Chapter 525: The Cause

The matter of Body Refinement was not only because it related to the Cultivation of the Wood Undying Scripture, or because it concerned winning the favor of that one Sect senior.

It was also driven by a need Shen Changchuan himself had—

to extend the duration of the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu’s Overclocking State!

After a month of taking stock,

Shen Changchuan had easily discovered that the duration of the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu’s Overclocking State was closely tied to the strength of his own Physique.

The stronger his Physique,

the more his Dantian Meridians could withstand the violent surges of Magical Power.

In other words, they could resist the pressure from the explosive increase in Magical Power for longer, thus extending the duration of the Overclocking State!

Furthermore, a robust Physique would also enhance his defensive capabilities, giving him a greater advantage in combat.

Therefore, a Body Refining Technique was, without a doubt, extremely important to Shen Changchuan.

However, just as Shen Changchuan was about to select the first Body Refining Technique to practice from the hundreds he had obtained from the Yuqing Immortal Sect,

Senior Sister Wei came to visit.

Shen Changchuan had no choice but to go and greet her personally.

“Junior Brother, you’re truly a prodigy! To break through again in just a few short months!”

Wei Yuting said with a radiant smile upon seeing Shen Changchuan,

“Congratulations, Junior Brother, on taking your strength to another level!”

Seeing Shen Changchuan again after two or three months and sensing the aura of the Soul Emergence Eighth Layer Realm coming from him, Wei Yuting realized something.

She wasn’t the least bit surprised.

This was undoubtedly a bit strange.

After all, when they met two or three months ago, he had seemingly just broken through to the Seventh Layer Late Stage.

Now, upon seeing him again, he had already broken through to the Soul Emergence Eighth Layer.

Such speed…

In anyone else, it would be simply incredible!

But facing Shen Changchuan now, Wei Yuting somehow felt it was to be expected.

She even noticed the unusual calm within her own heart.

‘Perhaps it’s because what would be an incredible miracle for others,’

‘is just par for the course for him.’

Wei Yuting couldn’t help but sigh internally,

a sense of understanding dawning on her.

When you’ve been shocked too many times,

you naturally stop being surprised.

“You flatter me, Senior Sister.”

Shen Changchuan shook his head slightly, a wry smile on his face.

“This breakthrough was just a lucky fluke. If Master hadn’t fought to get me the opportunity at the Spirit Transformation Pool, I’m afraid it would have taken me more than three years of bitter effort to break through the bottleneck.”

He wasn’t just being humble, either.

To be honest,

he had truly underestimated the difficulty of breaking through a Cultivation Realm and overestimated his own innate talent.

He had originally believed that with his own hard work and no shortage of Cultivation Resources, breaking through from the Soul Emergence Seventh Layer to the Soul Emergence Eighth Layer within ten years would be a simple matter.

But it wasn’t until he actually reached this point,

standing on the threshold of the breakthrough, that Shen Changchuan truly understood how difficult it really was.

It was no wonder his master had looked so disappointed back when he wanted to split his focus on a Tier Two Top Level Skill.

Both were from the Seventh to the Ninth Layer,

but the Soul Emergence Realm and the Qi Introduction Realm were completely different concepts!

The difficulty involved…

The former was dozens, even hundreds of times greater than the latter!

Even now,

he couldn’t say with certainty that he would be able to raise his Cultivation to the Ninth Layer Realm in eight years, before the Immortal Sect’s grand competition began.

A hint of melancholy subsequently appeared on Shen Changchuan’s face.

“…”

Seeing the change in Shen Changchuan’s expression,

Wei Yuting was momentarily speechless.

‘Just listen to him,’

‘Is he even serious right now?’

‘It took her nearly ten years to break through from the Soul Emergence Seventh Layer Peak to the Soul Emergence Eighth Layer!’

‘And he, who only needed a “mere” three years of effort, thinks it’s a long time and is pulling a face over it.’

‘So what did that make her, who had spent ten years of bitter effort to make the same breakthrough?’

Wei Yuting didn’t know the term “humblebrag,”

but she had to admit,

she felt like he was flexing on her.

“Anyway, let’s not talk about this anymore.”

Wei Yuting had no desire to continue a conversation that would only serve to further demoralize herself.

She composed herself and changed the topic.

“Junior Brother, you sent me a Communication Talisman earlier asking about the Immortal Sect Daoist and the other powerful, noteworthy geniuses among the younger generation in the Immortal Sect, didn’t you?”

“That’s right… but it’s nothing major. I just wanted to understand the situation in the Immortal Sect a bit better. You could have just sent a Communication Talisman, Senior Sister; why come all the way in person? I’m so sorry to have troubled you.”

“The Sect’s Mountain Gate is only two or three hundred li from your Dawan Village. It’s a short walk, really. It’s no trouble at all…”

After a bit of small talk,

the two returned to the matter at hand.

As a disciple of Master Wandering Dragon, Wei Yuting had practiced Cultivation at the Yuqing Immortal Sect for many years before coming to the Tian Nan Domain. Thus, she was quite knowledgeable about the Immortal Sect’s most illustrious member of the younger generation: the Daoist.

In fact,

that particular Daoist and Wei Yuting were fellow disciples from the same cohort.

Because of this,

Wei Yuting had witnessed him fight in past competitions, back when he had not yet become the Daoist.

As for his strength,

one could only describe it as nearly invincible!

Back then, during the various monthly and annual competitions for their cohort, no one had ever been able to force him to use a second move!

Wei Yuting even heard later that while he was at the Soul Emergence Seventh Layer, he was already capable of fighting on par with ordinary disciples at the Ninth Layer Peak!

He was a being on a level that Wei Yuting and her peers could hardly imagine.

Moreover, his Cultivation Realm progressed at a frightening pace.

Compared to Shen Changchuan, his speed was by no means inferior; in fact, it was even greater!

It was rumored that in the span of ten years,

he had already advanced from the Soul Emergence First Layer to the Soul Emergence Ninth Layer.

The reason he currently remained in the Soul Emergence Realm,

was, according to rumor, because he was cultivating a world-shaking Technique. If he succeeded, it would increase his chances of advancing to the Profound Pill Realm by over thirty percent!

It was precisely because of this

that the Daoist received such serious consideration from the Immortal Sect’s upper echelons, who were even willing to organize a joint competition with the Top Level powers of several neighboring great domains for his sake.

Because,

the Daoist’s strength had long since transcended the level of the ordinary Soul Emergence Realm!

And within the Yuqing Immortal Sect,

besides the Daoist,

there were two other Immortal Sect Disciples whose strength was in a league of its own—former Daoist Disciple Candidates.

Below those two were people like Lin Wushuang, a bloodline descendant of Master Profound Pill; Deng Yingzhi; Zhu Xingyun; and others who, whether due to their lineage, background, or immense talent, also possessed strength that far surpassed ordinary cultivators at the Soul Emergence Ninth Layer Peak.

After Wei Yuting’s thorough explanation,

Shen Changchuan’s expression became incredibly grave,

and he felt an unprecedented, immense pressure.

If the Yuqing Immortal Sect alone had so many powerful prodigies,

then what about the other great domains?

‘If I just stick to the path I’ve planned for myself, I’m afraid I might not even place in the top fifty…’

Shen Changchuan’s gaze was profound,

a thousand thoughts flashing through his mind.

‘It seems,’

‘a technique similar to the Spatial Slash will have to be developed, one way or another.’