Chapter 203: Condensing a Clone

Wang Lin's eyes flickered. His Divine Sense spread out, and his body moved at an extremely fast speed, sweeping in all directions as he flew. Suddenly, his body paused, and his eyes looked north. Two thousand li north of his current location, he detected two Cultivators rapidly heading east.

Both Cultivators were male. One was young, with cultivation around the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment. The other was middle-aged, with cultivation reaching the Early Stage of Core Formation. After a quick glance, Wang Lin's body suddenly moved, flying towards the two with the speed of a thunderbolt.

Mai Guorong, as a Disciple of the Haoran Sect, was following his Master's orders to attend the bi-annual Spirit Opening Assembly at the Cloud Heaven Sect. The so-called Spirit Opening Assembly was actually a Medicinal Pill auction unique to the Cloud Heaven Sect.

The Cloud Heaven Sect was famous for Alchemy in the Chu Country. Even some Grade Four cultivation Countries would occasionally come to purchase and trade their Medicinal Pills, though that usually happened during the decade-long Grand Spirit Opening Assembly. As for the smaller bi-annual Spirit Opening Assembly, it was often attended by junior Disciples from various Schools in the Chu Country, serving as a minor form of tempering.

This type of small Spirit Opening Assembly would not feature overly precious Medicinal Pills; they were usually standardized pills. However, for junior Disciples, these Medicinal Pills were still highly sought after.

It was well-known that any Medicinal Pill produced by the Cloud Heaven Sect would be more effective than similar Medicinal Pills. As such, any pill refined by the Cloud Heaven Sect possessed a certain value and was highly favored.

Aside from these Spirit Opening Assemblies, the Cloud Heaven Sect refused all other transactions. Therefore, even for this bi-annual small Spirit Opening Assembly, all Schools in the Chu Country still sent a large number of junior Disciples to participate.

Mai Guorong felt extremely proud that he could stand out from numerous Disciples to attend this Spirit Opening Assembly, but he knew that his ability to come was all thanks to having a good Master.

Thinking of this, Mai Guorong's gaze fell upon the middle-aged man in front of him. This person had an ordinary appearance, a sallow complexion, and looked as if he could die at any moment. Yet, Mai Guorong dared not underestimate him in the slightest, his body and mind filled with respect. Not to mention that this person was his Master, just the fact that his cultivation had reached the Early Stage of Core Formation was enough for Mai Guorong to consider himself extremely lucky.

It was rare even in the Haoran Sect for a Core Formation Stage Cultivator to take someone as a Disciple. This meant his status had instantly elevated to that of an Inner Sect Disciple. Although there was still a difference from Core Disciple, if Mai Guorong's cultivation could reach the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment, he would naturally become a Core Disciple.

Furthermore, what made him respect his Master even more was that his Master was one of the few Alchemy Great Masters in the Haoran Sect. Although the Medicinal Pills he refined couldn't compare to those of the Cloud Heaven Sect, the difference wasn't significant.

As a result, his Master's status in the Haoran Sect immediately became transcendent. As the saying goes, 'a rising tide lifts all boats,' and Mai Guorong himself felt superior among the Inner Sect Disciples.

"Focus on controlling your Flying Sword, don't be distracted. We are already very close to the Cloud Heaven Sect, don't bring shame to our Haoran Sect's name!" A hoarse voice interrupted Mai Guorong's thoughts. He quickly nodded in affirmation, no longer letting his mind wander, and followed closely behind.

After a while, Mai Guorong looked at his Master in front of him, flying and curiously asking, "Master, Cloud Heaven Sect…"

"Silence!" Before he could finish speaking, the sallow-faced middle-aged man's expression suddenly changed. He immediately stopped, turned sharply, and stared behind him, eyebrows tightly furrowed, and let out a low growl.

Mai Guorong was startled and quickly stopped, looking back. He saw blue skies and white clouds behind them, with no abnormalities. Doubt filled his heart, but just then, a rumbling sound suddenly came from afar. The clouds in the distance were pushed by a powerful force, slowly rising forward. At first glance, it looked as if the clouds had turned into waves, rolling and surging forward in unison.

Mai Guorong's expression immediately changed drastically, and his eyes revealed horror.

At the same time, a black figure, moving at an extremely fast speed, swift as a thunderbolt, rapidly rushed from the distance. In just a few breaths, the figure was already close.

Mai Guorong could clearly see that this person was wearing black clothes, had a stern face, and white hair flowing behind him, exuding an extremely demonic aura.

This person's cultivation, in Mai Guorong's eyes, was as unfathomable as the deep sea. Especially the person's eyes, which were filled with infinite coldness, faintly revealing a terrifying tremor that made one's heart pound.

Mai Guorong quickly lowered his head, standing behind his Master, his face pale, his body and mind chilling.

"What heavy Evil Qi!" Mai Guorong's Master, Alchemy Great Master Xu Li of the Haoran Sect, his pupils involuntarily constricted. With his Divine Sense, he immediately detected that the opponent's cultivation far surpassed his own, and the feeling of Divine Sense emanating from the opponent was even more shocking.

In his opinion, even if this person had not reached the Nascent Soul Stage, the feeling he gave was exactly the same as when he encountered Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators within the sect on normal days.

As such, he dared not underestimate him in the slightest. Moreover, in his view, even the few Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators of the Haoran Sect did not possess such dense Evil Qi as this person.

Xu Li had dedicated his life to studying the Dao of Alchemy and was extremely sensitive to the fluctuations of spiritual energy. He could almost imagine that a person with such Evil Qi must have extremely bloody hands. If one was not careful with such a person, it would surely lead to a monstrous disaster.

Thinking of this, he quickly cupped his fist respectfully and said in a deep voice, "Fellow Daoist, I am Xu Li of the Haoran Sect, and this is my humble Disciple. Your Excellency has arrived in a hurry, may I ask what brings you here? If I, Xu, can be of any help, I will certainly not refuse."

This white-haired youth was naturally Wang Lin. He glanced at the two of them, his gaze falling on Xu Li. He cupped his fist slightly and said in a low voice, "Fellow Daoist, may I ask which Cultivation Country this is?"

Xu Li was startled. He scrutinized the other party for a few moments and then said in a deep voice, "This is the Chu Country. May I ask where Fellow Daoist is from?"

"Chu Country…" Wang Lin pondered for a moment, not answering the other party's question, but instead slapped his right hand on his Storage Pouch.

This action immediately caused Xu Li's expression to change drastically. He quickly retreated a few steps, pulling his Disciple Mai Guorong with him, his eyes showing caution.

Wang Lin glanced at him, then flipped his right hand, and a Jade Slip appeared in his palm. He pressed the Jade Slip to his forehead, and immediately a vast map appeared in his mind.

This Jade Slip was precisely the map he had obtained from Zhou Zihong of the War God Temple, which recorded information about the area around the Fire Burning Country.

The moment he heard the words "Chu Country," he immediately remembered having seen a description of this place somewhere. Now, after checking the Jade Slip, he clearly understood his approximate location.

The Chu Country bordered the Fire Burning Country to the north, the Xuanwu Country to the east, and even shared a border with the Cultivation Devil Sea. Besides these, it was also adjacent to the Shattered Stone Mountain Range, known as the Land of Immortal Remains.

It could be said that the Chu Country was a Cultivation Country closely situated to the Shattered Stone Mountain Range. According to the Jade Slip's description, the Chu Country had an extremely vast area and numerous Cultivators within it. Among Grade Three cultivation Countries, the Chu Country had already reached the peak of Grade Three and could Breakthrough at any time to become a Grade Four Cultivation Country.

All of this was because, throughout the entire Chu Country, there were more than ten Cultivators whose cultivation had reached the Late Stage of Nascent Soul. This immense power was the key to the Chu Country's advancement.

If just one person among them could Breakthrough to the Soul Transformation Stage, then the entire Chu Country would immediately transform and become a Grade Four Cultivation Country.

This was also why, after the drastic changes in the Fire Burning Country back then, the Fire Burning Cultivators chose to invade the Xuanwu Country instead of the Chu Country!

After all, compared to the Chu Country, choosing the Xuanwu Country was the best option for the Fire Burning Cultivators.

The Jade Slip also contained records of some Schools in the Chu Country. Wang Lin read for a moment, put away the Jade Slip, looked at Xu Li, and said in a deep voice, "Fellow Daoist, what part of the Chu Country is this?"

Xu Li's left hand was on his Storage Pouch, secretly vigilant. Hearing the question, he pondered for a moment and slowly said, "This is the Cloud Heaven Mountain Range!"

Wang Lin nodded, his eyes scanning around, finally staring forward, and calmly said, "So, if I travel ten thousand li from here, at the peak of the Cloud Heaven Mountain Range, that's where the Cloud Heaven Sect is located?"

Xu Li's eyes gleamed, and he cautiously said, "Does Your Excellency have a connection with the Cloud Heaven Sect?"

Wang Lin gave Xu Li a half-smile, cupped his fists, and said, "Thank you, farewell!" With that, Wang Lin's body suddenly moved, transforming into a long rainbow that streaked across the sky, quickly disappearing without a trace.

It wasn't until Wang Lin had left that Xu Li finally let out a sigh of relief. His back was drenched in sweat, and a slight breeze now brought a chilling sensation.

The pressure Wang Lin exerted on him was truly immense. If Xu Li hadn't spent years in Alchemy, making his cultivation extremely stable and his mindset several times calmer than ordinary Cultivators, he would have been flustered and greatly shaken during his confrontation with Wang Lin.

He took a deep breath and looked back at his Disciple. Mai Guorong's eyes still showed terror as he gazed in the direction Wang Lin had disappeared, and he stammered, "Ma… Master, what is that person's cultivation? Is he a Senior in the Nascent Soul Stage?"

Xu Li shook his head and said in a deep voice, "This person is full of Evil Qi. If I am not mistaken, he might be someone who escaped from the Cultivation Devil Sea. Such people are often seen in our Chu Country, but someone with such profound Evil Qi, this is the first time I have encountered one in my life."

"Evil Qi?" Mai Guorong was startled.

"For every person killed, a trace of Killing Intent can accumulate. When Killing Intent reaches a certain level, it can transform into malevolent Qi. This malevolent Qi, for some Cultivators, is excellent material for Artifact Refining. If malevolent Qi accumulates for a longer period, it might transform into Evil Qi. This person's Evil Qi is truly monstrous. He didn't use any Divine Ability; just the Evil Qi emanating from his body could instill fear in people's hearts. I wonder if he can utilize his body's Evil Qi. If he can, then even Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators could be affected and experience a momentary illusion," Xu Li said in a low, slow voice.

Mai Guorong took a deep breath, hesitated for a moment, and asked, "Master, according to what you said, this person has not reached the Nascent Soul Stage?"

Xu Li remained silent for a moment, nodded, and said, "Even if he hasn't reached it, he is not far from a Breakthrough. If I am not mistaken, this person has likely reached the Pseudo-Nascent Soul Realm of Core Formation Late Stage Great Perfection. Alright, do not mention this matter to outsiders, lest it attract unnecessary trouble. Even when you return to the Vast Heaven Sect, do not speak carelessly. Do you understand?"

Mai Guorong quickly nodded. Even if Xu Li hadn't instructed him, he wouldn't speak carelessly. After all, the feeling this person gave him was truly terrifying, and he didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble.

Speaking of Wang Lin, after confirming his location, he traveled extremely fast. After flying for a long distance, his Divine Sense already detected waves of spiritual power fluctuations appearing ahead. According to the description on the map Jade Slip, the Cloud Heaven Sect was located directly ahead.

Wang Lin nodded internally, thinking that the Master and Disciple pair had not lied. Having confirmed the direction, Wang Lin pondered for a moment. Since the Cloud Heaven Sect was here, Wang Lin immediately decided not to continue flying, but instead to enter secluded cultivation near the Cloud Heaven Sect! After glancing at the distant Cloud Heaven Sect, he immediately turned and flew away.

On a cliff seven or eight thousand miles away from the Cloud Heaven Sect's mountain gate, Wang Lin landed. He looked around, satisfaction showing in his eyes. Then, he waved his right hand forward, and a Flying Sword flew out of his Storage Pouch. It began carving into a stone wall in the middle of the cliff face, forming a Vortex shape.

Soon, an Immortal Cave appeared inside the cliff. Following Wang Lin's usual habit, the Immortal Cave had two stone chambers. Wang Lin slipped inside the Immortal Cave, looked around, thought for a moment, and then opened up another stone chamber.

After finishing this, he floated out. He slapped his Storage Pouch with his right hand, and the Restriction Banner immediately flew up. Wang Lin performed Hand Seals and pointed at the Restriction Banner. The Restriction Banner instantly started moving without wind, rapidly expanding, and in the blink of an eye, it had grown more than ten times in size.

Then, Wang Lin changed his Hand Seals, sending out streams of spiritual light. The flag of the Restriction Banner immediately extended infinitely, eventually forming a black curtain that could almost cover the sky and the sun.

At this moment, Wang Lin's gaze was calm. He shouted in a low voice, "Disperse!"

As soon as he spoke, the black curtain immediately trembled. Restrictions fell from within it and sank into the cliff. Ultimately, thousands of Restrictions emerged from the black curtain, wrapping the entire cliff face densely in moments.

Wang Lin took a deep breath, and with a call from his right hand, the Restriction Banner immediately shrank and fell into his grasp. With a flick, Wang Lin deeply embedded it into the stone wall.

Looking from the outside now, the Immortal Cave in the middle of the cliff had vanished, showing no trace whatsoever. The entire cliff looked ordinary, with nothing unusual about it.

Wang Lin pondered briefly, then continuously waved his hands, casting several afterimage Restrictions. These landed on several points around the cliff, ultimately forming a tight protective circle using a series of afterimage Restrictions. Only then did he relax.

He stepped forward. The moment his body touched the cliff, he instantly vanished. When he reappeared, he was already inside the Immortal Cave. Inside the Immortal Cave, he swiped his right hand across his Storage Pouch, and an item immediately appeared in his hand.

This item was the Azure Dragon Jade Slip gifted by Li Muwan back then. Although it had developed some cracks, it did not affect its use. After Wang Lin examined the Jade Slip briefly, he cast a Spiritual Spell upon it. Immediately, a Dragon Roar emanated from the Jade Slip, and an Azure Dragon leaped out from within. After circling Wang Lin's body a few times, its figure grew larger and larger, finally transforming into a massive Azure Dragon. After rotating slightly within the stone chamber where Wang Lin was located, the stone walls seemed to become transparent, offering no obstruction to it.

The Azure Dragon roared once more, drilled into the space above the Immortal Cave, and merged with the entire cliff, forming a protective barrier.

This Immortal Cave could be said to be the most tightly secured one Wang Lin had set up to date.

Wang Lin expended great effort on the defenses of this Immortal Cave because, barring any accidents, he would likely reside here for a very long time.

Wang Lin stood silently inside the Immortal Cave for a long time, his eyes showing decisiveness. Then, he tapped his glabella with his right hand. As his Sea of Consciousness fluctuated, the Devil Head Xu Ligou and the Second Devil Head, the little beast, seeped out from his glabella one by one.

The two devils exhibited different behaviors upon appearing. The moment the Second Devil Head materialized, it looked toward Wang Lin, its eyes showing waves of fanatic reverence. Now, if Wang Lin gave a command, even if it was to devour a Soul Transformation Stage Cultivator, it would rush forward without hesitation, even if the consequence was certain death.

As for the Devil Head Xu Ligou, the moment he showed his figure, his shifty eyes immediately glanced all around. At the same time, he forced a look of great respect onto his face, bowing and scraping toward Wang Lin and showing waves of fawning smiles.

Wang Lin pointed at a stone chamber and said in a deep voice, "Starting today, you two devils will Cultivate in this stone chamber. Without my permission, you are not allowed to take a single step out of the stone chamber, or you will be instantly wiped out."

Xu Ligou was startled and was just about to speak, but the Second Devil Head, without any hesitation, quickly floated into the stone chamber indicated by Wang Lin's finger. Xu Ligou hesitated for a moment, then quickly swallowed his words. He thought to himself: Since the Second One was so straightforward, wouldn't he be overshadowed by the Second One if he didn't immediately show his stance and dilly-dally? So, he quickly followed closely behind and entered the stone chamber.

After the two devils entered, Wang Lin's extreme realm Divine Sense suddenly moved, sweeping around the stone chamber, leaving behind some Divine Thought before retracting it.

Thus, if the two devils disobeyed and tried to fly out, they would certainly suffer the attack of the extreme realm Divine Sense. Wang Lin had to guard against this carefully. After all, both Devil Heads were refined by him personally. Normally, he wouldn't worry about unexpected changes, but the matter he was about to undertake absolutely disallowed even the slightest accident. Therefore, he confined these two Devil Heads.

Having done all this, Wang Lin was silent for a moment and quietly walked toward the stone chamber in the very center. After sitting down cross-legged, he took a deep breath, and heavily tapped his glabella with his right hand. Instantly, a spherical object flashing with seven-colored light slowly drifted out from his glabella. This sphere gradually solidified, finally revealing the appearance of the Heaven Defying.

After silently looking at the Heaven Defying Bead for a few moments, Wang Lin waved his right hand, and the Heaven Defying Bead immediately floated to the side. Following this, Wang Lin took out several jade bottles from his Storage Pouch and placed them to his left and right.

Afterwards, he quietly closed his eyes and began meditating peacefully.

Time flashed by swiftly. In the blink of an eye, a year passed. During this year, Wang Lin's body remained almost motionless, except for the daily collection of Spiritual Liquid.

During this period of meditating, Wang Lin continuously compressed the surplus spiritual power within his body, eventually transforming it into three Vortexes. Inside these Vortexes was a single red thread from the Heavenly Tribulation.

Over these days, the Heavenly Tribulation's thread had been completely suppressed by him. However, Wang Lin dared not relax even slightly. Although the thread was small, it was power derived from the Heavenly Tribulation. If handled improperly, the consequence would be his body being utterly destroyed by this thread. Although his body had undergone reorganization once, Wang Lin did not want to verify the power of the thread with his own life.

Besides these things, Wang Lin spent the rest of his time slowly contemplating a Divine Ability technique in his mind. This was his unorthodox method for solving the stagnation of his cultivation.

Even now, Wang Lin clearly remembered the Divine Dao Technique he saw back then in the cave on the back mountain of the War God Temple, which was inscribed from memory by the War God Temple's Founding Ancestor, Chen Chong!

That year, he expended great mental effort to finally comprehend this technique and figure out its Divine Ability. This technique was a Clone method possessing great Divine Ability. The Clone obtained by Cultivating this technique was a complete true body.

By having the Clone Cultivate simultaneously, the cultivation speed would increase, and at the moment of forming the Nascent Soul, the two would undergo Fusion, thereby increasing the success rate of forming the Nascent Soul.

However, this Cultivation Technique was incomplete. The Clone obtained through cultivation had a fatal flaw: the Clone was a separate entity, possessing zero cultivation upon appearance, and its Lifespan was less than half a Jia Zi.

The reason Wang Lin did not choose this method back then was that he did not have enough Spirit Medicine even for himself, let alone for the Clone to consume. But now, Wang Lin saw a way within this Divine Dao Technique that would allow him to Break through to the Nascent Soul Stage without having to discard his original cultivation.

By Cultivating a Clone and having it reach the Nascent Soul Stage within the span of half a Jia Zi, and then having the main body and the Clone undergo Fusion, he could certainly bypass the chasm that stopped his extreme realm at the Core Formation Late Stage!

This way, he wouldn't need to discard his original cultivation and would still have a chance to Break through his cultivation. However, there was one difficult point: how to make the Clone reach the Nascent Soul within half a Jia Zi.

With the assistance of the Heaven Defying Space, the half a Jia Zi period would be greatly extended. Based on the standard analysis of six times the normal rate, if he were inside the Heaven Defying Space, Wang Lin could gain nearly three Jia Zi, or 180 years, of time.

But there was still one crucial problem: Medicinal Pills!

The answer to this problem would be found at the Cloud Heaven Sect! This was also the reason why Wang Lin immediately decided to enter secluded cultivation here after learning he had arrived in the Chu Country and was not far from the Cloud Heaven Sect!

Wang Lin's gaze was calm. On the ground in front of him, there were three white jade bottles, filled with the Spiritual Liquid that had dripped from the Heaven Defying Bead over the past year. This was the first gift he had prepared for his Clone!

After a moment of silence, a trace of decisiveness flashed in Wang Lin's eyes. He took a deep breath, performed Hand Seals with both hands, slowly closed his eyes, and began condensing the Clone according to the requirements of the Divine Dao Technique.

If one could comprehend this Divine Dao Technique, Cultivating it was not very difficult and had nothing to do with personal Aptitude. Otherwise, Chen Chong of the War God Temple back then was arguably the person with the worst Aptitude in the War God Temple, yet he was the only one, after his Master, who comprehended and recorded this Divine Dao Technique.

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(Yesterday's complaint drew some dissatisfaction from friends. Er Gen apologizes for this.)