Chapter 256 : A Hidden Refuge in Flaming Depths

"This matter is concluded. We shall meet again in the future."

After dividing the treasures, Qingci the Recluse [a wandering cultivator known for his poetry and swordsmanship] prepared to depart and digest the gains from their venture.

The treasures they had obtained this time were worth approximately eight to nine million Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy, used as currency and for cultivation]. Even after an equal split, it would be sufficient for them to cultivate all the way to the False Core Realm [a quasi-Golden Core state achieved by forcibly condensing a flawed core, weaker than a true Golden Core].

As for whether they could break through to the true Golden Core [the third major realm of cultivation, where one forms a solidified golden core of immense power] realm, that would depend on their future opportunities and destiny.

Watching the three depart, Eldrin Chen collected the remains of Senior Lin Daoyang before turning and flying into the depths of the Flaming Prison Sea of Fire [a vast, treacherous region of perpetual flame and magma].

The Flaming Prison Sea of Fire spanned a million Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters]. Its environment was perilously complex, making it difficult even for Foundation Establishment Cultivator [the second major realm of cultivation, where one establishes a solid foundation for their dao] to venture deep within. As long as he did not penetrate beyond three hundred thousand Li-length, this place was, for him, a relatively safe refuge.

After flying over one hundred thousand Li-length into the Flaming Prison Sea of Fire, Eldrin Chen found a mountain peak and finally began to examine the harvest from this expedition.

Opening the Storage Bag [a spatial artifact capable of holding vast quantities of items], he carefully inventoried its contents. He discovered several dozen ancient scrolls and tomes, which could be roughly categorized into three types.

The first category consisted of cultivation arts [esoteric methods for refining one's spiritual energy and advancing in realm]. The second contained divine abilities [powerful supernatural techniques derived from one's cultivation]. The third was a collection of miscellaneous yet crucially important ancient texts.

Eldrin Chen gave them a cursory glance. The cultivation arts numbered seventeen in total, encompassing those aligned with the Five Elements and even several suited for practitioners with Anomalous Spiritual Root [rare spiritual root affinities that deviate from the standard five elements, such as wind, ice, or thunder]. This novel is serialized on audi novel.com. Visit for updates.

Most of these cultivation arts could lead one all the way to the Golden Core Ninth Layer. It was evident that before its downfall, the Ethereal Void Sect had prepared meticulously, ensuring the legacy they preserved was sufficient for any cultivator to reach the Golden Core Great Perfection without ever needing to worry about their foundational path.

Furthermore, these arts mostly came with one or two accompanying divine abilities, and some even included methods for forging their corresponding Life-Bound Magical Treasure [a powerful artifact intrinsically linked to a cultivator's life force and cultivation]. The collection was remarkably comprehensive.

This was the immense advantage of inheriting a great sect's legacy. In this world, many cultivators were forced to repeatedly switch their core cultivation arts, but as one's realm grew more profound, changing to a different art became an arduous and taxing endeavor.

Take Eldrin Chen, for instance. He currently practiced the Solar Separated Flame Scripture, and the spiritual energy and True Essence [the refined, potent energy cultivated within a practitioner] within his body had been tempered by this art for years.

If he wished to switch to another art, he would first need to undergo the laborious process of converting all that accumulated power.

Before the Golden Core Realm, such a conversion was manageable, involving only the transformation of one's mana. However, after forming a Golden Core [the solidified core of a cultivator's power, a milestone of immense strength], the core's elemental affinity becomes intrinsically linked to the practitioner's cultivated energy.

For a Golden Core Realm cultivator to switch to a more profound art, they would need to spend an entire Jiazi-time [a cycle of sixty years] painstakingly realigning their Golden Core.

And if one wished to switch to an art of a completely different elemental nature—for example, if Eldrin Chen wanted to cultivate an earth-attribute art after forming his Golden Core—

the process would be even more grueling. He would first need to expend vast amounts of time purging his body of all fire-attribute mana, reverting his Golden Core to a neutral, attribute-less state. Only then could he begin cultivating the earth-attribute art—a process that could easily consume three full Jiazi-time.

By acquiring these arts, Eldrin Chen ensured that future Chen Clan Cultivators would have a clear, unwavering path laid before them. At least until reaching the Nascent Soul [the stage where one's spirit forms an independent entity, a step towards immortality], they would be spared the detours and wasted effort of constantly switching their core cultivation methods.

For Eldrin Chen, these cultivation arts would also profoundly deepen his reservoir of knowledge, granting him the capability to deduce and develop even more advanced techniques.

After reviewing the cultivation arts of the Golden Core Realm, Eldrin Chen had already formed the intention to once again embark on the path of deducing new arts.

In the past, he had spent three years to deduce the Earth-Fortress Sovereign Scripture to the Purple Mansion Ninth Layer. Given another ten years, he was confident he could deduce the other three attribute-based arts to the same Purple Mansion Ninth Layer.

However, he was not in a hurry at the moment. Instead, his gaze turned towards the most important ancient tome.

This ancient tome was one of the foundational treasures of the Ethereal Void Sect, a Nascent Soul-realm cultivation art named the 'Vast Sea Scroll'.

After perusing it for a while, Eldrin Chen's calm expression finally showed a flicker of emotion. The Vast Sea Scroll was also known as the Ancient Vast Sea Scroll.

This method was created by the founding patriarch of the Ethereal Void Sect. It could be cultivated to the seventh layer of the Nascent Soul Stage, making it a rare and superior-grade Nascent Soul Cultivation Art.

The Ancient Vast Sea Scroll meticulously documented the obstacles and secrets from the Foundation Establishment Realm all the way to the Nascent Soul Late Stage. This knowledge alone was enough to elevate Eldrin Chen's understanding by more than a single level.

Cultivating this Ancient Vast Sea Scroll would cause one's internal spiritual power to become vast and boundless like an endless ocean, possessing a depth and solidity rarely seen in the world.

Furthermore, this Ancient Vast Sea Scroll also contained four divine abilities and the method for refining a single Lifebound Spiritual Treasure.

Setting aside the divine abilities for now, the Lifebound Supreme Treasure [the ultimate, most powerful form of a cultivator's personally bound artifact] was truly astonishing. This was the first time Eldrin Chen had ever heard the legend of a Lifebound Spiritual Treasure [a high-grade, spiritually evolved form of a lifebound artifact].

It turned out that among Life-Bound Magical Treasure [artifacts personally bound to a cultivator's soul and cultivated alongside them], there existed a hierarchy. In this realm, they were divided into three grades: the Life-Bound Magical Treasure, the Lifebound Spiritual Treasure, and the legendary Lifebound Supreme Treasure.

According to the records within the Ancient Vast Sea Scroll [an ancient scripture detailing profound cultivation methods], while the potential of a Life-Bound Magical Treasure was immense, it ultimately had its limits.

For a Life-Bound Magical Treasure to ascend and become a Demon-Subduing Supreme Treasure [a supreme treasure capable of subduing demons], it must first be elevated to the realm of a Lifebound Spiritual Treasure.

Otherwise, even if one's cultivation broke through to the Nascent Soul [the realm where a cultivator forms a spiritual infant, a major leap in power] realm, the Life-Bound Magical Treasure would remain fundamentally flawed. Whether it was the Lifebound Formation Runes [the innate magical patterns etched into a lifebound treasure] it contained or its very material composition, it would be insufficient. It would inevitably shatter under the pressure of ascending through the Heavenly Thunder Tribulation [the catastrophic lightning tribulation that tests cultivators during major breakthroughs].

Furthermore, as recorded in the ancient scroll, to ascend to the legendary Supreme Treasure of Pure Yang [a supreme treasure of ultimate yang purity], one must first refine their Lifebound Spiritual Treasure to the level of a Lifebound Supreme Treasure. Read the full novel exclusively on audio~novel.com.

The Life-Bound Magical Treasure attached to this Ancient Vast Sea Scroll, the 'Ancient Vast Sea Scroll Painting' [the pictorial manifestation of the Ancient Vast Sea Scroll, a lifebound treasure], was precisely the legendary Lifebound Spiritual Treasure.

"Ancient Vast Sea Scroll Painting,"

Eldrin Chen's eyes narrowed slightly, a tremor of awe he could not suppress stirring within his heart.

The method for forging this Ancient Vast Sea Scroll Painting was far too precious. The value of this single item alone surpassed imagination; it was likely something even a Nascent Soul True Lord [a powerful master of the Nascent Soul realm] would covet intensely.

Eldrin Chen carefully stored it away. Such a treasure was an excellent asset for the clan's foundation, and it also served as a valuable reference.

He understood perfectly well that by the time he cultivated to the Golden Core, Late Stage, this object might assist him in deducing the path for his Lifebound Spiritual Treasure [a cultivator's most intimately connected and powerful magical artifact], potentially elevating several of his Life-Bound Magical Treasure [magical treasures bound to a cultivator's life force] to the rank of Demon-Subduing Supreme Treasure [a supreme-grade treasure of immense power, specifically effective against demonic forces].

After putting away the Ancient Vast Sea Scroll Painting, Eldrin Chen turned his gaze towards the divine abilities.

There were only two divine abilities, yet their value was truly inestimable.

Cultivation arts often included attached divine abilities, but the fact that Lin Daoyang had deliberately separated these out spoke volumes about their rarity and preciousness.

Both of these divine abilities were exceptionally precious Great Divine Ability [a supreme-level supernatural power or technique]. One was named the 'Nirvana Tribulation Transference Art' [an art that allows for the transference of heavenly tribulation calamities through a state of rebirth], and the other was called the 'Phantom-Splitting Sword Art' [a sword art that splits into countless phantom blades].

Among these two Great Divine Ability, the 'Phantom-Splitting Sword Art' was a world-rare offensive Great Divine Ability. Once mastered, this ability could divide into countless millions of strands of Sword Intent [the conceptual will and power imbued into a sword technique] to strike across heaven and earth.

Legends spoke of a Peerless Dao Lord [a title for a supreme expert at the Nascent Soul realm] who once unleashed this divine ability, obliterating hundreds of thousands of Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] of land with a single blow and annihilating legions of evil demons.

However, the conditions for cultivating this divine ability were exceedingly harsh. It required finding a fifth-rank demon-refining immortal sword to assist, merely to have a chance at achieving initial mastery.

The other Great Divine Ability, the 'Nirvana Tribulation Transference Art', was even more extraordinary. This divine ability could only be cultivated to success by a Nascent Soul True Lord [a master at the Nascent Soul realm], and likewise, only a Nascent Soul True Lord possessed the power to activate it.

This divine ability is a method for extending one's lifespan, and also a world-shaking technique for reincarnation and tribulation avoidance, capable of allowing a person to live a second life. Official source: audio-novel . com. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.