Chapter 257: Spirit Embryo Transformation, the Tribulation of Inner Demons!

In the end, this massive Century Impact was dealt with without any danger.

Because the four great Transformation Spirit True Monarchs took action, the losses among all the participating cultivators in this battle were not significant, with total casualties amounting to just over three thousand, excluding the mortals who had not been evacuated to the Immortal City.

However, nearly three million mortals on the outermost perimeter lost their lives in the mouths of the Corpse Demons.

The death of so many mortals did not cause much turmoil. After the impact ended, the four True Monarchs all temporarily remained in Beiling Immortal City to prevent Shi Mingkong from launching another counterattack, while Lu Yuan and the other visiting cultivators lingered for a few days and embarked on their journey home after attending the victory banquet.

Upon returning to Longshan Immortal City, they were welcomed by the city's cultivators as if they were heroes returning in triumph, and Lu Yuan's Huanglong clone also appeared in person to host a welcome banquet.

At the banquet, all the participating cultivators toasted one another and indulged in merrymaking, wishing to vent the pressure that had built up over these past few months.

After all, past Century Impacts had been extremely cruel, with participating cultivators suffering battle losses of up to thirty or forty percent; for them, the supporting cultivators, to have suffered zero losses this time was an extremely rare occurrence.

Even if luck played a part, it was enough to make all the cultivators feel fortunate.

And after this banquet ended, Lu Yuan returned to his Zizhu Peak cave dwelling.

Dismissing his maidservants, he remained alone in the quiet room, his gaze deep and dim.

Other Longshan Immortal City cultivators who returned were rejoicing at this narrow escape, but he deeply felt the insufficiency of his own cultivation.

His current cultivation might be hard to match at the Nascent Soul level, but it was far from enough when encountering a Heavenly Corpse King. When Shi Mingkong led the demon horde to strike Beiling Immortal City, if he had possessed late-stage Refining Qi into Spirit cultivation or higher, then those three million mortals would not have turned into innocent ghosts.

"The next main goal is to break through to the late stage of Refining Qi into Spirit as quickly as possible. Since that is the case—"

Lu Yuan took a deep breath, calmed his mind, and immediately communicated with the Heavenly Book:

"Illuminate, Roaming Spirit Controlling Qi!"

Hum.

In an instant, the Heavenly Book in his mind bloomed with boundless radiance, illuminating every space within his sea of consciousness.

"Nine Luminaries proceed in order, Primordial Origin wanders, brilliance shines bright, original spirits disperse, flowing gazes are endless, bestow upon me radiance, cast upward the vermilion scene, resolve stagnation and open the heart, attain the station of flying clouds, ascend the body to Purple Micro."

Illuminating this Supernatural Power required fifty thousand units of Qi Luck, or five hundred strands of Heavenly Dao Merit. As the massive amount of Merit Power Lu Yuan had accumulated burned away, the sound of a great bell—like the voice of the Great Dao—resounded, and a Supernatural Power seed began to condense from nothingness within his void sea of consciousness.

This state lasted for a very, very long time. Three sunrises and moonsets after he entered the quiet room, Lu Yuan slowly opened his eyes, his gaze revealing an indescribable agility amidst its vicissitudes.

After condensing the Supernatural Power seed, he had mastered 【Roaming Spirit Controlling Qi】.

This Supernatural Power consists of two parts: first, Roaming Spirit; second, Controlling Qi.

Among them, Roaming Spirit is a Supernatural Power for cultivating and strengthening the Primordial Spirit, and even for the Primordial Spirit to leave the body; Controlling Qi is a Supernatural Power for using the Primordial Spirit to control and drive all Original Qi in Heaven and Earth, causing the effects of Dharma techniques to multiply.

Setting the latter aside for now, the former was exactly what Lu Yuan needed right now.

The late stage of Refining Qi into Spirit is the process of cultivating the Spirit Embryo into a Primordial Spirit. With the assistance and blessing of this Supernatural Power, he would inevitably gain great help in his cultivation toward the Primordial Spirit realm, so he closed himself off for deep meditation without hesitation, beginning to contemplate and cultivate with all his heart.

Spring departed and winter arrived.

Cultivation knows no years; in the blink of an eye, ten years passed.

During these ten years, although Lu Yuan's true self was in seclusion, the activities of the Huanglong clone and the Liuyun clone were completely unaffected. With the support of his clones, Chen Zhantang and the other disciples from the lower realm fully integrated into the Immortal City, quickly mastered the basic common knowledge of the cultivation world, and began to combine their knowledge of lower-realm weaponry to make inventions.

The first thing they invented was the Spirit Fire Cannon, cast from various Spirit Materials of the cultivation world.

This cannon was a low-cost weapon created by combining first-tier metal Spirit Materials with Dharma Arrays and gunpowder; by the standards of the cultivation world, it could be regarded as a first-tier low-grade Dharma Artifact.

Yet, this cannon, which was barely an entry-level Dharma Artifact in the cultivation world, could unleash the astonishing power of a second-tier offensive Talisman—or even a strike from a Foundation Establishment cultivator—with every shell fired during experiments!

The most critical point was that the materials for this cannon were all low-grade Spirit Materials. With the resources and means of Longshan Immortal City, there was absolutely no difficulty in casting these cannons, and dozens could be cast every month with ease!

With the endorsement of the Huanglong clone, these cannons were quickly deployed to the battlefield once they were released, and they almost immediately greatly reduced the pressure on the frontline cultivators.

After all, quantitative change leads to qualitative change. A few or a dozen such cannons brought little change to the long frontline, but dozens or hundreds of Spirit Fire Cannons capable of continuously firing strikes comparable to a Foundation Establishment cultivator brought help that was immediate and sufficient to turn the tide of battle!

Because, let alone first-tier Corpse Soldiers or second-tier Corpse Generals, even third-tier Corpse Kings and fourth-tier Heavenly Corpses could hardly withstand the strikes of hundreds of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

It could be said that after the Spirit Fire Cannons were mass-produced at scale, the Longshan Immortal City cultivators on the frontline resisting the Corpse Tide suddenly found things much easier, and the Spirit Fire Hall also became famous throughout the Immortal City overnight.

At the same time, under the instruction of the true self, the Huanglong clone once again opened the Reception Array, selecting another hundred Dao Palace disciples from the lower realm to fill the ranks of the Spirit Fire Hall, and its development became even more vigorous.

This day.

On Linglong Peak.

Although he vaguely knew of the changes in the outside world, Lu Yuan's true self had no time to attend to them, because after ten years of cultivation, he had touched the threshold of the Refining Qi into Spirit Primordial Spirit realm and had begun to attempt the final breakthrough.

For this reason, he had even secretly come to Linglong Peak, where the Spiritual Machine was most abundant, to borrow the Daoist field of True Monarch Huanglong to add to his assistance.

At this moment, inside the grass hut on the mountain peak, where a barrier Dharma Array had been set up.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

Although Lu Yuan remained motionless like a statue, a vast sound of surging tides faintly emanated from his body, which was the manifestation of his Dharma Power flowing and surging to the extreme.

His massive Dharma Power surged and churned, but his will was like a needle calming the sea in the vast ocean; he remained oblivious to the signals coming from all parts of his body, his mind and intent concentrated as never before, gathering upon the Spirit Embryo in his abdomen. The Spirit Embryo is equivalent to a cultivator's Nascent Soul.

After ten years of cultivation, Lu Yuan's Spirit Embryo was now incomparably strong and solid, its entire body emitting a misty divine light, as if facing some kind of transformation.

Normally, every small stage of cultivation after entering the Nascent Soul level requires a long period of time measured in centuries; it is simply impossible for a Nascent Soul early-stage cultivator to advance to the late stage in just over ten years of cultivation.

However, Lu Yuan possessed 【Nine Breaths Serving Qi】 and 【Roaming Spirit Controlling Qi】, so his cultivation speed was dozens or even hundreds of times that of a normal cultivator; thus, in just ten years, he had completely perfected his cultivation of the God Embryo Realm, and was only one step away from transforming into a Primordial Spirit.

At this moment.

Under the surging of his vast Dharma Power, Lu Yuan's Divine Sense perception was elevated to a level of sharpness he could not even judge; everything within his body was like patterns on the palm of his hand, clearly visible, with nowhere to hide.

Time seemed to have lost its meaning for him. His Spirit Embryo cut off all distracting thoughts, as if drifting alone in a black hole of absolute silence; there was not the slightest sound, no space existed, no time existed—it was entirely absolute darkness and emptiness.

One day. Two days. Three days.

One month, two months, three months.

He did not know how much time had passed, but the Dharma Power in his dantian space surged more and more violently, and the divine light emitted by the Spirit Embryo became more and more vast, until it shone like an extremely brilliant, magnificent, and scorching sun!

"It is time!"

At this moment, every inch of Lu Yuan's flesh, skin, and hair let out a cry from the depths of his soul. The next moment, the vast and surging Dharma Power, combined with his all-or-nothing intent, merged into this sun with an unparalleled momentum of seeking life through death!

Boom!

In an instant, thunder exploded; every clap of thunder seemed to resound directly in the depths of Lu Yuan's mind, and the violent roar felt as if it were going to tear the top of his head right off!

That scorching sun, which had suddenly appeared in the void, appeared without obstruction, showing cracks as if it were about to shatter, like opening a shackle that had existed since ancient times. Immediately following, a variety of feelings—sour, sweet, bitter, spicy; love, hate, affection, enmity; joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness—all uncontrollably and frantically surged out all at once!

The Spirit Embryo cracked open, and the Primordial Spirit was about to be born!

And just at the moment the Spirit Embryo began to transform.

Lu Yuan's entire being was like a house of cards with its most critical piece pulled out; his body, soul, Dharma Power, and consciousness were all uncontrollably and rapidly spiraling into chaos!

The Tribulation of the Heart Demon had arrived.

The Tribulation of the Heart Demon is a trial that every Nascent Soul cultivator must face when breaking through to the Transformation into Divinity, unavoidable whether practicing new or ancient methods.

A cultivator's path is inherently one of defying Heaven; the transformation of the Nascent Soul into a Primordial Spirit is a complete metamorphosis of the essence of a cultivator's life, and during this process, the cultivator's mind will inevitably become obscured, allowing heart demons to arise spontaneously and generate infinite illusions.

If one can successfully survive the Tribulation of the Heart Demon, the Spirit Embryo will naturally transform into a Primordial Spirit under the tempering of the demon; but if one fails, the cultivator will, at best, suffer a cultivation deviation and regression, or at worst, their soul will collapse and they will become an idiot!

Under normal circumstances, a great cultivator at the Yuan Ying Late Stage wishing to break through to this realm requires decades or even a century of preparation to collect secret techniques, spiritual objects, and Pills to protect their soul; those with deep backgrounds will even invite a Transformation into Divinity Heavenly Monarch from the Immortal Alliance to act as a Protector, only then having a sixty or seventy percent chance of success.

Yet a situation like Lu Yuan's—practicing for only ten years and attempting the breakthrough relying solely on himself without preparing almost any external aids—can be called unique.

At this moment.

The world within Lu Yuan's consciousness was already completely different; he felt as if he were being pulled by an irresistible force, falling into a bottomless, pitch-black abyss, and he was still falling.

Beaming with joy, mourning like one who has lost their parents, domineering, in unbearable agony, ecstatic, furious—all sorts of emotions and sensations were stirred together in a chaotic, illogical mess, rushing out from his heart like a passing glance, without reason or warning.

He had lost all perception of his body and the outside world, as if his soul had been pulled out of his body by an invisible hand and cast into the abyss.

It felt like only an instant, yet also like ten days or half a month had passed; the endless darkness where Lu Yuan's consciousness was falling began to become surreal, with infinite, colorful streams of light colliding, seemingly giving birth to countless illusory yet real worlds from the collisions, flickering rapidly and densely filling every void, with new worlds being born and old ones destroyed, forming mottled, interlaced, and dazzlingly bizarre illusions!

Everywhere his vision reached, there were several completely different landscapes simultaneously, like countless glass shards interlaced piece by piece; often one area would be filled with heavy snow and everything frozen, while adjacent to it would be flames of war and smoke rising to the sky; or one fragment would show a vast expanse of blue waves with tides rising and falling, while in the adjacent shattered space, there would be rolling yellow sand and utter desolation. The entire world was mottled and chaotic, and all of this was composed of scenes Lu Yuan had personally experienced!

Falling, falling, an endless fall.

Following this, the shifts in time and space became increasingly intense. At times, everything was shaking, swaying, and cracking. Within the fissures appeared countless strange world scenes: peddlers and passersby, bustling crowds, high platforms and grand mansions, as well as mountains of blades and seas of fire, or mountains of corpses and seas of blood, piles of white bones...

Not only that, but in Lu Yuan's conscious perception, the surrounding air also became extremely unstable, at times sunny and warm, at times biting cold, at times dry and scorching like a desert; these various capricious changes mixed together, and the extreme change in sensation made his head feel as if it were about to explode!

Chaos, chaos, and more chaos!

At this moment, countless streams of information erupted and impacted him, various perceptions—both real and illusory—constantly eroded him, and a thousand flavors drilled into Lu Yuan's mind all at once, as if he were in a dream, one moment at a ten-thousand-foot height, the next falling into an abyss.

A hair's breadth away yet worlds apart, a thousand years in a dream, dreamlike bubbles and shadows, like dew and like lightning.

Various realities and illusions were mixed and alternating, changing extremely quickly; from one moment to the next, Lu Yuan felt thousands of strange yet familiar thoughts and consciousnesses emerge, mixed with thousands upon thousands of male and female voices, laughing, cursing, whispering, and wailing in the deepest part of his mind:

"Don't kill me, don't kill me, this opium has nothing to do with me!"

"I am a Commandant of the True Martial Division, you rebel actually dare to ambush and kill a court official! Drag him away and behead him for all to see!"

"I am the Empress Dowager of the Great Jin, kneel!"

"Hehehe, sick men of the Jin Dynasty, even if you cut off your queues, in your hearts you are still kneeling to us."

"Ah, ah, help, I beg the Immortal to save me, save me..."

"You clearly had the ability, why didn't you save us, why...!"

The sound waves grew increasingly noisy, surging and magnificent, and Lu Yuan was like a small boat in a stormy sea, ready to capsize at any moment.

This feeling of extreme chaos seemed to last for a thousand years, and then—

Boom!

The endless falling suddenly stopped; like the explosion of a cosmic singularity, a massive void and dizziness suddenly struck, and everything returned to nothingness.