A seven-colored Golden Core.
The Mystic Primordial Dao Chapters contained no record of one, but by the logic that more colors meant more badass, a seven-colored Golden Core ought to be very powerful.
There was one thing Chen Xia did not quite understand, though.
Of those seven colors, gold alone was missing.
A Golden Core without any gold.
Did that make any sense?
Chen Xia thought about it for a while and decided he should not dwell on it. Knowing it was a Golden Core was enough.
Still, the Golden Core kept spinning inside him, emitting seven-colored light. It really did look rather like a disco ball, with the atmosphere turned all the way up.
Fortunately, his body was not transparent.
Forming his Golden Core had taken Chen Xia over half a month, and the result could be considered perfect.
He could feel a clear improvement in his abilities. According to the Mystic Primordial Dao Chapters:
Only upon forming a Golden Core did one become a person of the heavens.
Only after achieving a Golden Core did one truly step onto the path of cultivating the Great Dao, able to begin using all manner of Divine Abilities and spells and creating Divine Abilities of one's own.
And the most important part was creating one's own Divine Abilities.
A Golden Core was the embryonic Great Dao one condensed. The embryonic Great Daos of different cultivators might resemble one another, but they were never the same.
Take the simplest example, a fire Dao Golden Core. Two people might both condense fire Dao Golden Cores, and both might even use cold fire, but the further they cultivated, the greater the difference would become.
This was a Great Dao forged through each person's experiences and fortuitous opportunities, with their personality and soul also playing a part.
Across all the heavens and myriad worlds, perhaps two people with identical experiences and fortuitous opportunities could be found.
But could two people with identical personalities and souls also be found?
If they truly were found, then they were not two people, but just one.
Chen Xia did not know what embryonic Great Dao his seven-colored disco ball represented. He could see no imagery within it and really could not make sense of it.
But if he could create his own Divine Abilities and spells, he had plenty of ideas. He already had some spells prepared in his mind.
Take his current elementary comprehension of time, for instance.
Chen Xia wanted to create a Divine Ability that stopped time. He had even thought of a name.
Initially, influenced by the culture of that tiny island nation to the east, he had decided to call it...
Unleashing havoc after time stopped.
But considering that it was too long and awkward to say, he shortened it a little and simply called it:
Time Stop.
Chen Xia was still at the pondering stage, considering how to make Time Stop a reality. That would depend on his own comprehension.
There was something else Chen Xia wondered about. Why had there been no notification in his mind about his luck taking effect when he condensed his Golden Core? Had he not been lucky enough to trigger it?
At that thought, he drew his Divine Sense inward, sinking it into his body to look at his seven-colored Golden Core again. It suddenly occurred to him: could his seven-colored Golden Core have appeared precisely because of his luck's blessing?
After all, there really were times when no notification of a luck blessing appeared in his mind.
For instance, when he picked up money outside or returned from fishing with a full haul, his luck gave no notifications.
Perhaps it felt there was no need?
Chen Xia did not understand, but fortunately, he did not chase himself into dead ends. He easily made peace with himself, patted his sleeves, and strolled out of the house.
As soon as he stepped outside, he saw Huang Qingyue in a pale yellow dress, standing solemnly at the entrance with candied hawthorn in her mouth, utterly unaware that Chen Xia had come out.
"What are you thinking about?" Chen Xia had already walked up behind her and asked curiously.
Only then did Huang Qingyue come to her senses. Delighted surprise quickly lit her eyes, and she hurriedly turned to look at Chen Xia. With candied hawthorn in her mouth, her words were a little muffled.
"You're ou'!"
"Mm." Chen Xia nodded, then asked with a chuckle, "Were you waiting for me?"
Huang Qingyue bobbed her little head. She was about to speak, but felt the candied hawthorn in her mouth was inconvenient, so she took it out and said solemnly and earnestly:
"You said you were going to form your Golden Core. That's a huge matter. I've been guarding outside every day, keeping watch for you. Otherwise, what if someone sneaked in and disturbed you while you were forming it?"
Looking at the enormous candied hawthorn skewer in Huang Qingyue's hand, Chen Xia thought, This girl's prowess hasn't diminished a bit over the years. Aloud, he replied casually:
"It wasn't really that big a deal. Besides, no one in the imperial city would dare disturb me."
"It's not the ten thousand things you expect you fear, but the one you don't." Huang Qingyue looked solemn, her delicate brows knitted as she spoke with complete seriousness.
"Then thank you for all your hard work." Chen Xia smiled.
"Hehe, it was no trouble." Huang Qingyue smiled. In front of Chen Xia, she simply liked being a little girl.
Seeming to remember something, Huang Qingyue felt around in her sleeve and suddenly produced a skewer of candied hawthorn. With a smile sweeter than the candy, she said:
"I saved this for you."
Chen Xia accepted it and asked curiously, "When did you save this for me? It hasn't melted after all this time?"
Huang Qingyue raised her delicate brows and smiled proudly. "I bring two skewers every day. If you come out, I can give you one too. If you still haven't come out by the next day, I eat it first."
Chen Xia peeled away the paper wrapping, opened his mouth wide, and put the candied hawthorn inside. He also gave Huang Qingyue a thumbs-up and praised her:
"Awesome."
"Haha." Huang Qingyue laughed and put her candied hawthorn in her mouth too. The two stared at each other with bulging cheeks, one pair of eyes large and the other small, looking quite comical.
Neither spoke, though.
Because eating candied hawthorn required concentration.
That was what Huang Qingyue said.
Even those enormous candied hawthorn skewers could not withstand the ravages of two cultivators. They were soon gone.
Huang Qingyue wiped her mouth with a silk handkerchief, then glanced at Chen Xia. Her pretty face reddened as she extended it with one hand, lowered her little head, and said shyly:
"Here, wipe yours too."
Chen Xia did not reach out to take it. Instead, he asked very cautiously:
"Do you have bad breath?"
Huang Qingyue's blushing face froze. Planting both hands on her hips, she said indignantly:
"I do not! My mouth smells lovely. Even my saliva is fragrant. Smell it if you don't believe me. Ah~"
As she spoke, Huang Qingyue opened her mouth wide, signaling for Chen Xia to come and smell.
Chen Xia had manners. Since Huang Qingyue had invited him to smell, he immediately leaned over.
At the same time, he noticed something very strange. Huang Qingyue's mouth was huge when she ate, yet now it looked remarkably small.
A cherry-sized mouth would have been just the right description.
Chen Xia stared wide-eyed and sniffed.
There was a delicate fragrance, neither rich nor heavy, like peach blossoms in March, rain in June, sweet osmanthus in September, and snow in December.
Above all, it was light and elegant.
"Smells goo', righ'?" Huang Qingyue asked indistinctly, her mouth open.
Clearly, she took this matter very seriously.
Chen Xia nodded. "It does."
He was about to draw his head back.
"Wai' a secon'." Huang Qingyue stopped him, then added proudly, "My saliva is fragrant too."
"Uh..." Chen Xia hesitated, then asked, "How am I supposed to smell that?"
Surely he could not ask Huang Qingyue to spit it out.
Huang Qingyue turned her head aside, her cheeks scarlet. The blush spread all the way down her neck, vividly visible against her fair, tender skin.
She dared not look at Chen Xia and seemed rather guilty, her fingers twisting her skirt uneasily as she stammered:
"W-well... you don't necessarily have to smell a fragrance, right? You can also... taste it."
Chen Xia considered this, then nodded in agreement. "That is indeed a good approach."
"Th-then would you like a taste?" Huang Qingyue turned to look at Chen Xia, her entire pretty face so red it seemed about to drip blood, tears even glistening in her eyes.
A mixture of bashfulness and boldness.
Chen Xia put aside his usual languid manner, his expression turning serious for once as he asked:
"Really?"
"Mm!" Huang Qingyue nodded firmly, closed her eyes, and clasped her hands before her chest, trying to conceal her shyness a little.
Chen Xia wrapped his arms around her slender, tender waist, then leaned his head closer.
Lips met lips, and tongues intertwined.
The delicate fragrance passed over his tongue, making it distinctly perceptible.
Like nectar and ambrosia.
The whole process ended quickly.
Chen Xia straightened, pursing his lips, still savoring it.
The bashfulness on Huang Qingyue's face grew deeper still. Only after a long while did she ask softly:
"Was it fragrant?"
"An endless aftertaste." Chen Xia gave it high praise.
"Phew, that's good." A smile appeared at the corners of Huang Qingyue's mouth too.
The two began staring into each other's eyes again.
Chen Xia suddenly asked, "Are you truly ready?"
A sweet smile on her lips, Huang Qingyue thought for a moment, then nodded and replied:
"I've waited decades."
"That's good." Chen Xia nodded and exchanged another look with Huang Qingyue. They understood each other without words.
"I want to practice the sword," Huang Qingyue suddenly said, changing the subject.
Chen Xia asked curiously, "Why do you want to practice the sword?"
Huang Qingyue explained with a smile, "Because all those great heroes of the jianghu seem to practice the sword. I think they also say the sword is the king of weapons, with the greatest killing power."
There was indeed some basis for that statement. Many wandering heroes wielded swords, and among them were exceptionally powerful figures a cut above users of other weapons.
When people spoke of great heroes of the jianghu, they usually imagined someone roaming to the ends of the world with a sword.
So it was not strange that Huang Qingyue wanted to practice the sword.
In the days that followed, Huang Qingyue did indeed begin practicing the sword. She used a long, narrow, slender sword of no particularly fine quality, just an ordinary blade.
The sword techniques she learned were not profound either, merely ordinary jianghu sword arts.
But Huang Qingyue was only a beginner now and could not use particularly profound sword arts anyway.
When Huang Qingyue practiced, Chen Xia would bring a little stool and sit nearby, watching her graceful figure move in its pale yellow dress.
Huang Qingyue once asked Chen Xia a question. "Brother Chen, do you like pale yellow dresses?"
Chen Xia did not answer, only asking curiously, "Do you?"
Huang Qingyue knitted her lovely brows and thought carefully for a long while, yet still found no answer. Troubled, she said:
"I'm not sure."
Chen Xia grinned. "I think pale yellow dresses suit you quite well."
Huang Qingyue stopped frowning and worrying. The corners of her lips lifted, and she nodded with a smile.
"Then I like pale yellow."
Year eighty of Great Song's Wei calendar.
The long-lived Song Wei passed away, and Crown Prince Song Nan succeeded him.
Before his death, Song Wei came specifically to see Chen Xia once. By then, he was so weak he could only lie in bed, and his children carried him there on his bed to meet Chen Xia.
The first thing he said was that he hoped Chen Xia would protect Great Song.
Chen Xia only smiled and replied, "I can block natural disasters, but there are some man-made calamities I don't want to concern myself with."
Song Wei knew what he meant by man-made calamities.
Such things as struggles for the throne, princes raising armies, and military rebellions.
Song Wei nodded weakly. "If such things truly happen, naturally, there would be no need for you to intervene. It would only mean that our Great Song was fated to fall."
Having lived nearly a hundred years and now facing death, Song Wei had come to terms with it. If such things truly happened, Great Song's allotted fate would have reached its end.
The main thing was that he was dying and could no longer be Great Song's emperor.
The two thus reached an agreement. Chen Xia would only handle natural disasters and a few man-made calamities, such as immortals descending to the mortal world. He would ignore everything else.
No dynasty lasted forever. Surely Great Song could not really be allowed to endure for tens of thousands of years.
After settling his final wish, Song Wei passed away in his bed. The entire nation mourned. Crown Prince Song Nan succeeded him and treated Chen Xia with even greater respect, even coming specifically to seek his instructions on somewhat major decisions.
After being asked once or twice, Chen Xia told him to decide for himself. There was no need to ask.
Naturally delighted, Song Nan hurriedly assented.
Chen Xia also began his quiet cultivation. He sensed that an insight was approaching. The Golden Core within him slowed its rotation, and he was close to seeing the scene inside it.
This required him to quiet his mind and carefully seek understanding before he could make the spinning Golden Core slow completely.
It was not a simple matter. There were too many distractions in the outside world, and comprehending his Golden Core required an extremely long period of mental stillness. A brief spell was of no use at all.
Thus, in the tenth year after Song Nan ascended the throne:
Chen Xia decided to enter seclusion.
He had Song Nan excavate a secret chamber a hundred meters beneath the imperial city, then entered it to cultivate in seclusion.
Huang Qingyue was reluctant to part with him, but she certainly supported Chen Xia's decision. She also intended to guard his seclusion and wait for him to emerge.
After saying goodbye to Huang Qingyue, Chen Xia entered the secret chamber a hundred meters below alone.
Holding her sword in her arms, her eyes filled with reluctance, Huang Qingyue watched the blue-robed figure before her grow smaller and smaller until it faded and vanished.
She sniffled and hugged the sword in her arms tighter.
She would protect Chen Xia very well!
Year forty of Great Song's Nan calendar.
An earth-shaking event occurred.
The immortal gate shook, and the ground for thirty li around collapsed all at once.
A figure hovered above the immortal gate, slowly walking downward as though descending steps. Upon reaching the ground, he spoke words that shook the world.
"I cultivated for a hundred and thirty years to form a Golden Core. Today, my core is complete! Unmatched in all the world, invincible beneath the heavens!"
And so everyone in the world knew.
The old immortal had emerged from seclusion!