Chapter 288

Chapter 288: Spiritual Energy Carrying Heavenly Fire

Lou Yun was no stranger to such concealed mechanisms and hidden passages. He believed that the many magical weapons masters who lived in seclusion upon the Great Snowfield must all have similarly discreet setups and traps guarding their dwellings.

After opening this passage, the boy waved at Lou Yun and then stepped first onto the descending stairs. Naturally, Lou Yun followed closely behind.

Once both entered, the door above the passage shut automatically. Though plunged into utter darkness, it did not hinder Lou Yun’s sight. Meanwhile, the boy, seemingly familiar with the route from traversing it many times, descended three steps at a stride.

Lou Yun silently estimated they had descended nearly a hundred meters underground before the stairs finally ended. Then, following the boy through a maze of winding turns for roughly another eighty to a hundred meters, they arrived at a small stone cavern dimly lit by weak lamps.

The boy turned and gestured a few signs to Lou Yun. Then he quickened his pace, dashing straight for the cavern. It was only now that Lou Yun’s spiritual senses finally detected a faint energy fluctuation.

In a flash, Lou Yun appeared at the cavern entrance. Inside, he saw a middle-aged man, about forty or fifty years old, lying on a simple stone platform. His face was deathly pale, his breath faint.

The boy stood beside the man, watching Lou Yun anxiously while frantically signing. Clearly, this was his father.

Without a word, Lou Yun approached the man and probed his internal condition with his spiritual senses. He understood instantly. The spiritual energy inside the man’s body was chaotic and frenzied—obviously suffering from cultivation deviation!

Moreover, this man’s magical weapon realm was remarkably high, likely a five-star Heavenly level cultivator on the verge of breaking through to the king rank. His deviation probably stemmed from an obstacle encountered during his breakthrough attempt.

The cure for cultivation deviation was straightforward: assist in aligning the chaotic spiritual energy. Seeing no need for further inspection, Lou Yun addressed the boy, “Your father suffered cultivation deviation while training. I will heal him now. Do not worry, and do not disturb us. Just wait quietly.”

The boy nodded hurriedly.

Lou Yun then helped the man sit upright, placed his hands on the man’s back, and began slowly channeling his own spiritual energy into him, striving to stabilize the violent currents within.

However, the moment Lou Yun’s energy entered the man’s body, he sensed immediate peril. An immense suction force exploded within the man. His form felt like a starved beast, greedily and forcibly pulling Lou Yun’s spiritual energy into itself.

The suction was terrifyingly powerful. Though Lou Yun sensed the danger almost instantly, withdrawing his spiritual energy proved impossible. Resisting the pull and halting this drain was equally futile. His palms seemed fused to the man’s back, unable to pull free.

Lou Yun opened his eyes abruptly and stared. The seemingly innocent boy now stood calmly across from him. All traces of worry had vanished from his delicate face, replaced by an impassive, detached expression, as if he were merely a spectator to events that held no concern for him.

At that moment, Lou Yun finally understood: he had walked straight into someone’s trap!

Evidently, these two—presumably a father-son pair—were collaborators in deception. The father feigned cultivation deviation while the son sought unsuspecting helpers outside. Exploiting sympathy, most would follow the boy to assist. Once here, like Lou Yun, when they attempted to stabilize the chaotic energy with their own spiritual power, their energy would be sucked dry!

Absorbing another’s spiritual energy served only one purpose: to seize it for oneself, harnessing it to elevate personal cultivation!

And yet, Lou Yun knew this method of stealing spiritual energy for advancement was deeply flawed. While the spiritual energy absorbed during cultivation was fundamentally the same for all cultivators, its nature transformed after entering the body according to the cultivator’s training technique and unique five-element attributes.

Absorbing this altered, incompatible energy could never directly merge with one’s own spiritual power. Its conflicting attributes meant it required cleansing and fusion by one’s own magical weapon, resulting in significant waste. Only a sliver could truly integrate.

Simply put, it resembled absorbing beast souls for cultivation. Although beast souls contained vast energy, they were riddled with impurities. One needed extensive refining to extract a minuscule amount of pure spiritual energy.

Lou Yun had heard of techniques relying on this plundered cultivation method. Yet he doubted many willingly chose such a path. The return was simply too pitiful for the effort involved.

He never expected to encounter actual practitioners of such arts today!

Lou Yun had been vigilant, yet despite all caution, the boy had duped him, leading him step by step to this ambush.

Now, Lou Yun felt his spiritual energy erupting from him like floodwaters breaching a dam, surging violently into another’s vessel. Fury and desperation collided within him.

Calm! Stay calm!

Lou Yun knew panic was fatal. The greater the turmoil, the deeper the disadvantage. He had to regain composure and find a way out.

Taking a deep breath, he forcibly steadied his mind. Clarity returned, and with it came a solution.

A cold smile touched Lou Yun’s lips. Witnessing it, the spectator boy felt an involuntary, deep-seated dread blossom within him.

“You crave my spiritual energy so intensely? Then have your fill,” Lou Yun’s voice was icy. “But I wonder… can your stomach handle energy that bears heavenly fire?”

As Lou Yun’s words fell, crimson light flared along his arms. Twin bursts of flame erupted from his shoulders, coiling like fiery serpents down his limbs. They surged through his palms unhindered, plunging into the middle-aged man’s core.

“AHHH!”

An ear-splitting, soul-rending shriek tore from the man’s throat, punctuated by deafening echoes. The entire cavern trembled violently, dust raining from the shaking walls.

The scream lasted less than a second. Abruptly, a thick plume of fire erupted from his gaping mouth. In the next instant, his form vanished—incinerated into a heap of ash so fast the eye couldn’t follow.

The mute boy stood petrified, eyes wide and unblinking, seeming to cease breathing entirely at the sight.

Lou Yun’s spiritual energy fused Fusang Fire and Thunderstorm Fire. When he channeled these twin infernos directly into his target’s core, their consuming heat ignited him from the inside out. Not this mere Heavenly level cultivator, not even an imperial-level magical weapons master like Leng Cangqiong could endure such fire. Ash was the inevitable end.

Lou Yun exhaled a long breath and slowly stood. Twin shards of icy light shot from his eyes, fixing upon the mute boy’s face as he approached him step by menacing step.

Only then did the boy snap back to reality. Terror contorted his features. He frantically waved his hands, shaking his head wildly. He gestured at the pile of ash, then at himself, uttering helpless, panicked “Ah! Ah!” sounds—clearly begging for mercy.

Lou Yun stared coldly, yet hesitated within. He’d suspected the boy faked muteness to deceive him. But now, facing death itself, words still failed him. This muteness was no act.

Part of Lou Yun desperately wanted to end the young trickster’s life. But considering the boy’s tender age and his genuine disability—perhaps he’d been coerced by the man—Lou Yun’s hand withheld its fury.

After a long pause, Lou Yun sighed. “For your youth, ignorant though you may be of previous crimes, I offer a chance for redemption.” His voice was grave. “Change your path. But mark this: should I learn you persist in wickedness and deceit… I swear I will return for your life.”

Lou Yun turned to leave. Suddenly, a small hand gripped his wrist.

Frowning, Lou Yun glanced back. “What now?”

“Ah! Ah!” The boy made two simple gestures: Wait!

Hesitating briefly, Lou Yun halted. Curiosity won. What else could this boy possibly want?

Seeing Lou Yun stop, the boy darted like lightning to a corner of the cavern. Kneeling, he pried up a section of the floor, retrieving a piece of beast hide. He offered it urgently to Lou Yun.

Lou Yun eyed the hide warily. Suspicion flared. Trusting this boy again felt perilous.

But the mute youth was insistent. He shook his head emphatically, gestured pleadingly, his face flushed with frantic urgency.

Ultimately, Lou Yun reasoned the boy posed no physical threat. After another moment’s hesitation, he accepted the hide and unfolded it.

His tightly furrowed brow instantly smoothed. Joy blossomed across his face.