Chapter 192

Chapter 192: Purification

Li Shuang first took out the jade slip that recorded the First Tier of the Rebirth Art.

This art was an orthodox Soul Method.

If she could enter it, she could temper her soul through Spirit Refinement and speed up her Soul Realm.

After one’s cultivation reached a certain level, the Soul Realm mattered far more than raw spiritual power. First Senior Sister Luo Ming Yue had been stuck at Nascent Soul Peak for years; her spiritual power was more than enough, but her Soul Realm refused to break through.

Until one day she understood her path, and her soul transformed; only then did she naturally step into the Divine Transformation Stage.

For cultivators on the Nanlan Continent, improving the Soul Realm was too random; they could only rely on sudden insight or slow experience.

But in the Central Continent, the many Soul Methods let soul training proceed step by step, much like training spiritual power.

The existence of Soul Methods was the main reason the cultivation world of the Central Continent was so strong.

Li Shuang had fallen in realm before, but with the Rhythm Method she had returned to the Soul Realm of Early Nascent Soul.

If she could learn the Rebirth Art and pair it with the Rhythm Method, her Soul Realm should advance even faster.

Her spirit sank into the jade slip.

In the next moment, lines of formulas bloomed naturally in her mind.

Lines surfaced in her mind: “The Mysterious Gate of life and death lies within one thought of the Reincarnation Cycle. When yin reaches its limit it embraces the yang soul; the Yellow Springs knock on the Purple Palace. On the Spirit Terrace plant an Azure Lotus, and with Karmic Fire forge the true form. The three souls take on the Void Refinement aspect, and the seven spirits turn into a long rainbow.”

Her pupils tightened.

Aside from the Supreme Emotionless Art, whose grade was unknown, this was her first time touching a Heaven Grade Art.

Even the general outline of the Rebirth Art was mysterious beyond measure.

Reading the first tier, she grew both shocked and cautious.

She suddenly understood why only ten people had ever reached the advancement stage.

To train this art, one needed not only fate but also a huge amount of time.

The Rebirth Art had three turns, matching three stages.

The First Turn was Purification.

The Second Turn was Ferrying.

The Third Turn was Nirvanic Cycle.

Across these stages, the First Tier drew the power of the stars into the soul, washing away the soul’s turbid qi.

The Second Tier visualized the Nether River, ferried countless wandering spirits, tempered the soul with Karmic Fire, and hardened the seven spirits in yin wind. When achieved, one could summon Rebirth Radiance to resolve grudges a hundred years old.

At the Third Tier, one opened the heavenly eye to peer through the seam of the Reincarnation Cycle and condensed a Dao seed that stored the causes and effects of the heavens. Those who completed it could seize the Power of Rebirth, rebuild the body and nascent spirit, and fully transcend this world.

The last two stages were only sketched in a few words, yet even just looking at them, she felt endless hidden wonders.

This was truly a world-bridging art.

Before this, she had been curious why the Rebirth Art counted as a Heaven Grade Soul Method.

Now she had only one thought: was this really only a Heaven Grade Soul Method?

In the Hall of Myriad Arts there was even a Heaven and Earth Mysterium Art priced at one billion Merit Points. At that level, just how earthshaking would a Soul Method be?

Hall of Myriad Arts. Myriad Arts City. And that mysterious City Lord. This world was far bigger than she had imagined.

In Myriad Arts City, a breathtakingly beautiful woman slowly opened her eyes.

A faint light flickered at the bottom of her gaze.

Today, ten more people had exchanged for the Rebirth Art.

It was a pity.

Among these ten, the chance that anyone would succeed was far, far too small.

She lifted a hand, and a glow flashed at her fingertip.

If Li Shuang had been there, she might have guessed that this glow was Rebirth Radiance, a power one could master after the Second Layer of the Rebirth Canon reached Great Completion. The woman murmured, “But reaching this level is still not enough,” then added, “only by training to the Third Turn can one peer into the Reincarnation Cycle and bring back Little Sister.”

In true value, the Rebirth Art was in no way inferior to the Heaven and Earth Mysterium Art, and might even be stronger. Compared with that value, the Merit Points price was basically a gift.

Her only hope was that someone would reach the Third Turn and then help her find Little Sister.

She herself was still working hard.

But she had been stuck at the Second Turn for too long; even she had lost confidence.

Could anyone truly train this art to the Third Turn?

She sighed softly and closed her eyes again.

In the secret room, Li Shuang had already begun studying the First Turn’s method.

The instructions read: sit facing the Big Dipper, draw the power of the stars into the soul, use the spirit sea as a furnace, and refine the soul’s impurities with the gathered starlight. Every thirty-six cycles, a phantom Azure Lotus would appear on the Spirit Terrace; that state counted as Minor Completion. When the Soul Lotus turned from phantom to real, that state counted as Great Completion.

Reading this, a thoughtful light passed through her eyes.

Azure Lotus?

This practice would cause an Azure Lotus to appear in the sea of consciousness.

At Foundation Establishment, she had used a lotus seed from the Ninefold Lotus Platform.

Now this Soul Method was also tied to the Azure Lotus.

It seemed that along her path she had a special fate with the Azure Lotus.

There were further details.

The art stated that at each stage, the First Tier required choosing a star as the Origin Star and borrowing that star’s power to temper the soul. When choosing the Origin Star for the First Tier, one must pick a weaker star. Never reach for a star whose light was too strong, or you would only lose more than you gained.

As for the strongest of all, the Lunar Star, the art warned in clear words: never use the Lunar Deity’s glory to carry out Spirit Refinement. The Lunar Star’s power was simply too strong. Without a special chance, using Lunar Starlight would end in only one way: death.

Li Shuang frowned and thought carefully.

The reason given was that the Lunar Deity’s light was too strong and, without special chance, meant death.

But what if she had special resources?

Looking at her still-ample stores, her heart beat faster.

With the Heaven and Earth Furnace, if there was any chance of success, she could turn that chance into reality.

[Then try it?]

Li Shuang immediately left seclusion.

To train the First Turn of the Rebirth Art, she needed the power of the stars.

It happened to be night. The stars glittered across the sky, and a full moon hung high. This was when star power was strongest.

In the deep night, Emotionless Peak was extra quiet.

Silently, Li Shuang searched the mountains around the Sword Sect and chose a deserted peak. She sat facing the Big Dipper.

The first step was to draw starlight into the body.

The art explained how to sense starlight, but it also said this varied from person to person.

Some might spend ten or even a hundred years and still fail to sense even a thread of star power.

Li Shuang took a deep breath.

[If I cannot even pass this first step and sense star power, then there is no hope for anything after it.]

Under the glittering stars, she slowly closed her eyes.

Following the art’s guidance, she spread out the power of her soul to sense the starlight.