Chapter 196: Transformation and Ascension

Feng Hansheng looked at Chen Yue intently, then suddenly burst into loud laughter. The sound echoed through the quiet courtyard, startling a few birds resting on the wall outside.

“Excellent! I like your spirit. That’s how it should be! Before I came, I was still a little hesitant, wondering if you were worth granting access to those two locations. But now, it’s clear you are.”

The four of them in the courtyard looked at Feng Hansheng, not knowing what decision he was about to make.

Feng Hansheng beamed. “Tomorrow, go directly to the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform for three days. After that, if your Heart Spirit can take it, you’ll head to the Wenda Corridor for another three days!”

Meng Yu Jin and the two others were stunned.

The Gathering Essence Spirit Platform and the Wenda Corridor. These two places held a special status in the Panshi Sect, belonging to one of the Sect’s most vital cultivation resources. It was difficult for ordinary disciples to even know of their existence, let alone enter them.

Even the Elders needed a compelling reason to apply for their use.

Chen Yue didn’t know what these two places were, but he could tell from their names that they were places to improve one’s cultivation and comprehension.

Chen Yue didn’t hesitate. He immediately cupped his fists in a salute. “Thank you, Elder Feng!”

Feng Hansheng waved his hand and said no more. With a leap, his figure shot into the sky, rapidly shrinking to a black dot in the morning light before vanishing over the horizon.

The courtyard returned to its tranquility. The green bamboo still rustled in the gentle breeze.

Meng Yu Jin and the others were all smiles. Liu Zhengyi slapped his thigh. “You’ve really hit the jackpot this time. Back in the day, I had to fight my way into the top three of the Cyan Cloud Ranking just to get to use these two places. And you, still just at the Marrow Refining Realm, have nabbed two slots just like that.”

Mo Ciqiu nodded and picked up the thread. “The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi inside the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform is extremely dense. One day of cultivation inside is equivalent to ten or more days outside. Disciples without a solid enough foundation actually can’t withstand that kind of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, but with Chen Yue’s current physique and foundation, there shouldn’t be a problem.”

She paused for a moment before continuing, “The Wenda Corridor, on the other hand, can greatly improve Chen Yue’s Cultivation Technique and Martial Techniques, but it places a high demand on one’s Heart Spirit.”

Mo Ciqiu had been to both of these places, so she naturally understood their effects.

Meng Yu Jin watched Chen Yue, her face alight with a smile rarely seen on her. She was usually composed and restrained in front of others, her smiles never more than a slight upturn of her lips.

But now, her smile held a joy that came from the bottom of her heart.

With the support of these two places, the probability of Chen Yue breaking through to the Refining Organ Realm within a month had greatly increased.

As for the barrier between the Marrow Refining Realm and the Refining Organ Realm, it was an insurmountable mountain for many Martial Artists. However, the experience from the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform and the Wenda Corridor was precisely what Chen Yue needed to shore up any potential shortcomings in the shortest possible time.

A moment later, Chen Yue said his goodbyes to the three of them and followed the mountain path of True Inheritance Peak back to his own courtyard.

The sun was climbing higher, its light filtering through the gaps in the canopies and casting mottled shadows on the stone steps.

Back in his courtyard, he closed the gate, and the world grew quiet once more.

In addition to his daily cultivation, Chen Yue had a new task today: to contemplate the similarities between the Heart-Burning Record and the Burning Pill Technique, and attempt to merge them into one.

The Heart-Burning Record and the Burning Pill Technique shared the same origin; both achieved greater operational efficiency by burning a part of oneself. However, the former burned one’s Heart Spirit, while the latter burned both Heart Spirit and Qi Blood.

Chen Yue sat cross-legged on the stone slabs in his courtyard, closed his eyes, and sank his consciousness deep within his body.

He repeatedly simulated the operational pathways of the two cultivation techniques in his mind, trying to find a point where they could intersect and merge.

Time slowly ticked by during his deductions. The afternoon sun moved to the western side of the courtyard wall, and the green bamboo in the corner cast long shadows on the ground.

Night fell. At midnight, the familiar ripples appeared right on time.

[Daily Settlement]

[Attempted to merge cultivation techniques. Merge successful. New Cultivation Technique obtained: Burning Essence Technique]

…

[Burning Essence Technique (Perfection 273/600)]

…

A massive tide of comprehension flooded into Chen Yue’s Sea of Consciousness. All the vague obstructions he had encountered during his daytime deductions were filled in and cleared away by this new understanding.

The new Burning Essence Technique retained the core concepts of both cultivation techniques while partially canceling out their respective drawbacks, finding a better balance point between refinement efficiency and Heart Spirit consumption.

Upon careful examination of the new technique, he realized it could even serve as a Life-or-Death Secret Technique. When fully activated, it could unleash power far beyond his normal capabilities for a short period.

Moreover, the so-called side effects were very minor for Chen Yue.

Of course, its most important characteristic—its ability to refine elixirs—remained unchanged.

More importantly, the Experience Points required for this Secret Technique were unbelievably low.

Just like the Heart-Burning Record before it, it was so compatible with Chen Yue that he had cultivated it to Perfection in just a few days.

Now, with this new Burning Essence Technique, Chen Yue estimated that he could probably reach complete Perfection after just one more day of cultivation.

Early the next morning, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, a Deacon Disciple was already waiting outside Chen Yue’s courtyard.

Chen Yue pushed open the courtyard gate. The Deacon Disciple quickly stepped forward. “Senior Brother Chen, I am here to guide you to the Gathering Essence Spirit Platform.”

His voice was polite and respectful, tinged with a reverence reserved for disciples on the Cyan Cloud Ranking.

Chen Yue cupped his fists. “I’ll have to trouble you then, brother.”

The Deacon Disciple smiled. “Not at all, Senior Brother Chen. This way, please!”

The Deacon Disciple led Chen Yue through the main peak’s mountain paths, bypassing several buildings, and then ascended a flight of steps along a hidden trail.

The path was lined with tall cypress trees, their canopies obscuring much of the sky.