Book 2, Chapter 90 - Tempering the Body

A hoarse and emotionless voice echoed, scaring Zhao Jiuge.

“Go inside.”

Looking at the source of the voice, Zhao Jiuge found two elders standing at the two sides of the door. These two elders were wearing hemp robes, their bodies were thin, and their eyes contained no trace of emotion. They sat there like they had fused with the scenery. Zhao Jiuge hadn’t even noticed them even when they were this close.

“Yes, Elder.” Instructor Zhou respectfully bowed.

The stone door slowly opened and Instructor Zhou went inside. Zhao Jiuge wondered why Instructor Zhou was so respectful to the two elders, but he quickly followed him inside.

After they entered the mountain, the inside was dark. Then the door closed behind them, cutting off the light coming in from outside and engulfing everything in darkness. Everything outside turned back to normal.

They walked forward for dozens of meters and turned twice before a faint light appeared in the distance. Zhao Jiuge felt like the path winded down and wondered how far this path went. Soon, he could smell how damp it was becoming.

The further he went, the more narrow the tunnel became. After an unknown amount of time, they made a right turn and arrived in a stone chamber. He thought that they had arrived when he suddenly saw a black-robed elder. Fortunately, he was prepared this time and was not scared.

The black-robed elder was thin like a piece of dried-up wood, but his eyes were bright. He also had no aura, and when he looked at Zhao Jiuge, Zhao Jiuge felt like he was being completely seen through. Cold sweat covered his back, and this shocked Zhao Jiuge greatly.

Instructor Zhou bowed once more and said, “Elder, I’ve brought another disciple to temper himself in the spirit vein. The Head Teacher has ordered that all disciples in this generation that reach the Foundation Realm be allowed to temper themselves in the spirit vein immediately.”

Zhao Jiuge noticed that Instructor Zhou had bowed even lower and was even more respectful this time. Zhao Jiuge didn’t know that anyone who was an elder of the sect was extremely powerful. They never left the sect, they just peacefully cultivated inside the sect while guarding some important locations. The black-robed elder in here was far more terrifying than the two outside.

The black-robed elder looked at them once and responded, “I know. You guys can go inside.” Then he closed his eyes and became motionless like a rock.

Once the two of them continued past the stone chamber, Zhao Jiuge felt the temperature drop once more. This cold was bone-chilling even for him. After reaching the Foundation Realm, normal cold had no effect on him. This let Zhao Jiuge know that the spirit vein was not far away.

Sure enough, a moment later, the surrounding walls emitted a blue and white glow and the spiritual energy became violent. Zhao Jiuge was secretly shocked at how dense the spiritual energy here was. If he cultivated here, how fast would his cultivation level increase?

However, Zhao Jiuge didn’t know that the weaker he was, the shorter the period of time he could stay here, because his body wouldn’t be able to endure it.

The surroundings gradually opened up, and it was no longer a narrow tunnel. The surroundings were frozen by ice. If one looked up, one could see icicles hanging from the ceiling.

Everything was replaced by blue and white. It was crystal clear and very beautiful. However, the temperature continued to drop, Zhao Jiuge couldn’t help but shiver.

Instructor Zhou stopped and said, “Okay, go in yourself. Remember, don’t go too deep inside. With your current strength, you can only cultivate at the outer edge of the spirit vein to temper your body. I’ll go to the other spirit vein to pick up Mu Zijun and Bai Zimo, then I’ll come here and wait for you.”

Zhoa Jiuge nodded. “Then you go ahead first, Instructor Zhou.”

“Remember to take good advantage of this opportunity, there aren’t many opportitunes to enter the spirit vein. This is the time to improve your strength, I want to see how many days you can stay inside.” Instructor Zhou repeated his words a few more times before leaving.

When Zhao Jiuge saw Instructor Zhou completely disappear, he continued walking with a serious expression. He was preparing to temper his body.

Just as he was entering the spirit vein, there were three people talking about him.

……………..

Mysterious Heaven Peak, a silent hall.

A young man wearing purple was excitedly listening to his eldest disciple’s story. When Fu Hongling told her master about what happened, the young man in purple smiled and said, “Interesting, so he was able to break into the Foundation Realm because of this?”

Fu Hongling slightly lowered her head and responded, “Yes, Master.”

The Mysterious Heaven Sword Sect’s Head Teacher, Jian Wuxin, asked a meaningful question. “Hongling, what do you think of that little fellow?”

Fu Hongling pondered a bit before answering, “His heart is very strong and he is a sensible person. How could Master’s vision be wrong? I also like this child.”

Wu Tianshan suddenly looked at Fu Hongling and teased, “Yo, Senior Sister, this is different from your usual personality. He is just a child, it’s unknown if he will become our junior brother yet.”

Fu Hongling’s gentleness toward her master suddenly disappeared and her face was cold once more. Her beautiful eyes stared at Wu Tianshan. “If you don’t speak, no one will think you’re a mute. Is it because we haven’t trained together that your body’s itching? How about we go test if your cultivation has progressed after so long?”

“Senior Sister, I’m in the wrong. I’ll shut up.” When Wu Tianshan heard his sensior sister asking to train, he trembled. He had suffered a lot before, so he played it smart this time.

Seeing Wu Tianshan’s childish attitude, Jian Wuxin frowned. He said with a stern voice, “Tianshan, you have been stuck at Nascent Soul for so long, how can you still have this attitude?”

Hearing that his master was a bit angry, Wu Tianshan immediately became more serious and looked like he was being taught a lesson. Only at this moment did he act properly.

“Although Hongling is the eldest disciple, she is not suited. Your second senior brother has been missing for many years, but his Life Lantern still burns. He must be trapped in a certain place, but I have to manage the sect, so I can’t go search for him. Recently, the ambition of the Ten Thousand Dao Sect can’t be underestimated, we have to be on our guard. Your fourth and fifth junior brothers won’t be able to achieve anything big. Those two stay at the Enforcement Hall, going out on missions. Sha Sha is still too young, so the burden of the future falls on you. Don’t blame your senior sister for always scolding you. After all, the position of Head Teacher is always passed down in the Mysterious Heaven Peak. If you lack strength, how can you take the position?” Jian Wuxin sighed and he looked into the distance.

Wu Tianshan’s head lowered more and more while Jian Wuxin spoke. After Jian Wuxin finished, Wu Tianshan softly whispered, “Master, Disciple knows he is wrong. In a few days, I’ll head out of the sect to train my heart in order to seek a breakthrough.”

Jian Wuxin nodded and then changed the subject. “How many days do you think that little fellow can stay inside the spirit vein tempering his body?”

Fu Hongling was in a daze, thinking about the matters of the sect. When her master suddenly asked her, she honestly answered, “Disciple doesn’t know.”

Wu Tianshan pondered. “It shouldn’t be more than half a month.”

Seeing his master remain silent but showing an inexplicable smile on his face, Wu Tianshan suddenly thought of something. He seemed surprised, and he stared at this master and said, “Master, do you really intend to take that child as a disciple? That child’s character is good, but his talent is nothing special.”

Originally, Wu Tianshan thought his master was just joking, but now he realized that his master’s concern for Zhao jiuge was no joke. Wu Tianshan’s mind was in chaos—the Head Teacher taking a disciple was not a small matter.

“What? Is that child that bad?” Fu Hongling’s cold face revealed some displeasure.

Wu Tianshan immediately stopped talking.

“What do you understand? It’s almost time for the Seven Holy Land Exchange. This exchange is nothing but the sects showing off their future stars. The other will be discussing the tournament. Aside from that girl Sha Sha, we don’t have any disciples that are good enough. After the exchange will be the 100-year sect tournament. Now that the sect’s talents are withering, I’m afraid it will be too difficult for Sha Sha to handle it alone. If we don’t get good results, I fear the Ten Thousand Dao Sect will find this opportunity to cause problems and suppress our Mysterious Heaven Sword Sect. After all, all of you have passed the age to participate, so I want to choose a suitable candidate among these new disciples. That’s why I allowed these disciples to enter the spirit vein to temper themselves early. I wanted to see if there were any good seedlings among them,” Jian Wuxin said with a heavy heart.

Wu Tianshan was suddenly dumbfounded and became speechless. How could he see through someone’s hidden intent? Fu Hongling was able to see through some of her master’s thoughts, but she didn’t have any solutions and could only be anxious.

“Okay, this is not something you guys should worry about. Take your time to cultivate and improve your strength.” Jian Wuxin’s expression returned to normal.

“Everyone, go do your own things. Tianshan, you go out to hone yourself, just be careful.”

When Fu Hongling and Wu Tianshan were about to leave, Jian Wuxin suddenly said, “Oh yes, Hongling, don’t push yourself too much. Cultivating too much can also be harmful. If you have nothing to do, go out more, it can help improve your state of mind. You have also been stuck at a bottleneck for many years. Relaxing occasionally is not a bad thing.”

Fu Hongling pondered for a while before she nodded and left with Wu Tianshan.

After his two disciples left, Jian Wuxin stood with his hands behind his back. He muttered to himself, “Half a month at most? Zhao Jiuge ah Zhao Jiuge, I want to see how long you can last in the spirit vein.”

……

The deeper Zhao Jiuge went, the lower the temperature dropped, until Zhao Jiuge had to use spirit force to resist the cold. When the spirit force filled his body, Zhao Jiuge felt a bit better, but this feeling didn’t last for long. After a few more steps, Zhao Jiuge trembled from the cold. Looking at the dense spiritual energy and ice crystals, Zhao Jiuge knew that this was his limit. He didn’t waste time and immediately sat down. The air was not only filled with spiritual energy, this spiritual energy here had the cold attribute.

Tempering his body meant that he should cycle this spirit force through his body. By doing this, the surrounding spiritual energy would flow through his body and slowly temper it. This process would be long and painful. The longer this process went, the stronger his spirit force would become. That’s why some people can only last for a day or two, while others could last a month.

Zhao Jiuge took a deep breath, then his eyes lit up and he was ready to temper his body. He took a deep breath and sucked in a large amount of cold air. Finally, when Zhao Jiuge was ready, he closed his eyes and officially began tempering himself!

Previous Chapter Next Chapter