Body Cultivation

Body cultivation was the most difficult and painful type of cultivation, it required the cultivator to refine and merge one's body with minerals and cultivation resources. It was also a deadly practice in which any mistake could result in death.

Shiro closed his eyes and tried to remember what a body cultivation technique looked like; it was a rare cultivation path that few people practiced, making it extremely difficult for Shiro to recall the entire content of the cultivation manual, if he could get the defense of a body cultivator coupled with the sword arts he had practiced diligently during his mortal days then he would be unstoppable especially when facing his peers and people of the same cultivation level.

Shiro had only managed to piece together the manual after many hours of trying.

'Sigh- There are so many missing pieces, I'm not sure if I can work this out.'

Shiro thought, completely dejected, he had tried his best to remember but had failed so he had to make do with what he had.

Shiro recalled the first step of body cultivation while sitting in a lotus position. It entailed absorbing the earth's energy known as Ki. While energy cultivation required the use of heaven energy known as spiritual energy, body cultivation also required the use of earth energy to strengthen the body.

Shiro felt a sharp pain on his skin as soon as he began absorbing the earth's Ki; Ki particles were slightly larger than spiritual energy particles, making it more difficult to absorb into the skin. Shiro's pain was a sign that his body was capable of making contact with and absorbing Ki.

*whoosh*

Ki flowed into Shiro's body like a torrent of energy, freeing him from the shackles of mortal limits and reintroducing him to the path of a cultivator. Shiro had achieved his first breakthrough as a body cultivator, and the nostalgic and refreshing feeling of the breakthrough fueled Shiro's remorse for losing his cultivation, fueling his anger and motivation as he completely shut himself off to cultivation.

*whoosh* *whoosh* *whoosh*

Few hours and three breakthroughs later, Shiro had finally managed to reach the peak of the energy gathering realm. He could have chosen to cultivate into the late stages for a safer breakthrough, but after staying in the same place for nearly a day, spirit beasts had begun to roam the area in search of food. Shiro had become a cultivator, but he still believed that if he faced one of these beasts, he would surely lose.

After making his judgement, Shiro gathered everything which he deemed necessary and began making his way to another part of the forest. Shiro encountered many difficulties along the way; avoiding direct contact with spirit beasts proved to be more difficult than he had anticipated; and at times, the trees were denser than usual, causing the imaginary map in his mind to become a little blurry.

It took a lot of time but Shiro finally made it to the other side of the forest after a little struggle here and there. As he made his way there, Shiro wasn't just fleeing beasts; he was also looking for ores to refine his skin.

To break into the body transformation realm, one needed to refine his body with minerals, which were ground into a paste and infused into the body using Ki. This was one of the reasons why few people practiced body cultivation, as the process of refining one's body with minerals was arduous and painful.

Shiro enhanced his sense of smell after reaching the other side of the forest and began searching for mineral ores. It took him a long time with only his nose, but after an hour or so, Shiro had finally located an ore vein.

Shiro had discovered the black fire ore, which was known for being found in environments with a high concentration of dark matter. The vein took the shape of a cave and as Shiro stepped in he felt as though he had stepped into an oven to be baked.

Shiro's senses were thrown into disarray by the heat alone; if Shiro had entered this place before becoming a cultivator, he would surely have died, but as a cultivator, Shiro's body had become more resistant to things like heat and cold, leaving him barely able to withstand his current situation.

Shiro pushed himself towards the vein's center, utilizing the benefits of being a body cultivator to extract the ore. Shiro noticed that his body had become a little tougher than it had been previously. His cultivation didn't improve, but Shiro could tell he was getting closer to a breakthrough than ever before.

Shiro sat in the lotus position, crushing the black fire ore to dust with his bare hands and sprinkling it over his body, without even leaving the vein.

Steam began to escape his skin at breakneck speed as the heat from the vein assisted in converting the crushed ore to fluid. Shiro's hair stood up as the pores on his skin were blown apart by the heat.

Shiro's cultivation began to rise as he approached the bottleneck that was preventing him from entering the body transformation realm. In an instant, black flames erupted from his core, directly attacking and tearing apart the bottleneck. It was a shocking incident because such a quick breakthrough was unprecedented even for Shiro. Upon entering the body transformation realm, all the Ki accumulated at the energy gathering realm began fusing with the dark flames, giving birth to an even greater fire.

The dark flames spread like wildfire, reaching into the deepest parts of his core and destroying any and all impurities they found; it was like a heaven-defying medicinal herb cleansing his body of all impurities accumulated during cultivation. When the flames finished their work, they went to rest in Shiro's core, changing its color from sea blue to deep black. Shiro felt the refreshing sensation of a breakthrough as all of his injuries were healed in an instant.

'Hmm- that was exhausting'

Shiro thought as he fell to the ground feeling as though all the energy in his body had been sucked dry.

'It's finally over'

*Crackle* *Crackle* *Crackle*

Just as Shiro was beginning to feel at ease, thunderous roars erupted from the heavens, causing massive damage to the surrounding areas.

This was a phenomenon that Shiro had witnessed and experienced countless times in the upper realms...

Heavenly Tribulation.