Changes in the Body

"......" A delicate, understated incense drifted gently through the air, and balmy sunlight filtered into the room through the lattice window. After staring blankly at the wooden ceiling for several seconds, Xu Yuan's vacant gaze gradually regained its clarity. Yet as his memories from before falling unconscious surged back into his mind, his eyes instantly narrowed with wariness. Only when his gaze shifted from that familiar ceiling to the elegant, tidy room around him—and landed upon the familiar furnishings within—did that lingering unease in his heart vanish completely. In this entire world, there was probably no safer place than this. For he had returned home—a home where his old man was present. "Phew..." After playing corpse on the soft, warm bed a little longer, Xu Yuan let out a soft exhale, braced himself to slowly sit up, and then chuckled under his breath. It was a bit like a madman's laugh, but surviving an assassination attempt like that naturally warranted some celebration. Though he had no idea how he had survived, let alone what had transpired after he lost consciousness, he rather liked this feeling. Close your eyes, open them, and you went from the chaotic, perilous Huizhou County straight back to this safe, cozy bedroom. Having laughed his fill, Xu Yuan's expression gradually smoothed into composure. He needed to inspect the state of his body. Moreover... What Tianye had said back in that dark space left him somewhat concerned. "'You'll understand what I mean once you wake up'..." Xu Yuan murmured in confusion and prepared to circulate his cultivation technique. But the moment the thought arose, a sensation like a needle driven into his brain violently exploded in his mind. Having endured so much hellish torment, Xu Yuan's current pain tolerance meant that this sting inside his head could not even slow the pace of his thoughts. Yet the piercing agony brought not just pain, but memories. As those memories flooded in, Xu Yuan's recently relaxed brow instantly furrowed, and an involuntary wave of nausea surged from the depths of his chest. Because these memories belonged to him... No, they were his memories of Huizhou County after he had turned into that monster. Having his forehead pierced, his torso nearly severed diagonally at the waist, or his head blown to dust by a beam of light—none of that amounted to much. After all, Xu Yuan had experienced all of those things more or less back when he was an aberrant ghost. What he found intolerable was that among these recollections was the process of devouring the flesh and blood of the entire population of Huizhou County. This memory was etched agonizingly deep. The gurgling sounds as mangled corpses shriveled and caved in amid the black mist, along with the distinct sensation of fullness as their flesh and blood fused into his body, were branded with horrific clarity into his mind. One corpse after another. And among them, there were even living people who had survived by fluke. All of them had been eaten by him. "......" The sunlight pouring through the lattice window suddenly felt glaring. Xu Yuan's breathing grew ragged, and he made an instinctive flick of his sleeve. The array inscribed within the bedroom suite hummed to life. The sunlit window swiftly dimmed until the entire room was plunged into pitch darkness. In this dim obscurity, Xu Yuan inexplicably felt a sliver of peace. He looked down at his palms, his eyes flickering with conflicting emotions. He felt somewhat reluctant to examine his current body. Because he wanted to run away from it. He feared his body might still harbor that instinctive craving for flesh and blood, just as it had in those memories. Ever since his transmigration into this far-from-peaceful supernatural world, taking another person's life had never been a taboo for Xu Yuan. But if he were to eat a human... Xu Yuan rubbed his brow vigorously, suppressing the turbulent emotions in his heart, and let out a bizarre, quiet scoff. What kind of vampire setting was this? An invasion of foreign ghouls, was it? With that thought, Xu Yuan pushed down his unease, circulated his technique, and began inspecting his body. To his astonishment, everything within him had returned to normal. More than that—he had broken through. The Source Qi coursing through his body, along with the abundant satiety that required no food, both told him that he was now a cultivator of the Flesh Integration Realm. He could finally get up off the floor tiles of the Chancellor's Manor and walk on his own two feet. Before the joy could spread through his heart, a strange look flashed in Xu Yuan's eyes. He noticed something peculiar about the Source Qi flowing through his meridians. Source Qi in a cultivator's dantian was always an immaculate white, only shifting in color after being processed by various cultivation techniques. Yet at this moment, the Source Qi within his dantian had turned black. A color as dark as ink. Puzzled, Xu Yuan drew out a wisp of Source Qi from his dantian and manifested it above his palm. This wisp of black Source Qi nearly melded into the dim surrounding room. After a moment of silence, Xu Yuan began circulating the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art. The black Source Qi coursed through the designated meridians, and when it reappeared in his palm, it had turned blood-red as usual. "......" Xu Yuan stared at the ball of crimson light in his hand for a few seconds, clenched his fist to snuff it out, and then circulated the Lotus Sword Art that Ran Qingmo had originally taught him. Soon, a wisp of azure radiance lit up the darkened room. Seeing this light, the bewilderment in Xu Yuan's eyes was plain to see. The black Source Qi inside him seemed to function no differently from the ordinary white Source Qi, changing color according to whichever technique he used. If that was the case, why had it turned black? There had to be something special about it, right? Even so, Xu Yuan chose not to experiment any further. It was simply his nature; taking things as they came made life far easier. If he couldn't figure it out, he wouldn't dwell on it. If there was something unique about it, he was bound to discover it down the line. For now, it was enough to know that this black Source Qi posed no harm to him. With that in mind, Xu Yuan flicked his hand to deactivate the light-shielding formation he had just opened, and gentle sunlight once again flooded the room. He did not get out of bed immediately. Having finished checking his Source Qi, there was still his intent-soul to consider. And the moment Xu Yuan sank his consciousness into his sea of consciousness, he immediately understood what Tianye had meant back in that pitch-black space. The Lock of Shared Life. That woman Tianye had locked her life with his once again! Moreover, the Lock of Shared Life connecting the two of them this time was different from the one in the illusion realm. When Xu Yuan swept his intent-soul across it, he could even vaguely sense the location of Tianye's true body. What was this enchantress playing at? Was the price for rescuing him from that dark space binding their lives together once more? Xu Yuan could not comprehend what Tianye was trying to accomplish. He was merely at the Flesh Integration Realm, while she was the world's most formidable "Tianyan" Saint. By linking the Lock of Shared Life, hadn't Tianye essentially fastened a leash to herself and handed the other end to him? A two-way leash. Unable to make sense of it, Xu Yuan chose to shelve the thought for now. And the Lock of Shared Life was not the only change within his sea of consciousness. Just as Xu Yuan had anticipated, his originally pure and spotless intent-soul within his sea of consciousness had also transformed into a mass as black as ink. A faint smile touched the corner of his lips once more. Xu Yuan practicedly sent his intent-soul outward from his body—and the smile instantly froze on his face. The moment his intent-soul swept through the bedroom, a dense cloud of black mist engulfed the entire room! "......" Xu Yuan fell silent. His throat bobbed as he swallowed a gulp of saliva. Silently, Xu Yuan drew his intent-soul back into his body, and the black mist filling the room vanished without a trace. So the black mist in his memories that had instantly blanketed the entirety of Huizhou County was actually *his* intent-soul! Possessing those memories, Xu Yuan knew just how formidable that mist was. Within the area it covered, cultivators of the same rank would have their senses almost entirely blocked. The reason it had been so easily dispersed in his memories by the mature beauty and Luo Bingli was purely because "he" had been nothing more than a monster acting on instinct, with no concept of controlling it, merely letting the black mist spread outward indiscriminately. As for Feng Jiuxuan... Xu Yuan shuddered instinctively and shook his head. His maternal uncle didn't count; a Saint Tier cultivator was simply bullying people with overwhelming cultivation. Having thoroughly inspected his body, Xu Yuan regained his calm composure, feeling even a touch of excitement. Although he had nearly died, this trip could still be considered a blessing in disguise. His hardware was fully decked out; all he lacked was cultivation. Getting out of bed, he stood tall, took a long stretch, and prepared to step outside to take a look. Judging by the thin blanket on his bed, the season was likely still late summer or early autumn. His unconscious state probably hadn't lasted too long. Unless, of course, he had slept straight through a whole year or more. *Creak—* The room door was pushed open. Before Xu Yuan could even take a deep breath, two gazes fell upon him. The figures of his old man and his uncle materialized in the courtyard before him in the blink of an eye. And very quickly, a third gaze landed on the now-frozen Xu Yuan. Xu Changge had arrived as well. Except he was standing atop the courtyard wall.