Chapter 1212: Lost Soul Ruins Tale
“Ye Mo, can you remove spirit sense marks?” Bian Fengta asked. Removing truth realization state spirit sense marks was exceptionally difficult for cauldron filling state cultivators, but Ye Mo was no ordinary cauldron filling state cultivator. Teng Yi also looked at Ye Mo anxiously, seeking reassurance.
Ye Mo nodded. “Yes, but not now.”
“Why?” they both asked simultaneously.
“Removing it now forces immediate departure; we can’t go to the Lost Soul Ruins,” Ye Mo explained. Doing so would alert Teng Xiong and the other truth realization state cultivator, who might lie in wait. He would remove the mark and flee if entering the ruins proved impossible; otherwise, he'd leave it there, leading them to believe he perished within.
Ye Mo placed eight extreme-grade spirit stones on Blue Moon. Fueled by his cultivation essence, it soared above the Heartless Sea. A few days later, Blue Moon landed.
Ye Mo saw the Lost Soul Ruins for the first time and instantly recognized it as no ordinary place. A grey mist shrouded the entire area, resembling a war-torn city. Ruined buildings loomed within the mist, and the island itself seemed to sway.
“Don’t scan your spirit sense in…” Teng Yi warned, too late. Ye Mo had already done so, and a sharp pain shot through his sea of consciousness. A voice beckoned him into the ruins, his face dazed, and he instinctively moved forward.
The Three Birth Chant spontaneously activated, alerting Ye Mo to the danger. He severed the voice with Purple Eye Soul Sever. Teng Yi reached him just then.
“I forgot to warn you against scanning your spirit sense in. Did you just do it?” Teng Yi asked.
Ye Mo nodded. “Yes, it’s incredibly powerful and unsettling.”
“You scanned your spirit sense in and broke free?” Teng Yi was astounded. Normally, such an act would be fatal without outside assistance. Ye Mo's escape was unbelievable.
Ye Mo took a Spirit Recovery Pill. “My spirit sense is unique; I could sever the connection. But this Lost Soul Ruins is extraordinary. Level nine spirit herbs here? Impossible.”
He found the idea of an abandoned city plausible, perhaps containing ores, but not level nine spirit herbs.
Teng Yi said gravely, “Level nine spirit herbs do exist within. Someone once saw a disaster transformation state tertiary stage cultivator take three, but his soul was lost, leaving him a zombie. Many entered afterward, but none returned. Eventually, despite the knowledge of the herbs' existence, fewer and fewer people dared to enter.”
“Do you know its origin? Why does it resemble a city?” Ye Mo inquired.
Bian Fengta also looked expectantly at Teng Yi.
Teng Yi nodded. “I know a little, but it's a tale. In ancient times, the Lost Soul Ruins was a beautiful city called Bright Moon City. Its lord was Feng Chun, who had a close friend, Li He. Their bond was such that Li He married his only daughter, Li Hun, to Feng Chun's son, Feng Xi.”
The stillness of the surroundings, coupled with the swaying buildings of the Lost Soul Ruins, heightened the mystery of Teng Yi's narrative.
Teng Yi continued, “Feng Xi and Li Hun, due to their fathers' friendship, grew close and became deeply in love. Unexpectedly, Feng Chun and Li He faced a powerful enemy in the Heartless Sea. Together, they were no match. Feng Chun pushed Li He away, facing the enemy alone, allowing Li He to protect his daughter and Feng Xi. Li He was reluctant to leave, but Feng Chun pushed him away and then self-destructed with his essence blood, engulfing the enemy.”
Bian Fengta sighed, “This Feng Chun was a true man.”
Teng Yi nodded. “Li He heard the explosion, knowing there was no hope of return. He rushed back to Bright Moon City, fearing revenge, but after months, the enemy hadn't appeared. He assumed the enemy had fled, gravely wounded by his friend's self-destruction. He left Bright Moon City and returned home, intending to marry his daughter to Feng Xi. But then, something else occurred.”
“What?” Bian Fengta asked urgently.
Even Ye Mo was eager to know.
Teng Yi continued, “Upon returning, Li He discovered his daughter unconscious after cultivation, her soul lost. She became a living corpse, soulless. Even the best pill king in the Heartless Sea couldn't save her. Despairing, Li He lived in seclusion on his island with his daughter.”
“Li He is a tragic figure,” Teng Yi said, comparing his father to Li He.
Ye Mo frowned. Soul loss during cultivation was rare, usually due to outside influence. But he realized this was a tale, possibly not entirely factual.
Teng Yi sighed. “Feng Xi, heartbroken over his father's death, waited a year without seeing Li He bring Li Hun to Bright Moon City, so he went to her. Learning of her condition, he was devastated. He asked Li He to let him take Li Hun, promising to care for her for life. Li He, believing he would marry his daughter to Feng Xi anyway, agreed.”
“Bringing Li Hun back, Feng Xi sought to save her at all costs. He found a secret technique in his father’s books: a Soul Nourishing Formation. Placing the soulless person inside, one used their own soul to nourish them. After ninety-nine days, some of the soul might recover, growing stronger through cultivation. However, a great flaw existed: nourishing another's soul severely damaged one's own essence blood. At best, eighty percent of one's lifespan was lost; at worst, one lost their own soul, becoming an idiot.”
Bian Fengta sighed, “Feng Xi was a man of great emotion.”
Ye Mo knew of the Soul Nourishing Formation. The injured person needed at least a fragment of their soul for it to work. The ideal treatment was a Soul Nourishing Pill, capable of cultivating a lost soul and repairing dead ones. A heaven-grade level seven pill, it was comparable to level eight or even nine. It required a Soul Return Fruit, a level eight spirit herb rarer than most level nine herbs.
“Did Feng Xi succeed?” Bian Fengta asked.
Teng Yi shook his head. “If he had, there would be no Lost Soul Ruins.”