Mo Tiange fell into deep thought.
They had originally guessed that it was Demon Lord Guifang who had absorbed the Origin Demonic Qi, but they hadn't expected that Demon Lord Guifang had actually perished, and the one cultivating the Origin Demon Great Method was Yang Chengji. Yang Chengji was only at the mid-Core Formation stage now. Even if he absorbed the Origin Demonic Qi, he couldn't advance immediately. So, was he also unable to get out?
"This is getting interesting..." Mo Tiange shook her head and sighed. "I thought we were unlucky enough, but it turns out there are others sharing our misfortune."
"Let's not talk about that for now," Jing Xingzhi asked. "Are you familiar with this person? Is he reliable? If you have a grudge against him, I'll go kill him to avoid future trouble."
"That's not necessary," Mo Tiange shook her head. "Although I don't have a deep friendship with him, we did cooperate once. He's actually a decent partner. Now that he can't get out either, and there's no conflict of interest between us, peaceful coexistence goes without saying. We might even be able to work together to get out."
"Hmm." Jing Xingzhi thought for a moment and agreed. "However, one must always be wary of others. If he regains consciousness..."
"I've already prepared for that." Mo Tiange smiled, pointing around the great hall. "This defensive formation is difficult for ordinary people to even detect. If he finds his way here, it will give an early warning."
Jing Xingzhi hadn't noticed it earlier either and couldn't help but marvel. "Your attainments in formations are truly impressive."
Mo Tiange merely gave a bitter smile and didn't respond. No matter how good her formation skills were, they couldn't exceed her own cultivation realm by too much. Against the ancient restrictions surrounding this Immortal Palace, she was utterly helpless.
Jing Xingzhi turned to look at Qin Xi again and asked, "How is he?"
Mo Tiange set aside her melancholy, knelt up, and adjusted the fur covering Qin Xi. "I don't know either. For now, I can only feed him healing pills every few days, hoping to slowly repair the damage to his Dantian."
Jing Xingzhi frowned. With his Sea of Consciousness sealed, he couldn't cultivate. If Qin Xi's body was filled with Spiritual Qi, this method might work. But previously, his Spiritual Qi was almost completely depleted. It was hard to say whether this method would be effective because pills also required Spiritual Qi to refine and unleash their medicinal efficacy. Otherwise, most of the pill's effect would be wasted.
He reached out and took Qin Xi's pulse. After a while, a look of surprise appeared on his face. "Where did the Spiritual Qi in his body come from?"
The difference in cultivation made it impossible for Mo Tiange to clearly sense Qin Xi's condition. She asked anxiously, "What is it?"
Jing Xingzhi said, "A day ago, the Spiritual Qi in his body was almost empty. But now, there's a faint circulation of Spiritual Qi..." After probing a while longer, he confirmed, "That's right, this Spiritual Qi is circulating automatically. How strange. Could it be that his Sea of Consciousness isn't sealed? But that's not it either..."
While Jing Xingzhi was utterly perplexed, Mo Tiange's spirits greatly lifted. Of course, she knew the reason. The two of them were no longer purely of Yin or Yang constitution. She cultivated the Primordial Chaos method, and Qin Xi cultivated the Three Cycles Revolving method. Both contained the meaning of endless cycles and perpetual regeneration. There was residual Spiritual Qi in Qin Xi's body. After she input her own Spiritual Qi, the Yin and Yang energies automatically formed a cycle, hence this situation.
Since a small cycle had formed within his body, the Spiritual Qi wouldn't completely dissipate. As long as the pills continued, his Dantian would eventually repair itself one day. Once his injuries healed, the possibility of his Sea of Consciousness reopening was high.
For over a day, although she had forced herself to remain calm, deep down, she had been in a daze. Many things were fuzzy, and she couldn't concentrate. Only now did she feel her mind clear and regain vitality.
"What about his Dantian? Is it any better?"
This time, Jing Xingzhi examined for a longer time before replying, "Although it's not very obvious, it is better than before." He paused, then added, "There's something inside his Dantian with extremely powerful energy. I can't get close to it."
After saying this, Jing Xingzhi turned to look at her, seemingly waiting for an explanation.
Mo Tiange knew this should be the Yang Spirit Bead. However, it wasn't appropriate to explain this item too clearly to others. So she said, "He had a fortuitous encounter in the past and obtained a treasure. This item was refined into his Dantian and can contain a great deal of Spiritual Qi. I imagine it was this item that absorbed the Vermilion Bird's Breath earlier."
"So that's how it is." He had been unable to understand why all the Vermilion Bird's Breath was absorbed by Qin Xi, causing the Bow of the Vermilion Bird to become his as well. Hearing Mo Tiange's explanation, he finally understood. "However, both the Vermilion Bird's Breath and the Bow of the Vermilion Bird were absorbed by this item. Does that mean it has recognized him as its master?"
How could Mo Tiange answer that question? Sentient treasures—this was her first time encountering one too.
Jing Xingzhi didn't expect an answer from her either. After thinking for a moment, he smiled again. "Qin Shoujing has really turned misfortune into fortune this time. A sentient treasure! Many cultivators never see one in their entire lives."
Mo Tiange detected a hint of envy in his words and couldn't help but laugh. "Even if he obtained the Bow of the Vermilion Bird, what use is it? We're trapped here now, who knows when we'll be able to get out."
"Not necessarily," Jing Xingzhi said. "Don't you know the secret technique to open the Immortal Palace passage? It's just that there's no one to implement it. Now there are four living people in this Immortal Palace: you, me, Qin Shoujing, and that demonic cultivator kid. What if we all cultivate to the Nascent Soul stage... Why are you looking at me like that?"
Mo Tiange said, "I'm wondering if you know mind-reading techniques."
"..." Jing Xingzhi was speechless for a moment. "So you've already thought of this?"
Mo Tiange nodded. "You're right, but not entirely. I can indeed learn that set of secret techniques from that senior, but the power required to open the Immortal Palace passage is by no means ordinary. Previously, when the passage was opened, it required the Spiritual Qi supply from four other late-Nascent Soul cultivators plus my senior brother—five people in total—to be sufficient. Now, with only the four of us, we would all need to advance to the late stage to achieve it."
"All of us at the late stage..." A look of disappointment flashed in Jing Xingzhi's eyes. Not to mention that Mo Tiange and that Yang Chengji hadn't even formed their Nascent Souls yet, he himself had only recently formed his. By normal reckoning, advancing to the late stage would take at least several hundred years, let alone the fact that Qin Shoujing didn't know when he would wake up.
Seeing his expression, Mo Tiange smiled. "There's another way."
"What?" Hearing this, Jing Xingzhi's hope was rekindled.
"One of us advances to the God Transformation stage. As long as there is one God Transformation cultivator, this secret technique can be performed."
"..."
Seeing Jing Xingzhi's expression, she laughed even more heartily. "What kind of expression is that?"
"That's the same as saying nothing." Jing Xingzhi rolled his eyes. Advancing to God Transformation? That was even harder than all of them advancing to late-Nascent Soul stage!
"But at least there's still hope." Looking down at Qin Xi's peaceful sleeping face, she said softly, "As long as there's hope, we can't give up."
Jing Xingzhi looked at her silently for a long time before suddenly saying in a low voice, "Mo Qingwei, I finally understand why Qin Shoujing chose you."
Without waiting for Mo Tiange to speak, he stood up and walked to the other side of the statue, his voice softly drifting over. "You two... are very alike. To meet someone whose heart resonates with your own... that's truly fortunate..."
After their initial communication, the two of them began a life of not disturbing each other, with occasional exchanges.
Usually, apart from looking after Qin Xi, Mo Tiange spent her days cultivating, studying techniques and miscellaneous arts, and occasionally opening the alchemy furnace to refine healing pills for Qin Xi. Worried about Qin Xi, she stayed in the great hall without leaving, entrusting the task of scouting the surroundings to Feifei.
As for Jing Xingzhi, he casually took a meditation cushion from his Qiankun Bag and tossed it in a corner, focusing on healing and recuperating on his own. When he had nothing to do, he wandered around.
As for Yang Chengji, he still hadn't regained consciousness and was still in the stage of refining the Origin Demonic Qi. Both Feifei and Jing Xingzhi were very interested in him. Every day, they would go check on him, then return to report the situation to her, speculating on when he would stop cultivating.
Mo Tiange couldn't help but find it amusing. Feifei was one thing—he was a playful spirit beast by nature—but Jing Xingzhi originally had this kind of personality too. He was so different from when they first met.
A month passed in the blink of an eye.
On this day, after feeding Qin Xi his pills, a voice that had been silent for a long time suddenly echoed in her mind: "Girl."
Mo Tiange was overjoyed. "Master, you haven't spoken for so long."
Fuyaozi's voice sounded weary. "Your master... your master has rested for so long precisely for today."
Mo Tiange was slightly stunned, suddenly realizing something, and felt a pang of fear. "Master..."
"It seems you've guessed." Fuyaozi's tone remained calm. "This wisp of your master's divine sense is about to dissipate. I'm afraid I can't accompany you any longer."
"Master..."
"Why are you sad? Life, death, and parting are ordinary matters in life. Besides, didn't you say my original self had already advanced to God Transformation long ago? I just don't know if that original self is still alive. If he has already passed away, having lived such a magnificent life, it wouldn't be a waste of walking this world. If he's still alive, perhaps you and I will meet again someday."
Mo Tiange held back the sting in her nose and whispered, "Yes, Master."
Although their time together had only been a few short years, this master's wholehearted care and guidance had allowed her to experience a long-lost warmth in the lonely, helpless Yunzhong.
In her mind, Fuyaozi's voice came softly: "I don't know if my original self has taken any disciples. If not, you are your master's only successor." After saying this, his tone turned serious and solemn. "Girl, listen. Although you are trapped here, it's not without hope of getting out. Remember, you must not become despondent, understand?"
"Yes, Master." Mo Tiange couldn't help but straighten her expression.
"The space-tearing technique to open this space was split into five parts back then. Even if I passed it on to you, you wouldn't be able to use it. However, the method to open the Immortal Palace restrictions is your master's secret legacy, though it borrowed the power of four others at the time. This set of secret techniques is extraordinary. Your master obtained it not long ago and only had a superficial understanding. Now, I will pass it on to you. Study it well. Perhaps you can find a better method."
Hearing this, Mo Tiange felt a surge of pleasant surprise. "Master, so you mean it's not absolutely necessary to have that much Spiritual Qi to open the Immortal Palace restrictions?"
"That's right. Everything will depend on your talent." Fuyaozi paused, then added, "Before you master this secret technique, why not form your Nascent Soul here? This place is far from the troubles of the mortal world, free from cultivator conflicts—a good place for secluded cultivation. Your master will also pass on his own insights on Nascent Soul formation to you. Contemplate them carefully."
"Understood, Master."
Fuyaozi fell silent for quite a while longer before saying, "Alright, sit cross-legged properly, embrace the origin and guard the one. Your master will imprint everything I know directly into your Sea of Consciousness."