Chapter 687: Charm Arts
Chapter 687: Charm Arts
The Human World.
Inside the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm.
Myriad Wood Mother Qi rippled, and the Ancestor Demonic Tree rustled.
Upon its trunk, a young man in green robes was deep in slumber. His face was like sculpted jade, his brows sharp as blades, and his countenance exceedingly youthful.
At this moment, he stretched, yawned, and opened his eyes.
Those eyes seemed to have seen through the ways of the world, having endured much vicissitude, yet they also held an ineffable youth and vitality, filled with a longing for life and beauty.
Fang Xi sat up and surveyed his surroundings.
Within the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm, beneath the Ancestor Demonic Tree, was a cave abode that appeared to be constructed from stacked beautiful jade.
Within the spirit herb garden, numerous rare and precious spirit herbs were planted, enough to make even cultivators from the Earthly Immortal World green with envy.
Furthermore, judging by their age, they were all ripe for use in alchemy.
Beyond the spirit herb garden lay thousands of mu of spirit fields, cultivated by Yellow Bean Warriors and Copper Bean Armored Soldiers.
Most of the spirit fields were planted with various spirit grains, especially the core one hundred mu of high-grade spirit fields, which cultivated a type of "Jade Void Rice"!
Fang Xi had painstakingly acquired this spirit seed from Moonlight Immortal City; it was a sixth-stage spiritual item. Each grain of spirit rice was as large as a longan, exceptionally plump, and through its pearl-like surface, a faint palace could be discerned within. . .
Regular consumption of this spirit rice was said to not only greatly benefit Return to Void cultivation but also slowly elevate a cultivator's physique to a level comparable to a Return to Void-level body cultivator.
Originally, this "Jade Void Rice" had extremely stringent requirements for its growing environment; even in Moonlight Immortal City, there weren't many mu of spirit fields suitable for its cultivation.
But within the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm, everything was different.
This place was a sacred land for wood-attribute plants!
Fang Xi even utilized the Myriad Wood Mother Qi to ripen this "Jade Void Rice" early, so he could savor its taste.
Aside from the hundred mu of "Jade Void Rice" spirit fields, the remaining thousands of mu of spirit fields were meticulously planned, some planted with spirit grains, others with spirit trees.
The Nascent Soul-level Golden Bean Dao General served as the head servant, responsible for the daily management of the spirit fields.
Beyond the spirit field area, to the east, was a pond whose water was as clear and green as jade, and the Horned Dragon resided within it.
To the south, two wood beasts affectionately huddled together, playing.
After being subdued by Fang Xi with his beast taming art, they now regarded the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm as their home, only waiting to produce a litter of small wood beasts in the future.
As for the west, it was Tai Sui's territory.
At this moment, Tai Sui had transformed into a snow-white mountain of flesh, continuously emitting the fragrance of lingzhi, growing white lingzhi mushrooms that were harvested by the Yellow Bean Warriors to serve as the Ancestor Demonic Tree's main food.
In the northern part of the mystic realm, it was the territory of the "Horned Wood Flood Dragon".
It was rooted in the earth, giving birth to countless vines, vine snakes, wood wolves, and vine tigers. . . truly a paradise for wood-attribute spirits. . .
These collectively formed the defenses of the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm, though, of course, they were currently just a nascent form, with relatively weak defensive power.
What was truly formidable were the formations Fang Xi had laid out at the periphery of the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm, and the hidden Kyushu Mechanized City at the highest point in the sky!
"The Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm has begun to take shape."
"Even now, its output is quite astonishing. . ."
Currently, the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm and Fang Xi shared a symbiotic relationship; one's prosperity was the other's, and one's loss was the other's.
Naturally, he wished to manage this spiritual realm well.
Furthermore, it was related to his future cultivation advancement, so he couldn't afford to be negligent!
"Myriad Wood Mother Qi. . . a total of one hundred and twenty-seven mu."
With a thought from his divine sense, Fang Xi knew the amount of Myriad Wood Mother Qi within the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm.
Although it was continuously consumed to hasten the growth of spirit plants and increase lifespan, it was also constantly being generated throughout various parts of the mystic realm. . .
By now, there were already one hundred and twenty-seven mu!
And Fang Xi, who cultivated the Earthly Immortal Dao, had a strong intuition about this: "Once the Myriad Wood Mother Qi surpasses a thousand mu, my cultivation will naturally break through to the mid-stage Return to Void realm. . ."
"When it reaches five thousand mu, I should be able to break through to the late-stage Return to Void."
"As for perfected Return to Void, that might be achieved when the Myriad Wood Mother Qi in the mystic realm reaches ten thousand mu!"
As long as the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm continued to upgrade, it would drive Fang Xi's own cultivation to advance!
There would be no need for arduous cultivation or breakthrough pills!
This was the terrifying aspect of the True Immortal World's inheritance!
"Long Qingzi. . . truly had exceptional luck, but it's a pity he was a bit too profligate after acquiring the Immortal Abode inheritance. . . I should take this as a lesson."
Fang Xi sighed with emotion.
In the memories of the true Long Qingzi, he was also wary of his second nascent soul, and did not duplicate all of his memories.
For instance, regarding the "Earthly Immortal inheritance", the second nascent soul only knew a portion of its content.
Furthermore, in the Human World's Green Emperor Mountain inheritance, Long Qingzi also held back many things; not only did the "Withered Glory Chant" cultivation method contain hidden clauses, but even the "Supreme Pole Star Life-Ending Divine Light" was only taught in a simplified version.
Although it claimed that a Nascent Soul could contend with a Divine Transformation cultivator, essentially, one use would exhaust a Nascent Soul cultivator's entire lifespan, leading directly to their demise.
What was even more treacherous was that it was extremely difficult to master!
Its lineage was primarily for cultivating a suitable body-snatching target, not for its descendants to flourish. . .
Fang Xi was determined to firmly remember this lesson and not give his Outer Dao Incarnation any opportunities.
"Now that I have the Ancestor Demonic Tree, my lifespan will definitely far surpass Long Qingzi's. . . I might as well outlive him. . ."
He had a thought.
At this moment, his body exuded an aura of a "lying flat" salted fish.
It was only when he previously went to Three Realms Mountain that he was forced to get a bit involved.
But after getting a bit involved, Fang Xi immediately returned to the Human World to lie low.
With this thought, he looked again at the Ancestor Demonic Tree's roots.
Beneath a certain layer of soil, there seemed to be a set of stark white bones, already penetrated and rooted by countless tree rootlets, as if drawing nourishment.
"As expected of a late-stage Return to Void Grand Cultivator. . . even a single bone makes excellent flower fertilizer, enough for the Demonic Tree to digest for a long time. . ."
Fang Xi couldn't help but sigh.
These white bones were, naturally, the remains of that "Commander Tang".
Before, following Ice Fiend Son's intelligence, he had waited for a long time until he finally got the heaven-sent opportunity for this person to go out alone, then unleashed the "Supreme Pole Star Life-Ending Divine Light" for an instant kill!
Only after killing the opponent, dragging the corpse along with the storage bag into the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm to destroy all traces, and then descending to the lower realm, did he have time to carefully inspect everything.
At that time, he felt exceptionally fortunate!
This "Commander Tang" was, surprisingly, a late-stage Return to Void Grand Cultivator, with astonishing combat power.
An ordinary early-stage Return to Void cultivator would not only be no match for him but might even be directly killed!
He cultivated both qi and body to an extremely profound realm.
Fang Xi even suspected that even if an early-stage Integration cultivator pursued him, this Commander Tang might still have a certain chance of escaping.
Unfortunately, he encountered Fang Xi; the Supreme Pole Star Life-Ending Divine Light went all out from the start, utterly unreasonable. . .
"His physique was so formidable that it was enough to make the Ancestor Demonic Tree grow several more feet. . ."
"Besides that, there were quite a few good things in his storage bag. . ."
Fang Xi smiled slightly.
In this person's storage bag, the most abundant item was Immortal Jade, a full one thousand three hundred and seventy-two pieces!
Just this amount was enough to make Fang Xi a wealthy figure among Return to Void cultivators.
Besides Immortal Jade, Commander Tang's storage bag also contained several bottles of pills suitable for Return to Void cultivators to enhance their magical power, various rare treasures. . .
And three six-stage treasures!
Among them, the most precious was a "Bi Flame Armor", with astonishing defensive power and remarkable effectiveness against divine sense attacks.
However, it was Commander Tang's life-bound artifact; its artifact spirit swore never to yield, and after its spirituality was erased, its value plummeted.
Another item was a jade hammer.
Fang Xi toyed with it for a bit, feeling that its power was not bad, possessing a unique offensive subtlety, but it was stolen goods, so it wasn't very convenient to use.
The last item, however, was a ferocious bronze flying chariot!
This chariot resembled an ancient war chariot, and in the driver's position, there were even two warrior automatons, which were actually two five-stage puppets!
Fang Xi tested it; this war chariot's escape speed was extremely astonishing, yet it consumed very little magical power.
Even for Return to Void cultivators, it was an excellent flying treasure.
"Too bad, they're all stolen goods. . ."
"The flying treasure could be disguised and still be barely usable, but the jade hammer is a bit too conspicuous. . ."
"Ugh. . . anyway, I'm not planning on making a move in the Earthly Immortal World, so it seems. . . it's fine."
Fang Xi jumped down from the Demonic Tree and came to the spirit fields where Jade Void Rice was cultivated.
He rolled up his sleeves, working like the most ordinary spirit farmer in the cultivation world.
Jade Void Rice was quite delicate and required meticulous care.
And Fang Xi was originally a spirit plant cultivator by origin, later specifically collecting such ancient texts.
The advancement of a spirit plant cultivator was originally much easier than that of alchemy or formations, not to mention the convenience of cultivation methods and Myriad Wood Mother Qi; now he was also a top-tier spirit plant cultivator.
Feeling the faint threads of spiritual energy emanating from the earth, and the joyful emotions conveyed by the Jade Void Rice, Fang Xi gained a deeper understanding of the Earthly Immortal Dao.
At this moment, grains of Jade Void Rice had ripened, like strings of pearls hanging on the rice stalks, bearing abundant fruit, bending the originally straight and tall rice leaves.
Within the longan-sized pearl rice, natural pill patterns had even formed, transforming into the image of a faint palace.
"The patterns inside the Jade Void Rice are fundamentally pill patterns. . . Is this the mystery of top-tier spiritual items? Refining pills using the natural creative power of heaven and earth? No. . . it should be said that alchemy itself was originally formed by imitating and learning from this kind of creative power. . ."
With a grateful heart, Fang Xi picked a stalk of Jade Void Rice.
Cooking this rice was also very simple: just steam it.
He had long ago relocated several spirit springs within the spirit fields; their water was clear and sweet.
Most of these springs came from Long Qingzi's Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm, with first-rate water quality, while a small portion were also spirit springs, emitting rich spiritual energy.
At this moment, he took some water and began to build a fire and cook on the spot. . .
In less than a moment, a rich aroma of rice wafted out from the pot.
Fang Xi picked up a grain of Jade Void Rice; after being steamed, it had fully absorbed the spirit spring water and was now as plump as a baby's fist. The palace patterns within were even clearer, and faintly, ancient seal characters could be seen.
Or rather, natural Dao patterns. . .
He took a bite, feeling only an explosion of rich rice aroma within his mouth.
When it came to enjoyment, Fang Xi had tasted delicacies from various worlds and had never deprived himself in this regard; his palate had become quite discerning.
He had never imagined that a mere spirit grain could bring him such a sensation.
The sweet rice burst between his lips, carrying a rich fragrance, with a soft, glutinous, and sweet texture that made him feel as if he were in the clouds.
In terms of taste, it even surpassed many spirit meals meticulously prepared by master spirit chefs!
And with each chew, it continuously transformed into streams of golden elixir, flowing down his throat, warming his dantian completely.
"This Jade Void Rice, I truly planted it correctly."
Fang Xi sat cross-legged, silently cultivating to refine it, sensing a slight increase in his magical power's vibrancy, but he didn't pay it much mind.His current cultivation progress primarily depended on the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm.
The main reason for consuming this grade of spirit rice was for its body-refining effects.
At this moment, guided by Fang Xi, most of the warm current from the Jade Void Rice diffused from his internal organs to his limbs and bones, making him feel as if he were soaking in a hot spring, utterly comfortable throughout his body.
"If it were ordinary body-refining pills and cultivation methods, most body-refining processes would be extremely painful, like being cut by a thousand knives. . . but the gentle nature of spirit rice made body refining a pleasure instead."
Of course, not every cultivator could afford this method of body refining.
As far as Fang Xi knew, even the Return to Void cultivators of Moonlight Immortal City couldn't afford Jade Void Rice for every meal.
He ate the Jade Void Rice in large mouthfuls, and before long, he had finished an entire pot of spirit rice, couldn't help but pat his stomach contentedly.
After eating his fill, Fang Xi contentedly surveyed his own spiritual realm.
Although with a single thought, he could know the most minute changes in every part of the spiritual realm, as the realm was like one with him.
But life, after all, needed some sense of ritual.
He walked through numerous spirit fields, arriving at their edge, where he saw many Copper Bean Armored Soldiers, Silver Bean Dao Soldiers. . . still diligently cultivating the spirit fields, causing the boundaries of the spirit field area to continuously expand.
"On Horned Dragon's side, with it looking after those spirit fish, there shouldn't be much of a problem. . . occasionally snatching a few is also fine. . ."
Fang Xi pondered for a moment, then still went to the southern grassland.
"Moo!"
Two wood beasts ambled over, stopping at Fang Xi's feet, lowering their heads in submission.
At any rate, he had mastered the Dragon Taming Sect's six-stage beast taming art, so taming two five-stage wood beasts was no problem at all.
Fang Xi lifted a foot and entered the great antlers of the female wood beast.
Countless antler branches forked out, seemingly forming a labyrinth; many spots were covered with a layer of spiritual soil, where spirit flowers and spirit herbs grew.
Green vines also twined around the towering antlers.
Amidst the concealment of spiritual wood, some small spirit beasts also resided.
It could be said that given the wood beast's immense size, these two gigantic antlers were practically another small ecosystem.
Fang Xi extended his hand, letting a bird-type spirit beast with a faint aura land on his arm.
He performed a hand seal with one hand, and this bird-type spirit beast let out a cry like a cuckoo weeping blood, spitting out a drop of vital blood.
Threads of Taishang Azure Wood Divine Light emanated, directly replenishing this demonic bird's life force.
Fang Xi casually released it, gazing at the drops of blood suspended in mid-air.
At this moment, he silently circulated a profound technique; the Taishang Azure Wood Divine Light transformed into a verdant radiance, enveloping that drop of demonic bird blood.
A strange power of bloodline emerged.
The crimson blood instantly burst open, transforming into dark red runes that merged into the Taishang Azure Wood Divine Light.
Fang Xi suddenly felt that the power of the Taishang Azure Wood Divine Light had increased again.
"Bloodline power, talisman power. . . natural Dao patterns? !"
He muttered, and touched the storage ring on his hand.
Blank jade talismans flew out, allowing Fang Xi to record any insights he gained into the Dao of Talismans onto them at any time.
Although those blood-colored runes were the bloodline power of the demonic bird.
But human cultivators were skilled at learning, able to even simulate the innate divine abilities of demon beasts.
Now, imitating those bloodline runes with talismans also had a certain chance of success. . .
Fang Xi was already a talisman dao grandmaster, and once he became absorbed in copying, time quickly passed without him noticing.
But for him, this was naturally of no consequence.
After all, his lifespan was vast. . .
Even though the myriad lower realms, along with their rare spiritual items and the All-Heavens Precious Mirror, beckoned, Fang Xi was not in the least bit anxious.
...
Earthly Immortal World.
Three Realms Mountain, Celestial Brahma Army camp.
Fang Xi flew out from Pu Xianzi's cave abode, a faint smile on his lips.
Pu Xianzi truly lived up to her reputation as a top-tier ascended cultivator from the lower realm; the spiritual tea she cherished tasted quite good.
The two of them enjoyed tea and discussed the Dao for three days, finally dissolving all the accumulated pressure and negative emotions from their pioneering work.
Back then, in the Sumeru temporary camp, he barely had time to maintain his energy and nourish his magical treasures each day, so where would he have had so much leisure?
However, after returning to the Celestial Brahma Army camp, the Divine Transformation cultivators indeed relaxed quite a bit.
Although rumors said the three races were about to start a new round of confrontation, it hadn't been confirmed yet, had it. . . ?
And experts from the demon race capable of infiltrating the human race to assassinate late-stage Return to Void cultivators, even if they were to act again, their targets could only be those top-tier Return to Void cultivators, or even Integration stage grand figures!
What did that have to do with them, these Divine Transformation cultivators?
Fang Xi even suspected that the Celestial Brahma Army recalling the pioneering team was likely due to Fei Xing Daoist's vehement insistence.
After all, the demon race wouldn't assassinate so many Divine Transformation cultivators, but they might assassinate him.
Although. . . this was completely guessing in the wrong direction.
"Without a major war, staying in the military camp isn't bad; at least it's relatively safe, the trading channels are decent, and I can still get a lot of the latest intelligence from the human high command. . ."
As an Outer Dao Incarnation, Fang Xi planned to silently lie low and explore trading channels, as instructed by his true body.
In the future, there should be many rare spiritual items that could be sold through him.
As the place where ascended cultivators gathered most, it seemed quite reasonable for some top-tier spiritual items from lower realms to appear, didn't it?
"What my true body needs now are things that can aid the Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm. . . The space is already vast enough; what's currently lacking are various wood-attribute spiritual items, spirit plants, and even spirit beasts. . ."
"Fortunately, when Long Qingzi's Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm was breached back then, there were still many spoils of war; directly relocating them satisfied many requirements. . ."
It was precisely because of Long Qingzi's selfless contribution back then that Fang Xi's entry into the Earthly Immortal Dao was so simple and easy.
Of course, later cultivation was also indispensable.
The Earthly Immortal Dao lies in the accumulation of time, or rather. . . cultivating deeply for a great burst of power!
...
Fang Xi returned to his cave abode and saw a transmission talisman.
He waved his hand, a streak of light flashed, and the transmission talisman landed in his grasp.
Fang Xi listened for a few sentences, his expression subtly changing: "Gu Daoist. . . has fallen? !"
This wasn't something he did.
Yet, Gu Daoist had inexplicably fallen; a moment's thought revealed it was inseparable from the group of ascended cultivators.
Regarding this, he could only say that among ascended cultivators, there truly were hidden talents and crouching tigers.
Although they had always silently endured, they would bare their fangs if one wasn't careful!
At least this time, it was done very cleanly; the Celestial Brahma Army couldn't find any clues and ultimately blamed it on demon spies. . .
However, this matter was also within Fang Xi's expectations.
After his backing collapsed, Gu Daoist was already rootless like duckweed; having offended too many people before, he was bound to face retribution.
Even the higher-ups wouldn't make a big fuss over this, after all. . . the law doesn't punish a crowd.
He returned to his cave abode, sat cross-legged on a bright yellow meditation cushion, silently nourishing the "Divine Infant Sword" within his body.
As for the "Netherworld Banner"?
This quasi-six-stage treasure had already been sent by him to the Human World, to receive nourishment from his true body's immortal origin qi.
Once the "Netherworld Banner" fully advanced to six-stage, it could return to replace the "Divine Infant Sword".
By elevating both of these treasures to six-stage, the Outer Dao Incarnation's combat power would be further enhanced.
Without the external clamor, though people were restless, Fang Xi persisted in daily meditation and refining treasures, living quite a carefree life.
One day.
Two streaks of light arrived together, landing in Fang Xi's Little Night Peak.
The cave abode's restrictions opened, and Fang Xi stepped out, looking at Yunxi Xianzi and Liu Xu, suddenly uttering a sound of surprise.
Liu Xu was one thing, but Yunxi Xianzi, in every movement at this moment, seemed to carry a hint more charm than before, and the aura of her cultivation method also subtly changed.
"Fellow Daoists, this is. . ."
Fang Xi asked, puzzled.
"Fellow Daoist Fang, to tell you the truth. . ."
Yunxi Xianzi and Liu Xu exchanged a glance: "Having experienced this pioneering work, we deeply understand that if ascended cultivators have no force to rely on, they are truly like duckweed in the wind. . . After some consideration, we have joined the 'Celestial Charm Sect'!"
"Celestial Charm Sect? !"
Fang Xi furrowed his brow.
This sect was a large one near Three Realms Mountain, said to have Integration stage cultivators overseeing it.
However, it seemed to only recruit female disciples, and was known for its mastery of charm arts.
"I see. I wish you both a bright future."
Fang Xi was silent for a moment, then cupped his hands in congratulations.
"The Celestial Charm Sect also has several Return to Void elders serving in the Celestial Brahma Army; although they are in the Gandharva and Deva Camps, they can still provide some support to us. . ."
Liu Xu said.
"Moreover, the Celestial Charm Sect's cultivation methods are uniquely profound; they can be cultivated concurrently without hindrance. . . " Yunxi Xianzi smiled alluringly, as if a hundred flowers had bloomed: "Fellow Daoist, do you perhaps think charm arts are merely a minor path. . . This humble one originally thought so too, but after reading our sect's ancient texts, I realized this was a misconception. . ."
"In the Dao of Charm Arts, the lower methods involve beguiling others, and even dual cultivation to enhance magical power."
"The middle methods involve charming all sentient beings, cultivating by absorbing the 'qi of the mortal world'. . ."
"The higher methods enable one to charm heaven and earth, thereby becoming a darling of the heavens, with opportunities and fortunes flocking in. At the peak, it can even weaken heavenly tribulations by a few points. . ."
...
“Others, sentient beings, and the heavens and earth, then? ” Fang Xi nodded. This did indeed sound like a lofty concept, truly befitting a sect that had produced Void Amalgamation cultivators.
However, he had never harbored any intention of stopping them.
After all, they were merely fellow villagers; he could not decide their destinies for them.
Now that they had made their choice, they could only bear the consequences themselves.
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