Chapter 345 – Cultivating As Usual
Fire Nation, ancestral grounds.
The temperature was extremely high, and waves of heat battered down. This great desert seemed like it was going to erupt into flames.
Although barren, it was not empty. These days, there were plenty of figures present. Experts frequently roamed about, and there was no lack of creatures from other regions.
There were huge mountains on the edge of the desert, and on the other side were golden sand dunes. The terrain was rather complicated. Originally, this was a desolate place, but now, it was bustling with people who came to participate and train themselves.
Shi Hao had returned after the battle concluded. After the battle ended, he retreated while coughing out blood. When his spirit returned to his body, he suddenly opened his eyes. His expression was rather pale. The battle had resulted in neither victory nor death with neither party dying.
Injuries in the Void God Realm would impact the real body. Not only would there be an ‘aftereffect’, once one was injured there, it was as if the real body was injured too.
He thoroughly understood how extraordinary Shi Yi was now. He could even be considered terrifying. His title of being a reincarnated deity was not just for show!
If they truly continued their battle using their great forbidden abilities to determine life or death, it would have been truly scary. Whether he won or lost, there would be a great price to pay. This was truly an otherworldly opponent.
Truthfully speaking, this was the first real enemy that Shi Hao had ever encountered!
“You’re injured?” A large eyed beauty and several youths showed concerned looks. Their faces revealed complicated emotions. Every one of them was gravely shaken after personally witnessing the battle.
One could say that Shi Hao’s accomplishments in the Void God Realm were absolutely exceptional, making him appear incredibly dazzling. He defeated ancient clans like the Rain Clan, invaded the Demonic Spirit Lake, and killed pure-blooded creatures. Everything was just like the stories from legends!
It was a place where this youth was absolutely unrivalled. He was like a spear that others simply could not block.
Perhaps only that dual-pupiled individual could slightly hinder his footsteps.
The dual-pupils truly possessed the power to shake the world. After all these years, not only was everyone in Stone Country aware of its power, even the Fire Clan understood its might. This was a great enemy, one that was recognized as a great threat by the imperial family and noble lords.
Yet now, there was a youth who had lost his supreme being bone, yet still shone just as brilliantly as the other naturally blessed supreme youth. Just how shocking of a reality was this?
Huo Ling’er handed a pellet of medicine over. Its sweet fragrance permeated the air as it sparkled in the palm of her hands like a precious pearl. Bizarre symbols flickered about its exterior.
Shi Hao did not hesitate and directly swallowed it. The bones within his body began to crack like the chants of dragons and the roars of tigers. Soon after, color quickly returned to his face.
In reality, these injuries could hardly affect him. Even without any medicine, he could still recover quickly just by relying on his own constitution. This merely made the process a bit faster.
“Shi Yi is truly a frightening individual. Do you have the confidence in defeating him a month later?” Huo Ling’er asked.
“He is formidable indeed. It has always been said that the dual-pupils can open up the heaven and earth, so I want to see it for myself,” Shi Hao replied.
“What are you planning to do after this?” Huo Ling’er asked.
“Cultivate.” Shi Hao’s expression was very serious and solemn.
Up until now, the most important thing had been to quickly improve their strength. However, after experiencing this battle, both he and Shi Yi were able to get a measure of each others’ abilities. Now, they absolutely had to pour in all of their efforts.
In reality, both of them were under great pressure.
Shi Hao had surmised that the other party was at a crucial point. From his chanting of sutras and taking strolls, Shi Yi was most likely at the extreme limit of the Engravement Realm and aiming for absolute perfection.
This was not very good news. His opponent had cultivated for several more years, so he would naturally have a sense of superiority after walking further down his path. Now, he wanted to take it one step further and obtain perfection. His spirit would become perfect as well, leaving behind no weaknesses. At that time, he would become even more confident.
The outer world was currently bustling.
Whether it was Stone Country or Fire Nation, they were all swept up by these news. The ancient countries of the wasteland had all obtained the results of the battle in the Void God Realm, and discussions were breaking out everywhere.
Even the Archaic Divine Mountains found it difficult to calm down, and there were even some mature pure-blooded creatures discussing the rise of these two supreme youths. These two possessed the power to look down on all races, and the battle between them was being referred to as the battle of supreme youths.
No matter who was looking at this, every great power felt a bit of pressure, especially those from the Archaic Divine Mountains and other restricted lands. This type of glory had originally belonged to them.
Every single area was greatly affected, and they wouldn’t become peaceful again for quite a while. Every single sect was discussing this topic, as the effects of this matter were incredibly great.
Even experts from outside this region became a bit apprehensive, such as the Heaven Mending Sect and the Sky Severing Sect. Those that had entered the wasteland region were all paying close attention to this event.
This was true especially for the Heaven Mending Sect. There were a few experts who had actively tried to search out Shi Yi and Shi Hao. They believed that these two were closely affiliated with their sect, and as a result, they wanted to converse with the two.
In fact, Heaven Mending Sect, Sky Severing Sect and Western Paradise Sect were all terrifyingly great powers that far surpassed other sects. If even these sects were paying close attention and thinking of taking action, then a great storm would inevitably break out.
However, they did not act. They only allowed those who entered this region to deal with this situation secretly.
The outside world was in a state of unrest, and even several great countries were greatly disturbed. Meanwhile, the two most important individuals in this event were completely quiet. After that event, they no longer revealed themselves, temporarily vanishing from this world.
Although their figures could not be seen, their names continued to spread. Everyone had a feeling that these two stars would slowly rise, and in the future, it was possible that they would shake up the wasteland region.
Shi Yi disappeared from the Martial Imperial Manor. He walked along great mountains and rivers alone, gazing into the descent of great waterfalls and watching the setting sun dye half the horizon red in a relaxed manner.
This was also a method of cultivation. He was alone, immersed in his thoughts and gaining extraordinary insights. He had long reached a certain threshold in his cultivation, so all he currently needed to do was sharpen his mind.
He would cultivate earnestly from time to time; however, training in isolation was not necessarily always the fastest way to improve. Once the dao and heavenly law were touched upon, everything became much more complicated. Comprehending the dao by travelling through the great wastelands would sometimes yield even better results.
While Shi Yi was on his trip, within the Fire Nation’s ancestral grounds, one of Huo Ling’er’s old servants also brought up this question. After analyzing Shi Yi’s current situation, what he spoke about was shockingly similar.
“He had already reached such a level! It truly is terrifying. Currently, by tempering his heart and mind, he is accumulating experience. Just thinking about it is terrifying!” The old servant was originally a great expert that possessed shocking status, yet he was willing to become a servant to protect Huo Ling’er. He continued, “Chanting sutras and taking long walks are all steps to comprehend the dao. Are you not worried? Will you still continue to cultivate normally after seeing this?”
Shi Hao simply laughed without showing any signs of being disturbed. In a very natural voice, he said, “No matter what method is used, he is still cultivating. The dao can be comprehended by roaming the world, or enlightenment can be gained at a moment of life and death. They have nothing in common with each other, but their end goal is the same. The fact that he seems extraordinary and walks a brilliant path does not mean that I necessarily need to change anything.”
The old servant was startled. This youth’s indifference and comprehension explained quite a bit. The young man already knew clearly exactly what it was that he had to do. He did not rush nor did he move too slowly as he proceeded at his own pace. This was, perhaps, the best response.
“That’s right. Perhaps by chanting sutras and taking strolls, he is merely putting on a transcendent appearance just to pressure you,” Huo Ling’er said.
Shi Hao did not say anything. There was no point in investing more thought into matters like these. It was already enough to do the best that he could.
In the following days, Shi Hao lived up to his words. He was not impatient and he did not worry. He followed his own rhythm and did what he had to do to persistently advance forward towards his goal.
The girl with large eyes and a few others were trying to help Shi Hao find a path. They discovered a place where there were enormous magma lakes. There were powerful beasts there, making things easier for him.
He currently needed divine substances to quickly break through.
Within a few days, Shi Hao caught a few hundred Yang Fish yet again. Their golden fluid glistened, and after being refined, they shone within the Heaven Transforming Bowl. He tipped up his head and drank it down to refine his body and assist in the comprehension of the dao.
It was almost as if he had forgotten the big battle that was in a month. He neither trained nor thought about it as he continued the way he did before to increase his strength.
“This Sky Battlefield will be in the skies of the Spiritual Transformation region. You should take some time to think about how you are going to deal with him.” Huo Ling’er could not help but remind him.
“All the regions are connected. Engraving realm’s comprehension is similar to any other realm’s.” Shi Hao answered.
Since the past few days, his improvement had been incredibly fast, reaching the intermediate stage of the Engraving realm long ago. His comprehension became increasingly deep, allowing him to undertake different experiments.
Shi Hao went into seclusion once again. After closing his eyes, he inspected his flesh and bones before starting to engrave patterns. However, he did not do it the same way he did it in the past. This time, his expression was incredibly serious and focused.
Within his body, the divine lights began to flow like water. One moment, they formed heavenly blades, next divine furnaces, and then they formed cauldrons; the divine lights were undergoing endless transformations.
Each form gave birth to completely different results. When the divine lights turned into heavenly swords, his aura became oppressive and incredibly threatening. However, when they formed divine furnaces, divine power was igniting like raging flames. The potential within his entire body was completely released like a never ending stream. They then turned into a cauldron…
Eventually, all of the divine light was recollected. He began to meditate, and after concentrating all of his attention, he began to form a creature.
A symbol appeared between his eyebrows. It was his mind evolving as it continuously flickered and shone like the sun. Finally, a dim golden luster appeared. It shed from a sphere of light, and out came a Kun Peng.
This was not created from his endless symbols, but refined from strands of divine light!
Quickly afterwards, Shi Hao began to construct a second Kun Peng. His thoughts refined a cauldron, a clock, and a pagoda, transforming all the divine light within his body as he wished into one Kun Peng after another.
However, this was too difficult.
The Kun Peng was one of archaic vicious ten, one whose abilities were rumored to be unrivalled and divine. However, Shi Hao had not completely comprehended them. In reality, even if the deities themselves were in his place, it would still be impossible for them to instantly discern its secrets. This was something that required time to refine and experience.
There was even less of a need to talk about how detailed such a precious technique was, and he was using the most fundamental divine light to bring about a broad scale construction.
If this were to succeed, a single strand of divine light would equate to a Kun Peng. At that time, what flowed through Shi Hao would not be the most fundamental symbols, but rather small Kun Pengs! If the endless Kun Pengs were used to utilize the Kun Peng’s precious technique, then… this would be simply unimaginable!
The accumulation of such power would inevitably trigger great fundamental changes. When such an explosive power was released, the sun and moon would lose radiance, making ghosts cry and deities howl.
Even with all of Shi Hao’s effort, this was still incredibly tough to accomplish. When the Kun Peng’s precious technique formed a symbol, it became incredibly complex. It was deeper and more profound than the boundless stars in the sky.
This one symbol contained too much. It was the result of combining endless transformations.
Shi Hao frowned. This road was simply too difficult! He could only figure out a rough direction and engrave a simple and crude Kun Peng into his body.
At this exact moment, a silhouette appeared over the horizon. It drew closer step after step, and it seemed as if the world itself was trembling in acknowledgment. This gave everyone a bizarre and terrifying feeling.
How come someone like this suddenly appeared? Shi Hao widened his eyes and observed with suspicion.
“Father emperor!” On the horizon, Huo Ling’er ran over and called out.