Chapter 403 - 2: The Path Forward Is Severed

Primordial Energy surged like a tide.

Pulled by some unseen force, the Primordial Energy from hundreds of miles around gathered toward a single barren mountaintop.

The vast energy condensed into a pillar of Qi, transforming into a crystalline stream that connected heaven and earth, standing tall in the sky.

A celestial phenomenon!

A similar phenomenon occurred when Xi Chen achieved his Dao Foundation.

However, the spectacle back then was nowhere near as vast and boundless as it was today; the Sect Array had been enough to conceal it.

But now,

the Primordial Energy from hundreds of miles around was being forcefully drained, a disturbance that could be clearly felt for thousands of miles. It was impossible to conceal.

「In the Quiet Chamber.」

Zhu Ju sat cross-legged on a meditation mat. A ball of Spiritual Light gathered in his dantian, devouring a sea of Primordial Energy.

HISSS...

The Primordial Energy surged.

His Essence, Qi, and Spirit condensed.

Then, at a certain moment,

a round, gleaming golden Pill appeared within his dantian, eventually taking the dantian’s place entirely.

A Golden Core!

The Golden Core began to spin, and with its rotation, a wisp of pure Magical Power emerged, rapidly circulating once through his meridians.

With every rotation, another wisp of Magical Power was born. In a mere moment, it had flooded his entire Physical Body.

ROAR...

A sound like a surging tide rose from within.

With a single thought, his Magical Power churned, and his perception expanded to encompass the world around him, taking in every last thing.

His Physical Body, tempered by the Golden Core’s Magical Power, grew even stronger, and his Divine Soul became imbued with a spiritual resonance, allowing him to perceive all sorts of things he never could before.

He opened his eyes.

The pitch-black Cave Mansion was perfectly clear to his sight.

Zhu Ju slowly reached out and gently clenched his fist.

Instantly,

the Power of the Five Elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—gathered around him, coalescing into five Thunder Balls in the blink of an eye.

"Five Elements Thunder Technique..."

A complex expression appeared on Zhu Ju’s face as he watched the five Thunder Balls gently orbiting his palm.

Of the myriad forms of Magic, Thunder Techniques were supreme.

The Thunder Technique, which once required Finger Techniques, incantations, and linking his Divine Thought to runes, could now be cast with a single thought.

Moreover,

with a single thought, the five Thunder Balls silently vanished.

He could form and dismiss them at will!

Dispersing a Thunder Technique was far more difficult than creating one, but to a Golden Core Cultivator, there was no difference.

"Time... space..."

Zhu Ju murmured, his finger pointing forward. It moved in a way that seemed both slow and fast at once, causing the empty air to ripple like the surface of water.

’No wonder my wife said the Golden Core Realm is so difficult to describe. You can never truly understand it until you reach it.’

’In the eyes of a Golden Core Grandmaster, time... is something that can be perceived!’

This was somewhat similar to the concept of gravity from his past life. Once gravity reached a certain magnitude, it could warp spacetime.

Like a neutron star, near which the flow of time was much slower than it was near other planets.

A Golden Core...

...could be understood as a kind of neutron star.

Its very existence could, to a certain extent, distort time and space.

For example, Guu Qinghuan of the Blood Demon Sect, a Golden Core whom Zhu Ju had once fought, could unleash tens of thousands of sword strikes in an instant. This was possible only because, in her perception, time itself had slowed down.

’No wonder it’s said that with a Golden Core, my fate is my own, not for the heavens to decide. So that’s what it meant.’

Zhu Ju could clearly sense that the lifespan of a Golden Core Grandmaster wasn’t inherently longer than that of a Dao Foundation Cultivator.

But the Golden Core could influence time.

It could slow the effect of time on one’s Physical Body.

And thus,

one’s lifespan was naturally extended!

’Legend has it that in the Ancient Era, Cultivators didn’t have Nascent Souls. They mainly cultivated the Nine-Turn Golden Core Path and could achieve immortality all the same. Looking at it now, perhaps those legends were true after all.’

Zhu Ju composed himself and with a light wave of his sleeve, the stone door to the cave swung open. A graceful silhouette filled his vision.

"My wife!"

"My husband!"

The two smiled at each other and embraced tightly.

*

*

*

A commotion as massive as breaking through to the Golden Core Realm could not be hidden from others. The Immortal Alliance, in particular, which had been monitoring the Ten Thousand Mountains with its Tier Four Grand Array, naturally knew the moment someone from the Bright Void Sect had advanced.

The Immortal Alliance’s Golden Core Cultivator stationed nearby rushed over after receiving the news, and it turned out to be an old acquaintance.

"Fellow Daoist Zhu!"

Bathed in golden light, Hong Kan, a Golden Core Cultivator from the Immortal Alliance, descended from the sky. He cupped his fists toward Zhu Ju, his face filled with astonishment.

"Your Talent is extraordinary and your foundation profound, Fellow Daoist. I knew you would form a Golden Core sooner or later, but I never imagined..."

"It’s only been a little over a decade, and you’ve already attained the Great Path."

"I was merely fortunate," Zhu Ju said, cupping his fists in return.

"A few years ago, I obtained a Curious Object in the Jade Void Cave Heaven. Otherwise, I would have needed another hundred years of bitter Cultivation."

His progress had been too fast, far beyond anyone’s expectations, so he could only attribute it to a fortuitous encounter.

"The Jade Void Cave Heaven?" Hong Kan’s eyes flickered.

"I never thought Fellow Daoist Zhu had gone there as well. It’s a true shame we didn’t run into each other."

"Fellow Daoist Hong went in too?" Zhu Ju raised an eyebrow.

"I heard an Immortal Mansion appeared in the Jade Void Cave Heaven, and that someone refined its Town Stele. Do you know who that person was?"

Hong Kan’s expression darkened.

"After that person finished the Refinement of the Town Stele, they sealed the Jade Void Cave Heaven. They haven’t been seen in over ten years."

"Hah..."

"When they finally decide to appear, Fellow Daoist, you’ll know."

He was clearly unwilling to discuss it further.

Zhu Ju smiled faintly.

’Hong Kan must have fought for the Town Stele back then, but he was one of the losers. The Jade Void Cave Heaven is arguably the greatest Treasure in the world. It’s no surprise he’s unwilling to dwell on having missed out on it.’

"Fellow Daoist Zhu."

Hong Kan handed over a Jade Scroll.

"It’s standard practice for the Immortal Alliance to present a congratulatory gift to new Golden Core Cultivators. I came in a hurry and didn’t bring it, but I’ll make up for it at your Golden Core ceremony in a few days. But besides the gift, there are other benefits."

"Take a look."

Zhu Ju reached out to accept it. As he swept his Divine Thought inside, his perception was flooded with images of countless Rare Treasures.

’So many!’

Zhu Ju looked astonished.

"There are this many?"

Logically, the higher one’s Cultivation, the rarer the required Spiritual Medicines and Spiritual Materials should be, meaning there should be fewer of them available.

But the Immortal Alliance’s reserves were beyond anything he could have imagined.

"Yes." A smile touched Hong Kan’s lips.

"The world is in chaos, and the Demon Dao runs rampant. While the common people suffer, this has also forced the various Sects to stop holding back. To prevent their stashes from falling into the hands of the Demon Sect, all kinds of Rare Treasures have been unearthed. In a way, it’s been to our advantage."

"Of course..."

He sighed and continued,

"There’s another reason."

"On the path of Cultivation, Golden Core is effectively the limit. Nascent Soul True Men don’t consume these resources, which is why there are so many good things left."

Hm?

Zhu Ju was taken aback.

"Fellow Daoist Hong, what do you mean by that?"

He knew that above the Golden Core Realm was the Nascent Soul Realm, and after that came Divinity Transformation, Refining Void, Integration, and other Realms.

Even if the collapse of the Great Path had wiped out everyone above the Nascent Soul Realm, Nascent Soul Cultivators themselves still existed.

Although they were few.

Hong Kan spoke, "You’re aware that Nascent Soul Cultivators can’t make a move often, to avoid the influence of the Great Path, correct?"

"I am."

"In truth, not only can they not act, they can’t even increase their Cultivation. For every bit of Cultivation they gain, their chances of becoming a Fallen Demon increase."

?

Zhu Ju stared in astonishment.

"But... the Six Paths Demon Monarch is at the Mid-Stage Nascent Soul Realm..."

"No!"

Hong Kan gently shook his head.

"The Six Paths Demon Monarch is not at the Mid-Stage Nascent Soul Realm. His power is just a bit greater than that of an Early-Stage Nascent Soul Cultivator."

"Furthermore..."

"It’s very likely the Six Paths Demon Monarch isn’t even human. The path he cultivates is somewhat different from our orthodox Methods. You will slowly learn about these things in the future, so there is no need to go into detail now."

Zhu Ju’s expression was complicated. It was a long while before he came to his senses and looked down at the Jade Scroll in his hand.

"So I can use the merits from advancing to the Golden Core Realm, plus my own things, to exchange for various Spiritual Medicines and Treasures from the Immortal Alliance?"

"Yes."

"What did my wife exchange for?"

"Sect Leader Pei exchanged for some materials to set up an Array, as well as some Spiritual Medicine that can increase the Cultivation of Foundation Establishment Cultivators."

Hong Kan’s voice was tinged with emotion as he spoke.

"Sect Leader Pei didn’t redeem a single thing for herself. She left all her merits for the Sect."

Hearing this, Zhu Ju looked up toward Pei Jingque, who was outside greeting guests, and slowly nodded.

Pei Jingque hadn’t made any exchanges for herself, firstly, because she was devoted to the Sect.

And secondly,

she wasn’t an orthodox Golden Core Cultivator. She had already become the Artifact Spirit of the Three-Flame Simurgh Fan; Spiritual Elixirs and Medicines were useless to her.

After a moment of thought, Zhu Ju selected a few items.

He thought for another moment.

Then, he took out some of his old spoils of war and exchanged them for Elixirs and supplies.

Seeing Zhu Ju take out one Magical Treasure and Curious Object after another, Hong Kan looked surprised, but he didn’t ask any questions.

He probably assumed these were all things the Bright Void Sect had prepared for Zhu Ju.

Little did he know,

these were all Zhu Ju’s personal spoils of war.

It was just that in the past, he wouldn’t have dared, nor would it have been convenient, to take them out for trade. Now that he had advanced to the Golden Core Realm and stood near the apex of the Cultivation Realm, there was no longer any need to be so secretive.