Two Realms: I Will Become the Immortal Emperor

Chapter 285: Chapter 257: Cultivating Methods and Foundation Establishment

Although the nine vast flames converged, they condensed into a single drop of orange fire.

It had gone directly from a gaseous state to a liquid.

The drop of flame hovered in midair, continuously emitting ripples of red Spiritual Light. Had he possessed this single drop of orange flame during his battle with True Master Chilong, he could have utterly annihilated both the True Master’s body and soul.

’With this Divine Ability, along with the Sword Pill and the Yellow Gourd, I wonder if I could stand against Thousand Eyes or True Master Duobao.’

The thought crossed Chen Che’s mind, but he quickly dismissed it.

Those veteran Golden Core True Masters had countless tricks up their sleeves. He would never clash with them unless he had absolutely no other choice.

HUFF.

Pushing open the door to his Quiet Chamber, Chen Che headed straight for the Sacrificial Hall.

While Chen Che was in seclusion, Lu Ping’an had given up the remainder of his lifespan.

Since Lu Qinglian had already made preparations in advance, his transition to the Ghost Dao was almost without obstacles. Furthermore, the Ghost Market provided him with a decent Cultivation environment. Despite having switched paths less than half a month ago, Lu Ping’an had already reached the Qi Refining Second Layer.

However, Chen Che knew that for Lu Ping’an, this was merely the first step.

Li Changqing hadn’t changed much. He was even more diligent than before, and his success rate for creating Tier One Lower-Grade Talismans had now reached ninety percent.

Moreover, he felt he had improved a great deal. Questions that were once incomprehensible were gradually becoming clear to him.

Next, Chen Che visited the Forging Hall, Alchemy Hall, Internal Affairs Hall, and the auction house in turn. His main purpose was to get a clear picture of each hall’s situation. Oftentimes, one could only truly understand things by seeing them with their own eyes.

In addition, he didn’t forget to make arrangements for the Pills and Weapons. Although the three-month deadline he’d agreed upon with Chen Yin hadn’t yet passed, their first order was already complete. It was time to have someone deliver it.

For now, he didn’t want to get too involved with them.

As he was leaving, Rong Zhongxuan respectfully handed him a copy of the *Hai Zhou Hu Family Annals*.

He casually flipped through it.

There were no explicit dates recorded, but the earliest entry was from five hundred and twenty years ago.

The Hu Family’s ancestor began as a woodcutter. He embarked on the path of Cultivation after finding a blood-stained Cultivation Technique in a hollow tree.

The entries for the first few generations were vague, with many events just glossed over. But as the years passed and the family grew, the records became increasingly detailed. It documented the Hu Family’s major decisions throughout the years, even recording how many Foundation Establishment Pills they purchased.

The Yellow Gourd had an extraordinary origin, and Chen Che still wanted to discover where it came from. That was why he had Rong Zhongxuan make the trip, even after the Hu Family had been wiped out.

’It’s not recorded here.’

Unfortunately, there was no mention of the Yellow Gourd.

While disappointed, Chen Che also breathed a sigh of relief. There was no telling how many hands this annal had passed through. If the Gourd had truly been recorded within its pages, others would have learned of it as well.

Clearly, Hu Haiqing had kept it a secret.

He casually burned the booklet to ash. Returning to his courtyard, Chen Che took out several Leopard Embryo Elixirs for Meng Qingxuan and explained the main points of the Foundation Establishment Three Gates to her in detail.

With the Leopard Embryo Elixirs to compensate for her deficiency in Qi and Blood, Meng Qingxuan’s chances of reaching Foundation Establishment were already at ninety percent. With the addition of a Foundation Establishment Pill, failure was almost impossible.

Then, Chen Che returned to Earth Element Star, as summer vacation was over.

The sophomore curriculum built on the freshman courses, corresponding to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Realm. The schedule, however, wasn’t as packed as it had been freshman year; it was quite relaxed. Some of the faster students had even finished studying the sophomore material ahead of time.

Chen Che also found time to flip through the textbooks. With his Cultivation at the Foundation Establishment Sixth Layer as a base, the material wasn’t difficult to learn.

He’d heard that Ye Zhihan was already preparing for some kind of test.

”Grad school exams?” He asked Li Tingyu, who answered bluntly. ”Zhurong Daoist School doesn’t require them. If you achieve Core Formation before graduation, you’re automatically admitted to the graduate program. There’s no written test or interview.”

That was good.

Chen Che breathed a sigh of relief. At his current pace, he was sure he could achieve Core Formation before graduation.

Next, he inquired about Cultivation Techniques for the Golden Core Realm...

”Tier Three Techniques?”

In her office, Li Tingyu pondered for a moment before asking, ”How is your Cultivation of the Nine Transformations Spirit Flame Technique coming along?”

”I just reached the Second Transformation yesterday.”

Chen Che demonstrated the flame.

”Only one year... That speed rivals my own back in the day. I didn’t expect this. Your Spiritual Root may not be high-grade, but your talent for Magic is quite good. I suppose it’s fine for you to learn about Tier Three Techniques ahead of time.”

Li Tingyu was slightly taken aback, then raised her hand and wrote out a note.

”It has my signature on it. You can go directly to the library and pick them up.”

”Er...”

”What’s wrong? Are you not satisfied with these two techniques?”

”Of course they’re good.”

Chen Che nodded.

Both techniques Li Tingyu gave him were Tier Three Middle Grade.

One was the *Taichu Haoyue Sword*, and the other was the *Wind Thunder Technique Step*. Moreover, she had chosen them specifically based on his abilities. They were almost a full Grand Realm above his current level, which meant they would take him a long time to master.

But when it came to Sister Li, Chen Che didn’t beat around the bush.

”I’d also like to learn a Body Refining Technique.”

”Body Refining!”

Li Tingyu frowned, her fingers tapping a rhythm on her desk. ”Student Chen Che,” she said with great seriousness, ”times have changed. Body Cultivators have become obsolete. Choosing a Body Refining Technique would just be a waste of your time.”

”Qi and Blood is only really a requirement during Foundation Establishment. The need for it isn’t even that great when you reach Core Formation...”

As Earth Element Star’s Cultivation system developed over the years, in addition to the Hundred Skills of Cultivation that branched off, it also became divided into paths like Magic Cultivator, Body Cultivator, Ghost Cultivator, Divine Cultivator, and so on.

The primordial era was the most glorious period for Body Cultivators.

Divine Abilities of Body Cultivators like Carrying Mountains and Chasing the Sun, Undying Golden Body, and Blood Rebirth are still recorded in today’s textbooks.

But why, then, is Earth Element Star dominated by Magic Cultivators?

It was, of course, due to a scarcity of resources.

Body Refining is based on the physical self, constantly strengthening one’s flesh, Qi and Blood, muscles, bones, and internal organs. On the surface, it seems unrelated to one’s Spiritual Root. But no matter the type of Cultivation, its ultimate essence is consumption. Qi and Blood originate from the body; the more frantically one cultivates, the greater the toll on the body.

If that consumption isn’t replenished, one will become listless at best; at worst, their power will begin to wane.

Therefore, Body Cultivators are more dependent on external Spiritual Objects.

For the first hundred years after the Immortal Sect’s founding, Body Refining was still one of the more popular paths.

With the push for universal Cultivation, the student body’s demand for things that replenished Qi and Blood, like Demon Beast meat and Spirit Treasures, skyrocketed, but supply could never keep up. Even when the Immortal Sect tried to cultivate large quantities of Body Refining Spiritual Objects, the growth periods were too short for them to reach their full potency.

Thus, the path of Body Refining became increasingly difficult to follow.

Today, the Immortal Sect has canceled the Body Refining curriculum entirely, reducing it to a gym class primarily designed to help students temper their Qi and Blood. Only some wealthy students who lack a Spiritual Root still choose to become Body Cultivators.

”I just want to learn a bit about it.”

Chen Che knew all of this, of course, and he was telling the truth.

Although Yunzhou didn’t have the same resource scarcity problem as the Immortal Sect, his own energy was finite.

There was no harm in mastering a bit more of this ’extracurricular knowledge’.

After all, you can never have too many skills.

”Mm, as long as you understand.”

Li Tingyu trusted this student of hers. She took back the note and added a few more lines.

”Second floor of the library. Find the *Flame Emperor Body Refining Technique - Upper* yourself.”

”Only the upper volume? What about the lower one?”

”Didn’t you say you just wanted to learn a bit about it? What do you need the lower volume for? This upper volume is enough to keep you busy for a decade. The lower volume is a Tier Four Technique, which is beyond my clearance level. If you want to learn it, wait until you get into the graduate program.”

Li Tingyu shot him a glare and rose gracefully to brew herself a cup of fruit tea, the Amber on her anklet jingling softly.

”Goodbye, Instructor.”

With that, Chen Che took the note and left.

High Tier Techniques were the foundation of Zhurong Daoist School. Although the Immortal Sect was said to be open and without sectarianism, techniques like these truly couldn’t be bought on the open market.

’Half of a Tier Four Technique!’

Watching Chen Che leave, Li Tingyu sat down dejectedly, feeling truly frustrated.

She wasn’t a jealous person by nature, and she’d seen her share of students with a talent for Magic over the years. But this kid’s talent was just a bit too much.

’It took me a full three years to reach the Second Transformation...’

The more she thought about it, the more dejected Li Tingyu felt. She sipped her fruit tea, unable to figure it out.

’Could it be that my talent for Magic is just that bad?’

...

After checking out the three techniques from the library, Chen Che began studying them immediately.

The *Flame Emperor Body Refining Technique - Upper* wasn’t too difficult.

It was divided into three stages: Qi and Blood Like Mercury, Ice Skin and Jade Flesh, and Steel Bones and Iron Flesh, which corresponded to the three Grand Realms of Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core, respectively.

To put it simply, it was about condensing one’s Qi and Blood, then gradually transforming the body’s Physique.

Previously, he had just been haphazardly tempering his Qi and Blood. Without a proper advanced technique, he didn’t know what the next step was and was just fumbling in the dark. This Body Refining Technique, however, showed him the way forward. And since he already had a sufficient foundation of Qi and Blood, he just needed to follow the steps and cultivate.

The *Wind Thunder Technique Step* and the *Taichu Haoyue Sword* were the difficult ones.

As he read through them, he found them truly abstruse and difficult to understand.

But that was to be expected. They were Tier Three Techniques, after all.

The former was a movement technique derived from insights into wind and thunder. It was divided into Wind Step, Thunder Step, and, upon achieving Great Success, the Wind Thunder Step.

The latter was once called the *Taichu Sun Sword*. According to Li Tingyu, it had once been a Tier Four Swordsmanship, but its core principles were lost during the Calamity of Heaven’s Fall. Although it had been reconstructed, its power had fallen to Tier Three Middle Grade.

It was divided into four forms: Firefly, Starlight, Stars, and Bright Moon.

...

「Two more months passed in the blink of an eye.」

In November, the weather grew slightly cool.

Chen Che walked out of his Quiet Chamber.

’The *Flame Emperor Body Refining Technique* really is something special.’

Since his Qi and Blood had long since reached the level of the Foundation Establishment Realm, the Qi and Blood Like Mercury stage wasn’t difficult. He simply had to consolidate his foundation and easily achieved it. The Ice Skin and Jade Flesh stage wasn’t hard either. His appearance had already been fixed at that of a sixteen or seventeen-year-old when he reached Foundation Establishment, and now after practicing the Body Refining Technique, he looked even younger.

Of course, that was just a side effect. The main benefit was a huge increase in his Defense Power.

Tier Two Low Grade Weapons and Magic could no longer break through his defense, which was like wearing a piece of Tier Two Middle Grade Armor.

Just as he was thinking, a vast Foundation Establishment aura suddenly erupted within Jinyun Valley. The aura didn’t belong to anyone in the Valley, however. Chen Che raised an eyebrow, then a smile spread across his face.

’Has she successfully reached Foundation Establishment?’