Cultivating with Top Enlightenment

With Ning Qi's assistance.

The trace of spiritual power that had merged into the body was immediately expelled.

At the same time, Ning Qi sensed the strange power from before suddenly vanish, as if it had never existed. Meanwhile, Blade Demon's condition finally improved significantly, with his pupils returning to their original jet-black state and the life energy in his body reversing.

In the back mountain.

A dead silence.

Only the sound of Blade Demon gasping for breath remained.

In his jet-black pupils, fear was visibly etched, despite having mentally prepared himself for the possibility of dying, he couldn't help but feel suffocated when truly facing such an unknown and terrifying entity.

If Ning Qi hadn't prepared numerous contingency plans beforehand, his fate would have been bleak.

"What... what exactly is it? In the spiritual qi... what on earth exists?" Blade Demon asked hoarsely.

He looked up at Ning Qi, eager for an answer.

But Ning Qi's eyes were also full of seriousness.

He slowly shook his head.

Everything remains unknown.

The only certainty now is that there is indeed a harmful substance within the spiritual qi; his perception couldn't be mistaken. This is the source of everything, Ning Qi took a deep breath and said:

"How do you feel now?"

Blade Demon observed himself inwardly, fully perceiving, and after a moment, said gravely:

"My lifespan has decreased somewhat, and the life energy within me has weakened a lot."

He felt lingering fear; if not for the reversal of the secret technique at the last moment with Ning Qi's help, he might have met his demise.

Ning Qi nodded slightly:

"It seems... the harmful substance within spiritual qi drastically reduces one's lifespan. If it's absorbed into the body, one might die from lifespan depletion!"

Blade Demon remained silent, his voice somewhat rough:

"In this case, doesn't it imply that the path to Martial Saint is a dead end? Without absorbing spiritual qi, one cannot reach the Martial Saint Realm, but absorbing it leads to lifespan depletion. Nothing works!"

He felt a bit hopeless, but then his eyes suddenly brightened:

"No, if that's the case, how did the Ancient Saints ascend? There must be a way!"

Ning Qi fell into contemplation, various thoughts rising unceasingly.

After a moment, he spoke:

"There are a few possibilities; either the Ancient Saints have already mastered the method to remove this harmful substance, filtering it out before absorbing spiritual qi, then naturally no problem would occur."

"Or, the Martial Saints might temporarily suppress the backlash from this harmful substance, waiting until reaching the Martial Saint Realm when lifespan extends, allowing them to withstand the backlash of this harmful substance."

"I lean towards the latter."

Ning Qi's eyes showed a slight wave.

From his previous conversation with Taoist Bai Shan, he had already understood some things, and now this is his evidence.

If the Ancient Saints had found a solution, perhaps the world wouldn't be the way it is now.

Blade Demon fell silent.

Does this mean that the Ancient Saints were merely enduring it?

Ning Qi smiled and reassured:

"Friend, there's no need to be discouraged. This time, it's not a total loss. At least we've discovered the presence of this toxic substance. What the Ancient Saints couldn't do doesn't mean I can't."

His words were calm, yet filled with strong confidence.

This time, it's not just no harvest, but rather a tremendous gain!

For Ning Qi.

The difficulty isn't the problem, it's not having a target.

Now that he can trace the path of this toxic substance, all it takes is a few more attempts to gradually find a way to eliminate it. In this, he has great confidence in himself.

Blade Demon was stunned, then also laughed.

He always instinctively forgets just what kind of prodigy stands before him; no matter how powerful the Ancient Saints are, they merely cultivated for more years, but when it comes to talent and insight, it's unlikely anyone could match the fearsome figure before him.

"Alright! Whatever plans you have, I'll fully cooperate!" Blade Demon straightened his body, raising his right arm like a blade.

Ning Qi merely waved his hand and smiled:

"The urgent matter for you now is to first restore your body. Since this toxic substance consumes lifespan and life energy, I also need to prepare some life-extending treasures and secret techniques."

As luck would have it.

Thanks to the previous situation with Qin Yun, the True Martial Sect is already fully collecting life-extending treasures, yielding some results. In his spare time, Ning Qi has been pondering the creation of life extension secret techniques, and now the foundation is laid.

Blade Demon nodded as well.

He used to scoff at life-extending treasures, because he was already at the Celestial Being Peak; if he couldn't find a path forward, living a long life meant little. But now, since there is hope, he won't reject it.

The two stood side by side in the night sky, exchanging insights on refining spiritual qi.

The spiritual light in Ning Qi's mind grew ever stronger.

Many ideas were born.

Time passed.

After Blade Demon's condition returned to peak, he and Ning Qi conducted another experiment. This time, Ning Qi was prepared, sensing the toxic substance within spiritual qi and spiritual power more clearly. Furthermore, with precautions taken, Blade Demon suffered less backlash.

This filled him with excitement.

The direction is right; now it's a matter of relentless effort.

Just need a few more trials to gradually grasp the essence of this toxic substance and its form within spiritual qi, then Ning Qi can certainly devise a secret technique to filter it.

Moreover.

There's an additional benefit.

That is, Ning Qi's mastery of spiritual power is growing at a visible pace, subtly advancing his strength further. At this rate, before long, even Taoist Bai Shan wouldn't be able to rival him.

In this manner, at least until a spiritual awakening, Ning Qi remains among the strongest.