Chapter 561: Hell (I)
Lin Zheyu felt a throbbing ache in his head as he muttered, "I can't do this anymore. I need to rest a bit. The Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture is too brutal. Next time, I'll only use 2 units of Origin Force at once, and 10 units per day at most."
Even now, his spirit still felt dazed. There had been moments when he truly thought he had died, as though his spirit had fallen directly into the legendary Hell. That deathly silence, that terror, that eerie and horrifying sensation that chilled him to the bone... Lin Zheyu still remembered it vividly.
"Was that really just an illusion?" Lin Zheyu murmured softly.
It had felt far too real, so real that Lin Zheyu could not help but wonder whether it truly had been only an illusion. The Netherworld Cold Spring, used to cultivate the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture, was said to originate from a spring connected to hell itself.
Lin Zheyu could not help but suspect that, under the influence of the Netherworld Cold Spring, his spirit might truly have touched the legendary hell.
Lin Zheyu shook his head, trying to clear the lingering haze in his mind. "Whether it was real or not, I never want to experience that feeling again."
It had been a very long time since he experienced pain like this, pain akin to complete spiritual exhaustion. Yet what Lin Zheyu suffered now was not actual depletion of spirit, but sheer mental fatigue taken far beyond its limits. The feeling was no easier to bear than true spiritual exhaustion.
Enduring the pounding discomfort in his head, Lin Zheyu burst out of the violent energy lake and vanished into the dark void. Sitting cross-legged in midair, he began circulating the Spirit Martial Universe Secret Art—Advanced to restore his spiritual state.
Black winds howled past, carrying the violent power of rules and energy as they swept toward Lin Zheyu. Yet he remained completely unmoved, not even bothering to set up a protective formation. Using such things would only waste spirit stones. His powerful physique was far more reliable.
The violent power of rules and energy swept over Lin Zheyu alongside the black winds. Golden blood qi surged within his body, instantly devouring the invasive energies. Any injuries caused by the violent forces recovered in an instant beneath his terrifying vitality.
The current Lin Zheyu was no longer what he once had been. After cultivating the Heavenly Pivot Nine Refinements Nine Tribulations Art to Perfection, his physique had reached an unbelievable level.
Not only was his vitality frighteningly abundant, but even the blood qi energy within him had also become vast beyond measure. If it were the energy lake below, he would still retain a trace of caution. But as for the violent rule energy raging throughout the void, he no longer regarded it as a threat.
No matter how fiercely the winds raged from every direction, he remained unmoved. Even if he simply allowed the violent rule energy to wear him down, Lin Zheyu could still endure for four or five days with ease. At that point, a single unit of Origin Force would restore him to peak condition.
Time passed slowly. A day later, Lin Zheyu slowly opened his eyes. The bloodshot veins in them had faded, his gaze had become much clearer, and the pain in his mind had vanished. The deathly hallucinations lingering over his psyche were finally gone, though a faint psychological shadow still remained.
Lin Zheyu let out a long sigh and could not help but marvel. "What a bizarre technique. The senior who created it was truly a genius."
Only after beginning its cultivation could one truly understand the terrifying power of the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture. This technique was the very embodiment of life born from death. Every cultivation session was like dying once. The visions of hell that accompanied it felt so real that it was as if one had truly died. If one could not break free from those deathly hallucinations, they would never awaken again.
Lin Zheyu had modified certain parts of the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture, omitting several unnecessary safeguards. He skipped various protective medicinal pills, dharma artifacts, and formations because those things consumed too many spirit stones. Following his principle of saving whenever possible, he simply cut them out. The result was that he nearly shattered his own spirit.
Within the consciousness space, Lin Zheyu could not truly die. No matter how he cultivated, he would not, in theory, perish. Once inside, he also could not stop on his own and could only endure until the Origin Force energy was completely exhausted.
Lin Zheyu had used 10 units of Origin Force in one go, repeatedly experiencing death without any way to stop, forced to endure it passively. That feeling was truly impossible to describe to outsiders.
After resting for a full day and cultivating the Spirit Martial Universe Secret Art the entire time, Lin Zheyu finally recovered somewhat. Only then did he have the energy and mood to examine his current condition.
[Heaven Rewards the Diligent]
[Name: Lin Zheyu]
[Origin Force: 466]
[Skills: Earth Shrinking Technique (Perfection), Primordial Concealment Technique (Perfection), Seven Absolute Sabers (Fifth Stage: 3%), Primordial Golden Body (Second Stage: 100%), Spirit Martial Universe Secret Art—Advanced (Perfection), Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture (First Stage: 33%)]
Lin Zheyu looked at the data in his consciousness and thought to himself, 10 units of Origin Force brought the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture to 33% of the first stage. This speed is still acceptable.
Yesterday, he used 3 units of Origin Force to cultivate the Heavenly Pivot Nine Refinements Nine Tribulations Art to Perfection of the third stage. Right after that, he began cultivating the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture, which nearly ended with his spirit collapsing entirely.
Lin Zheyu looked at the three shackles winding through his body and thought inwardly, As expected of the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture. I've only just started cultivating it, yet not only has the second shackle completely turned gold, but a third shackle has also formed. Could it be that by the end, all seven shackles will appear?
Even after cultivating the Heavenly Pivot Nine Refinements Nine Tribulations Art to Perfection of the third stage, the second shackle had still not completely transformed into the same thick golden form as the first. Yet after only beginning the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture, not only had the second shackle fully evolved into its golden state, but even a third shackle had appeared.
Lin Zheyu carefully examined his condition, shock filling his eyes. No wonder the changes were so drastic. Even before reaching Perfection of the first stage in the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture, he could already feel the vitality within his body reaching astonishing levels. The increase was nearly equivalent to fully cultivating the first stage of the Heavenly Pivot Nine Refinements Nine Tribulations Art. Yet the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture had only progressed by around 30%.
"Such astonishing improvement truly lives up to the name Nirvana. Experiencing near-death during cultivation was worth it after all," Lin Zheyu said with a smile.
The increase in strength diluted the lingering shadow of death in his heart. After witnessing the terrifying effects of the Yellow Springs Nirvana Scripture, Lin Zheyu felt he could afford to die a few more times. Just not right now.
"Ahem, the path of cultivation requires balance. Work and rest must complement each other. Tension and relaxation should alternate in moderation. I need to stay disciplined in idle times and calm in busy times. That is self-control, cultivation, and wisdom. I used enough Origin Force yesterday, so it's time to head out and catch a few yaos for fun," Lin Zheyu muttered.
The demonic qi around him began surging over. Golden runes emerged across his body, flickered a few times, and rapidly transformed into purple-black runes. A faint purple-black energy spread, covering Lin Zheyu's entire body.
With a muffled sound, a pair of purple-black wings unfurled behind him. With a gentle flap, Lin Zheyu shot toward the node's rift leading to the demon realm. These wings were genuinely useful. In this violent and chaotic void, the Earth Shrinking Technique was nearly impossible to use, making the wings his substitute for travel.
After only a few flaps of his wings, he arrived near the node rift. The moment he passed through, deafening roars exploded in his ears. Because Lin Zheyu had repeatedly transformed back into human form here, exposing the aura of a living being, many powerful yaos had gathered nearby. Fortunately, most were only at the five-pattern level. With Lin Zheyu's current strength, he no longer needed to act as cautiously as before.
The moment he entered the demon realm, Lin Zheyu violently flapped his wings and shot into the distance at astonishing speed, instantly leaving the surrounding yaos far behind. These yaos held little research value, and he had no intention of wasting energy killing them. Besides, slaughtering too many might attract the attention of stronger nearby yaos.
If that attracted six-pattern Golden Core realm yaos or even seven-pattern Nascent Soul realm yaos, things would become troublesome. Lin Zheyu had yet to fully study the demonic patterns of those yaos living within the purple-red magma. He was reluctant to leave this place behind.
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