Planting a thought as a seed can awaken the deepest hidden Heart Demon, hence the term Heart Demon Seed.
In ancient times, the Heart Demon Seed was a spell designed for attack. Over the course of thousands of years, it evolved into a method of control.
Now, cultivators use the Heart Demon Seed to manipulate others by planting it in their minds.
“What are you?” Yu Zhao demanded coldly, her voice filled with anger. “Why did you plant a Heart Demon Seed in me?”
“Fang Cheng Lang” turned his head aside and remained silent.
Yu Zhao smiled faintly.
Her hand moved like lightning, seizing “Fang Cheng Lang” by the neck. In his terrified gaze, she gave a decisive twist.
Crack!
The sound of breaking bones echoed, and the illusion before Yu Zhao’s eyes collapsed rapidly. In a blink, she found herself back by the pool behind the stone door.
The blue heart submerged itself into the pool, hiding at the bottom and refusing to surface.
Yu Zhao chuckled softly.
Did it think she would be powerless just because it hid underwater?
It was gravely mistaken.
Channeling her inner spiritual energy, Yu Zhao used her divine sense like a brush to swiftly draw a rune in the air.
When she completed the last stroke, an invisible wave rippled outward, and the rune became visible.
“Go!”
Yu Zhao extended her finger, pointing towards the submerged blue heart.
The rune glowed and pierced through the water, branding itself onto the blue heart.
Instantly, a flood of emotions surged into Yu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness—fear, panic, rage…
“Eeeek!”
The blue heart let out a sharp cry, breaking through the water’s surface and rushing straight at Yu Zhao, seemingly intent on mutual destruction.
Yu Zhao stood her ground, unflinching. With a mere thought, she struck with her divine sense.
The once ferocious blue heart seemed to be punched mid-air, immediately deflating. Trembling, it stopped a few feet away from her.
Yu Zhao raised an eyebrow.
The Heart Demon Seed was truly effective.
She could sense all the emotions of the blue heart and control its every movement.
In other words, its life or death was entirely in her hands.
“Now, tell me what you are,” Yu Zhao demanded.
The blue heart, initially calm, began to ripple with violent emotions again.
An overwhelming mix of rage and sorrow, capable of disrupting Yu Zhao’s spirit, nearly overcame her.
She quickly activated the Illusory Tides Technique, stabilizing her mind. The close call left her shaken.
She had underestimated the complexity of the Heart Demon Seed. Though it could control the mind, one must always guard against emotional backlash. Unless she was absolutely certain she could suppress the target’s mental strength, she dared not use it recklessly.
The blue heart seemed lost in its memories, silent for a long while.
After a brief hesitation, Yu Zhao asked, “Are you a Merfolk?”
“Heh, it’s rare for someone to recognize a Merfolk.”
The blue heart admitted it.
Its voice, stripped of allure, now sounded low and desolate, carrying an immeasurable sense of loss and sorrow.
At that moment, Yu Zhao was at a loss for words.
Unsure how to address it, she decided to call it Merfolk for now.
The Merfolk had tried to plant a Heart Demon Seed in her. By all rights, Yu Zhao had no reason to feel sympathy.
However, considering the tragic story behind the Merfolk, seeing it reduced to surviving with just a heart stirred something in Yu Zhao.
“Can you tell me your story?” she asked.
The Merfolk, sensing the change in her tone, was surprised.
After a brief pause, it let out a cold laugh. “What’s there to tell? You humans—so greedy—invaded the Merfolk Tribe’s Territory for Pearls of Immortality. In just half a year, the entire Merfolk Tribe disappeared from the Southern Abyss. This is all your doing.”
Yu Zhao, unfazed by the accusatory tone, frowned and asked, “Then how did you end up in this state?”
Yu Zhao didn’t mean to reopen someone’s wounds.
But certain things had to be clarified before she could decide what to do.
The merfolk spoke in a lifeless tone. “My body is different from the others of my kind. Their tears turn into Spirit Beads, but I was born unable to cry. A merfolk who can’t shed tears is worthless. So, they dismembered me.
“That’s when I realized my heart still retained consciousness even after being removed. I don’t remember much after that—too much happened—but eventually, I ended up imprisoned in this stone chamber. He demanded that I plant Heart Demon Marks on everyone who entered. Once I marked a thousand people, he promised to set me free.”
A heart detached from its body that could still think and speak… wasn’t that akin to having two lives?
Yu Zhao could vividly imagine how mad cultivators would become if they learned of this secret.
The merfolk didn’t want to elaborate further. Clearly, many horrifying events had transpired.
Yu Zhao chose not to press him for details. Her focus shifted to the “he” the merfolk mentioned.
“Who is ‘he’?”
“The one who truly controls the Merfolk Pavilion.”
The merfolk shuddered, clearly terrified of the person he spoke of.
“Why does he want you to plant Heart Demon Marks?”
The merfolk hesitated.
Seeing this, Yu Zhao didn’t rush him.
The Heart Demon Mark she had planted on the merfolk’s heart ensured he couldn’t disobey her orders.
Sure enough, after a long silence, the merfolk spoke again. “His lifespan is nearing its end. He hopes to use the Soul Devouring Technique to find a way to extend it.”
Yu Zhao took a moment to process his words.
To ascend to the fifth floor of the Merfolk Pavilion, cultivators needed to meet two conditions: wealth and leisure.
Typically, such cultivators either came from prominent cultivation families or were influential disciples of major sects.
They possessed knowledge that ordinary cultivators could never access.
The Merfolk Pavilion’s master used this process to filter out those cultivators who met his criteria, then subjected them to soul-searching to steal their memories.
Understanding this, Yu Zhao felt a chill run down her spine.
“Is he a Nascent Soul cultivator?”
Only a Nascent Soul cultivator would dare to recklessly invade another’s soul.
“Yes.”
Yu Zhao’s heart sank.
From the moment she stepped onto the fifth-floor staircase, she had likely caught the attention of the Nascent Soul cultivator. Even if she hadn’t been marked with a Heart Demon Mark, she was probably his next target for a soul search.
Curiosity killed the cat!
Yu Zhao gave the merfolk a deep look. “Once I leave this place, I’ll remove the Heart Demon Mark. As for you…”
She had intended to leave a warning, but seeing the lonely heart left her feeling it was pointless.
She took a deep breath and turned to leave.
The Merfolk Pavilion had set no obstacles in the passageway. Yu Zhao passed through it smoothly and descended the stairs.
The female cultivator and Little Red, who had been waiting on the fourth floor, immediately looked up when they heard footsteps. They saw Yu Zhao descending, her face flushed and her steps unsteady.
“Senior?” Little Red hurried forward to support Yu Zhao’s arm.
Was she drunk?
But there was no scent of alcohol on her.
The female cultivator wasn’t surprised. Almost all guests who descended from the fifth floor looked similarly disoriented. A bit of rest usually cleared their minds.
She guided Yu Zhao and Little Red to a private lounge for rest.
As expected, it wasn’t long before the flush faded from Yu Zhao’s face, and her eyes regained clarity.
Without delay, she completed her transaction with the Merfolk Pavilion and left with Little Red.
Only after running through two streets did she feel her rapidly beating heart finally calm down a little.