Chapter 197 - 188: Metamorphosis and Ascension

Chapter 197: Chapter 188: Metamorphosis and Ascension

The path was paved with smooth bluestone slabs, covered by a thin layer of moss. The air was filled with the distinct, sharp fragrance of cypress and a fresh scent like the earth after a rain.

At the end of the path, a grand hall came into view.

The hall was built against the mountainside, its flying eaves, bracketed arches, gray tiles, and white walls appearing solemn and majestic in the faint light of dawn.

Before the hall stood two massive stone pillars, their bodies carved with archaic cloud patterns, now somewhat blurred by the erosion of wind and rain.

The hall’s doors were shut tight, yet faint wisps of white mist seeped from the cracks, as if something were slowly flowing behind them.

In the shadows beneath the hall’s eaves, a figure sat cross-legged, resembling a stone statue forgotten in a corner.

Hearing the footsteps, the figure opened his eyes. An immense pressure surged forth like a tidal wave, blanketing the area and instinctively forcing the Deacon Disciple to bow his head.

Chen Yue’s pace faltered for a moment, but he quickly recovered. Though the pressure was immense, it was not harmful.

The figure was a slender-faced, middle-aged man. His eyes held a certain detachment, born from long years of solitary watch.

His gaze fell upon Chen Yue. "Chen Yue?"

Chen Yue took a step forward and clasped his hands in a salute. "Disciple Chen Yue greets you, Uncle-Master!"

Qin Hongzhang nodded. The gesture was slight. His gaze rested on Chen Yue for a moment, his voice devoid of inflection.

"After you enter the hall, do not touch anything. Go directly to the center, sit cross-legged, and you may begin cultivating. The Fasting Pills are also ready. They are on the stone platform inside the hall. You may take one each day.

"If you require anything else, ring the bronze bell inside. I will hear it."

His speech wasn’t fast, but every word was concise and clear, as if he had uttered these instructions countless times before.

Chen Yue clasped his hands. "Yes, I understand!"

Qin Hongzhang nodded, then raised his right hand and gave a light flick in the direction of the hall.

The hall’s great doors let out a low RUMBLE. The two heavy wooden gates slowly swung inward, and a majestic aura surged out from within.

The Ten Thousand Forms Tiger Roar Golden Bell within Chen Yue began to circulate almost instinctively, automatically drawing the surging aura into his flesh and blood.

This Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was immeasurably denser than the trickle he could channel while practicing his forms in the courtyard.

Chen Yue took a deep breath and strode into the hall.

The doors slowly closed behind him with a dull thud, completely cutting him off from the outside world.

The light inside the hall was much dimmer than it had been outside. Only a few Luminous Pearls, embedded in crevices in the ceiling, cast a soft, fluorescent glow.

The air was filled with an indescribable aura—rich and gentle. It was like being immersed in a sun-warmed hot spring, putting one’s entire body at ease.

The hall’s interior was spartan. The floor was paved with a peculiar type of large stone, its surface as smooth as a mirror yet with a slightly warm, gentle feel.

The four walls were made of the same stone, devoid of any carvings or decorations, as clean as a repeatedly polished Jade Plate.

The dome arched high overhead, its apex dozens of feet from the floor, making the entire hall feel vast and profound.

In the center of the hall was a slightly sunken area, a palm’s breadth deeper than the surrounding floor. It was roughly circular, about twenty feet in diameter, and looked like a shallow basin carved out by some natural force.

Chen Yue walked to the center of the hall and stopped in the middle of the depression. He turned to face the empty hall, then sat down cross-legged.

Chen Yue closed his eyes and rested his hands on his knees. His breathing quickly became long and even.

According to Meng Yu Jin, there was no need to take any elixirs here. The surrounding Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was the best medicine of all.

The dense Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi would be more than enough to sustain his cultivation for the next three days. How much he could absorb depended entirely on his own limits; he needed no external aids.

Chen Yue first began to circulate the Vast Heart Rock Skill. An aura of Central Justice and Peace surged from his Dantian, flowing rapidly along his meridians and driving his Inner Strength to cycle endlessly.

As his Inner Strength circulated, imperceptible wisps of power touched his skin. They silently seeped into his skin, muscles, and meridians before merging with his Inner Strength.

It was the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi. Though he wasn’t actively guiding it, this subtle permeation was occurring all over his body.

Another portion of the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi found its way into his Sea of Consciousness. Like invisible wisps of wind brushing across the surface of water, it made gentle contact with his Heart Spirit.

The touch was so light it was almost imperceptible, yet it carried a tremor that made his Heart Spirit faintly quiver.

Chen Yue’s Heart Spirit still couldn’t perceive the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi. Whether it was the rarefied Primordial Qi he channeled while practicing the Ten Thousand Forms Tiger Roar Golden Bell in his courtyard or the dense Primordial Qi currently in the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform, his Heart Spirit perceived only a blank void.

He knew it was there, but he couldn’t capture it.

But the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi here was simply too dense. It was so thick that even without him sensing it, the Primordial Qi naturally seeped into his body like water into a sponge, requiring no active guidance.

Of course, since he had not opened his Innate Acupoints and had no Divine Sense to actively guide it, his efficiency at refining this Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was actually very low.

Compared to the methods of Innate Realm experts, who used their Divine Sense to channel it, Chen Yue’s current refinement was more of a passive fusion. Most of the Primordial Qi simply passed through his body, lingered briefly, and then seeped away.

Yet even with such low-efficiency passive refinement, it was still much faster than using elixirs.

It was a pity that a method like the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform, which gathered Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, was time-consuming, laborious, and resource-intensive, and thus was rarely made available.

Chen Yue circulated the Vast Heart Rock Skill for a time and could feel his cultivation increasing slowly but steadily.

The rate of growth was more gentle than he had anticipated. It lacked the distinct feeling of his Inner Strength swelling, which he experienced when taking elixirs, and was instead a more refined sensation.

He estimated that, if stretched over an entire day, the rate at which his Inner Strength grew from passively absorbing Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was roughly equivalent to the cultivation growth from refining over a dozen Nourishing Spirit Pill Yang Pills in a single day.

For other Marrow Refining Realm disciples, this was, of course, an astonishing rate.

After all, most disciples in the Marrow Refining Realm considered refining one Nourishing Spirit Pill Yang Pill a day to be quite good. Two was nearly impossible and would lead to an accumulation of unresolved Medicinal Power.

But Chen Yue could already refine seven pills a day in the outside world. If his time in the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform only amounted to the equivalent of refining a dozen or so, the return on investment felt a little low.

However, the Inner Strength cultivated here was far more condensed than that refined from elixirs, an advantage that elixirs could not match.

And the more condensed one’s Inner Strength, the greater the immeasurable benefits for solidifying one’s foundation and achieving future breakthroughs.

This was also why the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform was generally only open to those at the peak of the Refining Organ Realm, as they were the ones who most needed to re-temper their Inner Strength.

Chen Yue considered this for a moment and decided to try something new.

Without stopping the circulation of his Vast Heart Rock Skill, he instead activated the Burning Essence Technique he had recently acquired.

In the next instant, a trace of his Heart Spirit and a wisp of his Qi Blood were simultaneously incinerated within him.

The process was swift and brief, causing no discomfort. It felt more like the energy in a small area was instantly extracted and converted, becoming a burst of pure impetus that began to drive his Inner Strength to its absolute limit.

As the Burning Essence Technique circulated, some subtle equilibrium within Chen Yue was shattered. For reasons unknown, the Sword Intent in his Sea of Consciousness began to shine with increasing brilliance.

The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, which had previously just passed through his Sea of Consciousness before dissipating, now seemed drawn to something. It lingered at the edge of his Heart Spirit, forming a faint resonance with the Sword Intent in his Sea of Consciousness.

In that instant, Chen Yue suddenly perceived a trace of power around his body.

It was something he had never perceived before.

It was not wind, nor heat, nor any kind of force he could name, but it undeniably existed, right there around his body.

’Is this the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi?’

’I can perceive the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi now?’

’What’s happening?’