Chapter 964: Devouring the Heaven's Hand

In reality, within the wild wastes hidden realm, Xiao Nanfeng trembled slightly before waking up.

He sat there in a daze. The memories of his dream were vivid in his mind, leaving him at a loss.

"Another wedding...?" Xiao Nanfeng thought to himself. He had mixed feelings about what had happened in the dream.

Last time, it had been a wedding with Madam Rouge. This time, it was with Liu Miaoyin. It made him wonder if the Yuqing dreamliquor was some kind of dubious intoxicant.

Still, he didn't regret anything that had happened in the dream.

He switched back to his physical body and turned to the black lotus beside him, his expression gentle. "Miaoyin, are you alright?"

Blue Lantern had noticed Xiao Nanfeng's awakening but had refrained from disturbing him considering that he seemed to be lost in thought. Upon hearing Xiao Nanfeng's words, however, Blue Lantern seemed confused. Hadn't Xiao Nanfeng always addressed Liu Miaoyin as "Senior Miaoyin"? When had that changed?

The black lotus trembled slightly and replied, "I'm fine."

Xiao Nanfeng was intimately familiar with Liu Miaoyin's tone of voice by now. He immediately realized that she too remembered everything from the dream. A wave of complex emotions washed over him, but he quickly calmed down.

"Let's focus on your recovery for now. Follow Blue Lantern's instructions and purge the heavenly energy from your cursed spiritual avatar," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"Very well!"

Xiao Nanfeng turned to Blue Lantern, who nodded and activated the array, causing the Heaven's Hand to release a cloud of mist that enveloped the black lotus.

With a soft hiss, green energy began to seep out of the cracks on the black lotus. At the same time, the fissures on its surface visibly began to heal.

After half a day of effort, the cracks marring the surface of the black lotus finally mended in full, and it stopped leaking green energy. With a hum, the black lotus began to transform. It eventually took on the shape of Liu Miaoyin, who stepped out of the HEaven's Hand.

Xiao Nanfeng and Liu Miaoyin locked eyes. Her face instantly flushed as her gaze darted around. A blush crept up her neck.

Xiao Nanfeng said nothing as he stepped forward to take her hand. Liu Miaoyin's body shook slightly, but she didn't resist. Blue Lantern was utterly dumbfounded by this interaction. Just what was going on?

"If there's something you want to say, let's talk about it later. For now, how's your recovery?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

Since there were others present, the two refrained from speaking intimately. Still, their hands were clasped tightly together, and Liu Miaoyin's radiant smile, directed at Xiao Nanfeng, confirmed their circumstances.

She nodded before saying, "I think I've made a breakthrough."

"Ah?" Xiao Nanfeng didn't quite understand.

"Yufu Li mentioned my shortcomings. In the dream earlier, you helped me overcome them. I've broken through the barrier in my heart and can now achieve greater heights. Moreover, I only dispelled part of the heavenly power from within my body. I retained the rest and can now refine it to fully recover from my injuries and go even further. I can even manipulate the law of reincarnation without needing a charm anymore," Liu Miaoyin explained.

"Really? Then this has been a blessing in disguise for you!"

Liu Miaoyin nodded with a gentle smile.

"Your Majesty, Senior Liu, if you no longer need the Heaven's Hand, shall I dispel the formation?" Blue Lantern asked.

Liu Miaoyin glanced at the formation that had summoned the Heaven's Hand and solemnly bowed. "Thank you, Blue Lantern. I don't need it any longer."

"My pleasure, Senior Liu." Blue Lantern smiled back.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"Hold on," Xiao Nanfeng suddenly interjected.

"What's the matter?"

Xiao Nanfeng stared at the Heavenly Hand and the roiling dark clouds above. "The Heaven's Hand contains the power of the heavens, a vast and potent energy. Is it possible to refine it and make it my own?"

"Huh?" Qing Deng and Liu Miaoyin looked at him incredulously.

"What? Can't I make use of this power?" Xiao Nanfeng asked. "I was able to integrate cursed effigies into my cultivation thanks to the energy from these Heaven's Hands earlier. This is extremely pure energy—wouldn't it be a waste not to use it?"

The two could see that Xiao Nanfeng was considering devouring the Heaven's Hand.

Liu Miaoyin thought for a moment before replying, "You were previously able to integrate the Heaven's Hand's energy because it was a case of ‘evil countering evil.' The Heaven's Hands contain a peculiar kind of malicious energy that offset your cursed effigies' own cursed energy. That's why you were unaffected. Under ordinary circumstances, these Heaven's Hands cannot be refined."

"Why not?"

"For instance, the heavenly energy within the charm of heavenly law caused me significant harm. The energy within the Heaven's Hand is similar. It carries a destructive and unique type of malicious energy—the heart force of the heavens," Liu Miaoyin explained.

"Heart force?"

"Indeed. The heart force of the heavens is different from ours. It carries a peculiar malicious quality that significantly suppresses our cultivation. Forcibly absorbing such energy would result in irreversible harm."

Xiao Nanfeng's eyes lit up as he mulled things over. "I'd like to give it a try."

"What?" the two cultivators exclaimed in surprise.

"Blue Lantern, use the formation to direct the Heaven's Hand toward me, just as you did for Miaoyin."

Though skeptical, the two cultivators trusted that Xiao Nanfeng wouldn't act recklessly.

"Got it!" Blue Lantern replied.

Blue Lantern activated the formation once again. The Heaven's Hand loosened its grip before suddenly reaching out for Xiao Nanfeng.

It grew translucent as heavenly energy transformed into clouds of white fog that swirled around Xiao Nanfeng.

Xiao Nanfeng absorbed the energy and sent it into his dantian.

Sure enough, the energy contained countless small hands that attempted to tear him apart. However, he had long since stimulated the golden tree within his heart. With a hum, golden light enveloped the small hands and absorbed them effortlessly.

"It worked!" Xiao Nanfeng exclaimed in delight.

Amidst his joy, he marveled at the mysterious origins of the golden tree within him that was capable even of absorbing the heart force of the heavens.

With the heart force neutralized, Xiao Nanfeng quickly refined the remaining energy of the Heaven's Hand, transforming it into pure power that surged through his body.

He sat cross-legged in meditation, energy swirling all around him. In no time at all, the entire Heaven's Hand had been devoured.

"This... How is this possible?" Qing Deng muttered, dumbfounded.

Liu Miaoyin, equally shocked, asked anxiously, "Nanfeng, are you alright?"

Xiao Nanfeng opened his eyes with a smile. "I'm fine. I can neutralize the heart force of the heavens."

"Truly?" the two asked, their eyes wide with amazement.

"Don't worry about me, Miaoyin. Focus on healing yourself. I'm fine here," Xiao Nanfeng reassured her.

"Very well." Liu Miaoyin agreed with a nod.

"Blue Lantern, use your formation to summon all the Heaven's Hands. I want a feast!" Xiao Nanfeng laughed.

Blue Lantern was left speechless. Xiao Nanfeng's cultivation methods were truly extraordinary—he could devour even the Heaven's Hands?

"Understood!" Blue Lantern replied.

One by one, more Heaven's Hands were summoned by the array.

Xiao Nanfeng devoured them all with astonishing speed, leaving Blue Lantern in awe.

Seeing that Xiao Nanfeng was unharmed, Liu Miaoyin retreated to a distant mountaintop to heal.

With a wave of her hand, the spiritual aether surrounding the wild wastes hidden realm surged toward her like a tidal wave.

The sudden depletion of spiritual energy startled the cultivators throughout the hidden realm. Many panicked and began searching for the disturbance causing this phenomenon.

Blue Lantern witnessed everything firsthand. He glanced at Liu Miaoyin's domineering spiritual absorption, then at Xiao Nanfeng devouring the Heaven's Hands. His face twitched. Just who were these two monstrous cultivators?

Beyond the wild wastes hidden realm, Chu Tianban's face darkened. "It's been eight days. What are Xiao Nanfeng and Blue Lantern doing in the hidden realm? Why haven't they emerged yet?"

"We don't know. With the entrance sealed and the heavenly rules suppressing even Boundless Immortals, we can't do anything to confront Xiao Nanfeng and Blue Lantern. We don't have any protection tokens, after all," a subordinate in black replied.

"A protection token?" Chu Tianban's eyes suddenly lit up with a cunning glint.

"Do you have some sort of idea, Lord Chu?" his subordinate asked.

Chu Tianban narrowed his eyes. "We might not be able to enter, but there's someone who can—someone who isn't restricted by the heavens."

The subordinate's eyes widened. "Do you mean... the Void Saint?"

"Exactly. The Void Saint should have recovered by now. If he learns Xiao Nanfeng and Blue Lantern are here, what do you think he'll do?"

"The Void Saint may not dare to venture into Yongding any longer, but he would surely jump at the opportunity to finish off Xiao Nanfeng here!"

"Exactly. Xiao Nanfeng has destroyed two crystals of solar essence. If he doesn't die here, how will I report back to His Highness? Let's set things up," Chu Tianban ordered.

"But we don't know where the Void Saint is! Even if we do, would he really believe us so easily?"

"Don't worry about that. I'll handle it." Chu Tianban's eyes brimmed with killing intent.

"Understood!"