Yuan’s Ascension

During the early soul levels, from the Yin Soul, the Settled Soul, to the Conscious Soul, the soul was relatively weak. At these levels, the soul would slowly gain strength, and the level of control one could muster gradually improved.

Once it reached the Soul Perception level, one's thought processing speed greatly increased, allowing one to multi-task and marking the true beginning of stepping onto the immortal path. The majority of Qi Sea cultivators and Golden Core cultivators were at this level.

At the Yang Soul level, one was capable of driving the great power of heaven and earth. The range of one’s Soul Force perception greatly expanded, and one gained the ability to possess weak creatures.

Generally, cultivators at the Amethyst Cradle phase could reach this level. When Wu Yuan first arrived at the immortal continent, he was capable of rapidly processing such a large quantity of information mainly due to his powerful soul.

Once the Yang Soul reached its perfected state, one reached the Soul Will level.

Quantitative changes led to qualitative changes.

Once the soul reaches the Soul Will level, one gains a significant increase in perception range. Wu Yuan thought. He felt his soul, which was originally only able to extend a thousand li in all directions, rapidly expanding to tens of thousands of li.

With a single thought, he could observe everything happening in a ten-thousand-li-radius! This was Soul Will.

Secondly, the clarity of perception has been enhanced.

He focused carefully. Besides the countless ever-changing scenes within ten thousand li, he could sense the operation of heaven and earth's power and the flow of spiritual qi. It was as if he was looking down on the world from a higher dimension, giving him a feeling of detachment.

Soul Will allows one’s perception to penetrate beyond the surface layer of sensation into the deeper layers, pointing directly to the source. With this, most arrays or concealment methods will be useless against me. Wu Yuan understood this.

Just as how controlling heaven and earth's power allowed one to distort light, rendering one invisible to the naked eye, arrays operated based on the profundities of heaven and earth, preventing one’s Soul Force from penetrating the boundary of the array and perceiving what was inside.

If there was a shield, there would also be a spear.

Under the scrutiny of Soul Will, ordinary concealment methods were all useless. Those who reached this soul level could easily perceive a person's specific mana cultivation level, age, and soul level.

Take Old Yu, Zhuo Haiyue’s bodyguard. Why was he able to see through some of Wu Yuan’s secrets? It was because of Soul Will.

All in all, Soul Will was an ultra-enhanced version of the Yang Soul. Though fundamentally unchanged in every aspect, it was an overall upgrade.

Many Void Refiner and Elysian Field cultivators are only able to develop Soul Will some time after breaking through. My qi refiner self is still at the Golden Core phase, yet it has already reached this level.

Wu Yuan found it all somewhat surreal.

Strengthening the soul was not easy, yet it was of utmost importance. The soul was especially fundamental to the strength of a qi refiner.

The advancement of the soul generally relied on nourishment by the qi sea or the soul chamber, aided by Dao comprehension.

Of course, there were also external treasures that could enhance it. However, at higher soul levels, treasures capable of strengthening the soul became increasingly scarce and precious, and had many limitations to their usage.

The Dragonsoul Crystal Bead was very valuable, but it typically only improved the soul to the peak of the Yang Soul level.

Breaking through from Yang Soul to the Soul Will level? If one relied solely on the Dragonsoul Crystal Bead, the possibility was low.

The black pagoda truly is an inconceivable treasure. Wu Yuan mused inwardly.

Over the past ten years or so, the rapid enhancements of his qi refiner self's soul could be attributed to the continuous progress he made in cultivation, insights into the Dao, and the strength of his immortal root. But the main reason was his daily Visualization of the black pagoda.

Similar Soul Visualization techniques existed within the Dragon Star Immortal Sect and were practiced by ordinary disciples. However, those legendary Soul Visualization teachings created by Archimmortals were less than a tenth as effective as the black pagoda.

The intangible influence of the black pagoda magnified the effect of the Dragonsoul Crystal Bead several times at least, allowing me to reach the Soul Will level in one push. Wu Yuan concluded after some contemplation.

The black pagoda had three main functions. The first was to enhance his cultivation. By killing enemies of similar strength, it would produce blood-red mist, but Wu Yuan had not used this function for a long time now. His body refiner self could not find that many strong opponents, and his qi refiner self didn't need it.

This is the disadvantage of joining a sect. My lifestyle appears unfettered, but the abbot and my master are probably watching me in secret. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly. Even if they are doing so out of good intentions, it also limits my actions.

All strength was derived from a source. By consuming spiritual qi within ethercrystal and divine crystal for cultivation, Wu Yuan could go from the first-stage Golden Core phase to the ninth stage in just ten or twenty years.

If he tapped into the blood mist function as well, he might be able to shorten this time period, but it would easily attract the curiosity and scrutiny of the senior members of the sect.

Before he fully understood the origin of the black pagoda, Wu Yuan dared not reveal its existence.

Of course, his current cultivation progression was already rapid. Faster? The effect wouldn't be as significant, given that his qi refiner self's soul was already unimaginably strong.

The second function of the black pagoda was to strengthen the soul. From Wu Yuan's understanding, this was the greatest function of the black pagoda. The soul played a crucial role in his incredible Dao comprehension speed.

The third function was to defend his soul.

However, sufficient blood mist is needed to activate the soul defense function. I'm still in the sect, so there's no rush. Wu Yuan deliberated.

When the Moonsilver Tournament ended and he stepped into the Amethyst Cradle phase, he would temper himself through life-or-death trials. At that time, he would fully utilize the black pagoda’s three major functions.

Soul Will. With a mental command, a dense swarm of flying swords appeared in the meditation chamber, filling the vast space in the blink of an eye.

Whoosh~ A total of 2187 fourth-grade flying swords swiftly assembled into three Thousand Swords Arrays, even without the infusion of mana.

It’s much easier than before. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly. The power of my attacks has increased by about thirty percent.

Thirty percent wasn't much. When the soul reached the level of Soul Will, the enhancement in pure power wasn't much, far less than when one advanced to the Yang Soul level.

The power of the artifacts themselves constituted a greater component to overall attack power. The stronger the artifacts, the stronger the output.

However, the duration that I can maintain my sword array has increased. A smile tugged at the corners of Wu Yuan's mouth. If employing three Thousand Swords Arrays was previously my ultimate move that should not be executed lightly, it is now simply a regular technique. I can now withstand the mental exhaustion from keeping the burst state active while battling opponents for far longer.

From Wu Yuan's estimation, even if over two thousand fourth-grade spirit flying swords were all upgraded to the third grade, he could still sustain the array, albeit barely.

It was terrifyingly powerful!

If I encounter Hao Shanjing again, it won’t take much to defeat him. Wu Yuan concluded. Taking first place in the Moonsilver Tournament probably wouldn't be hard either.

With my soul at this level, I might even be able to clear level sixty of the one-star tower.

But after a brief moment of reflection, Wu Yuan decided that there was no need to show off.

His soul talent was strong, but a Golden Core cultivator developing Soul Will? This was not something the Dragonsoul Crystal Bead could explain; it ran contrary to common sense. Once exposed, it might result in unforeseen problems.

There's no rush. I’ll wait until my Dao Comprehension reaches a higher level, then challenge level sixty of the one-star tower. It won’t be too late then. Wu Yuan decided.

It wouldn’t be wise for him to casually expose the fact that he had reached the Soul Will level. At most, he would let his master know. Knowing that Wu Yuan had both the Dragonsoul Crystal Bead and a body refiner self, his master might ‘deduce’ some plausible explanations without too much skepticism.

The biggest benefit of my soul’s level-up is my speed of Dao comprehension. Wu Yuan realized as he perceived the ‘green’ heaven and earth's power.

It was at least five times clearer than it had been in the past! That was the advantage of a strong soul.

Many Amethyst Cradle cultivators cultivated for hundreds of years at the Golden Core phase, yet failed to grasp the True Intent of a Dao. Yet they were able to achieve it after advancing to the Amethyst Cradle phase.

Why? Because their souls had grown stronger.

By the same logic, as one progressed in their comprehension of each Dao, reaching the True Intent stage and even Dao Field stage, the difficulty of making breakthroughs increased exponentially.

Take for example the Land Dao. If one were to state that advancing from the first to second level of the Domain stage was a challenge with a difficulty rating of one, then progressing from the first to the second level of the True Intent stage had a difficulty rating of one thousand

As for advancing from the first to second level of the Dao Field stage, the difficulty rating would skyrocket to one million.

Yet, some peerless geniuses were able to achieve breakthroughs in a span of thousands to tens of thousands of years.

Why? This was because as they progressed through the cultivation phases, and their souls grew stronger, their overall Dao comprehension aptitude also improved, accelerating their Dao comprehension progress at the later phases.

Of course, even someone with the best Dao comprehension aptitude would eventually hit a bottleneck, especially when breaking through to the next stage. Besides innate talent, one also needed the right opportunities and a dose of good luck.

Bottlenecks are something I’ll only have to consider in the future. At least, the efficiency of my qi refiner self’s comprehension of the Wood Dao should reach one-third that of my body refiner self’s comprehension of the Earth Dao. Wu Yuan thought eagerly.

In the past, it didn’t even reach one-tenth. After all, his mind-boggling comprehension speed of the Earth Dao was not only due to the aptitude of his body refiner self but also the guidance of the Celestial Body Law Codex and his master’s pointers.

But now, with a breakthrough in his soul level, Wu Yuan’s Wood Dao comprehension efficiency immediately soared more than tenfold.

In six years at most, and one at least, I should be able to reach the initiate threshold of the Extended Life Sword Codex. Wu Yuan composed himself.

If this news were to get out, it would surely astonish countless people. Once he reached the initiate threshold of the Extended Life Sword Codex, it meant that Wu Yuan had grasped the basics of the Longevity Dao.

A Golden Core cultivator that could step through the threshold of an Intermediate Law was already a top-tier genius in the entire immortal nation.

To comprehend two Intermediate Laws at the same time, and make rapid progress in both?

Even Wu Yuan scarcely dared to imagine it.

At least, in terms of my rate of improvement, I should be able to give Zhuo Haiyue a run for her money. Perhaps, I could try clearing level seventy of the one-star tower. A sense of yearning took root in Wu Yuan’s chest.

After his soul metamorphosed, Wu Yuan felt that he had hope of conquering level seventy of the one-star tower before turning a hundred. Otherwise, his chances were slim to non-existent.

With a stronger soul, my practice of Sword Soul Sourcelight will also get more efficient. Given enough time, I can definitely hope to advance to the fourth source realm or even the fifth source realm. Wu Yuan revealed a smile.

I’ll also be able to cultivate another offensive-type soul secret art. When the time comes to face off against these Golden Core cultivators or even Amethyst Cradle cultivators, I might be able to kill them with a single thought. Wu Yuan was aware of some particularly powerful soul secret arts.

Of course, killing an Amethyst Cradle cultivator with a single thought was no easy feat.

There’s no rush. On the path of cultivation, one should aim high but remain grounded. Comprehending the Dao is the key. It won’t be too late to practice other secret arts after grasping the Longevity Dao.

Wu Yuan stilled his mind and began to wholeheartedly study the Extended Life Sword Codex.

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