Chapter 460: Nascent Soul Cleansing

Why is it progressing differently from what I've read?

Han Li didn't know whether he should be concerned or elated by this turn of events.

Only upon closer inspection did he discover that there were hints of white light opposing the spreading black strands in the acupoint, forming what appeared to be a white umbrella that kept the black strands at bay.

This is... starpower!

This immortal acupoint just so happened to overlap with one of the 36 profound acupoints that he had previously opened, and to his surprise, the starpower within the profound acupoint was able to counteract the spread of acupoint decay.

Han Li was quite relieved to see this, and it seemed that he wouldn't have to resort to any extreme measures for now. With that in mind, he decided to continue observing the progression of the acupoint decay.

If the average True Immortal cultivator were to witness this, they would most likely be so envious and enraged that they would drop dead on the spot! How could there possibly be someone dealing with acupoint decay in such a leisurely fashion?!

At this moment, the black strands and the starpower in the acupoint were clashing like a pair of opposing armies, with neither side able to get the better of the other, and it seemed that they were evenly matched.

However, Han Li noticed that with each clash that took place, the black strands were always able to claim a minute advantage. This wasn't necessarily because they were more formidable than the starpower that opposed them. Instead, it was because even profound acupoints were still just that: acupoints.

While it was able to drastically enhance the immortal acupoint's ability to oppose the effects of acupoint decay, thereby significantly slowing down its onset, it wasn't able to fundamentally prevent the progression of acupoint decay.

In other words, the starpower within the profound acupoint could buy a cultivator precious time in the face of acupoint decay, but if the cultivator couldn't find a way to truly counteract acupoint decay, then they would still inevitably suffer the same terrible fate that had befallen countless True Immortals before them.

After observing the acupoint for a moment longer, Han Li made a hand seal, and his Mantra Treasured Axis instantly appeared at his behest.

All 360 of the Time Dao Runes on the axis had already been restored at this point, and they were giving off formidable time law power fluctuations. At the same time, a beam of golden light shot out of the Eye of Truth at the center of the axis, shining down upon that immortal acupoint.

As soon as the golden light shone down onto the immortal acupoint, it immediately transformed into a series of golden threads of light that were visible to the naked eye, and they became entangled with the black strands before slowly pulling them out like uprooting carrots from the soil.

As soon as these two powers came into contact with one another, Han Li immediately felt as if the skin there were being tugged on, and the intense, tearing pain made him draw an involuntary sharp breath.

An indescribable sense of agony was instantly transmitted from that immortal acupoint into his consciousness, and he hurriedly made a hand seal before pointing a finger at the Mantra Treasured Axis, upon which it began to revolve rapidly, while the golden light radiating from its Time Dao Runes grew even brighter.

At the same time, a translucent golden light suddenly shot out of the Eye of Truth.

This golden thread was none other than the time law thread that he had painstakingly manifested, and it was imbued with incredibly pure time law powers.

The time law thread shot through the air like an arrow, piercing into that immortal acupoint of Han Li's in a flash.

As soon as the golden thread pierced into the immortal acupoint, a layer of golden light instantly emerged to encompass the entire acupoint.

As soon as the black strands within the immortal acupoint came into contact with this golden light, the former instantly began to melt away like snow under the scorching sun, and it didn't take long before they were completely cleansed.

All of this had taken place in the span of just a few seconds, and after the black strands completely receded, the surrounding world's origin qi began to surge into the immortal acupoints once again.

In the face of one of the three paramount laws, the acupoint decay that had struck fear into the hearts of countless late-True Immortal cultivators had been dispeled with ease.

Han Li heaved an internal sigh of relief upon seeing this, and he closed his eyes as he continued to cultivate.

A few minutes later, the 36th immortal acupoint was finally completely opened.

A resounding boom rang out within Han Li's body as all 36 of his immortal acupoints lit up in unison, forming a beam of blinding golden light that erupted upward from his body before piercing straight into the dark clouds up above.

A rare look of surprise appeared on Daoist Xie's face as it witnessed this from above.

"How could this be? How did he manage to stave off the acupoint decay so quickly? Is the combination of a Profound Immortal Physique and time law powers really this potent at counteracting acupoint decay?"

Of course, this was naturally a good thing, and it returned to the rooftop of the azure bamboo pavilion on the edge of the city.

Meanwhile, rumbling thunderclaps rang out incessantly as the dark clouds in the sky gradually faded. However, instead of a clear, blue sky, what was revealed was a vast pool of golden lightning. The lightning inside had been liquefied and was shimmering radiantly.

Han Li took a glance up at the pool of lightning, then reached out to make a grabbing motion, and the intricate jade box that had been placed in front of him this entire time instantly flew into his grasp.

With a casual sweep of his sleeve, the talismans adhered to the box were removed, and the lid flew off on its own.

After the lid was removed, a peculiar medicinal aroma instantly wafted out of the jade box. Inside the jade box was a longan-sized golden pill, and it was none other than the Golden Soul Pill that Han Li had refined in the past.

Han Li plucked the pill out of the box between two of his fingers, then brought it up to his eyes for a closer examination before swallowing it.

As the pill slid down his throat, a burst of gentle golden light instantly appeared over his chest and abdomen, basking his face in a golden glow.

A burst of peculiar energy emerged within his chest and abdomen, but instead of descending into his dantian, it rose straight up into his consciousness to fuse as one with his soul.

The first thing that Han Li felt was a sharp pain in his head, immediately following which he became unprecedentedly sensitive and conscious. In that instant, he felt as if all of his senses had been elevated to a whole new level.

The world before him was still the same world, but it also seemed to be completely different.

He was now able to see the flow of spiritual power in the air, he was able to hear the sound of dust particles colliding around him, and he was able to feel even the faintest gust of wind, as if all of his pores had been completely opened up.

Even without having to use his spiritual sense, he was able to detect everything in every single corner of this secret area. He was able to sense all of the changes taking place around him, and even the faint pulsing of the core in Daoist Xie's body had become clearly audible to him.

Right at this moment, his ears twitched slightly, and he felt as if he could hear something beneath the stone platform in that abandoned garden.

Right as he was about to focus on the sound and listen more carefully, this brief period of heightened sensitivity passed, and his senses returned to normal, while his soul became denser and more resilient.

Han Li immediately reined in his attention and began to focus. He knew that the final obstacle standing in the path of his progression to the Golden Immortal Stage had arrived.

After taking a deep breath, he tapped the top of his own head, and his nascent soul instantly flew out from within, enveloped within a layer of golden light.

Upon emerging from his body, his nascent soul flew around him for a moment before rising up into the air, flying headfirst into the pool of golden lightning up above.

As had been established, the nascent souls of Golden Immortals were far more formidable than that of True Immortals, and the reason for this was that during a Golden Immortal Stage breakthrough, a pool of heavenly lightning would emerge in the heavens. As long as a True Immortal Stage nascent soul could withstand the baptism by lightning, then it would be elevated to a whole new level.

As soon as Han Li's nascent soul entered the pool of lightning, the entire pool instantly began to churn violently, much like a pot of hot oil that had just had a drop of water splashed into it.

The liquefied golden lightning within the pool began to crash into Han Li's nascent soul in waves, while the nascent soul made a hand seal before sitting down within the pool with its legs crossed.

It remained completely still even as the pool of golden lightning churned violently around it, allowing the liquefied golden lightning to strike its body relentlessly.

Dense arcs of golden lightning appeared around the nascent soul like a golden robe, clashing against the golden light radiating from its body.

Meanwhile, Han Li's physical body remained seated in its original posture, but his brows were tightly furrowed in agony.

At this moment, his entire consciousness was churning just as violently as the pool of golden lightning.

Arcs of blinding golden lightning were flashing and intertwining incessantly, filling virtually the entirety of his consciousness, and each flash of lightning was like a whip that struck his soul.

He was able to clearly feel the torment that his nascent soul was having to endure within the pool of lightning, and this agony on a spiritual level was even more excruciating to endure than any form of physical pain.

Han Li didn't know much about what was involved in a breakthrough to the Golden Immortal Stage, and he was planning to enquire Daoist Hu Yan about the subject following the conclusion of this immortal manor adventure, but never did he think that he would be attempting a breakthrough in this random secret area.

For a True Immortal, opening the 36 immortal acupoints only took them halfway to reaching the Golden Immortal Stage, and the other half of the breakthrough hinged on the outcome of this nascent soul refinement process.

The outcome of the nascent soul refinement process was something that was dependent on both the resilience of the nascent soul and the will of the heavens.

Upon entering the lightning pool, the nascent soul would've essentially entered a lightning prison, and it was entirely up to the heavens when the lightning pool would fade. In some cases, the refinement process would end in just half a day, while others could be subjected to this torment for days on end.

The longer this process dragged on, the more significantly the nascent soul would be enhanced, but at the same time, the probability of the nascent soul being destroyed in the process would also steadily rise.

For those with unstable nascent souls, sending their nascent souls into the lightning pool would be no different from committing suicide. There was no chance that a frail nascent soul would be able to endure this refinement process, and its destruction would be inevitable.

However, Han Li certainly didn't fall into that camp. His nascent soul was far more resilient than that of the average True Immortal to begin with, and he had cultivated the Spirit Refinement Technique to the fourth level, making his nascent soul more stable and resilient than that of many Golden Immortals. Furthermore, having just consumed that Golden Soul Pill, he was almost excessively well-equipped to endure this refinement process.

The only question left was how long this refinement process was going to last.

Daoist Xie was observing all of this from afar with a calm look on its face, and it was unclear what it was thinking.