The Regressor of Mount Hua
Chapter 377. North Sea Dragon Gate (2)

Chapter 377. North Sea Dragon Gate (2)

"...!" Zhou Xuchuan sucked in a breath.

At Leng Yuefei's words, the Valley of Phantoms came to mind.

Mind Killing?

While Leng Yuefei was talking about freezing one's heart, the result was similar to the Mind Killing of the Valley of Phantoms. The only difference was that the Phantoms lacked individuality, or the ability to think for oneself, while she only excluded emotions. Other than that, they were similar in many ways.

"Wait a minute... If the heart is frozen, won't there be problems manifesting one's path?"

As the name suggested, the Manifestation of One's Path meant manifesting the form of one's heart into something physical.[1]

While the cultivation requirements were one thing, the important part was one's heart. If one's heart, one's mentality, or one's mind were to collapse, it would affect one's pursuit of the path and cause problems down the line.

The fact that the Juvenile Fist Emperor finally escaped from the form of a child was proof of this matter.

"Don't think too deeply about it. Just think that it was because my heart was frozen that I obtained this power."

"I understand." Zhou Xuchuan nodded in agreement.

"If your path is the deepening of one's Cold Headed Mind, does that alone constitute the condition of Manifestation of One's Path? But wouldn't there be a problem with attaining enlightenment afterward?"

A leap of realms was, in essence, enlightenment. The extremes of the martial path, the Harmony Realm and the Coruscant Realm,which transcended one's limitations, were like that as well.

While Zhou Xuchuan couldn't clearly see what was unfolding before him, he thought that, at the very least, enlightenment was necessary.

"What a foolish question. The realm ahead is beyond human imagination, so why are you asking about it based on common sense in the human world?"

"...True," Zhou Xuchuan replied.

"Continuing our conversation, my appearance is the result of my 'aging' being 'frozen' due to my Manifestation of One's Path."

"Ha, just when did you reach the Harmony Realm and the Coruscant Realm?"

Leng Yuefei hadn't achieved Youth Restoration, so she had to have achieved this realm, the state beyond the pinnacle of martial arts, at her apparent age.

While this wasn't something that Zhou Xuchuan, who had become an Empyrean Overlord before he even reached twenty-five, was supposed to say, he considered himself an exception due to his regression.

"I apologize for the lack of explanation. To continue my explanation, I should talk more about the martial arts of the North Sea, the Ice Desolation Art."

Zhou Xuchuan waited for Leng Yuefei to continue.

"When a person's body temperature drops below a certain level, the human body will try to raise its temperature by shivering or through muscle movement. However, if even those attempts were to fail, it'd turn off bodily functions or minimize movement to conserve strength.

"The Ice Desolation Art possesses such characteristics as well."

"The Great Tortoise Breath Technique?"

"It's the same principle."

The Great Tortoise Breath Technique, the basic technique of a Phantom, or rather, an assassin, worked by slowing down one's breathing until it seemed as if it had stopped, reducing the heart rate in return.

"Ah!" Zhou Xuchuan slapped his knee upon realizing something. "The secret to the youth is the body's time!!"

"That's right."

Little Ghost looked younger than she was because of the characteristics of the Great Tortoise Breath Technique, which made one age physically slower than normal people.

The people of the North Sea grew in a strange way due to that characteristic.

A slow-flowing physical aging and a higher level... So that's it?

The people of the North Sea aged slowly, so their masters aged even more slowly. In addition to the fact that one could become more than ten years younger after a Bodily Reformation.

Zhou Xuchuan's doubts were clearly resolved.

"Are you aiming for immortality? You must be disappointed."

"I was just curious, so it doesn't matter."

Zhou Xuchuan closely examined Leng Yuefei's face. No matter what she said, he couldn't feel any emotion from her.

Little Ghost came to mind, and sympathy welled up in his heart.

"Sword God, there's no need to pity me."

Eyes as cold and transparent as ice were fixed on Zhou Xuchuan.

Zhou Xuchuan, reflected in those eyes, answered with a trembling face. "Considering how you don't have emotions, you're pretty good at reading other people's feelings."

"Thoughts, personality, voice, and tone of voice. If you take into account other factors as well, it's not difficult to make such deductions. Also, I said that I can't feel emotions, I didn't say that I don't 'have' any emotions."

"What does that mean?"

"It would be quicker to think that I'm less emotional than others. Joy, anger, sadness, pleasure, and more emotions like love, hatred, and desire—I feel them so extremely rarely that they are invisible to me.

"Moreover, I don't really care enough to go searching for them. At least, that's how it is if I were to explain this."

"How complicated."

"The human mind is simple yet complicated." Leng Yuefei forced the corners of her mouth up with her fingers. "In short, the rational part is the top priority, while the emotional part is frozen. Not only is it hard to feel, but it's also secondary in importance in the first place.

"In other words, emotions are unnecessary for me, so don't feel any pity."

To be honest, being secondary was putting it softly. There were very few instances when she recognized such emotions. She didn't feel the need for emotions, and she didn't really want to get them back.

Without them, she didn't have to worry about the possibility that her Manifestation of One's Path would collapse. She also didn't have to worry about the possibility of losing strength.

She had no fear or greed, after all.

"I see..." Zhou Xuchuan licked his lips in regret.

"Hmm, I don't understand your reaction." Leng Yuefei tilted her head.

"It doesn't seem like you're in love with me or even have a lot of emotions toward me... are you disappointed?"

"I won't deny it." Zhou Xuchuan smiled bitterly. "North Sea Ice Palace Master, can I ask you a few more questions?"

"Feel free to ask."

"I-if... your heart isn't frozen but dead, is there a way to make it better?"

"Hmm."

Leng Yuefei thought for a moment. It didn't last long.

"Sword God. In the Central Plains, whenever you fix something, would you say that it got better?" asked Leng Yuefei, the North Sea Ice Palace Master, seemingly wondering what he was talking about.

The next day, the North Sea Ice Palace gave a grand farewell to the Central Plains people who decided to help them. It wasn't just Zhou Xuchuan, as even Luo Xiaoyue became famous.

As for Little Ghost, she was active in places that weren't visible, and she had been living an inconspicuous life, so her very existence wasn't acknowledged. The masters, such as Leng Yuefei seemed to have noticed her, but they didn't bother asking questions.

"Benefactor, your expression doesn't look so good... could it be that we've done something rude?" the guide, Hawar, asked cautiously.

After the civil war and the resolution of the problem in the North Sea, Zhou Xuchuan officially became a hero and benefactor, so Hawar couldn't help but be cautious around him.

"No. I was worried that something might have happened in my hometown while I was away," Zhou Xuchuan answered, making sure that Hawar wouldn't misunderstand.

Hawar noticed that Zhou Xuchuan had lied out of consideration for her, but she didn't bother pointing that out.

"Senior Brother, what's wrong?" asked Luo Xiaoyue.

Since Hawar had noticed, how could Luo Xiaoyue not notice it? On the way home, when they finally had some space from the people of the North Sea Ice Palace, Luo Xiaoyue decided to ask him about what was going on.

"I held onto hope, but am I supposed to say that I lost it? It all just feels a little strange."

"Ah..."

Luo Xiaoyue also couldn't hide her regret.

"What a pity."

Luo Xiaoyue carefully stroked Little Ghost's head.

Her touch was gentle, but it seemed to be filled with regret.

"If I hadn't had any expectations in the first place, I wouldn't have been disappointed," Zhou Xuchuan muttered bitterly.

"That's not true!" Luo Xiaoyue exclaimed passionately.

"Junior Sister Luo?" Zhou Xuchuan's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh, I'm sorry for raising my voice, Senior Brother." Luo Xiaoyue looked surprised and embarrassed, but she continued, "Of course, if you don't have any expectations in the first place, there won't be any disappointment.

"However, if you don't have the heart to hope for something to happen, then there will truly be no hope." Her hand on Little Ghost's head moved downward, and she hugged the girl. "So... please don't give up. There will definitely be a way. Please don't give up hope."

Luo Xiaoyue blushed a little, looking embarrassed, but she didn't look away. She looked straight at him and showed him her sincere and clear eyes.

"Yes, that's right. Haha." Zhou Xuchuan chuckled upon thinking about Luo Xiaoyue's words. "Not hoping for anything is the same as giving up on the possibility of success. I can't let that happen."

The Six Empyrean Overlords weren't gods. The Coruscant Realm, which was likened to the firmament itself, wasn't absolute.

"Surely, there must be a way."

He looked up and saw that the endless snowfall had stopped.

The pitch-black dark clouds were gone.

"Ah..."

The senior brother and junior sister exclaimed unknowingly.

The aurora was before them. The curtain of green and various colors rippled calmly like waves, creating a magnificent sight. It was as if the sun had just appeared beyond the mountain; it was like they were seeing the light of dawn.

The boundary between light and darkness.

The people of the North Sea called the curtain of light the soul of god, and at this very moment, the two felt like they understood why.

***

A wolf-sized dog was dragging a sled. The return trip was faster than the departure, as the abnormal weather was no more. The snow dog dragging the sled had just been saved from starvation, so it wasn't very strong.

However, it was still much stronger than before.

"Then, we'll see you in a short while. Thank you, once again."

Hawar and the guides greeted Zhou Xuchuan, Luo Xiaoyue, and Little Ghost with the utmost courtesy. The distrust they had shown on their first meeting was nowhere to be found. Instead, they showed gratitude and respect.

"Thank you for your hard work guiding us. I should be the one to thank you."

"No, how could—"

"Since it seems like this back and forth will never end, I won't accept your polite words," Zhou Xuchuan interrupted with a slightly mischievous smile.

Hawar scratched her cheek, feeling embarrassed by his response.

"Then, we'll take our leave now."

They uttered more than enough farewells when they left the Ice Palace. Moreover, they had more than enough conversation on their way to North Gate Village, so there was nothing to regret.

"Take care. I'll see you again soon."

It was strange for the North Sea Ice Palace Master to be absent here, especially after Zhou Xuchuan had aided them through a civil war. However, she still needed to handle the aftermath.

The Central Plains issue was urgent, and fortunately, Zhou Xuchuan had received a reply that the cleanup wouldn't take long.

While Leng Yuefei said that she would give him a gold yuanbao and other things, he'd only accept them if they wouldn't become too much of a burden. Of course, he would accept them later.

"I'm worried about the Central Plains."

He had spent more time out here than expected. He was worried that something had happened since he hadn't been able to contact the Martial Alliance.

Zhou Xuchuan and Luo Xiaoyue looked worried. In order to pick up the pace, they ran while cutting down on their meals and sleep. Thankfully, they had more than enough qi reserves.

Soon, they took off their winter clothes and put them away, feeling grateful for the Central Plains' climate.

The snowy field that seemed endless no matter how far they went was finally nowhere to be found. They felt a little better, as they were no longer staring at a white expanse.

A while later, Zhou Xuchuan and Luo Xiaoyue stopped by a village to obtain some information, and their faces immediately turned pale.

Urgent news.

Some of the Five Mountains had betrayed the Martial Alliance.

The Mount Hua Sect attacked.

1. Remember, the word for Path is literally Heart View. ☜