Chương 75: Chapter 74 – Stars Can Really Get Under the Skin

Ever since Ren had started practicing his new body cultivation manual, he had also studied astrology and astronomy. Since his new manual required him to absorb astral qi as fuel for the spirit flame, he at least wanted to know exactly what he was imbuing his body with. It had widened Ren's horizons greatly, but what he learned left him conflicted. It had been a painful lesson that the inner sect's library was not infallible.

Just as his own writings had been accepted after a brief review, so it was that the many millennia of cultivators living out their entire lives in the sect meant that the library also had thousands of conflicting accounts. While most topics were thoroughly researched, the great mysteries of the world had as many theories surrounding them as drops of water in the ocean. And the heavens were the greatest of mysteries to cultivators.

Some accounts spoke of realms stacked one on top of another, each filled with myriad races. Others wrote of demonic invasions and endless conflicts. Some spoke of 36 blissful lands, while others cautioned 36 inhospitable sub-realms. Some even claimed it was a vast emptiness filled with burning suns! He didn't know whether to laugh or cry at some of the absurd claims! Still, he couldn't help but be curious himself. Perhaps one day he might grow strong enough to be worthy of learning some hidden secrets of the world.

Would he follow in his predecessors' footsteps and hoard it, or would he release it to all? Only time would tell. After all, not every secret needed to be known. It had taken a while for Ren to parse through the theories until he found a few records of absolute verified facts. The record he found the most lucid categorized the stars as fixed and moving. Certain stars remained in the same position in the sky no matter the season or time of day. Others moved across the horizon, appearing once in a hundred years.

It would have been hard to believe if it wasn't for the author being a core formation realm cultivator who were known to have a lifespan of around 500 years. She had surely confirmed it with her own eyes? But that same core formation expert had put forth a theory even she couldn't verify. That the fixed stars were actually the points where the domain they existed in and the domain above theirs lined up. In the end, Ren summarized his conclusions.

The heavens were still a wonderful mystery; many cultivators were moon mad, and astral qi was a type of qi that originated from higher concepts than he could decipher. He already struggled with Karma and had no desire to overextend himself. All that mattered to him was that astral qi had been used in numerous techniques without harming the users. Once he was satisfied there was no risk, Ren had followed the stances and qi cycling described in the Heavenly Fire Body Refining Manual to draw in astral qi.

After completing a set of smoothly flowing stances, he would have drawn in a few wisps of qi that would suffuse his body. He would have to complete 27 sets before he could move to the next step. Once he gathered enough astral qi, Ren would sit before the yin flame and draw in an ember. Just like his previous method, he had to cycle it through his meridians where it was fed by the astral qi. The flame would then burn out the impurities, focusing specifically on his bones.

That completed one cycle, and after as many cycles as he could complete in a session, the ember would exit his body. But Ren didn't let the ember rejoin the original flame because the astral qi would slightly change it. The more cycles he completed with the ember, the greater the change. Instead, the slightly sparkly ember was gathered into another pile of bones, which the flame could still feed on.

The Marrow Cleansing Realm of body cultivation had strengthened his skeletal structure and tendons and granted him immense strength, allowing him to lift up to 10, 000 jin! He wasn't just able to lift large boulders but even throw them! Unfortunately, using his full strength could tear him apart because his entire body hadn't been reinforced, only his muscles and bones.

It also slightly increased his defensive capabilities, but he would have to wait until he reached the Organ Reinforcement Realm, which came after his current one, for swifter healing speeds. The long amount of time it required to complete one cycle of gathering the astral qi and then immolating it meant the process was more gradual. But though it was slower than his previous method, it also penetrated deeper, and the gains for each complete cycle were greater. That night Ren prepared extra healing pills.

As he got his hands on more alchemy recipes and began to grow most of the required ingredients, he had improved the quality of pills he could produce. To complement his body cultivation, Ren had 3 types of pills ready. The first made his body slightly more malleable. It infinitesimally increased the impact of body cultivation by allowing his body to be more accepting of the change. He normally wouldn't bother for such small benefits, but the pill was really cheap and easy to make.

It was good alchemy practice to improve his fire control and sense of timing. The second pill released vital essence when his body called for nourishment. It could be taken during and after the body cultivation session. He was particularly proud of the red pill he rolled in his hands. He had experimented and changed the recipe to allow for the main ingredient to be replaced by the flesh eating moss he grew.

It had resulted in many burnt batches, and he nearly cracked his cauldron from explosions caused by losing control of the concentrated energies, but he succeeded. It had drastically reduced the cost required to make it. And the pill had been crucial for his rapid advance, replenishing his energy quickly. More importantly, Ren had felt like an alchemist for the first time by substituting ingredients and coming up with an alternative to support the moss in the form of the liquid from the blood pool.

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it. The final pill was for healing. It was as different as heaven and earth compared to his initial pills. It was far more potent and targeted injuries more effectively. He could eat it directly in an emergency or dissolve it in the bath for an extended recovery. He began performing the stances under clear skies, a river of stars lighting up the heavens above. Ren cycled his qi as he flowed from one stance to the next.

He had long since gotten used to the movements and let himself fall into a trance. Even completing a set no longer broke the trance, and he smoothly flowed into the next. His speed picked up as he progressed. Once 27 sets were complete, the astral qi filled his body. Sitting cross-legged before the flames, he drew in an ember of the Ossiferous Yin Flame. The ember began its work of burning out the impurities, but the pain was still tolerable.

He moved it along the path and felt himself approach an intangible barrier but couldn't quite cross it. It was frustrating to be so close, but he didn't let it break his concentration. No matter what, he couldn't lose control over the flame. He could injure himself severely if he got distracted at an inopportune moment. He still hadn't broken through when the cycle was complete.

"I know I can break through tonight. I'm ready. I just need to push myself!" He reassured himself. Over the past months he had worked himself up to completing 3 cycles a night before he wore himself out. He had always adhered rigorously to the manual, but tonight, he made a change. Moved by the same feeling that told him tonight was the night, Ren decided to try something he had contemplated before. This time when he began the next cycle, he didn't stop at 27 sets.

He paused for a moment to let the astral qi spread throughout his body, then instead of proceeding to the flame, he began another round of the stances. He pushed through the next 10 sets rather easily, but around the 13th, he started to feel tingly. He kept going, falling back into his trance. When he paused after the 27th set, he noticed how full he felt as the astral qi once again spread through his flesh and organs. Still, he gritted his teeth and kept going into the 3rd cycle in a row.

After the 9th set, Ren felt bloated and could no longer rely on a trance to ignore the tingly sensations that grew into prickly thorns. As he approached the 18th set, he felt as though he were swelling, his body straining to contain the power. No wonder the manual stopped after one cycle; a higher-order qi, like astral qi, couldn't be toyed with! But so close to his goal, he couldn't stop.

Trying to keep himself from screaming, Ren kept going, but the pain was making it nearly impossible to maintain the smooth transition of stances. At the 25th set, Ren felt the qi was trying to tear its way out of him, and he was being stabbed from within. It was worse than the Balanced Yin Body Refining art at this point, which had been torturous to get through. Still, it wasn't as bad as when he was struck by lightning and nearly starved while unconscious.

He couldn't help but scream through the last set, completing 81 sets, or 3 cycles, in a row. He stumbled toward the fire, barely able to see with the lights dancing in front of his eyes. He pulled in a larger-than-normal sparkly ember and began moving it through his meridians. The relief was immediate, and he no longer felt like he was going to explode. His relief was short-lived as Ren detected another problem replacing the relief. The yin flame had too much fuel!

All the astral qi meant the flame was blazing wildly. He forced it back under control, but there was no solution for the climbing pain. So Ren forgave himself and simply screamed as he guided the ember the rest of the way through his meridians. This time when he approached that same intangible barrier, he blew past it as if it weren't there! A remarkable change began to take place within his body, but Ren couldn't be bothered. The ember was still just halfway through the path.

His screams echoed through the peak, frightening the tortoises, who all tucked their heads into their shells. The ember was heating its body as it neared the end of the path. Ren didn't even notice his body turning red and steaming in the cold night air as he roared. His mind was drained, but he was just so close! He tried for one final burst and, as soon as the ember reached the end, pushed it out of his body. He got up and ran to the prepared bath, shoveling pills into his mouth.

The water sizzled as he immersed himself. Ren was exhausted, but he laughed through a hoarse throat at his accomplishment. His body was undergoing an enthralling change, and having prepared enough pills, he didn't need a natural treasure to recover. Although he knew he could accumulate more impurities through overconsumption of pills, Ren wasn't worried because the transformation would still push out the worst of the gunk while it was ongoing. The next morning, Ren felt extremely energized.

He had expected to feel lethargic or perhaps just want to relax, but his body was overflowing with energy. It was a side effect of reaching the Organ Reinforcement Realm. This realm of body cultivation was actually far more difficult to progress through, but the benefits it provided were commensurate. The first stage began with refining his kidneys, which allowed him to store and generate more vital essence. He was just experiencing a fraction of those benefits now.

Ren had no plans or manual to continue body cultivation for the moment, as this was good enough to be selected for the trial. He still intended to pursue it in the future when he had found an appropriate manual and a better source of nourishment than pills. If he kept introducing more impurities through the remnants of pills, he would be ruining all the progress he had made so far.

Not knowing what to do with all this energy, Ren impetuously decided to follow his previous plan and go visit all the challenges he had established from the first to the last.

"It's as good an idea as any!" Ren said to nobody as he threw out his flying sword. Even as he hopped on, he felt a weight settle on his head. He tilted his head up slightly and came face to face with an eager tortoise waving its legs in anticipation. The little one had started to display an ability to manipulate the wind, which it mostly used to ferry itself.

"Oh very well, you can come!" He surrendered with a sigh, not wanting to endure a pouting face on his return. The excitement was starting to fill him, wanting to learn what everyone thought of the new trials since his last tour! He cut through the air, an excited squeak echoing in the wind.