Chapter 1238: Evil Sacred Thought Entity
In the sixth life within the *Seven Lives Seven Deaths Diagram*, Ling Feiyu was reborn as a white fox, while Zhang Ruochen became a reclusive cultivator, serving as her guide, awakening her intelligence, and helping her embark on the path of cultivation.
In that life, Zhang Ruochen and Ling Feiyu spent three hundred years together. Starting as a fox and a human, they later became a woman and a man, always living in seclusion on Cangwu Spirit Mountain.
As time passed, their relationship grew quite subtle, resembling both a master and disciple and a celestial couple. They roamed the North Sea at dawn and Cangwu at dusk, sharing countless indescribable memories and a faint, tender affection.
In that life, though the world was vast and boundless, they lived as if only the two of them existed.
Having merged with the memories and sacred insights of the sixth life, Zhang Ruochen felt not a trace of joy but instead sank into a long silence.
Three hundred years of memories and emotions were too complex, filled with too many joys and sorrows. Even with his spiritual power reaching the fifty-first rank, Zhang Ruochen still struggled to distinguish reality from illusion, deeply affected by it.
After a long while, Zhang Ruochen let out a deep breath, emerging from his confusion, only to fall into deeper distress.
"In the *Seven Lives Seven Deaths Diagram*, I actually developed feelings for her! Fortunately, those emotions aren't too deep, and I haven't fully fallen into them. Can I still pull myself out?"
Zhang Ruochen felt uneasy because the sixth life was not the end.
There was still the seventh life.
He couldn't predict whether their feelings would deepen further in the seventh life, reaching a point beyond control.
Zhang Ruochen and Ling Feiyu were not meant to be together; their emotional entanglement arose only from a twist of fate.
Once such feelings sprouted, they might not be a good thing.
Zhang Ruochen tried hard to recall the moment they withdrew from the *Seven Lives Seven Deaths Diagram*. At that time, Ling Feiyu had appeared quite composed, not seeming to be caught up in emotion.
"I'm probably overthinking it. The seventh life likely had nothing happen."
Zhang Ruochen smiled faintly, trying to think positively.
At the same time, he was curious. No matter how strong Ling Feiyu's cultivation was, she had directly merged with seven lifetimes of memories. How could she have shown no emotional fluctuation?
Had she deliberately suppressed her emotions?
"I'm really curious how she views the seven lives we experienced."
Zhang Ruochen gently shook his head, deciding not to dwell on it.
Thinking about it would only bring more trouble.
At worst, after merging with the memories of the seventh life, he would personally go to the Demon Sect's main altar to see her.
After merging with the memories and sacred insights of the sixth life, Zhang Ruochen's mastery of the Sword Dao reached the fifth level of Sword Seven.
His Time Sword Art's third realm, the "Twelve Hours Sword Art," also improved significantly, with each move and stance becoming more refined.
Zhang Ruochen closed his eyes and released his Sword Intent.
"Rustle, rustle."
Dense sword shadows emerged in the cabin.
At first, the sword shadows were faint, like wisps of mist.
Gradually, they grew clearer, surrounding Zhang Ruochen, paying homage to him, and emitting sharp clanging sounds, resembling a scene of ten thousand swords paying tribute.
These sword shadows were not formed from Sacred Qi or Sword Qi but from Sword Intent.
Yes, Sword Intent.
Sword Intent is a form of thought, ethereal and intangible. Being able to use Sword Intent to form sword shadows proved that a sword cultivator's Sword Dao mastery was very close to that of a Sword Saint.
The power of sword shadows formed from Sword Intent and those formed from Sacred Qi or Sword Qi were on completely different levels.
It was said that a true Sword Saint could use Sword Intent to forge a tangible Sacred Sword, unleashing power that would reach an even higher level.
"Sword Seven has ten levels in total, and I've only comprehended the fifth. Becoming a Sword Saint is indeed no easy task," Zhang Ruochen mused.
If other sword cultivators knew what Zhang Ruochen was thinking, they would likely be furious.
After all, many sword cultivators only comprehended Sword Seven and became Sword Saints after reaching the "True Realm" or "Ultimate Realm." Moreover, those who became Sword Saints were the rarest of the rare among sword cultivators.
Zhang Ruochen, still at the Lower Realm Saint level, had Sword Dao mastery nearly matching a Sword Saint, yet he was still dissatisfied. How could that not infuriate others?
Beyond his improvement in the Sword Dao, Zhang Ruochen's sacred insights far surpassed those of other Lower Realm Saints.
In other words, Zhang Ruochen no longer needed to spend time separately on sacred insights. As long as he had precious cultivation resources, refining and absorbing them would naturally elevate his cultivation level.
Zhang Ruochen took out the Dragon Pearl from his Space Ring and held it in his palm.
"Refining the Dragon Pearl should push my cultivation to the peak of the Lower Realm Saint level."
Zhang Ruochen urgently needed to raise his cultivation level and enhance his combat power to confront the Death Knights sent by the Undying Divine Temple on his own strength.
Every bit of strength gained increased his chances of victory.
Zhang Ruochen pressed his hands together, compressing the Dragon Pearl.
The head-sized Dragon Pearl shrank to the size of a pigeon egg.
Zhang Ruochen swallowed the Dragon Pearl, and the seventh-layer Sacred Qi circulation route of the *Nine Heavens Bright Emperor Scripture* appeared in his mind as he focused on refining it.
Inside his body, the Dragon Pearl turned into a mass of gas.
One by one, Sacred Dao Rules flew out from the gas, traveling along his Sacred Meridians into his Qi Sea.
In the Qi Sea, Zhang Ruochen's Sword Dao Sacred Source floated.
The Sword Dao Sacred Source resembled a palm-sized crystal, radiating brilliant light.
The Sacred Dao Rules from the Dragon Pearl entered the Qi Sea, circled the Sacred Source nine times, and then surged into its interior.
The Sacred Dao Rules within the Sword Dao Sacred Source grew denser and denser.
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen's cultivation rapidly increased. Every quarter-hour was equivalent to a month of cultivation for other Lower Realm Saints.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhang Ruochen had absorbed eighty percent of the Dragon Pearl's essence, reaching the peak of the Lower Realm Saint level. His Sacred Qi was so full and plump (baoman) that he could barely control it.
Zhang Ruochen quickly stopped absorbing the Dragon Pearl's essence and focused on suppressing the violent and raging (kuangbao) Sacred Qi within him.
Once he stabilized, he let out a slight sigh of relief. "I've finally reached the peak of the Lower Realm Saint level. Once I fully master my power, I can refine the remaining twenty percent."
Zhang Ruochen channeled the remaining twenty percent of the Dragon Pearl's power through his Sacred Meridians into his Qi Sea, temporarily sealing it.
Having reached the peak of the Lower Realm Saint level, it seemed difficult to improve further before breaking through to the Middle Realm Saint level. However, Zhang Ruochen felt there was still significant room for growth and that he hadn't truly reached the limit of the Lower Realm Saint level.
The Sacred Dao Rules and Sacred Qi within his Sword Dao Sacred Source were all obtained from absorbing the Dragon Pearl, so they weren't pure. With continued consolidation and refinement, he could certainly achieve greater improvement.
"Gah, gah."
Suddenly, strange sounds came from outside the cabin, resembling the laughter of an evil spirit shadow.
The eerie noise grew closer, becoming clearer.
"Not good, it's that sinister shadow again."
Zhang Ruochen could clearly feel a chilling, cold and gloomy air current (yinhangliu) rushing toward him.
Having witnessed the power of the evil spirit shadow, Zhang Ruochen immediately suppressed his aura, shrinking his body inside the Ten Saint Blood Armor, lying flat on the ground like a corpse.
"Gah, gah."
The sinister and sneering (yincece) laughter drew nearer, lingering just outside the cabin.
Zhang Ruochen had never encountered such a bizarre and unpredictable entity. He had no idea how to deal with it, so he continued playing dead, hoping to fool it.
The Ten Saint Blood Armor was indeed a treasure, managing to deceive the evil spirit shadow.
Before long, the laughter of the evil spirit shadow gradually faded away.
Zhang Ruochen stood up, but just as he let out a sigh of relief, a "chi, chi" sound came from outside the cabin, as if someone was using a sharp tool to cut through the bronze door.
"It didn't leave?"
Zhang Ruochen raised his hands, mobilizing Space Power, preparing to escape using Spatial Displacement.
"Bang."
The bronze door of the cabin was torn apart, and Xiao Hei rushed in from outside, chuckling, "Zhang Ruochen, this emperor spent several days finally finding you. Why did you hide in the lowest level of the ghost ship?"
"So it was you."
Zhang Ruochen withdrew his Space Power and said, "I was hiding from the ghost shadows on this ship. Do you know what they are?"
Xiao Hei nodded his furry round head and said, "Those are Evil Sacred Thought Entities."
"Are they living beings or undead?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
"Neither living nor undead."
Xiao Hei pondered how to explain to Zhang Ruochen, then said after a moment, "Every Half-Saint and Saint has sacred thoughts, but no one can clearly explain what sacred thoughts are. This emperor believes that so-called sacred thoughts are a kind of perception of Half-Saints and Saints."
"Many Half-Saints and Saints died on this ghost ship. On the way here, this emperor saw countless skeletons. Their Sacred Souls have all disappeared."
"However, for some reason, their sacred thoughts have combined to form ferocious Evil Sacred Thought Entities. Whether living or undead, they will be attacked by them."
Zhang Ruochen frowned and said, "Sacred thoughts are just a single thought of a Saint. Can a thought cultivate a form and unleash power more terrifying than a Saint?"
Xiao Hei said, "That's why this emperor said this ghost ship is extremely strange. Anyway, it's best to avoid Evil Sacred Thought Entities. Hiding in the lowest level of the ghost ship is indeed a wise move."
Zhang Ruochen was about to ask how to deal with Evil Sacred Thought Entities when Xiao Hei spoke first, "Zhang Ruochen, who is that person sitting behind you? Is he the drunkard?"
"Someone? There's someone there?"
Zhang Ruochen thought Xiao Hei was talking nonsense and didn't pay much attention.
Xiao Hei stretched out a cat paw, pointing behind Zhang Ruochen, and said, "Can't you see? There really is a person sitting there."
Earlier, Zhang Ruochen had used Spatial Displacement to enter this sealed cabin and had been fully focused on cultivation, without carefully observing his surroundings.
Seeing that Xiao Hei didn't seem to be joking, Zhang Ruochen turned around to look at the corner.
In that instant, Zhang Ruochen's back turned ice-cold, and his scalp felt like it was about to explode, because in the corner of the cabin, there really was a person sitting.
To be precise, it should be a dead person.