Two days later, Hun Changqing emerged refreshed from the secret chamber he had shared with Medusa. He stretched, a wicked smile playing on his lips.
These past two days, Hun Changqing hadn't resorted to merely using his physical strength to fight Medusa, as he had in the valley—a battle that would have yielded little result even after half a month.
Instead, Hun Changqing directly utilized his internal energy, imbuing every movement with immense power. Although Medusa later also used energy to enhance her power, she was still utterly defeated and routed, now lying in the secret chamber in a deep sleep.
Even with Medusa's strength at the fifth level of Dou Zong, it would take her several days to fully recover. During these few days, Medusa would be much quieter and wouldn't bother Hun Changqing anymore.
Having resolved Medusa's problem and obtained a batch of pills from Yao Chen, Hun Changqing abandoned his desire to indulge in beauty and decided to begin serious cultivation.
Reaching the pavilion, Hun Changqing set up some defensive formations, then sat cross-legged. A flash of light appeared in his storage ring, revealing a silver pill emitting a faint, sweet fragrance.
The pill was perfectly round, with exquisite patterns, and appeared crystal clear. Hun Changqing could faintly see a silvery sheen slowly flowing within it.
He pinched the pill between two fingers, sensing its surging medicinal power, which emanated a chilling aura.
This was a pill specially customized by Yao Chen for Hun Changqing, meant only for his own consumption. Hun Changqing named it the "Taiyin Pill" in Yao Chen's name.
"The amount of medicinal materials required to refine just one Taiyin Pill is terrifying. I wonder if this pill, made at such a high cost, can help me break through to the Dou Zun realm?"
After pondering for a moment, Hun Changqing tilted his head back and swallowed the Taiyin Pill. The Taiyin True Qi within his body, as solid as liquid, enveloped the pill and began to refine it.
The Taiyin Pill began to melt within Hun Changqing's body, and strands of pure medicinal power, carrying immense cold energy, flowed towards his limbs and bones.
The immense cold medicinal power put considerable pressure on Hun Changqing's constitution, which was adept at manipulating cold energy, and an extremely cold aura emanated from his body.
Centered on Hun Changqing, chilling energy emanated from his body, rippling outwards in layers.
Had Hun Changqing not set up a protective array, this chilling energy would have instantly corroded and dissolved the newly acquired property.
The medicinal power of the Taiyin Pill flowed violently through Hun Changqing's meridians and bones, its energy washing over his body. Terrifying shocks formed within him, impacting the invisible, intangible, and only vaguely perceptible barrier within his body.
...
As time passed, the medicinal power within Hun Changqing's body washed over him again and again, merging into his very being. His aura had reached its peak, as if it were about to break through some kind of barrier.
Hun Changqing could feel the barrier within his body that had been blocking him from reaching the Dou Zun level was now riddled with cracks, teetering on the verge of collapse.
Seeing this, Hun Changqing was overjoyed. He mobilized all the energy within his body, converging and coalescing it into a terrifying energy tide.
With a burst of energy, Hun Changqing manipulated the energy tide, unleashing massive waves of energy that crashed against the barrier.
"Boom!" Hun Changqing's body began to tremble violently. A series of low, buzzing sounds, audible only to him, emanated from within him, the intense pain from the impact on his vital organs causing him to clench his teeth, a chill emanating from between them.
...
"Hmph..."
A moment later, with a muffled groan, a mouthful of blood spurted from his mouth like a small arrow, splashing onto the ground. The ground, stained with the chilling blood, was instantly eroded and dissolved, leaving several pitch-black craters from which residual chill emanated.
The turbulent energy between heaven and earth gradually subsided as Hun Changqing spat out his blood, and the surrounding energy ripples slowly dissipated.
Hun Changqing changed his hand seals, and the surging Yin energy around him slowly converged into his body, gradually receding. In an instant, the entire pavilion returned to calm.
"Hoo..."
After gathering the Yin energy, Hun Changqing parted his lips slightly, exhaling a turbid breath accumulated in his chest due to the residue of the Taiyin Pill. He then slowly opened his eyes, his gaze shifting between light and shadow. His expression was somewhat grim.
Hun Changqing's breakthrough... failed. Just now, Hun Changqing was about to break through the bottleneck, almost succeeding, when he suddenly felt a strange and intense feeling of being bound.
However, he quickly calmed down his chaotic thoughts caused by the failed breakthrough. Although he failed this time, after carefully recalling the scene when he broke through, Hun Changqing vaguely sensed something.
This should be due to something about his Taiyin True Body, making it more difficult for him to break through this bottleneck to Dou Zun. But once he broke through, Hun Changqing felt that his Taiyin True Body seemed to undergo some interesting changes, so he didn't dwell on it too much.
Moreover, just before Hun Changqing was about to break through and was restrained, he had already glimpsed some of the mysteries of the Dou Zun level, a feeling completely different from what others had described.
Some things can only be understood through personal experience.
Because he had just stepped halfway into the Dou Zun realm, the Taiyin True Understanding deep within his soul's origin underwent a change, with three indistinct characters appearing.
Upon seeing this, Hun Changqing immediately mobilized his soul power and guided the Taiyin True Understanding enveloping his soul's depths. After several dozen breaths, just as Hun Changqing was about to suffer mental exhaustion, the three characters finally became clear:
"Weapon Refining Chapter!"
Upon seeing these three characters, Hun Changqing was initially taken aback, but quickly understood. His Taiyin True Explanation encompassed everything; having already included cultivation methods and some rudimentary array setups, it was normal for it to also contain a section on weapon forging.
However, since he had only glimpsed a fraction of the secrets of Dou Zun, only these three characters had surfaced in the Taiyin True Explanation. The rest of its content would likely only be revealed after he truly ascended to Dou Zun.
Judging from this change in the Taiyin True Explanation, Hun Changqing realized that what he previously knew was merely the tip of the iceberg of this supreme inheritance; the remaining secrets were beyond his current capabilities.
However, Hun Changqing believed that as his strength increased, he would unravel the secrets of the Taiyin True Explanation one by one and then use them for his own purposes.