Black Magic Rose Chapter 15
byChapter 15: Forced Test
That energy fluctuation, carrying malice, was like a poisonous miasma silently spreading in the night, precisely locking onto the location of Wen Jingheng’s bedroom. It didn’t attack directly; instead, it began to infiltrate and entangle in an extremely subtle manner, attempting to stimulate something dormant.
Shu Yijin lay on the guest room bed, eyes closed, breathing steady, as if still sound asleep. However, his entire divine consciousness was highly concentrated, like the most precise radar, closely monitoring every subtle change in the external energy, as well as any internal disturbance within Wen Jingheng transmitted through the Black Rose mark.
He could clearly “see” an invisible, structurally complex energy array being quietly activated, originating from somewhere underground on the east side of the manor. The core target of the array was not him, but Wen Jingheng, who was asleep in the bed! Its purpose was clearly to stimulate and draw out the long-dormant Holy Energy within Wen Jingheng!
What a clever move—using the tiger to devour the wolf! Shu Yijin sneered inwardly. The Wen Family Elder Council was indeed cunning and cautious. They dared not directly target him, the “suspicious individual,” so they chose to provoke Wen Jingheng. Once Wen Jingheng’s Holy Energy was successfully activated, it would instinctively repel or even purify any nearby existence carrying an “evil” aura. At that point, no matter how well Shu Yijin disguised himself, he would be exposed under the Holy Light!
This was an overt scheme. If he intervened to stop the array from taking effect, it would be self-exposure; if he didn’t intervene, once Wen Jingheng’s energy was activated, he would still be exposed and potentially severely injured!
In a flash, Shu Yijin made his decision. He could not be exposed, nor could he allow Wen Jingheng to wake up now! The only way out was to forcibly suppress Wen Jingheng’s energy before it was fully activated! But this required him to use divine power far exceeding his usual output, and it had to be precisely controlled—he needed to counter the external stimulating array, suppress Wen Jingheng’s instinctive resistance, and ensure no overly obvious traces of power were left behind!
The risk was extremely high! But he had no choice!
No sooner said than done, the array’s power surged like a tide, violently impacting the energy core within Wen Jingheng! The dormant Holy Energy instantly boiled, like cold water poured into hot oil! Wen Jingheng’s body suddenly trembled on the sickbed, his brow furrowed, and a deeply suppressed, painful groan, seemingly from the depths of his soul, escaped his throat. A faint, warm golden light began to uncontrollably seep out from his body surface!
Now!
Shu Yijin’s eyes snapped open. His crimson eyes held no trace of human emotion, only the coldness and determination belonging to an Ancient Evil God! He rapidly formed a complex and ancient seal with his hands across his chest, mobilizing the Source Blood divine power that had been suppressed by the Seal for too long. It transformed into countless black energy threads, thin as hair but incredibly tough, which penetrated the wall and silently merged into Wen Jingheng’s body!
These black threads precisely wrapped around the Holy Energy nodes that were about to erupt, tightly constricting and binding them like the most intricate chains! Simultaneously, another portion of his divine power formed an invisible barrier, resisting the continuous stimulation from the external array!
“Ugh—!” Shu Yijin grunted, a trickle of bright red blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. Forcibly suppressing Holy Energy, which was fundamentally incompatible with him and of an extremely high power level, was like grasping a red-hot branding iron with bare hands, causing severe backlash to himself! Even more terrifyingly, the energy within Wen Jingheng seemed to sense the external “evil” suppression and resisted even more fiercely! The two forces engaged in a silent but perilous tug-of-war within his body!
His face instantly turned ashen white, his body trembled slightly, and veins bulged on his forehead, clearly enduring immense pain. But he gritted his teeth, his divine consciousness highly focused, manipulating the black threads, little by little forcing the boiling golden light back into the depths of Wen Jingheng’s energy core. This was an extremely delicate and exhausting process, like dancing on the tip of a blade. The slightest mistake would not only ruin his efforts but could also cause irreversible damage to Wen Jingheng.
Time seemed infinitely long. The external array energy continued to pour in, attempting to reignite the flame. Shu Yijin’s divine power was rapidly depleting, and the backlash from the Seal grew stronger. He felt as if his internal organs were being torn apart, and his vision swam.
He couldn’t give up! He desperately held on.
Finally, just as he was on the verge of exhaustion, the layer of uncontrollable golden light on Wen Jingheng’s body completely dissipated, and the restless energy core was forcibly calmed, returning to silence. The external array also seemed to have run out of energy, or perhaps sensed the anomaly (failure to achieve the desired effect), and the malicious fluctuation retreated like a tide.
Silence returned to the bedroom, broken only by the rhythmic beeping of the medical equipment and Shu Yijin’s heavy, suppressed gasps.
He succeeded. But he paid a heavy price.
“Pfft—”
Another mouthful of blood could not be suppressed, staining the front of his clothes and the bedsheet beneath him. The severe backlash caused his vision to blacken, and he nearly fainted. He clung to the last shred of clarity, quickly wiping away the blood from his mouth and the floor, using his meager divine power to temporarily seal the turbulent vital energy within his body, making himself appear only slightly fatigued.
He couldn’t leave any traces of injury; otherwise, it would be impossible to explain.
After finishing all this, he was practically drained, slumping onto the chair, unable to move even a finger. His divine power was chaotic, and the Seal was extremely unstable due to the forced exertion, sending waves of tearing pain through him.
Just then—
“Mmm…”
An extremely faint, yet undeniably clear groan came from Wen Jingheng’s bed!
Shu Yijin suddenly raised his head, his crimson eyes filled with disbelief and horror!
Wen Jingheng’s eyelids were trembling violently, as if he was using all his strength to try and open them! His fingers were also twitching slightly, seemingly trying to grasp something!
He… under the dual impact of external stimulation and internal suppression, his consciousness had been forcibly shaken, showing signs of waking up!
Shu Yijin’s heart instantly sank to the bottom. If Wen Jingheng woke up now, saw him spitting blood, and felt the residual, albeit faint, traces of energy confrontation in the room… everything would be ruined!
He stared intently at Wen Jingheng, his mind racing, searching for any possible way to salvage the situation. However, the intense pain and weakness in his body meant he barely had the strength to stand up.
Could it be… failure at the last hurdle?
At this critical moment, Wen Jingheng’s struggling movements slowly ceased. His eyelids stopped trembling, his fingers relaxed, and his breathing returned to being steady and long, as if everything just now had been a random discharge of nerve endings.
He ultimately failed to break through the final restraint and sank back into a deep coma.
Shu Yijin let out a long, silent sigh, cold sweat having already soaked his back. A sense of exhausted relief washed over him.
He leaned back in the chair, looking at the still-sleeping Wen Jingheng on the bed, his expression incredibly complex.
This time, in order to protect himself, he had forcibly suppressed the possibility of Wen Jingheng waking up. The subtle and dangerous connection that had just begun to bud between them seemed to have acquired another deep, irreparable rift.
And as for the Wen Family Elder Council, although they failed to force him to reveal himself, this test undoubtedly pushed both him and Wen Jingheng further into the dangerous spotlight.
The storm was far from over.