Chapter 126 – Refining the Lotus Seed

Before Qin Yu could respond, the Hundred Nether Sword within his storage ring was already ringing with excitement, urgently signaling to come out. With a flick of his sleeve, the Hundred Nether Sword howled out. Qin Yu stood up and followed behind it.

In a corner of the courtyard, there was a well. The surface of the water was four to five meters below ground, and the water was extremely clear. Looking further down, it was dark, and it was unknown where it led or how far down it went. At this moment, the Hundred Nether Sword was hanging atop the well. Then, with the sword tip directed towards the well, it gave off a sharp keening cry!

In the next moment, a sharp light flashed out from Qin Yu’s eyes, indicating his surprise. He could see faint traces of black energy rising from the well and fusing into the Hundred Nether Sword. The roaring sound suddenly became clear and a yin chill permeated the air. It seemed that the previous changes were all caused by the black energy within the well.

After probing for a moment, a puzzled expression crossed Qin Yu’s face. The aura coming from the well was that of specters. He had already experienced this before in the Netherworld Realm, but the spectral aura emanating from the well was actually far richer. No, it was much richer than that, at least ten times more so.

Within the Netherworld Sea Region, when the Hundred Nether Sword was soaked in Qin Yu’s blood and also used to kill the tumor, it had completely recognized Qin Yu as its master. Now, Qin Yu could clearly feel how happy the Hundred Nether Sword was at this moment. Whether it was because of how dense it was or because some other change had happened to it, the spectral energy rising from the well was an incredible tonic to the sword.

This fellow had already fallen in love with this place. And, after realizing that Qin Yu had the intent of leaving, it also shook out a threat: if you want to leave, then leave without me!

Qin Yu ignored its whining. His thoughts rapidly raced. The Hundred Nether Sword was an extremely high quality treasure. If he continued to empower it, there was a high chance it would evolve into a spirit treasure, rapidly increasing its killing abilities. He didn’t dare to go to the Netherworld Sea Region again, so if he missed the chance this well offered, it would likely be impossibly difficult for him to find another place with such formidable spectral energy.

The big turtle had tossed him here and quickly hurried away. In addition to the observations he made today, it seemed that the big turtle clearly didn’t care about him. If so, then he could actually stay in the sea race capital city for a period of time. As soon as this thought appeared, it quickly overtook his mind. The sea race capital city was absolutely the safest possible place. If he was a bit more careful, then this place would actually be a good choice to refine the five element spiritual objects.

The next day, as the pale blue coral in the courtyard turned blazing red once more, the spectral energy coming from the well vanished. Qin Yu looked down at the little blue lamp as the light faded away, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

The Hundred Nether Sword flew back, stumbling. A loud crashing sound rang out. Qin Yu went over to check and found that the sword had fallen over. With twitching lips, he placed the sword back into his storage ring.

Qin Yu pushed open the courtyard doors and attempted to leave. No one jumped out from the bushes to stop him. Besides some others glancing at him with cold and disdainful eyes, everything was perfect. In the far off distance, he could see the gates of the capital city. He turned and followed back along the road he came from.

When the coral turned dark blue once more, the Hundred Nether Sword woke up on the dot. It fired towards the well, completely alert, and called out for the spectral energy to rise up once more.

On the third day, Qin Yu slowly expanded his area of action. He visited the city gates once and even stood below the gates and jovially chatted with Meng Li. He vaguely raised the topic of whether he could temporarily leave the capital city, but as he saw the awkward expression on Meng Li’s face, he quickly changed the topic.

Bidding his farewells, Qin Yu returned to the courtyard, a bit unsure.

Today, the Hundred Nether Sword seemed to sense something. It endured the temptation and stood waiting. Then, it pointed straight at Qin Yu as if staring at him, seeming to say, hey big fellow, if you dare to leave, I will immediately go wild!

Qin Yu glared at it and smiled, “Screw off and go digest some more. If you keep trying to act tough here, aren’t you afraid that you’ll die from holding it in?”

Buzz –

The Hundred Nether Sword was overjoyed. It wagged about like a happy dog and rubbed Qin Yu’s leg. Then, with a whistle, it rushed over to the well. This was its own request and Qin Yu was too lazy to bother with it.

Qin Yu let out a light breath and shook his head. He didn’t know whether his decision to stay was right or wrong, but since he had already made his choice, there wasn’t any need to continue hesitating.

It was time to begin.

Although he had only started studying array formations, Gu Shengping had been an extremely skilled individual and the fragments of things he left behind were very useful. Qin Yu only had to follow the directions to complete the necessary arrangements. A moment later, a simple array formation was drawn up. It possessed excellent concealing properties and was almost undetectable.

Its function was simple. It shielded one’s aura and covered up fluctuations of strength. In terms of defense, it could mislead and imprison. As for killing abilities, arranging that was too difficult and Qin Yu didn’t have full confidence he could do so. Moreover, this was the sea race capital city, so he wanted to cause as little trouble as possible.

His dantian sea was still quiet and his magic power in a frozen state. But, Qin Yu could feel the boundless energy beneath the layer of ice. It was like a slumbering volcano. Once it awoke, it would surely erupt with an even greater power. But waiting for it to naturally wake up on its own would require some time. Qin Yu thought about it for a moment and decided to try giving it a push with outside forces.

He took out several Cloudrain Pills and swallowed them. As they entered his mouth, their medicinal efficacy flowed into his flesh and blood, rapidly transforming into magic power. As if drawn in by a magnetic attraction, this strength gathered into Qin Yu’s dantian sea without any need for him to revolve his cultivation method. This magic power fused into his dantian sea, and several moments later, a smile appeared on his face.

It worked.

Magic power of the same source possessed an instinctual desire to merge together. There were clearly more fluctuations of magic power beneath the layer of ice, but it was far from enough. With a flick of his sleeve, Qin Yu took out the entire bottle of Cloudrain Pills, a full hundred of them.

He lifted his hand and swallowed some.

He closed his eyes and refined them.

Magic power continuously flowed into his dantian sea. The fluctuations beneath the ice became increasingly strong.

One day…

Two days…

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Three days…

In a quiet and peaceful environment, time slowly passed. This small courtyard seemed to be forgotten by everyone else. In his room, Qin Yu sat cross-legged in meditation. Sweat dripped down his forehead, drenching his robe and sticking it to his body. Within his dantian sea, the layer of invisible ice violently trembled as the edges began to crack apart.

Qin Yu swallowed down ten Cloudrain Pills in a single go. Billowing magic power broke in, and with a light cracking sound, magic power broke free from the ice.

Bang –

His black robes fluttered about. Strong winds whipped up as a powerful aura suddenly erupted from his body.

Golden Core first level, Golden Core second level, Golden Core third level…Golden Core seventh level...

However, at this time, Qin Yu’s rising aura had yet to stop.

Golden Core eighth level, Golden Core ninth level…peak ninth level!

Shua –

Qin Yu’s eyes flashed open as a sharp light exploded within them. As he carefully sensed the changes in his body, he smiled. In the Netherworld Sea Region, after the Demon Body swallowed the essence of the tumor, Qin Yu had gained a foundation for his cultivation to rapidly rise. The layer of ice during this time was his body absorbing and transforming the essence.

Golden Core ninth level could be called the peak of the Golden Core realm. Another step forwards was the tenth level, otherwise known as the Hollow Nascent Soul realm, just a thin thread away from breaking into the Nascent Soul realm. If Qin Yu continued to cultivate like this and also had enough pills, he would be able to attack the Nascent Soul realm in another year or so. If he succeeded, he would become one of the peak existences in this world.

Just how intense was this temptation? Even Qin Yu couldn’t help but feel his thoughts waver. But, he soon suppressed this desire. Even Golden Cores had divisions of strength, so there were naturally the strong and weak amongst Nascent Souls. If he had a chance to obtain an even greater strength he should naturally try that with every ounce of effort he had.

In any case, he had nearly completed all the necessary preparations. All that was required was for him to begin!

Closing his eyes, Qin Yu silently took control of the rising magic power in his body. At the same time, he started to carefully deliberate over the steps needed to refine the five element spiritual objects.

Two hours later, he made sure that all the details were flawless and he had a full grasp of the procedure. Then, he opened his eyes. With a flick of his sleeve, the Fleeting Flame Furnace emerged. He lifted a finger and the mouth of the furnace opened. A black light shot out, emanating boundless fluctuations of water-attribute aura. This proved its identity as a water-attribute spiritual object. As he was in the sea race capital city in the depths of the sea, to start by refining the water-attribute spiritual object first was the most appropriate path to take.

He lifted a hand. Magic power tumbled atop his palm. With the cultivation of a ninth level Golden Core, the magic power on his power soon condensed into the shape of a furnace. This furnace had three feet and a narrow body. Small textures covered it, in the shape of wind, fire, and thunder. Although this furnace was only condensed from magic power, it emitted an ancient and boundless aura.

The Fleet Flame Furnace hummed, seemingly awed, appearing as if it were submitting.

Qin Yu’s thoughts stirred. Perhaps a furnace like this really did exist in the world, and what he was doing was borrowing a bit of its strength to form a projection. As soon as this thought appeared, he pushed it to the side. He had reached the most critical moments of refining the five element spiritual objects and he couldn’t allow himself to be distracted and lose his concentration.

The furnace atop his palm opened. The black light briefly struggled. Soon, the light dispersed, revealing its true form. This water-attribute spiritual object was a black lotus seed. It was the size of a knuckle, and looking at it carefully, one could see watermarks covering its surface. The watermarks came in dense layers, twining about each other as if the waters of a hundred rivers were contained within.

Whoosh –

The lotus seed flew into the furnace. Qin Yu’s heart shook. He instinctually closed his eyes and his consciousness soon turned blurry. He was half-awake, half-asleep, as if he were observing a waking dream.

In this dream, he was a lotus root that had been accidentally abandoned in a mountain pool. He soaked in this cold pool of water, not knowing how many years passed. With great difficulty, he broke through his shell and took root in the bottom of the pond where he started to germinate. But, the soil at the bottom of the pond was even colder than the water. As his roots drilled into the soil, they froze and died.

But he never gave up. He stubbornly persisted on the edge of life and death, tenaciously living on. After more years passed, his roots slowly adapted to the cold soil and one day, he was able to draw in nutrients.

Countless years passed. A black lotus broke through the water, and its leaves were enthroned in black light. At some unknown day, the lotus suddenly burst apart. Only a single lotus seed flew out. It was pitch black in color and countless watermarks swirled on the surface of his body.

In the room, Qin Yu opened his eyes, a dazed look on his face. For a time, he found it difficult to distinguish whether he was Qin Yu or a lotus seed who had lived so long ago.

The furnace on his palm shook and cried. In the next moment, it scattered into magic power that rushed into Qin Yu’s body. Then, in his dantian sea, a black seed appeared. It began as a phantom but soon took material form. It suspended itself at the base of the great dao platform, echoing in resonance with the Golden Core. The black light of water contracted, syncing together with Qin Yu’s aura.

The magic power within Qin Yu’s body whistled. It had become much more lively and exuberant than before. As he took in a deep breath, his conscious returned to crystal clarity. His thoughts raced. He soon understood that the ‘dream’ he experienced was the process by which the lotus seed had been born. Because he had refined it into his soul, he had obtained the ‘memories’ of the lotus seed, and the lotus seed became a part of his body.

He could feel that the magic power in his body was clearly much smoother than before. Qin Yu smiled. Moreover, it seemed that the use of a water-attribute spiritual object was much more than this. At the very least, if he were wounded in the future he would have the support of the lotus seed’s strength, and his injuries would recover far faster.

The first of the five element spiritual objects had been successfully refined!

Silently calculating the time, Qin Yu’s eyebrows leapt up. He never thought that the ‘true dream’ he experienced would take nearly half a month. He nearly hadn’t used up any magic power in his body, but his soul actually felt weary and a bit more diffuse than before. This was clearly the result of refining the lotus seed and fusing with its ‘memories’.

This feeling of weariness left Qin Yu a bit restless. But thinking about it, he couldn’t figure out the reason. So, he closed his eyes and started to restore his mind.