Chapter 156 The Realm of Trials (Part 7)

This was the first time Jiang Gu had spent so long separating his primordial spirit from his body. It took him a full five days to completely fuse the two together. To be on the safe side, he specially used a black jade bracelet to cover his primordial spirit, so as not to reveal the aura from the tribulation.

If his previous guess was correct, then the identity of "Jade Rank" was most likely determined through the primordial spirit. Once Yan Yutai confirms that he is Jade Rank, he will be faced with endless troubles.

For the past few days, the man in black robes has been quietly staying in the corner of the room. He has a very low profile, but he makes sure that Jiang Gu never leaves his sight.

Jiang Gu wasn't entirely certain that the other party was Wei Feng—Yan Yutai had many tricks up its sleeve, and even if they had helped him block the lightning tribulation, and there were various signs to corroborate this, he still couldn't completely trust them.

If it wasn't Wei Feng, then it must have been something released by Yanyutai to test and confuse him. Even if the other party really was Wei Feng, his primordial spirit appeared in the tempering spirit realm, and he went to such lengths to get close to him. It's still unknown how much of this was due to Yanyutai's instructions... The tests a few days ago are also hard to take as evidence.

He analyzed the situation with a clear mind, but when he saw the other party's tattered primordial spirit, he couldn't help but feel angry. However, this anger was mixed with an instinctive wariness and calmness, which was completely different from when he was at the auction.

His cultivation level was unpredictable, his purpose was unclear, and he even seemed to have some ulterior motives. He was completely different from Wei Feng, whom he had brought back from the auction house before—a single wrong step in the Boundary Village could lead to utter ruin, and this person made him feel dangerous.

"Awake?" Wei Feng suddenly spoke from the corner.

Jiang Gu deactivated the magic array around him, looked up at him, and asked, "How is the injury to your primordial spirit?"

"Neither good nor bad." Wei Feng propped himself up on his knees and stood up, twisting his stiff neck. "It's been damaged for too long, so it won't take effect so quickly."

"Then come with me to the training pool to retrieve the Sorrowful Fire." Jiang Gu stood up and walked past him.

Wei Feng couldn't figure out what he meant, but he didn't need to. He put on the black robe and followed Jiang Gu out the door. Yin Yang City was not only home to their batch of cultivators who had entered the city for trials, but also to many other batches of cultivators who had reached different realms, making Yin Yang City very lively.

The training pools are also divided according to the different attributes of spiritual roots. Jiang Gu naturally entered the training pool of the metal branch. The pool was filled with wispy smoke. The different pools were clearly marked with their effects, such as healing the primordial spirit, healing external injuries, tempering muscles and bones, widening meridians, and enhancing perception. There were all sorts of effects, and the fees charged were different according to the different effects.

Jiang Gu glanced at the price list on the notice board in the hall and chose the pool for tempering his muscles and bones.

Wei Feng followed behind him, slightly surprised. "Your bones and muscles are incredibly strong; do you still need to temper them?"

Jiang Gu calmly replied, "We don't have enough spirit stones."

"..." Wei Feng choked for a moment, recalling the memories that had distracted him, and touched his nose guiltily. Jiang Gu, who was walking in front, suddenly turned around, his eyes revealing an ambiguous expression.

Wei Feng's hand froze in mid-air, then he casually lowered it. "What's wrong?"

Jiang Gu calmly withdrew his gaze and turned to walk towards the reserved training pool.

Tempering muscles and bones is part of body training, which requires the body to be in contact with the pool water without any obstruction. The magic robes on his body become a constraint. Wei Feng stood by the pool, and the swirling mist drifted past his eyes. There was a set of neat white magic robes on the shore, while Jiang Gu had already submerged in the water, leaning against the stone wall of the training pool, and met his gaze with a cold expression.

Wei Feng tried his best to control his gaze from moving downwards, but his eyes were beyond his control. He had seen Jiang Gu without clothes many times, but most of the time it was his extremely gruesome wounded body. Jiang Gu was already used to rotten flesh and white bones. At that time, Wei Feng was still young, and all he felt was heartache and helplessness. He had no energy left to spare for any other thoughts or evil ideas.

However, the Jiang Gu before him was a rare sight. His face was stunningly handsome, and his physique was also excellent, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. His muscles were neither too thin nor too exaggerated, but perfectly proportioned. His abs were faintly visible underwater. He spread his arms out on the shore, his shoulder and neck lines were smooth and powerful, and the mist condensed into water droplets on his collarbone, which slid into the pool water.

Tick-tock.

Ripples spread out.

Wei Feng swallowed hard, pressing his tongue against his palate, forcing himself to look away from Jiang Gu, even though he had fantasized countless times about leaving mottled red marks on this body, kissing inch by inch from the tip of his nose to his ankles, hearing Jiang Gu panting when aroused, and seeing Jiang Gu lost in lust—but it was all just a fantasy in the end.

Even during their only spiritual connection, Jiang Gu remained calm and composed throughout, taking control of everything without ever losing his composure.

Jiang Gu looked at him with a cold scrutiny. He suppressed the burning desire in his eyes and lowered his eyes to let Jiang Gu examine him.

“The Sorrowful Flame is suppressed at the bottom of the training pool, which connects to all the pools. However, each training pool has a seal set up by the Misty Rain Platform at the bottom, which even a Great Luo Golden Immortal cannot break through.” Wei Feng said in a deep voice, “But I can take you in.”

"Why?" Jiang Gu looked at him through the steam, the pain from the tempering of his muscles and bones making him more awake.

“I have a piece of my primordial spirit suppressed below, providing nourishment for the Sorrowful Fire,” he said casually. “I can easily change form without disturbing the formation.”

"You want me to help you retrieve that piece of primordial spirit?" Jiang Gu narrowed his eyes and said, "Why don't you retrieve it yourself?"

“I don’t have a body, and I can’t attach myself to someone else’s body.” Wei Feng paused. “Besides, I’m not comfortable bringing other people in.”

"You trust me?" Jiang Gu's tone was slightly somber.

"I don't believe you." Wei Feng stiffly turned his head away when he wanted to look at him again. "But I'm useful to you. You can't use the Sorrowful Fire because it contains my primordial spirit. You're ranked too low right now. If you can't get the Sorrowful Fire, you'll be eliminated."

It's just a matter of mutual exploitation.

"Then let's go."

The wide white robe swept through the mist and returned to Jiang Gu's body. The bloodstains that had seeped out after his bones were tempered appeared on the white robe, but were cleansed by spiritual energy.

Wei Feng calmed himself down and leaped into the training pool. He grabbed Jiang Gu's hand precisely in the water and said before the other could shake him off, "Hold on tight and hold your breath."

A cool, damp mist dissipated in the water, enveloping Jiang Gu completely, separated only by a thin layer of spiritual energy shield. As they dived to the bottom of the pool, the surrounding environment grew darker and the air thinner.

“The pool is very deep; it will take about half an hour,” Wei Feng’s voice rang in his ear. “We have already entered the magic array; do not use any spiritual power.”

Jiang Guyi obeyed and withdrew all his spiritual power.

After a moment of silence, the unfamiliar voice rang out again, "Aren't you afraid I'll lie to you?"

“There’s no need.” Jiang Gu’s voice sounded somewhat distorted in the water. “Your primordial spirit is incomplete, and consuming mine will not benefit you at all.”

Wei Feng chuckled: "Perhaps I want to communicate with you on a spiritual level?"

If these words were spoken between two complete strangers, it would be blatant harassment. Even though Jiang Gu vaguely understood Wei Feng's identity, it was still a naked offense.

Even if they had already communicated spiritually once.

Jiang Gu didn't like reminiscing about the past, but the sensory stimulation from the previous spiritual communion was too intense, so much so that he couldn't help but recall it, and his expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

In the water, Wei Feng was in the form of mist. He was resting his chin affectionately on Jiang Gu's shoulder in a position that Jiang Gu couldn't detect. "It seems you've had a spiritual connection with someone before? How was it?"

Jiang Gu's eyes turned slightly cold. Wei Feng changed his position again, hugging him from behind and whispering in his other ear, "I apologize for the offense, but I'm really curious how the other party convinced you."

His tone was somewhat malicious, filled with barely suppressed jealousy and twisted pleasure, "Is it with the owner of that little primordial spirit? You cherish it so much, you probably wouldn't bear to let its owner suffer in this Yin-Yang Tower, it's truly enviable."

"What do you like about him? Do you like his stupidity without realizing it, or his naivety and lack of malice? And his unwavering devotion to you no matter how much suffering he endures?" Wei Feng scoffed. "But people change. Maybe he's just pretending to deceive you, secretly cursing you countless times, wishing he could tear you to pieces... If you knew he was like this, would you still like him?"

There was still endless darkness ahead. Jiang Gu listened to the sound of flowing water, his expression unchanged, but the air pressure around him suddenly dropped.

Despite his meticulous planning, he still made a mistake, not anticipating that Wei Feng would also be distracted.

He sealed the memories of the divided spirit, but not the original body. Clearly, this guy remembered the matter of spiritual communion very clearly and still held a grudge.

Moreover, the personality of this beast in front of me is simply... a complete mess.

“I definitely wouldn’t like him.” Wei Feng seemed to be answering for him, but also talking to himself. “I’d probably feel disgusted even if I just tried to connect with him on a spiritual level.”

“But it doesn’t matter. There are very few things in this world where both parties are willing, and most things don’t go as planned…” He chuckled, and the mist enveloping Jiang Gu transformed into a hazy human figure, climbing up Jiang Gu’s shoulders and neck from behind and affectionately pulling him into his arms. “Naturally, whoever is stronger gets to decide.”

Noticing the disappearance of the spiritual energy barrier between them, Jiang Gu frowned in displeasure. Just as he was about to make a move, Wei Feng, who was perched on his shoulder, laughed and said, "Using spiritual energy will ruin everything. Don't you want the Sorrowful Flame anymore?"

He tilted his head and kissed Jiang Gu's soft earlobe, wrapped one arm around his shoulder, and pointed to a distant fire with the other, saying in a muffled voice, "It's right there."

The soft flesh of his earlobe was bitten and ground by his teeth, and the strange tingling sensation made Jiang Gu's brows furrow tightly. When Wei Feng tried to put his hand inside his shirt, he finally couldn't bear it any longer and grabbed Wei Feng's wrist. "That's enough."

Wei Feng raised an eyebrow in surprise, then hugged him and laughed so hard he trembled. "You really want to ask about the Sorrowful Fire that badly?"

In the past, Jiang Gu would probably have turned against Wei Feng long ago, even at the cost of the divine artifact. The fact that he has endured until now makes Wei Feng wonder if this is a fake Jiang Gu.

He didn't use any internal energy; he was just relying on his strength to fight Jiang Gu and try to break free from his grasp. But Jiang Gu's strength was no less than his, and the sound of the puppet's bones breaking was clearly audible in his ears.

The turbid energy seeped slowly through Jiang Gu's five fingers into Wei Feng's flesh, piercing his already broken primordial spirit. Wei Feng was shocked and hastily protected his connection with his body. If he had been even half a breath later, the turbid energy would have directly seeped into the threads that stitched his primordial spirit together and silently strangled him.

Unable to manipulate the turbid energy with spiritual power, Wei Feng almost fell for his trick, and a hint of annoyance flashed in his eyes.

Jiang Gu turned his head and looked at him calmly, "Go get the fire when you've had enough of this."

Wei Feng stared intently at Jiang Gu's earlobe, which he had bitten until it was red and still bore deep teeth marks. He licked the canine tooth that had bitten Jiang Gu earlier, and instead of retreating, he advanced, letting the turbid energy rage into his primordial spirit. He said in a hoarse voice, "Haven't you had enough of this? It's not like you haven't been strangled before."

He was referring to the time he was "killed" by Jiang Gu in the Spirit Tempering Realm, acting like a reckless and unruly person. "You'd better take out my primordial spirit first, or there's nothing more to talk about."

Jiang Gusheng was amused by his words and suppressed her irritation, asking, "Where is that piece of primordial spirit?"

Wei Feng pulled him towards the flickering light.