Chapter 487: Mythic Body

"Fine, we hand it over. We hope you'll keep your promise."

Among the two mysterious members of the Mind Research Society, their leader quickly nodded.

Suddenly!

His right hand, like a venomous snake, seized a pitch-black dagger and stabbed it deep into his own companion's back!

"You..."

The companion tried to say something, his face contorting with intense pain.

The leader released the dagger and plunged his palm directly into the companion's back, as if searching for something.

Not long after, he pulled out a crimson-bound secret text, its cover dotted with faint starlight, and respectfully handed it to Fang Xing.

"The Heart Dream Ritual?"

Fang Xing nodded and opened the first page, revealing a twisted, agonized face.

From its features, it was clearly the man who had just been stabbed in the back.

Compared to the fading companion, this face was more grotesque, its lips stiffly curled upward—as if sneering at something.

【The one betrayed longs for the next to appear...】

Across the front page, a line of text materialized.

Then came basic knowledge about the "Heart," crude but still valuable.

"My lord, may I go now?"

The remaining leader asked nervously.

"Give me the coordinates of the marketplace, and you may leave."

Fang Xing nodded, watching the Deep One's figure vanish.

For him now, in this world, good and evil meant nothing—only what served his own interests mattered.

"Hagis is truly evil... he chose the fastest way to create a secret text."

The girl beside him trembled as she stared at Fang Xing: "You... you wouldn't do that too, would you? This is a unique ability of the Heart Path—you can't do it."

"I couldn't before. But now? Maybe I can."

Fang Xing shook his head.

He had no intention of turning this little girl into a secret text.

He was considering using the wonders of the Heart Path to transform Esoteric Sect martial arts into "secret texts," then spread them—of course, each secret text would carry initiation rites and strict prohibitions...

"This method of instantly generating secret texts, though it requires killing someone, is quite useful..."

Fang Xing chatted with the girl: "Has there been a rebellion in your Mind Research Society?"

"Yes. My father had prepared for it, but the Deep Sea Gate somehow erupted, trapping many Exalted..."

The girl's expression was sour: "Otherwise... I never would've been caught by Hagis and his two companions..."

"The Deep Sea Gate?"

Fang Xing knew it was his fault, but he had no intention of admitting it—instead, he silently pondered the Heart secret text he had just obtained.

In the girl's eyes, his image suddenly changed.

Then...

Fang Xing punched forward: "Illusion Fist!"

The girl's expression instantly glazed over, as if sinking into layer upon layer of illusions...

"Heart Sect martial arts center on the mind—they are Mind Arts! Merging with Heaven and Earth, a single thought can create myriad transformations."

Fang Xing gazed at the girl's dazed eyes and spoke calmly: "Tell me everything you know about the Mind Research Society. And—did you tamper with the coordinates just now?"

"No..."

The girl answered dazedly: "But my father is coming soon—he's an 'Awakener' of the Heart Path, and he's cultivated the 'Reverse Life Ritual.' After performing the 'Cocooned One' rite, he manifests the 'Mythic Ancestry' phenomenon. His original cocoon was made from the hide of a ferocious black dog... now it's become the Hellhound of myth."

"Oh? Tell me more."

Fang Xing grew interested.

Through the girl's explanation, he learned her name was "Ying," from an Exalted family.

Her family had long held power within the Mind Research Society until recently, when a rebellion by subordinates crippled them.

Every Exalted of the Heart Path must perform the "Cocooned One" rite before entering a dream, crafting a "cocoon" suited for the Aether Realm.

Most can only make basic auxiliary tools; the more advanced, like Ying's wings or the Deep Ones' chrysalises.

Ying's father originally used the hide of a black dog.

Supposedly, that black dog was ferocious—it had killed its own eight siblings during the Reverse Moon Rite, surviving by devouring their flesh, then was skinned and made into a cocoon.

In the Aether Realm, it appeared as a dog the size of a cow, invincible—it once bit an Awakener to death!

After Ying's father ascended to Awakener, he performed a ritual that mutated the dog's bloodline into a creature only found in myth—the Hellhound.

This mythic being's body flowed with dense Aether energy, never dwelling in the mundane world, only occasionally intruding into human dreams, whispered about in fear...

An Awakener of the Heart Path, even in the Aether Realm, faced no fear when confronting Longevity beings of other Paths.

This was the unique trait of the Heart Path.

Other Paths each had their own marvels.

For instance, the Mechanism Path—even low-rank Exalted could craft high-rank mechanical wonders. Someone like Fang Xing could easily forge a mecha; even as a Wanderer, he could challenge an Awakener or even a Longevity being!

The Blood Path was no less formidable—it could strengthen the body and stir desires...

"But all these essences will be absorbed by my Esoteric Sect martial arts, transformed into my own, shaped into my form!"

Fang Xing waited a moment longer, then sensed Aether fluctuations in the distance—black dog hairs materialized in the air.

Then, a Hellhound as large as a rock formation crawled out, its body wreathed in thick Aether energy, forming a blazing emerald-green hellfire.

"Release Ying!"

The Hellhound sniffed, instantly spotting Fang Xing and the girl, then spoke in a deep male voice.

"Who are you? Do you even know the rules? I'm a kidnapper—I demand ransom. One secret text, or I won't release her..."

Fang Xing sneered.

The Hellhound clearly hesitated.

Suddenly, it raised a paw and slammed it hard against its leftmost head.

Crack!

A blood-stained tooth fell, turning midair into a pale bone scripture: "Release her!"

"Oh? No wonder you're an Awakener..."

Fang Xing gave it a quick inspection, then patted the girl's head.

"Ah!"

Ying let out a piercing scream, sprinting to the Hellhound's back, then cried: "You monster! What did you do to me?"

The scene made it seem as if Fang Xing had committed some unforgivable act against her.

"Damn it!"

The Hellhound's fur bristled.

It roared, spitting out wave after wave of ink-green fireballs.

These flames, rich with Aether, flowed like liquid, possessing both corrosive and burning properties.

In the outside world, such a three-headed Hellhound could hold its own against an entire small army.

"What did I do?"

Fang Xing's palms danced—wave after wave of "Steam Press Palm" struck the emerald fireballs midair, shattering them.

A few emerald sparks landed on him, but were instantly blocked by a layer of gray-white stone skin—his "Stone Statue Art"!

Exalted of the Stone Path were silent, restrained... and Stone Aether, the most stubborn and unchanging Aether, excelled at resisting other Aether intrusions!

"What did I do to her?"

Fang Xing smiled faintly: "Probably the same thing you're about to experience."

He clenched his right hand into a fist.

The Heart Sect martial art—the Illusion Fist!

As the fist struck, a great sun rose behind Fang Xing.

Vast and radiant, stretching a thousand meters, its massive disc and corona nearly illuminated the entire Aether layer!

Compared to this blazing sun, the Hellhound was minuscule.

Seeing this sun rise, every creature in the Aether Realm trembled from the soul, their minds filled with only one thought—submit! Submit! Submit!

【Indeed, in the Aether Realm, using the Heart Path as a bridge, I've finally manifested a sliver of my true nature...】

Fang Xing's mind stirred—he saw his Illusion Fist descend, crushing the Hellhound beneath immense pressure. The beast let out a mournful howl, its other two heads curling inward, its body shrinking rapidly until it became a newborn puppy.

"Yip!"

The black puppy's eyes remained shut, whimpering helplessly.

"Dad?"

Ying, seeing this, nearly burst into tears.

But then she noticed the black puppy whimpering, scrambling to Fang Xing's feet, nuzzling his shoes affectionately.

"Anyone struck by my Illusion Fist becomes my slave."

Fang Xing picked up the puppy and tossed it casually into Ying's arms: "This effect... only I can undo."

"You... what do you want? More secret texts? I'll give them all to you..."

Ying, watching her once-undefeatable father reduced to this, turned cold with terror.

"Hmm, I like how sensible you are."

Following the hidden knowledge he had gained while controlling A Ying, Fang Xing visualized the heart-school martial art in his mind, and a strange scripture appeared in his hands.

It resembled a red brick, its surface carrying the scent of iron and blood, covered in patches of rust-like marks.

"I am the master of the Secret Sect. This is a secret transmission of the Secret Sect—I give it to both of you."

Fang Xing's figure flickered, appearing before A Ying. He shoved the transmission into her arms, then pressed his left and right hands onto her and the puppy's heads.

Real-life dog-head rubbing!

"This dog looks promising—it has a karmic connection with my Secret Sect. I shall bestow upon it the 'Dog-Head Golden Vajra Mouth Secret' initiation... and you as well."

The Secret Sect's martial arts have always been open to all, regardless of gender.

Since Fang Xing intended to spread his Secret Sect martial arts, he naturally treated everyone equally.

"You... I..."

A Ying's eyes were filled with panic, but she had no way to stop him—she could only watch helplessly as Fang Xing's large hand came down...

The second chapter update will come later.

(End of chapter)