Chapter 430

When immersed in cultivation, time always passes very quickly.

In the blink of an eye, another two years have passed.

"As expected of a true Five Elements Spirit Body, not only is the absorption efficiency of elixir potency much higher, but the speed is also nearly doubled."

Feeling the surging, turbulent mana within his body, Yunhe couldn't help but exclaim.

He had forgotten how long it had been since he last immersed himself so pleasantly in cultivation, feeling the increase in cultivation base from absorbing elixirs.

"My mana has now reached the peak of early Yuan Ying; I can clearly feel the bottleneck's existence—once I break through, I will reach mid‑Yuan Ying!"

"Once his cultivation base reaches mid‑Yuan Ying, even when facing a late‑Yuan Ying great cultivator, Yunhe will have enough confidence to protect himself."

"But now is not the time to attempt breaking through the bottleneck."

"He does have in his hand a 'Primordial Separation Pill' that assists in breaking through the mid‑Yuan Ying bottleneck."

"Five Elements Sword Formation!"

"Based solely on the 'Five Elements Sharp Sword Qi', this sword formation's power is already not inferior to the power Yunhe previously displayed when driving the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword to execute a sword formation."

"If this woman truly still possesses her primordial yin, and with the aid of the 'Primordial Separation Pill', the chance of breaking through should be at least seventy to eighty percent."

"If you try like this, this cultivation chamber will probably be destroyed."

Feeling the might of this sword formation, Yunhe's heart surged uncontrollably.

"This is a flying sword formed by condensing the 'Sharp Sword Qi' with five‑elements mana, not his natal treasure, the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword."

Immediately afterward, five more flying swords shot out from his palm, wrapped in even richer five‑elements mana, encircling his body.

Yunhe's eyes flashed, and a sharp intent burst forth from his body.

Given the material of his five Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Swords, the heavenly thunder power they contain, and the 'Spirit Body Seal', even a top‑grade fourth‑level treasure might not match them.

He now feels that the Five Elements Sword Formation he previously used was like a child wielding a great blade—powerful, yet unable to fully unleash its potential.

In Yunhe's eyes, countless brilliant stars seemed to revolve.

Over these years, his Demon Beast Body's comprehension of sharp intent has never ceased.

For breaking through to mid‑Yuan Ying, such a critical matter, it is natural to employ every means available.

In an instant, thirty‑six 'Five Elements Sharp Sword Qi' surrounded him, flying and dancing in a special formation.

"Next, I should also properly study the changes that condensing a Five Elements Spirit Body brings to my various secret arts, divine abilities, and powers."

As Yunhe lightly exhaled, all the sword threads returned to his palm.

Using the formless, signless nature of the 'Formless Sword Formation' as a bridge, one hundred and eight sword threads, like the one hundred and eight stars in the heavens, encircled his body.

He still remembered that Feng Qingdan of the Fragrance Pavilion had promised to help him break through the mid‑Yuan Ying bottleneck.

"This is the true 'Five Elements Sword Formation'!"

Immediately after.

"The consumption of the 'Yin Yang Mystic Qi Pill' is also less than expected; the remainder can be traded with other Yuan Ying cultivators, making it excellent material."

"But speaking solely of this sword qi, even clashing head‑on with an ordinary low‑grade fourth‑level treasure would not leave it at a disadvantage."

Yunhe gave a low shout.

And now, as the Five Elements Spirit Body coalesces, the true Five Elements Sword Formation also reveals its sharpness.

He had prepared a total of one hundred twenty 'Yin Yang Mystic Qi Pills', but in the end used only ninety, leaving thirty remaining, which are also quite valuable.

"Twelve Heavenly Stars Great Formation!"

In most cases, even if the probability is only twenty or thirty percent, when it's time to fight, one must still give it a go.

Yunhe smiled faintly, and the five Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Swords flew back into his dantian's qi sea once again.

Relying solely on these thirty‑six 'Five Elements Sharp Sword Qi' combined with the Five Elements Sword Formation, he felt that, aside from the heavenly thunder power, its strength was roughly comparable to—if not slightly greater than—the power he previously achieved by driving his natal treasure, the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword, to execute the Five Elements Sword Formation.

"Shatter!"

At that moment, his external incarnation, which had been silently standing by, suddenly spoke.

"If we could increase the probability by another one or two tenths, that would be about enough."

"I know."

"Now that the Five Elements Spirit Body has reached great accomplishment, under the nourishment of this five‑elements mana, these five Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Swords will soon be able to advance to the level of a mid‑grade fourth‑level treasure!"

However, for most Yuan Ying cultivators, having a seventy to eighty percent chance is already considered an extremely high probability of breakthrough.

"Formless Sword Formation!"

In an instant, those thirty‑six sword qi transformed into one hundred and eight finer sword threads.

When all means are employed, even a mid‑Yuan Ying cultivator may not be able to withstand it.

"Whoosh——"

However, relying solely on this pill, Yunhe feels it is not stable enough.

"Swish swish swish——"

Yunhe flipped his palm, and with a 'hum' a five‑colored sharp little sword condensed in his hand.

"How is it?"

His external incarnation stepped out from the shadow in the corner and asked.

"Very successful." Yunhe nodded, "If I were to encounter Old Ancestor Ji Huan now, I probably wouldn't need all that trouble; in a surprise encounter, a single face‑to‑face might let me kill him instantly!"

At this moment, Yunhe gained greater confidence in his own strength.

"What if we break through to mid‑Yuan Ying?" the external incarnation asked again.

"Mid‑Yuan Ying?"

Yunhe's smile widened, "I dare not say more, but in this realm, no one at mid‑Yuan Ying or below should be my match; even a late‑Yuan Ying great cultivator would not lack the strength to fight me."

Hearing this, the external incarnation also showed a smile.

They are originally one entity; as the main body's strength grows stronger, naturally it also means the incarnation becomes stronger.

But once the true self breaks through to mid Nascent Soul, the external incarnation, as his offshoot, will not encounter too great a bottleneck even breaking through to mid Nascent Soul; he only needs to continually consume elixirs to increase his cultivation base.

Condensing the 'Five Elements Spirit Body' brings me all‑round benefits—not just the 'Five Elements Sword Qi' and 'Five Elements Sword Formation', but also the 'Inverted Five Elements Spirit‑Absorbing Divine Light', the Five Elements Formation, and the Morning Origin Five Qi.

Hum——

On Yunhe's body, a ring of five‑colored light suddenly burst forth.

This strange ability seems not to stem from his qi sea dantian, nor from his mana, but from his limbs and bones, from his viscera.

At this moment, Yunhe's bones, meridians, and organs are covered with strange 'Five Elements Spirit Patterns'.

These patterns not only speed up his absorption of spiritual energy, but also grant him the ability to release the 'Morning Origin Five Qi'.

"The Five Elements return to the Five Elders, the three flowers transform into the three purities—this is the way of cultivation."

And the 'Morning Origin Five Qi' grants him the ability to defend against five‑element techniques.

As long as he manifests the 'Morning Origin Five Qi', within the range of the five qi the power of the five elements is under his control—this is an absolute defense.

Of course, the carrying capacity has an upper limit, though it has not yet been tested where that limit lies.

I don't know why, I have a feeling that this five‑colored five qi can be not merely a defensive means; if used as an offensive means, wouldn't it be the five‑colored divine light?!

Pure 'Morning Origin Five Qi' naturally cannot reach the level of the 'Five‑Colored Divine Light'.

But if we add the 'Inverted Five Elements Spirit‑Absorbing Divine Light', combined they might be even stronger than his conception of the Five‑Colored Divine Light.

'Five‑Colored Divine Light'—within the five elements, nothing remains unstained, nothing remains unbroken.

"However, how to transform the 'Morning Origin Five Qi' into an offensive means will probably require further thought."

The five‑colored light surrounding his body instantly retracted; he looked toward the external incarnation and asked:

"How about you? How are you?"

The external incarnation spread his hands: "You can see for yourself."

Yunhe also did not hesitate; toward 'himself' he needed no courtesy, immediately performing the 'Return to One Technique' to synchronize their memories and insights.

During his cultivation period, the external incarnation was obviously not idle.

His original cultivation of the 'Sinner Buddha Sword Canon', because his body had been refined into a corpse and with new memories added, he knows it but is not proficient.

During this time, he thoroughly took up the 'Sinner Buddha Sword Canon' again.

Meanwhile, with spare time, he learned a few secret techniques from the 'Ultimate Bliss Seven Emotions Technique', increasing his means against enemies.

"Actually, I should thank you—for letting me grasp the 'Sharp Sword Qi' for no reason."

After the memory assimilation ended, the external incarnation spoke with a hint of teasing.

As for this, Yunhe just smiled.

Originally just one person, the external incarnation seems especially fond of chatting with the true self.

The external incarnation's grasp of the 'Sharp Sword Qi' is poor; however, as a cultivator of the 'Sinner Buddha Sword Canon', lacking a suitable flying sword treasure makes it hard to exert much power.

Fortunately, since the external incarnation is itself a corpse‑refined being, his physical body is not weak; plus the 'Beast Soul Banner' and Yunhe's many talismans and secret arts, facing ordinary early Nascent Soul cultivators he will not be at a disadvantage, but against mid Nascent Soul cultivators it could be tough.

"His strength has greatly increased."

Yunhe couldn't help but let out another long roar.

Even though he couldn't break through to mid Nascent Soul, condensing the 'Five Elements Spirit Body' gave his overall strength a considerable boost.

"Leaving seclusion?" the external incarnation asked.

Yunhe shook his head.

"For a cultivator, too great a fluctuation of mind and spirit is not good."

"Moreover."

"Rather than waste this opportunity, let's refine the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword to advance."

The external incarnation nodded; his thoughts naturally matched Yunhe's.

"If so, then I'll ponder formations and spirit patterns."

The true self and the avatar have a clear division of labor.

"Good."

Boom!!

A sudden thunderclap on flat ground.

Suddenly it exploded throughout the sand region.

The entire sky suddenly surged with sheets of black clouds, accompanied by rolling golden thunder plasma.

"What is that?!"

The cultivators outside the sand region who were panning for gold saw this scene; they all stopped their actions, each showing shock.

"Calamity, calamity clouds?"

Some older, experienced cultivators still recognized what the spreading black clouds signified.

"Is a senior undergoing the lightning tribulation? Nascent Soul?!"

Whether for human cultivators or demon beasts, the lightning tribulation mostly represents Nascent Soul or transformation.

This is absolutely not something they can provoke.

"Lightning tribulation?"

At the same time, an azure‑colored figure suddenly flashed out from a forest outside the sand region, gazing at the rolling thunder plasma, face solemn, eyes flickering.

Swish—

Then another figure flew out from the forest, hovering beside the azure figure.

"Swallowwind, what's the situation? Could this person be breaking through to mid Nascent Soul?"

The later‑appearing figure is stooped, looks rather short, crafty in appearance, with two tufts of fiery red whiskers.

"Crimsonflame, are you stupid or am I? Would breaking through to mid Nascent Soul bring a lightning tribulation?" The Swallowwind Beast lightly licked its lips, "Moreover, this is neither a transformation tribulation nor a Nascent Soul tribulation."

That means there is a treasure.

A hint of greed flashed in the narrow, elongated eyes of the Flame-Treading Scarlet Jackal.

"I'm not wrong, right? This person has plenty of good stuff on him." The Wind-Swallowing Beast is no better than the Flame-Treading Scarlet Jackal.

I just didn't expect he'd dare hide in the Fan Clan's territory.

"Normal." The Flame-Treading Scarlet Jackal spoke slowly: "Since you say this person is not from the Southern Border, he either leaves directly, or if he stays, the Fan Clan's territory's Mountain-Protecting Grand Array, which we didn't destroy back then, is naturally the safest place."

Upon hearing that, the Wind-Swallowing Beast showed a smile: "Originally I should have gone to the Golden Light Temple, but passing through this place I caught the scent of the Gold-Eating Armored Beast, which reminded me of this person."

"This person's reputation is not small, 'Old Devil Yun'."

If it weren't for Yunhe's reputation, the Wind-Swallowing Beast wouldn't need to summon the Flame-Treading Scarlet Jackal; they would have intercepted him right after the exchange meeting ended.

"Hmph." The Flame-Treading Scarlet Jackal gave a low hum: "Over the years we've killed more than one or two 'Old Devils.' At the end of the day, they're merely early Nascent Soul cultivators."

But here we have two mid-Fourth Level greater demons in human form!

Even a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator encountering any one of them would have a rough time, let alone two.

With such strength, dealing with an early Nascent Soul cultivator is absolutely

Though that's what was said, the Flame-Treading Scarlet Jackal showed no trace of contempt; instead, it was solemn.

"Right." The Wind-Swallowing Beast asked: "Do you still remember that formation?"

"Naturally."

The two greater demons in human form instantly turned into streams of light and fled into the sandy region.

But soon.

Under the wrap of a strange gust of wind, the two demons instantly concealed their form, aura, and everything.

Cree—!!!

A clear, long cry rang through the heavens.

A magnificent phoenix-like bird with five-colored plumage soared across the sky, its five-colored rosy light nearly covering half the heavens, beating its wings proudly as it faced the impending terrifying thunderbolt.

On this bird's body, there also swirled golden arcs of light, as if echoing the thunder slurry within the tribulation clouds.

And if anyone were present now, they would see that this seemingly radiant bird is merely an illusion; its true form is the five rainbow-colored tail feathers behind it, resembling silk ribbons.

This phoenix-like bird.

It is actually the manifestation of the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword!

Or more accurately, this phoenix-like bird is the transformation of the sword's artifact spirit!

Yunhe stood with hands behind his back in midair, gazing at the tribulation clouds and the phoenix-like bird, his expression somewhat strange.

"I originally thought the artifact spirit of the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword would manifest as a flood dragon, but in the end it turned out to be a phoenix-like bird."

However, using five-element arcane power to forge it, with a base of paulownia wood, that makes sense.

Cree—!!

This time, as long as he survives the tribulation, the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword will not only successfully advance to mid-tier Fourth Level, but also fully awaken its artifact spirit, promoting it to a mid-tier Fourth Level treasure.

In theory, treasures and artifacts are not ranked stronger or weaker, but in practice treasures are slightly above artifacts by one level.

That is to say, a lower-tier Fourth Level treasure is roughly equivalent to a mid-tier Fourth Level artifact, while a mid-tier Fourth Level treasure can rival an ordinary upper-tier Fourth Level artifact.

Of course, such a comparison is not precise, because some special artifacts or even ancient relics are not much weaker than treasures.

(End of chapter)