The cultivation speed of the Corpse Demon Secret Art was simply too shocking, too monstrous—one thousand four hundred and forty cycles per day. What kind of concept was that?
One cycle per minute!
Consequently, the moment he activated it in a placement slot, Wang Yu felt a distinct and immediate difference.
Every single minute, a wave of Yin energy and Corpse Qi would abruptly manifest within his body. The Yin energy integrated into his blood vessels, causing his body temperature to plummet rapidly. A faint, pervasive chill settled over his entire being.
The Corpse Qi merged into his bones, making his skin even paler, to the point of becoming somewhat gaunt and desiccated. His fingernails turned dark and hardened, and his entire aura began to shift towards that of an orthodox demonic cultivator—the kind that clearly did not look like a good person at first glance.
His hair, which had begun to show an inch of black at the roots, turned completely white once more. This time, it wasn't due to the influence of waning lifespan, but rather a certain transformation wrought by the dual energies of Yin and Corpse.
A flood of insights and experiences related to the Corpse Demon Secret Art poured into his mind.
The ultimate goal of this secret art was to cultivate "Heavenly Yin Blood" and "Corpse Demon Bones." Achieving this with just the incomplete method was certainly impossible; this was merely the preliminary, first-stage transformation.
It would grant Wang Yu traits akin to a Jiangshi: bronze skin and iron bones, and Herculean strength.
It would also bestow the innate Yin-cold nature of a ghost, which would henceforth accelerate his cultivation speed for cold-attribute techniques. The power of Yin-cold attribute spells would skyrocket, and it would even slightly enhance his spiritual sense.
This kind of body-transformation secret art was exceptionally rare.
If it were the complete method, its value would be inestimable! But as merely an incomplete method, the numerous side effects it entailed destined it to be a path few cultivators would choose to tread.
Wang Yu had his eyes set on its unique effect of reconnecting severed limbs.
Furthermore, the Heavenly Yin Blood seemed to have a quality that simulated spiritual root aptitude. To a certain extent, it was also a method to enhance his own innate talent. Combined with the effects of the "Coldblooded Art," it was highly likely a special synergy would occur.
After all, both involved Yin-cold transformations targeting the blood.
The results would be visible within three months!
Wang Yu swiftly returned to his residence, sealed it shut, and began a long period of secluded cultivation.
......
......
And so it was.
By the 4th month of his 2nd year as an outer sect disciple.
Ninety days passed in the blink of an eye. Within his residence in the Evil God District, Wang Yu stood before a life-sized ice mirror, examining his drastically altered appearance.
His eyes were now a deep,幽绿幽绿 (ghostly green), with the whites of his eyes transformed into a pure, unsettling black. Two sharp fangs protruded from his upper jaw, identical to the fangs of a Jiangshi.
His skin was paler than a corpse's. His head of silver hair was tied up in a high crown, appearing sharp and efficient. His originally refined facial features, paired with his诡异 (eerie) pupils, now carried a distinct air of wickedness.
These were the changes to his countenance. The nails on his hands and feet had turned pitch-black and sharp, representing the most obvious physical alterations.
The strength in his limbs and bones had skyrocketed; he now possessed Herculean power, capable of pulverizing a man-sized bluestone rock with his bare hands. His skin was like bronze, his bones like iron—impervious to ordinary blades, spears, fire, and water.
Simultaneously, Wang Yu discovered he had developed a certain aversion to light, now preferring dark environments. A bloodthirsty sensation emerged within him, along with a desire to devour those wandering, lonely souls and wild ghosts.
These were all side effects brought by the [Corpse Demon Secret Art]. To a certain degree, it was a transformation into a constitution approximating that of a Jiangshi and a Yin Ghost, possessing the strengths of both while also suffering from their respective drawbacks.
Wang Yu's body temperature had dropped to around 18-19 degrees Celsius, and his heartbeat was incredibly slow.
His blood had transformed into Yin blood, with minuscule, moving black talisman motes drifting within it.
His bones had transformed into demonic bones, with Corpse Qi penetrating deep into the marrow, forming a set of incomplete talismans upon his skeletal structure.
**[Placement Slot 3: Corpse Demon Secret Art (Incomplete Method / Repairing in Progress…)]**
`Corpse Demon Secret Art (100/100): One thousand four hundred and forty cycles per day. Completion estimated in twenty years.`
Wang Yu was deeply surprised, then suddenly understood.
These twenty years likely referred to the time required to repair the art to the second stage. Subsequently, there would probably be third and fourth stages, corresponding to the Core Formation and Nascent Soul periods.
With the physical transformation complete, according to the descriptions within the Corpse Demon Secret Art, the next step was to utilize the dual energies of Yin and Corpse to condense a "Yin Blood Pill" within his body. This object was the key to reconnecting his severed limb.
Not only would it eliminate rejection reactions from foreign tissue, cultivating three "Yin Blood Pills" could even allow for the regeneration of a severed arm. However, achieving this required the art to be repaired at least to the third stage.
The road ahead was long and burdened with responsibility.
While examining his body, Wang Yu made another new discovery—a change in his aptitude!
The incomplete Heavenly Yin Blood and Corpse Demon Bones were like bestowing upon him a different, unorthodox form of aptitude, akin to an acquired Yin Spiritual Root, complementing his preliminarily mutated "Ice Spiritual Root."
The mutations of the Yin-Ice attribute were both applied to his Water Spiritual Root. It猛然 (suddenly) grew from a length of about one *cun* to nearly four *cun*.
It was already not much different from the aptitude of a Mixed Spiritual Root. This change thrilled Wang Yu beyond measure. Sacrificing his 'second brother's' happiness and enduring so many side effects were all for the sake of this very transformation.
After a day of quiet cultivation.
Four additional strands of refined Yin-cold spiritual power appeared within his body. This change signified that his cultivation speed had once again doubled.
Factoring in the efficacy of the top-grade Coldblooded Pills, it would take at most one hundred and sixty days—roughly five and a half months—for him to smoothly break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining.
This represented a milestone transformation for his entire cultivation journey, its significance far from ordinary.
Starting from this day, time seemed to press the fast-forward button.
The changes in Wang Yu's appearance did not attract much attention. After all, this was the demonic path, filled with all manner of strange, half-human, half-ghost cultivators. His current state was relatively normal—just somewhat resembling a Jiangshi.
Only members of the Alchemist Association and Zhao Shang, among others, noticed the extraordinary nature of this secret art he was practicing, but none inquired further.
Spirit stones were earned as usual. Wang Yu also began making contacts with inner sect disciples of the [Heavenly Corpse Peak], seeking a refined corpse to remedy the regret of his severed arm.
Although the True Transmission disciple Su had promised him the arm of a second-grade ice-attribute corpse, he couldn't possibly seek out Duan Ping to inquire. The fact that there had been no contact for so long was, in itself, telling.
Stretching it out for a few more years would likely only breed more unforeseen complications.
Therefore, Wang Yu decided to search on his own first. The minimum requirement was a peak first-grade corpse, with the ideal being obtaining a remnant arm from a second-grade refined corpse.
For Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Heavenly Corpse Peak, there should be quite a few second-grade refined corpses that couldn't be fully repaired. Just buying one arm should present several opportunities.
On another front, Wang Yu was also scouting for a suitable top-grade magical instrument in preparation for his eventual departure from the sect.
Thus, five and a half months passed in the blink of an eye.
In the 9th month of his 2nd year as an outer sect disciple, the aura around the cross-legged Wang Yu swelled and distended, his spiritual power cultivation reaching the extreme limit of his current stage.
A full three hundred strands of Yin-cold spiritual power coiled around his body, condensing a layer of frost on the ground.
Fifth Level of Qi Refining—Achieved!
The originally planned three and a half years had been achieved in just over a year. The speed could not be considered anything but fast.
As for breaking through to the sixth level of Qi Refining, that would be a much longer process, requiring the condensation of a full one thousand strands of spiritual power. At that point, he would encounter the bottleneck between the middle and late stages of Qi Refining.
He would need to undergo the second spiritual refinement of that thousand strands of power, condensing them from a thousand into a hundred. With the "strand" as the unit, one hundred *strands* of spiritual power constituted the seventh level of Qi Refining!
Then would come the final accumulation phase, until reaching the threshold of the third spiritual refinement, where spiritual power would liquefy into true essence—one of the three barriers of Foundation Establishment.
Currently, he needed to accumulate seven hundred strands of spiritual power to reach perfection at the fifth level.
Based on the current efficiency of his two placement slots, it would require 1750 days—nearly five years. This wasn't slow. Factoring in the top-grade Coldblooded Pills, he could likely break through in about three years.
(End of Chapter)