Chapter 215 - Am I About to Fall into the Abyss?

"The progress of your Lifebound Spirit Sword can’t keep up with your own."Eventually, once your Sword Intent is sufficiently honed, you can just buy a powerful sword to use for the time being.

"Otherwise, you won’t be able to defeat Sword Cultivators of the same Realm who have similar resources.

"Besides, Lifebound Spirit Swords can break, so choosing the right materials is crucial.

"Most people wait until they’re stronger.

"The Sect recommends considering it once you reach the Late Stage of the Inner Sect, or even waiting a bit longer."

Jiang Man sighed. ’It’s still better to be a Magic Cultivator.’

’It saves money.’

’Their attacks are a little weak, but with the Purple Mist Divine Light, that might not be the case anymore.’

After stowing his things, Jiang Man prepared to leave.

"Are you going to keep looking for people?" Ji Yifei asked.

Jiang Man nodded. "It’d be dangerous if someone drifted too far out."

For a moment, both of them were stunned.

’Anyone who didn’t know the truth would think he’s a good person, right?’

’In reality, they only become a "good person" after handing over their Spiritual Source.’

But before Jiang Man could leave, a seven-colored, auspicious cloud suddenly appeared.

"This light?" Jiang Man was rather surprised. "A good omen?"

"No." The woman beside them looked at the seven-colored cloud and said casually, "I remember seeing this in a book. This should be a technique of an Ancient Well Type Evil God.

"The more people who are staying up late, the greater its power.

"It’s not a huge threat.

"They’re just a rabble. Even if someone nearby staying up late triggers it, it’s no big deal. It doesn’t have much effect on Golden Core cultivators.

"The Ancient Well Type Evil Gods are the most heavily suppressed, so this seven-colored cloud technique only targets those at the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment Realms.

"Under normal circumstances, it can’t manifest near the Yunqian Bureau or the Sects.

"So no one pays it any mind.

"It’s probably appeared this time because of you all.

"But people don’t really pull all-nighters anymore, so it shouldn’t be an issue.

"It won’t even stop...

"Huh?

"What’s going on?"

The woman was stunned to see the seven-colored cloud, which had been about to drift away, stop directly overhead.

What was even more surprising was that the faint light on the auspicious cloud began to shine with dazzling brilliance.

’Is someone pulling an all-nighter here?’

’And not just one or two people?’

’Otherwise, how could the light be so bright?’

"You, Outer Sect Foundation Establishment disciple, are out of luck. You’re about to experience the despair of advancement. If you have to blame someone, blame all the people around here who are staying up late," the woman said, her tone laced with pity.

But very quickly, she saw a seven-colored glow erupting from Jiang Man’s body.

It pulsed in response to the auspicious cloud above.

The woman was speechless. "..."

’So you’re the one pulling the all-nighter?’

Then, the light enveloped everything around them.

In an instant.

The three of them felt the scene shift.

They appeared in a forest. The azure sky was gone, replaced by a gray, hazy canopy.

"So this is the work of an Ancient Well Type Evil God?" Ji Yifei asked, intrigued. "This is my first time seeing it."

Jiang Man looked around. It felt similar to the Ancient Well Sixth Secret Realm he had visited before.

There was an inexplicable sense of oppression in the air.

But it was useless against him.

However, the oppressive feeling seemed to intensify.

Then, Jiang Man sensed that the area had been sealed off.

’It seems everyone who was pulling an all-nighter has been pulled in here.’

At that moment, Ji Yifei and the woman beside him stood up.

"We can finally move. This Heart Demon Dream Realm is a rather clever technique from the Evil God. It’s designed to let those who enter feel despair while at their peak condition," the woman said, sounding rather surprised.

This was Qin Yihan of the Evergreen Sect.

"Is this place very special?" Ji Yifei asked.

Qin Yihan looked at Jiang Man. "Ask him how he feels right now, and you’ll know."

Ji Yifei looked over.

Jiang Man watched them warily. "I don’t feel much. It’s just a bit oppressive."

"Just a bit oppressive?" Qin Yihan shook her head. "You must have been cultivating all night, and for a long time, right? Otherwise, you wouldn’t have given off such a bright light.

"Pulling all-nighters to cultivate damages your Heart Spirit. Even if it doesn’t show now, it will become apparent when you try to advance your Realm.

"Of course, some people can’t advance anyway and just use all-nighters as an excuse to save face.

"It’s a fact that pulling all-nighters harms the Heart Spirit, and the Ancient Well Type Evil God can use this to its advantage.

"You’ll understand once you enter the Inner Sect and learn more about these things."

After a pause, she looked at Jiang Man and continued, "Maybe you don’t feel anything now, but the longer you stay here, the more you will feel that despair."

"So what am I supposed to do now?" Jiang Man asked curiously.

"Cultivate," Qin Yihan said, looking at Jiang Man as if she were watching a play unfold. "You have to pull an all-nighter to cultivate. Everyone brought here by the light has to.

"Cultivating through the night here is highly efficient.

"First, it lets you feel the thrill of rapid progress. Then, it plunges you into despair.

"It allows Heart Demons to fester, making recovery nearly impossible afterward."

"Cultivation is highly efficient?" Jiang Man said with some disbelief.

"Yes. You can try cultivating, but the oppressive atmosphere will overwhelm you, and you’ll eventually fall into the abyss," Qin Yihan sneered.

’This guy has already damaged himself by cultivating all night to get here. He won’t get very far in his cultivation path.’

’Even if he manages Core Formation, it will be of the lowest quality.’

’He’s not even worth mentioning.’

Jiang Man paid no mind to the rest of her words. All he heard was "yes," which meant it really *was* highly efficient.

’How could there be such a great opportunity?’

After a moment of thought, Jiang Man resumed tempering his Spirit.

He strived to break through to the Eighth Layer.

’Spiritual Eighth Layer, and then I’ll raise my Physical Body by another layer to reach the Seventh Layer.’

’The bottleneck between the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment and Foundation Establishment Perfection should disappear then, right?’

Afterward, he tried to temper his Spirit.

He was surprised to find that the environment really did seem to accelerate his cultivation. While it wasn’t as potent as taking an Elixir, it was much better than cultivating normally.

’The Evil God is truly my greatest benefactor.’

’The Evil God in the Ancient Well Sixth Secret Realm gave me seventy thousand Spiritual Source, and later, one of its subordinates in the Sect gave me another twenty thousand.’

’And now it’s giving me more.’

’It would be a disservice to the Evil God’s generosity if I didn’t pull an all-nighter to cultivate properly.’

「Elsewhere.」

Zhuo Bufan felt the pressure of the environment, his brow slightly furrowed.

He also discovered that his cultivation speed had increased.

But this place was not a good place.

And he had an inexplicable feeling.

If he continued to cultivate, he would undoubtedly be walking into an abyss.

"This is an Evil God Domain. You have no choice but to cultivate," a woman beside him said calmly. "I’m surprised the Zhuo Family has someone like you who pulls all-nighters to cultivate.

"Do you just let all the warnings about harming your Heart Spirit go in one ear and out the other?"

Zhuo Bufan was silent.

He hadn’t expected to run into a member of his own family while looking for opportunities.

But he wasn’t convinced by her words.

"Still not convinced?" the woman sneered. "As the days pass, you’ll be forced to move forward. You’ll feel more and more oppressed, your body will grow more and more uncomfortable, and you’ll keep walking right into the abyss.

"Then you’ll see all the others who pulled all-nighters to cultivate alongside you.

"By then, your world will be nothing but darkness and despair.

"By the time this place dissipates, you’ll be as good as crippled when you return.

"You have your own issues, but the person who brought you here to train has even bigger ones.

"How could anyone bring a Foundation Establishment disciple here to teach a lesson?"

"Will everyone fall into the abyss?" Zhuo Bufan suddenly asked.

"Every single one," she said with conviction.

Zhuo Bufan didn’t speak again.

Instead, he began to cultivate.

This was a place of incredible efficiency. How could he possibly pass it up?

’Because that man has surely started already. He definitely wouldn’t waste any time.’

’The others will be doing the same.’

’Zhao Yaoyao is still dead set on taking second place. If I rest, won’t she overtake me?’

’Absolutely not.’

The woman beside him was a bit surprised to see Zhuo Bufan so focused.

’A pity he’s chosen the wrong path.’

In addition, Zhao Yaoyao, Lin Qingshan, Wei Beichuan, and others...

...were all cultivating.

Some of them had people by their side, some were all alone.

But only a few of them knew the truth of this place.

The others were all silently cultivating.

They would cultivate first and worry about the rest later.

Jiang Man was naturally the same.

Meanwhile, the two people beside him remained vigilant of their surroundings.

They also idly wondered how long Jiang Man could last in such an oppressive environment before he started to slack off.

One day.

The two were not surprised.

Two days.

Still diligent.

Three days.

It was like he was just getting started.

Five days...

Ten days...

Fifteen days.

Qin Yihan watched Jiang Man ceaselessly tempering his Spirit and Physical Body.

Especially his Physical Body—it looked like he was about to have a breakthrough.

The environment was indeed growing darker, and logically, the pressure he felt should have been mounting.

’So why can he still cultivate with such focus?’

The twentieth day.

On this day, Jiang Man’s Physical Body emitted Qi and Blood Power.

One of his feet sank into the ground.

He then quickly reined it in.

Physical Body Seventh Layer.

He had broken through.

Only then did Jiang Man let out a heavy sigh of relief and exclaimed:

"What a great place. It’s a shame it feels like it’s about to disappear."

Ji Yifei looked at Qin Yihan, his expression seeming to ask, ’Didn’t you say he would get more and more demoralized?’

Her cold eyes flickered, as if to say, ’What are you looking at me for?’