Zhang Chen muttered a word, then pulled out the Great Freedom Celestial Demon: "How should the liquid in the Ascension Pool be used?"
The Great Freedom Celestial Demon glanced down at the Ascension Pool, showing no particular interest, and casually said, "Just jump in and soak. However, the essence in the Ascension Pool is far too scarce right now, not enough for a complete transformation. I suggest you soak just one part, allowing that part to undergo transformation. In the future, whether you use Divine Techniques or practice mantras, it will amplify your powers."
"Just soak one part? Where should I soak?" Zhang Chen looked up and down at his entire body.
"If you've cultivated into a Primordial Spirit, of course, soak the Primordial Spirit, let it transform. Unfortunately, your Primordial Spirit isn't completed yet, so you can only work on the physical body." The Great Freedom Celestial Demon said nearby.
Hearing this, Zhang Chen pondered and scanned up and down before finally focusing on his hands: "If I use this pool of liquid to soak my hands, what changes will occur?"
"Your hands will evolve into an Immortal Body, making gestures smoother and more powerful, but it serves no unique purpose," said the Great Freedom Celestial Demon.
After a moment of contemplation, Zhang Chen finally immersed his hands into the pool. The colorful liquid in the pool seemed to come alive, actively gathering towards Zhang Chen's hands, penetrating through his skin and pores, continuously driving some inexplicable changes in his hands.
"I advise you to soak only one hand because the essence in this pool is insufficient for both hands to transform," the Great Freedom Celestial Demon reminded him.
Taking the advice, Zhang Chen promptly withdrew one hand, while letting the other soak in the pool. The water in the pool seemed to boil, evolving into mysterious colorful runes. The colorful runes transformed into rays of light, weaving into scarves and swirling around Zhang Chen's palms, refining all kinds of mysteries within, causing his fundamental nature to undergo incredible changes.
Days swiftly passed, and Zhang Chen's hand transformed over three days until all the colorful energy in the pool was exhausted, and Zhang Chen retrieved his hand, standing firmly at the pool's bottom.
Zhang Chen looked down at his left hand, feeling as if a certain mysterious energy was gathering within; this mysterious energy seemed like magical power, yet it wasn't magical power, its attributes stronger and more incredible.
Moreover, Zhang Chen felt his left hand had changed significantly, as if natural energies, usually unreachable, could now be manipulated by his left hand.
"Immortal's Left Hand," remarked the Great Freedom Celestial Demon, looking Zhang Chen up and down with a sour tone, "Through this left hand, you can better comprehend the Great Dao, sense and understand the laws of Heaven and Earth, and unravel the changes in Divine Techniques' patterns. You now have a Half-Immortal Body, and your future achievements are limitless. The Ascension Pool is for cultivators who reach a certain realm and need transformation in the pool to attain immortality, yet you are far from that threshold and have received such a gift — you're very lucky!"
Listening to these words, Zhang Chen became displeased and argued, "My achievements today, Zhang Chen, are solely due to my diligent efforts in cultivation, so how can you call it mere luck?"
Though Zhang Chen said this, he knew in his heart that without the Golden Finger, he wouldn't have achieved today's success.
Zhang Chen ignored the Great Freedom Celestial Demon and turned his eyes to the Ascension Pool before him, the Immortal's hand forming gestures, silently reciting a spell and began sacrificially refining the Ascension Pool.
Though the Ascension Pool was in a ruined state, it was still a rare Supreme Treasure for Zhang Chen. Moreover, although the pool had leaks, couldn't he repair it in the future? If he could, its former glory will surely be revived.
Zhang Chen had the sacrificial refining mantra and manipulation mantra for the Ascension Pool and possessed five hundred years of magical power, now armed with the Immortal's Hand, making the refining much easier.
Crucially, Zhang Chen discovered that the Immortal's Hand could amplify his Divine Techniques by more than tenfold. The magical power passing through it was also amplified by that inexplicable Qi Mechanism, speeding up the Ascension Pool's refining process.
Ten more days passed swiftly, and Zhang Chen had mastered the Ascension Pool's first layer of restriction, gaining a general understanding of the pool.
The Ascension Pool originally had forty-eight innate restrictions, but due to severe damage, twenty-four of them collapsed, with only twenty-four still functioning.
"The most crucial thing is that the twenty-four innate restrictions remaining in the Ascension Pool are still functioning, gathering twenty-four drops of refined energy daily. This is the real jackpot," Zhang Chen thought to himself with hidden delight.
Twenty-four drops aren't much, about the size of half a cap of mineral water. Though not very useful now, over time, gathering it daily will certainly amount to a vast number in the long run.
The reason the Ascension Pool hasn't amassed significant refined energy over thousands of years is due to the dissipation of energy. The innate restrictions are damaged, losing the means to constrain the energy of the Ascension Pool.
"It's a pity I arrived late. Most of the Ascension Pool's energy has contributed to the Northern Dragon Vein. That damn Zhang Shicheng has gained a fortune. No wonder his ancestral tomb has become illustrious overnight, glowing with shades of red and purple," Zhang Chen cursed quietly to himself, feeling as though he suffered a massive loss. These things were supposed to be his, yet Prince Pingbian's Mansion benefited. How could he possibly be happy?
Zhang Chen scrutinized the entire Ascension Pool from top to bottom. The pool, now the size of five cubes, had fallen from the Spiritual World and landed on the mountains below, embedding itself into the mountains. Due to the energy leakage, it has temporarily connected with the Northern Dragon Vein, making it unwise to move it recklessly.
"If I don't take away the Ascension Pool and let it nourish the Northern Dragon Vein daily, I'm afraid that one day the Northern Dragon Vein will transform into an Ancestral Vein under the nurturing of the refined energy," Zhang Chen speculated silently.
"However, now that the Ascension Pool is temporarily connected with the Dragon Vein, forcibly moving it might cause changes in the Northern Dragon Vein, potentially provoking Celestial Punishment," Zhang Chen muttered to himself quietly.
"But it's not without a way. When Prince Pingbian goes through the Transformed Dragon and Walking Flood Dragon phase, I can naturally collect the Ascension Pool," Zhang Chen circled the Ascension Pool, scrutinizing it closely to see if there were any traces left by old acquaintances. Despite all the looking, he found no useful clues and had to withdraw his gaze in disappointment.
"What was the outcome of that great battle back then? Are these scars left from that great battle?" Various thoughts flickered through Zhang Chen's mind, his eyes full of scheming.
Thinking for a long time without results, he turned his gaze to the distance, seeing an invisible Feng Shui Grand Array covering the Ascension Pool, suppressing its continuous release of energy.
"Interesting!" Zhang Chen squinted and glanced into the distance. The sky, initially drizzling, had now turned into a gentle rain, yet the cold surge in the air continued to flow.
"Now that the Northern Ancestral Vein has the help of the Ascension Pool, Prince Pingbian Zhang Shicheng has gained the advantage of the land, with hundreds of thousands of troops stationed here, he also possesses people's support. My only maneuver is the timing. If I can force Zhang Shicheng to prematurely undergo the Transformed Dragon and Walking Flood Dragon phase, ruining his timing will at least increase his failure probability by ten percent," Zhang Chen pondered silently.
But how to force Prince Pingbian Zhang Shicheng to bring forward his transformation?
Zhang Chen looked at the Feng Shui Grand Array before him, then at the Ascension Pool. A thought gradually formed in his mind: "I have a way! If I break this Feng Shui Grand Array and then expose the Ascension Pool, when the world's heroes gather here, there will surely be brave men unafraid of Celestial Punishment. Celestial Punishment targets cultivators, and ordinary martial artists won't be punished if they excavate the Dragon Vein."
Having made up his mind, Zhang Chen saw refined essence accumulating again at the bottom of the Ascension Pool, collected it into a jade bottle, and transformed into a stream of light, reappearing before Chen Xu. He once again used his Dripping Water Transfer Technique to pass through the Feng Shui Grand Array's barrier.
"Zhang, have you discovered anything?" Chen Xu had been waiting for quite some time, and seeing Zhang Chen appear again, a glint of anticipation flickered in his eyes.
Zhang Chen nodded at these words, handing the jade bottle of essence from the Ascension Pool to Chen Xu: "This bottle contains a liquid with incredible Creation. Once absorbed by a person's body or organs, it will undergo an unimaginable transformation."
Zhang Chen described the traits of the refined liquid from the Ascension Pool. Chen Xu scratched his head, pondered for a moment, and then uncorked the bottle, positioning it against his forehead.
"My Feng Shui Technique includes a Divine Technique called the Celestial Eye. Once opened, the Celestial Eye captures celestial secrets, observing past and future, deducing changes in the world's grand scheme, holding all sorts of incredible powers. According to your description, this liquid should help me unlock my potential, activate the Celestial Eye, and even enhance and transform my Celestial Eye," Chen Xu's eyes were full of anticipation.
Seeing Chen Xu's actions, Zhang Chen was momentarily stunned, then praised, "You're quite clever!"
That little amount of energy from the Ascension Pool wouldn't be enough to enhance any body part, but using it to activate and cultivate the pineal gland, opening the Celestial Eye, holds some hope.