Chapter 337: Chapter 335: The Spirit Body Causes Trouble
Before the solemn tomb, a Daoist respectfully lit three sticks of incense, bowed, and placed them in the incense burner.
He paid his respects for a long while. A gentle breeze swept by, leaving the area before the tomb empty.
A Firework Daoist came over with a broom to perform his routine cleaning and maintenance.
’Senior Brother Li insisted he saw someone, but who would come out in this weather... Even if a Foundation Establishment Elder came, they’d have to enter through the main gate. I would’ve seen them, no doubt.’
The Firework Daoist swung his broom with gusto, sweeping all the fallen leaves to one side.
’He must be trying to keep that roasted roe deer all to himself, tricking me into coming out here... Oh my god, someone really was here!’
The round-headed Firework Daoist cried out in alarm. His broom fell to the ground as he stared at the freshly extinguished incense in the bronze censer.
The bronze censer was cleaned every hour. He remembered clearly that it had been spotless the last time he came by.
The ash was still warm. The Cultivator who came to pay respects must have just left.
"Hall Master Liang, please don’t blame me! I won’t dare to slack off anymore. I’ll be sure to make my rounds on time and keep everything clean..."
The Firework Daoist’s face turned pale. He quickly knelt and kowtowed several times toward the tomb.
He got up and looked around. Seeing no one, he knew that the senior must have left, so he began to sweep again with renewed diligence.
...
"Senior Brother, are you saying that Qi Yue has been detained in Beiyuan, and that’s why he hasn’t returned?"
Bai Zichen was greatly surprised, not expecting such a twist.
He had assumed Qi Yue hadn’t returned to the Sect because he was consolidating his Realm in Beiyuan or had found some other opportunity. He never imagined he’d been imprisoned.
"The Dharma Aspect Sect or the No-Life Sect?"
To be able to detain Qi Yue, who had already reached Core Formation, and even allow him to send a letter back meant they had no fear of the Qingfeng Sect’s backing.
With Bai Zichen’s reputation as the Sword God resounding throughout the Northern Domain, and everyone knowing that the Qingfeng Sect had two future Nascent Soul True Monarchs, only a Nascent Soul Major Sect would dare to act this way.
Of the three Nascent Soul Sects in Beiyuan, the Tianhe Sword Sect was close with the two of them and would never do such a thing.
That left only two options: the Dharma Aspect Sect and the No-Life Sect.
"The No-Life Sect. They say Elder Shibi has taken a fancy to Qi Yue and wants to marry one of his Direct Descendants to him, to become Dao Companions..."
Master Ge Cang shook his head helplessly. He never expected his disciple to encounter something like this after successfully reaching Core Formation while traveling in Beiyuan.
The No-Life Sect had rivaled the Dharma Aspect Sect for ten thousand years, so their strength went without saying. Elder Shibi was a long-famous Mid-Stage Nascent Soul Demon Cultivator.
For such a major figure in the Northern Domain to take an interest in Qi Yue seemed like a good thing on the surface, but upon closer inspection, something was amiss.
’It seems this Female Cultivator is quite favored. Elder Shibi must be after Qi Yue’s Qingsang Spirit Body...’
Bai Zichen saw the truth of the matter at a glance. After reaching Core Formation, Qi Yue would be able to stimulate the strand of Purest Spiritual Energy deep within him, which contained Great Dao True Intent.
If he transferred this Purest Spiritual Energy to his Dao Companion during dual cultivation, he could instantly increase her chances of reaching Core Formation by fifty percent.
Furthermore, this Purest Spiritual Energy didn’t conflict with other Core Formation Spiritual Objects.
In other words, by becoming Qi Yue’s dual cultivation Dao Companion, even someone as dumb as a pig would have a high chance of successfully reaching Core Formation.
Qi Yue held a special status in the Qingfeng Sect, and almost all of his requests were met. Besides being Master Ge Cang’s disciple, a major factor was his possession of the Qingsang Spirit Body.
It was like a ’buy one, get one free’ deal. Cultivating him to Core Formation meant he could basically bring a female Foundation Establishment Perfection Cultivator along with him to achieve a Golden Core.
That’s why even though Qi Yue was a recluse within the Sect, the Female Cultivators who knew about his Qingsang Spirit Body saw him as a rare treasure and did everything they could to get close to him.
Who would have thought that on one trip out, he would fall into the hands of the No-Life Sect.
"That’s right. I asked Fellow Daoist Yann of the Tianhe Sword Sect about it. That Female Cultivator is a direct descendant of Elder Shibi, and she was pushed to the Late-Stage Foundation Establishment purely through resources... Using Yue’er’s Qingsang Spirit Body is likely her only chance to reach Core Formation."
Even a Nascent Soul True Monarch couldn’t guarantee a one hundred percent success rate for Core Formation; at most, they could only increase the probability.
An extremely rare Spirit Body like the Qingsang Spirit Body, which benefits others rather than oneself, was a favorite among people like him.
Master Ge Cang was extremely concerned for his only disciple. As soon as he finished recuperating his physical body, he made numerous contacts to try and rescue him.
"Junior Brother Bai, you probably don’t know this yet, but Fellow Daoist Yann has successfully passed his Tribulation Crossing and become a Nascent Soul True Monarch... He personally intervened. Under normal circumstances, they would definitely release a Core Formation True Man. The No-Life Sect has no need to offend another Nascent Soul Major Sect when they already have a mortal enemy like the Dharma Aspect Sect."
"But Fellow Daoist Yann wrote back saying Elder Shibi’s attitude is resolute. He claims Qi Yue and his descendant fell in love at first sight and are willingly becoming Dao Companions. He even said he would invite me to the ceremony."
"This matter is indeed quite troublesome..."
Bai Zichen and Master Ge Cang looked at each other in dismay. For him to not even give face to the Tianhe Sword Sect showed just how unyielding Elder Shibi’s attitude was.
With Qi Yue trapped in the No-Life Sect, there was nothing they could do, even if they both broke through to become Nascent Soul True Monarchs.
The No-Life Sect had three Nascent Soul True Monarchs in the open alone, and a Tier Four Array laid out on Kunshan Peak enveloped the entire mountain range.
It was rumored that multiple Spiritual Treasures guarded various peaks, echoing one another, and that rays from the Outer Heaven and body-shattering Gang Winds were integrated into the array.
Even Late-Stage Nascent Soul Cultivators could only sigh in despair before such an array.
Fortunately, they were after his Qingsang Spirit Body, so Qi Yue’s life was at least not in danger. He had merely lost his freedom.
"This is a case of ’a man’s wealth is his ruin.’ I just didn’t expect a Spirit Body of the Qingsang Spirit Body’s level to attract the attention of a Nascent Soul True Monarch. It was my oversight..."
Master Ge Cang had been supportive of Qi Yue traveling the world to seek opportunities for Core Formation.
He had long prepared the resources for his disciple’s breakthrough. Qi Yue’s talent was only above average. He had calmly accepted his own mediocrity compared to the Sect’s Core Formation Ancestors and had given up on specializing in Pill Discussion long ago, only hoping to reach Core Formation normally.
He also carried a Secret Treasure bestowed by Master Ge Cang, which could unleash a mighty Thunderbolt at a critical moment, allowing him to survive an encounter with even an ordinary Core Formation True Man.
But against a titan of Elder Shibi’s caliber, all his trump cards were useless.
The two of them only knew bits and pieces from the letter sent by the No-Life Sect. They didn’t know that Qi Yue had been captured by Jiang Yuhua not long after entering the No-Life Sect’s territory.
He was forced into Core Formation. Fortunately, he succeeded in one go. However, the influx of nature’s spiritual energy after his breakthrough triggered the Purest Spiritual Energy hidden deep within him, which contained the True Meaning of Reviving Withered Wood. Just a fleeting wisp of its aura was sensed by Elder Shibi.
A mere Spirit Body was nothing special in a sect like the No-Life Sect.
Among the current generation of Core Disciples, although there were none with a Celestial Spiritual Root, there were three disciples with Abnormal Spiritual Root talent and five who possessed a Spirit Body.
Higher up, Elder Shibi himself possessed the Nine Evil Crow Spirit Saint Body. He was naturally attuned to all kinds of Evil Qi. Cultivating in the environment of an Earth Evil Yin Vein was like a fish in water for him; he could even directly absorb Earth Core Evil Qi into his body to enhance his Cultivation and forge Magical Treasures.
It was precisely because of this Sacred Body that he, with his Dual Spirit Root Talent, had come so far.
But Qi Yue’s Qingsang Spirit Body, with its special nature of being able to help others achieve breakthroughs, was what caught Elder Shibi’s eye. He planned to use it to help his most beloved descendant cross the Core Formation Celestial Chasm.
"Elder Yann achieving the Nascent Soul Realm is a good thing for us. A friendly Nascent Soul True Monarch can play a crucial role at a critical time..."
Bai Zichen changed the subject, no longer dwelling on Qi Yue, lest a matter where they could only wait and see affect Master Ge Cang’s state of mind.
"Indeed. It wasn’t easy for Fellow Daoist Yann to take that step. The Tianhe Sword Sect can now be said to have a successor... Junior Brother Bai, we must also put the matter of reaching Nascent Soul on our agenda."
With his strength, Master Ge Cang could naturally tell at a glance that his junior brother had already broken through to the Late-Stage Core Formation.
In his estimation, with Junior Brother Bai’s stunning talent, he would face the trial of Shattering his Core and Transforming into a Nascent Soul within a 60-Year Cycle at most.
The most pressing problem facing them was the lack of a safe Tier Four Tribulation Crossing Spirit Land.
"Borrowing a Tier Four Spirit Land from someone and being under their roof is the worst option... Brother Ge, if you have any ideas, please share them. I will certainly cooperate and see if we can make it happen."
Bai Zichen’s personal short-term goal was to comprehend the Starry Sky True Intent and lay down the Star River Sword Array after gathering all twelve Flying Swords.
This would give him a way to consistently deal with Nascent Soul Cultivators even while still in the Core Formation Stage.
However, if Master Ge Cang had a way to obtain a Tier Four Spirit Land, he wouldn’t mind spending time to help him.
It would not only help Brother Ge meet the conditions for Nascent Soul formation as soon as possible, but it would also be preparation for his own future Tribulation Crossing.
"Without borrowing external help and finding a Spirit Land ourselves, I’ve thought it over and there are only two ways."
After his Five Crystal Glaze Body was crippled, Master Ge Cang, in the process of nurturing his physical body, felt that his own path had become purer. He could no longer be as unrestrained as before, freely wielding the might of his Divine Thunder.
At a subtle level, his mastery of Thunder Skill had risen to a new level.
Having lost the ability to defeat any opponent by unleashing an endless, raging Thunder Sea, Ge Cang finally understood what it meant for Thunder Skill to have a spirit of its own.
Previously, he had the Realm but no depth. Now, he had embarked on a completely different path.
"The best option is naturally to seize the Spirit Vein where that Cyan Simurgh dwells. The only problem is I don’t know how much of its strength that feathered beast can use while it’s slumbering... If it has returned to the normal level of a Tier Four Great Demon, even if we join forces, we’ll only be able to protect ourselves. We’d have no way of defeating a Tier Four Demon Beast."
Master Ge Cang had clearly thought this through, and he laid out his ideas in detail.
"The lesser option is to occupy a Tier Three Peak Top-Grade Spirit Vein and use a Celestial Spirit Gathering Spirit Array to temporarily raise the Spiritual Qi’s grade to Tier Four... Although it can’t compare to a true Tier Four Spirit Land, as long as we have sufficient preparations and a large amount of Top-Grade Spirit Stones, we can basically achieve over eighty percent of the effect."
"The Celestial Spirit Gathering Spirit Array, I think I’ve heard of it... Senior Brother Wei once wanted to set one up for his Core Formation, but he gave up in the end due to a lack of Spirit Stones."
As the somewhat familiar name came up, Bai Zichen quickly recalled the memory.
"Exactly. This Cloud Platform is merely a Tier Three Top-Grade Spiritual Land that has been pushed to a Tier Three Peak Top-Grade using a Gathering Spirit Array. If we can’t deal with that Cyan Simurgh, it shouldn’t be difficult to find another Tier Three Peak Top-Grade Spirit Vein in Black Mountain... At worst, we’ll just have to prepare several batches of the Top-Grade Spirit Stones required for the Celestial Spirit Gathering Spirit Array to last through the entire period of Shattering the Core and Transforming into a Nascent Soul."
A Tier Four Spirit Land generated this way could also make Spiritual Qi seem tangible.
But it was ultimately rootless, relying entirely on the transformative effect of the Celestial Spirit Gathering Spirit Array. Using it for something as important as the Nascent Soul Tribulation was unsettling.