Calling the Mental Assault Art a spell might be a bit of a misnomer; it’s more like a systematic set of mental combat techniques.
It details how to use mental energy as a weapon to kill or control people, which seems pretty sinister.
Precisely because of this, the book was classified as forbidden, prohibiting Yun City cultivators from practicing it.
Of course, being sinister isn’t the only reason. Another point is its extremely high mental energy requirements for the practitioner and its significant side effects.
The first page of the book clearly states: Do not practice unless your mental energy is extremely high. Do not practice unless your willpower is extremely strong. Do not practice unless you are unafraid of death.
The more Su Mo read, the less confident he felt. He decided to go ask Yun Fei for advice. After all, he was Yun City’s number one expert, a B-rank—the Haoran Realm, a stage where mental energy is fully mastered. In theory, he should have some good suggestions.
Arriving at the City Lord’s manor, Yun Shan immediately came to greet him, holding a flower wreath made of fresh blooms.
“Sister Su, this is for you.” The young man’s eyes were shy, not daring to look up at the beauty before him.
Su Mo found this encounter utterly maddening. It was the first time he’d ever been given flowers by a guy, and it felt incredibly awkward.
It seemed Yun Shan had genuinely developed feelings for “him.”
No, he had to put a stop to this immediately. He couldn’t let this drag on.
“I’m sorry, my heart already belongs to someone else. Thank you!” Su Mo said sincerely before taking long strides and darting away in a flash.
Yun Shan stood frozen on the spot, his lips pressed tightly together, eyelids drooping, his entire being instantly deflated.
After a good while, he rallied himself, a confident light shining in his eyes: “Sister Su must be making an excuse to reject me. I need to try again. Maybe if I persist, I can win her over?”
Having convinced himself, Yun Shan, brimming with confidence, followed after her, calling out as if nothing was wrong: “Sister Su, wait for me!”
Upon reaching the main hall, he found Yun Fei discussing matters with Yun Hui. Su Mo waited outside until they finished before entering.
“Miss Su, what brings you here?” Yun Fei’s face lit up with a smile the moment he saw Su Mo.
“I’ve encountered a bit of a problem with my cultivation and would trouble Uncle Yun for some guidance.”
Yun Fei took the book Su Mo handed over and said with a laugh, “Guidance is too strong a word. I can only offer a suggestion or two.”
“You’re too modest, Uncle.”
Yun Fei opened the book and exclaimed in surprise, “You’re actually reading this book?”
Shocked, he then sighed: “This Mental Assault Art harms both the user and the target. Even if one meets the stated practice requirements, if you encounter someone with stronger mental energy than yourself while using it, you will suffer backlash.”
“So, you don’t have any good suggestions either?”
Yun Fei shook his head.
“Alright then, it is what it is, given how sinister it is,” Su Mo said with a helpless smile.
It seemed he would have to figure it out on his own.
Just then, Yun Fei suddenly went “Hmm,” as if pondering something. Su Mo’s heart leapt with hope.
Had he thought of something?
After a moment of thought, Yun Fei slowly spoke: “Actually, there is someone in Chuyuan who practices this Mental Assault Art. It’s just that this person is eccentric, with unpredictable moods. He is currently an elder of the Xiong family.”
Su Mo’s eyes lit up. As long as someone practiced it, that was fine.
“Please, Uncle Yun, tell me this senior’s name so I may pay him a visit.”
Just as Yun Fei was about to speak, someone urgently reported from outside: “Reporting to the City Lord! Forces from the Xiong, Wu, and Huang cities have appeared outside the East Gate, led by their respective City Lords. They say they’ve come for the Young Master’s birthday celebration.”
Yun Fei didn’t seem surprised. He first apologetically said to Su Mo: “I only know that man is called Xiong Qiang. Other details…”
Su Mo immediately clasped his hands in gratitude: “Thank you, Uncle Yun, for telling me. Since you have official business, I won’t disturb you further. Farewell.”
Yun Fei, however, smiled meaningfully: “Miss Su, there’s no need for you to withdraw. The other three families gathering in Yun City at this time is precisely because of you.”
Su Mo wore an expression of confusion, then suddenly had an epiphany: “Oh, oh, oh! So that’s how it is.”
Yun Hui, standing to the side, rubbed his nose, thinking to himself: If you didn’t know, then why were you waiting here in Yun City?
If he could see through Su Mo’s act, Yun Fei naturally could too. Neither of them pointed it out.
With an order from Yun Fei, the entire City Lord’s manor sprang into action, preparing to receive the “honored guests.”
He himself changed into more formal attire and took people to greet them outside the city.
As he left, he specifically instructed that Su Mo should best stay at home and appear quite aloof when the other families came to visit. That way, he might even manage to snag some benefits.
Su Mo quite agreed with this approach.
He returned to his quarters, which now had many new maidservants, all carefully selected from the City Lord’s manor.
According to Yun Fei’s reasoning, the more it looked like this, the less daring the other three families would be to act arrogantly, and during the scheming…Ugh cooperation, they could also gain more benefits.
It was bustling outside, but Su Mo shut himself alone in his room.
With time to kill, he passed the hours cultivating.
The Water Attribute Jade Seed was almost fully formed, currently in the final preparatory stage.
He sat cross-legged and performed an internal inspection, finding that the number of black liquid droplets in his second Qi Sea had increased by a few more, though they were still minuscule compared to the entire sea.
The first Qi Sea had been in an unstable state ever since it fully liquefied, but now it had finally stabilized.
The two Jade Seeds within his kidneys had already taken shape. They just needed that final push for the Jade Planting Art to advance once more.
Right, Su Mo thought, Yun Fei told me to act aloof. Why not break through now and let them wait for a while?
No sooner said than done. Su Mo gave a mischievous laugh, channeling spiritual power into his kidneys. The two unformed Jade Seeds immediately responded and began to crystallize.
Due to the incompatibility of water and fire, the successfully planted Fire Attribute Jade Seed did not assist in this crystallization.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to follow the order of the Five Elements’ mutual generation; it was just that the Water Attribute Jade Seed, influenced by the medicinal power of the Snow Lotus inside his body, had actually begun to develop automatically. Well… he could only say it was exasperating.
Two points of coolness emerged around his waist, right where the kidneys are located. The spiritual energy in the air was voraciously devoured by these two points as if it were free. Although it didn’t trigger a spiritual energy tide, it still noticeably thinned the spiritual energy in Yun City.
Meanwhile, just as Yun Fei had met the other three City Lords at the city gate, they all sensed the unusual phenomenon originating from Su Mo’s location.
The City Lords of Xiong, Wu, and Huang were all B-rank. What Yun Fei could sense, they naturally could too.
“When did Yun City gain such a powerful expert? The aura is very strong, even stirring phenomena.”
Yun Fei waved his hand dismissively: “It’s nothing, just Miss Su going about her daily cultivation.”
Yun Shan, standing nearby, noticed the pride filling his father’s eyes as he said this, along with a hint of smugness.
The other three looked at each other. City Lord Xiong was the first to speak: “Who is this Miss Su? Daily cultivation can cause such a phenomenon? She couldn’t be sixth rank, could she?”
Yun Fei remained impassive, saying lightly: “A friend. Helped my Yun family with a small favor. Merely repelled a beast tide single-handedly, that’s all. Whether she’s sixth rank or not isn’t important.”
City Lord Wu’s face darkened, his expression somewhat angry: “You call that a small favor?”
Yun Fei suddenly remembered something and added: “Ah, right. Three Beast Kings were present at the time. The Blood-Eyed White Tiger was killed by her in one move.”
Apart from City Lord Huang, who looked completely indifferent, the other two’s expressions turned sour.
Are you showing off here, huh?
Yun Fei acted as if he didn’t notice and even thoughtfully reminded them: “My friend has quite a temper and doesn’t see people easily. If you gentlemen wish to pay a visit, you’ll probably need to show some sincerity. After all, she is…”
He paused, then suddenly raised his voice cheerfully: “Welcome, the three City Lords, for coming to celebrate my son’s birthday! Such a grand scale, even I, as his father, am envious!”
Yun Shan was biting his lip so hard to keep from laughing it nearly bled. He was only just discovering how much of a troll his father could be. That last word father was clearly ambiguous! Hahahaha!