A sword's cry, capable of shaking the nine heavens and resounding for a thousand miles, suppressed the myriad thunderclaps, becoming the sole sound between heaven and earth, quelling all defiance!
"Hoo…"
Letting out a long breath, Wu Tao's face revealed a hint of joy.
However, before he could relax for long, the surrounding spiritual energy began to surge into Wu Tao's body spontaneously and madly.
A spiritual energy vortex, immeasurably vast, covering a radius of thousands of miles, abruptly formed…
And within it, there were also some mysterious and unknown substances hidden.
…
After surviving the heavenly tribulation, there is bound to be good fortune.
As vast amounts of spiritual energy poured in, and mysterious substances integrated, a dazzling light suddenly shot out from the center of Wu Tao's forehead.
An infant, as if substantial, appeared in the sky, like the sun breaking through the clouds.
Gazing at the newly formed Nascent Soul, it appeared serene, as if in a deep slumber, its ordinary face even carrying a hint of sharpness!
Suddenly, a gust of breeze brushed past, touching the Nascent Soul, and its tightly closed eyes abruptly opened.
"It's done!"
A sigh, both affirmative and joyous, yet also containing a hint of bitterness.
"Return!"
The Nascent Soul, with a flash of golden light, merged back into Wu Tao's body.
At that instant, Wu Tao let out a long roar that echoed through heaven and earth.
Amidst the roar, the fierce winds abated, and the thunderclouds retreated. It was as if the dust had settled, the smoke and clouds dispersed, and a clear and vast sky returned.
Nascent Soul, formed!
…
Finally, a brilliant golden light emanated from Wu Tao's body, manifesting the Nascent Soul domain!
The thunderclouds scattered, the fierce winds retreated, and apart from the devastated landscape and scorched earth, it was as if nothing had ever happened.
Ethereal immortal music seemed to linger in the air, and colorful spiritual flowers rained down, a celestial celebration for passing the heavenly tribulation and achieving the Nascent Soul!
In this calm that followed what seemed like a storm, Wu Tao spread his arms, raising them into the wind, as if embracing this world.
It was only upon truly reaching the Nascent Soul realm that he distinctly felt the difference.
The sensation of being able to borrow the power of heaven and earth for his own use made Wu Tao extremely excited.
It was like a frog, that had always been confined to a well, suddenly leaping out to see the vast sky, the shock in its heart beyond words.
The path of cultivation and seeking the Dao is inherently a path of transcendence.
The human body is both the greatest reliance and the greatest restraint.
Where there is one benefit, there is also one drawback.
Upon reaching the Nascent Soul realm, one can slightly break free from this restraint.
Therefore, after reaching the Nascent Soul realm, when the spirit transforms into the Nascent Soul, one can slightly break free from the shackles of the physical body. It is precisely the shattering of the Golden Core to form the Nascent Soul.
It can be called the transformation of the Nascent Soul!
After more than two hundred years on the rugged immortal path, Wu Tao had finally taken this step, with the Great Dao now within reach.
An invisible fluctuation spread out from Wu Tao's body in all directions, almost naturally.
Within the range of this fluctuation, with a thought from Wu Tao, he could alter its form and control it at will.
The power of the Nascent Soul domain lies precisely here!
Within a thousand feet, heaven and earth were instantly transformed, the universe changing in the blink of an eye.
Those who reach the Nascent Soul realm can pierce through the heavens and earth, condense the power of heaven and earth, break through the changes of heaven and earth, comprehend the wonders of heaven and earth, and thus control heaven and earth!
This profound and unfathomable power of heaven and earth is absolutely beyond the comprehension of those below the Nascent Soul realm!
Nascent Soul cultivators can also condense the power of heaven and earth, control a space, and form their own world!
Therefore, in the hearts of ordinary cultivators, powerhouses who have reached the Nascent Soul realm are almost invincible existences, and can only be contended against by sheer numbers!
"Now is the time to avenge Elder Peng!"
Wu Tao took a step forward, as if moving through space, and in an instant, his figure became ethereal, a tiny black dot, disappearing into the distance.
Shu Commandery, Wei City!
Disguised, Wu Tao entered Wei City and after a few days of diligent investigation, he had a good grasp of the Fan family's strength!
However, Wu Tao couldn't openly attack the Fan family without reason. He needed to find an excuse, or rather, a pretext.
Because if he were to attack the Fan family openly and without restraint, all the major and minor families in Wei City would be filled with apprehension!
At that time, Wu Tao would face not just the Fan family, but all the families in Wei City.
After thinking for several days, Wu Tao finally came up with a good plan: to play the role of a lamb to the slaughter, pretending to be a plump target to lure the Fan family into making a move.
The next morning.
Using the illusionary arts of the Nightmare tribe, Wu Tao disguised himself as a middle-aged male cultivator in the late Foundation Establishment stage and wandered through the streets and alleys of Wei City.
As a major city in Shu Commandery, Wei City was undoubtedly very prosperous. Wu Tao's first target today was Wei City's finest artifact shop.
And behind this artifact shop was the Fan family!
Because he did not have a family crest on him, the shop assistants did not pay much attention to Wu Tao, who clearly looked like a rogue cultivator.
For a shop that was backed by the powerful Fan family, they did not need to pay much attention unless disciples from some famous major families came over.
Especially for cultivators dressed like Wu Tao, the shop assistants believed that despite their loud shouts, their storage pouches were empty of even a single spirit stone.
Therefore, the shop assistant who attended to Wu Tao casually took out a top-grade artifact that was not too bad and began his introduction.
The Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword was one of the top-grade artifacts most favored by the Fan family's artifact refining masters.
This was because this type of top-grade artifact consumed the least amount of materials and yielded the highest profit.
…
The Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword had a luxurious exterior and a swift flight speed. It was not suitable for cultivator combat, but it was suitable as a flying artifact.
The reason this Qi Refining stage shop assistant produced the Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword, which was unsuitable for combat, was partly to deceive Wu Tao, this rogue cultivator.
In his opinion, these rogue cultivators had never seen anything good.
Furthermore, just the reputation of their Fan family artifact refining shop alone was enough to sell even the worst top-grade artifact at a good price.
Wu Tao heard this and his expression showed a hint of disdain.
He picked up the Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword and after a gentle swing, his eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"Good heavens, this is a group of unscrupulous merchants…"
"With such thin material and such shoddy restrictions, wouldn't it be like sending oneself to one's death if used in combat?"
…
Although alchemy and artifact refining were different, some principles were still the same.
As a grandmaster of alchemy, Wu Tao could see the trickery at a glance.
…
"Hey, are you buying or not? The Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword is eight hundred spirit stones each. If you're not buying, please leave!"
Seeing Wu Tao holding the Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword and playing with it without any restraint, the shop assistant's face immediately turned gloomy!
Although this assistant was only at the Qi Refining stage, he was not afraid of ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators due to the powerful Fan family backing him!
"Trash, and eight hundred spirit stones each. Does this artifact refining shop not have any better artifacts?"
Wu Tao's face darkened. He took out a tattered old saber and slashed it fiercely. With a flash of saber light, the Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword was instantly cut in two!
…
"Bastard, you're causing trouble here…"
The shop assistant's eyes almost popped out seeing the broken Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword. The Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword was not lacking in hardness; how could it be cut in half by a mere broken saber?
He remembered that the last time, a rogue cultivator who was confident in his strength had struck the sword several times with his artifact, but had not managed to scratch it.
In the end, that rogue cultivator happily bought a Maple Leaf Green Steel Sword as a treasure.
"It seems there will be no gains, truly disappointing…"
"This renowned Fan family artifact refining shop seems to be all show and no substance…"
Wu Tao shook his head with a look of disappointment that was hard to conceal and prepared to walk out of the shop.
At this moment, a clear male voice rang out from behind.
"My lord, please wait a moment. Could I have a look at your ancient saber? The one that cut through Master Fan Zhou's work just now?"
"Ancient saber?"
Wu Tao's expression turned strange as he turned around and looked in the direction of the voice.
…
At another counter in the shop, a young man in the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, dressed in a grey thousand-year-old silkworm silk robe, looked at him earnestly.
Behind this young man stood two cultivators in the early stage of Core Formation, with a hint of arrogance in their demeanor.
This young man was quite handsome, and his eyes revealed a strong interest in the ancient saber!
…
"What the heck is this guy? Where did he come from?"
"Why didn't the owner of the shop come out, but instead this irrelevant fellow came trotting over!"
"I hate variables the most…"
Wu Tao frowned, looking at this group of people whose identities were clearly not simple.
…
Looking at the young man whose face was full of smiles, Wu Tao secretly guessed.
"He must be some pampered young master from a major family who has a peculiar hobby for artifacts. How troublesome."
"Indeed, there are all sorts of people in this world!"
…
Wu Tao was just about to try and fool this young man into leaving him alone.
Just as Wu Tao opened his mouth to say something, his peripheral vision caught sight of a figure.
And it was this figure that changed his mind.
Wu Tao provocatively said with a disdainful tone: "I'm sorry, that is a magical artifact for cultivators to use in battle…"
"It is not the vast amount of art pieces displayed here…"
"If my brother is interested in ornate art-like artifacts, there are already plenty of art pieces here, you don't need mine!"
…