sinovels Chapter 210 - 164: Mighty Heiye
Chapter 210 - 164: Mighty Heiye
’Heiye is here... but isn’t it a black panther? Why did it say "meow"?’
Fang Qingyuan followed the sound and looked up to see an elegant big cat sprawled atop one of the house’s rafters. It was pitch-black, and its eyes shone with a bewitching, uncanny light.
Fang Qingyuan was overjoyed. No longer bothering to puzzle over whether Heiye was a cat or a panther, he immediately asked with great eagerness:
"Master Heiye, what flavors are you in the mood for?"
Heiye licked its lips and said:
"Nothing spicy, and nothing sweet. Something light will be just fine."
Heiye’s tastes were rather simple. Jinbao preferred rich, sweet flavors, Yinbao liked things on the saltier side, and Situ Jingyu would eat absolutely anything. Even poison, once inside her stomach, would be incinerated by the furnace of her body and converted into nutrients.
Just as he was thinking of Situ Jingyu, she arrived, drawn by the aroma. However, upon entering and seeing Heiye, her movements immediately grew more reserved. She wiped the silly, joyful grin off her face and adopted the dignified air of the lead disciple of the Fire Cave Territory Branch.
"Disciple Situ Jingyu greets Master Heiye."
Fang Qingyuan had told Situ Jingyu about Heiye’s visit before he arrived, so she wasn’t surprised to see him here.
Situ Jingyu also addressed Heiye as Master. In the Beast Taming Sect, a Companion Beast’s status was determined by its owner. Heiye’s owner was Zhao Liangde, who was of the same generation as Situ Jingyu’s own master. Just as Situ Jingyu had to call Zhao Liangde ’Master,’ the same courtesy naturally extended to Heiye.
Situ Jingyu’s master was the head of the Miscellaneous Affairs Peak at the Fire Cave Territory Branch, a position equivalent to Zhao Liangde’s. Over the past few years, when the various branches convened for meetings at Zongshan, he and Zhao Liangde had developed an amicable relationship. Otherwise, a single letter from Zhao Liangde wouldn’t have carried so much weight, nor would Fang Qingyuan be enjoying such special consideration.
Heiye glanced at Situ Jingyu and gave a wave of his paw in acknowledgement. Then, he turned to Fang Qingyuan, gesturing for him to get a move on.
’Heiye is so impatient; he must be starving.’ Fang Qingyuan mused. This was a secret trip, so Heiye naturally couldn’t take a Flying Boat from another sect. And the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect didn’t have one for him to ride. So, for the journey of thousands upon thousands of miles, Heiye had traveled all by his lonesome, a single cat in the sky. When he got hungry, he would have to descend and hunt demonic beasts for a raw meal. It must have been quite an ordeal.
...
After a hearty meal, Heiye casually picked a room and went inside to rest. Situ Jingyu went out to practice her forms, Fang Qingyuan sat in meditation in his Quiet Chamber, and Jinbao went off to play by himself. Each was busy with their own affairs, and they did not disturb one another.
Though Fang Qingyuan appeared to be meditating and circulating his energy in the Quiet Chamber, his consciousness was actually inside the Immortal Mansion.
Within the Immortal Mansion, a ghastly green orb spun in midair. Every so often, wisps of black energy would spray from the dozen-odd holes in the orb, drifting before Fang Qingyuan. This energy was then ground down by his Cultivation Technique, which stripped away all impurities, leaving only the purest Soul Power for him to absorb.
After a long while, Fang Qingyuan felt his spirit begin to distend, and he promptly ended his cultivation for the day.
Strengthening one’s spirit was a slow, grinding process that couldn’t be rushed. It was intimately tied to one’s own sense of self. If he got greedy and advanced too quickly, he could easily fall prey to a host of Heart Demons and suffer from cognitive distortion. By then, Fang Qingyuan would become someone even he couldn’t recognize, yet he would remain completely unaware that anything was amiss.
After these past few days of Soul Dao cultivation, Fang Qingyuan felt that his Soul Power was about to reach its peak for his current stage. Although one’s spiritual power could be increased indefinitely, as was the case for Ghost Cultivators, the spirit and the physical body were meant to be complementary. If one grew too strong and the two fell out of balance, a great many problems would arise.
He was at a critical juncture, on the verge of Foundation Establishment. Although the Soul-Catching Ball still held many Yin Souls, Fang Qingyuan decided to quit while he was ahead and save the remaining spiritual resources for later.
’I have to admit, that Pig-faced Cultivator really did me a huge favor. Not only did he generously provide these Magical Artifacts, but he also allowed me to gauge our opponent’s true strength, which solidified my decision to ask Heiye for help. If I had stuck to the original plan, with just me and Situ Jingyu, we likely would have been completely blindsided.’
After stowing away the Soul-Catching Ball, Fang Qingyuan began refining his Magical Power once more. Though its quantity would no longer increase, any small improvement in its purity was a welcome gain.
Three days later, Heiye finally emerged from his room. He ambled lazily over to Fang Qingyuan and immediately demanded something to eat.
At this, Fang Qingyuan took various dried fruits and cured meats he had prepared beforehand out of his storage bag and offered them to him.
Heiye sniffed the food, picked out a few pieces to eat, and didn’t touch the rest. Once he had finished, he said:
"Let’s get this business over with. Before I left, my master said I shouldn’t stay out for too long. The sooner we get this done, the sooner I can go back. Besides, the sand in this place is truly detestable."
Since Heiye had spoken, Fang Qingyuan naturally obeyed. ’In truth, if I wasn’t too scared to disturb his sleep, I would have dragged him out of bed ages ago.’
And so, Fang Qingyuan led Situ Jingyu and Jinbao to the Gua Talisman Alliance to find Chu River. Heiye, meanwhile, concealed himself in the surrounding shadows, unwilling to make a public appearance.
They made their way forward and soon arrived at the Gua Talisman Alliance’s base. Not a moment after Fang Qingyuan sent in his calling card, Chu River himself emerged with several others to welcome them.
This warm welcome wasn’t entirely on Fang Qingyuan’s account; a large part of it was due to the presence of Situ Jingyu, a Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Body Cultivator.
Chu River had a pale, clean-shaven face and the air of a scholar about him. But to hold the position of an alliance leader so securely, he couldn’t possibly be as simple as he appeared. Rumor had it that he was a man of great cunning.