Starting as a prodigy wanting milk? A world-destroying deception in the opposite direction.

Back in her room, Shen Zhen took out two bottles of Nianchen Liquid.

One bottle contained newly acquired Nianchen Liquid, its amber color shimmering faintly in the candlelight;

The other bottle was tampered with by Jin Wanquan; the character "熙" on the bottle had an extra stroke.

But it does him no harm at all; on the contrary, it can trigger the power of despair within him.

He picked up the tampered spirit essence bottle and removed the beeswax seal.

A faint, strangely inviting aura wafted towards me.

Shen Zhen sat down cross-legged and began to circulate the basic mental techniques of the Spirit Suppressor, slowly absorbing the energy from the Mind Dust Liquid into his body.

Unlike ordinary Mind Dust Liquid, this bottle of Mind Dust Liquid has a purer energy and carries a faint hint of violent energy.

But the moment it entered his body, it was firmly absorbed by that dormant, desperate mental force.

At first, it was just a slight ripple, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake.

But as more energy was absorbed, the power of despair suddenly awoke like a sleeping beast and surged wildly within his body!

The gray-black psychic energy flowed along the meridians, and wherever it passed, the original white psychic energy was rapidly purified and became more condensed.

The two kinds of mental energy intertwine and are constantly nourished and strengthened, yet they do not repel each other, as if they were originally one and symbiotic.

Shen Zhen could clearly feel that

The two types of mental power within my body are growing at a visible rate, my meridians are being continuously widened, and the vortex of mental power in my dantian is spinning faster and faster.

This power was too violent, yet strangely, it was now under his control.

He recalled the feeling when Ruanjia Lane merged with the emotions of the Illusionary Desire Demon, and the outburst that led to Jin Wanquan's execution in the canyon.

Now, he has a vague feeling that he is gradually able to control this desperate mental force on his own, no longer passively triggered.

"Buzz—"

A slight rumble came from within his body, and his psychic power broke through a certain critical point.

Shen Zhen could sense that the barrier of the mid-stage first rank was loosening, and an even stronger power was brewing within his body, which could erupt at any moment.

Instead of rushing in, he guided his mental energy to circulate repeatedly within his body, constantly refining and purifying it.

The power of despair became increasingly refined, its original gray-black color revealing a deep luster, and its power far surpassed that of before.

The white psychic power was also constantly evolving, and the two types of psychic power complemented each other, allowing Shen Zhen's overall strength to achieve a qualitative leap in a quiet way.

The surrounding space seemed to tremble slightly due to this powerful psychic energy fluctuation, and there was a faint whistling sound of wind.

Shen Zhen was immersed in this wonderful state.

After an unknown amount of time, Shen Zhen slowly finished her practice, opened her eyes, and a sharp glint flashed in them.

His mental power was several times stronger than before, and he was only one step away from the late stage of the first rank.

With more time to accumulate experience, or when the right opportunity arises, a breakthrough can be achieved smoothly.

He clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within him, and a surge of excitement rose in his heart.

Only by becoming stronger can we cope with the upcoming crisis, protect our sister and father, and avenge our mother and Lu Renjia.

In the following two weeks, the capital city was restored to its former glory.

The damaged houses were repaired one by one, and the broken bricks and tiles in the streets and alleys were swept away.

Shops are gradually reopening, and the streets and markets are becoming more crowded, appearing to have returned to their former prosperity.

But Shen Zhen knew that some things had changed.

The sacrifice of Yun Tianhe, the deaths and injuries of ordinary people, and the attacks by heretics during the natural disasters are like cracks etched into people's hearts.

The temple's prestige suffered an unprecedented blow, and even though the reconstruction work proceeded in an orderly manner, the doubts and grudges in the hearts of the people could not be erased.

In an effort to win back popular support, the temple sends out a large number of purifiers and believers to the streets every day to spread its message.

They were dressed in neat uniforms, holding idols, and shouting as they walked along the street:

"The temple has always upheld the will of the Divine Ancestor, bringing peace and tranquility to everyone. This is a gift from the Divine Ancestor; let us not fail to repay it!"

"The ritual of appeasing the gods calmed their anger and sorrow; it was the temple that protected everyone!"

"Heretical and wicked words mislead the masses; only by believing in the divine ancestors and the temple can one stay away from disaster!"

Propaganda teams can be seen everywhere on the streets and alleys, and the air is filled with the scent of calming incense, as if trying to cover up people's unease.

However, the results were not ideal.

When Shen Zhen went out, he heard people whispering more than once.

At the vegetable market in the south of the city, two middle-aged women were picking out vegetables while whispering to each other:

"That's true, but the heretics were causing such a ruckus that day, didn't they almost break through the temple's defenses?"

"Even Lord Yun Tianhe has sacrificed himself. Can the temple truly protect us?"

"I've heard that some natural disasters are brought about by those appeasement rituals performed at temples," another older woman said, lowering her voice even further.

"I have a niece who lives in a neighboring county. The disaster four years ago only got worse after the temple's protectors came."

In a tavern in the western part of the city, several men were drinking, their voices filled with discontent:

"The temple keeps calling out for the blessings of the gods, but our lives are getting harder and harder."

The imperial taxes are getting heavier and heavier, and natural disasters keep coming one after another. Is this what they call peace and stability?

"Don't say that, or the people from the temple and the government will hear you," someone warned.

"So what if I heard? I'm telling the truth!" the man retorted.

"Last time, my son wanted to get a job at the government office, but he was harassed and told he had to pay a registration fee of ten taels of silver. Isn't that blatant robbery?"

These voices were small, yet they spread among the people like a plague.

People outwardly bowed respectfully to the sorcerers being promoted, but their eyes betrayed suspicion and wariness.

Shen Zhen looked at all this with a heavy heart.

He knew that this natural disaster had greatly diminished the temple's prestige in the hearts of the people, and its originally sacred and inviolable image had been cracked.

This crisis of trust is exactly what heretics want to see.

He told the people that Lord Yun Tianhe's sacrifice would not be in vain, and the temple would do everything in its power to protect everyone.

At the same time, he warned those heretics with ulterior motives who spread rumors not to try to take advantage of the situation, as the temple would severely punish them if caught.

That day, Shen Zhen suddenly saw a group of people gathered in front of a notice board on the street, discussing it animatedly.

He squeezed in and saw a new notice posted on the bulletin board, which read:

"Anyone who reports heresy will be rewarded with a stick of calming incense."

Those who capture heretics will be rewarded with a bottle of Mind-Cleansing Elixir and will be granted entry to the temple to worship the ancestral gods.

"You can get the Spirit Dust Liquid just by capturing heretics?" someone asked in surprise.

"This Nianchen Liquid is a rare item; ordinary people will never see it in their entire lives."

"What if I report the wrong person?" someone worried.

"It says there's a reward for verified reports, how can we let you report things randomly?"

Amid the murmurs, Shen Zhen spotted a woman's figure that seemed somewhat familiar. The woman paused for a moment before turning and hurriedly leaving the crowd.

Without thinking much of it, he turned to look at the notice and a bad feeling arose in his heart.

The temple's bounty might tempt some people to take risks for profit, or even frame innocent people.

This, in turn, will only make the already chaotic situation more complicated.

Just as Shen Zhen was pondering, a member of the Cleansing and Evil Division shouted urgently from the perimeter:

"Captain Shen, Chief Ling has given us an urgent mission."

"Let's go back!" Shen Zhen immediately responded, turning around and heading towards the direction of the Jingxie Division.