Then, the flowers began to collapse into pieces. In the space of a single breath, the pieces transformed into gray ashes. Immediately, blood sprayed from Xu Bai’s mouth, and his body sagged. Next to him, Chen Mo trembled and coughed up blood. The two of them immediately stopped in their tracks, their faces filled with both viciousness and astonishment.
Zhixiang wasn’t finished. Her phoenix-like eyes glittered as the two men stopped in place. She lifted her right hand and pointed toward them. Immediately, both Xu Bai and Chen Mo coughed up blood. Looking even more flabbergasted, they began to retreat.
They had realized that even as she had raised her hand, they had already been injured. It was as if they had fallen into a bizarre reality with a new set of rules.
“Injure first, attack second?”
“Everything’s been turned around. It’s a divine ability that bends the rules of reality? That’s a Spirit Severing technique!” Their faces immediately filled with shock, and their minds spun. Without hesitation, they fled at top speed.
Zhixiang lowered her hand and watched indifferently as the two left. Then she turned and shot back toward Meng Hao.
With his Spiritual Sense, Meng Hao could detect some of the things that had just happened. However, he did not stop moving, and kept his Immortality Bridgestone held tightly in hand, ready to crush it at any moment.
“That was my show of good faith,” said Zhixiang. “They won’t be able to heal their wounds in a short period of time, and surely won’t have the gall to continue to pursue further.
“Meng Hao, this time, I sincerely wish to cooperate you. Last time, I truly made some mistakes. This time… why don’t we truly work together in the spirit of cooperation?
“You don’t need to respond, nor tell me your decision. In the easternmost region of this land mass is a mountain crag that juts out. I will wait for you there for one month. If you come, then we can work together, and you can acquire a lot more Celestial soil. If you don’t wish to come, then I won’t force the matter.” Zhixiang didn’t pursue him. Having finished her transmission, she stopped and watched Meng Hao shoot off into the distance. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking. After a long moment passed, she turned and headed toward the east.
Meng Hao frowned. He was having a hard time analyzing Demoness Zhixiang’s words and actions. She was just too changeable. One minute they were fighting each other, the next she was acting like this.
Although he was hesitating, he didn’t reduce his speed at all. He proceeded onward for eight days, until he was absolutely certain that no one was pursuing him. It was only then that he stopped to rest.
Three more days passed, and then he proceeded onward. Six days later, he stopped again. By this point, he was about eighty percent certain that Zhixiang was in fact not following him.
“Could it be that she really changed her mind?” he thought with a cold laugh. He was currently sitting cross-legged in an Immortal’s cave that he had carved out. As far as leaving the Realm of the Bridge Ruins, he really wasn’t willing to do so. Eyes glittering thoughtfully, he produced some Celestial soil and sent his consciousness into it, slowly attempting to gain enlightenment.
He used the same method he had used to study the fire. He closed his eyes, and the structure of the Celestial soil appeared in his mind. When the structure was complete, he would be able to use the Earth-type totem seed given to him by the Crow Divinity Tribes to fully congeal his Earth-type totem tattoo. That was the method he planned to use.
Time passed. During the following ten days, everything around Meng Hao was quiet and peaceful. No one disturbed him. On the outside, many of the other Western Desert Cultivators had already left this place.
Finally, Meng Hao opened his eyes, and they shone with a bright light. In his mind, he had already completely outlined the basic structure of what could be referred to as a grit formed from Celestial soil.
“Not bad….” he thought, taking in a deep breath. From within his bag of holding, he produced the weak Earth-type totem seed that he had acquired from the Crow Divinity Tribes. It was flickering, and about to fade away; he had been carefully protecting it this entire time. Clenching his teeth, he branded it onto his right arm.
The instant the Earth-type totem seed was branded onto his arm, Meng Hao’s will caused the Celestial soil grit in his mind to merge with the five Crow Divinity Tribes’ Earth-type totem seed.