164: Seven types of sword essence

The atmosphere grew even more stagnant for a moment due to the questions concerning the secrets of the Cultivation Technique and the heavy price involved.

True Person Jing Yu took a deep breath, her expression extremely solemn:

"Junior Sister is absolutely right. Regardless, Disciple Lin has rendered a great service to Beast Taming Peak. Beast Taming Peak will surely do its utmost to compensate him, helping him recover his cultivation and repair his Foundation."

She flipped her hand to produce a jade box. As the lid opened, a piece of withered wood about a foot long, dark in color yet radiating a warm and peaceful aura, appeared before them. "This is 'soul nurturing wood'. It has the miraculous effect of nourishing the Divine Soul and strengthening the Divine Sense, which should be of great benefit for stabilizing the Foundation and repairing damage to the Origin. Consider this my compensation for Disciple Lin."

Lu Yuchan’s gaze swept over the soul nurturing wood. Knowing it to be a rare treasure, her icy expression softened slightly.

She took the wooden box: "Since you have such intentions, I am not unreasonable. This matter shall rest here for now. I hope Senior Sister will also carefully investigate the reason for Disciple Qinghan’s recent Breakthrough, so as to avoid any unknown hidden dangers."

"Naturally." True Person Jing Yu nodded solemnly.

Lu Yuchan said no more; her figure flickered and vanished.

True Person Jing Yu stood alone in place, looking in the direction where Lu Yuchan had disappeared, then lowered her head to look at her own palm. The trace of doubt between her brows, stemming from Xiao Qinghan's abnormal Core Formation, lingered for a long time.

Lin Feng’s extraordinarily pure Foundation and Qinghan’s illogical Breakthrough—what kind of secret was hidden between the two? And that girl Qinghan wouldn't speak of the specific process.

The next moment, Lu Yuchan’s figure appeared within the Cloud Vast Pavilion on Yunmiao Peak, as if she had never left.

Lin Feng was still sitting quietly on the stone bench in the courtyard, regulating his breath. His complexion remained pale, but his aura was slightly more stable than before. Hearing the movement, he opened his eyes and stood up: "Revered Master."

Lu Yuchan nodded slightly and handed over the jade box containing the soul nurturing wood: "This is a fragment of soul nurturing wood gifted by Senior Sister Jing Yu. It has the effect of nourishing the Divine Soul and strengthening the Divine Sense. It should be of some help to your current condition."

Lin Feng received the wooden box with both hands. When his fingertips touched the warm wood, his mind felt a trace of serenity involuntarily, and even the stagnant Spiritual Qi within his body seemed to flow a little more smoothly.

"Thank you, Revered Master." He bowed solemnly.

"Mn." Lu Yuchan looked at him. "Your Origin is damaged and cannot be recovered in a single day. Return to Baoyue Peak to enter seclusion. Use the Spiritual Qi of the earth veins to slowly plot your recovery; stabilizing your current Realm is the top priority. Do not be impatient, and certainly do not force a Breakthrough through the barriers, lest you shake your Foundation."

"This Disciple understands." Lin Feng nodded. He was well aware of his current condition; he should prioritize nourishment and repair, and must not be rash.

"Go." Lu Yuchan waved her hand and said no more. Her figure gradually faded, evidently having departed.

Before long, Lin Feng returned to his own Immortal Cave on Baoyue Peak. The Immortal Cave was filled with abundant Spiritual Qi and was spotless, no different from when he had left. However, upon returning now, his state of mind and cultivation were worlds apart.

Lin Feng sat cross-legged in the cultivation room, his eyes slightly closed, his mind sinking completely into his body.

This seclusion was unlike any other he had experienced before.

His cultivation had fallen to the Foundation Establishment Mid-stage, and his Origin was damaged, like a tall building collapsing and his Foundation wavering. He no longer rushed for success but instead devoted all his focus to reconstruction.

He first inspected his Dantian. The lake of thick, vast Spiritual Qi, originally formed by Cultivating the Nine Profound Sword Heart Art, now appeared somewhat dispersed.

But within this slightly dim spiritual lake, five Sword Essences of different colors and distinct auras, like five strange crystals resting at the bottom of the lake, still radiated a light that could not be ignored.

Fiery red fire Sword Essence, flowing azure water Sword Essence, sharp golden metal Sword Essence, lush green wood Sword Essence, and the recently refined, thick and heavy earth Sword Essence.

These Five Elements Sword Essences were the results of his many years of bitter cultivation, and also the Foundation for repairing his dao foundation now.

He immersed his mind in the most fundamental generation and restriction changes of these Five Elements Sword Essences. His Divine Sense cautiously guided them, attempting to construct a weak cycle.

Wood generates Fire, Fire generates Earth, Earth generates Metal, Metal generates Water, Water generates Wood.

At first, the cycle was stagnant and difficult to pass, like rusty gears, failing to continue whenever it reached a critical point. But this time, Lin Feng’s state of mind was different. With the help of the cool aura emanating from the soul nurturing wood beside his knees to stabilize his Divine Soul, he patiently attempted it over and over, carefully comprehending every sliver of energy’s generation and transformation.

He did not know how much time had passed, but the stagnation gradually faded, and an extremely faint yet real connection was established between the Five Elements Sword Essences. A nascent yet resilient cycle slowly took shape.

Although it was far from perfect, it could already sustain its own operation and began to spontaneously and slowly absorb the Spiritual Qi of the earth veins, nourishing his damaged Dantian and Meridians.

Just as the Five Elements cycle was initially stabilized, from deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the heaven-stealing vine, which was cultivated alongside his own life, sent a trace of an extremely faint yet clear palpitation.

His thoughts raced: "The Five Elements are the Foundation of all things and can derive all phenomena. I have cultivated profound Cultivation Techniques like the Ice Soul Divine Light and the Seven Heavens Thunder Lure, and I have long understood the operation of ice and thunder powers."

"Water becomes ice when it encounters extreme cold, and the violent nature of metal draws the might of heaven to become thunder. Since I have already refined water-attribute and metal-attribute Sword Essences, and my Foundation is solid, why not use this as a guide to integrate my past insights into the Dao of ice and thunder into the Sword Essence, and deduce their ultimate changes?"

Once this thought arose, the chilling Dao Charm from when he had executed the Ice Soul Divine Light in the past, and the violent will from when he had drawn the Seven Heavens Thunder Lure, surged into his mind, resonating mysteriously with the water and metal Sword Essences within his Dantian.

He no longer suppressed this impulse and resolved to try.

He first used the water-attribute Sword Essence as a base. His Divine Sense not only simulated the extreme cold Dao Charm but also poured all his profound understanding of the "Solidification" and "Nirvana" Concepts from when he cultivated the Ice Soul Divine Light into it, guiding the Sword Essence's nature to undergo an essential transformation.

The process was extremely dangerous; the water-attribute Sword Essence fiercely resisted this transformation, which was nearly a "betrayal" of its flowing nature, and several times it teetered on the brink of collapse.

But at this moment, the Five Elements cycle had already formed, and the Foundation was stable. That endless, ceaseless power provided a solid backup, and he had the deep Foundation laid by his past cultivation of ice-type Cultivation Techniques as support.

After countless failures, that wisp of water Sword Essence suddenly underwent a qualitative change, transforming into a brand-new Sword Essence that was crystal clear and radiated an aura of absolute ice cold; it was the ice-attribute Sword Essence.

With the ice-attribute Sword Essence formed, the drastic change in energy also triggered the metal-attribute Sword Essence. Lin Feng followed the same method, integrating his insights into "Explosion" and "Destruction" from when he cultivated the Seven Heavens Thunder Lure into the metal-attribute Sword Essence, guiding it to transform into the power of thunder.

Soon, a thunder-attribute Sword Essence, shining with purple light and containing the violent power of thunder, also condensed and took shape.

Upon inspecting his Dantian again, the scene inside had changed drastically.

In addition to the Five Elements Sword Essences that served as the Foundation, there were now two additional mutated Sword Essences: ice and thunder.

The seven Sword Essences shone in mutual reflection. Although the ice and thunder Sword Essences were derived from water and metal, their auras were distinctly different, yet they were vaguely connected to the Five Elements Foundation, nourished and restrained by it.

At this point, Lin Feng’s mind was suddenly enlightened, and he truly grasped the ultimate Profound Truth of the Nine Profound Sword Heart Art: "The Five Elements as the Foundation, deriving all phenomena." The potential of this Cultivation Technique far exceeded his previous imagination.

Taking advantage of his clear mind and accessible Comprehension Ability, he set about processing that piece of soul nurturing wood.