Chapter 581 - 243: Tathagata (2)

He sat down cross-legged and continued to circulate the Eight Extremes Vajra Body, simultaneously resisting the Evil Qi and remaining highly vigilant.

For the next two days, everything in the Black Water Abyss Prison remained as usual.

Master of the Seven Sufferings paid him a visit, asked a few simple questions about the situation, and saw that Chen Qing was handling things with ease, his vital energy stable. He then departed as silently as he had arrived.

Staring at the old monk’s disappearing back, Chen Qing mused to himself, ’This Master of the Seven Sufferings... They say he accepted the Sect Leader’s invitation to defend the prison and neutralize the Evil Qi, but he’s been here for thirteen years. He appears to move about freely, but in reality, he’s been stuck in this grim place for ages. How is that any different from being a prisoner? It’s less like he’s the defender and more like he’s the one being imprisoned.’

He shook his head, pushing aside these stray thoughts to focus on his Cultivation.

Circulating the Eight Extremes Vajra Body in this place required him to split his focus to resist the Evil Qi. Yet, through the repeated tempering of his vital energy, there seemed to be a subtle, almost imperceptible improvement.

One day, Chen Qing was sitting cross-legged near the entrance.

Just then, an extremely faint rustling sound came from a cell deeper inside the ring-shaped area.

Chen Qing suppressed his aura and slowly walked over, stopping several paces from the stone door.

"Young man... are you the new guard on duty?"

A voice drifted from inside, clear and melodious. It carried a natural, gentle charm—not the deliberate use of a Charming Skill, yet it seemed to scratch the deepest itch in one’s heart, irresistibly causing it to stir.

"I am," Chen Qing replied, his tone flat and betraying no emotion.

"My name is Luo Xiangru."

The woman inside introduced herself, her voice tinged with a delicate weakness. "Young man, your vital energy is so powerful, your masculine aura as abundant as a furnace. You must be an elite disciple from the younger generation of the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect, aren’t you? It’s truly... enviable."

’Luo Xiangru?’

Chen Qing’s mind raced. He combed through his memories of the Sect’s archives and the various figures he’d heard of, but the name was completely unfamiliar to him.

He remained impassive, playing along. "It’s just my duty as a Sect disciple. Since you know how dangerous this place is, why are you wasting your breath?"

If anything, the woman only made him more wary and cautious.

How many men in this world had met their end because of a woman?

Anyone imprisoned here was no saint. No matter how enchanting her voice, it couldn’t change her fundamental nature.

"I mean no harm."

Luo Xiangru’s voice remained clear. "My Cultivation was sealed long ago by an expert from your sect. My Dantian is like stagnant water, my meridians like withered vines. I’m no different from a mortal. Besides, this is the heavily guarded Prison Peak of the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect. Even at my peak, it would have been impossible for me to escape, let alone in my current condition."

Chen Qing heard her out and said coolly, "Is that so? Then what is it you want with me?"

A light laugh like the chiming of silver bells came from inside.

"I have no other intentions. It’s just... it’s been so long since I’ve had anyone to talk to. I just wanted to chat with you, young man, to relieve the boredom. After all, I’ve been locked in this sunless place for years without a single person to talk to, or to show a bit of warmth..."

Toward the end, her tone became so plaintive and frail it could have moved a heart of stone.

Chen Qing, however, sneered to himself. ’As if he’d fall for such a ploy.’

Just as he was about to speak, another, colder voice suddenly rang out from a nearby cell.

"Relieving your boredom? You’re just lusting after his body! You wretched demoness, you’ll never change!" The voice was grim, filled with undisguised mockery.

The voice paused, then addressed Chen Qing. "Be careful. That woman is one of the favorite concubines of Qi Xun Nan, the Sect Leader of the Infinite Demon Sect. Her name is Luo Xiangru, and she’s a natural-born seductress."

’A concubine of Qi Xun Nan, the Sect Leader of the Infinite Demon Sect?!’

Chen Qing was stunned, his gaze instantly sharpening.

The Infinite Demon Sect was a behemoth that had rivaled the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect for many years. Its Sect Leader, Qi Xun Nan, was an infamous titan of the Demon Path, his power unfathomable.

’The woman locked in this cell was actually his favored concubine?’

Seemingly sensing Chen Qing’s silence, Luo Xiangru quickly retorted, "Young man, don’t listen to his nonsense! I’m just a weak woman trapped in a cage. What ulterior motives could I possibly have? I just wanted to talk to someone to ward off the loneliness, that’s all. Besides..."

Her tone shifted, taking on a note of self-deprecation and sorrow. "Master Qi... I’m afraid he’s long forgotten that someone like me, Luo Xiangru, even exists in this world. I don’t want to escape, nor can I. You know that."

"Hmph, such clever words!"

The man in the next cell sneered, "She doesn’t want to escape because she knows she can’t. But she’s desperate for a man. She wants to spend a night of passion with a young disciple like you, someone brimming with vitality! I’m just afraid a little thing like you can’t handle having this demoness suck you dry to the bone!"

"Besides, do you have any idea who Qi Xun Nan is? He seeks revenge for the smallest slight. If he finds out someone touched his woman—even a plaything he’s long since discarded—he’ll hunt you to the ends of the earth and make sure you can never be reborn!"

Chen Qing remained silent, just listening.

"Fang Hui! Those old bastards from Danxia Peak will refine you into a puddle of pus and blood sooner or later!" Luo Xiangru, having been struck a nerve, shot back, her voice turning sharp and losing its former gentle charm.

"Don’t worry, I’m tough as nails!"

The man named Fang Hui let out a hearty laugh, his voice booming with energy. "Not only am I not dead, but after every pill test, I feel my Cultivation bottleneck loosening! Once my ’agreement’ with Danxia Peak is up, I might even turn this disaster into a blessing and break through to the True Essence Realm in one go!"

Chen Qing’s gaze shifted to Fang Hui’s cell. He asked in a deep voice, "You’re Fang Hui? What’s your story? Why were you imprisoned here on Prison Peak?"