Chapter 730 Reencountering the Nascent Soul Tribulation

The airship travels high in the sky, overlooking the demonic energy below, which resembles thick, dark clouds.

Unlike the dark clouds, the demonic energy was constantly churning, and every now and then a few strangely shaped birds or demons made of mist would appear.

Because the airship was at a much higher altitude than it would normally travel, many of the monks on the deck were suffering terribly from the extremely low temperatures and thin air.

Everyone was wearing thick fur coats and huddled together, but even so, they couldn't feel much warmth.

The higher one flies, the more one feels a chill that freezes the soul. Cultivators below the Nascent Soul level cannot even cross the first layer of aura, let alone the gale above it.

That was a gale capable of blowing flesh and blood into skeletons; only cultivators in the late Nascent Soul stage could pass through safely.

Gu Zhonghe left the ship's side and shouted:

"The demonic energy conceals malice. Everyone, move away from the ship's railing and do not look down any further."

As the airship passed over the Gula Pass, everyone saw a scene shrouded in demonic energy, and only then did they truly believe that a great calamity was about to occur.

He came to the center of the deck, cupped his hands in greeting, and said:

"Senior, I'll stay here and keep watch. You should go and rest in the cabin."

It would take more than a month for the flying boat to reach the gates of the Golden Spirit Sect.

Ji An waved his hand gently, "I don't know if we will encounter any danger. Staying outside will allow us to react immediately."

His goal was to lead these artisans back to the sect, and of course, he had to ensure their safety along the way.

Although he did not sense any danger when passing through the demonic energy, he did not let his guard down.

He was a Nascent Soul cultivator, and when he flew away on auspicious five-colored clouds, his speed was extremely fast. Even if there was danger, he would disappear before it could be unleashed.

Ji An activated the Flame Fire Spell, and crimson spiritual light enveloped the entire flying boat. Everyone felt the eerie wind that had been seeping into their bones disappear, and their bodies felt warm and cozy.

He suddenly felt a surge of power and immediately released a golden light that leaped from the ground, leaving the flying boat.

Gu Zhonghe only felt five-colored light appear in his eyes, and then he found that the True Lord had disappeared and appeared a hundred feet away from the flying boat.

The spiritual energy shield covering the deck posed no obstacle whatsoever; that shield was part of the airship's defensive array.

Ji An saw a gigantic head, hundreds of feet in diameter, formed of mist, opening its massive mouth as if to devour the flying boat.

The head was a blurry human shape, exuding an ominous aura.

Without a second thought, he unleashed the Crimson Fire Divine Thunder. The crimson lightning exploded, instantly scattering the mist, and the terrified screams abruptly ceased.

It turns out that many invisible demons gathered in the fog, and they coalesced into a new entity to hunt together, but they ran into a brick wall.

The wailing reached the deck, and Gu Zhonghe felt as if countless cicadas were chirping wildly in his ears, making him slightly dizzy.

Those cultivators with lower cultivation levels fared even worse, their expressions turning extremely terrified, their bodies trembling as if they had witnessed something utterly horrific.

The drifting black mist flickered with crimson flames, ignited by the aftershocks of the spell.

A Nascent Soul cultivator unleashing a spell at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core level can easily kill a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, and even a Golden Core cultivator at the Perfection level cannot withstand more than a few blows.

Ji An frowned slightly. He had only been in the demonic energy-shrouded area for a little over an hour when he was attacked. He wouldn't be able to have any peace for the foreseeable future.

He rode a cloud to the side of the flying boat and transmitted his voice to Gu Zhonghe:

"I'll patrol outside, you keep the tribespeople calm."

Activate the flying boat's fastest flight mode; don't be stingy with the spirit stones consumed.

His idea was to safely bring this group of people to the sect.

After saying that, he increased the distance between himself and the flying boat, so that he could have a better view and observe the situation in the demonic energy below the flying boat.

"Yes, sir!" Gu Zhonghe shouted, giving the order.

"Boys, the True Lord is personally protecting us, you should be secretly happy."

"Haha," a good-natured laugh spread out.

These are cultivators at the Nascent Soul level; they were previously at opposite ends of the world, and there was no possibility of them ever meeting.

Now that a true lord is willing to do this, everyone feels that there is hope for the future, and life in the Western Continent should be very wonderful.

A few days later, Ji An, who was flying at the same speed and parallel to the flying boat, discovered a patch of demonic energy surging wildly more than 20 miles away, which aroused his great curiosity.

Just as he was hesitating whether to go over and take a look, thunderclouds shimmering with five-colored light began to gather.

Chaotic divine lightning! Judging from the intensity of the tribulation clouds, this indicates that a cultivator is undergoing a Nascent Soul tribulation.

He was overjoyed. At that moment, the stone tortoise flew out of his dantian and came outside, then quickly became transparent and flashed towards the tribulation clouds.

He immediately returned to the flying boat and said:

"Attention everyone, there is a Nascent Soul Tribulation forming ahead. The flying boat should turn west and go around it. I said stop, stop again."

Ji An recalled a map of the Western Continent. This location was roughly the area where Yuanhe Mountain was located, which meant that a new Nascent Soul cultivator was about to be born in the Xuan Yin Sect.

He was not afraid of this. Regardless of whether the enemy could successfully transcend the tribulation, he had proven in actual combat that he could beat a Nascent Soul cultivator to a pulp.

With strength, one has nothing to fear.

Even if the enemy successfully transcends the tribulation, the Golden Spirit Sect is in a state of seclusion and is not afraid of being sabotaged by Nascent Soul stage demonic cultivators.

Another very important point is that even if a demonic cultivator successfully transcends the tribulation, he will inevitably be covered in wounds and will need at least several decades to recover.

The cultivation world is not friendly to demon cultivators; demon cultivators can hardly enjoy the 'bonus' of breaking through to a higher realm.

"Yes, sir!" Gu Zhonghe responded loudly, then rushed into the ship's control room and gave the order:

"Turn west, someone ahead is undergoing a tribulation of lightning."

A moment later, a majestic voice echoed throughout every corner of the airship, "Stop."

The airship gradually slowed down and finally hovered in the air.

Three days later, a bolt of purple lightning appeared from the void, and soon after, a hazy radiance emanated from the demonic energy in the distance.

Several hours later, the sound of surging waves echoed in the sky, a blood-red river fell from the heavens, and countless ethereal whispers came, faint and indistinct, carrying a lingering and poignant sense of sorrow.

Many people on the deck of the airship shed tears without realizing it, their eyes vacant and looking as if they had no will to live.

The stone tortoise returned to Ji An's dantian, at which point he sensed something was wrong and hissed:

"Wake up! Head south at full speed!"

He hadn't expected that the Nascent Soul Dharma Image could affect low-level cultivators from such a distance; this information was extremely important.

As if waking from a dream, the group watched as the flying boat slowly started moving, its speed increasing rapidly as they fled as if escaping.

Ji An frowned. As the tribulation of lightning proceeded, the demonic energy around him dispersed, allowing him to see the true situation during the tribulation.

The demonic cultivator undergoing tribulation actually summoned a white bone magic weapon to protect himself. Although this magic weapon turned to ashes in the lightning tribulation, it helped the demonic cultivator withstand a great deal of damage.

The demonic cultivator successfully survived the tribulation of lightning, and the injuries he sustained were not particularly serious.

The fact that the Xuan Yin Sect possesses such a weapon-refining tradition will undoubtedly greatly increase the success rate of demonic cultivators in transcending tribulations.

He wasn't afraid of two Nascent Soul level one demonic cultivators. If there were ten or eight such cultivators, and they could still maintain a balance between offense and defense, he would have to temporarily avoid their sharp edge.

In this way, the Western Continent is in grave danger.

Ji An and the flying boat maintained the same speed, and Ji An focused his mind on his dantian to connect with the stone turtle.

The golden characters illuminated the upper dantian, shining brightly above the Guanghan Palace, like stars adorning the night sky.

[Master: Ji An]

[Tao Yun: Gold 2360.5, Water 2472.6, Wood 1628.3, Fire 1286.4, Earth 1265.8]

The approximately 1,300 points of Daoist energy he gained greatly eased his tense emotions.

"Refine the Dao essence to improve the grade of the Gengxin Metal Dao Seed."

All fear stems from insufficient firepower. If his attacks could penetrate the defenses of a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, he wouldn't be afraid even if there were ten or eight Nascent Soul cultivators from the Xuan Yin Sect.

Furthermore, even if demonic cultivators improve their cultivation very rapidly, they couldn't possibly have that many primordial spirit seeds.

Even if there were ten Nascent Soul level demonic cultivators, he could obtain more than 10,000 points of Dao essence from them, which would be enough to raise his Dao seed by several grades.

As the grade of the Dao seed increases, the power of the related spells naturally increases as well.

Taking metal-based spells as an example, the defensive power of metal and stone is enhanced, and spells such as Taibai Extinguishing Spirit Sword and Gengjin Divine Thunder benefit from this.

Ji An's consciousness was pulled into the mysterious space of the stone tortoise. He first experienced the Geng metal storm, where countless Geng metal particles seemed to be covered by sand raised by a hurricane, and the silver light engulfed him.

His spiritual shadow was ravaged and riddled with holes, quickly withered away, life was cut off, and his consciousness became blurred.

Once a certain level is reached, the divine consciousness shadow returns to its original state, continuing to endure the baptism of the storm and endlessly reincarnating.

This level of Gengjin Storm is an attack at the Nascent Soul level, and the intense sensation is unbearable.

As it turned out, being beaten was the most effective way to deepen one's understanding, and Ji An's comprehension of the Geng metal power increased rapidly.

I don't know how much time passed, but the scene changed.

He was surrounded by a sea of ​​fire, where Xin Jin floated and melted, shrinking in size, demonstrating the resilience of true gold that fears no fire.

Ji An felt that something within him was being refined, and he immersed himself in the process, gaining insights.

The scene changed again. He stood in the center of the Bagua diagram, and silver sand evolved from his fingertips. Electricity flickered on each grain of sand, which was him controlling the yin and yang changes of the metal element particles.

Finally, his consciousness returned to his body, and a towering silver hurricane shone in his eyes.

When metal transforms into yang, it is ruthless and destructive, the sharpest spear, seemingly capable of piercing through everything;

When metal transforms into yin, it becomes hard and immortal, forming the strongest shield, seemingly able to defend against all incoming attacks.

This contradiction is what makes the gold trade so captivating; the wonder of change lies in the mind.

A smile appeared on Ji An's lips as he activated his magic and casually released the Taibai Extinction Sword.

The silver flying sword condensed rapidly and then activated, its trajectory extremely difficult to detect with the naked eye.

He could sense that the effects of the metal element spells had increased by at least 20%, and the mana cost of the spells had also decreased, as had the casting time. This was an all-around enhancement.

At his level of cultivation, even the slightest improvement brings positive changes, let alone such a sudden and significant increase.

Ji An once again focused his mind on the stone tortoise to examine the changes in its Daoist aura.

[Daoyun: Gold 2360.5→835.9]

[Tao Seed - Gengxin Metal (Middle Grade), stored in the Metal Palace of the Lungs, allows one to comprehend the extinction and indestructibility of metal, enhancing their understanding of metal-based magical arts.]

"Extinction, or Immortality"

Ji An murmured softly, gaining a new understanding of these two words.

The Daoist aura decreased by more than 1,500 points, but this loss is perfectly acceptable.

'Should we also upgrade the other Dao types to the middle grade?'

The idea popped into his head, but he ultimately shook his head; it wasn't necessary for the time being.

The Taibai Extinguishing Spirit Sword's advancement to the Great Perfection level will enhance his understanding of the Metal element's power, and since it possesses the most Metal element Daoist essence, he can confidently raise the grade of his Metal element Daoist seed.

Even if other Daoist types exhaust their corresponding Daoist essence, they may not be able to improve, and they won't be of much help in combat. It's better to keep them in hand for future needs.

He has now completed the 'required course' for a first-level Nascent Soul cultivator, and has initially built the Niwan Palace, allowing him to quickly improve his magical power cultivation level using elixirs.

The next step is to upgrade the grade of certain spirit trees, and then continue to use Daoist essence to upgrade the grade of the Gathering Yuan Tree.

More than half a month later, the flying boat flew out of the area shrouded by demonic energy, and Ji An was finally freed from being a guard and returned to the deck.

A few days later, the flying boat arrived above the Golden Spirit Sect, where it was filled with laughter and joy.

Not long after, Liu Yu arrived with several cultivators.

"Who is lingering here? The Golden Spirit Sect has sealed off the mountain and strictly forbids anyone from approaching. Leave immediately."

Ji An flew away on auspicious five-colored clouds, explained the situation, and said:

"Notify Gu Hongming to come out, and also have the Diligent Work Hall send people to examine these people."

For safety, it is necessary to perform a purification talisman.

"Yes," Liu Yu replied, then addressed those around him:

"Did you hear what the True Lord said? You two, divide the work and get to it immediately."

He couldn't possibly address Ji An as "Junior Brother" in front of lower-ranking disciples.

"Yes, sir," the two disciples of the Enforcement Hall at the Chaoyuan stage replied, and rode away on their magical artifacts.

The two brothers chatted casually. Liu Yu recounted what had happened in the sect in the past few months, while Ji An shared what he had seen and heard.

About an hour later, the cultivators from the Diligent Work Hall and Gu Hongming arrived one after another.

After examination with the purification talisman, two contaminated individuals were discovered.

Fortunately, the pollution wasn't severe and was purified by a third-grade low-level purification talisman.

Gu Zhonghe looked terrified; he never imagined that one of his clansmen would be corrupted.

Gu Hongming broke out in a cold sweat and cupped his hands in greeting:

"Thank you, True Lord. Without you, my family would not be in danger."

Ji An waved his hand, "Don't be shy. Go and settle your family in, and also explain the sect rules to them."

"Yes, sir!"

Gu Hongming boarded the flying boat and shouted:

"Everyone, come up here. I'll take you to my cave."

Gu Zhonghe was the first to respond, coming to the child's side and transmitting his voice:

"Ming'er, should we investigate why our clansmen were contaminated?"

Gu Hongming shook his head slightly and transmitted his voice:

"No need, it's all in the past, there's no point in investigating further."

Father, it's so good that you could come. Now our whole family is reunited.

Tonight, we'll host a grand banquet to enjoy the fine wines and delicacies of Xizhou.

Gu Zhonghe smiled broadly, "Do you have any third-tier spirit wine?"

"Yes, plenty!" Gu Hongming laughed.

Gu Zhong glanced around furtively, then transmitted his voice:

"Ming'er, do you have a cultivation partner?"

"No, but he took two concubines."

Gu Zhonghe's mouth stretched from ear to ear, "Haha!"

(End of this chapter)