Congealing Fiend and Refining Astral Qi

From what Qin Sang knew, the first half allowed for the refinement of three kinds of refined corpses in total. Zombies could be successfully refined using mortal walking corpses, corpses of Qi Refinement cultivators, or corpses of Foundation Establishment cultivators whose dantians had been shattered; they were the weakest. Baleful corpses required the corpse of a Foundation Establishment cultivator with an intact dantian. Five Elements yin materials were used to rebuild its foundation, after which earth fiend qi was drawn into the body. This was one of the greatest differences between this and other corpse refinement methods. The requirements for living corpses were far more complex. First, a Heavenly Corpse Talisman was needed to suppress the soul. Several times more Five Elements yin materials were required to stabilize the sea of qi, and earth fiend qi was drawn to scour the body. Drawing in earth fiend qi without damaging the dantian while preserving the spiritual power within the living corpse's sea of qi was exceedingly difficult, carrying an immense chance of failure. And now, Qin Sang had just learned the secret method of refining a Flying Yaksha from the message Wu Shang had left behind. Roughly speaking: A cultivator at the False Core stage—having advanced as far as possible in Foundation Establishment and reached culmination—had to be refined into a living corpse, after which secret arts and earth fiend qi were used to refine a golden core or demon core into the body, transforming it into a corpse core. As a disciple of the Heavenly Corpse Sect, Wu Shang was thoroughly familiar with the art. Once he made up his mind, he made ample preparations, including psychological ones. Refining oneself into a living corpse would involve changes on two fronts. First, the soul's fusion with the Heavenly Corpse Talisman would bring about unknown changes. Second, the physical body would undergo corpse transformation, especially after earth fiend qi entered the body. Having already resolved to blaze a new trail and borrow the Corpse Dao to verify the Immortal Dao, Wu Shang had long prepared to forsake his fleshly body. So long as his consciousness remained his own, he would not hesitate even if his body turned into that of a corpse! A Heavenly Corpse Talisman could refine others into living corpses, but what if one used it on oneself? Wu Shang gathered numerous wondrous elixirs, secret arts, and magic tools that served to stabilize the origin soul and protect the soul. Then, exhausting his fortune, he prepared all the requirements for corpse refinement, including a demon core. Refining a living corpse did not impose harsh requirements on the golden core or demon core; being intact and undamaged was enough. No one knew whether, since the secret art of the Heavenly Corpse Talisman was created, any ancestor of the Heavenly Corpse Sect had been mad enough to use it on themselves. In any case, there were no such records within the Heavenly Corpse Sect. Wu Shang only knew that he was the first. The Heavenly Corpse Talisman fused into his soul. Wu Shang discovered that the Heavenly Corpse Talisman did indeed have an impact. However, firstly, the talisman had been crafted by his own hands, and secondly, his modifications to the secret restrictions had worked. So long as he did not actively wipe out his own consciousness, he would not immediately lose it and turn into a muddle-headed refined corpse. He felt somewhat groggy, showing that the Heavenly Corpse Talisman truly did affect the origin soul. Complete assimilation by the Heavenly Corpse Talisman in the end was virtually certain. But this change was gradual and imperceptible, requiring a certain amount of time. Moreover, some of the preparations he had made were genuinely useful, buying him even more time. As for what he would eventually turn into, Wu Shang did not know either. Perhaps, after transforming into a Flying Yaksha and having his strength skyrocket, he could find a way to resolve it. The changes in his physical body were just as he had anticipated. Before earth fiend qi entered his body, he could counter his flesh's transformation by consuming the essence blood of other Foundation Establishment cultivators. But once the fiend qi was drawn in, under the impact of the earth fiend qi, the rate of corpse transformation accelerated drastically, impossible to resist by any means. After the fiend qi entered his body, he quickly gave up resisting and became an outright refined corpse. Naturally, Wu Shang did not care. Instead, he rejoiced, for his consciousness remained; there was still a glimmer of hope. Next, Wu Shang immediately began the next step of transformation. Fusing the demon core into his body to achieve the Flying Yaksha! To his surprise, he truly succeeded, turning into a refined corpse on the level of the Golden Core realm. Turning his vision inward, the corpse core, steeped in fiend qi, was pitch-black as ink, housed within his dantian and ready to be driven at will. This was his 'Golden Core'! This was the strength of the Core Formation stage! Such a vista was intoxicating. Just as Wu Shang was in ecstasy, he discovered to his horror that the corpse core within him was endlessly releasing earth fiend qi, actually beginning to batter his origin soul! In fact, there had already been signs of this when he drew fiend qi into his body as a living corpse. But because the duration had been brief, Wu Shang had not paid it enough attention, and he had assumed that after forming the corpse core and gaining power comparable to the Core Formation stage, he would be able to suppress the earth fiend qi. He never imagined that the corpse core not only failed to suppress it, but made it intensify. He had not lost his consciousness to the Heavenly Corpse Talisman, yet under the relentless corrosion of the earth fiend qi, his sanity began to suffer, gradually descending into madness. If this continued, he would soon lose his mind completely and become a walking corpse! The sudden turn of events instantly poured cold water over Wu Shang, jolting him awake. With little time left, Wu Shang tried every possible means to combat the earth fiend qi. Because his strength had skyrocketed after becoming a Flying Yaksha, many treasures that had previously been out of his reach could now be easily obtained. He took all manner of spirit pills, tried countless secret arts of both the righteous and demonic paths, switched to the righteous path's Shaoyang cultivation method, and refined the breath of earth fire into his body... Wu Shang tried countless methods, but they were either useless against the earth fiend qi or insufficiently strong to block its onslaught. In the end, Wu Shang suddenly thought of an object—a supreme Yang wonder that shared equal renown with earth fiend qi. Qiantian astral qi! Perhaps drawing Qiantian astral qi into his body could neutralize the earth fiend qi. Both earth fiend qi and Qiantian astral qi were world wonders born of the spiritual fortune of heaven and earth, one supreme Yin and the other supreme Yang, exceptionally violent. Ordinary cultivators dared not even approach them, let alone draw them into their bodies—much less harbor both. A single careless mistake would result in the body exploding to death. Wu Shang pondered agonizingly, and gradually, a way forward began to take shape; he felt there was great hope. However, Wu Shang's sanity was being eroded more and more severely by then. His days were numbered, leaving him no energy to search for Qiantian astral qi and make the attempt; he had to first find spiritual herbs to cleanse and temper his origin soul. And so, Wu Shang came to this place in search of the Night Orchid Lily. Pitiable and lamentable, Wu Shang was already at the end of his tether. His origin soul was almost completely corroded by the earth fiend qi, and his faint sanity could no longer hold out. Right here in this ice cave, his sanity collapsed, and he turned into a Flying Yaksha. In his dying moments of clarity, Wu Shang was filled with unwillingness. He could not bear for the results of his painstaking research to vanish silently into this desolate ice cave. In his final moments, he left a message on the ice wall and carved his name! No wonder the handwriting on the ice wall had grown increasingly messy; at that time, Wu Shang had been teetering on the brink of madness, holding on to the very end through sheer willpower. In the message, Wu Shang clearly expounded the secret method he had been unable to test personally, which he called—Congealing Fiend and Refining Astral Qi! And in the end, he poured out all his strength to plant an obsession within the Flying Yaksha's body. Precisely because this obsession existed, the Flying Yaksha stayed trapped here and, upon sensing the aura of the Heavenly Corpse Talisman in the living corpse, had stayed its lethal hand. "I hope that whichever junior of the Heavenly Corpse Sect sees this old man's message will carry it out of this place. "If you harbor lofty ambitions, you may attempt this old man's secret method to condense a corpse core. "Whether to remain trapped in Foundation Establishment and live out your days till old age, "or to wager everything, contest against heaven, dedicate yourself to the Corpse Dao to verify the Immortal Dao, and behold the scenery of the Golden Core... "The choice is yours to make."