Chapter 285: The Dao Refining Heavenly Stele

Wuqiong Dao Ren reached the twelfth layer of Foundation Establishment over twenty years ago.

Back then, to become stronger, he chose to abandon elixirs and rely solely on himself to condense a Golden Core.

Twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye.

In just a few more years, his false Golden Core would be fully formed.

But now, this false core has shattered—can you believe it?

Over twenty years of cultivation, ruined in an instant.

Once a false core breaks, one can never condense another; the only path left is to consume the 【Chaoyuan Pill】 to form a true core and endure the Tribulation.

How could Wuqiong Dao Ren accept this?

"Puh…" Another mouthful of blood spewed from his lips.

"Xu Kunlun—victorious!"

Below, the city lord's guards raised their hands and shouted loudly.

He Pingsheng had no interest in lingering; he leapt off the arena and left immediately with his belongings and companions.

All spectators surrounding the arena were stunned.

"No way… even a disciple of the Xuanyao Immortal Sect lost?"

"Aren't you supposed to be an alchemist? How are you this strong?"

"Holy shit—he one-punched him?"

"That's brutal!"

I bet he held back—if this had been a life-or-death battle, those two fools from the Xuanyao Immortal Sect would be dead!

"Puh…" Hearing himself called fools, Wuqiong Dao Ren spat another mouthful of blood.

…

"Xu Daofriend, you're incredible!" Ling Zhiwang looked at He Pingsheng with profound respect.

Previously, though he respected He Pingsheng, he'd always assumed his strength lay only in arrays and alchemy.

Yet in the cultivation world, strength is always the ultimate authority.

Now that He Pingsheng had demonstrated overwhelming power, he naturally earned respect.

As for Qiao Huizhu, she remained calm.

After all, she had once witnessed He Pingsheng instantly kill a Golden Core cultivator.

When he killed Bai Shangli, He Pingsheng had been only a Foundation Establishment second-layer cultivator.

After returning to the alchemy shop, He Pingsheng took out the 【Immortal Fruit Token】 and handed it to Qiao Huizhu: "I'm not from the Xuanyao Immortal Sect—even with this token, they might not give me the Immortal Fruit. Take it. When the fruit ripens, retrieve the 【Nanqi Fruit】 for me."

Qiao Huizhu no longer needed the Nanqi Fruit to breakthrough.

She'd give it to He Pingsheng eventually anyway.

"Alright!" Qiao Huizhu nodded. "I'll stay here and close off for a while!"

She wanted to further sense her own body, to see if she could enter the Golden Core realm by condensing a false core, rather than relying on pills.

After Qiao Huizhu entered seclusion, He Pingsheng grew bored.

He took out the 【Dao Grinding Stone】 that Mi Cangyuan had given him and casually tossed it into the Treasure Basin.

He didn't even know if it could be strengthened.

He guessed it was unlikely—its level was probably very high.

But to his astonishment—it succeeded?

After strengthening, the Dao Grinding Stone split into two.

One was black, the other purple.

He Pingsheng first picked up the black Dao Grinding Stone and sent his spiritual sense into it.

Information from the stone immediately flooded into his mind.

Name: Dao Grinding Stone

Level: Grade Three Item (Supreme).

Effect: This item requires no cultivation to use—it can polish one's own Dao methods and refine the power of cosmic laws.

He Pingsheng frowned.

This item was clearly tailor-made for Golden Core cultivators.

No wonder it could be strengthened—it was only a Grade Three item.

Even a supreme Grade Three item would be of little use to a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Yet most Golden Core cultivators cannot yet sprout a Dao root to comprehend Dao methods.

This…

Honestly, in the cultivation world, the Dao Grinding Stone was truly useless.

He Pingsheng looked disgusted: If I can't comprehend Dao methods at the Golden Core stage, what good is this thing?

Of course, for those who can sprout a Dao root and comprehend Dao methods at the Golden Core stage, its value would be immense.

Whatever. Let's see the other one.

He Pingsheng picked up the purple stone.

The purple stone was a standard rectangular prism, about three inches wide, two inches tall, and one foot long.

He Pingsheng sent his spiritual sense into it.

Information immediately surfaced in his mind.

Name: Liandao Tianbei.

Level: Grade Three (Supreme, Growable).

Effect: This item requires no cultivation to use—it can polish one's own Dao methods and refine the power of cosmic laws; when used to hone Dao methods, this treasure absorbs the power of cosmic laws and upgrades itself.

Wait…

What does that mean?

He Pingsheng drew a sharp, stunned breath.

So even though the 【Liandao Tianbei】 is currently only a Grade Three divine item, when used to hone Dao methods, it simultaneously absorbs the power of cosmic laws and grows?

That means it could one day evolve into a Grade Four, Five, or Six treasure.

So I can use it indefinitely to hone my Dao?

Perfect!

He Pingsheng was overjoyed.

He'd thought the black Dao Grinding Stone was useless—now he had one that could grow.

No longer useless—it could be used anytime, forever.

What use are the Liandao Tianbei and the Dao Grinding Stone?

Great use: when comprehending Dao methods, they can be used to hone them.

He didn't know exactly how the honing worked, but it would greatly aid Dao comprehension.

Perfect.

The key is—it requires no cultivation. Use it directly.

He Pingsheng put away the Liandao Tianbei and resumed alchemy.

Several days later, he strolled casually over to the Red Moon Trading House next door.

"Xu Daofriend?" Ling Zhiwang, seeing him, exclaimed: "Aren't you in seclusion?"

He Pingsheng gave a bitter smile: "What's the point of my seclusion?"

He gestured to himself.

He Pingsheng was now stuck at the eleventh layer of Foundation Establishment.

"Ling Daofriend… I've come to buy something from your trading house!"

Ling Zhiwang nodded: "Sure. Whatever you want—no need to browse. I'll have it brought right over."

He Pingsheng said: "Do you have a more comprehensive compendium of cultivation world knowledge? I want to read it."

He had worn out his copy of the Cultivation Miscellany.

It contained plenty of common knowledge, but not enough.

For example, the previous topics—Dao comprehension, Golden Core pathways—weren't recorded in the Cultivation Miscellany.

"We do," said Ling Zhiwang. "We have the most complete Cultivation Miscellany in existence. Wait a moment—I'll get it for you."

After a dozen breaths, Ling Zhiwang returned with a black jade slip and handed it to He Pingsheng: "This is the most complete Cultivation Miscellany in the cultivation world today!"

"If you want it, I'll give you a discount—1, 00 spirit stones."

"Low-grade!"

The price wasn't cheap, but to He Pingsheng, it didn't matter.

After handing over 1, 00 spirit stones, he rushed back to his shop.

Then he placed the Cultivation Miscellany into the Treasure Basin.

The next day, the Cultivation Miscellany split into two copies.

One was: Cultivation Canon.

The other: still Cultivation Canon.

Both books were identical, word for word.