Chapter 321 - 320: Fusion

After the Duel, Snow’s name once again echoed throughout the entire Hundred Ghosts Sect. However, no one else knew that Snow had already become Jiang Qiu’s Cultivation Dish.

Only Bell Fish and the Duel Elder were aware of this matter. A month passed, and there was no mention on the Yin Net of Snow being a Cultivation Dish. Publicly, no one else was aware.

This was for the best. In the future, it would be more convenient for Snow to take the lead, while he would just be an ordinary foil.

Moreover, the Duel Elder was truly generous. He sent a hundred jin of Nether Dark Ore, and judging by its luster, the quality was quite high. It took Snow a full month to absorb such a massive resource.

As for her Realm, it skyrocketed. She rose a Level every three days, reaching the Ninth-Layer of the Bright Soul Realm in the blink of an eye. She was now just a step away from the next level, the Dharma Realm.

Fortunately, during this period, although some Elders from the Sect came to visit, drawn by her reputation, none of them came with any "orders," such as transferring Snow somewhere else, or telling Bell Fish to give Snow up.

After a peaceful month, Jiang Qiu took Snow to find Bell Fish. "Elder Bell Fish, Snow and I have cultivated to the Ninth-Layer of the Bright Soul Realm, but we’ve suddenly discovered that we can’t seem to absorb Nether Dark Ore anymore. What should we do?"

"???"

Elder Bell Fish shot up from her ice-snow cattail cushion, her long, fair legs flashing in a captivating display before being hidden again by her gradually settling black robes.

But there was no hiding the shock in her eyes. She circled Jiang Qiu and Snow, looking them over several times from front to back, before her eyes widened even further. "You’ve really broken through to the Nether Dark Realm?!"

In reality, aside from the first two days when various elders came to visit and she accompanied them for a while, she had been cultivating alone in her palace, which was much like being in seclusion. She had no idea what stage Jiang Qiu and Snow’s Cultivation had reached.

After all, in the Yin Yang Great Realm, lifespans were quite long. Who would bother themselves with trivial matters every other day?

Besides, it was only during the Yin Yang Summoned Life ceremony that so many elders had appeared. Once it was over and they had passed on resources and the Hundred Ghosts Communication Technique to their Direct Disciples, they had all run off to enter seclusion again.

Right now, Elder Zhao Sheng was still in seclusion, and who knows how many centuries the Sect Leader had been in seclusion, constantly trying to break through to the Fusion Realm.

’And now, before I’ve even finished my own seclusion, Jiang Qiu bursts in to tell me that he’s already reached the Ninth-Layer of the Bright Soul Realm?!’

"How did you cultivate so fast?"

Faced with the question, Jiang Qiu and Snow glanced at each other and shook their heads. "We don’t know. We’re just fast."

’In truth, I really don’t know why Snow cultivates so quickly. It feels like ever since I bound with her, I’ve been carrying a vacuum cleaner that just frantically sucks up any Nether Dark Spirit Charm it comes across.’

’It even feels a little like opening a reservoir. Open the floodgates, release the water, it all rushes in, and we level up.’

’It’s really worth pondering... what exactly are Snow’s origins?’

"Alright, alright. The difference in Talent can be as wide as the heavens and earth," Bell Fish sighed, her eyes filled with gratification. "You can’t absorb Nether Dark Ore now, is that right?"

"Yes."

Jiang Qiu and Snow, who had now grown to five-foot-three, nodded. They looked like a handsome couple. The height difference between them wasn’t large now, and even Snow’s demeanor had matured, losing some of her former liveliness.

’What a strange phenomenon. Does your body mature as your Realm increases? And it’s not even a small change.’

"The reason you can’t absorb Nether Dark Ore is that you’ve reached the hurdle of the Dharma Realm. Simply absorbing Nether Dark Spirit Charm can no longer sublimate your power," Bell Fish said, tapping Jiang Qiu and Snow’s foreheads with her slender, jade-like finger. "You must take the next step to advance."

HUMMM—

A gentle breeze blew, lifting the hair from their foreheads as more knowledge of the Dao was transmitted into their minds. It was a Q&A on common problems encountered when cultivating the Hundred Ghosts Dao to the Dharma Realm.

Firstly, the Dharma Realm was a Realm of great transformation. In this Realm, those who couldn’t fly would be able to command the skies, and they would also summon a Dharma Aspect related to their Cultivation Dish or Jade Sinews.

One could say it was a celestial chasm before the Peeping Dao Realm—the difference between heaven and earth.

Countless disciples were stuck at this threshold. Only the geniuses among the Elite Disciples had a chance to reach this Realm through their own efforts—and note, it was only a chance.

After all, the Hundred Ghosts Dao wasn’t an ordinary Dao. It tested... fate?

"Hiss—" Jiang Qiu drew in a sharp breath, looking up at Bell Fish with a frown. "We have to complete a preliminary fusion with Snow to enter the Dharma Realm?"

"Senior Brother, how do we fuse?" Snow’s eyes lit up, and she clenched her fair fists.

"I’d also like to know how we’re supposed to fuse."

Jiang Qiu took a deep breath as various images related to the word "fusion" flashed through his mind. ’Just what kind of fusion method is it?’

Having cultivated to this Realm, Jiang Qiu had experienced the unique aspects of the Hundred Ghosts Dao. His personal Soul Strength had increased significantly.

That’s right, even for a being already at the Dao Entry Realm, his Soul Strength was still visibly increasing, while his fear of death had dropped to an extreme low.

He didn’t know why, but it seemed that after cultivating the Hundred Ghosts Dao, he wasn’t so afraid of death anymore.

’It isn’t because of some newfound confidence, but just a simple feeling that death can’t threaten me. A life has its appointed time...’

This made him even more willing to take risks and strive for great things to raise his Realm. As long as Snow’s Realm rose and she became the Saint Heir of the Hundred Ghosts Sect, he would be able to access more information.

"The method of fusion is something you must explore yourselves. To this day, there is no universal fusion method that can explain the Hundred Ghosts Dao. The initial fusions of the various Elders in the Dharma Realm were all different.

"Some take a shortcut, using some ’Yin Yang male-female Fusion Technique’ from another Great Realm, and achieve decent results. Unfortunately, later on within the Dharma Realm, it becomes very difficult for them to achieve an epiphany and break through to the Peeping Dao Realm.

"Others directly perform Refinement on their Cultivation Dish, treating it as a Soul. This is the most inferior method. It allows someone with a certain degree of aptitude to easily break through to the Dharma Realm, but they are often stuck in the Dharma Realm for the rest of their lives.

"Then there’s the Dual Soul Coexistence method. This involves devouring only the Cultivation Dish’s physical body and allowing its Soul to reside within your own. This method especially tests your rapport, and many Cultivators who lack sufficient rapport have been counter-devoured by their Cultivation Dish.

"The key is, after they are counter-devoured, no one ever knows..."

Listening to Bell Fish’s tireless explanation, Jiang Qiu’s brow furrowed deeper and deeper. The male-female fusion felt too awkward. As for Soul Devouring, the limited potential made it undesirable. And Dual Soul Coexistence was too high-risk; there was no way he would do that.

’When all is said and done, do I really have to go back to that most primitive male-female fusion?’