Chapter 311: 194, Tian Yuan, Mysterious and Boundless Underworld, the Legend of Hell (5k long chapter, seeking subscription)
An Auxiliary Immortal Fate was equivalent to his Innate Divine Power. Once it was upgraded, it would greatly help him.
There's no hurry... Now that I have condensed the Nine Luminaries Immortal Fate [Cave Spirit], I can continue to cultivate the Immortal Path in the Instance World. The crisis from the Immeasurable Sect will not come for another fifty years. Xu Xing thought.
Due to his reincarnation in the Instance World and his lack of Gangsha Meridians, he had not fully utilized the time advantage of the Instance World when cultivating in the Main World to reach the Blending Light Realm and Purple Mansion Realm. But now, with this Auxiliary Immortal Fate [Cave Spirit], it should not be difficult for his self in the Instance World to condense a Flying Immortal Purple Mansion.
With a shift in his thoughts, he arrived at his other self in the Emperor Jin World.
Wu Yi Mountain Range.
Qiming Sect, within an internal Cave Mansion.
Solidify Nine Luminaries Immortal Fate [Cave Spirit]...
With his experience condensing the Purple Mansion in the Main World, recreating it in the Emperor Jin World was a familiar task for Xu Xing, posing no obstacles.
In a short while, as his Magic Power was consumed, Xu Xing sensed one of his splintered thoughts transform into a Horned Dragon Spirit, similar to the "Dark Serpent" from the Main World. This Horned Dragon Spirit was significantly stronger than the original Dark Serpent.
It took about four and a half years to condense the Purple Mansion in the Main World. The six-year seclusion was primarily to meticulously refine the Flying Immortal Purple Mansion and engrave Magical Prohibitions within it... With this Horned Dragon Spirit, I expect the process will be significantly shortened.
After the Horned Dragon Spirit was born, Xu Xing adapted to the spirituality of this Cave Spirit. Then, he began to direct this Cave Spirit to transport the Magic Power within his body, constructing the Flying Feather Purple Mansion in his Dantian. This time, constructing the Purple Mansion was more than twice as fast as before. If not for his physical constitution's limitations—the Horned Dragon Spirit (evolved from the Dark Serpent concept) being unable to transport too much Magic Power at once without risking damage to his Dantian—his progress in condensing the Purple Mansion would have been even faster.
「Three years later.」
Xu Xing once again condensed a Purple Mansion and, in one go, cultivated to the second stage of the Purple Mansion Realm.
There are three stages in the Purple Mansion Realm. Condensing a Purple Mansion marked entry into the first stage. Next, the Purple Mansion would serve as a Furnace Ding for the internal cultivation of the Returning Core. Only with the Purple Mansion's protection could the Returning Core "breakthrough" without harming the physical body. At this stage, the Returning Core already possessed various divine powers. A cultivator who did not cultivate their physical body or establish a Purple Mansion residence could not withstand a Returning Core that had condensed Magic Power to its extreme.
Ancient Books record that a Returning Core, though no larger than a Chicken Egg, possessed immense weight. Even a slight release of this weight could easily crush a person into meat paste. Moreover, the Returning Core was not only astonishingly heavy but also contained various Daoist Arts. During normal cultivation, it remained harmless; under the cultivator's control, it would not cause self-injury. However, at the critical point of a breakthrough, without the Purple Mansion's protection, even a slight leakage of its aura could injure the cultivator—a scenario not difficult to imagine.
The essence of the Purple Mansion Realm's three stages was to augment the 'quantity' of this Returning Core. Cultivating sufficient Magic Power until the Purple Mansion reached its utmost capacity signified the completion of the Purple Mansion Realm's three stages.
Generally, a lower-grade Purple Mansion could only store 300 years' worth of Magic Power. A medium-grade Purple Mansion could store 600 years' worth. An upper-grade Purple Mansion could store 900 years' worth. The 'Magic Power' here is benchmarked against the amount an ordinary lower-grade Purple Mansion Returning Core Cultivator accumulates in one year. In other words, the Purple Mansion Realm could accommodate 300 years of a cultivator's Magic Power. Thus, a Returning Core Cultivator with a lower-grade Purple Mansion possessed only one-third the Magic Power storage capacity of one with an upper-grade Purple Mansion. Step by step, the gap widened between them and the Prides of Heaven.
Someone is at the entrance of the Cave Mansion?
Meditating on the Jade Seat, Xu Xing opened his eyes and looked outside. He saw several Female Cultivators with anxious expressions standing at his Cave Mansion Entrance, asking the guarding disciple when he would emerge from seclusion. The leader among these Female Cultivators was Hua Shu, the Five-tribulation Ghost Immortal who had previously welcomed him into the Qiming Sect.
Six years had passed in the Main World. The time ratio to the Emperor Jin World was one to twenty. Thus, 120 years had now passed in the Emperor Jin World. Hua Shu had since grown into an Eight Tribulations Ghost Immortal and had become the Sect Master of the Qiming Sect, responsible for its affairs. During these 120 years, Xu Xing had not remained in constant seclusion. He would occasionally emerge from his Cave Mansion to investigate the local secrets and, incidentally, assist the Qiming Sect with some minor tasks. With his cultivation at the Approaching Yang Realm, he could be considered a top-tier expert in this region. Any task, no matter how difficult, became trivial once it reached his hands.
"When will Elder Yao come out of seclusion?"
"I have an important matter for which I must request Elder Yao's assistance!" outside the Cave Mansion, Hua Shu said urgently. Ordinarily, having been Sect Master for some time, she would not be so agitated. But today's matter was of grave importance; a slight misstep in handling it could risk the Sect's destruction. She could not afford to feign composure.
"'Elder Yao last emerged from seclusion seven years ago...'"
"'When Elder Yao entered seclusion, he left no instructions regarding when he would emerge. Please forgive me, Sect Master,' the guarding disciple replied hastily, his attitude respectful."
Seven years ago? Hua Shu frowned, her willow-like eyebrows knitting together. High-level cultivators often enter seclusion for decades at a time. Elder Yao has only been in seclusion for seven years. To disturb him now would be a breach of etiquette. Besides, Elder Yao last revealed his cultivation to be at the Elixir Mark Realm. This seclusion is likely an attempt to break through to the Approaching Yang Realm... If my interruption causes Elder Yao's efforts to be wasted, I will not only offend him but also become a pariah to the Qiming Sect.
However, just then, the Cave Mansion door creaked open quietly, and Xu Xing's calm and gentle voice drifted out, "Sect Leader Hua is visiting... I have failed to welcome you from afar. Please, come into the Cave Mansion and wait for a moment..."