Chương 114: The Secret of the Yang Fragment

Zhang Huaijin gazed down at the unconscious Yen Tianyang, his expression utterly indifferent. Without a word, he hoisted the man onto his back and sped away from the scene. Fifteen minutes later. Inside a gloomy mountain cave, a Tier 2 Dark wolf lay dead. The blood still spraying from its wounds was warm to the touch. He dumped Yen Tianyang's body onto the ground. The violent impact jolted Yen Tianyang back to consciousness. His face contorted in agony and fury.

"You... you're merciless!" Blood and dirt stained the corners of his mouth. His eyes, locked on Huaijin, burned with venom.

"Let's not pretend we're any different. I don't need to spell out what you did. I won't say this twice. Hand over the map fragment." As he spoke, Huaijin's foot came down on Yen Tianyang's arm. With a slight grind of his heel, a sickening crack echoed from the limb.

"Fine! Take it! Just stop crushing me!" Yen Tianyang's eyes flooded with terror. Zhang Huaijin was a devil. Pure, unrelenting cruel. Trembling, Yen Tianyang struggled to lift his shirt. Then, with his own sharp fingernails, he tore open the skin over his chest. Blood sprayed out, staining his heart area crimson. A flicker of surprise crossed Huaijin's eyes.

'This man is no less ruthless,' he thought.

'He sewed the fragment directly into his own flesh. No wonder I didn't find it in the storage pouch.' Moments later, a blood-soaked map fragment appeared in his hand. This only deepened his certainty: Yen Tianyang had definitely unlocked the fragment's secret. Why else would he go to such extremes? Yen Tianyang handed over the fragment, his eyes hollow with despair. All he could do was hope that Huaijin would let him live. His meridians were shattered. His cultivation was gone. But he was still breathing.

And as long as he drew breath, there was still a chance. Lying on the cold ground, weak and fading, Yen Tianyang's mind raced silently, grasping for any lifeline. Meanwhile a sphere of water coalesced in Huaijin's palm. He used it to wash the blood from the fragment. He rubbed the material between his fingers. It was identical to the piece he already had. No difference in texture or make. The only difference was the character inscribed on each. The fragment he already possessed bore the character Yin.

The one he had just taken from Yen Tianyang bore the character Yang. Huaijin probed the fragment for a long time, sensing it from every angle. Nothing happened. After fifteen minutes of fruitless fiddling, he let out a sigh. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. He had no clue how to activate it. He turned his cold gaze back to Yen Tianyang.

"Talk," Huaijin said abruptly.

"What secrets does this map fragment hold?" The sudden command snapped Yen Tianyang out of his desperate thoughts. Pale and trembling, he looked up at Zhang Huaijin's unreadable face. He's already figured it out, Yen Tianyang realized.

"I'll talk! I'll talk! Don't step on me!" He screamed in agony. He had barely hesitated for a heartbeat, and Huaijin's foot had already crushed down on his face. Yen Tianyang felt his own cheekbone bending under the pressure. He didn't dare make any demands now. He was terrified that this brat would simply stomp his head like an egg. Over the following minutes, Yen Tianyang explained everything he had learned from his fragment: how it worked, and how he had uncovered its secrets.

—— When Yen Tianyang finished speaking, Huaijin's face betrayed a flicker of disbelief. He stared at the two fragments in his hands, and a sudden heat surged in his chest.

'So that's how it works.' Yen Tianyang had once been nothing more than a rogue cultivator at the late stage of Qi Refining Realm. He had stumbled upon his piece of the map by chance. For years, he exhausted every method he could think of, spending countless hours, but never unlocked its mystery. Eventually, he gave up. Then, one random day, Yen Tianyang got into a fight with other cultivators while hunting a spirit beast. Outnumbered, he was forced to flee.

He remembered that day vividly: the heat was unbearable, sweltering. It was the Day of the Direct Sun (summer solstice). Cornered, he had fled into a volcano, certain he was trapped, that death was moments away. But that was when his map fragment, the one bearing the Yang character, suddenly reacted. It grew scorching hot, and a profound, mysterious energy enveloped his mind. A violent bolt of lightning tempered his physical body directly.

Instinctively, Yen Tianyang comprehended the energy and grasped a new Lightning attribute technique on the spot. His cultivation base even broke through to the next level then and there. He turned the tables and slaughtered his pursuers, escaping alive. The Yang fragment contained a mysterious energy that allowed its owner to comprehend a Lightning-attribute technique. Yen Tianyang had learned the Sun Thunder Manual.

Afterward, he began hunting for other Lightning techniques, desperate to grow stronger, deepen his foundation, and master even more lightning arts. He confessed openly: the feeling of destroying his enemies with lightning was simply intoxicating. Crucially, that bolt of lightning power could be permanently etched into the owner's dantian. Yen Tianyang called this etched power a Lightning Seed. As time passed, the seed would absorb spiritual energy, growing and developing on its own.

And if one's innate talent was sufficient, they could derive all sorts of different Lightning attribute techniques from it. It all depended on the depth of one's own insights. Even without a natural Spirit Root attuned to the Lightning element, one could still wield the power as if it were part of their own body. Eventually, they might even etch it into their bloodline and pass it down to future generations. In other words, this map fragment contained the very foundation for comprehending the Dao of Lightning.

And Lightning-attribute techniques ranked on the top, rivaling even the sword path itself. —— After hearing Yen Tianyang's explanation, Huaijin slowly exhaled a deep breath. His mind raced with calculations. His only hope now was that this wasn't a one time use treasure. If it was, he would be furious.

'No wonder Yen Tianyang wanted to find the other map fragments,' Huaijin realized.

'One fragment gave him formidable power. If he found another piece and figured out how to activate it, he might even have the potential to break through to the Purple Mansion Realm.' Huaijin looked down at Yen Tianyang pinned beneath his foot.

"You'd better pray that this map fragment isn't a one time treasure," he said, his voice as cold as winter frost. Slowly, he withdrew his foot. Yen Tianyang's lips twisted into a pained, desperate smile. Before he could utter another word, he was knocked unconscious again. Huaijin stuffed Yen Tianyang into a bag and slung it over his shoulder. He couldn't put the man in his storage pouch, Yen Tianyang was still a living being.

"Day of the Direct Sun... a volcano," he muttered to himself, calculating the date in his head.

"Half a month from now is the Day of the Direct Sun. Let's give it a try." With the unconscious Yen Tianyang on his back, he set off immediately. If he remembered correctly, there was a volcano in Qing'an County, right next to Jianqu County.