The green-robed woman smiled and said, "The Heavenly Spine Mountain Range has only a few hundred Purple Mansion cultivators, and I've met or at least heard of more than half of them. It's normal for me to recognize someone new like you."
Elian nodded. Despite the vastness of the Heavenly Spine Mountain Range, the lack of a mortal population to sustain a large number of human cultivators kept their numbers relatively low.
Most of the cultivators here hailed from either the Tianlu or Ji Continents.
The green-robed woman seemed about to say more but quickly composed herself, straightening her robes and sitting upright.
In the distance, a figure in long robes appeared atop the Dao platform.
"Greetings to Haoran True Monarch," everyone said in unison, bowing respectfully.
Haoran True Monarch, his expression calm, gestured for them to be seated, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.
Elian observed the True Monarch closely. He appeared youthful, no older than 27 or 28, with a jade-like countenance. His deep, profound eyes exuded an aura of majesty and authority without effort.
After glancing at the assembly, Haoran True Monarch lightly brushed his long sleeves and began speaking in a steady tone.
"Before I begin, you must understand that coming here to hear me speak ties you to my karmic cause."
"Having received this karmic cause, you must also abide by my precepts. Should you achieve success in the future, you are forbidden to commit heinous acts or deeds that harm humanity."
"My life is dedicated to slaying demons and evil. In your power, you must also strive to protect peace and contribute to the well-being of humanity."
When he finished, the crowd responded with bowed heads, "We understand."
Nodding slightly, Jiang Haoran wasted no further words and began his lecture.
Elian listened attentively and was quickly absorbed in the teachings.
Haoran True Monarch's lecture was not filled with esoteric concepts or vague metaphors like "the Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao."
It was pragmatic and straightforward, offering practical advice and wisdom.
He began with the Foundation Establishment stage, discussing how to cultivate effectively and increase the chances of breaking through bottlenecks.
He also explained methods to improve the likelihood of advancing to the Purple Mansion stage, including techniques like Chen Nianchuan's method of tempering oneself with underground fire fiends.
Moreover, Haoran True Monarch shared 17 techniques, each capable of slightly increasing the probability of a successful breakthrough to the Purple Mansion.
After a day, he moved on to cultivation techniques for the Purple Mansion stage, and Elian was captivated, experiencing moments of clarity and revelation.
Before long, the lecture shifted to methods for breaking through to the Golden Core stage.
"To achieve the Golden Core," Haoran True Monarch said, "you must unite essence, qi, and spirit. For these to unify, each must first reach perfection."
"Essence refers to the physical body and its vitality. Qi is your mana/spiritual energy. Spirit refers to the soul and divine sense."
As Haoran True Monarch spoke, Elian gradually understood the critical steps to forming a Golden Core.
To break through independently, a cultivator must cultivate their essence, qi, and spirit to perfection in the Purple Mansion stage. Only then could they hope to succeed.
The body, being the vessel of life, must be intact. A severely damaged body would leak vitality like a punctured balloon, making it impossible to fully contain essence, qi, and spirit.
During the Golden Core breakthrough, these three must be locked in perfect harmony under immense pressure to condense into a Golden Core. Any physical deficiency would render success almost impossible.
High-grade pills could repair the body, but such pills were at least fourth-rank upper-grade, costing so much that even Golden Core cultivators would feel the strain.
These pills were exceedingly rare. Many Golden Core cultivators desired them because even if their bodies were destroyed, their Golden Cores could escape and use such pills to reconstruct their physical forms.
Therefore, protecting one's body was crucial when aiming for the Golden Core stage.
A fully intact body refined to the pinnacle of the Purple Mansion stage, with robust vitality, greatly increased the chances of success.
Mana followed the same principle. Only mana refined to the peak of the Purple Mansion stage qualified a cultivator to attempt forming a Golden Core.
The purer the mana, the higher the success rate. Many Purple Mansion cultivators possessed only a single natal treasure, which, while accelerating cultivation, often left their mana inadequately refined, making a Golden Core breakthrough nearly impossible.
Cultivators with two natal treasures to refine their mana had significantly purer power and a higher likelihood of success.
The spirit—divine sense—was the most critical of the three.
Haoran True Monarch continued, "Vitality can be tempered with mana or nourished through the blood and flesh of demon beasts. Over time, it can eventually reach perfection."
"If your mana advances rapidly, the best way to strengthen your body is to cultivate a body-refining technique."
Elian took note of this. His mana progressed swiftly, but his physical body lagged slightly, requiring improvement.
"As for mana, if your cultivation keeps pace, refining it with multiple natal treasures is ideal. This greatly enhances its purity."
"If that's not an option, you can use pills like the Genesis Green Essence Pill, which increases the density of mana."
Elian made another mental note. The Genesis Green Essence Pill could expand the meridians, allowing Purple Mansion cultivators to accommodate 30% more true essence, slightly boosting their chances of a Golden Core breakthrough.
However, this pill required a thousand-year Green Essence Ganoderma as its main ingredient, a fourth-rank spiritual herb, making it a fourth-rank treasure pill.
Priced at 500,000 spirit stones each, it was unaffordable for most late-stage Purple Mansion cultivators.
Finally, Haoran True Monarch said, "The strength of your soul is the most crucial step in forming a Golden Core."
"The purer your mana, the stronger your soul must be to control it. If your soul is insufficient, it won't withstand the mana and vitality during the breakthrough, leading to mana backlash."
"To strengthen the soul, aside from rare moments of enlightenment, you must practice soul-refining techniques."
"But soul refinement depletes the soul. Excessive practice can lead to qi deviation. You must use Spirit Nourishing Pills to recover your soul and avoid harm."
After a pause, Haoran True Monarch glanced meaningfully at Elian, seemingly sensing his potential for forging a superior Golden Core.
With a hint of encouragement, he added, "The Flame Abyss in Tianlu Continent is both a perilous place and an excellent location for soul refinement."
"If you have enough Spirit Nourishing Pills, training there will yield twice the results with half the effort."
...
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