Chapter 106
Translator: penny
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Star Formation Secret Realm (2)
Dark River Starry Fish.
In simple terms, it was a fish that resembled a demon from the starry sky.
Its appearance blended so perfectly with the night sky full of stars that even I, knowing it was there, couldn't spot it no matter how hard I stared or poured my divine sense into the search.
At this point, was it camouflage or some kind of concealment divine ability?
It hid its presence thoroughly, sending out high-quality, vibrant bait in the form of constellation spirit beasts to lure in cultivators.
Because the monster's prey was the 'spiritual roots' possessed by cultivators.
A cultivator's spiritual root. The golden core of the Core Formation Realm. The nascent soul of the Nascent Soul Realm.
The inner dan of spirit beasts and yokai.
The creature fed on what could be called the core of existence. It wasn't just eating to grow stronger—it could only consume those things.
Plop, plop.
Even now, the Nascent Soul Realm cultivators it had just eaten were spat out, their nascent souls devoured.
The five Nascent Soul Realm cultivators falling from the starry sky were alive and intact otherwise, but without their nascent souls, they were no longer cultivators.
The precious spiritual roots they had nurtured from the Refining Qi Realm, formed into golden cores, and grown into nascent souls had vanished in an instant.
"The escape art...! The escape art won't activate!"
"Uaaah! I can't feel my spiritual power!"
"What the hell...!!"
I flew toward the screaming Nascent Soul Realm cultivators and deployed a Cloud Escape Art.
Spreading it wide to form a massive cloud, I caught the Nascent Soul Realm cultivators and set them down on the ground before taking their storage pouches.
"This is payment for your lives."
"W-Wait...! What just happened to us?!"
"No! My storage pouch!"
I pulled out moonstones and spirit stones from their storage pouches and handed them back.
"You had your nascent souls eaten by the Dark River Starry Fish. You're no longer cultivators—you're mortals now."
"What... what...!"
"You probably won't last long. Having lived beyond your allotted mortal lifespan with a mortal body, the Longevity Tribulation will come for you."
The cultivation world had heavenly resources and earthly treasures for extending life.
Those that increased lifespan granted more time for cultivation, relatively boosting the chances of breakthroughs.
Yet why did so many cultivators avoid extending their lives and desperately strive for breakthroughs within their natural span?
Because living beyond one's allotted lifespan invited the Longevity Tribulation simply for outliving one's time.
"The Longevity Tribulation...!"
"N-No! How are we supposed to survive a Nascent Soul Longevity Tribulation with mortal lifespans...!"
"Uaaah! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!"
"Please! Please save us! Please!"
I ignored the Nascent Soul Realm cultivators clinging to me and begging as I pursued the Dark River Starry Fish. Their curses and pleas echoed behind me, but I paid them no mind.
"Their storage pouches are pretty damaged."
"It probably mistook the inner dans inside and smashed them trying to eat them."
"Yeah. It crushed the pouches entirely, so most of the contents are wrecked. No pills at all?"
"Must've mistaken the inner dans for something else."
"I see..."
I rummaged through all five storage pouches, salvaging what I could. Unfortunately, almost nothing was intact.
"Tch. Shouldn't have bothered."
The haul was so meager it drew a sigh, but one of them must have been wealthy—he had a good stash of high-grade spirit stones.
As I thought that, the Dark River Starry Fish's bait suddenly halted in place. Wondering what was happening, I watched as it whipped around and charged straight at me!
"Damn! It spotted me?"
"You were circling too close."
This spirit beast effortlessly devoured five Nascent Soul Realm cultivators. Even the bait it used to lure prey was terrifyingly fast and powerful, forcing me into a defensive stance.
Boom!!
As the dragon brushed past me, my Sevenfold Veil Bell shattered in an instant, but I was already shielded by the Protective Divine Light, so I ignored the follow-up impact and pointed at the dragon constellation.
'Double Harmony Flying Sword Flash.'
Pouring real power into the Double Harmony Art to unleash a Flying Sword Flash, a slash twice the size of the dragon constellation erupted and engulfed it.
Kabooom!!
The higher the great realm, the wider the gap from the previous stage.
In truth, back when I was at the same level, even with Double Harmony Art, I could barely fight early Nascent Soul Realm cultivators.
But as my spiritual power's purity rose too high, forcibly sealing the Double Harmony Art, I worked to refine my unitary spiritual power's purity while constantly honing my spells.
Through endless practice, I boosted the spells' base power enough to strip any peer's defenses in three casts and fell them. My unitary spiritual power's purity enhanced the spells' inherent might, and incorporating the Sun-Moon Star Formation Great Harmony Scripture and Saran's insights into the Double Harmony Art improved it further.
The result? The Double Harmony Art I unleashed after so long far exceeded my expectations.
"Heh. Who'd believe the master is just a Core Formation Realm cultivator?"
The casual Flying Sword Flash I fired was so potent even Saran marveled, and I chained them relentlessly before unleashing five in a row at once.
'Higher spiritual power purity lets me cast spells with less energy.'
Thanks to that, even spamming spells like this barely drained my reserves.
I hurled five Flying Sword Flashes simultaneously at the tattered dragon constellation swarm, which fled desperately—far more frantically than when dodging the five Nascent Soul Realm cultivators earlier. Its speed despite near-total destruction proved it wasn't a real creature.
"A Dark River Starry Fish takes centuries to regenerate once its bait vanishes. A dragon bait might take over a millennium."
"That's why it's desperately protecting the bait."
"Yes. The main body is powerful but incredibly sluggish. It claims a territory at birth and rarely leaves."
What a peculiar creature.
Nearly immobile itself, it left fighting and hunting entirely to its bait.
"What we need is the organ inside the Dark River Starry Fish's skull that creates the dragon bait. It's adjacent to the brain, called the Star Birth Brain Palace."
"I know. We have to crack open its head somehow and find it."
"Exactly. The dragon-form Star Birth Brain Palace brims with endless dragon and star qi, making it the core ingredient for refining the Enlightenment Six Paths Dragon Pellet."
I chased the wounded dragon constellation with Cloud Escape Art flight, arriving at a similar altitude to where the Nascent Soul Realm cultivators were devoured. I immediately spread the clouds of my Roaring Dragon Tempest Armor in all directions.
As expected, the Dark River Starry Fish opened its maw to suck me in, but I blended into the widespread Roaring Dragon Tempest Armor clouds and instantly widened the distance.
Out of the Dark River Starry Fish's attack range, I fired spells toward its presumed head, starting from the mouth, as Saran had taught.
"Flying Sword Piercing Flash."
Layered Flying Sword Flashes merged into a single razor-sharp beam that assailed the Dark River Starry Fish.
The Blazing Sword Piercing from Gong Ga-jin was a sword path divine ability requiring sword talent, meant for Pyong Yu-ran, but no reason to waste it—I extracted its insights and fused them with Flying Sword Flash.
The result: Flying Sword Piercing Flash, a new spell whose power scaled with layering.
Krunch!
"...!"
Yet my Flying Sword Piercing Flash, infused with divine ability insights, barely pierced the tip.
"Damn. That's all it can do?"
I clicked my tongue, spewed more clouds from my armor to reposition, and the suction swept through where I'd been.
Gazing at the helplessly drawn-in clouds, I observed the Dark River Starry Fish.
"...It doesn't seem about to split?"
"No. It doesn't see us as that big a threat yet."
"Good."
The Dark River Starry Fish self-destructed when mortally threatened.
It exploded its body, scattering countless eggs carried within on the blast, which flew far to escape danger while absorbing the mother's qi from the explosion to hatch into fry and begin life.
Initially feeding from yolk sacs, they later mimicked nearby constellation yokai forms for bait. How many of its fry had the power and talent to mimic a dragon?
In other words, failing to catch it now might mean leaving the Star Formation Secret Realm empty-handed.
"Don't rush."
Saran spoke calmly.
"The Dark River Starry Fish's suction is a spatial force that devours space itself. Even a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator can't resist if caught. You've seen it."
"I know. But I can escape with your help."
"Yes. But if I, a Soul Transformation Realm cultivator, appear, it might explode immediately."
I nodded and pulled away from the Dark River Starry Fish.
'The Sun-Moon Jade Seal applies heat and pressure, useless for opening its head. Flying Sword Flash and Piercing lack power. Lure it with Bewitching Palm Song? No, that won't work.'
Cell-Severing Shadow Blade Dance.
Severing Dragon Claw Hand.
Cell-Severing Shadow Blade Dance could slice foes at the cellular level, and Severing Dragon Claw Hand's speed and sharpness could decapitate before it reacted.
'If I'm doing it, Severing Dragon Claw Hand. Attacking with Cell-Severing Shadow Blade Dance risks it sucking in the mist before I'm ready.'
Unleash Severing Dragon Claw Hand from afar to cleave its head in one stroke.
But could my current Severing Dragon Claw Hand manage it?
Thinking it over, I glanced at the dragon constellation bait.
"... ."
Since the Dark River Starry Fish mimicked creatures perfectly, the dragon constellation held the real thing's ecology and behaviors.
After a moment's thought, I settled far from the Dark River Starry Fish, used a formation tool to conceal my presence, and began observing the healing dragon constellation bait in hiding.
Anti-Dragon Five Paths was insight toward the dragon pinnacle; deeper dragon understanding would deepen Anti-Dragon Five Paths insights.
Deeper Anti-Dragon Five Paths would naturally strengthen Severing Dragon Claw Hand and Cloud Escape Art.
Thus, I observed the Dark River Starry Fish's dragon constellation bait to deepen my dragon knowledge.
Along the way, I clashed with unrelated cultivators and spirit beasts attacking me, slaying them all while staring unblinkingly at the dragon constellation and honing insights for ten straight days.
How dragons moved. How they hunted prey. How they attacked. How they evaded or defended. How they fled.
I observed every detail, and as dragon understanding grew, so did Anti-Dragon Five Paths insights.
And that led to Severing Dragon Claw Hand's enhancement.
"Alright. Time to go."
On the tenth day in the Star Formation Secret Realm.
Deeming preparations complete, I rose to hunt the Dark River Starry Fish once more.