Chapter 20: Spirit Root Transformation, Nascent Soul Realm Cultivator
The night sky was silent, with occasional cries of birds and beasts, as the mountains and forests lay dormant in the darkness.
Gu An sat meditating within the Life Span Barrier, enjoying the moonlight.
Tonight's moon was beautiful, just like his mood.
His Cultivation Level had reached the 4th floor of the Core Formation Realm, and he was getting closer and closer to the end.
He planned to continue cultivating until he broke through to the Nascent Soul Realm, and then he would cultivate a Secret Skill, because the Gale Shadowless Leg no longer satisfied him.
What Nascent Soul Realm Great Cultivator used legs?
It had to be a sword!
Gu An decided to favor the Seven Swords of the Li Family now that he had reached the Cultivation Level of the Nascent Soul Realm, and he needed matching offensive techniques.
Hmm, assume that Cheng Xuan's master is a Great Cultivator at the Nascent Soul Realm!
Gu An aimed to overestimate his opponents as much as possible to minimize the chance of defeat.
After the previous combat, the Cultivator had left and had not returned, which allowed Gu An's heart to completely settle.
He was now a Core Formation Realm Cultivator, who could walk arrogantly in the territory of the Outer Sect. Even if someone suddenly barged in, they couldn't withstand a single kick from him!
Core Formation Realm 5th floor!
His Cultivation Level was raised once more, and Gu An's Divine Sense also grew stronger!
Core Formation Realm and Foundation Establishment Realm were like heaven and earth.
The difference in Spiritual Power and Divine Sense was immense. Gu An's Divine Sense could now condense together, forming a powerful impactive force.
Only upon reaching the Core Formation Realm did he feel like a true Cultivator.
If Core Formation Realm was this profound, how much stronger would the Nascent Soul Realm be?
Gu An couldn't wait to continue his cultivation.
He was forced to wait until his Cultivation Level reached the breakthrough point of the Core Formation Realm 6th floor. Only then did he access his Attribute Panel.
His gaze was involuntarily attracted to his Spirit Root.
He had tried to enhance his Spirit Root before, which had been unsuccessful and caused him a psychological shadow. Fearing it was a bottomless pit, he had shifted his efforts toward other aspects, although deducing Cultivation Techniques could also enhance his Spiritual Root Qualification.
Now that he was strong enough and still had an abundance of lifespan left, he decided it was time to try enhancing his Spirit Root again.
After a while, when his Cultivation Level's increase halted, Gu An directly invested two thousand years of lifespan into his Spirit Root!
"You have invested two thousand years of lifespan into the evolution cultivation of your Spirit Root."
"You perceive the nature of heaven and earth for one hundred years, your Five Elements Spirit Root Perception Power is enhanced."
"You perceive the nature of heaven and earth for two hundred years, your Five Elements Spirit Root Perception Power is enhanced."
…
"You perceive the nature of heaven and earth for one thousand years, finally catching a glimpse of the True Meaning of Heaven and Earth, your Spirit Root is baptized by heaven and earth, your Five Elements Spirit Root Qualification begins to transform, all your Five Elements Spirit Root Qualifications are transformed from a Mortal Body to second-rate, with the Wood Spirit Root being more prominent."
"You perceive the nature of heaven and earth for one thousand two hundred years, your Five Elements Spirit Root Perception Power is enhanced."
…
"You perceive the nature of heaven and earth for two thousand years, finally catching a glimpse of the True Meaning of Heaven and Earth, simultaneously perceiving the earth's rivulets, your Spirit Root is baptized by heaven and earth, your Five Elements Spirit Root Qualification begins to transform, all your Five Elements Spirit Root Qualifications transform to first-rate Mortal Body, with both the Wood Spirit Root and Earth Spirit Root being exceptionally notable."
Lines of notifications popped up in front of Gu An.
Upon seeing the initial Five Elements notifications, his heart began to bleed out.
He had been careless!
This thing really was a bottomless pit!
Seeing the final result with all Five Elements Spirit Root reaching a first-rate state, his mood improved, but he still felt a sting, considering that the cultivation of Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill had already brought his Wood Spirit Root to a first-rate level.
He shouldn't think this way!
He should consider that the Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill took one thousand years to enhance one Spirit Root to first-rate, so to enhance all five to first-rate would require at least five thousand years.
Then the question arose, why hadn't he cultivated other attributes' Cultivation Techniques?
That's the nature of humanity; one must explore to find the most perfect path.
As Gu An reflected on himself, the Earth Spiritual Qi surged again, this time not to increase his Cultivation Level but to temper his bones and sinews.
It hurt!
Gu An felt an unprecedented pain and could only grit his teeth and endure.
To divert his attention, he began mulling over the Attribute Panel.
As he saw it, enhancing the Spirit Root Qualification was the most difficult; considering it's akin to the ultimate lifespan limit, while the Cultivation Level represents the current lifespan, breaking through a limit was always the hardest.
No postnatal effort could ever be more challenging than breaking through a fate ordained by the heavens.
This was why the Supreme Sect respected talents so heavily; Ji Xiaoyu, with her Dual Spirit Root, was much more important to the Supreme Sect than a single Core Formation Realm Cultivator.
For ordinary people, the fewer Spirit Roots, the higher the qualification – assume a person's total talent value represented by the Spirit Root was one hundred, a Dual Spirit Root could split fifty each, but if it were a Five Elements Spirit Root, each Spirit Root's Talent Value would only be twenty, which sometimes meant mediocrity.
Gu An was different now; by enhancing his Spirit Root Qualification, it was akin to increasing his total talent value number from one hundred upwards.
Unfortunately, Spirit Root attributes couldn't be directly cultivated to enhance their level, and now other Spirit Roots weren't much help in cultivating the Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill, so his cultivation speed had increased a bit, but not much.
However, he noticed the prefix 'Mortal Body' before the first-rate qualification.
Couldn't there also be 'Sacred Body', 'Spirit Body'?
Gu An mused randomly, and at the same time, the consumption rate of the Life Span Barrier began to slow down. From the start of the breakthrough to now, he had already consumed one hundred thirty-four years of lifespan.
As his Spirit Root Qualification continued to enhance, Gu An clearly felt that the various attribute Spiritual Energies became clearer, which also changed his perception of the entire heaven and earth.
The sensation of pain was being replaced by a sense of novelty!
After a long time.
Gu An's body no longer absorbed spiritual energy, and his Spirit Root Attribute in the Attribute Panel changed to a top-grade Five Elements Spirit Root. He did not get up, but instead invested two thousand years of his life span into his cultivation level.
The failure in crossing the tribulation left a shadow over him, so he decided to make a bold move, thinking if he only invested one thousand years and got stuck at the 9th floor of the Core Formation Realm, he would surely cough up blood.
There was a real possibility of that happening!
After failing to cross the tribulation, he had to waste fifty years before he could make another attempt. It was too real; failures in the real-world tribulation meant either death or injury, and healing indeed took time.
And the tribulations in the Nascent Soul Realm would certainly be even more difficult, likely with more failures than not!
Let's begin!
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for one hundred years, your cultivation level has broken through to the 7th floor of the Core Formation Realm.]
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for two hundred years, your cultivation level has broken through to the 8th floor of the Core Formation Realm.]
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for three hundred years, your cultivation level has broken through to the 9th floor of the Core Formation Realm.]
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for four hundred years, you forcefully attempted to break into the Nascent Soul Realm with the great accomplishment of the Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill, began crossing the tribulation, and did not survive the Three Mystical Heavenly Tribulation, failing the tribulation.]
…
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for fifteen hundred years, you forcefully attempted to break into the Nascent Soul Realm with the great accomplishment of the Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill, began crossing the tribulation, and did not survive the Three Mystical Heavenly Tribulation, failing the tribulation.]
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for sixteen hundred years, you forcefully attempted to break into the Nascent Soul Realm with the great accomplishment of the Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill, began crossing the tribulation, and finally survived the Three Mystical Heavenly Tribulation, succeeding in the tribulation and advancing to the Nascent Soul Realm.]
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for eighteen hundred years, your cultivation level has broken through to the 2nd layer of the Nascent Soul Realm.]
[You have practiced Qi Absorption Cultivation for two thousand years, your cultivation level has broken through to the 3rd layer of the Nascent Soul Realm.]
Damn!
He actually failed twelve times!
When Gu An saw the six tribulation failures, his heart sank. When he failed ten times, his vision went dark.
Luckily, he eventually succeeded in breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm.
Is the Nascent Soul Realm really that difficult to break through?
Gu An thought in despair, realizing why the lifespan spent in simulated cultivation was greater than the actual consumption.
Simulated cultivation was equivalent to practicing without any aids. Normal cultivation involved ingesting elixirs, using formations to gather spiritual energy, which also helped in crossing the tribulations, not to mention the wonderful effects of some rare treasures.
The spiritual energy from the world began to surge wildly again, and the consumption rate of the Life Span Barrier began to speed up.
Gu An calmed his mind and started to enjoy the improvement of his cultivation level.
…
The early morning sunlight swept across the human world, and Profound Valley gradually brightened. Gu An stood on the mountaintop, overlooking the autumn-colored forests; his robe fluttered, and the sunlight shone on him, making it seem like he could ascend to immortality at any moment.
He had already formed his Nascent Soul and had become a true Nascent Soul Realm cultivator!
To commend himself, he increased his apparent cultivation level by one floor, reaching the 4th floor of the Qi Cultivation Realm. In the future, he would raise it by one floor every year, stopping at the 9th floor of the Qi Cultivation Realm, so he would not be recruited away.
He couldn't resist checking his Attribute Panel again.
[Name: Gu An]
[Life Span: 22/4502]
[Spirit Root: Top-grade Five Elements Spirit Root (with prominent Wood and Earth Attributes) (life span can be invested for simulated cultivation)]
[Cultivation Level: 3rd layer of the Nascent Soul Realm (life span can be invested for simulated cultivation)]
[Cultivation Technique: Fire Control Technique (not mastered), Divine Wood Pure Yang Skill (Refined to Perfection), Dragon Strength Divine Primordial Skill (Refined to Perfection), Alchemy (Initial Understanding) (life span can be invested for simulated cultivation)]
[Secret Skill: Gale Shadowless Leg (Fully Integrated), Li Family Seven Swords (not mastered), Eight Directions Step (not mastered) (life span can be invested for simulated cultivation)]
Gu An planned to further invest in mastering the Li Family Seven Swords, then continue to save life span, aiming to reach the milestone of a hundred thousand before using it.
For now, he needed to rest for a few days to calm his excited heart.
With his Nascent Soul Realm cultivation, he could easily obtain a decent position and treatment at the Supreme Sect, but the thought of the Supreme Sect sending him out to slay demons, fight against the Demon Dao, and possibly even internal strife, quelled that fleeting thought.
He must not lose sight of his original aspirations to achieve the ultimate fruit!
Nothing could sway him; he was determined to stay secluded in Profound Valley to the end!
He could occasionally search for Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, but he absolutely could not shift his focus away from Profound Valley.
A higher status might allow his lifespan to increase faster, but the risk was proportionally higher, and since he had no enemies, why rush?
Gu An turned and walked down the mountain.
He was already capable of flying in the Nascent Soul Realm, but he chose not to; instead, he opted to walk down.
When he reached Medicine Valley, Xiaochuan and others gradually came out.
"Big Senior Brother, did you climb the mountain so early?" Ye Lan greeted Gu An, and she couldn't tell if it was her imagination, but she felt today's Big Senior Brother looked even more handsome.
Gu An smiled and said, "Just checking on some seeds. Today, you lead them in their practice."
Ye Lan nodded in agreement, wanting to ask more, but Gu An had already headed towards the loft.
From a distance, Wuxin watched Gu An's figure, secretly thinking, "There must be some mysteries in the forest! I will find them!"
As Gu An ascended the staircase and pushed open the door, he saw the White Spirit Rat lying on the table, its whole body inflated like a balloon, and the Cang Teng Fruit had disappeared.
Still breathing, not dead!
He immediately performed a Life Span Detection on the White Spirit Rat.
[White Spirit Rat (1st Tier): 12/120/180]
Hmm?
It had gained seventy years of lifespan; initially, the White Spirit Rat only had fifty years.
Was the medicinal effect of the Cang Teng Fruit this strong?
Gu An immediately walked to the wooden cabinet, took out a Cang Teng Fruit, and began to munch on it.