Cultivation Starting from Choosing Augments

Chapter 328 - 179: Obtaining the Yellow Springs Fiend

Fortunately, Xiao Chen was no ordinary person. He had a way to deal with the Evil Qi.

The instant he felt the Yin Fiend enter his body, he silently recited the Mystic Sky Eating Secret Technique.

Before the Evil Qi even had a chance to attack, the Secret Technique suppressed and completely devoured it.

In the next moment, a realization dawned on Xiao Chen.

The wisp of Evil Qi he had just devoured was none other than Yin Water Fiend, also known as Yellow Springs Fiend.

According to the Secret Technique, although the Yellow Springs Fiend was a type of Yin Fiend, it was extremely aggressive and would actively corrupt any living beings nearby.

It was this very trait that made it extremely difficult to gather.

Unless it was cultivated in a very sealed-off location, it would often be completely consumed the moment it formed.

Only a place like the Yellow Springs Traveling Palace, which had been devoid of life for tens of thousands of years, could accumulate enough Yellow Springs Fiend.

Xiao Chen opened his eyes, staring in delighted surprise at the Golden Coffin before him.

He now understood that the reason it had initially looked like flowing water was simply because the Evil Qi inside the coffin was so dense it had condensed into a liquid.

’I never would have thought... The greatest treasure here, my main objective for this trip, was actually hidden inside the Golden Coffin.’

"You’re awake. Are you alright?"

Seeing him open his eyes, the Artifact Spirit floated over with concern.

’Generally speaking, having your Sea of Consciousness assaulted by the Yellow Springs Fiend makes it feel like an eternity.’

’Only a few breaths might have passed in the outside world, but the Cultivator themselves would feel as if a long time had gone by.’

"It’s my fault I didn’t warn you in time. There’s actually Evil Qi mixed in here."

The Artifact Spirit feigned remorse before trying to coax him. "But don’t worry. As long as you listen to my arrangements, I can guarantee you can enter safely without being corrupted."

"As long as you pass this final trial, what my master left behind..."

"Hey! What are you doing!?"

It was halfway through its sentence when it saw Xiao Chen jump into the coffin with a SPLASH and expertly sit down cross-legged to meditate.

"No, that’s not the right posture!"

"You idiot! You’re asking to die!"

The Artifact Spirit immediately panicked.

Since Xiao Chen hadn’t lain down completely, it couldn’t use the Golden Coffin to possess his body.

Besides, with the power of the Yellow Springs Fiend, it would only take a few breaths for him to be assimilated into a mindless, walking corpse.

However, in the next moment, what unfolded before its eyes completely shattered the Artifact Spirit’s perception of reality.

Billowing clouds of Evil Qi burrowed into Xiao Chen’s body, yet his physical form showed no change at all.

In fact, his face even showed an expression of pure comfort.

’What’s going on?’

’Xiao Chen is actually absorbing the Evil Qi!’

As the Artifact Spirit sensed the "water level" of the Yellow Springs Fiend in the Golden Coffin steadily drop, it fell into a deep state of bewilderment.

Neither its years of research on the *True Monarch of the Yellow Spring’s Secret Scripture of Life Passage Punishment* nor the memory fragments it had absorbed from the dead Cultivators in the miniature city could explain what was happening.

.

’No, I have to stop this!’

The Artifact Spirit couldn’t make sense of it, but it knew one thing: without the Evil Qi to help wear down the Divine Soul, its possession scheme would never succeed.

But the problem remained: it had no way to attack Xiao Chen directly.

Its desperate shouts were having no effect whatsoever.

Even when it threatened him with the loss of the inheritance, Xiao Chen paid it no mind.

At this point, the Artifact Spirit finally realized that Xiao Chen had been after the Evil Qi from the very start.

After its repeated attempts at persuasion and threats proved fruitless, it finally threw caution to the wind, deciding to do everything in its power to cause trouble for Xiao Chen.

Although it couldn’t affect the outside world, it still retained a degree of control over the Golden Coffin itself.

This was especially true for the various trials.

After scanning the miniature city, the Artifact Spirit quickly identified several Demon Cultivators who were struggling to solve the puzzles.

According to the memory fragments it had absorbed, these people were likely Xiao Chen’s adversaries.

’In that case, I might as well help one of them get out quickly and deal with this troublemaker, Xiao Chen.’

The Artifact Spirit scanned the group, its gaze reluctantly settling on a stout man in his forties.

’What it really wanted was the youngest body possible. Otherwise, it would have picked someone from the city long ago instead of wasting so much time on Xiao Chen.’

Unfortunately, because the Divine Fire Sect had intercepted them, all the Cultivators who managed to enter the Earth Palace early were at the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

This meant none of them were particularly young; the one in his forties was the youngest of the bunch.

The Artifact Spirit glanced one more time at Xiao Chen, then, without further hesitation, it switched to a completely new target.

「In the miniature city.」

Zhou Xingyuan was following Master Nijie’s instructions, searching for Restrictions of all sizes throughout the city and destroying as many as possible.

Suddenly, an ancient voice echoed in his ear.

The speaker introduced itself as the Guide, explaining that after a rigorous selection process, Zhou Xingyuan had been chosen to inherit the treasures within the Yellow Springs Traveling Palace.

All he had to do was follow its instructions, and he would receive the true inheritance of the Yellow Springs Dao.

At first, Zhou Xingyuan was extremely wary and refused to believe such a wonderful opportunity would fall into his lap.

But soon, the Guide proved that it wasn’t lying.

Under its guidance, Zhou Xingyuan easily dispelled a Restriction in the city and successfully obtained a Top Grade, Dharma Artifact Level Shield.

Immediately after that, he received a complete Yellow Springs Secret Technique.

Then, they effortlessly acquired an entire block of Taiyin Divine Iron—a Tier Three material for Artifact Refining.

Zhou Xingyuan was astonished to discover that this Guide knew the entire city like the back of its hand.

It was as if it had been living here for tens of thousands of years.

It could also provide the simplest solutions for all the Restrictions, guiding him directly to the core of the Inner City.