Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path

The Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm is vast and boundless, so the paths of cultivation are numerous, but only two can be considered mainstream.

"The first is the Outer Qi Refinement Path you are familiar with, referred to as the outer dao, which relies on absorbing the spiritual qi of heaven and earth to break through;

the second is the Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path, which relies on capturing and refining the gang and sha of heaven and earth to break through one's own shackles."

Xiao Yuanjun spoke slowly to clear up his confusion.

Zhang Yuan nodded thoughtfully.

Xiao Yuanjun was at the Tenth-Level Qi Refinement of the Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path and could kill the Great Completion Outer Dao Foundation Establishment Li Jiehua, which showed that between the two paths, cultivators of the Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path were stronger.

Extrapolating from this, wouldn't Xiao Yuanjun have the strength of an Outer Dao Golden Core?

Zhang Yuan was slightly startled. To his knowledge, the contemporary head of the Eastern Bian Li was merely at the late stage of the Golden Core Realm.

"Both paths use Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core to divide their realms, but you must know that the Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path is the true orthodox path of heaven and earth in the Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm, holding a higher status and greater strength," Xiao Yuanjun said.

"Is it because of divine abilities?" Zhang Yuan asked.

Xiao Yuanjun said she possessed four life-bound divine abilities, but Outer Dao Qi Refinement had no concept of life-bound divine abilities.

"Correct, whether one possesses divine abilities is one of the differences between the cultivators of the two paths."

Xiao Yuanjun wore a look of children are indeed teachable, and then a wisp of defiling wind appeared, circling in her palm.

"This wind is named the [Fivefold Body-Rending Qi]; the first defiles flesh, the second defiles the five viscera, the third defiles the mind, the fourth defiles the seven corporeal souls, and the fifth defiles the three ethereal souls. Were you not a Foundation-Building Heavenly Being of the Gang Sha Path, anyone struck by this wind would have their spirit destroyed and form obliterated within three breaths."

One must not touch even a bit of this thing.

Zhang Yuan subconsciously wanted to back away, but alas, his body could not move.

An outer dao cultivator having their spiritual root seized was no different from a mortal's heart leaving their body. It could be said that Zhang Yuan was able to speak alive at this moment purely by a miracle.

Miracles cannot last forever, however, and Zhang Yuan would die sooner or later due to the fading of his vitality.

Yet since Xiao Yuanjun said she could save Zhang Yuan, she certainly was not just speaking idly.

Xiao Yuanjun crushed the defiling wind and opened her hand once more, a completely different clear qi circling above it.

A second divine ability!

"This is the [Ninefold Harmonizing Qi], which can cure all illnesses and bring the dead back to life. Even for a dying person like you, it can prolong your life by a breath or two."

"Go."

Xiao Yuanjun flicked her hand.

As the [Ninefold Harmonizing Qi] entered his body, Zhang Yuan felt his head clear instantly. All the pain inside and outside his body vanished completely, and his previously shattered body rapidly healed.

Zhang Yuan slowly stood up, feeling full of vigor and vitality. If not for the residual blood stains still lingering on his clothes, he would have had the illusion that he had never been injured at all.

This truly was the method of a divine immortal!

"Many thanks to Master for saving my life!" Zhang Yuan got up and bowed with cupped hands.

Xiao Yuanjun shook her head lightly. "It is not that simple. This divine ability of mine can ensure you do not die for a month, but after a month you will still die. If you want to stay alive, there is only one path..."

"Follow your master to cultivate the Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path. Once you step into the First Qi Refinement Layer, you will be cured without treatment."

"This disciple asks Master to impart the dharma."

Since it concerned his own life, Zhang Yuan hurried to speak.

Xiao Yuanjun: "Anyone can cultivate the Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path; it does not require a spiritual root as a foundation for cultivation like the outer dao does, but correspondingly, it has extremely high demands on one's own fortune and Fortune Predestination."

"Those with deep Fortune Predestination can complete Qi Refinement in a short time and shock the Foundation Establishment realm, but for those with shallow Fortune Predestination, even with the method in hand, they can forget about ever stepping into the First Qi Refinement Layer for the rest of their lives."

Zhang Yuan felt pessimistic and disappointed.

No matter how he looked at his experiences over the past few months, they did not resemble those of someone with deep Fortune Predestination. Was he really only going to scrape by and linger on for a month, only to meet his end right here?

"Rest assured, the heaven and earth gang and sha you need to step into Qi Refinement have all been considered for you by your master before coming here. You just need to go and retrieve them," Xiao Yuanjun said suddenly.

"May I ask Master, where are these heaven and earth gang and sha located?" Zhang Yuan's eyes lit up.

Xiao Yuanjun pointed at the head on the ground and said, "Right within the Eastern Bian Li. Exactly where is temporarily unknown, but once we go, we'll find out."

"Right, you mentioned earlier that this person is from the Eastern Bian Li. What is his status?"

She did not know much about the Eastern Bian Li. If the person on the ground had some status within the Li clan, soul-searching him would make this trip simple.

Of course, his status could not be too high; a collateral, unfavored junior or something would be best.

"This person is the son of Li Houcheng," Zhang Yuan said.

"Li Houcheng? Why does that sound so familiar..." Xiao Yuanjun pondered.

"Li Houcheng is the contemporary head of the Eastern Bian Li," Zhang Yuan reminded her.

"Oh right! So he's the Li clan head. No wonder it sounded so familiar. Come to think of it, this thing on the ground... is the son of the Li clan head? I remember the Li clan head only has a single son... Damn it, we've messed up!"

Xiao Yuanjun was terribly alarmed, for a moment even forgetting to maintain her levitation, and dropped straight down from mid-air.

This was bad. She had killed him too quickly.

If not for showing off her strength in front of Zhang Yuan, she definitely would have inquired about his identity first before deciding whether to kill him.

It was all the blame of this person's realm being too low. As the only son of the Li clan head, he wasn't even an Outer Dao Golden Core, which caused her to mistakenly assume his status wasn't high.

"To my knowledge, that Li Houcheng is merely an Outer Dao Golden Core," Zhang Yuan said.

Xiao Yuanjun sighed. "Li Houcheng amounts to nothing, but the main issue is the Eastern Bian Li as a whole..."

As an immortal-cultivating aristocratic clan entrenched in the east of the Bian Kingdom, apart from the outer dao heritage, the gang sha heritage was also indispensable.

The clan head was always taken by mediocre people who had no affinity for the gang sha path. The waters of the Eastern Bian Li ran very deep, and just the Gang Sha Path Foundation Establishment Celestials alone numbered at least five!

Not to mention that the Eastern Bian Li had a Gang Sha Path Golden Core sitting above the Foundation Establishment Celestials guarding them. For such an entity, merely being perceived by them would pose a threat to one's life.

Listening to Xiao Yuanjun's explanation, Zhang Yuan twitched the corner of his eye and hurriedly checked his talent.

[Heavenly Vision]

[1. Your master killed the only son of the Eastern Bian Li clan head. The Eastern Bian Li fly into a rage and dispatch a Foundation Establishment Celestial to hunt you down. You choose to respond to all changes with stillness and are ultimately slapped to death in a ruined temple.]

[2. You choose to flee, hoping to take advantage of the Li clan's delayed reaction to leave their sphere of activity, and are ultimately slapped to death by a Foundation Establishment Celestial in the deep mountains and old forests.]

[3. You choose to face the Foundation Establishment Celestial head-on, fighting with all your might, and are ultimately glared to death by a single look from a Foundation Establishment Celestial.]

Looking at the three future paths that had appeared before his eyes, Zhang Yuan's expression changed drastically.

Three certain-death futures without a shred of a path to survival; this time he was truly going to die!

Damn it!

Had he known earlier, he wouldn't have killed Li Jiehua first. After all, he was always magnanimous, and letting Li Jiehua live a little longer wouldn't have been out of the question.

Xiao Yuanjun stabilized her posture upon landing, remained silent for a moment, and reached out to pat Zhang Yuan on the shoulder.

"What are you panicking for? Killed is killed; your master has her own ways to survive."

Zhang Yuan sighed, not explaining much.

He had long since tested it: the futures deduced by [Heavenly Vision] were locked, and no matter what actions were taken, the established future could not be changed.

Yet, precisely in the next second after Xiao Yuanjun's voice fell.

Zhang Yuan was astonished to find that the future deduced by [Heavenly Vision] had changed.

Although only the third future had undergone a change, judging from the deduction of [Heavenly Vision], a sliver of a lifeline had appeared once again!