Chapter 202 – Bringing Out Cultivation, Void Return Great Perfection! (5k)

Seeing this, Su Xing let out a long breath of relief.

“As expected, my current strength should be at the Peak Legendary level…”

“And with a body-tempering cultivator’s physique along with my vital energy and Protective Hardened Qi… even against two Legendary-stage demon beasts, I have nothing to fear!”

After a pause, Su Xing shook his head slightly and said, “But if I wanted to face a Demon Emperor, I’m still more than a step behind…”

“Still, being able to raise my cultivation to Void Return Great Perfection this time is already extremely impressive!”

“Progress has to be made one step at a time…”

So Su Xing thought.

At the same time, Su Xing also figured out one thing — the monster that had previously devoured his divine soul did indeed belong to the demon race.

“Shaped like a monkey, agile in movement, yet only half a person’s height…”

“According to the information I obtained before, ordinary Legendary demon beasts are all extremely tall — the shorter ones are several hundred zhang, and the taller ones reach a thousand zhang!”

“But among the demon race, one that can be so small in stature yet so formidable in strength… it’s probably from a special race within the demon race!”

Su Xing already had his suspicions.

“At the very least, it comes from a royal clan among the demon race… perhaps even one of the Ten Great Imperial Clans!”

Of the demon race’s Ten Great Imperial Clans, the only one Su Xing currently knew of was the Shadow Tribe.

But now, he would have to add this monkey-shaped demon race to the list…

Su Xing took out paper and pen and began recording.

Ever since he started simulating, Su Xing had developed the habit of keeping records.

Writing down useful information obtained from each simulation would undoubtedly help Su Xing in the Real World going forward!

“Next, it’s time to select my Qi Refinement cultivation! Void Return Great Perfection!”

At the thought of the Void Return Great Perfection cultivation about to fall into his hands, Su Xing felt a faint surge of excitement and anticipation.

His gaze turned to the rewards from this simulation.

【Ready for Round Two】: Purple talent. Price: 1,000,000 energy.

【Twenty Years of Alchemy Experience】: After redemption, existing alchemy insights will increase by a small margin. Price: 2,000,000 energy.

【Void Return Stage, Grand Perfection cultivation】: Void Return Great Perfection cultivation. Spiritual power flows endlessly like a great river. Price: 400,000,000 energy.

【Protective Astral Aura (Perfection)】: The divine ability Protective Hardened Qi at Great Perfection. Your mastery of Protective Hardened Qi has reached the realm of transcendence. With sufficient comprehension, you may advance even further, reaching a level that not even the technique’s creator ever achieved. Price: 50,000,000 energy.

【Energy-Infused Exotic Metal Ore, 500 Cubic Meters】: Valued at 8,000,000,000 energy. Due to the large amount of impurities contained within, the value is halved.

Su Xing nodded slightly and murmured:

“500 cubic meters of exotic metal ore containing eight billion energy… meaning when converted to simulation energy, it’s worth 800 million… and after purification, 1.6 billion!”

At this thought, Su Xing couldn’t help but feel excited.

1.6 billion energy was definitely no small number for Su Xing.

“There’s nothing to agonize over with this simulation’s reward selection…”

“The obvious priority is Protective Hardened Qi and Void Return Great Perfection cultivation!”

“However, I don’t quite have enough simulation energy on hand — only a mere 230 million…”

Su Xing thought it over, then decided to convert all the remaining useless items in Old Dog Zong’s storage artifact into simulation energy.

With that, Su Xing’s energy jumped to nearly 700 million!

As for the remaining half of the treasures in Old Dog Zong’s storage artifact, Su Xing couldn’t touch those — after all, they were all things that would help with his cultivation.

Once he had enough energy, Su Xing murmured:

“I choose to redeem Void Return Great Perfection cultivation and Protective Hardened Qi at Perfection!”

As his words fell, the simulator’s notification sounded in Su Xing’s ears.

【You have successfully brought out Void Return Great Perfection cultivation. Cost: 400,000,000 energy. Remaining energy: 310,230,000.】

【You have successfully brought out the divine ability Protective Hardened Qi (Perfection). Cost: 50,000,000 energy. Remaining energy: 260,230,000.】

As the simulator notifications faded, two streams of mysterious power flowed into Su Xing’s body.

The first thing Su Xing felt was the stirring of spiritual power within him.

He quickly sat cross-legged and focused his mind.

Immediately after, the aura around Su Xing’s entire body began surging violently.

Void Return stage, Sixth Layer… Void Return stage, Seventh Layer… Void Return stage, Ninth Layer!

Finally — Void Return Great Perfection!

In just a few breaths’ time, the cultivation within Su Xing’s body broke through one barrier after another, as naturally as water flowing into a canal.

The spiritual power that had originally surged like a great river grew increasingly vast and boundless… already faintly taking the embryonic form of a sea of spiritual power.

Su Xing closed his eyes, continuously adjusting the aura throughout his body.

A quarter of an hour later, Su Xing finally rose slowly, taking in the changes to his strength following the explosive increase in cultivation.

With a thought, a mass of spiritual power appeared in Su Xing’s palm.

Su Xing continuously compressed the spiritual power in his hand, to the point where the air around him began to warp slightly.

This was none other than the divine ability Su Xing had comprehended on his own — Spirit Burst.

Under extreme spiritual power compression came extreme destructive force!

With a thought, the Spirit Burst in Su Xing’s palm slowly dissipated.

Using Spirit Burst to test the growth of spiritual power within his body was a solid method.

After carefully sensing for a while, Su Xing murmured:

“Compared to when I first entered Void Return Great Perfection, the total amount of spiritual power in my body has expanded at least four or five times over!”

“My magical power is much more potent… and the force behind my techniques has skyrocketed exponentially!”

Su Xing’s most lethal divine abilities were currently the Separation Fire Technique and Spirit Burst.

However, since Spirit Burst consumed too much spiritual power, Su Xing still relied on the Separation Fire Technique more often.

“Not bad… with my current spiritual power, if I were to unleash a single Spirit Burst, I could probably obliterate most of a city in an instant!”

“And if it hit a Legendary-stage powerhouse, even if they survived, they’d be left in tatters…”

This was still without Su Xing having done any further research or training on Spirit Burst.

If he were willing to study Spirit Burst further, combined with his earlier idea of using three types of spiritual energy, the power would undoubtedly be even more terrifying!

“Before I knew it, my cultivation has already reached Void Return Great Perfection!”

“Accordingly, I still have too few offensive techniques… I really should learn some more presentable divine abilities and techniques!”

With a thought, Su Xing decided to select one or two divine abilities from Old Dog Zong’s legacy to study and expand his repertoire.

And a trip to the Luotian Assembly dungeon was also necessary.

“With my current strength, if I can achieve the status of Sacred Son at the Luotian Assembly… I should be able to access Heaven-tier secret arts!”

Su Xing murmured.

Given the rate at which his strength was growing, even Earth-tier techniques would quickly become obsolete, so there was no need to invest great effort into learning them.

Unless they were Earth-tier secret arts with special utility.

After adapting to the increase in his cultivation realm, Su Xing began testing his Perfection-level Protective Hardened Qi!

With a thought from Su Xing, an invisible barrier of protection enveloped him.

After carefully sensing it for a while, he nodded and murmured:

“Compared to the Major Mastery level from before, the defensive power of this Protective Hardened Qi has improved by leaps and bounds… no wonder the heavenly thunder body tempering required Perfection-level Protective Hardened Qi…”

“Even an Emperor-level powerhouse would probably need two strikes… no, three strikes to break through this Protective Hardened Qi!”

“But… if it could be advanced even further, what heights could the Protective Hardened Qi reach?”

Su Xing felt a sense of anticipation.

After spending a bit more time adapting to the Protective Hardened Qi, Su Xing began disguising his appearance, concealing his aura, and shielding his fate from divination.

Su Xing was preparing to make a trip to the Baili estate.

“The Frozen Wonderland dungeon, exotic metal ore worth 1.6 billion energy… plus the Baili family’s gift of gratitude…”

“This trip will net me at least two billion! Compared to that kind of profit… taking a little risk is well worth it!”

Su Xing left the spirit field grotto-heaven, and once the sky began to darken, he prepared to head for the Baili estate in Guang Province.

He had specifically rehearsed this in a simulation beforehand, so the risk this time should be minimal.

As night fell, Su Xing stepped onto his flying sword, his figure concealed within the darkness, and flew toward the Baili estate.

With Minor Mastery in the Sword-Controlling Technique combined with his Void Return Great Perfection cultivation, Su Xing’s flying speed was several times faster than before.

From the Capital City to Guang Province — a distance of nearly twenty thousand li — Su Xing arrived above the Baili estate in just two to three hours.

It was the dead of night.

With a thought, Su Xing’s divine sense blanketed the entire Baili estate.

Sure enough, just as his earlier simulation had shown.

Of the three Martial Emperors that had originally been at the Baili estate, only two remained.

And there was no trace of Baili Tu’s aura within the estate either.

“As expected, Baili Tu must be trapped inside a dungeon right about now.”

Su Xing thought to himself.

He then casually set up a Concealment Formation and entered the Baili estate as if he were invisible. Arriving at Baili Qi’s room, he found Baili Qi slumped over a table with a miserable expression, drowning his sorrows in solitary drinking.

“Heh, Young Master Baili certainly knows how to enjoy himself… still drinking alone at a time like this?”

Su Xing stood behind Baili Qi and spoke without warning.

Baili Qi shuddered instantly and whipped his head around to look at Su Xing.

When he realized who it was, overwhelming joy flooded his face, and his eyes even glistened with tears.

“Senior… you, you’ve finally come!”

Baili Qi trembled with excitement and said, “My father, he…”

Su Xing furrowed his brows slightly and simply asked, “Tell me the details. What happened to the Baili family?”

Hearing this, Baili Qi sobered up considerably and nodded hastily.

“Senior, here’s what happened… My father later entered an advancement dungeon…”

Baili Qi recounted everything that had happened over the past few days in full detail, then hurriedly produced two storage rings.

Handing them to Su Xing, he said, “Senior, these are the dungeon items our Baili family has collected over the past two months…”

“As long as you can rescue my father, from now on, the Baili family will serve at your command!”

Su Xing nodded inwardly. Although Baili Qi had previously put on an act of filial devotion, when it truly mattered, he clearly cared deeply about his father.

But Su Xing didn’t rush to accept the storage rings. He simply said, “I’m already aware of the situation… Just give me the coordinates of the dungeon your father entered.”

“As for these dungeon items, it won’t be too late to discuss them after I bring him back!”

Baili Qi was overjoyed and immediately provided Su Xing with the dungeon coordinates.

This Frozen Wonderland dungeon was located in Guang Province, only a few hundred kilometers from the Baili estate.

After learning the coordinates, Su Xing took to sword flight, and in less than a quarter of an hour, he arrived outside the Frozen Wonderland dungeon.

The dungeon was nestled between mountain valleys. One glance told him it was a temporary dungeon — its location was well-hidden.

It likely hadn’t been open for long, and it seemed like it would close soon.

Su Xing didn’t hesitate and stepped directly through the air portal before him.

The moment he crossed the threshold, Su Xing’s vision shifted and warped.

Guang Province’s weather had been sweltering, but upon entering the dungeon, the surroundings were already a vast expanse of white snow. The air temperature plummeted from thirty or forty degrees to more than ten below zero.

Goose-feather snowflakes poured from the sky, and howling winds were strong enough to hurl roadside boulders into the air.

As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but a blanket of white snow, and visibility was severely impaired.

“As expected, this qualifies as a forbidden-level dungeon. The climate is this extreme… Just upon entering, it’s already more than ten below zero. Further in, it could reach extreme lows of over negative two hundred degrees!”

Su Xing sighed inwardly.

“Though this obstruction of visibility has absolutely no effect on me…”

With a thought, Su Xing spread his spiritual sense outward like a tide. Every presence within thirty thousand zhang — a hundred kilometers — was within his grasp.

“That aura is… the Martial Emperor powerhouse called Uncle Fu?”

In Su Xing’s perception, several tens of kilometers to his due north, there was an aura moving slowly. That had to be Uncle Fu.

Su Xing planned to follow the steps from the simulator and meet Uncle Fu first.

Protective Hardened Qi materialized three feet from Su Xing’s body, blocking out all the bitter cold.

Su Xing channeled his spiritual energy and transformed into a streak of light, shooting northward.

Before long, Su Xing arrived at Uncle Fu’s side.

Uncle Fu was in terrible condition. A dignified Martial Emperor powerhouse, yet his body was trembling slightly, and he bore several wounds.

Compared to the dungeon entrance, the temperature here was far more extreme — over a hundred degrees below zero!

The extreme cold, combined with heavy snow and gale-force winds obscuring visibility, was proving difficult even for a Martial Emperor like Uncle Fu to withstand.

Uncle Fu lifted his head with difficulty, glanced at Su Xing, and a glimmer of light flashed in his eyes.

“Senior, you…”

Su Xing descended slowly from the air, sustaining his Protective Hardened Qi.

The Protective Hardened Qi blocked all wind and snow. Within a three-zhang radius, the blizzard automatically retreated.

“I already know what’s going on. Leave the rest to me…”

Su Xing nodded calmly, every bit the image of a lofty senior expert.

Martial Emperor Uncle Fu’s heart surged with joy. He nearly dropped to his knees before Su Xing on the spot, tears streaming down his face.

“The master… the master can be saved!”

A dignified Martial Emperor powerhouse, yet Uncle Fu wept like a child — a testament to his unwavering loyalty.

Su Xing extended a finger and pointed in a direction.

“Follow that direction straight ahead, and you’ll be able to leave this dungeon before long.”

“As for Baili Tu — I’ll bring him back.”

Su Xing spoke with casual plainness, but Uncle Fu didn’t harbor a shred of doubt. He believed completely.

He was a Martial Emperor powerhouse, yet in this harsh environment he could barely maintain his stamina.

Su Xing, by contrast, showed not the slightest sign of being affected — even the surrounding wind and snow parted of their own accord.

The gap in their strength was self-evident.

In Uncle Fu’s eyes, if even someone as powerful as Su Xing couldn’t rescue Baili Tu, then Baili Tu was truly beyond saving.

“As you command! Thank you, Senior!”

Uncle Fu bowed to Su Xing with heartfelt sincerity, then set off toward the dungeon exit.

With Uncle Fu’s strength, leaving the dungeon safely wouldn’t be a problem.

After all, the deeper one ventured, the colder the air became. Closer to the entrance, conditions were much more manageable.

After Uncle Fu departed, Su Xing took to the air once more, his spiritual sense blanketing the snow plains within thirty thousand zhang like a radar scanner, sweeping for traces.

The Frozen Wonderland dungeon was truly massive — as large as an entire province.

But Su Xing’s spiritual sense had extraordinary range, his speed was fast, and he already knew from the simulation that Baili Tu was in a cavern beneath the snow plains. This gave his search clear direction.

In less than an hour, Su Xing detected Baili Tu’s faint aura deep within the snow plains, in an ice cave a thousand zhang underground.

“Mm, this should be the place…”

“Though the temperature here must be over two hundred degrees below zero… For snow bears to survive in such a harsh environment — quite impressive!”

Su Xing quickly located the entrance to the underground ice cave.

Before long, he reached the depths of the cavern.

A thousand zhang beneath the snow plains, there was actually a hidden world.

A flat, spacious underground cavern, with dried grass scattered around for warmth — clearly the snow bears’ lair.

Su Xing swept his spiritual sense across the area and quickly spotted Baili Tu, frozen solid into an ice sculpture, as well as a sizable exotic metal mining zone.

At the same time, several frenzied snow bears launched their attack on Su Xing.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Blue magic resembling a blizzard howled toward Su Xing.

But Su Xing neither dodged nor flinched. His Perfection-level Protective Hardened Qi held the ice and snow firmly at bay.

“Tsk tsk… I didn’t expect these snow bears to be magical creatures…”

Su Xing gave a slight nod, then held nothing back, launching his attack against the snow bears.

In just a few breaths, one Martial Emperor-level and three Heavenly King-stage snow bears were dispatched by Su Xing.

Su Xing glanced at the snow bear corpses and stored them in his spirit field grotto-heaven.

“The snow bears’ pelts should make excellent materials… And the bear paws can be steeped in wine. Can’t let any of this go to waste!”

Adhering to his principle of thrift and frugality, Su Xing wasted nothing.

With the enemies dealt with, Su Xing turned his attention to Baili Tu.

“Hmm, frozen into an ice sculpture… But the formidable vitality of a Heavenly King-stage powerhouse has kept him alive. He shouldn’t be in any immediate danger.”

Su Xing nodded slightly, then channeled his spiritual energy to melt the ice encasing Baili Tu.

But Baili Tu’s injuries were too severe. Even after the ice was thawed, he remained unconscious for the time being.

Seeing that Baili Tu’s life wasn’t in danger, Su Xing drew his Blackice sword and began mining the exotic metal ore in the ice cave.

Swish, swish, swish!

Elemental energy coated the Blackice sword as Su Xing sliced the exotic metal ore into hundreds of uniform cubes.

Su Xing stored all the mined exotic metal ore into his spirit field grotto-heaven.

After confirming nothing was left behind, Su Xing grabbed the unconscious Baili Tu and departed the Frozen Wonderland dungeon.

The moment he exited, Su Xing spotted Martial Emperor Uncle Fu, who had been waiting for some time.

When Uncle Fu saw Baili Tu, his eyes reddened with emotion. After confirming that Baili Tu was not in mortal danger, Uncle Fu dropped to his knees before Su Xing.

“Thank you, Senior, for saving our master. This immense kindness — our Baili family will surely repay it!”