Chapter 765: Again Encountering Innate Fetal Poison

Under the illumination of the Eye of Insight, a thin, greyish-blue line meandered within his enormous soul, resembling a parasite and feeling completely out of place.

“Is that... the Innate Fetal Poison?” His pupils contracted.

He had known about the Innate Fetal Poison in his body since his time in Tianxuan Kingdom. Yet, suppressed by the Heaven's Path Zhenqi, it couldn't resist and posed no immediate threat, so over time, he had stopped worrying about it. His original plan was to reach the Nine-Star Master Teacher realm before thirty, which would surely resolve the issue. He never imagined... when did this thing get into his soul?

Previously, it resided in his physical body, where the Heaven's Path Zhenqi could suppress it. But how could he deal with it now that it was in his soul? His eyelids twitched, and Zhang Xuan's expression turned grim.

The soul is the foundation of everything; if it dies, one is truly dead, with no chance of survival. He had initially thought that if cultivating his soul didn't resolve the issue, he could find a way to seize another body. But now, it seemed entirely futile!

This thing had been hidden within his soul for who knew how long. Previously, his soul was too weak to detect it, but now that his soul body had grown past ten meters, significantly enhancing both its power and abilities, he finally noticed something amiss.

“Perhaps... the Innate Fetal Poison was implanted in my soul right from birth!” The Innate Fetal Poison was a result of a scheme while he was still in the womb. At that time, his soul hadn't even fully developed, so it was highly probable that it existed not only in his physical body but also in his soul much earlier. It was simply undetectable then because his soul was too weak to leave his body.

Now that his soul body had reached ten meters, this entity also seemed to have grown alongside it, which is why he so easily discovered it. This implied that when his soul was weak, the Innate Fetal Poison hidden within it was also weak, but now that his soul was strong... it, too, had become powerful!

“What am I going to do? If I continue cultivating my soul... this thing will just poison me to death prematurely!” He looked utterly disheartened. Judging by the fetal poison's appearance, without the Heaven's Path Zhenqi to suppress it, it could easily erode his soul. Once completely infiltrated, even deities likely couldn't save him.

What kind of situation was this! Other transmigrators became geniuses; it was bad enough that he was a 'waste,' but he even got this as a bonus. What was he supposed to do?

Although the Heaven's Path Witch Soul was extraordinary, it couldn't gather Heaven's Path Zhenqi. Without Zhenqi, this fetal poison could do whatever it pleased. He couldn't possibly let his life be controlled by something so uncontrollable!

“Unless... something can penetrate the soul and suppress this thing!” Since Zhenqi couldn't enter the soul, he had to find something else that could. Otherwise, if this entity decided to act up, he would truly die before accomplishing anything.

It was like his physical body: with the Heaven's Path Zhenqi present, he wasn't overly concerned even with the Innate Fetal Poison, as he could suppress it as long as it didn't fully erupt. But now, his soul had nothing to counter it, leaving him in constant peril. This was a situation he absolutely did not want.

“The Witch Soul profession directly cultivates the soul, and while I've inherited everything from Mo Hunsheng, there's no method to suppress this fetal poison. Furthermore, the Master Teacher Pavilion eradicated the Witch Soul lineage long ago, so its inheritance is broken. Therefore... this profession won't be very helpful in solving the problem!” He lowered his head in thought.

Without a complete inheritance, there were no relevant books. If he couldn't find books about the soul, he couldn't synthesize a Heaven's Path cultivation technique, rendering it useless for suppressing this fetal poison. At this moment, he was at a loss, his only hope being to find relevant books within professions that influenced the soul.

“Among the Master Teacher Academy's ten departments, only the Calligraphy and Painting Department, the Demonic Music Department, and the Startling Flight Department can influence the soul! Calligraphy and painting enlighten the mind, calm the heart, and elevate one's artistic conception, but they cannot directly attack the soul. The Demonic Music Department and the Startling Flight Department, however, can bewitch minds and launch attacks. If I'm looking for relevant books, it should be in these two departments.” Professions like alchemy, artifact forging, heavenly crafts, and beast taming within the Master Teacher Academy were of little use concerning the soul.

The Demonic Music Academy and the Startling Flight Academy were the only places likely to have books on the soul. These two academies primarily focused on deluding minds, so they should contain numerous secret manuals concerning the soul. “Alright, I'll go check them out at dawn!”

Time waited for no one, and he certainly didn't want to wait to be poisoned to death by the Innate Fetal Poison. However, it was already past midnight; rushing to the Demonic Music or Startling Flight departments now would yield nothing. It was better to wait until dawn. Although the academy's teachers would begin recruiting students starting from tomorrow's exam, it made little difference to him whether he formally enrolled or not. If he wanted a master, he had already agreed to be Dean Zhao Bingxu's junior brother, so there was no need to seek out regular teachers. Even without a formal apprenticeship, he could attend public classes. His primary goal in coming to the academy was to find and read books; having a dedicated teacher was secondary.

“Since I can't sleep anyway, I might as well head back now, and while I'm at it, check on Wang Ying, Sun Qiang, and the others!” With his stamina recovered and the Innate Fetal Poison bothering him, sleep was clearly out of the question. He decided to use the time to check the living quarters Sun Qiang had found and guide his students' cultivation, ensuring they progressed quickly. He didn't want them to fall too far behind Yuan Tao, Zhao Ya, Lu Chong, and the others.

He stepped out of the room. The night was like water, with countless stars twinkling above. Since Saints frequented the academy, flying would easily draw attention. After a brief hesitation, Zhang Xuan summoned his Violetwing Heavenly Gliding Beast. Many students at the academy were Beast Tamers, and their flying spiritual beasts could freely take off and land without attracting undue notice. He leaped onto the beast's back and flew straight out of the academy.

Before Zhang Xuan went to Thunder Yuan Peak for the assessment, Sun Qiang had already located a residence and provided him with the detailed address. Guiding the Heavenly Gliding Beast, he flew for about ten minutes until a modest courtyard appeared before him. This courtyard, only a few hundred square meters in size, was much smaller than the mansions he had previously resided in. Nevertheless, securing such a relatively spacious courtyard in Hongyuan City, where land was incredibly valuable, must have required considerable effort.

Just as he moved to dismount the Heavenly Gliding Beast, his brows suddenly furrowed. “Eye of Insight!” His gaze, sharp as lightning, pierced downwards. Immediately, he spotted several dark figures standing quietly around the courtyard, their purpose unknown.

“They're all Void-Treading Realm experts!” Although these individuals were expertly concealed, his Eye of Insight could penetrate their disguises, leaving them nowhere to hide. Through the concealment, he could discern their subtle inner power, which gave off the sensation of dormant dragons. Each of them was an Ethereal Mortal 8-dan Void-Treading Realm expert.

What were such formidable experts doing, lurking stealthily around his courtyard? Could they be plotting against Sun Qiang and the others? “Sun Qiang and the rest just arrived here, completely penniless. What could possibly attract the greed of such masters?”

While Void-Treading Realm experts weren't considered top-tier masters in Hongyuan City, they were certainly formidable. What were such powerful individuals doing encircling this small courtyard? Sun Qiang and Zheng Yang were practically penniless; there was nothing they possessed that anyone would covet!

“This is a good chance to test my recently improved cultivation!” His gaze sharpened. At Thunder Yuan Peak, his cultivation had broken through to the pinnacle of the Bridge of Heaven realm, his Zhenqi power reaching 8 million ding. Within the underground fire passage, his Five-Star Golden Body had advanced to the second layer, granting him 8 million ding of physical strength. Combined with his soul power of 3.2 million ding, his total strength neared 20 million ding—enough to contend even with a late-stage Ethereal Mortal 8-dan Void-Treading Realm expert! Since these unknown individuals had come with malicious intent, he wouldn't hold back!

He moved, descending from the Heavenly Gliding Beast's back. The Violetwing Heavenly Gliding Beast had flown extremely high, so the individuals hidden below hadn't detected him at all. Circulating his Zhenqi, supported by the Worldly Sky-Treading Steps, he drifted down slowly like a feather, aided by the night's cover. “I'll start with the weakest ones first!”

There were four individuals hidden around the perimeter. The weakest, only at the early Void-Treading Realm, was like a withered leaf. Zhang Xuan drifted gently with the wind and appeared before him. With Heaven's Path Zhenqi sealing his acupoints, he moved like a phantom of the night. Not to mention Void-Treading Realm experts, even those in the Chrysalis Sealing Realm would likely struggle to detect him. Raising an eyebrow, he gathered all his strength into his palm and pressed lightly. The black-clad man, hidden behind a withered tree, felt a jolt in his back as an immense force surged through him, instantly sealing all his meridians. *Thud!* His vision went dark, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

“That was so simple!” Zhang Xuan's eyes gleamed. Before, whenever he encountered Void-Treading Realm experts, he barely had time to hide, let alone get close. Now, he could defeat them with ease. After knocking out the first, he cast a glance at the second target's location and approached.

This second individual was a mid-stage Void-Treading Realm expert, and more vigilant. He detected Zhang Xuan as soon as he drew near and was about to cry out when a strong wave of soul pressure surged over him, silencing him instantly. It was a Witch Soul attack! Although the opponent was a Void-Treading Realm expert, his soul cultivation was significantly weaker than Zhang Xuan's. Such an assault was enough to stun him for half a breath. Though the duration was brief, a battle often hinged on a single instant, and this was more than enough to incapacitate him. With another press, this expert also collapsed to the ground, unconscious, without even knowing who had struck him.

“The first two were weaker and easier to handle, but the remaining two won't be as simple...” After knocking out two, Zhang Xuan exhaled slowly. The two he had just incapacitated were an early and a mid-Void-Treading Realm expert, both weaker than him by his power assessment. The remaining two, however, were a late-stage and a peak-stage expert, surpassing him not only in cultivation but also in raw strength. Attempting such easy sneak attacks again would clearly be challenging.

“Quick battle, quick resolution!” Knowing that a successful sneak attack was unlikely and that hesitation would only lead to more trouble, Zhang Xuan didn't dither. He stomped his foot on the ground. His figure, like lightning, shot straight towards the black-clad man at the late-stage Void-Treading Realm. It was the Heaven's Path Movement Art! His movements were swift as electricity, like a mere afterimage.

“What?” Hearing the rush of air, the remaining two immediately became alert. The late-stage Void-Treading Realm black-clad man, who was Zhang Xuan's target, felt his pupils constrict even further, and the hairs on his body stood on end. However, it was too late to react. Just as he began to rise, he saw a fist already upon him. A wild and fierce power descended, combined with his movement and fist techniques, making Zhang Xuan's strike astonishingly potent. Before he could even respond, he was hit by the fist, spewing blood, and sent flying over ten meters. He crashed into a massive rock and blacked out.