Chapter 156: Re-entering Wild Boar Mountain

Duan Rong handed the date-red horse to the old man, paid a piece of broken silver, and entered Wild Boar Mountain that very night.

Although the bright moon was in the sky, the ancient trees were dark and secluded, their lush branches and leaves forming a canopy that blocked the moonlight.

In the old forest, it remained pitch black; the few wisps of moonlight that occasionally filtered through the gaps in the leaves only revealed small, shadowy, indistinct silhouettes...

Duan Rong did not leap through the dark forest beneath the trees. After all, it was the dead of night, the light in the forest was too dim, and visibility was poor. He was not afraid of wild beasts, but snakes, insects, and scorpions were still somewhat annoying...

Duan Rong executed his Proficiency-level Cloud Snake Step, leaping back and forth between the branches of a century-old camphor tree. In less than two breaths, he stood on a branch at the treetop. The night breeze blew, causing the branch to sway. Duan Rong stepped on the branch, controlling his balance, and adjusted his posture gently in rhythm with the swaying...

Once he stood on the treetop, his field of vision immediately opened up...

Duan Rong gazed into the distance. The moonlight was like water, spilling over the sea of trees. With the rustling sound of the night breeze, the forest sea rose and fell like waves, the moonlight shimmering. The bright moon on the distant mountaintop seemed to rise from between the mountains and the sea...

Facing such an ultimate, wondrous sight, Duan Rong's heart could not help but tremble. "Heaven and Earth possess great beauty yet remain silent! The bright moon born of mountains and seas—what a magnificent sea of moonlit forest!"

Even with such beautiful scenery before him, Duan Rong had no time to properly enjoy it or linger, for he had already set himself the goal of devouring Tree Spirits.

Before the assessment date for Intern Escorts to become full Escorts, he had to return to the Escort Agency, and he had to refill the Tree Spirit Light Sea area within his Lingming Sea of Consciousness with Tree Spirits.

In other words, he had to devour seventy-nine Tree Spirits within three days.

One must know that the last time he was in this Wild Boar Mountain, it had taken him a full six days to devour eighty-one Tree Spirits.

However, Duan Rong had estimated that last time he could only devour First Tier Tree Spirits, and it was difficult to distinguish between First Tier and Second Tier Tree Spirit ancient trees just by their appearance. This resulted in him spending time using the Spirit Reader, only to have to let nearly half of the Tree Spirits go, unable to devour them.

But this time, his Mental Power had increased by one level.

He could devour both First Tier and Second Tier Tree Spirits, and combined with his previous experience, Duan Rong felt that devouring eighty-one Tree Spirits in three days should be achievable!

Duan Rong stood on the branch, placed his hand on the treetop, and silently recited: "Read Spirit Artifact!"

Artifact: Ancient Camphor Tree (123 years)

Spirit Artifact Tier: Second Tier

Devouring Requirement: Host Mental Power Level 2 (Met)

Devouring Effect: Primary Level Intelligence (can slightly increase Host Mental Power)

Duan Rong glanced at the set of data floating before his eyes and whispered: "Devour!"

As the word "devour" left Duan Rong's lips, the data panel before his eyes flickered and then vanished.

Duan Rong pushed off with his feet, and his figure shot out...

Duan Rong's figure was like a black dot, flickering and floating amidst the moonlit waves above the forest sea, shuttling back and forth like a boat...

On the evening of the third day, at the bustling East City Gate as dusk gathered, a person covered in dust rode a horse into the city.

It was Duan Rong, who had returned from Wild Boar Mountain after devouring seventy-nine Tree Spirits.

Duan Rong's body and face were covered in a layer of dust, his lips were dry and cracked, and his face was filled with exhaustion.

Duan Rong first rode to the carriage firm to return the horse, then went to a beef soup shop by the street, drank two large bowls of beef soup in a row, and ate three full large flatbreads with chili oil.

Duan Rong let out a burp, feeling that more than half of his exhaustion had faded. He wiped his greasy mouth, stood up, and walked toward the Yuanshun Escort Agency with very slow steps.

It was not that he did not want to walk faster, but he was so full that he simply could not walk quickly.

By the time Duan Rong walked back to the Yuanshun Escort Agency, the night was already like water and the lanterns had been lit. He returned to his Liu Lu courtyard, stripped off his clothes, and stood beside the large water vat at the kitchen entrance.

Duan Rong used clean water and soap to wash himself thoroughly inside and out, then walked into the hall, dripping wet and naked. Duan Rong found a towel, dried his body, and then lay on the bed in the Inner Room for a while to rest.

However, after the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Duan Rong struggled to sit up from the bed. Although he had barely rested in the old forest of Wild Boar Mountain over these three days and was exhausted, wanting nothing more than a good sleep, he wanted even more to quickly achieve the second level of the Womb Treasury Sutra.

Once the second level of the Womb Treasury Sutra was achieved, it would not just be an increase in Mental Power, but would also possess other miraculous qualities.

Otherwise, how could one even speak of the "Soul" in this Soul Technique?

Duan Rong, still naked, carried a wooden basin to the large water vat in the courtyard. The night was pitch black and willow branches swayed. Duan Rong drew a basin of clean water and returned to the Inner Room bedroom.

Duan Rong placed the basin of clean water in the corner of the room, took out the green Porcelain Bottle containing the Dragon Flame Fat, and poured all the remaining Dragon Flame Fat into the water.

Duan Rong also knew that when he entered the Lingming Sea of Consciousness, because the concentration of Dragon Flame Fat in the water he used to coat his body was too high, it would cause intense pain during application, and when he sat in meditation to form seals, his whole body would endure an unbearable, strange itch. However, because his method of practicing the Womb Treasury Sutra involved the intervention of the Tree Spirit Light Sea, his speed far exceeded that of ordinary people, so his consumption rate of Dragon Flame Fat was equally fast. Last time he practiced the Womb Treasury Sutra, he had to exit his Sea of Consciousness halfway to replenish the Dragon Flame Fat, and he did not want the same thing to happen this time.

That would affect his efficiency too much.

Duan Rong took four Mountain and Water Paintings from the cabinet beside the bed, used the Candle Lamp to reveal the hidden images of the Four Great Wisdom Kings, and then posted them in the four directions he had prepared.

Afterward, Duan Rong walked to the corner of the wall. The gelatinous Dragon Flame Fat had completely dissolved in the water; the water in the basin was red to the point of purple, even slightly turning a purplish-black.

Duan Rong knew this was caused by the excessively high concentration of Dragon Flame Fat. He squatted by the basin and began to apply it to his body...

A burning pain like fire spread from where he applied it...

Duan Rong poured the last bit of liquid from the bottom of the basin onto the back of his neck... A skin-peeling pain spread across his entire body...

He quickly flashed to the meditation cushion in the center of the four directions, sat cross-legged, recited the incantation, and formed the seals...

As Duan Rong recited the incantation and formed the seals, his whole body suddenly felt as if it were being bitten by a swarm of ants; the itch was unbearable. Duan Rong gritted his teeth, a muscle on his right cheek twitching uncontrollably. He endured it forcibly, sitting there without moving a muscle.

After wave upon wave of something rushing toward the back of his head, the itching sensation in his pores began to fade bit by bit...

As the itching subsided, Duan Rong was finally able to concentrate his Mental Power to focus on the flickering point during his breathing transition in his visualization.

During his second attempt, Duan Rong hit the mark. After a moment of mental trance, he arrived once again at the Lingming Sea of Consciousness.

The earth and sky within the Lingming Sea of Consciousness were just as they had been three days ago when he exited. Even so, as Duan Rong looked up at the sky, beneath the shroud of thin, rolling mist, the Star Body emitting a milky-white fluorescent light and the eerie crimson Blood Cocoon beside it still made his heart tremble slightly.

When he achieved and practiced the first level of the Womb Treasury Sutra, the Star Body emitting the milky-white fluorescent light gave him a sense of holiness, especially since he had a faint spiritual connection with that Star Body; he could feel the tranquility and peace of that milky-white star.

But for this second level of the Womb Treasury Sutra, from the moment the Blood Cocoon took shape, a sense of demonic restlessness rose in his heart as he looked at it...

However, Duan Rong also understood that the many miraculous aspects of the Womb Treasury Sutra were not something he could comprehend at his current stage, and it was best not to speculate wildly; he should just practice according to the technique...

Since the Womb Treasury Sutra was the supreme treasure of the Taiyi Sect, the technique had been verified by generations of ancestors...

As long as he practiced according to the method, there would be no problems.

And from the moment Duan Rong entered the Lingming Sea of Consciousness, the thin mist rolling between heaven and earth slowly turned from pale red to deep red. Soon, the crimson demonic mist filled the space between heaven and earth...

That rolling mist was filled with red threads formed by the incredibly dense Dragon Flame Fat.

Duan Rong's gaze shifted, and he headed toward the Tree Spirit Light Sea in the southeast of the land...

(End of Chapter)