Chapter 277: Void Refinement
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Translated by Frog in the Well
Read it only at Nineheavens.org
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Governing the Qi that became unstable as his realm rose, and going to the secret realm.
Jin So-myeong, who laid out a rough plan and was about to execute it immediately, paused.
It was because once the excitement and joy of becoming a Void Refinement stage cultivator subsided, a certain puzzling point caught his eye.
【Lifespan】: 238 / 9,101
It was not a particularly grand question.
He merely thought that the lifespan that increased as his realm rose was slightly strange.
Based on typical human cultivators.
The lifespan of a 1st-realm Qi Condensation stage cultivator was 120 years.
The lifespan of a 2nd-realm Foundation Establishment stage cultivator was 250 years.
The lifespan of a 3rd-realm Golden Core stage cultivator was 500 years.
The lifespan of a 4th-realm Nascent Soul stage cultivator was 1,500 years.
The lifespan of a 5th-realm Soul Formation stage cultivator was 3,000 years.
The lifespan of a 6th-realm Void Refinement stage cultivator was 9,000 years.
It was like this, and looking closely, a rule could be seen.
It increased by roughly double up to the Golden Core stage, and
It jumped by three times starting from the Nascent Soul stage, which could be called a leap to a spiritual lifeform.
Since a higher-realm cultivator escaped various constraints including the physical body, it was a very natural phenomenon for the increase in lifespan to grow.
However, looking at it again now, the lifespan of the Soul Formation stage was slightly strange.
From 1,500 years to 3,000 years, it only increased by two times.
‘Should it not be normal to increase by at least three times like during the Nascent Soul stage?’
At a glance, it felt like the increase in lifespan should gradually become larger as the realm rose, but the trend broke once during the Soul Formation stage.
Although he did not quite understand…
Actually, in a way, it might not be a particularly strange thing.
Since there was no guarantee from the start that the increase in lifespan had to continue rising in proportion to the realm.
The principle of how lifespan increased was not yet properly revealed. He merely grasped the limit of lifespan through the records of predecessors.
‘Forget it. Let us cultivate.’
At any rate, the nine thousand years of lifespan obtained by ascending to the Void Refinement stage was sufficiently long, and once his body tempering realm reached the 6th rank, his lifespan would increase drastically once more.
And rather than obsessing over the remaining lifespan, treading a higher realm was ultimately the path to living longer.
‘By the way, where should I cultivate now?’
Before going to the Blue Cloud Sea Region where the secret realm would open,
He needed a place to govern his unstable Qi for about half a year to a year.
‘Hmm…’
Scanning the surroundings at the acrid smell of burning that brushed past the tip of his nose, there was not a single speck of intact land.
Only a dark crater deep and large enough that the entire sea could be moved into it is visible.
Due to the transcendent destructive power possessed by the Black Lightning, a part of the desert had evaporated.
The cave of the Thunder-Pattern Hermit Lizard, which had been his safe shelter for decades, was also gone without a trace.
It was swept by the Lightning Tribulation, shattered to pieces, and scattered in all directions.
Just as he was smacking his lips in regret.
Rumble…
Hearing the sound of thunder echoing from deep inside the crater, he narrowed his eyes.
He closely examined the crater whose depth reached ten thousand li, and surprisingly, the entire crater was filled with lightning Qi.
It was to the extent that it was fine to call it a sea made of lightning instead of water.
‘It is not bad.’
Although the crystal cave collapsed, the lightning Qi remained.
It was because the completely shattered crystal fragments were embedded here and there in the crater.
‘I can just cultivate here.’
Although it would not be as safe as when the cave was intact, it was fine. Since he had reached the Void Refinement stage, he did not need to mind typical threats.
Ssshh…!
Descending to the bottom of the crater filled with lightning Qi, it felt like being in a volcano.
Perhaps due to the aftermath of the Black Lightning, the air was heated hot, to the extent that his skin turned red under the hot wind that blew from time to time.
‘Except for being slightly hot, it is not bad for cultivating.’
Sweeping over the land covered with ash, he selected the place where lightning Qi was most abundant and began to construct his dwelling.
First, swinging his sword to flatten the ground, he converted the law power flowing along his meridians into the Five Elements Divine Thunder.
Rumble!
The moment the bundle of white lightning spewed from his fingertips stretched in all directions.
The surrounding atmospheric temperature dropped drastically.
It was because he harbored cold Qi in the Five Elements Divine Thunder, which traversed the Five Elements and Yin-Yang.
Simultaneously with lowering the temperature by scattering the white lightning.
He deployed the Thunder Dao Refining Art to solidify the Five Elements Divine Thunder into the form of crystal pillars.
If he possessed the Thunder Dao Refining Art, the divine ability obtained from hunting the Thunder-Pattern Hermit Lizard that solidified lightning Qi to make crystal aggregates, constructing a dwelling was simple.
Once he drove crystal pillars in the surroundings as if building a fence, the suffocatingly hot atmosphere cooled down to a perfectly appropriate level.
‘Cheon Jin-il. Come out for a moment and install a formation.’
Calling the clone who had mastered formations to finish constructing the dwelling, the main body crossed over to the Secret Realm of the Mind.
“You succeeded!”
“Yes.”
The golden phoenix that flew over as if she had been waiting. Geum-cheong, whose single wing length reached 10m, circled around his head.
Rumble! Boom!
As if setting off celebratory firecrackers, she made a racket while pouring lightning in all directions.
“Void Refinement stage! You reached the Void Refinement stage!”
After running wild while beeping like that for a long time, she shrank her size like a skylark and flew over to sit on his shoulder.
Wryly smiling at her fussy appearance, he flicked his finger to pour lightning.
Feeding her the Five Elements Divine Thunder, her eyes resembling black beans grew wide.
“Indeed! It became much more delicious! Master, quickly become stronger!”
Just as he was throwing the Five Elements Divine Thunder to her, who was moving her beak as if asking for more.
Geum-cheong, whose mind was captured by the lightning Qi, paused and spoke.
“Beep! Come to think of it, some very bad guys surprise-attacked me a while ago.”
“Ah, those guys.”
Around the time he was absorbing the worldly source Qi to break through the great realm, there were demonic cultivators who tried to capture Geum-cheong.
“Since weaklings dared to target this body, I punished them properly. Like this.”
Flapping her wings, Geum-cheong circled in the air as if demonstrating, and her form was quite plausible.
“After avoiding them easily like this and hitting them a few times, they collapsed immediately.”
“Is that so? Our Geum-cheong has become very strong. Good job.”
“Beep beep beep!”
For reference, the end of the demonic cultivators who surprise-attacked Geum-cheong was wretched.
Throughout the time Jin So-myeong broke through the great realm, they collapsed and could not move, and eventually evaporated without a trace after being swept by the aftermath of the Lightning Tribulation.
Thinking from their perspective, it was a truly unlucky thing.
To think they targeted Geum-cheong of all existences.
Although Geum-cheong had almost no actual combat experience, she was considerably strong in the same realm.
She was suspected to be born with the bloodline of a thunderbird, which was a true spirit, and she grew up eating the Five Elements Divine Thunder, which was lightning forged by the Supreme Great Ability.
A demonic beast born with lightning was originally on the strong side, but Geum-cheong was strong on an entirely different dimension.
‘If only she could do something about her cowardly personality, she would be much stronger than now… but that will be difficult.’
Since he did not expect strong combat power from Geum-cheong in the first place, he had no intention of forcing it.
Simply growing the Jade Light Spring, her nest in the Secret Realm of the Mind, was already a considerably great help.
Just as he was thinking so.
“Those bad guys spread an incredibly giant net to capture this body, but no way! I ripped it apart with a single bolt of lightning!”
Geum-cheong’s heroic tales continued.
How happy must she be after winning her first actual combat? Understanding all of it, he listened quietly at first.
However…
“Beep! And those bad guys fought unfairly, two of them attacking simultaneously. Of course, even so, they could not defeat this body.”
There seemed to be no sign of the endlessly continuing heroic tales ending.
“I got it, so stay still for a moment. I need to strengthen the Secret Realm of the Mind.”
“Beep?”
Geum-cheong, who was flying around swiftly and pecking the air with her beak, paused and returned to his shoulder in an instant.
Snuggling subtly, she folded her spread wings and shrunk her body.
Like a child who was afraid of thunder on a rainy day pulling a blanket over their head.
“Beep! I am ready!”
Looking at her solemnly nodding her head, he chuckled.
The moment he invested 100 medium-grade immortal stones into the Secret Realm of the Mind.
Rumble!
The size of the Secret Realm of the Mind expanded by double, and the concentration of the worldly source Qi in the air rapidly became dense.
【Secret Realm of the Mind】
【Facilities】: 6th-Rank High-Grade Spiritual Vein, 6th-Rank High-Grade Spirit Stone Mine
【Resource Yield】: 41 medium-grade immortal stones / 1 day
What was a 6th-rank mid-grade spiritual vein was promoted to high-grade.
Following that,
【Resource Yield】: 42 medium-grade immortal stones / 1 day
【Resource Yield】: 43 medium-grade immortal stones / 1 day
…
【Resource Yield】: 79 medium-grade immortal stones / 1 day
【Resource Yield】: 80 medium-grade immortal stones / 1 day
The spiritual vein of the Secret Realm of the Mind reached the end of the 6th-rank high-grade, right before the peak grade.
‘Hah.’
It was thrilling. It was like the feeling of drinking a carbonated beverage with ice on a hot summer day.
Who would even imagine?
Harboring a 6th-rank high-grade spiritual vein, which could not even be dared unless one was a considerably strong force, inside one’s body.
Just as he was smiling at the immense luxury.
【To grow the mine to the 6th-rank peak grade, high-grade immortal stones are required.】
The condition to advance one step further came out.
‘High-grade immortal stones…’
If only he possessed this, he could grow the Secret Realm of the Mind to the 7th rank.
Of course, to grow the Secret Realm of the Mind further, his Divine Sense had to become stronger than now, but since that condition would naturally be filled as he cultivated, he did not need to mind.
What was important was high-grade immortal stones.
Where should he go to obtain a treasure that was valid even for Unity stage Dao Sovereigns?
‘Will there be some if I go to the secret realm?’
The secret realm he would visit soon, the Limitless Pure Land .
To describe that place in the Blue Cloud Secret Realm in one word, it was the ruin of a race that was destroyed a very long time ago.
‘Well… I will only know when I go.’
Although the Limitless Pure Land was a place where numerous treasures slept, it was unknown whether there would be high-grade immortal stones, which could be called 7th-rank spiritual objects.
Just as he was recalling his goal.
Geum-cheong, who was clinging tightly, poked out only her head.
“Is it finished?”
“Yes.”
“Indeed, it was nothing much.”
He hurriedly stopped Geum-cheong, who was stretching her body to start her heroic tales again.
“Wait a moment.”
“Beep?”
Although it was cute to see her chattering, he did not want to hear the exact same heroic tale for the fourth time.
“Let us go outside the Secret Realm of the Mind. Since the lightning Qi is dense, it will be good for your cultivation as well.”
“Lightning Qi?”
At the words that there was plenty of lightning Qi, Geum-cheong, who followed him out of the Secret Realm of the Mind as if possessed, saw the black-charred crater and tilted her head.
“Just where on earth is this place? It is cold, yet strangely hot.”
“The place where the crystal cave you like was located.”
“?”
The beak of Geum-cheong, who was blinking her eyes resembling black beans, fell wide open.
After looking around the surroundings repeatedly several times, she spoke.
“Where is the crystal cave?”
“It is over there.”
The moment he pointed to the crystal fragments embedded here and there in the crater in a shattered state.
“Beeeeeeeeeep! No!”
Geum-cheong, who screamed like a person who discovered their house wretchedly collapsed, deployed the Lightning Escape Art.
The moment she flew like an arrow as if to pick up the crystal embedded in the ground.
The formation Jin So-myeong had installed when he descended to the crater earlier.
So…
Geum-cheong, who went outside the white crystal pillars driven like a fence to cool down the heated air, screamed.
“Beeeeeep! Beep! Hot! It is hot! Beep beep beep beep!”
Surely three times faster than the speed she flew to pick up the cave fragments.
At an incredible speed, she flew back inside.
‘Hah.’
Should he call this surprising?
The speed Geum-cheong showed when fleeing to escape the hot air was unusual.
‘This fellow… when fleeing, she is several times faster than usual.’
If she became slightly faster, she would be on par with the Black-Flame Boundary-Stone, which was a 6th-rank movement-type Dharma treasure.
While a hollow laugh came out from the absurdity, he was relieved.
Because at least she did not seem like she would easily suffer anywhere.
Examining Geum-cheong, who flew in a hurry and shrunk her body at his feet, there were no particular injuries.
She was sturdy, worthy of a demonic beast possessing an inherently strong body.
“Hot! Too hot!”
Looking at her making a fuss despite not being hurt anywhere, he shook his head, and
He gathered the Five Elements Divine Thunder harboring cold Qi into a bead shape and solidified it using the Thunder Dao Refining Art.
Making the cold Qi leak out little by little, he threaded it onto the string of the necklace Geum-cheong originally wore.
For reference, this necklace was made by solidifying his True Blood, and it was what Geum-cheong used when entering and exiting the Secret Realm of the Mind.
Anyway.
“It is good! Now it is not hot!”
Once he made it possible for her to travel around the crater, she began to diligently bring back the crystal fragments nearby without even being ordered.
She simply could not bear to leave the minerals containing lightning Qi fallen on the ground.
She could just travel around when the air cooled down a bit, yet to pick them up right now.
Whomever she took after, her personality was truly hasty.
Even so, since traveling around a harsh environment like the hot crater would naturally become a cultivation, he decided to leave her be.
Calling his clone to install additional formations in the surroundings,
He sat cross-legged and fell into meditation.
Since all urgent matters were finished, it was time to adapt to his mind and body that had changed while breaking through the great realm.
Absorbing the 6th-rank demonic spiritual objects left by the Ghost Smoke Grand Palace Elders to increase the proficiency of the Primordial One Qi Art, and
One day, while concentrating on meditation to govern his unstable Qi, Jin So-myeong quietly opened his eyes and unfolded the Law Domain, which could be called the authority of the Void Refinement stage.
‘Ah.’
Although nothing changed on the outside,
It was clearly felt along with a throbbing sensation in his temples.
A radius of 400m centered on him.
If it was the space dominated by the Law Domain, he felt a sense of omnipotence that he could do anything.
Leaving behind the bizarre elevation as if falling into self-absorption,
The moment he captured the law he realized while breaking through the Void Refinement stage…the phenomenon called speed…in his mind.
‘Hmm…’
He felt a sensation as if something exquisitely designed was out of alignment, like the spring of a clockwork mechanism creaking.
At the strange sensation, he narrowed his brow, grabbed the sand on the ground, and scattered it in the air.
In an instant.
The sand grains that scattered like grapes drew a bizarre form.
Some were fast, and some were slow.
The speeds of the sand grains scattered with the exact same force were all different.
Some bounded at an invisible speed like a bullet, and some crawled sluggishly like a slug and fell with a plop.
They were all results of speed being twisted by the Law Domain.
‘As expected…’
Admiration automatically flowed out.
Now, if it was the space dominated by his Law Domain, he became able to control speed.
Of course, the price was quite large.
He had merely controlled the speed of the sand grains flying, but the law power inside his dantian decreased noticeably.
‘The consumption of law power is considerable…’
Although it seemed he would have to undergo considerable cultivation to use it in actual combat, that degree was no problem.
Since anything was bound to become proficient if repeated diligently.
And also,
He naturally realized the cultivation he had to undergo at the Void Refinement stage.
Currently, the range he could dominate with his Law Domain was a radius of 400m.
Compared to his Divine Sense that could stretch up to 4,000km, it was only at the level of one-ten-thousandth.
In short, only when he expanded the range he could dominate with his Law Domain to the level of his Divine Sense could he finally be said to have mastered the Void Refinement stage.
‘Is this why it is the Void Refinement stage?’
Void Refinement .
Only now did he understand what refining the void meant.
Since that day.
Jin So-myeong, who learned about the Law Domain through numerous experiments, brushed himself off and stood up.
‘I should set off slowly.’
It was time to go to the Blue Cloud Sea Region where the secret realm, the Limitless Pure Land, was located.
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