Chapter 272: Chapter 271: Grandpa (Congratulations to Chief June123!)_1
"This matter is of great significance... Please allow me some time to ponder, and I will give you an answer later," Fang Xi replied with a slight interest but also some struggle.
"Hehe... Naturally, this is no problem, senior plans to stay on Dragon Fish Island until your Core Formation celebration, so you can give a response then..." Zhang Zhusheng was well aware of the allure a third-rank Spiritual Vein held for Core Formation cultivators, thus he was in no hurry, responding with a fisherman’s patience.
"Hmm, someone come, go prepare a Dongfu for the various Sirs of Mysterious Heaven Sect..."
Fang Xi stood up and saw Zhang Zhusheng and the others out one by one.
His gaze lingered on Zhan Tu last, a slight smile on his lips as he transmitted his thoughts through Divine Consciousness Transmission.
With the strength of his Divine Consciousness now, not even Elder Zhang could detect it.
Zhan Tu’s body trembled lightly, then seamlessly followed the others as if nothing had happened.
...
Late into the night.
A shadowy figure approached Evergreen Pavilion, the luminescent Prohibition outside the pavilion seemingly posed no obstacle to this person, who entered at will.
Lights inside the pavilion were bright, illuminating the face of the figure – indeed it was Zhan Tu!
Zhan Tu took a deep breath, suppressing the unease in his heart, and ascended to the top of Evergreen Pavilion.
"Zhan junior, you’ve finally arrived..."
Fang Xi stood by the window with hands behind his back, seemingly observing the night sky, and upon seeing Zhan Tu, he smiled.
"Junior is too undeserving for such an address. Senior, you summoned me in the middle of the night with Divine Consciousness Transmission, may I know the reason?"
Zhan Tu bowed first, holding tightly a ’Vertical Ground Golden Light Talisman’ in his bosom, which sadly brought him no sense of security.
After all, the person standing in front of him was a Core Formation elder, and also a third-rank Array Master!
Being inside the opponent’s Great Array, running any distance would be futile.
"The matter? It’s quite simple... I want to meet the person inside you," Fang Xi looked at Zhan Tu, speaking words that drastically changed the latter’s expression.
"What person? This junior doesn’t understand what senior is referring to..."
Zhan Tu retreated several steps, one hand clutching a shield Spiritual Instrument, the other hand subconsciously touching his chest.
"Young Zhan... don’t be rash..."
The voice of the old ghost came through, "You’re trapped like a turtle in a jar now and can’t escape. Let me talk to this person..."
Zhan Tu took a deep breath, his expression when looking at Fang Xi became extraordinarily complex, and suddenly he pinched a Magic Spell, shrouding his face with a layer of grey mist.
He closed his eyes, and his entire being seemed to fall into a slumber.
The next moment, when those eyes opened again, they held a yellowish glow.
Fang Xi locked eyes with that pair, immediately feeling an emptiness in his heart, which made him solemn, "Senior... may I know how to address you?"
"Hehe... I am but a remnant soul, no need to mention past names, you may call me ’old ghost’," a hoarse, dry voice emerged from Zhan Tu’s mouth.
"Old ghost senior, could it be... a Ghost Cultivator?"
Fang Xi’s expression shifted, "From... Jade Island’s Nine Leaves Sect? After all, I never noticed anything amiss with this person before, and it was only after he returned from the ruins at the auction that something seemed strange..."
The old ghosts sighed, "I misjudged... Although I found the Array on Dragon Fish Island somewhat interesting back in the day, I never realized it was of the third rank and even operated at full power on a daily basis... The Cultivation World is indeed full of geniuses..."
If it had discovered the secrets of the ’Nine Nether Profound Wood Array’ sooner, it certainly wouldn’t have let Zhan Tu attend the auction and engage in subsequent events.
Even if he did participate, he would have concealed his presence and not frequently communicated with Zhan Tu, thus avoiding any loopholes.
Unfortunately, while it was cautious in front of Elder Zhang, it had underestimated Fang Xi, who had been a Foundation Establishment cultivator back then, which led to a huge blunder.
"Hehe... Senior has not yet answered my question," Fang Xi’s eyes were piercingly cold.
With only a remnant soul of the Nine Leaves Sect left, which could only execute Soul Possession to inhabit Zhan Tu’s body, and yet they now had no cultivators beyond the Golden Core stage, Fang Xi, with his Array to support him, was naturally fearless.
Even if he couldn’t win by chance, he could still flee...
"I am neither human nor ghost, nor am I a Ghost Cultivator, just a remnant soul of the Nine Leaves Sect..." the ’old ghost’ replied with Zhan Tu’s body, wearing what seemed like a mask of fog, only the yellow glow in his eyes flickering.
"To have survived this long?"
Fang Xi was greatly surprised – if not a Ghost Cultivator, how could the soul of a cultivator last so long?
"It is but with the aid of a secret treasure and by using a Secret Skill to seal my own being... While thousands of years may have passed in the outside world, for me, it felt as though I merely took a nap," the ’old ghost’ chuckled.
"So senior has occupied this person’s body, could it be with the intent to take over his body or even... conduct a Soul Possession?" Fang Xi probed cautiously.
Even though it’s universally acknowledged in the Cultivation World that Nascent Soul possession is the optimal choice and comes with the least side effects.
But whether of the Righteous Path or the Demon Path, there are many secret skills, and after paying a tremendous price, a Golden Core cultivator might be able to achieve effects similar to soul possession!
However, this kind of ’soul possession’ usually has very strict conditions and severe side effects.
Only by achieving an ’Origin Soul Infant’ can one freely possess bodies, or even undergo corpse disintegration reincarnation, truly known as a master of divine skills!
It is for this reason that not only is it incredibly difficult to cultivate a Nascent Soul, but there are also many tribulations to overcome.
Such as the Nascent Soul Heavenly Tribulation, and the Heart Demon Tribulation!
On the contrary, condensing a Golden Core at best gives rise to some celestial phenomena; other than that, there are neither Heavenly Tribulations nor any Heart Demon Tribulations to contend with.
From this, it can be seen that stepping into the Nascent Soul stage is to truly step into the threshold of defiance of the heavens for long life!
The so-called tribulations like the Heavenly Tribulation are nothing more than mechanisms of this world used to limit cultivators.
If heaven and earth do not actively restrict you, how can one be deemed as ’defying the natural order to become an immortal’?
In the ancient times, one also needed to condense a Nascent Soul to truly enter the gates of high-level cultivators!
Fang Xi’s thoughts drifted, and in an instant, he associated many things, only to hear the old ghost reply, "No... This body of mine is utterly incapable of soul possession, I only wish to borrow this person to fulfill some desires... Once my desires are fulfilled, my soul will still disperse and return to the natural order, hoping to re-enter the cycle of reincarnation..."
"I see."
Fang Xi did neither express belief nor disbelief, but silently communicated with the Great Array and his life-bound magical artifact, watching the old ghost with magic power in his Golden Core ready but not released.
"Sir has invited me here, may I ask for what purpose?"
The old ghost’s eyes flashed with light a few times before he suddenly spoke again.
"To be frank, do you possess the ’Kuyong Skills’ adequate for post-Nascent Soul cultivation?"
Fang Xi sighed and said.
"Hehe... It turns out you have cultivated our sect’s supreme technique. I have not only the ’Kuyong Skills’ for Nascent Soul cultivation but even the subsequent Chapters for Transcendent God!"
The old ghost chuckled with a terrifyingly bold tone.
"’Kuyong Skills’ were actually created by a Transcendent God cultivator?" Fang Xi was truly shocked.
"Naturally, do you know the origins of our ’Nine Leaves Sect’?"
The old ghost stood with hands behind his back, exuding the demeanor of a lofty individual.
"I only know that the Nine Leaves Sect is the dominant force in this region of Yue Country, please enlighten me on the rest..."
Since the other party wanted to perform, Fang Xi reluctantly played along, as it didn’t cost anything and he could learn many secrets.
"Hm! In ancient times... this continent wasn’t called the South Wilderness, it was even the center of this world. Great divine skill cultivators weren’t seen everywhere, but they were certainly not scarce. Our ’Nine Leaves Sect’ has a long and storied history. Our ancestor once entered the largest sect on this continent—’Green Emperor Mountain’—and later came to Ancient Yue Country to branch out and establish the ’Nine Leaves Sect’!"
"This ’Kuyong Skills,’ is the very technique our ancestor brought from the ’Ancient Green Emperor Mountain’... According to legends, the ’Green Emperor Mountain’ was extremely formidable, with successive generations of Transcendent God cultivators in residence, and even its legacy came from immortals, it was a genuine Immortal Taoist system!"
"The Immortal Taoist system of the Immortal Realm!"
Fang Xi’s face showed confusion: "Could it be that in the ancient times, the Immortal Realm could communicate with our realm?"
"Of course... The divine skills of the great ancient divine practitioners far surpassed your imagination. Back then, the exchange between the two realms was not particularly arduous, and there were even rumors of exiled immortals reincarnating in our world..."
The old ghost said, "As for the ’Immortal Realm,’ the correct term should be—the Earth Immortal Realm! Don’t ask me why, but it’s written just like that in the notes of our ancient ancestors."
"Earth Immortal Realm? Don’t tell me there’s also a Heavenly Immortal Realm above?"
Fang Xi touched his chin, smiling thoughtfully.
"Perhaps... But you should know that this technique has a frighteningly profound origin, and comes with Chapters on Transcendent God... Hehe, if you manage to cultivate it to perfect Transcendent God, you might even ascend and enter the Earth Immortal Realm and become a true immortal."
The old ghost said with a sly smile.
"Your Excellency throws out so much unknown and dubious secret news just to elevate your own worth... There’s no need for us to keep up the pretense."
Fang Xi’s expression suddenly became impassive: "I am in need of the ’Kuyong Skills’ for post-Nascent Soul cultivation, may I inquire how Sir is willing to trade?"
"We should have gotten to this earlier!"
The old ghost’s voice became extremely calm: "This technique is the Nine Leaves Sect’s highest inheritance, exquisitely incomparable, with many intricacies that are only passed down orally. The technique jade slips circulating outside... Hehe, they are missing many crucial parts. If you cultivate to a profound state, you will encounter many obstacles, and it’s very possible to be trapped at a certain bottleneck unable to advance. I can impart all these critical secrets to you... And all you need to do in return is to make one promise."
"What kind of promise?"
Fang Xi asked in return.
He already felt that the ’Kuyong Skills’ had a too great and far-reaching implications... He was somewhat inclined to discard it and switch to cultivating the ’Green Wood Longevity Skills’.
After all, as long as he was steady and firm, condensing a Nascent Soul should not be a problem, so why take such a risk?
If the old ghost asked him to make a Heart Demon Oath or something of the sort, Fang Xi was ready to outright refuse.
But if it was just a promise, there would be no harm in seeing what kind of medicine the old ghost was selling in his gourd?
"I need Sir to accompany me to a ruin when you are at the late stage of Core Formation to retrieve an item!"
The old ghost said cheerfully: "To show my sincerity, I can first gift you the ’Kuyong Skills’ Nascent Soul Chapter. Those who can cultivate all the way to the late stage of Nascent Soul... will also come with many secret skills and critical points for practice!"
"Oh?" Fang Xi was genuinely surprised: "Sir really trusts me so much?"
"You will know once you see."
The old ghost gave a mysterious smile, took out a jade slip, imprinted his Divine Thought into it, and then tossed it to Fang Xi.