Chapter 83

Chen Qing, Wu Meng, and the others used the Water-Parting Spell to separate the water, and stepped on the slippery algae to enter the snake den from the cave entrance. Halfway through, they felt that the chaotic energy flow around them had stopped, and gradually, spiritual energy began to seep out from the depths of the snake den along the water on both sides.

There was no movement inside the cave, and Chen Qing and the others continued to walk deeper.

The torches in the underground palace had long fallen into the water and gone out, but a night pearl embedded in a crevice emitted a faint light.

The light was dim, but it was enough for Chen Qing and the others to see the situation inside the snake den.

Chen Hai was sitting slumped on a broken rock that protruded from the water, his posture awkward, his body drenched, blood seeping from his seven orifices, his face covered in blood, and his exposed skin cut with countless small wounds, with fresh blood flowing out.

Chen Hai was barely alive, sitting there, about to fall into the water at any moment.

Wu Meng was startled, not expecting that Chen Hai had really gone into a state of demonic possession during his cultivation, causing such a big commotion. He deeply regretted not entering the snake den in time and instead strongly preventing Chen Qing, Chen Su, and the others from coming in.

Wu Meng, Zhou Jun, and Ge Tong flew up to the broken rock, not daring to easily help Chen Hai up.

Seeing that Chen Hai was not in immediate danger, Chen Qing let out a sigh of relief but could not help but mock him, "Your cultivation is insufficient, yet you tried to forcibly open the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea without finding someone to protect you. You even ordered Wu Meng to guard outside and not let us in. Now it looks like you are just reaping what you sowed."

Chen Qing was simple-minded and had no deep scheming. She had developed a dislike for him because of the incident with Zileng, but her nature was not bad. Chen Hai sometimes got annoyed by her causing trouble, but he did not have any grudges against her and did not guard against her as much as he did against Chen Zhang and Su Zileng.

At this moment, hearing her mocking, Chen Hai wiped the blood from his face and laughed, saying, "Although I suffered a bit, I have still managed to cultivate..."

"Has Young Master stepped into the Spirit Sea Realm?" Wu Meng asked in surprise.

Chen Hai's face and body were covered in blood, his thick beard and wet, disheveled hair obscured half of his face, and the light in the snake den was dim. Wu Meng, Zhou Jun, and the others did not immediately realize that Chen Hai had successfully opened the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea, thinking he had suffered a severe backlash from demonic possession during cultivation.

Chen Su and Su Zileng were both shocked and suspicious. At first glance, Chen Hai's face covered in blood was a clear sign of demonic possession.

Only when the vast spiritual energy absorbed into the body lost control and surged out from the limbs, bones, and seven orifices, causing such injuries, could the physical body be compared to a bag of skin torn by violent spiritual energy.

If Chen Hai had really gone into demonic possession, how could he have "cultivated" successfully?

However, Chen Hai's injuries did not seem as severe as those caused by demonic possession, and Chen Su and Su Zileng were puzzled and could not understand what had happened during Chen Hai's cultivation.

After Chen Su's shock and suspicion, although he saw that Chen Hai's injuries were not so severe, he did not feel completely relieved. He thought it was still necessary to send someone to inform Young Master Chen Zhang.

In the past two or three years, Chen Hai had consumed a large amount of resources to rebuild his martial path. At this point, even if he had successfully stepped into the Spirit Sea Realm, it was not strange.

If an ordinary person with average talent used the spirit medicines worth 60,000 to 70,000 points of sect merit, they should also be able to open the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea. This was the key reason why most of the direct-line descendants of the major clans could enter the upper seven peaks for cultivation.

Opening the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea was not difficult and could be achieved with the help of elixirs and resources. The differences in talent and foundation would only gradually become apparent in subsequent cultivation.

Chen Su could confirm that Chen Hai had opened the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea on the basis of four spirit veins, which was already a step behind others. In the future, he should not pose a substantial threat to Young Master Chen Zhang.

Su Zileng's delicate brows were slightly furrowed, and the doubts in her heart could not be resolved.

According to the secret letter, Chen Hai's cultivation had been completely destroyed, and even the memories of his previous cultivation had been erased by a powerful being using a secret method. Logically, using the cultivation methods of the upper seven peaks of Taiwei Sect, it should not be so easy to reopen the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea. How could Chen Hai have smoothly stepped into the Spirit Sea Realm again in just two or three years?

As for the cliff-falling incident, Su Zileng could not confirm whether Chen Hai had noticed any suspicious points, but she felt that from this moment on, she had to be extra cautious. Although she did not know what had happened at Tieliu Ridge Dao Academy, the Chen Hai before her was no longer the depressed Yao family's abandoned son who had just arrived at Taiwei Mountain.

Chen Hai's cultivation path was unconventional, fundamentally going against the methods recorded in the Alchemical Cauldron Secret. He had opened the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea by taking a different path. However, the spiritual energy in the snake den was limited, and when the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea was about to take shape, the hundred bones' essence energy he had gathered in the mystic acupoint had not fully merged into the true essence vortex.

When the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea took shape and connected with the spirit veins, the part of the hundred bones' essence energy that did not merge into the spirit sea or spirit veins lost control and surged in his organs, seeking an outlet, causing injuries similar to those from demonic possession. It was no wonder others misunderstood.

Chen Hai was also seriously injured, but the part of the hundred bones' essence energy that lost control only impacted his most vulnerable organs after the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea had taken its final form, and the damage was limited to the lowest level.

Chen Hai did not need to explain anything to others. Chen Qing used the Water-Parting Spell to separate the water, and with the help of Wu Meng and Zhou Jun, he returned to the East Courtyard to rest.

******

Back in the bedroom, after confirming that Chen Hai was not seriously injured, Wu Meng, Zhou Jun, Ge Tong, and Zhou Jingyuan left, leaving Chen Hai to rest in the room.

Chen Hai sat cross-legged and used the inner vision method to observe his navel area. He saw that the area formed by the intersecting spirit veins, which was previously a hazy void, was now enveloped in a faint golden glow.

This was the opened Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea, an existence between the real and the void. It had not yet incorporated a drop of true essence, so it was not yet visible.

Chen Hai confirmed that his injuries were not serious and eagerly took the Spirit Nourishing Pill to cultivate true essence.

After three days and nights, when Chen Hai could no longer refine more true essence, the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea appeared like a golden lake in the faint golden glow.

Chen Hai did not know how vast the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea opened on the basis of six or eight spirit veins could be, but he knew that the one he had opened was no worse than that of ordinary inner disciples of the upper seven peaks and was almost approaching the upper limit of a four-vein spirit sea.

Many people, such as Zhou Jun, Chen Qing, and Chen Zhang, had advanced on the basis of six spirit veins, but they had cultivated according to the methods recorded in the Alchemical Cauldron Secret, and the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea they opened could not reach the upper limit of a six-vein spirit sea. In fact, their results were still a step behind Chen Hai.

The depth and breadth of the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea were certainly important, but the strength of the Mystic Wall could not be overlooked.

When Chen Hai could no longer cultivate more true essence, the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea was fully formed in the golden glow. The true essence was like surging lake water, but there was a clear boundary on all sides, restrained by an invisible force, preventing it from bursting out.

This invisible restraint was the Mystic Wall.

When using spells or mystical techniques, the true essence would be activated, causing a strong impact on the Mystic Wall. If the Mystic Wall could not withstand this impact, the true essence would surge into the most vulnerable organs, and the backlash would be fatal.

Chen Hai used his hand as a spear and performed the Ten-Step Water-Cutting Slash. With each step, he made a slash, but on the tenth slash, he held back, causing the vast true essence in the Spirit Sea to surge wildly, like a raging storm.

Even so, the Mystic Wall, despite the impact, remained unshaken, showing no signs of cracking.

A high-quality Mystic Wall!

It had been three days, and Chen Hai's injuries had largely healed. At this moment, he felt like opening the window and letting out a long cry. Choosing such an extremely dangerous method to open the Secret Palace of the Spirit Sea and achieving such results was indeed worth the effort.

"Young Master..."

The two maidservants waiting outside the room heard the commotion inside and pushed the door open to see Chen Hai already lively and getting out of bed, bowing to greet him.

When Chen Hai returned to the East Courtyard, two maidservants and housekeepers had already been arranged to take care of his daily life.

Although these maidservants were selected from the good families of the attached civilians of the Medicine Garden, the internal affairs of the inner courtyard were beyond the reach of Zhou Jingyuan and Ge Tong. Chen Hai was somewhat uneasy about the arrangements made by Chen Su.

These two girls, both around fourteen or fifteen years old, had fair skin and beautiful features. Despite their young age, their figures were already well-developed. In the hot summer, they wore light silk dresses, with their chests already prominently raised, and their eyes had a touch of coquetry. Coming from ordinary attached civilian families, such girls could be considered top-notch.

After greeting him, one of the girls came in to quickly tidy up the bed, while the other brought water to help him wash. Chen Hai asked, "What are your names?"

"The sister Zileng said our names at home were too vulgar, so she changed our names to Rong'er and Juan'er. We will serve in Young Master's room from now on," said Juan'er, who was more outgoing and had a clear, bright voice like a lark. She was not afraid of Chen Hai and told him everything about Su Zileng's arrangements for them to serve in the East Courtyard. Rong'er, on the other hand, was somewhat shy and did not dare to look up at Chen Hai.

After washing, Chen Hai felt hungry and did not take more elixirs to replenish his essence. He asked the two maidservants to bring some food from the kitchen. While drinking thin porridge, he casually asked about the internal affairs of the Medicine Garden.

These two maidservants were children of the attached civilians of the Medicine Garden, and being selected to serve in the inner courtyard was already a very good background.

Currently, Ge Tong served as the Pavilion Warden, mainly responsible for the security and defense of the Medicine Garden and the Zhaoyang Pavilion area. However, other matters in the city, such as the construction of the city and private gardens, the management of attached villages and civilians, and the collection of land rent and taxes, were mainly handled by Chen Su. The medicinal fields and foundries were directly managed by specific personnel dispatched by Su Yuan.

In addition, apart from the private gardens of Sun Gan, Su Yuan, and others, which were entrusted to trusted people, the private gardens of Chen Hai and Chen Zhang, as well as the residences of Chen Lie and Chen Qing in the Medicine Garden, were part of the inner courtyard of the Zhaoyang Pavilion. As the deputy manager of the Pavilion, Chen Su was responsible for the expenses of the East Courtyard, but the specific affairs of the inner courtyard were managed by Su Zileng.

Even though Su Zileng was of slave origin, she had stepped into the Spirit Sea Realm and gained Chen Qing's trust, giving her the qualifications to participate in the management of the inner courtyard.

These two girls were specially selected by Su Zileng to serve in his room...