The Divine Ability Faction and Body Refinement Faction Xiang Yun had mentioned were the two largest factions in the Primordial Hall.
It was normal for factions to exist within a power. Wherever there were interests, there would be factions. The four halls of the Dao Sect and the Eight Divisions of Yuan Gate were both full of them.
The Primordial Hall was much more unified because of its fondness for body refinement, but it had still split into two factions.
Those were the Divine Ability Faction and the Body Refinement Faction.
The Primordial Hall's means of attack were far too limited. Once its members encountered enemies with a wide variety of tricks,
if they couldn't overwhelm them, they could easily be run ragged.
Thus, some of the Primordial Hall's seniors had proposed studying so-called battle body divine abilities, moves similar to those found in body refinement martial arts.
But they would be executed using Qi and blood and the physical body.
The conservatives had strongly opposed the idea.
Their main argument was that body refinement martial arts already had corresponding methods, though most were for close combat. To them, these so-called battle body divine abilities were unorthodox paths.
All they needed to do was train their bodies relentlessly. Once their bodies were strong enough, they could naturally break ten thousand techniques with a single punch.
This was also the prevailing view in the Primordial Hall. They argued that no matter how much research went into it, the results could not compare to the divine abilities that came with the many body refinement martial arts, or to other martial arts.
Why seek far and wide for what was close at hand? With that much effort, why not just cultivate martial arts?
Why research battle body divine abilities at all?
The Divine Ability Faction, on the other hand, argued that battle body divine abilities were different from martial arts. Martial arts couldn't be used without Origin Energy, but battle body divine abilities could.
Nor was it exactly a modification of the physical body; it didn't go that far. As Xiang Yun saw it,
they were really trying to create a Tianxuan Continent version of the Tyrant Body Ancestral Form.
The Tyrant Body Nine Forms were not innate. Generation after generation of Tyrant Bodies had tempered themselves through special methods, then drawn out the essence and etched it into their bloodlines.
Only then had the Tyrant Body Nine Forms taken shape.
Each faction had its own arguments, and they had contended for many years. Later, after Hong Wuji became Hall Master, he used his strength to put an end to the conflict.
But many dissenting voices remained, though most belonged to disciples below the Nirvana Realm.
Xiang Yun had suppressed them fiercely once before, leaving them unable to argue any further.
Why had it started up again now?
"You'd better not look into the details. It involves matters on the demon race's side."
"It has something to do with the demon race too?"
Xiang Yun hadn't expected the demon race to be involved. This was no small matter.
On the Tianxuan Continent, relations between the human and demon races were poor.
Seeing that Xiang Huang didn't want to say more, he stopped asking. He could look into it himself later.
"Then I'll go cultivate."
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure anything out. In this world, strength was what mattered in the end. Once he emerged from seclusion, he would be invincible in Nirvana.
He would suppress anyone in the Nirvana Realm. None of these troubles would amount to anything!
"Mm. Tell me what resources you need, and I'll prepare them for you."
"Dad, please get me some Earth Fiend Cold Qi and Heavenly Dipper Lightning Qi. I need a whole lot."
Xiang Yun didn't stand on ceremony. Although he could convert World Power through the World Tree, treasures like these could certainly reduce some of the expenditure.
He'd be a fool to turn them down.
"Mm. I'll have someone deliver them to you at the Pill River."
Xiang Huang didn't ask for details and nodded. When it came to cultivating body refinement martial arts,
those two kinds were quite ordinary.
Xiang Yun left and turned into a streak of light, arriving at the Pill River on Battle Heaven Peak.
At a glance, the Pill River gave off incomparably dense Nirvana Qi. It rippled out from the river, warping even the surrounding space.
Looking closer, he could see many platforms floating above the Pill River. Numerous disciples sat on them, cultivating with their eyes closed, while others tempered their bodies with various martial arts.
These platforms were scattered all around the Pill River. Generally speaking, however, the closer they were to its center, the fewer platforms there were, and the fewer disciples occupied them.
As soon as Xiang Yun approached, he felt terrifying gravity descend upon him. This was one of the Primordial Hall's distinctive features.
Every cultivation ground had a formation that artificially imposed gravity, partly to temper the body and partly for each Primordial Trial.
The Nirvana Realm Primordial Trial, however, was somewhat different from the one for those below the Nirvana Realm.
Xiang Yun's arrival attracted little attention. It was perfectly normal for someone to come here to cultivate.
Xiang Yun plunged into the Pill River with a bang and charged onward. At the same time, the suction from the miniature black hole in his dantian surged, and a gigantic black hole vortex appeared.
Streams of Nirvana Qi, like soaring dragons, were frantically devoured by Xiang Yun. In an instant, a vacuum seemed to form around him, drawing in the surrounding Nirvana Qi.
Xiang Yun absorbed that in turn, and the process repeated.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh-!"
The howling of the Nirvana Qi finally drew some attention. Eyes fell on the massive black hole, and startled cries rang out.
"Who's so reckless? Absorbing Nirvana Qi like that-even if his body is strong, he can't push it that hard!"
"Holy crap, absorbing it that fast-is he even human? Isn't he afraid of bursting..."
"Wait, is that the Young Hall Master...?"
Someone's gaze fell on the figure within the black hole. His slender build, in particular, stood out far too much in the Primordial Hall.
With that strength and that build,
there was a very good chance he was the Young Hall Master.
"The Young Hall Master broke through to the Nirvana Realm? But he should be at ordinary Nirvana at most. How dare he absorb it like that?"
"Wait, if the Young Hall Master keeps absorbing it like this, how are we supposed to cultivate? Come on, let's show him the rules of the Pill River!"
A few people exchanged glances and chuckled. If Xiang Yun had seen a bunch of muscular men chuckling like that, he would probably have found it creepy.
Xiang Yun, who had still been heading deeper, suddenly sensed several presences blocking his path.
"Senior Brother Jiang, Senior Brother Fang, Senior Brother Jiang?"
They were all disciples of Battle Heaven Peak. Of the three peaks-Battle Heaven, Primordial, and Battle Law-Battle Heaven Peak was the closest to Xiang Yun.
So Xiang Yun naturally knew them. He looked at the three burly men in confusion as Jiang Tao laughed. "First, congratulations on breaking through to Nirvana, Young Hall Master. But you're this brazen right after your breakthrough?"
"Don't you know the rules of the Pill River, Young Hall Master?"
Jiang Wuyun chuckled beside him. Because the Primordial Hall practiced body refinement martial arts, it needed enormous resources.
Thus, the Pill River had a rule: the deeper the platform, the more one had to rely on one's fists to have a say.
It didn't matter whether you were an elder's son or the Hall Master's son; there were no exceptions.
"Since you're just a little cultivator at ordinary Nirvana, go cultivate obediently on the outskirts, hehe!"
Fang Yun roared with laughter.
Xiang Yun felt helpless. He knew the three senior brothers meant no harm.
The deeper one went into the Pill River, the denser the Nirvana Qi became.
If one's body couldn't withstand it, one could easily be injured. That was another reason for testing strength.
But I just learned the Qiankun Battle Body. Do I need to worry?
"What are you three mumbling about? What rules? Senior brothers, take my fist first!!"
The instant the words left his mouth, purple Origin Energy erupted from his fist, changing color in midair.
The left half was black, the right half white. Black and white intertwined like two yin and yang fish clasping each other's tails.
The Heavenly Tyrant Fist appeared once more, and this time he had also incorporated the Kun Peng Precious Technique into it.
"Come on, brother, come on!"
Jiang Tao wasn't afraid. With a low shout, he instantly activated his Nirvana Golden Body, golden light covering him from head to toe.
Fang Yun and Jiang Wuyun reacted just as quickly. Golden light burst from both of them, their Golden Bodies taking solid form as a layer of tangible golden callus formed over their fists.
They activated their Primordial Battle Bodies at the same time.
All three grew taller, their muscles bulging and veins standing out as their Qi and blood churned like blazing furnaces.
The three punched at once.
"Eight Desolations Fist!"
"Mountain Shattering Fist!"
"Blazing Sun Fist!"
Jiang Tao's fist was covered in a thick, earthen-yellow surge of Qi. The Eight Desolations Fist overwhelmed opponents with sheer momentum.
Fang Yun's fist produced a piercing whistle as it tore through the air. The Mountain Shattering Fist was a Spirit Martial Art, capable of shattering mountains and splitting stone with one blow.
Jiang Wuyun took a fierce, powerful approach. With the Blazing Sun Fist, his fist looked like a small sun heated red-hot.
Three golden fists smashed toward Xiang Yun, colliding with the black-and-white Heavenly Tyrant Fist.
"Boom-!"