Chapter 503: Chapter 457: Devouring the Heavens
"These Dragon Bones have been around for too long. They’re okay for Artifact Refining, but for Cultivation, too much energy has been lost, they’re too inferior."
Jiang Yuebai and Lu Nanzhi stood together in the small courtyard used as a warehouse in the Lotus Platform Cave Heaven, with all Dragon Bones sorted by category, divided half for each.
The ones with good appearance, Jiang Yuebai placed all into the warehouse, while those with average appearance were casually thrown outside the courtyard. She could later refine some Dragon Bone Puppets, either for farming or for battle usage.
Among them were six pieces of crimson-colored fragments mixed within, possessing Dragon Qi but not pure, unable to be pieced into a complete bone. Jiang Yuebai couldn’t identify what kind of bones they were, so she temporarily kept them by her side.
It’s not an issue that the "Dragon God Transformation" can’t be Cultivated temporarily; although this Cultivation Technique seems powerful, it’s extremely troublesome to cultivate, requiring a large amount of Dragon Bones, Dragon Blood, Dragon Scales, and the like.
The most critical is the Dragon Soul, a Dragon has just one Dragon Soul, even harder to obtain than Essence Blood; and she wasn’t like the dragon-slaying maniac Zhur Jiuyou, where would she find so many Dragon Souls?
So Jiang Yuebai temporarily abandoned this Cultivation Technique and continued to cultivate her improved "Barbarian God Skill," fused with the "Nine Revolutions Golden Body Technique," which after cultivation allows one to have a giant body like Yi Zhengyang’s, with the Giant Barbarian God Illusion and a massive physique.
Especially after her improvement, the dependent illusion transforms into a Buddhist Angry-Eyed Vajra, and she currently is striving to model the illusion during its first condensation after the Eight-Armed Vajra in the labyrinth back then.
"Come on, Anan, no matter how you avoid, now I’ve become a Cauldron Slave, this Cultivation Technique must be completed. Even though we are in the Lotus Platform Cave Heaven, I feel the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon can still monitor us; it just looks down on this dilapidated place of mine."
Jiang Yuebai called out to Lu Nanzhi, and the two walked out of the warehouse, where their eyes were met with intersecting paths surrounded by fenced Spiritual Fields, planted with various Spirit Grass and Spiritual Flowers, with some Spirit Fruit Trees by the side.
Planting Puppets regularly spread clouds and rain, Green Armor Bees harvested nectar, and Little Demons dragged fist-sized pottery jars, watering and weeding in the Spiritual Field, checking the growth situation of Spirit Plants.
Many of these varieties were later grafted by Jiang Yuebai, with shorter growth cycles and stronger medicinal properties.
Among them are also the Spiritual Medicines she uses for Alchemy, planted living plants bought previously in Stone Gate City, picked while used.
Unfortunately, security issues could not be guaranteed, leaving Jiang Yuebai unable to concentrate on Alchemy.
Passing through the Spiritual Field, an ancient-style garden sat by the lake, complete with pavilions, towers, rockeries, and lotus ponds, entirely built according to Jiang Yuebai’s preferences.
"The Spiritual Energy here is much richer than before, Xie Jingshan found some very good craftsmen," Lu Nanzhi praised.
Jiang Yuebai led Lu Nanzhi towards the lotus pond in the center of the garden, where she already transferred the Spiritual Vein Pulse beneath the pond, making it the place with the densest Spiritual Energy in the entire Lotus Platform Cave Heaven.
"Actually, I prefer the outer environment where Spiritual Energy and Demonic Qi coexist."
In the pavilion at the center of the lotus pond, Jiang Yuebai took out the Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron, and she and Lu Nanzhi sat on opposite sides.
The reason for attempting fusion here is that everything in Lotus Platform Cave Heaven is under her control, allowing her to better handle unexpected situations.
"Chaos births Yin Yang, undergoing a series of complex changes, eventually transforming into various energies between heaven and earth. Later, when the blood of the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon is thrown in, no matter if it’s Demonic Qi or Demon Energy or Spiritual Energy, just toss in whatever you have, Chaos is unpredictable, no need to worry much."
After confirming with Lu Nanzhi, Jiang Yuebai found a black light sphere, using the method of plunder to stir up a Spiritual Energy vortex above the Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron.
With the cauldron lid open, Jiang Yuebai threw out the black light sphere, and nine drops of Dragon Blood were immediately absorbed into the cauldron.
Jiang Yuebai glanced at Lu Nanzhi, pouring all the Spiritual Energy from her Golden Core and the Demon Energy from her Divine Elixir into the cauldron.
Lu Nanzhi also cast a Hand Technique, surging forth Ice Soul Demon Qi.
All the energies were swallowed cleanly by the Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron, and even the Spiritual Energy in the lotus pond was drawn into it as the Spiritual Energy vortex rotated above.
The Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron was like a never-satisfied Taotie, only consuming and never releasing, with no change occurring.
Jiang Yuebai even felt the long-repressed hunger of the Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron exploding, increasingly craving more energy.
Jiang Yuebai’s brows furrowed tightly, her white hair flew behind her, condensing into two White Vine Avatars, splitting into two Divine Thoughts to control the Avatars and inject Phoenix True Fire and Earth Evil Fire into the cauldron.
Lu Nanzhi also continued to ramp up, her Ice Soul Sword rose from behind her, suspended in mid-air, with Sword Intent like an ice crystal tide pouring wave by wave into the cauldron.
Still not enough!
The Leaf Hand in Jiang Yuebai’s Sea of Consciousness shook, and two thunderbolts of black and white fell out of nowhere.
Water Thunder and Jian Palace Thunder!
The Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron glowed brightly inside, with thunder flashing, various energies mixed, yet there was no intense collision.
It was like sinking a stone into the ocean, leaving no hope in sight.
After an hour, the two exhaustedly stopped, and the Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron returned to calm, its lid closing. Jiang Yuebai was still tormented by that deep soul hunger.
"It’s insatiable! I bet it would take ten to eight giant dragons to fill it halfway. If only we had Xie Jingshan with us, we could throw his storage ring and chain armor in there; that might be enough."
Jiang Yuebai couldn’t help but complain.
Lu Nanzhi, pale, took a breath and said, "Don’t rush. The Nine-Headed Flood Dragon gave you thirty years for a reason; with time, you’ll eventually satisfy it."
Seeing Lu Nanzhi’s exhausted and weak state, Jiang Yuebai stood up, placed her hand on Nanzhi’s shoulder, and led her out of the Lotus Platform Cave Heaven to absorb the Demon Energy outside to recuperate.
"It looks like this is going to take a while. Wait for me; I’ll go ask the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon for some blood again!"
Jiang Yuebai descended into the abyss, only to be thrown out empty-handed in less than a tea’s time.
She didn’t get discouraged, and as usual, injected all her energy into the Heaven-Swallowing Cauldron with Lu Nanzhi daily. After closing the cauldron, she’d go beg the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon again.
Out of ten attempts, nine times she was thrown back. But occasionally, maybe in a good mood, the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon would squeeze out a bit of blood for her.
As long as the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon was willing to give blood, Jiang Yuebai wouldn’t give up, visiting every few days to plead.
While Jiang Yuebai focused entirely on dealing with the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon, Lu Nanzhi wasn’t idle. Seizing the opportunity when Yuebai distracted the Flood Dragon, she examined each of the nine dragon heads surrounding the abyss.
Lu Nanzhi discovered that the chains binding the black coffin were connected to the mouths of the nine dragon heads, which were also binding the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon below. It was very likely that each dragon head’s mouth harbored additional larger spaces.
But just like above, the mouths of the dragon heads carried Dragon Clan restrictions.
During one exploration, Lu Nanzhi even saw Xingchou sneaking into the Zhur Jiuyou dragon head’s mouth. The entry was brief, and when their eyes met, Nanzhi felt Xingchou had tried to break through the restriction but failed.
This time, with Lu Nanzhi by her side, Jiang Yuebai was especially patient. The two encouraged and supported each other, treating it as a death lock-in.
Aside from feeding the cauldron, daily practice was their routine.
Before being trapped here, Lu Nanzhi had already exchanged all her Spirit Stones for various sword techniques and manuals. She practiced and researched daily, with her complete Ice Demon legacy, having no plans to learn the Chaos Nirvana Skill.
Focused on the Sword Dao, Lu Nanzhi, upon Jiang Yuebai’s suggestion, attempted to cultivate the Barbarian God Skill using Demon Energy. This cultivation technique was quite comprehensive in body refining, capable of enhancing strength and defense.
Jiang Yuebai was the same, not wasting a single moment.
Unfortunately, without the Immortal Cultivation Panel to assist her, she was unsure of her daily progress, occasionally feeling frustrated for not sensing any gains.
In contrast, Lu Nanzhi remained calm, as meditation and practicing the sword had become a habit. Results or no results, they didn’t stir much emotional response from her. Persistence was what mattered.
Jiang Yuebai knew she was too dependent on the Immortal Cultivation Panel, never having experienced the tedious and unrewarding period of cultivation, lacking the patience to cultivate a steadfast heart.
Her craving for advancement, harvest, and fear of wasting time on fruitless efforts pushed her need for the Immortal Cultivation Panel to constantly affirm the correctness of her approach.
Unlike now, where everything relied on perseverance, sustaining change until qualitative transformation, it took a long time to know the outcome.
Indeed, shortcuts taken in the past demanded a double return in the end.
Jiang Yuebai suppressed her urge to sneak a peek at the Immortal Cultivation Panel. When frustrated, she’d seek the Nine-Headed Flood Dragon, report cultivation progress, and ask for blood, taking it as mental and observational training.
An endless underground space devoid of day and night, lacking the turn of seasons, Jiang Yuebai barely felt the passage of time.
The only indicators were the scars she and Lu Nanzhi engraved on the black rocky walls, each marking the completion of their daily eleven-hour cultivation plan, with no days wasted.
Time passed unknowingly, perhaps five or six years, maybe seven or eight, but the wall bore no more space for new marks.
That day, the rumble of thunder seemed to come from beyond the skies, and the entire underground space suddenly shook violently.
A powerful wave of Spiritual Energy emanated from where Xingchou was, astonishing Jiang Yuebai as she looked over.
Was Xingchou about to form a Nascent Soul?
