Gou in the world of comprehension

Chapter 1464 Back to square one
After an unknown amount of time, Su Fan slowly opened his heavy eyelids.

He lay limp on the ground, his injuries so horrific they were unbearable to look at.

The "Cloud and Dragon Pattern Mist-Transforming Treasure Robe" that he was once so proud of is now in tatters, the fabric torn to shreds, covered in dust and unknown stains, and its former brilliance is nowhere to be seen.

Su Fan blinked, looking bewildered, his eyes filled with confusion. He slowly turned his neck to look around.

Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?

Where did you come from?

At this moment, Su Fan's mind had completely gone blank.

Not to mention where I am right now, I have no recollection of how I passed out.

My mind felt shrouded in thick fog, a chaotic mess, making even thinking sluggish.

"hiss……"

A gasp of pain escaped Su Fan's lips through gritted teeth.

He instinctively tried to sit up by pushing himself up from the ground, but as soon as he exerted force, a piercing pain surged from his limbs and bones, instantly spreading throughout his entire body.

His face turned deathly pale from the pain, his teeth clenched so tightly they clicked, his brows furrowed, and his features contorted slightly with agony.

Only when the sharp pain struck did my chaotic mind feel as if it had been pricked by a needle, and finally a few fragmented memories returned.

Su Fan's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart skipped a beat.

Wasn't I just breaking through to the Fusion Realm?

Am I not dead?

He tried hard to recall, but he only remembered that the moment the third heavenly lightning struck, the earth-shattering pressure left him powerless to resist, and then he completely lost consciousness.

He thought he had given up completely and was completely useless; he didn't believe he could survive the tribulation.

But who would have thought that he would survive in the end?

Not only did they survive, they also successfully broke through to the Fusion Realm.

Little did he know that the Evil Spirit Realm had a unique environment, and that heavenly lightning had never appeared in this area from ancient times to the present.

Unfortunately, Su Fan, that troublemaker, chose this place to break through to the Integration Realm, which attracted countless incredibly powerful heavenly lightning bolts.

Although this heavenly tribulation was originally aimed at Su Fan, heavenly lightning is naturally particularly sensitive to yin energy.

In particular, the dense evil energy in the place where the evil spirit originated, which was almost solidified, and the being that had just taken form and was exuding a terrifying pressure, instantly became the main targets of the heavenly lightning.

Most of the tribulation lightning that was originally meant to strike Su Fan deviated from its course and crashed down on the source of the evil spirits and the newly born terrifying being.

However, the final test of one's Dao heart was indeed extremely dangerous.

Fortunately, the Yin spirit within Su Fan protected him in time, allowing him to survive the ordeal unscathed.

To be honest, Su Fan's breakthrough to the Integration Realm was incredibly easy. The whole process was so chaotic and confusing, it was like he was just going through the motions. Even he himself found it unbelievable.

"You've got some nerve, breaking through to the Integration Realm in this godforsaken place and still surviving..."

Just then, a thought, mixed with a sense of relief at surviving a disaster and a hint of sarcasm, suddenly echoed in his mind.

In fact, at the moment the heavenly lightning struck, even it had resigned itself to its fate, thinking that its remnant soul would surely vanish into nothingness along with Su Fan's death.

But who would have thought that even though this kid had given up and given up, he ended up being perfectly fine and even successfully broke through to a higher realm.

Moreover, when Su Fan was crossing the final mental barrier, Old Dragon Li Gao clearly felt the interference of the Yin Spirit within his body.

I used to hear people say that cultivators who possess demonic seeds are people with great fortune.

But now it seems that this statement is utter nonsense.

If it weren't for the protection of the Yin God, Su Fan would have long since turned to ashes under the heavenly lightning.

Upon hearing the old dragon's thoughts, Su Fan awkwardly sent back a thought.

"Seniors...are you alright...?"

"You still have the nerve to ask..." Old Dragon's thoughts instantly turned violent.

"You didn't utter a single word before the breakthrough, we weren't prepared at all, you almost got me killed just now..."

Upon receiving Old Dragon's angry message, Su Fan reluctantly shut his mouth and did not refute it further.

He knew in his heart that he was certain to die this time, so he did not inform Lao Long Li Gao and Xie Fo Lao Wang before breaking through.

Anyway, if he really dies, the remnant souls of these old guys will also vanish into thin air, so it doesn't seem to make any difference whether we notify them or not.

"Senior...I'm sorry..."

Seeing that Lao Long Li Gao was no longer paying attention to him, Su Fan gritted his teeth and struggled to get up from the ground.

He tried to slowly open his arms. Although the excruciating pain still surged like a tide, he could clearly feel that the blood and qi in his body were surging endlessly. The power was like an overwhelming tide, surging and turbulent, several times stronger than before the breakthrough.

What surprised him even more was that his already extraordinary physical strength had increased by at least several times.

Su Fan's eyes suddenly narrowed, and his divine sense subconsciously spread out.

Within a radius of tens of thousands of miles, even the slightest breeze rustling through the grass could be clearly imprinted in his mind.

This feeling of divine control over everything stirred an indescribable fascination within him.

However, with excruciating pain all over his body, he had no mind to carefully assess how much his strength had increased.

Su Fan raised his head and looked towards the summit of the giant peak not far away.

The gray-black halo that had been hovering there was now completely gone.

The being that had once filled him with immense terror had vanished without a trace.

That terrifying being must have been struck dead by heavenly lightning.

Su Fan looked around again and found that the evil spirit aura that had been so dense that it was almost tangible had completely dissipated, and the air had become incredibly fresh.

Even the previously gloomy sky is much brighter than before, and you can even see a faint ray of light.

He endured the excruciating pain in his body, and with a swift movement, he instantly appeared atop the giant peak.

The gray-black halo that once stood here is long gone, leaving only a fist-sized, pitch-black crystal lying quietly on the ground.

Su Fan did not touch it rashly with his hands. Instead, he used his divine sense and carefully manipulated the dark crystal with his mind, making it slowly float in front of him.

At this moment, the surface of the crystal was cloudy and looked unremarkable, even somewhat rough.

But his intuition told him that this seemingly ordinary black crystal was only temporarily dormant, and that it must contain terrifying energy capable of destroying the world.

“This should be the origin of the evil spirit…” Old Dragon Li Gao’s thoughts echoed again, his tone tinged with solemnity.

"You better not be careless, kid. This thing was just struck by heavenly lightning and is only instinctively asleep. Once it wakes up, it's no joke; the consequences will be unimaginable..."

Su Fan understood this perfectly well; this thing was a hot potato, and he was even hesitant to take it, fearing it might cause trouble. Perhaps sensing his hesitation, the thought of Old Dragon Li Gao echoed in his mind again.

"However, even among our True Dragon Clan, very few have ever seen an object that embodies the essence of evil spirits. If we take this thing back and have someone knowledgeable refine it properly, it could definitely become a top-grade treasure for calming the mind and nourishing the soul..."

Upon receiving this thought from Lao Long Li Gao, Su Fan hesitated for a moment.

On one side are potential dangers, and on the other are huge benefits.

After weighing the options, he finally decided to put the thing away.

Thinking of this, he immediately activated his divine sense and began to scan his storage ring.

Fuck...

Where did Lao Tzu's spiritual jade go?

But the next second, his expression suddenly changed, and he couldn't help but curse in his mind.

It turned out that when his divine sense swept over the storage ring, he discovered something extremely strange.

The countless spirit jades that were originally piled up in the storage ring have now vanished without a trace, leaving not even a speck of dust.

That wasn't all. Besides the spirit jade, all the top-grade pills, high-level talismans, rare magic treasures, and array tools stored in his storage rings had also lost all their spiritual energy, becoming dull and lifeless, no different from ordinary objects in the mortal world.

The countless materials for crafting artifacts, herbs for alchemy, and rare materials related to array formations and puppets were in a truly appalling state.

The materials used for crafting artifacts turned into piles of rusty scrap metal, while the medicinal herbs used for alchemy became clumps of withered, yellowed grass that crumbled at the slightest touch.

Su Fan instantly understood the reason.

He needed to consume a massive amount of spiritual energy to break through to the Integration Realm.

In order to support his breakthrough, the Yin spirit within him not only drained all the spiritual jade in his possession.

It also drained the spiritual energy contained in countless cultivation resources and poured it all into his body, barely managing to withstand the consumption of the breakthrough.

Fortunately, Su Fan was very wealthy. Over the years, he had accumulated countless spirit jades and a mountain of various cultivation resources.

Just how much cultivation resources does he have?

To put it simply, Sister Zhen and Li Chongxiu, leading a large number of ghost soldiers and generals, have been working day and night to sort things out, but they still haven't been able to accurately count the exact number.

If it were anyone else, would they have broken through to the Integration Realm in such a place as the Evil Spirit Realm, where spiritual energy is scarce and the environment is harsh, as he did?

Even if one manages to survive the tribulation lightning, the inability to gather enough spiritual energy will cause the breakthrough to fail, and may even lead to qi deviation.

At this moment, Su Fan's heart was bleeding.

Those spirit jades and cultivation supplies were spoils of war that he had seized from the Celestial Race after massacring more than a dozen planes.

Even if he squandered money recklessly, it would have been enough for him to live on for several lifetimes, but now it's all gone.

Suddenly, Su Fan had a bad feeling. He didn't dare to delay and instantly entered his personal secret realm.

But when he stood on the land of his personal secret realm, only a bitter smile remained on his face.

The portable secret realm at this moment has long lost its former spiritual energy. Not even a trace of spiritual energy can be felt in the air, making it no different from the mortal world.

“Master…you’re finally back…”

Just then, two figures flew swiftly from a distance; they were Zhenjie and Li Chongxiu.

Upon seeing Su Fan, they could no longer hold back and threw themselves into his arms, bursting into tears.

"Master, the spiritual veins in the secret realm... the spiritual veins have been drained, and... and the cultivation supplies stored here have all lost their spiritual essence, they're no different from useless trash..."

Sister Zhen cried and choked out her words, her voice full of heartache and anxiety.

Su Fan sighed inwardly, just as he had expected.

How could I possibly survive the consumption of breakthroughs with just the spirit jade and cultivation resources in my few storage rings?

Although the spiritual vein resources in his personal secret realm are still inferior to those of super sects with a history of ten thousand years, they are definitely no worse than those of ordinary sects, and their foundation is quite profound.

After hundreds of years of hard work, we've gone back to square one overnight.

Su Fan smiled bitterly to himself, but he also knew that he couldn't blame anyone else for this. Ultimately, it was because he was too willful and made a rash breakthrough without being prepared in advance.

But then he thought about it again and felt relieved.

Regardless, the result was good; at least the breakthrough to the Fusion Realm was successful.

Spiritual jade can be earned back, and cultivation resources can be robbed again.

If the spiritual veins in the portable secret realm are gone, we can simply bring in a few more from outside. In just a few days, the spiritual energy resources in the portable secret realm will be restored to their original state.

But if he fails to break through to the Integration Realm, he won't even have a place to cry, and may have already turned into a pile of bones.

Su Fan gently patted Zhen Jie and Li Chongxiu on the back, offering them a few words of comfort. After they calmed down, he turned and left the portable secret realm.

He searched through his storage ring for a long time before finally finding a jade box that had lost all its spiritual energy.

Although the jade box has lost its spiritual energy, the material is still quite sturdy.

Su Fan carefully placed the object containing the essence of evil spirits into the jade box, then took the jade box and entered the Yin Gathering Secret Realm, heading straight for the gloomy valley.

The valley remained largely unchanged, still filled with a chilling, yin energy that sent shivers down one's spine.

Su Fan walked to the stone platform in the center of the valley, sat down cross-legged, and glanced at the oil lamp magic weapon burning quietly next to him.

"You brat, hurry up and let me see the jade box. I've lived for so long and I've never seen anything that is the origin of evil spirits..." Old Dragon Li Gao's voice came from the oil lamp with a hint of urgency.

Upon hearing this, Su Fan did not hesitate and handed over the jade box directly.

Lao Long Li Gao immediately manipulated the oil lamp to approach the jade box, and then the thoughts of Xie Fo Lao Wang and others also surged over.

The group huddled together and began to study the object that was the origin of the evil spirit, leaving Su Fan standing aside for a while.

Su Fan didn't mind and asked, "Senior, how do I establish a Star Gate?"

His most pressing concern now is to build the Star Gate as soon as possible.

The Evil Spirit Realm is too eerie; it's strange in every way. Only by having a way out can I feel at ease.

Who knows if those strange beings will suddenly cause some kind of trouble again?

In fact, Su Fan was overthinking things this time. At this moment, those strange beings in the Evil Spirit Realm had long been frightened away and fled far away, and were still trembling in some corner.

Even after a long time, it's estimated that no strange creature would dare to step into this area that has been baptized by the thunder of heaven and earth.

For these sinister and terrifying evil spirit lords, heavenly thunder and lightning are their nemesis; they are truly terrifying.

However, at this moment, both Lao Long Li Gao and Xie Fo Lao Wang were focused on the source of the evil spirit and had no time to pay attention to Su Fan's question, not even giving a single response.

(End of this chapter)