Chapter 422

In the bizarre world, a scene even more bizarre than the place itself was taking place.

In that infinite mist, the brain tree that had originally carried greed and malice and wanted to swallow Xu Qing's memory, at the moment Xu Qing spread out the memory of Ding-Ding Yisaner and allowed the other party to eat it...

The brain couldn't help but tremble.

It saw an existence that it shouldn't have seen. There was no suppression by the power of the Criminal Prison Department here; perhaps this was also the reason why it couldn't forget after seeing it.

And it, which existed specifically by swallowing memories, was very special. All of this made the brain tree suffer immense pain, and in the end, it even let out a scream.

Other brain trees around seemed to rarely encounter similar things, or hadn't experienced it for a long time. At this moment, they actually emitted curious emotional fluctuations one by one.

"What's wrong, what's wrong?"

"Is it that delicious?"

"I want to try it too."

These words made Xu Qing immediately understand that these brains in the Grand Void Realm were still somewhat simple to a certain extent.

And amidst the curiosity of these brain trees, the brain screaming in front of Xu Qing now had its screams become shrill.

Its body, whether it was the brain or cerebellum, was wriggling violently, and the brainstem was twitching, even exuding intense struggle, wanting to retreat.

But Xu Qing's right hand grabbed it fiercely, gripping it tightly, his fingers sinking deep into it, making it unable to break free. Subsequently, he spoke calmly.

"Is it delicious?"

"I..." The brain tree's scream became more and more astonishing, spreading in all directions. The next instant, with a bang, it collapsed and exploded directly, shattering into countless pieces and splashing mucus everywhere.

Body and spirit destroyed.

Its death caused the surroundings to fall into silence instantly. Even if the other brain heads were simple, they all reacted now, retreating one by one, and there were even screams.

"Why did it explode!"

"What kind of memory did it eat!"

"What did you feed it!"

Xu Qing shook the mucus off his hands with an expressionless face, lost in thought.

This was a method he thought of on the spot, and it could also serve as a probe and test for Ding-Ding Yisaner.

In fact, Xu Qing was not as ignorant of Ding-Ding Yisaner as he appeared on the surface.

Although he didn't know the specifics, the reduction of the bamboo slips, the words of the head prisoner, and various details had long allowed him to analyze part of the answer.

Ding-Ding Yisaner contains horror; I must have awakened many times, but I can never remember it, Xu Qing murmured in his heart.

"It must be related to a god."

"Perhaps that is an existence where everyone who sees and remembers it will fall into a curse and die?"

"So the Criminal Prison Department's suppression of it is likely to make everyone who sees it forget, using forgetting to sever the cause and effect?"

"Is this the reason why I can't remember that memory?"

Xu Qing pondered. He vaguely remembered the previous jailer telling him that when you think you know the answer, there is actually more waiting for you.

"Then, before each of my forgettings, is the answer I got like this? Or are there deeper secrets that I don't know? And how much of my answer is correct?"

Xu Qing pondered, his gaze falling on other brain trees.

He found this bizarre Grand Void Realm very interesting. Not only could it allow him to obtain the Transformation Demon Art, but it could also be used as a probe for Ding-Ding Yisaner.

Xu Qing prepared to try again, so he took a step forward and appeared directly in front of a brain tree. The other party's body trembled and was about to dodge, but Xu Qing raised his right hand.

"It's very delicious, come and eat."

That brain seemed to be struggling, but the longing for memory still made it approach cautiously, touching Xu Qing's palm, while other brain trees also observed one after another.

But the next instant, the brain tree that touched Xu Qing trembled violently, emitting a shrill scream. As all the folds twisted intensely and were about to explode, Xu Qing spoke rapidly.

"What did you see!"

"I saw..."

With a bang, before it could finish speaking, this brain tree shattered and collapsed.

Xu Qing's expression was ugly as he turned to look at the next brain tree.

All the brains around retreated instantly, one by one exuding clear fluctuations of terror, fleeing madly.

Xu Qing was a bit unwilling, so he chased after one, caught up with it quickly, touched it amidst the other party's screams, and spoke softly.

"Come, it's very delicious."

Time passed like this. Three days later, when the trial time limit of the Grand Void Transformation Demon Sect arrived, the big fish waiting in front of the statue took a hard breath, and Xu Qing's figure instantly appeared inside the big fish.

As the big fish's body swayed and turned to return, Xu Qing, who was inside it, looked back at the statue, regret and even some lingering attachment in his eyes.

"It's a pity that I didn't fully probe the answer, only exploring a part of it. If you gave me some more time..."

Xu Qing murmured in his heart; he felt that this place would become the place of opportunity for him to unravel Ding-Ding Yisaner.

"It's just that the military merit required for each visit is too much."

Xu Qing shook his head, then raised his hand, and a rune similar in appearance to a brain tree floated on his palm.

This is the contract with the Grand Void Realm.

Every trial-taker who comes here, after successfully making a brain tree satisfied with the memory it swallowed, will be given such a rune as a contract, allowing them to unfold demon transformation afterward.

And the consumption of demon transformation, besides being borne by the cultivator themselves, will also be partially shared by the Grand Void Realm.

The specific ratio is different for everyone, depending on the contract signed with those brain trees in the Grand Void Realm.

Xu Qing suppressed the regret in his heart and waved his hand again, and a second, third, fourth... appeared in his palm.

In the end, a total of thirty-two runes floated before him.

Each one is a contract that allows him to manifest the shadow transported from his sea of consciousness. As for the other party bearing most of the consumption, Xu Qing paid very little here.

Xu Qing understood the reason why this was the case.

This was the recognition of goodwill from those brain trees in the Grand Void Realm toward him.

The large number was also because the weight of this recognition was very heavy.

Xu Qing felt moved in his heart, flicked his sleeve, put away the thirty-two runes, and then closed his eyes to meditate.

Time passed. Unknowingly, his body shook again. As the feeling of teleportation emerged, his figure disappeared inside the big fish and returned to the comprehension compartment of the Grand Void Transformation Demon branch sect in the Capital.

As the teleportation ended, Xu Qing opened his eyes, recalled the experience of these three days, finally took a deep breath, stood up, and walked out of the compartment.

He prepared to return to the cultivation room of the Sword Pavilion to try whether the Transformation Demon Art could manifest the Ghost Emperor as he thought.

With this thought, Xu Qing flew out of the Grand Void Transformation Demon branch sect, headed straight for the ground, and after arriving at the Sword Pavilion, he stepped in immediately and then opened the array protection around it.

After doing all this, inside the cultivation room, Xu Qing checked the surroundings.

The cultivation room of the Sword Pavilion is a space in itself, and the area is very large.

Confirming that it could barely accommodate the Ghost Emperor shadow, Xu Qing's eyes revealed anticipation. He took out a contract rune of a brain tree and slowly merged it into the Ghost Emperor Mountain in his sea of consciousness.

As it approached, this rune shone with brilliant light.

The light grew larger and larger, finally turning into a sea of light, shrouding the Ghost Emperor Mountain within it.

At the same time, outside Xu Qing's body, a blurry mountain peak appeared on him, gradually replacing his figure.

Although it was much smaller than the real Ghost Emperor Mountain, it was still shocking. And looking closely, one could see that this mountain was a humanoid figure sitting cross-legged!

Although the whole was still translucent and in a state of blur, it could not hide the monstrous ferocity. Vaguely, one could see that this humanoid figure was wearing pitch-black armor, holding a giant blade, and carrying two worlds on his shoulders.

It looked like the spirit of an evil god, sitting cross-legged.

Every inch of armor on his body contained the power to destroy all directions, and the giant blade seemed to be able to cut through the world.

Astonishing fluctuations were emitted from his body, carrying brutality, madness, and even more anger toward heaven and earth. The momentum was earth-shattering, and the aura swallowed the ages.

Vaguely, there was also a stick that manifested along with it on the figure's knees, exuding terrifying pressure.

This figure was precisely the Ghost Emperor!

As for the appearance, it was eighty percent similar to Xu Qing!

It was just that its full appearance was only ten percent manifested at the moment, not substantial, and the Sword Pavilion was already unable to bear it at this moment, emitting a roar as if it were about to shatter.

Until the next instant, with the echo of a cracking sound, the contract rune in Xu Qing's sea of consciousness collapsed and shattered.

The sea of light dissipated, and the Ghost Emperor phantom outside Xu Qing's body also dissipated instantly; everything ceased to exist.

Xu Qing's body shook, he opened his eyes and spat out a large mouthful of blood, but his eyes revealed a strong light of excitement.

"It's possible!"

Xu Qing's breathing was rapid. He had longed for the manifestation of the Ghost Emperor Mountain for a long time, but he had never been able to do it, until the moment just now when he finally felt the hope of success.

Although it eventually failed, it was because that contract rune had reached its limit.

"Ten runes should be able to complete one manifestation!" Xu Qing was moved, took a deep breath, and suppressed the thought of continuing to try.

He only had thirty-one contract runes left now. Xu Qing felt a bit of heartache if he wasted them for the sake of trying.

"It can serve as my trump card. Roughly calculating, I should be able to use the Ghost Emperor body three times."

Xu Qing's eyes revealed sharp light, and he also pondered in his heart about continuing to accumulate military merit, striving to have enough military merit to go to the Grand Void Realm again after using it three times.

And just as he was calculating this matter, his sound-transmission jade slip vibrated, and the Captain's listless and confused voice came from within.

"Little Junior Brother..."

Xu Qing was stunned and took out the sound-transmission jade slip.

"What happened again?"

"Little Junior Brother, you tell me, why? For what reason?" Inside the jade slip, the Captain's voice carried bitterness and even deeper confusion.

"The answer to that fool Wu Jianwu's Heart-Questioning was all given by me. I sold the materials I bought back then to him at a high price. I watched him memorize them all. I was even worried he would forget, so I tested him several times. I even watched him walk toward the Heart-Questioning, and in the end, I watched him... shine for a full five thousand zhang!"

"Five thousand zhang!

"

"The same answer, the same materials, why did I get one zhang? I originally intended to let him get one zhang too, so I would have a companion..."

Xu Qing was silent, and after a long while, he offered a word of comfort.

"One zhang also has the goodness of one zhang; at least it's unique."

There was silence in the jade slip, and after a long while, the Captain's disheartened voice came.

"Little Junior Brother, you really don't know how to comfort people."

"Do you think that Wu Jianwu will substitute himself as the Profound Ghost Ancient Emperor again during the Heart-Questioning and then recite poetry in front of the Great Emperor?"

"No, I have to go ask!"

Xu Qing held the jade slip, feeling very sympathetic to the Captain's experience. Considering the friendship between fellow disciples, Xu Qing mourned for a few breaths...

Then he quickly put away the jade slip, got up and went out, and began to take missions to earn military merit.

Time passed. Whether the Captain finally asked for the answer, Xu Qing was not very clear. His main energy during these days was placed on military merit.

There were a great many missions of various patrols, searches, captures, and assistance.

In this, Shan Hezi, Wang Chen, and Ye Ling helped a lot. They belonged to different departments, and every time there was a mission, no matter the size, they would call everyone together.

Occasionally, Kong Xianglong would also run over, and everyone would go to complete the mission together. In this way, although the military merit was shared, the speed of completion was incredibly astonishing.

Especially after Zixuan heard that Xu Qing was longing for military merit, she directly issued an order as the manager of the Eight Sect Alliance branch sect. Thus, the Sword Holders who had come out of the Eight Sect Alliance over the years also helped.

After all, Xu Qing's position was the Palace Master's accompanying secretary. This identity and the ten-thousand-zhang radiance made many people willing to make friends.

Not to mention that everyone came from the same alliance.

Before, it was because Xu Qing was too low-key and rarely contacted people, so everyone didn't have this opportunity.

Now, with Zixuan's order, everyone was willing in their hearts. Very few people would reject a matter of kindness that was just a matter of lifting a finger.

Thus, in the end, Xu Qing could complete six or seven missions almost every night.

Military merit naturally began to grow. Even if the amount was not high, watching the military merit numbers continuously increase, a sense of satisfaction would still rise in his heart.

Such crazy mission-taking also caused Xu Qing's fame in the Capital to spread even further.

And at the Criminal Prison Department, Xu Qing would also go over during the day. Everything was as usual, and the little boy did not have any more problems.

Until this day, half a month later, Xu Qing, who had just walked out of Ding-Ding Yisaner, was about to continue to take missions, but before he could leave the Criminal Prison Department, his Sword Holder command sword received an order from the Sword Holding Palace.

"Xu Qing, come to the Sword Holding Palace immediately!"

The voice inside the command sword was very majestic, exuding a cold and murderous intent, and even more unquestionable.

I am temporarily safe... shivering.

Most of my friends around me have tested positive.

Feeling a bit panicked.