"Master, how many times have I told you? Don't call me Xiao Chenzi," Mu Chen said with a sigh of resignation.
The Profound Old Ghost pursed his lips, unfazed. "What seems to be the problem?"
Mu Chen paused in thought, then said uncertainly, "Master, I didn't stop because I had a problem with reconstructing 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 materialized beside Mu Chen.
Mu Chen shook his head. "I don't know. Two days ago, I suddenly felt like my Spiritual Power had hit a bottleneck."
The Profound Old Ghost froze for a moment, then burst out laughing. "You silly kid! 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. One is for Energy Soul Refining, the other for Primordial Power Forging Soul. Since Primordial Power cultivation has realms, it's only natural that Spiritual Power does as well."
"From highest to lowest, Spiritual Power is divided into five realms: Qian, Kun, Kan, Li, and Fan. The Mortal Realm is the lowest of these. Right now, you've reached the peak of the Mortal Realm. All you need is the right trigger to break through to the Leaving Realm."
Mu Chen listened patiently. He knew that whatever the Profound Old Ghost said was bound to be useful—with the exception of the name 'Xiao Chenzi'. He continued, "Then what's special about the Leaving Realm?"
The Profound Old Ghost said, "Back in the day, with the help of a Spiritual Technique, any ordinary Martial Master could have reached the Leaving Realm. But now, over a hundred thousand years later, Spiritual Techniques have likely been lost to time. If one relies solely on Primordial Power breakthroughs to transform their Spiritual Power, they would have to reach the Martial Spirit Realm at a minimum to achieve that. So, wouldn't you say this is a good thing?"
"Heh heh, that is a good thing. But a breakthrough in Primordial Power also transforms your Spiritual Power?"
"Of course. Primordial Power and Spiritual Power are complementary. Every time your Primordial Power breaks through to a new stage, your Spiritual Power will also advance. Likewise, if your Spiritual Power breaks through, the speed at which you absorb Primordial Power will increase."
"I see." A look of realization dawned on Mu Chen's face. This was an unexpected boon. In just over five months, his Spiritual Power had gone from the Lower Lower Grade of the Mortal Realm to its absolute peak. 'If any of the old masters heard about this, they'd die of shame.'
"Alright, problem solved," the Profound Old Ghost said lightly. "All that's left for your Dantian reconstruction is the final step: Solidifying the Pill. The sooner you complete it, the sooner you can start on the path to becoming a true powerhouse."
Mu Chen nodded and instantly unleashed his Spiritual Power, now at the peak of the Mortal Realm. The Dantian Vortex immediately accelerated to twenty times its original speed. As his Spiritual Power surged, the Dantian's rotation grew even faster. The eighteen spherical Dantian fragments began to fly about chaotically within their respective zones. But because the space was now so vast, it was extremely difficult for them to collide; several times, they merely grazed past one another.
Mu Chen's brow furrowed. He let out a low growl, "Move!"
Suddenly, the Dantian's rotational speed surged again, reaching a staggering twenty-five times its original rate. Consequently, the fragments began to slam against the invisible barriers of their zones with increasing frequency, rebounding at new angles each time. Looking down from above, one could see eighteen spheres hurtling along completely unpredictable trajectories, each trailing a long, black tail.
"BOOM!!!"
In one of the nine zones, two Dantian fragments, as if unable to bear the solitude, finally collided. A massive explosion sent a powerful shockwave spreading in all directions. A strange phenomenon occurred: the zone barriers, previously capable of deflecting the high-speed fragments, suddenly seemed to lose all effect. The shockwave tore through the entire Dantian. Immediately after, as if on command, all the other fragments across the nine zones slammed into their partners, creating a deafening roar.
Mu Chen stared, dumbfounded, at the astonishing scene. The next moment, a violent burst of white light erupted from within the Dantian Vortex, enveloping the entire Dantian. The brilliant glare completely blinded him.
At the very same moment that the eighteen Dantian fragments collided within Mu Chen, the sky over all of Luofeng City suddenly darkened. Immediately after, nine-colored cloud clusters, crackling with rainbow-hued Thunder Light, materialized out of thin air, blanketing the entire city. Then, from the Azure Sky above, a terrifying pressure descended with the unstoppable, crushing force of a Mountain Range.
"HUUUUUMMM!!"
A tremendous hum reverberated through the air. In that instant, every corner of Luofeng City seemed to freeze in time. A dead silence fell. Every single person was forced to their knees, their eyes filled with terror. They couldn't even twitch a finger.
In a rear mountain of the Xuanling Empire's Imperial Palace, a green-haired elder in green robes suddenly snapped his eyes open. Two beams of tangible, cold light shot from his gaze. With a gasp of surprise, his body flickered once and then vanished.
Above the throne room of the Xuanling Empire's Imperial Palace, a handsome man in a Dragon Robe was staring blankly at the strange phenomenon on the horizon. Suddenly, he felt a familiar fluctuation of Primordial Power beside him. An elder in green robes slowly solidified into view. The handsome man quickly and respectfully greeted him, "Elder Wu."
The green-haired elder known as Elder Wu simply waved a hand, his eyes glinting as he stared intently in the direction of Luofeng City. Over there, a nine-colored expanse was erupting in brilliant light.
Just then, three more figures appeared in the throne room. The handsome Emperor once again bowed respectfully to each in turn. "Elder Yin, Elder Li, Elder Sun."
Of the three, two were men and one was a woman. The woman appeared to be around forty, yet she possessed a dignified grace. One of the men was powerfully built, his bulging muscles visible beneath his beast-skin clothing. The other was rather short and slight, with an exceedingly plain face—the kind of person you would instantly forget in a crowd. His eyes, however, were as sharp and piercing as a hawk's.
When the three saw the green-haired elder before them, they all bowed. "Elder Wu."
These four were the Honored Elders of the Xuanling Empire, and among them, Elder Wu's status was clearly the highest. He remained silent, his gaze fixed on the direction of the strange phenomenon. After a moment, Elder Wu asked calmly, "Xuan Yin, which cities lie in that direction?"
The still-bewildered Emperor quickly replied, "There are three cities in that direction: Yellow Flame City, Luofeng City, and Qingling City."
This yellow-robed man was indeed the sixth Emperor of the Xuanling Empire, Xuan Yin.
Elder Wu gave a slight nod. A pair of green Elemental Wings erupted from his back, and beneath his feet, six purple Martial Rings composed of Primordial Power materialized and stacked upon one another.
The expressions of the four below him turned serious. They congratulated him in unison, "Congratulations, Elder Wu, on your successful advancement to Sixth-Ring Martial Emperor."
The words had barely left their mouths when Elder Wu, who had just begun to ascend, descended once more. He looked toward the horizon where the phenomenon was fading and shook his head with a sigh. "A pity."
Elder Yin, standing behind him, asked in confusion, "Elder Wu, what was that phenomenon just now?"
Elder Wu replied calmly, "If I'm not mistaken, that was a Celestial Tribulation triggered by some great expert. And a very powerful High-Level Thunder Tribulation at that. But it seems that expert got cold feet. They actually suppressed their Cultivation to evade it. A real pity. We missed a chance to witness it."
Hearing this, the others were stunned. Ordinary Martial Artists don't trigger tribulations. To draw down a Celestial Tribulation, one must be a monstrous talent—so monstrous that the heavens themselves grow jealous and seek to strike them down. Their expressions then turned grim. If that Celestial Tribulation had actually erupted, Yellow Flame City, Luofeng City, and Qingling City would have been wiped from existence.
"Very well. Dismissed." Elder Wu shook his head in disappointment. With a flick of his sleeve, he vanished, leaving the other three Elders and Xuan Yin standing helplessly in the great hall.
…
Inside Mu Chen's Dantian in Luofeng City, the Profound Old Ghost wiped a bead of sweat from his brow, his voice still trembling. "Holy hell, that was close. I never thought the Nine Attributes Dantian would summon the Nine Venerable Thunder Tribulation. If I hadn't used the Extreme Spirit Pearl to conceal Xiao Chenzi, the entirety of Luofeng City would've been reduced to rubble today."
Mu Chen, meanwhile, was completely unaware of what had just transpired in the Outer Realm. Before him, nine pitch-black orbs floated quietly around the Dantian Vortex.
"It's done? That was... too easy," Mu Chen said in disbelief.
The Profound Old Ghost looked equally puzzled. Although the Dantian's formation had triggered the Nine Venerable Thunder Tribulation, that was an external disaster.
'Impossible... There wasn't even a sliver of pain during the Dantian's formation. Could the Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique really be that heaven-defying?' The Profound Old Ghost began to wonder if this technique might even be a Divine Rank Technique.
But just then, the unexpected occurred…