As he circulated his energy according to the Mountains and Seas Art, the spirit energy flowing into his body suddenly filtered out a large amount of anomalous substances.
After that, the cleansed spirit energy that remained coursed through his entire body through his energy channels, and this caused Xu Qing's body to emit popping noises at this moment.
It was as though some previously congested areas in his body were now instantly opened. His blood and flesh were tempered and nourished at this moment.
He visualized the xiao image in his mind. At this moment, the xiao seemed to come alive and was adopting all sorts of different postures.
Although the Mountains and Seas Art was known as a cultivation art, it didn't cultivate laws. But rather, it was a type of body-refining method.
There were a total of ten levels that matched the ten levels of the Qi Condensation Realm.
The bamboo slip clearly introduced that every level a cultivator attained would grant them an additional tiger's worth of strength. Five tigers made up one xiao and two xiaos made up one kui*.
The introduction continued to say that xiao could move mountains, while kui could shift seas. This was why the cultivation art was known as the Mountains and Seas Art.
At this moment, the purple crystal that was buried in his chest was like a vortex that continuously absorbed spirit energy, and it flowed toward the crystal with absurd ease.
As a result, Xu Qing's cultivation speed greatly increased.
After an unknown amount of time, the popping sounds in Xu Qing's body intensified and a lot of impurities within his body flowed out of the pores of his entire body.
A pungent smell then permeated the cave.
As the impurities flowed out, Xu Qing's body actually became more 'crystalline' than before. Even his dirt-covered face looked more exquisite now.
The popping sounds and the spirit energy flowing in gradually ceased after some time. After that, Xu Qing opened his eyes.
A hint of purple light flashed past his eyes.
After he recovered, Xu Qing's mind turned sluggish for a moment.
Right now, the dark cave actually looked somewhat clearer in his eyes. He then hurriedly lowered his head to survey his body, and a look of disbelief gradually appeared on his face.
"This feeling…"
A trace of excitement flashed on Xu Qing's face. He stood up and punched out, actually creating the sharp gushing sound of wind from the blow.
Because the cave was very small, he couldn't test his speed. But the feeling when he lifted his legs and punched out allowed him to know that there was a great improvement in all the various aspects of his body.
After that, he immediately rolled up the sleeves on his left arm.
When he saw a fingernail-sized black dot appearing there, Xu Qing drew in a deep breath and suppressed the excitement in his heart.
"So, this is the first level of Qi Condensation!"
According to the description of the bamboo slip, this black dot was none other than a mutation point of someone who cultivated the Mountains and Seas Art. It was located on their left arm. Moreover, there would be an additional black dot for every level the cultivator attained.
He touched the mutation point on his arm. At this moment, Xu Qing was evidently excited with regard to his sudden improvement in strength. He then lifted his head and glanced at the entrance gap, waiting in anticipation for dawn so he could go out and test his speed.
But very soon, Xu Qing's expression was filled with suspicion. He moved closer to the entrance gap and listened attentively.
The outside world was as dark as ever, but there were no strange sounds at all.
This was something he had never encountered despite his many days here.
In the past, even if dawn had broken, although there were no more sounds from the mutated beasts and strange existences, the sound of falling rain would still exist.
However, right now, even the sound of falling rain was gone.
"Can it be that…"
Xu Qing's mind was stirred as a conjecture rose in his heart.
He silently waited until he saw a beam of resplendent light streaming through the entrance gap of the cave. The light reflected in Xu Qing's black pupils was as though it illuminated his entire world.
The instant he saw the light, Xu Qing's body trembled.
He lifted his hand and slowly approached the ray of light before he basked his body with it. He felt a warmth in his palm. This sensation, which he had not felt for a long time, slowly awakened his spirit that had been sleeping.
"Sunlight…"
A long time later, a bright luster appeared in Xu Qing's eyes, and he began to shift the blockage away. As more light streamed in, he slowly squeezed his way out of the gap.
The instant he exited the cave, he lifted his head and what he saw was no longer the dense layer of dark clouds but the bright and resplendent sun.
It was as though the old man in the morning suddenly regained his vitality after being ill for many days. The curtains of dark clouds finally parted, allowing 'freshness' to descend upon the world again.
"The rain has stopped."
Xu Qing took a deep breath of the air that contained the warmth of the sun as he silently gazed at the city under the shadow of the rising sun.
Everything in the city seemed to shine with a different splendor under the resplendent red-tinged sky.
The morning glow of the sky cascaded down from the gaps of the cloud. The rays of light were like countless whales spewing out golden waterfalls, cleansing away the darkness and mist in the city, revealing its mottled scars.
The collapsed buildings everywhere, the numerous greenish-black corpses, the blood-colored puddles that constituted a shocking sight…everything seemed to be reminding Xu Qing that a calamity had happened here.
A hint of complication appeared in Xu Qing's gaze. He had lived for six years in the slums outside the city, and he had also seen this city for six years.
Although the number of times he entered was very few, this place was ultimately the place he had wanted to stay in the most for the past six years.
"I obtained a cultivation art here."
"I obtained the purple crystal here."
"I…survived here." Xu Qing mumbled and fell silent.
Only after a long time later did he sigh lightly and walk toward the greenish-black corpses. He lowered his head for some time and carried one of the corpses before he walked forward.
He then headed to a public square nearby and placed the corpse down. After that, he turned and continued to carry the second corpse, the third, the fourth…
Some of the corpses were at the end of the street, and some were even crushed underneath the rubble.
Even so, he still carried all the corpses in the surrounding area to the public square. Right now, the corpses here were stacked up like a small mountain. Some were complete corpses, and others had parts of their bodies missing.
Xu Qing stood there and started a fire. Maybe it was because of the anomalous substances, the flames grew increasingly intense the longer they burned, and thick smoke was soon emitted…
Next to the thick smoke, Xu Qing gazed at the burning bodies for a very long time before he silently walked away to the second area. Very soon, another column of thick smoke spiraled upward, and the columns of thick smoke began to increase in number…
Just like this, on the first day when the sunlight streamed into the city, other than the sunlight, there was only black smoke that arose from the burning corpses.
The columns of black smoke rose to the skies, blotting out the sunlight. At this moment, the red morning glow was also filled with helplessness. The reddish hue darkened into a dark red, and it felt as though the sky was sighing.
It also seemed that the columns of smoke had become the tears, and the shadow cast by the smoke on the ground transformed into tear stains.
The last tear stain was at the location Xu Qing discovered the purple light.
Over there, Xu Qing placed the corpse of the old man from the medical shop down. As he burned the body, heat waves gushed forth and he stood silently at the side. The roiling flames were reflected in his dark pupils as they flickered unceasingly.
His disheveled and dried long hair also slowly curled from the heat. A long time later, Xu Qing's body bent as he lowered his head to pray.
"I wish…for you all to rest in peace."
At this moment, the flames suddenly flared intensely and the heat grew increasingly stronger. Sparks akin to dandelion seeds were generated, and they floated in the sky along with the wind.
Only the spiraling smoke still contained reluctance and regret that was impossible to diffuse. Even the wind couldn't disperse the emotions.
As the smoke rose higher, it felt like wounds had appeared in the sky.
They were insignificant and filled with helplessness.
…
A long time later, as the sounds of chaotic steps rang out, a strange voice drifted over behind the youth.
"I was saying why we didn't see any corpses when we were on our way here. So, there's a silly brat who didn't mind wasting his strength and stamina to cremate these corpses."
"Might as well. Since your longing cannot be cut, I shall help you and toss you inside the fire to let you accompany them."
Xu Qing then abruptly turned his body to face these people.
[1] Supernatural being from chinese folklores