Chapter 265: Summer Insects Cannot Speak of Ice

Xu Chen was stunned for a moment, his heart filled with both shock and joy.

He had not expected that Guilingzi had been here for over seven hundred years, and that his cultivation had reached such a terrifying level.

In that case, if he were to give him the Blood God Grass directly, wouldn't he recover even faster?

However, the two had only known each other for a day; as the saying goes, one should not reveal one's wealth, and it is unwise to speak deeply with a shallow acquaintance. He was still somewhat hesitant and decided to observe for a while longer.

After all, he had too many secrets, and if they were all leaked, it would likely bring unexpected danger.

Therefore, he did not respond directly, but instead said, "I did not expect that Senior's cultivation had reached such a height. It seems our hope of leaving this place has increased a little. If we can truly return to the Mortal World, I fear Senior will be able to break through the Void and become a True Immortal!"

Guilingzi waved his hand regretfully and said, "Little Friend Xu does not quite understand the difficulty of breaking through the Void. There is a saying in the Immortal World: 'Reaching the Huashen Realm is easy, becoming an Immortal is hard.' Merely cultivating to the Spirit Soul Great Perfection is already immensely difficult, and wanting to break through the Void is even harder. In truth, breaking through the Void does not rely solely on cultivation; it requires immense opportunity and, furthermore, transcendent comprehension. There are thousands of Immortal Sects in the Shenzhou Xianjie, and cultivators in the Shenling Realm emerge one after another. Every hundred years, there are bound to be great cultivators who successfully reach the Huashen Realm, but in reality, one who can truly break through the Void and become an Immortal is hard to find in a thousand years. Ninety percent of them almost all perish after exhausting their lifespans in the Shenling Realm."

"Why is that?" Xu Chen asked, puzzled.

Although he was still a long way from the Huashen Realm, he was very clear about the cultivation realms after Spirit Transformation. After all, Spirit Transformation Great Cultivators were not an extremely scarce species; the Great Song already had five of them at present. He had not only met them all but had also spent time in relatively close proximity to them. In particular, the Great Elder, Xuanchen Zhenjun, had undergone Spirit Transformation; he had not only witnessed the Heavenly Tribulation with his own eyes, but even the Blood God Grass had been brought back by him after a narrow escape from death.

Therefore, he had always believed that breaking through the Void after the Huashen Realm should be the same as Spirit Transformation after the Danyuan Great Perfection—requiring only a certain type of breakthrough Spirit Pill and Spirit Medicine to be completed smoothly.

But looking at Guilingzi's expression now, it seemed he had thought of it too simply.

Seeing Xu Chen's stunned and surprised expression, Guilingzi patiently explained: "For a Huashen cultivator to break through the Void, the first requirement is to comprehend at least one Dao rule, and then use the power of the rule to break open the Void Soul space. Only then can one merge with the Five Elements Qi, refine the five energies, reverse yin and yang, and allow the Primordial Spirit to advance into a Yang Spirit. Yet, the rules of heaven and earth are inherently unfathomable; relying on cultivation alone is far from enough. One also needs the assistance of extremely rare Rule Spirit Objects. And these rule objects are rare in heaven and earth; they do not appear naturally, but require immense fortune to encounter."

"This junior has heard of a Void Breaking Pill; is that not effective either?" Xu Chen asked in surprise.

Guilingzi smiled bitterly and shook his head: "The Void Breaking Pill is merely an auxiliary aid outside of Rule Spirit Objects. Without comprehending the power of rules, no matter how powerful the Void Breaking Pill is, it is useless. This process is completely different from the Golden Core Spirit Transformation; the difficulty cannot be mentioned in the same breath. If the Void Breaking Pill were useful, there wouldn't be so few great cultivators who achieve the status of True Immortal."

Xu Chen finally understood, so he nodded and said, "So that is how it is. This junior's cultivation is too low, and I am indeed ignorant. However, since Senior was able to reach the Huashen Realm, your opportunity and comprehension must be impeccable, and your luck naturally cannot be too bad. Perhaps once we get out, you will soon be able to find such a Rule Spirit Object."

Guilingzi was truly caught between laughter and tears this time. He waved his hand and said, "It is still too early for this; let us not discuss it for now, otherwise I fear my Dao heart, which is on the verge of withering, will not remain stable. However, Little Friend, you possess deep fortune and opportunity; your future path of the Dao will surely be smooth. Therefore, I shall provide you with some guidance in advance; consider it a small token of my gratitude."

For the time that followed, the group slowly explored and searched everywhere within the white fog, while Guilingzi continuously spoke of various theories and techniques regarding cultivation.

He was originally a great cultivator of the Yuqing Hall, possessing an extremely rich accumulation of heritage. Furthermore, he was an extremely intelligent and gifted figure who had been able to pioneer the unique Ghost Cultivation Technique of the Ghost Pill and reach his current cultivation in the Shenling Realm; naturally, he was no ordinary person. Therefore, every sentence, and even every word he spoke, was guidance that could never be obtained in the Immortal World.

Even though Xu Chen had grown to such a level in the Taiyuan Sect, including his Master, Xuanhe Zhenren, no one had ever explained the methods and techniques of cultivation to him so carefully and patiently.

As for the various contents after Spirit Transformation, he had never heard a single word about them.

But now, Guilingzi was tireless, pouring out almost everything he had learned and realized in his life without reservation.

Although Xu Chen's cultivation was very low, his knowledge and accumulation were extraordinary. By comparing this with the knowledge he had learned in the Scripture Pavilion of the Yuqing Hall, and adding the feelings he had gained from his own constant cultivation and exploration, he verified and contrasted the three, and many of his confusions regarding cultivation suddenly became clear, giving him a sense of sudden enlightenment.

"In fact, the world is not lacking in genius cultivators, nor is it lacking in Huashen True Monarchs, but breaking through the Void is not something that can be achieved by human effort. In the final analysis, the word 'Void' is a chasm. We have always believed that the world is real—not only are the heavens, earth, and all things real, but people are also real. However, to become an Immortal, one must comprehend the 'Void.' But what exactly is the 'Void'? This is where the mystery lies, and it is what stumps all living beings."

Guilingzi was in a talkative mood today, walking with Xu Chen through the white fog while continuously lecturing on the Dao.

When he spoke of the final stage of Refining Spirit and Returning to Void, he could not help but sigh with emotion, and there was a sense of lingering melancholy that he could not let go of.

Xu Chen was naturally even more confused, his face filled with bewilderment.

Things that even a genius and great power like Guilingzi could not understand were naturally like listening to a heavenly book to him.

However, he had always believed in one thing: that brute force creates miracles. Just like how ordinary cultivators say the Void is difficult to traverse, for a True Immortal, shattering the Void and roaming the nine heavens is as simple as drinking water. When Youtong brought her flying through the Void, a single flap of her wings covered thousands or tens of thousands of miles; it relied entirely on brute force.

As for what the "Void" that Guilingzi spoke of actually referred to, Xu Chen felt he did not need to worry about it so early.

As the saying goes, when the cart reaches the mountain, there will be a road; when the boat reaches the bridge, it will naturally go straight.

Some things can only be gradually understood after reaching a certain realm.

Summer insects cannot speak of ice.

This is the massive cognitive barrier brought about by the difference in realms.

What's more, he was still in the stage of Refining Essence into Qi, which belonged to a completely different species stage than the realm of Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation—like the difference between an ant and an elephant; they could not talk on the same level at all. Forcibly trying to explain or comprehend it was just like a joke.

At present, he did not even understand what the rules of heaven and earth were, let alone Refining Spirit and Returning to Void.

However, not knowing is one thing, but Xu Chen possessed and had experienced things completely different from ordinary cultivators. He had many strange encounters, and he hid things on his person like the Blue Jade Bead and the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele—things that even True Immortals could not possess or fathom. Therefore, accumulating some advanced knowledge in advance was also very good; if he encountered them in the future, he would not fail to recognize them and let them pass by in vain, only to regret it for the rest of his life.

Therefore, Xu Chen asked: "Senior, you just said that breaking through the Void requires the assistance of some extremely rare Rule Spirit Objects, but where do these things usually appear, and what do they look like?"

Guilingzi could not help but smile bitterly: "It seems Little Friend has even more interest than I do. However, I have never seen these Rule Spirit Objects myself; I have only heard of them. The most common Rule Spirit Objects in the world are naturally the Magic Treasures left behind by True Immortals or some of their cultivation insights. However, they are extremely rare in the Mortal World. Even if they exist, they are all in some extremely dangerous places, such as the Ancient Tomb of a True Immortal, the ruins left after the great battles of ancient Immortals, or even hidden in the caves of True Immortals. To obtain them is not only full of danger, but they are also extremely difficult to find; even a True Monarch would not dare to tread there easily. Besides this, there is another even rarer existence, which is the Tribulation Crystal left behind when a True Immortal undergoes tribulation. However, the amount in existence is even rarer; it is hard to encounter in ten thousand years."

"Tribulation Crystal?!"

While Xu Chen was surprised, he suddenly remembered the strange crystals he had collected in the large pit blasted out by the Tribulation Lightning after he was inexplicably drawn into a massive blood-colored Heavenly Tribulation while using a False Golden Core not long ago.

After hesitating for a long time, he flipped his hand slightly, took one out from his golden bracelet, and handed it to Guilingzi, saying: "Senior, look, is this a Tribulation Crystal?"

Guilingzi had been shaking his head and smiling bitterly, thinking to himself that Tribulation Crystals were even rarer than the relics of True Immortals, so how could one appear in your hands? However, the moment his Divine Sense landed on what was in Xu Chen's hand, it was as if he had been struck by lightning. His body shook violently, his expression changed drastically, and he grabbed the crystal in his hand. After his Divine Sense probed slightly into it, he exclaimed: "This, this aura, it seems it re—really is a Tribulation Crystal! Where, where did you get this?"

Xu Chen said: "This was something I accidentally discovered in Minghuang. Is this really a Tribulation Crystal?"

Guilingzi was trembling all over, his face full of excitement as he said: "This aura is indeed very similar to the Tribulation Crystals I know of. It should, it should be... it is..."

"Little Junior Brother, what are you saying to Senior Guilingzi that has him so excited? Could it be that you have found the exit to the passage?"

Chen Yang's voice came from not far away, filled with surprise, and he came running over.

Wang Daolin, Lu An, and Zhong Hui also seemed to have been startled by Guilingzi's exclamation and all turned to walk toward this side.

Guilingzi hurriedly stuffed the Tribulation Crystal into Xu Chen's hand and urgently transmitted his voice: "Little Friend, you must put this away quickly. Wang Daolin's identity is not simple; he might see some clues. If we really escape, the news will inevitably leak. Once a large Immortal Sect like the Qingcheng Sect finds out, Little Friend may face a fatal disaster."

Xu Chen was naturally also very surprised and excited. He raised his hand to push the Tribulation Crystal back and transmitted his voice: "This junior's cultivation is too low, and this item is useless in my hands. Let's leave it with Senior for safekeeping for now. If Senior can make use of it, feel free to do so. Just remember to give this junior a hand when the time comes; consider it a token of gratitude for Senior's help in looking after Fourth Senior Brother and for finding the way back!"

At this time, Chen Yang and the others were already right in front of them. Guilingzi did not decline any further; he flipped his hand and stored the Tribulation Crystal into his own Magic Treasure for storage, then said with a voice trembling with excitement: "In that case, I shall keep it for now!"

"Mm!" Xu Chen nodded, then turned to look at Chen Yang, who was walking over, and held up a wild grass emitting Spirit Qi fluctuations in his hand, smiling: "I was just discussing the spirit grasses in this white fog with Senior Guilingzi, and I feel we could find a way to refine some usable Spirit Pills."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yang immediately felt deflated. He smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Little Junior Brother, you are thinking too simply. I originally learned alchemy from Master, and Senior Guilingzi is a grandmaster of the Dao of Alchemy; how could we not have thought of that? It is a pity that we have stayed here for so many years and thought of countless methods, but not once have we succeeded."

Xu Chen feigned surprise: "So that is how it is. It seems I was too self-righteous."

At this time, Guilingzi also managed to suppress his surprised and chaotic Dao heart. He waved his hand and said loudly: "It is getting late today, and we have already carefully checked every inch of this vicinity countless times. I imagine the exit will not appear so easily. Let us return as soon as possible, discuss it slowly, and come back to investigate carefully in the future!"

Thus, Chen Yang and the others all nodded in agreement, and soon the group left the white fog area.

……

(End of chapter)