Following the increasingly clear fluctuations of lightning elements in the air, along with the faint resonance hidden deep within his bloodline, Yu Yuanchen trekked arduously through the dense mountains and forests for three days. Finally, he came to a halt before a steep cliff face covered in slippery moss and vines.
According to the map and the almost imperceptible yet real natural magnetic field interference, his destination was right here. He observed carefully and discovered that at the base of the cliff, hidden by several massive, seemingly randomly fallen jagged rocks and an unusually dense patch of Adiantum, was an extremely narrow gap that could only allow one person to pass through sideways. Had he not been searching intentionally with keen perception, he would have absolutely overlooked it as just another ordinary part of the mountain.
Yu Yuanchen pushed aside the tough ferns and squeezed sideways into the gap. It was extremely narrow at first, barely wide enough for a person, but after walking a few dozen steps, the view suddenly opened up!
A surge of lightning-attribute Heaven and Earth Origin Qi, several times denser and purer than that of the outside world, rushed toward him, carrying a tingling sensation that made his whole body feel comfortable. It was as if he had passed through an invisible barrier and stepped into a secluded world isolated from the rest of society.
Before him lay a deep ravine, flanked by vertical cliffs a hundred feet high. The cliffs were deep purple and shimmered with a faint metallic sheen, covered in charred marks and peculiar crystals left behind by years of lightning strikes. The bottom of the ravine was not wide, measuring no more than twenty or thirty meters at its broadest point. A clear, babbling stream wound its way through, and occasionally, tiny arcs of electricity would flash and vanish within the water.
At the end of the ravine was an even more peculiar stone wall, riddled with countless honeycomb-like holes. Wisps of visible pale purple lightning emanated from these holes and gathered in the air of the ravine, causing the concentration of lightning elements within the entire area to reach an astonishing level. Tiny static charges floated in the air here; with every breath, he could feel that unique energy pouring into his body, nourishing his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul. This was the core of the "Thunderclap Ravine," the source of the lightning element enrichment.
"It truly is a treasure trove!" A flash of joy crossed Yu Yuanchen's eyes. The lightning elements here were not only dense but also exceptionally pure and gentle, unlike the violent nature of the Thunder Gorge, making it more suitable for long-term, deep cultivation and enlightenment. He roughly estimated that with the energy concentration here, it would be more than enough to support his cultivation until he reached the level of a Soul Emperor, with plenty left over for body-tempering experiments.
He did not rush to start cultivating his Soul Power immediately, but instead carefully investigated the entire Thunderclap Ravine. Aside from some strange plants and insects that favored lightning, there were no powerful soul beasts lurking within, making it perfectly safe. He found a dry stone platform near the core stone wall, where the lightning elements were most concentrated, to serve as his future spot for meditation and cultivation.
Subsequently, his gaze was drawn to the scenery on one side of the ravine. There, a waterfall cascaded down from the high cliff; though not as vast as the waterfalls of famous mountains and rivers, it still possessed a plentiful volume of water. It crashed into the pool below, creating a thunderous roar and splashing mist into the sky. The rocks beside the waterfall had been smoothed and hardened by years of constant erosion.
"What a perfect natural place for tempering!" A thought stirred in Yu Yuanchen's mind; the body-tempering method he had conceived required exactly this kind of external assistance.
After settling in, he did not immediately begin high-intensity body tempering. Instead, he spent several days allowing his body and mind to fully adapt to the environment of the Thunderclap Ravine, adjusting his state to its peak. Every day, aside from his fixed Soul Power meditation, he consumed Soul Beast Meat to accumulate Bloodline Power.
Once his condition was perfect, he began his self-created "body tempering" hard training.
At the first light of dawn each day, Yu Yuanchen would go beneath the waterfall.
At first, he did not use his Soul Power or Bloodline Power to resist; he relied solely on his physical body, stepping into the ice-cold, bone-chilling pool with its immense impact, walking step by step directly beneath the waterfall.
"BOOM!!!"
The massive flow of water smashed against his head, shoulders, and spine like a heavy hammer. The dual blow of cold and weight almost suffocated him instantly. He gritted his teeth, knees slightly bent, rooting himself firmly onto the smooth rock, resisting this pure natural force with his sturdy physique. This was not for direct tempering, but to hone his will and let his body become familiar with and adapt to the powerful external pressure.
Half an hour later, when he felt his body gradually adapting to the impact, he began to circulate his Bloodline Power.
A scorching aura rose from within his body, and the bloodline beneath his skin began to surge like a river awakening. He guided this power to counter the impact of the waterfall, while simultaneously attempting to control his muscles to vibrate slightly, mimicking the "Skin Quenching" technique he had deduced, allowing the bloodline to accelerate and permeate through his skin and muscle layers.
The impact of the waterfall seemed to turn into an invisible giant hammer, constantly pounding every inch of his skin and every muscle. Meanwhile, the surging bloodline was like an iron billet thrown into a furnace; amidst this repeated pounding, impurities were shaken out and expelled, and the structure became tighter and tougher.
This process was painful and long. His skin quickly turned bright red, then purple, and his muscles ached as if they were tearing. Yet, he kept his mind focused, using his powerful Spiritual Power to precisely control the rhythm and amplitude of the bloodline's execution to avoid damaging his foundation.
In the afternoon, when the waterfall tempering paused, he turned to another task—smashing against mountain rocks.
He chose the hardest, yet relatively smooth-edged boulders beside the waterfall. Again, he first circulated his Bloodline Power, causing his skin to tighten and his muscles to knot, then he would strike the rocks steadily and forcefully with his shoulders, back, elbows, and knees.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The dull sounds of impact echoed rhythmically through the ravine. This was not self-mutilation, but rather, through this controllable, violent external impact combined with the eruption of his own bloodline, he was vibrating and hammering his flesh, tendons, and membranes from the inside, making them more resilient, explosive, and resistant to impact. Each strike was accompanied by the violent churning of his bloodline and the microscopic tearing and restructuring of his muscle fibers.
At night, it was time for recovery and accumulation. He returned to the stone platform and consumed large amounts of Soul Beast Meat; the dense bloodline essence was quickly absorbed, compensating for the day's consumption and nourishing his damaged body. This was followed by deep Soul Power meditation, drawing the pure lightning elements of the Thunderclap Ravine into his body. Not only did this increase his Soul Power, but the gentle Thunder Power also subtly stimulated his cellular activity, complementing the day's tempering effects.
He did not forget that wisp of "Thunder God Power." At the moment when his bloodline was most active and his body had the strongest absorption capacity after being tempered, he would extremely carefully draw out a trace of imperceptible purple-gold energy and integrate it into his surging bloodline.
"Hiss—"
Like a red-hot soldering iron dipped into cold water, wherever that wisp of Thunder God Power passed, his bloodline instantly boiled, bringing a scorching heat and stinging pain far beyond what he had felt before, as if every cell were being torn apart and burned. Yet, what followed was a deeper level of rejuvenation and new life; the purity and activity of his bloodline were increasing at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the toughness of his skin and flesh increased accordingly. However, this process was extremely dangerous; a moment of carelessness could lead to disaster, so he could only sustain it for a very short time each time, and it required longer periods of breath regulation and large amounts of blood-based food afterward.
Day after day, month after month.
Yu Yuanchen's life became extremely monotonous and arduous. Waterfall impacts, rock collisions, consuming blood-based food, Soul Power meditation, stimulating with Thunder God Power... the cycle repeated.
The scars on his body never completely disappeared; old wounds had not yet healed before new ones were added. His skin, initially red and swollen, gradually became as deep as bronze, with a dense texture and a faint sheen; ordinary sharp stones dragged across it could now only leave faint white marks. His muscle lines became more defined—not the bloated kind, but a streamlined form containing explosive power; every movement he made carried an aura of heavy, solid weight.
The Soul Beast Meat in his Storage Soul Tool was being consumed rapidly, but he could clearly feel that his total Bloodline Power was growing at a stable rate. More importantly, the "quality" of his bloodline was constantly improving, like refined iron being repeatedly forged, shedding the dross and becoming increasingly pure and solidified.
Time passed silently in his self-forgetful hard training, and in the blink of an eye, half a year had passed.
On this day, Yu Yuanchen finished a round of waterfall impacts and rock collisions as usual. He stood by the pool, feeling the surging, powerful, and solidified bloodline within him. With a thought, he did not circulate his Soul Power, but purely mobilized his Bloodline Power, throwing a punch at a hard green stone half a person tall beside him.
"Puff!"
With a muffled sound, although stone chips did not fly everywhere, a fist print an inch deep was clearly left on the surface of the green stone, its edges smooth as if chiseled by a sharp blade! And his fist remained completely unharmed, as circulating the Bloodline Power through his flesh and blood was now smooth and unobstructed.
Yu Yuanchen looked at the fist print, and a look of satisfaction finally appeared in his eyes for the first time in half a year.
"The tempering of flesh and blood is complete!"
After half a year of hard work, relying on sufficient high-quality blood-based food, his own solid foundation built since childhood (years of medicinal baths and arduous training), and even more so, this day-after-day, near-masochistic hammering and the adventurous stimulation of that wisp of "Thunder God Power," he had finally completed the first step of body tempering—the initial tempering of flesh and blood!
At this moment, the toughness of his skin and membranes far exceeded that of an ordinary beast-type Soul King, and his muscle strength, explosive power, and endurance had all been elevated to a new level. His total Bloodline Power and purity had surpassed the vast majority of Soul Emperors who specialized in physique. He could clearly feel that his body had shed an invisible shackle, becoming lighter and more powerful, and the carrying and circulation of his Soul Power seemed to have become a bit smoother.
Although he was still far from the completion of body tempering and forging the so-called "Golden Body," this solid first step had undoubtedly laid a firmer foundation for his future path. His Soul Power cultivation also benefited; after half a year of hard training, plus the effects of the treasure land of the Thunderclap Ravine, his Soul Power had risen from level 54 to the peak of level 55, only a thin line away from level 56.
Yu Yuanchen looked toward the core stone wall deep in the Thunderclap Ravine, where lightning flickered, his eyes burning. With the initial tempering of flesh and blood complete, it was time to devote more energy to the accumulation of Soul Power and further exploration of the "Thunder God Power." At the same time, the next step of body tempering—"Marrow and Bone Quenching"—also needed to be conceived and prepared for.
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: GodKun-Chan