Chapter 9

Seeing the corpse, the white cloth on Chimu's face fluttered uncontrollably, the thorn pattern on it twisting, revealing his extreme agitation. He murmured, "Is it her? How could she appear here, and... dead?"

He extended his hand, wanting to check the female warrior's breath, but hesitated, as if afraid of desecrating her.

The young lady saw this scene through the gap in the carriage curtain, her eyes widening in surprise.

Since their first meeting, Chimu had always remained calm, as if no one in the world could catch his attention except his master. Now, he showed such a shock!

Who was this woman?

Chimu gritted his teeth and was about to reach out again when a roar suddenly echoed in the air: "Get away!"

In an instant, a powerful wave descended from the sky, enveloping Chimu and his companions!

Almost everyone's movements froze, unable to move a muscle. Even Chimu could barely lift his head, his neck making a creaking sound.

A cavalry descended from the sky, only six in number, but they seemed like an army of thousands. The leaves of the nearby tree were lifted by the air current, fluttering everywhere.

These six riders were mounted on creatures that were neither horses nor dragons, with hooves treading on clouds, astonishingly majestic.

These were sixth-stage Qingyun beasts, tamed Ming beasts. They could fly through the clouds, covering three thousand miles a day. However, they were naturally fierce, and if one's strength was insufficient, they could be counter-controlled.

Chimu's gaze fell on the saddle of the Qingyun beast, recognizing the mark. Instantly, he broke out in a cold sweat, the thorns on the white cloth seeming to freeze in terror.

"Imperial... Imperial Knight..."

He uttered a weak voice from deep in his throat, almost inaudible.

When these six appeared, the sunlight seemed to dim for a moment, but quickly brightened again, illuminating their figures. They were not as imposing as they initially seemed. Their armor and the Qingyun beasts were covered in wounds, and one of them had lost an arm, barely controlling the reins with one hand. All the wounds were fresh, clearly from a recent battle.

The lead rider slowly descended the Qingyun beast beside the female warrior's corpse, sneering, "Stealing that one's treasure and escaping to here, you deserve to die!"

Imperial City? The young lady heard these three words clearly, her slender fingers gripping the carriage curtain involuntarily. The lead knight immediately noticed. He shouted, "Who's there!"

With his shout, a green light shot out, colliding with the carriage. The carriage exploded with a loud bang, turning into countless fragments!

In that instant, the young lady's toes lightly touched a few fragments, darting away. However, the disparity in strength was too great, and she only managed to avoid the core of the explosion. The remaining shockwave threw her out, and she crashed to the ground with a muffled groan.

"Seventh-ring Mingxin seed, not yet in the realm..."

Seeing the young lady's strength, the Imperial Knight sighed in relief, then frowned.

With this level of strength, how could she move within his domain's restrictions?

He dismounted the Qingyun beast, walked over, and dipped a drop of the young lady's blood, tasting it. Immediately, a look of surprise appeared on his face: "You are the descendants of the medicinal people, with such pure blood! Excellent! Offering you to that one, he will be very pleased!"

He threw the young lady onto the back of the Qingyun beast. Even if Chimu could move freely, he would only dare to lower his head, not daring to say a word.

These were Imperial Knights!

Unexpectedly finding a treasure, the leader of the Imperial Knights was very satisfied. He returned to the female warrior's corpse and ordered, "Search! The item should still be on her!"

They had been pursuing her, changing several teams, but with the control of the Imperial City, she never escaped their monitoring. She had never stopped or interacted with anyone, so it was impossible for her to transfer the item they wanted.

Two knights bent down to search her armor, but the leader's face suddenly changed, and he shouted, "Step back!"

He shouted quickly, but the change happened even faster. The female warrior's chest began to emit a strong light, which instantly expanded, covering a hundred-meter radius. The light contained powerful energy, engulfing everyone present!

"Mingxin seed self-destruct!"

The knights cried out in shock, their voices quickly drowned by the silent explosion.

The light lasted about ten seconds, then gradually dimmed.

The tree by the roadside was gone, the road and land completely vanished, leaving only a large pit.

The female warrior's corpse and the six surrounding Imperial Knights left no trace, their bodies thrown to the edge of the pit, unknown if alive or dead.

After a long time, one of the bodies moved, struggling to rise.

His black clothes were tattered, half of the white cloth on his face missing, the thorn pattern gone.

Chimu coughed lightly, spitting out a mouthful of blood. He staggered to his feet, looking around.

The Imperial Knights were too close, completely obliterated by the explosion. His subordinates barely remained intact, but had no breath.

Only...

Chimu narrowed his eyes. Jiang Chen, who was closest to the explosion, had been the first to sense it, flipping to the back of the Qingyun beast, using it as a shield. Now, she lay heavily injured by the pit, her chest rising and falling slightly, still alive!

A woman who had just obtained the Mingxin seed and had not yet formally started cultivation could survive such an explosion...

Chimu struggled to walk over, his hand sweeping over her, muttering, "Truly the descendants of the medicinal people..."

He lifted her, staggering away.

In the vast wilderness, only a large pit and the scattered bodies of seven or eight people remained.

...

...

Moonlight filtered through the branches of the Mingxin tree, casting on the young man below.

Jiang Feng moved, opening his eyes. A golden light flashed in his eyes, then he raised his hand, covering his heart.

His heart still beat strongly, but now, it seemed another beat had appeared, hidden behind his heartbeat, equally powerful.

In his sleep, he had seen clearly: it was a perfectly round seed, entirely golden and very bright, like a fragment of the sun.

This seed had absorbed a large amount of Mingxin seed light points and began to sprout. Its outer skin cracked, and a branch sprouted from the middle, with nine fruits on it, each unripe and green.

He instantly realized what it was.

"Mingxin seed? I got the Mingxin seed? It has sprouted and grown a primordial branch?!"

"I, I can now formally cultivate martial arts? As long as I let these nine fruits mature, I can enter the Dawn Realm and become a true martial cultivator?!"

Jiang Feng pressed his chest, feeling the faint pulse of the Mingxin seed, filled with surprise.

At this moment, he suddenly felt something was wrong. Looking up, he saw a faint white figure sitting beside him, gazing at the moon between the branches, completely lost in thought.

Hearing Jiang Feng's words, she turned her head, shaking it in confusion: "Mingxin seed? No, that's not right, this isn't a Mingxin seed..."

"This is... the Tianxin seed!"

...

...

Ghost?!

Jiang Feng's eyes instantly widened, jumping up in alarm. He jumped straight up two meters, his head "bang" hitting the lowest thick branch.

The white figure floated over, touching his head, tilting it slightly: "Are you okay?"

The figure had a head, body, and limbs, a vague human shape, but its face was indistinct. From her voice, it was barely discernible that she was a woman. Her "hand" carried a chill, touching Jiang Feng's forehead, feeling as comfortable as an ice pack.

Jiang Feng became even more cautious, stepping back to avoid her, asking, "Who are you? What is the Tianxin seed?"

"…What is the Tianxin seed?" the white figure asked in confusion.

Jiang Feng frowned: "Didn't you just say this isn't a Mingxin seed, but a Tianxin seed?"

"…Did I say that?" the white figure asked again.

Jiang Feng stared at her for a long time, but the white figure remained dazed and ignorant.

He recalled some content he had seen in the young lady's books.

When people died, sometimes a remnant soul remained. Their souls were fragmented, their memories incomplete, remembering only the most persistent thing from their life.

Such remnant souls usually did not last long in the world, being dissipated by the natural Ming force generated by the sun and moon.

Thinking of this, Jiang Feng was no longer very afraid. He stood up, touching his body. An unknown energy flowed beneath his skin, giving him extraordinary strength.

He could feel that this energy originated from his heart, spreading through his body via his blood.

The seed was growing deep in his heart, sprouting a branch, with golden threads flowing inside, slowly nourishing the first green fruit.

He tried it out, and under the influence of this golden energy, his strength, speed, and reaction abilities were significantly enhanced.

Yes, this was Ming force! Whether this seed was a Tianxin seed or a Mingxin seed, it meant Jiang Feng could now cultivate!

As long as he worked hard, he would one day light up all nine fruits, officially entering the Dawn Realm! Then, he could take the big exam and go to the capital to see the young lady!

Jiang Feng's heart was stirred, and it took a long time for him to lower his head.

He saw the little rabbit lying by the tree roots, motionless, as if unconscious.

Jiang Feng half-squatted, about to touch it, when the white figure floated over, entering the rabbit's body. The rabbit's ears twitched, and it stood up, its red eyes glowing with vitality under the moonlight.

Jiang Feng immediately pulled back his hand, saying in disbelief, "That remnant soul was actually attached to your body?" He thought for a moment, "This Tianxin seed, did you bring it to me?"

After thinking for a while, he finally picked up the rabbit and stood up, "No matter who you are, this seed allows me to cultivate, all thanks to you. Let's go, I will treat you well!"

A green shadow flashed, and Jiang Feng's toes touched the roots of the Mingxin tree, instantly darting out of its range.

The tree was silent, leaves covering the ground, and the Mingxin seeds in the branches were all gone.

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New book, please support with recommendations and collections!! The new version of the small black room has a group writing function, which has greatly increased my motivation to write. Seeing others write, I always feel my word count should move too...

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