Cube-like Supernatural Powers: Longevity Begins with Qi Refining

Chapter 35 The Bronze Palace Appears

"What the hell?"

"What do you mean by being more powerful than that senior disciple from before? In this world, there are only two left who are stronger than him?"

Sitting at the bow of the boat, Xiong Zhou sensed the response from the spirit of heaven and earth, and hesitated to speak.

That senior disciple Yu Changqing was absolutely the best among the best in this realm's true disciple competition, but there are definitely at least four who can rival him.

Two of them are the immortal holy body and the true disciple who carries the black ruler. The other two are the two true disciples who ranked first and second in the previous session.

Two people have now vanished into thin air...

Without a doubt, the two who disappeared were definitely not the two newly promoted disciples.

"So, the first and second true disciples of the previous Qi Refining Level 1 have already found opportunities, broken through bottlenecks, and raised their own limits?"

"Or is it that in order to break through the bottleneck, they indirectly gave up this grand competition for the first level of Qi Refining?"

"Just like Senior Brother Yu Changqing?"

One possibility after another swirled in Xiong Zhou's mind, causing him to fall silent.

Regardless, the plan he had just conceived in his mind had already fallen apart before it even reached the halfway point.

The plan was essentially stillborn before it was even halfway through.

"Gurgle..."

Xiong Zhou picked up the chilled orange juice in front of him and drank it in large gulps to relieve his worries.

"As expected, I'm just not cut out to be a 'wise man,' a 'strategist,' or a 'schemer'..."

"This kind of thing, which requires divination and foresight, is beyond my capabilities."

"I can't keep up with my brain."

Xiong Zhou misses Senior Sister Zi Xuan. If she hadn't been eliminated, he could have just asked her directly.

Senior Sister Duanmu Ning would be fine too. With her status as a master of sorcery, she could definitely be a good strategist.

Now he relies on his cunning inspiration to constantly communicate with the spirit of heaven and earth... Xiong Zhou feels a bit desperate, his hair is falling out in clumps.

"No wonder that none of the ancestors who left behind the memories in their bloodline mentioned how to scheme, nor did any of their memories describe conspiracies or open schemes."

"Most of the information is about how to avoid calamity, how to escape disaster, how to go with the flow, how to seek good fortune and avoid misfortune, or how to escape for one's life."

"We have to consider this, we have to consider that, we have to think a hundred steps ahead for every step we take. In the realm of strategizing and planning, all of this seems to be just the basics..."

Holding an orange juice in one hand and smoothing his hair with the other, Xiong Zhou turned to look at the ancient, remnant soul that was relentlessly pursuing him, even more ferocious and deranged than before. He was somewhat at a loss for words to utter.

However, on the bright side, things seem pretty good as they are now?

By utilizing the small airship's navigation capabilities, as long as this ancient remnant soul remains insane and irrational, it can be kept trailing behind the airship for sixty days in this special way, thus completing [Chain Mission 4: Escape].

However, after chasing him for so long, if Xiong Zhou didn't retaliate, he would feel a sense of suffocation in his chest.

"My thoughts are not clear..."

Xiong Zhou muttered a few words.

Frowning, he continued to peruse the memories of his bloodline inheritance.

Watching the cunning beasts at the first and second levels of Qi Refining, in extremely difficult and dangerous environments, bring their auspicious beast bloodline abilities to the extreme of their current level, thus escaping danger and gaining opportunities.

Suddenly, a very peculiar thought arose in Xiong Zhou's mind.

Given his current scheming abilities, his ability to deduce celestial secrets, and all related skills, it is indeed highly unlikely that he will become a Qi cultivator skilled in scheming.

However, just because one is not good at planning or strategizing does not mean that one cannot "ask" for answers.

As for who to ask?

That is of course the laws of this world, the spirituality of all things in this world, and the myriad paths of this world.

Anyway, there's no cost to trial and error, so it doesn't matter if we fail.

Since that's the case, why not ask?

Xiong Zhou put down the pottery jar in his hand, his eyes thoughtful, the light in them growing brighter and brighter.

He quickly adjusted his state, communicated with the spirituality of heaven and earth once again, and amplified his inspiration, allowing his consciousness to immerse itself deeply in the vast laws of heaven and earth.

A few breaths later, Xiong Zhou addressed the spirituality of the entire Azure Sky Realm, asking a question.

[I want to kill this ancient, remnant soul that keeps chasing me. Tell me how.]

Strands of divine favor emanated from Xiong Zhou, revealing his identity as a mythical beast of heaven and earth. The power of the abundant authority of this realm permeated the air, slowly resonating with certain laws, trends, and destiny of the Azure Sky Realm.

In a daze, Xiong Zhou seemed to see the tattered yellow cloth of the inner world light up, and for the first time, a wisp of indescribable Dao essence overflowed, lofty, unpredictable, and beyond words.

"Splash..."

The phantom of a long river appeared in Xiong Zhou's eyes, reflecting one scene after another, depicting the history of the Azure Sky Realm and telling the story of the passage of time between heaven and earth.

Suddenly, Xiong Zhou noticed that wisps of white mist were rising from the illusory river, enveloping the surface of the ever-flowing river.

Within this pure white mist, translucent threads emerge, weaving into a net that connects with the shimmering images in the river, forming a boundless network.

All things and beings existing within the realm of the Azure Sky, and all the countless beings who have never transcended the constraints of time, are within it, and are all members of it.

Just like outstanding actors performing according to a script on an opera stage.

The performance was so vivid and engaging that it was captivating.

"The river of time... and the mists of fate?"

"Is time a river, and fate the mist on its surface?"

"The two are intertwined, neither can escape the other, almost like a reflection of each other's existence?"

Xiong Zhou has developed his own understanding and perspective on "time" and "fate".

This is based on the Qi cultivation knowledge of the Tai Li Immortal Sect, yet transcends some of its knowledge, making it difficult for Xiong Zhou to judge whether what he saw and understood was correct.

The resonance with the Azure Sky Realm changed, incorporating traces of the Way of Time, strands of the Way of Destiny, and strands of power belonging to one's own spiritual essence.

This long river of time, flowing like a long river, even made a slight sound in the river of destiny composed entirely of white mist, as if something predetermined had undergone a subtle change within a permissible range.

"Buzz..."

The spirituality that lingered in the azure sky responded to Xiong Zhou; the hazy instinct of the entire world truly responded to him.

[Forward...forward...fate has brought us together...]

Wisps of ethereal, somewhat incomprehensible Daoist sounds drifted into Xiong Zhou's inner world from the darkness, condensing into Daoist patterns before Xiong Zhou's consciousness, floating above the pixelated wheat.

"What is it?"

"I asked you how to kill that insane, ancient remnant soul behind me, and you actually replied that an opportunity was approaching?"

Xiong Zhou looked utterly bewildered, his eyes glazed over as if he had witnessed something utterly absurd.

This is no longer just a simple case of giving an irrelevant answer.

Xiong Zhou had ample reason to suspect that there was a problem with the operating logic of this Azure Sky Realm.

"I shouldn't have placed my hopes on a world that might have problems even at its very origin."

"What I need now is not an opportunity, but a way to kill the ancient remnant soul behind me."

Xiong Zhou rubbed his stiff face.

Okay, it would be foolish not to take advantage of such an opportunity.

Anyway, since we can keep that crazy ancient remnant soul hanging on our heels, let's see what this so-called opportunity is all about first.

Xiong Zhou waved his hand, and the flying boat's direction stabilized, beginning to sail in a straight line.

Time passed slowly, and several more hours went by.

As dawn broke, a ray of sunlight rose from the horizon, illuminating the small airship and landing in front of the bear boat.

A few wisps of ethereal, somewhat incomprehensible Daoist sounds drifted into the inner world of the bear boat from the darkness once again, forming Daoist patterns one after another on the pixelated wheat.

[Fate brought us together.]

Two different Dao patterns swirled within the inner world of the bear boat, radiating tiny rays of light and reflecting the Dao essence belonging to time and destiny.

Even though Xiong Zhou doesn't have a deep understanding of "time" and "fate," he can still grasp their meaning.

"A gift from fate?"

"Is it my destiny?"

With a slight hesitation, Xiong Zhou extended his finger and tapped the two Dao patterns.

In an instant, both heaven and earth underwent drastic changes.

The rays of sunlight rising from the horizon were distorted, and the seemingly inexhaustible death energy and corpse energy that permeated the earth rapidly converged towards the location of the bear boat.

"Click...click..."

Spatial rifts appeared, weaving together into a terrifying net, revealing a corner of a bronze palace hidden deep within the heavens and earth.

"Boom!"

The terrifying phenomenon caused by the shaking of the laws spread from where Xiong Zhou was to the entire vast Azure Sky Realm, and could be clearly seen by those Tai Li True Disciples who had not been eliminated, as well as by all the natives living in the mild regions.

All beings who have a deep understanding of the principles of law and whose understanding of the profound mysteries of cultivation techniques is at or above Lv.4 felt an invitation that was both extremely secretive and obscure, yet also open and aboveboard.

The translucent, blood-red phantom that had been chasing Xiong Zhoufei stopped abruptly. Staring at the bronze palace, it was completely lost in thought, unconsciously muttering incomprehensible murmurs.

It seemed as if it was reminiscing, struggling, or even suppressing its own twisted anger.

"Uh... Ah!"

"I've destroyed all your things!"

"Why, why is the mansion I bestowed upon you still here?!"

The translucent, blood-red phantom trembled and roared, unleashing wave after wave of terrifying legal tremors that tore apart everything within a ten-mile radius and stained everything within a hundred-mile radius with a blood-red filth, making it eerie and ominous.

The bear ship, which had already arrived at the bronze palace in a small flying boat, was completely unaffected.

Before this vast bronze palace, it seemed as if all laws were suppressed, rendered unusable, and unable to be activated.

Only by cultivating one's vital energy and blood, and by forging a physique that ordinary people cannot achieve, can one truly attain true strength.

Xiong Zhou jumped down from the small flying boat and put it into his storage bag. Then, he looked at the tens of thousands of slightly unfamiliar yet somewhat familiar beasts engraved on the gate of the mansion.

After comparing the memories in his mind, Xiong Zhou's expression showed a hint of surprise and doubt.

"These animal inscriptions seem to bear a striking resemblance to the ancient, savage races mentioned in our ancestral bloodline..."

"But haven't these barbaric races almost all become extinct, or their bloodlines become extremely rare?"

In a corner of the gate, Xiong Zhou even spotted a figure that resembled a cunning creature.

It's unclear whether the large dog engraved here is truly an ancestor of his or her, or a design carved by the craftsman who forged this gate based on his own impression.

In any case, Xiong Zhou did not sense any affinity or Dao essence from this big dog, not even a trace of the familiar Dao essence of the Wood element.

"Why inscribe so many barbaric races?"

"Do you have a collecting habit?"

Amidst a barrage of complaints, Xiong Zhou approached the door without hesitation and reached out to touch the seemingly cunning inscription.

He had just had another sudden whim. It wasn't a very powerful one, but there were some signs about his own bloodline's potential, and he didn't sense much danger.

Safety is relatively guaranteed.

"brush!"

A golden streak of light flashed before Xiong Zhou, and his figure instantly disappeared in front of the bronze palace, as if following some special path and going deep inside.

At this moment, the semi-transparent blood-red phantom slowly looked towards the place where Xiong Zhou had disappeared, its eyes almost bloodshot.

"I'm going to destroy this..."

"His traces must not exist..."

The ancient remnant soul murmured softly, its hatred having shifted from Xiong Zhou to the fallen immortal holy body and the bronze palace.

His hands, stained with black blood, slowly reached out and, with a series of clanging sounds, pulled open the bronze door, stepping inside.

-----------------

Xiaochang Kingdom, capital city.

Yan Feng fiddled with a quiet, burning divine fire in his hand, which was scorching with faint death energy and yin energy, and appeared exceptionally vast and majestic.

Amidst the flickering divine fire, he slowly absorbed the principles within the flames, merging them into his inner world and transforming them into a part of his own path of Qi cultivation, broadening his path and constructing different colors, all of which were the spiritual foundation of the flames.

Yan Feng cast his gaze into the distance, and with the help of a special flame, he saw a bronze palace rising in the distance. He sensed the wisps of malevolent energy, blood energy, and the immense Qi of heaven and earth that made him pale.

Suddenly, he frowned, and a wisp of flame shot out, forming the Tai Chi Bagua and revealing the secrets of heaven.

With a hint of confusion, Yan Feng murmured to himself, "Is there some opportunity for me in this?"

At the fingertips, the shapes of Tai Chi and Bagua constantly evolve and deduce, listing various hexagrams to deduce the information of this bronze palace as accurately as possible.

"It possesses innate fire..."

"The Unquenchable Flame, the Flame of All Beasts, the Flame of Blood... the Flame of the Netherworld?"

Yan Feng deduced the existence of the last primordial fire, and his pupils contracted slightly.

"Why would such innate fire belonging to the dead exist within the Azure Sky Realm?"