Chapter 189 - 164: Perfection

Chapter 189: Chapter 164: Perfection

After clarifying the information, Li Changsheng’s eyes lit up slightly. "To think it would be this simple," he murmured.

The heavy stone in his heart finally dropped. He immediately summoned the other insects that were on the verge of advancing.

After inspecting them one by one, Li Changsheng looked thoughtful.

The Red-winged Blood Bamboo insects he had brought from the Beast Valley all required Little Wooden Head’s sap to advance. As for the insects bred by the Insect Mother, their advancement requirements were the same as those advancing from low-grade to mid-grade—consuming their own kind.

Currently, the ones meeting the advancement requirements were still the very first batch of insects. Not counting Big Bro and Little Bro, there were eighty left from the Beast Valley, and only thirty-five bred by the Insect Mother.

"Are all the insects from the Beast Valley special, or are the ones bred by the Insect Mother special?"

Li Changsheng did not know either.

Logically speaking, the insects advancing via Little Wooden Head’s sap suffered fewer losses, which was undoubtedly better. But he couldn’t forget that they required external aid to advance.

The insects bred by the Insect Mother were different. Although they suffered tremendous losses with each advancement, their uniqueness lay in their ability to advance simply by consuming their own kind.

Both had their pros and cons; it was hard to say which was definitively better.

Li Changsheng pondered for a brief moment. Instead of letting the insect swarm advance, he turned around and returned to the wooden cabin.

The Insect Mother’s advancement had already added to the heavy burden on his Power of Heart and Mind. If the other insects were to advance to high-grade one by one, the resulting pressure would probably drive him truly insane.

Now, he finally understood why other Cultivators called those practicing the Spirit Worm Manipulation Skill madmen and avoided them like the plague. Enduring extreme mental pressure year-round caused not only mental stagnation but also physical sluggishness, affecting every aspect of a person. Over time, it would be a miracle not to go mad.

Returning to the third floor, Li Changsheng sat cross-legged on the soft couch, closed his eyes, and circulated his Spiritual Power to nourish his Spirit Veins.

Days passed one by one. In the blink of an eye, half a month went by.

The Spirit Veins, which were expected to adapt after seven days of nourishment, had taken twice as long. This was because the suppression of his Power of Heart and Mind had made his Spiritual Power circulation much slower than usual.

"Phew..." Li Changsheng slowly let out a breath of stale air and opened his eyes. With a flip of his hand, he took out a sapphire porcelain bottle, round at the top and square at the bottom. Taking a deep breath, he unstoppered it.

The Spirit Ascending Liquid was colorless and odorless, resembling a pool of viscous fluid. When shaken, the liquid did not cling to the walls of the bottle.

Li Changsheng did not hesitate. He raised the sapphire porcelain bottle and poured it into his mouth. The moment it entered his mouth, the liquid surged down his throat, accompanied by a wave of refreshing coolness, and landed directly in his stomach.

Li Changsheng set the porcelain bottle down, closed his eyes to concentrate, and circulated his Spiritual Power to digest the Spirit Liquid.

A few breaths later, a scorching heat radiated from his stomach. The sensation was similar to when he consumed the Spirit Vein Fruit. The heat flow, like a bone-scraping steel knife, surged through his nine fully opened main Spirit Veins and flooded into the unopened ones.

In an instant, Li Changsheng felt as if dozens of sharp little knives were carving out his flesh inch by inch. Waves of intense pain surged into his Power of Heart and Mind like a tidal wave, making his already groggy and sluggish mind teeter on the edge of collapse.

But he could not pass out. Once he lost consciousness, the medicinal efficacy of the Spirit Ascending Liquid would dissipate, not only rendering all his previous efforts in vain but also causing massive damage to his Spirit Veins. When that happened, who knew how long it would delay his breakthrough to the Vein Condensation Realm.

As time trickled by, Li Changsheng sat cross-legged on the soft couch with a contorted expression. His clothes were drenched, and fine beads of sweat continuously rolled down his forehead.

After an unknown amount of time, a soft "POP" echoed in Li Changsheng’s Power of Heart and Mind. His previously heavy and suppressed mind suddenly lightened.

A pale gold, densely intricate vein map appeared before his eyes, followed by a profound, inexplicably joyful sense of completion swelling in his heart.

In the outside world, an invisible vortex materialized around his body, and the Spiritual Qi drifting in the air swarmed into him.

Li Changsheng knew this was the best moment to rapidly advance his cultivation. Not daring to slack off in the slightest, he took out a Second-Order low-grade Water Rhythm Spirit Pill and swallowed it. He immediately took out the Yin Blood Jade, gripped it in his left hand, and forcefully inhaled a mouthful of the fiery Earth Fire Evil Qi. Closing his eyes to focus, he operated the Blood River Refining Yang True Skill with all his might.

The opening of his Spirit Veins allowed his cultivation to jump straight to the Qi Cultivation Eleventh Layer. His naturally gifted divine soul instantly expanded several times over, completely eradicating the pressure on his derived Power of Heart and Mind and removing all constraints when circulating his Spiritual Power.

With every Great Circulation of his Spiritual Power, his cultivation advanced by ten percent. The exhilarating sensation of his cultivation rapidly skyrocketing left him thoroughly intoxicated.

However, as his cultivation rose at a breakneck pace, his Spirit Veins began to tremble, as if they were somewhat unable to withstand the increasingly mighty Spiritual Power.

Right at this moment, the Three-leaf Mark on Li Changsheng’s glabella flashed with spiritual light, and wisps of jade-green Life Spiritual Aura diffused downward from his forehead. Whether it was the veins flowing with Spiritual Power or the blocked ones, all were coated with a pale green film.

With this layer of film, the Spirit Veins stabilized once again.

As if acting subconsciously, Li Changsheng took out Spirit Pills one after another and continuously swallowed mouthfuls of Earth Fire Evil Qi. Unfettered, the Cultivation Technique he practiced guided his Spiritual Power through circulation after circulation.

It continued until the Three-leaf Mark on his glabella dimmed, and the pale green film covering his veins shattered. Li Changsheng was jolted awake by bursts of stabbing pain from his Spirit Veins.

The invisible suction wrapping around him slowly dispersed.

"Phew..." Li Changsheng exhaled a long breath and opened his eyes.

Feeling the Spiritual Power inside him—expanded several times over, scorching hot yet hiding a Yin-cold Blood Toxin—he fixed his gaze on himself.

[Target: Li Changsheng]

[Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Eleventh Layer "73%"]

[Cultivation Technique: Blood River Refining Yang True Skill (12/12) | Traits: Blood Toxin LV1, Fire Evil LV1]

[Magic: Three-leaf Spirit Absorption Vein Map "Minor Achievement 36%" | Spirit Contract (Fragment) "Major Achievement 5%" / Golden Turtle Shield "Major Achievement 3%"...]

Looking at the wildly surged panel data, the corners of Li Changsheng’s mouth couldn’t help but curl up slowly.

Consuming the Spirit Ascending Liquid this time had not only allowed him to open all his Spirit Veins but also boosted his cultivation to the Qi Cultivation Eleventh Layer. With just a little more accumulation, he could easily reach the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer.

Moreover, his Cultivation Technique traits had undergone some changes. Nourished by his overflowing Spiritual Power, the Magic he practiced had also significantly improved.

Li Changsheng touched the Three-leaf Mark on his glabella and chuckled. "To think the Life Spiritual Aura also has this function."

If not for the Life Spiritual Aura stabilizing his Spirit Veins, his advancement from taking the Spirit Ascending Liquid would have probably stopped at breaking through to the Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer at most, jolting him awake due to his veins’ inability to withstand the rapidly expanding Spiritual Power.

"Legacies..." Regaining his senses, Li Changsheng couldn’t help but shake his head slightly.

He didn’t believe for a second that other Spirit Plant Masters were unaware of the Life Spiritual Aura’s effects. It could only be said that the Spirit Plant Masters within the sect were rather reclusive and arrogant. Even for such a superficial application, people like Lan Cai Shen and Tan Hu were actually kept in the dark.

Li Changsheng didn’t dwell on it. He was someone who had joined the sect midway through his life, so it was perfectly normal for him not to know certain secrets. His gaze then fell onto the Cultivation Technique traits. Seeing the added "LV1" text next to them, his eyes flickered.

"The Golden Finger panel moves according to my will, which means this ’LV1’ is manifested based on the memories in my mind. It didn’t have this text before because the Cultivation Technique traits hadn’t manifested. Does its appearance now mean they finally have?"

Li Changsheng looked at the slightly dimmed Yin Blood Jade in his hand, as well as the Talisman Bottle containing the Earth Fire Evil Qi, his expression thoughtful.

"Is it because of them...?" After pondering for a moment, Li Changsheng looked around, his gaze landing on the wooden table.

He walked over to it. With a slight shift in his thoughts, his Spiritual Power—scorching on the outside but concealing Yin-cold on the inside—rapidly flowed into his palm. Li Changsheng inspected his jade-like crimson palm for a few seconds before slowly pressing it down onto the wooden table.

HISS...

A wisp of blue smoke slowly rose. Li Changsheng lifted his arm and looked at the clean hole through the tabletop in mild surprise.

"Raw Spiritual Power is this strong..." he muttered. One had to know that this wooden table was crafted from century-old ironwood, making it just as hard as the Rune Hoe he had obtained from Steward Ye in the past. Yet, such tough wood was like paper maché in the face of the Blood Sun Spiritual Power.

"As expected of a Condensing Vein Realm Technique," Li Changsheng praised. Immediately after, he began testing his other Magic, one by one, using his Cultivation Technique traits.

However, this testing left him somewhat disappointed.

None of the Magic he currently practiced was compatible with his Cultivation Technique, completely failing to unleash the true might of the Blood Sun Spiritual Power. The only one that was even slightly compatible with the Blood Sun Spiritual Power was the Sharp Gold Magic. When cast, it carried Fire Evil and Blood Toxin on top of its innate sharpness, yielding impressive lethality.

Testing it on the century-old ironwood table, a gentle swipe was enough to reduce one corner of it to ashes.

As for the Golden Turtle Shield, it only gained an extra layer of Fire Evil and Blood Toxin on its exterior; otherwise, no noticeable difference from before could be seen.

However, during his experiments, he also discovered a rather interesting Magic—the Lesser Cloud and Rain Magic, which he had cultivated to major achievement.

When fueled by the Cultivation Technique’s Blood Toxin, the gathered cloud resembled a fiery sunset cloud. The rain it unleashed was a pale red, containing a trace of the Yin-cold Blood Toxin. Unfortunately, the power was far too dispersed, making it rather weak.

After experimenting for a while, Li Changsheng sat cross-legged and regulated his breathing before leisurely heading downstairs. Once his Spirit Veins adapted to the Spiritual Power, he would be able to consume a Second-Order Spiritual Pill and pile his Spiritual Power up to the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer. At that point, all that would be left was to nourish his Spirit Veins and quietly await the arrival of the Mutant Spiritual Aura.

Returning to the small courtyard, Li Changsheng walked over to Little Wooden Head. After soothing it with his Power of Heart and Mind, he extracted half a small bowl of its sap. With a slight shift in his thoughts, he summoned the insects that met the advancement requirements and issued the command to advance.

BUZZ...

Amidst a chorus of buzzing, the insect swarm split into two groups. One group, led by Big Bro and Little Bro, landed in the wooden bowl on the ground, while the other began a life-and-death slaughter among themselves.

Li Changsheng watched for a moment before turning and walking toward the kitchen. In no time, cooking smoke curled upward. The crisp sound of chopping vegetables from inside blended with the sharp, melodic jingling of Little Wooden Head’s branches, echoing out into the surroundings.

While he was making the pig feed, thousands of miles away from the Ring Mountain Spiritual Land...

Luo Fang, dressed in plain robes, and Feng Bai Mei, wearing a green Daoist Robe, stood atop a mountain peak. They gazed straight ahead with solemn expressions.

Not far ahead of them lay a misty, endless swamp. The interior was hazy and unclear, but the visible outer edges were covered in twisting, bare shrubs. Between the shrub crevices, in the mud, and amidst the weeds, various shapes and colors of insects, venomous snakes, and beasts could be seen moving about, hunting for Blood Food.

It vividly illustrated the phrase "survival of the fittest."