Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 525 - Sixth-Level of the Heavenly Phase Realm

Spirit stones were universally recognized as currency in the cultivation world and could be used to purchase anything. However, there was an item with more value than spirit stones: the True Spirit Pill.

There were items that only those in the True Profound Realm could condense. They didn't need any spiritual herbs and drew spiritual energy directly from the endless void and compressed them into pills.

The pills contained no impurities, and each True Spirit Pill holds a terrifying amount of spiritual energy. This was a thousand times better than absorbing spiritual energy from the atmosphere.

Upon reaching the True Profound Realm, ordinary spirit stones couldn't satisfy their needs. Most of the True Spirit Pills condensed by the True Profound Realm cultivators could only satisfy them, and they would rarely sell them.

Refining the True Spirit Pills was a complex process that required laws of the True Profound Realm. This was the reason why a single True Spirit Pill was so valuable.

To Liu Wuxie’s surprise, the Desolate Devouring Art practiced by Liu Wuxie showed signs of converting spiritual energy into pills. Judging by this trend, the Desolate Devouring Art would help him refine True Spirit Pills after reaching the Nascent Transformation Realm.

This overturned Liu Wuxie's understanding, and his expectations for the Desolate Devouring Art grew even higher. He calmed his mind and focused on making a breakthrough.

True essence surged through Liu Wuxie's meridians and spread throughout his body. Countless acupoints began to tremble, and the true essence collided with and impacted the finer meridians.

Liu Wuxie had attained the True Dragon Physique with many finer meridians activated. It would severely affect his future cultivation if these meridians couldn't be cleared.

Another sequence appeared as the Heavenly Dao Book absorbed the energies from the Blood Spirit Fruit.

In just three days, Liu Wuxie recovered his soul sea entirely and even took another step forward in his cultivation.

"Breakthrough!" Liu Wuxie reached the sixth-level Heavenly Phase Realm with a roar. Endless energy waves formed into a vortex above the inn, emitting a powerful suction force that devoured all the surrounding spiritual energy.

His next task was to consolidate his cultivation over the next five days. The vortex above the inn slowly vanished.

In the past few days, everyone in Azure Mountain City had been on edge, fearing the city would become a wasteland.

Fortunately, Liu Wuxie didn't drain all the spiritual energy, and the city's spiritual energy would recover in a few days. However, the trees in the city had all withered with their spiritual energy drained. They would need at least one to two years to recover.

When Liu Wuxie stood up, crackling sounds echoed throughout his body as if his bones were grinding against each other like weapons. His bones were covered in a layer of dragon runes, and even strands of golden lights were in his blood.

He could feel the terrifying power coursing through his body, and a slight lift of his hand could cause the air to sweep out in all directions.

"What power!" Liu Wuxie was shocked. At his current cultivation, no one in the Heavenly Phase Realm could threaten him, and he could butcher cultivators in the low levels of the Astral River Realm easily. He wouldn't have to worry if many Astral River Realm cultivators didn't gang on him.

When he came out of the room, sunlight shone onto his face, and his pale complexion had vanished, returning to a fair shade.

"Brother Liu, you're finally out!" The two women quickly approached, and the worry on their faces faded away.

"Sorry to keep you two waiting," Liu Wuxie said apologetically. He had made two significant breakthroughs since arriving in Azure Mountain City, but the two women hadn’t seen much change in themselves. It wasn’t enough for him to grow stronger; those around him needed to keep pace as well. Without great power, none of them could secure their place within the Heavenly Dao Society.

"Are we returning to the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion?" Chen Ruoyan asked, though she didn't seem eager to go back just yet. The sect felt stifling to her, and she longed to explore more of the world outside.

"Let’s take a walk first," Jian Xing'er suggested. Though she appeared composed, a trace of sorrow flickered in her eyes. Given everything she had been through, it was no surprise that recovery would take time.

After significantly boosting his strength, Liu Wuxie planned to travel around the Southern Province. The province had ten major cities, and he had only been to Fan City. There were still many other cities for him to visit and explore.

There were three months left till the Ten Grand Ceremony, and he had to hurry in raising his cultivation as much as possible.

The two women had no objections as they left the inn and soared into the sky, disappearing above the clouds.

The He Clan heaved a sigh of relief after ensuring that Liu Wuxie had left. They were worried Liu Wuxie might turn around to deal with them.

Not long after Liu Wuxie left, two men in ragged clothes emerged from a tattered house.

"Senior Brother Teng Yue should've received the news of the clan's calamity by now." These two were remnants of the Teng Clan who hadn't been fully eradicated.

"The message has been sent, and Liu Wuxie's portrait should've reached Senior Brother Teng Yue a few days ago." The man on the left said with murderous intent flickering in the depth of his eyes. He still couldn't believe that the Teng Clan had vanished in just one night.

"Senior Brother Teng Yue is in the Astral River Realm, and he will avenge the Teng Clan!" The Teng Clan had sent many of their disciples to the Azure Crimson Gate throughout the years, and Teng Yue was one of them.

The trio flew across mountains and rivers, briefly stopping wherever they went to experience the local customs and scenery. They had long left the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion's territory and entered other regions.

At this time, the Hou Clan was also mobilizing their disciples to hunt Liu Wuxie. The Hou Clan's experts arrived on the second day after Liu Wuxie left Azure Mountain City, only to find that he was already gone.

Ten days later, after crossing the vast mountain ranges, Liu Wuxie entered one of the Southern Province's ten major cities, the Serene Sea City. The scale of this city was equal to Fan City.

They could see countless cultivators bustling in the city before entering it. When they arrived, cultivators would land and enter the city on foot. There was a rule that no flying was allowed over the ten major cities and territories of the ten major sects.

"The Serene Sea City is connected to the Azure Crimson Gate in the east, Demonic Heart Palace to the west, and Sky Rift Valley to the north. Because of this, disciples from these three factions frequently visit the city," Jian Xing'er explained as they descended into the bustling city below.

Liu Wuxie nodded. He had read about Serene Sea City in the Hidden Books Collection and was familiar with its role in the overall power structure of the Southern Province.

The Serene Sea City was known for producing particular spiritual stones. There were many types of spiritual stones; the common ones were mined from spiritual stone veins and could be directly absorbed by cultivators. A type of spiritual stone was also transported from the barren lands.

Strangely enough, these spiritual stones were enveloped in a desolate aura that had to be removed before the spiritual stones could be extracted. But that wasn't it because it was just the beginning.

The spiritual stones from Serene Sea City were eroded by desolate aura, making them unusable for human cultivators in their raw state. So why was the spiritual stone industry there still flourishing? The answer lay in something even more valuable hidden within those stones—fossils.

In ancient times, this barren land was home to countless races, including the abyssal, demonic, human, and ancient races. There were numerous of them, dating back millions of years.

Over countless millennia, remnants from these civilizations were buried deep underground and became encased within the spiritual stones. These ancient remnants included everything from bones and weapons to fragments of artifacts.

Many years ago, a cultivator famously discovered an ancient sword fragment inside one of these spiritual stones. Though the piece was small, it caused an uproar throughout the Southern Province due to its ancient origins and immense value. The relics within the stones were evidence of a bygone era when cultivator civilization reached its peak—an era vastly superior to the current, declining cultivation world.

Time had the power to transform even the simplest materials. A bone buried for eons could harden into a spiritual stone, and a piece of wood could evolve into a spiritual embryo after absorbing vast amounts of energy.

If a sword were embedded into a tree, over time, as the tree decayed and was nourished by the earth, the sword would become fused with the wood. A cultivator who bought and split open that wood could uncover a divine sword of incredible value.

Similarly, there were cases where skulls encased within the spiritual stones contained needles forged by ancient blacksmiths. These ancient relics often exceeded the value of modern monarch artifacts.

In Serene Sea City, ordinary items might not fetch much value, but anything from the barren land battlefield was considered precious—even something as simple as a leaf.

The barren land, located close to the city, was perilous. Few cultivators could survive its treacherous conditions. The Azure Crimson Gate, Sky Rift Valley, and Demonic Heart Palace had long since charted the battlefield, but the dangers still loomed.

The best time to venture into the barren land was during the full moon, when the desolate aura weakened. If absorbed, this aura could harm a cultivator’s cultivation and was nearly impossible to refine.

The trio paid their entry fee and entered the city. Compared to Fan City, Serene Sea City was bustling with a higher concentration of cultivators. Most people had come because of the city's reputation and location at the border of three major sects.

Because of its territory, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion wasn't connected to any of the ten major cities, and its nearby cities were slightly inferior to them.

"What a huge city!" Chen Ruoyan was dazzled by the sight of the city.

She had heard that a city in the cultivation world was comparable to a nation in the mundane world, and the rumor was well-deserved after witnessing it today.

The Serene Sea City was massive and almost boundless. Many shops were lined on both sides of the street, and Liu Wuxie noticed many shops carrying banners of the three major sects.

This was weird, making him wonder if the three major sects controlled the Serene Sea City. But that wasn't the case because these shops had little connection with them.

They carried the banners of the three major sects to prevent unnecessary trouble, so anyone who caused trouble would have to think twice. In simpler terms, they merely used the influence of the three major sects to deter any potential troublemaker.

As the trio passed through the streets, they saw more merchants bearing the banner of the barren land. This meant the items were mainly transported out from the barren land.

"Junior Brother Liu, don't believe these shops. Most of their items are replicas, and there aren't many real items from the barren land." Jian Xing'er reminded Liu Wuxie not to be fooled by them.

Liu Wuxie nodded. He also knew there was a higher chance that these shops were bluffing without Jian Xing'er's reminder.

"Honored guests, why don't you come in and take a look? We've just received a new batch of goods shipped out from the barren land yesterday. They're guaranteed to contain treasures!" A shopkeeper came out to the streets to draw in customers.

Anyone could tell from Liu Wuxie's trio's appearance that they were outsiders who had just arrived here and were easy prey on the locals. The other shops would do it even if they didn't take advantage of them.

"Not interested!" Liu Wuxie waved his hand dismissively. He had just arrived in Serene Sea City and wanted to explore before committing to any plans. The city was vast, and he had no intention of leaving soon. There would be plenty to keep him busy for a while.

"Don't be so quick to walk away! It wouldn't hurt to take a look inside," the shopkeeper insisted, attempting to grab Liu Wuxie's sleeve. The shopkeeper knew that once Liu Wuxie entered, refusal would no longer be an option. If he didn’t make a purchase, things could quickly turn hostile.

"Let go!" Liu Wuxie looked displeased. He had never seen anyone conduct business so aggressively before.

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