Chapter 326: Chapter 49: Three Corpse Qi in Zhao Hua Furnace
Three days later, within the cloister where Jiang Li was in seclusion.
Layers upon layers of compass illusions formed a halo, slowly revolving around the figure suspended in the center.
Wind, fire, water, wood, mountain, and metal, even the heavens above and earth below, faintly resonated with Jiang Li’s silhouette.
In the Cave Heaven Blessed Land, Jiang Li had experienced the unity of Ming He Tian Di, combining it with his Physics School’s Heavenly Union, which deepened his understanding and analysis of heaven and earth. Now that the Nine Springs were formed and the eight qi had returned to their places, forming the Image of the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams, he had yet to fully comprehend the eight qi. However, he was already capable of experiencing the Heaven and Man Sensing.
But with the emergence of Heaven and Man Sensing, Jiang Li felt even more intensely the evil qi that pervaded heaven and earth—the scent of decay and decline.
It wasn’t the appearance of the Five Vile Qi that was eroding the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy, but rather a change in the operation of heaven and earth itself, transforming the Spiritual Energy into Five Vile Qi.
This change originating from heaven and earth itself was the crux of the End of Dharma.
The higher a cultivator’s realm, the more they could perceive the decay between heaven and earth. If one’s cultivation realm was insufficient and an error occurred, absorbing the Five Vile Qi into the body would be like ingesting poison, harming one’s life, but if rescued in time, they might still survive.
Yet those of higher realms could sense the obscure operation of heaven and earth. Under the influence of Heaven and Man Sensing, they might even emulate the actions of heaven and earth—then they would truly be doomed. Their body would become a source of poison, generating Five Vile Qi from within, essentially ensuring death.
"How truly cruel this is."
Jiang Li opened his eyes, suppressing the desire to merge with heaven and earth, and reigned in his Qi Mechanism, "I better stick to my Physics School."
At least the Physics School didn’t pose a risk of losing control, though it did need a bit of brainstorming.
The faint compass illusion also gradually receded, merging into his body. Jiang Li felt his body and made a swift assessment of his current situation using the sharp intuition of a cultivator practiced in Magic Calculation.
Nine Qi Sea, his power was nine times that of other cultivators of the same grade. Even though the Demon Cleansing True Qi was needed for the facade, he still had eight times the amount.
And in terms of quality, it was an absolute domination. Even if an opponent practiced a cultivation technique of the same grade, purely in terms of quality, they might not compare to Jiang Li. The "Qi Tomb" was, after all, reliant on Qi for sustenance. How could it lag behind others in terms of nourishment?
In terms of the physical body, the preliminary effects of the Innate True Body Method were beginning to show. The body was vibrant with life and agile in movement, and as blood surged through it, it carried a forceful and fiery quality, precisely the result of refining the body with the three qi of wind, wood, and fire.
With just a thought, the muscles in his arms subtly shifted, and his spine cracked like thunder.
The changes from the Yinglong Transformation had now reached the torso, particularly in the spine, where the talismanic seeds within the Acupoints had truly become a part of the body, making the power of talismans innate.
’The constant body temperature around forty degrees, blood as fiery as a diluted Emperor Yan’s Fierce Blood. I could very well pass as a Body Refining Martial Artist. The signs of the Divine Farmer’s appearance also seem to have progressed. Could the next step possibly involve a transformation of the blood?’
Awakening the Divine Farmer’s appearance from the initial superficial layer to flesh, the next step might likely be the metamorphosis of blood and bones.
This indeed aligned with his current progress with the Innate True Body.
Jiang Li speculated internally.
Aside from his physique, what was most crucial was the vibrant life force. In terms of the physical body’s recovery power, ordinary martial artists couldn’t even come close.
And in terms of lifespan, it had also significantly increased. Although the primary principle behind the lifesaving effect of the Ginseng Fruit was to expel the Precelestial Dirt Qi and to nourish life with the Innate Essence, with repeated usage, the effects would gradually diminish. Nevertheless, it had still granted Jiang Li a lifespan of over a thousand years.
It even fully compensated for the lifespan Jiang Li had previously consumed.
Only the two streaks of white at his temples were left by Jiang Li.
Because that would increase his stylishness and also add a mature air to him, preventing Tianxuan from always treating him as a youth.
’Just to get closer to my master, to show my filial piety, I really have put in a lot of effort.’ Jiang Li stroked a strand of white hair, thinking thus.
And regarding the Divine Soul...
A golden light appeared behind Jiang Li’s head, with the vague outline of a halo visible.
After three days of cultivation, Jiang Li had finally cultivated his Primordial Spirit, and because of the Divine Dao Fruit bringing about a Pure Yang Dao Body, Jiang Li’s Primordial Spirit was flawless from the start, with no need to undergo tribulations like Yun Jiuye did.
Five Ginseng Fruits were ingested and completely digested by the appearance of the Divine Farmer, significantly enhancing Jiang Li’s strength. Unfortunately, the five Ginseng Fruits weren’t as effective as the garden of Peaches of Immortality and the piles of Golden Core eaten by Sun Monkey; they couldn’t cultivate an indestructible body.
Not to mention that these Ginseng Fruits were also weakened.
But even so, the advancements in essence, qi, and spirit still made Jiang Li feel unbeatable.
He was very strong.
He just didn’t know exactly how strong he had become.
Jiang Li contemplating this, slowly descended, wishing to find somewhere to test himself.
But suddenly, as soon as his feet touched the ground, there was a heavy feeling, as if two black holes were sucking him from below, his body feeling like it was bearing the weight of two great mountains.
However, peculiarly, the ground showed no corresponding deformation.
Jiang Li struggled to lift his foot, experiencing a fierce pull between his right leg and the ground, far less agile than in the past.
"Can I still fly?"
Jiang Li thought this to himself, driving his True Qi as his body slowly lifted off the ground.
As for Wind Control, he dismissed the thought; with such "weight," even a hurricane might not be able to lift him.
His feet and the gravity wrestled, rising slowly, at a shockingly slow rate.
But after he was about a foot off the ground—
Whoosh!
Jiang Li suddenly broke free from the earth’s restraint and shot upwards like a cannonball.
He pressed his hand against the ceiling, using a sophisticated method to unhinge the momentum, hovered in mid-air deep in thought, and then slowly descended.
Until he touched the ground, Jiang Li remained agile, but upon contact, that black hole-like gravity captured him again.
"Every touch on the ground generates a certain gravity, to rid of this gravity, one must be a foot off the ground. But once airborne, no gravity ensues regardless of proximity to the ground... What principle is this?"
Jiang Li muttered to himself.
Then, Tianxuan’s voice emerged beside his ear.
"You have consecutively consumed five Ginsengfruits and refined your body with them. Your body has essentially eliminated the Postcelestial Five Elements Qi, reaching utmost purity, akin to the Heavenly Pure Qi, attracting murky Qi, since purity and murkiness are inherently one. It’s because you possess the Demon Cleansing True Qi, otherwise, the Five Vile Qi would have churned towards you."
On the third floor of the tower, within a chamber, Tianxuan lay reclined on a soft bed, watching the scene manifest within the Round Light and spoke unhurriedly.
Seeing her at such ease, coupled with her timely intervention, she likely kept her attention on Jiang Li over these past three days.
"Clear and turbid attracts," Jiang Li muttered with a hint of a headache, "Is there a solution?"
"Once you fully master your body and mask the pure qi with Innate Qi, it shall no longer affect you," Tianxuan spoke leisurely, "This is also an opportunity for you to perceive the Qiankun Mechanism."
By Qiankun Mechanism, naturally, she referred to the essence of Heavenly Qi and Earth Qi.
As an important figure of the Ji Family, Tianxuan had an understanding of the Jiang family’s "Qi Tomb."
Indeed, this was a good opportunity.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Li felt as if destiny was in his hands, perfectly aligning with his need to comprehend the Eight Qi.
Upon deeper contemplation, the Innate Eight Qi encompassed all phenomena, and as Jiang Li advanced, he was bound to encounter such opportunities.
This wasn’t a matter of luck but an inevitable necessity.
However, before grasping the Two Qi mechanism, Jiang Li’s life was bound to face some troubles.
At that moment, Tianxuan added, "The promotion you aim for should be to the Great Grandmastership of the fifth-rank; the Three Corpses God Dao Fruit cannot be used for promotion anymore, but it would be a waste to leave it untouched."
Suddenly, a small incense burner fell from the sky, its form resembling a blooming lotus, entirely jade-colored, apparently made from white jade with a jade lid covering it.
Jiang Li caught it, and Tianxuan’s instructions reached his ears, "This is the Zhao Hua Furnace, derived from the essence of Flowing Light’s brilliance. Burning Flowing Light Incense inside allows those who smell it to reminisce about glorious past times for cultivation of the Taoist Heart. Open the incense burner and place the Three Corpses God Dao Fruit inside."
Jiang Li followed her instructions, taking out the Jade Talisman that bore the Three Corpses God Dao Fruit and placing it into the Zhao Hua Furnace.
"Stimulate your True Qi," Tianxuan continued guiding.
The Innate Qi was infused into it, and the Zhao Hua Furnace ignited without fragrance, emitting a lightly mottled aura that materialized into bizarre shapes.
It resembled a human yet also a beast. Upon closer inspection, it morphed among three forms, a bull-headed, calf-bodied monster.
[Dao Fruit- Fifth Grade: Three Corpses God]
[Category: Divinity]
[Fitting Conditions: Sixth Grade Divine Dao Fruit, Body with Unremoved Three Corpses]
[Promotion Ceremony: Guarding the Geng Shen Night, the Three Corpses Leaving the Body, Exhausting the Six Jia Days, Subduing the Three Corpses]
[Divine Skills: Three Corpses Transformation, Three Corpses Possession, Feasting Ritual, Battle Nature of Three Corpses]
Jiang Li: "..."
Ever since Jiang Li obtained this Dao Fruit, he had been busy dealing with various matters and only now had the time to truly interact with the Dao Fruit.
And this was the result.
Even though his containment wasn’t a Sixth Grade Divine Dao Fruit, he managed to fully resonate with the Three Corpses God Dao Fruit; did that not indicate a perfect alignment, just lacking a Divine Dao Fruit?
[How could I possibly be this kind of person?]
Even the Karma Collection found rare agreement with Jiang Li.
As the Zhao Hua Furnace continued expelling mottled auras, the energies moved towards Jiang Li like living creatures, letting him taste an indescribable flavor that brought forth various mixed thoughts in his mind.
Desire for luxury, food, and lust.
His Pure Yang Dao Body granted Jiang Li microscopic perception of his physical body, allowing him to clearly feel the changes occurring, while his Pure Yang Dao Heart dismissed every trivial thought.
Jiang Li calmed his mind and spirit; a Sword Light swiftly passed, cutting through all that was superfluous, cleansing his Daoist Heart and enlightening his Divine Body.
Likewise...
Jiang Li suddenly raised his sword finger, and slowly, Sword Qi emerged from its tip. The rolling mottled auras surged towards the Sword Qi.
The pure energy could merge with all qi, and so could pure intentions with all thoughts.