Begin your practice with the crane-shaped stance.

Chapter 125 Heavenly Gang Techniques: Summoning Wind and Rain

As the days passed, Xia Dong finally made it to the day when the moon was full again in the Tiger Hill Cave.

At this moment, the Taiyin restriction that Senior Guyue had casually set up outside Tiger Hill Cave had been removed when True Person Guyue left.

Instead, there is a constantly operating "Five Elements Maze".

This array plate was a spoil of war that Master Guyue seized from the storage bag of the Black Spider Dharma King of the Wusheng Sect.

Compared to the Five Elements Bewildering Array that Master Guyue used to conceal his aura, this Five Elements Bewildering Array not only conceals his tracks but also possesses considerable killing power, capable of killing enemies at crucial moments. This gives Xia Dong more confidence in dealing with crises.

Moreover, Xia Dong disliked the use of the Taiyin Divine Light as a protective barrier for his cave dwelling.

Of course, on the one hand, the restrictions set up by the Taiyin Divine Light are ultimately just a tree without roots. Without an array plate as a support, the circulation of spiritual energy will inevitably stagnate over time, making it very easy for flaws to occur.

But deep down, what truly made Xia Dong feel uneasy was his instinctive fear and wariness of the great cultivator.

He was merely a Qi Refining stage cultivator and knew nothing about the mysterious and unpredictable methods of the Purple Mansion Grandmaster cultivators.

Who can guarantee that Senior Lone Moon can use that same Yin restriction to silently "spy" on his every move from thousands of miles away?

He possesses too many secrets, especially the ancient bronze bell that concerns the path to immortality, which must never be exposed to anyone.

For him, only a formation that he personally set up and that was completely under his control could give him true peace of mind.

Therefore, the formation arranged by the array plate was exactly what Xia Dong wanted.

As night deepened, a bright, full moon finally rose to its zenith, its cool light spilling across the entire valley like mercury.

The giant snake, which was coiled outside the cave, keenly sensed the opportunity. It raised its huge head, let out a low hiss, and then opened its mouth wide, offering the still-forming inner core into the air.

The inner elixir spun rapidly under the moonlight, greedily drawing in and absorbing the abundant lunar essence.

At the very moment the giant serpent summoned the moonlight, the ancient bronze bell in Xia Dong's sea of ​​consciousness, which had been silent for a long time, seemed to resonate with the outside world in some extremely mysterious way, emitting a distant and desolate hum.

The ancient bell did indeed revive!

Under the influence and guidance of the ancient bell's invisible power, the ordinary lunar radiance underwent a miraculous transformation, turning into strands of "Imperial Dew" containing endless creative vitality, which dripped down in a gentle stream.

Xia Dong sat cross-legged quietly in the secret room, feeling the familiar and vast fluctuations in his sea of ​​consciousness. His nerves, which had been tense for many days, finally relaxed completely, and he revealed a relieved and satisfied smile.

The Emperor's Dew, flowing like silk threads, dripped down and merged into the giant serpent's enormous body.

Looking back, the serpent's foundation was already astonishingly deep.

It not only endured the baptism and enlightenment of the ancient bell's mysterious sound and the Emperor's flowing liquid many times, but also ate spirit rats containing spiritual energy and spirit fish that had mutated at the bottom of the pool on a daily basis. In addition, it was fed the Profound Yin Gathering Qi Pill from time to time in summer and winter, so its foundation was already extremely solid.

Not to mention, when Senior Lonely Moon opened up the Purple Mansion here last time, the massive Emperor's Flow Spiritual Rain benefited it immensely.

With a series of coincidences piling up, quantitative changes finally led to qualitative changes.

Tonight, the inner core of the giant serpent, suspended in mid-air, shone brightly, and a terrifying surge of blood energy and demonic power far exceeding the late stage of Qi Refining erupted—this guy is actually about to advance directly to the Foundation Establishment stage of a demonic beast!

Standing at the edge of the formation, Xia Dong witnessed the unstoppable advance of the giant snake and couldn't help but feel a strong sense of envy, even mixed with a bit of sour jealousy.

To gain a foothold in the cultivation world, he had to strategize and fight on the edge of his seat, expending enormous resources and energy for every step forward. But this worm in front of him was much better; it only needed to lie outside its cave every day to worship the moon and eat elixirs and wild game. Now, it was about to cross the Foundation Establishment barrier that countless human cultivators dreamed of, all so naturally.

The workings of fate and destiny in this world are sometimes truly beyond our control.

At this moment, the giant serpent was absorbing moonlight at an increasingly faster pace, and its enormous body was completely enveloped by an extremely dense layer of spiritual mist.

Through the mist, one can vaguely see its originally hard scales peeling off layer by layer, and the newly grown scales gleam with a deeper, more indestructible light.

Just as it was about to complete this transformative metamorphosis, a sudden change occurred!

The surrounding spiritual mist suddenly stopped, and the vortex of spiritual energy that had been flowing back in frantically showed signs of fatigue and exhaustion.

The giant serpent let out a painful and agitated roar, and its advancing power began to fluctuate violently. The originally solid demonic energy showed signs of dissipating, and it seemed that all its efforts were about to be in vain.

Xia Dong's expression hardened, and he instantly understood the reason.

Ultimately, it's because the spiritual energy of this place is too thin!

Monsters are much larger than humans, and their blood and energy are as deep as the ocean. The spiritual energy they need to break through to a higher realm is several times that of human cultivators.

In this environment of spiritual depletion, simply relying on drawing upon the sparse natural spiritual energy around it is simply insufficient to fill the huge deficit it suffered during its foundation-building and transformation.

In this life-or-death situation, Xia Dong did not hesitate at all.

The giant serpent had long been his most loyal protector and helper, and he absolutely could not stand by and watch it fail to advance.

With a flick of his wrist, he took out a Spirit-Attracting Pill that emitted a rich fragrance from his storage bag, and with a burst of strength from his finger bones, he threw it out.

"Open your mouth!" Xia Dong shouted in a low voice.

The giant serpent was of one mind with him. In extreme pain, it suddenly raised its head, opened its mouth wide, and swallowed the Spirit-Guiding Pill in one gulp.

The moment the high-quality Spirit-Attracting Pill entered its stomach, it instantly transformed into a vast and highly attractive stream of pure spiritual energy, which exploded within its body.

It not only replenished the spiritual energy it desperately needed, but also acted as a powerful catalyst, violently pulling back the stagnant spiritual energy around it.

With the powerful support of this immense spiritual energy, the spiritual mist began to churn violently once again.

The anxiety in the giant snake's eyes completely disappeared, and it let out a long, exhilarating hiss. The powerful aura belonging to a Foundation Establishment demon beast finally broke through the last obstacle, and the momentum of transformation steadily advanced once again.

As night gradually faded and the first light of dawn appeared in the east, the intense fluctuations of spiritual energy between heaven and earth finally subsided.

With a long, languid, and satisfied hiss, the giant snake slowly swam back down the cliff before sunrise, dragging its massive body, and comfortably curled up into a ball.

Xia Dong stood not far away, his eyes fixed on the snake's movements.

To his surprise, he discovered that the snake's body was visibly shrinking, and its originally hard and rough old scales were loosening layer by layer.

The giant snake twisted and turned at the bottom of the cliff, as if shedding an oversized old garment, and successfully emerged from its old skin.

However, just as Xia Dong's eyes lit up and he was about to step forward to collect the extremely valuable snake skin, an unexpected incident occurred.

The massive molted skin that the giant snake had just shed suddenly trembled violently. A faint light flashed on the snake's new body, and the last trace of spiritual energy and essence contained in the old molted skin was completely absorbed by the snake.

The snake's molted skin, having lost the support of spiritual energy, instantly became withered and fragile, and then turned into ashes in the morning breeze.

"That's it?" Xia Dong's eyes twitched slightly, and he secretly felt a great sense of regret.

He was still hoping to use the snake molt from this Foundation Establishment stage demon beast to upgrade his Xuan Snake Inner Armor.

When they last encountered the Green-Faced Ghost, one of the Five Ghosts of Tianshui, the opponent was driven to the brink of despair by True Person Guyue and then frantically self-destructed his Foundation Establishment Dao Foundation.

Although Xia Dong narrowly escaped death, the terrifying aftershocks of the self-destruction still severely injured him, and the Xuan Snake Inner Armor he was wearing was also seriously damaged, losing much of its spiritual power.

He had originally planned that the new skin shed by the giant snake after its advancement would definitely be a top-quality material for repairing and strengthening its inner armor.

But who would have thought that after this guy advanced to the Foundation Establishment stage, he didn't even leave him a trace.

However, Xia Dong's frustration did not last long.

He looked down at his strong palms, feeling the domineering, fierce, and surging martial arts energy within his body.

"Oh well, if it's broken, it's broken," Xia Dong thought to himself.

He has now mastered the top-tier body-refining technique, the Vajra King Technique.

He knew very well that as long as he mastered this technique to a high level, his mortal flesh and blood would eventually be tempered to be even stronger and more terrifying than these demonic beasts.

External things are ultimately just aids; the strength of one's own body is fundamental.

Therefore, whether or not the Xuan Snake Inner Armor can be repaired and upgraded is no longer of much concern to him.

At that moment, heavy, long breathing sounds came from the bottom of the cliff.

After successfully crossing the insurmountable barrier of Foundation Establishment, the giant serpent seemed to have exhausted all its energy and entered an extremely deep sleep.

After a demon beast breaks through a major realm, it often needs a long period of slumber to stabilize its cultivation and digest the surge in spiritual power and bloodline within its body. Judging from its current state, it's hard to say when it will be able to awaken again.

Xia Dong looked at the black snake body that was undulating slightly in the morning light, chuckled, and didn't bother with it anymore.

Now that the great serpent has successfully advanced, he has gained another trump card. Now, he should turn back to his secret chamber and focus on honing his cultivation.

Inside the secret chamber, Xia Dong felt a surge of urgency as he sensed the ancient bronze bell that had been completely revived within his sea of ​​consciousness.

With a flick of his wrist, a crystal-clear stone containing extremely terrifying spiritual energy appeared in his palm—a high-grade spirit stone he had obtained in the underground palace.

I used one of the Yin Spirit Pills before, and now I have one left.

He had previously learned from the ancient bronze bell that if the "Wind Control Technique" wanted to merge with the Profound Yin Divine Water to break through its limits and be upgraded into the "Heavenly Gang Technique", high-grade spirit stones would be indispensable.

With summer and winter preparations complete, Xia Dong suddenly activated the ancient bronze bell with his divine sense.

In an instant, the ancient bell emitted a thunderous roar that shook the very soul, like a whale sucking water, instantly draining the massive amount of pure spiritual energy from the top-grade spirit stone.

Immediately afterwards, Xia Dong unhesitatingly poured all the true meaning of his already perfected "Wind Control Technique" and the profound mysteries of the "Mysterious Yin Divine Water" into the ancient bell's deductions.

This is no longer an enhancement of ordinary martial arts or low-level spells, but a deduction of the mysterious "Tiangang Technique"!

Xia Dong's sea of ​​consciousness seemed to be opening up a new world, and the scene was extremely terrifying.

A sudden gust of wind arose; it was no longer the gentle breeze that lifted the body, but a fierce gale that could tear mountains apart and upside down the sky.

The heavy water essence of the Xuan Yin Divine Water was swept and torn apart by the gale, transforming into pitch-black thunderclouds that blotted out the sky.

Immediately afterwards, a torrential downpour began, the rain as heavy as a thousand pounds, each drop containing extreme cold and destructive power.

The wind amplifies the water's momentum, and the water borrows the wind's power; the two merge perfectly under the immense power of the ancient bell, transforming into supreme divine power capable of changing the world and manipulating celestial phenomena.

As the deduction concluded, the ancient and intricate inscriptions on the bell's surface flowed and eventually transformed into a vast incantation, deeply imprinted in Xia Dong's memory—the Heavenly Gang Incantation, "Summoning Wind and Rain"!

Xia Dong was overjoyed as he examined this wondrous magic manual.

The technique is divided into nine levels. If one can cultivate it to a high level, it is enough to overturn rivers and seas and destroy a country. Its power is simply terrifying.

However, when he looked expectantly at the threshold of the first level, the ecstasy on his face froze instantly, and his expression darkened.

"The entry requirements for the first level are: one's spiritual foundation must reach the perfection of Qi Refining, and one's magical power must reach the late stage of Qi Refining."

Xia Dong's lips twitched violently a few times, and he couldn't help but curse inwardly.

The extraordinary nature of this Heavenly Gang Technique is truly remarkable; even just obtaining the entry qualification requires such stringent conditions!

His magical power has indeed broken through to the seventh level of Qi Refining, which is considered the late stage of Qi Refining; but his spiritual consciousness cultivation is only at the eighth level of Qi Refining.

However, Xia Dong's depression did not last long.

He calmed down and examined himself. In recent days, through refining the strange fire and constantly refining the Spirit-Guiding Pill, he had thoroughly tempered his Qi Refining Level 8 spiritual foundation, which had been slightly unstable due to forcibly consuming pills to break through, into an extremely stable state.

Now that the foundation has been laid, we have the resources to continue our efforts.

He patted his storage bag, and two pills with a faint crimson glow appeared in his palm. These were the "Crimson Yin Spirit Pills" produced after the ancient bronze bell completely refined the Foundation Establishment stage vengeful ghost that Ci Xiang had transformed into.

Three ancient bells were forged at that time. He swallowed one and his spiritual sense surged to the eighth level of Qi Refining. Now, only two remain.

"If I were to refine both of these Crimson Yin Spirit Pills, the immense pure medicinal power would not only propel my divine sense to the pinnacle of Qi Refining, but it might even directly challenge the ethereal Foundation Establishment level of divine sense!" Xia Dong thought to himself.

Faced with the allure of "Calling the Wind and Summoning the Rain," Xia Dong no longer hesitated.

He picked up one of the crimson Yin Spirit Pills, about the size of a longan, which emitted a pure yet slightly eerie spiritual energy, and swallowed it in one gulp.

Immediately, he closed his eyes and focused intently on circulating the "Mysterious Yin Refining Spirit Technique," frantically refining the immense medicinal power that had suddenly erupted in his sea of ​​consciousness.

After swallowing the first Crimson Yin Spirit Pill, the immense medicinal power exploded in his sea of ​​consciousness, and his spiritual cultivation level soared.

Xia Dong knew that the power obtained by devouring evil spirits could easily lead to an unstable foundation. He did not rush into things, but immediately left seclusion and plunged into the alchemy room and talisman-making room.

Day after day, he frantically refined elixirs and drew talismans. In these repeated extreme extractions of his divine sense and meticulous operations, he repeatedly hammered and tempered his surging divine sense, like steel being forged through a hundred refinements, gradually removing those superficial impurities.

Once his cultivation level was completely stable, Xia Dong solemnly took the last remaining Crimson Yin Spirit Pill.

After the medicinal power of the pill was completely digested and absorbed, his sea of ​​consciousness was like a dried-up lake bursting its banks with a torrent. The range and resilience of his divine sense underwent a qualitative leap, and he finally stepped into the perfect stage of Qi Refining in a natural way!

However, a surge in power is always accompanied by dangerous hidden dangers.

These two Crimson Yin Spirit Pills were, after all, refined by the Foundation Establishment Fiend Ghost of Cixiang of the Red Lotus Temple, who was filled with resentment and the evil aura of dual cultivation.

While nourishing his divine consciousness, it also nourished the demonic nature within him.

With the breakthrough in his divine sense, this demonic nature erupted completely.

An indescribable heat surged from the depths of my bones, rushing straight to my mind.

Xia Dong's eyes instantly turned a terrifying crimson. He felt as if he were in an endless sea of ​​desire, burning with lust, his reason teetering on the edge of madness.

He immediately sat down cross-legged and frantically circulated the Vajra King Mantra, attempting to suppress this evil fire with the vast and powerful true meaning of Buddhism.

However, the previously invincible power of the "wrathful Vajra" was like a drop of water falling into a boiling oil pan this time. The fierce Buddhist teachings not only failed to extinguish the flames of desire, but instead provoked a frenzied counterattack from the demonic nature.

"Damn it—" Xia Dong bit his tongue hard, and with the help of the pain that brought him a moment of clarity, he stumbled out of the secret chamber and plunged headfirst into the deep, cold pool outside the cave.

The icy water instantly submerged him.

The extreme cold outside and the boiling desire inside created an extremely painful tug-of-war.

Xia Dong trembled as he soaked in the water, desperately trying to hold onto the last vestige of clarity in his mind. He used the coldness of the pool to force himself to calm down, desperately guiding his will to overcome the demonic influence in his heart that controlled his body's instincts.

Next, the profound mystery of "Changchun Xingqi Jue: Shenzang Pian" finally revealed its crucial role.

This technique, which can lock away the very essence of human life, is like an unbreakable dam, forcibly cutting off the demonic allure of the physical body's qi and blood.

Under the operation of the Divine Treasure Chapter, Xia Dong gradually restrained his outwardly tyrannical and demonic nature.

Then, the "Netherworld Spawn" talisman seed, which had been dormant in his dantian and possessed the "stealing the subtle" characteristic, seemed to have smelled something delicious and began to tremble slightly.

This originally gray-black talisman seed actively spread out an invisible net and began to devour the compressed demonic energy!

The terrifying demonic energy that nearly drove Xia Dong to madness was utterly powerless against the Netherworld Talisman Seed.

Imperceptibly, the demonic nature was gradually dissolved and refined, not only ceasing to cause trouble but also becoming pure resources to nourish the growth of the talisman seed.

When the pool water returned to complete calm, Xia Dong slowly stood up from the cold pool and wiped the water droplets from his face.

As his demonic nature was completely devoured, he was surprised to find that his aura had undergone a subtle and inexplicable change.

His originally handsome face remained unchanged, but his every move exuded a unique charm.

This charm is profound and languid, exuding a gentle yet deadly allure.

It has nothing to do with any supernatural powers or spells that bewitch the mind; rather, it is a life magnetic field that emanates purely from within, perfectly natural.

To use a phrase from an online novel Xia Dong had read in his previous life, he had practically awakened a "succubus physique" at this moment.

As long as he stands here, even without saying a word, he can unknowingly break down other people's defenses and easily gain their favor.

Xia Dong dressed and looked at his reflection in the water, unable to help but mutter to himself, "If I maxed out this succubus attribute, wouldn't that be equivalent to cultivating the legendary innate soft rice holy body?" He shook his head helplessly, putting this absurd thought out of his mind.

Relying on yourself is worse than relying on anyone else; only absolute strength is the foundation for a secure life.

After calming his mind, Xia Dong returned to the secret chamber and officially began cultivating the Heavenly Gang Technique, which he had derived from the ancient bronze bell—"

"To command the wind and rain".

However, only after truly mastering it did he deeply realize the terrifying nature of this technique. Even though his spiritual sense had now reached the perfect level of Qi Refining and his magical power was firmly stationed at the late stage of Qi Refining, the mysteries of heaven and earth and the changes of Yin and Yang involved in "Summoning Wind and Rain" were still as profound and obscure as a heavenly book.

Initial attempts all ended in failure.

Sometimes it was just a weak whirlwind, and sometimes it only condensed a few drops of ordinary water devoid of any spiritual energy. But Xia Dong had a ruthless streak in his bones. He worked tirelessly in the secret chamber, repeatedly forming hand seals and emptying his mind to communicate with the energy of heaven and earth.

When one's magical power is exhausted, one meditates to recover, and then continues the deduction.

After countless days and nights spent in the dark chamber, finally, with the completion of the last intricate hand seal by Xia Dong's fingertips, a palm-sized, pitch-black thundercloud materialized out of thin air in mid-air. A biting gale swept through the cloud, followed by a few heavy drops of spiritual rain, imbued with the pure essence of creation, falling to the ground.

"Finally, I've mastered it—" Xia Dong breathed a long sigh of relief, his eyes filled with both exhaustion and joy. He had finally managed to master the first level of "Calling the Wind and Summoning the Rain."

When he stepped out of the secret chamber and applied the technique to the spiritual fields outside the cave, the true wonder of the first layer was fully revealed to Xia Dong.

To his surprise, he discovered that the spiritual rain summoned by the Heavenly Gang Technique actually contained a law of heaven and earth that could stimulate vitality and greatly accelerate the growth of spiritual plants!

After discovering this amazing secret, Xia Dong's life became extremely regular.

The spiritual plants in this spiritual field already enjoy the nourishment of the "Emperor's Dew" generated by the ancient bronze bell every month.

Now, with Xia Dong tirelessly using the first level of "Summoning Wind and Rain" every day to send down spiritual rain for irrigation, the spiritual fields have undergone a remarkable transformation.

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Xia Dong stood in front of the spirit field, his eyes fixed on a spirit herb swaying in the wind. He was struck dumb, frozen in place.

This medicinal herb exudes an ancient and rich fragrance, and its leaves even have condensed into tangible spiritual crystals, clearly indicating that it is a thousand years old!

Xia Dong crouched down and carefully examined the herb, his excitement gradually subsiding. He keenly sensed that due to the environmental limitations of this place, the spiritual energy outside was extremely thin. Although this herb was a thousand years old, its foundation was somewhat insufficient, making it only an "ordinary" thousand-year-old herb. Its medicinal effects were far from reaching the level of those rare and precious herbs that had grown naturally for a thousand years in blessed lands.

Even so, it was enough to shock Xia Dong.

"One month—it only took one month to cultivate a thousand-year-old spiritual herb—" Xia Dong muttered to himself, his heart pounding uncontrollably.

Xia Dong squatted by the spirit field, his gaze lingering on the thousand-year-old spirit herb that exuded an ancient medicinal fragrance, his chest rising and falling slightly.

After a brief period of euphoria, he quickly calmed down, his mind racing as he analyzed the value of everything before him.

He quickly realized that the greatest advantage of this cultivation method was not that he accidentally obtained a high-level spiritual herb, but that it could produce a stable output "continuously".

"As long as the Imperial Dew falls from the ancient bronze bell every month, and I irrigate it daily with the spiritual rain from the 'Summoning Wind and Rain' technique, this spiritual field is simply a treasure trove that continuously produces millennium-old spiritual herbs," Xia Dong secretly calculated in his heart.

He couldn't help but recall some secrets about the upper echelons of the cultivation world that Senior Lonely Moon had previously revealed to him.

In this era of depleted spiritual energy, high-grade spiritual herbs are almost impossible to find in ordinary spiritual lands of the Great You Dynasty.

The reason why the royal family of the Great You Dynasty and those top Daoist families were able to maintain their rule and strengthen their advantage over the sects was precisely because they possessed "secret realms" and "immortal traces" passed down from ancient times.

Senior Guyue once said that those secret realms and immortal traces can produce thousand-year-old or even ten-thousand-year-old spiritual herbs.

Moreover, it is undeniable that due to the special environment and mysterious laws within the secret realm, the growth rate of spiritual herbs there is indeed much faster than that outside.

"However, even if the growth rate in the secret realm is very fast, it still takes a long time for it to accumulate generation after generation."

Master Guyue speculated that secret realms and immortal traces require decades or even centuries to mature a batch of spiritual herbs. This timeframe is already extremely short.

But cultivating medicinal herbs is much faster in summer and winter!

However, the most important of them all is the Emperor's Dew.

Without the Emperor's Dew, this level of skill could not be achieved solely through the Heavenly Gang Technique of "Calling the Wind and Summoning the Rain".

More importantly, this is far from the limit.

Xia Dong raised his right hand, and with a slight thought, a drop of crystal-clear spiritual rain, exuding a rich aura of creation, immediately condensed at his fingertips.

He gazed silently at the drop of water.

"Calling the Wind and Summoning the Rain" is an incredibly powerful and mysterious celestial technique with as many as nine levels.

He has only just crossed the extremely demanding threshold, barely managing to reach the entry level of the first level. The spiritual rain of the first level alone, combined with the Emperor's Essence, can cultivate an ordinary thousand-year-old spiritual herb within a month.

What if his magical power and divine sense continue to break through in the future, and he practices this technique to the second or third level, or even deduces it to an extremely profound realm?

"Perhaps, once I master the 'Summoning Wind and Rain' technique to a high level, the magical rain I can summon at will be just as powerful as the imperial nectar conjured by the ancient bronze bell!" Xia Dong thought to himself.

However, once he reaches that level, the spiritual herbs he needs will be of a very high quality.

Xia Dong couldn't help but think about it.

Stop dreaming and keep practicing hard.

Time flies, and sixty years pass in the mountains.

While cultivating spiritual herbs, Xia Dong devoted all his energy to the cultivation of the "Mysterious Yin Scripture".

Thanks to his powerful divine sense, which had already reached the pinnacle of Qi cultivation, and with the continuous supply of high-quality Spirit-Attracting Pills, his efficiency in absorbing and transforming the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was astonishingly high.

Over five years of alternating seasons, Xia Dong's magical power, like rivers flowing into the sea, steadily and progressively increased, eventually leading to a breakthrough to the ninth level of Qi Refining.

:

:

What surprised him most during these five years was the transformation of his consciousness.

While cultivating the Demonic Sect's ultimate technique, the "Asura Yin Sha Blade," the violent demonic nature of it was always with him. Xia Dong did not retreat; instead, he used it as an excellent whetstone to sharpen his soul.

Under the relentless stimulation and tempering of the demonic power, his divine consciousness, which was already at the peak of Qi Refining, unexpectedly broke through the shackles between immortals and mortals, and leaped over a major realm, directly entering the early stage of Foundation Establishment!

The moment his divine sense broke through, Xia Dong felt that his five senses had undergone a tremendous qualitative change. The wind blowing around the Tiger Hill Cave, the flapping of insects' wings, and even the subtle flow of spiritual veins under his feet were all clearly visible in his sea of ​​consciousness.

Unfortunately, in these five years, he still couldn't find a way to open the Heartfire God Palace. The Sacred Heart Lotus Flame remained in his dantian, and its growth rate was very slow.

It seems that he needs to find a special technique similar to the Xuan Yin Scripture in order to open up the Heart Fire Divine Palace through the ancient bronze bell.

For the past five years, Senior Lone Moon has been in seclusion, and there is no sign of him emerging yet. However, during this time, Little Red delivered a set of clothing woven by the real Lone Moon.

Senior Guyue asked Xiaohong to convey a message: if Xia Dong must leave Linyuan Mansion during her seclusion, he should wear this robe, as it could save his life in a critical moment.

Now, as Xia Dong carefully examined his own state, his brows furrowed slightly. He keenly sensed that after his divine sense entered the early stage of Foundation Establishment, it was as if it had hit an insurmountable iron wall, and he could hardly advance any further.

He was perfectly clear about the crux of the matter.

Firstly, his current cultivation of the "Mysterious Yin Refining Divine Technique" is limited to the Qi Refining stage and has reached its limit; secondly, unless he can obtain a brand-new Yin Spirit Pill of a much higher grade than before, or his own cultivation officially breaks through to the Foundation Establishment stage, so that the qualitative change in his physical body and magical power can nourish his sea of ​​consciousness, otherwise, relying solely on arduous cultivation, his divine consciousness will not be able to take another step forward.

However, if one wants to deduce the Profound Yin Refining Spirit Technique of the Foundation Establishment stage, the ancient bronze bell explicitly requires that "high-grade spirit stones" be used as the medium for the deduction!

However, when forcibly refining the Foundation Establishment Fiend Ghost transformed from the Compassionate Image using the ancient bell in the underground palace, an extremely precious high-grade spirit stone was also consumed.

He could clearly sense that after each time he rode the ancient bronze bell, the creature would first fall silent, then revive, and afterwards, its appetite would increase.

"I really don't know where this thing comes from. It's a bottomless pit that consumes resources—" Xia Dong sighed helplessly.

High-grade spirit stones are extremely rare, and he had already run out of them.

However, despite her initial frustration, Xia Dong quickly cheered up again.

Now his magical power has reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, and his divine sense has entered the early stage of Foundation Establishment ahead of schedule. His essence, energy, and spirit have all been honed to the peak of the Qi Refining stage.

He is now fully qualified to attempt to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Xia Dong stood up and stretched his limbs slightly, and a series of muffled thunderous cracking sounds emanated from his body.

Muscles and bones resonate in unison!

He looked towards the direction of Lin Yuan Prefecture City, his eyes flashing with light.

"It's time to go to the Eagle Wolf Guard and retrieve my Foundation Establishment Pill," Xia Dong murmured to himself.

Despite spending almost the entire five years in seclusion in his cave deep in the Tiger Hill Mountains, Xia Dong's success in the secular officialdom was not hindered in the slightest. He made great achievements and rose through the ranks step by step.

During the Wusheng Sect rebellion at Chihuo Mine, Commander Xiang's poor command and attempt to sit idly by and watch the outcome led to the army being in grave danger. He was subsequently held accountable by the imperial court and transferred from Linyuan Prefecture in disgrace.

Lord Qian, who had deep roots in the prefectural city, seized the opportunity and naturally rose to the position of commander of the Eagle Wolf Guard in Linyuan Prefecture.

As for the deputy commander who had been fighting against Lord Qian to the death, seeing that the situation was hopeless, he could only slink away and use his connections to be transferred to a remote area elsewhere.

As a close confidant of Lord Qian, Zhao Ting, the former superior, naturally rose in rank as well.

He was first promoted to the position of "probationary deputy commander" in the Thousand-Household Office for a few years, and then smoothly removed the "probationary" title and became a full-fledged deputy commander.

As for Xia Dong, with Zhao Ting and Lord Qian as his protectors, he can sit in the deep mountains while his merits come from heaven.

In the past few years, he has "made many outstanding contributions" and has been promoted to the position of centurion with great success.

To be honest, Xia Dong himself didn't even know what merit he had made.

However, in the Eagle Wolf Guard's files, every action of Xia Baihu was recorded clearly and in great detail.

Not only is there the head of the perpetrator as physical evidence, but also the signatures of colleagues and subordinates as witnesses; every contribution is logically sound.

In the words of his previous life, Xia Baihu's promotion experience in the Eagle Wolf Guard system was absolutely flawless and could withstand the test of history.

Once he reached the level of a centurion, a position of real power, he was fully qualified to go to the Eagle Wolf Guard's treasury and receive for free the Foundation Establishment Pill that the imperial court had already allocated and was waiting for him to reach a certain level of cultivation.

Moreover, Xia Dong himself also received a Foundation Establishment Pill as part of the supplementary registration of immortals.

There was no other way; Xia Dong felt that a Foundation Establishment Pill was simply not a safe bet.

In fact, most cultivators in the sect nowadays have excellent aptitude, so they often succeed with just one Foundation Establishment Pill. Only those with poor spiritual roots need multiple Foundation Establishment Pills.

Xia Dong happens to be the type whose spiritual roots aren't particularly strong.

After tidying up briefly, Xia Dong used his Wind Control Technique to leave the deep mountains of Tiger Hill and headed straight for Lin Yuan Prefecture City to pay a visit to the current Commander Qian and Deputy Commander Zhao.

..

The courtyard of the Thousand Households Office was filled with the gentle fragrance of sandalwood incense.

Upon learning Xia Dong's purpose, Lord Qian, who was holding a teacup, trembled violently and almost spilled the tea. He stared wide-eyed at Xia Dong as if he were looking at a monster, his astonishment evident in his eyes.

"Xueyi, you—you're already preparing to establish your foundation?" Lord Qian put down his teacup, his tone filled with undisguised shock.

He really didn't expect summer and winter to arrive so quickly.

All things considered, how many years has Xia Dong been in the world of cultivation?

To dare attempt to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm at such a young age—such cultivation speed!

On the other hand, Lord Qian has not forgotten that Xia Dong is a genuine Transcendent Realm martial artist!

The difficulty of cultivating both immortality and martial arts simultaneously, as well as the consumption of resources, are both extremely high.

:

He sighed inwardly: While this path offered superior combat power compared to others of the same level, its resource consumption was terrifying. The further he progressed, the more massive the resources required for both martial arts to temper the body and immortality to break through realms. The "hole" Xia Dong was about to fill was likely a bottomless pit.

Therefore, although Lord Qian was amazed when he looked at Xia Dong, who had a calm demeanor, he secretly shook his head.

The further one progresses in cultivation, the more resources are needed, increasing exponentially. This bottomless pit of resources, which cannot be filled by ordinary human effort or background.

However, cultivation is ultimately a matter of personal experience, like drinking water—only the person drinking knows whether it's hot or cold; it all depends on one's own fate and destiny. Lord Qian naturally wouldn't bother with such a trivial matter. With a beaming smile, he personally went to the secret vault and solemnly handed the Foundation Establishment Pill, contained in the sealed jade box, to Xia Dong.

Xia Dong carefully put the Foundation Establishment Pill into his storage bag, feeling much more at ease.

With the important business settled, he changed the subject and asked about another matter he had been thinking about for a long time: "Lord Qian, I remember you once mentioned that there is a martial arts competition within our Eagle Wolf Guard, and the prize for the winner includes an extremely rare high-grade spirit stone."

I wonder if this grand competition has been held recently?

Upon hearing this, Lord Qian's eyes lit up immediately.

If Xia Dong were willing to help, it would be a sure thing. He immediately explained enthusiastically, "Of course! This competition is a grand event jointly organized by the Eagle Wolf Guards of several surrounding provinces, a veritable gathering of hidden talents. Even more coincidentally, this year's venue happens to be Lin Yuan Prefecture in our Tianshui Province!"

Bringing honor to our institute and making a great impression on colleagues in other provinces—these are truly tangible achievements.

Lord Qian was extremely enthusiastic and fearing that Xia Dong might change his mind, he immediately and decisively ordered someone to fetch the roster and used his privilege as a commander to report Xia Dong's name.

Holding their competition certificate, Xia Dong walked out of the Qianhu Office, bathed in the summer sunshine, feeling extremely happy.

With his current strength, participating in the internal competition of the Transcendent Realm is practically child's play for him. It's free money, why not take it?

Compared to challenging a powerful cultivator like Senior Lonely Moon, who is at a higher level, it is clear that challenging a mere Qi-refining child is more to Xia Dong's liking.

He refused to believe that there was anyone more powerful than Xia Dong at the Immortal Refinement Stage or Martial Transformation Realm.