Time passed under the somber atmosphere at the Bipo Mountain Range.
Wu Yu's Heaven's Equal Palace was one of the places where the spiritual qi was densest.
However, he was not at Heaven's Equal Palace these days, but instead where Sun Wudao's grave had been. Of course, this was also the place where the spiritual qi stemmed from.
The overwhelming spiritual qi was constantly bathing his body.
Wu Yu was sitting cross-legged in the forest, focused.
"Uncle Sun, I wish to be here so I can accompany you."
This old man was Wu Yu's greatest regret.
In this time, he had basically cultivated the Nascent Yin Yang Single Sword Strike and the Nine Dragons Ascension Column to satisfaction.
The Fixed Body Art in his 72 Transformations was also getting more practiced by the day, with its success rate rising.
Of course, he was only following along for these immortality arts.
The core of his training centered around the Inner Vajra Buddha and the Great Way of Immortality Art.
Of these, the Inner Vajra Buddha's advancement would help his corporeal form become even more impervious. He could then consume Spirit Concentration Pills even quicker to condense his spiritual sources.
Without the second tier of the Invincible Vajra Body, his fastest way to cultivate spiritual power would have been to absorb the environmental spiritual qi, and take two Spirit Concentration Pills at every interval.
"The crux of the Qi Condensation Realm is to absorb spiritual qi and form spiritual sources that generate spiritual power. A majority of people do not train their physical form, and chafe against the time.
"Many people endeavor for a lifetime to condense qi, because their bodies are not strong enough, or because they do not have Spirit Concentration Pills.
"If everyone could also have the ultimate body strengthening spiritual art after they condensed qi, then perhaps the rate of qi condensation in the entire world of dao would be elevated...."
Wu Yu surmised.
But why, besides himself, did nobody continue to train their bodies?
Of course, this was simply about speed in the Qi Condensation Realm. From the Jindan Dao Realm onwards, he could not do this. It was said that the road to Jindan could only be taken step by step.
The path of dao naturally grew more difficult the higher one climbed. Martial cultivators were like salmon swimming upriver, but a majority would die in the process.
The thousand words of the Inner Vajra Buddha scripture caused his body agony each time he read it. This process was fairly unbearable. Only those with the greatest of wills could endure it.
In this place, dense with spiritual qi, Wu Yu recited the scripture of the Inner Vajra Buddha over and over again.
Each time he chanted, the words became a golden knife blade, twisting inside his body.
The sharp words cut his organs, tissues, and flesh, rending and destroying!
And each time he read the words of Inner Vajra Buddha, the Vajra Buddha inside him would grow a little taller, and become a little more resilient.
"That Inner Vajra Buddha is the manifestation of the resilience of my body. The stronger my body, the taller the Inner Vajra Buddha."
The Inner Vajra Buddha's growth was motivation enough for him to persevere.
This was an arduous, difficult process, and not accomplished easily.
"There are no shortcuts in cultivation. Cultivatingn the Inner Vajra is already a shortcut, although I must endure considerably more pain compared to others."
His inner body was broken down and rebuilt time and time again, as though innumerable knives were torturing his body from within, turning it into mince meat. The pain was tolerable for a few moments, but Wu Yu had endured it for a month, and even a few months.
Many times, Wu Yu could not endure anymore, and would then switch to cultivating the Nascent Yin Yang Single Sword Strike, or he would absorb a Spirit Concentration Pill and condense his fourth spiritual source.
Following the growth of the Inner Vajra Buddha, his flesh was strengthened, so absorbing the Spirit Concentration Pills had become extremely easy.
The 30 Spirit Concentration Pills that he had won entered his spiritual sources one after the other.
The fourth spiritual source, the High Rush Meridian in his feet, was forming.
At the fount of spiritual qi, the youth gritted his teeth, his body emitting golden light sporadically. One could see the impressive golden characters on his body.
They even rushed out of his inner body, cutting his skin.
His head, chest, and limbs were constantly shredded by the razor-sharp golden words. They were destroyed and then rebuilt, the words sinking into Wu Yu's flesh itself.
After a few days, Wu Yu would take a Spirit Concentration Pill.
The interval between Spirit Concentration Pills was much lower than anyone else in the Heavenly Sword Sect.
"Junior Brother's immortality art helps him condense qi very quickly. But even with it, there are not many who would dare to take the pain." From afar, Su Yanli stood on a thick tree bough, watching Wu Yu.
"His nature is direct, and his tenacity uncommon. He hs found a good inheritance, and his future is indeed bright. I hope that the current danger does not topple him. Given time, he will definitely rise far." Mo Shishu sighed.
"Let us hope that is the case." Su Yanli's gaze held deep worry.
Under the self-inflicted torture of the Inner Vajra Buddha scriptures, Wu Yu held out for a full two months. Although his Inner Vajra Buddha had not reached the second realm, it was already one zhang and eight feet high, close to the second realm.
In this time, he had consumed a total of 15 Spirit Concentration Pills.
And when he refined the 16th Spirit Concentration Pill, his High Rush Meridian's spiritual source finally formed.
And since then, Wu Yu's spiritual power grew enormously, and he entered the fourth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm.
The Great Way of Immortality Art was only at its beginning stages. It was an awesome art, and its greatest uses were the complementing of yin and yang energies. It enabled Wu Yu to have an even better spiritual power regeneration rate.
"Before this, my fighting power was already at Senior Sister Su's level. With this huge increase in spiritual power, and the reinforcement of my Inner Vajra Buddha, I should have surpassed her, and perhaps even reached Senior Brother Mo's level. If I fight with someone at the sixth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, with my Fixed Body Art and Nascent Yin Yang Single Sword Strike, I should not lose to them!"
It was difficult to imagine that his own ability had risen at this rate in such a short amount of time!
And for the him now, Heavenly Immortal Hao Tian was like an ant.
Just in terms of spiritual power alone, Wu Yu had already surpassed him.
As for Jiang Junlin, he could not possibly catch back up to Wu Yu in this lifetime.
Wu Yu stood up, his heart full of grand designs.
"No matter what, I will be of use...."
Along with the increase in his spiritual power, Wu Yu's courage had risen as well. He stood on the tall mountain, looking out at the Bipo Mountain Range. This stretch of mountains was his present home.
"Master, Senior Brother, Senior Sister, Qing Mang...." Their faces constantly appeared in Wu Yu's mind, whether serious or relaxed, warm or trusting....
"Continue!"
As long as there was still time, he would throw himself completely into cultivating dao.
Who knew when the crisis would arrive?
......
One day, Wu Yu accompanied Qing Mang on a walk through Myriad Treasures Valley. Presently, he was a popular figure in the Heavenly Sword Sect, and attracted attention everywhere he went.
Perhaps because Wu Yu had defeated Jiang Junlin, many of the disciples respected him greatly, and most people greeted him with a smile.
However, it was only too obvious that Myriad Treasures Valley had been diminished, and did not have the abundance of its former days.
"Wu Yu!" Suddenly, someone called his name from behind. The way his name was called, it seemed a little hostile.
He turned back to look, and it was Zhao Changtian and Yi Qingfeng.
Zhao Changtian was tall and fierce, his demeanor sharp. Yi Qingfeng had an otherworldly air. Both were special; otherwise, Lan Huayi would not have accepted them as personal disciples.
They halted Wu Yu, then strode up to him. Both had hostile expressions, and Zhao Changtian's glare was glowering. With a low and rough voice, he demanded, "What did you do to Shuiyue in the Valley of Immortal Fate? Why is she not right these days?"
"Wu Yu, you better answer honestly." Yi Qingfeng had lowered his voice with a warning tone as well.
Nowadays, Wu Yu's status in the Heavenly Sword Sect was different. In the past, they would have simply threatened him directly.
Wu Yu was in no mood to quarrel with Lan Huayi's disciples. He said, "What's not right about her?"
"She doesn't heed us, and she has shut herself in to cultivate up till now, not even saying a word," Zhao Changtian said.
"Isn't that a good thing?" Wu Yu started to understand now.
"Good thing? You! If you haven’t done something to her, why would she have become like this!?" Yi Qingfeng hissed with anger.
Wu Yu said, "If you were in the Valley of Immortal Fate and had personally witnessed the Ghost-Faced Ape kill all the other disciples and then leaving you alive, you would be the same way as well."
He was too lazy to be bothered with them. In the past, he was not their match, and would have been intimidated. But now, at the fourth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, his fighting strength was not inferior to them.
"You!"
Yi Qingfeng was unsatisfied not with what he had said, but with the manner in which he spoke to them. Wu Yu turned, called Qing Mang, and left.
"Stop right there!"
The two caught up.
Their exchange had drawn much attention.
"Wu Yu is going to fight them?"
"Wu Yu has defeated many strong opponents to date, but he's not their match, is he...."
However, they were to be disappointed. Zhao Changtian and Yi Qingfeng argued for a while, but then left despite their glowering expressions.
Evidently, they also knew that internal strife was not the right answer when the sect was facing so much pressure from outside.
"Brothers and sisters, breaking news!"
Suddenly, the ground shook with cries.
A competent middle-aged core disciple rushed into Myriad Treasures Valley, panting for breath.
In this period, all the disciples were on edge. Hearing this voice, many rushed over.
Wu Yu, Zhao Changtian, Yi Qingfeng, and the others had heard him as well, and they also gathered around. In a few moments, more than a thousand milled around.
And from his expression, it was not good news.
"Is it the ghostly cultivators, demons, and Zhongyuan Dao Sect here to fight!" someone asked, alarmed.
This caused quite a stir.
"No... not that!"
The person hurried to deny. There was a collective sigh of relief.
Their attention focused back on him.
He said, "The Sect Leader and Sect-Protector's eldest disciples have returned. Yang Qing is also back, but Yang Qing is dead!"
Wu Yu's face turned.
Feng Xueya's eldest and second disciple, and Lan Huayi's eldest disciple were not at the Bipo Mountain Range. And Wu Yu had never met them before.
Wu Yu had heard of them before. Feng Xueya's first two disciples. The eldest was called Night Wishes for Snow. Although young, Night Wishes for Snow was hailed as the foremost genius in the Heavenly Sword Sect, said to be at the eighth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, even stronger than some of the ordinary elders.
The second disciple was Yang Qing. Also extremely talented, Yang Qing was known to be a rebel with a fiery temper. Yang Qing used to clash with Feng Xueya, and had even been exiled by Feng Xueya from the Bipo Mountain Range for 10 years for a mistake. It was said that Yang Qing was at the seventh tier of the Qi Condensation Realm.
Lan Huayi's eldest disciple was called Lan Boli. Her talent was also extraordinary, and she was said to be at the eighth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm.
These three were the strongest amongst the personal disciples.
Yang Qing was said to also be roughly at the eighth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm.
And now, he had been exiled for eight years. In another two years, he could have returned to the Bipo Mountain Range. Word had it that in these eight years, he had truly turned over a new leaf, doing right outside and slaying demons. His reputation was excellent, and Feng Xueya had been well satisfied.
Yang Qing, dead?