Volume 5 Chapter 67

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

You can buy coins here to unlock advanced chapters: https://gravitytales.com/coins-purchase-page/

Volume 5 Chapter 67: Becoming Successful

After discussing the gains and losses from their recent competition and sharing their experiences in cultivating immortality over the years, they parted ways, both wearing thoughtful expressions on their faces.

Xu Qingfan did not know what Jin Qinghan was thinking as he left—maybe it was about the fierce battle they just had, possibly about the insights they exchanged, or perhaps he was wondering when he could battle Feng Qingtian again. Xu Qingfan, however, was thinking about Jin Qinghan’s final move during the competition.

Xu Qingfan lost because of that move.

That beam of golden light was like the first ray of light at the dawn of creation, faster than lightning, sharper than the God Weapon, more dazzling than the sun, and more unpredictable than the universe; it seemed as if no strong defense could withstand its piercing power.

At least not Xu Qingfan’s strongest defense technique—the "Five Spirit Bell."

At that moment, the golden light flashed, and Xu Qingfan’s clothes were torn, leaving a scratch on his side that drew a trickle of blood. It was not that Xu Qingfan was dodging quickly; in fact, he did not react in time. If Jin Qinghan had not slightly shifted his finger while firing that golden light, Xu Qingfan would have been pierced without any ability to resist.

This move, when you think about it, is very simple but also extremely difficult. It is simple because its essence is to compress the Spirit Qi throughout the body until it shoots out as a single line. It is difficult because, to compress the Spirit Qi to that extent, one must use a tremendous amount of energy and focus. How much control over the Spirit Qi is needed to achieve that? Every tiny bit of compression requires increasingly more energy, and if one is not careful, the Spirit Qi can bounce back, leading to damaged meridians.

Xu Qingfan thought that if he were to compress his Spirit Qi like that, he could only manage to compress it to one-sixth of Jin Qinghan’s level at most. In Xu Qingfan’s view, even most masters at the Mahayana Stage would struggle to do what Jin Qinghan did, which made Xu Qingfan admire Jin Qinghan’s courage. To compress Spirit Qi this way is dangerous; the pain suffered by the meridians and dantian is not less than the pain Xu Qingfan felt when transforming his body with the "Formula of Life and Death."

However, danger and achievement always go together. This move, although very dangerous to practice, delivers immense power when used. Compressing such a vast amount of Spirit Qi into a single line not only makes it the sharpest and most penetrating attack in the world but also allows it to reach unbelievable speed, making it impossible for even Xu Qingfan to dodge.

At the same time, using this move greatly harms the user. As Jin Qinghan continuously compressed Spirit Qi in his left arm, at the moment the golden light shot out, his left arm also shattered. If Xu Qingfan had not been there at that moment, Jin Qinghan’s arm would have needed at least ten years to heal.

"It seems that while I am progressing, others are also improving, and their progress might even be greater than mine. The Thunder Law, Blood Condensing God Weapon, Eight Evil Consciousness King, and that final line of golden light. In such a short time, Jin Qinghan has gained so many abilities; it’s truly incredible. I just wonder how far Feng Qingtian has come by now?"

As Xu Qingfan walked toward his cave, he silently thought about all the talents he met in the cultivation world over the years: Feng Qingtian, Jin Qinghan, Huang Xie, Deng Tianao, Chou Xuan, Lv Ziqing, Xu Xiurong…

With these thoughts, even though there was chaos outside the mountain, Xu Qingfan felt an even stronger desire to go down.

This is how people are; after experiencing too much, they long for peace, but after being calm for too long, they yearn for noise.

※※※※

While Xu Qingfan quietly considered Feng Qingtian’s progress, Feng Qingtian was wandering in a small village. Over the years, war had swept across the entire Shenzhou Continent. Although the turmoil had gradually calmed down, the damage done was not something that could be restored in just a year or two. Next came endless natural disasters and human misfortunes, with years of drought and locust plagues. Now, with deities fighting in the skies, a careless fireball or wind blade could strike down, killing half the villagers. Although they wanted to escape the disaster, they found there was nowhere to run on the Shenzhou Continent. As powerless mortals, they had nowhere to hide.

In such an environment, the mortals of the entire Shenzhou Continent felt helpless and desperate, wandering in confusion.

In this corner of the Shenzhou Continent, there was an unremarkable little village where no one knew if they would live or die in the next moment. Although there were still over a hundred households in the village, it was entirely silent, filled with numbness and confusion.

Feng Qingtian, with his usual cold expression, strolled along the grassy path in the village, occasionally stopping to turn and enter some ordinary home. He seemed to use some methods—either persuading or offering money—to make the villagers agree to let their children go with him. In this uncertain world, at least following Feng Qingtian offered a chance to survive. Perhaps, in such chaotic times, lives no longer held much value, even if it was the lives of their own children.

However, this all happened only occasionally. Out of the entire village, Feng Qingtian took away just two or three children. If there was any difference between these children and the others, it was that those two or three had a bit more sparkle in their eyes and a bit less numbness and confusion amidst the despair.

So, Feng Qingtian walked silently with these two or three children towards the next village.

To the villagers who watched him leave from the village entrance, Feng Qingtian’s lonely figure radiated a sense of mystery and determination.

※※※※

After returning to his cave, Xu Qingfan greeted his three disciples briefly before closing himself off for meditation.

During the recent match with Jin Qinghan, even though Xu Qingfan appeared relaxed and maintained a calm, elegant smile, he had actually consumed a lot of Spirit Qi. After all, his opponent was Jin Qinghan.

Additionally, Xu Qingfan learned a great deal during this encounter and the discussions afterward, but he needed to sit down and meditate to digest everything properly.

However, this meditation did not last long. Just a month later, Xu Qingfan came out again.

After coming out, Xu Qingfan became busy instead. He spent most of his time with his three disciples. A great disaster was about to arrive, so he needed to make the most of the time to help his disciples gain strength, whether by teaching them or using his energy to help them absorb the power of medicine into their bodies. Even though they only had four months, and even a Mahayana Stage master could not help them much, it was still better than nothing.

It is worth mentioning that just a few days after Xu Qingfan entered seclusion, Bai Yu reached Lingji Stage. This made Xu Qingfan feel a bit pleased. Although he did not manage everything, under his guidance and with the spirit medicine he provided, his disciples were making good progress.

During the rest of the time, Xu Qingfan often ran up the front mountain. With Jiuhua about to be born, this nonchalant Deacon Elder also became busy.

In this busy time, Xu Qingfan did not even have time to read books or enjoy tea.

Sometimes, Xu Qingfan would take out the green slip that Zhang Hualing gave him, which recorded the "Indefinite Sutra" and "Substitute for Heaven," and study it carefully. He only took a brief look at "Substitute for Heaven" and then set it aside, as that cultivation method was not something he could practice now.

Xu Qingfan’s main focus was on the "Indefinite Sutra."

Fifty years ago, Xu Qingfan learned the "Indefinite Sutra" from Liu Huaxiang, but Liu Huaxiang did not explain its origins. To prevent Xu Qingfan from discovering too much, he even edited and changed some parts of the "Indefinite Sutra." However, the "Indefinite Sutra" Xu Qingfan had now was much more detailed.

Speaking of it, Xu Qingfan felt ashamed. Before Liu Huaxiang passed away, he repeatedly urged Xu Qingfan to practice the "Indefinite Sutra" diligently. But as the disaster approached, Xu Qingfan found the practice of the "Indefinite Sutra" to be too slow. To cope with the disaster and quickly increase his strength, Xu Qingfan devoted most of his efforts to practicing the more powerful and effective "Formula of Life and Death."

At this moment, Xu Qingfan held the complete "Indefinite Sutra" in his hands. After trying to practice it, Xu Qingfan was surprised to find that he made progress very quickly, which was different from what Zhang Hualing had said. He then realized that the version of the "Indefinite Sutra" that Liu Huaxiang had taught him was altered for a reason; it was probably not just to hide the true nature of this cultivation method from Xu Qingfan, but also to prepare him for formally practicing the "Indefinite Sutra" in the future.

Thinking of this, Xu Qingfan felt a sense of disappointment that he had let Liu Huaxiang down.

Meanwhile, after three and a half months of hard work, Zhang Ningmei officially reached the Lingji Stage.

Another half month later, the Nine Pole Array of Jiuhua Mountain stopped reversing and emerged once again after being sealed for over sixty years.