Hardship Cultivation

"Senior, I have successfully reached Foundation Establishment and will soon begin Qi Circulation and Form Condensing. I wish to ask for your guidance on how to cultivate."

Zhu Yushuang replied with a cool tone, "The cultivation of the Qi Nourishing Realm is fundamental. Only by opening apertures can one circulate Qi, thereby altering the Qi meridians and cleansing the marrow. Form Condensing allows for the initial comprehension of Law Intent and breaking through the Mysterious Pass."

"The four stages of Qi Nourishing focus on Qi Circulation and Form Condensing."

"The key to Qi Circulation lies in the Qi Circulation Diagram. Only superior Qi Circulation Diagrams can nourish the soul and greatly benefit Cauldron Forging."

"Qi Circulation Diagrams that are not superior merely enhance innate talent or combat power by a small margin, which is better than nothing but of no benefit to the Great Dao."

"Although I possess a superior Qi Circulation Diagram, it is incompatible with you. You must open three hundred and sixty apertures before you can cultivate it."

Wu Tian did not feel disappointed upon hearing this. He quickly asked mentally, "Senior, is the Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram passed down by Wild Dog Cave of Skull Mountain a superior method?"

Zhu Yushuang said, "That is correct. Skull Mountain's Foundation Establishment methods are not superior, but their Qi Circulation Diagram is indeed among the superior ones."

"The so-called Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram is a direct lineage art of their Sect Master. It can absorb moonlight to nourish the form and spirit, so it naturally counts as superior."

Wu Tian was overjoyed. If that were the case, he was determined to obtain the Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram. However, this opportunity to seek guidance was rare, and he dared not waste time. He continued to ask, "Senior, what about the Form Condensing realm? Are there any key points?"

Zhu Yushuang pondered for a moment and said, "The Form Condensing realm involves transforming True Qi into the forms of all things in heaven and earth. The key is to borrow the forms of heaven and earth, comprehend the principles of heaven and earth, and thus allow the True Qi to nurture a wisp of Law Intent."

"Whether it be mountains, rivers, plants, lakes, or monsters and spirits, all can serve as objects for True Qi to condense its form."

"However, Form Condensing must avoid emptiness and, more importantly, avoid relying on external objects. Skull Mountain's method of using monster skins and souls to assist True Qi in Form Condensing is a deviation, damaging the foundation and not the proper path."

"But the disciples of Skull Mountain generally have low aptitude. If they do not rely on external objects, and only a handful of them can achieve True Qi Form Condensing through their own efforts, then it is even rarer than one in a hundred. This trade-off is also unavoidable."

"If you have confidence, you can choose the form of any object and take it. If you succeed, the Mysterious Pass will be easily broken, and Cauldron Forging will be within reach!"

Wu Tian felt enlightened. He now had a complete understanding of the cultivation of the four stages of Qi Nourishing and knew how he should proceed.

However, he still had one unresolved matter. He shamelessly continued to ask, "I am preparing to refine a Curse Artifact. Do you have any advice, Senior?"

Zhu Yushuang was silent for a long time. "The great sects of the Central Plains never refine Curse Artifacts. The four stages of Qi Nourishing are merely the foundation. By the time of Cauldron Forging and Law Refining, you can forge Magic Artifacts. Why waste time?"

"However, I happened to obtain the Abdominal Artifact Concealment Technique before, which can nurture Curse Artifacts. I will bestow it upon you."

"Go now, do not bother me with these trivial matters again!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she flicked a beam of green light that accurately landed on Wu Tian's forehead.

Wu Tian focused his mind on his spiritual platform and sensed a rune flowing with green auspicious light. As his mind touched it, dense runes surged forth.

He concentrated and sorted them for a moment, and a new skill naturally appeared on his System Panel.

[Abdomen Curse: Secret Transmission Curse Technique. Can swallow Curse Artifacts into the abdomen, naturally nurturing them during Qi Circulation.]

It was a very simple curse technique, appearing more like a type of skill.

Wu Tian was delighted, but suddenly he felt a premonition. He quickly used his Talent for Seeking Auspiciousness and Avoiding Calamity to check Skull Mountain. He sensed a concentration of malice on the mountaintop, forming dark clouds like demonic spirits, about to pounce on him.

Although the dark clouds were fierce, there was no bloody aura, indicating that it posed no mortal threat to him.

Moreover, the dark clouds had not yet enveloped him, meaning the other party merely harbored malice and had not yet acted.

"Who is this now?"

Wu Tian felt troubled. The other party was merely a wisp of malevolent intent, yet it had taken on a demonic form and was extremely ferocious, indicating profound strength. If he hadn't been protected by an Edict, he would have likely turned into a bloody mist long ago.

He completely abandoned the idea of returning to his cave dwelling. He had originally planned to return and use this time to cultivate the Silk Drawing Curse Technique, but now he would obediently stay on the mountainside and wait for an opportunity.

"Tong Guan was watching earlier, and I had to enter this forbidden area of Skull Mountain under his nose. Now that old fellow is gone, it's time to collect the spoils of war."

Wu Tian darted out like a white light, rapidly heading towards the place where he had just fought.

When he arrived, he saw that the corpses lying in pools of blood were already being consumed by birds, poisonous insects, snakes, and ants. Some fierce birds and savage beasts were even approaching, but they were wary of the lingering malevolent aura in the air and lingered at the periphery, not daring to come closer.

Wu Tian opened his mouth, picked up a bell, and then walked towards the lakeside.

After placing the bell down, he continued to transport items from the forest.

He made seven or eight trips before finally managing to move all the Curse Artifacts back. As for the corpses, they had long since been bitten beyond recognition.

There were a total of eight Magic Artifacts, including a banner, a large net, a bell, and five Ironwood sticks.

Most of these Curse Artifacts were of good quality. Only the bell had the effect of captivating the mind and could be considered a fine piece.

But for Wu Tian, they were basically useless. He possessed the Thunder Sound Curse, and when cultivated to perfection, his roar was like thunder, far more useful than any bell.

He was not originally in human form, so the other Curse Artifacts were even more useless.

Wu Tian did not feel disappointed. Regardless, these were his spoils of war.

He lay on the banner and began to cultivate.

He practiced the Water, Fire, Wind, and Thunder Curses one by one, then cleansed his impure Qi and opened apertures.

The essence of heaven and earth surged, and auspicious light filled the air. Time passed unnoticed.

In this forbidden area, with no one to disturb him, Wu Tian drank mountain spring water when he was thirsty and hunted in the forest when he was hungry, or ate wild fruits. It was spring, and there was no shortage of food in the dense mountain forest.

He was immersed in his cultivation, oblivious to external matters.

After three days, the Abdominal Pouch Curse could be preliminarily performed.

Wu Tian tried it. Currently, the space within his abdomen was limited, and he could only barely swallow the bell.

He did not feel disappointed and continued to cultivate diligently, dedicating most of his energy to opening apertures, connecting almost one aperture every day.

In his free time, he would use the Silk Drawing Curse to extract silk from the Ironwood staff, both to hone the technique and to weave Yin Soul Silk.

The wooden threads extracted from the Ironwood staff had to be refined with the Cloud Water Spell and Gather Wind Spell, then woven with a secret method, before they could become qualified low-grade spiritual material, Yin Soul Silk.

With the System Panel, the cultivation speed of the four Secret Transmission Curse Techniques – Cloud Water Spell, Gather Wind Spell, Silk Drawing Curse, and Abdominal Pouch Curse – was extremely fast, progressing by almost 1% every day.

Only the Thunder Sound Curse and Fire Pupil Curse, although much faster than during Foundation Establishment, still took five to six days to increase their progress by 1%. To achieve mastery would require at least over a year.

In addition, after cultivating Tongyou Qi, the advancement speed of his intermediate-level talents, which had been slow, also began to accelerate.

Wu Tian could clearly feel his strength improving every day, and it was an all-around improvement. His talents, skills, and cultivation were all increasing at an extremely terrifying rate.