The Profound Old Ghost curled his lip nonchalantly. "What's the problem?"
Mu Chen pondered for a moment, then said uncertainly, "Master, I didn't stop because I ran into a problem with rebuilding my Dantian. It's my Spiritual Power."
The Profound Old Ghost was taken aback. "Spiritual Power? What's wrong with your Spiritual Power?" As he spoke, his figure appeared beside Mu Chen.
Mu Chen shook his head. "I don't know either. Two days ago, I suddenly felt like my Spiritual Power hit a bottleneck."
The Profound Old Ghost paused, then burst out laughing. "You silly boy, this is a good thing! It means your Spiritual Power is about to break through to the Leaving Realm."
"The Leaving Realm?"
The Profound Old Ghost explained patiently, "Spiritual Power and Primordial Power are both forms of energy. There's Energy Soul Refining and Primordial Power Forging Soul. Since Primordial Power Cultivation has levels, Spiritual Power naturally does as well."
"Spiritual Power is divided into five realms, from highest to lowest: Qian, Kun, Kan, Leaving, and Mortal. The Mortal Realm is the lowest, and your current state is the peak of the Mortal Realm. You're just one opportunity away from breaking through to the Leaving Realm."
Mu Chen listened patiently. He knew that everything the Profound Old Ghost said was bound to be useful—'except for that name, Xiao Chenzi.' Mu Chen continued to ask, "So, what's special about the Leaving Realm?"
The Profound Old Ghost said, "In the past, with the help of a Spiritual Technique, any ordinary Martial Master could reach the Leaving Realm. But that was over a hundred thousand years ago, and Spiritual Techniques have likely vanished by now. If one has to rely solely on Primordial Power breakthroughs to evolve their Spiritual Power, they'd need to reach at least the Martial Spirit Realm to attain the Leaving Realm. So, you tell me, isn't that a good thing?"
"Heh, that's definitely good news. But wait, Primordial Power breakthroughs can also cause Spiritual Power to evolve?"
"Of course. Primordial Power and Spiritual Power are complementary. Whenever your Primordial Power breaks through a level, your Spiritual Power will advance accordingly. Likewise, if your Spiritual Power breaks through a level, the speed at which you absorb Primordial Power will increase."
'So that's how it is.' Mu Chen had a moment of realization. 'This is an unexpected boon. In just over five months, my Spiritual Power went from the Lower Lower Grade of the Mortal Realm to its peak. If some of the old masters heard about this, they'd die of shame.'
"Alright, problem solved. The only thing left in rebuilding your Dantian is the final step: Solidifying the Pill. The sooner you finish, the sooner you can set foot on the path to becoming a true expert," the Profound Old Ghost said lightly.
Mu Chen nodded and instantly released his Spiritual Power, which was at the peak of the Mortal Realm. The Dantian Vortex immediately accelerated to twenty times its original speed. As his Spiritual Power surged, the vortex's rotation sped up in tandem. The eighteen spherical Dantian fragments began to fly about chaotically within their respective zones. The space was now so vast that it was very difficult for the fragments to collide. Several times, they merely grazed past one another.
Mu Chen's brow furrowed, and he growled, "Move!"
Suddenly, the Dantian's rotation surged again, reaching twenty-five times its original speed. The Dantian fragments began to slam into the invisible barriers of their zones with increasing frequency, ricocheting off at new angles each time. From a bird's-eye view, the eighteen spheres were zipping around in completely erratic orbits, each trailing a long, black tail.
BOOM!
In one of the nine zones, two Dantian fragments, as if unable to bear the loneliness, finally collided. A huge explosion sent a powerful shockwave sweeping outward. Then, a strange scene unfolded. The zonal barriers, previously able to repel the high-speed fragments, suddenly seemed to lose all effect as the shockwave rampaged across the entire Dantian. Immediately after, as if on command, all the other Dantian fragments across the nine zones collided in pairs, creating a deafening roar.
Mu Chen stared, dumbfounded, at the astonishing scene. The next moment, a brilliant white light erupted from the Dantian Vortex, enveloping the entire Dantian. The intense glare completely blocked his vision.
At the very same moment the eighteen fragments collided inside Mu Chen's Dantian, the sky over all of Luofeng City suddenly dimmed. It was followed immediately by the appearance of nine-colored clouds, materializing out of thin air and crackling with colorful Thunder Light. They blanketed the entire city. Then, a terrifying pressure descended from the Azure Sky, crushing down with the unstoppable force of a mountain range.
VMMMM!
A tremendous hum rang out. In that instant, every corner of Luofeng City seemed to freeze. A dead silence fell. All of its people were forced to the ground, their eyes filled with terror. They couldn't even move a finger.
In a back mountain of the Xuanling Empire's Imperial Palace, a green-haired elder in green robes suddenly snapped his eyes open. Two beams of solid, cold light shot from his gaze. With a gasp of surprise, his body flickered and vanished from the spot.
In the throne room of the Xuanling Empire's Imperial Palace, a handsome man in a Dragon Robe was staring blankly at the strange phenomenon in the distant sky. He suddenly noticed a familiar fluctuation of Primordial Power beside him, and the figure of a green-robed elder gradually solidified. The handsome man hurriedly said with respect, "Elder Wu."
The green-haired elder, addressed as Elder Wu, simply waved his hand, his shimmering eyes fixed on the direction of Luofeng City. Over there, a nine-colored region was erupting with brilliant light.
Just then, three more figures appeared in the throne room. The handsome man in the yellow robe remained respectful, bowing to each in turn. "Elder Yin, Elder Li, Elder Sun."
The group consisted of two men and a woman. The woman appeared to be about forty, but carried herself with a noble grace. One of the men was burly and powerfully built, with muscles bulging beneath his beast-hide clothes. The other was rather small and thin with an extremely plain face—the type you would forget after a single glance in a crowd. His eyes, however, were as sharp and fierce as a hawk's.
When the three saw the green-haired elder before them, they all bowed and said, "Elder Wu."
These four were the Honored Elders of the Xuanling Empire, and among them, Elder Wu's status was undoubtedly the highest. At this moment, he was silent, his gaze never leaving the direction of the phenomenon. After a moment, Elder Wu said lightly, "Xuan Yin, which city lies in that direction?"
The man in the yellow robe, who had been confused by the situation, quickly replied, "There are three cities in that direction: Yellow Flame City, Luofeng City, and Qingling City."
This man in the yellow robe was the sixth Emperor of the Xuanling Empire, Xuan Yin.
Elder Wu gave a slight nod, and a pair of green Elemental Wings suddenly burst from his back. Beneath his feet, six purple Martial Rings, formed from Primordial Power, stacked one upon another.
The expressions of the four people below him grew solemn, and they congratulated him in unison, "Congratulations, Elder Wu, on successfully advancing to a Sixth-Ring Martial Emperor."
The words had barely left their mouths when Elder Wu, who had just begun to fly up, descended again. Looking at the fading phenomenon on the horizon, he shook his head resignedly. "What a pity."
Elder Yin, standing behind him, was very confused and asked, "Elder Wu, what was that phenomenon just now?"
Elder Wu said lightly, "If I'm not mistaken, that was a Celestial Tribulation triggered by some great figure. What's more, it was a very powerful High-Level Thunder Tribulation. But that person got cold feet and actually suppressed their Cultivation to avoid it. A pity. We missed the chance to observe a tribulation."
Hearing this, the others were stunned. An ordinary Martial Artist would never attract such a calamity. To trigger a Celestial Tribulation, one had to be a monstrous genius—a prodigy so talented the heavens themselves would grow jealous and send down a trial. But then, their expressions quickly turned grim. If that Celestial Tribulation had actually erupted there, Yellow Flame City, Luofeng City, and Qingling City would have been reduced to ashes.
"Alright, everyone is dismissed." Elder Wu shook his head in disappointment, and with a wave of his sleeve, he vanished from the court. The three other Elders and Xuan Yin were left standing helplessly in the throne room.
Back in Luofeng City, inside Mu Chen's Dantian, the Profound Old Ghost wiped away a cold sweat, still shaken. "Damn it, that was too close! I never thought a Nine Attributes Dantian would attract the Nine Venerable Thunder Tribulation! If I hadn't used the Extreme Spirit Pearl to conceal Xiao Chenzi, the entire city of Luofeng would have been turned to rubble today."
At this moment, Mu Chen was completely unaware of what had happened in the outside world. Before him, nine jet-black orbs floated quietly around the Dantian Vortex.
"It's done? That was a little too easy," Mu Chen said in disbelief.
The Profound Old Ghost also looked puzzled. Although the Dantian's solidification had attracted the Nine Venerable Thunder Tribulation, that was an external trial.
'This is impossible. There wasn't even a shred of pain during the Dantian's condensation. Can the Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique truly be this heaven-defying?' The Profound Old Ghost began to suspect this Cultivation Technique might even be a Divine Rank Technique.
But, just then, the unexpected happened...