The Tremors of the North

Ji Ning naturally refused the request. Although Ji Mo had begged to become his disciple, a sword art required a soul—it was about understanding the Dao, and that was not something that could be directly taught!

He then proceeded to instruct the others one by one. The young cultivators had become exceedingly humble, each one bringing their usual doubts before Ji Ning. To him, these questions were trivial; when it came to the sword, no one in the entire Ji Clan could match him.

This lecture lasted for a full two hours, after which Ji Ning bade them farewell.

"Go back and ponder carefully on your own. I won't keep you any longer," Ji Ning said after finishing his instructions, and he left directly.

The six young men stared after him longingly, wishing he would guide them for just a little while longer.

Night.

Ji Ning sat cross-legged on his bed, cultivating. The natural energy of heaven and earth surged toward him unceasingly, entering his body and liquefying into true ki. He continued until his dantian felt somewhat swollen, then stopped.

"At this rate, in a few more months I'll be able to open the Zifu through Ki Refining," Ji Ning mused to himself. "But as for reaching the seventh stage of the Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens… when will that day come?"

Currently, both his Fiendgod Body Refining and Ki Refining had reached the Xiantian perfection stage.

The Ki Refining technique he used was a common one within the Ji Clan, called the Water Element Art. The quality and quantity of true ki it produced were inferior, but breaking through to the Zifu stage was easier with it. Given Ji Ning's current level of Dao comprehension, once he accumulated sufficient true ki, he would be able to burst through and open his Zifu with overwhelming momentum.

"This Water Element Art is merely a common technique," Ji Ning thought. "It can only be cultivated to the Zifu stage. Once I break through, I'll need to find a more advanced Ki Refining technique."

Cultivation methods became more precious with each stage.

"I'll need to find a truly potent one." Ji Ning pondered. "If I keep using such a shallow method, my Ki Refining will stall at the Wanxiang Adept level."

The difference between profound and shallow techniques was this:

A profound, difficult technique was arduous from the very beginning, requiring steady and solid progress step by step, but it could be continuously cultivated upward.

A shallow technique made it relatively easy to open the Zifu at first, and with maximum effort, one could still hope to reach the Wanxiang level. But to become a Primal Daoist? There was no hope at all.

The Ji Clan was ultimately a relatively low-ranking tribe. They had no truly profound techniques for either Fiendgod Body Refining or Ki Refining. Only the Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens, due to its unique nature of being widely disseminated, had reached their hands. Their Ki Refining methods were all quite poor. People like Ji Jiuhuo and Granny Shadow had trained for nearly four hundred years yet remained stuck at the Zifu stage.

This was because shallow techniques made it easier to break through to Zifu, extremely difficult to reach Wanxiang, and utterly impossible to reach Primal Daoist.

"I must travel and adventure." Ji Ning looked forward to it. "I'll wait until I open the Zifu. By then, I'll have better means of self-preservation. My current strength is still too weak."

Ji Ning had a clear assessment of his own power.

In Ki Refining, he was at Xiantian perfection. Half a year ago, he had already been able to execute the ninth layer of the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation, whose offensive power should reach the Zifu perfection level. His weakness was that his true ki was consumed far too quickly, unlike true Zifu cultivators who could fight for much longer.

In Body Refining, his Crimsonbright Diagram had reached Xiantian perfection, allowing him to match an ordinary Fiendgod Body Refiner at the early Zifu stage. With his current vitality, even if his head were pierced through, he would not die! Although his raw attack power was somewhat inferior to the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation, in an actual close-quarters fight, his Body Refining abilities were actually stronger.

"The Lesser Thousand Sword Formation is supremely sharp," Ji Ning mused. "But if I encounter a Fiendgod Body Refiner at the Zifu stage, their body is incredibly tough. Even if a sword-light barely manages to pierce through, they can recover instantly."

"Against a Ki Refining cultivator at Zifu, I can fight even one at Zifu perfection."

"Against a Fiendgod Body Refiner at the early Zifu stage, I have confidence. Any stronger than that, and things become troublesome." Ji Ning understood this clearly. "I wonder how I can break through in the Crimsonbright Diagram. Yin-Yang transformation… Blood-Drop Rebirth… how can I achieve it?"

Being able to survive having his head pierced was nothing special.

Once he reached the seventh stage, he would achieve Blood-Drop Rebirth! With such terrifying vitality, any other Zifu Ki Refiner would be at their wit's end facing him. To kill such a powerful Fiendgod Body Refiner… how difficult would it be? They would have to slowly wear him down, grinding away all his divine power.

"Blood-Drop Rebirth." Ji Ning longed for it.

In truth, Ji Ning was already remarkably monstrous. In terms of offense, he had the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation! His body, trained by the number one Fiendgod Body Refining technique, had reached Xiantian perfection, making it incredibly difficult for a Zifu cultivator to kill him. They found it hard to kill him, but with his Lesser Thousand Sword Formation, he could kill them from a great distance.

"Not enough, not enough. If Beisheng's poisonous insects had been ten times more numerous, they could have worn me down to death through sheer attrition." Ji Ning did not dare to be the least bit complacent.

He remembered the words of the Black Ox…

Never underestimate any fellow cultivator. If you are formidable, how can your opponent not have some equally powerful tricks?

"Whoosh."

Ji Ning closed his eyes and began to visualize the Nuwa Diagram. He had been continuously training in this visualization technique. The reason he could now execute the ninth layer of the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation was largely due to his Divine Sense.

Dawn was just beginning to break.

Ji Ning, still seated cross-legged on his bed, suddenly snapped his eyes open. He frowned, straining to sense something.

"An illusion?" he murmured to himself.

"Boom~~~" An incredibly violent fluctuation of natural energy swept across the entire Winged Serpent Lake like a surging tidal wave. Such a powerful energy fluctuation made Ji Ning's face change color. Swish! He shot out from the window and landed directly atop a large tree.

"The north."

Standing on the crown of the tree, Ji Ning gazed into the distance. The terrifyingly violent fluctuation of natural energy was precisely coming from the north.

It was like a stone thrown into still water, creating ripples. A point far to the north was radiating a terrifyingly powerful fluctuation of heaven and earth energy… wave after wave, like ripples, sweeping across thousands of li of land, constantly propagating further and further away.

"Such a terrifying energy fluctuation." Ji Ning was shocked. "It can stir such a violent reaction. Compared to this fluctuation, the speed at which I absorb natural energy while cultivating is like the light of a firefly compared to the radiance of the sun or moon! What in the world is happening to create such a violent fluctuation?"

Swish!

From another spot on the island, a figure stepped rapidly across treetops and buildings, arriving at Ji Ning's side in a flash. It was Ji Yichuan, dressed in his white beast-hide clothes.

"Father." Ji Ning turned to look at the man beside him.

"You felt it too," Ji Yichuan said gravely, looking toward the north.

"Yes, the north." Ji Ning nodded, his expression solemn. "A terrifying fluctuation of natural energy. It's unbelievably powerful. Based on my perception, if I'm not mistaken, the source of this violent energy fluctuation should be several thousand li to the north."

Ji Yichuan also nodded. "My perception is a little blurrier than yours, but I estimate it to be about the same."

"Father, what could be causing such a violent fluctuation of heaven and earth energy?" Ji Ning pressed.

"There are many possibilities," Ji Yichuan said. "It could be the aftermath of Immortals doing battle. It could also be the emergence of some ancient legacy site. Or it could be a supreme immortal treasure revealing itself!"

Ji Ning's expression changed. "Then our Ji Clan..."

Several thousand li to the north was still within the Ji Clan's territory. The Ji Clan's Western Prefecture city was to the southwest of the ancestral manor. The area several thousand li to the north was the very heart of the entire Ji Clan!

"Regardless of which scenario it is, it doesn't bode well for our Ji Clan," Ji Yichuan said in a low voice.

Ji Ning's face turned ugly.

Immortals doing battle? An ancient legacy emerging? An immortal treasure appearing? Other unknown situations? How could the Ji Clan, whose strongest members were only at the Zifu level, possibly endure such a calamity?

"Come, let's go have a look," Ji Yichuan said.

"Alright." Ji Ning, his heart filled with anxiety and concern, immediately sent a true ki transmission to Qiuye, who lived nearby. "Qiuye, I'm going out for a while. The Brightheart Island is in your hands."

Swish! Swish!

The two of them shot directly into the air, then moved across the water with incredible speed, turning into blurs as they raced northward. At their level of cultivation, when they exerted their full movement technique, they were even faster than a Greenflame Bird—far faster than ordinary mounts.