Cultivation: Beginning with the Heart Reflecting Heaven and Earth

This time, the black mist completely ignored Lu Qian. It seemed to realize that things were hopeless, or perhaps that there wasn't enough time left. It self-destructed, turning into wisps of fine threads that quickly seeped into Lu Qian and Mu Xue's mouths and noses.

This wasn't possession, but a complete integration. It could be said that it was somewhat beneficial to Lu Qian and Mu Xue's cultivation, so it encountered no resistance and directly entered their bodies.

Before Lu Qian could retract his mental world, a wave of hunger surged from his heart aperture. The two combined instantly devoured the strands of divine thought that had burrowed into his body. His mind became clear, his mental world became much more agile, and the thoughts within his mental world became clearer. He even felt his true energy stirring within his body, as if he was about to break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining!

"This demonic witch from the Demonic Sect, how could she be so kind?"

He was initially puzzled, but then he sensed something was wrong. Most of the divine thought threads formed from the black energy had merged into Mu Xue's body, and these divine thought threads could carry memories. Who knew if this would have an impact on Mu Xue?

Lu Qian possesses both the Mind World and the Mind Aperture, and with their combined power, he can completely digest those strands of divine thought. However, Mu Xue is different; she has no means to resist the strands of divine thought, at least not on her own.

If I had to say something, it would probably be that Mu Xue's special physique could play a role, but I've never heard Mu Xue mention these things before. Can it really play the role it should?

Lu Qian was somewhat annoyed. The Heart Demon Seed exploded too quickly, and he had no time to intercept those strands of divine sense. He could only say that the Heart Demon Sect's methods were too strange and unpredictable, making them impossible to guard against. Moreover, his cultivation level was too low. He was only able to survive because Mu Xue forcibly activated that spiritual artifact, and that spiritual artifact was now damaged!

Just then, Mu Xue suddenly made a soft sound, her eyelids twitched, and she slowly woke up. Seeing Lu Qian, she smiled brightly, "Brother Lu, it's so good to see you're alright!"

Previously, Mu Xue's body was almost collapsing and she looked like she was about to die. It wasn't until the demonic sect witch used her divine sense to help stabilize her body that she didn't completely collapse. Later, she even transformed into a thread of divine sense and merged into Mu Xue's body. Now, Mu Xue seems to be fine.

It's true that Mu Xue's terrible condition was caused by the other party, but if the other party hadn't coveted Mu Xue's special physique and wanted to possess her, it's uncertain whether Mu Xue would have survived.

Therefore, it's a bit too late to complain about the previous situation now. At least Mu Xue can still wake up, which is the most important thing.

Lu Qian calmly wiped away the dried blood from Mu Xue's face and said softly, "Don't take that risk again next time!"

Mu Xue nodded gracefully. Perhaps due to the previous life-or-death crisis, or perhaps other factors, she had matured and said calmly, "That's right, we really can't take that risk next time!"

In Lu Qian's eyes, it seemed as if another face overlapped with Mu Xue's, then quickly disappeared, returning to Mu Xue's face. Everything before seemed like an illusion. He stood up as if oblivious. "Just remember this lesson! And... what happened before, you and I know, don't tell anyone!"

Mu Xue touched her forehead with her hand, slowly stood up, and gave a bright smile. "Of course! I wouldn't tell anyone!"

Lu Qian nodded. "That's good!"

After he finished speaking, he fell silent, like a piece of wood.

Mu Xue waited for a while, and seeing that Lu Qian still didn't speak, she finally asked, "Aren't you curious about what happened to me?"

Lu Qian shook his head with a smile, "Of course I'm curious, but if you don't want to say, then I won't!"

Mu Xue hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Her name is You Huan, and she is a candidate for Holy Maiden of the Heart Demon Sect! Moreover, she has a special physique, a dual-soul body, which allows her to have two souls in one body. When she is cultivating her Qi, she can have a clone. She is also exceptionally gifted in controlling puppets and cultivating divine sense, which is somewhat similar to my Thousand Silk Puppet Body, but she focuses more on herself."

"What died earlier was just her clone! Her main body is still alive, albeit severely injured. She can cultivate her clone back later... She probably won't let this go easily; she'll find us again!"

Lu Qian had already suspected something, and hearing Mu Xue's words only confirmed his suspicions. "Don't worry! I will avenge you! No matter how many clones she has, I will make sure she never leaves alive!"

Despite Lu Qian's confident assertions, Mu Xue chuckled. "She's a candidate for Holy Maiden of the Heart Demon Sect, about to reach Foundation Establishment, and will soon hold the title of Holy Maiden. You're not even one of the Ten Talents of the Vast Ocean, how can you expect her to never return?"

Lu Qian knew that with his talent, it was hard to believe that he could make the Holy Maiden of the Heart Demon Sect die. Perhaps Luo Wei, ranked first among the Ten Talents of the Azure Sea, could say that, but he didn't have that qualification now. He could only say, "Whether you believe it or not, one day I will be able to do it!"

"Yes, I believe you can do it!"

Seeing Lu Qian's serious expression, Mu Xue stopped smiling. Whether she truly believed it or not, only she knew. She then looked worried. "Youhuan is already a dual-soul body; she wants to refine my Thousand-Thread Puppet Body into an avatar as well!"

"By then, she will essentially possess two special constitutions, both perfectly suited for cultivating the Heart Demon Manual. After that, her progress in cultivating the Heart Demon Manual will be phenomenal! Therefore, whether it's for revenge or because she covets my special constitution, she probably won't give up easily!"

Lu Qian suddenly realized something: "Since she benefits so much from targeting you, wouldn't it also be beneficial if you turned the tables on her?"

Mu Xue nodded immediately, her eyes sparkling. "Of course! A part of her soul has merged with mine. She and I are essentially two sides of the same coin. As long as I am here, her dual soul body will never be complete! Conversely, I have also glimpsed the contents of the Heart Demon Manual from her soul fragment, and I can cultivate it as well."

"As long as I turn her into a puppet, my cultivation will still advance greatly!"

Lu Qian remained silent for a while. He wanted to ask Mu Xue if she was really preparing to cultivate the Heart Demon Secret Manual.

If this is discovered, being expelled from the Holy Land would be the least of their worries; Mu Xue's family, including Mu Dong, will definitely be affected as well.

But considering that Mu Xue had become like this to save him, Lu Qian could only subtly remind her, "Have you ever considered that she did this intentionally? At that time, she already had no chance to successfully possess you. She could have simply self-destructed and then cultivated her clone, which would have eliminated any future problems. So why did she do it this way?"

Mu Xue let out a long breath, took a few steps toward Lu Qian, getting closer and closer, still not stopping, her eyes fixed on him.

Lu Qian had no choice but to retreat, but Mu Xue continued to advance, eventually forcing Lu Qian against the wall. He could only ask, with a wry smile, "What does this mean?"

Mu Xue raised her head, her gaze colder than ever before, as if the will of heaven above was looking down upon the mortal world. Without a trace of emotion, she said, "This is the Dao! For every step you take, the Dao retreats! But your lifespan is finite, while the Dao is eternal. What's a little price to pay for achieving immortality and attaining the Dao? If you cannot attain the Dao, you will only live a mediocre life, adding nothing but sorrow!"

"Now that we have this opportunity, both she and I are grateful for it! The only way forward is through struggle, with no turning back!"

The only true path is through contention!

We must fight for it!

We will create the conditions, even the dangers, to fight for it!