C3 The Third Chapter

The phenomenon of an ordinary Martial Spirit leaving the body was already exceedingly rare, but for a Heavenly Realm Martial Spirit to do so was unheard of, a marvel that had never occurred since ancient times.

Overnight, the tale of Xia Yi's vanishing Martial Spirit spread like wildfire across the entirety of Foglaostein. Some people scoffed, others expressed regret, some remained silent, while some sighed in dismay. What does it mean to experience the fickleness of human relationships? Xia Yi understood this all too well.

Take Xia Yi's second uncle, Xia Yan, for example. His treatment of Xia Yi had become as different as night and day. Xia Yi's parents had vanished a decade earlier, and the headship of the Xia family had effectively passed to Xia Yan. However, Xia Yan had always held Xia Yi in high esteem due to his possession of the Heavenly Realm Martial Spirit. Leveraging Xia Yi's reputation, Xia Yan's business ventures thrived, catapulting the Xia family to the pinnacle of wealth within the Kisal empire in just ten years.

Initially, Xia Yan was quite kind to Xia Yi when his Martial Spirit had just disappeared. But as time went on and it became clear that Xia Yi's condition was irreversible, Xia Yan's demeanor towards him shifted dramatically.

There was an incident when Xia Yi intervened to stop two thugs from harassing a woman on the street. The confrontation left him bruised and battered, his body riddled with injuries, and he had to be carried back home. Following that event, Xia Yan's demeanor towards Xia Yi turned sour.

Before long, Xia Yan seized upon an excuse to expel Xia Yi from the family mansion, forcing him to relocate to the dilapidated ancestral home in the back garden of the Li Mansion.

The once-envied and illustrious Xia Yi had now become the butt of everyone's jokes. His reputation had taken a nosedive. People took advantage of him, and those who had once been envious of him now kicked him while he was down. Conversely, the friends who had once been close as brothers vanished without a trace. When trouble arose, they were nowhere to be found.

For three long years, Xia Yi lived in a daze, doggedly persisting in his daily martial arts practice. Yet, without his Martial Spirit to sense the Spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth, no matter how diligently he trained, his strength could never surpass the natural limits of the human body.

Xia Yi faced scorn everywhere he went, but his sister, Xia Ye, remained steadfastly by his side. When he was expelled from the family mansion, she chose to leave the comforts of home to join him in their dilapidated ancestral house, preferring a simple life of tea and plain meals over the Xia family's opulence.

Xia Yi's spirits had been waning, but his determination to protect Xia Ye and a deep-seated obsession kept him going. Six months prior, without consultation, Xia Yan had pledged Xia Ye's hand in marriage to Qin Yan, the son of Qin Seng. Enraged, Xia Yi confronted Xia Yan, only to be intercepted by Xia Yan's wife, who commanded her servants to beat him until he lost consciousness, bleeding profusely.

It took a month and a half for Xia Yi to regain consciousness, and by then, Xia Ye's wedding date had been set; in six months, Qin Yan would come to claim her as his bride. Known throughout Insasari as a notorious scoundrel, Qin Yan had ruined the lives of countless women. How could Xia Ye possibly have a good life married to such a vile man?

Despite his rage, Xia Yi felt powerless to alter his sister's destiny. All he could do was watch, unable to intervene.

During Xia Yi's period of unconsciousness, Xia Ye had resorted to threatening her own life to be allowed to care for him. Seeing her dissolve into tears day after day shattered Xia Yi's heart.

Plagued by remorse, Xia Yi's life was a constant struggle until he stumbled upon a dagger concealed beneath Xia Ye's pillow, sending him into an emotional tailspin. Xia Ye was gentle in appearance but resolute in spirit. Once she had decided on a course of action, no one could dissuade her. With her wedding imminent, why was she hiding a dagger? Was she contemplating suicide?

Xia Yi refrained from confronting Xia Ye, knowing it would not resolve the situation and could only serve to hasten her emotional breakdown.

Instead, he secluded himself, poring over the Xia family's ancestral records on Martial Spirits. At last, he discovered what he believed to be a viable solution. He constructed a Spirit Gathering Array to capture the wandering Martial Spirits, forcibly absorbing them into his own body.

Despite the secret record's clear warning of an extremely low success rate and the dire consequence of halving one's lifespan upon use, Xia Yi found himself without any other option. To prevent his sister from marrying a scoundrel, regaining his strength was his only recourse.

Thus, the incident of the red meteor occurred...

Xia Ye recounted the events through tears, and Qiu Feng quickly grasped the situation.

The nature of the red meteor was unknown to others, but Qiu Feng was well aware of its identity, for he was the red meteor himself.

Could such a coincidence exist in the world?

Had Xia Yi and I merged? No, that couldn't be...

If I'm not Xia Yi, then what became of the real Xia Yi?

Is he dead?

And if so, where is his body?

Struggling to remember the details, Qiu Feng shook his head in frustration.

He had lost consciousness before even hitting the ground...

"Sister, there are so many things I can't recall, like martial spirits and the like..."

Having pieced together fragments of his 'past,' Qiu Feng began to inquire about other aspects of this world, seeking to piece together its mysteries through Xia Ye's explanations.

Five days flew by, and Qiu Feng had begun to grasp the nature of this world, however slightly.

The existence of 'martial spirits' had given rise to numerous humans endowed with supernatural powers.

Upon hearing about 'martial spirits,' Qiu Feng instantly understood. These 'martial spirits' were akin to souls, the undispersed essences of once-powerful beings, now persisting after death.

My master had mentioned sending me to a world rife with malevolent energy, which now seems undoubtedly connected to these 'martial spirits.'

"Sister, do you possess a martial spirit as well?" Qiu Sheng asked, gingerly touching the large lump on his head, his thoughts drifting back to the events of that day.

Confronted with Qiu Feng's question, Xia Ye's cheeks flushed a soft pink as she gave a gentle nod.

In the vast lands of Foglaostein, countless beings thrived, and martial spirits were in no short supply. Just as people vary in strength, so too do martial spirits, their potency determined by the might they wielded in life. The more formidable the being once was, the more powerful the martial spirit it became in death.

Xia Ye was not very familiar with the various types and ranks of Martial Spirits; she had only learned about her own Martial Spirit from Xia Yi. Her Martial Spirit was exceedingly rare, known as the 'Guardian Martial Spirit.' Beyond bestowing the fundamental ability to accelerate the channeling of 'Spirit Qi of Heaven and Earth' to its host, the Guardian Martial Spirit possessed a unique talent: it would autonomously protect its host when they sustained injuries. Once Xia Ye explained this, Qiu Feng immediately grasped the concept.

"Brother, I truly didn't mean to hit your head on purpose. It was... it was the little spirit acting on its own. I really didn't intend to..." Xia Ye fidgeted with the hem of her clothing, clearly burdened with guilt over the incident where she had accidentally knocked Qiu Feng unconscious.

She was such a kind-hearted girl.

Overcome with a rush of emotion, Qiu Feng seized Xia Ye's delicate hand, squeezing it reassuringly as he consoled her, "Silly girl, how could I possibly be mad at you? If there's anyone to blame, it's me for not being clear-headed at the time and not knowing what I was doing... Ahem, as long as you don't hold it against me, that's all that matters to me."

Xia Ye felt uncomfortable with Qiu Feng's gesture, but her inherently gentle nature prevailed. After several unsuccessful attempts to withdraw her hand, she resigned herself to the situation, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

Her skin was softer than a baby's, her large, innocent eyes complementing her doll-like face that was so endearing... She was truly a treasure. As Qiu Feng continued to gently massage Xia Ye's hands, he couldn't help but inwardly express his fondness for her.

However, in the next moment, Xia Ye's expression shifted, and she suddenly burst into tears, throwing herself into his embrace.

"Brother, I really don't want to leave you."

"Don't cry, what's there to cry about?"

"My wedding is only seven days away. After that, I'll be married to Qin Yan, and I won't see you again," Xia Ye sobbed.

"Seven days... to get married!" Qiu Feng stiffened at the thought.

How could such a wonderful girl be marrying someone else?

As he pieced together the details Xia Ye had shared over the past few days, Qiu Feng's frown deepened.

Normally, Qiu Feng would remain detached from such matters, but this situation was different. Even though he had not fully embraced the role of Xia Yi, he couldn't stand idly by when it came to a good girl like Xia Ye.

How could I possibly let such a wonderful girl go to someone else?

I'm torn. This is the Kisal Dynasty, and I'm up against the son of the Prime Minister. Who am I in comparison? Just an ordinary person who has recently arrived.

Baleful Qi!

Yes, that's it, baleful Qi!

If I can harness baleful Qi, perhaps...

Suddenly, a spark of inspiration struck Qiu Feng as he recalled the reason his master sent him here.

"Sister, could you fetch me some pen and paper? Anything ordinary will do. Of course, if you could find a cinnabar brush and yellow mounting paper, that would be even better..."

Xia Ye, not grasping Qiu Feng's purpose but ever so compliant, didn't ask any questions. She simply nodded and left to fulfill the request.

The Xia siblings faced restrictions on their movements within the Xia household, but small tasks like obtaining pen and paper were still manageable.

Soon enough, Xia Ye returned with the requested items.

The paper was plain white, and the brush was a standard wolf-hair brush.

Qiu Feng nodded, pleased.

He didn't need yellow paper and a cinnabar brush to cast his talismans; these were just preferences, like being accustomed to a particular tool that feels right in your hand. On his first day learning the art, the old Taoist had explained that the essence of talismanic arts wasn't bound by the materials used. In fact, one could do without paper or brush entirely. The only crucial element was to be wholehearted in the endeavor.

It was a profound concept, one he hadn't quite grasped.

Even after a decade of studying talismanic arts, he still hadn't fully understood the old Taoist's teachings...

Qiu Feng had thoroughly memorized all 13,600 spirit talisman spells. Of course, while there were numerous spells, the power of talismans varied, and naturally, they were ranked accordingly.

After much contemplation, Qiu Feng finally decided to draw the simplest talisman on the white paper.

"Brother, what are you drawing?" Xia Ye asked curiously, watching the peculiar symbols take shape on the paper as she ground the ink.

'This is called the Clear Heart Talisman.'

Qiu Feng held the paper tightly, inhaled deeply, and focused as he pointed at the paper.

A faint hiss escaped as the white paper emitted a subtle red glimmer, vanishing as quickly as it appeared.

Malevolent energy!

It worked!