43: Breakthrough! Daoist Golden Core!

Deep within the Clear Wind Sect, atop a spiritual peak shrouded in mist and clouds, stood several magnificent halls.

In the most prestigious quiet room, where spiritual rhythms lingered, three people were having a secret discussion.

“Eldest Brother, what do you think of this Zhang Yang?” one of them asked.

“Lately, it seems he has been fighting people on the Martial Arts Stage every day at noon. Many old fellows from the Spirit Aperture Realm within the sect have gone there; he is taking the opportunity to improve his combat experience,” another added.

The eyes of both men finally fell upon the extraordinary young man in the center of the quiet room.

The youth was dressed in a flowing cloud-patterned green robe, his ink-black hair draped casually over his shoulders. An Aura circulated around him, faintly exuding a sense of otherworldly immortality.

He was Wei Chen, a strong contender for the top three in this session's Inner Sect Grand Competition. He possessed a Profound Core Realm Third Level cultivation and had understood Sword Intent to the fourth stage long ago, achieving a high-grade profound pill.

Wei Chen's expression was as calm as water. Hearing this, he merely lifted his eyelids slightly.

“There is no need to pay attention to this person. No matter how hard he works to hone his combat experience, the Spirit Aperture Realm can only ever be the Spirit Aperture Realm.”

“Unless he breaks through to the Profound Core Realm before the Inner Sect Grand Competition, he poses no threat to me.”

He shook his head slightly, his tone categorical.

“I do not believe that with Zhang Yang's talent, he would choose to break through to the Profound Core Realm before the Inner Sect Grand Competition!”

“A medium-grade profound pill would not be the choice of such a Genius.”

Wei Chen had naturally heard of Zhang Yang.

That he could actually defeat Cang Lingchuan while in the Spirit Aperture Realm, and do so with a single move, had surprised him.

After all, he had also challenged Cang Lingchuan back then. Although he won, it wasn't as easy as it was for Zhang Yang, and he had even sustained some injuries.

However, this surprise was fleeting.

He was not worried that Zhang Yang would pose a threat to him in this Inner Sect Grand Competition.

He was now a true Profound Core Realm Martial Artist.

He was even more convinced that with the talent Zhang Yang displayed, he must understand the impact of the Profound Core's quality on his future path of martial arts.

If he broke through to the Profound Core Realm with a medium-grade profound pill, even if he took the top spot in the competition, it would be putting the cart before the horse and destroying his own future.

Zhang Yang should not be so foolish.

As for Zhang Yang understanding Saber Intent to the fourth stage and thus condensing a high-grade profound pill?

Wei Chen felt it was even more impossible. How long had this Zhang Yang been cultivating?

Fourth stage Saber Intent? A pipe dream!

“No need to follow him anymore,” Wei Chen said with a wave of his sleeve.

“In this competition, the only ones I truly need to care about are Du Qi and Xiao Yu. Only those two pose a threat to me.”

All the Spirit Aperture Realm Disciples in this session's Inner Sect Grand Competition were destined to only compete for positions below third place.

The candidates for the top three would only emerge from among Du Qi, Xiao Yu, and himself. Everyone else was not worth his notice.

“Have Du Qi and Xiao Yu shown any movement recently?” Wei Chen shifted the conversation to the main point.

“In response to Eldest Brother,” the third person quickly replied respectfully,

“since Du Qi returned, he has been in secluded cultivation at his mountain peak, living simply and refusing all visitors.”

“As for Xiao Yu, he often Cultivates in a quiet room on Xuan Yuan Peak and hasn't left recently either.”

“It seems they are both gathering momentum and adjusting their states.” A sharp light flashed in Wei Chen's eyes as his Battle Intent rose slightly.

“I must not be negligent either. For the coming period, you two need not come again. I will emerge from seclusion on the day the competition begins.”

“Yes!”

The two respectfully took their orders, and their figures soon disappeared into the mist.

The room returned to silence.

Wei Chen walked slowly into the inner cultivation chamber, sat cross-legged on a futon, took out a Purple Sun Pill, placed it in his mouth, and began to Cultivate.

His fourth stage Saber Intent was still quite a distance from the fifth stage; it could not be achieved overnight.

At present, the fastest way to improve his combat strength was undoubtedly to use the Purple Sun Pill to refine his cultivation.

Meanwhile, atop the barren mountain.

Zhang Yang sat cross-legged, his mind sinking into his body as he began to charge toward the Profound Core Realm!

The first step was to trigger the innate qi, which was hidden deep within the lower Dantian.

Zhang Yang was very familiar with this, as he had already read through the experiences and insights of predecessors on condensing high-grade profound pills on the third floor of the Xuan Dan Pavilion.

He very easily located the innate qi at his Dantian.

The second step was to merge the nine apertures into one!

His thoughts were like lightning as the nine great Spirit Apertures within his body shook violently, like nine stars being pulled by an invisible force, beginning to slowly draw closer and merge.

This step also went smoothly for him.

The final step: use Concept as the furnace fire to forge the nine apertures into a Golden Core!

Zhang Yang did not rush to use the power of his Concept, but first pushed the nine apertures to merge naturally.

When they had merged to about thirty percent, a huge resistance suddenly appeared, as if an invisible barrier had grown between the nine apertures.

The time had come!

“Buzz!”

His Sea of Consciousness vibrated as the terrifying intent of the seventh stage Saber Intent was mobilized by Zhang Yang without reservation!

An invisible Saber Domain instantly enveloped the nine great Spirit Apertures merging within his Dantian. Using Concept as the hammer and will as the fire, he began to forcibly forge and smelt these nine stars!

One hour, two hours, three hours... Under the tempering of the seventh stage Saber Intent, the merging speed of the nine great Spirit Apertures far exceeded ordinary imagination.

After three hours, the Fusion had reached ninety-nine percent!

However, for this final tenth of a percent, the resistance suddenly increased by more than tenfold!

That invisible barrier became as hard as divine iron, like a shackle set by the Heavenly Dao in the dark.

If Zhang Yang's Saber Intent had only stopped at the sixth stage, he would likely be exhausted and unable to move an inch by now.

Fortunately! His Saber Intent had reached the seventh stage!

“One hundred percent! dao rhyme golden core! Condense for me!”

Zhang Yang let out a roar that shook his Divine Soul in his heart, and the remaining Saber Intent power in his Sea of Consciousness exploded!

“Crack—!”

As if from the deepest part of his Soul, a crisp sound, as clear as a shackle being violently severed, exploded in Zhang Yang's Sea of Consciousness!

In an instant, Zhang Yang felt his entire Soul lighten, as if an invisible heavy burden had been lifted!

Without time to carefully experience this wonderful change, Zhang Yang immediately operated the Breakthrough secret technique.

Deep within the Dantian's Qi Sea, that long-awaited wisp of innate qi, as if summoned, suddenly turned into a stream of light and instantly plunged into the core of the perfectly merged 'Aperture Core'!

The moment the innate qi took residence.

Above the barren mountain, the originally clear sky split open without warning, revealing a thin golden crack!

Immediately after, a dazzling golden pillar of light, like a heavenly sword falling, ignored the barriers of space and accurately poured into the Baihui point on the top of Zhang Yang's head!

The golden light instantly penetrated the Physical Body's barrier and reached the Dantian!

Under the combined action of the innate qi and the golden light from heaven, the merged 'Aperture Core' underwent an earth-shaking transformation!

It spun, compressed, and solidified crazily, finally turning into a fist-sized, perfectly round, and dazzling Golden Core!

Inside the Golden Core, the liquid True Yuan that had been compressed to the limit began an essential transformation!

They boiled and sublimated, turning toward a higher, purer, and more powerful form of energy: Origin Power!

At the same time, Zhang Yang's body was lifted by an invisible force, and without any external help, he quietly floated in the void three feet off the ground.

This was the nascent Origin Power, an inherent ability of a Profound Core Realm Martial Artist to hover in the air without using any external force.

As the transformation of Origin Power within the Golden Core continued, the golden light pouring down also turned from strong to weak, gradually becoming thin.

When the last wisp of liquid True Yuan had completely transformed into dazzling golden Origin Power, the golden light above Zhang Yang's head also completely dissipated.

The mysterious golden crack in the sky also slowly closed.