Chapter 2988: Chapter 2988
Ye Liuyun had also considered the possibility of integrating the power of heaven and earth into his physical body, but that was a matter for another time.
Right now, he needed to focus entirely on refining his Profound Essence. Even though his dantian and meridians had been reinforced by the energies of the world, they still wouldn’t withstand the sheer volume of Profound Essence surging through them.
At the same time, he had to continue channeling the power of heaven and earth to further strengthen his dantian and meridians. He was already stretched thin—some of the smaller meridians had to be neglected, leaving only the major ones protected.
Still, now that he could effortlessly sense the presence of the world’s energy, drawing upon it had become much easier. He had no shortage of the power needed to refine his Profound Essence and reinforce his dantian and meridians, so the risk was minimal.
Yet, his dantian and meridians continued to expand under the pressure of the surging Profound Essence. At the same time, they instinctively absorbed and fused with the heaven-and-earth-infused energy, constantly repairing the cracks formed by the relentless impact.
Just then, the energy within the Essence Conversion Cauldron had been completely drained. Without hesitation, Ye Liuyun retrieved a Storage Stone and began absorbing its reserves. He then channeled a fresh stream of Profound Essence into the cauldron and tossed in two strands of Primordial World Essence along with two strands of ordinary World Essence for conversion.
By the time he had exhausted the Profound Essence within the Storage Stone, the cauldron had already converted a portion of the new energy, allowing him to resume absorption. However, the process was now much slower—he absorbed each newly converted bit immediately, which gave him ample time to refine the Profound Essence properly.
The quality of his Profound Essence had changed drastically, now saturated with vast amounts of heaven-and-earth energy—completely different from what it had been before.
*"So my Profound Essence isn’t just capable of merging with Profound Qi—it can also fuse with this much of the world’s energy!"*
For now, Ye Liuyun didn’t have the luxury to fully appreciate the extent of his newfound strength. But he knew that this qualitative transformation of his Profound Essence would bring significant benefits. Just the sheer volume of energy he had absorbed was proof enough—his power would likely multiply several times over.
Suddenly, his entire body shuddered. A resonant boom erupted from within his dantian as the Profound Essence inside began to seethe violently.
*"Finally—a breakthrough!"* A wave of relief washed over him as he refocused on the changes within his body, continuing to infuse his Profound Essence with the power of heaven and earth.
The boiling Profound Essence surged out of his dantian, coursing through his meridians in a violent cycle before rushing back in. Upon its return, the energy was even more refined, carrying even greater amounts of heaven-and-earth power.
Most of his dantian and meridians withstood the impact—only the neglected minor meridians fractured under the strain, though the damage was negligible.
As the Profound Essence receded, it rapidly cooled and solidified, merging seamlessly with his dantian. The sheer density of the refined energy and the overwhelming presence of the world’s power made one thing abundantly clear—his strength had soared to unprecedented heights.
At the same time, both of his avatars also broke through to the Unity Realm, causing the surrounding natural energy around them to surge dramatically.
Once Ye Liuyun’s Profound Essence returned to his core, he relaxed and immediately began repairing the damaged meridians in his body while sensing the changes within himself.
The most noticeable change was his newfound mastery over the perception and manipulation of natural energy. Infusing his Profound Essence with this energy had become effortless, as easy as absorbing spiritual qi.
Only now did he realize that natural energy was truly omnipresent—it was just that before, he could barely even detect it, let alone harness it.
Now that his Profound Essence had merged with this energy, any attack he unleashed in battle would naturally carry its power.
After repairing his meridians, Ye Liuyun began absorbing the energy stored in the Essence Conversion Cauldron, continuing until he had drained it completely, solidifying his newly attained realm.
Then, he placed several more sources of primordial energy into the cauldron and infused it with a wisp of his newly refined Profound Essence, allowing the artifact to continue its conversion process.
Meanwhile, he immediately began channeling natural energy into his physical body. As expected, his flesh could indeed absorb it. The more he integrated, the stronger his body became—several times more resilient than before.
Now, there wasn’t a single gap left in his physique; his entire body had transformed into something akin to a treasure. At the very least, the strength of a sixth-level Unity Realm martial artist would no longer be enough to damage him.
This discovery filled Ye Liuyun with exhilaration. He hadn’t anticipated that reaching the Unity Realm would bring him such a tremendous leap in power.
Standing up, he took a moment to feel the energy coursing through him. Suddenly, it was as if he had merged with the heavens and earth—a sensation oddly similar to when his soul wandered the void. Never before had he experienced such a profound connection with nature on a physical level.
Now, with every movement—every gesture—he could sense the natural energy surrounding him. With just a thought, even more of it gathered around him, forming an invisible protective barrier.
Eager to test his newfound strength, he immediately sought out the Demon Vine for a sparring session.
With a single motion, the Profound Essence he unleashed was now imbued with vast amounts of natural energy. Once released, it drew in even more, amplifying the force of his attacks.
By leveraging the momentum of natural energy he had previously comprehended, he could further enhance the power of his strikes. Combined with his newly fortified physique, he was now able to hold his own against the Demon Vine.
The two of them fought for a long time, yet neither could gain the upper hand. After all, Ye Liuyun’s cultivation was four levels lower, so even with the momentum of Heaven and Earth’s power infused into his attacks, he couldn’t injure the Demon Vine. The Demon Vine’s physical body was inherently strong, making it impervious to his strikes.
Likewise, Ye Liuyun’s own physique was so robust that the Demon Vine couldn’t harm him either.
After familiarizing himself with his newfound strength, Ye Liuyun immediately returned to consume his share of the Five-Colored Condensing Fruit, refining his advance energy to an even denser state. Only then did he begin replenishing his energy reserves, filling his Yuan Storage Stone to capacity.
With the little time left, he first refined the Netherfire Blossom to enhance the potency of his Netherworld Ghost Flame. Then, he swallowed a pill crafted from Thunder Spirit grass to temper his lightning affinity, followed by a pill made from Divine Insight Fruit to further condense his spiritual consciousness.
By the time he had exhausted these resources, he could already feel a significant improvement in his strength. He went to check on the others and found that everyone had advanced in their cultivation.
However, they were all still refining other resources, seizing every moment to grow stronger. Judging by their auras, their newfound breakthroughs had already stabilized.
"Looks like I was the last one to break through," Ye Liuyun muttered with a wry smile.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, something struck him as odd. Not a single person had noticed his presence. Even if they were absorbed in refining resources, it was strange that none of them had reacted to him at all.
But since this was the spatial world of his second avatar, he was certain no illusionary techniques were at play.
"What’s going on?"
Puzzled, he deliberately cleared his throat softly to gauge their reactions.
This time, many of them opened their eyes and turned toward the sound. Some even flinched in surprise.
Only then did he relax, realizing they had probably been too deeply immersed in their cultivation.
