Chapter 159: CH. 159 | A Fractured Nascent Soul
Li Qingxue fell silent for a moment, unsure where to begin her explanation. Still, she was certain that Lin Tian’s condition had something to do with the restriction extraction process.
She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. Her attention shifted to the side as her eyes met Cao Ying’s.
"It seems I need to explain what happened inside the sect’s main hall," Qingxue said.
Cao Ying remained silent, her sharp gaze fixed on Li Qingxue, ready to hear the explanation.
Inside the guest house, Lin Tian formed a series of hand seals and activated his cultivation technique, absorbing the spiritual energy stored within the spirit stones.
He shattered all fifty mid-grade spirit stones, allowing every stream of spiritual energy to flow into his body.
I’ve used my soul manifestation for too long. It’s caused tiny cracks to appear in my Nascent Soul.
I never expected... modifying and extracting the restriction rune would’ve consumed so much of my soul’s spiritual energy.
Lin Tian had successfully removed Sect Master Yuntian’s restriction from Li Qingxue’s body without destroying it or triggering its activation mechanism.
However, that ability came with consequences that even Lin Tian had never imagined.
The complexity of the restriction rune, combined with the primordial energy of a Soul Formation cultivator, made the extraction process slow and extremely dangerous.
Not wanting the extraction to fail or put either of them in danger, Lin Tian chose to use the power of his soul and spiritual energy to modify the restriction rune.
When the process was finally complete, he never expected that extracting the restriction rune would end up injuring his Nascent Soul.
Only by cultivating and absorbing an abundant amount of spiritual energy could he restore his soul to its original condition.
Elsewhere, Cao Ying was stunned by Li Qingxue’s explanation. Her face stiffened, her eyes widened, and she instinctively turned toward the guest house.
"So, for seven days, he maintained his soul manifestation inside your dantian? Then he used his own power to modify the restriction rune before extracting it?"
Li Qingxue fell silent for a brief moment before responding with only a soft hum while staring straight at the house.
"I’m certain... his condition’s caused by damage to his Nascent Soul," Li Qingxue murmured.
"This isn’t good. He was planning to break through to the Soul Formation Realm before helping you."
"If he’s injured like this, his chances of breaking through are much lower," Cao Ying added.
Li Qingxue clenched her fists tightly and lowered her head, guilt filling her heart.
Lin Tian should’ve used his opportunity to seek heavenly enlightenment before breaking through to the Soul Formation Realm.
Instead, he’d flown to the Yunlan Sect, helped Li Qingxue deal with the restriction rune, and ended up injuring his own Nascent Soul.
Guilt weighed heavily on her heart. Had she known about Lin Tian’s original plan, she’d have firmly refused his help.
"Then what can we do?" Li Qingxue asked, "We’ve got plenty of pills. Would they help him recover?"
Cao Ying shrugged. She couldn’t say for certain whether pills would be enough to restore Lin Tian’s condition.
Only Lin Tian himself knew the exact state of his body. Cao Ying didn’t dare make assumptions because she’d never encountered anything like this before.
"We should wait until we hear from him. Then we’ll decide what to do if his cultivation doesn’t produce any results."
Li Qingxue gave a quiet hum, her heart still burdened with guilt.
Her eyes looked dim, and sorrow was clearly written across her face.
As the sect master, she was determined to help Lin Tian recover from his troubling condition.
***
Three days passed.
Cao Ying continued waiting alone in the front courtyard.
Li Qingxue had already left to handle several important matters related to her sect. She only returned every evening before nightfall to check on Lin Tian’s condition.
Using her Qi Aura Vision, she continued watching him, clearly seeing that his condition had improved compared to before.
However, judging from the unstable bursts of qi radiating from Lin Tian’s body, Cao Ying was convinced that he hadn’t fully recovered.
Lin Tian absorbed the final stream of spiritual qi from the shattered spirit stones.
He spread both arms to his sides, releasing a powerful wave of blue qi accompanied by a fierce gust of wind.
The wind shook the trees and leaves, sent dust swirling across the ground, and swept through Cao Ying’s long hair.
At least my cultivation’s still at the Perfect Nascent Soul Realm.
The guest house door slowly opened.
Lin Tian stepped outside looking much more refreshed, still dressed in his black robe.
"How’re you feeling, Lin Tian?" Cao Ying asked as she walked toward him.
"Much better," Lin Tian replied briefly.
"What about... your Nascent Soul?"
Lin Tian narrowed his eyes, surprised that Cao Ying already knew his condition was caused by damage to his soul.
Still, it didn’t surprise him that much. Aside from Cao Ying being a Soul Formation cultivator, Li Qingxue had probably already told her everything.
Lin Tian let out a quiet sigh. He stepped aside and looked toward the lush trees in front of the guest house.
"My cultivation foundation’s fine. It’s just that my Nascent Soul has developed cracks and become unstable."
"It seems I used too much of my Nascent Soul’s essence for too long while extracting that restriction rune."
"That could be dangerous. Soul attacks would only make your condition worse," Cao Ying said.
"I can still handle it," Lin Tian replied, "As long as I can restore my soul, I’ll be fine."
Cao Ying nodded. She was convinced that Lin Tian already had a solution for his current condition.
She stepped closer again and asked about the restriction rune he had successfully extracted.
Lin Tian turned around and summoned a wooden puppet about the size of a human.
The puppet stood before him while four white restriction runes floated around it from every direction.
Cao Ying stared at it in amazement.
"You actually managed to modify and extract a restriction rune this complicated?" she asked in disbelief.
"It took a lot of time and concentration. Still, I managed to do it."
"Then what’re you going to do with that?"
"I’m taking it with me. Keeping a restriction rune puppet inside the sect isn’t safe. I’m worried someone might try to sabotage it," Lin Tian replied.
"I see. That makes sense."
In the middle of their conversation, Lin Tian and Cao Ying were interrupted by Li Qingxue’s arrival.
As usual, she had come that afternoon to check on Lin Tian.
But the moment she arrived, she immediately noticed that Lin Tian had already finished cultivating.
The qi aura surrounding him was noticeably stronger than before.
"Lin Tian...?" Li Qingxue called softly.
Lin Tian turned toward her and smiled, "Li Qingxue."
Li Qingxue’s face turned pale, her hands trembled slightly.
She finally understood why Lin Tian had insisted that she cultivate without stopping for seven days.
Every bit of spiritual energy she’d absorbed had been used to sustain her body.
Meanwhile... Lin Tian had maintained his soul manifestation alone the entire time without having a chance to cultivate himself.
He... used his own soul to save me.
"How’re you feeling? Do you need pills to recover your soul?" Li Qingxue asked.
Lin Tian shook his head.
Restoring a soul, especially one as advanced as a Nascent Soul, required an extremely high-tier pill.
He was certain the elders of the Yunlan Sect’s Pill Refinement Hall could refine one.
However, producing a high-grade pill like the Soul Restoration Pill required rare ingredients.
"It’d take too much time, effort, and resources."
"You don’t need to do that," Lin Tian said.
"Then what can I do to help your Nascent Soul recover?" Li Qingxue asked.
"There’s a Soul Spring in the Saintess Spring Valley. That’s the safest way to restore my soul," Lin Tian explained.
Cao Ying smiled knowingly, "That’d save you a lot of time."
"Exactly."
"So I’ll restore my soul through the Soul Spring there," Lin Tian said.
Li Qingxue felt relieved, but not completely. There was still something weighing on her heart.
She couldn’t bring herself to let Lin Tian leave in his current condition.
If Lin Tian had to leave in search of heavenly enlightenment, then she’d accompany him.
"You’ve helped me and protected me."
"Now it’s my turn to help you."
"I’ll go with you to the Saintess Spring Valley."