Chapter 265 - 185: Ninth Layer of Qi Cultivation, On the Life and Death Platform

Chapter 265: Chapter 185: Ninth Layer of Qi Cultivation, On the Life and Death Platform

[Grade: Lower Grade Magical Treasure · Moonlight Bead] (Damaged)

[Experience: 209/200]

[Status: Upgradeable]

The Moonlight Bead gained experience much slower than the Red Flame Bead. This was likely because the moon was not as potent as the sun, and its phases waxed and waned every thirty days, causing fluctuations in the concentration of energy the Moonlight Bead could absorb.

Zhao Zuo didn’t immediately absorb the wisp of Moonlight Essence. Instead, he first tapped "Upgrade."

A familiar gray light spread out, and the Moonlight Bead itself regained its Spiritual Light. Unfortunately, fine cracks still riddled the crystal’s surface. Zhao Zuo gently injected some Mana into it to begin the Refinement of the repaired Spirit Patterns inside the Magical Artifact. He saw that the once-dim patterns had now regained their Spiritual Light.

Silvery traces formed a disc-like pattern inside the crystal. Zhao Zuo counted them—exactly thirty silver marks, which meant the Moonlight Bead could gather thirty more wisps of Moonlight Essence.

The upgrade’s enhancement was similar to the Red Flame Bead’s, slightly increasing the speed of condensation.

Zhao Zuo held the Moonlight Bead in his hand again. He injected Mana into the Magical Artifact, which enveloped the Moonlight Essence like a sphere before drawing it into his Meridians and finally to his Dantian, where a cold sensation spread out.

He casually lit the Concentration Incense beside him and quickly entered a state of deep meditation. Today, Zhao Zuo planned to attempt a breakthrough to the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining and had prepared a Vein Protection Pill in advance to prevent any accidents during the process.

In fact, he had prepared this Vein Protection Pill on the eve of his breakthrough to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, but since every breakthrough had gone smoothly, he never had a chance to use it.

The chill emanating from the Moonlight Essence wasn’t intense; it was gentle. Still, it caused hexagonal frost patterns to appear on the surface of his body, and his Meridians and Dantian were tinged with a faint, mystical blue.

Following his plan, Zhao Zuo began absorbing the Moonlight Essence. He first accumulated the converted Mana within the Meridians throughout his body, preparing for his Cultivation breakthrough. He needed to store as much Mana as possible in his body to reach the critical threshold.

As time passed, the Moonlight Essence was refined by his Mana, and the Mana within Zhao Zuo’s body approached the absolute limit his body could withstand.

He had experienced this situation many times, so Zhao Zuo was quite adept at it. Due to his exceptionally solid foundation, it was virtually impossible for his breakthrough to fail.

Therefore, without any hesitation, he began the breakthrough. Mana surged from the Meridians throughout his body... flowing toward his Dantian until it was completely full.

Immediately after, the Moonlight Essence released a powerful surge of Energy that pierced the barrier within his Dantian. Zhao Zuo felt his Mana churning like countless ocean waves, crashing against his Dantian’s walls and the bottleneck of his Realm.

Each wave of Mana brought immense force, battering the shackles of his Cultivation. He took a deep breath, calmed his spirit to focus his mind, and diligently directed his Mana to continue assaulting the bottleneck.

Because the Moonlight Essence was continuously generating more Mana, the force of the assault on the bottleneck steadily increased. Even if there were an indestructible wall within his Dantian blocking his progress, cracks would eventually appear under the relentless waves of Mana.

Zhao Zuo focused his mind again and launched a new assault. He was no longer satisfied with the Energy provided by the Moonlight Essence... and began to draw upon the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power from his surroundings, converting it into his own Mana.

After some more time, Zhao Zuo’s Mana once again reached its peak, and he charged at the barrier within his Dantian.

He knew there was no turning back once the bow was drawn. He could only stop once he shattered the barrier!

BOOM.

The Mana surged, and the barrier collapsed. A vast torrent of Mana flooded into his Dantian. In the next second, Zhao Zuo became like a black hole. The benefits of a Cultivation breakthrough were now apparent: he could rapidly absorb Energy from his surroundings to enhance himself.

Five seconds later, the Moonlight Essence was completely refined.

Six hours later, the Spiritual Power inside the Cave Mansion was suddenly depleted. Zhao Zuo’s metamorphosis was not yet complete. From here, he could only slowly absorb Mana to continue transforming his body.

This was a slow, grinding process that couldn’t be rushed.

It was said that Top Level sects had Spirit Liquid Pools to help with breaking through bottlenecks. The Spiritual Liquid was essentially liquefied Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power. During a breakthrough... it would only take a very short time to complete the body’s transformation and emerge from seclusion.

Zhao Zuo didn’t have access to such resources. He could only transform his body by Quenching it bit by bit.

「In the blink of an eye, five days passed.」

Zhao Zuo’s eyes had become brighter, as if a divine light was hidden within them. His body also emitted a faint white glow, giving him an otherworldly temperament. He seemed to be in harmony with nature, exuding an aura of peace and tranquility. His serene eyes looked as if they could see through everything in the Mortal World.

He had achieved a higher level of Cultivation, and his heart was naturally filled with joy.

Next, he just needed to fill his Dantian with Mana, and then he could begin cultivating in the Nourishing Body Realm.

At this point, there were only three days left until the duel on the Life and Death Platform.

Zhao Zuo decided to use these three days to further increase his combat strength, so he began to focus on cultivating the Golden Body Technique. Over a total of fifty-six hours, the strength of his physical body increased by another twenty-seven jin.

He was one step closer to reaching the Fifth-Layer Great Perfection of the Golden Body Technique.

On December 1st, Zhao Zuo went to the Life and Death Platform early to wait.

The Life and Death Platform was on the west side of the Inner Sect, situated on a platform at the peak of a mountain. The entire platform was several hundred meters in area, with the Life and Death Platform itself occupying only the center. It was surrounded not only by a ring of trees but also by many spectator seats.

The entire platform was paved with square black tiles, the gaps filled with a near-black substance. It looked perfectly flat overall. Due to the morning mist, the surfaces of these black tiles seemed to be coated in a layer of oil, looking incredibly smooth... and reflecting the morning light.

Zhao Zuo strode directly onto the Life and Death Platform and sat down in the center.

The Life and Death Platform itself was a huge slab of Black Stone, as if a large portion had been sliced off by a single sword strike to reveal a smooth plane. Patterns were carved along its sides, presumably to reinforce it.

Over hundreds of years on the Life and Death Platform, too many Inner Sect Disciples had settled victories and defeats, resolved grudges, and lost their lives. As a result, the surface of this massive Black Stone, reinforced by an Array, had become uneven, covered with sword marks, blade scars, and pits left by exploding Talismans.

Some of the marks were dark red, the faint traces of dried blood still visible.

Zhao Zuo found a clean spot and sat down. As expected, he didn’t have to wait long... After about ten minutes, a line of text appeared on his Identity Token.

"Meng Tianhua has challenged you to a duel on the Life and Death Platform. This is the third challenge; it cannot be refused."

"After multiple reviews by the Punishment Hall, the duel is approved. To decide life and death, and to settle all grudges."

Immediately afterward, the Bronze Ancient Bell on the upper left corner of the mountain platform began to sway, emitting a series of deep chimes. The sound traveled for several kilometers before gradually fading, ensuring everyone in the Moyun Sect’s Inner Sect could hear it. The chimes were not piercing, so they naturally wouldn’t disturb any disciples in seclusion.

Zhao Zuo stood up and gazed at the distant mountain ranges, his expression devoid of joy or sorrow.

Streaks of Spiritual Light were speeding toward the Life and Death Platform. Most were Inner Sect Disciples coming to watch the spectacle. Duels on the Life and Death Platform were extremely rare due to the rule that life and death must be decided... They typically only happened once or twice a year.

The streaks of Spiritual Light landed swiftly on the mountain platform. There were men and women... most of them young, with upright postures and an otherworldly, transcendent aura. They did not look like people from the Mortal World.

Each one was either handsome or beautiful; at a glance, it was a crowd of attractive men and women. Most wore Taoist Robes with longswords strapped to their backs, and they were sizing up Zhao Zuo on the Life and Death Platform with great interest.

"Ooh, looks like we’ve got a good show to watch."

"Yeah, but I wonder which Hall the disciples are from."

"It can’t be from the Core Heart Hall and the Earth Fire Hall, can it?"

"I heard it’s a duel between a disciple from the Earth Fire Hall and one from the Punishment Hall."

Before long, Meng Tianhua appeared below the platform. Three streaks of Spiritual Light descended from the sky. A crimson light landed and transformed into a burly man in a short shirt. A silver light became a handsome, straight-backed Sword Cultivator. The final light was pale blue, and upon landing, it turned out to be Han Qingshuang.

These three were the referees for this life-and-death duel: three Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Earth Fire Hall and the Punishment Hall.

After the three of them arrived, the chatter from the crowd below the platform noticeably quieted down...

.......

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