NOVPUBYet, Duke Lorrel sternly stated, "I am aware that Duke Doyle was once a wandering poet, but this matter violates the principle of the Star Shining Floating City. I, the highest councilor of the Star Shining Floating City, Duke Lorrel, formally oppose any proposals and actions unfavorable to this young man."
"As for the magical artifact, I will personally send someone to negotiate and try to persuade him to join the Star Shining Floating City. If he is unwilling to join, no one is permitted to enforce any coercive measures against him."
Having said this, Duke Lorrel grabbed the magic wand in front of him, commanded the 'Undead Three-headed Dog' at his feet, and walked out of the council hall.
"Duke Lorrel is openly defying the council system of the Star Shining Floating City. I request a vote to resolve this!"
Duke Doyle's face was sour as he shouted loudly at the departing Duke Lorrel.
The sound of the Undead Three-headed Dog's footsteps receded further and further, and Duke Lorrel paid him no mind.
"Duke Doyle."
"We know you are wholeheartedly devoted to the Star Shining Floating City, but this matter indeed goes against the principle of the Floating City. As the highest councilor of the Floating City, one must hold onto their last line of principle."
"Otherwise, what's the difference between you and those brutal demons from the Thorny Rift Valley?"
Duke Toynbee said solemnly, shaking his head, picked up the Blade of Judgment, and also exited the council hall with a gust tracing his four hooves.
"Foolish!"
"Too foolish!"
"This is for a better future of the Star Shining Floating City. Just a newly promoted Baron, just a magical artifact. Violates the principle of the Floating City?!"
Fury blazed in Duke Doyle's eyes.
Angered beyond containment by the remarks and decisive attitudes of Duke Lorrel and Duke Toynbee.
"Duke Doyle, please calm down."
"Within the Star Shining Floating City, there are too few outstanding descendants of the Human Clan. Duke Lorrel has always been worried about this. Every human descendant who ascends to lordship will receive more of her attention. Your proposal might cause that young man to harbor hatred towards the Star Shining Floating City, which is why Duke Lorrel reacted so vehemently."
Next to Duke Doyle, a tall figure in a white magic robe, with a pair of pristine white wings on his back, an attractive young man, spoke slowly.
He was 'Duke Blake,' one of the five highest councilors of the Floating City, of the Feather Clan, wielding the power of light, known as 'The Illuminator.'
"Duke Blake is right."
"Since Duke Lorrel is so opposed, let her try to connect first. If she is rejected, we can then secretly send someone to retrieve that magical artifact. With the level of alchemy of Duke Doyle, after duplicating the artifact, we can return the original back."
"That way, it won't cause conflict with Duke Lorrel, and it will be a significant contribution to the honor of the Floating City. Even Duke Toynbee would have nothing to say."
The last of the five supreme councilors of the Floating City, Duke Se Ya, of the Grey Elf Clan, chuckled soothingly and came up with a strategy for Duke Doyle.
"Humph!"
"Faced with these two obstinate old men, that's the only way!"
Duke Doyle snorted coldly, glanced at the image of Lu Qingfeng holding the Demon Suppressing Golden Ring, his eyes burning with eagerness. Eventually, he put away the crystal ball and left the council hall with Duke Blake and Duke Se Ya.
...
Watcher Nest.
Lu Qingfeng sat cross-legged in cultivation.
With thirty million Experience Value on hand, Lu Qingfeng had once again cultivated to the Gathering Law Realm, and his progression was swift. In just seven days, he had stabilized the early stages of Void Core and was moving toward the mid stage.
At this rate, he could fully absorb the Experience Value in at most two years.
While cultivating, he also solidified his foundation.
Atop a high mountain.
Lu Qingfeng stretched his limbs and practiced a set of boxing techniques that showed no traces of aggression or defense. Yet, it was incredibly profound, subtly in harmony with the mountains, the earth, and the streams.
Strands of vitality emerged from the mountains and rivers, converging towards Lu Qingfeng.
With each repetition of boxing, his mastery grew.
After nine rounds, Lu Qingfeng finally stopped and slowly ended his training session.
[Name: Lu Qingfeng]
[Cultivation: Core Formation·Void Core]
[Life Span: 109/3590]
"Five hundred and ninety years of Life Span."
Lu Qingfeng glanced at his attribute panel and immediately smiled.
Back in the Galaxy Realm, while his cultivation was aptly at the Divine Silence Realm, Lu Qingfeng spent Experience Value to strengthen the Red Dust Longevity Technique five times, reaching the True Sect Level.
The power greatly increased.
Originally, the Red Dust Longevity Technique's First Level could extend life by a maximum of six hundred and sixty years; after strengthening, it broke through to a complete thousand years.
The limit of the Third Level also increased from twenty-one thousand two hundred years to thirty-two thousand years.
"In reality."
"Merely by finding an Eighth Rank Spirit Wood, even with just cultivating to the Third Level, one could live an additional thirty-two thousand years!"
Starting from the Fourth Level of the Red Dust Longevity Technique, one needs to find various high-quality Spirit Wood in the world to extend life span.
Spirit Wood is hard to find and largely a matter of luck.
"Living an extra thirty-two thousand years, if I can advance to an Earth Immortal within this period, I can share my longevity with the world."
"The Red Dust Longevity Technique would then reach Perfection."
"The limitation of Spirit Wood only applies to me at the Foundation Establishment stage."
Lu Qingfeng stood atop the mountain peak, overlooking the bustling activity of the three clans in the Watcher Nest, contemplating.
The bursting Spiritual Energy of Blue Star had nurtured many Spiritual Objects and treasures.
After an exhaustive search of the stars by the Ten Thousand Laws Heavenly Gate, they finally found a piece of 'Golden Light Spirit Wood.'
This was Seventh-Order Spirit Wood.
Lu Qingfeng, not one for demanding, used the Golden Light Spirit Wood for Foundation Establishment and began cultivating the Red Dust Longevity Technique.
Fifty years of cultivation and careful contemplation; although he remained at the First Layer 'Mountain and River Pulse Fist,' he had already extended his lifespan by five hundred and ninety years.
"According to the description of the strengthened progress of the Red Dust Longevity Technique, using Eighth Rank Spirit Wood for Foundation Establishment, the limit of the First Level is to add a thousand years to life span. It's impossible to find Eighth Rank Spirit Wood on Blue Star, and Foundation Establishing with Seventh-Order Spirit Wood cannot reach such limits."
From his cultivation insights, Lu Qingfeng realized, "Foundation Establishment with Seventh-Order Spirit Wood, at most, adds nine hundred years to the lifespan."
For ordinary people, they could not simultaneously cultivate other techniques, so nine hundred years, plus a regular Mortal's lifespan of a hundred and ten years or so, amounted to living for a thousand years.
Many Spirit Void Practitioners might not live as long as this.
But Lu Qingfeng is different.
"With the Yellow Court Scripture at hand, I can command all laws."
"While cultivating other techniques to increase my cultivation level and Life Span, cultivating the 'Red Dust Longevity Technique' will significantly boost the extra Life Span gained."
Lu Qingfeng smiled inwardly.
A lengthy Life Span makes cultivation unworried.
Each step is steady and sure, groping in the game, resolute in reality without any obstructions.
It's just a pity—
"What a pity that even when strengthened to True Sect Level, flaws in the 'Red Dust Longevity Technique' still exist."
These are inherent flaws of the Cultivation Technique, which the Derivation Technique couldn't eradicate.
"Such a pity."
Lu Qingfeng shook his head.
In this way, Qingyu couldn't cultivate it either.
...
He reined in his thoughts.
Entered the stone house.
Lu Qingfeng began to cultivate another Magic Gate.
Sitting with legs crossed, he calmed his mind, while from his Divine Soul, he split off a thought with dual embodiment. The thought flowed into a clump of flame.
Whoosh! 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝒑𝙪𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝙢
A Flame Demon God emerged from Lu Qingfeng's body.
With a beast's head and a human's body, cloaked in red scales, with Fire Snakes adorning its ears and Fire Dragons beneath its feet!
It's the Zhu Rong Demon God indeed.
But this time, Zhu Rong Demon God differed from before. Its eyes were full of expression, and it needn't await Lu Qingfeng's command to walk, sit, or lie down in the stone house.
Lu Qingfeng, seated in meditation, felt an extremely bizarre sensation.
This feeling was like one hand practicing a hand technique and the other practicing a fist technique. Fist and hand techniques completely mismatched, but due to the skill of dual embodiment, both could be executed simultaneously without interference.
At this moment.
Zhu Rong Demon God was that left hand.
Lu Qingfeng's original body was the right hand.
"The First Level, Divine Soul Thought, reaching such degree should be considered Perfection."
Zhu Rong Demon God approached Lu Qingfeng.
Speaking in human language, except for the sound, it was indistinguishable from Lu Qingfeng.
"Divine Soul Thought."
"The thought inhabits the Dutian Demon God, almost tantamount to a Second Primordial Spirit."
A flash of thought crossed Lu Qingfeng's mind, "Dutian Demon God originally gathers the thoughts of the All Heavens Demon Gods, mastering Divine Skills, and possesses the instinct for battling the heavens. My thought inhabiting it is instead superfluous."
This was not the correct use of Divine Soul Thought.
In a movement of thought.
Zhu Rong Demon God collided into Lu Qingfeng's body and disappeared. At the original place, however, Divine Soul Power surged out from Zhu Rong Demon God's body, falling to the ground and transforming into a translucent shadow with the wind.
It bore an identical appearance to Lu Qingfeng.
Two Lu Qingfengs faced each other.
The original body remained seated in meditation.
The thought as a Divine Separation stood, rather ethereal. This was because Lu Qingfeng had not yet reached the Primordial Spirit Realm, and his Divine Soul Power was far from reaching the level of a Primordial Spirit Great Cultivator.
"Likely to dissipate with a blow of a Gale."
Lu Qingfeng sensed his Divine Soul Thought. With just this shred of Divine Soul Power, he could manipulate the omnipresent Spiritual Energy between heaven and earth, harnessing the might of the cosmos, capable of exhibiting strength not inferior to Foundation Establishment Qi Introduction and even the Condensed Liquid Realm.
But for Lu Qingfeng's original body—
A True Man of the Void Core Realm!
Even with an additional Spirit Void Level Divine Soul Thought avatar, there would be no substantial increase in combat strength.
"And this thought is born from a division of my Divine Soul, a thread split from it. If it's destroyed, although it can be cultivated back, it will still be a significant injury."
Lu Qingfeng had a thought.
The Divine Soul Thought rode the gentle breeze, soaring into the sky beyond, endlessly ascending.
High above, the Gang Wind was raging.
Bang!
The Divine Soul Thought was immediately shredded by the Gang Wind.
"Humph!"
Back in the Watcher Nest, Lu Qingfeng grunted, his complexion somewhat pale.
Yet in his eyes, there was little sign of defeat, "It's alright. This shred of Divine Soul Power only occupies a slither of my origin, with good cultivation and recuperation for some time, it can be restored."
Upon further thought.
Indeed, it is.
If the thought born from the Divine Soul was destroyed, causing great or even irreparable damage to the original Divine Soul, how could Primordial Spirit Great Cultivators possibly cultivate such a feeble technique?
"Even."
"If the Divine Soul Thought is destroyed, it requires time for meticulous recuperation for me. But for Primordial Spirit Great Cultivators, perhaps they could recover with just a breath."
Lu Qingfeng smiled unconstrainedly.
Using his current realm to speculate about Primordial Spirit Stage cultivators was like an ant gazing at the sky; everything was mere conjecture.
So, he stopped thinking about it.
"The First Level Divine Soul Thought is accomplished."
"Next, it's time to strengthen this Divine Soul Thought and refine the Second Primordial Spirit!"
