Having successfully navigated the Qualification Test Stone, his reawakened cultivation aptitude now a confirmed fact, Ye Fan stood amongst the other qualified aspirants. The initial shockwave his result had sent through the crowd was slowly settling into a mixture of wary curiosity, lingering disbelief, and for those like Wang Que and Shen Yun who still glowered from a distance, a festering, impotent resentment.
Ye Fan, however, barely registered the sea of lesser figures around him. His attention, sharp and intensely focused, roamed from the ongoing tests at the platforms below, then inexorably drifted upwards, towards the elevated viewing galleries. His eyes, like those of a patient predator meticulously surveying its hunting ground, scanned the assembled figures of the Tianshang Holy Land's established elite – the stern-faced Inner Sect Elders, their auras hinting at profound depths of spiritual power, and the proud, often aloof True Disciples, radiating the confidence of their esteemed positions. These were the echelons of power he was not just determined to reach, but to utterly, decisively, dominate.
Inevitably, his gaze snagged upon the contingent from Fairy Peak. There sat Su Chan, clad in the distinctive light purple robes of a True Disciple, an air of quiet, almost unreadable composure about him. Flanking him were three young women whose beauty was so striking it seemed to draw the very light towards them.
Fang Xin, with her innate elegance and an aura that bespoke both authority and grace; Lin Ruo'er, her intelligent eyes sparkling with a keen, observant light; and then, there was the one who had, moments earlier, captured his master's fervent attention – Ning Youxi. Her beauty was of a purer, more ethereal quality, her spiritual fluctuations subtly vibrant, almost like a hidden melody that only the most discerning senses could perceive, hinting at a profound, veiled depth. A fierce, almost avaricious ambition ignited within Ye Fan's eyes, a covetous hunger for power and possession that he expertly, almost instantaneously, masked beneath a carefully maintained veneer of humble aspiration.
As he feigned a casual interest in the ongoing qualification tests below, the ancient, sagacious voice of the Saint King remnant soul resonated within the deepest recesses of his mind, carrying an undercurrent of barely suppressed excitement.
"Little Fan, my disciple! Remarkable! Truly, utterly remarkable! My senses, even in this tragically diminished state, did not deceive me. That young woman seated to the left of the boy in the Fairy Peak section… the one with that uniquely vibrant yet artfully veiled spiritual signature… her name, according to the faint whispers I've managed to glean from the ambient spiritual chatter of the more informed disciples, is Ning Youxi."
Ye Fan's mental brow furrowed in concentration. "Master, what is it? What hidden truth have you unearthed about her?"
The Saint King's voice seemed to drop, taking on a graver, more profound significance, laced with an almost conspiratorial thrill. "Disciple, prepare yourself. She possesses a Primordial Yin-Yang Body! And not just any common physique of that nature, mind you – this is one of the legendary ones, whispered about in ancient texts, perfectly harmonized for the profound arts of dual cultivation. With such a peerless physique as your cultivation partner, your journey through the realms of power would become as smooth as polished jade!
You would encounter virtually no bottlenecks through the Mortal Daoist Realms – Qi Refining, Foundation Building, Golden Core, even Nascent Soul – they would be but fleeting milestones on your swift ascent!"
Ye Fan's heart hammered against his ribs like a war drum. A Primordial Yin-Yang Attunement Body! From the fragmented knowledge his master had imparted from far more ancient and glorious eras, he knew such physiques were treasures beyond imagining, coveted by countless peerless cultivators for the almost cheat-like benefits they offered to a compatible partner. "Are you absolutely certain, Master? Such a thing…"
"Absolutely!" the Saint King declared with unshakeable conviction. "And there is more, Little Fan! This Primordial Yin-Yang Attunement Body is exceptionally, almost unnaturally, well-hidden. There's a powerful, currently dormant bloodline signature enshrouding its true nature like a protective cocoon.
I suspect it's a deliberate measure, a legacy from an incredibly potent, perhaps even imperial, lineage. No ordinary cultivator, likely no one beneath the Great Emperor realm, or perhaps even those who have touched upon the threshold of Immortality, could normally detect its true essence. However, in my prime, during an exceedingly perilous expedition into a primordial secret realm lost to the mists of time, I chanced upon a set of supreme, heaven-defying pupil techniques – the legendary 'Eyes of Myriad Truths.'
Even with my current remnant soul, utilizing but a fraction of that forgotten power allows me to perceive veils and illusions that would blind others. I cannot fully discern the active properties of her bloodline as it lies dormant, but its sheer latent power, the ancient resonance it emits, tells me unequivocally that she hails from an extraordinary background. Her parents, or at least one of them, must be figures of truly immense, world-shaking power."
The monumental implications of his master's words struck Ye Fan with the force of a physical blow, leaving him momentarily breathless. Not only a perfect, unparalleled aid for his cultivation but also a potential bridge to a background of unimaginable power and influence!
"If you can make her yours, Little Fan," the Saint King continued, his ancient voice now almost a silken purr, laden with avaricious delight and strategic cunning, "you will gain not only a peerless dual cultivation partner whose Primordial Yin-Yang Attunement Body will all but guarantee your smooth and rapid ascent through the cultivation realms, but also a powerful, unshakeable backing that could shield you from countless early dangers and provide you with resources beyond your wildest imaginings! This, my disciple, is a heaven-sent opportunity, a gift from fate itself!"
A slow, crooked, almost draconic smile stretched Ye Fan's lips, his eyes glinting with a fierce, predatory light that was utterly at odds with his humble facade. "Do not worry, Master. Ning Youxi… and her Primordial Yin-Yang Attunement Body… they will be mine. Sooner or later, by whatever means necessary, I will make her submit to me, body, soul, and destiny.
" The image of her ethereal beauty, her anticipated proud demeanor eventually crumbling before his might, her unique physique becoming the fuel for his unstoppable rise to ultimate power – it was an intoxicating, almost irresistible vision.
Yet, a sliver of cold pragmatism managed to pierce through his exultation.
"But Master, according to the information we've managed to gather about this Tianshang Holy Land, I'll only be admitted to the Outer Sect initially. To even dream of becoming an Inner Disciple requires reaching the Golden Core realm – a significant chasm from my current state. And Ning Youxi… she is a True Disciple of Fairy Peak, personally mentored by a Peak Master, a figure of immense authority and power. It's not a simple matter for an Outer Disciple, or even an ordinary Inner Disciple, to casually approach someone of her elevated status and secluded position. I would likely need to become a True Disciple myself to have any hope of regular, unhindered contact." He frowned, the perceived timeline stretching uncomfortably before him.
.......
Our Current Cultivation Realms System for Tiaxu Continent:
1. Qi Refining: Gathering worldly Qi.
2. Foundation Building: Establishing a stable cultivation base.
3. Golden Core: Condensing Qi into a powerful core.
4. Nascent Soul: The Golden Core hatches into a miniature spiritual self.
5. Soul Transformation: Refining and strengthening the Nascent Soul.
6. Void Refining: Understanding and manipulating the void/space.
7. Dao Integration: Integrating one's understanding of a Dao into their being.
8. Supreme: Stepping beyond mortal limits.
9. Great Supreme: A higher level of supreme power.
10. Supreme King: Kings among Supremes.
11. Quasi-Saint: (Realms: Early, Middle, Late, Peak) Transitional stage to sainthood.
12. Saint: Beings who have comprehended a portion of the Dao.
13. Great Saint: Powerful Saints with deeper Dao comprehension.
14. Saint King: Kings among Saints, continent-shaking might (like Ye Fan's ring grandpa).
Emperor Realms (Each with Realms: Early, Middle, Late, Peak)
15. Quasi-Emperor: Touched the threshold of the Emperor Realm.
16. Great Emperor: Pinnacle of mortal cultivation, command laws of Heaven and Earth.
Legendary Immortal Realms
* Beyond the Great Emperor, realms of true immortality and unimaginable power. (Details to be unveiled later in the story).