Chapter 111
Besides gaining this ability, his potential also underwent a change.
Originally, after Zhang Ping obtained Zhao Yanhu's blood, his potential skyrocketed to eight stars. But after the Pure World Gemstone was formed, his potential was completely exhausted, and the eight stars vanished!
Before Zhang Ping could think further, the Evil Grudge Eye in his hand suddenly erupted with endless black mist.
Countless spirits emerged from the black mist, swirling madly around Zhang Ping. Their forms were vague, faces twisted and hideous, all observing Zhang Ping with malice.
Then, a spirit collided with the gemstone on Zhang Ping's forehead, causing him to scream in agony and fall to one knee.
At the moment the spirit struck the gemstone, he seemed to experience the spirit's pain. If before he only understood it superficially, like a skin-deep pain, now it was a heart-wrenching agony, cutting to the bone.
Seeing this, Feng Laixian immediately stepped forward. His Great Sun True Fire was most effective against such sinister entities, capable of burning these spirits to ashes with a single flame.
"Don't come over!"
Zhang Ping gritted his teeth, enduring the spirits' pain, and immediately shouted to stop him.
"So that's how it is, huh... this really is... haha!"
Zhang Ping covered the gemstone on his forehead with his hand. After recovering, he looked at the countless spirits around him and understood how to use the Pure World Gemstone.
He needed to guide these tormented spirits into a pure world, and the way to enter was through the gemstone on his forehead.
But this process was not pleasant. As they entered, he would empathize with the spirits' pain and had to use his mental strength to resist it. Only by withstanding the assault of pain could these spirits escape their past and reach the pure world within the gemstone, becoming new spirits.
In simple terms, he was like a filter, intercepting the spirits' resentment and pain, allowing them to be reborn.
"If I don't go to hell, who will?"
Zhang Ping looked at the countless spirits swirling around him, recalling scenes from the Appraisal Skill, and finally gave a bitter smile.
He truly wanted to do something for these poor souls. If he had no ability, it would be one thing, but now he did.
So, no matter how painful the process, he wanted to do it.
He just wasn't sure if he could endure such immense pain.
These were thousands of spirits, each having died in extreme agony and been tormented repeatedly in the Evil Grudge Eye for over two hundred years.
"So... do you want to do it?"
"I want to do it!"
Zhang Ping asked himself, answering his own question.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then shouted to Feng Laixian and the others, "I'm about to do something quite crazy. Please don't interfere, don't attack these poor spirits, trust me!"
After saying this, he lowered his hand covering the gemstone and gritted his teeth, "Come on, I will purify all your pain!"
In the next moment, the spirits surged like piranhas smelling blood. A spirit collided with the Pure World Gemstone, its body mostly absorbed by the gemstone, leaving countless black mists outside.
This time, Zhang Ping was mentally prepared, but he still groaned, veins bulging, eyes wide open, seeing the pitch-black pit, smelling the stench, as endless pain assaulted him. He could only clench his teeth to keep from making a sound.
A single spirit, trapped in the Evil Grudge Eye for over two hundred years, relived its death every day, 365 days a year, for 200 years, equivalent to countless deaths.
"Aaaaah..."
Zhang Ping initially thought his will was strong enough to resist the spirits' pain, but at this moment, he realized his will was not as strong as he imagined. Just a part of a spirit's pain made him wish for death.
He gripped the steel plate of the arena tightly, his fingernails cracking, leaving streaks of blood on the ground.
Finally, the first spirit successfully entered the pure world, but before Zhang Ping could catch his breath, the next spirit impatiently collided with the Pure World Gemstone, and he once again experienced that near-despairing pain.
Then, one spirit after another continued to enter the pure world through the Pure World Gemstone.
Zhang Ping's screams never ceased, and eventually, his voice became hoarse and weary.
Everyone else watched Zhang Ping with concern, while Cao Fang and the others dared not act rashly, equally shocked as they watched him. They understood the terror of these spirits better than Liu Sishan and the others.
Though they didn't know what Zhang Ping was doing, just hearing his screams was enough to understand how painful the experience was.
Zhang Shouzhong clenched his fist, whispering, "Is Zhang Ping really okay?"
"Trust him."
Liu Sishan's fingernails dug into her flesh as she whispered.
She knew Zhang Ping must have realized something, which was why he insisted on doing this. She trusted Zhang Ping's choice and believed he could persevere.
Five minutes, ten minutes...
The spirits around Zhang Ping showed no sign of decreasing.
These spirits were eager to enter the pure world, driven purely by instinct, much like piranhas drawn to the scent of blood.
Zhang Ping no longer had the strength to scream. He lay paralyzed on the ground, drenched in sweat, exhausted, and his mind began to blur.
He didn't know if he was still in the pit or somewhere else.
He didn't even know how bad his condition was or have the energy to think about how dangerous he was.
But just as he was reaching his limit, he seemed to return to school.
It was a hot afternoon, a cool breeze blowing into the classroom. He woke up groggily to find Su Jingyao lying on the desk, her dark eyes also watching him.
Su Jingyao seemed to be speaking, but he couldn't hear what she was saying. He tried to guess from her lip movements and finally realized she was saying, "Hang in there!"
Not far from the waterfall, beneath where Su Jingyao's skin was buried.
A blue light pierced through the ground, shooting skyward, flying rapidly towards Zhang Ping's location.
At that moment, Zhang Ping's eyes snapped open, slightly more alert, but soon this clarity was drowned out by endless pain.
"What is that?" Zhang Shouzhong looked up at the sky, seeing a blue light ball flying quickly.
Liu Sishan squinted slightly, her pupils contracting as she vaguely saw a not-so-familiar face in the light. She had seen this face during her investigation of Zhang Ping.
"Su Jingyao? How is that possible!" she murmured in disbelief.
The light ball descended, transforming into a pale blue figure, stopping right beside Zhang Ping. She knelt down, placing her hand on Zhang Ping's shoulder, and the blue light slowly merged into his body.
In the next moment, the ground around Zhang Ping was covered in white light.
One by one, white spirits emerged from the light. They had no distinct faces, only a vague human shape, but all knelt beside Zhang Ping, touching his body with their hands, streams of white light merging into him.
These spirits were the ones Zhang Ping had just purified. Through Su Jingyao's communication, they understood Zhang Ping's condition and appeared spontaneously, using their meager strength to alleviate his pain.
Subsequently, countless spirits were purified and successfully entered the pure world.
Then they emerged again, all gathering around Zhang Ping, using their extremely weak power to protect the one who was striving to protect them.