Grandpa, times have changed.

Chapter 659 Closer to Perfection

From the moment Gu Xingyun appeared until the brief moment he inquired about the principles of the Cleansing Technique, the remaining six threat detection puppets had already completed the analysis of the distribution of spiritual energy throughout Lingyun Mountain.

Lingyun Mountain itself is actually a pagoda-shaped magical artifact.

The exterior was covered by thirty-two interconnected arrays, which locked away the vast spiritual energy sealed inside.

Each of these grand formations is exquisitely crafted, with each element intricately linked to the next, and their complexity even surpasses that of some formations in the Tai Xuan Realm.

According to the feedback, the observed psionic reactions alone exceed those of a cultivator in the early stages of the Void Returning Realm.

This does not rule out the possibility that there are more complex and sophisticated formations built inside the mountain, locking away even more spiritual energy.

But without a doubt, the mastermind behind the disappearance of the extraordinary beings in this world is right here.

That's why Chi Jiuyu didn't hesitate to slash his sword to the side, trying to destroy the great formation here and force out the real mastermind.

That's right!

The Gu Xingyun before us is not real; it is merely a projection of the grand formation.

Although the projection itself was very realistic, and most Nascent Soul cultivators could be fooled by it, the unusual spiritual energy reaction on his body still did not escape the detection of the six miniature reconnaissance puppets.

After all, cultivators in the Tai Xuan Realm began studying the essence of 'spiritual energy' a long time ago. The combined achievements of countless high-level cultivators led to the development of the 25th generation 'Supreme' Spiritual Source Detection System that Chi Jiuyu is currently using.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it's an absolute crushing victory in terms of technology.

Not to mention she still had the Void-Piercing Golden Eyes she hadn't used...

The place where the longsword touched was clearly empty, yet strangely, visible 'wrinkles' spread outwards from the point of contact.

It was as if a taut curtain had been punctured and was now caved inwards.

"break!"

A layer of white light shone on the blade, and the pure killing intent tore through everything the sword touched!
Stab~!

With a sound like cloth being torn, the entire Lingyun Mountain visibly twisted, and the clouds and mist trembled.

This sword strike was incredibly skillful, hitting precisely the weakest point in Gu Xingyun's formation, forcibly stopping the entire formation from functioning with minimal energy expenditure.

Boom!
With a muffled thud, a portion of the spiritual energy that had been sealed off by the formation was released as the formation stopped, transforming into a pale golden ring that spread out from the mountaintop, sweeping away the dark clouds in the sky.

The vegetation and wild animals on the mountain began to undergo subtle changes under the nourishment of the scattered spiritual energy.

This peculiar scene was also witnessed in Tongyun Prefecture, two hundred miles away.

Many people even thought they had witnessed a divine intervention and began to kneel down and pray.

Even the weakened world, having long been nourished by spiritual energy, suddenly burst forth with a faint yearning.

A mysterious blessing descended upon Chi Jiuyu, who had broken through the great formation.

Congratulations! World's Blessing +10%

[Note! When the world's favor reaches 100%, you will unlock the title 'Spirit Cloud Heavenly Emperor', gain the friendship of this world, and be rewarded with 1 Ascension Point.]

[Current global fortune: 10%]

Lingyun Heavenly Emperor?

That sounds awesome!

But the reward of only 1 Ascension Point is too stingy!
The sudden notification made Chi Jiuyu mentally complain a couple of times.

She quickly suppressed any unnecessary thoughts in her mind and focused on dealing with Gu Xingyun in front of her.

The projection of the grand formation had become somewhat blurry due to the influence of her sword strike.

Strangely, Gu Xingyun not only didn't stop her just now, but now he's looking at her with great interest, a hint of greed showing in his multicolored, glassy eyes.

“Fun and interesting!”

He clapped his hands and sighed, his words still devoid of any extraneous emotion, only curiosity and amazement.

"My 'Thirty-Two Heavenly Net Spirit Locking Formation,' which I created over several months based on the Xuanling Sect's protective formation, was actually broken by your sword with a single strike."

"Wonderful! Wonderful!!"

"Fellow Daoist, your sword strike was exquisite and truly captivating. May I ask if you could explain the underlying principles to me?"

Although it was a question, Gu Xingyun still maintained his superior attitude.

"In return, I can grant you a quick death," he said earnestly.

"..."

Oh shit!

This guy can show off even more than I can!

Chi Jiuyu felt a surge of anger.

"Wonderful! Wonderful my ass!!!"

森！
A straight line of white light shot out, piercing and shattering the projection of the great array.

After unleashing this sword strike, Chi Jiuyu ascended to a high place, gathered his magical power, and stomped his foot down!
The surrounding mountains, rivers, and streams of Lingyun Mountain, along with the spiritual energy that had just dissipated from the entire Tongyun Prefecture, converged with her as she lifted her foot and crashed down.

When times come, heaven and earth all work together!
boom!
The impact, which could be seen directly, was like a torrent, like a celestial river surging and pouring down on Lingyun Mountain.

The grass and trees snapped, mud and bricks flew high into the air, and the entire mountain trembled violently because of her step, as if it would break at any moment.

But in the end, Lingyun Mountain stubbornly persevered.

However, the grass, wood, mud and stones that had accumulated on the tower over the years were all swept away by this one step.

Only one towering structure, with 108 stories, its entire body a pale gold color and covered in runes, remains standing silently amidst the devastation around it.

Because some of the previously sealed spiritual secrets had been leaked, a large hole was torn open in the sky.

Bright sunlight streamed down, illuminating the tower and refracting into rainbows.

Chi Jiuyu was also somewhat surprised.

She only did this because she couldn't stand that guy's arrogance, so she thought of kicking him while he was down, and also planting a few sword energies in there, so that she could use them to trick him if necessary.

But the power unleashed by that step truly exceeded her expectations.

With a single thought, the energy of the entire prefecture surged forth, as if the whole world were actively cooperating with her.

This was a feeling she had never had before!

"Excellent! Excellent! Although blessed by the power of heaven and earth, your step is still quite remarkable, fellow Daoist! Wonderful! Wonderful!"

Gu Xingyun's voice came from the tower, but even after witnessing this terrifyingly powerful stomp, he remained calm and composed.

"Given the many surprises you've given me, fellow Daoist, how about I let you choose your own way of dying?"

"..." After a moment of silence, "Fuck you!"

Even the mighty Nine Fishermen Ancestor, the number one genius in all the heavens and myriad realms, had never met someone so good at putting on airs!

If I don't kill you today, I, the Nine Fishermen Ancestor, will let you sit on the throne as the 'Spirit Cloud Heavenly Emperor'!

"Four Symbols Annihilated! Slay!"

In an instant, the four symbols were born and returned to nothingness, transforming into a four-symbol destruction sword wheel that crashed down on the towering pale golden pagoda.

……

……

The interior of the tower.

Inside the magnificent golden hall, a perfectly elegant figure sat on a pure white throne.

He wore a magnificent long robe, his hair was tied up with a jade crown, and his eyes were like glass, displaying seven colors, with a six-sided amethyst between his brows shining brightly. It was Gu Xingyun.

At this moment, a light screen appeared in front of him, showing the Four Symbols Annihilation Sword Wheel that was attacking the tower.

He stared intently at the sword wheel, eagerly analyzing its principles and absorbing its extraordinary information.

Brand new, never-before-seen, extraordinary information from a higher level!
If we can fully digest the extraordinary information that this fellow Daoist knows and make it even more perfect, perhaps the ritual can succeed?

"She was blessed by the world."

A slightly complicated voice came from ahead.

Another figure emerged from the shadows in front of the hall, dressed exactly like Gu Xingyun, and even their appearance was identical.

However, a hint of 'humanity' appeared in those seven-colored eyes.

"The counterattack of a dying wild dog is nothing to fear," Gu Xingyun said calmly from his throne.

The Spirit Cloud Realm itself was severely damaged when it was opened back then, and even most of its world origin was extracted by him.

The blessing power that can be given now is not even enough to support a half-god-level being.

"What, you seem unable to accept it?" Gu Xingyun on the throne looked at the 'Gu Xingyun' in front of the hall.

"I just have mixed feelings."

Gu Xingyun, standing before the hall, looked at the images on the light screen and recalled the time when he was still the "Child of the World".

There was a time when he also thought about saving this cruel world where people lived in misery and were treated like dirt.

The result was...

What's wrong with the world today?

Another 'Gu Xingyun' stepped out, dressed in a completely different black robe, with a cold expression and a pair of crystal-clear, multicolored eyes devoid of any emotion.

"..."

Humanity·Gu Xingyun sighed softly and said nothing more.

Seeing this, Gu Xingyun in black did not pursue the matter further, but instead looked at the real Gu Xingyun on the throne.

"This batch of molds has been completed, but 90% of them did not meet expectations. Only three sets of molds met the requirements, and one set exceeded expectations."

"Oh?"

A hint of surprise flashed in Gu Xingyun's eyes.

There were molds that exceeded expectations?

"I gonna go see."

He took one last look at the light screen, then got up and walked outside.

At this intensity of attack, the Xuanling Tower can probably withstand it for another three minutes.

While we have this time, let's go take a look at that set of molds that exceeded our expectations.

……

……

Deep within the Xuanling Tower.

It sits a dark red mountain of flesh, with thick blood vessels distributed on it, pulsating as the mountain trembles.

A streak of seven-colored light suddenly appeared, transforming into its true form, Gu Xingyun.

Ignoring the bizarre scene before him, he walked directly toward the crack in the mountain of flesh, following the passage all the way to the depths of the mountain.

Finally, he arrived at a spacious and brightly lit special incubation room.

The ground beneath your feet is not paved with bricks or stones, but rather a flexible, elastic carpet of flesh.

Inside the arched space, dark red filaments resembling muscle fibers are distributed on both sides of the walls, some even extending out to connect the walls and the floor, taut and stretched.

Among the dense, dark red threads, cocoons of the same size, with semi-transparent shells, were embedded in the wall.

The inside was filled with a viscous, pale yellow culture medium.

One after another, emaciated, twisted, and grotesque humanoid figures with dark red flesh and blood hugged their knees and quietly soaked in the culture medium.

Only one heart was exceptionally strong, its 'thump-thump' sound rising and falling like a thousand war drums being struck in unison.

Mold Man.

After the ceremony failed that year, he kept thinking about the reasons for his failure.

After years of deep thought, the final conclusion is—

I'm not perfect enough!
So he extracted his own organs, flesh, skin, and even emotional traits, and combined them with the strengths of other powerful and extraordinary beings in the Spirit Cloud Realm to cultivate them.

The product of this method is the mold-like figure before us.

As their name suggests, their purpose is to cultivate a better and more perfect mold, so that Gu Xingyun can get closer to 'perfection' and prepare for the next ceremony.

Thousands of years passed.

He successfully cultivated seventy-nine clones, each possessing a certain perfect trait, through this method.

According to his calculations, he only needs to cultivate 107 perfect trait clones, and then use himself as the foundation, combined with the 'Merge Me into One Secret Technique' from the "Shepherd Spirit Nourishes My Spirit and Transforms the Azure Sky True Scripture".

By incorporating the 'perfect traits' of all the perfect traits into one body, there is a high probability that the shortcomings of the ritual can be made up for, and one can truly transform into a flawless 'Cang Clan'.

The main body, Gu Xingyun, completely ignored the other failures and the molded humans that had just met the requirements. He passed through the intertwined dark red threads and arrived in front of one of the incubation chambers.

Boom!Boom!Boom!
Through the translucent casing, one can see a gaunt mannequin hugging its knees. It is smaller and more shriveled than the other mannequins, curled up in a cramped position.

A deep, powerful heartbeat resounded, revealing a heart with a glass-like texture, shimmering with a faint seven-colored glow, making it appear extraordinary.

With each beat, a vast amount of spiritual energy is drawn into the heart, which at the same time draws life force from other parts of the body.

Gu Xingyun, the main body, only observed for a short while before reaching out to break open the translucent outer shell, probing into the viscous culture medium, grasping the glassy, ​​seven-colored heart, and plucking it off.

The viscous, pale yellow culture medium flowed directly from the broken shell and spilled all over the ground.

"Junior sister, your bloodline is indeed more useful."

A hint of satisfaction flashed in Gu Xingyun's eyes.

He still remembered that when his junior sister was born with the Innate Pure Spirit Body, she was designated as a cultivation vessel by the Supreme Elder as soon as she entered the sect. Ordinary Xuanling Sect disciples who wanted to cultivate with her once had to pay the Supreme Elder at least ten years of cultivation!
Furthermore, he also had to pay his junior sister an additional five years of cultivation.

Even so, the line of people wanting to cultivate with her stretched from the top of the mountain to the bottom. In just thirty years, she reached the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, becoming the number one prodigy among the three righteous, five demonic, and eight major sects at that time.

This dazzling junior sister, however, treated him differently, and was even willing to give him a 20% discount during their dual cultivation, accepting one less year of cultivation from him.

Unfortunately, this period of prosperity was short-lived. Later, the second-generation patriarch of the Xuanling Sect was trapped in the Nascent Soul stage for many years and could not advance further. So he gathered a group of old monsters who had reached the Nascent Soul stage and wanted to break the Xuanling Secret Ritual left by the first patriarch.

As a result, they were all refined by the Mysterious Spirit Ritual, and none survived.

The Three Sects, Five Demons, and Eight Great Sects were in a precarious situation. At the critical moment, he seized the opportunity to refine his junior sister, who had already reached the Nascent Soul stage, thus enabling her to advance to the Divine Transformation stage and stabilize the position of the Xuanling Sect.

He has always preserved his junior sister's bloodline, and over the years, by combining it with his own bloodline, he has cultivated eight perfect trait clones.

He died a worthy death...

boom!
The earth shook violently, and the taut muscle fibers snapped one by one.

Ok?
Gu Xingyun paused.

They broke through so quickly?
A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, and he turned and rushed out.

This fellow Daoist from out of town is truly unexpected!
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(End of this chapter)