Chapter 189: Chapter 189: Condensing the Spirit Seed

"Cough, cough... My lord, I was wrong!" Ouyang Chen gasped, unable to breathe as he was being choked. He immediately begged for mercy. The black-robed figure’s terrifying methods were seared into his memory, and the mere thought of them drenched his robes in cold sweat.

"Hmph!" The black-robed figure snorted, then casually tossed Ouyang Chen against a nearby wall. The tremendous force sent fine cracks spiderwebbing across the stone.

"I want you to bring me his corpse!" the black-robed figure ordered dispassionately, sparing Ouyang Chen a single glance.

Hearing this, Ouyang Chen struggled to his feet. He cupped his fist and said, "My lord, the Five Elements Sect will hold its Grand Tournament in three months. I will kill him with my own hands then and bring you his corpse!"

"Three months?" The black-robed figure snorted, clearly displeased with the timeline.

Sensing the black-robed figure’s displeasure, Ouyang Chen’s heart skipped a beat. He hastily explained, "My lord, the Sect’s Grand Tournament is in three months. Chen Yu will definitely be keeping a strict watch on me until then. I won’t have many opportunities to make a move!"

"Hmph. If it must be three months, so be it. I’ve waited a thousand years; what’s another three months to me?" the black-robed figure said dismissively.

"However, if I do not see Shen Haoran’s corpse in three months... you know the consequences." As he spoke, the black mist around the figure swirled violently. Two tendrils of it shot out, grazing Ouyang Chen’s cheeks and leaving behind a pair of bloody gashes from which warm blood began to flow.

"Yes!" Terror filled Ouyang Chen’s eyes as he bowed his head in submission.

Seeing Ouyang Chen’s pathetic display, the black-robed figure snorted coldly before dissolving into a plume of black mist and vanishing from the cave.

Once the black-robed figure was gone, the crushing pressure on Ouyang Chen instantly vanished. He lifted his head, his eyes fixed on the empty air with pure venom. "Shen Haoran," he growled through clenched teeth, "I will repay you a hundredfold for all of this!"

Ouyang Chen didn’t dare resent the black-robed figure; the man’s power was beyond his comprehension. Therefore, he could only redirect all the humiliation he had just suffered onto Shen Haoran.

After a moment, Ouyang Chen took a deep breath, suppressed his fury, and his demeanor shifted back to that of the cold, ruthless number one expert on the Dragon and Tiger List. With a few flickers of movement, he vanished from the cave, leaving only faint wisps of the black mist to dissipate in the air.

...

Shen Haoran and Elder Yan had once again arrived at the Red Flame Mountain Range. Gazing down at the lush, endless sea of trees below, Shen Haoran sighed. "Who knows how long I’ll be stuck in this remote wilderness this time." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Cultivation is inherently a tedious and lonely process," Elder Yan said calmly as his ethereal form materialized. "Besides, the Spirit Gathering Technique must be practiced in a place like this. Condensing a Spirit Seed is much easier here than in the outside world."

Hearing this, Shen Haoran could only smile wryly. He took a leap, a blur of movement flashing beneath his feet as he jumped down from the cliff.

Once deep within the forest, Shen Haoran scanned his surroundings. After confirming there were no threatening Spirit Beasts nearby, he sat down cross-legged, feeling at ease.

Elder Yan floated out and began to explain, "The Spirit Gathering Technique. The ’spirit’ it refers to isn’t the Spiritual Power you refine for Martial Cultivation. It’s a different form of energy, an existence much like the Fire Spirit Black Obsidian. You need a strong affinity with nature just to be able to sense it!"

"However, that might not be a problem for you. The Chaos Divine Body is an embodiment of the Five Elements and nature itself, so your affinity is unquestionable. The real challenge is whether you can separate that spirit from its source, then condense it to form a Spirit Seed! Now, try to sense its presence."

Hearing this, Shen Haoran closed his eyes, calmed his mind and spirit, and tried to merge himself with the surrounding nature.

But even after a long while, Shen Haoran still couldn’t sense a thing.

"Quiet your mind. Release your Spiritual Thought. Feel it. Merge with it!" Elder Yan’s voice echoed in Shen Haoran’s ears like a sacred Brahma Sound.

At his words, Shen Haoran took a deep breath. His Spiritual Thought surged out like a tide, and he let it spread freely in all directions.

Freed from Shen Haoran’s control, his Spiritual Thought grew lively, like a group of curious children darting up, down, and all around the forest...

At that moment, Shen Haoran seemed to feel the emotions of the countless living things in the forest—some were sad, some happy, some angry, some vexed. And as they expressed these emotions, faint wisps of mist began to rise, swirling around each creature.

Shen Haoran watched this energy, so different from the wild Spiritual Power he was used to, and a flash of joy appeared in his eyes. ’So this is the so-called ’spirit’?’

Shen Haoran reached out with his Spiritual Thought, attempting to touch one of the tiny wisps of "spirit." However, the moment his Spiritual Thought made contact, the wisp instantly vanished!

"Huh..." Shen Haoran was dumbfounded. ’I didn’t expect this so-called ’spirit’ to be so... bashful!’

Shen Haoran could only sigh and try to touch another wisp. The result, however, was the same. Soon, every last wisp of "spirit" within range of his Spiritual Thought had vanished!

"This..." Shen Haoran was speechless. ’This ’spirit’ really is hard to gather!’

In the end, Shen Haoran simply gave up trying to touch the "spirit." He let his Spiritual Thought roam freely, content to be a mere bystander watching its lively dance.

This time, without his deliberate attempts to make contact, the so-called "spirits" actually began to approach his Spiritual Thought on their own. Slowly, a considerable amount of "spirit" gathered around it.

Seeing this, Shen Haoran was overjoyed. His free-roaming Spiritual Thought suddenly contracted, enveloping the cluster of "spirit" and pulling it back into his body.

A low, mournful cry echoed in Shen Haoran’s mind. The so-called "spirit" was actually making a sound of sorrow.

Shen Haoran paid it no mind. His Spiritual Thought kept the "spirit" enveloped, forcing it to circulate along the path prescribed by the Spirit Gathering Technique.

Tirelessly, Shen Haoran’s Spiritual Thought guided the "spirit" through circuit after circuit. Gradually, its resistance weakened until it finally became completely docile.

At last, it transformed into a seed and settled upon the Spirit Crystal within Shen Haoran’s Dantian.

Staring at the "seed" shimmering with a faint light, Shen Haoran was ecstatic. ’So this is the so-called Spirit Seed?’ He could feel a unique aura emanating from it, one that was indeed somewhat similar to that of the Fire Spirit Black Obsidian.

’But it’s so tiny,’ Shen Haoran thought with a frown. ’A Spirit Seed this small can’t possibly meet the requirements for the Heaven-Dominating Tribulation!’

"Condensing the Spirit Seed is just the first step," Elder Yan chuckled. "Next, you have to nurture it and make it grow. That’s no small task, and it’s all up to you now."

"Sigh..." Shen Haoran let out a breath, closed his eyes once more, and tried to sense other "spirits."

And now that he had a Spirit Seed, Shen Haoran discovered that his perception of the surrounding "spirits" had become much clearer. It was as if he had turned into a vacuum cleaner!

It was just that the so-called "spirits" were incredibly scarce. After a full day of work, he could barely see any growth in the Spirit Seed.

’Looks like this is just going to take time,’ Shen Haoran thought, shaking his head in resignation before closing his eyes once more...