In the training ground of the world residence.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! A silhouette flickered. Instantaneously, hundreds of illusory figures materialized in the vast space. Soon after, these illusory figures dispersed one after another like dreams or bubbles.
The Celestial Body Dao as the core, and the Longevity Dao for support. This ‘Celestial Phantom’ is really difficult to learn. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly.
Continue! He resumed his training.
‘Celestial Phantom’ was a set of teachings he selected from the sect’s repository. It was a powerful teaching that enhanced movement skills, and was highly compatible with himself. [1]
In a one-on-one fight, or during sect contests, the importance of movement skills was somewhat diminished. This was because a winner had to be determined, coupled with spatial constraints.
But when adventuring outside, movement skills were extremely important! This was even more so for a qi refiner.
Hmm? Wu Yuan abruptly stopped, a hint of joy flashed in his eyes. My body refiner self has finally reached the limit of the ninth-stage Shambhala phase.
His two true selves broke through, one after the other. The body refiner self, taking the lead, naturally reached his objective first.
I should carefully study the silver sphere bestowed by my master. Wu Yuan’s body refiner self halted, preparing to completely immerse himself in contemplation.
…
Inside the Essence Tower, in the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field.
Wu Yuan’s body refiner self sat in lotus position.
Compared to more than a year ago, his vital aura had increased by more than a hundredfold, mighty and unbounded. His internal shambhala had expanded from the initial 3600 li to a breadth of ten thousand li.
The Boundary Tree, towering several hundred li high, was thriving, its rich vital aura permeating the space. The existence of the Boundary Tree greatly stabilized his internal shambhala.
Surrounding the Boundary Tree was the vast ocean of vital ether. Little Black frolicked within it, its form remarkably large, nearly ten li in size.
Ninth-stage Shambhala phase! Little Black, too, has unknowingly reached the ninth-stage Shambhala phase. Wu Yuan felt the surging power within his body.
He could probably annihilate a thousand li stretch of rivers and mountains with a single punch.
Even some small stars would probably explode with a punch from me. Wu Yuan was inwardly amazed.
He increasingly understood why Shambhala cultivators could freely roam the macrocosm. It was simply because their bodies were immensely strong. Even when traversing the void with their physical bodies, they could ignore most dangers.
My shambhala. Wu Yuan turned his attention inward to his shambhala. Aided by the Boundary Tree, his vital ether recovered at a much faster speed.
According to my research, the internal Shambhala of a powerhouse with a typical second-degree eldritch root is usually about five thousand li in width. Wu Yuan mused inwardly. One with a first-degree immortal root often reaches sixteen thousand li.
Yet, Wu Yuan’s internal Shambhala stretched for ten thousand li, a feat that could only be described as pushing the limits of the second-degree eldritch root. This was the power of the Boundary Tree!
Among the treasures body refiners used to establish their shambhala’s foundation, the best ones could stabilize and expand actual space.
As for the root establishment treasures used by qi refiners, the optimal ones could bolster the soul and influence their Voidspace, like the Greenmist Crystal Wood.
Body refiners focus on their own bodies, yet their sensitivity to destiny and heaven and earth is somewhat diminished. Wu Yuan gazed up at the roof of the Essence Tower.
Even though my body refiner self’s soul is top-tier among Shambhala cultivators, I can only vaguely sense the Destiny Voidscape. I can’t even truly enter the Surface Void Layer of the Destiny Voidscape. Wu Yuan lamented silently.
He was becoming more conscious of the differences between the two major cultivation systems.
Though body refiners seemed full of vitality, the long road of immortal cultivation was fraught with deadly trials. A weaker premonition of danger meant a higher likelihood of death.
It is no wonder that throughout the long years from the time of heaven and earth’s inception, the qi refining system has become the mainstream cultivation system. Wu Yuan thought. It’s easier and the risk of death is lower too.
Of course, body refiners also had their own advantages, such as being able to cultivate a second true self!
The two true selves need to support and assist each other to walk further on the path of immortal cultivation.
Wu Yuan flipped his palm, revealing the silver sphere gifted to him by Master Kua Chi.
Master Kua Chi said that I can try to study it once I reach the ninth-stage Shambhala phase. Wu Yuan stared at the silver sphere.
The intricate cryptic patterns were extremely fine. Even with Wu Yuan’s vision and powerful soul, it was hard to get a clear view of each individual pattern.
Over the past year, he had made several attempts. Eventually, he faintly sensed that the silver sphere seemed to emit strands of vital aura. However, he couldn’t comprehend it.
After pondering briefly, a thought flickered across Wu Yuan’s mind.
Let’s try embedding it in the internal shambhala.
His chest glowed, then swallowed the silver sphere.
…
Hum~ A silver sphere materialized out of thin air at the center of his vast internal shambhala.
In the next instant, it started to expand rapidly as if it had been forcibly compressed for a long time.
Hmm? Wu Yuan’s pupils contracted slightly.
To Wu Yuan’s immense surprise, the silver sphere ultimately transformed into a silver sphere with a diameter of a hundred li.
Like a miniature star, it hung above his internal shambhala, its surface shimmering with a hazy silver glow, giving it an air of sanctity.
What? What is happening? Numerous thoughts raced through Wu Yuan’s mind.
But with his current knowledge, he quickly understood a thing or two.
In the world outside, the silver sphere is constrained and bound by the unseen pressure of heaven and earth? Wu Yuan thought to himself.
Meanwhile, the rules of my internal shambhala have not been perfected. My shambhala cannot completely ignore the rules of heaven and earth, but by reaching the ninth-stage Shambhala phase, I have gained a certain level of resistance. When the silver sphere is placed here, the effects of restriction are reduced by more than half. That is enough to reveal its true form.
Wu Yuan’s soul avatar looked up to see that the numerous silver cryptic patterns, which had originally been too small and tightly compressed to make out, had now been magnified by hundreds of millions of times!
At last, Wu Yuan could see them clearly. They were mysterious, profound, and inscrutable. Countless mysterious threads of cryptic patterns intertwined with an uncanny precision, leaving him in awe and shock!
He had never seen such profound Dao cryptic patterns. They were akin to an insurmountable holy mountain, instinctively inspiring a sense of reverence and worship in him.
Somehow, even the cryptic patterns of the Celestial Body Dao seem far less complex than these silver cryptic patterns? Wu Yuan was shocked.
He vaguely understood why his master had said that if he could walk this path, he would be incredibly powerful. How could it not grant him immense power?
These cryptic patterns? Wu Yuan observed and perceived them in great detail, attempting to decipher them.
He believed that his master wouldn’t give him a hopeless task.
Three hundred years?
At the moment, Wu Yuan couldn’t make heads or tails of these complex cryptic patterns. Compared to the Longevity Dao and Celestial Body Dao that Wu Yuan comprehended, it was thousands, if not tens of thousands of times more complex. There were innumerable threads, and he had no idea where to start.
Moreover, Wu Yuan could feel that the countless cryptic patterns formed on the silver sphere maintained a sort of equilibrium. If the equilibrium collapsed, and the sphere exploded, the resulting force unleashed would be truly hair-raising!
Can’t understand? Then break it down! Trace it! Read a book a thousand times, and its meaning will become self-evident. The same is true for these profound Dao cryptic patterns.
Wu Yuan wholeheartedly immersed himself in contemplation. A series of illusory cryptic patterns materialized around his soul avatar, formed by him tracing a small part of the patterns.
Time passed.
One day, two days… eight days…
Just as Wu Yuan was beginning to doubt himself and thought about changing his approach, several freshly traced cryptic patterns suddenly combined into one, and the fluctuations of a familiar Dao spread.
This? A mix of surprise and joy flashed across Wu Yuan’s eyes. Is this…the manifestation of the Celestial Body Dao’s profundities?
Swoosh! His gaze instantly fell upon the silver sphere a hundred li in diameter. Among the densely packed cryptic patterns, many sections seemed strangely familiar.
Celestial Body Dao! Celestial Body cryptic patterns!
The cryptic patterns on this silver sphere include the Celestial Body Dao? Is it just a part, or the entirety of the Celestial Body Dao? A vague notion of understanding bloomed within Wu Yuan.
He now saw why his master was willing to give him this opportunity. Perhaps it was because he had reached the True Intent stage of the Celestial Body Dao so quickly.
If it only contains a part of the Celestial Body Dao’s profundities, that’s one thing. Wu Yuan gazed up at the enormous silver sphere. But if it contains the complete Celestial Body Dao…that’s unimaginable.
I have a deep understanding of the Celestial Body Dao. Now, I will gradually extrapolate from the nodes I’ve comprehended to other cryptic patterns. Wu Yuan thought to himself.
It was just like translating the text of an unknown civilization, if one didn’t understand it at all, naturally there was no way to get started. But if one could decipher some of the key words, then there was hope to further decipher other texts through the correlation and frequency of subsequent and following words.
Dao comprehension was the same. The beginning was always the hardest part. But once someone gained a rudimentary understanding and obtained a thread of clues, one would certainly see results as long as one studied hard.
Time passed.
Three days later, Wu Yuan was even more astounded.
There aren’t just the profundities of the Celestial Body Dao, but also the Longevity Dao among this silver sphere’s cryptic patterns. Wu Yuan was in disbelief.
Due to his limited understanding of the Longevity Dao, he hadn’t noticed this at the beginning. But as he delved deeper into the extrapolations and insights, Wu Yuan naturally stumbled upon this revelation.
It’s not just the Celestial Body Dao or Longevity Dao, there are other cryptic patterns that don’t belong to either of these two Intermediate Laws, appearing far more profound. Wu Yuan felt a chill running through him. He was thoroughly shaken by what he was seeing.
The Longevity Dao and Celestial Body Dao were both intricate and extensive Intermediate Laws, vast beyond measure. Each fell under different Greater Laws.
Logically, merging them should not be possible.
For example, Wu Yuan might be able to simultaneously apply the principles of two Daos, but he was merely combining their effects, rather than truly integrating the two.
It was like the armies of two different countries cooperating in a battle. Hidden agendas were bound to exist, making it easy for one to undermine the other.
If they could fuse into one, acting as a single unit, their combined strength would skyrocket.
This certainly is an inconceivable path. Wu Yuan marveled, shaken to his core.
A single Intermediate law is already overwhelmingly powerful, once fully comprehended, one can become an Astral Monarch.
The fusion of several Intermediate Laws from different Greater Laws? It was downright terrifying. Just the thought of it was enough to send shivers down Wu Yuan’s spine.
However, after some pondering, Wu Yuan realized the arduousness of this path. Take the Celestial Body Dao. Fusing just three Lesser Laws from the same source was already extremely challenging, let alone the fusion of several Intermediate Laws of different sources? [2]
But once this path is successfully traversed, the power one would gain is beyond comprehension. Wu Yuan felt his heartbeat quicken with excitement, as if he had just seen a whole new path open before his eyes.
Three hundred years just to reach the initiate threshold.
I must give it my all. Wu Yuan was filled with motivation.
…
In a blink of an eye, nearly a year passed. It was almost two years since Wu Yuan’s two true selves stepped into Shambhala phase and the Amethyst Cradle phase respectively.
Headquarters of the Dragon Star Immortal Sect, within the training grounds of Wu Yuan’s world residence.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Flying swords whizzed past, their sword qi enveloping the sky for thousands of li. The colors of the world changed, as if this were a vast world of swords.
Not far away was a pile of waste, stacked as tall as a mountain. These were the scrap materials left after upgrading his lifebound flying swords, their essences completely absorbed.
The upgrading of my nine lifebound flying swords is complete. Wu Yuan stood in the air, murmuring to himself. The Moonsilver Tournament has ended? It doesn’t concern me.
Mm, I’ve made some progress in many arcane arts. Time to head to the Eldritch-Immortal Battlefield. Wu Yuan put away his nine lifebound flying swords and soared into the sky, heading to Dragon Star.
1. Changing movement technique -> movement skill, as it does not refer to a particular technique but rather overall agility stats ☜
2. source should refer to a Greater Dao ☜