The things that flowed into his consciousness made him feel, the answer he was seeking was at the other end of the passageway! As long as he could keep going down this path.
The bad news was, there were countless such soul bodies, and the one he had slain was the weakest among them, or rather, this soul body was like him, newly formed, otherwise it wouldn't have been so easily slain by him.
Feeling his own strength, Hou Niao wondered if he could still take a few more steps forward? At the very least, he needed to find a way back.
So he continued to drift forward and during this process, he became familiar with this soul body, even though he was very dissatisfied with it, but now he had no choice.
Indeed, he had not drifted far when he encountered the second wandering soul body. This time, already accustomed to the rules, he had no reason to hesitate; these things had no possibility to negotiate or communicate, their only raison d'être was to survive or to die.
But as soon as they made contact, he immediately realized he was in over his head; the energy of this second soul body was almost similar to the first. He had thought his stronger self could easily slay it, but in reality, he was completely crushed!
This soul's sword technique was exceptionally sharp, it moved fluidly, striking viciously and drilling in, once the sword light flashed, it left him, a would-be Quanzhen disciple, completely disoriented!
If it wasn't for the fact that the opponent's longsword also intermittently flickered and dimmed, and would have slain him with one stroke!
Even so, he didn't last long, one stroke failed and another followed, under the sudden and fierce strikes of the soul body, Hou Niao completely lost the initiative, his body was pierced by dozens of large holes, and finally, he couldn't hold on anymore and turned into a wisp of smoke.
I was even thrashed by an incomplete lone soul?
This was Hou Niao's last consciousness, and the next moment, he found himself back in the real world.
Still sitting in the small courtyard, the noisy gathering of Loose Cultivators in the distance sounded extremely pleasant to his ears, he was finally back, though he hadn't expected it to be in such a manner.
Inspecting his inner organs, he felt that this rotation of the Dantian had not been small, yet, he could no longer continue; the Purple Mansion Vortex had disappeared, as if it had never appeared.
But Hou Niao knew, all of it had truly happened, and it was not just a hallucination.
Bowing his head in thought, he struggled to recall every detail from when he became a soul body, but he did not find any specific solution, nor was he sure if this situation would recur the next time he practiced his Cultivation Technique?
His feeling was, it would happen again!
Standing up, he drew his heavy longsword and went into the courtyard to begin his swordsmanship cultivation; whether or not these strange phenomena would occur, a sharp swordsmanship was his assurance for growth.
In reality, it could kill enemies, in illusion, it could strike souls; to successfully continue cultivation, he must be able to stand longer in the Soul Realm!
A night passed without words...
On the second day, as the purple faintly appeared and the sky was about to lighten, it was the best time for morning practice; Hou Niao took a deep breath, whether the experiences of yesterday would reappear, now was the moment of truth.
Slowly he operated the two Dantians, Dragon and Tiger Meeting and Blood Transformation, he was now able to use both simultaneously, controlling them with ease; when both Dantians were operated to their maximum extent, at the Purple Mansion, that mysterious vertical eye appeared again.
It seemed to have also had a sound sleep, and now it opened its eyes.
Then let it come!
Hou Niao knew he could not refuse, as long as he kept operating the Cultivation Technique, he would certainly return to that mysterious Soul Realm, he had no capital to escape.
With a shift of his mind, indeed, he was still in that passageway, but, he did not see that powerful sword wielding soul body, which relieved him; it was not that he was boosting others' morale at his own expense, the growth of swordsmanship required time, training, and more experience, which could not be rapidly achieved.
He was unclear, if he was instantly sent back again, what would be the effect of the operation of the Cultivation Technique this time?
He still couldn't find out whether killing the Soul Body would be beneficial for his Energy Induction. His preliminary judgment was that it had no relation, but it still needed verification.
Last time he drifted forward, but this time he was actively searching forward. The method was the same, but his mood was completely different. Now, his actions were deliberate.
He didn't know how long it would take to find the truth of the Soul Realm. Surely he wouldn't die before finding it, would he?
The first Soul Body appeared, still faint and weak. It seemed that all the Soul Bodies born here were newly formed, which was good news. Otherwise, if an ancient spirit of hundreds or thousands of years appeared, he would stand no chance at all.
The killing this time was quite decisive because his Soul Body had become slightly stronger than yesterday. Most importantly, his confidence had returned, making his mind calm and his sword steady. With a steady sword, his strikes were ruthless.
The battle began to become enjoyable, and he admitted to himself that he was a person who liked to kill. Such battles slightly exhilarated him.
But the good mood ended after he had slain three Soul Bodies, because that Soul Body with powerful swordsmanship appeared again.
He couldn't and didn't want to run. He had to face this challenge himself! In the future, there would be too many powerful Soul Bodies like this one. If he wanted to move forward, he couldn't avoid even one.
He charged resolutely, but courage didn't equate to strength, and Soul Bodies weren't entities that could be intimidated; the fight was still one-sided. He swung his sword futilely, repeatedly struck, but none of these stopped his counterattack, trading life for life.
He lasted only a few more strikes than last time. That was all.
Bathed in the bright sunlight, Hou Niao, freshly washed, stepped out of the courtyard, feeling a need for fresh air; he could endure the solitude of cultivating alone in the courtyard, but if he stayed too long in the Soul Realm, the atmosphere was truly oppressive, as if everything he saw was bathed in blood and shadowed by demons.
He needed a change of environment, to relax; to breathe fresh air, see blooming flowers and grass, listen to the cries of birds and beasts.
Most importantly, seeing unfamiliar, lively humans also stirred something in his heart.
As he strolled along a grassy path, his mood lightened considerably. He was curious how those cultivators who practiced Bone and Blood Transformation comforted their hearts. Or did they simply let their hearts fall and become real demons?
From a distance, a slender figure approached; Xiao Qiang, holding a red-lacquered food basket, came up to him,
"I made some Pear Blossom Paste, and made a little too much... Thank you for swapping rooms with me, my cousin wouldn't let me say it yesterday, but I actually really like this bamboo forest. I just don't like those who drink every day..."
Hou Niao nodded understandingly, and generously accepted the food basket, "It's fine, I don't mind, you shouldn't worry about it."
Xiao Qiang bowed slightly and then floated away; it was a gesture of gratitude, not an intention to make a close acquaintance. Such a beautiful woman, of noble birth, was never lacking people to protect her.
It was just different from how her cousin, Dugu Lan, handled things; internally, she was just as proud. With his insight from observing countless people, Hou Niao would rather deal with someone like Dugu Lan and wouldn't want to involve himself with a woman like Xiao Qiang.
At least, Dugu Lan displayed her demands openly, while the latter kept them hidden in her heart.
For some reason, another woman's figure appeared in his mind, by the bank of Yao Water, graceful as a flying fairy.
He took a deep breath. No matter what, the beauty of the human world could never be replaced!
Indeed,
In the deep courtyard where the morning mist and glow arise, chanting spells to refine the three flowers. Hearing of Quanzhen where the path to immortality lies, when will the bluebird bring the Elixir sand?