After the Great Dao died

Chapter 98 Jade Qi Realm, Killing Power Cauldron

Time slipped away quietly in this daily arduous practice, and another two months passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Chen Lingxi woke up from her breathing exercises and opened her eyes.

At this moment, golden light flowed endlessly beneath his skin, and that golden light was more profound and restrained than before.

Deep within the bones, a golden broth surged like a tide, and within the marrow, a faint, jade-colored luster slowly began to emerge.

Although the jade color was extremely pale, it truly existed deep within his very bones.

"Jade Qi Realm."

His cultivation of Qi and blood finally crossed the threshold of the Golden Body Perfection and entered the realm of Jade Qi.

After months of arduous cultivation, and with the Xuanqi nourishing his muscles, bones, and skin day and night, his Qi and blood progressed much faster than expected.

Those who reach the Jade Qi Realm have their Qi and blood transformed into jade-like quality, making them translucent inside and out, and as light as a swallow.

At this level, the jade-like qi and blood throughout the body can condense into various forms, such as fists, palms, knives, or swords, with boundless power.

Although it cannot compare to the myriad of mysterious techniques of Qi cultivators, it is still an extremely high realm in the path of martial arts.

As he circulated his qi and blood, he felt the immense power surging within his body. He nodded in satisfaction, then stood up and walked out of the cave.

It was early spring outside the cave; most of the snow on the mountaintop had melted, with only a few small patches of grayish-white snow remaining in the shady areas.

Chen Lingxi crossed two mountain peaks and arrived at a small hill, where he sat down cross-legged.

"See you there!"

After circulating his Qi to the fifth floor, the area of ​​his divine chamber expanded again, now spanning fifty miles in both directions.

From this small hill, he only needs to use his ability to see and travel to take in most of Yuanjiang Prefecture and the surrounding mountains.

He calmed his mind and focused his consciousness into his spiritual chamber, where he used his supernatural powers of seeing and traveling.

His gaze followed the wisp of smoke as it drifted out of the hills, over the vast forests, across the winding Yuan River, into the city he knew all too well, into the Baosu Marquis's mansion where he had lived for so long.

He practices his spiritual disciplines and travels daily without fail.

However, Lin Su Ri has been in seclusion for a long time and has almost never left the Bao Su Marquis's residence.

During his travels, Lin Su Ri was always cultivating himself with the spiritual light from that lamp.

His aura grew deeper and more unfathomable each day, like a still pool of water, its surface calm and undisturbed, yet beneath it, immense power was constantly accumulating.

Chen Lingxi didn't know when he would break through his cultivation, nor what he would do after breaking through. So she could only observe his every move day after day through Jianyou, hoping to find some useful information from his seemingly ordinary cultivation.

But today is different.

Chen Lingxi's gaze followed the smoke into the East Hall of the South Courtyard, where the hall door, which had been closed for several months, was wide open.

Lin Suri had come out of the hall and was standing with his hands behind his back under the sycamore tree in the courtyard.

He remained calm and composed, dressed in a black brocade robe, with a jade belt around his waist and his hair ornaments perfectly in place.

His extremely pale face revealed no emotion, but his eyes were completely different from usual.

Deep within those eyes, two extremely faint and fine golden flames flickered slowly, gentle and profound, yet containing an indescribable pressure.

Chen Lingxi was startled.

"The spiritual energy rises to the seventh level, giving rise to divine consciousness."

He had seen similar descriptions in the records.

One of the hallmarks of the Seventh Floor of Qi Circulation is the emergence of divine consciousness.

When the spirit is solidified, it can even detach from the body and perceive the outside world.

The two golden flames in Lin Suri's eyes were a sign that his divine sense had solidified.

As he was thinking this, he saw Lin Suri slightly raise his head and look towards the direction outside the courtyard wall.

A faint, thin golden light silently shone from between his brows.

The light started as a tiny glimmer, but in an instant it spread out and transformed into extremely fine golden threads.

The threads, like a spiderweb, spread from between his brows, covering every inch of space within a radius of several dozen feet.

Chen Lingxi saw what Lin Su had seen that day.

At this moment, Chen Lingxi could clearly see every leaf of the sycamore tree in the courtyard, every fine line on the bluestone ground under the tree, and even every speck of dust floating in the air.

Everything was clearly visible, down to the smallest detail.

"Lin Suri finally crossed the threshold of the sixth level of Qi Circulation and stepped into the seventh level of Qi Circulation."

Chen Lingxi couldn't help but take a deep breath.

"In the future, try to go to the Baosu Marquis's residence as little as possible. If you do go, make sure Lin Su is not there, otherwise he will easily notice."

Unlike before, Chen Lingxi's cultivation level had improved, and his Concealing Edge Technique had progressed. Normally, he would conceal his strength and conceal his intentions, perhaps even at the seventh level of Qi cultivation.

The cultivators on the eighth floor could no longer detect it.

However, once the spiritual energy is revealed, it will inevitably be captured by Lin Suri.

As Chen Lingxi pondered inwardly, she saw Lin Suri slowly withdraw his divine sense back to his brow.

The golden threads receded silently like the receding tide, vanishing without a trace in an instant.

The pale golden light between his brows dimmed and eventually returned to its original state.

Then, Lin Su left the Marquis's residence.

Without looking to the side, he walked south along the long street, went straight out of the city gate, and headed towards the Zhuzhao River.

Chen Lingxi's perspective followed him all the way out of the city and to the banks of the Zhuzhao River.

The Zhuzhao River is much wider than the Yuan River, and its water is also deeper and more somber.

Lin Su stood on a protruding rock by the riverbank, his hands behind his back. His divine sense once again emerged from between his eyebrows, like an invisible tendril, silently probing into the river water.

The divine sense penetrated the surface of the river, went deep into the riverbed, and slowly swept across the mud and sand.

Through Lin Suri's perspective, Chen Lingxi could vaguely sense that something seemed to be lurking deep in the riverbed.

The thing's aura was extremely subtle, yet terrifying, exuding a fierce aura!

Just then, a cloud of black mist suddenly surged from the distant river surface, landing beside Lin Suri and transforming into a thin human figure as it churned.

The man was dressed in a black robe, his face covered by a mask, revealing only a pair of pale eyes without pupils.

It was the same Chao-surnamed cultivator who had traded with Lin Suri.

The cultivator surnamed Chao emerged from the black mist, walked to Lin Suri's side, and followed his gaze to the deep, still river.

He looked at it for a moment, then suddenly turned his head, a very subtle look of surprise flashing in his pale eyes.

"Brother Dao has broken through to the third level?"

Lin Suri nodded slightly: "I've gotten something by sheer luck."

The surprise in the eyes of the cultivator surnamed Chao deepened.

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly sighed deeply and shook his head, saying, "It seems that Brother Lin is exceptionally talented. Even after reincarnation and the erasure of most of his spiritual energy, he can still ascend to the third floor so quickly."

"As for me, Chao Feiye, I have been awakening my innate wisdom for twelve or thirteen years. Even after receiving that spiritual opportunity from my fellow Daoist, I have only barely broken through to the sixth level."

He slowly shook his head, his expression bitter.

Lin Su said, "The opportunity to obtain a cauldron depends on fate, so you don't need to belittle yourself."

Chao Feiye gave a bitter smile and then said, "The fragments of the killing cauldron in the river are truly extraordinary. Its owner must have died in the Great World, after which the cauldron shattered and fell into many grotto-heavens and secret realms."

Or perhaps the owner of this cauldron deliberately scattered it in search of a great opportunity.

Lin Suri's eyes showed little emotion: "The killing power cauldron is one in ten thousand; obtaining it allows one to roam freely within the same realm."

To seek opportunity using a deadly cauldron is far too risky—the owner of this cauldron is likely already dead.

Chao Feiye nodded, seemingly unsurprised by the assessment.

He paused for a moment, then added, "It will take at most a year for the chaotic void around this killing power cauldron to dissipate. After that, this killing power cauldron will inevitably attract many people to fight over it."

Lin Su Ri nodded: "Even if it's just a fragment, it can be used two or three times! With a killing weapon in hand, even the people of the third floor of Chaotian need to be wary."

Chao Feiye nodded solemnly.

The river wind suddenly picked up a bit more, whipping up the sand and gravel from the riverbank, which rustled against the two men's robes.

The journey shattered at that moment.

Chen Lingxi's consciousness was bounced back into the divine chamber, then exited from the divine chamber and fell back onto that small hill.

He sat among the withered grass, silent for a long time, then whispered the six words he had just heard during the visit.

"Fragments of a deadly weapon—"

"Consort Chun also visited the banks of the Zhuzhao River."

This bronze cauldron is so coveted that even the people on the third floor of the Chaotian Tower would covet it.

And now it lies somewhere on the riverbed, hidden by layers of silt and water, and swept up by the turbulent currents of the void, like a pearl buried deep in the mud, quietly waiting for the turbulence to dissipate and for it to see the light of day again.

"One year," he murmured to himself.

A year later, the fragments of this deadly weapon will attract countless people to fight over them.

Lin Suri, Chao Feiye, Lu Baizhong, Ying Chi, and those disciples from various sects who are lurking in the shadows and have not yet shown their faces, will probably all be moved by the news.

"A year is enough time for me to cultivate to the sixth level of Qi circulation and solidify my realm."

If one were to add the power of complete enlightenment—it might very well possess the strength to seize the cauldron!

Chen Lingxi stood up and went back to Qiaojishan.

Chen Ling returned to the cave and sat cross-legged on the bluestone.

He took the Star Stone out of his Qiankun bag, held it in his palm, and looked down at the dark, dull stone.

The three golden characters on the stone's surface had long since disappeared, leaving only a deep black color.

It was like a piece of rotten wood buried in an ancient tomb for who knows how many years, showing no trace of its mystique.

He placed the Star Stone on his lap and took out a small cup from his Qiankun bag.

The cup appeared to be ordinary white porcelain, with a very faint and delicate lotus scroll pattern painted around the rim, and some dried tea stains remaining on the cup wall.

He obtained this from Lin Longyue a few months ago. It was a cup used by Consort Chun at a banquet in the Baosu Marquis's residence, and it was something that Consort Chun had handled.

He held the cup in his palm and looked down at it for a long time.

After a long while, Chen Lingxi slowly raised her head and looked out at the vast forest outside the cave.

Consort Chun.

He silently recited the name in his heart, a deep chill flashing in his eyes.

"But I wonder if that deadly weapon is capable of killing someone like Consort Chun, who is at the eighth level of Qi cultivation?"