321: Chapter 321 Shi Jian emerges from the pass: the time, the place, and the people are all in his favor!

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In the blink of an eye, several more years passed, and the situation on all sides remained unchanged.

Myriad Demon Domain, Zixiao Peak.

The night was deep, and all was silent.

At the bottom of the thunder pool on the peak's summit, a fine crack suddenly split across the surface of the purple-gold light cocoon that had been silent for several years.

Crack.

Though extremely faint, the sound of cracking instantly stirred the thunderclouds high in the Nine Heavens.

Boom!

A thick bolt of wild purple lightning tore through the sky, striking straight down and crashing heavily into the thunder pool.

The entire Zixiao Peak shook violently, and the thunder-attribute vegetation covering the mountains swayed wildly, spewing out massive amounts of thunder qi.

The light cocoon exploded completely.

Amidst the churning thunder water, a massive bear-like body, towering like a mountain, slowly stood up.

On his pure white fur, fine thunder patterns writhed like living things, accompanied by rumbles of thunder, as an aura of creation and destruction continuously flowed.

Shi Jian opened his eyes.

Within his thunderous eyes, there was no violent lightning, but rather an extraordinary calmness.

The peak of a Level 7 Demon General, Golden Core Perfection!

With just a simple breath, the surrounding space rippled with visible waves as that pressure spilled outward uncontrollably, sweeping across the Myriad Demon Mountains in an instant.

The strength of his Divine Sense even faintly rivaled that of the Middle Stage of the Nascent Soul Realm!

On Panshi Peak, Shi Pan was startled awake by this aura. He stood up abruptly, his eyes filled with fanaticism, and knelt down heavily facing Zixiao Peak.

On Frost Snow Peak, Shi Yin stopped his breathing exercises and bowed his head in salute.

The Green Wood Demon Cave in the east, the Sun-Eating Demon Cave in the west, the Southern Marsh, the Northern Yunhui Ten Thousand Ranges...

At that exact moment, all the Golden Core Yao Generals felt that terrifying will that towered above all living beings, and they all bowed their heads in unison.

...

Shi Jian paid no attention to the commotion outside. Drawing in his aura, his massive body coiled at the edge of the thunder pool as he fell into deep thought.

Forming a Nascent Soul.

This was a chasm that lay before all cultivators.

Shattering the Golden Core, transforming the Divine Soul, and nurturing the Nascent Soul body—from then on, one's Lifespan would skyrocket, divine abilities would be born naturally, an immortal foundation could be cast, pointing directly to the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

But within this process lay extreme danger.

When breaking through to the Golden Core Realm, one must draw heaven and earth qi into the body, but breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm requires facing the baptism of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth...

Heaven and earth are ruthless, and the Great Dao is vast and boundless.

The moment a cultivator's Divine Soul touches the Dao, it is extremely easy for it to be directly assimilated by that vast and mighty power, erasing their self-awareness and turning them into a mere strand of pure rules between heaven and earth.

This is the greatest death tribulation of Nascent Soul formation: the erosion of the Great Dao, and the spontaneous birth of Heart Demons.

"Shattering the core is easy; guarding the heart is hard."

Shi Jian raised his bear claw, looking at the lightning dancing in his palm.

He possessed the Will of the Undying Wild Thunder, and both his Physical Body and Divine Soul far surpassed those of his peers, yet he still did not have absolute certainty when facing the erosion of the Great Dao.

If the Golden Core is a threshold of cultivation, where achieving the Golden Core means officially embarking on the path of the Dao;

then the Nascent Soul completely locks in one's future path. Once the Nascent Soul casts an immortal foundation, it can no longer be altered, and one completely enters the competition to contend for the Great Dao.

And taking this step is more than ten or a hundred times more difficult than crossing the Golden Core threshold!

From ancient times to the present, how many Prodigies have ultimately stopped here.

Just then, the clouds outside Zixiao Peak billowed.

A clear, bright laugh penetrated the thunder and reached the summit.

"Brother Shi has been in seclusion for over a decade. Emerging today is truly a cause for great congratulation."

The clouds gathered, and White Crane, wearing a white feather cloak, arrived stepping through the air.

He landed on the outer edge of the thunder pool, his gaze sweeping over Shi Jian's highly oppressive body, a trace of deep wariness flashing in the depths of his eyes.

Too strong.

Although Shi Jian had not yet formed a Nascent Soul, his extremely condensed foundation actually caused White Crane, a Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivator, to feel a tremor in his heart.

If he truly succeeded in forming a Nascent Soul, who on this Xuanling Continent would still be able to suppress this mutated Thunder Bear born of heaven and earth?

"Brother Bai, greetings."

Shi Jian's tone was flat, and his massive body did not move in the slightest. He then looked toward the void in the distance, where a gateway within the clouds was looming indistinctly.

"Your Yunxiao Secret Realm has been opened up well, and the Feather Race is currently gaining great momentum."

"It is all thanks to the rules Brother Shi established back then; my Feather Race is merely going with the flow."

White Crane smiled, took two steps forward, and waved his wide sleeve.

A palm-sized red sandalwood box flew lightly toward Shi Jian.

Shi Jian raised his claw to catch it. He was in no hurry to open it, but simply stared at White Crane quietly.

"Brother Shi is now at Golden Core Perfection, so you must already be planning for the Nascent Soul formation."

White Crane's expression turned solemn as he withdrew his smile. "The difficulty of Nascent Soul formation lies in the Divine Soul resisting the assimilation of the Great Dao. When I broke through back then, I almost lost myself in it."

"The item inside this box is called the 'Mind-Stabilizing Dao-Merging Pill'."

"I spent several years refining it myself, using Xuanqing Clear Water and supplementing it with several thousand-year Spirit Medicines."

"Taking this pill will form a thin membrane outside your Divine Soul, which can resist the erosion of the Great Dao, adding at least a half-percent chance of success to your Nascent Soul formation."

With a flick of Shi Jian's claw tip, the wooden box opened.

A longan-sized Medicinal Pill, its surface shrouded in cloud patterns, lay quietly inside.

Just a wisp of the pill's fragrance escaping made Shi Jian's Divine Soul feel a wave of coolness. Although this Medicinal Pill was not refined using highly advanced Alchemy methods,

its ingredients were indeed genuine, high-quality materials.

"Brother Yun, you have been thoughtful."

Shi Jian sighed with emotion, and White Crane shook his head, not minding it:

"We two demons can consider each other confidants."

"Back then, you schemed for me, so today is nothing more than returning what I owe you."

"Moreover, although the four kingdoms of the Human Race have declared a truce, their foundations remain. Old Man Ziyang of the Shangqing Sect is not dead, and the Taiqing Sect is watching us like a tiger watching its prey."

"With only me as a Nascent Soul in the Myriad Demon Domain, I cannot hold down the fort."

"Once they catch their breath, they could join forces to cause trouble at any time. We two demons rise and fall together."

"If Brother Shi can form a Nascent Soul, the two of us together will have the final say in the mid-western region of the Xuanling Continent..."

"Whether for public interest or private friendship, it is only right."

Hearing this, Shi Jian looked at White Crane for a few moments and suddenly smiled. This mutual assistance indeed warmed his heart.

Back when he was among the Human Race, when had he ever experienced such a thing?

Whether during his Core Formation or other times, Shi Jian was mostly the giver. Now, someone actually wanted to support and help him.

It was truly incomparable to those years when he was lying low among the Human Race.

"Good."

Shi Jian put away the wooden box and changed the subject.

"I accept the Medicinal Pill, but the commotion of Nascent Soul formation is too great. The celestial phenomena will surely affect thousands of miles. If it attracts the prying eyes of the Human Race's old monsters, who strike while I am weak, how many of them can you block?"

Hearing this, a cold smile played on the corner of White Crane's mouth.

"Rest assured, Brother Shi, I have already planned for this."

"Calculating the time, within these next few days, the 'Kunyuan Secret Realm' at the border of the Qingcang Kingdom and the Taiqing Sect is about to open."

"Is the Kunyuan Secret Realm about to open again?"

Shi Jian's eyes flickered slightly. He was all too familiar with this place. It opened once every hundred years, and this was already the third time Shi Jian would experience it.

"Indeed."

"Every time this Secret Realm opens, the major Sects of the Human Race will definitely go. Shangqing, Taiqing, the Zhengqi Sect, and the Yiqi Dao Sect—none of them will miss it."

"To contend for the Opportunities within the Secret Realm, those Nascent Soul old monsters will certainly not miss this chance to strengthen their Sects' mid-level forces."

"At that time, part of everyone's attention will surely be drawn by the Secret Realm."

"And that will be the perfect Opportunity for Brother Shi to break through his Realm in one fell swoop!"

After hearing this, Shi Jian understood clearly.

Favorable timing: the Kunyuan Secret Realm was about to open, drawing the attention of all sides.

Geographical advantage: the Myriad Demon Domain had been established as the supreme paradise for the Yao Race, which could provide him with protection, and there was also Zixiao Peak to offer him some assistance.

Human harmony: his current Realm was at Perfection, he had first received medicine gifted by White Crane to aid him, and now he had Zixiao Peak to assist him...

With the right time, place, and people—all three elements aligned—it was indeed time for him to begin his Breakthrough!

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