The Heart of the Weald was not a forest glade; it was a biological wound. At the center of a depression in the earth stood the "Great Blight-Oak," a tree so massive its canopy seemed to scrape the grey ceiling of the fog. Its bark was translucent, revealing pulsing veins of glowing green ichor that flowed upward from the soil, feeding into a single, massive bud at the very top.
Surrounding the tree were four jagged obsidian pillars, each carved with runes that hummed with a low, dissonant frequency. This was the "Quad-Seal of the Silent Rot," a ritual designed to compress the forest's life force into a single drop of "Primordial Corruption."
"The Spirit-Gilding Sap!" Shen Yuanxing cried, his eyes fixed on the golden liquid dripping from the central bud. "If I can refine that, the Level 7 bottleneck will shatter!"
"Shen, stay back!" Xue Lianhua shouted, her frost-aura flaring to its absolute limit. "The pillars! They're not just guarding the tree; they're anchoring a Soul Transformation level boundary! If you touch that sap, you'll trigger a soul-collapse!"
But the "Plot Gravity" was too strong. Shen Yuanxing, driven by the desperation to never be humiliated again, lunged forward. His golden sword-light cut through the air, aiming for the golden drop.
As his blade neared the sap, the obsidian pillars ignited. A shockwave of emerald energy erupted, slamming into Shen and throwing him backward like a broken doll. At the same time, the ground began to liquefy. From the black mud, four "High-Priests of the Rot" rose—cultivators whose bodies had been entirely replaced by the green ichor. They were at the Foundation Establishment peak, their collective aura pressing down on the squad like a physical weight.
[Emotional Stability System]
Zone Boss: The Quad-Seal Ritual.
Threat Level: Lethal.
Protagonist Status: Level 4 (Internal Foundation: Max).
System Note: The geniuses are attacking the Priests, but the Priests are being regenerated by the obsidian pillars. To stop this, you need to disrupt the 'Resonance' of the four pillars simultaneously.
Warning: You cannot destroy them. You are only Level 4. You must use 'Environmental Interference.'
Simultaneously, huh? Lin thought, his eyes scanning the ritual site. I don't need to break the pillars. I just need to change their tune.
Xue Lianhua was already engaged with two of the Priests, her ice-spears clashing against their liquid limbs. "Ruxin! Use the 'Heaven-Seal' scrolls! We have to contain the corruption!"
Mu Ruxin scrambled to activate her defensive formations, but the pressure from the pillars was causing her scrolls to self-combust before they could even open. "I can't! The frequency is too high! It's shredding my spiritual ink!"
Shen Yuanxing struggled to his feet, his golden light dimming. "I'll... I'll cut the pillars!" He swung his sword at the nearest obsidian spire, but his blade simply bounced off the indestructible stone, the recoil numbing his arm.
Lin Qingyu moved. He didn't run like a hero; he "scuttled" like a man looking for a place to hide. He moved toward the periphery of the ritual, carrying a bundle of "Spirit-Numbing Moss" he had quietly gathered in the previous valley.
"Lin, get down!" Xue screamed as a blast of green energy narrowly missed his head.
"I'm trying! I'm trying to find cover!" Lin yelled back.
He reached the first pillar. To any observer, he was just cowering behind it. In reality, he was pressing the Spirit-Numbing Moss into a specific hairline fracture at the base of the stone. He didn't use a massive burst of Qi; he used a tiny, vibrating pulse of his "balanced" energy to force the moss deep into the rune-channels.
Pillar One: Dampened.
He "tripped" toward the second pillar, his heavy backpack swinging wildly. As he collided with the stone, he "accidentally" spilled a flask of high-concentration "Salt-Water Alchemical Solvent" onto the glowing runes.
Pillar Two: Corroded.
"Shen! The tree! It's shaking!" Lin shouted, pointing toward the third pillar.
Shen, distracted by the shout, dodged a Priest's strike and looked toward the third pillar. He didn't see anything, but the momentary shift in his golden aura provided the "Static" Lin needed. Lin "dived" for the third pillar to avoid a stray blast, and as his hands touched the stone, he used a basic "Qi-Reversal" technique—something every Level 1 disciple knew, but used with such perfect timing that it neutralized the pillar's output for three seconds.
Pillar Three: Desynchronized.
The fourth pillar was the farthest away. Xue Lianhua was currently being pushed back toward it by the Priests.
"Senior Sister, watch out for the ledge!" Lin cried.
He threw his last "Fire-Spore" rock. It didn't hit a Priest. It hit the ground right at the base of the fourth pillar, creating a cloud of thick, distracting smoke. Under the cover of the haze, Lin executed a "Earth-Pulse" kick—a low-level technique. Because his Qi was perfectly balanced across all attributes, the vibration he sent into the ground was a "Null Frequency." It hit the pillar's foundation, causing the obsidian to tilt by exactly half a degree.
Pillar Four: Shifted.
The "Quad-Seal" failed.
The low, humming resonance of the ritual suddenly turned into a high-pitched shriek of feedback. The emerald light of the pillars turned a sickly yellow, then vanished.
Without the pillars' support, the High-Priests of the Rot began to melt, their liquid bodies unable to maintain their form without the ritual's anchor. They collapsed into puddles of harmless sludge.
The Great Blight-Oak let out a groan that sounded like a dying beast. The central bud, which had been glowing with corrupt power, suddenly shrivelled. The golden "Spirit-Gilding Sap" turned into a clear, pure mountain dew.
Silence fell over the Heart of the Weald.
The oppressive weight on their souls lifted instantly. Shen Yuanxing stood in the center of the clearing, his sword hanging low. He looked at the melted Priests, then at the silent pillars.
"What happened?" Shen gasped, his breath coming in ragged bursts. "The array... it just collapsed."
"The ley lines must have been unstable," Mu Ruxin said, her compass finally settling. She looked at the pillars. "Look! The moss, the smoke... it's almost like the forest itself rejected the ritual. It was a chain reaction of failures."
Xue Lianhua didn't look at the pillars. She looked at Lin Qingyu.
Lin was currently sitting on the ground, his back against the fourth pillar, his face buried in his hands. He looked like he was vibrating with fear.
"I think... I think I'm going to have a heart attack," Lin whimpered. "The loud noise... and the smoke... I thought the world was ending."
Xue walked over to him. She looked at the base of the fourth pillar. She saw the slight indentation in the dirt where Lin's foot had struck the ground. She knew that a "lucky trip" wouldn't cause a ten-ton obsidian spire to shift its alignment.
"You're very loud when you're scared, Lin Qingyu," Xue said, her voice unusually soft.
"It's a defensive mechanism," Lin said, peeking through his fingers. "The louder I am, the less likely I am to hear my own bones breaking. Is it over? Can we go home now?"
"It's over," Xue said. She reached out and helped him up. Her hand lingered on his wrist for a second longer than necessary. She felt his Qi. It was Level 4. It was "average." It was exactly what it was supposed to be.
But it was also as steady as the mountain itself.
As they began the trek back out of the forest, Shen Yuanxing stopped by the Great Blight-Oak. He looked at the "Pure Dew" that had replaced the golden sap. It wasn't the legendary resource that would have boosted him to Level 7, but it was a high-grade cleansing agent that would heal his shattered arm completely.
"I didn't get the breakthrough," Shen muttered, though he didn't sound as angry as he usually did. "But we stopped the ritual. The 'Silent Rot' has been pushed back."
"We did," Mu Ruxin said, smiling at him. "And we did it together."
Lin Qingyu walked at the back of the group, his "heavy" backpack feeling lighter than ever. He had saved the hero from a soul-crushing trap, protected the female leads, and dismantled a high-level Evil Sect ritual—all while maintaining the status of a "lucky coward."
[Emotional Stability System]
Mission Conclusion: The Southern Weald Expedition Successful.
World Impact: The 'Silent Rot' has been delayed by 50 chapters.
Squad Sentiment:
Shen Yuanxing: He now views you as a 'Good Luck Charm' he can't explain.
Mu Ruxin: She thinks you're a hero who doesn't know he's a hero.
Xue Lianhua: She knows you're a mystery, but she's decided to keep your secret to protect the 'Stability' you provide.
User Rank: 88th (Unchanged).
Mental Stability: 100%.
System Note: You managed to disrupt a Soul Transformation array using moss and a rock. Your 'All-Rounder' efficiency is reaching levels that are statistically impossible.
Next Arc: The 'Return to the Sect.' The Elders will be suspicious of how a group of juniors destroyed a High-Level node. Prepare for the 'Hall of Judgment' interrogation.
As the squad emerged from the grey fog of the Weald and saw the distant, sun-lit peaks of the Azure Cloud Sect, Lin Qingyu felt a sense of quiet accomplishment.
He hadn't stood out. He hadn't "leveled up" in a flash of golden light. He was still the guy who liked honey buns and naps.
"Hey, Shen!" Lin called out, tripping over a perfectly flat piece of grass. "When we get back, do you think the cafeteria will have those spicy noodles? I feel like I've earned them."
Shen Yuanxing looked back at Lin and, for the first time since the story began, gave a short, genuine laugh. "If they don't, Lin, I'll buy them for you myself."
Lin Qingyu smiled. Safe, stable, and free noodles, he thought. Chapter 22 is looking pretty good.