BXBX NOVEL Chapter 236
“Dang~”
The resonant tolling of bells echoed across a vast expanse spanning thousands of miles. These bells possessed a unique attribute, maintaining a consistent volume regardless of proximity. Standing beside them, their sound was as gentle as if heard from a thousand miles away. This extraordinary bell, known as the Returning Origin Bell, graced the main peak of the Returning Origin Sect. It wasn’t merely a bell. It was a powerful magical artifact, revered as the sect’s ultimate treasure for safeguarding its legacy.
“The Returning Origin Bell has sounded,” said one disciple. “Only guests in the Refinement stage have the honor of ringing it, so it appears that the leaders of sects from other realms have arrived.”
“Peak Master Dieyun’s influence is truly immense. It seems nearly half of the entire Canglan Realm is here this time,” added another.
The atmosphere buzzed with excitement within the Returning Origin Sect, where the nine peaks converged. In addition to Returning Origin Sect disciples, a substantial number of guests had already arrived, drawn by Peak Master Dieyun’s grand millennium celebration. Among the attendees was Lord Tianluo, the second-ranked sect leader from the Eastern Realm. He had brought a significant entourage and presented numerous flying ships as gifts, even though all these items could easily fit into a larger storage bag. However, ostentation was the norm when it came to gifts between sects.
Peak Master Dieyun was born ten thousand years ago. I was already in the Refinement stage. I never imagined that she would reach the pinnacle of the Refinement stage after all these millennia. At the same time, I remain in the same stage, Lord Tianluo mused, reflecting on his age relative to Peak Master Dieyun. He had reached the Refinement stage long before her birth, but her strength had far surpassed his. Despite being in the late Refinement stage, Peak Master Dieyun had reached the pinnacle in a remarkably short time, achieving it in just 2,500 years. Her exceptional first-grade Heavenly Spirit Root had garnered much attention in its time.
Peak Master Dieyun’s rapid growth was truly remarkable. She reached the Nascent Soul stage in 130 years, the Nascent Soul stage in 300 years, and the Refinement stage in 1,000 years. While not matching the Immortal Spirit Root, her first-grade Heavenly Spirit Root still facilitated impressive progress. However, after taking 1,500 years to advance from the Refinement stage to its pinnacle, she remained there for more than 7,000 years, unable to break through to the next level. She had hit a bottleneck, a significant challenge.
Considering her first-grade Heavenly Spirit Root, she should have reached the Refinement stage perfection by the age of 4,000 or even earlier, allowing her to continue advancing. Yet, at the age of 10,000, she still hadn’t achieved this, emphasizing the formidable nature of the bottleneck she faced. Many talented cultivators with Heavenly Spirit Roots could become frustrated when encountering such bottlenecks. Some with lower aptitude might remain in the Nascent Soul stage for over 2,500 years. For instance, the cultivator Jin, who was over 3,000 years old, wouldn’t have broken through to the Nascent Soul stage without Li Su’s assistance.
When Liu Xinshui and Liu Xinyue were over 1,500 years old, the strongest among them, Liu Xinshui, had only reached the Nascent Soul sixth stage. In comparison, Peak Master Dieyun, who achieved the Refinement stage pinnacle in just 2,500 years, was a true genius. Her accomplishments were enough to evoke envy in countless cultivators. However, the bottleneck had restrained her progress for thousands of years, preventing her from reaching the Refinement stage perfection.
Without overcoming this bottleneck, Peak Master Dieyun saw no way to progress beyond the Refinement stage. Lord Tianluo’s nostalgic comments didn’t resonate with her. Instead, she felt a growing sense of resignation. She had reached the age of 10,000 but still saw no hope of breaking through the bottleneck. If only her spiritual roots were more special, like an Immortal Spirit Root, that would be ideal. Immortal Spirit Roots had no bottlenecks before the Five Decays of Heaven and Man. With an Immortal Spirit Root, as long as one cultivated steadily, avoided inner demons, and refrained from reckless behavior, progress was almost guaranteed. However, with her first-grade Spirit Root, experiencing a bottleneck was extremely painful.
She considered herself fortunate, having seen many Heavenly Spirit Root geniuses face bottlenecks during the Nascent Soul stage or earlier. She recalled a genius with a second-grade Spirit Root who died during the Nascent Soul stage due to a bottleneck, cursing the heavens for granting him a great spiritual root but not luck and insight. There was also a genius with a first-grade Heavenly Spirit Root who rushed too quickly, faced inner demons, and went insane.
The Returning Origin Bell rang once more as more guests in the Refinement stage arrived, including Refinement cultivators from the Western Sea. Some speculated that the Queen of the Western Sea clan’s friendship with Peak Master Dieyun was the reason for their attendance.
As the Returning Origin Sect bustled with activity, Bihai, who had returned from afar, entered the sect. Although he didn’t receive excessive attention, as an Outer Sect Elder, some Foundation Establishment and Nascent Soul stage disciples recognized him and greeted him respectfully. He then made his way to Peak Dieyun.