Starting as a Grandmaster, all of my cultivation techniques are at max level.

Xia Jin's soul transformed into a stream of light and entered the other party's sea of ​​consciousness.

However, the sight before him made him frown.

"This is... that woman's sea of ​​consciousness?"

A hint of surprise flashed in Xia Jin's eyes.

He saw the woman's spirit.

Not far away, a huge black mist, like an octopus, was coiled in the very center of her sea of ​​consciousness. Countless black tentacles extended from the mist, firmly binding the female sword cultivator's soul within it.

At this moment, under the erosion of the black mist, her soul surface was covered with black patterns.

Above her head, a massive black mist was slowly rotating, like a giant eye, coldly watching everything within this sea of ​​consciousness.

Xia Jin's arrival seemed to shatter this deathly silence.

The woman's soul seemed to sense something, and her tightly closed eyes suddenly opened, revealing a pair of bloodshot eyes that also shone with a hint of light.

When she saw Xia Jin, it was like seeing a glimmer of hope. Without any hesitation, she mustered all her strength and, in a voice barely audible, uttered a few words, albeit haltingly.

"Help...help me..."

"Please...please...save me..."

The sound was very soft, but Xia Jin heard it.

However, Xia Jin's soul did not rush forward.

"You're lucky; you encountered me before your consciousness was completely annihilated!" Xia Jin looked at the eerie black mist, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

However, a hint of suspicion quickly flashed in his eyes.

"Strange. Even if an ordinary cultivator encounters an inner demon during seclusion, it shouldn't be this severe. Inner demons are indeed evil, but they are mostly manifestations of the cultivator's own obsessions. As long as the soul is resilient enough, there is always the power to resist them. How come it has become so dangerous in this Sword Tower?"

Suddenly, as if he had thought of something, his pupils contracted slightly.

"No... Sword Tower."

A glint of light flashed in Xia Jin's eyes.

Perhaps there is another possibility.

The Sword Tower of the Glazed Sword Sect is a sacred place for sword cultivators to temper their sword hearts.

Sword cultivators who enter this place often open their souls completely, abandoning all defenses, in order to gain a deeper understanding of sword intent and improve their sword dao realm, in order to accept the omnipresent sword intent in this world in the purest state.

Under normal circumstances, this practice can indeed allow sword cultivators to resonate more deeply with the sword intent, thereby achieving the effect of tempering the sword heart and improving one's realm.

But everything has two sides.

With the soul fully open, the defenses of the sea of ​​consciousness are at their lowest. If, during this process, the cultivator's mental state shows even the slightest weakness, inner demons will seize the opportunity to invade, and moreover...

Because the soul is completely undefended, the speed at which inner demons erode it will be hundreds of times faster than the outside world!

"No wonder." The doubt in Xia Jin's eyes had disappeared, replaced by understanding.

His spirit stepped forward, heading towards the woman's direction.

The black mist clinging to the woman seemed to sense Xia Jin's approach and began to writhe uneasily.

Xia Jin ignored her and walked straight to the woman's soul.

Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the woman's soul had been largely corrupted.

But her eyes were still shining; in those bloodshot eyes, the will to survive still burned, and she stared intently at Xia Jin, as if looking at her only hope.

Xia Jin didn't say anything more, but directly reached out her hands and grabbed the thickest black mist rope wrapped around her body.

The moment he touched it, a bone-chilling cold rushed straight up his fingers through his soul. At the same time, a malevolent consciousness emanated from the black mist, like the roar of a wild beast.

"You little brat, you're asking for it!"

"Want to save her? Then you'll have to die in her place!"

The black mist that had been hovering above the woman's head seemed to be enraged by Xia Jin's bold move, and it rushed directly towards his soul.

Countless black tentacles surged from all directions, instantly coiling around Xia Jin's soul like giant pythons, attempting to devour him entirely.

"Young master, be careful!!"

The woman's soul was thus freed from its restraints, but upon seeing Xia Jin's soul, she let out a sharp cry of surprise.

Even a hint of guilt flashed in her eyes, after all, no matter what, this person was also doing it because of her!

But she soon realized she was wrong.

This person dared to do such a thing, so naturally he must have had some absolute certainty.

Xia Jin's soul was entangled by the black mist, but there was no panic on her face. In fact, the corners of her mouth were slightly raised, revealing a mocking smile.

"You foolish thing. Do you know that compared to my physical body, my soul is perhaps an even more dangerous entity for you to provoke?"

Before she finished speaking, a layer of almost transparent flame ignited on the surface of Xia Jin's soul.

The black mist that was entwined around Xia Jin's soul reacted as if it had encountered its natural enemy the moment it came into contact with the transparent flame, letting out a scream that sounded like the wailing of ghosts and wolves.

"ah!!"

"What is this?! Impossible! This is impossible!!"

The black mist twisted and struggled wildly, trying to escape from Xia Jin's soul, but Xia Jin had caught it, and how could she let them escape so easily?

The transparent flame seemed to have a life of its own, spreading along the black mist and melting away wherever it passed, like snow under the scorching sun.

The once invincible power of inner demons appeared incredibly fragile before this layer of transparent flames.

In a short while, all the black mist that was wrapped around Xia Jin was completely burned away.

"Who...who exactly are you?"

When the woman looked up and thanked Xia Jin, fear reappeared in her eyes.

Because she saw that the transparent flames on Xia Jin's body did not go out as her inner demons dissipated, but were still burning fiercely.

The heat of the flames instilled an instinctive fear in her soul, which had just begun to recover.

Xia Jin seemed to sense the woman's fear, glanced down at the transparent flames burning on her body, and frowned slightly.

Then, the flames receded like the tide.

He raised his head and glanced at the woman indifferently.

"You're alright now."

After saying this, Xia Jin's soul transformed into a stream of light, flying directly out of the woman's sea of ​​consciousness and quickly returning to her physical body.

......

Beyond the sea of ​​consciousness,

Shen Jinghan was resting his chin on his hand, looking around listlessly. He glanced at Xia Jin and the woman every few breaths, afraid that something unexpected might happen.

Just as he turned around for the third time, Xia Jin suddenly opened her eyes.

"Junior Brother Xia!" Shen Jinghan suddenly stood up, walked up to Xia Jin, looked him up and down, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, "You... you succeeded?"

"Well, I guess so." Xia Jin nodded.

"How long have you been inside? Less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, right? That inner demon didn't cause you any harm, did it? Are you feeling unwell anywhere? Is your soul damaged? Let me tell you, injuries to the soul are no joke..."

Shen Jinghan bombarded him with a barrage of questions, clearly not wanting anything to happen to Xia Jin, his only junior brother.

"Don't worry, Senior Brother Shen. Do I look like something's wrong?"

Xia Jin didn't explain further, but just smiled and turned to look at the woman who was still sitting on the bluestone with her eyes closed.

"This woman should be waking up soon. When that happens, we can ask her about what happened in the Sword Tower."

Sure enough, it only took a few breaths.

Finally, the woman's long eyelashes trembled slightly, and then she slowly opened her eyes.

This time, her eyes were no longer empty and numb; instead, they regained their sparkle.

She blinked a few times, seemingly a little dazed, her gaze sweeping around her as if trying to confirm whether she had truly returned to reality.

Her gaze fell on Xia Jin.

Her clear eyes lit up, and she stood up from the bluestone. Although her movements were still a little unsteady, she stood firmly.

He then bowed deeply to Xia Jin.

"I am Mu Qingxue, a true disciple of the Glazed Sword Sect. I am deeply grateful for your help this time, and I will always remember this kindness. If there is any opportunity in the future, I will do my best to repay you."