Chapter 397 - Chapter 397: Primordial Ranked First
Chapter 397: Primordial Ranked First
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Just as signs of a breakthrough had just appeared, the very next day, it happened immediately, and the time it took for this breakthrough was unbelievably short. Moreover, it didn’t end after the breakthrough; the cultivation continued to soar.
This kind of scenario was completely overturning the cultivation principles that Chi Shuqing had upheld for so many years.
The manuals clearly stated that the cultivation of the Aperture Tempering realm followed a gradual process. When cultivating the Visceral Tempering realm, there might be various methods to advance, and as long as the methods were correct, they wouldn’t harm the foundation.
However, in the Aperture Tempering realm, opening each Aperture required careful attention; one couldn’t afford to be careless and risk damaging the apertures. Even after opening the apertures, they needed continuous nurturing to make them even stronger.
All of this made the cultivation of the Aperture Tempering realm appear extremely slow, often taking years, or even a decade or more, to increase one’s strength.
As for breaking through small realms, that required even more caution and prudence. After all, breaking through a small realm, if the foundation wasn’t sufficient and one forcefully broke through, the source could be easily damaged.
In severe cases, it might even be impossible for the cultivation to progress further for a lifetime.
But here with Chen Fei, the speed of cultivation was beyond belief.
Not only did he break through realms unreasonably fast, but even after the breakthrough, his cultivation continued to rise. There was no record of such a scenario in any of the scriptures, and Chi Shuqing had never heard of anyone doing it.
Therefore, Chi Shuqing was at a loss for words to express herself, and in her heart, she held nothing but infinite admiration for Chen Fei. He was the person she had found, a genius bordering on the extraordinary.
“Zzz!”
Like the sound of thunder shattering, Chen Fei appeared in front of Chi Shuqing as if teleporting, and tiny sparks of lightning flickered over his body.
The power of the Great Thunder Sword, combined with the Soaring Heaven Technique, gave Chen Fei’s speed a different kind of transformation.
“The Great Thunder Sword?” Seeing Chen Fei’s appearance, Chi Shuqing snapped out of her trance and expressed her surprise.
The Great Thunder Sword had been one of the prominent techniques of the Primordial Sword Sect many years ago, far more famous than the likes of the Zhongyuan Sword.
Especially in the eyes of ordinary people, practitioners who wielded the Great Thunder Sword appeared as if they were gods of thunder, radiating a majestic divine aura that made it impossible to look directly at them.
However, at some point, the members of the Primordial Sword Sect had stopped using the Great Thunder Sword. Ordinary people were unaware of the reasons, but various sects knew that it was because the lineage of the Great Thunder Sword had been damaged.
Chi Shuqing hadn’t expected to witness Chen Fei using this lost technique today. Moreover, the way he wielded it, the power was controlled in every aspect, not excessive but precise.
For a damaged lineage, achieving this level of control was impossible.
“This isn’t important. Would you like to experience something different?” Chen Fei’s face broke into a smile as he raised his palm, and with a slight flick of his fingers, sparks of electricity danced around.
Chi Shuqing was momentarily taken aback but then realized the meaning behind Chen Fei’s words. She couldn’t help but gently pat Chen Fei’s shoulder with a shy expression filled with tenderness.
The next morning, Chen Fei appeared in Immortal Cloud City.
Chi Shuqing was truly weakened this time, completely devoid of strength. The sensation was too intense, and even cultivators in the Aperture Tempering realm couldn’t bear it.
Within the Alchemist Alliance, Chen Fei came to exchange for the ninth level of the Thousand Threads Technique.
Due to the collision of insights yesterday, although it only took a short time to impart the Thousand Threads Technique, the proficiency of the eighth level had greatly improved.
In the past few months, even with ample resources, Chen Fei still came to the Alchemist Alliance to take on tasks, primarily for the sake of earning contribution points.
Chen Fei didn’t exchange these contribution points for anything else; he was saving up to exchange for the ninth level of the Thousand Threads Technique. He had already accumulated enough contribution points for this purpose some time ago but hadn’t exchanged it yet.
Now that the Thousand Threads Technique had reached this point in cultivation, to prevent any future disruptions in cultivation, Chen Fei decided it was time to exchange for the ninth level, to avoid any unexpected setbacks.
“Chen Alchemist, the Alliance Master wishes to meet you,” an alliance official said to Chen Fei quietly as he waited at the counter.
“It’s been many years since anyone exchanged for the ninth level of the Thousand Threads Technique in the Alliance. I’m quite surprised,” remarked Qin Jinglan, who was standing nearby.
Chen Fei nodded slightly, not showing any unusual expression.
As the Alchemist Alliance’s pinnacle technique, it was entirely normal for someone to accumulate enough contribution points to exchange for it. From Chen Fei’s perspective, it made perfect sense for the Alliance Master to request a meeting.
As Qin Jinglan had mentioned, it had been many years since anyone had exchanged for the ninth level of the Thousand Threads Technique in the Alchemist Alliance. Besides the hefty contribution point requirement, the difficulty of cultivating the Thousand Threads Technique had kept many alchemists at bay.
“The last time we met, you hadn’t even reached the Aperture Tempering realm,” Wei Xingshan said, looking at Chen Fei. It was their first encounter during a union mission several years ago. At that time, Chen Fei had only been in the Visceral Tempering realm.
Fast forward a few years, and Chen Fei had already reached the Aperture Tempering realm, with alchemical talent that rivaled his martial progress. In just a few years, he had continuously taken on tasks to refine spiritual pills and hadn’t failed once.
All of this was well-documented, as every contribution point expenditure was clearly recorded.
Wei Xingshan had heard reports from union officials about Chen Fei before. Someone as dedicated to alchemy as Chen Fei, who consistently produced high-quality results, was indeed a rare find within the Alliance.
Wei Xingshan had some regrets about Chen Fei’s background. If Chen Fei had been part of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect instead of the Primordial Sword Sect, he might have been groomed as the successor to the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect’s alchemical legacy.
However, it was clear that this was no longer a possibility. Chen Fei was irrevocably tied to the Primordial Sword Sect. Wei Xingshan couldn’t risk the danger of forcibly taking him into the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, as it would not only lead to internal conflicts but also face opposition from the entire sect.
For this reason, over the years, Wei Xingshan had known of Chen Fei’s existence but had never summoned him, as there had been no need. It was only today, upon hearing that Chen Fei intended to exchange for the final level of the Thousand Threads Technique, that Wei Xingshan seized the opportunity to meet him.
Wei Xingshan was well aware of the difficulty of cultivating the Thousand Threads Technique. Even after reaching the late Aperture Tempering realm himself, he had spent many years without completing the ninth level of the technique.
“Greetings, Alliance Master,” Chen Fei said with a respectful salute.
“How is the cultivation of the Thousand Threads Technique going? If you have any doubts, feel free to ask,” Wei Xingshan said.
Chen Fei’s request to exchange for the ninth level of the Thousand Threads Technique had surprised Wei Xingshan, but he didn’t think that Chen Fei had already reached this level in his cultivation. It was more likely that Chen Fei wanted to secure the exchange ahead of time, given the current turbulent situation, which was quite reasonable.
“I have some doubts about the third level of the Thousand Threads Technique,” Chen Fei said naturally, showing a hint of delight on his face. He then asked Wei Xingshan about a specific point from the third level of the technique, seeking his guidance.
When Wei Xingshan heard that it was a question about the third level of the Thousand Threads Technique, a glimmer of interest flashed in his eyes, and he patiently provided guidance.
As Wei Xingshan answered his questions, Chen Fei seized the opportunity to ask a few more, making Wei Xingshan feel like a mentor once again. After nearly half an hour, Chen Fei left the study.
Watching Chen Fei’s departing figure, Wei Xingshan couldn’t help but feel regret. Such a talented individual, yet not a disciple of the Alchemist Peak; it left Wei Xingshan with a sense of disappointment.
Chen Fei left Immortal Cloud City with the ninth level of the Thousand Threads Technique and returned to the Primordial Sword Sect.
Over the next month, Chen Fei stayed within his own courtyard, not going anywhere, and continually pondering the intricacies of the late Aperture Tempering realm.
During this time, Chen Fei made a trip to the Strange Heart Realm.
With his cultivation now in the late Aperture Tempering realm, there was no longer a significant gap between his spiritual power and his cultivation. Naturally, Chen Fei wanted to continue elevating his spiritual power.
The higher his spiritual power, the more effective he would be in controlling his own strength.
After three hours of hunting down dozens of first-stage Evils, Chen Fei finally stopped increasing his spiritual power when it reached the control of eighty-eight apertures.
Chen Fei attempted to kill more than a dozen first-stage Evils to confirm that there was no further benefit to his spiritual power.
For Chen Fei, the Strange Heart Realm was the simplest and easiest way to increase his spiritual power, and he had finally reached a point of diminishing returns.
Chen Fei wasn’t disappointed; after all, the effectiveness of killing first-stage Evils had been diminishing before, and with his breakthrough to the late Aperture Tempering realm, the diminishing returns had become even more pronounced.
It was clear that the essence within the first-stage Evils was too low-level for Chen Fei now.
Activating the Star Gazing Art, Chen Fei found a nearby second-stage Strange Heart. Under the influence of the Star Gazing Art, this second-stage Strange Heart didn’t have a very strong aura, roughly equivalent to a martial artist in the early Aperture Tempering realm.
Killing the second-stage Evil took Chen Fei some time, as they were undoubtedly much stronger than the first-stage ones. However, due to the significant gap between Chen Fei and the Evil, he still managed to kill it forcibly.
He extracted the essence and injected it into the Heart Refinement Formation.
The Fourth-tier Heart Refinement Formation marked another advancement in Chen Fei’s Heart Refinement Formation after he officially broke through to the late Aperture Tempering realm.
Despite becoming even more polluted and frenetic under the influence of the Fourth-tier Heart Refinement Formation, this second-stage Evil was ultimately refined into a pure source.
After Chen Fei absorbed it, his stagnant spiritual power once again experienced significant growth, and it was quite noticeable.
However, a strange sensation also surfaced in Chen Fei’s spiritual sense. An intangible hostility seemed to be projecting onto him from all directions, and an eerie chill crept into his heart, as if an impending disaster were about to occur.
With caution in mind, Chen Fei immediately left the Strange Heart Realm. For the next ten days or so, he didn’t venture into the realm again. Instead, he decided to explore a different place, farther away, and then re-enter the Strange Heart Realm to investigate further.
Back at the main peak of the Primordial Sword Sect…
“You’re going to the Sword Return Tower? For what reason?” Qu Qingsheng asked in surprise when he saw Chen Fei.
“To retrieve our heritage,” Chen Fei replied.
“But with our current strength, we still can’t…” Qu Qingsheng’s words were cut off as he suddenly noticed a change in Chen Fei’s aura. It steadily rose, transitioning from the early to the middle Aperture Tempering realm.
This wasn’t too surprising, as Qu Qingsheng had already been aware of Chen Fei’s breakthrough to the middle Aperture Tempering realm.
However, just a breath later, Qu Qingsheng’s eyes widened involuntarily.
Chen Fei’s aura had now reached the advanced Aperture Tempering realm, identical to his own..