Chapter 125

Zhou Shuo sensed the aura of heaven and earth; this aura of heaven and earth is the location of space, being everywhere yet intangible. All things reside within it; if one could fully master space, then all things in one's eyes would merely be a pile of data that could be altered at will, and one's golden finger could restore them with a snap of the fingers; indeed, one could even dispense with the golden finger and directly undertake spacetime travel.

"Alas!" Zhou Shuo looked at the assorted items floating around him, as if weightless, and couldn't help but shake his head and sigh; his grasp of space was still insufficient, holding these objects had limits: first, his strength was lacking, so the weight he could lift was limited, not a true transformation; second, relying on mental activation, he could not act freely and flexibly control them, needing deeper immersion; more importantly, how should he deepen this field?

The spacetime of the quantum realm—Zhou Shuo now dare not make a second trip there, for the Yang Spirit world also harbors divinities, not those artificially enshrined by human incense, but beings like Jiutian Xuannv and Chiyou, manifested by the world's rules as native powerful divine entities, namely the five great demons sealed by the Longevity Great Emperor; yet upon reflection, were Jiutian Xuannv and Chiyou also sealed?

"Besides, idly pondering these things..." Zhou Shuo compared the situations of Jiutian Xuannv and Chiyou, couldn't help but shake his head sharply; his most pressing matter now was cultivation, then figuring out how to repair the shuttle through space.

Zhou Shuo cleared his mind, slowly exhaled and inhaled, began entering the state of unity of heaven and man, started contacting the will of heaven and earth, felt the changes of the world's yin and yang qi, adjusted his mental state, and also began preparing to gather enough great medicine, refine it into an internal Golden Core, and incidentally train his soul.

Training in the Elixir Path likewise requires tempering the soul, but the method differs completely from the Daoist cultivation process of the Yang Spirit world; before crossing the life‑death barrier in that world, soul cultivation relies entirely on accumulating soul remnants so the spirit becomes familiar with leaving the body; once the barrier is crossed, body and spirit separate, and one begins to face the spring thunder tribulation, drawing on the thunder‑qi of heaven and earth when yin and yang harmonize to temper one's soul; after nine tribulations one becomes a Yang Spirit.

Nine lightning tribulations, each entailing a struggle against the will of heaven and earth; nine out of ten who undergo tribulation die. Zhou Shuo, being an outsider transmigrant, had never dared to challenge the will of heaven and earth until he obtained the Journey to the West Elixir Path, which then unlocked the latent cultivation of the tribulations; in fact, the two cultivations are largely similar.

The first to third lightning tribulations use the harmonizing yin‑yang qi to purge the soul's yin; the fourth tribulation begins contact with space; the fifth to seventh tribulations serve to familiarize oneself with space, reaching the level of creation, hence a ghost immortal after seven tribulations is also called the Creator; the eighth to ninth tribulations represent the state of unity with heaven and earth.

The cultivation of the Elixir Path is the soul gathering qi; according to the standard time of year, month, and day, one faces the sun and moon to collect essence qi, using the yin‑yang changes in the alternation of sun and moon to temper the soul; this step of cultivation is actually the same as the first to third lightning tribulations, except that one relies on thunderbolts while the other relies on the sun and moon; a lightning tribulation is a nine‑deaths‑one‑life gamble, whereas the other demands a higher standard but proceeds steadily and securely.

The true difference between the Elixir Path and lightning tribulation cultivation lies in the fact that the fourth through ninth tribulations are entirely conducted by refining the internal Golden Core and Nascent Soul; the Elixir Path takes the body as the cauldron, essence‑qi‑spirit as the medicinal ingredients, and forges a Golden Core; this Golden Core is not a substantive entity but a condensation of spatial property, radiant and round, impervious to water and fire, the size of a millet grain when small, expanding to fill the whole body when large; reaching this point counts as completing the cultivation of the fourth through seventh tribulations, after which one nurtures the embryonic core so the Nascent Soul takes form, returns the elixir to dispel yin, and thus can accomplish the cultivation of the eighth and ninth tribulations.

Lightning tribulation and the Elixir Path each have their own advantages and disadvantages, and their achievements differ; lightning tribulation enables rapid soul completion—if one can survive the thunderbolt and endure the tempering of heaven and earth's will, then perfect the flesh to become a human immortal, a Yang Spirit can be expected imminently; however, such a Yang Spirit can only be called a deity, while martial artists who shatter the void can rival it, and throughout history the Yang Spirit world has seen few who can master both paths.

Although the Elixir Path's methods are complex, its advantage lies in the complete integration of dual cultivation of life and destiny, and it proceeds steadily; once the Golden Core is formed, one can at least accommodate the constitution of four lightning tribulations and the flesh‑and‑blood derivation of martial arts; of course, reaching seven tribulations and shattering the void is not impossible, but it depends on one's practice.

Zhou Shuo had long chosen the Elixir Path for his cultivation, and had even calculated the sun‑and‑moon changes of the Yang Spirit world, but this time, because he needed to go to Yinzhou and the upcoming plot of the Yang Spirit world was tight, there was hardly any time left for practice, so he could not follow the regular route, nor could he say he was taking a shortcut.

To cultivate the Elixir Path one must gather internal medicines; fundamentally it is the accumulation of changes in the body's essence‑qi; Zhou Shuo has already found a method: when martial‑arts apertures absorb thunder‑qi to gather medicine, the quantity of harvested medicine can be greatly increased; while tempering the soul one must gather sun‑and‑moon essence, whose fundamental purpose is actually to sense the waxing and waning of heaven and earth's yin and yang; of course, the most crucial point—the spatial property—Zhou Shuo has already obtained through his accidental foray into the quantum realm.

"What a fortunate encounter." Zhou Shuo retrieved from the storm clouds over the sea the Jade Pendant of Xian Du that had absorbed thunderbolts; his face broke into a satisfied smile; the Xian Du Jade Pendant can store thunderbolt, and this natural thunderbolt not only aids in gathering qi but also possesses ample harmonizing yin‑yang qi; when combined with elixir methods, it can swiftly purge the soul's yin impurities; although it cannot reach the level of seven lightning tribulations, achieving four tribulations is no problem.

Chan Yin Sha, being angry, ignored him, and Zhou Shuo was glad to be at ease; he used the Xian Du Jade Pendant to hold the thunderbolt, then absorbed the thunder‑qi through his Valley Spirit aperture and Bright Mind aperture, combined with elixir methods and seasonal herb gathering, and the internal great medicine indeed accumulated swiftly, filling the cauldron within half a month.

When the great medicine filled the cauldron, Zhou Shuo discovered that those medicines which had previously only been perceptible now completely condensed into form inside the bodily cauldron; inner vision showed them as a yellow‑green sprout, exuding a lively aura, carrying the innate primordial qi of the whole body, which also underwent a qualitative change, the vital energy gathering inward, appearing deep‑condensed and stirring; the great medicine is also called Huang Ya, and this is roughly how it came to be.

After accumulating the great medicine, Zhou Shuo did not continue further cultivation but instead carefully contemplated the thunder‑qi within the Xian Du Jade Pendant, using thoughts endowed with spatial property to sense its yin‑yang changes, then supplemented with elixir training; this cultivation process, though swift and simple, is likewise fraught with danger, because yin and yang qi can provoke illusions in the heart, much like the situation of the first to fourth lightning tribulations; undergoing tribulation is not merely enduring lightning strikes, but also enduring heaven and earth's trial, where illusions arise in the mind, and only by passing through them does one count as having succeeded.

If, during a lightning tribulation, one is deluded by an illusion, the soul will scatter between heaven and earth, the body will quietly rot, unknown to outsiders; it can be said to be a death of ignorance and insensibility—this is the great terror of cultivators in the Yang Spirit world; eight or nine out of ten cultivators therefore dare not face tribulation, and Zhou Shuo is even more so.

As an outsider, Zhou Shuo's fear of this world's will is greater than that of those cultivators; however, through the Elixir Path this fear is sidestepped, and as for the illusions provoked when yin and yang qi temper the soul, they are like a game—he can save and reload at any time; nevertheless, even if he cheats, the bitterness still makes him taste it thoroughly.

In the secret chamber, Zhou Shuo tightly closed his eyes, feeling a stagnant sensation so intense it could drive one mad, plus a mental fatigue qi, and the countless rustling whispers in the air, like mosquito buzz, urging cessation; "Tired, tired, tired—if you are, then hurry to sleep; once asleep, all will be quiet."

His eyelids kept twitching; Zhou Shuo attempted to enter meditation, but unfortunately this phantom game does not accept such an approach—once the thought ceases, perhaps one could grow calm, yet the yin‑yang qi's tempering of the soul would halt immediately; this is the price of taking a shortcut.

"Hoo‑hoo‑hoo……." Zhou Shuo felt the stagnant sensation growing ever more pressing; he involuntarily flung his eyes open, gulped rough breaths, and the sweat bursting from his body instantly soaked his clothes.

Zhou Shuo sensed bodily fatigue, staunched the flowing sweat, slightly assessed the state of his soul, and his face instantly broke into a satisfied smile; although the illusions are hard to endure, there is indeed fruit: after several rounds, though he still could not withstand that stagnant feeling, his soul had duly been tempered, the 108 thought‑seeds increased to 365, and of the newly born 257 thought‑seeds, all had shed their yin qi, capable of transforming into the gentle yang breeze, reaching the standard of a single lightning tribulation.

"Shortcuts aren't easy either!" Zhou Shuo gently regulated his breath, roughly calculating the time spent on cultivation; in ten days he underwent ten illusions, each more severe than the last; although the training showed effect, he did not know on which day true success would lie.

Although he did not know on which day success would come, cultivation still had to continue; after Zhou Shuo recovered, he kept immersing himself in the phantom, causing the thought‑seeds to grow from 365 to 730, and their quality gradually shifted—from purged yin wind to rolling warm beads, then the beads condensed into a single filament of radiance, which transformed into leaping electric arcs; though he made continual progress, the oppressive stagnant feeling within the phantom remained unbeatable.

"Huh." Zhou Shuo opened his eyes, exhaled a long breath; his sweat no longer drenched his whole body, and his entire being felt an extraordinary lightness, giving rise to a light, joyful vigor.

"If only I could bring this vigor of reality into the phantom..." Zhou Shuo sensed his state, couldn't help but feel a mix of laughter and exasperation; in the phantom he constantly suffered fear‑induced oppression, utterly powerless to resist, yet bodily conditions seemed precisely the opposite; if the two could be balanced, that would be ideal.

"Hn." Zhou Shuo pondered the reconciliation of phantom and reality, his eyes flickering slightly; the key to the fourth lightning tribulation lies in spatial property—could he, while maintaining the circulation of yin and yang qi within the phantom, also enter a meditative state and thoroughly dispel the phantom's helpless‑resistance fear aura?