Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 109

Volume 6 Chapter 109: Exit the Barrier, Great Ascension

Xu Qingfan stood up in the cave deep within the yellow sand, ready to use his magic to clear the sand from above his head to escape. However, just as he began to channel the Spirit Qi in his body and his own aura began to overflow, before he could use his magic, there was a loud boom, and the yellow sand above him suddenly collapsed.

Xu Qingfan stared in surprise at the collapsing sand above him, not realizing that he had not used any strength. The sand that covered him was shattered simply by the pressure of his aura.

Using the power expected of a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator for the first time, Xu Qingfan was amazed by its strength. The pressure of his aura was already ten times stronger than before; this breakthrough in realm made him feel like a completely different person.

Although surprised by his new strength, Xu Qingfan remained calm. He waved his right sleeve, and the "Purgatory Staff," "World Defying Sword," and the eyeball left behind by the demon all flew into his sleeve. With a flash of black and white spiritual light, the rumbling yellow sand was pushed aside by Xu Qingfan, and in the blink of an eye, he had led countless Dark Crows from the depths of the yellow sand to outside the cave.

The cave was nearly a hundred feet deep. After stepping outside, Xu Qingfan looked at the dark cave and realized that the nearly hundred feet of thick yellow sand had been swept away by the pressure of his aura alone. He deeply understood the power that a Mahayana Stage master should possess.

"Yes, I have become a master. I never thought this day would really come."

In the Western Desert, the bright sun shone strongly, but Xu Qingfan looked up at it without fear and muttered to himself.

After more than ten days, escaping from a hundred feet below ground felt like breaking out of a cocoon and becoming a butterfly.

Time was short, and Xu Qingfan no longer felt sentimental. He said to Little Black behind him, "Little Black, your speed is not as fast as mine right now. I am surrounded by a mix of magical energies and can’t carry you with me. So, this time I can’t take you along. Once I leave, you should wait for me at the edge of the Western Desert with your group. How about that?"

Little Black was very intelligent and understood what Xu Qingfan meant. It couldn’t help but cry out in protest, as it had never been apart from Xu Qingfan since it was born, except for when it was hurt.

Seeing Little Black protest, Xu Qingfan tried to reach out to soothe it, but with the demonic energy swirling around him, Little Black screamed and jumped to the side.

Xu Qingfan smiled helplessly and said, "I’ll be back in at most a month. You don’t have to worry."

While talking, Xu Qingfan didn’t wait for Little Black to object. He activated "Flying Satin," transforming into a streak of black and yellow light, and quickly flew eastward.

Indeed, after Xu Qingfan reached the Nascent Soul Stage, his speed was many times faster than before, making it impossible for Little Black to catch up. Seeing Xu Qingfan leave, Little Black cried out and tried to follow, but the master was simply too fast. Before long, Xu Qingfan’s figure had vanished into the distant sky. Little Black had no choice but to lead its "Dark Crows" as Xu Qingfan suggested, flying toward the edge of the Western Desert to wait for his return.

…

Xu Qingfan’s heart raced; after leaving with Little Black, he immediately flew at top speed towards the location of "Ronghua Mountain."

The endless yellow sand beneath his feet turned into a blur of yellow light, quickly appearing and disappearing below Xu Qingfan. The distance of thousands of miles seemed to vanish in an instant, and after almost three days of flying away from the Western Desert, he had finally learned to control the new power within him.

Once he got familiar with his strength, Xu Qingfan hurried on his way while carefully observing his inner condition.

Just as Xu Qingfan had predicted earlier, when he stopped merging with the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic," the "Magic Pearl" became wildly powerful. Without the restraint of the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic," its merging speed with Xu Qingfan increased greatly. It not only continually reshaped Xu Qingfan’s body with endless demonic energy but also constantly eliminated the power of the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" inside him. As the merging deepened, the spreading demonic energy grew stronger.

The power of the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic," which had already merged with Xu Qingfan, fought desperately against the invasion of demonic energy. However, without any reinforcements, it was retreating step by step. Xu Qingfan’s body, which had previously been a mix of good and evil, gradually began to be dominated by demonic energy.

According to Xu Qingfan’s estimates, this situation could last at most six or seven days. Demonic energy would completely take over his body. By that time, even if Xu Qingfan tried to refine and merge with the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" again, the demonic energy would have taken root, and he would only be able to disperse some of his own demonic energy; he could not change his essence.

Time was running out, but for Xu Qingfan, there were two rather favorable points. First, Xu Qingfan had fused and refined the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" on his forehead, making his consciousness the stronghold of the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic." Therefore, even if he became completely demonized, his spirit would still be affected. For instance, at this moment, the endless Demon Thoughts in the Magic Pearl were continuously attacking his mind but were being blocked by the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic," keeping his defenses relatively stable for now.

Second, the demonic energy was still fighting against the power of the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic," leaving it unable to focus on anything else. Thus, the Nascent Soul in Xu Qingfan’s dantian was temporarily safe under the protection of his Spirit Qi. At the same time, the energies of life and death continued to merge and assimilate the positive and negative energies within him, flowing into the Nascent Soul, allowing it to grow rapidly and advance towards the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul.

It is said that both the "Magic Pearl" and the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" have fused about one-third with Xu Qingfan at this moment, and one-third of their power has entered Xu Qingfan’s body. However, these two powers have been absorbed and refined by Xu Qingfan’s life and death energy, becoming part of his own strength. The unrefined righteous and demonic energy is even stronger than Xu Qingfan’s power. Although it is continuously transforming Xu Qingfan’s body, he cannot use it yet because they have not fully merged, and he must use some of his own strength to balance the two.

In other words, Xu Qingfan has broken through to the Nascent Soul Stage using only one-tenth of the power from the "Magic Pearl" and "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic." This makes Xu Qingfan wonder what level he would reach if he could fully merge the power of both sacred objects into his body. Would it be the Soul Splitting Stage? Or even higher?

Xu Qingfan shook his head, no longer thinking about it, and quickly continued toward the direction of "Ronghua Mountain."

While hurrying along, it had been four to five days since Xu Qingfan broke through to the Nascent Soul Stage, and he had less than two days left to reach "Ronghua Mountain."

…

Meanwhile, as Xu Qingfan was hurriedly flying toward "Ronghua Mountain," a powerful and majestic aura suddenly erupted from an inconspicuous hill deep in the Southern Wasteland. Under this pressure, the entire Spirit Qi of the Southern Wasteland began to tremble, forming a terrifying vortex of Spirit Qi that surged into the desolate mountains.

Then, the sky, which had been gradually darkening, suddenly shimmered with golden light. Countless ghostly images of Buddhas and Arhats appeared in the sky, while endless Golden Spirit Qi transformed into golden flowers fluttering down from above. At the same time, ancient and sacred Buddhist chants echoed throughout the universe.

If any cultivator were to witness this scene, they would surely be amazed. The movement and gathering of Spirit Qi is an oddity that occurs when a cultivator achieves a significant breakthrough in the five elements of cultivation. The gathering of countless Buddhas symbolizes the achievement of those who follow the path of Buddhism, and the falling golden flowers, along with the sound of sacred music, reveal the immense powers of both Buddhism and Daoism.

Who could it be that practices both Buddhism and Daoism perfectly and has achieved enlightenment?

In the Southern Wasteland, thousands of miles wide, after going through many hardships, many demon beasts remained. When they felt this great pressure, their bodies shook. In the sound of chanting and celestial music, even though they were demon beasts, they lost their wildness for a moment, leaving only a peaceful heart, and naturally bowed towards the location of the desolate mountain.

Deep in the Southern Wasteland’s black giant mountain, "Ominous" and "Auspicious," who were fighting endlessly, also shook slightly. They looked towards the direction of the strange phenomenon, a flicker of confusion in their eyes, but soon resumed their fierce battle with each other.

This situation lasted for three to four days. The range of the phenomenon spread from the desolate mountain to thousands of miles beyond, before slowly calming down.

Suddenly, a loud rumbling sound erupted, and the desolate mountain cracked open, instantly becoming flat land.

At the same time, a white-clad cultivator, with a solemn and sacred expression, radiating a brilliant golden light, stood on a golden lotus, hovering between heaven and earth. The strong winds of the Southern Wasteland blew, yet the corners of his clothes did not move at all.

With his eyes closed, he sensed carefully for a moment. When he slowly opened his eyes, he gave a silent bow to the flat land where the mountain had been and then flew quickly towards "Ronghua Mountain," disappearing into the sky in the blink of an eye.

This person was Jin Qinghan, who, after merging the life achievements of over ten peak Golden Core Stage cultivators and understanding the supreme cultivation methods of the "Pure Land Sect," had been missing for several years and had finally reemerged.

At this moment, he was the first Mahayana master to combine the powers of both Buddhism and Daoism in the cultivation world for tens of thousands of years!