Wasted Spiritual Root to Embark on Demonic Cultivation

Chapter 264

The Soul Dream Origin Pill appeared like a glass bead, within which colorful spiritual patterns swirled in misty brilliance.

Its effect was to let the user experience a Soul Dream. When the dream ended, one’s Divine Sense would greatly increase, and it was especially effective for breaking through minor bottlenecks.

Wang Yu was stuck at this realm due to the limitations of his cultivation method.

After the Ancient Soul Art was completed and perfected, faint signs of breakthrough appeared.

However, ever since leaving the Heavenly Soul Sect’s Scripture Pavilion, he had either been fighting or fleeing. Everywhere were malicious cultivators harboring ill intentions.

He had truly experienced the kind of life a rogue cultivator lived without the shelter of a sect’s protection.

After consuming a Soul Dream Origin Pill, Wang Yu immediately fell into a hazy dream. Everything was indistinct and forgettable, yet it felt as though he had lived through an entire lifetime.

When he awoke, the Niwan Palace within his mind was filled with countless starlit motes of light that could nourish Divine Sense, dreamlike and illusory.

He quickly activated the Ancient Soul Art, refining all of the pill’s unique power. The Divine Sense within his Niwan Palace rapidly expanded.

Even that vague Ancient Soul within him had grown larger.“Still a bit short,” Wang Yu murmured after finishing his meditation, roughly estimating the time.

The refinement of the Soul Dream Essence Pill did not take long. Within a few days, he had already gained this much progress—its efficiency far surpassed that of the Ice Spirit Pill or the Ice Lotus Pill.

Unfortunately, taking too many of these pills would result in pill barrier.

As with all elixirs, this problem seemed unavoidable. After stabilizing his foundation for a moment, Wang Yu continued consuming spiritual pills.

Thus, half a month later, after refining five high-grade Soul Dream Origin Pills, the gray mists within his Niwan Palace further dissipated. Thousands of black paper boats drifted within that inner space.

These boats could resist any incoming Divine Sense attacks.

Deeper within, the light-blue threads representing his Divine Sense fully merged into the Ancient Soul Body. This guardian spirit, born from the mysteries of his cultivation art, grew ever stronger.

It was clear that he had succeeded in breaking through.

Wang Yu’s Divine Sense had reached the mid-stage of the third rank.

Its total capacity nearly doubled. The effect of the Soul Dream Origin Pill was excellent, if it had been supreme-grade, it would have been even better.

As for mid-grade or low-grade Soul Dream Origin Pills, he had no intention of taking them. Their quality was too low. It would be wiser to sell them for Spirit Stones, which could repay the spiritual materials he had spent.

In addition, the Ancient Soul was a manifestation of the cultivation method itself, not Wang Yu’s true soul.

Though similar in form, it was essentially a condensed manifestation of Divine Sense—one of the extensions of the soul, primarily serving to strengthen resistance.

In the future, it might even be refined into a second Nascent Soul, though Wang Yu had not yet decided whether to do so.

In cultivating the fourth-rank Ancient Soul Art, he only absorbed sunlight essence, moonlight radiance, and morning glow, avoiding the use of Heavenly Demon Intent for acceleration.

Of course, placing it into the Idle Slot was another matter entirely.

Over the past six years, besides cultivation and refining True Artifacts, many of his Soul Dao Secret Arts had been upgraded. With his previously perfected foundation, Wang Yu’s progress was swift.

Ten Thousand-Mile Manifestation, Soul-Shattering Finger, and Heavenly Soul One Qi—all of these third-rank Divine Sense arts had reached the minor completion stage. After depleting all accumulated foundation, his progress finally began to slow.

Even so, with his current Divine Sense realm, they could serve as reliable trump cards not inferior to the Demonic Dragon Fist.

In addition, the incomplete divine ability Soul-Extinguishing Death Ray was finally under his command. Even in its damaged form, it retained partial third-rank power.

Its cultivation method was unique, with the Ancient Soul serving as the prerequisite.

One had to inscribe the Soul-Crushing and Spirit-Extinguishing runes upon the Ancient Soul—not using one’s own True Essence or Divine Sense, but instead employing the Death Soul Qi between Heaven and Earth as the carving blade.

What was Death Soul Qi?

It was the wisp of energy released when a soul perished.

Wang Yu had once encountered Death Qi—the formless power that appeared when life neared its end. The closer one was to death, the harder it became to perceive it. Strangely, younger cultivators could sometimes observe it more clearly.

Death Soul Qi was one branch of Death Qi.

This dangerous force could easily cause one’s soul to scatter during cultivation. Furthermore, its supply was limited. It could only be found in mass graves, burial mounds, or gloomy yin lands.

Wang Yu had no desire to risk his life or waste time searching, so he directly used the Idle Slot to initiate the art.

For now, it could not yet be employed in combat.

He noticed something peculiar about all divine abilities.

Whether it was the Lesser Asura Killing Fist, the Yellow Springs Great Hand Seal, or the Demonic Dragon Fist, all of them provided some degree of positive feedback to his core cultivation while being practiced.

However.

Without sufficient True Essence, it was truly difficult to unleash the full might of any divine ability. The only exception was the Demonic Dragon Fist. The Soul Dao arts also shared this limitation.

This realization deepened his understanding of the Core Formation Realm’s importance.

“I still need to find spiritual herbs that can increase my True Essence limit,” he murmured.

Six years of seclusion had given him time to reflect deeply.

...

...

In Ancient Fang City of You Prefecture, at the Vegetarian Cuisine Pavilion,

The medicinal dishes here were well-known. When one did not hesitate to spend Spirit Stones, not only could one satisfy the palate, but such meals also provided significant aid to cultivation.

After emerging from seclusion, Wang Yu came here immediately for a hearty feast.

Once his appetite and desires were sated,

He headed to the Golden Abundance Tower in Ancient Fang City. Though this establishment was under the control of Jin Lin, it did not hinder his ability to spend freely here.

There were still six years left before the twenty-year agreement reached its term.

His purpose in visiting the Golden Abundance Tower was to collect the Qi of the Four Directions and the Four Seas. In this world, the heritage of Geomancers was not unique. Such special spiritual substances also had their own market value.

To refine the Fengshui Compass, he was collecting these spiritual materials.

The cultivation of the Earth Mother Scripture had just entered the proper path. It mainly relied on his own comprehension, and only when he encountered a bottleneck would he use the Idle Slot to break through. Therefore, progress was not very fast.

He had barely entered the beginner stage.

When he came out of Golden Abundance Tower, his expression showed clear satisfaction.

The Qi of the Four Seas had to be collected from the Chaotic Ancient Sea. He had no time to travel that far, but Golden Abundance Tower had a certain reserve. Moreover, it was not too expensive, five hundred thousand lower-grade spirit stones could purchase a complete set.

It was said that formation masters often needed such unique spiritual materials. The Qi of the Four Directions was the Earth Qi of the four land, and collecting it was relatively simple.

Using the Golden Vision of Qi Observation, one could trace the earth veins in four directions and extract a single wisp. On the other hand, the main material for the Fengshui Compass, Black Copper, was extremely rare, and he had not yet managed to buy it.

He had already worn the Earth-Net Ghost Mask twice, and that was sufficient.

Next, he planned to travel around Chasing Moon Prefecture, moving from north to south, returning to the territory of Cloud Ridge Prefecture. Along the way, he would gather information and collect the Earth Qi of the Four Directions.

He would travel while cultivating. By the time he returned to Jade Spirit, the appointed time with Zuo Qiuming would almost have arrived. Jin Miaoshan still had ice-attribute high-grade Core Formation spiritual materials and tribulation-avoiding treasures waiting for him.

By his estimation, it was almost time.

Thus, after leaving Ancient Fang City, Wang Yu went all the way south.

The territory of Yellow Spring Monastery was similar in appearance to that of the Exalted Sect, though smaller in scale, with much of its land lying over the sea.

Because the Desolate Silence Desert was unfit for mortal habitation, the population was denser elsewhere.

Robberies and ambushes were common in the wilds, yet the cultivators of Yellow Spring Monastery seemed unusually fond of meddling in others’ affairs. Once they caught someone, both sides often suffered great misfortune.

Fines.

Yes, the people of Yellow Spring Monastery disliked killing but were particularly enthusiastic about issuing fines. Using the excuse of “disrupting public order,” they could fine a person until he was utterly bankrupt, and then “kindly” introduce him to a mining job on some remote island.

Refusal was not an option.

After witnessing this several times, Wang Yu could not help scratching his head, wondering how such a bizarre custom had come to be.

Yellow Spring Monastery governed five prefectures: You Prefecture, Sha Prefecture (the Desolate Desert), Tao Prefecture, Bamboo Mountain Prefecture, and East Sea Prefecture. On the Crimson Kite Continent, their domain resembled a fat, long-bodied serpent.

It also extended across the eastern coastline, with East Sea Prefecture serving as their main base and most prosperous region.

Wang Yu did not involve himself in any conflicts. Using concealment techniques, he passed through undetected. Ordinary cultivators could scarcely sense his presence, and the journey was uneventful.

He smoothly reached the southern border of You Prefecture, which was very close to Wanglong City, the southern tip of Chasing Prefecture.

[TL Notes: Wanglong City was previously translated as Longing Rapids City]

The city lord of Wanglong City was Wei Hao, whom Wang Yu had met once in Jade Spirit. Wei Hao’s attitude had been friendly. Of the six fallen city lords among the New Nine Cities of Chasing Moon, his name was not among them.

Perhaps because his city lay in a remote region, he had escaped disaster.

Upon arriving nearby, Wang Yu entered a border city named Huangbai City and used some methods to inquire about the current state of Chasing Moon Prefecture.

The commonly known rumors were easy enough to uncover.

However, the detailed contents of the negotiations between the two dominant powers were much harder to learn.

Six years had passed.

As expected, there had been almost no progress. The situation remained at a stalemate. On the side of Chasing Moon Prefecture, the Exalted Sect city lords were frantically using their connections, taking the opportunity to strengthen their forces.

For them, this was a chance for meritorious expansion. The profits from city sovereignty came second.

Meanwhile, in Huangbai City, there were also many cultivators from Yellow Spring Monastery.

They too were taking advantage of the stalled negotiations, dispatching large numbers of inner and outer sect disciples to station themselves in this newly formed border city.

Once the negotiations concluded, they could immediately launch an attack to seize the final three cities and bring Chasing Moon Prefecture back under the control of Yellow Spring Monastery.

Both sides were mobilizing troops and gathering strength.

It was evident that once the talks ended, this place would likely see the final decisive battle to determine city sovereignty.

At this moment, while Wang Yu was temporarily staying in an inn, several Yellow Spring Monastery disciples entered, led by a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

They had just taken seats at an empty table when one of them noticed Wang Yu, who wore a mask. After whispering to his companions, the group surrounded him.

“Fellow Daoist, Chasing Moon Prefecture is currently in a state of war. This place is the closest to the remaining three cities of the Exalted Sect’s remnants, where enemy spies are plentiful. Could you verify your identity?”

Wang Yu set down his wine cup. From Ancient Fang City to here, this was the only city he had entered, and he had not expected to be questioned so soon.

“Gentlemen, I am but a wandering cultivator. I am unsure how to prove my identity.”

“A wandering cultivator?”

The men exchanged glances, and the Foundation Establishment leader rubbed his fingers together.

“Simple. Fellow Daoist need only allow This Yang to inspect your storage pouch.”

Wang Yu pondered for a moment, then retrieved a storage pouch from his robe.

This one was used for miscellaneous items, mostly things he no longer needed and could sell at any time. He took out several bottles of pills.

Calmly, he said, “Four bottles of first-rank supreme-grade spiritual pills. Would that suffice as proof?”

Each bottle contained nine pills, worth nearly ten thousand lower-grade spirit stones—enough to buy the lives of several Qi Refining cultivators. The Foundation Establishment leader accepted the pouch but made no move to share it with his subordinates.

With a wave of his hand, he was ready to leave.

Yet one of the others spoke up indignantly.

“Why are you skulking around wearing a mask? Take it off and let us have a look.”

“Ah… what need is there for that?”