"Who knows? With this opportunity, young friend, you might securely step into the late Golden Core stage."
Cold Mountain said with a smile, "And I might very well use it to strengthen my body further, reaching a level comparable to a Dharma cultivator in the pseudo-Nascent Soul realm."
Qing Chen's brows stirred. "The pseudo-Nascent Soul realm?"
"Mm." Cold Mountain nodded, a trace of yearning appearing on his bronze face. "This realm can be difficult to reach, yet it can also be easy.
"Either your comprehension reaches the heavens, letting you grasp it with the slightest hint-a feeling of mystical influence;
"Or you spend a great deal of time, with decent talent to boot, slowly honing yourself and searching for the right opening;
"Or you need a rare treasure, a peerless cultivation technique, and a good opportunity to ascend to heaven in a single step."
He paused before continuing, "Once you truly reach that point, if you're a Dharma cultivator, your Golden Core will contain a hint of the Nascent Soul realm's unity of heaven and man, allowing you to draw on some power of heaven and earth to refine your true essence.
"That tiny thread of profundity alone makes their true essence far purer than that of ordinary peak Golden Core cultivators. Their attacks are considerably more powerful, too, and they can even draw on a little power of heaven and earth to bolster their combat strength!
"Body cultivators, meanwhile, continually explore and temper their bodies, opening up the hidden treasures of the human body and thereby finding a hint of immortality, becoming like gods and demons."
Thick magnetic sand miasma swirled around the two of them, while fine magnetic sand continually struck the cliff face.
Abbot Hanshan stood quietly, his gaze turning toward the distant peaks hidden in the