Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Chapter 327: 218: Sudden Enlightenment_1

Chapter 327: Chapter 218: Sudden Enlightenment_1

“`

Qing stared blankly at the scene before her eyes.

Xu Yang was seated on the ground with his body stained with blood., thunder and lightning erupted, instantly illuminating his muscles and skin transparently.

With his muscles transparent, from the inside out, stream after stream of dark flow could be seen penetrating through flesh and bone, deeply rooted in the blood and even attempting to erode the Dantian and contaminate the Qi Sea.

It was Demonic Qi.

In the past, with the body as a furnace and Qi Blood as fuel blazing fiercely, coupled with the refinement of Thunder Series, these External Demons could be incinerated to ash.

But now, times were different from before: his body was seriously injured, Qi Blood was depleted, Mana severely damaged, and the power of thunder and lightning hard to invoke. Facing the invasion of Demonic Qi, he was continuously losing ground.

Summoning the thunder and lightning now was his last bit of strength; it seemed nothing more than a dying struggle, fundamentally incapable of reversing fate.

But it was in the exchange between the righteous thunder and the filthy Demonic Qi that…

“Roar!”

The Spirit Eel let out a sound, flipping back as threads of lightning followed it, wrapping themselves around Xu Yang’s body of their own accord.

Why would this happen?

It did not know.

It simply felt that there was something about this person that made its instincts tremble, something it couldn’t resist and thus coiled around him.

This was the instinct of a Spirit Beast!

This Spirit Fish was not an ordinary creature, but a Spiritual Object of heaven and earth, born to purify Demonic Qi in this world.

Therefore, it had two main instincts: one to absorb Spiritual Energy and the other to purify Demonic Qi.

Previously, Xu Yang took advantage of its first instinct, using the pure Yuan Sprit Mana as bait to lure it out.

Now, likewise, the righteous thunder and filthy Demonic Qi interacting directly stimulated its second instinct as a Spirit Fish.

So, involuntarily and uncontrollably, it came to Xu Yang’s side.

The golden Spirit Eel, driving the violent currents of thunder and lightning, twined and tangled around Xu Yang’s body.

“Crackling!”

The thunder exploded, electricity ravaged, Xu Yang’s body stood immovable, with only trails of Demonic Qi steaming.

As a Spiritual Object of heaven and earth, the Spirit Eel purified the Demons and cleansed the world, indeed having an extraordinary effect on Demonic Qi.

But merely purifying Demonic Qi could not remove Xu Yang from peril.

This Spirit Fish, though miraculous, was essentially only a Spirit Monster, at the level of Qi Refinement, and not of much significance.

Even if he exhausted it completely, consuming it from head to tail, it would not restore Xu Yang to his original state.

So…

“Whoosh!”

From the Qiankun Basket, a beam of Spirit Light spit out, with several Storage Bags flying out.

This treasure, true to its Qiankun namesake, could even contain Magic Artifacts and Storage Bags of similar ranks, breaking the conventional rule that lower-tier space Magic Artifacts could not “nest”.

Xu Yang’s previous spoils of war, including the Storage Bags of Yuwen Jie and others, were all stored in this Qiankun Basket.

Now, all ejected, Mana unravelled the openings of the bags, and immediately, beams of Spirit Light dazzled the eye.

Spiritual Objects, indeed, all were Spiritual Objects.

Although they were just common Spiritual Objects, lacking the ability to purify Demonic Qi, they were still a considerable fortune.

Fortune is provisions, provisions are strength.

Xu Yang’s thoughts were moved, Mana was urged, and vortexes formed around his body. Countless Spiritual Objects shattered, transforming into pure Five Elements Qi, turning into a surge of blue, yellow, red, white, and black torrents, rushing towards him mightily.

Five Elements Spiritual Root!

Five Spirits True Jue!

Apart from cultivating for combat, it also had marvelous uses for healing, capable of drawing the Five Elements Qi from all things in the world to nourish oneself. In theory, as long as there were enough Five Elements Spiritual Objects, any depletion could be restored.

If it had such miraculous effects, why hadn’t he used it before?

Because of the Demonic Qi!

These Spiritual Objects were also contaminated with Demonic Qi. Even if he extracted the pure Five Elements Qi with his Mana, there would still be some residual filth that clung like a stubborn maggot, impossible to shake off. If used for healing, it would inevitably worsen the demonic contamination.

But that was before, and now was different.

Lightning frightened it away, Demonic Qi steamed, and ultimately it was extinguished into nothingness.

The Spirit Eel exerted its force, thunder transformed demons!

Under the targeted purification by the Spirit Eel, the contamination of Demonic Qi had been significantly reduced. Although it wasn’t completely cleared, it was just barely usable.

Xu Yang operated the Cultivation Technique, the five-colored torrent flowed into his body, filling the depleted gaps, soothing the pain of injuries.

The Five Elements provided strength, the Cultivation Technique circulated throughout his body, and the Life Scroll turned accordingly. The Healing Holy Skill showed its miraculous effect, rapidly repairing his scarred flesh.

Five Elements Restoring Yuan Technique, creating rebirth from the Life Scroll.

Amidst the lightning currents, Xu Yang’s body gradually rose, still in a seated position, yet now suspended in mid-air.

The thunder was brilliant, his body transparent, the blood that had flowed before had now crusted into scabs. At this moment, they were peeling off in chunks and layers, revealing the newly restored muscles; truly a rebirth from lightning and fire, a resurrection from the dead.

“Whimper!”

In the midst of this rebirth, the coiled Spirit Eel let out a cry as its body involuntarily shrank, visibly weakened from the inside out.

Clearly, it had reached its limit.

After all, it was only a Qi Refinement Spirit Monster, purifying so many Spiritual Objects was an unbearable burden.

It had reached its limit, but Xu Yang’s injuries had not fully recovered, and his ultimate goal had not yet been achieved.

So…

“Roar!!!”

With a dragon’s roar, Xu Yang opened his eyes and soared upwards, transforming into a golden dragon.

The golden dragon stirred the Spirit Eel, spiraled into a vortex in the void, reducing a vast amount of Spiritual Objects to ash, all transforming into the Qi of the Five Elements.

“Whimper!”

The Spirit Eel chirped happily, its aura surged mightily, and in just a moment, it passed the threshold of Foundation Establishment.

Afterwards, the golden dragon flew down and Xu Yang’s figure reappeared.

He actually used his own Mana, with a dual cultivation method, to assist the Spirit Eel in establishing its foundation.

The Spirit Eel established its foundation and was reborn with new strength; the thunder and lightning refined the source of demons once more.

Seizing the opportunity, Xu Yang operated the Cultivation Technique, shattered the remaining Spiritual Objects, refined the power of the Five Elements, and filled himself completely.

Time passed unknowingly; the Cultivation Technique was complete, injuries fully healed.

But Xu Yang did not stop there.

He was running out of time. Although the True Demon lacked Spirit Wisdom, it could not be guaranteed it wouldn’t hold a grudge. Now that he had caused such a commotion, it was possible he might have attracted its attention.

Therefore, he could not wait any longer or delay further; he had to establish his foundation immediately to further strengthen his power.

Without hesitation, Xu Yang consecrated the five Spiritual Objects he had picked out and saved for last.

These five Spiritual Objects were all second tier and were considered upper-class among these stored treasures.

With a surge of his mana, the five spirits shattered and transformed into five glows of azure, yellow, crimson, white, and black, rushing toward his body.

“Aang!”

The Spirit Eel let out a cry, spiraling into the air and shedding lightning, mingling the power of the Five Elements.

In fact, Xu Yang didn’t need it anymore; his wounds had completely healed, returning to his peak condition. Now with his robust Qi Blood and powerful mana, he could refine the Demonic Qi on his own.

But he did not stop the Spirit Eel’s well-intentioned aid. Gathering the Five Elements into his body, he commenced the Tri-element integration.

Three Flowers converged atop the head to build the Taoist foundation, the Five Qi towards the origin form a Golden Core!

The Three Flowers represent the integration of the Essence, Qi, and Spirit into one, on which the foundation of the Tao can be built.

It is from this that one embarks on the path of cultivation, ascending to the realm of the Heavenly Immortal.

Having cultivated through several lifetimes and having studied as a teacher, Xu Yang was thoroughly familiar with this process, with no possibility of error.

It was not even necessary for him to exert control; the Five Elements Spiritual Root operated autonomously, naturally completing the fusion as if it was growing on its own.

This was the way of Heaven’s foundation building—a predetermined rule, naturally leading to a smooth and unobstructed process.

During this foundation establishment phase, Xu Yang could clearly feel his Five Elements Spiritual Root being purified and undergoing transformation, like a sapling sprouting new buds, leaves, and branches.

In that instant, Xu Yang felt his understanding of the human body, of the Spiritual Root, of all things in heaven and earth, and of Yin-Yang and Five Elements deepen by a layer and become clearer, as if a mysterious veil had been lifted to reveal the true extraordinary beauty beneath.

No, not just the Spiritual Root or the Five Elements.

There was more…

Qing stood there, dumbstruck and lost in thought.

Things were moving too quickly; even though it was happening right before her eyes, she felt utterly unable to keep pace.

She couldn’t understand what had happened before, and what followed was even more baffling.

Suddenly, the five-colored lights of azure, yellow, crimson, white, and black converged, and the thunder and electrical currents evaporated, leaving behind only one figure standing there, moving his hands and circulating his power.

Upon beginning the motion, one could see the black and white Yin-Yang fishes chasing each other, and a profound Taoist Rhyme emerged.

Tai Chi Fist Skill.

Was it Tao or martial arts?

It was difficult to distinguish.

His body aligned with Yin and Yang, his fists conducted Tai Chi, and between the chasing Yin-Yang fishes, multiple colors began to radiate.

The multitude of colors, representing both the Post-Heaven and Pre-Heaven, signified the division of Yin-Yang Qi forming the Five Elements.

“Roar!”

With a punch from Xu Yang, the metal Qi formed into a sword, let out a roar, and solidified into the silhouette of a White Tiger, surrounded by startling thunderbolts.

“Aang!”

Another punch, azure light shimmered vividly as the shadow of the Azure Dragon materialized amid the vast expanse, also intertwined with thunder and entangled with lightning.

“Screech!”

Yet another punch, and the Vermilion Bird appeared, with both thunder and fire moving together, with the Black Tortoise of murky water and the Yellow Kylin also surging forth.

The Five Elements and Five Spirits, radiating five colors, all converged into the power of thunder.

Shortly thereafter, the Five Spirits raced and the Five Elements rotated, transforming into five streams of thunder light in azure, yellow, crimson, white, and black.

If there were any cultivators present, they would all be inevitably shocked.

Yimu Thunder!

Ding Fire Thunder!

Thunder of Ji Earth!

Thunder of Xin Metal!

Kui Water Thunder!

Post-Heaven Five Elements Thunder!

The Five Elements rotated, forming a system with an integrating momentum. The five colors of azure, yellow, crimson, white, and black dense together, revealing an extremely terrifying aura.

Qing had already collapsed to the ground, her face deathly pale as she watched everything transpire before her, even holding her breath involuntarily.

She felt her heart taut like a strained thread, just waiting for the convergence of the five-colored thunder, after which everything would explosively shatter.

Fortunately, the five-colored thunder did not merge. Instead, it gradually dissipated in the hands of the cultivator, settling down in an unexpected manner.

“…”

Everything returned to calm. Xu Yang opened his eyes, looked at his hands for a long time, and then a smile appeared on his face as he murmured, “So that’s how it is, so that’s how it is. Indeed, the mysteries of heaven and earth are endless. Hahaha!”

His laughter was jubilant, barely containing his joy.

The happiness of sudden enlightenment could hardly be concealed.

Just now, at the moment of foundation building and entering the Tao, he hadn’t only deepened his understanding of the human body and the Spiritual Root, or of Yin Yang and Five Elements; he had also gained deeper insight into the Thunder Series.

The human Spiritual Root, the Yin Yang and Five Elements, were the results of the purification by the Foundation Establishment of the Five Elements Spiritual Root and the Five Spirits True Jue.

But where did this Thunder come from?

It indeed came from the Spirit Eel!

Although its strength was not great, having only reached Foundation Establishment, its origin was special—it was a creature born from the natural workings of the world, a purifying spiritual being.

Within its body, it harbored secrets of the natural order.

This touch of natural order granted the Spirit Eel its Innate Divine Ability to command thunder, shake lightning, and purify and transform demons!

And it was this touch of natural order that allowed Xu Yang, in his moment of epiphany, to advance his understanding and awareness of Thunder Series.

With this, he successfully combined the power of the Five Elements and mastered a divine ability not even recorded in the Five Elements True Jue—the Post-Heaven Five Elements Transforming Demon Thunder!

The power of the Five Elements combined with Thunder Series?

Perhaps it was not as comprehensive as the unification of Heaven, Earth, Human, and Thunder Sword Formation, but it was certainly worthy of being called a Divine Skill. With sufficient Cultivation and enough Mana, it could ascend to the fourth tier, easily killing Nascent Souls as if they were mere trifles.

This Thunder Series, encompassing the force of the Five Elements and possessing the ability of the natural order to purify and transform demons, could be said to be terrifying in its lethality against demons of this world.

Now, with Xu Yang at the Foundation Establishment stage and the successful purification of the Five Elements Spiritual Root, he had progressed yet another step. Empowered to unleash this Five Elements Transforming Demon Thunder, he was confident he could subdue all Golden Core demons.

As for that True Demon…