Volume 1 Volume 5 Chapter 122

Volume 5 Chapter 122: Between Good and Evil, Only a Thought (Part 2)

However, on the other side, while Xu Qingfan was risking meditation in the chaotic mountain to suppress the invasion of "Beast Madness," he originally worried about unexpected incidents, like the "Beast Madness cultivator" breaking through Xu Ying and Xu Zhiyuan’s defenses, or a hidden expert suddenly attacking. So, although he was meditating with his eyes closed, he still kept a portion of his Divine Sense alert to his surroundings.

"Beast Madness" is a strange energy. So far, no one in the cultivation world has fully studied its characteristics. They only know it has two functions. One is to transform the cultivator’s body, greatly increasing Spirit Qi and sharpening the senses, while also granting powerful healing abilities and vitality. The second is to alter or destroy the cultivator’s Divine Sense, leaving only madness and killing in their mind. It can be seen as a gain and a loss.

For example, at this moment, Xu Qingfan clearly felt the energy of "Beast Madness" spreading quickly within him. Wherever it went, his body slowly underwent some unknown change, and this energy surged towards Xu Qingfan’s head, aiming to destroy his Divine Sense.

However, the energy of "Beast Madness" is specifically designed to target the bodies of human cultivators, making it a natural enemy of human cultivators. Once it touches someone, there is no way to remove it.

But Xu Qingfan’s situation was quite different. Before this, he had first merged with the "Wutong branch," which contained powerful Phoenix Spirit Qi, giving his body traits unique to the Phoenix. Then, he used the secret method left by Zhang Xusheng in Jiuhua to modify his body. Over the years, he had transformed his body countless times using the life-and-death energies in his body. In some ways, Xu Qingfan’s body was already very different from that of a normal human cultivator.

Because of this, while the danger from "Beast Madness" energy was still great for Xu Qingfan, the speed at which it spread was much slower. Master Bo Hui was turned into a "Beast Madness cultivator" in just a moment after being bitten by them, while the "Beast Madness" energy had only just begun to invade Xu Qingfan’s legs. One reason for this difference was that Master Bo Hui was attacked by more than ten "Beast Madness cultivators," whereas Xu Qingfan was only bitten once.

However, although Xu Qingfan’s body was different from an ordinary person, it was still a human body and could not effectively resist the invasion of "Beast Madness" energy.

The four types of Spirit Qi that Xu Qingfan practiced—"Withered Qi," "Flourish Qi," "Phoenix Spirit Qi," and "Formless Spirit Qi"—were quite rare and mysterious in the cultivation world. He circulated them to gather in his legs, trying to block the invasion of "Beast Madness" energy, but the effect was limited. It only slowed the speed of the invasion a little, while the "Beast Madness" energy continued to slowly and firmly consume Xu Qingfan’s body, ignoring any attempts to stop it.

As Xu Qingfan kept a portion of his Divine Sense focused on the situation around him, the gathering speed of Spirit Qi slowed, and he became powerless to halt the "Beast Madness" energy’s invasion, watching helplessly as it approached his waist.

However, Xu Qingfan’s lower body, already under the control of the "Beast Madness" energy, had lost its ability to move. He could clearly feel his legs, but they wouldn’t respond. He sensed that inside his legs, the meridians were slowly expanding, and the Spirit Qi remaining in his legs was rapidly increasing, making them feel more powerful than ever.

This change was something Xu Qingfan had always dreamed of, but if it meant losing control of his legs, it would not be worth the cost. Moreover, at this moment, the "Beast Madness" energy was also surging towards his head, aiming to destroy his Divine Sense.

Even with his eyes closed in meditation, and holding onto his Divine Sense, Xu Qingfan was still drenched in sweat from trying to block the invading "Beast Madness" energy. Sweat poured down his face and neck, soaking his clothes.

As time passed, the "Beast Madness" energy grew stronger inside Xu Qingfan. Even though the four Spirit Qi inside him tried hard to resist, they were being pushed back. Xu Qingfan decided to focus solely on combating the invading "Beast Madness" energy, ignoring any unexpected events that might occur outside his body.

At this point, nothing was more important than resisting the attack of the "Beast Madness" energy.

After pulling all his Divine Sense back inside and gathering all his Spirit Qi and Divine Sense to fight the "Beast Madness," the situation inside Xu Qingfan finally stabilized a bit. However, the "Beast Madness" energy still had the upper hand, slowly eating away at Xu Qingfan’s body.

It had only been a brief moment since the "Beast Madness cultivator" had bitten Xu Qingfan’s ankle, yet the "Beast Madness" energy invading his body had already grown over a hundred times stronger.

Xu Qingfan could see that the "Beast Madness" energy was about to invade his waist, and as it took over more of his body, it became even stronger. At that moment, it had only claimed half of his body, yet it was already so powerful. If it got any further, Xu Qingfan would become a "Beast Madness cultivator" and lose all his sanity.

Just as Xu Qingfan prepared to gather all his Spirit Qi to launch a strong counterattack against the invading "Beast Madness" energy, he despairingly realized that more than half of his four energies had been unknowingly consumed during the previous resistance. In terms of numbers, the "Beast Madness" energy was now in the lead.

The situation was critical, and the "Beast Madness" energy proved to be the nemesis of human cultivators. Its various traits specifically targeted human cultivators. Although it was weak at the start, throughout his struggle with it, Xu Qingfan had consistently been at a disadvantage, with no way to turn the tide.

However, even though Xu Qingfan had lost control over half of his body in an instant and his resistance and counterattacks were being pushed back, he had not gained nothing.

During the time spent battling the energy of "Beast Madness," Xu Qingfan forced himself to stay calm. While resisting the "Beast Madness" energy, he also carefully observed its characteristics. Only by understanding the enemy could he defeat it.

According to Xu Qingfan’s observations, he found that "Beast Madness" energy was a type of energy between Spirit Qi and Divine Sense. This was why the various Spirit Qi had no effect on him, yet it could move freely within the cultivator’s body. Xu Qingfan did not have time to thoroughly investigate why it could transform the cultivator’s body. He only knew that this energy contained a strong ferocity and bestial nature. Even though it could improve the cultivator’s body, if it invaded the brain, the ferocity and bestiality, combined with the characteristics of "Beast Madness" energy, would leave the cultivator powerless to resist, no matter how high their cultivation level or Divine Sense.

While using the four types of Spirit Qi in his body to battle the "Beast Madness" energy, Xu Qingfan noticed that none of the Spirit Qi could effectively resist it. The only exception was the combined use of "Flourish Qi" and "Withered Qi," utilizing the "Formula of Life and Death" to defend against it, which could slightly block the invasion of the "Beast Madness" energy.

It could be said that if Xu Qingfan had more "Flourish Qi" and "Withered Qi," relying solely on these two types of Spirit Qi, the "Beast Madness" energy might have only been trapped in Xu Qingfan’s injured right leg. Although there was some progress, it would not be as obvious as it was now.

However, even though the "Flourish Qi" and "Withered Qi" in Xu Qingfan’s body were the most powerful, they were limited in number. Using both together consumed even more energy, so Xu Qingfan still needed to use other Spirit Qi to swap in; otherwise, he would not have lasted until now, as these two types of Spirit Qi would have already run out.

"’Flourish Qi’ and ‘Withered Qi’ are my own creations. They contain the two energies of life and death, which are the most fundamental energies within the human body. It is not surprising that they can restrain ‘Beast Madness’ energy. However, the energies of life and death in the human body are limited and cannot be cultivated or absorbed. Although my ‘Flourish Qi’ and ‘Withered Qi’ possess the characteristics of life and death energy, they are mixed with components of Withered Qi and Wood-type Spirit Qi and are no longer pure. Thus, they cannot restrain ‘Beast Madness’ energy and may even be at a disadvantage. Still, ‘Flourish Qi’ and ‘Withered Qi’ are the only Spirit Qi in my body that can contend with ‘Beast Madness’ energy, so whether I live or die this time depends on them."

Xu Qingfan calculated secretly in his heart while gathering the little remaining ‘Flourish Qi’ and ‘Withered Qi’ into one point, minimizing the consumption of both. He used "Formless Spirit Qi" and "Phoenix Spirit Qi" to resist the "Beast Madness" energy, while thinking urgently about how to use ‘Flourish Qi’ and ‘Withered Qi’ to suppress the "Beast Madness" energy.

Just as Xu Qingfan’s thoughts whirled, the "Beast Madness" energy had already invaded his chest.

"I have no choice."

When the time came, Xu Qingfan gritted his teeth and finally made a decision. He would use the most powerful move from the "Formula of Life and Death," which had previously overcome the strong man with the suppressed Spirit Qi, "Cycle of Life and Death."

However, this move was always used outside the body, and this time Xu Qingfan intended to use it within himself. He did not know what the result would be, but it would certainly cause great harm to his body.

As time passed, black and white energies swirled around Xu Qingfan’s body. Inside him, between the meridians, a black and white Spirit Qi symbol formed slowly, resembling a Tai Chi pattern, moving toward the incoming "Beast Madness" energy to suppress it.

"I did it!"

Xu Qingfan felt clearly that the "Beast Madness" energy was beginning to be suppressed by the "Cycle of Life and Death," slowly retreating bit by bit.

If he succeeded, Xu Qingfan would not only be the only person unaffected by the Beast Madness, but he would also enjoy the many benefits of being transformed by the Beast Madness Energy, with increased Spirit Qi, heightened senses, and vibrant life force.

But would "Ri" just stand by and watch Xu Qingfan like this?