The Truth

"The Nine Layers of the Golden Core." Yaoguang digested the information. Barring any unforeseen developments, his cultivation in the [Qi Path] from here on out would proceed along this trajectory. Compared to the existing Nine Layers of Qi Refining and the Five Stages of Foundation Establishment, this path was vastly more refined. While it might not elevate the ceiling of his combat prowess, in terms of practical application, it would put him an entire tier above the conventional realms. In other words, as long as he could successfully achieve Foundation Establishment, he would possess at least tier-five combat strength. The subsequent stages—Convergence and Core Formation—would make him even more formidable. "What's more..." Yaoguang weighed his options. "If my calculations are correct, once I reach the Fission tier, I will be capable of killing a Crimson Golden Core of the Cangwu Great World." Yes, killing. There would be no protracted struggle, no mere holding one's own, and no simple defeat. The only distinction would be whether he could kill them or not. Because... Prior to the Fission realm, he might not even survive a single blow from such an opponent. After reaching the Fission realm... As long as he could withstand a single blow, he would have myriad ways to utterly unravel the stability of their Golden Core, causing it to collapse and destroy them from within. At present, the only issue giving him a slight headache was... *If I don't follow the beaten track, most of the medicinal pills available on the market won't be able to aid my cultivation,* Yaoguang reflected inwardly. Yet this also gave him an idea. Remembering the Immortal Alliance's formidable monopoly over the medicinal pill market, if the Nine Cauldrons Sect wished to overtake them on the bend in the future, perhaps they could start by introducing a new cultivation system and a new system of medicinal pills. "Unfortunately... the new 'Qi Path' system doesn't mention medicinal pills either..." Ultimately, Yaoguang could only propose suggestions to Wu Qingying based on his specific requirements. He could only hope she would be able to develop pills capable of aiding his cultivation. Otherwise, his progress in the qi refining stage might drag him down even more than the Star God stage. As he pondered, he continued assimilating the knowledge of the Nine Layers of the Golden Core, pausing deliberately over one secret technique in particular. Immediately afterward, his attention shifted back to that heavily sealed Crimson Golden Core. "External Core!" he murmured. This secret technique was called the External Core Technique. True to its name, it allowed a cultivator to refine a Golden Core that did not belong to them for their own use, enabling them to wield its might and power much like a natal dharma treasure. "Refining an External Core is no simple matter, especially since this Crimson Golden Core has poor stability. However... my realm as a spirit cultivator is exceptionally high. Leveraging that advantage, it's not impossible to refine this Crimson Golden Core into an External Core." A sharp glint flashed across Yaoguang's eyes. His mind was made up. However, before formally cultivating the External Core, there was one matter he needed to discuss with Li Hanqiu first. With a shift of thought, Yaoguang projected his consciousness into a certain space within the Virtual Spirit Realm of the "Divine Kingdom." Once his figure manifested, the figures of Li Hanqiu and Li Qingshan appeared right behind him. Surprise was visible between both of their brows. "Yaoguang? Did you call us here for something? No need to be polite—feel free to speak your mind," Li Hanqiu said openheartedly. Beside him, Li Qingshan nodded as well. Now that Li Hanqiu had made his stance clear, there was no need for him to say more. "First, I must thank you both. Even though you knew I harbored many secrets, you still tolerated my unreasonable behavior," Yaoguang said, cupping his hands. Li Hanqiu and Li Qingshan exchanged a glance, vaguely sensing what this meant, a flicker of pleasant surprise rising in their hearts. "It is we who should be thanking you. If not for you, the Nine Cauldrons Sect would never enjoy its current glory," Li Qingshan said immediately. "As for secrets... everyone has them. Whether you choose to share them or not, we respect your choice." Yaoguang nodded. He pondered for a brief moment before saying, "My secret... you can understand it as having obtained an inheritance." Li Hanqiu nodded. "I figured as much. And that inheritance isn't from the Cangwu Great World, is it?" "Oh?" Yaoguang glanced at him. "Your improvements to formations, your concepts in artifact refining, and the design of the Zixiao-16 flying sword are wildly imaginative—so imaginative, in fact, that they don't resemble any style known within the Cangwu Great World. On top of that, you once encountered a squad from the Moon Demon Empire... so I guessed your inheritance was likely acquired from a member of that Moon Demon Empire squad." Li Hanqiu smiled faintly. "Of course, there could be other reasons. After the Moon Demon Empire was defeated, most of them were forced to flee back to their own world, while many who couldn't escape in time hid in neighboring affiliated worlds. Depending on their status, they all left a few things behind." Hearing this, Yaoguang did not object. Since Li Hanqiu had arrived at a plausible understanding, there was no need to explain in detail. Moreover, in a sense, Li Hanqiu wasn't wrong. Yaoguang had indeed obtained many inheritances; it was just that the method of obtaining them differed from what Li Hanqiu imagined. "Perfected Li, you mentioned earlier the division of the Nine Layers of Qi Refining and Nine Layers of the Golden Core from the 'North Sea battlefield.' Do you know any details about it?" Yaoguang asked. "A few," Li Hanqiu replied. He paused in thought for a good while before continuing, "Ah, well. Since we have free time today, I'll explain to you and Qingshan the details of the war against the Moon Demon Empire that was decided several decades ago." At these words, both Yaoguang and Li Qingshan perked up with rapt attention. Whenever the outcome of that war against the Moon Demon Empire was brought up, all the Golden Cores were evasive and vague. It wasn't difficult to see that the victory in that battle... Was far less simple than people imagined. "I did not personally accompany the top powerhouses who collapsed their Golden Cores into black holes during the counteroffensive into the Moon Demon Empire's homeworld, but I learned the specific details of the battle through intelligence reports sent back from the front line. And of those details, the most critical element was the North Sea Star battlefield." Speaking to this point, Li Hanqiu sighed with emotion. "Across this vast starry sky of ours, people have always spoken of the Three Thousand Great Worlds. But the phrase 'three thousand' is merely an idiom rather than an exact number; the true number of great worlds far exceeds that. And North Sea Star... is one of those 'Three Thousand Worlds,' akin to our Cangwu Great World!" "Another civilization?" Neither Yaoguang nor Li Qingshan found this surprising. How many stars were there in a single galaxy? Hundreds of billions. And how many affiliated worlds surrounded the Cangwu Great World? A mere one hundred and eight thousand. Therefore, the existence of worlds beyond the Cangwu Great World was only natural. Wasn't the Moon Demon Empire's home world distinct from the Cangwu Realm as well? Furthermore, some of the techniques Yaoguang had obtained previously, such as Heavenly Dao Formless and Heavenly Dao Alone, clearly did not follow the style and path of the Cangwu Great World. "When we were locked in war with the Moon Demon Empire, the empire's world was concurrently waging war against North Sea Star," Li Hanqiu said. "The reason we were able to iterate our cultivation methods so rapidly—pivoting abruptly from the Golden Core and Nascent Soul to the path of Fission, Fusion, Crimson Golden Core, and Radiant Sun Golden Core—was not purely due to the impact of the Moon Demon Empire's civilization. Rather, it came from inspiration drawn from North Sea Star's cultivation system. Their system shared a much higher similarity with ours, which allowed us to complete the transition in a mere few centuries, granting Golden Cores power rivaling the scorching suns in the heavens." "So, the Cangwu Great World's original cultivation system consisted of Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and Nascent Soul? Whereas North Sea Star had the Nine Layers of Qi Refining and the Nine Layers of the Golden Core?" "Correct." Li Hanqiu nodded. "Above the nine layers lies the Void Piercing Realm." At this, he sighed with feeling. "In truth, the cultivation system of our world wasn't bad either. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for so many people to forcibly collapse their cores into chaotic black holes within a few centuries of coming into contact with North Sea Star. It was merely constraints in our thinking, or perhaps flaws in our utilization of certain fundamental forces, that kept our cultivation system from achieving immense destructive power. Back then, even a Nascent Soul expert had to expend immense effort to destroy a single affiliated world." Yaoguang understood this point. It was much like modern people compared to the ancients. Having exposure to different things led to different ways of approaching reality. A person of peerless intellect in ancient times, if placed in modern society and given a little time to familiarize themselves with it, could still rise to the upper echelons. "To a certain extent, it was only after establishing contact with North Sea Star and receiving their assistance that we finally managed to defeat the Moon Demon Empire. Because of that, this matter was never publicized with fanfare... The figures standing at the pinnacle felt there was no glory in it. And after defeating the Moon Demon Empire, that group of Golden Cores, along with the leading Void Piercers, did not choose to return. Instead, they traveled to North Sea Star. On one hand, they wanted to study North Sea Star's more complete cultivation methods to resolve the flaws within their own bodies; on the other hand..." Li Hanqiu paused. "The Moon Demon Empire was merely defeated, not annihilated. They had to ensure that when the Moon Demon Empire made its comeback, they would possess sufficient strength to confront them, rather than relying on external aid like last time." "Everyone made that choice?" Yaoguang was somewhat surprised. "The Void Piercers made that choice. After all, warping space to return would have made their condition even more unstable... As for the Golden Cores... without the Void Piercers to warp space, they had no power to return on their own." Li Hanqiu added, "The so-called Centennial Agreement was essentially the final decree left by those Void Piercers and Golden Cores before their departure. Otherwise, how could all those standing at the world's peak have quietly abided by it?" Hearing this, Yaoguang couldn't help casting a sidelong glance at Li Hanqiu. *It seems you're precisely one of those who don't follow the rules very well.* "Ahem... Well, I've said all that needs to be said." Li Hanqiu spoke again, cutting straight to the heart of the matter. "Since you brought up the Nine Layers of Qi Refining and the Nine Layers of the Golden Core, does that mean you..." Yaoguang nodded, making no attempt to conceal it. "I have the relevant cultivation methods in my possession." "Complete ones?!" Li Hanqiu's eyes lit up. "Complete," Yaoguang replied. Then, after brief consideration, he added, "And the quality should be quite good." "Good! Good! Good!" Li Hanqiu gave a heavy nod. "Though our world's cultivation system has its merits, in this day and age, one must possess sufficient martial might to preserve our civilization's heritage... Qingshan, begin vigorously promoting this throughout the sect—" "Perfected Li, wait," Yaoguang interjected. "Promoting an entirely new set of methods must be done step by step. Otherwise, if everyone switches cultivation methods at once, the sect will inevitably be left vulnerable during the transition. If someone takes advantage of that weakness..." At these words, Li Hanqiu cooled down from his excitement. "I spoke rashly. Yes, this truly must be done progressively, and with great caution." Li Hanqiu thought for a moment. "I will select a cadre of talented, fiercely loyal disciples to practice the new methods. Judging by how smoothly many Core Formation cultivators previously transitioned to the Golden Core, the compatibility between our two worlds' methods is remarkably high. If they can successfully transition..." Joy gleamed in his eyes. "The Nine Cauldrons Sect's overall strength will experience a massive leap!" "Not only that, with these methods in hand, we will hold a tremendous moral and philosophical high ground. In the future..." Yaoguang smiled, voicing what many in the Nine Cauldrons Sect had never dared even dream: "With this inheritance, contending against the Wuji Astral Palace for the position of master of the Cangwu Great World will no longer be an idle fantasy."