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Chapter 114: Chapter 111: Accumulation
Upon returning to Lingxiao City, Gu Jinlai immediately arranged for the distribution of Nourishing God Pills.
The disciples of the Gu family in the Gang Condensation and Qi Refining Realms also received a large number of Qi Refining Pills as rewards.
In addition, those cultivators who had not yet reached Qi Refining were also bestowed with numerous elixirs to accelerate their Body Refining, Refining Organs, and Blood Exchange phases of cultivation.
It was foreseeable that what awaited them was nothing short of a meteoric rise in strength.
...
"Unfortunately, the Heaven and Earth Qiankun Map could not be moved to Lingxiao City, not even a copy of it," Gu said with a sigh.
"The Heaven and Earth Qiankun Map, a Dao Artifact that delves into the secrets of Lucky Qi, is a power we have yet to touch," said Gu Chaoyang, who accompanied Gu Jinlai.
"Lucky Qi," Gu Jinlai echoed.
It was a term that seemed familiar yet vague in his understanding.
According to ancient records, a large population living together could regulate the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, making cultivation smoother for cultivators.
Therefore, top sects are often established in densely populated cities and are keen on conquering cities and plundering populations.
Once the number of beings reached a certain level and a complete system of order was established, like a super sect or imperial dynasty, it would stabilize the minds of the people and generate Lucky Qi, a mysterious force.
With the aid of this power, one could advance by leaps and bounds in cultivation.
"The reasons Emperor Tianji of the Heavenly Demon Holy Temple launched an attack on the Daqian Dynasty was to reshape the heavens and the earth, recreate the mountains and rivers, and use the Lucky Qi of Daqian to transcend the Heavenly Tribulation and break through to the True Immortal Realm, a realm of eternal life," Gu Jinlai remarked.
"However, his failure, rather than being attributed to the Sanqing Holy Temple or Daqian Dynasty, could be said to be due to a change of heart among the people. Daqian capitalized on the situation, and Lucky Qi backlash ultimately led to his demise," Gu Jinlai explained.
As a member of the Purgatory Demon Sect, Gu Jinlai naturally had a deep understanding of this matter.
The Purgatory Demon Sect was branded as one of the Ten Great Demon Sects because they had risen in rebellion at the behest of the Heavenly Demon Sacred Land.
After the collapse of the Heavenly Demon Holy Temple, they, as the losers, were naturally branded as evil and were targets for elimination.
If it weren’t for the chaos in the world and the rampant demons, the Daqian might not have had the resources to deal with the Ten Great Demon Sects, allowing the Purgatory Demon Sect, Netherworld Demon Sect, and Cold Moon Demon Sect to occupy a state like they do now, ruling millions of people as unofficial kings.
"Times create heroes! Now that Star State is in chaos, with major forces emerging from the territory, if they are scrambling for it, why can’t we compete? Should we take the opportunity to take over the surrounding cities? Not to mention the far ones, capture Sunset City first?"
"A moment’s delay, a step’s delay. By the time the Major Sects have almost divided the territory of Star State, it will be even harder for us to regain it," Gu Chaoyang suggested.
"What we need now is not territory," Gu Jinlai looked at him. "It’s time."
Occupying two cities was the current limit of the Gu family’s power.
To open up a third battlefield...
He would have to wait until the second Short Range Defense Cannon Co-spirit was available.
"The nail that sticks out gets hammered down. The foundations of each major power are not as simple as we imagine. All we can do now is train more soldiers, so that we won’t end up with territory but not enough people to defend it," Gu Jinlai stated.
Upon hearing this, Gu Chaoyang had no good rebuttal.
The decisions made by Gu Jinlai represented the highest will of the Gu family.
Even the Family Head Gu Changfeng would not go against it.
Just as the Sect Master Lu Dengxian of the Purgatory Sect would not go against the will of the Venerable Daoist Lu Zhanxian.
At this moment, Gu Chifeng hurriedly approached from outside: "Patriarch, a message has come from Yuanhua City. They have an army of six thousand wishing to travel through the territories of Yuanhua City and Lingxiao City to Baihe City to join up with Red Robed Elder Xue Wuqing and Elder Tan Qingquan, who are stationed there."
"Six thousand people, passing through our Yuanhua City and Lingxiao City?"
Gu Jinlai was somewhat surprised. "If I remember correctly, they’ve already captured Quicksand City during this time. Through such a border city, they could also enter the territory of Star State."
"They could enter from Quicksand City, but they would have to cross the controlled area of Chang County City, which is nominally still under the State Governor’s jurisdiction," Gu Chaoyang explained.
"Let them pass," Gu Jinlai weighed briefly.
Six thousand people was neither too many nor too few.
It wasn’t enough to attack Yuanhua City or Lingxiao City but was still a force to be reckoned with.
"We are still officially elders of the Purgatory Sect and it’s not yet time to break with the Purgatory Sect. Let them pass," Gu Jinlai decided.
"Yes."
Having received the order, Gu Chifeng left.
"The Purgatory Sect is reinforcing... It looks like their next move is about to begin," Gu Jinlai estimated.
Following the battle in Starlight City, the State Lord Mansion and Dragon Sparrow Manor suffered heavy losses, losing three Divinity Transformation beings and more than a handful of Refining God beings. Since then, the powers that had been operating in the shadows openly declared their intentions and boldly formed their own factions.
But...
This was just the beginning.
Their goal was not simply to occupy a few cities, but to completely fragment Star State and control it entirely.
Thus, the next great war was inevitable.
Only when both sides of the battle were completely exhausted did they truly come to a stop.
This was the time period Gu Jinlai strove to achieve.
It was just uncertain whether the State Lord Mansion, the Purgatory Sect, and other forces would give him this opportunity.
"Speaking of which... ever since I condensed the True Spirit on the road in Starlight City, I have finally been able to divert some of my attention to refining my body... The time is just about right..."
Gu Jinlai then left his study and walked towards his Martial Arts Academy.
This was a large Martial Arts Academy covering an area of nearly ten thousand square meters.
The layout inside the academy was very simple.
The only surprising feature was the mirrors distributed around the perimeter of the Martial Arts Academy.
These mirrors were arranged at special angles, allocating the sunlight according to the Great Sun’s movement, focusing all the light onto him.
Although the radiation from the Great Sun was reduced after refraction, the efficiency with which his body absorbed hydrogen radiation also had an upper limit.
Therefore, this environmental structure only increased his cultivation speed threefold compared to normal sunbathing.
Even so, during his time in Lingxiao City, his body, which had reached the peak of Upper Demons, was eager to transform, with metamorphosis imminent.
"Eternal Furnace."
Gu Jinlai’s cultivation technique operated, elements co-spirit.
Vast energy was released from within his body, repeatedly washing over his body, refining his physique, making it increasingly sturdy.
Especially those clearly defined muscles that, when filled with energy, radiated golden light, making him appear as if cast from gold, emanating a sacred and majestic aura.
In comparison to the previously used Red Sun Demon God Body Refining Technique, where was the slightest hint of ferocity and terror now?
"The strength of a demon comes from within. The major difference between Upper Demons and Great Demons is the transformation in strength and physique. Unlike the Refining God or Hugging Pill, where the essence of strength is similar, this double-layer transformation makes Great Demons far superior in muscle tenacity, bone density, and explosive power than Upper Demons..."
Gu Jinlai then began practicing a set of swordsmanship.
This was a broad and expansive military formation swordsmanship that he had Su Nanxing exchange from the Self-refining Demon Hall.
After spending the four Qingguang he had accumulated during this period, he had completed the cultivation from entry-level to small achievement.
As for the name of this swordsmanship...
All Swords Return to One, an Ironclad Swords Immortal.
Naturally, he also named this swordsmanship himself.
Because the swordsmanship had already reached a small achievement in his hands, when he executed it, it was ferocious and fierce.
The sword blade swept through like a hurricane. The high-frequency vibrations from merely the friction between the sword blade and the air were enough to shatter the floor of the courtyard.
"Martial Arts is divided into Transformation Realm, Mental Realm, and Tendency Realm. Among them, the Transformation Realm refers to achieving extreme control over one’s own power, so every action and word can release twelve times the power... To put it more plainly, it means refining swordsmanship and combat techniques into instinct, forming a brand, and triggering a killing move with a single thought."
Gu Jinlai’s sword techniques were executed one after another, sweeping broadly with booming sounds like thunder: "Beyond that, the Mental Realm is rather mystical, often only comprehensible by cultivators above the Refining God Realm. At least, I have never heard of anyone understanding the Mental Realm before the Refining God Realm."
This realm merges one’s will and sword moves into one, bringing the sword moves and fist techniques to life.
Moreover, they become extremely sensitive to any crisis detection.
There has always been a saying that if Refining God could comprehend the Mental Realm, it could rival a Divinity Transformation Flying Sword.
In other words...
"If I could comprehend the Mental Realm, I wouldn’t need to rely on the perks of the Short Range Defense Cannon to sense an incoming flying sword. By then, facing such an uncertain attack, the safety would undoubtedly increase tremendously,"
said Gu Jinlai.
Although the radar of the Short Range Defense Cannon had extraordinary scanning effects, on one hand, its scanning range was limited, about forty to fifty miles, and on the other hand...
From scanning the target to issuing an alert, there was a certain time lag.
If faced with three or four flying swords shooting like lightning at the same time, it would be utterly baffling and hard to intercept.
This was the root of the variability.
If he could detect the incoming flying sword by himself, why would he need to depend on external objects?
"Mental Realm, bringing my swordsmanship and fist techniques to life... somewhat similar to the Co-spirit state. Some ancient texts also state that after cultivating the Primordial Spirit, especially after acquiring the True Spirit, understanding the Mental Realm becomes significantly easier, just like going from Refining God to the Enlightenment Realm. But now I’m thinking of mastering the Mental Realm before even stepping into the Enlightenment Realm..."
It seemed somewhat overly ambitious.
"Step by step. The cultivation of the Enlightenment Realm relies on two aspects. One is sudden enlightenment, where the blessing reaches the spirit, and the other is accumulation, the accumulation of reading thousands of books and traveling thousands of miles. By cultivating dozens of swordsmanship and fist techniques to perfection and comprehending their true essence and mystery, one naturally enters the Enlightenment Realm like dripping water wears away stone,"
thought Gu Jinlai.
The nature of these two paths is probably akin to a talent overflowing individual investing one million to earn ten million, and another spending a hundred million to earn the same amount.
The investment costs are different, but the final outcome is the same. 𝑛𝘰𝘷𝑝𝘶𝑏.𝑐𝘰𝘮
"The Eternal Furnace can make me strong quickly, but just like the Grand Sun Nine Refinement Visualization Method couldn’t let me directly cultivate the True Spirit, with the impending chaos in Star State, what I need now is to gain stronger power as soon as possible."
Just like earning a hundred thousand a day, continued over a year, compared to earning ten million at once.
The former yields higher returns, but under the current circumstances...
Gu Jinlai chose the latter.
"Humming!"
As he pondered and practiced his swordsmanship, a new burst of energy penetrated and vibrated through his viscera, sinews, and bones, leading him into a deeper layer of refinement.
"Hmm?"
Gu Jinlai slightly perceived.
"The critical point of the Great Demon Body... has been crossed."
