Chapter Fifty-Nine: The Peculiar Heart-Calming Technique

Within Xie Yingying’s bedchamber was a cavern, filled with an array of formations, elixirs, and medicinal pills, as well as numerous manuals and techniques. The air was pure and dense with spiritual energy, making it an ideal place for secluded cultivation.

She stood with her hands behind her back, gazing at the various cultivation items before her, her expression deeply conflicted. Lowering her head, the tips of her ears flushed pink, and she seemed on the verge of collapse. She had always thought that the original owner, no matter how she practiced cultivation, was upright and proper. Yet, who would have guessed that the original owner's cultivation methods were so scandalous, enough to make one blush and heart race? Truly worthy of someone who cultivated the Path of Carnal Pleasures!

Her heart was filled with helplessness and confusion; for a moment, she couldn’t even think of how to complain about the original owner. Silently pursing her lips, she pushed aside those items that made her uncomfortable, dumping them all into a corner, and walked over to the bookshelf that held the manuals. As she pulled down a few volumes, she thought with disdain: Bai Shengyun, next time I see you, I must be able to escape from your grasp again! It would be even better if my strength surpassed yours!

Yet to her dismay, upon opening the books, she found none of them were proper manuals. Instead, they were filled with explicit illustrations of intercourse. Xie Yingying’s face darkened; she snapped the book shut with a bang and stuffed it back onto the shelf.

She searched the shelves for a long time before finally finding a scant few volumes that were not filled with erotic pictures or carnal techniques. These rare books recorded cultivation methods outside the Path of Carnal Pleasures.

Among them were methods for the Path of Slaughter, the Path of Ice, the Path of Thunder, and even the Path of Ten Thousand Ghosts. Xie Yingying carefully read through these alternative cultivation manuals, discovering that not all of them were evil or demonic. Many were fairly normal.

However, her body was of pure yin constitution, and her fate was steeped in coldness. Apart from cultivating the Path of Carnal Pleasures, the next most suitable method for her was the Path of Ten Thousand Ghosts.

She opened the table of contents for the Ghost Path manual, and as she read, her expression changed drastically with shock.

The so-called Path of Ten Thousand Ghosts required one to slaughter tens of thousands of ghosts to continually increase one's own power. Upon reaching the Nascent Soul stage, one could collect ghosts and use them as tools; at the Divided Spirit stage, one could forge a "prison," where ten thousand ghosts wept and wailed, endlessly battling; at the Tribulation Crossing stage, one would use ghosts as mediums, unleashing curses that could plunge a region into chaos; and upon achieving union with the Dao and ascending, one would leap into the ghost realm, become the Ghost King, and command all the evil spirits in the world.

She could not help but suck in a breath of cold air, recalling those mischievous, playful ghosts in the demonic sect—sometimes harmless, sometimes naughty. She grew upset at the thought. To start with, she would be forced to slaughter so many innocent spirits, and later, she would have to kill them all indiscriminately, constantly exploiting them. It was utterly despicable!

Resolutely, Xie Yingying turned away, refusing to even glance at such records again.

She continued searching, but still could not begin cultivating, for the remaining methods either did not suit her constitution—forcing them might even harm her—or, like the Ghost Path, were vicious and would lead the practitioner to commit terrible sins, ultimately suffering through countless tribulations under divine retribution.

In the end, Xie Yingying had flipped through all the manuals, growing sleepy yet still finding nothing normal or suitable for herself. Resting her chin in her hand, she sighed, her eyes bloodshot from searching too long and too intently. She covered her mouth and yawned.

She extended her spiritual sense outward and saw that night had fallen. The mischievous little ghosts who loved to play pranks had come out again, drifting everywhere, sometimes letting out wailing cries with a hint of laughter, as if trying to let their voices pierce into someone’s chamber to frighten them.

Xie Yingying had been about to ask these little ghosts for help—after all, they had lived here for centuries and knew far more than she did.

But the moment she heard those eerie cries, goosebumps rose all over her skin, and she quickly withdrew her spiritual sense, obediently staying inside the cave.

Though she was used to the little ghosts’ mischief by now, being used to it did not mean she wasn’t afraid!

Now fully awake from fright, Xie Yingying no longer felt sleepy. Knowing it would be a while before sleep would come again, she began searching her mind for any calming incantations or techniques the original owner might have practiced, hoping to find a cultivable path.

As far as she knew, this world contained at least three thousand great paths—far more than those described in the scant manuals she possessed.

So, lost in thought, she stared off into the distance, letting memories of the original owner’s life replay in her mind.

After a long while, Xie Yingying began searching through childhood memories, muttering inwardly, “Oh, Xie Yingying, you really were a handful. Don’t tell me you never practiced a single calming technique?”

With that thought, her hopes dimmed.

Just as she was about to give up, a fragment of conversation suddenly surfaced in her mind. In the memory, she could see only darkness—it seemed the original owner had been in a shadowed place at the time.

“Master... I’m scared.”

That trembling voice was followed by Huo Tianqing’s, who spoke close to her ear. She could faintly sense the coldness of his breath. His tone was unchanged from now, but carried more amusement and defiance.

“Don’t be afraid. I’m watching over you. As long as you make it through today, you’ll be fine.” He spoke with a gentle smile, then his hand settled on her head, softly ruffling her hair. “Yingying, do you remember?”

“What?”

“That Clear Heart Incantation—I taught it to you. Do you remember?” Huo Tianqing continued to smile. “If you do, recite it a few times.”

She obediently began repeating in her heart: “Clear the mind, steady the spirit, let all things become one...”

Huo Tianqing laughed softly at her side, his warmth tinged with an emotion hard to name, as if something unspoken was quietly taking root.

Even though Xie Yingying could not see his expression from that time, she could guess he must have been smiling slyly, calculating and full of ill intent, as he spoke these words to the young “her.”

Furthermore—

“Let the mind be pure, and I alone remain. Let mind and Dao unite, selfless and unbound...”

Xie Yingying recalled this line from the Clear Heart Incantation, her brow furrowing. Something felt off. She tried to recall more, but could find no further memory of what happened next, as if it had never existed.

“Selfless...” she repeated, the word lingering on her lips.

Then her expression changed, surprise flashing across her face. Wasn’t this a Daoist philosophical term? Weren’t Daoist cultivators the ones who most often recited such phrases? Why would Huo Tianqing, someone who practiced the demonic path, teach the original owner such an incantation?

Just then, at the vibrant foot of Gu Feng Mountain, Shen Ruru glared at the people before her, shouting furiously, “Go to the demonic sect and find Xie Yingying for me! Don’t let Shengyun find her first, do you hear me? Why are you standing around? Go!”

It had been a long time since anyone had seen Shen Ruru so angry. They all trembled and hurriedly replied in unison, “Yes!”