Ling Wuxie wondered as he tried to unravel the mystery of the mist. With a hand on his head, he tried to access his memories to see if there was anything that could explain this situation.
"I can't! I didn't find anything." He pouted, unable to find anything useful for this bizarre situation.
After a while, he gave up and turned forward. He didn't want to enter something unknown without knowing what was on the other side.
But he also didn't know what was ahead. The place had changed again.
Ling Wuxie once again felt confused by the random shift in the trees—and at the same time, he felt fear. He was lost, completely without direction.
His eyes instantly welled up, but he was quickly filled with determination. "I'll go back!"
He promised himself and then turned around, leaving the trees and heading toward the mist. 'Since everything is confusing, go into the unknown. Sometimes the answers are there.'
That was the saying his mother always told him. And this strange situation in the forest had a strong possibility of being resolved by stepping into the fog.
'But it'll be dangerous... What if strong monsters appear? Should I improve my cultivation level? But I just advanced—my foundation might become unstable.' Ling Wuxie shrugged. Then, he smiled.
"What choice do I have? Between being unstable and never being able to go home again? I choose the first option!" Decided, he returned to the trees, standing behind them. He took out the cauldron, which was full of blood—at least ten liters. The rabbits he killed had been numerous.
"This is going to hurt, and hurt a lot..." Ling Wuxie felt his nerves on edge, but he quickly forced himself to calm down, controlling his breathing. After a few deep breaths, the nervousness wasn't bothering him as much.
Managing to compose himself, he looked at the cauldron and, without further hesitation, swallowed all the essence. It slid down his throat, burning everything like searing fire.
It was as if Ling Wuxie had been submerged in a boiling pool, burning his entire body. Every part of him felt like it was about to explode. And at the same time, his movements failed—his brain, trying to protect him, seemed to have numbed his senses.
But it still hurt too much. Ling Wuxie, unable to scream, cried through his eyes. Meanwhile, the essence mixed with human blood. An internal battle began, each trying to dominate the other.
The human blood had the advantage. Even with the immense pressure from the essence, this was its territory.
Meanwhile, his heart beat like thunder. Each beat gave more strength to the blood, which, at a certain moment, after several pumps, turned into a voracious whale, devouring everything like a black hole.
Boom!
Several explosions echoed inside him. The human chains that restrained Ling Wuxie were undone. This time, he broke through two barriers—from the third level to the fifth.
Feeling stronger, more muscular, more resilient, Ling Wuxie rose from the ground and looked to the sky. It was gray, empty. It looked like the beginning of morning.
Raising his hands to the sky, Ling Wuxie whispered: "This pain is my determination! To return home! And to become a swordsman! And the best blacksmith... Today is something I'll never forget, it will be engraved in my memory and never be forgotten."
After whispering those words, he headed toward the mist. This time, without thoughts, but fully alert. His hands held the sword firmly. At the slightest movement, he would draw it immediately.
As he passed through the mist, Ling Wuxie went blind. He couldn't see anything. His mind felt clouded by the fog. Clutching the hilt of the blade even tighter, he walked straight ahead, aimlessly.
After some time, the fog began to fade. Some things became visible. Ling Wuxie saw several high platforms, and the ground ahead of him was shattered. If he wanted to move forward, he'd have to jump from land to land.
Now it looked like a sea of rocks, so far apart and small. Ling Wuxie rolled his eyes at that, increasing his focus even more. After a few seconds, he leapt like a frog.
Jumping between chunks of land, each step made his hair flutter, and each landing bent his knees. After jumping across a hundred areas, he finally reached a new place.
Ling Wuxie, stopping his jumps, looked ahead. A massive rocky formation appeared before his eyes, reaching the top of the clouds. Beyond that, there was nothing. It seemed that, to move forward, he'd have to climb.
"What's the point of all this?" He finally said, after arriving at the place.
At that moment, he felt confused. 'We're already here, we can't go back. The only thing I can do is keep moving forward, without looking back.'
Coming to that realization, he didn't think anymore and began the climb. At first it was easy. All he had to do was ascend a slope of dirt—not difficult at all. But as he climbed higher, Ling Wuxie's heart became more restless.
Soon, when he reached halfway, the scene before him changed—to something familiar. The moment he went to the forge with his father for the first time.
"Illusion?" Ling Wuxie had heard of that. There are places that use illusions to test the Dao Heart. Seeing his father, he wanted to cry, but stayed firm and passed straight through. Next, he saw himself going to the hospital to bring food to his mother.
Then, another moment: when he cultivated for the first time. And so it continued, showing all the joys he had experienced in life.
Ling Wuxie, even knowing it was fake, seeing his life flash before his eyes, couldn't help but feel emotional. And at the same time, he wanted to see what came next.
But instead of happiness, he saw a sea of blood. An area filled with corpses, destroyed houses. And in the sky, a crimson star hovered.
Ling Wuxie, upon seeing this, vomited. The nausea kept rising. His mentality collapsed. His vision blurred. But in the last second, the sword he held gave him strength!
It seemed to whisper... You are not alone.
It was just his mind distorting things, but it was enough to calm him. Continuing to climb, as always, the scenery changed.
This time, he was in a peaceful place, with flowering trees full of fruit. Ahead, a waterfall. The tranquil sound of falling water brought an indescribable peace.
'This is nice...' He inhaled the air a few times and kept walking. This time, he reached the top of the formation, where there was a wooden sign, which read:
"Shroud of Emotions"
Ling Wuxie, seeing that, was surprised. Then he stopped to ponder. 'First happiness, then tragedy, and finally peace... What is this shroud trying to say?'