Qin Xi suddenly felt a twitch in his brow. It seemed something had happened.
He opened his eyes, frowned, and thought for a moment.
Cultivators sometimes experienced premonitions of fortune or misfortune. What he was feeling now was a sense of ominous foreboding. Had something happened?
Unable to figure it out, he raised his voice and called, "Zhenji..."
He stopped halfway. Zhenji wasn't here today; he had gone to participate in the trial of the Myriad Laws of Nature Formation—could it be related to Zhenji?
After pondering for a while, his mind remained unsettled. He flicked his sleeve, rose, opened the door to his cave abode, and slowly walked out.
The sunlight outside was bright, and he felt a moment of disorientation. Right, he hadn't come out for many years, so many that he couldn't even remember exactly how long it had been...
This had been his longest seclusion—over thirty years without leaving his cave abode, advancing directly from mid Core Formation to Core Formation perfection, with only a single step remaining before forming his Nascent Soul. He had originally planned to continue his seclusion until achieving Nascent Soul. But now, it seemed...
The throbbing pain in his brow grew intense. He felt he didn't have time to sit here pondering. With a wave of his sleeve, a pure white cloud appeared beneath his feet. He stepped onto the cloud and flew towards the main peak.
When the Myriad Laws of Nature Formation had appeared, his master had also asked him to go investigate. He had refused, citing his seclusion. Now he didn't even know where the formation was located.
However, as soon as he spread out his divine sense, he easily found the place beneath the main peak where many people were gathered. That was likely the spot.
Without hesitation, he rode his cloud downwards.
When he landed at the bottom of the valley, he saw the scene of chaos. Many disciples had failed the trial and emerged, densely crowded around something.
The Core Formation elder presiding over the scene had long sensed his powerful aura. One of them was about to see who it was when he pushed through the disciples and froze. "Junior Brother Shoujing?"
Qin Xi approached. "Senior Brother, what happened?"
"Ah," the elder reacted, "you've come just in time. It's a disciple from your Clear Spring Peak who's had an accident."
Qin Xi frowned but said nothing. He followed the elder into the crowd.
"Junior Brother Shoujing!" Sect Leader Shen, who was squatting on the ground examining the situation, greeted him.
Before Qin Xi could speak, he saw the disciple lying on the ground. It took him a good while to find his voice. "What happened?"
One of the elders explained, "There was a problem in the third stage. These two disciples collided. One was experiencing a realistic hallucination, and unfortunately, this one was in the stage of the Five Bewilderments Entangling Spirits, where the mind begins to blur. So..."
Following the elder's gaze, Qin Xi frowned again. "Mingzhu?"
Ruan Mingzhu was sitting in a corner, listless and trembling, not even reacting when called.
Sect Leader Shen said, "She was teleported out while entangled by a Demonic Obstacle. It's best not to call her right now."
Qin Xi nodded, his gaze fixed on the unconscious Mo Tiange. "Wasn't it said this trial formation posed no danger?"
Sect Leader Shen, while channeling Spiritual Qi into Mo Tiange, replied, "There's no life-threatening danger. This disciple was teleported out the moment she suffered a fatal attack. But her consciousness was in a state of confusion at the time, so her mind was damaged, hence her current condition."
"...I see." Seeing Sect Leader Shen withdraw his hand, Qin Xi also squatted down, felt Mo Tiange's pulse point, and sent a probing strand of Spiritual Qi.
Her meridians were fine, her dantian intact... but her Sea of Consciousness was closed. His brow furrowed deeply. A closed Sea of Consciousness could be a minor or major issue. While it might not be life-threatening, being attacked by someone else while undergoing a mental trial was extremely dangerous. If the stimulation was excessive, she might not wake for ten or twenty years, or even forever!
He looked up at Ruan Mingzhu, wanting to say something, but seeing her cowering appearance, she didn't seem much better off. He ultimately gave up.
"Junior Brother Shoujing, this is your fellow disciple, right? Why don't you take her back first? This matter could be serious. It's best to let Senior Uncle Jinghe take a look."
Qin Xi didn't hesitate, nodding. "Alright." He bent down, picked up Mo Tiange, glanced at Ruan Mingzhu, and said, "Sect Leader Senior Brother, I'll trouble you to look after my junior apprentice-niece. I'll send someone to fetch her later."
"Of course." Sect Leader Shen readily agreed. Given Dao Lord Jinghe's temperament, if his beloved disciple was injured in the formation and his grand-disciple suffered such a shock, it would be fortunate if he didn't hold them accountable. Moreover, they indeed bore some responsibility. Originally, entering the Myriad Laws of Nature Formation did involve danger, but they had worried the disciples might be unwilling to take the risk, so they hadn't explained in detail, merely emphasizing caution.
"Master! Master!" Ye Zhenji had just emerged from the formation and happened to witness this scene. His face turned pale as he rushed forward, looking at Mo Tiange. "What happened to my aunt?"
Qin Xi frowned. "We'll talk back at the peak."
He waved his sleeve, summoned his flying cloud, and took Ye Zhenji back to Clear Spring Peak.
The flying cloud reached its maximum speed, arriving at the summit of Clear Spring Peak in an instant, landing before the Shangqing Palace.
Without stopping, Qin Xi carried Mo Tiange and strode into the Shangqing Palace. "Master!"
Dao Lord Jinghe's divine sense enveloped the surroundings. He had been wondering what was happening when he turned and was startled. "What's going on?"
Qin Xi set Mo Tiange down, urgently saying, "Master, take a look. She was attacked by someone while undergoing the mental trial in the formation. I've checked. There's no surface injury, but her Sea of Consciousness is closed."
Hearing this, Dao Lord Jinghe grabbed Mo Tiange's wrist, felt her meridians, and examined her condition.
His expression darkened upon checking.
Unable to bear it, Qin Xi asked, "How is she?"
Dao Lord Jinghe stroked his beard, his brow tightly furrowed. "Not good. I estimate she had just discovered a weakness in her mental state, then was attacked during the Five Bewilderments Entangling Spirits..."
"What should we do?"
Dao Lord Jinghe glared at him. "Can you stop interrupting? I haven't finished!"
Qin Xi, glared into silence, had to admit his fault. "Fine. I won't interrupt."
Dao Lord Jinghe continued, "Her closing her Sea of Consciousness is a subconscious self-preservation measure, so we don't need to worry about her safety. She should be fine. However, how to wake her is a bit troublesome."
Having confirmed his disciple was safe, Dao Lord Jinghe stroked his beard, leaving a pause, waiting for Qin Xi to ask. But after being scolded, Qin Xi didn't ask, just stared at him, making him feel rather awkward. Just as he was getting annoyed, Ye Zhenji beside him hurriedly asked, "Grandmaster, what should we do?"
Ye Zhenji's timely question pleased Dao Lord Jinghe immensely. He suddenly found the boy quite agreeable and said with a smile, "There's not much to do. Take good care of her, make sure her body doesn't deteriorate. After some time, when she realizes there's no danger, she'll naturally slowly open her Sea of Consciousness."
"Oh..." Both Ye Zhenji and Qin Xi sighed in relief simultaneously.
Qin Xi thought for a moment and asked, "Master, roughly how long might she remain in this state?"
"Hmm... as short as a few months, as long as several years or decades." Then he patted Qin Xi's shoulder and said irresponsibly, "Don't worry. She's still young. Even if she wakes up decades later, it won't delay her Core Formation."
Having said that, ignoring Qin Xi's gloomy expression, he waved his hand. "Alright, take her back to the Clear Heart Residence. Have Xiuqin and the others take care of her."
Qin Xi restrained himself repeatedly but finally couldn't hold back. "Master! A few years is one thing, but decades? Even if she's not a mortal, lying unconscious for so long will cause physical problems! Can't you think of something?"
"Huh?" Ye Zhenji, who had just relaxed upon hearing his aunt was safe, grew nervous again. "Grandmaster, is that true?"
"Nonsense!" Qin Xi answered, his brow deeply furrowed, his voice carrying anger. "Cultivators don't need to eat, but we still absorb Spiritual Qi to sustain ourselves! If she's unconscious for years or decades, she'll survive, but without absorbing Spiritual Qi, her body will atrophy. By the time she wakes, her cultivation will have regressed!"
"Ah! That serious!" Ye Zhenji turned to look at Dao Lord Jinghe, pitifully pleading, "Grandmaster! You can't let Aunt become a shriveled old woman! Aunt is still young!"
"Pfft!" Dao Lord Jinghe spat out his tea. "Shriveled old woman, hahahaha, you really came up with that!"
"Master!" Qin Xi glared at him angrily. "If you want to laugh, laugh all you want later. Right now, think of a solution!"
"What solution?" Dao Lord Jinghe spread his hands, looking innocent. "I already said, she'll naturally wake up after a while."
"Really?" Qin Xi said with a dark expression. "You don't want the Nine Revolutions Mind-Calming Pill anymore?"
"Ah! You dare threaten me?!" Dao Lord Jinghe exclaimed strangely.
"So what if I threaten you?" Qin Xi raised an eyebrow. "Don't forget, your spirit herbs are all in my hands. Want pills? Fine, use your brain and solve this problem first!"
Dao Lord Jinghe gritted his teeth. "You brat! I had you learn alchemy, and you end up threatening me with it!"
Unfortunately, Qin Xi remained unmoved, not even glancing at him.
Dao Lord Jinghe huffed angrily, then his eyes shifted as if he suddenly remembered something. He turned and glared at Qin Xi. "Weren't you supposed to be in Death Seclusion? How come you're out already?"
"..." Qin Xi was taken aback. He wanted to say something, moved his lips, but ultimately didn't speak.
Seeing his expression shift from initial anger to later embarrassment, Dao Lord Jinghe slapped the table and laughed uproariously, laughing so hard he couldn't straighten his back. "Hahaha, you kid, you're killing me! Death Seclusion? You've been secluded for thirty-five years, how come you silently emerged? Hey, don't tell me this isn't considered emerging. You've left your cave abode, you're sitting outside drinking tea—if that's not emerging, what is? Hey, what's really going on? Tell your master. How did you know Tian Ge was in trouble? Why did you suddenly emerge?"
Qin Xi didn't speak, turning his head away as if counting ants on the ground.
Dao Lord Jinghe leaned in mischievously. "Hurry up and tell me, what happened? You were in seclusion for thirty-five years, claiming it was Death Seclusion, then suddenly emerged. You have to explain to your master, right? Tell me, tell me!"
Harassed beyond endurance, Qin Xi finally said, "I thought something happened to Zhenji."
Now even Ye Zhenji, squatting nearby, turned to look.
With his master in front and his disciple beside him, Qin Xi looked flustered. "I... felt an ominous premonition, thought something happened to Zhenji, so I..."
"Oh, you could actually sense an ominous premonition." Dao Lord Jinghe nodded with a serious expression. "Not easy. Truly not easy."