Chapter 18

He kept increasing the number of lightning bolts.

If one bolt was ineffective, he raised it to ten.

If ten yielded nothing, he increased them to a hundred.

In the end, he suddenly realized that the body-tempering effect had nothing to do with the number of lightning bolts.

No matter how countless bolts of lightning struck his body, his flesh remained completely unchanged.

Could it be that he needed lightning with special attributes?

With that guess in mind, Lu Tian withdrew from the dream space.

With his cultivation having surged so greatly, obtaining high-quality lightning would not be difficult—

Heavenly Tribulation Lightning Punishment was the best choice.

The day of his tribulation was likely not far off.

He could verify his guess then.

Lu Tian left in satisfaction.

He had gained greatly this time and needed to quietly digest his insights.

What he did not notice was this.

Inside the Blood Sea palace, Ancestor Minghe stared at the scene in the water mirror, his chest heaving violently.

What shocked him was precisely Lu Tian's earlier action!

He could actually devour another's origin to make up for his own foundation...

Such a thing had never been heard of since ancient times!

To witness the Art to Mend Innate Defects today, this seat had not lived in vain.

What a Western Teachings!

Minghe clapped his hands in praise, the shock in his eyes still undiminished.

Innate deficiencies were not uncommon in the Primordial World.

But a method to mend one's foundation was unprecedented!

If this method spread, the number of great powers in the Primordial World would surely multiply!

He had already lost count of how many times Lu Tian had astonished him.

Heaven-Defying Comprehension paired with supernatural means, with Jieyin and Zhunti secretly protecting the Dao... the Primordial World was likely about to gain another peerless powerhouse!

Though Sage's Restraint prevented him from leaving the Blood Sea.

It did not stop his heart from surging with excitement.

No wonder they sent this child to the Blood Sea Trial. They were using my Asura Race as his stepping stone. What fine calculations, Fellow Daoists.

Minghe looked toward the Two Sages of the West and shook his head with a bitter smile.

Today, he had truly witnessed Jieyin and Zhunti's far-reaching schemes.

He was not quite angry.

After all, the benefits he had gained far exceeded ten thousand Asuras.

Still, being treated as a chess piece left a somewhat strange feeling.

Venerable Jieyin smiled faintly while twirling a flower. "It is merely a Bodhi Branch. This poor Daoist's heart aches as though flesh had been cut away."

There was indeed such an intention in sending this child here.

"My luck is rather good. Though he was born deficient, Heaven's Mercy took pity on the West's lack of talent and granted him an Innate Divine Ability to mend his foundation, leaving him a thread of hope."

"Those Asuras could not escape death anyway. Better to fulfill both of our needs and let each take what he requires."

Jieyin did not dare reveal that this was a secret method created by Lu Tian himself. The matter was far too astonishing. If word spread, even the other Sages would force them to hand over this method!

No matter how gifted Lu Tian was, he would only add one more powerhouse to the Primordial World.

But a secret art capable of repairing one's foundation was enough to overturn the Primordial World's entire order. It absolutely could not be exposed!

Minghe nodded and smiled. "Since I have received benefits from Fellow Daoists, Karma has been formed. I will naturally keep my mouth shut."

Minghe firmly believed Jieyin's claim about an Innate Divine Ability.

He simply did not believe such a secret method could exist in this world.

Only an Innate Divine Ability could explain it.

Since that was the case, why publicize an ability others could not replicate?

Not only would it be futile, it would also offend Jieyin and Zhunti and incur Karma. Would that not be foolish?

Minghe continued to watch Lu Tian closely.

He wanted to see just how many more pleasant surprises this child could bring!

--

Lu Tian's reputation ultimately spread.

Although he had killed every Golden Immortal present, some had not joined the battle or had departed early.

When news spread that three thousand Golden Immortals had fallen in the Star Burial Sea...

The entire Crimson Continent was shaken!

Every Taiyi Golden Immortal listed Lu Tian as a target who had to be killed!

With the talent this child had displayed, if he broke through to the Taiyi Realm, no one would stand a chance against him!

They had to completely eliminate him while he was still in the Golden Immortal Realm!

The powerhouses of the six battlefields mobilized in full force, dispatching every Golden Immortal and True Immortal to search for Lu Tian's whereabouts.

After devouring a Golden Immortal's memories, Lu Tian learned of this and could not help but laugh.

He had not expected to become everyone's target.

He did not care.

He had never intended to conceal his strength. Earlier, he had suppressed his Vajra Body only to temper his Blade Technique.

"I wonder how much chance I have against a Taiyi Golden Immortal now?"

Lu Tian secretly pondered.

Taiyi Golden Immortals were completely different from Golden Immortals!

There were two major requirements for attaining Taiyi—

First, one had to gain entry into all five origin laws of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, and completely master one of them.

Second, one had to refine the Five Qi in the Chest.

Only after meeting both requirements could one undergo the heavenly lightning tribulation and advance to Taiyi!

Lu Tian had currently fully comprehended the Five Elements Origin Laws and completely mastered even the Laws of Time and Space. In terms of law attainment, he had already surpassed most Taiyi Golden Immortals. However, his cultivation still had a crucial shortcoming—the condensation of the Five Qi in the Chest.

The Five Qi in the Chest required one to select rare treasures of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—and refine them respectively into the five major organs: the lungs belonged to metal, the liver to wood, the kidneys to water, the heart to fire, and the spleen to earth. Only when the five elemental qi circulated endlessly within the body and forged a Five Elements Body could one advance to Taiyi Golden Immortal. This process was truly a leap in the essence of life. Those who achieved a Five Elements Body existed on an entirely different level from ordinary Golden Immortals.

The quality of the five-element rare treasures directly determined the strength of the Five Elements Body. Normally, cultivators used the element whose laws they understood best as the foundation. If one specialized in fire laws, one would choose a high-grade fire-attribute rare treasure and pair it with lower-grade materials of the other four elements, forming a five-element configuration centered on fire. The most basic method was to refine Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy, which took time but was reliable. Those of higher standing used spiritual roots, spiritual materials, or even spiritual treasures.

After becoming a Taiyi Golden Immortal, one's strength would undergo a qualitative leap—even the weakest Taiyi Golden Immortal could wipe out three thousand Golden Immortals as easily as turning a hand. Though Lu Tian possessed the bearing of invincibility among equals, his advantage would no longer be so obvious against stronger opponents. While the Primordial World occasionally saw challenges across realms, such cases were exceedingly rare. Even Lu Tian, who bore multiple inheritances, had no absolute confidence.

With my current cultivation... Lu Tian thought to himself, my understanding of the Space-Time Law already surpasses that of most Taiyi Golden Immortals. Even if I cannot defeat them, I can still retreat unscathed. My strongest killing move, Moon Like a Hook, is a Grand Unity Level Secret Method. Its power rivals a casual strike from a Taiyi Golden Immortal. If I use the Vajra Body, my combat strength can increase tenfold—equivalent to the gap between an early Golden Immortal and a peak Golden Immortal.

"By that calculation, when I use Moon Like a Hook, its power should be a hundred times that of an ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortal's full-force strike."

"Once I reach Golden Immortal Perfection, I can test my edge."

Lu Tian was not a reckless man, so he naturally would not rashly seek out a Taiyi Golden Immortal to provoke into a contest.

Now that his foundation had been remade, his foremost task was to cultivate wholeheartedly until he reached the peak of the Golden Immortal Realm.

Once his realm was stabilized, his strength would certainly rise further.

Only then would it be prudent to practice the Blade Technique.

After all, what Taiyi Golden Immortal did not have a few secret arts kept in reserve?

A hundredfold increase in ** was not particularly rare in the Primordial World.

Lu Tian casually opened a cave dwelling. After setting up a Concealment Formation, he sat cross-legged and entered meditation.

With a wave of his sleeve, several hundred Jade Bottles appeared before him.

Their stoppers popped open in unison, and a rich medicinal fragrance immediately filled the cave dwelling.

Several thousand Spirit Pills rose into the air, and he opened his mouth and swallowed them all.

These pills that assisted cultivation had all been obtained from the defeated Golden Immortals.

Since they came from the same source, he might as well refine them all at once.

Thump, thump, thump—

The demonic heart in his chest beat like war drums, its sound shaking the surroundings.

A demonic heart capable of converting even the Power of Origin naturally had no trouble refining pills.

The surging medicinal power transformed into Spirit Liquid, rushing through his meridians before being completely absorbed in an instant.

"The medicinal effect is acceptable. It can roughly double my cultivation speed."

"What originally required sixteen hundred years of bitter cultivation can now reach completion in eight hundred."

Lu Tian refined the medicinal power with the appetite of a whale, his cultivation visibly advancing.

If others witnessed such progress, their jaws would likely drop.

Yet the only ones watching at this moment were primordial giants such as Jieyin, Zhunti, and Minghe.

The three great powers were not particularly surprised by it.

Only Ancestor Minghe clapped lightly and laughed. "Now that your disciple's foundation has been completed, he is indeed promising material."

"With such cultivation speed, he can barely be considered presentable."

Jieyin and Zhunti smiled and modestly demurred.

Yet ripples stirred in their eyes.

They had once worried over Lu Tian's deficient foundation and slow cultivation.

In the blink of an eye, this ** had entered the ranks of the Primordial World's foremost cultivators.

How could they not feel deeply moved?

Lu Tian in the cave dwelling knew nothing of this.

He remained wholly focused on refining pills.

Among the three thousand Golden Immortals he had slain were quite a few peak Golden Immortals, Law Golden Immortals, and even Origin Law Golden Immortals.

These experts no longer needed Golden Immortal-level pills, yet Lu Tian had them piled up like mountains. During the Blood Sea Trial, pills were practically hard currency, convenient for trade and circulation alike. As the slaughter continued, more and more pills gathered, eventually all falling into Lu Tian's hands for him to squander as he pleased!

One box of pills exhausted? Open another!

One bottle was not potent enough? Swallow ten bottles at once!

Developed pill resistance? Just switch to another kind!

While cultivating in seclusion, Lu Tian could not help but sigh. Since taking form, when had he ever been this lavish?

--

The Crimson Continent remained turbulent.

The large-scale purge triggered by the hunt for Lu Tian intensified the conflicts between powerhouses, and the flames of war swept across the entire continent.

Sixty years later, the Star Burial Sea silently vanished, leaving only an empty and desolate void.

Two hundred years later, Minghe once again sent down a forbidden land—the ninety-nine-story Trial Tower formed from a High-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure. A True Immortal Asura reached the sixty-second floor, surpassing all of his race. He was rewarded with advancement to peak Golden Immortal, escaped a Taiyi encirclement, and was hailed as the second Xiyue.

Over six hundred years, three more forbidden lands appeared. The Asura Race suffered severe casualties, and True Immortals nearly vanished.

In the seven hundred and eightieth year, the allied armies of the Four Great Tribes pressed forward. A final battle was on the verge of erupting.

Eight hundred years later—

Within the cave dwelling covered by the formation, divine light swirled around Lu Tian as he finally attained the peak Golden Immortal Realm!

**

The vast aura of a peak Golden Immortal left Lu Tian dazed.

In the past, he had cultivated bitterly for ten thousand years from taking form to becoming a True Immortal. Then he spent another ten thousand years traveling to join the Outer Sect of the Jie Teaching, all in pursuit of the Dao. Back then, he knew his aptitude was mediocre, and his lifelong aspiration had been no more than Golden Immortal fruition—an ultimate transformation below Grand Unity, granting eternal life.

Yet his years in the Jie Teaching's Outer Sect had been difficult. His cultivation barely advanced, and he had suffered the contempt and exclusion of eastern cultivators.

He had once read novels depicting the harmonious atmosphere of great Primordial World sects, but only after experiencing it himself did he learn how false it was...

After enduring life's hardships, he came to understand that such friendship existed only among Inner Sect **.

For an overlooked Outer Sect ** like him, it had always been nothing more than an illusion.

Forced to leave his homeland, he traveled through a million li of mountains and rivers, with his life hanging by a thread several times.

After ten thousand years of wandering, he finally entered the Western Teachings. Fortunate to receive guidance from his two masters, he had unexpectedly attained Golden Immortal fruition directly.

The feelings involved were truly difficult to explain to outsiders.

From taking form to becoming a True Immortal, he had cultivated bitterly for ten thousand years.

From True Immortal to Golden Immortal, another twenty thousand years had passed, during which he had nearly died time and again. The path of the Dao had been arduous.

And from Golden Immortal to the peak...

In merely eight hundred years, he had crossed the chasm he had once regarded as insurmountable!

Even counting the time spent in the Demonic Path inheritance, only two or three thousand years had passed in the mortal world.

Lu Tian could not help but feel emotional.

The current him had long since been reborn. He was no longer the ignorant man he had once been.

Next, it was time to begin condensing the Five Qi in the Chest and knock upon the Gate of Taiyi.

Lu Tian's gaze burned like torches, his aura deep and steady.

The only matter requiring consideration now was what he should use as the foundation to refine the five qi.

Ordinary Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy was absolutely not an option—that would be no different from severing his own Dao foundation.