645: Chapter 645 (advance)

"Mid-Nascent Soul Stage!"

Liu Xuan gently clenched his palm, feeling the terrifying power contained within his body.

"If I were to perform Body Integration with Peach Blossom armor right now, I should be able to fight a Soul Transformation Middle Stage Dao Lord, right!"

With the Yin and Yang Combined Attack technique, when Liu Xuan was at the Early Nascent Soul Stage, he could unleash combat power comparable to the Soul Transformation Middle Stage when teaming up with Peach Blossom, though it wasn't sustainable for long.

Now that Liu Xuan had reached the Mid-Nascent Soul Stage, his own combat power had greatly increased, and his endurance had also been significantly strengthened. Whether he could defeat a Soul Transformation Middle Stage Cultivator was hard to say, but fighting to a standstill shouldn't be a problem.

"Soul Transformation Middle Stage, plus my collection of treasures and my status as a Fourth-Grade Peak Formation Master—if I keep a low profile, self-preservation shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Speaking of treasures, Liu Xuan instinctively looked inward, observing the Grotto-Heaven Small World that had expanded to about three times its original size.

When cultivation reaches the Nascent Soul Stage, the most obvious change in Realm improvement is not mana, but the Nascent Soul, which contains the Laws of Heaven and Earth.

Liu Xuan was even more special; within his Nascent Soul, there was a Grotto-Heaven Small World evolved from Laws.

The Grotto-Heaven Small World had also undergone Fusion with the Sixth-Grade Immortal Artifact, the wither-thrive life-death cauldron. The reason his Breakthrough to a minor Realm caused such a huge commotion and absorbed so much Spiritual Qi was mainly because the Fusion between the internal world and the Immortal Artifact, the wither-thrive life-death cauldron, had deepened, allowing it to unleash more of the Immortal Artifact's power.

Liu Xuan looked up slightly, his gaze piercing through the Formation barrier and the deep, dark pond water, looking towards the deep sky.

"If the Spiritual Qi anomalies in the Southern Border intensify, then the cause of all this will be very clear!"

Regarding the Southern Border Spiritual Qi anomalies, Liu Xuan currently had three guesses. The first was that the spread of the Heaven-Seizing One Qi Secret Art was causing True Qi to not enter the cycle; the second was Jing Zun, who possessed a Seventh-Grade High Grade Azure Dragon Bloodline that far exceeded the Bloodline limits of this world; the third was the Sixth-Grade Immortal Artifact, the wither-thrive life-death cauldron, which was constantly refining life force.

Last time, at Jiang Xingwan's place, he had basically ruled out the guess about True Qi not entering the cycle. This time, because his cultivation had advanced, the Immortal Artifact had strengthened; if the Spiritual Qi anomalies intensified, it would prove that the wither-thrive life-death cauldron was the cause.

If the trend of the Spiritual Qi remained unchanged, the most likely culprit would have to be that kid, Jing Zun.

Of course! It was also possible that Liu Xuan had guessed wrong about everything and there were other possibilities, only he hadn't thought of them yet.

"Let's not worry about this for now!" Liu Xuan looked at Peach Blossom, who was watching him from the edge of the Formation. "I'll go try the armor Body Integration with Peach Blossom first to see how much combat power we can unleash!"

To bring the Yin and Yang Combined Attack secret technique to its best state, frequent practice was needed. Previously, Liu Xuan and Peach Blossom could coordinate very well, but now that his cultivation had advanced, he had to get familiar with it all over again.

"Congratulations to Husband for successfully advancing to the Mid-Nascent Soul Stage!" Peach Blossom looked at Liu Xuan, whose temperament had become even more refined and immortal-like, and smiled as she bowed to congratulate him.

The joy only lasted for a moment before Peach Blossom pulled on Liu Xuan's arm, leaned her head on his shoulder, and her tone suddenly became dejected.

"It is naturally a good thing that Husband's cultivation has advanced, but it will be even harder for me to conceive a little baby now!"

Peach Blossom had tasted the sweetness when her son Jing Zun was born, and ever since then, she had wanted to conceive a second child.

For this reason, she had tried all sorts of methods, even using some unreliable folk remedies, but in the end, she still hadn't gotten her wish.

When Cultivators or Yao Beasts have children, whichever party improves their cultivation, the chance of pregnancy afterwards decreases.

She hadn't conceived when Liu Xuan was at the Early Nascent Soul Stage, and now that Liu Xuan had advanced to the Mid-Nascent Soul Stage, it would be even harder for her to get pregnant.

"Don't worry, Wife; we are both still young, and there is plenty of time ahead!" Liu Xuan comforted her, wrapping his arm around Peach Blossom's fragrant shoulder.

To this day, Liu Xuan already had over a thousand children and over two thousand descendants. With his offspring beginning to reproduce actively, he no longer had a strong obsession with having children.

If it happens, it happens; if not, it's no big deal. He believed in letting nature take its course.

"Of course it doesn't matter to you, Husband; you have so many children, while I only have one," Peach Blossom said, looking aggrieved.

"Then what do you want? I have already favored you enough!"

Peach Blossom took the opportunity to hook her hands around Liu Xuan's neck, hanging her whole body on him, and acted spoiled: "I don't care; I want even more favoritism!"

Liu Xuan reached out to hold her, preventing her from falling, and then said helplessly: "Just this once, don't make it a habit!"

"Thank you, Husband, you are the best!" Peach Blossom bloomed with a charming smile and took the initiative to kiss Liu Xuan.

...

A few days later.

Liu Xuan took some time to go to the East Sea again to meet with Jiang Xingwan, asking her to observe once more whether there were any trend changes in the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi anomalies.

The result was exactly as Liu Xuan had guessed. According to Jiang Xingwan, there was indeed a clear intensification of the Spiritual Qi in the Southern Border.

However, Jiang Xingwan told Liu Xuan that it was a good thing that this stable growth trend had been broken. It meant that the previous growth trend was not stable, and the emergence of changes actually conformed to the natural flow patterns of the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

Everything looked more like a coincidence rather than a specific cause or human intervention.

Liu Xuan was not so optimistic. When his guess was confirmed, he couldn't think of any good way to handle it for the moment.

He could not yet fully control the Sixth-Grade Immortal Artifact. Swallowing life force was its autonomous behavior, and Liu Xuan didn't even know how to interrupt it right now.

Moreover, life force was the key to the functioning of the wither-thrive life-death cauldron. It could not only unleash the Life and Death Profound Light that strips away Lifespan but also accelerate the maturation of High Grade Spirit Medicine. Unless necessary, he didn't want to interrupt it.

"Move it to the East Sea?"

That didn't seem to work either. Moving the Grotto-Heaven Small World along with the wither-thrive life-death cauldron to the East Sea was simple, but after arriving at the East Sea, it would still swallow life force, thereby causing the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to converge towards the East Sea.

It might dispel the suspicions of various factions in the short term, but as long as the swallowing intensity of the wither-thrive life-death cauldron continued to grow, it would be unavoidable in the future.

Frequent long-distance movement would also carry the risk of exposing clues and flaws, so it could not be tried lightly.

"Damn it!"

"Don't push me; if you push me any further, I'll blow up with you all!"

After some thought, Liu Xuan decided to remain still for the time being and wait for the subsequent changes in the situation.

If everything remained stable, that would be for the best; if someone came knocking, he would give them a blast of the Life and Death Profound Light.

Regardless of whether they were at the Soul Transformation Late Stage or Soul Transformation Peak, he would like to see how many years of Lifespan these people had for him to strip away.

For those who cultivate immortality, the higher the Realm, the more they fear death. Even if only a small portion of their Lifespan was stripped away, there was a high probability they would be forced to retreat by Liu Xuan.

As the saying goes, misfortunes never come singly. Just as Liu Xuan was still worrying about the Spiritual Qi anomalies caused by the Immortal Artifact, an even worse piece of news came from Ghost King Lian Yue the Ghost King.

In the yin fiend Ghost City under the Biyou Pool, inside a great hall, Ghost King Lian Yue the Ghost King, dressed in white, was holding the hand of a fair-skinned little boy about three or four years old and said to Liu Xuan:

"The Great Sage Taisui of the Southwest has awakened. He has already issued a decree, advancing the once-in-a-century offering, originally scheduled for fifty years from now, to one year from now."

The Great Sage Taisui of the Southwest was one of the two overlords of the Yao Race in the Southern Border. He slept all year round and only accepted offerings from the many Yao Race in the Southern Border once every hundred years.

This rule had not changed for nearly ten thousand years. The reason it had suddenly been advanced this time could only be one thing: it, too, had sensed the Spiritual Qi anomalies in the Southern Border.