Chương 58: Mid-Foundation Establishment! Core Formation Divine Sense! Awakening of New Abilities!

Core Formation Divine Sense! Awakening of New Abilities!

Chapter Fifty-Eight: Mid-Foundation Establishment! Core Formation Divine Sense! Awakening of New Abilities!

After the Great Evolution Technique incident, Zhou Ding's life returned to a regular rhythm.

Two years have passed in the blink of an eye.

For the past two years, every morning at the crack of dawn, he would take Xiao Jin out of the cave and spend an hour exploring for treasures in the Taiyue Mountains.

This is an unwavering habit.

The Taiyue Mountains are extremely vast, spanning thousands of miles, and countless treasures are hidden within them.

Elixirs, ores, monster lairs, cultivator caves... but most of these treasures are hidden in secluded corners or buried deep underground, and are little known to people.

Even if ordinary cultivators have the ability to probe with their divine sense, they can only scan the surface of the ground and are powerless to see what lies deep underground.

But with Xiao Jin's ability to hear the earth, all of this was exposed.

Any anomaly within dozens of feet underground could not escape Xiao Jin's perception.

Whether it's the roots of a medicinal herb, the veins of a mineral, or the caves dug by a monster, they can all be clearly detected.

With Xiao Jin's help, Zhou Ding acquired a large amount of resources.

Occasionally, one can even discover the cave dwellings left behind by Foundation Establishment stage cultivators.

The owners of those cave dwellings have long since perished, the cave dwellings have been buried by time, and the formations have also become ineffective, but the relics inside are still quite well preserved.

Although it couldn't compare to the harvest from Qingyangzi's cave, it still brought him a considerable amount of spirit stones, pills, and magical artifacts.

Every time Zhou Ding discovers such relics, he is filled with emotion.

That's how the cultivation world is: some ascend to immortality, some perish, and some disappear silently into the river of time.

The owners of these cave dwellings once left their mark on the cultivation world, but now only a pile of bones and a few magical artifacts remain.

If I don't work hard to cultivate, I'll probably end up in the same situation.

Whenever he thought of this, he became even more diligent.

Therefore, after each treasure hunt, he would return to his cave, take some elixirs, and devote himself to cultivating the "Azure Origin Sword Technique".

Purple Essence Pill, Yellow Origin Pill, Heart-Clearing Powder...

He was never stingy with any kind of elixir that could enhance his cultivation; he would eat it and use it whenever he needed to.

Others who cultivate often worry about the pills, having to break a single pill in half and carefully calculate every bit of its potency.

But he took them bottle after bottle, one pill after another, without interruption.

Sometimes, watching the pills in the bottle rapidly diminish, Zhou Ding would secretly feel fortunate.

If it weren't for Xiao Jin's help in treasure hunting, and if it weren't for the abundant spiritual energy provided by the Spirit Eye Spring, how could he dare to be so extravagant?

In the world of cultivation, how many cultivators risk their lives, even resorting to murder and robbery, for a few pills?

Yet he was able to cultivate so recklessly.

Such treatment would make 99% of cultivators envious, jealous, and resentful.

Thinking of this, he looked at Xiao Jin, who was curled up in the corner, and a look of emotion flashed in his eyes.

If it weren't for this little guy, I probably wouldn't have even reached the Foundation Establishment stage yet.

They may have died in the Blood Forbidden Zone.

In the evening, Zhou Ding would cultivate the "Great Evolution Technique" to hone his divine sense.

For the past two years, he has practiced the Great Evolution Technique every night without fail.

He spent three months mastering the first level.

During those three months, he followed the visualization techniques in the cultivation method every day, constructing complex arrays in his mind to temper the origin of his divine consciousness.

At first, he often had splitting headaches and sometimes couldn't sleep all night.

But he gritted his teeth and persevered.

After three months, he finally mastered the first level, and his spiritual strength improved significantly, allowing him to divide his spiritual sense into more than ten separate thoughts.

That feeling was absolutely wonderful.

He spent a year and a half on the second layer.

This level requires splitting one's divine consciousness into hundreds of parts, significantly increasing the difficulty.

Each time one's consciousness is split, it is like cutting one's own soul with a knife; the pain is indescribable.

Several times, he almost gave up.

After persevering through hardship, he finally mastered the second level and was able to divide his divine thoughts into hundreds.

The third floor...

It has not yet been mastered.

The third level of the Great Evolution Technique requires splitting one's divine consciousness into hundreds of parts, a difficulty far beyond imagination.

He tried countless times, but each time ended in failure.

The feeling was like trying to split a drop of water into hundreds of parts, yet not letting any of them disappear.

too difficult.

But he was not discouraged.

Because he could clearly feel that as his cultivation deepened, his divine consciousness was constantly growing stronger and more refined.

Even without mastering the third level, his spiritual sense range had reached twelve miles.

The range of a pseudo-core cultivator's spiritual sense is approximately five miles.

The range of spiritual consciousness in the early stage of Core Formation is between twenty and thirty miles.

Zhou Ding's current spiritual strength surpasses that of ordinary pseudo-core cultivators, but it cannot truly rival that of core formation cultivators.

Occasionally, when he has some free time, he will study the "Qingyang Array Manual" he obtained from Qingyangzi's cave and deduce those mysterious arrays.

The art of formations is profound and complex.

Even with Xin Ruyin's guidance, he had already grasped the basics of formations.

But every time I open the Array Manual, I discover new questions and realize my own shortcomings.

But it was this feeling of constant exploration and progress that captivated him.

Sometimes, when he gets to a crucial point in a problem, he forgets the time and sits there for an entire day.

It wasn't until his stomach rumbled or Xiao Jin nuzzled his hand with its head that he suddenly realized how much time had passed.

Days passed by like this.

Fulfilling and peaceful.

……

This day.

Inside the cave, in the quiet room.

Zhou Ding sat cross-legged beside the Spirit Eye Spring, his eyes closed and his breathing long and even.

A misty spiritual energy gushed from the spring, swirling around him and slowly seeping into his body with each breath.

Within his dantian, the ball of azure true essence was churning violently.

After two years of arduous training day and night, and consuming countless elixirs, he finally mastered the fourth level of the Azure Origin Sword Technique to perfection.

At this moment, he is trying to break through the threshold of the mid-stage Foundation Establishment.

That threshold, though invisible and intangible, truly exists.

The true essence circulated rapidly in the meridians, washing over the invisible barrier again and again.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Zhou Ding's forehead, sliding down his cheeks and dripping onto his clothes.

His face was slightly pale, his lips were tightly pressed together, and his brows were furrowed.

Each impact felt like banging his head against an iron wall, shaking him to his core.

But he gritted his teeth and remained motionless.

"boom!"

A muffled rumble came from inside his body.

The barrier that had troubled him for so long was finally broken through by his true energy!

In that instant, Zhou Ding felt light as a feather, as if a thousand-pound burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

The azure true essence in the dantian surged into the new meridians like a floodgate being opened, forming an even larger circulation within the body.

An aura several times stronger than before suddenly erupted from Zhou Ding's body!

Zhou Ding opened his eyes.

Two sharp glints shot out from his eyes.

He felt the surging true energy within his body, and an uncontrollable joy appeared on his face.

Mid-stage Foundation Establishment!

We've finally broken through!

He took a deep breath, circulated his true energy, and felt the difference from before.

The magic power is purer, more concentrated, and nearly twice as much as before.

If the magical power in the early stages of Foundation Establishment is a small stream that barely reaches the ankles, then the magical power in the middle stages of Foundation Establishment is a raging river that can submerge the waist.

Whether casting spells or activating magical artifacts, their power will be greatly enhanced.

With a thought, a ball of azure true essence appeared in his palm.

The true essence was solid as liquid, with a deep color and a faint radiance flowing through it.

It's a world of difference compared to two years ago.

Zhou Ding nodded in satisfaction and dispersed his true energy.

More importantly, it is spiritual consciousness.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, his divine sense surging out like a tide and spreading in all directions.

This feeling is like immersing your mind in water and being able to sense everything around you.

His divine sense continued to extend, passing through the walls of the quiet room, through the rock strata of the cave, through the Five Elements Mystic Light Array outside, and probing towards the primeval forest outside.

He could "see" the rocks outside the cave, the moss growing in the crevices of the rocks, and the small insects crawling on the moss.

Finally, at a distance of about fifteen miles, the divine sense detected the boundary.

Twenty li!

Zhou Ding's pupils contracted slightly, and a look of shock flashed across his face.

His spiritual strength was actually comparable to that of an ordinary early-stage Core Formation cultivator.

He possessed the divine sense of a Core Formation stage cultivator even in the mid-Foundation stage!

An indescribable excitement welled up in Zhou Ding's heart.

He recalled the days he had spent diligently practicing the Great Evolution Technique every night for the past two years.

Those nights with splitting headaches, those agonizing tossing and turning, those countless moments when I wanted to give up...

Everything has become worthwhile now.

This Great Evolution Technique truly lives up to its reputation as an ancient secret art of alchemy!

If one masters the third level of the Great Evolution Technique, one's cultivation will break through to the late Foundation Establishment stage.

What level of spiritual power will he reach?

He couldn't imagine it.

Thinking of this, Zhou Ding felt a strong sense of anticipation.

……

Just then, a familiar feeling washed over me.

A warm sensation came to my mind.

That was a mysterious connection with Xiao Jin, transmitting feedback power.

Zhou Ding's spirits lifted, and he quickly diverted a wisp of his mind to probe into Xiao Jin's body.

In the corner of the quiet room, Xiao Jin was curled up.

Heat surged within Xiao Jin's body, like boiling magma, frantically transforming its physical form.

A low growl escaped Xiao Jin's mouth; it was a painful howl.

Its body trembled violently, and beneath its fur, it seemed as if countless small snakes were wriggling, bulging out in twisted protrusions.

Those bumps rolled under the skin, sometimes bulging up and sometimes flattening, a sight that was shocking to behold.

Through telepathy, Zhou Ding could clearly sense Xiao Jin's pain at that moment.

That kind of pain is like thousands of ants gnawing at your bones, or like being burned by raging fire, enough to break any living being.

He could even feel the excruciating pain of every bone and meridian in Xiao Jin's body being torn apart and then reassembled.

Half an hour later.

The heat flow finally subsided.

Little Gold was in the corner, panting heavily, covered in sweat, its fur clinging damply to its body.

Zhou Ding began to carefully examine Xiao Jin's condition.

Her physique hasn't changed much.

But his physical strength has been further enhanced.

He let Little Gold extend one of its front paws and gently tap it.

The claws were as hard as iron, striking the stone wall with a crisp "clang," leaving several deep claw marks.

The claws were as hard as iron, striking the stone wall with a crisp "clang," leaving several deep claw marks.

What surprised Zhou Ding even more was that beneath Xiao Jin's fur, the faint outline of a layer of pale golden scales was beginning to emerge.

The scales were only a thin layer, covering vital areas such as the back and head. The scales were fine and dense, with a faint golden light flowing through them.

Under the illumination of the luminous pearl in the secret chamber, the scales reflected a faint golden light, appearing both mysterious and majestic.

"This is……"

Zhou Ding's heart skipped a beat, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

He reached out and gently stroked the scales; they were cold and hard to the touch, as if he were touching a layer of metal.

Xiao Jin is a rodent-like monster, belonging to the mammalian class.

And now, it's actually evolving into a lepidopteran?

Such cross-species evolution is extremely rare in the world of cultivation.

With this layer of scales, Xiao Jin's defensive capabilities will be greatly enhanced.

Even if they encounter a powerful enemy in the future, they will not be fatally wounded.

Zhou Ding nodded in satisfaction and continued to investigate Xiao Jin's other abilities.

The ability to hear sounds from the ground has been further enhanced.

Originally, the fine detection mode could only cover about fifteen miles, but now Zhou Ding had Xiao Jin use it to its fullest extent to carefully sense the surroundings.

A moment later, a look of surprise appeared on his face.

Twenty li!

The precision detection mode covered a range of nearly twenty miles!

Within a radius of twenty miles, no movement or disturbance can escape Xiao Jin's perception.

Whether it's the escape light of a cultivator, the tracks of a demonic beast, or the fluctuations of spiritual veins deep underground, all can be clearly detected.

What does this mean?

This means that in the future, whenever an enemy approaches within twenty miles, he will be able to detect them in advance and deal with them calmly.

In the world of cultivation, this kind of advantage often means life or death.

The earth-burrowing technique is even faster.

Zhou Ding had Xiao Jin try it out in the cave. It transformed into a golden stream of light and moved freely underground, its speed nearly half again as fast as before.

If danger arises, Xiao Jin can instantly disappear underground, leaving the enemy nowhere to find her.

The Black Spirit Claw has also changed.

Driven by "demon essence", it can unleash detached black claw blades that are extremely sharp and also possess the "spirit-breaking" property, capable of tearing through spiritual energy shields and defensive magical artifacts.

Zhou Ding let Xiao Jin try it out.

Little Gold raised its front paw, its demonic energy surging, and a faint dark light appeared on the tip of its paw.

"laugh--" A dark claw-like blade flew out from the claw tip and slashed across the stone wall in front of it.

The stone wall was incredibly hard, made of the unique Qinggang stone of the Taiyue Mountains. Ordinary magical weapons could only leave shallow white marks when they struck it.

But where Wu Ling's claws slashed, five deep claw marks were left on the stone wall, each half an inch deep, with smooth, mirror-like edges.

Even more terrifying, fine cracks were faintly appearing on the stone wall around the claw marks.

Those were the marks left by the "Spirit Breaker" property.

Zhou Ding nodded secretly.

The power of the Black Spirit Claw will surely catch the enemy off guard.

The clone technique hasn't changed much.

It can still create an identical clone, possessing the original's abilities.

To Zhou Ding's surprise, Xiao Jin awakened a new ability this time.