to clear out the mountains and forests is far less effective than targeted aerial clearing.
After Qiuqiu voluntarily joined the sweep, the number of monsters roaming Azure Cloud Mountain decreased rapidly.
"Huh? Why is the Source Fire rising so fast?"
Deep within the quiet room, Lin Xu, who was in seclusion, was slightly surprised. He contacted the three protectors, including Hu Da, to check on them one by one, but found nothing amiss.
It wasn't until they connected with the Dharma Protector Evil Eye and saw it actively attacking the wandering evil creatures that they understood what had happened in the territory.
"You did a great job, Qiuqiu!" Lin Xu happily sensed the Evil Eye's mental fluctuations. Having not paid attention for a while, he hadn't expected this Evil Eye to have developed independent thinking abilities. "Take your companions and obtain more Source Fire for me!"
"Chirp chirp~"
Overjoyed at being praised by its owner, Qiuqiu danced with excitement. Almost without hesitation, it summoned back the other three Evil Eye, learning to compete for favor without any instruction.
From that moment on, four tireless "bombers" appeared in the sky above Azure Cloud Mountain.
Deep within Azure Cloud Cave, the unexpected surprise did not interrupt Lin Xu's meditation. In the extreme tranquility, a certain power was vaguely gathering and sprouting.
Like a newly sprouted seed, slowly growing in the soil, he vaguely sensed this change, almost imperceptible, like an illusion.
"What exactly is that?" Lin Xu frowned slightly as he snapped out of his meditative state.
This inexplicable feeling always disturbed his practice, causing distracting thoughts to arise in his pure meditative state.
After a moment's hesitation, he picked up the Glazed Spirit Lamp, its candlelight flickering slightly, its light three times brighter than usual.
Within the sea of consciousness, the flame of the illusory lamp shone even brighter, like a great sun illuminating the world and brightening the turbulent sea of consciousness.
The darkness at the boundaries of the sea of consciousness is slowly receding; this is progress brought about by cultivation, gradually dispelling the unknown darkness and illuminating consciousness.
Although the flames were brighter, the expansion speed of the soul's boundaries remained unchanged. This was already the optimal solution, with the best effect and the least consumption.
However, as the light shone brightly in my sea of consciousness, my perception became increasingly acute, and the previous vague sensations gradually became clear.
"There really is something there!"
With a thought, Lin Xu entered a state of Thought Overclocking, and time was instantly stretched out. Things that were originally blurry in his perception gradually revealed their details.
"Is this... a concept?" He hesitated, sensing the vague information.
The information he could perceive was extremely chaotic, ranging from large things like mountains, trees, land, and living beings to small things like the direction of the wind and the swaying of leaves, all presented in this vague, chaotic, and fragmented information.
It's like a big stew; you can scoop out anything from it.
At this moment, these chaotic and fragmented pieces of information are slowly converging, then colliding and merging, attempting to merge into a complete thing. However, because they are too fragmented and too chaotic, they have not yet taken shape.
"Authority..."
A word suddenly flashed through Lin Xu's mind, startling him from his meditative state. He turned to look at the bronze seal placed to the side, slightly stunned. "Is it you?"
He picked up the Mountain Lord Seal and played with it for a moment before entering a meditative state once more.
This time the feeling was clearer; this inexplicable conceptual information was continuously converging and then merging into the seal.
Lin Xu opened his eyes and looked at the bronze seal in his hand with a puzzled expression. Before obtaining this seal, he had never experienced such an unusual situation while in a meditative state.
"So, this really is the perfect item for me?"
A strange feeling told him that this power, which was gathering strength, was extremely important to him.
"To leverage conceptual power, perhaps only by using Spirit Gold as a sacrifice to activate Wish Technique."
Lin Xu pondered for a moment, then took out a coin of Incense Fire Heaven Silver from his pocket.
One thousand Incense Fire Dharma Coin is equivalent to one tael of Incense Fire Heaven Silver.
The spirit lamp shone brightly, consciousness merged with heaven and earth, and the phantom of a spirit lamp appeared. With a thought, the Heaven Silver in his hand was offered up, turning into a wisp of green smoke and rising. "Accelerate the condensation of authority!"