Cultivation: Start From Simplifying Martial Arts Techniques

“Yes, the shattered spiritual treasure!” Tong Zhongqiu nodded.

“So, it’s a spiritual treasure,” Chen Fei’s eyes were filled with astonishment.

Chen Fei had considered that there might be secrets beneath the Imperial City, but he never imagined that the secret would be this significant, containing a spiritual treasure. Even if this spiritual treasure was broken, it was still far beyond the level of magical treasures.

In the Thousand Feathers Alliance, Chen Fei had seen two spiritual treasures: one was the Enlightenment Tower, and the other was the Haiyue Cave.

Regardless of which one it was, both gave Chen Fei an unbeatable feeling.

It was like an ordinary person standing at the foot of a mountain, looking up at the entire peak. You could clearly feel your own insignificance and the grandeur of the entire mountain.

The strengths of both sides were simply not on the same level.

From this, one could understand the true value of a spiritual treasure.

Given the density of the heaven and earth elemental energy in the territory of Imperial City, it was a bit difficult for even a mid-Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivator to be born. The fact that a spiritual treasure had appeared was truly unimaginable.

“So, the biennial Elemental Tide is what that spiritual treasure uses to repair itself?” Chen Fei looked up and asked.

“Yes, because of its damage, it instinctively wants to repair itself. However, due to the severity of the damage, it cannot ultimately store the absorbed elemental energy and has to disperse it,” Tong Zhongqiu explained.

Chen Fei nodded. It made sense that the Elemental Tide contained a spiritual aura. It was purely because the spiritual treasure had absorbed the heavenly and earthly elemental energy during the tide, naturally imbuing it with some of the spiritual treasure’s characteristics.

The royal family of Imperial City must have discovered the existence of the spiritual treasure a long time ago, which was why they built the Imperial City there, with the intention of claiming this treasure.

But now, several hundred years had passed, and this spiritual treasure had not yet been retrieved.

Because if it were really taken out, the royal family would not remain as weak as they were now, and there would be no sign of rebellion in the territory of Imperial City.

However, even so, the benefits of such a close encounter with a broken and ownerless spiritual treasure were immeasurable.

This was also the reason why among the royal family, the transmission of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm inheritance remained uninterrupted and even, for the most part, there were more than one Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators within the royal family.

But something must have gone wrong in recent years, causing various regions of Imperial City to rise in power. It was hard to believe that there was no external influence from other Combined Aperture Tempering realm forces.

When Chen Fei was in Immortal Cloud City, he was still in the Aperture Tempering realm and didn’t have the qualifications or means to understand such information, and he didn’t care about it either.

After all, it was too far away from him, and caring about why the royal family was weakening seemed like a luxury!

Without the presence of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators from the Thousand Feathers Alliance, the secret of the spiritual treasure beneath the Imperial City would likely have remained hidden. It could be said that there were too many talented individuals with Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivation in the Thousand Feathers Alliance, and they had seen what a spiritual treasure looked like, which immediately alerted them to the anomaly beneath the Imperial City.

Unlike the other Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators within the territory of Imperial City, who probably hadn’t even seen peak magical treasures, let alone spiritual treasures, even if they had suspicions about the secret beneath the Imperial City.

But suspicions were just suspicions, impossible to verify, and ultimately futile.

Chen Fei felt a tinge of envy. A spiritual treasure, even if it was damaged, would bring immeasurable benefits if acquired.

However, Chen Fei could only envy from a distance. For a damaged spiritual treasure, Chen Fei wanted it, and other Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators were no exception.

Within the Thousand Feathers Alliance, there were many late Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators, and even peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm powerhouses. To these experts, a damaged spiritual treasure was an opportunity that couldn’t be missed.

It was precisely because this spiritual treasure was so severely damaged that it couldn’t even store the absorbed heavenly and earthly elemental energy. It seemed to be beyond repair, or else the powerful experts in the Mountain Sea Realm would have taken action.

But it was also because the Mountain Sea Realm experts didn’t bother to go there that it gave these peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators the chance to obtain a spiritual treasure.

Within the Thousand Feathers Alliance, each of the top ten factions had peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators, and in some factions, there were even more than one.

Compared to these individuals, Chen Fei appeared relatively immature.

Tong Zhongqiu had come here to inform Chen Fei of this matter, certainly not to suggest that Chen Fei should try to seize the damaged spiritual treasure. Tong Zhongqiu wasn’t that reckless.

It was simply a case of two individuals coming from the same place, having similar cultivation levels, and Tong Zhongqiu sharing information with one person.

Three days later, Tong Zhongqiu returned.

“Did Yan Xuanji from the Tiandao Sect make a move?” Chen Fei’s eyebrows couldn’t help but twitch.

Yan Xuanji was an acquaintance, although Chen Fei was only familiar with the younger Yan Xuanji, from over a hundred years ago.

In the Haiyue Cave, in the Heavenly Stairs Hall, Chen Fei had challenged the young Yan Xuanji.

At that time, Yan Xuanji had already been a peerless genius among his peers, unmatched in brilliance. Yet, in the Heavenly Stairs Hall, Chen Fei had defeated him with a single move.

Yan Xuanji himself was unaware of this matter; otherwise, he would probably be standing outside the Primordial Sword Sect with his sword right now.

Currently, Yan Xuanji was a late Combined Aperture Tempering realm powerhouse, and there were rumors that he was attempting to break through to the peak of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm. If he succeeded, the Tiandao Sect would have two peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts.

“He shattered the formation of the Imperial City in three strikes, and no one could stop him!” Tong Zhongqiu said in a hushed tone.

“Three strikes? This Imperial City really lives up to its reputation as impregnable!” Chen Fei sincerely remarked.

The fact that the formation could withstand three strikes from a late Combined Aperture Tempering realm expert was truly astonishing. If it had been an early Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivator attacking, they would have exhausted themselves without shaking the Imperial City.

In other words, if it weren’t for the appearance of the Boundless Sea passage, even with a rebellion on the other side and other early Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators coveting it, the people inside the Imperial City would have remained safe.

Unfortunately, this city that had stood for hundreds of years was broken by Yan Xuanji’s three strikes.

“What happened next?” Chen Fei asked curiously.

“Yan Xuanji didn’t harm ordinary people; the people inside the Imperial City scattered in a panic, and of course, the royal family was no exception,” Tong Zhongqiu said with a smile.

Facing a powerhouse like Yan Xuanji, the formation couldn’t hold up, and the early Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators within the royal family certainly couldn’t withstand him either.

“Was there anyone else?” Chen Fei asked with curiosity.

Late Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators were indeed powerful, and the Tiandao Sect was formidable, but their strength wasn’t to the point of being overwhelming. Within the Thousand Feathers Alliance, there were nine other factions of similar strength to the Tiandao Sect.

So other late Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators had no reason to remain indifferent when it came to the shattered spiritual treasure.

“Of course, there were others, but they didn’t intervene. After Yan Xuanji dispersed the crowd, he used a single strike to break open the entire Imperial City, revealing the hidden spiritual treasure underground. Unfortunately, with Yan Xuanji’s abilities, even he couldn’t retrieve the spiritual treasure.”

“Couldn’t retrieve it?”

Chen Fei’s expression changed slightly. Previously, he thought that the reason the Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators from the royal family couldn’t retrieve the spiritual treasure was due to their insufficient cultivation. Now, it seemed that even Yan Xuanji, a late Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivator, couldn’t do it.

No, not just Yan Xuanji, other peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts were undoubtedly present at the time, and there were likely more than one, but even so, the shattered spiritual treasure remained in its original place. “Could it be that this spiritual treasure has fused with the earth?” Chen Fei speculated.

“Yes, it has fused with the earth,” Tong Zhongqiu looked somewhat surprised as he watched Chen Fei. He hadn’t expected Chen Fei to quickly guess the truth of the matter.

“That’s indeed the case,” Tong Zhongqiu repeated.

Chen Fei looked up at Tong Zhongqiu and noticed that his expression was somewhat different at this moment. It made Chen Fei wonder if there were additional variables in this situation.

However, even if there were variables, this spiritual treasure was incredibly difficult to handle. It was a sure path to death for anyone below the peak of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, and even if a peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivator acquired it, there was no guarantee that others would agree to it.

Perhaps, with the shattered spiritual treasure, these peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts had a chance to explore the next level, the Mountain Sea Realm.

Once they truly reached the Mountain Sea Realm, they would no longer be among the top ten factions of the Thousand Feathers Alliance but would become equals with the alliance’s leader.

This leap in status was highly tempting.

However, precisely because it was so tempting, once a peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivator acquired it, others would undoubtedly continue to compete fiercely for it, with no possibility of easing tensions.

“Normally, the spiritual treasure fuses with the earth and cannot be separated,” Tong Zhongqiu explained.

Tong Zhongqiu gazed intently at Chen Fei and said in a serious tone, “But three months from now, the Elemental Tide will reappear, and at that time, there will be a chance to pry the spiritual treasure away from its fusion with the earth.”

“Mr. Tong, you don’t intend to compete for it, do you?” Chen Fei looked at Tong Zhongqiu, somewhat incredulous.

“You overestimate me, young man. What I mean is, when this spiritual treasure is pried loose, many spiritual resonances will fall. It’s common for them to drift dozens of miles away,” Tong Zhongqiu sighed and explained.

Spiritual resonances, when acquired, can enhance one’s cultivation, comprehension of techniques, refinement of magical treasures, and even extend one’s lifespan. Just increasing one’s lifespan by a decade or more is easily achievable.

Such treasures are rarely seen in ordinary circumstances, or rather, one rarely has the chance to come across them.

However, forcefully prying the spiritual treasure away from its fused state results in an excessive number of spiritual resonances being released. Due to the violent nature of this process, they scatter over a great distance.

Similar incidents occurred in the Boundless Sea in the past, and the details were well-documented.

Chen Fei’s expression underwent a subtle change. Asking him to compete for that spiritual treasure was out of his league at his current level of power. Trying to seize it with insufficient strength would be like jumping into a fire pit.

However, if they were only competing for the spiritual resonances on the periphery, the danger would undoubtedly decrease significantly.

The temptations of enhancing his cultivation and extending his lifespan didn’t hold much appeal for Chen Fei. But within these spiritual resonances, there was a subtle connection to the mysteries of the Mountain Sea Realm.

This was what truly attracted Chen Fei and was also the most enticing aspect.

The Combined Aperture Tempering realm had never been Chen Fei’s final destination; he had always believed that. However, the Mountain Sea Realm was shrouded in mystery, with only two individuals in the entire Thousand Feathers Alliance at that level, and Chen Fei had never had the opportunity to interact with someone from the Mountain Sea Realm.

The several cultivation techniques Chen Fei practiced only vaguely touched upon some aspects of the peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm, but the information was quite limited.

Trying to reach the peak of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm with his current cultivation technique, the Profound Light Slicing Shadow Sword was proving to be somewhat challenging.

Two months later, as Chen Fei’s Profound Light Slicing Shadow Sword reached a state of Great Completion, his agility and sword techniques gained a significant boost. At the same time, Chen Fei, Tong Zhongqiu, and Qin Haishan left the Sea Peak City, crossed the passage, and returned to Immortal Cloud City.

Chen Fei hovered in mid-air, looking down at the land below him, feeling a mysterious sensation welling up within him.

After leaving for several years, he had unexpectedly returned!