Chapter Fourteen: Purification of the Marrow

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The Outer Realm can be regarded as a world of its own.

When the body's apertures are projected into the Outer Realm, they become the celestial firmament, and when his eyes are reflected there, they become the sun and moon.

Cultivating the Outer Realm is akin to returning from the acquired to the innate state; so long as the Outer Realm endures, the soul remains undying, the flesh eternal.

Previously, that woman shattered his physical body with a single finger; her power surged through his soul into the Outer Realm, causing it to crumble.

Fortunately, his Outer Realm was not near his body but hidden in an extremely secret place, protected by formations that constantly absorbed the essence of heaven and earth, severing space to repair the Outer Realm.

Yet now, within this palace, his Outer Realm was petrified along with his soul.

This was a calamity—one that sealed his vital force.

Within the Outer Realm, the flow of light ceased; this light was time.

Time froze, invaded his body, and so his vitality was sealed.

This was a spell concerning time.

He thought of that woman.

Three lifetimes of karma, three calamities!

He faced the great tribulation of time, feeling every particle of his body transforming, sensing his life being sealed away.

This sealing was reversible.

He looked around; in the palace, apart from the three living beings, he traced the stone sculptures back at least two thousand years.

They had been sealed for two millennia, yet their vitality remained as fresh as ever; they had been sealed so they could be awakened.

Ying Xiantian’s thoughts stirred; one thought arose, and myriad thoughts followed.

But in the next moment, he fixed his gaze upon Xu Zhong and You Sujue.

“He was fated to die young, yet someone wielded supreme power to alter his destiny, blur the workings of fate, and rewrite the heavenly mandate.” Ying Xiantian, skilled in divination and physiognomy, deduced the cause and effect: “My vital force resides within him.”

Then his entire soul compressed into a single inch of spiritual light, approaching Xu Zhong’s brow.

“Xiao Zhong…” You Sujue’s heart tightened.

Next, she saw Xu Zhong’s heavenly gate flicker with light, as did the crown of his head and jade pillow.

The portals appeared, the mud pill palace opened.

Ying Xiantian thus entered Xu Zhong’s mud pill palace.

Countless powers surged within.

Originally chaotic and deep, the mud pill now seemed as if a world had been forced inside, washing the primordial essence.

Then, before Xu Zhong’s eyes, a world unfolded.

Ying Xiantian connected to his Outer Realm within Xu Zhong’s mud pill palace, opened the gate to the world, and let the innate qi flood his flesh.

The innate qi flowed like a mighty river within the mud pill palace, traversing north, south, east, and west.

In that river, Xu Zhong suddenly saw three figures identical to himself.

“Are these… my three souls?”

With a glance, Xu Zhong comprehended everything.

“His soul is wounded; opening the gate to the world, he absorbs the innate qi from his Outer Realm to heal.”

“I too absorb his innate qi. Consider it rent!”

Ying Xiantian’s eyelid twitched; this was the mud pill palace, abode of the three souls and seven spirits, the source of consciousness. Any thought here was transparent.

Xu Zhong’s words were heard clearly by Ying Xiantian.

Ying Xiantian guided his Outer Realm’s innate qi into Xu Zhong’s mud pill palace.

Xu Zhong did not worry that Ying Xiantian might seize his body.

Without the concealment of his fate, he would eventually die in this palace, even if he had cultivated the Outer Realm.

In the outside world, his eyes gleamed as he pulled the anxious You Sujue into his arms.

“Hurry and cultivate; a great opportunity is at hand!”

You Sujue was half-convinced.

But in the next instant, she saw dense innate qi flow outward from Xu Zhong’s mud pill palace.

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This was the purest power.

The Dao plants sense spiritual qi; the Five Luminaries refine it; by guarding the One, one forms magical power. Upon reaching the Outer Realm, magical power transforms into innate qi, and now, only one step remains before refining qi into vital energy.

The dense innate qi made You Sujue exhilarated; she immediately sat cross-legged and began her cultivation.

Xu Zhong did likewise.

His Fire Luminary secret treasury absorbed the innate qi, radiating divine light and sweeping through the body’s apertures.

Indeed, innate qi is incomparable to spiritual pills or herbs.

In an instant, the abundant innate qi flooded his entire being; his pores opened, countless black smoke expelled from his body, followed by innate qi entering through his pores.

“You’re cultivating wrong!”

Ying Xiantian, bathing in the innate qi to heal, shed stone fragments that coalesced into a great abyss, madly devouring life. He seized this abyss and threw it out of Xu Zhong’s mud pill palace.

At this moment, he noticed Xu Zhong circulating his qi.

“The true use of the Fire Luminary secret treasury is to cleanse marrow and cut through the meridians.” Ying Xiantian instructed: “You’re currently merely cutting through meridians, expelling impurities from your apertures and channels.”

“But as you cut through, you must also cleanse the marrow!”

“What does it mean to cleanse the marrow?” Xu Zhong asked.

“You must break the qi apart and blend it into your blood; expel every impurity from your blood as well. When your qi and blood are strong, only then will your body be powerful. With a strong body, you can channel qi into the five organs, purify them, and finally pour it into your bone marrow.”

“In this way, your body will approach the innate state, prolonging your life.”

Xu Zhong’s eyes shone.

“The Five Luminaries are the foundation of cultivation; all realms and all techniques build upon them.”

“If you wish to go further, you must lay the most solid foundation at this realm.”

As Ying Xiantian spoke, Xu Zhong had already acted.

His mirrored heart manifested, reflecting his origin.

In a moment, every aperture in his body transformed into a miniature Xu Zhong, tirelessly cleaning the apertures and expelling filth.

Now, his blood began to pulse, like a river boiling intensely. Eventually, a bubble burst, and a tiny Xu Zhong struggled out from the torrent, jumping about in the Fire Luminary secret treasury formed by his heart, grabbing a strand of innate qi and stuffing it in his mouth, then being pushed out by the river.

With the first, soon came the second, third…

Until all his blood was completely transformed into countless miniatures of himself.

These tiny Xu Zhongs seized innate qi and transported it through the Five Luminaries’ channels to various locations.

A foul stench!

A terrible odor emanated from Xu Zhong.

Black sludge rolled over his skin, unbearably foul.

This was expelled from the blood vessels.

“His comprehension is impressive!” Ying Xiantian marveled. “He is of average talent, but his insight has elevated his aptitude to a high level.”

Then Ying Xiantian reconsidered: “Someone altered his fate, grafted their fortune onto him. His luck condenses like purple mist, transforming like a dragon.”

“Insight and fortune together bring him to the brink of genius—a true prodigy.”

Ying Xiantian glanced at the fox in his arms: “This little fox seems unusual.”

“Seems to carry the bloodline of Qingqiu; but how did Qingqiu blood come to the land of Yu?”

You Sujue’s demon core in her purple mansion greedily absorbed innate qi; the spiritual power from her bloodline grew stronger, driving her cultivation.

“But where did these two—a human and a demon—come from? Why have I never seen them?”

They bore no murderous intent and practiced the most orthodox Dao and demon arts.

Neither from the Demon Sect nor the Dao Alliance—perhaps wanderers.

Ying Xiantian bathed in innate qi.

His soul was nearly restored.

But he dared not restore his physical form.

The mud pill palace can store souls, but cannot contain living beings.

If he regained flesh, it would be as if a sun were forced into Xu Zhong’s mind—before entering, Xu Zhong would have evaporated.

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Ying Xiantian had no means to return through Xu Zhong’s mud pill palace to his Outer Realm, unless he chose self-destruction; only then could everything be replicated anew in the Outer Realm.

The Outer Realm is a world.

But even worlds wear down.

If the damage is too great and replenishment impossible, the Outer Realm collapses.

Unless faced with utter desperation, Ying Xiantian would never choose to die.

Now, the gloomy qi in Xu Zhong’s body’s apertures had been completely expelled.

Innate qi spiraled within.

Each little Xu Zhong rested on the innate qi, breathing as he did, falling into a dream.

Each aperture now seemed to become a dantian, absorbing innate qi.

Blood circulated through his whole body.

Black sludge formed into lumps, clinging to his skin.

Gradually, his clothes hardened like iron, soaked with black sludge; some even dripped onto You Sujue.

The innate qi spiraled, expelling every impurity from the blood.

His blood became flawless, pure, with a soul-like texture, brimming with rich spiritual power.

As it flowed, it murmured with sounds like ocean waves.

“My skull seems untempered. Perhaps…”

The thought arose, stirring the spiritual qi.

Ying Xiantian heard, hastily tried to stop him.

But he spoke too late.

Spiritual qi already spiraled in the skull.

Next instant, Xu Zhong’s head throbbed with pain, swelling as though about to split.

“Ugh!”

Xu Zhong spat a mouthful of blood.

His blood pooled on the ground, swirling with dense vitality, gleaming like blood jade, crystalline as amber.

“You truly have no regard for your life,” Ying Xiantian said from within the mud pill palace.

“You haven’t even reached the Guarding the One realm and dare to temper your skull. I’m not sure whether to call you brave or foolish.”

You Sujue was startled awake by the commotion, saw Xu Zhong pale and weak, and hurriedly fumbled for vials of medicine, feeding him water and pills. Seeing his color return, she was finally reassured.

Ying Xiantian closed the gate to the world; the innate qi vanished.

“To guard the One, you must preserve truth and eliminate falsehood,” Ying Xiantian said earnestly. “Eliminating falsehood means tempering the skull; only by expelling all stagnant filth and foul qi from the head can truth remain.”

“Only after reaching the Guarding the One realm and securing the ‘One’ should you attempt to temper the skull.”

Xu Zhong nodded.

His understanding of cultivation reached only the Five Luminaries realm—an insight, not true practice.

“You act recklessly; now that you have irrigated the five organs, it’s fine, but with your temperament, sooner or later you’ll come to harm while cleansing the marrow.”

“Cleansing the marrow requires utmost caution; if you err, your bones may be shattered by runaway spiritual qi in an instant, especially the spine. Once injured, it cannot be repaired, not even by those of great power.”

Xu Zhong remembered Ying Xiantian’s words.

After refining the medicine, he felt much better.

Just then, a loud crash echoed outside the door.

As if something heavy had fallen.

Then, footsteps sounded from outside, and the door was pushed open.