Chapter 651: Unity of Spirit and Flesh

The woman in white seemed reluctant to leave, but Zhang Xuan knew this was not the time to explain. He exerted force suddenly.

Plop!

The two entered the pool. The snow fox that had been swimming in the water swam over when it saw them.

"Hurry, or we'll lose our lives!"

Grabbing the snow fox, Zhang Xuan shouted urgently, and with his other hand, he pulled the woman and swam deeper into the pool.

He had observed carefully earlier; among the many spirit beasts attacking, few were adept at fighting in water. Entering here would immediately make things much safer.

Moreover, he had noticed when they arrived that this pool connected to a wide river, which might provide a chance to escape the encirclement!

Splash!

As soon as they entered the depths of the pool, they heard a series of violent disturbances above, and saw many spirit beasts jumping in after them.

Knowing there was no time to delay, Zhang Xuan did not pause. He circulated his true qi, accelerated, and swam forward in the direction of the river he remembered.

It was indeed much safer in the water. At first, some spirit beasts chased after them, but after he fended them off, they gradually dwindled. After swimming for nearly an hour, with no more spirit beasts pursuing, he breathed a sigh of relief and swam toward the surface.

Holding his breath for an hour was nothing for his current strength. He turned to look at the woman in white he was pulling; she seemed unharmed as well.

That made sense. For so many spirit beasts to besiege her so cautiously, her strength must be no less than his.

Such a person, with abundant true qi, would hardly be unable to endure holding breath for an hour.

Whoosh!

The two people and one beast emerged from the water. They looked around and, finding no danger, finally relaxed.

"We're safe now..."

Pulling the woman, he leaped to the shore.

After swimming underwater for an hour, they were now far from the waterfall. The waterways were intricate and confusing; even if those spirit beasts wanted to find them, it would be difficult.

Still, they needed to be cautious. The enemy had flying spirit beasts; searching from the air would be much easier.

"Let's find a place to get some food and dry our clothes!"

Seeing that both of them and the beast were utterly disheveled, with clothes clinging to their bodies, Zhang Xuan gave a wry smile.

The woman in white, knowing he had saved her, had become much friendlier. Hearing his words, she smiled slightly and nodded in agreement.

Mount Qingji had many caves dug by spirit beasts, quite spacious. They found one unoccupied and entered.

They gathered some dry branches and lit a campfire, finally feeling warm again.

Though both were highly cultivated, it was winter, and after swimming underwater for an hour, they still felt bone-chilling cold.

"I am Zhang Xuan. May I ask the lady's name..."

After drying his clothes, he took some dried meat from his storage ring and handed it over. Zhang Xuan reverted to his original appearance and cupped his fists with a smile.

For some reason, he felt as if he had known this girl for a long time, a sense of familiarity, otherwise he wouldn't have risked his life to save her.

The girl shook her head and said nothing. Instead, she smiled slightly, took the dried meat, and ate some gracefully, tearing it with her fingers.

"You... can't speak?"

Seeing that she only smiled and said nothing, Zhang Xuan was startled.

Since meeting her, she hadn't spoken a single word, only smiled at most, giving a feeling of serene indifference.

The girl shook her head.

"Is it some chronic ailment or...? How about I treat you? I am a very skilled physician!" Zhang Xuan said.

Some people lose their voice due to injury or errors in cultivation techniques, but with the right method, it should be curable.

He had read many medical texts and knew a great deal about medicine. Moreover, with the Library of Heaven's Path as his support, curing her should not be difficult.

The woman in white waved her hand.

"Are you worried I can't cure you... or do you not want treatment?" Seeing her wave, Zhang Xuan frowned.

The girl continued to wave her hand, her expression calm. It seemed she was accustomed to this state and did not wish to be treated.

"Since you don't want to... then forget it!"

Seeing her unwillingness, Zhang Xuan did not force the issue.

Being with this girl, for some reason, he felt a deep peace in his heart, a sense of being far from the hustle and bustle.

"Hmm?"

Sitting quietly, he was about to find something to say when suddenly his expression changed, his body stiffened and began to tremble uncontrollably.

"Damn..."

Zhang Xuan clenched his fists.

After being tempered by the Earthfire and the Purification Pool, his physical body had improved considerably, but it was still insufficient to accommodate his enormous soul. Under normal circumstances, he should continue to cultivate his physical body and avoid exerting force.

But when he saw the woman in white in danger, he couldn't hold back and acted directly. In the heat of the moment, he hadn't felt anything, but now that the danger had passed, he immediately felt his soul stabbing like needles and his vision blurring.

In terms of his previous life's units, his current soul was size 45, while his physical body was size 42. Though he could still force it in with some effort, walking too much would cause severe pain, hard to bear.

This was exactly the situation now.

Forcibly crammed into the body, it still hadn't reached the optimal fit. When not using power, it was fine, but once he did, his true qi, body, and soul felt as if they were separating, causing unbearable pain to the soul.

He had intended to leave a heroic impression in her heart by saving her, but this happened instead. Zhang Xuan was deeply frustrated.

"Suppress!"

Focusing his mind, he forcibly suppressed his soul to adapt to the body. But the more he suppressed, the stronger the backlash, as if the aftereffects of forcibly stuffing his soul into the body had erupted all at once.

"Ah..."

With a roar, he could no longer hold on. His soul surged out from between his brows.

It was still the same problem: his soul was too strong, his body too weak. Even though he had forced it in earlier, they still couldn't merge perfectly.

"It's over..."

Feeling his soul leave his body, Zhang Xuan's heart turned cold.

Releasing his soul would indeed alleviate the pain, but... leaving his body would reveal his identity as a soul manipulator... It would be hard to explain.

Although soul manipulation was one of the special professions, it had lost its inheritance for countless years and had been eradicated by the orthodox Master Teacher Pavilion, becoming synonymous with coldness and deceit in people's minds.

If she learned he possessed such a sinister profession... the favor of saving her would likely vanish instantly.

What kind of luck was this? Why did it have to happen now, of all times?

What would she think? Would she suspect he had ulterior motives?

As he was agonizing over what to do, he suddenly saw the woman in white stand up and gently pat him.

Whoosh!

The soul that had just burst out was immediately pressed back into his body.

At the same time, a special current flowed through his entire body, and the excruciating pain instantly eased.

"This..."

His eyes wide, Zhang Xuan was stunned.

Even he couldn't control his soul, yet she had solved it with a single pat. What was going on?

Could it be... that this woman in white was even more powerful than Ye Wentian, who was at Mortal Transformation Realm Level 8?

After all, even Ye Wentian had no way to deal with his soul leaving the body; otherwise, he wouldn't have left him on the stone table without rushing to save him.

Just as he was about to ask, he suddenly felt a wave of fatigue, his vision went dark, and he fainted.

In his coma, he felt as if his soul and body were once again in harmony, without the previous constraints...

After an unknown amount of time, he woke up.

"Hmm?"

Rubbing his eyes, he sat up. Indeed, he felt no more conflict between his soul and body, an indescribable lightness.

"My physical body hasn't become stronger, but my soul seems to have been refined anew, becoming purer, and entering the body is much easier!"

His eyes lit up.

His physical body was still the same, but his soul had become purer. Although it was still a behemoth nearly ten meters tall, it was more flexible, and entering the body no longer felt uncontrollable.

"Let me try!"

Closing his eyes, he let his soul comb through his entire body. He immediately felt every muscle and every cell under his control; his soul had perfect command over his body.

This feeling, even before, he had never had.

"Is this... perfect-level unity of spirit and flesh?"

Clenching his fists, Zhang Xuan trembled with excitement.

At Mortal Transformation Realm Level 5, one could achieve unity of spirit and flesh, but this so-called unity was merely finer control over power, surpassing ordinary cultivators.

Legend had it that reaching the perfect level allowed internal vision, observing changes in the body, and repairing damage.

Reaching this state, one's spirit was clear and qi bright, the body flawless like white jade. Even Mortal Transformation Realm Level 9 could not achieve it; only sages could... And he, a soul manipulator, had attained it!

"But... with complete unity of spirit and flesh, can my soul still leave the body?"

In the midst of excitement, he suddenly froze.

This perfect unity of spirit and flesh was something only martial artists could achieve; soul manipulators had never been heard of... Could it be that during his coma, his soul and body had completely fused, causing his soul manipulation abilities to disappear?

If so, even if his soul could fully control his body, there was nothing to be happy about.

Soul manipulation techniques, even among the many ancient professions, were among the top, with advantages other professions could hardly match. For example, absorbing the spiritual energy of the Purification Pool was impossible for any other profession.

He quickly activated his soul manipulation technique and tested it. He found that his soul could still leave his body and move freely.

Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

His soul returned to his body. He stood up, looked around, and frowned.

The cave was eerily quiet. The campfire had long gone out. There was not a single person in sight. The woman in white he had saved was gone.

"Miss?"

He couldn't help calling out. Just as he was about to go out and look, he saw a line of elegant handwriting on a nearby stone wall.

"You saved me once, I saved you once. We are even. The mountains are high and the rivers long; we shall meet again."

"Meet again?"

Zhang Xuan was stunned. "Gone?"