Traveling through time to cultivate immortality: a life and death test

Liu Xing observed that Jiao Jiao's demon core had grown larger than before, now the size of a fist, and the demonic power it exuded was more than doubled. The strength of Jiao Jiao's demonic power was now comparable to his own mana, and he estimated it to be comparable to a level six demonic beast.

Jiao Jiao was now striving to consolidate her cultivation, her mind focused on it. Her sea of ​​consciousness, demon elixir, divine awareness, and demonic power had all doubled as she adapted to the changes in her body. A new technique emerged from her inherited memories, and she began to practice according to it. Her mana gradually stabilized, no longer fluctuating violently like boiling water.

Liu Xing finally felt relieved. He needed a few years to stabilize his cultivation and shed his skin to strengthen his body. So, he congratulated Jiao Jiao on her breakthrough and retreated to his bedroom.

Both of his pets had already broken through to level five, so he couldn't fall behind. At this point, his mana, consciousness, and physical strength had all reached their peaks, with no room for improvement. It was time for a breakthrough.

He sat quietly on the new stone bed, closing his eyes in meditation, first adjusting his state to the best it could be. Then he read through the Foundation Establishment technique, "Wind and Cloud Art," from beginning to end, word for word, carefully pondering it to ensure a thorough understanding. He then practiced the technique again, savoring it carefully to ensure that there were no more problems with the flow of his spiritual energy.

He exchanged the mid-grade spirit stones in the spirit gathering array for high-grade spirit stones. This time, he was determined to use all the best he had to break through the bottleneck of the Jindan stage in one go. He knew that his spiritual roots were poor, so the preparations he made to break through the bottleneck were dozens of times greater than those of others.

At the same time, he took out the Fire-Condensing Liquid and Millennium Soft Gypsum and placed them beside him for later use. He also took out two jade boxes, one containing Fengzhi Pills and the other containing Fengsui Pills. With everything ready, he no longer hesitated. He picked up both Fengsui Pills and Fengzhi Pills, tossed them into his mouth, closed his eyes with determination, and began to refine the medicinal power and absorb the vast spiritual energy around him.

That day, atop the forbidden peak, the previously cloudless sky suddenly filled with a rainbow of auspicious clouds, forming a massive vortex of spiritual energy. The force of the movement was so immense it shook the earth. Experienced masters of the older generation instantly understood that someone was breaking through to the Golden Core realm. The force of the movement was two to three times more powerful than a typical Core Formation phenomenon.

Su Xingchen was the first to sense the situation. He was once again startled awake by the strange vision. A quick look revealed that it was Liu Xing who was breaking through to the Core Formation stage. It was a crucial moment, so he kept a close eye on Liu Xing, hoping to prevent any mishaps so he could intervene in time.

The various masters of the Thousand Machines Sect stopped to gaze upon the auspicious cloud formation in the sky. This phenomenon appeared every few decades, and each time it appeared, a new Jindan-level expert appeared. Suddenly, a variety of emotions filled the air, some expressing envy, some anticipation, and some anxiety.

"Looking at this situation, I wonder which senior brother is making a breakthrough." Ge Teng, who flew out of the cave, looked at the sky enviously and muttered to himself.

He hadn't achieved a breakthrough after taking the Phoenix Marrow Pill; it seemed the opportunity hadn't arrived yet. He possessed dual spiritual roots, a gifted mind. His grandfather, a Nascent Soul master, had chosen a top-tier cultivation technique for him, and he was bound to have no shortage of elixirs. Given these conditions, achieving a dan should have been a sure thing. However, things didn't go as planned. After nearly ten years of seclusion, he still fell just short of a breakthrough.

"Could it be Liu Xing?" He guessed uncertainly.

"But Liu Xing's cave is on the mountainside, and this senior brother who broke through is in the restricted area on the top of the mountain. It shouldn't be him." Ge Teng was suddenly shocked. The restricted area is where the great elder's cave is located. The person who can break through in the restricted area can only be a disciple of the great elder. When did the great elder have a disciple in the foundation-building stage?

It wasn't just Ge Teng; the other Qianji Sect disciples were also filled with doubts. Could it be that the Great Elder had accepted a closed disciple, who had spent decades cultivating in the restricted area, never leaving the mountain, and therefore no one had ever seen him?

"Liu Xing has broken through. The future belongs to him!" Lu En flew out of the cave, observing the strange phenomenon in the sky with some relief. This Great Elder's closed disciple, who constantly amazed him, had been able to annihilate a mid-stage Core Formation expert while still in the Foundation Establishment stage. Now that he had broken through to the Core Formation stage, he probably wasn't sure he could defeat him completely. If anyone else heard Lu En say he wasn't sure he could defeat the newly broken Liu Xing, they would probably be shocked. Remember, Lu En had reached the False Infant stage, just one step away from breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.

"The rising star of the revitalized sect has appeared. It must be him, without a doubt. Senior Brother Su has been hiding this from us for so long." The black-robed elder, the head of the Divination Department, sensed the auspicious aura and thought quickly, quickly coming up with a possibility. To be accepted as a disciple by Elder Su must be something extraordinary. The black-robed elder felt a little frustrated. Why couldn't this disciple be from the Divination Department? Alas, it was fate.

Unbeknownst to Liu Xing, his breakthrough had already attracted considerable attention and excitement within the sect. However, he had no time to dwell on this now; he was at the critical juncture of his breakthrough. Time and again, he desperately pushed forward against the bottleneck, unyieldingly resisting the constraints of his spiritual roots.

He had already ingested the Fire-Condensing Fluid and Millennium Soft Gypsum. Regardless of whether his tendons and veins could withstand it, he inhaled deeply, drawing the immense spiritual power generated by the Spirit Gathering Array around him into his body, blending it with the already solidifying spiritual energy in his Dantian. This force was so powerful that an ordinary cultivator's body would surely burst. Only his body, comparable to that of a magical weapon, could withstand it without exploding. With the determination to die, Liu Xing unleashed this force recklessly towards the bottleneck membrane.

"Boom!" With a crisp sound, the bottleneck membrane shattered, and Liu Xing felt himself enter a completely new realm. His sea of ​​consciousness doubled in size, his soul doubled in strength, and his consciousness doubled in strength. The feeling of emptiness in his sea of ​​consciousness made him uncomfortable, as if he had entered some kind of illusion.

He constantly experiences various tempting illusions: beauty, wealth, power, desire—all readily available if he's willing to give up and move forward. This is the inner demon that arises when breaking through. Those with weak resolve often succumb to temptation and fail to achieve their goal.

However, Liu Xing's soul and consciousness were inherently much stronger than those of ordinary people. Furthermore, his determination to pursue the Dao was unwavering, and no one could shake it. Therefore, in just a moment, all these illusions were shattered.

At this moment, a vortex of spiritual energy from the sky swirled towards him, filling him with spiritual energy! Liu Xing carefully controlled the spiritual energy in his dantian, gradually solidifying his magic power into a thumb-sized golden elixir. Don't underestimate this small golden elixir; the magic power it contained was twice as powerful as his own.