Chapter 140

Chapter 140: Wind?

***

Lin Muyu took out 3 smooth low-grade demon cores and handed them to Xiaoyun:

“Take these for cultivation first. The demonic energy inside is very gentle, suitable for your current needs. I’ll be leaving now.”

The demon race cultivated demonic energy, which was a variant of spiritual energy, different from the spiritual energy that human cultivators used.

Therefore, the demon race couldn’t use spirit stones like humans did, but instead relied on demon cores to absorb power and improve their cultivation.

These 3 demon cores were specially selected by her at the sect’s market for Xiaoyun. The demonic energy was pure and gentle, suitable for beginners to cultivate.

“Sister, you must be careful…”

Xiaoyun clutched the demon cores, looking up at Lin Muyu gratefully.

But before she could finish her words, the figure before her transformed into a wisp of smoke, vanishing instantly from the doorway, leaving only a faint fragrance lingering in the air.

Xiaoyun was stunned, muttering quietly to herself:

“Sister is getting stronger and stronger… I can’t fall behind either, I need to cultivate quickly!”

Even though she was just a demon with thin bloodline, with that cultivation technique, couldn’t she also become a strong person?

On the other side, Lin Muyu had already stepped into the dense forest outside the village.

She appeared to be walking leisurely, but her steps were as light as a cunning rabbit in the forest.

Her speed was actually comparable to when she used to run at full acceleration.

“The speed of the Foundation Establishment stage is truly incomparable to the Qi Refining stage.”

Lin Muyu reflected in her heart. All of this was thanks to the leap in physical quality after Foundation Establishment, as well as the qualitative change in the spiritual energy within her body.

The spiritual energy flowing through her meridians was no longer gaseous as before, but had transformed into a pure liquid form, circulating slowly through her meridians.

To use an analogy, she used to be like a steam engine, relying entirely on her body for power.

Now she had become an efficient fuel engine, able to propel her body with just the circulation of spiritual energy.

Also because of the liquid spiritual energy, she didn’t even need sleep anymore.

The liquid spiritual energy would actively seep into her bloodstream, traveling with the blood circulation to cleanse impurities from her body and dispel fatigue, keeping her in peak condition at all times.

Once she learned sword flying, she would be able to soar at low altitudes.

At that time, with no obstacles blocking her way, her speed would increase even further.

Passing through a dense thicket of bushes, the scenery ahead suddenly became somewhat blurry, with faint formation fluctuations permeating the air.

Lin Muyu stopped in her tracks, her eyes sharpening:

“Mm, I’ve arrived.”

This was the location of the previous illusion.

Without hesitation, she activated Xiaotao’s new ability.

After all, she couldn’t ask Xiaotao about everything, it was more convenient to see for herself.

“Insight!”

As the ability manifested, the scenery before her instantly became clear, and a line of light blue text appeared in her vision:

【Basic Formation – Illusory Realm

Formation Creator: Unknown (speculated to be someone from Qinglan Sect)

Disguise Effect: Releases a confusing barrier to the outside, greatly reducing the probability of people accidentally entering. Those who step inside will not be confused】

“I see.”

Lin Muyu murmured softly, gaining an initial understanding of this formation.

However, looking at this information, she couldn’t help but feel a bit regretful.

Her Insight ability still couldn’t compare to the systems in those novels.

Systems had conceptual-level abilities, so they could definitely identify the formation creator, even issue tasks and give rewards.

But her ability could only speculate about who the formation creator was, let alone have any task mechanism.

However, after thinking about it again, she felt satisfied.

After all, something as heaven-defying as a system couldn’t possibly exist in this world.

Even if it did, it would only be a divine artifact crafted by high-level cultivators, without any conceptual-level abilities.

Since this outer basic formation had no danger, Lin Muyu didn’t plan to dismantle it.

After all, this was cultivator territory. With fewer ordinary people coming here, it would actually ensure their safety.

She lifted her foot and stepped into the formation. The scenery before her twisted slightly, then returned to normal.

She walked straight toward the dilapidated small house in the center of the formation.

Following Xiaotao’s previous guidance, she came to the roof of the small house.

Lin Muyu crouched on the roof, asking the air softly:

“Xiaotao, what should I do next?”

“Embed me in the intermediate formation core, then place it on here.”

……

At the same time, inside the small house.

A girl with gray, lifeless pupils was sitting on the cold floor, casually picking up a pill and stuffing it into her mouth.

The pill dissolved instantly upon contact, transforming into a faint stream of spiritual energy that surged into her abdomen, barely suppressing her hunger.

This was a spiritual sustenance pill, the only thing that had sustained her life over the past few months.

The woman who trapped her here never cooked for her, only leaving behind a pile of spiritual sustenance pills, as if feeding livestock awaiting slaughter.

The girl lowered her eyelids, and the iron chains on her wrists made “clanging” sounds as she moved, particularly grating in the empty room.

She knew her fate.

Once she grew a bit older, that woman would come and use her as a cultivation cauldron to improve her own cultivation.

What awaited her then would only be a fate worse than death.

It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about dying.

But every time she tried to bash her head against the wall, or tried to slash her wrist with her fingernails.

Someone wearing a mask would always emerge from the shadows, instantly stopping her actions.

That person also carried healing pills, and no matter how badly injured she was, one pill would immediately heal the wound, leaving not even a scar behind.

She had also tried starving herself by refusing to eat the spiritual sustenance pills.

But whenever she went more than a day without food, the masked person would appear and forcefully stuff the pills into her mouth.

Resistance only brought harsher punishment, punishment that wasn’t fatal, but made life worse than death.

Over time, she learned to be “obedient.”

Like domesticated livestock, she waited quietly in this small house for the day of her slaughter.

Only occasionally, she would think of the little girl she had saved a few days ago.

“I wonder if she managed to escape…”

The girl murmured to herself, her eyes still dull and lifeless.

Even though she knew that was a demon, she still chose to save her.

In her eyes, human hearts were even more terrifying than demons.

At most, a demon would eat her, but humans would torment her, making even death a luxury.

Perhaps, when that demon became powerful through cultivation, she would come back to save her?

As soon as this thought emerged, she suppressed it herself.

She laughed self-mockingly. Demons were demons after all, how could they remember a complete stranger of a human girl?

She was just finding herself an excuse to keep living.

But… when would she find a place to call home?

“Sigh…”

Just then, she suddenly frowned and instinctively lifted her head.

Although her eyes couldn’t see, her hearing and sense of touch were exceptionally sensitive.

She could hear faint footsteps from the roof, could feel the wind she hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Someone’s here again?”

The girl weakly propped herself up, moving closer to where the breeze was coming from.

Ever since the masked person was forcibly activated a few days ago, this place seemed to have been cut off from the world.

She hadn’t felt the occasional wind blowing in from outside the window since then.