Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 610 - Ninth-Level Heavenly Phase Realm

No ordinary person could consume two ninth-grade pills in succession; their physique wouldn’t withstand the strain, and their body would likely explode under the pills’ immense power.

However, Liu Wuxie had no such fear. The Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron absorbed the pills, breaking them down into manageable energy before channeling it back into his body.

The Insight Pill allowed Liu Wuxie to maintain a calm mind with steady breathing. He had achieved a rhythmic pattern that resembled a newborn, with each breath like part of the natural world's cadence.

The Meridians Cleansing Pill was transforming his meridians, cleansing the impurities within.

Liu Wuxie wasn't in a hurry because he still had a lot of time as time worked differently in the cultivation chamber. One month in the cultivation chamber was only one day in the outside world, and twenty days were left until the Ten Grand Ceremony.

Five days passed in the blink of an eye in the cultivation chamber, and he had successfully absorbed the Meridians Cleansing Pill and Insight Pill. There was no longer a hint of impurity in his body, and even his primordial spirit became clear like a crystal.

Even before reaching the Astral River Realm, Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit had reached the size of an adult's fist. His primordial spirit would grow stronger if he could reach the Astral River Realm.

As true essence coursed through Liu Wuxie's meridians, he began to attempt his breakthrough to the ninth level of the Heavenly Phase Realm. Tens of thousands of mid-grade spirit stones shattered, condensing into spiritual liquid that the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron consumed.

The density of his true essence was comparable to the pinnacle of the Astral River Realm.

"Indigo Flame Pill...with this, I'll make a breakthrough to the next level!" Liu Wuxie swallowed the Indigo Flame Pill with a gulp, which felt like blazing flames exploding in his abdomen.

Suddenly, purple flames appeared in the desolate world and filled the void. The purple flame was converted into purple true essence, filling up the desolate world.

Liu Wuxie's cultivation began to rise, heading towards the ninth level of the Heavenly Phase Realm.

As he circulated the Desolate Devouring Art, tens of thousands of mid-grade spirit stones were reduced to ashes and merged into Liu Wuxie's body. Even a hundred cultivators in the Astral River Realm couldn't rival Liu Wuxie's speed of devouring spiritual energy.

Laws began manifesting in the desolate world, appearing even before Liu Wuxie had reached the Astral River Realm.

Meanwhile, deep within the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron, Dan Cheng's primordial spirit remained imprisoned, barely clinging to life. From his confinement, he had borne witness to Liu Wuxie’s meteoric growth, a sight that filled him with dread. Every surge of spiritual liquid into the cauldron sent tremors through Dan Cheng’s heart. Though not dead, his body served as a source of Nascent Transformation Realm laws, which Liu Wuxie extracted to strengthen his own foundation.

With a loud rumble, Liu Wuxie broke through, successfully reaching the ninth level of the Heavenly Phase Realm. His cultivation surged rapidly, pushing him to the pinnacle of the ninth level. Only one more step separated him from the Quasi-Astral River Realm.

He wasn't in a hurry to make another breakthrough and chose to consolidate his cultivation to reach the Quasi-Astral River Realm. Then, he could use the coral essence to reach the Astral River Realm in one swoop.

Each step Liu Wuxie took was deliberate and calculated. His focus now was on consolidating his cultivation and broadening his meridians, allowing his true essence to flow freely without resistance.

With each cycle, Liu Wuxie’s true essence grew stronger. He even managed to take a step further with the True Dragon Physique, his very bones emitting a golden glow and covered with countless dragon runes.

As Liu Wuxie stood up, rumbling sounds echoed from his bones. When he clenched his fist, he sent a ripple through the air.

"What tremendous power!" Liu Wuxie marveled. This was only the pinnacle of the Heavenly Phase Realm, and he was confident that he would be invincible beneath the Nascent Transformation Realm if he could reach the Astral River Realm. He began to practice his fist technique to consolidate his current cultivation.

Many true disciples had returned to the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion to prepare for the Ten Grand Ceremony. The area meant for them was crowded with people, and true disciples could often be seen in the surroundings.

There were many disciples gathered on a small peak. This was because true disciples could be assigned to a small-scaled mountain, an even better treatment compared to elite disciples.

"Senior Brother Qin Dao, you must avenge the fallen disciples!" many elite disciples pleaded as they kneeled before Qin Dao, begging him to avenge them.

Qin Dao had turned thirty this year and was famed for his throwing knife technique. He had obtained the technique in his teens, mastering it to the point where every throw was lethal. Since his debut, no one had ever survived three strikes from him.

He didn't have an imposing figure, standing at an average height with a thin mustache and sharp, hawk-like eyes that glinted with intense ferocity. Those in the surroundings could sense his menacing gaze, and they held their breaths, fearing that even a whisper could ignite Qin Dao's wrath.

"Get up; he's done for!" Qin Dao commanded, his voice cold as he took a deep breath to suppress his simmering fury. Sweeping his gaze over the group, he added, “I’ve been away for over a year honing my skills, and yet, so much has happened in my absence.”

"We should reconsider because that brat has done a great service for the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, and we might provoke the sect's displeasure if we act rashly," a youth said as he stepped forward, standing before Qin Dao.

During Qin Dao's absence from the sect, this youth had managed the Lesser Blade Association, and he was Qin Dao's most trusted brother-in-arms.

His name was Song Guang. He was known for being ruthless, and the Lesser Blade Association had flourished under his management. Even without Qin Dao, the Lesser Blade Association had managed to operate normally.

"Say no more. How can we stand firm in the sect if we don't kill him?" Qin Dao waved his hand to dismiss what Song Guang said. The Lesser Blade Association had never faced such a situation since its establishment. Cutting off all their sources of income had dealt a lethal blow to the faction.

The other regions buzzed with tales of the recent year's events, and most of them centered around Liu Wuxie.

......

Meanwhile, Liu Wuxie remained oblivious to all of this, lost in his own world. After stabilizing his cultivation at the ninth level of the Heavenly Phase Realm, he began circulating the Desolate Devouring Art to accelerate his progress.

Although in seclusion, Liu Wuxie could easily imagine the upheavals occurring outside. With the Ten Grand Ceremony approaching and many true disciples returning, ferocious conflicts were inevitable.

"The Purity Pill!" Liu Wuxie took out the Purity Pill and placed it in his hand. The level of the Purity Pill was even beyond the Transcendent Pill, and it could cleanse his mundane impurities to elevate his aura to a new level.

"True Profound Realm's laws!" Liu Wuxie marveled as he inspected the pill. He realized that this pill was likely refined by the sect master himself.

When he consumed the pill, his mundane aura began to dissolve, and his mind sharpened. It felt like he was floating among the clouds—a sensation beyond words.

Shortly after, Liu Wuxie retrieved the Spirit Consolidating Pill. This extraordinary pill had the unique property of preserving a person’s spirituality, which naturally declined with age. Spirituality was strongest in youth but would diminish over time, often becoming tainted as one grew older.

With the Spirit Consolidating Pill, Liu Wuxie's spirituality could be maintained at a vibrant level. With his rising cultivation, his spirituality would also rise in the future.

After consuming various ninth-grade pills, Liu Wuxie's cultivation began to shake. The Desolate Devouring Art began to circulate to devour the laws in the surroundings.

"Coral essence, you're up next!" Liu Wuxie said as he took out two coral essences. One was obtained on his journey back from the Blood Sea Abyssal Island, while the other was a reward from the sect master.

He planned to use the coral essences to reach the Astral River Realm in one swoop, and this was a rare opportunity he couldn't afford to miss.

After absorbing so many heaven-defying pills, it would be too much of a disappointment if he couldn't make a breakthrough.

However, he wasn't in a hurry because he had yet to refine more laws, especially the Nascent Transformation Realm laws from Dan Cheng.

As demonic flames blazed in the cauldron, a heart-wrenching scream came from Dan Cheng.

He was only left with a fragment of the primordial spirit because Liu Wuxie had absorbed the majority.

The Golden Spirit Fruit finally reached maturity after devouring so much spiritual energy and spirituality. The fruit gave off an alluring radiance, but Liu Wuxie wouldn't consume it lightly.

Liu Wuxie's cultivation began to rise and swiftly reached the pinnacle of the Heavenly Phase Realm, advancing towards the Astral River Realm.

With pills and coral essences, Liu Wuxie could feel that the gateway to the Astral River Realm was slowly opened to him.

The Heavenly Dao Book unfurled, and Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit began to grow. It was once no larger than a fist, but it had grown in size during his attempt at the Astral River Realm.

Most importantly, facial features began to appear on his primordial spirit—an attribute usually associated with the high levels of the Astral River Realm.

This was incredible, but concern soon overtook his thoughts.

"This won't do. If my primordial spirit is too strong, the laws of the Astral River Realm can't catch up," he realized.

The desolate world was immensely powerful, and the amount of true essence Liu Wuxie required was hundreds of times greater than that of ordinary cultivators. Additionally, with his exceptionally strong primordial spirit, the quantity and quality of laws he needed were proportionately immense.

The pills and coral essences alone couldn't satisfy his primordial spirit, and his breakthrough was only complete when it reached full saturation.

Frustration set in because this had stalled his advancement.

Despite multiple attempts, his efforts failed because his primordial spirit was still undergoing a transformation. In addition to the facial features, limbs had also grown swiftly on his primordial spirit.

This frustrated Liu Wuxie, and it would probably shock the world if anyone knew that facial features had developed on his primordial spirit even before he reached the Astral River Realm.

His primordial spirit was like a black hole, continuously drawing spiritual energy from the surroundings, and Liu Wuxie had consumed half of the vast reserve of spirit stones.

The consumption rate was terrifying, but Liu Wuxie still found himself at an impasse as time ticked by; his cultivation remained at the Quasi-Astral River Realm, unable to cross that threshold.

"Screw it!" Liu Wuxie gritted his teeth as chains rattled within the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron as Dan Cheng was dragged out.

"Liu Wuxie, what are you trying to do?!" Dan Cheng yelled. He was already at Liu Wuxie's mercy, unable to resist. He only had a fragment of his primordial spirit left; he was beyond salvation, and he would perish even if Liu Wuxie released him now.

"Help me take a look at my primordial spirit and tell me what's wrong with it," Liu Wuxie said. He was troubled by this obstacle in his cultivation as he had never experienced it before. Dan Cheng was in the Nascent Transformation Realm and must have had experience since he had gone through the Astral River Realm to reach his current height.

However, Dan Cheng was left speechless at the sight of Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit.

"What's your actual cultivation? Are you in the Nascent Transformation Realm or Astral River Realm?" Dan Cheng's voice was tinged with fear; he couldn't comprehend how Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit was so powerful.

Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit was the size of two adults' fists, practically solid, and had fully formed facial features and limbs.

After reaching the Nascent Transformation Realm, the primordial spirit would be infant-like, but Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit was unlike any infant. This meant it had yet to undergo the phase of nascent transformation.

However, it didn't look like the Astral River Realm either because Liu Wuxie was still working toward it.

"I'm in the Heavenly Phase Realm," Liu Wuxie sighed in exasperation. His cultivation was stalled at the brink of a breakthrough, and he could not progress further.