In the cultivation world, individuals usually resort to the path of corpse liberation and ascension only when they are unable to protect themselves. Those who have some foresight often try to seek rebirth and continue cultivation after the liberation of the corpse, rather than opting for the path of a scattered immortal.
Those who pursue the path of corpse liberation typically do so only when they have no other options or when they have truly reached a dead end in their cultivation.
To ascend and become an immortal means reaching the pinnacle of cultivation, transcending the stage of refining spirit to return to emptiness. “Returning to emptiness” means that the immortal infant has matured, the body has transformed into pure yang energy, and there is no longer any physical constraint. As ancient sayings go, “beyond the three realms, untouched by the five elements.”
At this level of cultivation, one is no longer bound by a physical form, and the body can move as the will desires, with magical abilities manifesting at one’s thoughts. Thus, at the immortal stage, one’s powers are incomparable to those of ordinary cultivators who rely on the infant to channel true energy.
A scattered immortal, on the other hand, involves attaching one’s yuan-shen to a unique material after corpse liberation, shaping it into a form somewhat akin to the pure yang body of a true immortal.
Because the scattered immortal’s form is anchored to rare and precious materials, it is no longer constrained by a physical body, and its yuan-shen is free and unfettered, allowing it to traverse the void and wield greatly enhanced powers. However, a scattered immortal is not a true immortal achieved through cultivation but rather one dependent on external objects, thus naturally inferior to a genuine immortal body. Additionally, since the scattered immortal is an artificially created immortal form, forcefully elevating one’s cultivation at the time, it usually results in a stagnation of future progress.
The most famous scattered immortal was Nezha, the Third Prince, from the ancient Battle of Investiture of the Gods. Nezha, after falling out with his father, Li Jing, removed his bones and tendons to return his father’s essence and mother’s blood, thereby achieving corpse liberation. Later, his master, Taiyi Zhenren, reconstructed his body using lotus flowers, allowing Nezha to become a scattered immortal. Although the reconstructed lotus body was a supreme treasure of the immortals, and Nezha was bestowed with multiple magical treasures by his master, appearing powerful and formidable, his actual cultivation level was still a notch below that of Yang Jian and others.
Therefore, such scattered immortals are mainly capable of overpowering cultivators who have not yet reached the Foundation Building stage or below. If they encounter true immortals, unless they are freakishly powerful like Nezha, most would stand little chance in battle.
However, compared to cultivators at the Zhenren stage, the scattered immortal’s power is significantly higher. In Zhang Liusun’s current state, he should not even have a physical form, yet Mei Qing could sense the childlike body. It was merely a temporary vessel, offering no real advantage in battle and instead proving to be a hindrance. Zhang Liusun’s true strength had clearly declined compared to when his body was intact. How could he face someone like Xu Fu, a scattered immortal, with such confidence?
As Mei Qing pondered these thoughts, he suddenly heard Zhang Liusun chuckling in his ear, “No need to worry about that. Although I’ve lost my physical body now, I have gone through heavenly tribulations. In a way, I could be considered an immortal, but I forcibly suppressed my cultivation level to focus on rebuilding my physical form. While I may not be a true immortal, I’m certainly no ordinary Zhenren. Besides, while scattered immortals might boast their strength against other sects’ cultivators, they’re in trouble when facing those who have practiced the Divine Thunder Technique of the Shenzhao Sect.”
As Mei Qing was still contemplating Zhang Liusun’s words about “those who have practiced the Divine Thunder Technique,” Xu Fu, provoked by Zhang’s mockery, had already become furious, roaring, “You’re still wet behind the ears and dare to speak so arrogantly! Just watch my skills!”
Mei Qing hesitated, for according to history, Zhang Liusun had achieved cultivation during the Yuan Dynasty and could be considered a senior cultivator. However, compared to Xu Fu, Zhang was indeed a junior. Thus, Xu Fu’s remark about him being “wet behind the ears” wasn’t entirely baseless.
As soon as Xu Fu’s voice faded, the waves near the ship suddenly surged upward, forming massive layers of towering waves. The white foam looked like blooming pear blossoms, creating a striking contrast against the dark evening sky and adding to the awe-inspiring spectacle.
Then Xu Fu roared, “Supreme Nine Spirits, Three Primordial Essences, attack!” The layers of foam surged even more violently, splashing water droplets into the air. Gradually, in midair, the water coalesced into the head of a colossal beast resembling a mountain.
The beast’s head was hideous, with wrinkled skin layered on its head. Its two enormous eyes glowed like lightning, and its nose was nowhere to be seen. Below was a gaping blood-red mouth, with protruding fangs and long, inverted whiskers. Its skin, formed from seawater, had a strange glass-like sheen, beneath which swirled dark currents that rippled with each movement of its head and mouth.
The monstrous beast raised its head and let out a deafening roar, akin to the simultaneous bellowing of tens of thousands of wild oxen. The surrounding sea churned violently, and fierce winds swept across the top of Jieshi Mountain, sharp as blades, striking against the protective barrier Zhang Liusun had erected around Jieshi. The barrier rippled outward in concentric circles.
Upon realizing its sonic attack had been effortlessly blocked by Zhang Liusun, the beast’s enormous eyes flared with intense light. Its long whiskers thrashed wildly in the air, and it roared furiously. Then, with a sudden surge, the sea behind it rose like a mountain. With a terrifying sound akin to the sky collapsing and the earth cracking, it opened its enormous mouth and lunged straight toward the summit of Jieshi.
Even before the beast’s head arrived, violent winds whipped up from all around it, sending seawater flying in a frenzy. The resulting mist, set against the dark background, added to the spectacle. Looking up from where Mei Qing stood, the massive beast’s head nearly blocked half the sky, descending like a mountain and causing one’s heart to pound with fear.
“Empty showmanship, mere waste of effort!” Zhang Liusun coldly snorted. “Watch how I destroy it!”
As Zhang Liusun snorted, a small patch of black suddenly appeared before the beast’s head.
From afar, this patch of blackness looked like a small disk. However, Mei Qing, having recently learned about the Five Elements Sphere technique from Zhang Liusun, immediately recognized the similarity in methods. He realized that this was a small space forcibly created within the Five Elements. Although the elements were separated, their balance wasn’t destroyed. Instead, within a certain area, the Five Elements were spinning at an extremely high speed.
Upon seeing this, Mei Qing immediately understood Zhang Liusun’s intentions and couldn’t help but admire his ingenuity. This technique consumed very little true energy, and maintaining it required only a small amount of energy to keep it spinning. Yet the precision and cleverness of the method left Mei Qing in awe.
In front of the enormous beast’s head, this tiny black spot was smaller than a grain of sand. Watching this small black spot rushing toward the beast’s head, one would hardly notice unless paying close attention. However, the moment this tiny black spot touched the lower part of the beast’s head, something strange occurred.
It was similar to what Mei Qing had experienced when he faced the Three Talents and Five Elements Formation of Xi Nu. As soon as the Five Elements Sphere touched the water beast’s head, Mei Qing felt Zhang Liusun subtly draw out a tiny bit of water essence from the Five Elements.
Although only a small amount was drawn out, it immediately disrupted the balance among the Five Elements. As the Five Elements Sphere spun like lightning and wind, the moment a void appeared inside, it immediately drew in a bit of water essence from the outside to replenish itself.
Then, Zhang Liusun controlled it very well, drawing out a bit more water essence each time the sphere completed a rotation. With just this slight manipulation, the Five Elements Sphere began spinning faster and faster, drawing in more and more water essence from the outside, causing the black sphere to grow larger and larger.
In the blink of an eye, this rapidly spinning Five Elements Sphere expanded to several zhang in size. Its surface shimmered with water light, waves flying, yet inside it was pitch black, with only occasional faint glimmers flashing like thin threads, flickering on and off.
Only then did the beast realize something was wrong. Its expression turned furious, and it let out a roar, forcibly halting its downward lunge and retreating repeatedly. The sudden stop sent water splashing everywhere, creating a storm-like chaos across the sky.
However, the Five Elements Sphere followed the water’s flow, instantly sticking to the beast’s chaotic whiskers, spinning a few times, and already devouring half of the beast’s long whiskers.
The beast roared in fury, shaking violently, sending water flying in all directions, rising straight into the clouds, creating a cacophony of crashing waves. No matter how it struggled, it couldn’t shake off the Five Elements Sphere, which clung to it like a leech. As it continued to devour the water beast’s head, the beast’s giant mouth was already half gone.
“You dare!” Seeing the dire situation, Xu Fu suddenly let out a furious roar, rising from the top of the black ship in the distance. With a sweep of his large sleeve, he sent a water arrow flying past the battling Five Elements Sphere and the beast, directly aiming at Jieshi Mountain.
As soon as this water arrow was released, it carried a chilling gust that not only failed to stir the sea’s surface but instead suppressed all the flying water droplets and waves around it, making them calm.
In the midst of the chaotic battlefield filled with flying water droplets, this water arrow was like a force that tore through heaven and earth. Wherever it passed, it forcibly carved out a path of absolute calm, silently speeding forward.
At the tip of the arrow, a faint glow was barely visible. It wasn’t dazzlingly bright, but as soon as Mei Qing saw it, he couldn’t help but gasp in alarm.
This water arrow was purely formed from true energy, naturally a concentration of water essence. However, Xu Fu’s cultivation had reached an unbelievable level, his manipulation of the Five Elements already bordering on effortless mastery.
Water and fire are naturally antagonistic, but when pushed to extremes, they can counteract each other. Thus, under Xu Fu’s immense power, the sharp tip of the arrow was almost at the point of counteracting the fire element. It was almost certain that even if Zhang Liusun had set up a protective barrier around Jieshi Mountain, it would be hard to withstand such a powerful strike.
Under such a powerful attack, the massive Jieshi Mountain could not possibly dodge. Mei Qing couldn’t think of any way to deal with Xu Fu’s strike other than a direct confrontation.
Seeing the overwhelming force, Zhang Liusun couldn’t help but let out a hearty laugh and shouted, “What a great move!” Then, the previously spinning Five Elements Sphere suddenly elongated, a sharp tip protruding from one side. Like a silkworm spinning silk, a long black line curled sideways and attached itself to Xu Fu’s water arrow.
Seeing this, Xu Fu couldn’t help but laugh loudly, saying, “Boy! With such a tiny force, do you really think you can break my technique? It’s like an ant trying to shake a tree—utterly ridiculous!”
However, what happened next immediately shut the mouth of this corpse-liberated immortal.
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