Qin Renhuang just became an immortal, and you told me this is the prehistoric time

"No wonder cultivators in this realm are often so powerful in battles between people of the same level."

Ying Xuan understood.

However, he quickly suppressed his joy and returned to calm thinking.

"Although physical cultivation is powerful, looking across all the worlds, it seems that most of the worlds I have traveled through are still focused on cultivating the primordial spirit and comprehending the great Dao of heaven and earth. Worlds like Shrouding the Heavens, which develop the physique to the extreme, are truly rare."

Ying Xuan weighed the options in his mind.

"In the long run, the Great Dao of the Primordial Spirit, communicating with the laws, and comprehending the universe are still the fundamental paths to pursuing eternal transcendence. The physical body can serve as a vessel to protect the Dao and solidify the foundation, but the main direction of cultivation should not be easily changed."

Therefore, even though his physique might be greatly enhanced by cultivating the Heaven-Covering Technique, Ying Xuan did not intend to change his usual fighting style.

He would still primarily rely on his primordial spirit to mobilize the power of heaven and earth and unleash exquisite Daoist techniques, with his formidable physique serving more as a last resort and a guarantee of survival. Therefore, although he knew the power of the "Nine Secrets" and other combat techniques that Ye Fan might possess, he did not harbor any intention of forcibly seizing them.

Those are more about skills and explosive techniques, which are not the same as the "fundamental path" he pursues.

Having experienced the wonder of opening up the Sea of ​​Bitterness, Ying Xuan did not continue to delve deeper into the Sea of ​​Wheels Secret Realm.

With a sudden thought, he shifted his attention to another important matter.

With a wave of his hand, the "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Formation" that enveloped the island and isolated it from the outside world instantly began to shimmer. One hundred and eight array flags appeared from the void, rapidly shrinking and gathering, finally transforming into a palm-sized, emerald-green, warm jade tablet with what seemed like a vast expanse of surging waves inside, which fell into his palm.

On the jade tablet, stars dotted the surface, subtly corresponding to the numbers of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Fiends, radiating mysterious and unpredictable spatial and stellar fluctuations.

Ying Xuan's purpose in cultivating the Heaven-Covering Technique this time, besides wanting to strengthen his physique and explore more mysteries of the physical body, was also for this "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Formation"!
This formation was personally crafted by him and continuously nurtured with his own primordial spirit. It incorporated a portion of the spatial essence of the Void Heaven Palace and the national fortune of the Great Qin Dynasty, making it a top-tier formation. It was already connected to his mind and spirit, and could be considered one of his "natal magic treasures." Its power was vast, its potential limitless, and it could absorb enough resources at any time to completely transform into a true immortal artifact!
If the Void Heaven Cauldron didn't possess irreplaceable strategic value for the continued development of the Great Qin, he would have already integrated its essence into this formation to help it complete the final leap.

In this realm, besides the "Thousand-Silk Brocade Robe" that combines protection and concealment, the only true magical treasure he carries that can serve as his core combat power is this "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Formation." This formation integrates offense and defense, and is particularly adept at trapping enemies, teleporting, and sealing space. The power it unleashes in his hands far surpasses that of ordinary Heavenly Treasures.

In addition to its unique body-refining system, the world of Shrouding the Heavens also has its own unique aspects in the realm of "magical treasures." Cultivators in this world often spend their entire lives and resources refining one or more "natal magical treasures."

These magical artifacts are intertwined with their owners' lives and cultivation. As the owners' realm advances, they are constantly nurtured and refined with their own Dao principles and divine power. This not only enhances the material and spirituality of the artifacts, but also imprints the owners' understanding of the Great Dao, their own "Dao" and "Li" on them, making the artifacts an extension of their own Dao, with immense power and ease of use.

Now that Ying Xuan has come to this realm, he naturally does not want to miss this excellent opportunity to strengthen his natal magic weapon!

"Using the power of the Bitter Sea Divine Artifact, combined with my own Great Dao, I nurtured and refined my natal magic weapon, making it more compatible with myself and imprinting it with my own 'Dao' and 'Principle'..."

A glint of light flashed in Ying Xuan's eyes, and he had already made his decision.

He formed hand seals, and a series of complex and profound incantations were projected like streams of light into the shimmering jade tablet in his palm. The jade tablet shone brighter and emitted a soft hum, as if responding to his call.

Immediately, Ying Xuan's mind sank into the sea of ​​bitterness, guiding the power of that newly opened and still surging sea of ​​bitterness, as well as the refined and abundant life essence within it, to slowly emerge from his dantian, transforming into a crystal-clear and dazzling torrent that enveloped the jade tablet!

"melt!"

Ying Xuan let out a low shout, and the jade tablet, which was enveloped by the torrent of life essence, transformed into a stream of emerald light. Following the path he guided, it suddenly entered his dantian and plunged directly into the newly opened sea of ​​bitterness!

"boom--!"

Like a giant rock thrown into a calm lake! The jade tablet formed by the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Formation triggered a violent reaction as soon as it entered the Sea of ​​Bitterness!
The pure and vast life essence from the sea of ​​suffering, as if finding an outlet, surged wildly towards the jade tablet, attempting to cleanse, nourish, and imprint itself according to the methods recorded in the Daoist scriptures for nurturing one's natal treasure. The jade tablet accepted everything without reservation, like a bottomless pit, greedily absorbing this life essence.

However, a problem immediately arose!
The essence of this "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Array" is truly too high! It is not made with ordinary materials of this world, but rather it integrates the spatial origin of the Void Heaven Palace, the national fortune of the Great Qin Dynasty, and the stellar space Dao that Ying Xuan himself comprehended. Its materials and structure are close to the level of immortal artifacts! Its size is also enormous, consisting of one hundred and eight core array flags and countless derivative runes, equivalent to a super-large composite magic weapon.

When an ordinary cultivator first enters the Sea of ​​Wheels, their Sea of ​​Bitterness has just been opened, their life essence is limited, and the natal magic treasures they nurture are mostly in their infancy or of low grade. But as soon as Ying Xuan's formation entered, the "nutrients" it required and the "Dao principles" it carried instantly exceeded the normal capacity of his newly opened Sea of ​​Bitterness!
Ying Xuan's expression changed slightly, and he immediately sensed something was wrong. The life essence in the Sea of ​​Bitterness was being frantically extracted by the formation, at a speed far exceeding the normal state described in the Daoist scriptures for nurturing one's natal magic weapon!
What's more troublesome is that the material of the formation itself is too high. The life essence that the Bitter Sea has initially tempered is unable to produce an effective "nurturing" and "imprinting" effect on it in a short period of time. Instead, it is more like a one-sided "consumption"!
"Is it because the formation wasn't made with materials from this world, making its essence too high and its 'affinity' with the power of the Bitter Sea insufficient? Or is it because my Bitter Sea has just opened, and although the 'quality' of my life essence is pure, its 'quantity' and 'exclusive characteristics' are not enough to shake this formation that is close to a celestial artifact?"

Ying Xuan's mind raced, and he instantly understood the key point.

The simplest solution to the current situation is to immediately sever the connection between the formation and the Sea of ​​Bitterness and remove it from the Sea of ​​Bitterness.

After all, the formation had only just been installed and hadn't fully integrated with his understanding of the Heaven-Covering Technique. Disconnecting would cause some backlash, but it wouldn't be serious. Afterwards, he could follow the orthodox methods of this realm, gather suitable materials, and reforge a more suitable natal magic weapon. This thought had barely formed when Ying Xuan's gaze suddenly hardened, directly rejecting this "safe" option!

"Reforge your natal magic weapon?"

Ying Xuan sneered inwardly.

"That means the newly crafted magic weapon will replace the 'Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Formation' and become my new natal magic weapon. But am I confident that I can upgrade a new magic weapon to the current power level of the 'Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Formation' in a short period of time?"

The answer is obviously no.

The conditions for creating the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Formation are extremely demanding. It requires a massive amount of rare materials, a natural foundation of star formations, and a full 108 living people with special aptitudes who are "corresponding to the celestial stars" as the core of the formation. It took many years to finally take shape.

It also incorporates the spatial mysteries of the Void Heaven Palace and the national fortune and dragon energy of the Great Qin Dynasty. Such an opportunity is rare and hard to come by; he has absolutely no chance of replicating it in a short period of time.

Abandoning the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Formation and choosing a new magic weapon far less powerful as one's natal item? In this world of Shrouding the Heavens, where powerful figures abound and dangers lurk everywhere, it would be tantamount to cutting off one's own arm, and one's strength would be greatly diminished!

What makes him capable of dealing with potential dangers? What makes him capable of coveting the resources of this world? Relying solely on his incompletely transformed pure Yang primordial spirit and the unfamiliar Heaven-Covering Dao techniques? The risks are too great!
Moreover, he was currently on a deserted island where the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was pitifully thin.

Most of the Earth's spiritual energy has been absorbed by Kunlun's "Ten Thousand Dragons Paying Homage" formation to nourish the ruthless elder brother, leaving him unable to obtain effective replenishment from the outside world.

Once he chooses to disconnect, the enormous life essence he just consumed will be wasted, and his condition will also be damaged.

There is no turning back, only moving forward!

Ying Xuan's eyes sharpened as he made his decision. Since conventional nurturing methods were inefficient due to the high quality of the magical artifact, and might even lead to "indigestion," then he would use a more aggressive and domineering approach!
"Since you have such a big appetite, then I'll let you eat your fill! If you can't finish, I'll force you to eat! I'll stuff you until you can digest it, until you bear my mark!"

Ying Xuan no longer hesitated and completely released the constraints on his own life essence! He sank his mind into the deepest part of his body, not only mobilizing the life essence already present in the sea of ​​suffering, but also directly stimulating the endless life energy and accumulated spiritual power hidden in every cell of his body, and even... attracting the precious wisps of pure yang energy swirling around his primordial spirit!
"Boom—!"

Like a river bursting its banks, a tsunami surging forth! Immeasurable life essence, cellular spiritual power, and even pale golden pure yang energy transformed into an unprecedented torrent, pouring into the sea of ​​bitterness with even greater ferocity and recklessness, rushing toward the "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Grand Array" jade tablet that was like a black hole swallowing everything!
Ying Xuan's face turned pale at a visible speed, and his breathing became unstable.

This kind of consumption is simply overdrawing the source of life and the foundation of the primordial spirit! If it weren't for his terrifyingly profound foundation, any other powerful being in this world who dared to act so recklessly would probably be drained into a dried-up corpse and have their Dao foundation destroyed in an instant!
"Refine it for me!"

Ying Xuan gritted his teeth and roared, doing his best to maintain the connection between his mind and the formation, guiding this terrifying torrent, and according to his profound understanding of the formation's structure and his initial comprehension of the "Dao" and "Li" of the Heaven-Covering Technique, he forcefully impacted, refined, and imprinted it!
The jade pendant trembled violently in the sea of ​​suffering, emitting a hum that seemed to be unable to bear the weight, and even fine cracks began to appear on its surface!

But soon, under the endless flow of high-quality energy, the cracks were quickly repaired, and the jade pendant's light became brighter and brighter. The blue waves inside rippled more and more rapidly, and one hundred and eight points of starlight could be vaguely seen floating and twinkling within, echoing Ying Xuan's primordial spirit!

It was like a thrilling tug-of-war and forging process.

Using his vast accumulated knowledge as fuel, the Bitter Sea as a furnace, and his will as a hammer, Ying Xuan forcefully imprinted this extremely high-quality "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Formation" with his own life imprint, which incorporated the concept of body tempering in the "Covering the Sky"!
After an unknown amount of time, when Ying Xuan felt a faint emptiness throughout his body, and even the pure yang energy around his primordial spirit dimmed considerably, the dramatic changes in the Sea of ​​Bitterness finally brought a turning point!

The jade tablet seemed to have reached a critical point, and suddenly burst forth with dazzling brilliance! The jade tablet completely dissipated, transforming into one hundred and eight orbs of light of varying sizes, all shimmering with the light of stars and blue waves, which arranged and rotated in the Bitter Sea according to the positions of the Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiends!
Immediately afterwards, these 108 orbs of light, as if having found their home, slowly sank down and finally landed in the core and bottom of the Bitter Sea, taking root firmly! They were connected by their energy, and starlight and blue waves intertwined, faintly constructing a miniature, more stable and profound "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiend Formation" in the core of the Bitter Sea!
At the same time, a purer, more refined life essence, as if it had undergone countless trials, gushed forth from a tiny spring that had just been forcibly created at the center of these 108 "array base islands"!
This newly generated life essence is of a higher quality than the one Ying Xuan injected before. It carries the vastness of stars and the agility of space, and quickly feeds back to his body's cells, which are slightly "dried up" due to excessive consumption, along some mysterious path!

"It's done!"

Ying Xuan suddenly opened his eyes, a trace of fatigue flashing in them, but more than that, an overwhelming sense of relief and joy!
He won his gamble! With a near-self-destructive, crazy dedication, he managed to initially refine the massive magic weapon "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends Formation," which was close to a celestial artifact, into the Bitter Sea, establishing a deeper connection with it. He also successfully used the divine power of the Bitter Sea and his own Great Dao to perform the first and most difficult "imprint" on it!
Although the process was extremely dangerous and costly, the rewards were astonishing. The formation successfully took root in the core of the Bitter Sea, which not only means that it can be continuously nurtured and strengthened as the Yingxuan Wheel Sea Secret Realm improves, but more importantly...

Its connection with Ying Xuan's physical body has become incredibly close, almost becoming an extension of his body. It will be easier to use, and its power may undergo unexpected changes.

More importantly, the purer life essence that was being fed back was rapidly repairing his depletion and seemed to have subtly improved the nature of his cells.

However, the changes are not over yet.

Just as Ying Xuan breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to recuperate, the spiritual root light clusters around his primordial spirit, which were condensed in the world of Mortal Cultivation and represented different attribute laws, seemed to be attracted by the new formation in the Sea of ​​Bitterness. They actually broke away from his primordial spirit on their own, fell like meteors, and plunged into the Sea of ​​Bitterness, heading straight for the one hundred and eight formation base islands!

What surprised Ying Xuan even more was that the Bitter Sea seemed to possess its own sentience, spontaneously absorbing the extremely sparse fragments of laws scattered throughout the surrounding world and merging them into these spiritual root light clusters. The replenished spiritual root light clusters, as if injected with vitality, leaped and flickered joyfully within the Bitter Sea, finally imprinting themselves into their corresponding "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiend Array Base Islands"! (End of Chapter)