Volume Two: The Appearance of the Nine Provinces Map, Entering the Spirit Void Sect Chapter 132: Breaking Through Another Aperture

Page (1/3)

Chen Yu clenched his fists in excitement. As the Fire-Escape Art circulated, a refreshing coolness spread through both body and mind. The scorching heat of Redflame Mountain could no longer affect him.

“Haha…”

Unable to contain his comfort, Chen Yu burst into hearty laughter.

After resting for a short while, he resumed cultivating. Although the power of the Fire-Essence Seeds had dissipated, traces of it still lingered within his body. He could use it to attempt a breakthrough into the Fourth Aperture.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye, yet Chen Yu still failed to break through. He could not help frowning.

“Was it because I tried to break through too soon? But I clearly felt that I was ready to advance to the next realm. Why couldn’t I break through?”

He sank into thought, recalling that sensation. Again and again, he analyzed the process, and his mood grew increasingly heavy.

“The breakthrough was too hurried. It felt as though I was strong on the outside but hollow within. My own foundation has not yet settled enough.”

Even after discovering the cause, Chen Yu felt little joy. His heart grew heavier still as he thought, “At this rate, let alone reaching the Yin-Yang Realm within a year—even breaking through all eight apertures of the One-Origin Realm may prove difficult.”

For this very reason, Chen Yu found himself even more puzzled. Why had Chu Yang, Master of Skyvault Peak, demanded that he reach the Yin-Yang Realm within a year? Chu Yang could not possibly be unaware that such haste would destabilize his cultivation and ruin his future path.

Could Chu Yang be trying to harm him? That was even less likely. The two of them had no grievances, and Chu Yang had openly stated that he wished to take Chen Yu as his disciple.

Since Chu Yang had not been mistaken, then the problem lay with Chen Yu himself. His foundation was insufficiently settled; he merely had to make up for it. But how was he to do so?

Seeking heavenly treasures seemed unrealistic. Given his cultivation, the wealth he possessed already was remarkably considerable. There was no need to dream of anything more.

But if that was the case, what could he do? Chen Yu shook his head helplessly. If he were still in the Spirit Ruins, he could ask Chu Yang for advice on how to remedy his shortcomings.

At that thought, inspiration suddenly flashed through his mind. He murmured softly, “Make up for it? Make up for it? Yes… that’s it. The Heaven-Mending Sun-Bathing Art might work.”

He could not help recalling what it had been like to cultivate the Heaven-Mending Sun-Bathing Art that day, and remembering the scene of his breakthrough into the One-Origin Realm. Was it not very much like his current situation?

In both cases, he had sought greater strength and a smoother breakthrough, using the Heaven-Mending Sun-Bathing Art to temper the power within his body.

Having reached this conclusion, Chen Yu no longer hesitated. He immediately began circulating the Heaven-Mending Sun-Bathing Art. As expected, although the change was subtle, he could still sense the slightest transformation within his body.

Page (1/3)

Page (2/3)

Moreover, within Redflame Mountain, Chen Yu felt as though he were inside a furnace fueled by the flames of the sun. The effects of the Heaven-Mending Sun-Bathing Art became even more pronounced. Thus, he consumed the remaining Fire-Essence Seeds one after another, using the art to temper his body.

His vital essence, energy, and spirit changed with every passing moment. The magical power within him grew purer, the blood and vigor of his physical body became increasingly abundant, and his mind attained a crystalline clarity. He felt so refreshed that it was almost as though his soul might leave his body and wander freely through the Great Void.

And so it went. After consuming seventy or eighty Spirit-Gathering Pills in succession, then refining and absorbing the demon cores of the Scarlet Mountain Ape and the Fire Crow, Chen Yu’s foundation was tempered to perfection. Even the deficiencies remaining from the One-Origin, First-Aperture and One-Origin, Second-Aperture stages had been completely repaired.

Now, he was more than four or five times stronger than before.

With a single Meridian-Opening Pill entering his stomach, he pressed his middle finger against the Crown Chakra and placed his forefinger tightly against its rear side. Between each inhalation and exhalation, he guided the magical power in his dantian to strike at the Yin Gate.

Perhaps because he had re-forged his vital essence, energy, and spirit, the process of opening the aperture proceeded more smoothly than ever before. With only one strike, the Yin Gate was forced open.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered around him. The magical power within his body rapidly expanded, nourishing the Dao Seed in his dantian.

Once the Yin Gate opened, the Sea of Qi, the Tailbone Gate, the Life Gate, and the Yin Gate within his body seemed to merge into a single whole. At that moment, Chen Yu’s spiritual perception rose once more. He seemed able to sense the currents of the earth’s vital energy and perceive how terrain changed—scattering when met by wind and gathering when met by water. This was what mortals called geomancy.

He knew that if he could cultivate such abilities to their utmost limit, he might one day alter the great momentum of heaven and earth with a wave of his hand, while discerning the locations of innate spiritual treasures.

Nor was that all. With all four apertures connected, Chen Yu could, for the first time, feel the earth’s profound weight. His speed in drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth became even more astonishing.

Chen Yu slowly rose to his feet, feeling the mighty power surging through his body. He leaped forward, transformed into a streak of golden light, and shot out of Redflame Mountain.

Nearly two months had passed since he had left the Spirit Ruins. It was time to return.

Before that, however, he still needed to hunt down a Moon Wolf and obtain its demon core.

Moon Wolves mostly lived in the region around Moonwatch Cliff. They were extremely savage by nature, and on nights of the full moon they became even more ferocious. Moreover, they generally lived in packs, so not only human cultivators but even demon beasts rarely dared provoke them.

Most Moon Wolves, however, were only at the One-Origin, Third-Aperture stage. Hunting one should not be too difficult.

Page (2/3)

Page (3/3)

He moved swiftly through the forest. Along the way, he encountered several cultivators traveling in small groups, but none of them disturbed the others.

Cultivators came in all shapes and varieties. In a desolate forest like this, one could never be sure that someone would not be tempted by another’s wealth and strike without warning. Such incidents were far from uncommon.

Several days later, Chen Yu arrived outside Moonwatch Cliff. What concerned him was that he saw several cultivators wandering around the entrance in succession. His mood immediately darkened as he guessed, “It seems others have come with the same intention as me. They are all after the Moon Wolves.”

He drew a deep breath but did not enter Moonwatch Cliff at once. Instead, he decided to observe the situation first. He had no intention of being used as someone else’s pawn.

What surprised Chen Yu, however, was that the number of cultivators gathering around Moonwatch Cliff continued to grow.

“Hmm? Could something have happened here?”

Puzzled, Chen Yu became even more cautious and refrained from acting rashly.

After several days, thirty or forty people had gathered there. From their conduct, it was not difficult to see that each group was acting independently, with no connection to the others. The one thing they had in common was that none of them was in a hurry to enter Moonwatch Cliff. Instead, they remained outside, constantly watching for something.

Just as Chen Yu was wondering what had happened inside Moonwatch Cliff, a beautiful woman dressed in white stepped forward from among the crowd and said, “I am Liu Yue’er of the Endless Cliff Sword Monastery. My respects to you all.”

“So it is Fairy Liu of the Endless Cliff Sword Monastery.”

The crowd immediately turned toward her with envy and excitement.

“May we ask what advice the fairy has for us?”

“I believe the purpose that brought every one of you to Moonwatch Cliff is already obvious,” Fairy Liu said.

Everyone nodded silently. One person spoke bluntly:

“If the fairy has something to say, please speak plainly.”