C696 All Kinds of Breakthroughs

Whether it's the true energy of the Reality Condensing Stage or the true essence of the Shape Gathering Stage, these are generally transformed from the vital energy of the world. To put it in numbers, it takes ten thousand particles of vital energy to form a single particle of true energy, and ten thousand particles of true energy to form a single drop of true essence. The sheer quantity is staggering.

Woo Zhengyang's martial path is even more challenging because each ordinary sword essence he cultivates is dozens of times more potent than the true essence of a typical practitioner. When this ordinary sword essence is integrated into the first sword essence, it undergoes further compression and refinement.

Therefore, for Woo Zhengyang to refine his first sword essence to the mid-stage of the Shape Gathering Stage is an enormous task. Even with the aid of spirit crystals, it requires a significant amount of time.

At this moment, Woo Zhengyang's first sword essence has absorbed something unknown, reaching an incredible level. From just entering the Shape Gathering Stage to reaching its mid-stage in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn? That's insane!

Even more astonishing is that while the first sword essence has reached the mid-stage, the energy mass it absorbed remains vast.

Half an hour later, Woo Zhengyang's first sword essence advanced again, propelling him into the late stage of the Shape Gathering Stage. Yet, the upheaval of the first sword essence continues...

An hour later, Woo Zhengyang's first sword essence no longer resembles a liquid but has crystallized into a solid form.

Woo Zhengyang had reached the peak of the Shape Gathering Stage. He felt that with just a bit more energy, he could break through to the Reality Condensing Stage. The difference between these stages is the crystallization of true essence, forming tiny particles.

However, his wish didn't come true. Shortly after reaching the peak, the energy within his first sword essence quieted down, fully absorbed. Even so, Woo Zhengyang found it hard to believe, staring at the spinning crystal sword in his core with a sense of disbelief.

Since his physical cultivation had rapidly advanced, Woo Zhengyang was worried about how his energy cultivation would keep up, especially since he practiced the unique "Sword Sacrificing Spell." To his surprise, he had just returned and already broken through a major stage. But it still wasn't enough.

Upon returning to this world, Woo Zhengyang sensed that not only was his energy cultivation on the verge of a breakthrough, but his physical cultivation was as well. His physical cultivation had recently entered the Inner Stage.

Although the "Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique" wasn't as intimidating as the "Sword Sacrificing Spell," it was still incredibly challenging to master, particularly in transforming the blood. This immense task required refining all blood into essence blood through the technique to wield the power of the dragon and elephant.

After leaving the ancestral land, Woo Zhengyang noticed that his blood, much like his vital energy, was on the verge of bursting. It was a peculiar phenomenon, almost as if it were a gift from the ancestral land. Woo Zhengyang's body tempering and energy refining were nowhere near a breakthrough, yet inexplicably, he was about to break through.

For energy refining, Woo Zhengyang could suppress it with his body tempering skills. However, when it came to body tempering, he had no stronger means to hold it back and could only continue refining diligently. Initially, Woo Zhengyang didn't sense that his body tempering was nearing a breakthrough. After all, using the "Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique" to refine his essence and condense his vital energy into sword essence seemed sufficient.

Yet, it felt like some rule dictated that Woo Zhengyang must break through. No matter how much he refined along the way, the blood within him never diminished. It wasn't until recently that all his blood was refined into essence blood. This was a sign of mastery in the "Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique."

If Woo Zhengyang wanted to break through, he could now aim for the Tendon Bone Stage. However, he hesitated to do so. In the sealed world, Woo Zhengyang could practice body tempering techniques without restraint because the Heaven Shrouding Great Array sealed the meridians, preventing interference. Moreover, with constant danger at that time, Woo Zhengyang had no mind to worry about anything else.

In this ordinary world, Woo Zhengyang had to pay attention to balancing two aspects; otherwise, the disparity between body tempering and energy cultivation would become too great, leading to suppression issues, with one potentially being completely overwhelmed. The Inner Stage of body tempering is equivalent to the Shape Gathering Stage of energy cultivation.

By a stroke of luck, Woo Zhengyang's energy cultivation reached its peak. If his body tempering could break through to the Tendon Bone Stage, the gap wouldn't be significant. However, Zhengyang was concerned that his body tempering might inexplicably leap to a higher stage, similar to his energy cultivation, which could cause some problems. He decided to play it safe and aim for both to break through simultaneously.

As he stepped out of Heavenly Death Peak, Woo Zhengyang was startled by the scene before him. All the disciples and elders of the Profound Heaven Sect, along with Bing Yue, Loong Zhiwu, and others, stood at the cave entrance, staring at him in shock. Even Nie Fengyu, who usually feared Bing Yue, was waiting outside.

"What's going on with you all?"

"Brother, was that strange phenomenon in the sky just now caused by you?"

"Strange phenomenon?" Woo Zhengyang asked, puzzled.

After listening to their descriptions, Zhengyang finally understood what had happened. By condensing his first sword essence, he had inadvertently triggered a celestial phenomenon! It seemed that the small sword that descended from the phenomenon was the reason he could directly reach the peak of the Shape Gathering Stage.

"Does this mean... breaking through to the Shape Gathering Stage is a gift from the ancestral land, and those later energy clusters have nothing to do with it? If that's the case, my body tempering skills could directly advance to the Tendon Bone Stage?"

Woo Zhengyang had been pondering his body tempering progress, and upon learning this, it was the first thought that crossed his mind. Breaking through is a challenging task, and suppressing one's progress is equally frustrating. Especially with the Inner Stage's vital energy, Woo Zhengyang couldn't even use a trace of it without risking a surge that would force a breakthrough.

Of course, even if he did break through, there was no rush. Woo Zhengyang wasn't about to turn back now! After chatting with everyone, he finally understood the origin of the celestial phenomenon.

According to ancient records, celestial phenomena occur under two circumstances: one is fixed, and the other is not. The fixed one happens when someone ascends to the rank of Martial Emperor, while the non-fixed one involves exceptionally powerful natural treasures, techniques, or artifacts...

Either way, it's incredibly awe-inspiring. Triggering a celestial phenomenon means that the object has the potential to alter the balance of the world...

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