Chapter 1251: Peeking into the Way of Desire

First, his mastery of Returning to Void Power became increasingly exquisite and refined under this operation that is nearly 'nanometer‑scale'; with a thought he could complete the extremely complex weaving and guidance of energy structures.

Second, through this 'integration' and 'assistance', he felt his connection with the surrounding heaven and earth become tighter and more harmonious. The long‑standing sense of alienation rejected by the Heavenly Dao seemed to weaken a little. Although the world's spiritual energy remained 'cold' toward him, it was no longer full of 'hostility'.

What is most remarkable is that in the area where he continuously carried out this 'assisted purification', plants seemed more vibrant and the spiritual energy appeared purer and more lively. A faint, positive feedback began to vaguely gather around him—not energy, but rather a kind of natural 'affinity' or perhaps 'merit' from heaven and earth? This feeling was extremely vague, hard to grasp, yet undeniably real.

One day, an unexpected guest arrived.

He came not as an enemy, but as an elder of the Heavenly Craft Sect—the very Zhao Elder who had been responsible for deciphering runes on the extreme northern ice fields years ago. He held a visitation card, his expression complex as he stood outside the cave dwelling.

"Han… Senior Han, I am Zhao Qian of the Heavenly Craft Sect, junior, and have come specially to pay my respects." Zhao Elder spoke respectfully, with a hint of guilt. Back then, in the extreme northern affair, the Heavenly Craft Sect had unwittingly become a pawn of Yan Buji, nearly causing harm to Han Wuxian.

Han Wuxian opened the cave dwelling and invited him inside.

Zhao Elder explained his purpose: In recent years, the Heavenly Craft Sect had encountered a difficulty while repairing an ancient transmission array. The array's core had accumulated an immutable spatial sludge and stray energy residues, extremely stubborn; ordinary methods could not remove them and might instead cause an energy imbalance that would collapse the array. They thought of Han Wuxian's Returning to Void Power, which might safely and effectively 'annihilate' those sludge and residues by virtue of its nature.

"Senior Han, we fully understand that you are currently…… inconvenient. But this matter concerns the exploration of an important relic, which also holds significance for the cultivation world. May I ask if you could……?" Zhao Elder spoke cautiously, fearful of provoking this being who, though imprisoned, remains profoundly unfathomable.

After listening, Han Wuxian fell into contemplation. This was an excellent opportunity to test the fruits of his years of exploration! Removing the sludge and residues, in essence, is 'purification' and 'restoration', in accord with the heavenly‑earthly cycle, so it should not trigger the Heavenly Dao Forbidden Seal.

"Very well." Han Wuxian nodded in agreement, "but I must go to the array's core myself, and the removal must be carried out my way."

Zhao Elder was overjoyed and promptly agreed.

Several days later, Han Wuxian followed Zhao Elder to that ancient transmission array deep underground. At the array's core, indeed, tangled colorful yet decay‑unstable energy sludge was found.

Han Wuxian did not unleash his mighty annihilating power. He approached the array's core, extended a finger, and at its tip lingered the extremely weak Returning to Void Qi that he had carefully 'disguised' and 'harmonized'. His divine sense, like the most precise scalpel, probed into that mass of energy sludge, precisely locating the node where its structure was most unstable and closest to natural dissolution.

Then, like a master micro‑sculptor, he used that strand of Returning to Void Qi as a carving tool and gently 'tapped' those nodes.

There was no loud roar, no blinding light. Under his fingertips, that stubborn energy sludge, like snow brushed by a spring breeze, silently began to melt and dissolve, turning into the purest basic spiritual particles that returned to the array's meridians and even to the surrounding heaven and earth! The whole process was smooth and efficient, causing no energy turbulence whatsoever.

The Heavenly Craft Sect elder and array masters standing nearby stared agape! The problem they had spent years unable to solve was resolved by him so casually! Moreover, this method…… was completely different from the domineering Returning to Void Annihilation they knew; it was more like a…… purification that bestows tranquility!

Han Wuxian carried out the 'surgery' with full concentration; the Heavenly Dao Forbidden Seal on his brow remained tranquil. His actions were judged as 'assisted repair' and 'obstacle clearance', falling within the bounds permitted by order.

When the last trace of sludge was cleared, the core of the ancient transmission array glowed with a soft, steady light, signifying that it had been completely restored.

The Heavenly Craft Sect members were overcome with emotion, moved to tears of gratitude toward Han Wuxian.

Han Wuxian merely gave a slight nod, saying nothing more. He sensed that his internal power had not grown much, yet felt a hint more 'penetrating', and that deep down his sense of affinity with heaven and earth seemed to have strengthened a bit; he understood this clearly.

This path, he had taken correctly.

Power is not merely about being 'strong'. Under the shackles of rules, he found another form of growth—integrating into the rules, understanding them, and then, by means allowed by the rules, achieving his own goals, even…… subtly accumulating a kind of 'capital' that transcends mere strength.

He raised his head; his gaze seemed to pierce the heavy strata, seeing the heavenly order suspended high above the nine heavens.

The imprisonment remains, the road ahead still long.

But he is no longer a prisoner trapped in a cage; he has begun to learn how to carve his own mark upon the cage's walls…… an explorer.

A century of time now seemed no longer so unbearable.

After helping the Heavenly Craft Sect repair the ancient transmission array, Han Wuxian felt little joy, instead sinking into deeper contemplation. The process of using subtle Returning to Void Power for 'assisted purification' and 'catalyzing circulation' gave him a completely new understanding of power usage, yet also made him more clearly sense the boundaries of his own Great Dao imposed by the seal.

"Integrating with the rules, borrowing strength to strike strength—ultimately this is only a stopgap. The core of the Heavenly Dao Forbidden Seal lies in restricting my authority to define 'termination' and 'reincarnation'. To truly break the shackles, my comprehension of the Dao must reach, or even surpass, the level of those who set the seal……" Han Wuxian knew that although a hundred years seemed long, for grasping the Great Dao it was but a snap of the fingers. He needed a more fundamental breakthrough.

That day, as usual, he extended his divine sense into heaven and earth, catching and analyzing the various faint thoughts flowing in the wind and earth veins, enriching his 'Termination Lineage' model. Suddenly, his mind stirred slightly.

In a desolate valley thousands of li beyond the Myriad Soul Mountain Range, he detected an extremely faint yet vaguely familiar abnormal fluctuation. This fluctuation was not naturally produced; it bore a man‑made, distorted trace, and its core intent…… actually shared the same origin as the strand of Yan Buji's 'Self Desire' that he had sealed! Yet it was more diluted, more fragmented, as if it were unintentionally dispersed residue.

"Is this residual power of Yan Buji? No, he has long since perished in body and spirit, returned to heaven and earth…… This seems more like…… a secondary derivative that grew in the natural environment after being long contaminated by his power?" Han Wuxian immediately became alert. The 'Way of Self Desire' of Yan Buji is unfathomably strange; even after his corporeal form vanished, its lingering influence could lie dormant and slowly ferment.

He could have ignored it, for with the Heavenly Dao Forbidden Seal on him, fewer troubles are better. But a thought flashed in his mind: Yan Buji's Dao and his own Returning to Void Dao intersect in the realm of 'termination', yet diverge in opposite directions. Deeply studying the form and operation of those power derivatives might give him a new perspective, even…… an opportunity to break free from current mental constraints.

After a moment's contemplation, Han Wuxian decided to venture forth. He concealed all his aura, lowering his presence to the minimum, like a ripple blending into the spatial background, and silently slipped toward that valley.

Within the valley, the scene was bizarre. The plants were not withered but displayed an abnormal luxuriance and twist, branches and leaves knotted, colors gaudy, emitting an irritating, vexing aura. Some weak demon beasts prowled there, their eyes overflowing with excessive excitement, greed, and agitation, fighting each other incessantly just to claim a stalk of poisonous herb bearing a faint trace of spiritual energy. The whole valley resembled a micro‑ecosystem whose survival desire and predatory instinct had been magnified and distorted.

"As I suspected……" Han Wuxian hovered in midair, his chaotic eyes sweeping downward, and he immediately saw the clue. Yan Buji's residual power, here, had insidiously permeated—not directly destroying life, but stirring and amplifying the most primal desire within living beings, driving them toward self‑destruction in their frantic pursuit and competition. This is a more covert, more essential form of 'termination', pointing straight to the heart's source.

He cautiously extended his divine sense, avoiding the agitated beings, and deeply felt the invisible desire power field permeating the valley. Unlike the tyrannical, overbearing 'Self Desire' will of Yan Buji's true self, this field was more primal and chaotic, like the primordial swamp of desire, nurturing all kinds of disordered thoughts.

The Heavenly Dao Forbidden Seal warmed slightly, as if assessing the risk of his contact with this power. But Han Wuxian's aim was not to absorb or employ it, but to observe and analyze. He was like a calm scientist, recording the fluctuation patterns of the desire power field, analyzing how it drives different beings to produce specific emotions and behaviors, and how, amidst this chaos, it draws energy to sustain its own existence and even slowly grow.

Gradually, he became immersed in analyzing the rules of this unique power.

"Desire…… is not purely negative. The will to survive, the thirst for knowledge, the drive to advance—these too are forces that propel life forward……"

"Yan Buji took the wrong path, treating desire as a tool for control and plunder, endlessly amplifying its 'possession' and 'devouring' aspects, ultimately bringing ruin upon himself……"

"But what is the essence of this desire's source, the fundamental impulse that drives life to 'want to exist', 'want more'? Is it of the same origin as the 'vitality' with which heaven and earth first opened and myriad things sprouted, merely a different branch? And what is its relation to the 'termination' that tends toward stillness and return to the origin?"