Within the island protection array on Tai’an Island, Li Fan browsed through the Miscellaneous Records of Cultivation he had purchased, his brow slightly furrowed.
Bottleneck? Heavenly Tribulation?
Ever since returning from Myriad Immortals Island days ago, he hadn’t stopped cultivating for a single moment.
His original plan had been to strike while the iron was hot and break through to the late-stage Qi Refinement realm in one decisive push.
He could feel the breakthrough was close, so close he could almost touch. Yet no matter how intensely he cultivated, that final step remained just out of reach.
That seemingly insignificant gap stood before him like an insurmountable chasm.
After consulting the Miscellaneous Records of Cultivation , Li Fan finally confirmed he had encountered a bottleneck.
The concept of cultivation bottlenecks had existed since ancient times. During the cultivation process, one’s progress could stall at a certain point, refusing to advance any further.
In the current cultivation world, these bottlenecks had an even greater impact on cultivators.
Starting from the mid-stage Qi Refinement realm, every cultivator would inevitably encounter a bottleneck when attempting to break through each stage of a cultivation realm.
Diligent cultivation was not enough to overcome this type of bottleneck. The cultivator had to actively seek a uniquely personal, intuitively sensed opportunity to break through.
This opportunity could be anything: looking at a specific painting, drinking a particular cup of tea, a sudden epiphany, a flash of insight during a life-or-death struggle, an offhand remark from someone else, or meticulous guidance from a senior, etc.
In short, there was no predictable pattern—it all depended on the inscrutable “will of the heavens.”
Undoubtedly, the presence of these bottlenecks severely hindered cultivation speed. It was as if the heavens themselves had sent down a tribulation to obstruct their progress. Thus, cultivators referred to it as the “Heavenly Tribulation.”
And now, this Heavenly Tribulation had descended upon Li Fan, shattering his plans for a rapid breakthrough.
After sitting in meditation within the array for several days, Li Fan still didn’t have the faintest clue as to where his breakthrough opportunity might lie.
Knowing this wasn’t something that could be brute-forced in a short time, he didn’t grow impatient. He temporarily set aside his cultivation of the Lesser Water Manipulation Art and turned his focus to the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture.
The Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture consisted of five levels, corresponding to the five major realms of ancient times: Innate, Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, and Nascent Soul.
The Innate realm was a rather unique concept in the teachings of certain ancient sects. It emphasized expelling all the turbid energy accumulated since birth to return to a state of pristine innate purity.
Those sects believed that beginning cultivation from the Innate realm made it easier for one to comprehend the Heavenly Dao, and both one’s cultivation speed and potential would far surpass those of ordinary cultivators. The Heavenly Mechanisms Sect was one such sect that advocated that all cultivation should begin from the Innate state.
However, ever since the new methodology had replaced the old and cultivators plundered the heavens and seized the earth, harmony between heaven and man was no longer emphasized. Naturally, there was no more talk of returning to the Innate state.
Yet the most fundamental part of the entire Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture technique was the Innate realm. Therefore, what Li Fan had to do was substitute the Innate realm with the Qi Refinement realm and complete the first level of cultivation.
Generally speaking, using a higher realm to substitute for a lower one would make cultivation relatively easier due to downward compatibility.
But when it involved the differences between ancient and modern cultivation systems, it wasn’t so simple. Furthermore, Li Fan was still a beginner who had only been cultivating for a few years and had little relevant knowledge in this area.
That was why it had taken Li Fan several years just to get started in the first place. And that was with the boost to his comprehension from taking the Liuli Pill.
Having hit a bottleneck in the Lesser Water Manipulation Art, Li Fan turned to the second level of the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture instead.
He planned to cultivate both techniques to the mid-stage Qi Refinement realm simultaneously, hoping the combination might help him break through the bottleneck.
After all, cultivation techniques were precious in this era. It was truly uncommon for an ordinary cultivator like him to practice multiple techniques at once.
According to the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture, mastering the second level of the technique would grant him the divine ability known as Discernment of Mechanisms.
As the name implied, Discernment of Mechanisms allowed one to perceive and distinguish the various energy mechanisms within heaven and earth.
This ability was the very foundation of the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture.
Only by perceiving and sensing these energy mechanisms could one proceed to capture and refine them.
The difficulty of cultivating the second level far exceeded Li Fan’s expectations.
The Lesser Water Manipulation Art was straightforward, guiding the cultivator without a single wasted word. In sharp contrast, the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture hid its methods within a pile of intentionally obscure and profound language, forcing the reader to speculate and ponder for themselves.
Compounding this difficulty, it occasionally sprinkled in insights into the Heavenly Dao and esoteric anecdotes from the ancient cultivation world. This jumbled mix left Li Fan feeling dizzy and his blood surging.
After reading it through once, he felt a spark of understanding. Yet, when he actually attempted to cultivate, he realized he hadn't grasped anything at all.
Fortunately, Li Fan was not one to give up easily. Despite the immense difficulties, he patiently studied and contemplated every single word and sentence.
As Li Fan diligently cultivated, another year passed. Although his progress on the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture was nearly nonexistent, Li Fan remained undiscouraged.
On his second trip to Myriad Immortals Island to collect compensation for his acting guardian position, he spent all 800 contribution points and the five Tai’an Fruits saved over two years to redeem insights on cultivating ancient techniques.
Li Fan then activated the Assisted Cultivation Mode within the Tianxuan Mirror.
Instead of practicing the technique itself, he read the cultivation insights he had redeemed, meticulously comparing and cross-referencing them with the experiences he had summarized over the past year.
It was like a sudden epiphany; all the doubts and difficulties he hadn’t been able to resolve before were instantly answered.
When he reached particularly brilliant passages, Li Fan couldn’t help but dance with joy.
It was only then that he truly understood the saying: "If I hear the Dao in the morning, I may die content in the evening."
Five days passed quickly. With his new understanding, Li Fan hurried back to Tai’an Island and entered seclusion once more.
When he resumed cultivation this time, things were utterly different.
All the obscure and difficult parts of the technique had become perfectly clear, and his progress proceeded without hindrance. Li Fan’s mind quickly became fully immersed.
Time holds no meaning in cultivation.
One day, a golden, mist-like spiritual qi, entirely different from the water-attribute spiritual qi, abruptly appeared within Li Fan’s dantian.
Li Fan’s eyes snapped open, a look of profound joy on his face.
Finally, I’ve completed the second level of the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture. He let out a long sigh of relief.
He stretched his slightly stiff body and glanced at the time, feeling somewhat disoriented.
He hadn’t expected this session of seclusion to last an entire year. To Li Fan’s senses, it had felt like little more than a single night’s sleep.
Still, the hardship had ultimately borne fruit.
With a thought, Li Fan gathered the golden spiritual qi into his eyes and activated Discernment of Mechanisms.
Let’s see what these so-called energy mechanisms of heaven and earth truly look like. He thought, a thrill of excitement coursing through him at the first time using his newfound divine ability.
He turned his gaze toward Tai’an Island.
The sight he witnessed made his heart lurch and his blood run cold.
A thick, murky black aura of death blanketed the entire island like oppressive storm clouds!
The deathly energy was so concentrated it seemed almost solid, casting the island in the ghastly pallor of the underworld, despite it being daytime.
Uneasy and alarmed, he dismissed the arcane art and immediately cast it again.
He looked several times in succession, only finally convinced he wasn’t mistaken when the terrifying results remained consistent.
How can this be? He wondered.
Abruptly, as if remembering something crucial, he swiftly cast the Water Mirror Art and stared at his own reflection.
There, he saw it.
The aura of death gathering above Li Fan’s own head was a thousand—no, ten thousand—times thicker than that hanging over the mortals on the island.