“Awake?” Bu Jiang felt a surge of joy in her heart.
Perhaps the power of the Abyss of Extreme Ice was even stronger than before, or maybe the demonic power within her was being suppressed, but the energy Bu Jiang directed towards Zanxing could not dissolve the snow and ice of the Abyss. Yet, despite the long passage of time, the ice and snow on Zanxing had shattered. Bu Jiang immediately looked at the name on the ice wall—”Yang Zanxing”—which had not faded, it was still deeply embedded in the stone.
It hasn’t disappeared? Bu Jiang was slightly distracted. Why?
Zanxing’s body was encased in the ice cave, so Bu Jiang couldn’t see clearly. She called out Zanxing’s name a couple of times, but Zanxing did not respond, as if the shattering ice was merely a coincidence. Bu Jiang couldn’t see Zanxing, and naturally, she also couldn’t see Zanxing’s eyes opening within the ice cave.
Zanxing had fully awakened.
The small tree deep within her spiritual roots continued to grow. While others could not see it, she could clearly feel warm currents continuously emanating from the tree’s branches and leaves, slowly repairing her body that should have been severely damaged. The Ten Thousand Killing Formation had destroyed her senses and her primordial spirit, but now they were gradually being restored to their original state, even more complete than before, reborn in this ice and snow prison.
It was as if her entire being had been shattered and torn apart, then reformed into a completely new self, starkly different from the past.
Zanxing looked down at Mimi.
The Silver Moon Lion had completely fallen asleep, lying at Zanxing’s side, leaning closely against her. The light and shadow of the Qinchong Seed also fell upon Mimi, and its fur, burned by the divine fire pillar, had unknowingly returned to its original state, though it seemed slightly different from before, now with a hint of silver shimmer amidst the softness.
While her spiritual meridians could be repaired, the Qinchong could not regenerate a Golden Core. Zanxing’s spiritual energy was limited, but in contrast to her depleted energy, her mental strength had grown exponentially.
Zanxing suddenly realized she seemed to be able to see everything.
The Abyss of Extreme Ice was very deep and long, seemingly with no visible exit. She climbed from the bottom, exerting all her strength, but it felt as if she was still thousands of feet away from the exit. Now, she finally saw clearly that the Abyss of Extreme Ice had no exit at all. One could enter, but not leave. At the top of the abyss, there was only a layer of ice and snow covering everything.
To escape the abyss, one would have to break through the ice layer.
But that was impossible. The ice and snow of the Abyss of Extreme Ice could restrain and weaken one’s demonic energy. Even someone as powerful as the Demon Queen Bu Jiang had gradually weakened over the past two years, leaving her name inscribed in the ice of the abyss.
Those whose names were left behind were doomed to never escape.
Was it really like that?
Zanxing’s gaze fell upon Mimi. The Silver Moon Lion was still holding a cyan Qiankun Bag in its mouth. Perhaps knowing it was about to fall into an unknown period of slumber, Mimi had spat out the Qiankun Bag before its next sleep.
There wasn’t much in the Qiankun Bag—just some useless talismans and energy pills. In the current situation, having or not having the pills made little difference.
She struggled to move her frozen hands, finally managing to grasp the rope of the Qiankun Bag. Zanxing pulled the rope, emptying the contents of the bag.
Among the scattered items, two books stood out prominently. One was titled How to Conquer a Handsome Young Hero. Upon seeing this book, Zanxing couldn’t help but smile, recalling how Men Dong had presented it to her with a serious expression. The other book… Zanxing looked at the cover of the other book, unable to take her eyes off it for a long time.
—The Peerless Heart Sutra.
The name was indeed quite hasty, anyone who saw it would not think it was a peerless heart sutra.
She had obtained the Sacred Tree Fruit in the Sacred Domain of the treasure trove, and yet Mimi had casually brought back the peerless heart sutra. Zanxing had originally intended to give this book to Mu Cengxiao, to avoid falling into the traps of fate by seizing some extraordinary opportunity. However, upon opening the sutra and reading the first page, she found it quite unpresentable and thus left the book in the Qiankun Bag.
Now, in this abyss thousands of feet deep, this unpresentable peerless heart sutra might be her only hope.
Zanxing stared at the cover for a long time, then stiffly turned her fingers to open the first page.
It was still the familiar scrawled handwriting, as if the writer had done it on a whim.
This technique is unique and not suitable for ordinary cultivators. To practice this technique, one must first discard all their cultivation and start anew.
This peerless heart sutra was now more suitable for her than ever. She didn’t need to discard her cultivation, her entire cultivation had been wiped clean during the Ten Thousand Killing Formation, so the initial step was already taken care of.
Zanxing turned to the second page: This heart sutra is true and without falsehood, worth trying; you won’t lose anything. Practicing this sutra will allow you to dominate the Three Realms, fearless of gods and demons, with ascension imminent.
The green light of the Qinchong projected onto the crooked words, as if adding a touch of vitality to these absurd statements. Zanxing’s fingertips gently brushed over the pages, and for a moment, she suddenly recalled the short, poor craftsman from the treasure land.
In his dire situation, the swordsmith Chai Sang found the Evil Sword Manual, which at that moment became his only hope. He boldly tried it, and although the outcome was not ideal, it was still the result he sought.
Now, her situation was strikingly similar to Chai Sang’s.
Only that the Evil Sword Manual was now replaced by the unreliable heart sutra before her.
Zanxing steadied herself, thought for a long while, and finally turned to the third page.
Not a demon, not an immortal, with divinity but no essence. Only if these conditions are met can you continue. If you forcefully practice, it will go against the principles, resulting in heavenly punishment and instantaneous death.
Not a demon, not an immortal? Doesn’t that mean an ordinary person? Having divinity but no essence, having divine essence but no cultivation essence—how is this different from requiring an experienced newbie? Zanxing had initially been full of determination, but upon reading this line, she started to waver. Could such an unreliable heart sutra really be a supreme one?
Zanxing stared at the words ‘instantaneous death’ for a long time, unmoving.
Isn’t this a bit too dangerous?
However…
The snow in the abyss continued to layer up. Although the Qinchong could melt some of the ice and repair her spiritual meridians, this solution wasn’t sustainable. It could end up like the Fire Basket, which might fail at any moment.
She really had no other choice.
Zanxing turned to the next page.
This time, the handwriting had changed again.
On this page, there was a casually drawn face of an old man, making a funny face with squinted eyes. Next to it was a line of text: If you can meet such strict conditions, it seems you are at your wits’ end. Since that’s the case, fellow cultivator, we are destined to meet. I, an old man, will lend you a hand to help you practice this peerless heart sutra.
Zanxing: “?”