A Mortal's Start in the Spirit Beast Mountain

Chapter 441 Blood Shadow Incarnation

"It's done!" A glint flashed in Luo Ming's eyes, and he was secretly delighted. His tense mind finally relaxed slightly. This marked the complete completion of the refining of the seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls and the internal linkage formation!

However, just as he relaxed, "Buzz buzz buzz—!!!"

The floor of the meditation room, which was strong enough to withstand the attacks of a Core Formation cultivator, suddenly emitted a sickeningly loud humming sound, as if it could no longer bear the weight!

The array's spiritual light flickered violently and erratically. The array patterns carved on the ground and walls even began to show subtle distortions and cracks, as if they were about to collapse completely at any moment!

Seeing this, Luo Ming was not surprised but delighted, a satisfied smile appearing on his face. He whispered, "Good! The gravity of the field that it emits after only the initial refinement is already too much for this reinforced formation to withstand."

If, in future battles, one were to fully activate all seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls, pushing the "Heavy Water" property to its limit, what a spectacle that would be! Even a typical late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator would likely struggle to survive within its reach!

Although the material of the Xuan Yuan Pearl, "Sinking Sea Xuan Crystal," is heavy, its weight alone poses a limited threat. A Core Formation cultivator with a decent defensive magic weapon might be able to barely withstand the impact of a Xuan Yuan Pearl that is not activated by magic power.

However, the mystery of this treasure lies in the fact that once it is infused with magical power and activated, its weight increases exponentially! If a single Xuan Yuan Pearl is activated to a size of several zhang (approximately 6.6 meters), its weight will reach an extremely terrifying level! If all seventy-two are unleashed simultaneously and activated to their fullest potential—

Luo Ming roughly estimated that such a terrifying superposition of gravity fields would probably cause even a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator to change color drastically if trapped in it. Their first thought would not be to withstand it, but rather how to escape as quickly as possible!

Of course, to unleash the "heavy water" properties of all seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls to their fullest potential requires an enormous amount of magical power and spiritual consciousness, and the activation speed is relatively slow.

Given Luo Ming's current cultivation level at the early stage of the Nascent Soul stage and his divine sense comparable to that of the late stage of the Nascent Soul stage, it is estimated that he can activate a maximum of thirty-six at the same time and relatively quickly, forming an effective field to trap and kill enemies.

No matter how many there are, in the ever-changing battles of the Nascent Soul level, it is easy to be unable to control them in time and have your core area avoided by your opponent with speed or strange supernatural abilities, making it difficult to exert your maximum power.

"Thirty-six are enough for now. As my magical power advances further, the number I can control at the same time will naturally increase."

Luo Ming was not discouraged; on the contrary, he was full of anticipation. With a thought, the seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls in the air dimmed and transformed into seventy-two streams of blue light, which entered his body and sank into his dantian for nourishment.

The suffocating gravity field in the quiet room immediately dissipated, and the humming of the ground array gradually subsided. However, the cracks indicated that what had just happened was not an illusion.

Luo Ming stood up, stretching his body, which was slightly stiff from sitting for so long. A year of hard work had brought his natal magic weapon to its peak, further increasing his strength. Next, he needed to handle other matters, and perhaps consider returning. After all, someone was waiting for him on Silver Shark Island. And he should also make good use of Feng hope's materials.

As Luo Ming's thoughts stirred, the seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls, which were suspended in mid-air in the quiet room and exuded a heavy force field, trembled in unison, transforming into seventy-two deep blue streams of light. Like a school of fish returning to their nest, they rushed into Luo Ming's dantian.

Within Luo Ming's dantian, his two-inch-tall, clearly defined nascent soul, sitting cross-legged, opened its eyes, raised its small hand, and made a gesture of invitation.

Seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls then orderly surrounded the Nascent Soul, slowly rotating and floating along some mysterious trajectory. Each Xuan Yuan Pearl was closely connected to the Nascent Soul through mental link, and at the same time, the unique gravitational fluctuations emanating from them began to spread.

This fluctuation not only did not disrupt the circulation of pure magical power within the dantian, but instead created a continuous and comprehensive "quenching" effect.

Luo Ming could clearly feel that his already far more refined and powerful magical power than that of other cultivators of the same level was being tempered and compressed at an extremely slow pace by the omnipresent "gravity field" spontaneously formed by the seventy-two Xuan Yuan Pearls.

"The effect of the 'Mysterious Water Condensation of Essence' recorded in this technique was already remarkable when there were only twelve Mysterious Essence Pearls. Now that seventy-two pearls are in the dantian, the spontaneously formed tempering field has enhanced the effect by more than several times." Luo Ming looked inward at the changes in his dantian, feeling the process of his magic power being "compressed" and "purified" bit by bit. He felt both joy and a trace of helplessness.

The more refined and pure one's magical power, the more solid one's foundation, the greater the power of one's supernatural abilities, and the easier it is to break through bottlenecks.

However, correspondingly, the time and resources required to accumulate such condensed magical power to a level sufficient to break through to the next realm would likely far exceed those required for other cultivators of the same level.

If other Nascent Soul cultivators knew about his "trouble," they would probably be driven mad with jealousy. Countless cultivators suffer from weak and mixed magical power, trying every means to find pills and secret techniques to condense their magical power, but to no avail.

He, on the contrary, because his natal magic weapon was too "powerful", actually "disliked" that his magic power would slow down as a result.

However, this was just a fleeting thought in his mind. The long-term benefits of a solid foundation far outweigh any short-term increase in cultivation speed.

"Now that my natal magic weapon is fully developed, the next step is to use Feng hope's bottle of essence blood to cultivate the 'Mysterious Purity Qi Transformation Technique' and condense my first Blood Shadow Avatar." Luo Ming collected his thoughts, a hint of anticipation flashing in his eyes.

Once mastered, the "Blood Shadow Avatar" is an excellent trump card, whether it provides an extra ally in battle or allows one to burn the avatar and use the "Blood Escape Technique" to escape in times of crisis. The mystery of the "Mysterious Purity Qi Transformation Technique" lies in its theoretical ability to condense three avatars, each with different attributes and characteristics from the original body, demonstrating immense potential.

He couldn't wait to take out the jade bottle that sealed most of Feng hope's essence blood, remove the talisman, and a thick and pure dark blue blood with strong wind attribute fluctuations came into view.

According to the "Mysterious Purity Transformation Technique," the cultivation of this avatar takes an extremely long time. It takes several months to initially condense its rudimentary form. To cultivate it to "minor success," possessing 20% ​​of the original body's strength, requires at least several years of hard work. And to reach "major success," possessing 50% of the original body's strength, requires more than ten years of painstaking effort. Naturally, the earlier one begins cultivation, the better.

Luo Ming planned to first condense the initial form of the "Blood Shadow Avatar," place it in his dantian, and slowly nurture it with his own magical power and the secret technique of "Mysterious Purity Qi Transformation." Once this was completed, he could lead the array masters from Silver Shark Island back to Silver Shark Island to set up the teleportation array on the other end.

"Um?"

Luo Ming's brows twitched slightly as he sensed an unusual and intense fluctuation in the spiritual energy of a certain area of ​​Blood Crane Island outside his cave.

This fluctuation is not chaotic, but rather carries an orderly, inward-converging rhythm, accompanied by some kind of breakthrough opportunity.

His vast and keen divine sense instantly spread out like a tide, enveloping the entire Blood Crane Island. After a brief investigation, he pinpointed the source of the abnormal spiritual energy to a mountainside cave about ten miles away from his own cave dwelling, where the spiritual energy was relatively abundant.

In the quiet chamber of the cave, Fan Jingmei sat cross-legged with her eyes closed. Her aura fluctuated violently, and golden light emanated from her dantian. Her magical power was unusually active, having already surpassed the limit of the Foundation Establishment stage, and was climbing and condensing towards a new and more stable level!

"The fluctuations of Core Formation—it's finally done." Luo Ming withdrew his divine sense, his expression calm and unsurprised.

A year ago, he used his own pure magical power to cleanse her bones and marrow, tempering her foundation, with remarkable results. This woman already had enough accumulated power; what she lacked was the purity of her magical power and the stability of her Dao foundation. After his intervention, this deficiency was remedied, and he also provided her with some pills to aid in the formation of her core. It was only natural that she could successfully form her core.

"With this woman advancing to the Core Formation stage, her ability to handle the mundane affairs of the Azure Cloud Sect and coordinate relationships with various parties will be even stronger, saving me a lot of trouble. If that guy Gao Yuan can also break through to the Pseudo-Infant stage as promised, or even try to condense the Nascent Soul stage—then the foundation of this sea area can be considered initially stable, and we can let go a little." Luo Ming pondered in his heart.

His assistance to Fan Jingmei was both fulfilling a promise and for his own benefit. Having another stable, efficient force capable of providing him with resources and intelligence was always a good thing.

For a cultivator to form their Golden Core is now considered a significant event on Blood Crane Island.

For low-level cultivators, this was like a shot in the arm. After the beast tide, many high-level cultivators perished, but now new cultivators have successfully formed their cores, which shows that there is still hope.

Inspired by this, and perhaps as a long-suppressed potential erupted, several more cultivators who had reached the Foundation Establishment stage successfully entered the Core Formation stage on Blood Crane Island over the next decade, injecting new vitality into the human race's power in the outer seas. Of course, that's a story for later.

Six months later.

A seemingly insignificant cyan light rose quietly from Blood Crane Island, hovered briefly, and then sped towards Silver Shark Island in the vast outer sea, disappearing into the clouds in the blink of an eye.

On the highest peak of Blood Crane Island, on the viewing platform outside the sect leader's hall, two figures stood side by side, silently gazing in the direction where the streak of light had disappeared. It was Gao Yuan, and Fan Jingmei, whose early-stage Core Formation cultivation had been completely solidified, whose demeanor was now more dignified, and whose brows held less of a deliberate fawning and more of a calm and confident air.

Only when the azure light completely disappeared from sight did Gao Yuan's tense body relax almost imperceptibly, and he exhaled a long breath almost inaudibly.

This mysterious Nascent Soul ancestor, though bringing a promise of "Nascent Soul opportunities," possessed unfathomable strength.

The unpredictable nature hidden beneath the calm surface exerted far greater pressure on him than when he faced the ever-expressive Master Miaohe.

Now that the other party has left, and although his return date is unknown, at least for the time being, he no longer needs to be so cautious and tread on thin ice.

He turned his head slightly, his gaze falling on Fan Jingmei beside him. After successfully forming her core, this woman seemed even more beautiful, with radiant skin and a graceful figure. Coupled with the composure she had cultivated over many years as the head of the Miaoyin Sect, she possessed a captivating charm as she stood there quietly.

A hint of admiration flashed across Gao Yuan's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it, returning to his usual calm. He thought of his master Miao He's fate, and then of how this woman had managed to have that Old Ancestor Luo sacrifice his true essence to personally help her cleanse her bones and marrow, enabling her to successfully form her core—the implications of this made him ponder deeply.

"Vice Sect Leader Fan has successfully formed her core, congratulations!" Gao Yuan turned to face Fan Jingmei and spoke calmly, "Now that you have advanced to the ranks of high-level cultivators, I'm afraid you will need to take on a lot of responsibility for the affairs within the Biyun Sect in the future."

Upon hearing this, Fan Jingmei's beautiful eyes flashed with a sharp light, and she instantly understood the subtext of Gao Yuan's words—this was an intention to entrust her with more of the daily management authority of the Biyun Sect.

Although the Azure Cloud Sect is far less powerful than behemoths like the Star Palace and the Reverse Star Alliance, it is still a formidable force among the human race in the Outer Star Sea, with resources and influence far exceeding those of the Myriad Sound Sect she originally controlled. If she could take control of this sect—

Even with Fan Jingmei's composure, her heart couldn't help but stir with a surge of emotion and longing.

Power is one of the best nourishing substances.

However, she did not show much emotion on her face. She simply bowed slightly and said with a hint of doubt in her voice, "Sect Leader Gao, you flatter me. Jingmei has just entered the Core Formation stage and is not yet familiar with the affairs of the sect. How can I be worthy of such an important task? All matters of the sect still need Fellow Daoist Gao to take charge."

Gao Yuan waved his hand, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon where the sea and sky met, his voice low and firm: "Vice Sect Leader Fan is too modest."

Your abilities are well known to both Gao and the Ancestor.

To be honest, after this incident, I, Gao, deeply feel my own inadequacy in cultivation. I intend to go into seclusion for cultivation in the near future, and I will not emerge until I reach the Nascent Soul stage. I will temporarily entrust the sect's mundane affairs to you. Unless it concerns the survival of the sect, there is no need to disturb my seclusion.”

Fan Jingmei understood the resolute determination and entrustment in Gao Yuan's words. His seclusion to break through to the False Nascent Soul stage meant he was completely relinquishing power and focusing solely on the Dao. She took a deep breath, suppressing her turmoil, and solemnly bowed again, saying earnestly, "Sect Leader Gao, please go into seclusion with peace of mind. Since I am trusted by the Ancestor, I will naturally do my utmost to manage the sect's affairs, and I also hope that Fellow Daoist Gao can successfully reach the False Nascent Soul stage."

Gao Yuan gave her a deep look, said nothing more, and simply nodded. Then, his figure transformed into a streak of light and flew directly into the depths of the island to his secluded cave.

Gao Yuan left the vast Biyun Sect to the newly appointed Vice Sect Master Fan, whose background was complex.

Fan Jingmei stood alone atop the peak, the sea breeze ruffling her skirt and hair. She gazed in the direction Gao Yuan had gone, then at the horizon where Luo Ming had disappeared, and finally turned her gaze to the island and sea below that belonged to the Biyun Sect.

Silver Shark Island, on the top floor of Mingyue Tower, in an elegant seaside pavilion.

Yuan Yao, dressed in an elegant long dress, stood by the railing, holding a cup of spirit tea that had long since gone cold, her gaze fixed blankly on the distant horizon where the sea met the sky.

That's the direction of the Qiyuan Island sea area. In recent years, during every break from her cultivation, she would always come here involuntarily, quietly gazing in that direction, as if her gaze could pierce through the vast waves.