Forge your destiny into a sword, slash your soul and ascend to immortality

Chapter 364 The Hell of the Soul, the King of Hell
This Five Saints Secret Realm lies deep within the Sea of ​​All Beings' Minds, buried in the thoughts of countless beings.

Its very existence is inextricably linked to countless thoughts and endless emotions.

As Jing Qian stepped inside, he felt as if he had entered a magical palace where the light of his heart and the power of his will intertwined.

It was as if a film of water surrounded him, reflecting the fragments of thoughts flowing through his mind—so bizarre, so strange, so indescribable.

He followed his heart and walked forward, letting his soul guide him.

The structure of the "Sea of ​​All Beings' Minds" and the "Ruins of Imagination" is extremely similar, but the feeling they evoke is worlds apart.

One leans more towards thoughts and emotions, the other towards thought and imagination, yet they arrive at the same destination by different paths, making them difficult to fathom.

Until he reached the deepest part of this secret realm, he saw a black jade stone tablet with four large characters inscribed on it:
[A Hell of the Soul]!
The fact that this secret place was named "Hell" was truly unexpected for Jing Qian.

He stared intently at the ancient and weathered black jade stele. The four large characters "Hell of the Soul" on it were not engraved, but rather seemed to be formed naturally from countless tiny, twisted, painful and struggling soul imprints.

Just by gazing at them, one can almost hear the silent wails of millions of living beings deep within their hearts.

A heavy, oppressive aura, yet carrying a strange purifying power, emanated from behind the stone tablet.

This is the deepest sediment of the "Sea of ​​All Beings' Minds," the final destination and manifestation of all spiritual garbage and negative emotions of all living beings!

Jing Qian instantly understood that the Five Saints of the Great Abyss had joined forces to create this [Hell of the Soul] not only to lay down their legacy, but more importantly, to absorb and suppress the negative emotions in the entire [Sea of ​​Souls of All Beings].

This is a grand and ingenious system, an important infrastructure for maintaining the balance of the mind.

Imagine if there were no "Hell of the Soul," then the "Sea of ​​Souls" would be gradually eroded by numerous negative emotions, turning the entire sea of ​​souls into a terrifying and vicious place.

Jing Qian carefully sensed the aura of the "Hell of the Soul" and reflected on his own cultivation, and for a time he felt that he had gained a lot.

The power of the totems here is omnipresent, making it the best template for the path of cultivation.

As if sensing his arrival, a beam of spiritual light suddenly flashed on the [Mind Hell] stone tablet, and a figure quietly appeared in front of him.

Jing Qian was not surprised by this, as if it were all within his expectations.

He watched quietly as the light coalesced, eventually transforming into a little girl who was about seven or eight years old.

She was dressed in a simple white dress, barefoot, and hovered in front of the black jade tablet, completely out of place with the oppressive and heavy environment around her.

Her eyes were as clear as the purest crystal, reflecting the glimmer of her heart, yet they seemed to have witnessed all the joys and sorrows of the world, possessing a depth and tranquility that was completely at odds with her age.

The little girl curiously tilted her head to look at Jing Qian, her face showing no fear, but rather a pure smile with a hint of inquiry.

"You came."

Her voice was ethereal and childlike, yet it resonated directly in Jingqian's heart, as if it were an echo of his own thoughts.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, fellow Daoist. May I ask your name?"

Jing Qian responded calmly, already understanding that this little girl was no ordinary person.

In terms of strength alone, the opponent is only at the Transcendent level, which is not surprising in the depths of the Sea of ​​All Beings' Minds.

She may be a special spiritual being nurtured in the long years of the "Hell of the Soul," a guide left behind by the Five Saints, or perhaps the embodiment of pure and clean "goodness" born after the endless negative emotions have been purified to the extreme.

In any case, her presence here is bound to be closely related to his upcoming experience.

"You can call me [Spirit]."

“There is a lot of ‘suffering’ here.”

The little girl raised her hand and pointed to the surging darkness behind the stone tablet, her tone as calm as if stating a fact.

"They are noisy and heavy."

"I know."

Jing Qian nodded.

He had already experienced this firsthand; the closer he got to the stone tablet, the more terrifying the aura became.

“You are the fourth person to come here. The previous three people, although they also put in a lot of effort, did not make things easy for me for long.”

"But you are different."

The little girl's gaze seemed to penetrate Jing Qian's outward appearance, reaching his newly reshaped, solidified, and pure core essence.

"In your heart, there is light, a very bright light. And... something very sharp, and another hellish prison."

What she said corresponded precisely to the triangular cycle foundation within Jing Qian's body, composed of Pangu's blood, the Zhuxian Sword, and the Sumeru Realm.

"Could you help me make this place a little quieter?"

The little girl blinked and made a request that seemed simple but got to the heart of the matter.

This may be the true test of inheritance set up by the Five Saints, to purify and soothe the dark side of the entire "Sea of ​​Souls".

Jing Qian looked at the pure spirit before him, then at the endless filth of his thoughts, and slowly nodded. "I'll give it a try."

He didn't even make any demands or offer any reward; instead, he simply agreed to the other party's request.

This was not an impulsive decision, but a choice made from the heart after understanding the true meaning of this place.

Purifying evil thoughts is not only helping others, but also self-improvement, and a responsibility to the Five Saints.

Upon hearing this, the little girl named Xingling's innocent smile became even brighter.

With a gentle wave of her hand, the black jade stele seemed to become transparent. Behind it, the surging, viscous darkness, like a flood bursting its banks, carrying a million times the sharpest hissing and heavy resentment, began to churn wildly!
A staircase made of black jade quietly appeared from among these evil thoughts, pointing directly into the depths of those endless evil thoughts.

[Spirit] spoke:
"Step onto these steps and walk to the end."

"With each step, you will hear the 'bitterness' more clearly and get closer to the 'source'."

"When you truly confront this 'suffering,' you will know how to calm it down."

Her voice remained ethereal, but the meaning behind her words carried immense weight.

This black jade staircase is clearly not a physical entity, but rather a manifestation of extremely condensed negative thoughts and the Five Sacred Laws. It is a trial path that leads directly to the core of the [Mind Hell].

Jing Qian looked at the staircase that rose from surging evil thoughts. It wound its way up and disappeared into the endless darkness. Each step seemed to be forged from solidified sorrow, twisted resentment, or frozen despair.

Just gazing at it is enough to make one's soul flutter!
Without the slightest hesitation, he nodded slightly to [Spiritual Essence] and then stepped onto the first step.

"boom!"

It was as if he had stepped on a bubble made up of countless nightmares.

A more specific and sharper pain instantly enveloped him.

He felt as if he had personally experienced a series of tragic separations and deaths, felt the heart-wrenching pain of being betrayed by his loved ones, and tasted the ultimate despair of shattered ideals and collapsed beliefs...

These were no longer a vague torrent of emotions, but transformed into crystal-clear "memories" and "experiences," which frantically assaulted his mind.

Above the first step, boundless evil thoughts gather, giving rise to the pain of separation!
This is the ultimate bitterness born from all forms of "separation" experienced by countless beings throughout history.

There is the heart-wrenching longing of lovers separated by vast distances, the agonizing loss of loved ones through death, the sorrow of parting ways with dearest friends, the loneliness of wandering far from home, and even the eternal farewell to cherished memories and dreams…

These vast and refined sentiments of "separation" are like billions of invisible ice needles, piercing through Jing Qian's body and striking the core of his soul.

Countless shattered images, mournful cries, and desperate pleas to stay played out wildly in his mind.

It was as if he had experienced countless partings and deaths in the same moment; the accumulated sorrow and emptiness were enough to turn even the hardest heart to dust.

Jing Qian swayed violently on the steps, his face turning as pale as paper.

He kept his eyes tightly shut, his brows furrowed, and his jaw clenched, enduring this torture that originated from the depths of his soul.

He could feel his mind being pulled by this immense "suffering," as if he were about to sink into it, lamenting with this endless separation.

However, just as his consciousness was about to be overwhelmed, the newly constructed power system within him emitted a deafening roar.

The most crucial change occurred within the [Sumeru] dimension he governed.

This nascent inner universe, faced with the overwhelming pain of separation, did not resist it, but instead rose to the challenge and began to actively absorb this suffering.

But this one breath had a profound effect; the pain of parting instantly came back to life!
It seemed to have been greatly offended, and instantly began to twist and coalesce.

In the blink of an eye, a colossal and ever-changing terrifying being appeared before Jing Qian.

The pain of parting transformed into a "giant demon"!
Then, following Jing Qian's magical power, the giant demon plunged into the [Sumeru] dimension.

Its sole purpose is to cleanse the entire [Sumeru] dimension with endless malice, dragging it into an endless abyss of separation.

At the critical moment, a fierce glint flashed in Jing Qian's eyes.

"You dare to be so presumptuous in my world!"

His mind was in perfect harmony with his inner universe, and the three fundamental forces were mobilized with unprecedented intensity.

In an instant, a powerful sword light slashed out from his sea of ​​consciousness, heading straight for the [Parting Pain], completely enveloping it.

In an instant, sword light and roars flew together, frantically disrupting the normal existence of the [Sumeru] dimension.

Jing Qian was incredibly experienced in battle. This "bitterness of parting" before him, though a terrifying demon born from the "sea of ​​all beings' hearts," was ultimately nothing more than a phantom at the level of the "other shore."

He has a very high chance of winning against this giant demon!

However, this great demon was formed from endless evil thoughts. Even if he broke its form, these evil thoughts could not be completely eliminated, or at least most of them could not be cleared away. In that case, Jing Qian could not be considered to have won.

The key to this battle is figuring out how to dispel negative emotions!

(End of this chapter)