"Yuan Dasheng?!" Zhu Xuanji's pupils contracted slightly, as he stood in place, stunned for quite a while.
"It really is Yuan Dasheng?"
He had considered this possibility before, but as soon as the thought arose, he quickly dismissed it.
Because in Zhu Xuanji's view, the Mechanical Demon General undoubtedly had Golden Core-level power!
Inside it, the True Scripture recorded on the Blood Path Diagram Plate should at least be at the Golden Core level.
If not, then this Blood Path Diagram Plate would be of little use to a Golden Core-level Mechanical Demon General.
Yuan Dasheng was not a Golden Core-level demon cultivator; he always appeared to be at the Foundation Establishment level.
Before he revealed his demonic skills, even the entire Monkey Head Gang believed he had no cultivation.
Not long ago, Zhu Xuanji led the three Golden Pill Ancestors deep into Fire Persimmon Mountain and fought with those Magma Demon Apes.
Those Magma Demon Apes were demon beasts; relying on their strong bodies, they had Golden Core-level combat strength without cultivating any techniques.
Yuan Dasheng left the impression of being just such a beast, merely a demon beast raised by Yuan Yi, not a demon cultivator.
"Yuan Dasheng was at most Quasi Golden Core-level before his death."
"If he possessed a Golden Core-level True Scripture, why didn't he cultivate it?"
"If he had cultivated it and owned a Golden Core-level True Scripture, how could he still be at the Foundation Establishment level?"
"If he were a Golden Core-level demon cultivator, he wouldn't have failed to protect Yuan Er, nor would he have lost his own life."
Although Yuan Dasheng was observed by Zhu Xuanji at the Fire Persimmon Festival to have some foundation in demonic cultivation,
Zhu Xuanji knew that this foundation was far from reaching the Golden Core rank.
At this moment, Zhu Xuanji's mind was filled with chaotic and turbulent thoughts.
Memories of past scenes frequently flashed in his mind.
He seemed to return to the day of the Fire Persimmon Festival, seeing Yuan Dasheng through his Golden Eyes.
He had wanted to activate his demonic powers, but forced himself to suppress it, ultimately not using them.
He was gravely injured and dying; if not for Zhu Xuanji's rescue, he would have long been dead!
Zhu Xuanji then saw himself, along with Zhou Family's Golden Pill Ancestor and Fei Si, lifting the roof and breaking into Chen Cha's Mechanical Workshop.
The three of them inspected Yuan Dasheng's corpse, found it had just begun to be processed, yet its blood had already been drained.
"Seeing" this, Zhu Xuanji's heart trembled slightly, and he couldn't help but think: "Many parts inside the Mechanical Demon General are related to vital blood."
"The demonic skills on the Blood Path Diagram Plate likely focus on cultivating vital blood."
"But by the time we reached the workshop, Yuan Dasheng was already dead, and all of his vital blood had been extracted."
"This action was really fast."
Yuan Dasheng, the demonic True Scripture related to vital blood, and one crucial Qi Refinement third stage, young cultivator, small character——Ning Zhuo!
"Good, good, what a small character, Ning Zhuo!"
"I, Zhu Xuanji, was actually deceived by you."
Realizing this, Zhu Xuanji immediately put away the Mechanical Demon General, broke through the roof, and flew into the sky.
...
Ning Zhuo's soul returned to his body, descending into his underground secret chamber.
He activated the Floating Cloud Handkerchief, enveloping himself in layers of white clouds.
After a while.
Within the cocoon of clouds, Ning Zhuo's face was full of doubt.
After his soul returned to his body, he immediately began to comprehend the Foundation Establishment method.
Upon careful contemplation, he found this Foundation Establishment method to be quite different from what he had imagined.
"The Foundation Establishment method I obtained uses the Divine Sea as the main base point, with the other two elixir fields as supplements, to achieve breakthrough and ultimately enter the Foundation Establishment Stage."
"But according to my previous understanding, shouldn't the three elixir fields be equally important, without prioritizing one over the others and breaking through all of them simultaneously?"
"The Foundation Establishment method I acquired is clearly based on the Mirror Stand Spirit Communication Technique, with the other two techniques as supplements."
"Is this the true arrangement of the Three Ancestral Masters? Or does it mean there are another two Foundation Establishment methods, each emphasizing different aspects than the one I have?"
"Next exploration of the Immortal Palace, should I ask the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit?"
"If I can't contact it, I need to uncover the other two paths and collect all the Foundation Establishment methods to understand the truth."
Ning Zhuo had a feeling telling him that his guess was correct.
Only by collecting all the Foundation Establishment methods, merging and integrating them, could he achieve the true sense of simultaneously cultivating all three elixir fields.
"If I had known this earlier, I should have asked the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit directly at that time."
Ning Zhuo sighed.
His plan to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage had to be postponed.
...
In the depths of the Immortal Palace Main Hall.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit also sighed.
After Ning Zhuo's soul returned to his body, leaving the Lava Immortal Palace, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit had been focusing its gaze on him.
It didn't spy on Ning Zhuo forcefully, to avoid triggering significant consumption of the clouds.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit sighed in its heart: "The real Foundation Establishment method can't be hidden from Ning Zhuo."
Ning Zhuo's guess was correct!
The truly complete Foundation Establishment method had to be comprehensively understood through the three paths by the trial disciple; only by gathering all three parts and integrating them could the true method be obtained.
This didn't mean the method Ning Zhuo currently held was defective. In fact, he could use it.
This arrangement was specially set by the Three Ancestral Masters.
This method suited those who had a complete understanding of the Buddhist path, but little talent in the other two paths.
For these people, they could still use this method to reach Foundation Establishment without getting stuck and unable to progress.
When the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit communicated with Ning Zhuo, it purposely avoided this topic.
At that time, Ning Zhuo hadn't delved deeply into the Foundation Establishment method and hadn't noticed this issue, allowing the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit to temporarily fool him.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit knew: only by gathering the complete Foundation Establishment method could Ning Zhuo truly achieve simultaneous breakthroughs in all three elixir fields.
Cultivators who advanced this way would receive meticulous attention from the Lava Immortal Palace and substantial support.
In short, cultivators who achieved Foundation Establishment through this true method were the destined true disciples of the Lava Immortal Palace!
...
In the depths of the clouds.
Ning Zhuo temporarily set aside the Foundation Establishment method, quietly sensing the Medical Hall Master's Medallion in his mind.
This official badge was actually a magical treasure. As such, it could be directly stored in Ning Zhuo's elixir field for nurturing.
By communicating with the Medical Hall Master's Medallion, Ning Zhuo could immediately sense the Medical Hall of the Lava Immortal Palace.
At the same time, he could also, vaguely, sense the general situation of his subordinates.
When he sensed Ning Xiaohui, he sensed a huge ice block in front of her.
The next moment, Ning Xiaohui stretched out her slender jade finger and lightly touched the surface of the ice block.
The ice block suddenly shattered, and the Golden Blood Battle Ape was rejuvenated, restored to its original state!
Ning Zhuo couldn't help but sincerely exclaim: "Ice-jade Hands... incredible talent."
"This time, Ning Xiaohui has been a great help indeed."
Talent! Known as the soil for divine skills, and divine skills were the in-depth application of the principles of Heaven and Earth.
Therefore, talent did not follow reason.
At the same time, talent also followed the ultimate reason.
Compared to Ning Zhuo, Ning Xiaohui understood even less about the structure of the Golden Blood Battle Ape. But relying on her talent, she could actually repair it!
Through various channels, Ning Zhuo now gradually understood a lot of information about Ice-jade Hands.
"The essence of Ice-jade Hands lies in rebirth from death! It represents the principle that Heaven always leaves a way out for people."
"Mechanical artifacts are originally inanimate objects, unexpectedly well-matched with the talent of Ice-jade Hands, resulting in better treatment effects than for living entities."
"But when will talent like Ning Xiaohui, willingly work for me?"
Ning Zhuo felt a sense of enormous convenience.
Having a capable subordinate was truly wonderful!
He had hidden the truth from Ning Xiaohui through the layer of the Lava Immortal Palace, indirectly making her work for him.
Once Ning Xiaohui knew the truth, she would definitely turn against him.
Ning Zhuo sighed in his heart.
He knew: although his influence had grown significantly, there was still one thing he couldn't achieve——making cultivators with talent willingly work for him!
Most people now followed him because they valued his talent and saw a promising future, seeking refuge under him.
Ning Zhuo's subordinates didn't have talent. His current small influence couldn't keep such capable people.
The temple was too small to house a great Buddha!
Talented cultivators received wide favor and recruitment, gaining more support and resources in families, sects, and countries, making it impossible for them to stay under Ning Zhuo's command.
Ning Zhuo's influence was too small now, and there was no space for these talents to realize their potential.
"Unless I obtain the Lava Immortal Palace and become the Master of the Immortal Palace!"
Ning Zhuo looked forward to the future, completely unaware that Zhu Xuanji had turned into a rainbow and was flying rapidly toward him.
Zhu Xuanji's actions were not well concealed, instantly alerting countless cultivators in the city.
The only one who knew the whole story was the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit.
"Coming, coming!" The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit was extremely excited.
It crouched on the main hall chair, eyes gleaming, eagerly anticipating the upcoming show.
In the underground cultivation secret room.
The clouds around Ning Zhuo suddenly consumed rapidly.
Ning Zhuo immediately became alert, retracting the clouds, activating his defensive measures, and shouting: "Who's there?!"
Bang.
The next moment, Zhu Xuanji hovered right above Ning Zhuo's home.
He stretched out his palm, aimed his palm center downward, and lightly grasped and pulled.
An invisible force lifted the roof, then flung it away.
Zhu Xuanji grasped and pulled again, lifting the floor away.
Ning Zhuo, in the underground secret room, was thus exposed.
"Lord Zhu Xuanji!" Ning Zhuo looked up and saw Zhu Xuanji, stunned and terrified, hurriedly bowing.
Zhu Xuanji descended from the sky, slowly landing in front of Ning Zhuo.
His expression was full of killing intent, his square face exuding authority at this moment.
The center of his pitch-black pupils emitted points of golden light, evidently activating his Golden Eyes.
Zhu Xuanji, dressed in a bright red brocade robe with black embroidered edges, wore a waist badge with the words Divine Hunter Office, capturing one's attention and imposing considerable psychological pressure on others.