Translator: CinderTL
Song Wen's tightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open, his gaze radiant and his inner light restrained.
His cultivation had advanced to the Late Body Integration Stage.
His spirit root had also been upgraded to ninth-grade.
This significant enhancement to his innate constitution brought an indescribable sense of lightness and clarity, as if he had shed the ancient shackles weighing him down for millennia, giving him the mystical illusion of being so light he could fly.
The surrounding heaven and earth spiritual qi had become unprecedentedly clear and vibrant. No longer did he need to exert effort to draw it in; instead, the qi seemed to possess a life of its own, radiating a natural affinity toward him.
Without conscious guidance, wisps of pure spiritual qi spontaneously gathered, seeping into his limbs and bones. As it circulated through his body, it was refined into his own magical power.
"Tsk tsk! Late Body Integration Stage! ninth-grade spirit root!" Song Wen exclaimed, his mood soaring.
However, in his sea of consciousness, Gu Que poured a bucket of cold water on his elation.
"Ji Yin, the nine grades of spirit roots are merely an artificial classification. ninth-grade doesn't represent the pinnacle. Even among ninth-grade roots, there are vast differences—gaps as wide as chasms."
The joy on Song Wen's face instantly froze.
"Senior Gu Que, what do you mean by that?" Song Wen's voice carried a hint of displeasure, suspecting the elder was deliberately trying to dampen his spirits.
"The gap between geniuses is even greater than the gap between geniuses and ordinary people," Gu Que said.
"Senior, are you saying I still need to find ways to improve my innate talent?" Song Wen asked.
"Not necessarily. I'm merely speaking from experience. Your current spirit root aptitude is already sufficient. If you ever advance to the Tribulation Crossing Stage, each successful passage through a heavenly tribulation will temper your innate talent, causing it to spontaneously sublimate until you shed your mortal form and attain the 'Immortal Foundation Dao Bone'," Gu Que explained.
"Immortal Foundation Dao Bone..." Song Wen murmured to himself.
Gu Que's voice carried a hint of distant melancholy as he continued, "Indeed. It represents the pinnacle of mortal innate talent and serves as the cornerstone for unlocking the immortal gate. Only with the Immortal Foundation Dao Bone can one bear and refine Immortal Essence Power."
Despite the mystical aura surrounding this "Immortal Foundation Dao Bone," Song Wen felt little inner turmoil.
Firstly, discussing such matters was premature. He was currently only at the Late Body Integration Stage, with the Tribulation Crossing realm remaining as distant and elusive as a mirage.
Progress must be made step by step. Dwelling on such distant and ethereal concepts would only disturb his tranquility and disrupt his Dao Heart.
Secondly, since the Immortal Foundation Dao Bone would automatically manifest upon successfully crossing a heavenly tribulation, there was no need to waste mental energy on it.
Ignoring Gu Que, Song Wen shifted his attention to the entire mountain valley.
The scorching heat released from Song Wen's body during his spirit root enhancement had completely transformed the surrounding landscape.
All the pavilions nearby had been reduced to ashes.
The distant Spirit Fields were parched and cracked, stretching across miles of barren red earth, their spirit grass withered and dead.
Only the White Jade Palace remained intact within the entire mountain valley.
"How did all the spirit grass die?" Song Wen's lips twitched slightly.
Though the spirit grass here wasn't particularly rare, its sheer quantity made it worth at least several hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones. Its destruction was truly a pity.
Song Wen had never imagined that consuming the Yaoguang Lotus could cause such widespread devastation.
Since Rong Shu had died here, Song Wen had no intention of lingering. He rose into the air, preparing to leave.
As his peripheral vision swept over the White Jade Palace below, he paused momentarily.
With a wave of his hand, he unleashed a gust of wind that slammed open the palace gates.
Inside lay a group of beautiful women sprawled haphazardly on the floor.
The gust of wind swept through the open gates and into the palace.
The women on the floor stirred and slowly regained consciousness.
They had merely been overwhelmed by Song Wen's overwhelming aura and fallen unconscious; their divine souls remained unharmed.
Without lingering, Song Wen left the mountain valley and swiftly departed.
Ten years later.
Song Wen, his cultivation realm now firmly established, arrived at a desolate, lifeless land.
This region stretched for a million miles, yet it harbored no signs of life. Only occasional gusts of yin wind swept across the petrified ground, stirring up a few grains of sand.
This place was known as the Howling Wind Plains, a natural gathering point for yin energy.
The Howling Wind Plains remained shrouded in yin energy year-round. While the concentration wasn't enough to disrupt Song Wen's senses as a Body Integration Stage cultivator, it did dim the light, leaving the area perpetually shrouded in darkness.
Deep within the Howling Wind Plains, the Rong Clan maintained an exceptionally unique operation: the Blood Fiend Abyss, dedicated solely to refining various malevolent qi for the clan's use.
The Blood Fiend Abyss was of paramount importance to the Rong Clan, and thus, at least two Body Integration Stage cultivators were stationed there year-round.
Before her divine soul was devoured, Rong Shu had revealed to Song Wen that among the two Body Integration Stage cultivators currently stationed at the abyss, one was named Rong Yiwen. A mid-Body Integration Stage cultivator, Rong Yiwen practiced the Corpse King Blood Refinement Art.
Song Wen flew low, skimming the barren ground and following its contours.
Suddenly, he halted his escape light and landed at the foot of a low earthen hill.
The Blood Fiend Abyss lay approximately five thousand miles ahead.
Song Wen's divine sense could already probe the outer edges of the abyss, but he couldn't grasp its full extent.
The Blood Fiend Abyss spanned over two thousand miles in width, sunken deep into the earth like a dried-up lakebed.
Song Wen's divine sense remained firmly locked onto the entrance of the Blood Fiend Abyss.
A towering hundred-zhang archway stood at the entrance, yet no one entered or exited, rendering the dozen or so guards stationed outside seemingly redundant.
"Shadow Void, are there any other entrances to the Blood Fiend Abyss?" Song Wen asked within his sea of consciousness.
"No, this is the only entrance," Shadow Void replied.
"If there's only one entrance, why is there no traffic?" Song Wen didn't voice the question aloud, but his brow furrowed in thought.
After a moment's contemplation, Song Wen decided against directly attacking the entrance simply because it was guarded by a Body Integration Stage cultivator. Rong Shu had mentioned that the Blood Fiend Abyss's defensive array was formidable, capable of repelling even early-stage Great Ascension cultivators.
To meet Rong Yiwen, only two paths remained: either lure him out or wait patiently for him to emerge on his own.
Song Wen had no intention of waiting long.
Suddenly, a figure materialized beside him, identical in appearance and even aura to Song Wen himself—the Cosmic Transformation Incarnation.
Several deep, bloody gashes marred the Incarnation's chest, exposing bone. A sinister chill emanated from the wounds, preventing the blood from clotting and continuing to invade its internal organs, leaving the Incarnation teetering on the brink of death.
Song Wen summoned the Blood Sea Seal and had the Incarnation swallow it whole.
Immediately afterward, the Cosmic Transformation Incarnation soared into the air, flying toward the entrance of the Blood Fiend Abyss.
"Who goes there? Retreat immediately! The Blood Fiend Abyss is a private domain of the Rong Clan, forbidden to outsiders."
Among the guards, a Peak Void Refinement cultivator had long since detected the Cosmic Transformation Incarnation. Instead of raising an alarm, he waited for the figure to approach before bellowing his warning.
Simultaneously, the other guards activated their mystic treasures, poised for action.
"Is this the Rong Clan's Blood Fiend Abyss? I am Fan Kang, a core disciple of the Divine Blood Gate, gravely wounded and in urgent need of a secure place to heal. Open the restriction immediately and grant me entry. Saving this venerable one would be a great service."
Though ostensibly pleading for help, the Cosmic Transformation Incarnation's words carried an air of imperious arrogance.
Upon learning that he was a core disciple of the Divine Blood Gate, the guards' icy demeanor instantly vanished.
The guard captain stepped forward with a fawning expression.
"Young master, forgive my audacity, but how can you prove your status as a disciple of the Divine Blood Gate?"
The Cosmic Transformation Incarnation glanced at the guard captain with disdainful mockery.
"You are unworthy of demanding proof from this venerable one. Summon your steward at once."
The guard captain choked, glancing uneasily at the young master, who was also at the Void Refinement Stage.
"Young master, please understand that I cannot summon the two elders without prior authorization."
"Useless trash!" The Cosmic Transformation Incarnation kicked the guard captain's leg, sending him crashing to his knees.
(End of the Chapter)
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