Eternal Life from the Golden Needle Technique

Chapter 372: Chapter 369: Level 3 Peak

”All that talk, and for what? I thought you were some mighty expert, but you were nothing special at all.”

The figure standing behind Xiong Banqing spoke with cold indifference.

With a flick of his wrist,

he telekinetically retrieved the Storage Bags from the two corpses, along with the other items tied to their waists.

Then, he casually tossed out two Fireballs that radiated an incredibly scorching heat.

This was a Tier Two Magic, its flames altered to burn hotter than molten lava.

And so,

in the space of just a few breaths,

the two corpses were incinerated into ash!

Seeing the enemies reduced to nothing but dust,

Shen Changchuan finally let out a sigh of relief.

Thankfully,

there were no mysterious Demon Dao Techniques, and no reanimated corpses.

The two were well and truly dead.

That’s right.

The newcomer was, of course, Shen Changchuan!

After receiving a message from Senior Sister Wei Yuting, who was stationed within the Sect,

Shen Changchuan had set out.

It had taken him several days, but he had finally tracked the two down just a short while ago.

At the time, the pair were in the final stages of slaughtering a large village below.

But Shen Changchuan hadn’t immediately intervened.

Instead, he had hidden himself to observe their strength,

only deciding to make his move after confirming one was at the Soul Emergence Fifth Layer and the other at the Soul Emergence Fourth Layer.

He then used a Tier Two Magic—one primarily used for concealing one’s aura—to approach them silently.

And then,

just as they had completed their gruesome work,

he launched a surprise attack at the very moment their Heart Spirits were most relaxed,

unleashing the Cyan Wood Sword Light and heavily wounding them both before they could even react!

Of course,

by this point,

the Cultivators who had been resisting in the village center had already been completely wiped out.

Shen Changchuan glanced at the ruins of the village,

sighing internally,

but felt little else.

’It couldn’t be helped.’

’Although my strength has grown considerably over the past three years, and my Cultivation Realm has even reached the Soul Emergence Realm Third Layer Peak,’

’I don’t believe for a second that I’m invincible.’

’Never mind distant threats; I couldn’t even handle a Cultivator in the Soul Emergence Late Stage.’

’Before I could ascertain my opponents’ strength,’

’how could I just rush in blindly without a care?’

’That would be irresponsible with my own life.’

’To the Cultivators of that large village who resisted to the very end, my actions might have looked like I was callously leaving them to die.’

’But,’

’my own life is what’s most important.’

’I did my best while ensuring my own safety.’

’I won’t feel any guilt over it.’

”At least, I’ve avenged you!”

Shen Changchuan’s figure flew high into the sky.

He glanced down at the sprawling ruins one last time and murmured.

Then, without lingering,

he transformed into a streak of light and flew toward the Sect’s Mountain Gate.

...

High above in the sky,

Shen Changchuan sat cross-legged on Xiaofeng’s back,

speeding through the air.

At that moment,

Shen Changchuan held a thumb-sized centipede with interwoven gold and black markings in his palm, gently stroking its hard head with his finger.

”Well done, Xiaojin!”

Shen Changchuan said in praise.

’It was this little guy who used its Talent Magic to grow larger earlier,’

’effortlessly shattering the Soul Refining Banner’s Domain from the outside.’

’If Xiaojin hadn’t helped by forcefully tearing apart the Soul Refining Banner’s Domain,’

’I’m afraid it would have taken me much more effort to take down those two!’

’As expected of a Tier Two High Level Poisonous Insect King.’

’Even ignoring its lethal poison,’

’its raw power alone is comparable to a Cultivator at the Soul Emergence Seventh Layer!’

’Perhaps because it’s a Gu Insect,’

’Xiaojin isn’t skilled in direct combat.’

’But its offensive power is undeniably strong.’

’In certain situations, it can play a significant role.’

Satisfied, he rewarded Xiaojin with a Spirit Pill he had refined himself.

After watching it devour the pill with great relish,

Shen Changchuan returned it to the White Jade Gourd.

’I’ve now reached the Soul Emergence Third Layer Peak.’

’With my current strength, combined with the many techniques I’ve mastered over the years, not even a Cultivator at the Soul Emergence Sixth Layer Realm could confidently say they could take me down.’

’And with Xiaojin’s help, if used correctly, I might even be able to slay a Soul Emergence Sixth Layer expert...’

Shen Changchuan calculated silently in his heart.

After three years of arduous Cultivation,

his strength had increased by more than just a little.

Although he had spent a great deal of time and energy improving his Gu Technique over the past three years, all while needing to perform Alchemy to earn Spirit Stones,

and, as the Deputy Hall Master of the Sect’s Law Enforcement Hall, he also had to occasionally take action to resolve problems requiring force for the powers under the Sect’s command,

Shen Changchuan had never once slacked in his own Cultivation.

Three years of effort,

and now, Shen Changchuan

had not only accumulated and improved his Magic, but his Divine Techniques had also undergone a further transformation!

If the him from three years ago had to rely on a sneak attack to kill a Soul Emergence Fourth Layer Cultivator,

then the him of today

was fully capable of fighting and killing a Soul Emergence Fourth Layer expert head-on!

In fact, with his many techniques and accumulated power,

it wasn’t impossible for him to fight a Cultivator in the Fifth and Sixth Realms!

His strength had grown immensely!

But at the same time,

Shen Changchuan had also encountered a problem.

Namely—he had hit a bottleneck!

That’s right.

The bottleneck of the Soul Emergence Third Layer Peak stood squarely before him!

In fact, as early as half a year ago,

his Cultivation had already reached the peak of the Third Layer.

For the past six months,

he had never stopped trying.

In his attempt to break through,

he had even reduced the time he spent on improving his Gu Cultivation Technique and on Alchemy over the last half-year.

He tried breaking through in seclusion,

and he tried practicing his Magic,

repeatedly depleting his Magical Power, attempting to break the bottleneck by strengthening his power through cycles of exhaustion and replenishment, all while increasing his progress bars for his Magic.

However,

even after the number of Magic skills on his progress bar panel surpassed the one-thousand mark,

Shen Changchuan could feel that the bottleneck hadn’t budged an inch!

’Why is this happening?’

’Could it be that I’ve been cultivating too quickly, making my foundation unstable, and that’s why I can’t easily break through the bottleneck?’

’But that’s impossible! The legacies in the Sect’s Scripture Pavilion contain profound knowledge about foundations. According to the descriptions from our predecessors, after repeated tempering, my foundation should be much deeper than that of other Cultivators at the same Realm!’

Shen Changchuan’s brow furrowed slightly.

He even extended his hand. A wisp of Magical Power coiled in his palm, distorting the light around it.

’No! No matter how I look at it, this Magical Power is extremely condensed.’

’Even Senior Sister Wei said my foundation is incredibly solid, far stronger than those who are just propped up by elixirs!’

’The problem isn’t with my foundation!’

Shen Changchuan shook his head.

He dismissed the possibility of having a shallow foundation.

Shen Changchuan examined himself,

thinking for a long moment.

He combined the vast amount of Cultivation Experience from the Sect’s predecessors stored in his mind

with the teachings of his master, Master Wandering Dragon.

’Perhaps... this isn’t my problem.’

’Perhaps it’s just not that easy to break through Realms after reaching the Soul Emergence Realm...’