116: That's all I can do for you.

After speaking, Mu Yurou no longer hesitated.

Her hands formed an ancient and complex hand seal, and the Origin power within her body, which had been cultivated alongside her life and originated from the "tianyi true water," began to boil and burn.

Her face became transparent at a speed visible to the naked eye, and a soft yet resolute blue halo radiated from her entire body.

What she was burning was her own life Origin and Divine Soul.

In Lin Feng's blurred vision, he could only see Mu Yurou's body glowing; that light was warm and familiar, yet it carried a destructive aura that made his heart tremble. He wanted to stop her, wanted to shout, but he couldn't make a sound and could only watch helplessly.

Mu Yurou gave him one last deep look, as if she wanted to carve his appearance into the depths of her Soul. Then, she leaned down, and her cool lips lightly pressed against his dry, cracked ones.

A pure, vast, extremely Yin and cold warm current, yet one that contained infinite vitality, was slowly transferred into his mouth with this kiss.

That was her everything—her "tianyi true water," her life, and her Soul.

At the same time, he seemed to hear the last thoughts she left in the world, filled with infinite attachment and relief:

"Brother Lin... the world outside... is truly beautiful... Unfortunately, I can only accompany you this far... From now on, you go see it for me... Go see higher and grander mountains, further and bluer seas... including my share... live well..."

The moment the True Water entered his body, Lin Feng felt an indescribable, majestic power instantly soothe all his wounds. His parched Dantian was moisturized, his imbalanced Spiritual Qi was forcibly harmonized, and even the barriers of his cultivation showed signs of loosening.

Power returned rapidly, and his body felt more full than ever before. But he could not feel the slightest bit of joy.

He suddenly sat up, reaching out his hand to grab the person in front of him.

But Mu Yurou's body, before he could touch it, had already begun to turn into countless shimmering blue points of light. Like fireflies in the wind, they drifted upward lightly and silently, merging into the mountain breeze and disappearing completely.

In her place, only a trace of her unique light fragrance remained, along with the cool sensation on his lips that had not yet dissipated.

Lin Feng knelt on the spot, maintaining his reaching posture, motionless.

The power within his body surged and his injuries were completely healed, but his heart felt as if a piece had been brutally gouged out, empty and filled with bone-chilling wind.

The world regained its color, but his world was left with only gray and white.

He slowly withdrew his hand and clenched it into a tight fist, his nails digging deep into his palm until blood seeped out.

Facing the void where Mu Yurou had dissipated, he shouted silently:

"Blood Fiend Sect, Ghost Spirit Sect, Bishui Palace... I, Lin Feng, swear here that I will make you... pay in blood!"

Revenge was the only thought supporting him from collapsing. But the Blood Fiend Sect, Ghost Spirit Sect, and Bishui Palace... each was a giant occupying a region. With his current strength, going there rashly would be no different from striking a stone with an egg.

He must live on; he must become stronger.

This thought was like ice-cold spring water, extinguishing some of the heart-burning rage and allowing his near-collapsing mind to regain a sliver of rationality.

He took a deep breath, focusing his eyes on his nose, his nose on his heart, and his heart on his Dantian.

Within the Dantian Qi Sea, that drop of "tianyi true water" was quietly suspended, emitting a soft and vast azure glow.

The most startling change occurred in the originally restless green and crimson two-colored Sword Essence.

That scorching and violent Fire Attribute Sword Essence seemed to be moistened by an invisible sweet rain, no longer frantically burning his Meridians; and that wildly growing Wood Attribute Sword Essence also seemed to receive just the right amount of nourishment and restraint, no longer spreading in an orderly fashion.

tianyi true water, instead of conflicting with fire and wood, acted like a master harmonizer, building a subtle balance and cycle between the two opposing elements.

Lin Feng slowly opened his eyes, his gaze falling on his open palm. With a slight movement of his will, a wisp of crimson flame, a trace of emerald wood Qi, and a stream of azure water spirit actually managed to coexist harmoniously in his palm, flowing incessantly.

Wood, Fire, Water.

He recalled the pain worse than death when his body was out of balance earlier, and compared it to the subtle balance the three powers had initially achieved within him now. He quickly realized a problem he had previously overlooked.

The Nine Profound Sword Heart Art requires maintaining attribute balance. The extreme strength of a single attribute inevitably brings backlash and collapse.

Only when the Five Elements are complete, generating and overcoming each other in an endless cycle, can one lay a supreme Dao foundation and truly unleash the potential of the Nine Profound Sword Heart Art, or even... surpass those who came before.

He must find high-quality Metal and Earth attribute Innate Spiritual Items as soon as possible to completely complete the Five Elements.

The grief and hatred in his heart now transformed into a cold and determined motivation. He stood up, took one last look in the direction where Mu Yurou had dissipated, and buried that bone-deep longing and pain deep in his heart.

He took out the purple mansion spirit pill gifted by Su Sizhu, the purple Qi flowing on the pill's surface shimmering brightly.

The pill entered his stomach, and a cool sensation dissolved from his Dantian. Instead of dispersing into his limbs, it flowed straight up between his eyebrows like a stream returning to the sea.

In an instant, the Sea of Consciousness trembled slightly. He saw his obsessions like a spider web entangling his Divine Sense Origin. The ferocity born of revenge and the despair born of betrayal began to loosen under the effect of the medicinal power.

This wasn't a forced erasure, but rather like untying knots; they detached naturally from his Divine Soul piece by piece and sank into the deepest depths of the Sea of Consciousness.

As the obsessions were stripped away, his Dao Heart gradually revealed its true colors, like a mirror wiped clean of dust, reflecting his most authentic aspiration for the Dao.

He understood that the merit of this pill lay not in immediately increasing cultivation, but in solidifying the Dao foundation. The clearer the Divine Soul, the more sensitive it would be to sensing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi in the future. The more stable the Purple Mansion, the harder it would be for Heart Demon Tribulations to shake him even slightly during a Breakthrough.

The medicinal power gradually fused, and Lin Feng focused his mind, completely integrating this nourishment into his own Dao foundation.

When he opened his eyes again, the patterns on the nearby stone walls were perfectly clear to him. He lightly touched his fingertips, and the three-colored spiritual light flowed like a ring, no longer hindered.

He softly swore to the void: "Since this body has received the tianyi true water, I shall use the Great Dao to witness Karma."

Just as he was about to set off in an Escaping Light, a sharp sound of breaking air came from the horizon, approaching rapidly from afar.

Lin Feng's body tensed instantly, and he almost instinctively dodged behind a giant rock, concealing all his breath.

Was it pursuers from the Blood Fiend Sect or the Ghost Spirit Sect? They actually hadn't given up yet.

A surge of killing intent rose in his heart, and he could almost not hold back from rushing out to fight to the death. The image of Mu Yurou's tragic death flashed in his mind, making his knuckles turn white.

But the next moment, he forced himself to calm down. He focused his gaze and saw that only two people were coming, one chasing and one fleeing, not a large group.

He saw that the one fleeing ahead was a middle-aged Cultivator dressed in green robes, covered in blood, his Escaping Light already teetering.

The person pursuing behind was a thin, tall man who struck ruthlessly, sending streaks of black light straight for the former's vital points.

The two Escaping Lights, one after the other, landed on the nearby open ground.

"Hand over the item. I will spare your life." The thin, tall Cultivator's voice was sharp as he formed hand seals, and ink-colored ripples rose around him.