128: Chapter 128 Tempering the Soul and Body to Ward Off Misfortune

Combining Old Zhao's description with his own perceptions, the attack pattern of that "heterogeneous entity" was now clearly outlined: energy/information-level erosion and contamination, slow extraction of life force, and potential accompanying mental interference and low-frequency physical influence.

These were common methods used by the Demonic Path, ghosts, and even some extraterrestrial demons in the Immortal Realm, only manifesting here under different physical rules.

He had to immediately and specifically strengthen his defense and adaptability against these threats.

This was the foundation for survival and all subsequent actions.

Ling Ye did not start to Cultivate immediately.

He first sat back at his desk, spread out a piece of white paper (paper records were less likely to be monitored), and listed the threat characteristics described by Old Zhao using concise keywords:

Erosion: Contact leads to loss of life force (bioenergy) and organ failure. Manifests as a "cold" sensation, possibly accompanied by energy-level contamination.

Low-frequency influence: Emits low-frequency "scratching sounds" difficult for instruments to detect, which can cause dizziness, irritability, and mental discomfort.

Information contamination/Mental interference: Proximity causes feelings of "being watched" or "agitation"; long-term contact may lead to mental derangement.

Physical inertia/Assimilation: Can slowly affect surrounding matter (e.g., accelerated metal corrosion), potentially causing abnormal biological behavior (Crystal-Armored Beast).

Potential activity: Appears to be "breathing," the seal might be loosening, and the influence is spreading.

To address these characteristics, he needed to conduct strengthening and adaptive training across four aspects: mental, life field, physical body, and perception.

Mental aspect: This was of utmost importance.

The core of the "Star Gods Mental Concentration Chapter" lay in "visualizing eternity, will remains undying."

He needed to adjust the "structure" of his visualization from a relatively neutral "sense of Order" to imagery with stronger defensive and Purification capabilities.

For example, visualizing his Sea of Consciousness as ancient stars, emitting clear, constant light to cleanse all external evil intrusions; or visualizing an undying hearth fire burning in the Void Realm, warming himself and dispelling the chill.

At the same time, he needed to strengthen his willpower and steadfastness training to simulate "concentration" when suffering from mental shocks.

Life field/Energy aspect: Spiritual Qi was thin in this world; he could not directly absorb Spiritual Qi to strengthen his Origin like in the Immortal Realm.

But he possessed "Spiritual Sense," which could perceive and limitedly guide energy information.

He needed to try to guide the weak but definitely existing "Qi" (life energy) within his body during meditation, forming a denser, more orderly "circulation field" around him, as if constructing an invisible "energy membrane" on his body surface to enhance resistance to "erosion" and "extraction."

This might borrow from some crude "protective True Qi" or "breath-concealing techniques," but it must completely adapt to this world's physical rules without relying on external Spiritual Qi.

Physical body: A strong physique was the cornerstone for resisting all negative effects.

In addition to continuing the scientific training of the "Federal Special Soldier Preparatory Physical Training Outline," he needed to add specialized exercises to counter states like "weakness," "fatigue," and "reduced coordination."

For example, conducting fine operation training under extreme fatigue; short-term explosive power exercises in oxygen-deprived (simulating life force extraction) environments; or even attempting light Cultivation in his apartment late at night when his "Spiritual Sense" perceived increased "disharmony" in the Old Factory District, letting his body and mind slowly adapt to that faint "erosive" pressure, like receiving a trace amount of a vaccine.

Perception: "Spiritual Sense" was a Sharp Weapon for countering and investigating "anomalies."

He needed to improve its "resolution" and "anti-interference" capabilities.

When analyzing fluctuations from the Old Factory District at a distance, he should try to distinguish between different types of "information fragments" (such as pure "noise," "erosive intent," "material structure feedback," etc.) more precisely.

At the same time, he should simulate how to maintain the clarity and directionality of his "Spiritual Sense" when suffering from strong mental interference or information contamination.

With his thoughts clear, Ling Ye did not hesitate and immediately began to practice.

He first performed mental defense visualization.

Sitting cross-legged, he discarded distracting thoughts and sank his consciousness into his Sea of Consciousness.

This time, he did not outline an abstract "star map structure" but visualized himself standing in the endless dark Void Realm, with a cold, constant star emitting pale silver light above his head (borrowing the sense of the stars from the "ancient ring").

The starlight fell like a waterfall, shrouding him.

The light was not scorching but carried a Concept of "stability" and "Purification" that had remained unchanged for eternity, as if it could freeze the passage of time and cleanse all filth and chaos attached to it.

"Ancient stars, stabilizing the Divine Soul, cleansing external evils, I stand firm…"

Silently reciting the self-created mantra, Ling Ye felt his spirit become more solid and cold under the starlight bath.

The "adhesiveness" to external information streams seemed to decrease slightly, and his mood became increasingly calm and waveless.

This visualization consumed more Mental Energy than before, but the sense of "purity" and "stability" it brought was also stronger.

An hour later, he finished the visualization.

Though his spirit was slightly fatigued, his eyes were clear and sharp.

Next was the life field circulation practice.

He tried to guide the weak, thread-like Qi in his body, no longer satisfied with it naturally circulating in his Meridians (though they might not be called Meridians in this world, the energy channels were similar), but forcibly using his will to "diffuse" it under his skin to form an extremely thin, slowly flowing "Qi Membrane."

This process was extremely difficult, requiring extremely high control of his will, and the "Qi Membrane" was extremely unstable, collapsing at the slightest distraction.

But he persisted, trying again and again, failing again and again, and reorganizing again and again.

It took a full two hours before he could barely maintain this "Qi Membrane" in a stable circulation on his body surface for about ten minutes.

Although the effect was minimal, he could feel that when the "Qi Membrane" existed, his skin's perception of air temperature seemed slightly sharper, and the sense of "isolation" or "filtering" of external energy was also vaguely enhanced.

This was a good start.

Then, he conducted resistance physical training.

After completing the day's regular strength and endurance exercises, he held his breath and performed a limit number of push-ups and squats to simulate willpower persistence under states of "oxygen deprivation" and "muscle soreness."

Then, he closed his eyes, stood on one leg, and simultaneously used his fingers to quickly touch several small objects of different shapes (pebbles, pen caps, buttons) placed on the table in front of him, training his tactile discrimination and fine operation ability when his body control decreased.

Finally, he attempted to perform simple calculations and recall complex figures in his mind simultaneously, simulating multitasking ability when suffering from mental interference.

Sweat soaked his clothes, his muscles trembled, and his brain swelled, but he gritted his teeth and persisted.

Every time he broke through the limit of fatigue, he felt a deeper control over this body and will.

Late at night, everything was quiet.

Ling Ye did not sleep but went to the window again.

The "disharmony" in the direction of the Old Factory District was indeed slightly more active than usual in the deep night after the rain, like a cold heart beating slowly in the darkness.

He took a deep breath, slowly circulated the "Star Visualization" and the "Qi Membrane" on his body surface, which had just become a bit more stable, and then cautiously extended his "Spiritual Sense."

This time, he did not just passively receive or vaguely analyze, but tried to perform "targeted filtering" and "structural analysis."

He imagined his "Spiritual Sense" as the most precise sieve, performing a rough classification of the chaotic "information stream" rushing towards him: doing his best to block the purely uncomfortable "noise" and malicious "erosive intent" outside; allowing only relatively "neutral" information regarding energy fluctuation "frequency," "intensity," and "patterns of change," as well as fragments that might contain environmental feedback (such as underground structural vibrations, air density changes) to pass through.

At the same time, he focused on "listening" to and "feeling" that low-frequency "scratching sensation," trying to analyze its fluctuation pattern to see if there was truly a rule to follow, rising and falling like "breathing."

The process was still difficult, and the mental consumption was huge.

But this time, the information fragments he captured were "cleaner" and more "useful" than ever before.

He "felt" that the "source" of that "disharmony" seemed to be located underground in the southeast of the center of the Old Factory District, at a depth difficult to estimate.

Its increase in "activity" was not continuous but had a weak "ebb and flow" about every two to three hours, like a tide.

At the peak of the "rise," that low-frequency "scratching" sensation and erosiveness would increase slightly and spread clearer "ripples" to the surroundings; while at the bottom of the "fall," it would be relatively calm.

He also "felt" that the anomalous energy seemed to have a special "affinity" or "catalytic effect" on metallic substances, and the metal structures remaining in the ruins of the Old Factory District seemed to have become "amplifiers" and "relay stations" for its spreading influence.

This perhaps explained why the strange sounds were often described as "metal scratching."

As for "life force extraction," it could not be directly perceived at a distance, but that cold "quality" that seemed to be able to freeze the Soul made him not doubt its existence at all.

After an hour of focused perception, Ling Ye withdrew his "Spiritual Sense" with a pale face, cold sweat dripping from his forehead.

The consumption was huge, but the harvest was also huge.

He not only verified Old Zhao's description but also preliminarily mastered some of the activity patterns and influence methods of that "heterogeneous entity"!

This provided a crucial basis for his subsequent actions, whether it was evasion, investigation, or confrontation!

He slumped in his chair, panting rapidly, but a cold arc curled at the corner of his mouth.

The enemy had appeared, and its path had traces.

And my shield was growing stronger; my blade was growing sharper.

In the following days, Ling Ye completely entered a mode of bitter cultivation.

During the day, he studied efficiently in his academy courses; in the evening, he "ran into" Old Zhao to consolidate their connection (no longer digging deep, just chatting about daily life or playing chess); at night, he devoted himself to targeted cultivation.

"Star Visualization" became more proficient, his mental defense significantly improved, and he could basically keep his mind clear when facing the chaotic information stream from the Old Factory District.

The "Qi Membrane" circulation time gradually extended to half an hour, his perception of temperature and energy changes on his body surface became increasingly sharp, and he even tried to deliberately approach some old metal objects at home when the "Qi Membrane" was running to feel if any weak anomalous "information" remained, exercising the discriminatory power of his "Spiritual Sense."

The intensity of physical and resistance training gradually increased, and his body's stability and recovery ability under extreme states were both improving.

He even borrowed books from the library on "Basic Battlefield First Aid and Toxin Resistance" and "Extreme Environment Survival" to learn how to deal with various possible negative physical states.

The late-night perception of the Old Factory District never stopped.

He was like the most patient hunter, slowly outlining the contours, habits, and activity patterns of the prey's lair.

Meanwhile, the academy and community remained calm on the surface.

Dr. Su Qing's psychological counseling proceeded as scheduled, the topic still revolving around adaptation and adjustment, but she seemed quite satisfied with Ling Ye's increasingly calm and stable mental state.

Zhou Ming did not appear again with probes like that day, but Ling Ye could occasionally see him in the physical training grounds or in the event photos of the academy's news agency.

Sun Li still kept to herself, her complexion seeming even worse.

Wang Hao was busy preparing for the upcoming midterm assessment and rarely mentioned the Old Factory District again.

"Deep Space Frontier Capital" and that surveillance car still had no more movement, like venomous snakes lurking in the shadows.

Ling Ye knew this calm was just an appearance.

The "thing" under the Old Factory District was continuously active, various forces were struggling in the dark, and he was frantically accumulating strength, waiting for… that inevitable intersection point.

Seven days later, on a drizzly weekend evening.

Ling Ye finished his daily cultivation and was preparing to go to the park.

His personal terminal suddenly vibrated, receiving a message from an unknown number:

"Student Ling Ye, this is Su Qing. Regarding the 'community environment adaptation' issue you mentioned earlier, as well as the interest you have shown in related fields, I think we might be able to provide a more direct communication platform. At eight o'clock tonight, there will be an internal discussion meeting in the activity room of the 'Anomaly Research Society' in District D of the academy. The topic involves 'A Preliminary Exploration of Local Unexplained Phenomena from a Multidisciplinary Perspective.' If you are interested, you can come to observe. No need to reply. — Su Qing"

The message came suddenly, but it was also within expectations.

Su Qing finally took the initiative to extend the olive branch of the "Anomaly Research Society."

Was it a trap? Was it a test? Or… did she think the time was ripe and wanted to include him, this "potential anomaly-related person," into her scope of observation or even absorption?

Ling Ye looked at the drizzling rain outside the window and felt the cold pulse coming from the direction of the Old Factory District in his consciousness, which seemed even more active in the rainy night.

He put away his terminal, a flash of determination in his eyes.

It was time to get a little closer to the center of this pool of water.