Book 2: Chapter 21: Sacred Wood Seal, Unlocked!

Vol 2 Chapter 21: Sacred Wood Seal, Unlocked! When Lin Jing turned his focus inward, he suddenly discovered that the Ice Soul Gu parasitizing his body had also entered the Cavern Heaven with him. At the time of his initial entry, he hadn’t given it much thought and had overlooked the Ice Soul Gu. Now that he considered it, this realization came as a surprise. It made sense that the Pine Leaf Mouse, bonded with him via a bloodline contract and cultivated alongside him using the Beast Taming Art passed down from the Immortal Palace, would enter the same Cavern Heaven. However, the Ice Soul Gu had no such contract. Yet, it followed him into the Dragon-Phoenix Cavern Heaven as if it were one of his contracted beasts. “Does this mean that the Cavern Heaven regards the Ice Soul Gu as part of me?” Lin Jing pondered. “It’s certainly possible. Mature Gu worms can act independently, but as Senior Shen Song mentioned, newborn Gu worms are much more fragile. They require a host to act as their vessel to safely sleep. Without an appropriate environment for rest, infant Gu worms will perish.” ‘In these specific circumstances, the relationship between the Gu worm and its host is no longer a simple parasitic one. While it doesn’t reach the level of full it does make the Gu worm highly dependent on its host. Perhaps this parasitic connection, combined with partial symbiosis, made the Cavern Heaven perceive it as part of me.’ A faint smile crossed Lin Jing’s lips. The Pine Leaf Mouse, noticing the gleam in Lin Jing’s eyes and his restless demeanor, gulped nervously. No way… Is he planning to unlock that spider’s seal? “Hey!” Is this even okay? Senior Shen Song had repeatedly warned him not to use the Ice Soul Gu’s power unless it was a life-or-death situation. “Senior Mo Song also taught me this: as a demonic cultivator, don’t be overly obedient.” “This Cavern Heaven is a rare opportunity, not to be wasted.” “After I came out of the Bodhi Cavern Heaven, I read many books about such places. There are rumors that the Dragon-Phoenix Cavern Heaven can help cultivators break through their ” “Do you understand what this means? It means that as long as we hunt enough Dragon-Phoenix creatures, I can not only reach the Ninth Stage of Qi Refinement, saving myself years of arduous cultivation and countless resources, but I might even have a chance to break through to the Tenth Stage or even the Eleventh Stage of Qi Refinement. That’s a dream come true for countless cultivators! Reaching such heights would make Foundation Establishment much easier for us.” To establish a foundation, one must compress their True Energy, transform it into liquid form, circulate it throughout the body, purify their spiritual veins, shed their mortal body, and give birth to the True Essence Spirit Sea. True Essence flowing within the Spirit Sea is far more powerful than True Energy. A Foundation Establishment cultivator’s magical power is over ten times stronger than that of a Qi Refinement cultivator. Additionally, their consciousness and perception will transform into "spiritual sense," allowing them to detect movements within a hundred-zhang radius with just a thought. For most ordinary cultivators, the difficulty of Foundation Establishment lies in the lack of sufficiently pure and dense True Energy to compress it into liquid form. This is why they often rely on external aids like Foundation Establishment Pills to assist them in breaking through. However, those with powerful techniques or innate spiritual bodies possess extraordinary True Energy, making Foundation Establishment easier and rendering pills unnecessary. Lin Jing, unfortunately, did not fall into either category. While the Beast Taming Art he cultivated allowed him to contract spirit beasts, it offered no particular advantage in True Energy refinement. Similarly, his Longevity Body only excelled in lifespan, unlike elemental spiritual bodies, which enhance specific types of True Energy. This meant that when Lin Jing attempted to break through to Foundation Establishment, he would be no different from an ordinary mortal cultivator, with no significant advantages. Worse still, his Longevity Body's slower cultivation speed and True Energy refinement would force him to spend a long time in the Qi Refinement stage. As such, he would most likely have to rely on a Foundation Establishment Pill and the feedback from his contracted beasts to attempt his breakthrough. But now, if he could cultivate in the Dragon-Phoenix Cavern Heaven and reach the peak of Qi Refinement—perhaps even the Tenth Stage—breaking through to Foundation Establishment would become as effortless as drinking water. Additionally, the deeper his foundation during Qi Refinement, the greater the enhancements to his body before Foundation Establishment. Take, for example, two Qi Refinement cultivators: one establishing their foundation at the Fourth Stage and the other at the Tenth. The latter would absorb spiritual energy several times faster than the former. These were concepts Lin Jing had gleaned from books. Now that he had encountered such a rare opportunity, his eyes gleamed red with excitement, unable to suppress his desire. This was one of the few chances to accelerate his cultivation speed before Foundation Establishment! Lin Jing made up his mind. He and the Pine Leaf Mouse rode a flying leaf, soaring through the vast expanse of the Dragon-Phoenix Cavern Heaven in search of their next prey. Sёarᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Standing atop the leaf controlled by the Pine Leaf Mouse, Lin Jing crossed his hands behind his back, his robes fluttering as his sharp gaze scanned the horizon. “Senior Shen Song did warn that repeatedly using the Ice Soul Gu’s power would hasten its awakening, making it difficult to suppress even with the Sacred Wood Seal.” “But as long as I establish my foundation quickly and contract the Flame Dragon Carp, which possesses a Fire Kirin bloodline, even if the Ice Soul Gu fully awakens, it shouldn’t be a major problem.” “Now… assist me in unlocking a sliver of the Ice Soul Gu’s seal.” Lin Jing made up his mind. Hearing this, the Pine Leaf Mouse frantically scratched its head. Isn’t this too extreme? That power—it feared it. If Lin Jing used it, wouldn’t he end up frozen solid? “No problem. If I can’t handle it, I’ll stop,” Lin Jing replied, opening a vial of Longevity Blood. The blood’s aura naturally diffused into the surroundings. After flying for some distance, Lin Jing discovered that the Dragon-Phoenix Cavern Heaven was indeed as vast as the records described. Actively searching for Dragon-Phoenix projections would waste considerable time. Perhaps this method could attract the projections to attack them instead. Now that he thought about it, he had been so focused on his breakthroughs earlier that he hadn’t noticed something. Reflecting on it now, the flavor of the Dragon-Phoenix he had slain seemed to awaken his taste buds. Lin Jing licked his lips. This kind of simple, sensory pleasure was quite satisfying. “Hey!!!” The Pine Leaf Mouse also swallowed hard. Even as a mostly vegetarian spirit beast, it found itself wanting to taste it again. However, its gaze shifted uneasily to the Longevity Blood. For some reason, it found that scent even more enticing… “Sacred Wood Seal, release!” Lin Jing’s gaze turned deep and resolute. At the same time, within Lin Jing’s inner world... A colossal ice crystal spider, entirely bound by vines of the Sacred Tree, slumbered within its sealed prison. The golden-green divine patterns of the seal not only suppressed the spider’s conscious activity but also locked away the terrifying power it exuded. However, as Lin Jing and the Pine Leaf Mouse worked together to partially lift the seal, a horrifying wave of white frost energy surged through the cracks in the vines. This cold aura flowed into Lin Jing’s body, merging with the True Energy within him. In an instant, his previously ordinary Beast Taming Qi transformed into a freezing cold ice-element True Energy! In the outside world, a wave of horrifying frost energy erupted from Lin Jing’s body, shooting straight into the sky. In mere moments, snowflakes began falling over the forested mountains, and as the ice-element True Energy coursed through him, Lin Jing’s skin turned as white as snow, his hair became frosted with pale white, and his pupils transformed into eerie ice-blue, like those of a frost beast. Suddenly, a green dragon emerged from the valley, soaring toward Lin Jing. But before it could approach, Lin Jing uttered a single word: “Die.” The frosty aura surged violently. The dragon-like serpent froze mid-flight with an audible turning into an ice sculpture. In the next moment, the frozen sculpture shattered into countless shards of ice, scattering in all directions as the creature’s life force vanished completely.