The Water Mansion remained as ancient and mysterious as ever, suffused with an eternal aura.
Ever since Lei Zhan had returned to the Water Mansion, he had felt at ease and comfortable.
For nearly four years, he had been out adventuring and tempering himself, constantly battling the Demon Race across the North Dark Sea or heading to one sinful demon stronghold after another. He had barely had any leisure.
Now that he had returned to the Water Mansion, nowhere in the Great Xia World—or even the Three Realms—made Lei Zhan feel safer.
Every day, Lei Zhan practiced his spear arts, visualized the Inner Contemplation of Sun and Moon Bright Buddha, and cultivated the Qi Refining Path method Nine Directions Fragment, just as he had in the outside world.
But the taut string in his heart had slackened considerably. He had found just the right balance between tension and relaxation, and his cultivation had not slowed.
Time passed, and half a year slipped by in the blink of an eye.
"Master." Lei Zhan looked at Immortal Juhua and bowed respectfully.
"Mm." Immortal Juhua looked over. "Are you heading out?"
"Nothing escapes you, Master." Lei Zhan smiled slightly. "Now that I've reached the Myriad Phenomena level, I feel an even greater sense of urgency."
Though the Qi Refining Path method Nine Directions Fragment was top-notch, it required a vast amount of the world's energy.
Now that Lei Zhan had reached the Myriad Phenomena True Person level, the speed at which he absorbed the world's energy had naturally surged tenfold, even a hundredfold, compared with when he was at the Purple Mansion level.
But even so, the amount he could accumulate was still a drop in the bucket compared with what he needed to break through to the Primordial Spirit Daoist level.
"Cultivators need ever more time to progress from Purple Mansion to Myriad Phenomena, then to Primordial Spirit Daoist, and even to Return-to-Void Earth Immortal."
Immortal Juhua shook his head. "And you're cultivating a powerful Qi Refining Path method, which demands even more time."
Lei Zhan nodded.
The further one cultivated, the harder it became, and the deeper the foundation one needed to build.
It was like building a house. Only by laying a firmer, deeper foundation could one build higher and better withstand risks.
Those cultivators who only cared about speed built nothing more than thatched huts, then frantically piled more height onto them. How could they compare with the palaces that stood tall on deep, solid foundations?
"Lei Zhan."
Immortal Juhua looked at Lei Zhan and said, "I had originally planned to wait until you reached the Primordial Spirit Daoist level before offering you some help with your cultivation, so your path would be a little easier."
A hint of a smile crossed Immortal Juhua's lean face, as though he had thought of something.
"But... geniuses and monsters are always different from ordinary cultivators. You're a monstrous talent with profound insight into the Dao. As long as you have enough Essence Liquid, you could even break through to the Primordial Spirit Daoist level in one go..."
As Immortal Juhua spoke, a storage magic treasure appeared out of thin air before Lei Zhan.
"These things were prepared for you in the first place. I'll give them to you early."
"Hm?" Lei Zhan was taken aback.
Lei Zhan, with the experience of his previous life, naturally understood the thought behind Immortal Juhua's gesture. But to give them to him now?
It seems my monstrously good comprehension has changed what Master and Yellow-Haired Great Bear think of me... Lei Zhan's thoughts turned.
"This Earth-Grade storage magic treasure contains a top-grade Heaven-Grade magic treasure I saved for you, as well as three million jin of Essence Liquid. Even though Nine Directions Fragment consumes Essence Liquid at an enormous rate, this should still be enough to advance your Qi Refining Path cultivation to the Primordial Spirit Daoist level."
"Three million jin of Essence Liquid?" Lei Zhan was startled.
Three million jin of Essence Liquid was no small sum. After all, buying an Immortal-Grade magic treasure cost no more than two or three million jin!
Even a low-grade Immortal-Grade magic treasure was a powerful treasure!
"Mm. I made some calculations. Three million jin should be enough for you to reach the Primordial Spirit level." Immortal Juhua cautioned him, "But... I can give you the Essence Liquid, yet you mustn't neglect tempering your foundation. Spending some time consolidating yourself at each stage is essential."
The path of cultivation demanded constant refinement of one's foundation. Only with a steadier foundation could one travel farther in the future.
Lei Zhan nodded.
Disciples of the great clans and powers had powerful backing, abundant resources, and no shortage of guidance. They had every opportunity to cultivate all the way to the Return-to-Void Earth Immortal level in one go, yet very few actually did so.
Over the years, Lei Zhan had encountered some reincarnated immortals while adventuring. After recovering their memories from their previous lives, they too could raise their cultivation all the way back to the Return-to-Void level in one go. But unless they had no choice, few did so.
These reincarnated immortals had far greater insight into the soul and the Dao than ordinary cultivators. They faced almost no bottlenecks on the path to the Return-to-Void level.
Yet most of them still chose to proceed step by step, spending at least several years tempering themselves at each stage before breaking through to the next.
Immortal Juhua smiled. "The Myriad Phenomena and Primordial Spirit levels... At different levels of cultivation, your understanding of the Dao is entirely different."
"So, though resources aren't a problem, I still hope you'll remain at the Myriad Phenomena level for a while."
"Yes." Lei Zhan bowed respectfully.
"He's gone?" A gigantic phantom of a Yellow-Haired Great Bear appeared out of thin air in the hall.
The bear phantom looked at Immortal Juhua, who sat cross-legged. "Seems you're worried about the little fellow too."
"He's my disciple. Naturally, I want him to return unharmed when he goes out adventuring."
Immortal Juhua shook his head. "The Myriad Phenomena level is the stage where cultivators are most likely to die. My disciple is such a monstrous talent, and he has a good chance of surviving the tribulation someday. If he were to perish halfway..."
At the Myriad Phenomena True Person level, a cultivator was strong, but not especially so. There were still Primordial Spirit Daoists, Earth Immortals, and Loose Immortals above them. Even adventuring across the boundless lands or the North Dark Sea was a stretch.
But they were not weak, either. After all, anyone qualified to reach the Primordial Spirit Daoist level could not be all that weak.
Yet it was still the stage where cultivators were most likely to die.
When Lei Zhan had been at the Purple Mansion level and gone adventuring, even when he encountered danger, his master could usually save him in time.
But if Lei Zhan grew stronger, the dangers he encountered would grow stronger too.
If he stumbled into a perilous region or a divine-demon ruin, then even Immortal Juhua, who had the power to slay Celestial Immortals, might not arrive at his disciple's side in time.
"Lei Zhan..." Yellow-Haired Great Bear's gaze was distant.
"That little fellow Lei Zhan was already a young tiger, ready to sharpen his teeth and lap up blood. Now that you've bestowed all those treasures upon him, he's like a tiger with wings."
"He can inherit the great divine abilities my master left behind, and now he can also use his Qi Refining Path cultivation and that Earth-Fiend Primordial Chaos Sword Formation to pass the fifth level of the War God Hall..."
"His fortune is even deeper than yours."
The North Dark Sea.
A huge Dragon-Head Warship flew through the sky, cutting through layer upon layer of clouds like a black bolt of lightning.
"Hahaha! Exhilarating!" Lei Zhan stood at the bow of the Dragon-Head Warship, his heart brimming with joy.
The Qi Refining Path method Nine Directions Fragment was powerful to begin with. Lei Zhan had also broken through to the Myriad Phenomena level in the Water Mansion, raising his foundation and naturally strengthening his abilities in every way.
Afterward, he had used the Essence Liquid Immortal Juhua bestowed upon him to bring his Qi Refining Path cultivation all the way to the Myriad Phenomena perfection.
With seven hundred and twenty top-grade Earth-Grade flying swords to help him, he had used the Earth-Fiend Primordial Chaos Sword Formation to form an even mightier Water-Fire Grinding Disc. Passing the test of the War God Hall's fifth level had been a breeze.
"Now that I'm using Myriad Phenomena-level energy to control this puppet warship, it's nearly ten times faster than before! I should be able to reach North Sea Commandery City in an hour."
Lei Zhan's divine sense enveloped the entire Dragon-Head Warship. He sensed the currents of air streaming past both sides of the vessel, a smile on his face.
The Dragon-Head puppet warship's speed had increased nearly tenfold, but that was only the limit of the magic treasure, not Lei Zhan's own limit!
Naturally, controlling the puppet warship with Myriad Phenomena energy made its speed worlds apart from before!
Lei Zhan's Qi Refining cultivation had reached Myriad Phenomena perfection, nearly matching a mid-stage Primordial Spirit Daoist. With energy so abundant, controlling a puppet warship was no problem at all.
Soon, North Sea Commandery City, built on a vast island, came into view in the distance.
"Baili Changfeng kept inviting me to a banquet, saying he wanted to introduce me to a few cultivators he'd recently met." Lei Zhan looked ahead. From afar, the enormous North Sea Commandery City still looked like a tiny black speck.
But as the distance closed, the speck grew larger and larger, like a crouching giant beast poised to strike.
"Unfortunately, I was busy slaying that Myriad Phenomena-perfection Water-Splitting White Shark Great Demon at the time. I was swamped with other things, so I could only decline. Now, I'll go meet him! And I want to cultivate the Star-Plucking Hand, which requires a great deal of Five Elements Essence. I might as well see if I can learn anything about where to find those Five Elements treasures."
After passing the War God Hall's fifth level, Lei Zhan had not chosen to exchange for a Heaven-Grade magic treasure or a rare treasure. He could not use a Heaven-Grade treasure yet, anyway.
Cultivators generally used only the few treasures they were best at wielding. No matter how many more they exchanged for, they would simply sit in a storage magic treasure.
The full set of top-grade Earth-Grade flying swords he had exchanged for earlier was already enough. He did not lack anything else for the moment.
As for life-saving treasures—the top-tier ones even more powerful than the God-Slaying Ring—he could not see them the first time he exchanged for a Heaven-Grade magic treasure. Most of those only appeared the second or third time.
He had not found any rare treasures containing Five Elements Essence, either, though he needed them to cultivate the Star-Plucking Hand. In the end, he chose to exchange for the most valuable cave-dwelling magic treasure.
"The Star-Plucking Hand..."
Lei Zhan raised his hand. It was long and slender, with fingers as exquisitely sculpted as jade. Countless intricate Star-Plucking Divine Patterns lay hidden in the deepest part of his palm.
The top-tier divine ability Star-Plucking Hand, passed down by Daoist Sanshou, was known as Six-Turn Star-Plucking.
At the God-Devil Body Refining Purple Mansion level, one could cultivate the first turn!
At the Myriad Phenomena level, one could cultivate the second turn.
At the Primordial Spirit level, one could cultivate the third turn.
At the Return-to-Void level, one could cultivate the fourth turn.
Now that Lei Zhan's God-Devil Body Refining cultivation had reached the Myriad Phenomena level, he naturally wanted to find the corresponding Five Elements treasures as soon as possible and cultivate the second turn of the Star-Plucking Hand.
By then, his hands alone would rival an Immortal-Grade magic treasure.
If he unleashed his full power and used his spear arts, he might even have a chance of passing the War God Hall's sixth level.
Three chapters again today! Please keep reading!