Cultivation: Start From Simplifying Martial Arts Techniques

Chapter 587: The Road to the Mountain Sea Realm

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Stepping into the later stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm was much more difficult than reaching the Fourth transformation or the Fifth transformation. Just as in the early stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, there were many at the first and second transformations, but very few who could break through to the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

In the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, there were also many who ultimately stagnated at the Fifth transformation without making any progress.

The reasons why these individuals could not break through were varied, but fundamentally, there were two main reasons: cultivation techniques and resources.

The reason for the lack of resources was obvious, just like the difference between Immortal Cloud City and the Boundless Sea.

And if the cultivation technique being practiced was not advanced enough, even if it was comprehended to the highest level, it was not enough to drive the advancement of cultivation.

When Chen Fei initially broke through to the Combined Aperture Tempering realm and obtained the Azure Sky Technique by killing his first peer, it belonged to this type of cultivation technique.

Its comprehension was relatively simple, with a low threshold for cultivation. Many martial artists in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm preferred this type of technique. Even when faced with stronger techniques, some in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm still chose the Azure Sky Technique.

Many martial artists who broke through to the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, after a period of flourishing, would find that their potential seemed to have been exhausted. The rapid progress they made in the Body Tempering realm and the Aperture Tempering realm seemed to be gone forever.

Every bit of progress in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm became extremely difficult. These martial artists eventually realized that they might be stuck in the early stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm for the rest of their lives, unable to continue climbing upwards.

However, techniques like the Azure Sky Technique, because their comprehension threshold was slightly lower, might actually allow them to progress towards higher realms.

Directly providing them with the inheritance within top forces would probably halt their progress in its tracks.

It’s harsh, but it’s also realistic; the difference in innate talent determines where a martial artist’s limits lie.

Chen Fei, on the other hand, didn’t have these concerns. Regarding resources, although he wasn’t born into a top force, he could still access most of the resources.

Of course, things like the Celestial Azure Flower were indeed beyond Chen Fei’s reach under normal circumstances, which was one of the advantages possessed by those geniuses.

As for cultivation techniques, they were once a limiting factor for Chen Fei, not because they were too difficult, but because they were too simple. However, with the acquisition of the Profound Heavenly Sword, this issue had long been resolved.

With the Profound Heavenly Sword in hand, it was almost inevitable for Chen Fei to break through to the sixth transformation of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm. He didn’t even need the Profound Heavenly Sword at the Grand Completion stage; the Perfect Stage was already more than enough.

From the perspective of the Heavenly Eye, after forcibly breaking through to the fifth transformation, the Combined Aperture Tempering realm was already filled with tiny, intricate cracks.

However, these cracks were all repairable, and once restored, they wouldn’t affect Chen Fei’s foundation. By forcefully infusing the power of spiritual treasures, it was estimated that it would take less than two months for Chen Fei to fully repair his Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

Compared to the previous time when it took seven to eight months to recover after breaking through to the Fourth transformation, now it would only take two months, significantly shortening the time consumed.

All of this was achieved through the massive consumption of elemental stones. By then, Chen Fei’s assets of over ten thousand medium-grade elemental stones would probably be almost depleted, unable to even support him for two months.

However, these issues were not significant. The only real problem now was that if Chen Fei continued to forcefully break through to the sixth transformation of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, the final level of his Combined Apertures might end up being relatively ordinary.

The three expansions and three contractions of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm ultimately lead to the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, followed by the gathering of the three flowers, reaching the pinnacle of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

The three expansions and three contractions essentially temper the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, preparing for the gathering of the three flowers, and even preparing for future breakthroughs into the Mountain Sea Realm.

Chen Fei had already undergone three expansions and two contractions, with a solid foundation and not many problems. However, the Triple Entanglement, which occurred at the sixth transformation, actually had a significant emphasis.

Lower, middle, upper, extreme—the Triple Entanglement of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, the most common method, was to collapse the Combined Aperture Tempering realm to the size it was when initially breaking through to the Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

At this point, after reaching the sixth transformation, it may seem that there has been no change in the size of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, but internally, there has been a complete transformation, and the cultivation has reached the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

However, according to the records in the Profound Heavenly Sword, such a size of Combined Aperture Tempering realm is actually the most common type, known as the low-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

In the Thousand Feathers Alliance, for those who practice ordinary techniques and lack special opportunities, if they manage to break through to the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, the Combined Aperture Tempering realm within their bodies belongs to the low-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

These kinds of Combined Aperture Tempering realms, if they want to continue cultivation, face challenges akin to scaling the heavens. At most, they can gather one flower, and attempting to gather two flowers is almost impossible.

Because the low-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm within the body cannot withstand the power of two flowers, it may eventually collapse.

The Azure Sky Technique belongs to this type of technique. If one truly breaks through to the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm using the Azure Sky Technique, they may be stuck at the seventh realm of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm for life, only able to gather one flower.

The Primordial Profound Art obtained by Chen Fei in the Sea Dominione Cave was slightly better than the Azure Sky Technique, but the ultimate result was estimated to be not much better, with probably gathering one flower being the endpoint.

To gather two flowers, one must achieve a medium-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm when breaking through to the sixth transformation, causing the collapse of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm to be smaller. This not only makes the elemental energy within the body more refined but also allows the Combined Aperture Tempering realm itself to withstand the power of two flowers.

With a high-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm, which is even smaller in size, one can withstand the power of the gathering of three flowers, stepping into the pinnacle of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

The inheritance techniques of the top ten elite forces in the Thousand Feathers Alliance provide martial artists with the opportunity to cultivate a high-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm. Only with a high-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm gathering three flowers is it possible to retain a glimmer of hope for breaking through to the Mountain Sea Realm.

Chen Fei’s Profound Heavenly Sword, forged from the techniques of nine top forces, if cultivated step by step, would take four to five years. By then, the proficiency of the Profound Heavenly Sword would have already reached the Great Completion stage.

With the Great Completion stage Profound Heavenly Sword cultivating the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, achieving a top-grade Combined Aperture should be an inevitable result without any other assistance. Such treatment was only available to the geniuses of the Thousand Feathers Alliance.

Just like Gu Danying, the personal disciple of Min Yanlu, who initially cultivated a top-grade Combined Aperture, encountering no bottleneck even when gathering three flowers, and having a considerable chance of breaking through to the Mountain Sea Realm.

However, if one intended to forcefully break through to the sixth transformation of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm in two months, it was impossible to cultivate a top-grade Combined Aperture.

The fact that the Profound Heavenly Sword had not reached Great Completion was indeed a minor issue, but in reality, it was not too significant.

A Profound Heavenly Sword at the Great Completion stage, if cultivated step by step, was actually sufficient for condensing a top-grade Combined Aperture.

Even prodigies like Gu Danying didn’t fully comprehend their primary cultivation techniques to the utmost extent during the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm. At that level, it was impossible to comprehend techniques to such a degree.

The reason for Chen Fei was his forced breakthrough. With the Great Completion stage Profound Heavenly Sword, coupled with the pressure from the Dragon-Elephant Induction Point, Chen Fei could at most condense a high-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

This was already considered the most favorable outcome. As for a top-grade Combined Aperture, it was impossible to achieve.

The cultivation realm was inherently a gradual process, and Chen Fei’s shortcut method would inevitably encounter many difficulties.

For disciples of those top ten forces, being able to condense a high-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm at the sixth transformation was already the perfect outcome because it represented the limit of their techniques.

But for Chen Fei, who clearly had the potential to condense a top-grade Combined Aperture, increasing the hope for future breakthroughs into the Mountain Sea Realm, there was no reason for him to give up on that possibility.

However, in the martial world, where there are difficulties, there are also methods.

If Chen Fei wanted to break through to the sixth transformation of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm and condense a top-grade Combined Aperture in two months, he will need to use a special kind of spiritual pill to assist him in the breakthrough.

Harmonization Pill!

Among those top forces, if a disciple with sufficient talent wants to break through to the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, they will take this kind of pill. With the power of the pill, they ultimately achieve a high-grade Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

Yes, with the use of the Harmonization Pill, they ultimately achieved a high-grade Combined Aperture.

If disciples of the top ten elite forces truly wanted to condense a top-grade Combined Aperture, they must cultivate the inheritance within their sects to the Great Completion level to possibly achieve this.

However, the reality was that many prodigies preparing to break through to the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm hadn’t even reached the Great Completion level with their sect’s inheritance.

The Harmonization Pill was valuable for enhancing the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, and it was rare to come by.

Even with Chen Fei’s connections, he definitely wouldn’t be able to obtain the Harmonization Pill, and it was unlikely to appear in the market. Even if it did, it would be immediately snapped up.

However, currently, in Sea Dominion City, while the market still didn’t have this item, there were quite a few missions in the Task Hall that directly rewarded this pill.

For ordinary Combined Aperture Tempering realm practitioners, the Harmonization Pill was indeed hard to come by. Even among the top forces, not everyone could obtain it.

But for the Thousand Feathers Alliance as a whole, the Harmonization Pill wasn’t considered overly extravagant. They have enough resources to offer such pills as rewards for missions.

Two months later, once the Combined Aperture Tempering realm within Chen Fei’s body returned to its original state, he began preparing to break through to the next transformation and achieve the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm.

Chen Fei had no intention of changing this original plan. However, he was also determined not to let go of the opportunity to condense a top-grade Combined Aperture. The only thing was that he needed to go to the Task Hall and accept a special mission.

Chen Fei sat cross-legged as the surrounding spiritual energy returned to its usual calmness. The floor of the cultivation room was once again covered with medium-grade elemental stones. Chen Fei closed his eyes and immersed himself in cultivation.

While Chen Fei quietly broke through to the fifth transformation of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, the entire Sea Dominion City was still recovering from the scars of yesterday’s turmoil.

Nearly ten people died in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, most of whom were in the early stage. Many forces had been reduced to the fifth rank overnight, and they didn’t know if they could survive the upcoming battles.

Outside of Sea Dominion City, the presence of sea monsters once again emerged.

Yesterday, due to Min Yanlu’s appearance, the sea monsters suffered heavy losses. Not to mention the first and second-tier sea monsters, nearly twenty third-tier sea monsters were turned into minced meat under the Enlightenment Tower.

In theory, after that battle, the sea monsters’ attacks on Sea Dominion City should subside to some extent.

But in reality, the sea monsters continued to appear, and their goal of destroying Sea Dominion City remained unchanged despite any losses they had suffered.

Or perhaps, for the vast number of sea monsters, yesterday’s losses were inconsequential..