Cultivation: I Can Traverse Otherworlds

Two thousand Iron Evil Stones!

This was no small sum.

Judging by the output of the mines, two thousand Iron Evil Stones were nothing. Any major power could easily acquire them.

The key was,

Zhu Ju was just a disciple of the Bright Void Sect’s Dragon Head Lineage, and he had only joined the Sect a few years ago at most.

How could he possibly obtain so many Iron Evil Stones?

And even if he could,

How would he explain it to others?

"As for Spirit Stones, that’s actually the easy part." Zhu Ju’s expression was complicated as he looked through his belongings.

Spirit Stones—

He really wasn’t short on them!

Inside the Qiankun Bag of Fann Jie, the Black Death Master’s disciple, were over a hundred Spirit Stones and many other valuable, rare materials.

Most importantly,

there was an Acupoint Opening Pill that could help a Cultivator open their Acupoints. This was a hot commodity among Innate Qi Refiners.

An Acupoint Opening Pill for the early-stage Innate realm was useless to him now, so it was only natural to exchange it for Spirit Stones.

Over the next few days, Zhu Ju used the Hidden Element Technique to disguise himself and frequented the market at the foot of the mountain.

Through various channels, he first exchanged his possessions for Spirit Stones, then secretly began purchasing Iron Evil Stones.

He never bought much at once—a dozen here, a few dozen there—so as not to attract attention.

It would take a considerable amount of time.

But it was safe.

Besides,

he was in no hurry.

...

In the Earth Fire Stone Chamber.

In between purchasing Iron Evil Stones, Zhu Ju once again extended his rental for another month.

By using the Earth Fire for Artifact Refining over a long period, he also got to know two other fellow disciples who frequented the place.

Pei Xing.

An Inner Sect Disciple.

He was from the same family as Pei Jingque.

This senior brother from the Inner Sect was over eighty years old, with a Cultivation at the Breaking Four Acupoints stage. He had become an Inner Sect Disciple due to his merits in Artifact Refining.

His experience was similar to that of Brother Ge, the Alchemist.

According to Pei Xing, although he was old, his seniority within the Pei Family was not high. By generation, he was supposed to address Pei Jingque as "Grand-aunt."

However, he had entered the Sect on his own merits, not by leveraging any connections.

No one would doubt this point.

After all,

he had joined the Sect earlier than Pei Jingque.

The other person was named Yuzhou, a short, thin Outer Sect Disciple with dark skin and a rough, hoarse voice.

It wasn’t until their second meeting that Zhu Ju realized she was a woman.

Unlike him,

neither Pei Xing nor Yuzhou had to pay to use the Earth Fire Stone Chambers; there was no need to spend extra Spirit Stones.

"We forge Weapons for the Sect Disciples. Senior Brother Pei is in charge of the Inner Sect and True Inheritance disciples, while I handle the Outer Sect Disciples."

Yuzhou said with a matter-of-fact expression:

"When you’re working for the Sect, of course you don’t have to spend Spirit Stones."

"..." Zhu Ju gave a dry laugh.

"Makes sense."

"I come from an Artifact Refining Family in the Mortal World. Senior Brother Pei took a liking to me, so I accepted a mission from the Sect," Yuzhou said, moving a pile of ore.

"Senior Brother Pei studied Artifact Refining under an Elder for a while, but he’s never personally refined a Magical Artifact."

"Refining Magical Artifacts..."

"Only disciples of the Celestial Sword Lineage can do that."

"Even if we get materials that can be used to refine a Magical Artifact, we wouldn’t do it ourselves. We’d have a senior brother or sister from the Celestial Sword Lineage refine it to ensure a better outcome."

"I see..." Zhu Ju nodded and sighed helplessly.

"I understand."

He had originally planned to exchange some insights on Artifact Refining with them to gain more experience, but now it seemed unnecessary.

The stone chamber.

BOOM!

The Earth Fire erupted, its flames shooting over ten feet high.

The scorching heat baked the surrounding rock, and the hard stone walls took on a glazed sheen under the Fierce Flames.

Zhu Ju stood bare-chested in the center of the chamber, his eyes fixed on the fire before him. He suddenly waved his arm.

SWISH!

The five Flying Sabers hanging at his waist shot out like lightning and plunged into the Earth Evil True Flame.

CRACKLE!

BOOM...

As if some foreign substance was burning in the flames, the furnace erupted with a five-colored halo, and streams of Powerful Qi dissipated into the air.

Zhu Ju remained expressionless, allowing the sputtering sparks to land on his body without flinching.

As the Five Peaks True Form Force circulated, his True Qi connected with the Five-Pointed Flying Sabers, allowing him to clearly feel the intense heat of the Earth Fire.

It even...

caused his Divine Soul to grow restless.

The Earth Evil True Flame was no Mortal Fire. Not only could it melt steel, but it could also trigger a Cultivator’s Heart Demon.

A Heart Demon gives birth to Heart Fire, which can burn a Cultivator to ashes from the inside out.

"Huuu..."

Zhu Ju exhaled a long, turbid breath, suppressed his agitated emotions, formed a Seal Technique with his hands, and let out a low shout.

"Om!"

Celestial Dragon Eight Sounds!

This Buddhist Wonderful Dharma was not just for Body Tempering; it also had the wondrous effect of suppressing distracting thoughts and the Heart Demon.

With his mind stabilized, the various Methods from the Artifact Refining Truth surfaced in his thoughts one by one.

"Purge!"

The Spell in his hands changed, and streams of True Qi poured into the Five-Pointed Flying Sabers being refined, helping to purge their impurities.

At the same time,

something resembling iron sand floated out of his Qiankun Bag and slowly sank into the Earth Evil True Flame.

Star Meteorite Iron!

A Refining Material that cost dozens of Spirit Stones for a single tael.

Though called Star Meteorite Iron, it was actually just iron sand. True Star Meteorite Iron was a Curious Object used for refining Magical Treasures.

This iron residue,

was more than enough for Zhu Ju.

BOOM!

When the Earth Evil True Flame came into contact with the Star Meteorite Iron, it immediately burst into an even more intense Fierce Flame, accompanied by a series of explosions.

It was like lighting a string of firecrackers.

The frenzied flames made refining the Magical Artifact even more difficult, and the required consumption of True Qi increased exponentially.

Zhu Ju’s eyes were deep and profound. True Qi surged through his body, and thanks to the characteristic of Five Elements Mutual Generation, his True Qi felt endless.

Time passed.

An unknown amount of time went by.

The Elixirs he had placed beside him to restore True Qi were almost all gone, and he had eaten all the Demon Beast Flesh.

Zhu Ju’s cheeks were sunken and gaunt. He had lost a significant amount of weight, and his ribs were faintly visible.

Only his eyes grew ever more fervent and bright.

BOOM!

Within the scorching Earth Evil True Flame, five sharp auras flickered in and out of existence. The Magical Artifact was already taking shape.

SWISH!

His eyes flashed, and Zhu Ju abruptly drew the long saber at his side.

The blade sliced across his arm, and blood sprayed forth.

"Go!"

Guided by his Spell, the flowing blood shot toward the fire like five sharp arrows, merging with the five auras.

The Blood Refining Technique!

This was an Artifact Refining method recorded in the Artifact Refining Truth.

Magical Artifacts refined with this technique possessed greater Spirituality and a more potent killing intent, but they were also difficult to give to others.

Only the provider of the blood essence could unleash the Magical Artifact’s true power.

Zhu Ju had no intention of giving the Five-Pointed Flying Sabers to anyone else; pursuing ultimate power was what he truly desired.

BOOM!

A deafening roar resounded.

SWISH!

Five pinpoint gleams of light pierced through the Earth Evil True Flame and shot out of the furnace, rushing toward Zhu Ju like nimble Swimming Fish.

"Refine!"

Zhu Ju spat out a breath of True Qi, furiously activating the Method.

As the Five Elements True Evil merged with the Magical Artifact, a feeling of connection, as if they were part of his own body, washed over him. It was as if he had grown five new arms.

With every breath he took, the Magical Artifact resonated in sync with his own Qi.

CLANG!

The five gleams of light rang out as their brilliant glow slowly receded, finally revealing a form that was part saber, part sword.

It looked more like a sword,

than a saber.

"In that case..."

Zhu Ju spoke, his voice hoarse.

"From now on, you shall be called the Five-Pointed Flying Sword!"

CLANG!

The five Flying Swords all trembled in unison, seemingly delighted by their new name, and then zipped around to form a straight line.

Then they suddenly fanned out like a blooming lotus platform, their layers peeling open one by one like petals.

They moved with his thoughts!

An extension of his will!

SWISH!

A sword light flashed and streaked toward the side of the stone chamber, instantly carving deep gashes into the hard rock wall.

As Zhu Ju controlled the Flying Swords, he felt his mind merge with them. Wherever his thoughts went, the Flying Swords followed.

There was no resistance!

He could even use the Flying Swords to absorb Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy.

He could now perform some of the powerful Sword Control Methods from the Five Elements Sword Technique.

BOOM!

His spirits soared, and the True Qi in his body suddenly surged, forcefully smashing through an invisible barrier.

Zhu Ju’s eyes widened in delight.

The Innate Second Acupoint!

Opened!

RUMBLE...

True Qi coursed rapidly through his Meridians, growing stronger with each revolution. In an instant, its strength had increased by nearly fifty percent.

His Physical Body was also nourished by the True Qi, becoming more solid.

Even his Divine Soul’s perception range expanded to about twenty-seven zhang, just one step away from a Great Mage’s thirty zhang.

Flying Swords, complete!

Second Acupoint, open!

A double dose of good fortune!

Pushing open the stone door, Zhu Ju staggered out, his legs weak and unsteady.

"Senior Brother Zhu."

Yuzhou was approaching from outside and looked delighted to see him.

"You’re finally out of seclusion! Senior Brother Pei said you were in seclusion for Artifact Refining and couldn’t be disturbed, so he paid for a few extra days for you."

"Oh!"

Zhu Ju looked dazed.

"Has it been more than a month already?"

"Mhm."

Yuzhou nodded emphatically.

"It’s been ten days over."

"Time passed so quickly." Zhu Ju’s eyes were still hazy as he took out a few Spirit Stones from his Qiankun Bag.

"Please give these to Senior Brother Pei for me. Thank you."

"I need to go back and get some rest."

Forty days of grueling work would take a toll on even an Innate Qi Refiner. Right now, all he wanted was to find a bed and sleep soundly.

*

*

*

「In a dense forest outside Yidu.」

Situ Kongli stared at Zhu Ju, her face ashen. Her hands were clenched into tight fists, the veins on their backs bulging.

"Zhu!"

"You finally decided to show your face?"

"Do you have any idea how long it’s been?"

"..." Zhu Ju rubbed his chin.

"Are things not going well for you?"

Situ Kongli was furious.

It was worse than "not going well."

The Demon Catchers’ stance was ambiguous, while the Celestial Capital Sect and the General’s Mansion had launched several all-out assaults on the Situ Family.

The City Lord’s Mansion had been breached as early as half a month ago.

The Situ Family had suffered heavy losses. Although they hadn’t reached the point of scattering and fleeing, they were not far from total defeat.

"You have to understand,"

Zhu Ju said with a dry cough.

"Two thousand Iron Evil Stones is no small number. Even with my connections, it was difficult to gather them all in a short time."

"However..."

"I have fortunately fulfilled my mission!"

He gestured behind him.

"Go." Situ Kongli took a deep breath and gave a look to someone behind her, who immediately went forward.

Under a thick tangle of vines were two crates, filled to the brim with Iron Evil Stones.

"Miss!"

"There’s no problem!"

Situ Kongli took one of the Iron Evil Stones. Her expression was complicated—there was joy and anxiety, but mostly, there was regret.

If she had gotten these Iron Evil Stones a month ago, while it might not have been enough to defeat the alliance of the Celestial Capital Sect and the General’s Mansion, maintaining the status quo wouldn’t have been difficult.

But now...

their effectiveness was greatly reduced!

"Miss Situ."

Zhu Ju spoke up.

"Did you bring my item?"

"Hmph." Situ Kongli snorted coldly and tossed an object to him.

"Here!"

"THUD..."

Zhu Ju reached out and caught it. It was a goose-egg-sized ’Inner Core’, from which he could feel a potent Essence.

’Strange!’

Holding the ’Inner Core’, Zhu Ju looked puzzled.

He had spent the last month cramming information about Inner Cores, so he was certain of one thing.

The thing in his hand that looked like an Inner Core... was very likely an actual Inner Core.

That sounded like a redundant statement.

But,

the Inner Cores recorded in the Dragon Head Peak’s Library Pavilion were formed from the entire life Essence of a powerful Demon far stronger than a Dao Foundation Cultivator. They would never be this weak.

He knew for a fact that,

in the Main World, an Inner Core could completely replace the Heavenly and Earthly Treasures needed to refine a Foundation Establishment Pill. A single one could even be used for several batches of pills.

But this thing...

Although its Essence was also potent, it was absolutely impossible that it came from something far beyond an ordinary Dao Foundation Cultivator.

At most, it was from a Late-Stage Innate being.

’Or could it be...’

’that the Great Demons of the Magic World are very weak?’

"Our transaction is complete."

His thoughts raced, but Zhu Ju flipped his hand and stored the Inner Core away.

"I will take my leave!"

"I won’t see you out," Situ Kongli said, her face cold.

Watching Zhu Ju’s back recede into the distance until he disappeared, one of the people behind Situ Kongli finally spoke up.

"Miss, are we just going to let him leave like that?"

"What else?"

Situ Kongli snorted.

"That man is quite strong. Provoking him for no reason would only make a powerful enemy for the Situ Family. Now is not the time to stir up more trouble."

"Besides..."

"*We* may be letting him leave, but that doesn’t mean others will."

"Indeed." A person walked out from the dense forest and said,

"It’s better to offer help in times of need than to add flowers to a brocade. Providing assistance when he needs it most will make it easier to gain his trust."

"Elder Xie." Situ Kongli’s expression became respectful.

"We’ll be counting on you in a moment."