Chapter 718: Perfection in the Nirvana Sutra, Extreme Control!

Chapter 718: Perfection in the Nirvana Sutra, Extreme Control!



Luo Chen had always found himself susceptible to "mental demon invasions".

During the Essence Energy Cultivation stage, he faced a mental tribulation.

At the Foundation Establishment stage, he fell into demonic hindrances.

To counter this, he diligently cultivated related techniques and secret arts.

Whether it was the Bright God Annihilation or the Microcosmic Yuan Technique, they all served to temper his willpower and mental state.

Unknowingly, he gradually forged an indomitable and impervious mental fortitude.

This mental cultivation was not apparent in everyday life, but whenever faced with significant events, Luo Chen always remained calm and made the right choices countless times.

Whether it was the Cangwu Mountain's deep troubles or the Devil Slaying Land surrounded by powerful enemies, even when the late-stage Primordial Spirit, Moon Scattering Immortal, pursued him relentlessly across ten thousand miles, he maintained his inner calm amidst the frenzy of his emotions.

Thus, throughout the entire Golden Core realm, he never encountered mental invasions similar to those he faced during the Essence Energy Cultivation and Foundation Establishment stages.

However!

Luo Chen never expected that instead of mental invasions, he would face external demonic attacks.

After breaking through the Primordial Spirit stage and surviving the tribulation, Han Zhan suddenly rose!

That battle in the Mind Sea could be considered an external demonic tribulation.

Now, over a decade later, even though he had recovered and his cultivation had surpassed his previous level, he still couldn't shake off the lingering fear.

"Among the world's cultivators, am I the only one who experiences this, or is it the same for everyone?"

During his free time, Luo Chen had also asked himself this question.

But in the end, he couldn't find an answer.

Unable to force a conclusion, Luo Chen could only let it go and focus on strengthening himself to the best of his abilities.

And now, after the worst had passed, his gains exceeded ordinary imagination.

A complete Great Five Elements Sword Array formation diagram, the method to refine Flying Cloud Master's Sword Orb, and even an additional metal-attributed True Artifact Sword Orb with no trace of willpower!

Holding the Sword Orb, Luo Chen pondered.

This should have been a backup weapon prepared by Flying Cloud Master for himself.

From this perspective, Flying Cloud Master, as a sword cultivator, seemed not as pure as he appeared.

A sword cultivator dedicates their life to refining a single sword orb.

The sword lives with the cultivator, and its destruction means the cultivator's demise.

From the very beginning, he had kept a way out for himself, which explained why his sword techniques lacked that extra flavor and fell short of the formidable might of breaking through all laws with a single strike.

"Nevertheless, it's a great bargain for me."

Luo Chen chuckled, collecting the formation diagram, forging records, and the Sword Orb together.

He was only missing four more, and with time, he might be able to master a powerful sword array.

Subsequently, he began to inventory the other resources in Flying Cloud Master's Storage Belt.

At first glance, it didn't seem like much, but as he meticulously went through each item, Luo Chen couldn't help but smile.

Rare herbs, pills suitable for Golden Core and Primordial Spirit cultivators, and a dazzling array of treasures filled his eyes.

There were also over a dozen books covering various aspects, most of which were rarely seen in the outside world.

For instance, an unadorned jade slip contained the very information Luo Chen needed.

The Geography of the Northern Sea

Within, it detailed the geography of the Northern Sea, along with the corresponding power names.

Especially noteworthy, Flying Cloud Master had marked the power distribution of the Northern Sea after the Demonic Yuan, including the Mara Stream's control over twelve sea areas, precisely matching the twelve stream leaders.

The Penglai Immortal Sect, returning from the Monster Sea, monopolized three sea areas.

The Ten Thousand Immortals Assembly, centered around the Dragon Soaring Mountains, occupied eight sea areas in a scattered manner. While it seemed like a lot, three of these areas were part of the Three Ocean Defense Line, constantly facing monster beast invasions, making them undesirable to outsiders.

The other three were originally territories of Primordial Spirit powers.

In other words, the Ten Thousand Immortals Assembly truly controlled only two prosperous sea areas.

The most powerful force was the Cang Hai Righteous Alliance!

With the strength of a single alliance, they occupied twenty-nine complete sea areas, each guarded by a Primordial Spirit cultivator! If not for this alliance's focus on mutual interests, relying solely on the prestige of the powerful Cang Hai, their internal disunity might have made the Mara Stream hesitate to confront them directly, even with the support of the Penglai Immortal Sect.

Luo Chen didn't pay much attention to some of the smaller, scattered forces.

However, when he exited the jade slip, his spiritual sense intentionally noted the sea areas occupied by the Heavenly Yuan Commerce Alliance.

Seven, not a significant number.

But in recent years, the influence of the Heavenly Yuan Commerce Alliance had grown exponentially, spreading across the righteous, demonic, and solitary cultivator factions in the Northern Sea. Its presence was felt throughout the entire region.

Especially with the backing of the Heavenly Yuan Dao Sect! It was a colossal force standing tall in the distant Central State. Even during the time of the Primordial Demon Sect, they merely coexisted across the sea, respecting each other's boundaries.

Luo Chen placed the jade slip within easy reach in his storage ring and breathed a sigh of relief.

"With this map, I'll be able to avoid many detours when I return to the cultivation world."

He then continued to inventory Flying Cloud Master's belongings.

If one were to ask what was most abundant in Flying Cloud Master's belt, the answer was undoubtedly items related to Magic Treasures!

A high-grade Magic Treasure, the Heaven's Girdle Furnace, had no combat power but was solely for refining and pill concocting.

Three high-grade Magic Treasure flying swords.

Twelve mid-grade Magic Treasures.

Low-grade Magic Treasures and artifacts were few and far between.

Each item was personally refined by Flying Cloud Master and bore his unique cloud-pattern mark.

These treasures, if sold, could arm a smaller Primordial Spirit sect, and for a Golden Core sect, it would be like arming them to the teeth.

Luo Chen reached out and picked up a long halberd, examining it with great interest.

This was an unusual treasure, rarely used by cultivators in the cultivation world.

The reason he paid so much attention to it was that although the treasure's rank was not high, only of low-grade, it was placed among the high-grade treasures, alongside three flying swords.

As he held it, Luo Chen's eyebrows furrowed.

Heavy! An extreme sense of heaviness caused his wrist to bend, and the halberd plummeted towards the ground.

But who was Luo Chen? Even without using his Source Power, he possessed immense divine strength.

He gripped the shaft with one hand and the hilt with the other, his muscles rippling as he slowly raised the halberd in front of him.

"So heavy, it must have the weight of ten thousand catties."

"A cultivator's spiritual sense might barely be able to control it, but it's too strenuous. It doesn't seem like a treasure made for cultivators."

"Could it be specifically refined for Body Cultivators?"

Luo Chen's heart stirred, and a crimson power flowed from his arm, covering the halberd.

He didn't have the vigorous aura of a Body Cultivator, but he had Source Power.

He wondered if it would work...

The next moment, as the Source Power enveloped the halberd, it suddenly became lighter in his hand. Although it was still as heavy as a mountain, he could at least wield it freely.

Luo Chen was taken aback, then naturally broke into a smile.

Previously, he had been thinking of refining a weapon that could withstand Source Power and enhance it after achieving Soul Formation.

Unexpectedly, he had found the perfect solution.

Although the rank might be a bit low, just the sheer weight of ten thousand catties was enough to deter ordinary cultivators from tampering with it.

"I wonder what material this treasure was refined from."

Luo Chen's interest piqued, and his spiritual sense fell upon the halberd's dark shaft and the moon-shaped blade and spearhead, which emitted a faint, dim glow.

Based on his knowledge, he identified some of the materials: Metal of the seventh day, Thunder Sand, and a large amount of Traceback, but he couldn't recognize the main material.

Hiss! A wisp of green flame appeared, and the Prosperity and Withering True Fire covered the halberd.

As the True Fire's terrifying high temperature scorched the halberd, a special aura gradually emerged.

It was an aura of solidity, like the earth itself!

"Yuan Heavy Mountain Stone!"

Luo Chen was astonished. He never expected that the main material of this halberd would be the heavenly meteorite recorded in ancient books—the Yuan Heavy Mountain Stone!

In ancient times, there was a meteorite that fell from the heavens.

Although it wasn't large, once it landed on the ground, it was indestructible and couldn't be moved by force.

So, it was given the name 'Yuan Heavy Mountain Stone', symbolizing the weight of a mountain descending from the heavens.

The main material of this halberd was indeed Yuan Heavy Mountain Stone, and due to its unique properties, Flying Cloud Master couldn't engrave enough array formations on it, which affected its rank.

"Wait, stop!"

Luo Chen waved his hand and quickly retracted the Prosperity and Withering True Fire.

The Fire Spirit had been playing around and almost melted the halberd.

"I know you're powerful, but that's enough!"

Luo Chen glared at the True Fire and retracted it.

Ever since the Fire Spirit gained sentience, it had been very active. Before, Luo Chen had suppressed its spirituality, but after achieving Soul Formation, he felt he could let it grow freely, so he stopped suppressing it.

Now, it had become even more unruly.

Ignoring the Fire Spirit's grievances, Luo Chen happily thrust the halberd into the ground.

Next, he would take some time to refine the halberd and enhance his abilities.

Finally, Luo Chen took inventory of the spirit stones left by Flying Cloud Master.

Wow! It was a substantial amount!

Adding up all the spirit stones of various ranks, there were a staggering five hundred million low-grade spirit stones.

If you included the thirty thousand high-grade spirit stones Luo Chen had obtained earlier, his net worth would be around eight hundred million! This didn't even include the ten top-grade spirit stones from Han Zhan.

Those were strategic resources and couldn't be measured as regular currency in the cultivation world.

"Tsk tsk! Indeed, a horse doesn't grow fat without night grass, and a man doesn't become rich without windfall gains. I've toiled for so many years, constantly buying and selling spirit stones, and it would take at least two hundred years to accumulate such wealth. But with just a few battles, I've become immensely wealthy, and I no longer need to worry about spirit stones."

Luo Chen was filled with emotion.

However, if given the choice, he would never want to become rich through such a dangerous method.

It was too risky!

After imprinting his mark on Flying Cloud's belt and changing it to red, Luo Chen happily tied it around his waist and continued his cultivation.

...

Time passed slowly.

The spiritual energy on Dragon Abyss Island, after the brief resurgence, finally began to gradually decline.

Countless spiritual energy, day and night, dissipated into the heavens and the vast sea.

Even with the protection of array formations, which relied on the earth's veins, couldn't stop the trend of spiritual energy leakage.

This was the decline after reaching its peak!

Luo Chen's cultivation also gradually approached its conclusion.

In the third year after stabilizing his cultivation base, he optimized the Azure Sun Great Palm and unlocked Han Zhan's storage bag.

In the fifth year, he unlocked Flying Cloud's storage belt and reaped a bountiful harvest.

In the seventh year, he completely refined the true artifact-level Summoning Banner.

In the eighth year, after several unsuccessful attempts to refine the Penglai Octagonal Pavilion, Luo Chen took a different approach. He used Han Zhan's early cultivation method to refine the Octagonal Pavilion, gaining a certain level of access.

This True Artifact was incredibly difficult to refine because it was a hereditary artifact.

Although the Penglai Immortal Sect did not entrust it entirely to a single person, they had also left behind intricate restrictions on it.

With Luo Chen's current level of attainment, it would take at least several decades to completely refine it.

However, this limited access was already sufficient to support Luo Chen's daily needs.

When the ninth year arrived, Luo Chen's main cultivation technique reached its peak.

The Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Sutra reached its pinnacle! On this day, Luo Chen looked at the attribute panel, where the progress bar reached the "Grandmaster 100/100" stage, and the term flashed, transforming into the three characters "Grandmaster."

No changes?

Luo Chen hesitated, and in a situation where spiritual energy was not abundant, he once again activated his innate cultivation technique.

He divided his attention, sensing the absorption of external spiritual energy.

"It's increased by half compared to before!"

"This slight qualitative change can barely support my Nascent Soul Stage cultivation."

"With this, changing my main cultivation technique isn't as urgent."

Luo Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

This set of cultivation techniques, known as the best fire-attributed techniques in the world, had numerous wondrous uses even in the Golden Core chapter.

Even after the Nascent Soul Stage, relying on the proficiency of reaching the pinnacle, it can still support the cultivation of Nascent Soul Cultivators.

Suddenly, Luo Chen's heart stirred.

As he absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, it seemed like something was changing? With a thought, his Nascent Soul Domain suddenly expanded!

The scattered fire-attributed spiritual energy of heaven and earth rushed towards him, accompanied by a powerful oppressive force that enveloped the Earth Abyss.

At the same time, Luo Chen let out a soft shout.

"Come out!"

The next moment, the Prosperity and Withering True Fire quietly emerged.

It trembled and looked at Luo Chen, spreading its branches.

"As expected!"

Luo Chen manipulated the branches derived from the True Fire, merging them into his Nascent Soul Domain.

In an instant, an extremely destructive force began to spread.

In the Earth Abyss, countless rocks started to melt.

Luo Chen withdrew and rose into the air above Dragon Abyss Island.

"Black King!"

Black King, who was cultivating on the island, responded to Luo Chen's call.

"Master, do you want to spar again?"

Luo Chen looked down at Black King and smiled slightly.

"This time, it's simple. Just infuse your Source Power throughout your body and try to resist my Hellfire of the Netherworld."

Black King uttered an 'oh,' not particularly surprised.

The Nascent Soul Domain didn't have much effect on them, the Savage Beasts.

Source Power was naturally immune to domain suppression.

Luo Chen had already realized this and shared this method with Black King.

At this moment, facing the Hellfire, Black King calmly awaited the domain suppression.

But soon, his expression changed.

He watched as wisps of blue smoke rose from his body.

"How could this happen?"

Huff...

Luo Chen exhaled deeply.

Looking at his domain, he couldn't help but smile.

The Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Sutra, at its pinnacle, didn't provide a significant cultivation boost, at least for Nascent Soul Cultivators, it was only marginally useful.

But its other effect was beyond expectation.

It had an extraordinary control over fire-attributed spiritual energy of heaven and earth, even without refining or imprinting his seal on the scattered spiritual energy! Not only that, but it also had terrifying control over substantial fire, as if an upper-level being naturally suppressed a lower-level one.

The Withering Vigor Fire Spirit, which had been extremely arrogant before, now trembled and obeyed Luo Chen's control.

Luo Chen decided to merge it into the Hellfire of the Netherworld... not just a simple fusion, but also incorporating its innate ability to burn away the life force of living beings.

Therefore, the Hellfire of the Netherworld, in addition to suppressing enemies, now had an additional ability.

Annihilate the Void! It could annihilate other attributed spiritual energy of heaven and earth, even Black King's Source Power, which was immune to Nascent Soul Domain suppression! In battle against enemies, when the Hellfire of the Netherworld appeared, enemies would be unable to control spiritual energy, while Luo Chen could. With this advantage, he could establish victory.

"My hundred years of bitter cultivation were not in vain!"

A hundred years, no exaggeration! Since Luo Chen obtained the Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Sutra, he had been cultivating it, and now, a hundred years had passed.

Looking back at all the cultivation techniques and secret techniques Luo Chen had learned in his life, none had taken as long as this one.

And the final result was indeed extremely satisfying for Luo Chen.

"I wonder what wonders the Nascent Soul chapter of the Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Sutra holds?"

Luo Chen's thoughts wandered for a moment before he returned to the Earth Abyss.

...

Unknowingly, the tenth year arrived.

The spiritual energy on Dragon Abyss Island had already dropped to a level unsuitable for Nascent Soul Cultivators.

Even in the Earth Abyss, only the cave mansion that Luo Chen was protecting with all his strength had a Tier Four Spirit Vein quality, and it was still declining.

This year, Luo Chen was 226 years old! In the morning, he slowly opened his eyes and blinked his eyelashes.

"It's time to leave!"

Luo Chen rose leisurely and left the Earth Abyss.

Outside, Black King and the others, who had been notified in advance, were already prepared.

Luo Chen extended his right hand, and an eight-angled pavilion slowly appeared in his palm.

"Jing He, use this treasure to collect all the Spirit Soil on the island, leaving no trace behind!"

Sang Jing He had successfully formed his core and was now at the initial stage of the Golden Core, barely capable of controlling the Penglai Octagonal Pavilion.

He left with his treasures.

"Tianxuan, go to the Earth Abyss and retrieve all the spirit stone ore that has been discovered."

Tianxuan accepted the order with delight.

Even if the ore's internal spirit energy was insufficient due to leakage, its grade remained, and with proper arrangement, these ores could still create a spiritual land.

"Black King!"

"Yes!"

"Take all the Dragon Worms from the island!"

Black King let out a hearty laugh, his massive body twisting as he headed north of Dragon Abyss Island.

Other demonic beasts and savage beasts would have difficulty taking away so many Dragon Worms.

But he was different.

Thirty years ago, during his recovery, millions of Dragon Worms' blood had merged into the blood pool, and he had absorbed it completely.

In a sense, he also possessed the bloodline of the Dragon Worms.

Previously, the mass slaughter of Dragon Worms had caused them to flee the island, but many had returned later. Aside from the island's overflowing spiritual energy, there was also the reason that Black King naturally emitted a high-level Dragon Worm aura.

Blood is thicker than water!

After giving these orders, Luo Chen went alone to the former site of Xiqiu.

What was once Xiqiu Mountain was now just a massive crater.

There, a colossal White Tiger stood silently, towering over the area.

Twenty years had passed, and though the wind and rain had battered it, its restrained killing intent remained unchanged.

Covered in moss and vines, it exuded an air of ancient desolation.

Looking at the giant White Tiger, Luo Chen took a deep breath and leaped onto its head.

He sat cross-legged, and with a flick of his fingers, he cast a series of restrictions onto the White Tiger.

Puppet technique was also something he knew!

After spending so much time with Han Zhan, he had picked up a few things by osmosis.

Perfectly controlling a puppet might be difficult, but subduing it was simple.

Especially!

Now that he had a divided soul!

As he cast the final restriction, Luo Chen's thoughts stirred, and his divided soul entered the puppet's head.

Vaguely, he could sense a dormant soul deep within the puppet.

This White Tiger puppet was not a lifeless object!

Within it was a restrained tiger spirit, and Luo Chen's divided soul slowly approached it.

...

Deep within the Monster Sea, there was a famous spiritual mountain among the demons.

Its name was Cloud Terrace!

The reason this spiritual mountain was famous was because its owner was a rare pill refining master among the demons.

The demon was Sea Edge Heavenly Mother!

On this day, brilliant light radiated from Cloud Terrace Mountain.

Sea Edge Heavenly Mother, wearing a flower-patterned green robe, walked out from the mountain.

At the same time, in the sea below the mountain, numerous five-pointed star rays of light appeared, and at first glance, there seemed to be hundreds of them.

"Heavenly Mother!"

"Heavenly Mother!"

Sea Edge Heavenly Mother nodded, looking at her children and grandchildren with a satisfied smile.

"Not bad, you all haven't been slack in your cultivation these years. Next, let's go to the Abyssal Depths Sea together!"

With a wave of her wide sleeves, she led over a hundred third-rank clan members straight towards the distant Abyssal Depths Sea.

The Abyssal Depths Sect was trapped in the Five Elements Heaven, unable to escape for at least a few hundred years.

Perhaps, they might never be able to leave.

This meant that their cultivation grounds were unoccupied.

She had once gone there with the Whale Emperor and the Northern Departure Great Sage.

She knew that there were tens of millions of Dragon Worms and countless Spirit Soils above.

If she could bring these Spirit Soils back to Cloud Terrace Mountain, it would greatly enhance the foundation of the Sea Edge clan. It was known that the Sea Edge clan was not only skilled in pill refining but also in cultivating medicinal herbs.

With these Spirit Soils, they would be like tigers with wings!

As for the Dragon Worms, without their tribal leader, they would become their slaves.

"If it wasn't for me, the descendant of the Mingzhao Heavenly Mother, encountering the desperate Blood Nightmare Demon King, who injured my original body, I wouldn't have needed thirty years to recover."

"Going to the Abyssal Depths Sea now should still be in time."

"No, even if it's too late and other demonic beasts have occupied it, I will do my best to take it back."

Sea Edge Heavenly Mother's eyes flashed with determination.

Leading her clan's elite, she headed east towards the Abyssal Depths Sea.

Wherever they passed, the demonic beasts in the Monster Sea trembled in fear.

No one had expected that the seemingly weak Sea Edge clan possessed such formidable power, with over a hundred third-rank demon kings.

And this was just the tip of the iceberg; there might be even more third-rank Sea Edge demon kings remaining on Cloud Terrace Mountain.

Perhaps this was the influence of a powerful pill refining master!

With his strength alone, he had revitalized the clan, making the small Sea Edge clan grow strong.

Ignoring the thoughts of the demonic beasts, Sea Edge Heavenly Mother headed east with increasing urgency.

Her urgency had a reason.

The elite demons who had been taken away by the Sea Emperor Whale and the Northern Departure Great Sage in the past had escaped from the Northern Night Mara Heaven and were now launching a large-scale invasion of the human territories.

She had to seize this opportunity to benefit her clan.

If she waited for those powerful demons to return, the legacy of the Dragon Abyss Sect would no longer be available to her.

So, she had to act quickly!

One month later.

Sea Edge Heavenly Mother, who had been traveling day and night without rest, arrived outside Dragon Abyss Island with over a hundred elite clan members.

She looked at the island, which seemed like a wasteland with three-foot-tall rubble, and her mind was in a daze.

"Did I come to the wrong place?"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end