The First Immortal of Destiny

Yuan Heming and other Golden Core Realm cultivators of the Riverside Sect had been making slow progress in their cultivation over the years, unable to step into higher Minor Realms. This was the result of many intertwined factors...

Factor one: their Talent was limited. Factor two: their foundation was inadequate. Factor three: they lacked opportunity!

But for Shen Mo, these problems no longer existed.

Speaking of Talent.

His Talent had soared to ”Extremely Rare,” ranking him above numerous Spiritual Bodies in the cultivation world. His Vitality had also reached the ”Ancient Holy Body,” allowing him to rival a Class IV peak demonic beast purely through physical power. Both of these were of Orange quality, only one step away from Gold quality ”Born Immortal” and ”Saint Body”.

The extent of his monstrous Talent had reached the limits this world could contain. If he took one more step, he would instantly attract a heavenly tribulation to kill him!

One could say that even if the entire Primordial Realm were searched, very few could match Shen Mo’s current Talent. As for ”Born Immortal” and ”Saint Body,” not to mention the odds of being born into this realm at one in a hundred million, as soon as they were born, they would be annihilated by the tribulation of heaven and earth. Even Heavenly Monarchs could not protect such monstrously talented newborns.

Speaking of foundation.

When Shen Mo achieved the Qi Gathering Realm, he had consumed a Purple Sun Red Fruit and used its power to open three Dantian.

After cultivating his Spirit Sea, he also expanded his sea of Mana to the limit of this realm, enough to look down upon his peers!

If, during the Qi Gathering Realm and Spirit Sea Realm stages, Yuan Heming and others each had their own achievements and did not fall far behind Shen Mo, then upon achieving the Golden Core Realm, Shen Mo had condensed a perfect quality Golden Core in his Dantian. This further widened the gap between him and the Golden Core Realm cultivators of the sect!

Even Yuan Heming, with the highest cultivation and best quality Golden Core, had only succeeded in creating a high-grade Golden Core.

Cultivating towards enlightenment is just like this. At the beginning, there is not much difference; the higher one goes, the bigger the gap between individuals becomes!

Moreover, after stepping into this realm, the quality of the Chaotic Yuan One Qi Pill inside Shen Mo’s body continued to improve. It had now fully surpassed the ”flawless” grade and metamorphosed into a top-quality Golden Core.

Speaking of opportunity.

In terms of external items, Shen Mo had Samadhi True Fire to refine his Essence and Qi, Enlightenment Tea to advance his cultivation level, and Chen Mengze’s nature Qi to nourish the quality of his Golden Core.

In terms of internal cultivation, he had his Martial Performance Body to assist in cultivation, he had inferred and cultivated his main cultivation method to a very high level, and he had a Skill to expel Turbid Qi and Filthy Qi.

If any of these opportunities had fallen upon Yuan Heming and other Golden Core Realm cultivators, or even anyone else in the cultivation world, they would have considered themselves extremely fortunate.

It was simply impossible for anyone to have such great Creation as Shen Mo!

Therefore, Shen Mo’s promotion to the late-stage Golden Core Realm this time did not encounter many twists and turns. It was as relaxed and natural as eating and drinking.

BUZZ!

Inside the Vacuous Realm, the speed at which the pure Spiritual Qi whirled and tumbled suddenly rose another notch.

Like a cascading waterfall, it crazily rushed towards Shen Mo’s location in the Jade Cave, forming a large, strange funnel-shaped cloud of breath of Primal Spirit above his cave mansion that was visible to the naked eye!

The breath of Primal Spirit accumulated over countless years inside the Dungeon started to become thinner at an alarming speed.

Sitting in their own cave mansions, Yuan Heming and Zhou Zhiwei momentarily felt a sense of suffocation and depression due to the violent changes in the Spiritual Qi in the Dungeon. The two quickly exchanged thoughts via Divine Sense, finally leaving only gasps of surprise and envy!

「Two months later.」

The nature’s spiritual energy within the Vacuous Realm recovered, though its total volume had been reduced by three-tenths.

Although a reduction of three-tenths might not seem like much, for a vast Dungeon like the Vacuous Realm that had existed for many years, it was an absolutely shocking event!

Before Shen Mo, the four Golden Core Realm patriarchs—Yuan Heming, Zhou Zhiwei, Feng Daogu, and Gongsun Jiuru—had been cultivating in the Dungeon for hundreds of years. Not a bit of Spiritual Qi had been consumed; in fact, the concentration of Spiritual Qi was steadily increasing every year!

Of course, given the characteristics of the Vacuous Realm, it could still recover bit by bit.

However, this recovery would take at least a century!

「Inside the Jade Cave.」

Shen Mo slowly dispersed the breath of Primal Spirit surrounding him, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes.

I miscalculated!

Unexpectedly, after I advanced to the peak of the Golden Core Realm, replenishing the shortage of True Yuan in my Dantian required so much Mana.

Even consuming a large amount of Elixirs was not enough; I also absorbed so much breath of Primal Spirit from the Vacuous Realm that the concentration of Spiritual Qi in this Dungeon was greatly depleted and no longer as rich as before...

If I had known this, I would have chosen a deserted place in the Dungeon or outside the sect gate to make the breakthrough!

However, very soon, the look of regret in Shen Mo’s eyes was replaced by joy and satisfaction.

Although he had caused some impact on the Vacuous Realm, he had finally stepped into the peak of the Golden Core Realm, getting one step closer to becoming a Heavenly Monarch.

Now, my cultivation has reached the peak below the Divine Bridge Realm.

If I can successfully find the path to enlightenment, I can take that crucial step and join the ranks of Heavenly Monarchs!

If I cannot find the path, then even if I cultivate more diligently, it will only provide a minuscule increase to my cultivation level—better than nothing, I suppose.

After Shen Mo entered the Peak Realm, using Inner Sight Magic to perceive himself, he found that he had hit an invisible barrier.

If he could not comprehend the Dao, then even if he consumed more elixirs and herbs, no matter how much he secluded himself for cultivation, the benefits he could gain were extremely limited!

At present, he could still refine nature’s spiritual energy, converting it into his own True Yuan along with Essence and Qi. However, he could only accumulate it bit by bit, and forced refining could damage the quality of the Golden Core.

Setting aside the Golden Core for now.

Continuing to refine more True Yuan, considering his current foundation and accumulation, was equivalent to pouring cupfuls of water into a vast lake—the gain was minimal.

Even if he sat in meditation for a thousand years until his Lifespan was exhausted, the total amount of True Yuan in his body could at most increase by twenty percent. If other cultivation method and magic, Skills, magic treasures, and other means did not progress, the enhancement to his overall combat power might not even reach half a percent!

Moreover, concentrating on refining True Yuan could cause irreparable damage to the Golden Core!

Some things may benefit from reduction, or be harmed by addition.

For cultivators at the peak of the Golden Core Realm, upon reaching this Realm, their Essence and Qi have achieved a perfect and delicate balance. Forcibly refining True Yuan to increase its volume would break this balance.

Reflected in their own cultivation, the Golden Core, which represents the degree of transformation of their Essence and Qi, would be damaged as a result.

In mild cases, the quality of the Golden Core might decline. An originally flawless Golden Core could become incomplete due to excessive pursuit, no longer bright and perfect, and fall to a high-grade Golden Core!

In more serious cases, it might even cause the Dao Body’s blood and Qi, True Yuan Mana, and soul and Path Heart to decay. Consequently, the Golden Core would also become dull and rotten, completely severing the path of Dao.

No wonder I met so many powerful cultivators at the peak of the Golden Core Realm in the Heaven Patrolling Zone!

Before pinpointing my own path of Dao, blindly secluding myself for cultivation offers no benefits and instead creates drawbacks...

It’s better to move around in the Outer Realm, to perceive the nature of heaven and earth and the myriad states of the mortal world. This is more conducive to understanding principles and comprehending the Dao!

Having understood these points, Shen Mo also formed new plans for his subsequent cultivation process.