Chapter 261: Ancient Movement

Lin Xun sat there silently, with the fantastic image of thousands of stars cycling in the void in his mind. He was practicing the Star Circulation of Meditating Magic, through which he reflected on himself in order to refine his mind and soul.

In his mind, however, the shadows of death collided with each other. It resulted in dark emotions such as terror, despair, death, and so on. They tried to distract him from his practice.

Each death shadow represented a particular scene, where existed different eidolon overmatches, different moves of “Reaching for the Stars” (RFS), and different feelings before death…

All these turned into heart devils, always crushing Lin’s mind. One could imagine how dangerous and terrible a situation Lin was faced with.

Were it any other ordinary practitioner, he or she might already have been unable to bear it earlier on. It could lead to only one result: their mind collapsing and getting fully possessed.

Although Lin Xun had not been reduced to such an extremely hazardous situation, for the time being, it was still not going well for him, either. Things were actually pretty dangerous for Lin right now.

Lin was akin to treading on thin ice at this time. With the help of Meditating Magic, Lin had barely emptied his mind and kept himself from being possessed by the heart devils.

But if it continued like this, Lin’s mind would collapse sooner or later, and the evil spirits in his mind would then creep into his whole body. If it developed that far, there would be no way to salvage the situation even if you had heavenly power.

What should he do?

The image of Star Circulation emerged in the sea of his consciousness, allowing Lin to maintain an absolutely clear mind.

He could detect that his state of mind had already been on the verge of collapse. The death shadows accumulated all together, kept fermenting and were about to break through the limit of his mind. The only way of changing this was that you must get rid of these death shadows and smash them all to smithereens!

“Reaching for the Stars… Reaching for the Stars…”

Lin Xun recalled the profound meaning of Tianyuan Saberplay in silence. He had become aware when he passed the tests in the Secret Realm of Hundred Battles that if he wanted to dispel the heart devils, he had to surpass his opponents in the understanding and mastery of RFS!

It was because the heart devil was caused by death and the death by RFS. If you could suppress your opponent in the practice of RFS, it definitely meant that you could crush all those death shadows one by one and keep yourself from feeling more fear, unwillingness, and despair. And then, you could eventually obliterate the heart devils!

It didn’t take long before Lin gave up searching for the answers from Tianyuan Saberplay. The profound mystery in the secret martial arts was limited after all. How deep and how much one could learn from them depended mainly on the practitioner’s own understanding capacity.

“If I can pick out and crush each one of the death shadows, I might be able to get through the current crisis…”

One idea suddenly came up in Lin’s mind and made him lost in thought.

It was a very dangerous act. With one single mistake, Lin would be completely possessed by the heart devils and fall into the dark abyss.

But if he didn’t act on his plan, it was no different from waiting for death.

What should he do?

For the first time in his life, he was caught in a dilemma.

…

When the chariot arrived before Lin Xun’s courtyard, Liu Qingyan got off and asked curiously, “Are Master Xun and Childe Lin really living here?”

“Greatest genius often remain concealed. Master Xun must be a big shot. Only his apprentice seems good for nothing.”

When it came to Master Xun, Granny Wind actually held great admiration for him. After all, she had witnessed a marvelous spiritual treasure refined by him just a few days ago.

Liu Qingyan had a slight smile, “Then, let’s get in, Granny. I also want to witness the greatness of Master Xun personally.”

While speaking, they walked towards the courtyard.

But at this time, Granny Wind seemed to detect something wrong, and her pupils suddenly contracted. She said hurriedly, “Wait, Miss!”

Like a flash, Granny Wind had already blocked Liu’s way. “There are signs of killing in the courtyard. It doesn’t seem right.”

Liu Qingyan was dazed by Granny’s words.

By this time, Shue Jin had also appeared in front of the courtyard. When he saw that it was Granny Wind and a young girl, he frowned and said, “Mad Woman, it’s already deep late at night. What are you doing here?”

Granny Wind snorted, “Do you think I want to come? By the way, what’s going on with the killing aura in the courtyard? Are you fighting someone?”

Shue Jin shook his head without making any explanation.

“Granny, do you know this elder?”

Liu Qingyan could not help asking.

Granny Wind gave a sound of consent but did not explain Shue Jin’s identity to Liu Qingyan. Instead, she said, “Shue Jin, we are here to visit Master Xun tonight. So, please let us…”

Shue Jin interrupted, “No, Master Xun’s not available tonight.”

Granny Wind’s face darkened as Shue Jin was showing no due respect for her feelings. When she was about to say something, Liu Qingyan had already preempted her, “This elder, is Childe Lin here?”

Shue Jin was stunned, “Mad Woman, is this girl Liu Qingyan?”

Granny Wind said coldly, “It’s none of your business. She’s asking you whether Lin Xun that bastard is here or not?”

Shue Jin hesitated for a moment as he did not want to get entangled with Granny Wind any longer. But judging from her personality, she wouldn’t leave him be if he gave no reply.

Suddenly, an idea came to him. Shue Jin said hurriedly, “Come with me.”

Finished with his words, he turned and walked into the courtyard.

Granny Wind and Liu Qingyan shared a look and then followed him. As soon as they entered the courtyard, they caught sight of Lin Xun, who was sitting cross-legged in meditation.

“Eh!”

Sensing a torrent of murderous aura from Lin, Granny Wind squinted her eyes and felt something wrong.

Liu Qingyan also seemed to figure something out, with her pair of eyes full of surprise.

“The heart devils?”

Granny Wind asked.

Shue Jin nodded and said with a low and heavy voice, “It seems that he has made some mistake when cultivating.”

Granny Wind had initially been intending to ridicule Lin for a while, but when she saw the stern look of Shue Jin, she immediately knew that the situation was extremely grave.

She gave up her original intention and frowned while asking, “This lad’s only in the Human-gang Realm, so he should not yet come in contact with the world’s greatest mysteries. Generally speaking, it is almost impossible for him to be possessed by the Heart Devils. Could it be that he encountered some problems with the martial arts he is cultivating?”

Shue Jin was precisely trying to count on Granny Wind’s wisdom to find a way to help Lin Xun by inviting her in. Hearing her analysis, he immediately cheered up and said, “Mad woman, do you have any idea on how to fix this?”

Granny Wind walked up, stared at Lin carefully for a long time, and finally shook her head and said, “I’m afraid not. The lad has already been terribly haunted by his heart devils and has reached the brink of collapse. There’s nothing that can be done about it even if the King of Life -Death Realm arrives.”

Hearing this, gloom crept up on Shue Jin’s face in an instant. Was there really no way out for this boy?

“Although one must obliterate the heart devils on his or her own, it doesn’t mean there’s nothing we can do to help.”

Liu Qingyan, who had remained silent until that time, suddenly spoke. Lights of wisdom glimmered in her starry eyes as she seemed to have thought of some methods.

It surprised Shue Jin very much, and he asked, “How can we help then?”

The expression of Granny Wind, however, changed instantly. She said, “Miss, your present cultivation isn’t strong enough to allow you to practice the secretive martial art!”

Granny Wind’s words made Shue Jin even more convinced of the fact that the beautiful girl in front of him was really able to help Lin Xun!

“Granny, I want to have a try.”

Liu Qingyan bit her cherry lips and then made this plea with a clear and pleasant voice, which was also infused with a touch of firmness. “If we hesitate any longer, there truly would be no way out for Childe Lin.”

“Miss…”

Granny Wind looked very anxious. Before she could make a reply, Shue Jin interrupted instead, “What harm can be done by letting the girl have a try?”

“What the fuck do you know?”

Obviously pissed off, Granny Wind burst out scolding. It seemed that if Shue Jin said any more words, she would put up a desperate fight with him right now.

Liu Qingyan appeared surprisingly calm at this moment while a touch of indescribable stateliness radiated from her speech and behavior inadvertently. “Granny, I’ll have the final say on this matter. There’s no more need to talk me out of this.”

The expression on Granny Wind’s face went through a sudden change. Before long, she sighed, “All right, all right.”

Shue Jin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, he could not help being amazed by the girl in front of him for her ability to deal with the matter which even he and Granny Wind felt pretty troublesome.

As far as Shue Jin knew, Liu Qingyan was only an artistic practitioner even though she was famous all over the world. What was more, her cultivation was also only in the Heaven-gang Realm and was still one step away from the Sea Spirit Realm.

But she knew a way to help Lin, who had been possessed by heart devils right now. How could anyone be not surprised at it?

Liu Qingyan sat casually on the stone chair on one side of the courtyard, holding a jade bamboo flute in her delicate hands and blowing it gently.

The flute sound was ethereal like it was coming from the ancient times, brimming with unspeakable mystery and desolation.

In an instant, Shue Jin sensed an indescribable force between heaven and earth within the courtyard. It seemed to have brought vitality to the courtyard and caused delicate flowers to spurt out from the ground, and the grass swayed charmingly in the night breeze.

And in the sky, silver starlight floated down, rendering the courtyard seemingly shrouded in mist and giving people dreamlike ethereal feelings.

Shue Jin was invaded by shock. What music was this?

Even he, at this moment, felt relaxed and refreshed both inside and outside his body. With a kind of gentle force caressing his mind, Shue Jin felt his mind was emptied and cleared of all distracting thoughts.

Granny Wind, on the other hand, wore an extremely mixed look, which embodied anxiety, relief, worry, and heartache…

It was as if everything had quieted down. Flowers and grass were swaying in the courtyard, glittering brightly. The strings of the ethereal and desolate flute sound spread all around.

In a plain white dress, the girl sat there on the stone chair at ease, with her light-violet long hair hanging down to her waist. She sat quietly and played the jade bamboo flute, striking a beautiful picture that was unable to be forgotten.

…

Lin Xun finally decided to risk everything in a single venture!

He didn’t have time to waste anymore. He had to fight this time for all or nothing.

In Lin’s mind, his calm consciousness was slowly regaining control and was cautiously approaching the heart devils, which kept fermenting in him.

If he could pick out one single death shadow and obliterate it, it meant he was successful on this try. Otherwise, it would mean… his mind had completely collapsed!

Therefore, Lin Xun dared not have the slightest carelessness.

However, an indescribable force of emptiness and desolation crept over him all of a sudden before his mind could draw near those death shadows.

‘This is…?’

Lin’s consciousness trembled due to this sudden occurrence and almost went out of control, startling him and causing cold sweat to break out.

But he was utterly stunned the next second because those death shadows which were formerly chaotically colliding quieted down strangely, as if they had been fed with magic potion. They were like dormant beasts and no longer had the fierce momentum they were exhibiting just now.

Immediately, Lin realized that his chance had come!

No matter where that mysterious, ethereal, and desolate force just now came from, Lin definitely wouldn’t let such a great opportunity slip by.

Shoop!

A ray of Lin’s calm and cold consciousness suddenly dashed out and shrouded a death shadow!