Shackles of Humanity

’I’m fine for now, but Lu Qing might be in mortal danger.’ Luo Kai stood up and sent out his spiritual frequency, searching for a possible way out. However, the surrounding Mist also contained a frequency of its own, which actually interfered with his search.

Finally, he sensed a familiar Water Frequency. His spirits lifted, and he followed the sensation. He had no idea how long he walked, but the surrounding Mist gradually thinned. A small lake appeared before him, only a few acres in size, its banks covered in all sorts of verdant plants.

The Mist was much thinner here, and sunlight finally broke through. Luo Kai breathed a sigh of relief and hurried to the shore. He looked down at Lu Qing. Her breathing had eased considerably, but her beautiful eyes remained tightly shut, her expression pained. She was clearly still trapped in a nightmare. It seemed the Mist in this valley could make a person fall into an eternal slumber, eventually leading to death—a truly terrifying thought.

Luo Kai’s heart filled with anxiety. He scanned his surroundings. Apart from the small lake, every other area was shrouded in Mist. Once inside the Mist, it was impossible to discern direction or one’s own location. In essence, they were trapped here.

Just then, a warning flared in his mind. A shadow shot out from the lake. With Lu Qing in his arms, Luo Kai had no time to free up his hands and could only retreat rapidly. As he fell back, he drew the Military Dagger from his leg with one hand, thrusting it out in a flash of cold light. The shadow’s reaction was also extremely swift. It twisted in mid-air and opened its mouth to bite at Luo Kai’s wrist.

The shadow was a monstrous snake as thick as a man’s arm. It had a triangular head with a pair of feelers, and its body was covered in dense, cyan scales. Its long fangs were just about to sink into his wrist.

Luo Kai’s arm bent at an impossible angle. With a twist, the gleaming Military Dagger pierced the monstrous snake’s body. A flick of his wrist and a sharp downward slice gutted the creature. A shower of blood erupted as the snake fell to the ground, twitching convulsively a few times before it died.

Luo Kai took a few steps back, still holding Lu Qing. There were many more of the monstrous snakes in the lake.

After a moment of thought, he circled the lakeshore and spotted a crevice under a large, protruding boulder not far away. He walked over and used his Severing Blade to carve out a small cave. After laying Lu Qing down, he frowned, wracking his brain for an escape plan. Though he didn’t want to think about it, he had likely been deceived. If it were just him, it wouldn’t matter, but Lu Qing could lose her life because of this, and that was the one thing he couldn’t bear.

He took a long breath, suppressing the rage in his heart. He extended his Spiritual Will, letting it coil around Lu Qing as he searched for a way to wake her.

Every living being possessed an independent will that would resist the intrusion of an external consciousness, similar to a spiritual firewall. But if the intruding consciousness was too powerful, it could shatter this firewall, potentially causing severe damage to the consciousness of the one being invaded.

This was the same principle behind how the Evil Energy had once tried to assimilate his own consciousness. Therefore, Luo Kai didn’t dare probe too deeply. He could only gently touch Lu Qing’s spiritual frequency, attempting to rouse her.

It seemed to be working. Lu Qing’s expression eased considerably, but she showed no signs of waking.

As the sun set, a hush fell over the valley. Afraid that the monstrous snakes might come out, Luo Kai didn’t dare wander too far from Lu Qing. He gathered some dry grass and branches from nearby, dried out the dampness, and built a fire.

Throughout the night, Luo Kai kept his spiritual frequency active, enveloping Lu Qing. This was the first time he had ever studied the frequency produced by a human consciousness in such detail. Lu Qing’s spiritual frequency was incredibly gentle, somewhat similar to flowing water. His own frequency, however, was more like Evil Qi—fierce and tyrannical. Despite wanting to make himself a little gentler, he couldn’t. ’Perhaps this is my true nature,’ he thought.

Time passed, bit by bit. Lu Qing’s spiritual frequency went from resisting at the start to slowly accepting his. It was a bit like falling in love. Eventually, the two of them entered a wondrous state of Fusion—a commingling on a spiritual level. In that trance, it felt as if only their two spiritual frequencies existed in all of Heaven and Earth...

Early the next morning, Lu Qing groggily opened her eyes. The memory of a strange dream from the night before immediately made her blush. After a long moment, she got up and walked outside. The fire at the cave’s entrance had already gone out. She looked around but didn’t see Luo Kai and started to feel anxious. Just as she was about to call out, a figure came sprinting toward her. It was Luo Kai, his face beaming with joy. "You’re finally awake," he said.

Lu Qing’s heart settled, and she asked, a bit dazed, "What happened? Where are we?"

Luo Kai then explained the strange nature of the valley to her.

"Ah, so does that mean we can’t get out?" Lu Qing grew anxious as well.

"Don’t worry, there has to be a way. I’ll go explore the surrounding area for the next couple of days."

Luo Kai didn’t dare go too far from Lu Qing, which meant he couldn’t explore very far. For the next two days, the pair stayed near the small lake. The lake was full of monstrous snakes, but strangely, they never came ashore. However, anything that approached the water’s edge was immediately attacked.

He could go a long time without eating, but Lu Qing couldn’t. And in this valley, besides plants and trees, there were only snakes. He had no idea how these monstrous snakes managed to survive.

Deciding to give it a try, Luo Kai caught one of the monstrous snakes, skinned it, and roasted it over the fire. His body possessed a powerful resistance to poison, so he wasn’t afraid of most toxins. He took a bite. The meat was fragrant and had a nice, chewy texture. He waited a moment and found that the meat had already been digested with no adverse effects. Relieved, he cut the snake meat into pieces and brought it to Lu Qing.

Lu Qing was so hungry her stomach was growling. The fragrant smell of the meat made her swallow hard. "What kind of meat is this?" she asked.

"Snake meat."

The color drained from Lu Qing’s face. "Can... can we eat it?"

Luo Kai smiled. "Yes. I tried it. It’s not poisonous, and it actually tastes pretty good."

Lu Qing still hesitated, not daring to touch it.

Luo Kai sighed. "Let me tell you a story. One day, a person was inexplicably thrown into prison. It was a cell for death row inmates, and the Prison Guards only gave him a bowl of thin gruel and a steamed bun each day..." He proceeded to tell her the story of his time on Nanya Island, recounting how he had nearly starved to death, how he had been brutally beaten, and how he had eventually escaped against all odds.

Lu Qing became so engrossed in the story that she forgot her hunger. "And then what?" she pressed. "What happened after the old fisherman saved him?"

A trace of sorrow appeared in Luo Kai’s eyes. "The old fisherman died," he said. "And everyone in the Small Fishing Village was killed by bad men."

Lu Qing let out a soft sigh as well and picked up a piece of snake meat, taking small bites.

Over the next few days, Luo Kai gradually expanded his search radius. But once inside the Mist, his sight, hearing, and smell were all rendered useless. Even his most trusted Spiritual Power was heavily obstructed, causing him to walk in circles. In the end, he could only follow the aura of the water to find his way back.

Lu Qing came to accept the reality that they couldn’t leave. When Luo Kai was nearby, she would wander around the small lake. On one of these strolls, she made an incredible discovery: a huge amount of medicinal herbs, all of them extremely valuable. The Snakebone Grass that Yao Guangfa had mentioned grew like a common weed here, covering the ground in vast patches. There were also countless other herbs, some she had seen before and some she hadn’t.

As a Wood Element Master, Granny Hua naturally had a deep understanding of the medicinal properties of plants. Having grown up with Granny Hua, Lu Qing had absorbed a great deal of this knowledge through osmosis. Now, she became busy, muttering "I’m rich, I’m rich," as she spent her days processing the herbs.

After the Great Cataclysm, the Active Energy contained within flora and fauna had increased dramatically, as had the probability of mutation. The rare medicinal herbs of today were all mutated plants with extremely potent properties.

With so many precious herbs available, they certainly weren’t going to let them go to waste. Lu Qing furrowed her delicate brows, trying hard to recall the medicated bath recipes her grandmother used to use. Luo Kai built a large wooden tub and acted as Lu Qing’s test subject, testing the properties of the various herbs.

Heaven and Earth are divided into Yin and Yang, and all life contains this same division. Most of the herbs here belonged to the Yin Attribute and had powerful Yin-nourishing effects. For a woman, this would naturally enhance her beauty and nourish her qi and blood. For a man, it could remedy a Yin deficiency in the body.

Half a month passed without them realizing it. Luo Kai soaked in medicated baths every day and practiced his Body Techniques in his spare time. Life was peaceful and comfortable, and he found himself surprisingly reluctant to let it go.

During this time, his body had once again undergone subtle changes. The flexibility of his bones and muscles had become even more formidable. His face grew more handsome, his skin fairer, and his once masculine aura had gained a hint of softness. This distressed him to no end.

Lu Qing’s changes were also significant. She had become even more beautiful and captivating, to the point that Luo Kai barely dared to look at her. When a man and a woman are isolated together for a long time, it’s inevitable that ripples will form in their hearts.

Compared to Luo Kai’s passivity, Lu Qing was far more forward. The tenderness brimming in her beautiful eyes was gradually beginning to melt his resolve.