Chapter 637 - 505: Stone Turtle’s Transformation and Looking to the Future

The crimson cloud beneath Master Yuxiao’s feet cast a clear and dazzling spirit light in the air. He flew with the fastest speed to the heights of Sunrise Peak, his eyes wide open, searching swiftly, and soon locked onto Ji An’s position.

He dove down, his hearty laughter echoing through the mountains:

"Haha, how do you feel? Your current appearance is quite special!"

The exposed skin had noticeable burn marks, large patches of charred black had already scabbed, and areas not severely injured showed signs of peeling.

His hair had become fluffy and curly, extremely eccentric, and there were clots of congealed blood on the dead skin of his cheeks and ears.

Many of the spiritual artifacts scattered on the ground were damaged, and the bright yellow armor was dulled, with numerous armor plates destroyed.

It was obvious the disciple was not lightly injured, yet he was rejuvenated under the moonlight of Taiyin.

After a cultivator successfully breaks through, the full moon appearing in the sky is the Moon of Taiyin, unrelated to the real bright moon, manifesting only after a cultivator passes the thunder tribulation as a reward from the Celestial Dao, possessing miraculous powers.

As long as there’s no death, no matter how severe the injuries, they will mostly heal, which is quite magical.

Not only can it heal injuries, but it can also comprehensively enhance the cultivator’s body and spirit soul.

Ji An held the face armor in his hand, patted his exploded hairstyle, and grinned bitterly:

"Does every cultivator look this miserable when breaking through to the Golden Core?"

At that time, when struck by the purple divine thunder, he thought he was done for.

All methods barely offered any protection against the majestic heavenly might of the Chaos Divine Thunder. The Lifebound Magical Treasure fared slightly better, having undergone rebirth; however, the damage to other spiritual artifacts was severe. Although a mysterious force repaired some of the damage, much remained irreparable.

Master Yuxiao suppressed a laugh:

"Not at all. Your situation was quite perilous, but everything is over now. Congratulations, Junior Brother Ji."

He looked like he had rolled in a coal pile and climbed out, with only a set of white teeth remaining.

The injuries looked terrifying, but they would heal quickly.

Being called Junior Brother Ji, Ji An felt as though a lifetime had passed.

Countless images flashed through his mind until he finally howled at the sky, his voice echoing across the surrounding mountains.

Although he felt stifled in the end, he succeeded, becoming the sect’s third Golden Core cultivator.

From now on, others would call him ancestor!

Master Yuxiao could feel his intent and nodded with a smile.

Having migrated to the Western Continent for three thousand years, the sect now showed signs of great prosperity, wonderful!

Ji An solemnly cupped his hands and said:

"Senior Brother, I need to retreat and stabilize my realm; let’s talk in a few days."

His current appearance was somewhat unsightly, and he needed to heal well while stabilizing his realm.

"Alright, then let’s discuss the cultivation status of Golden Core cultivators later, Junior Brother."

...

A corner of Red Copper Mountain.

At the entrance of the grotto mansion, Zhang Yuanshan stood with his hands behind his back, seemingly gazing into the distance.

His appearance was somewhat aged, with gray hair emerging at his temples and a beard swaying in the wind.

His eyes were dreamy, his thoughts long flown to some unknown distant place.

A piercing eagle’s cry sounded, and moments later, a female cultivator in a light blue silk skirt descended:

"Senior Brother Zhang, when will you obtain the Nourishing Yuan Pill?"

Zhang Yuanshan returned to his senses, showing a forced smile at the corner of his mouth:

"Junior Martial Uncle Jia says it needs to be purchased from the Middle Continent cultivator, so it’ll take at least another five years."

Five years would still greatly affect him. Nearing one hundred and ninety years old, fortunately, he had taken a Lifespan Extension Pill in his early years, prolonging his life by over twenty years, or else his Qi and blood would likely have begun to decline.

"What about you, Junior Sister?"

Zhao Mengyao replied softly:

"Just the same as us."

A quiet awkward silence fell between the two, broken only by the wind whispering past their ears.

After a moment, Zhang Yuanshan spoke:

"Why have you come today, Junior Sister?"

"You know, Senior Brother: Ji An’s now become the sect’s ancestor and will inevitably host guests.

If we aren’t invited, fine, but if we are, what kind of gift should we give?"

Zhang Yuanshan’s mouth twitched; he had just been pondering this question too. No one would have thought that from the same starting point, the differences among a few cultivators would become so vast.

He took a deep breath and opened his arms:

"Junior Sister, come inside, let’s talk."

...

Half a month passed.

In the grotto mansion, Ji An opened his eyes and exhaled deeply. After this period of cultivation, he could now mostly control his spiritual pressure from leaking, finally stabilizing his realm.

In his chest acupoint, the Golden Core shone brightly, becoming the most crucial core of his body.

Though he hadn’t switched to Golden Core Stage cultivation techniques, the Five Elements Divine Mansion continuously produced spiritual liquid, nourishing the Golden Core.

And in the lower dantian, pale golden magic power crystals also gathered, nourishing the Primordial Life Fire.

He formed a spell to conjure a water mirror, inspecting his injuries; the formerly wounded skin had all peeled off, and the new skin had a warm, white jade-like luster.

Except for his hairstyle, everything else had returned to the way it was before.

The injuries, while appearing frightening, hadn’t harmed his essence, so they healed quickly.

Ji An released the spell to tidy his hair, soon taming the natural curls.

"Much more pleasing to the eye now," he grinned at the water mirror, dismissed the magic technique, and began assessing the gains and losses.

After breaking through to the Golden Core Stage, his physique was stronger, and his Qi and blood power were more abundant, though the exact increase wasn’t quantified.

The enhancement in spiritual strength was by thirty percent, with benefits not to be captured by mere numbers.

Now his divine sense could extend to three hundred zhang, a significant improvement, vastly reducing the divine sense consumed in drawing Tier Two Talismans.