265: Chapter 265: Refining Void Realm

City Lord Li Qingge stared at the person holding the sword on the mural, his pupils constricting slightly.

Li Qinglian, the founder of the Sword Qi Great Wall and a human hero from the Human-Demon War ten thousand years ago.

His Sword Intent had remained unextinguished for ten thousand years.

"Nine-Headed Snake Emperor."

Clan Leader Shi Tianba stared at the giant nine-headed snake, his voice low.

The Nine-Headed Snake Emperor, one of the strongest of the Yao Race ten thousand years ago, died under Li Qinglian's sword.

The two looked at each other, both seeing the gravity in the other's eyes.

This palace was likely the core of that great war ten thousand years ago.

The Opportunity of the Mahayana Stage was inside.

But they could not enter.

The palace gates were tightly shut, with a line of words carved upon them.

"Only those below the Integration Stage may enter."

City Lord Li Qingge's expression darkened.

"Another Restriction."

Clan Leader Shi Tianba's mane bristled.

"It's been ten thousand years, and it still only allows those below the Body Integration Stage to enter?"

The two were silent for a moment.

They had toiled to rush here from their respective dens, only to be blocked outside the door.

The Mahayana Stage Opportunity was right before their eyes, yet they could not enter.

This feeling was more unpleasant than swallowing a fly.

"What should we do?" Clan Leader Shi Tianba asked.

City Lord Li Qingge thought for a moment.

"Each of us will call for people using our own means."

"We cannot enter, but they can."

Clan Leader Shi Tianba nodded and immediately sent a message using a Bloodline Divine Ability.

City Lord Li Qingge also sent a message using Sword Intent.

...

On the outskirts of the ruins, Xiao Ran was completely unaware of all this.

All his attention was focused on that invisible Bottleneck within his Dantian.

The Guixu Vortex spun frantically, compressing, purifying, re-compressing, and re-purifying the spiritual energy within his Dantian.

With each compression, the concentration of spiritual energy doubled.

The spiritual energy became thicker and thicker, changing from a gaseous state to a liquid state, and then from liquid to semi-solid.

It was as if an ocean was surging within his Dantian.

Xiao Ran gritted his teeth, gathering all the spiritual energy into a single point before violently exploding it.

Boom!

A crack was blasted open in that invisible Bottleneck.

Spiritual energy surged out from the crack like a flood breaking through a dam, pouring into new Meridians.

Xiao Ran's aura surged dramatically, leaping from the Peak Soul Transformation Stage to the half-step Void Refining stage.

But it wasn't enough.

What he wanted was to reach it in one go and break through directly to Void Refining.

Xiao Ran took a deep breath and continued the assault.

taiyin essence surged frantically from his Dantian, replenishing the consumed spiritual energy.

The Guixu Vortex spun faster and grew larger, spreading from his Dantian to his entire body.

His body was like a black hole, frantically devouring all the surrounding spiritual energy.

The spiritual energy in the cave was drained, the taiyin essence in the air was sucked dry, and even the ghost fires on the Yellow Springs corpses flickered unsteadily from the suction.

Xiao Ran felt that Bottleneck shattering bit by bit.

The crack grew larger, going from the width of a hair to the thickness of a finger.

The speed at which spiritual energy poured from the crack increased, and his aura climbed rapidly.

Just then, a noisy commotion came from outside the cave.

"There's a cave here! Someone is inside!"

"It's a human! Kill him!"

It was the Yao Race.

Several Yao Race prodigies at the Peak Soul Transformation Stage had discovered the cave and were attempting to break through the defensive line of the Yellow Spring Army.

Xiao Ran's brow furrowed, but it soon smoothed out.

The Yellow Spring Army could stop them. Over six hundred Soul Transformation Stage corpses were enough to deal with a few Yao Race prodigies at the Peak Soul Transformation Stage.

He didn't need to be distracted.

He continued to assault the Bottleneck.

Outside the cave, a fierce battle was underway.

Several young lions of the Golden Lion Clan, several Soul Transformation Stage Disciples of the Nine-Headed Snake Clan, and a Peak Soul Transformation Stage assassin from the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow Clan were frantically attacking the Yellow Spring Army's defensive line.

Although the Yellow Spring corpses were numerous, they lacked flexibility and combat intelligence, only able to hold their ground through sheer numerical advantage.

A Golden Lion smashed a corpse with one claw, but more corpses swarmed forward.

The Nine-Headed Snake Clan Disciples spat venom, corroding several corpses, but the venom had limited effect on them.

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow Clan assassin was as fast as lightning, weaving through the group of corpses and taking them down one by one, but there were too many corpses to be finished or exhausted.

"Damn it! Where did these corpses come from?"

A Golden Lion roared.

"I don't know! But the person inside is definitely not simple! Call for reinforcements, quickly!"

The Nine-Headed Snake Clan Disciple hissed.

A young Golden Lion took out a message jade talisman and infused it with spiritual energy.

A golden message flew toward the depths of the ruins.

Xiao Ran sensed the message, but he did not move.

He was at a critical moment in his sprint and could not afford to be distracted.

Only a tiny bit of the Bottleneck remained, like a thin sheet of paper that could be pierced with a single poke.

Xiao Ran gathered all his spiritual energy into a sharp sword and stabbed fiercely at that layer of paper.

Boom!

The paper broke.

Spiritual energy poured out like a tide, surging into every meridian, every cell, and every pore.

His body was transforming, bones restructuring, muscles strengthening, and his Divine Soul expanding.

A grayish-black pillar of light shot up from the cave, piercing through the stone walls and the Dead Wood Forest, reaching straight into the clouds.

Within the pillar of light, a massive vortex spun, devouring all the surrounding spiritual energy.

The clouds in the sky were sucked into the vortex, and the rubble on the ground was drawn in as well.

Even the Yao Race nearby were being pulled toward the cave by the vortex's suction.

"Is this... a Breakthrough to the Void Refinement Stage?!"

"Run! Don't get sucked in!"

The faces of several Yao Race prodigies changed drastically as they turned and fled.

They desperately fled the vortex's range, rushing toward the depths of the ruins without looking back.

The Yellow Spring Army did not pursue.

Their mission was to guard the cave, not to hunt down enemies.

The grayish-black pillar of light lasted for a full ten breaths before slowly dissipating.

The vortex also gradually shrank, eventually sinking back into the cave.

Xiao Ran opened his eyes.

His eyes were grayish-black, with a faint vortex spinning within his pupils.

His aura was more than ten times stronger than before, and every movement carried a sense of controlling heaven and earth.

Void Refinement Stage.

He had finally broken through.

Xiao Ran stood up and clenched his fists.

He felt his entire body filled with power, as if a single punch could shatter a mountain.

He looked down at his hands; a tiny vortex was spinning in his palm, an externalization of the Guixu Vortex.

Previously, the Guixu Vortex could only exist within his Dantian, but now it could be manifested externally.

This meant he could use the Guixu Vortex to directly devour an opponent's attacks in battle without having to catch them with his hands.

"Refreshing," Xiao Ran muttered to himself.

He turned and bowed to the skeletal remains on the stone platform.

"Senior, thank you."

Then, with a thought, the Yellow Spring Army turned into streaks of black light and entered the yellow spring banner.

Xiao Ran put away the banner and stepped out of the cave.

Outside the cave was a mess.

The ground was pitted from the vortex's suction, with rubble scattered everywhere.

A few Yellow Spring corpses had been smashed by the Yao Race, but most were still intact.

He glanced at the broken bones and sighed.

Although the Yellow Spring Army could respawn infinitely, it required time.

Having lost dozens this time, he would have to wait a few days for them to recover.

He looked up toward the depths of the ruins.

There, the golden light still soared into the sky.

Now that he was in the Void Refinement Stage, he could enter the inner perimeter.

Xiao Ran transformed into a grayish-black streak of light and flew toward the depths of the ruins.

On Li Changsheng's side, the Breakthrough was also underway.

He sat cross-legged in the stone pit as the taiyin essence from the spring water poured continuously into his body.

His Innate Dao Embryo resonated with heaven and earth; his body was like a massive vortex, absorbing all the surrounding spiritual energy.

The spiritual energy in the Dead Wood Forest was drained, the taiyin essence in the air was sucked dry, and even most of the spring water in the stone pit was absorbed by his body.

The water level of the spring dropped rapidly, falling from his waist to just his calves.

His aura climbed rapidly: Peak Soul Transformation Stage, half-step Void Refinement, Early Stage Void Refinement.

That invisible Bottleneck was like paper in front of him, broken with a single poke.

A silvery-white pillar of light shot up from the stone pit.

Within the pillar of light, a silvery-white lotus slowly bloomed.

The lotus petals unfolded one by one, each emitting a soft moonlight.

The moonlight spilled onto the Dead Wood Forest, illuminating it as bright as day.

Those dead trees actually sprouted, grew, and bloomed under the moonlight. The Dead Wood Forest turned into a sea of flowers.

The silvery-white pillar of light lasted for a full ten breaths before slowly dissipating.

Li Changsheng opened his eyes.

His eyes were silvery-white, with a faint lotus spinning within his pupils.

His aura was more than ten times stronger than before, and his entire body exuded a cold and holy aura.

Void Refinement Stage.

Li Changsheng stood up and looked down at the stone pit.

The spring water had dried up, leaving only a parched pit floor.

He took the Moon Fairy jade pendant from his robes; the spiritual energy within the pendant was also mostly consumed.

"It's time to go."