Longevity by Grinding Skills

Chapter 501: Chapter 501: Refining the Dharma Body, Forging the Divine Sky

At the same time, he glanced at the multiple Arrays he had laid out around his cave residence—for attracting thunder, gathering spirit, and protecting the body.

He had already mastered the Initial Understanding of Array Dao to the Perfection Realm. To advance further, his only option was to go to the Primordial Sect’s Daoist Skill Pavilion and exchange for a higher-tier Array Dao legacy.

This type of secret knowledge, which touched upon the very foundations of the Sect, naturally cost a tremendous amount of Merit Points.

What gave Xu Yunfan an even bigger headache was the Primordial Sect’s business strategy. Those bastards had dismantled the Array Dao system into fragmented pieces.

Basic theory, deconstruction of core Array Cores, the history of transformations in ancient Array Patterns...

Each category had to be purchased separately. And if you wanted to actually use the knowledge, you had to pay another exorbitant fee for every single Ancient Array Atlas.

For legendary ancient Arrays that were famous throughout the Taihua Spiritual Ruins, like the Two Forms Dust or the Circulation Essence Energy, splitting them into nine volumes to be sold separately nine times over would be considered an act of mercy.

At this thought, Xu Yunfan couldn’t help but lament how well the Primordial Sect had mastered the art of nickel-and-diming its disciples.

They had managed to turn the True Understanding of Array Dao—a body of knowledge that held the profound principles of the universe—into a monopolized, commercial product.

"First step: draw upon the Star Geng Metal Origin Qi to temper the Dharma Body!"

After checking everything several more times, Xu Yunfan finally felt at ease. The Star Metal Qi wasn’t a problem. Whether drawn from the depths of the Earth Veins or guided down from the stars of the Nine Heavens, as long as he used the Array Core to channel it, he would have an endless supply.

He was a cultivator who had entered the Dao through martial arts, and with the True Martial Demon Suppressing Scripture as his foundation, his physique was outstanding even among Foundation Establishment Daoist Masters. He was by no means weaker than a Body Cultivator—in fact, he might even be stronger.

As long as the Star Metal Qi didn’t involve the Gang Evil Qi of heaven and earth, everything would be fine.

In this world, the energies of the Celestial Spirits and Earthly Fiends were exceptionally rare. Birthed by heaven and earth themselves, they scattered across the land and required immense, painstaking effort to gather and refine.

Xu Yunfan formed a Two-Handed Seal and pointed toward a specific hub Array Disc on the ceiling of the Quiet Chamber.

The Array flared with light, and a deep spatial vortex—one that seemed to lead to the very Origin of the stars in the Nine Heavens—began to slowly spin overhead.

In an instant, a torrent of Geng Metal Qi—cold, sharp, and carrying an indomitable will—thundered down from the vortex like a tangible pillar of silver light.

HUMMM!

A piercing shriek echoed through the Quiet Chamber.

Xu Yunfan’s cross-legged body jolted violently.

This was no ordinary Geng Metal Spiritual Qi. The Celestial Body Tempering of the Divine Sky scripture was, if conditions permitted, best performed by drawing energy down from the Nine Heavens.

What he hadn’t expected was that this Geng Metal Qi was saturated with the murderous aura from the stars’ very core Origin.

The next instant, the Geng Metal Qi entered his body. It felt like billions of tiny, incomparably sharp steel needles made of starlight, instantly piercing his skin and drilling into his bones, marrow, and meridians.

Excruciating pain!

An indescribable, agonizing pain instantly consumed his entire body!

This agony far surpassed that of any ordinary body tempering; it felt as though countless needles were piercing, scraping, and reshaping every single one of his cells.

If not for his will, which had been forged to an incredible toughness through countless stat-boosting Cultivation sessions, and the powerful physical foundation laid by mastering the Profound Capital Eight Sceneries Celestial Refining Creation Cloud Scripture to the Great Success realm, not to mention the protection of the Eight Sceneries Cloud Qi, he would have long since passed out from the pain.

Even so, Xu Yunfan couldn’t stop the corners of his eyes from twitching.

This Geng Metal Body Tempering was, of course, meant to transform his very constitution, making him more suitable for practicing the Divine Sky Nine Heavens Profound Vault Undying Scripture.

Notifications from his Attribute Panel began to flash wildly in his vision.

’Geng Metal Body Tempering in progress. Your fundamental constitution is being altered...’

’You are practicing the Divine Sky Nine Heavens Profound Vault Undying Scripture...’

’You have gained a slight understanding of the Divine Sky Nine Heavens Profound Vault Undying Scripture...’

Feeling the agonizing pain of what felt like ten thousand ants devouring his body from within, an agony that pierced straight to his Divine Soul, he let out a long breath.

’Then again, I don’t have to just bear it forcefully.’

The Eight Sceneries Cloud Qi in Xu Yunfan’s body began to circulate instinctively. It didn’t fight back against the Geng Metal Qi, but instead attempted to harmonize and fuse with it, like a millstone accelerating the grinding process.

Time trickled by amidst the agonizing pain.

When the torrent of Geng Metal had been pouring into him for nearly a full Hour, Xu Yunfan felt as if his very bones had transformed into Star Essence Gold. His organs were pierced by the Geng Metal Qi and then slowly healed by the Eight Sceneries Cloud Qi, a cycle that left them with a tough, metallic luster.

The impurities within his body were scoured out by the Geng Metal Qi like fine sand, only to be vibrated into dust by the Protective Spiritual Light on the surface of his skin.

Just as his body was beginning to grow numb and adapt to the Geng Metal tempering, the most critical moment of the process arrived.

"Second step: Absorbing Nine Heavens Thunder Fire and Refining Golden Body!"

Without hesitation, the Spell at his fingertips shifted, and he abruptly pointed to the core of a different Array Disc—the Thunder-Attracting Array Disc.

KRA-KOOM!!!

Before the crack of thunder had even faded, the inky-black vortex of clouds that had gathered above Cold Crow Pass abruptly collapsed inward.

The bolt of Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, forcibly guided down by the Thunder-Attracting Array Disc, finally tore through the layer of the Nine Heavens Gangfeng. It transformed into a violet-white dragon of electricity as thick as a baby’s arm and, wrapped in a divine, majestic might capable of obliterating all evil, it struck down violently toward Xu Yunfan’s cave residence.

A deafening boom erupted inside the cave residence.

The sound didn’t come from outside; rather, the Array Disc had activated the power of the Divine Sky Thunderbolt, forcibly pulling down a bolt of Nine Heavens Divine Thunder from far beyond the Nine Heavens. The bolt, though only as thick as a baby’s arm, was condensed to its absolute limit and carried an awesome celestial power.

This was no ordinary storm lightning, but the purest Thunder Fire from high above the Divine Sky’s Nine Heavens—a force capable of breaking evil, shattering demons, and filled with the endless power of creation and destruction.

Violet-white electrical light instantly flooded the entire Quiet Chamber, casting everything in a deathly pale glow.

Before the bolt even struck, the unique, purifying will of the Thunder Fire had already pierced the Defense Array. Any stray wisps of foul energy within the Quiet Chamber evaporated like snow hit by boiling water.

The pillar of lightning slammed violently against the shield of the outer Defense Array, and its surface instantly fractured into a web of a thousand cracks.

The thirty-six Upper-grade Spirit Stones embedded in the Array Hub turned gray and cracked at a rate visible to the naked eye. A few moments later, the Defense Array collapsed.

But this brief respite was all Xu Yunfan needed. He didn’t hesitate, immediately guiding the residual Thunder Fire with precision into his Celestial Spirit point.

His body, having been tempered by the Star Metal Qi, was now the perfect conductor.

The Thunder Fire rushed along his Geng Metal-infused meridians, plunging deep into his organs. A serpent of violet-white lightning exploded into a blinding sphere of light within his chest cavity.

The pain was ten times worse than the Geng Metal Body Tempering.

Xu Yunfan’s organs convulsed violently within the Thunder Fire.

This Nine Heavens Thunder Fire contained the pure, destructive power to annihilate all things. It violently collided and began to fuse with the Star Geng Metal Origin Qi, which his body had not yet fully adapted to.

If the prior Geng Metal Body Tempering hadn’t already transformed his flesh into a nearly perfect conductor, and if the Eight Sceneries Cloud Qi wasn’t currently circulating to protect and repair him, this one strike would have been enough to shatter his Golden Body and turn his organs to ash.

Of course, the most important part was that with every jolt of lightning, a flood of notifications appeared on his Attribute Panel, all indicating that his Skill Level in the Divine Sky Scripture was increasing.

Every inch of his flesh and blood was reborn amid searing and tearing. His bones were tempered until they gave off a crystalline, jade-like glow, and faint, violet Thunder Patterns could be seen flowing within them.

The stream of information from his Attribute Panel now washed over his vision like a waterfall.

Time passed in a deadlock of extreme agony and stubborn perseverance.

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