The moment the Yu Ling Fruit entered his mouth, its skin melted away, releasing a rich, sweet flavor that spread across his tongue. A pure, cool stream of spiritual energy surged into Mu Chen's body like a torrential wave.
The violent influx of spiritual energy caused Mu Chen's body to tremble slightly, his lips parting involuntarily.
Without a moment's hesitation, Mu Chen's fingers danced as he formed a hand seal. Dense, black spiritual energy rapidly condensed in his palm.
Over the past half month, Mu Chen had repeatedly attempted to condense the second seal of the Sen Luo Death Seal. Although he had yet to succeed even once, the constant practice had made him incredibly proficient in the hand seals required.
Black spiritual energy enveloped his hand. It was exceptionally powerful—a level of intensity Mu Chen knew he normally could not achieve on his own.
His gaze was locked onto his palm, where the black spiritual energy had formed a vortex, greedily devouring the spiritual energy flowing in from his surroundings.
He focused his mind entirely on the vortex, not daring to lose concentration for even a fraction of a second. Normally, when he attempted to condense the seal, even if he failed due to insufficient spiritual energy, his careful control ensured he wouldn't suffer any backlash. Now, however, was different. With the massive influx of energy from the Yu Ling Fruit, the spiritual energy within his body was incredibly volatile. If he suffered a backlash now, the consequences would be severe.
Rumble...
Mu Chen maintained his absolute focus. The black storm spun faster and faster, until he could faintly see it condensing into the shape of a dark seal.
"All of it, merge!"
Mu Chen roared in his heart, fully mobilizing the spiritual energy in his body. He forcefully channeled it into the rapidly forming dark seal, pouring it relentlessly into the black light. The rotation of the dark seal accelerated. A minute later, the black storm abruptly contracted, and a dark seal quietly materialized, hovering silently above Mu Chen's left palm.
The second seal of the Sen Luo Death Seal had finally been formed!
Mu Chen gazed excitedly at the Sen Luo Death Seal hovering in his palm, but he did not let his guard down. Condensing the seal was only the first step, and his expression grew increasingly solemn.
Next, he had to merge this seal into his body. The moment it entered, it would unleash a terrifying shockwave that could potentially rupture his meridians.
Mu Chen had already experienced the agonizing backlash of the Sen Luo Death Seal when he cultivated the first one. He knew all too well that with each additional seal, the backlash would become exponentially more terrifying. Even a powerful cultivator like Teacher Mo, a formidable expert of the Spirit Soul Realm, could only cultivate two seals. Although the backlash was said to scale with the cultivator's own strength, this still proved just how terrifying the technique was.
Mu Chen took a deep breath. The spiritual energy within his Qi Sea began to surge, forming a protective barrier around his meridians to brace for the violent impact.
With his internal defenses prepared, Mu Chen did not hesitate. With a single thought, the hovering dark seal slowly sank into his left palm.
Thump!
The moment they made contact, Mu Chen's body shuddered violently. His expression changed drastically as a savage, destructive force—like a raging deluge—swept through him, roaring as it surged wildly into the meridians of his palm!
This impact force was utterly destructive. The meridians it passed through, originally fortified by spiritual energy like a levee, instantly shattered. Unable to withstand the force, they twisted and contorted, sending a searing pain shooting through his brain like lightning.
Sweat poured down his forehead like rain. However, he dared not be distracted; he hastily mobilized his spiritual energy to rebuild the broken levee.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Mu Chen’s body was as chaotic as a battlefield. The recoil force of the Samsara Purple Seal frantically destroyed those fragile defensive layers. The spreading pain made Mu Chen’s body tremble violently.
“Damn it!”
The pain made Mu Chen grimace. Clenching his teeth, he let out a low groan, stubbornly holding on. If he gave up now, not only would he fail right at the finish line, but his body would also suffer severe damage.
His meridians twisted in agony as the pain spread relentlessly. Mu Chen was drenched in sweat, the pain so intense that his mind grew hazy and disoriented.
Only now did he truly understand how terrifyingly difficult it was to cultivate the second seal of the Samsara Purple Seal.
This recoil force was destroying his outer meridians and threatening to advance toward his Qi Sea, sending a chill down Mu Chen’s spine. Slight damage to his meridians could still be healed, but a shattered Qi Sea—that was a fate he absolutely did not want to experience.
“Stop!”
Thinking of the terrifying consequences, Mu Chen steadied his mind and roared.
At that very moment, strange black specks suddenly appeared within his body, swirling and spreading throughout in an extremely bizarre sight.
As the black specks emerged, they seemed to spontaneously manifest, directly colliding with the fierce recoil force.
“Boom!”
The sound of clashing energy reverberated within his body, making Mu Chen’s ears ring. It took a moment for his hearing to return to normal. As soon as he regained his senses, he immediately checked his internal state, and his eyes widened in astonishment.
He discovered that the violent recoil force was actually being blocked.
“Why is this happening?”
Mu Chen wondered blankly, his mind focused on the black specks that were now fading and silently disappearing.
“Are these spiritual meridians? Why can’t I control them, or even sense them?”
His troubled thoughts yielded no answers, so Mu Chen could only sigh. It seemed his own body held quite a few secrets that he himself was unaware of.
Out of this intense pressure, an idea formed in his heart. Mu Chen silently circulated the Great Pagoda Art, drawing the spiritual energy that had scattered throughout his meridians back into his Qi Sea. As all of it settled safely back into its core, he felt the spiritual energy, which usually obeyed him without question, suddenly begin to tremble and fluctuate strangely, making his heart pound.
Clearly sensing that fluctuation, Mu Chen was both puzzled and overjoyed.
“This is… a sign that my spiritual energy is about to break through!”
His eyes opened wide in pleasant surprise. He immediately took out another Jade Spirit Fruit, unhesitatingly popped it into his mouth, and circulated the Great Pagoda Art, refining that cool, gentle spiritual energy, transforming it into dark spiritual energy, and guiding it all into his Qi Sea.
The two streams of spiritual energy quickly converged, as if cheering and welcoming each other. He could clearly feel the spiritual energy within his Qi Sea rapidly surging with powerful vigor.
The fluctuations continued for a moment before gradually subsiding. The dark spiritual energy in his Qi Sea shimmered like a starry sky. Compared to before, it had doubled in strength!
Inside the tent, Mu Chen slowly opened his eyes, his handsome face filled with joy. He stretched out both hands; on each of his palms, a purple seal appeared, flickering between visibility and illusion.
The Samsara Purple Seal—he finally had two of them!
Mu Chen smirked, clenching his fists. Tonight, not only had he successfully condensed the second seal, but he had also seized the opportunity to break through, advancing to the late stage of the Spiritual Movement Realm!
Feeling his spiritual energy grow significantly stronger than before, Mu Chen couldn't help but burst into joyful laughter.
Tonight's gains were truly far greater than he had anticipated.
As Mu Chen laughed heartily over his breakthrough, in another tent within the East Courtyard camp, Master Mo suddenly opened his eyes. He gazed toward Mu Chen's tent in surprise, a smile gracing his lips.
"That kid is truly something else!"