"The Dao that can be spoken of is not the eternal Dao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name..."
Amidst his murmuring, Ye Long could not conceal his trance-like daze, as if he were blocked by inner demons that suddenly twisted into a ferocious expression.
High in the air, spiritual energy suddenly swirled, turning into a vortex that enveloped him from above. Yet the moment the spiritual empowerment began, Ye Long could not help but roar in agony!
Hearing this, Qin Feng quickly looked over. Without any discernible movement from Qin Feng, a residual image flashed and vanished as he arrived right in front of Ye Long.
"Kid, steady your mind! Do not let the inner demons confuse you. Recite after me!"
With that, Qin Feng's spiritual-energy-infused fingertips pressed against the crown of Ye Long's head. A startling surge of energy violently drilled inside, instantly tending to his unrecovered injuries!
This pure spiritual power felt like a gentle spring breeze carrying vibrant vitality, instantly soothing Ye Long's internal organs. The rushing coolness made Ye Long feel as though he were trapped between ice and fire, causing him extreme discomfort.
Heart-Cleansing Incantation!
"The mind reaches stillness, with everything kept at heart; evil impurities of inner demons, let the spiritual sword repel them!"
At that moment, Qin Feng looked like a supreme sage descending, radiating unmatched might. The burly men on either side were terrified, not daring to approach.
Sinking into utter darkness, Ye Long seemed to catch a glimpse of golden light suddenly flashing in the depths of his mind. He abruptly opened his blood-red eyes, looking somewhat sinisterly wicked!
As the Heart-Cleansing Incantation took effect, the bloody firmament in his heart slowly receded, turning into a hazy, multicolored blur. Only then did Ye Long clearly see who the person before him was.
It was none other than Qin Feng!
"Why aren't you reciting?! Do you want to die?"
Qin Feng was also struggling immensely at this moment. Constantly channeling pure spiritual power and soul force, his face had long since turned pale, draining of all color.
"The mind... reaches stillness, with everything kept at heart; evil... impurities of inner demons, let the spiritual sword repel them," Ye Long roared in pain, silently reciting the Heart-Cleansing Incantation in his heart.
Caught in this double-pronged effort, he dared not do anything else; he could only recite the incantation.
Deep within his mind, the dark world gradually dissipated as a wisp of black Qi suddenly burst forth from his blood-red eyes. Qin Feng caught this instantly.
"Kid, steady your mind! Do not be deceived by the inner demon. The righteous path is vicissitudinous—obey this command instantly!"
Qin Feng pressed two fingers of his left hand together, his eyes suddenly wide with fury, and pointed once more at the center of Ye Long's brow.
At this time, the multicolored world was unfathomably deep, filled with continuous enticements:
"Hehehehe, little ghost, do you want power? Merge with me completely! From now on, this world will be ours!"
"Power!"
Ye Long muttered to himself, turning extremely frantic. He craved power, and even more, he craved to grow stronger.
Yet right at that moment, the soul force from his past life suddenly let out a sigh: "There is never a free lunch in this world!"
At that moment, he stood there in a daze, somewhat hesitant once more.
Unexpectedly, the inner demon continued its mischief, spouting nonsense:
"Kid, merge! Stop hesitating. Step onto the peak of this dazzling world with me! Kill, kill, kill..."
Even as it spoke, the inner demon seemed extremely anxious. In the nether realm, it was as if something was threatening an existence like the inner demon.
"Is that power really out there?!" Ye Long asked.
His body and mind inevitably trembled. In the end, his desire for power overpowered his reason, and the look of bewilderment vanished in a flash.
"As long as you are willing to merge, this seat will grant you the Supreme Demonic Art! Hhahahaha..."
The moment those words fell, visibly, the black Qi expanded by a circle, its momentum terrifyingly fierce.
Gazing at the gloomy and terrifying demonic shadow before him, Ye Long felt as if he were seeing the Three Pure Ones manifest in the world, causing him to hallucinate!
Just as his word "Merge" escaped his lips, and before the second syllable could follow, a stream of golden light suddenly swept across the entire heaven and earth.
It was as though the sovereign heavens were above, with the Great Dao eternal and unwithering, and the bright universe devoid of any filthy soil. It abruptly forced the inner demon to reveal its true form!
As the golden light struck, the inner demon was struck with terror, instantly taking the full hit. Unbeknownst to him, while the inner demon rapidly melted away, it suddenly transformed into a black light that forcefully merged with Ye Long!
Thump, thump, thump!
In an instant, the violent heartbeat sounded like rolling thunder drums, surpassing all words. Ye Long felt his entire aura instantly contract, along with the spiritual energy vortex above his crown which dissolved away accordingly.
This happened so fast that even Qin Feng was caught off guard.
When everything finally calmed down, Qin Feng withdrew his hands and let out a long breath of turbid air.
Ye Long, on the other hand, closed his eyes to rest, his overall soul force expanding by a full circle. Looking inward at the panorama of his Dantian, he could hardly contain the surging power throughout his body.
Meridian Opening Stage!
One must know that the strict levels of cultivation realms are harder to cross than ascending to the blue heaven.
Ye Long's Dantian spiritual power had originally been like mountains and seas, but once the darkness vanished, the spiritual energy had also dissipated entirely. Now, only a wisp as thin as a hair remained.
Yet one must not underestimate this thread of spiritual power; its purity rivaled that of spiritual essence! He simply was not aware of this yet.
Observing this wisp of spiritual essence internally, Ye Long could not conceal his inexplicable excitement. After all, he had finally stepped into the Meridian Opening Stage of his dreams.
A series of encounters had actually allowed Ye Long to clear his Governor and Conception meridians. Rather than saying "Qin Feng's spiritual power conditioned Ye Long's extraordinary meridians," it would be no exaggeration to say it was a marrow-cleansing rebirth for him.
Happiness had arrived much too suddenly; even if Ye Long didn't want to break through, it would likely have been difficult!
It wasn't until the time it takes for an incense stick to burn that Qin Feng finally opened his eyes.
Gazing at Ye Long, who had also opened his eyes, Qin Feng still looked somewhat skeptical and puzzled.
"This shouldn't be. How could mere Blue Stone Force attract the prying eyes of an inner demon? Kid, how do you feel?"
Hearing this, Ye Long was filled with excitement. He suddenly leaped up, laughing maniacally over and over:
"I feel amazingly well! I've already broken through to the Meridian Opening Stage! This is the Meridian Opening Stage, hahaha..."
"..." Hearing this, Qin Feng was left utterly speechless.
Suddenly, Qin Feng was consumed by burning fury, and he spoke with bitter indignation:
"Nonsense! If I weren't here, could you have broken through? You'd probably not even be yourself by now! Still... it truly is bizarre, bizarre..."
Before his voice trailed off, regardless of the crowd's pitiful, wronged expressions, Qin Feng turned wildly irritable and roared:
"Scram! Whoever suffers cultivation deviation tonight will be executed on the spot!"
One could well imagine the result.
"Awoo..."
Wails echoed everywhere, forcing the onlookers to scatter like birds and beasts, each harboring dissatisfaction yet not daring to voice their anger.
"And another thing," Qin Feng shouted, "any of you whose state of mind is lacking yet dares to forcefully practice, let that kid be a warning to you beforehand! When the time comes, execution on the spot just the same!"
"Awoo..."
"Is there no justice left..."
Regardless of the crowd collapsing once again, each of them couldn't hide their envy, jealousy, and hatred. At that moment, they had already concluded that treatment between people was clearly different.
Little did they know, as Qin Feng returned to his room, Ye Long suddenly curled his lips into a smile, radiating an extreme, sinister wickedness!