Chapter 232: Comprehensive Upgrade

["One hundred and seven years old, Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak!"]

[You breathed a soft sigh of relief, joy washing over your face.]

[Reaching the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak meant you had hit the absolute limit in both the quality and quantity of your magic power.]

[This was also the ceiling for the foundational strength of late Nascent Soul great cultivators.]

[As for whether one could become a top-tier great cultivator? That depended entirely on whether their offensive methods were formidable enough.]

[Most great cultivators, even after cultivating to the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak, remained ordinary great cultivators because they lacked sufficiently powerful offensive methods.]

[You began to sense the changes within your body.]

['Hmm... the quality and quantity of my magic power are thirty to forty percent higher than before I reached the late stage peak...']

['The increase in my soul strength is roughly the same...']

[A smile surfaced on your face.]

[You could not underestimate a mere thirty or forty percent increase. At the level of a late Nascent Soul great cultivator, improving even the slightest bit was excruciatingly difficult. A thirty or forty percent boost... was enough to completely crush an opponent in a battle between peers.]

['Given the strength of my Nascent Soul spiritual body, reaching the late stage peak naturally makes me a top-tier great cultivator...']

[You thought to yourself that your offensive methods were beyond doubt. After consuming two Nine Stars Ancient Holy Fruits and the Heart of Myriad Souls, the stability of your Nascent Soul spiritual body alone was enough to make ordinary great cultivators despair.]

['Add in the golden-grade talent, Surpassing Oneself by Half a Move...']

[Your heart stirred slightly. You raised your right hand, and wisps of magic power coiled around your fingertips, faintly distorting the surrounding space.]

[The space in the Human Realm was not as sturdy as one might imagine. At the Deity Transformation Stage, one could casually tear space apart.]

[Even when traveling, a Deity Transformation Stage Heavenly Monarch wouldn't rely on flying. Instead, they would directly tear through space, achieving long-distance leaps akin to a cross-spatial teleportation array.]

['The Deity Transformation Stage...']

[Cultivating to the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak meant you already possessed the optimal magic power conditions to push for the Deity Transformation realm.]

[With the current foundation of your Nascent Soul spiritual body, combined with the Primordial Spirit Pill and the first stream of Primordial Yin Qi from Li Yan after she stepped into the Nascent Soul Stage, your certainty of transforming your Nascent Soul into a primordial spirit would not be less than sixty percent even if you attempted the breakthrough right now.]

[Transforming the Nascent Soul into a primordial spirit was the first hurdle in reaching the Deity Transformation realm. If you couldn't pass this hurdle, the following two trials were out of the question.]

['The Annihilation Tribulation... the Five Elements Lightning Tribulation...']

[You mused to yourself, thinking of the latter two of the three Deity Transformation trials.]

[The Annihilation Tribulation was similar to the Heart Demon Tribulation, but far more dangerous. It was said that legendary great cultivators who had broken past their limits received a boost when crossing the Annihilation Tribulation, though what exactly that boost entailed remained unknown.]

['Has my current strength reached the level of a legendary great cultivator?']

[You speculated internally. In the near-ancient era, a great cultivator of this caliber had never been born. The concept of a legendary great cultivator had only existed during the resplendent primeval era.]

[As a result, the information passed down regarding legendary great cultivators was exceedingly rare.]

[Because none had appeared recently, they were rarely discussed. In comparison, intelligence on Deity Transformation Heavenly Monarchs was much easier to gather.]

['As for the Five Elements Lightning Tribulation... cultivating my physical body to the Fourth-Order Late Stage peak would increase my hopes of surviving it.']

[Your physical constitution was currently only at the Rank 4 Mid Stage. To elevate it to the Fourth-Order Late Stage peak, you still needed to seize a few serendipitous opportunities from the grotto-heavens and blessed lands of the Central Continent.]

['There are still over four hundred years until Heavenly Monarch Shuiyue passes away in meditation. I can take my time.']

[You gathered your thoughts. In the fifth simulation, Heavenly Monarch Shuiyue had passed away in meditation when you were five hundred and fifty-three years old.]

[It was only about a century later that Purple-Eyed True Monarch broke through to the Deity Transformation Stage and joined the ranks of the Heavenly Monarchs.]

[You still had plenty of time.]

['The Second Nascent Soul is still a distance away from the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak...']

[Within your dantian, beside your main Nascent Soul, the Second Nascent Soul was noticeably dimmer, its aura overshadowed by the main Nascent Soul.]

[Over the nearly hundred years of this simulation, you had naturally prioritized the cultivation of your main Nascent Soul, so the Second Nascent Soul's cultivation speed was somewhat slower.]

[However, the impact wasn't significant. Now that your main Nascent Soul had reached its limit and could no longer advance, you could focus on cultivating the Second Nascent Soul moving forward.]

[Since you had already cultivated to the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak, there were no bottlenecks or shackles in cultivating the Second Nascent Soul; you only needed the right resources.]

[In the one hundredth year, you were one hundred and seventeen years old.]

[Inside the immortal cave, you frowned as you looked at the humanoid puppet emitting a faint spiritual pressure in front of you.]

[This humanoid puppet's quality had reached the Rank 4 Middle Grade Peak, but it was still a step away from the Fourth Tier High Grade. You kept feeling like it was missing something.]

['Where exactly did the problem occur?']

[You wore a thoughtful expression. Ever since cultivating to the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak, you had more energy to devote to your other crafts.]

[Currently, your alchemical and talisman Dao skills had all reached the Fourth Tier High Grade, while your Divination, puppet-making, and array Dao skills remained at the Rank 4 Middle Grade.]

[Advancing your Divination skill to the Fourth Tier High Grade was a matter of serendipity that couldn't be forced, and your array Dao also required a specific opportunity, so you turned your focus to your puppet craft.]

[Once your puppet craft crossed into the Fourth Tier High Grade, you could construct puppets comparable to late Nascent Soul great cultivators. With five or six Fourth Tier High Grade puppets joining forces under the control of your massive divine sense, even a top-tier great cultivator would have to retreat.]

[Elevating your puppet craft to the Fourth Tier High Grade would add another method to your combat arsenal.]

[Moreover, it would allow you to maximize the strength of your Second Nascent Soul.]

[With the physical intensity of a Fourth Tier High Grade puppet, once possessed by the Second Nascent Soul, the power it could unleash wouldn't be much weaker than your true body in its normal state.]

[The Second Nascent Soul could also enjoy the enhancements of your many talents, such as Indomitable Will and Surpassing Oneself by Half a Move.]

['I'll study it for a few more years. If I still gain nothing, I'll head to Tiangong Island to seek guidance.']

[You thought to yourself that Tiangong Island was one of the five unorthodox sects, representing the absolute pinnacle of puppet craft in the Human Realm.]

[In the fifth simulation, when your alchemical skills had hit a bottleneck, it was through exchanging pointers with the alchemy grandmasters of Pill King Mountain that you achieved a breakthrough.]

[Sometimes, working blindly behind closed doors made it hard to take another step forward; you needed to exchange ideas with grandmasters of the same tier.]

[Now that your puppet craft was stuck at a bottleneck, you planned to replicate the method you had used when facing the shackles in your alchemical skills.]

['Rumor has it that Tiangong Island itself is an inconceivable puppet construct capable of unleashing might at the Rank 5 Deity Transformation level...']

[You mused inwardly that the top factions of the Central Continent all possessed foundational reserves at the Deity Transformation level.]

[During the near-ancient era, Tiangong Island had also produced several Rank 5 puppet celestial masters who roamed the Human Realm unhindered.]

[The other four unorthodox sects and even the four major merchant chambers were the same.]

[Even the dominant factions in the other four great regions possessed foundations at or near the Deity Transformation Stage.]

[The Emperor of the Dazhou Immortal Dynasty, when situated within the imperial capital, could unleash combat prowess approaching that of a Heavenly Monarch. As long as the immortal dynasty's providence remained unbroken, even someone as lofty as a Heavenly Monarch couldn't do anything to the dynasty's emperor.]

[Three years later, you were one hundred and twenty years old.]

['Hmm?']

[Your expression shifted slightly. Stepping out of your immortal cave, you received a transmission from Cold Talisman Grand Cultivator.]

['Fellow Daoist Qingfu... has passed away in meditation...']

[You looked toward a certain direction on Sky Talisman Mountain.]

[Fellow Daoist Qingfu was one of the four great cultivators of this generation in the Heavenly Talisman Sect.]

[He was also the oldest great cultivator among them, currently standing at over one thousand two hundred and ten years old.]

['Even a late Nascent Soul great cultivator as powerful as him, standing at the pinnacle of the Human Realm, still faces the end of his lifespan one day...']

[You sighed internally, thinking of yourself.]

[Oh right, you could simulate.]

[Never mind then.]

[Capable of infinite simulations, your lifespan was virtually endless, countless times greater than that of a late Nascent Soul great cultivator.]

[Following Grand Cultivator Qingfu's passing away in meditation, the Heavenly Talisman Sect kept a very low profile. They only held a small-scale funeral, unknown to most disciples, with only Nascent Soul Stage true lords attending.]

[At the funeral, you sat in the same row as the three great cultivators, including Cold Talisman Grand Cultivator and Red Talisman Grand Cultivator.]

["Fellow Daoist Qingfu has gone on ahead. We old fogeys don't have much time left either."]

[Red Talisman Grand Cultivator said in a low voice.]

[Cold Talisman Grand Cultivator remained silent.]

[Currently, the youngest of the three great cultivators in the Heavenly Talisman Sect was nearing a thousand years old. Even if they maxed out on life-extending items, they could only live for another two or three hundred years at most.]

[Of course, you weren't included in this group.]

[In this simulation, you were only a little over a hundred years old.]

[Even if you didn't break through to the Deity Transformation Stage, based on the lifespan of the Nascent Soul Stage, you could only be considered a toddler.]

[Your gaze swept over the Early Nascent Soul Stage and Mid Nascent Soul Stage true lords seated below.]

[Your eyes lingered on True Monarch Sanfu and True Monarch Xinfu for a moment longer.]

[According to normal development, over the next two hundred years, these two true lords would sequentially cross into the Late Nascent Soul Stage, succeeding Red Talisman and Cold Talisman as the Heavenly Talisman Sect's new great cultivators.]

[This was especially true for Great Cultivator Sanfu. By nurturing three Natal Spirit Talismans and cultivating to the Late Nascent Soul Stage Peak, his combat power would likely reach the level of a top-tier great cultivator.]

[Grand Cultivator Qingfu passing away in meditation didn't have a massive impact on the Heavenly Talisman Sect.]

[Among the five unorthodox sects, even if the Heavenly Talisman Sect didn't have a great cultivator holding down the fort, they still possessed a tremendous deterrent force.]

[As talisman cultivators, even if they died, the numerous dharma talismans they had nurtured remained, and even their Natal Spirit Talismans survived.]

[Grand Cultivator Qingfu had lived for one thousand two hundred years. Even though his efficiency in nurturing dharma talismans couldn't compare to yours, there was a very high chance he had managed to nurture the might of his talismans to the Quasi-Tier-5 level before passing away in meditation.]

[Although Grand Cultivator Qingfu was dead, his dozens of dharma talismans remained, continuing to serve as part of the Heavenly Talisman Sect's foundational reserves.]

[Returning to your immortal cave, you performed a quick calculation on your fingers.]

['Yan'er has already cultivated to the Mid Core Formation Stage Peak...']

[You nodded slightly.]

[In this simulation, due to your guidance and support, combined with the cultivation insights and experience Li Yan had left behind in the fifth simulation...]

[Not only was Li Yan's cultivation speed incredibly fast, but the Golden Core she formed had also reached flawless quality.]

[You weren't surprised by this. A Flawless Gold Core... was exceedingly rare among Core Formation stage true persons.]

[But for Nascent Soul-tier factions, they could basically nurture one Flawless Gold Core cultivator in every generation.]

[In your eyes—as a late Nascent Soul great cultivator—as long as one was willing to pay the price, raising a Flawless Gold Core true person could be considered quite simple.]

[Furthermore, Li Yan's aptitude was quite good. Coupled with the experience and insights from the fifth simulation, her forming a Flawless Gold Core was entirely within expectations.]

['At her current cultivation speed, she can push for the Nascent Soul realm before the age of one hundred and eighty. She can definitely cultivate to the Mid Nascent Soul Stage before I attempt my Deity Transformation breakthrough.']

[Your heart settled.]

[You were quite looking forward to the effects of the first stream of Primordial Yin Qi from a Mid Nascent Soul Stage primordial yin spiritual body, especially after it had been nurtured for hundreds of years.]

[In the one hundred and sixth year, you were one hundred and twenty-three years old.]

[You left the Heavenly Talisman Sect, arrived at a hidden location, and took out a Rank 4 Lower Grade puppet.]

[Then, executing the Spirit Attachment Art, you attached a wisp of your divine sense onto the puppet.]

[Next, you controlled the puppet and hurried toward Tiangong Island.]

[Even though you were heading to Tiangong Island to exchange puppet crafting techniques, you had no intention of going in your true body.]

[First, you didn't want to expose that your public identity had mastered the Rank 4 Middle Grade puppet craft.]

[Second, you were keeping your guard up against Tiangong Island.]

[Tiangong Island was, after all, a top-tier faction in the Central Continent. Even if they had long publicly stated that they welcomed exchanges with the many puppet grandmasters of the Human Realm...]

[Who knew what they would actually do?]

[In the fifth simulation, you hadn't interacted much with Tiangong Island, so naturally, you wouldn't take the risk.]

[Besides, even with the Heavenly Talisman Sect—with whom you had spent hundreds of years in the fifth simulation—when you first joined them at the start of this simulation, you had still left your main Nascent Soul outside. You were never completely defenseless.]

[Above the sea of clouds floated a grand and towering giant island.]

[Rather than an island, it was more like a small continent, spanning a full several hundred miles in size.]

[Patrolling the perimeter of the giant island were tens of thousands of flying puppets, each exuding the spiritual pressure of the Core Formation Stage.]

[Coupled with the spiritual pressure radiating from the giant island itself, even a late Nascent Soul great cultivator would be reluctant to approach carelessly.]

['Is that Tiangong Island?']

[The Tier 4 Puppet you controlled appraised the distant giant island from afar.]

[Within the island lay an intercepted Rank 5 spirit vein, capable of sustaining the daily cultivation needs of the many puppet masters on the island.]

['That World-Crossing Immortal Ark from the primeval era was tens of thousands of miles large in sheer size, far surpassing this Tiangong Island...']

[The World-Crossing Immortal Ark suddenly surfaced in your mind. This ark was also a puppet construct, and it had been collected into the treasury within the Ghost Realm Trial Field.]

[You controlled the Tier 4 Puppet and slowly approached Tiangong Island.]

[Whoosh!]

[A flying puppet swiftly approached, its eyes blooming with light. It carefully appraised you with a glance, then let out a sharp chuckle. "To think it's a fellow Daoist. Please, come in, come in."]

[Clearly, the one controlling this flying puppet was also a puppet grandmaster. Furthermore, he recognized at a glance that you were a puppet, as well as a puppet grandmaster.]

[Even among those controlling puppets, a puppet grandmaster's control was much more meticulous. This was the reason the flying puppet recognized your identity.]

[Inside Tiangong Island, within a grand hall.]

[You controlled the Tier 4 Puppet and slowly walked inside.]

[After entering Tiangong Island, you took in the scenery within.]

[Basically everything was a puppet construct. There were Flying Boats that even Qi Refining Stage cultivators could pilot, as well as giant puppet carts that moved at extreme speeds to transport the cultivators around the island.]

[The feeling Tiangong Island gave you was akin to Blue Star before your transmigration—puppet constructs were already being utilized in every aspect of life.]

[Upon entering the grand hall, you saw a long-bearded old man seated at the head of the room.]

["Fellow Daoist has come to my Tiangong Island..."]

[The long-bearded old man initially had a casual attitude, but when his gaze swept over the puppet you were controlling and the complex runic lines carved into its surface, his expression shifted slightly, and surprise rippled through his heart.]