56. The Sea of Hatred (Part Four)
◎A small flower? A small blade of grass. ◎
The night was as dark as ink.
Lou Tinglan leaned against the couch, the dull pain in his chest still throbbing. Although Qian Zhong's palm strike had not fundamentally damaged him, it had still caused his spiritual energy to stagnate and his breathing to become labored.
Only a single lamp remained in the room, its flickering flame casting swaying shadows on the wall, reflecting on his slightly pale profile, his brows furrowed with a lingering weariness and aloofness.
In the stillness of the night, a very faint noise suddenly came from the window.
"Knock knock knock—"
The voice was very soft, with a hint of hesitation, as if afraid of disturbing others, or as if testing whether he was asleep.
Lou Tinglan's gaze narrowed slightly. Who could it be at this moment?
He suppressed the itch in his throat, struggled to sit up, and walked unsteadily to the window, gently opening the inner room's window.
A cool night breeze swept in, causing the lamp on the desk to flicker. But outside the window, all was empty; not a soul was in sight.
He suspected it was a hallucination caused by his severe injuries and was about to close the window when his gaze suddenly froze. Four slender, white fingers were gripping the window frame. In the dark night, they looked particularly eerie.
His voice was slightly hoarse due to his injuries, but it carried a hint of determination: "Ran Qinghe."
After a brief silence, a head slowly rose from under the window, revealing half a face; it was Ran Qinghe.
She lowered her eyes, not daring to meet his gaze, but her hands gripped the window frame tightly, her fingertips turning white from the force.
Her voice carried obvious unease: "Senior Brother Lou, it's me, Xiao Hua."
Lou Tinglan: ...
Although he didn't know why Ran Qinghe suddenly started making such a joke, he still responded, "Yes, Junior Sister Ran, I am... Xiaocao."
"So, what brings you here tonight?"
"Ran Qinghe" sensed the joking tone in his words and said anxiously, "I really am Xiaohua. Hehe hasn't woken up in the Tower Prison, so I had no choice but to control her body to find you."
Lou Tinglan's expression hardened, and her aura turned colder: "What do you mean by controlling her body? Who are you?"
The doubts he had about her strange behavior quickly turned into vigilance, and he activated the finger binding technique.
Little Flower couldn't explain herself: "I'm Little Flower, didn't I already tell you?" She knew that this cultivator was an unreasonable, heartless, and treacherous person, and she shouldn't have come looking for him.
Hehe risked everything for him, yet he still questioned her about it.
It rolled its eyes, suppressing a sense of grievance and annoyance, and turned to leave.
However, the next second, this "treacherous" person suddenly grabbed her wrist with such force that it was irresistible, and dragged her into the inner room.
"Get out of her body." Lou Tinglan's expression grew colder, and her tone left no room for argument.
Xiao Hua hesitated for a moment. Although she had a very bad impression of Lou Tinglan, her desire to save Ran Qinghe ultimately prevailed.
Ran Qinghe's body trembled slightly, the light in her eyes quickly dimmed, and she fell forward limply like a puppet with its strings cut.
Lou Tinglan rushed forward and helped her up. The skin he touched was cool and soft. He froze for a moment, quickly suppressing his reaction, and carefully laid her flat on his bed. Almost simultaneously, a wisp of extremely faint black energy emanated from her forehead and obediently floated to the side.
"Are you a vengeful spirit?"
Lou Tinglan initially found it unbelievable, but then, recalling Ran Qinghe's previous unusual behavior, she understood.
He stood by the bed, looking down at Ran Qinghe's pale face. Her eyelashes were tightly closed, and her breathing was very weak.
He immediately circulated his spiritual power to draw out the resentment that was blocked in her dantian and meridians. At the same time, he realized that it was no wonder she was able to pass through the Tower Prison's restrictions silently before; she must have used the same method.
The fact that most of the resentment had been drained from the vengeful spirit was undoubtedly the work of Ran Qinghe. A dull pain shot through his chest, and he turned his head to the side, coughing a few times in a suppressed manner, a trickle of bright red blood seeping through his fingers.
He wiped away the bloodstains expressionlessly, his heart filled with a mixture of panic and anger.
Such immense resentment overflowed from her dantian and meridians, almost bursting through her sea of consciousness. He dared not imagine what would have happened to her if a vengeful spirit hadn't taken her away from the tower prison.
Is it just for him?
...It's not worth it.
Ran Qinghe on the bed was lifeless. Her once lively eyes, which always stared at him, were now tightly closed, and her lips were ashen, as if she would disappear at any moment.
We can't delay any longer.
Without hesitation, he placed the little flower into the Soul Jade to nurture it temporarily, and immediately activated the contract imprint on his spiritual platform.
In a short while, the spiritual energy in the inner room surged almost imperceptibly, and a figure quietly appeared.
The newcomer was dressed in the wide-sleeved Taoist robe with cloud patterns, the style of the White Void Sect's leader. He had a refined and elegant appearance and an otherworldly demeanor.
His gaze briefly swept over Ran Qinghe on the bed, then fell on Lou Tinglan's deathly pale face, his brows furrowing.
"Your breathing is disordered, your injuries are not yet healed, and you are forcibly activating your spiritual power..." He sighed helplessly at the end.
This person was none other than Yun Xiu, the head of the Bai Xu Sect. Lou Tinglan met him during a mission in the Discipline Hall.
At that time, a disciple of Baixu was practicing medicine when he happened to encounter a severely injured disciple of Qingxiao. The Baixu disciple kindly treated him, but after returning home, the Qingxiao disciple claimed that his injuries had not yet healed and went to Baixu to demand an explanation. Yunxiu then beat him back into serious injury and issued an order that no Baixu disciple may treat anyone except by invitation.
However, this sect rule was too extreme and was suspected of being a death sentence, so it earned the sect the infamous nickname of "White Impermanence".
Lou Tinglan was ordered to mediate, and the sect rules were eventually changed to require all cultivators to make a vow before accepting treatment from the Bai Xu Sect.
In this way, Bai Xuzong gained a reputation for saving lives and healing the wounded, and also avoided future disputes.
In return, Yunxiu placed a contract mark on Lou Tinglan's spiritual altar and promised to activate the mark to summon him for one free treatment.
Previously, when Lou Tinglan entered the tower, he was repeatedly tainted by resentment. When the resentment became too strong to be exorcised, he had no choice but to activate this mark.
This is the second time.
Lou Tinglan straightened up. Although his spiritual energy was nearly exhausted, he still kept his back straight and skipped unnecessary pleasantries. "I would be grateful if you could help me, senior. I will do my best to fulfill any request you may make."
Yunxiu's gaze returned to Ran Qinghe, and with a flick of her finger, a wisp of pure spiritual consciousness probed into her sea of consciousness.
After a moment, he withdrew his hand and shook his head: "The resentment has invaded the dantian and is also attacking the sea of consciousness through the meridians. At best, it will greatly weaken spiritual power, and at worst, it will endanger one's life."
"Moreover, if it were just ordinary resentment, it wouldn't be so bad, but the resentment in her body doesn't come from a single vengeful spirit. The resentment is so complex that it might be difficult to deal with."
Lou Tinglan's heart sank, and she realized his unspoken meaning: "So, senior has a way, right?" Yunxiu had previously exorcised his resentment, and the two resentments were originally from the same source.
Yunxiu looked at him, a glint of light flashing in her eyes, her tone calm and even: "There is a way. Just use your abundant spiritual power to force out all the resentment in your dantian."
He changed the subject, his gaze scrutinizing Lou Tinglan, "However, using this technique is extremely taxing. Tinglan, you should know that I treated you before to repay a debt of gratitude."
Lou Tinglan met his gaze, her pale eyes showing no hesitation: "Conditions."
Yunxiu slowly spoke, "The resentment within her is extraordinary. To save her, you will need at least... a level of spiritual power."
For ordinary cultivators, if they were to give up the spiritual power of an entire realm, the drastic drop in their cultivation level would be a minor issue. More importantly, it could damage their foundation, and whether they could recover in the future would be uncertain. Such a thing would almost be self-destructive.
Lou Tinglan also understood that the spiritual power at this level was only as payment for the treatment.
"good."
Lou Tinglan uttered a single word, without any hesitation.
A faint hint of surprise flashed in Yunxiu's eyes, but she quickly regained her composure, as if she had expected it.
He nodded slightly. "In that case, you will protect me while I perform my magic here. After it is done, you must give me a portion of your spiritual energy."
Lou Tinglan said no more, sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of the couch. Pure and powerful spiritual energy overflowed from his body, but was restrained by an invisible force. Under Yunxiu's guidance, it transformed into a warm yet powerful current, slowly flowing into Ran Qinghe's cold body.
As his spiritual energy dissipated, Lou Tinglan's face turned ashen at a visible speed, and his aura rapidly weakened. Meanwhile, Ran Qinghe on the bed gradually regained a faint hue on her pale cheeks, and her weak breathing seemed to have calmed down a little.
With the last bit of spiritual energy injected, Lou Tinglan uncontrollably spat out a mouthful of blood, staining her clothes red. Yun Xiu calmly watched all this, her expression unreadable.
“I really can’t bear to see you like this. How about I come back to you another day to get the spiritual power of this realm?”
Lou Tinglan replied, "Since I have promised you, there is no reason for me to delay any longer."
He made a hand seal, and excruciating pain instantly swept through his limbs and bones. His meridians felt as if they were being torn apart inch by inch, veins bulged on his forehead, and cold sweat poured down his face. But he gritted his teeth and did not make a sound.
*
After an unknown amount of time, Ran Qinghe's eyelashes trembled, and she finally broke free from the chaotic darkness.
The moment consciousness returned, the excruciating pain in his internal organs vanished, replaced by a weak emptiness and a lingering, clear, and familiar spiritual aura around him.
She slowly opened her eyes, her blurry vision gradually focusing. She turned her head and immediately saw Lou Tinglan sitting cross-legged by the couch.
His always impeccably tailored shirt was stained with a large, glaring dark red bloodstain. Ran Qinghe struggled to sit up, her voice dry and hoarse: "What happened to you...?"
Lou Tinglan coughed softly, her shoulders trembling slightly, her voice extremely cold: "It's nothing."
"Now that you're awake, you should leave."
He seemed unwilling to explain the cause and effect, as if afraid of dragging her into it again.
Ran Qinghe's gaze remained fixed on him. "Senior Brother Lou... don't you want to know who that vengeful spirit of the Tower Prison was in its previous life?"
Before losing consciousness, she heard the vengeful spirit whispering.
She repeated each word carefully: "Zhong Qi, Gongsun Yuan, Sang Yuanyue, Jiang Bairong..." and...
"Qianxue".
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