Heavenly River Baptism
While Lin Ming and his group were having the Heavenly River Spirit devour and merge with them, the surface of the Heavenly River became extremely lively.
Light and shadow kept bursting out from the Heavenly River. Some of these lights and shadows were in a sorry state, some were full of vigor, and some still had a bit of lingering fear after surviving a disaster, like a group of divers who had been holding their breath in the deep water for a long time finally surfacing.
Those who rushed out of the river each rode on a token-shaped boat. The boats were more or less damaged. Some had cracks crisscrossing like spider webs on their protective shields, some had a corner missing from their hulls, and some even had most of the Spiritual Runes on their tokens dimmed.
Regardless of their injuries, everyone who emerged from the river wore a relieved and joyful expression, as if the moment to hand in the papers of a difficult exam had finally arrived.
A figure stepped on a token on the river. It was a young man dressed in a gray-blue outfit, with a resolute face and a lean build. His Spiritual Energy was powerful and refined, clearly indicating that he was also Tier 9 Supreme being.
He then stomped his foot, and immediately the token burst with light, with countless points of light shooting into the sky.
Each of those points of light was about the size of a baby's fist, radiating a warm glow, like luminous pearls tossed into the air.
The points of light circled above his head once and then hovered steadily in mid-air, maintaining a distance of several feet between each other, like a string of beads strung together by invisible threads.
Those points of light were clearly the Heavenly River Crystal, and there were at least twenty of them.
Twenty Heavenly River Crystal — the Heavenly River Baptism triggered by this quantity should only be of a low level.
However, judging from the man's expression, he was clearly quite satisfied.
He looked up at the twenty Crystal Stone above him, a wide grin spreading across his face, revealing a set of white teeth. His smile carried a sense of relief, as if all his efforts had finally paid off.
After all, obtaining the Heavenly River Crystal is extremely difficult; even Tier 9 Peak master would go to great lengths to acquire it.
He fought those orbs of light in the deep water for a whole day and night, sustaining seven or eight wounds. His Golden Eagle Token boat was damaged so badly that it had to have three light shields replaced. The most dangerous moment was when he and the boat were almost capsized in the river. Only then did he manage to collect twenty orbs.
This achievement might not rank among the best in the Heavenly River, but for him, it was something he had worked incredibly hard for, so he was naturally very satisfied.
Buzz. The Heavenly River Crystal shot into the sky and converged with each other.
Twenty Crystal Stone spun rapidly in the sky, like twenty tops tethered to the same string, spinning faster and closer together.
Their surfaces simultaneously lit up with light, which surged from the core of each Crystal Stone, spread along the Spiritual Runes to the surface, and then extended outward from the surface like elongated threads of light.
The filaments of light connected, intertwined, and entwined among the Crystal Stone, eventually converging into a huge beam of light.
The beam of light was entirely emerald green, several meters thick, reaching the void above and connecting to the Heavenly River below, like a bridge linking the two.
The surface of the beam of light had fine Spiritual Runes that flowed slowly, like the veins of Spirit Liquid flowing on the trunk of a towering tree.
The man stood right in the middle of the bridge, his figure completely enveloped in the emerald light, like a statue wrapped in jade.
The mighty river surged forth with a whooshing sound.
The Heavenly River Water, drawn by the beam of light, surged upwards towards the sky like a waterfall flowing backwards.
The river water gathered above the man, forming a huge whirlpool. The whirlpool was about several tens of feet in diameter, and its entire body was made of river water and emerald green light. It spun faster and faster and tighter and tighter.
Within the vortex, vast and pure Spiritual Energy was being compressed and gathered. This Spiritual Energy was flung to the edge of the vortex by the powerful centrifugal force, and then pulled back by the gravity at the center, just like a giant centrifuge was throwing out impurities from the Spiritual Energy, leaving only the purest part.
A moment later, with a loud bang, a burst of emerald green light exploded at the core of the vortex. The light was like a green sun that had been ignited, turning the entire river surface into a warm emerald green.
Then the light transformed into countless raindrops, falling down from the sky.
The raindrops were dense and numerous, like a sudden downpour, each one trailing a thin, luminous tail as it fell obliquely from the sky.
Those raindrops were not ordinary rainwater; they were emerald green, seemingly containing an extremely strong vitality and Spiritual Energy.
Each drop, about the size of a fingernail, was like a concentrated essence of Spirit Liquid, crystal clear and translucent, like tiny jade beads.
Each drop was comparable to Supreme Spirit Liquid. When the raindrops fell on the river surface, they burst into a small emerald green splash, and the Spiritual Energy contained in the splash dyed the surrounding river water a warm green.
Below, the man who had triggered this Low-Tier Baptism wore an expression of ecstatic joy.
He looked up at the emerald green raindrops falling from the sky, his mouth stretched so wide that his back teeth were almost visible.
He immediately activated his Supreme Dharma Body, and a dark cyan Dharma Body rose from the ground behind him. The Dharma Body was composed entirely of solidified Spiritual Energy, with distinct armor.
He spread out the arms of his Dharma Body, palms facing upwards, like a deity receiving the dew of heaven.
Buzz! The raindrops fell on the Supreme Dharma Body and then merged directly into it. The moment each raindrop merged into the Dharma Body, a point of emerald green light shone on the surface of the Dharma Body. The light spread in all directions from the point of merging, like a drop of ink slowly spreading after falling into clear water.
Thousands upon thousands of raindrops fell upon the Dharma Body, and the emerald green light spread across Dharma Body surface like a tide, connecting, intertwining, and merging with each other, eventually forming a faint layer of emerald green light on the surface of the Supreme Dharma Body.
The light covered every inch of the Supreme Dharma Body like a thin film, like moss growing on the bark of an ancient tree.
Although this membrane may seem thin, anyone who has experienced it will know that with this layer of emerald light, the power of the Supreme Dharma Body can be enhanced by at least two times.
The previously blurry armor patterns became clear and sharp, and the previously somewhat loose Dharma Body structure became solid and tight, like a sharp sword that had been reforged and tempered.
At the same time, the man's body was also baptized.
The emerald green raindrops seeped into his body through his Dharma Body, like countless warm streams washing over his meridians and bones.
After undergoing a marrow cleansing and bone-refining process, a faint fluorescence appeared on the surface of his body. The fluorescence was entirely emerald green, like a thin layer of jade coated on his skin.
His muscles became more defined, and his bones crackled softly, like a bamboo shoot growing taller in the spring rain.
Impurities that had accumulated in the corners of the meridians over the years were washed out one by one, and expelled from the pores with sweat, forming a layer of grayish-black grime on the skin's surface. This also resulted in a significant improvement.
"Haha, as expected of the Heavenly River Baptism!" The man couldn't help but laugh out loud as he felt the changes in the Supreme Dharma Body, his face full of ecstatic joy.
He clenched his fist, and the thin green membrane on its surface bulged slightly with his movement, emitting a heavy sense of force.
He was clearly extremely satisfied with the baptism; his laughter echoed across the river, carrying a sense of exhilarating satisfaction after hardship.
Above the Heavenly River, many powerful figures were watching him. Those who hadn't yet collected enough Crystal Stone, those who had already completed their baptism, and those who were hesitating about whether to continue deeper, were all gazing at the emerald light that hadn't completely dissipated above the man's head.
When they saw the latter's improvement, they were surprised and eager to try it themselves.
This Heavenly River Baptism was indeed extraordinary! The man's foundation was not outstanding among them, but after a Low-Tier Baptism, his aura was raised significantly, and even his Supreme Dharma Body became more refined and fierce.
This visible improvement acts like a living advertisement, shattering the hesitation of those who were still observing.
"Even Low-Tier Baptism has such an effect?" Many people were quite surprised.
Although the man's improvement was so great, largely because his foundation was weak, making the effect more pronounced, it was still only a Low-Tier Baptism.
Above that, there are even stronger, High-Tier Baptism, and the Perfect Baptism, whose very existence is unknown.
If this is the case for lower-level units, what about higher-level units? And perfect units?
Those who had already accumulated twenty or thirty Crystal Stone began to consider whether to go down and try their luck again, while those who had only accumulated a dozen or so looked annoyed, regretting that they hadn't tried harder earlier.
Boom!
As some people marveled, more and more rays of light began to shoot into the sky above the Heavenly River, causing tremendous fluctuations.
The lights were multicolored, some emerald green, some deep blue, some Red Gold, and some silvery white; each ray of light represented a person who initiated the baptism.
The lights rose and fell on the river's surface, like a grand fireworks display. It was as more and more powerful beings began to trigger the Heavenly River Baptism.
The baptismal rays intertwined, reflecting a kaleidoscope of colors across the entire Heavenly River Way, like a spilled palette of hues.
Among them, the North King and Xia Jia were also prominently featured.
The two stood on their respective token boats, the Golden Eagle Token and Bai Ying Token tokens beneath their feet still bearing the cracks from their battle with the Heavenly River Spirit.
The two of them, while drinking soup with Lin Ming in the Nine Residences, displayed skills no less powerful than those of a typical Tier 9 Supreme Perfection.
After obtaining the jet-black heavy sword in the Dragon Mansion, the North King's combat power increased dramatically. He then effortlessly dispatched more than twenty Heavenly River Spirit in the Heavenly River.
Although Xia Jia's cultivation was slightly weaker, she was agile and had the help of her pair of silver-white short swords. She picked up the Heavenly River Spirit that had been crippled by others and managed to collect more than twenty of them.
Both of them had obtained more than twenty Heavenly River Spirit, and at this moment they underwent a baptism.
The Golden Eagle Token beneath the North King's feet trembled, and more than twenty Crystal Stone shot into the sky, converging into a dark golden beam of light, followed by a torrential downpour.
At the same time, a silvery-white light also shone on Xia Jia's side. The two baptisms took place almost simultaneously, one dark gold and the other silvery-white, reflecting each other on the river surface.