"Boom,"
In the valley, Li Qingshan knelt down on the scorched earth, his feet leaving several cracks in the rock beneath his feet.
He was panting heavily, his body covered in sweat mixed with undried blood, yet he couldn't hide his joy.
A surge of powerful energy coursed through my spine, like an ancient celestial dragon awakening within me.
Each pulse sent a tingling tremor through his limbs and bones, even his bones seemed to emit a low groan like a dragon's roar.
With each breath, the essence of heaven and earth surged into his mouth and nose like a tide, transforming into surging divine power that flowed into the Bitter Sea.
The resonance between the Four Extremes Secret Realm and heaven and earth had not yet dissipated, but the aura of the Dragon Transformation Secret Realm had already erupted like a volcano.
A golden dragon shadow loomed faintly above the spine, its scales clearly visible – a phenomenon signifying the successful completion of the Dragon Transformation First Change!
"Master! It's done!"
Xiaobai rode a wisp of Divine Rainbow, speeding from afar, its jade horn gleaming, circling joyfully around him.
She nuzzled Li Qingshan's cheek, conveying a strong sense of admiration.
She didn't linger, but simply nestled quietly on his shoulder.
Li Qingshan condensed a Solar True Force at his fingertips and sent it into Xiaobai's mouth, his voice carrying the powerful resonance of someone who had just broken through:
"Your protection is also a form of support."
The Xiaobai horn lit up instantly, and as it closed its eyes to refine its true energy, its aura subtly improved.
He looked inward at himself, and saw a great dragon coiled around his spine, its divine light radiating outwards. The dragon's roar reverberated throughout the secret realm, and the power of the Sea of Bitterness, the Dao Palace, and the Four Extremes all converged on the dragon's spine.
But this joy didn't last long before Li Qingshan frowned, clearly sensing something was wrong.
The amount of vital energy required for the Dragon Transformation Second Transformation is more than ten times that required for the first transformation.
Each subsequent change resulted in a geometric increase; "without the aid of rare treasures like dragon veins and Divine Marrow, relying solely on breathing exercises would likely prevent continuous breakthroughs in a short period."
He had used up most of the spiritual herbs he had collected recently, and finding new opportunities was urgent, but the transformation brought about by the breakthrough still excited him greatly.
A sense of leap in life level arises spontaneously, and lifespan directly increases to over 1,500 years.
Thinking back to my life in my hometown a century ago, those dynasties rose and fell, and the world changed beyond recognition, all within the current lifespan.
It's just a tiny ripple in the long river of time.
"The difference between immortals and mortals has truly reached this point."
After entering the Dragon Transformation Secret Realm, his spiritual senses became exceptionally sharp.
In the darkness, a wisp of auspicious energy, connected to himself, was pointing deeper into Kunlun.
" The Dao Bell also lacks core materials; let's explore for them together."
"If one obtains top-quality materials, it may be possible to cultivate Saint Weapon."
Li Qingshan began to follow his spiritual senses and venture into the depths of Kunlun. Along the way, ancient formations were densely packed, and the spiritual energy was so dense that it was almost liquefied.
Ancient Daoist charm still lingers within the broken array patterns.
Encounters with ancient mythical beasts, such as the " Mystic Tiger " with wings on its back and the " Colorful Curve of light from its mouth.
Sensing his aura as Dragon Transformation Realm, none of them dared to make the slightest move.
On the seventh day, his divine sense detected a valley shrouded in purple mist ahead.
The mist churned and rolled like a living thing, with faint sword energy weaving through it; "it contained pure Daoist essence, yet also a bone-chilling cold."
Li Qingshan probed with his divine sense, but was immediately repelled by an invisible force as soon as he touched the mist. As the array patterns flickered, an ancient killing intent rushed towards him.
"An ancient restriction holds a great secret!"
He tested the mist with his Solar True Force, and as soon as his fingertips touched it, countless cyan-gold sword energies burst forth.
Its sharpness was so great that it could even scratch his skin.
"What a powerful killing formation!"
Li Qingshan's pupils contracted slightly. The intensity of this sword energy was comparable to the full-force attack of a cultivator at the peak of the Dragon Transformation.
For the next few days, he spent his days cross-legged studying the array patterns;
At night, he would circulate the " Sun True Scripture " to stabilize his realm, with the Dao Bell suspended above his head.
Xiaobai cultivated nearby, occasionally venturing out to search for spiritual roots and precious herbs; his aura was already approaching the threshold of the Life Spring Realm.
On the fourth day, Li Qingshan finally discovered the flaw:
On the boulder in the northwest corner of the great formation, there is a node of the array pattern, which is the energy node of the killing formation.
His divine sense transformed into a golden figure that soared into the sky, using his divine sense as a key to inject the Solar True Force into the patterns.
"Buzz,"
The boulder trembled, its surface patterns dimmed, and the sword energy in the mist instantly weakened by more than half.
The path to cracking the code continues.
Following the killing formation was the illusion formation, where the mist transformed into countless illusions: a peerless fairy danced and played with shadows, causing divine senses to sway;
Mountains of gold and seas of jade piled up like mountains, stirring up greed.
Li Qingshan's mind was as clear as a mirror. He raised his hand and shattered the illusion, revealing the maze behind him.
The maze's eyes are arranged according to the Big Dipper's orientation, with the flowing star patterns echoing the sky.
"The answer must be determined by the direction the handle of the Big Dipper points."
Following the ancient records, Li Qingshan activated each key point of the formation one by one, and with each unraveling of a point, the fog thinned a little.
After more than a month, when the last array eye was activated, the purple mist receded like a tide, revealing the scene in the valley.
There were no magnificent palaces, only an empty stone hall, its roof covered with moss, and its pillars engraved with blurry star patterns.
In the center of the hall, a ball of purple clay the size of a human head floated in mid-air, its entire surface shimmering with a star-like brilliance.
Countless points of light floated and sank within, as if the sun, moon, and stars were revolving inside.
A rich Daoist aura wafted over, and the Dao Bell suddenly flew out of the Bitter Sea, trembling violently around the purple clay and emitting a yearning chime.
" Star River Purple Sand!"
Li Qingshan was startled, and the records in the Sun Sacred Clan's jade slip instantly appeared.
This is a top-grade material for forging King weapons and even Saint Weapon, containing the primordial laws of the starry river, a rare find even once in ten thousand years!
He suppressed his impulse, repeatedly probed the stone hall with his divine sense, and only after confirming that there were no remaining restrictions did he quickly step forward.
The moment your fingertips touch the purple clay, a warm, gentle energy flows into your body.
The Dao Bell tolled more and more rapidly, and the Sun Mark and Lightning-Attracting Mark on its surface began to flash spontaneously, as if in worship.
"Such a divine material is enough to transform Dao Bell!"
Li Qingshan could not hide his excitement and put the purple clay into a specially made jade box.
Even through the jade box, one can still feel the flowing cosmic energy within.
The Xiaobai creature swam to his shoulder, its jade horn lightly touching the jade box, only to be bounced back by the halo of light, conveying a sense of curiosity.
Li Qingshan's brief response:
"This is divine material for reforging the Dao Bell; in the future, the Dao Bell may grow into Saint Weapon."
Xiaobai immediately wriggled excitedly, its jade horns gleaming faintly.
He looked into the depths of the stone hall, where the walls exuded a terrifying pressure, and his divine sense was shattered as soon as it approached.
"What's inside is not something we can touch at this moment."
Li Qingshan turned around decisively. His strength Dragon Transformation First Change was still like an ant in front of the restrictions in the inner layer of Kunlun.
On the way back to the Earthfire Abyss, Li Qingshan was filled with excitement:
The breakthrough in Dragon Transformation and the acquisition of the Zisha teapot are double joys.
He has already begun planning a method for rebuilding:
"Melting old materials with the Sun True Fire, mixing in Star River Purple Sand as the skeleton, Lightning-Attracting Mark for the frame, and using Sun Mark as the soul,"
His steps grew lighter, and Xiaobai sensed his joy. The jade horn attracted several spirit birds to circle around him.
When we arrived at the Earthfire Abyss, the setting sun was painting the cliffs a golden-red hue.
Li Qingshan immediately took out the Star River Purple Sand and placed it near the earth fire to nurture it.
The purple halo and crimson earth fire reflected each other, creating a dreamlike scene. The Dao Bell floated to the side, its spirit's faint fluctuations filled with joy.
He sat cross-legged, took out a jade slip, and drew a weapon-refining diagram, fusing the Divine Markings of the Sun Sacred Clan with the remnants of the Sun Lips pattern.
The divine thoughts flowing from the tip of the brush outlined mysterious patterns on the stone platform.
Xiaobai sat curled up on his lap, quietly studying the diagrams. Occasionally, it would stretch out its tail to lightly touch the Dao Bell, then immediately retract it, looking adorably clumsy.
As night deepened, the fire crackled and popped, illuminating Li Qingshan's focused figure.
The Dao Bell tolls softly, and the purple clay teapot gleams.