Volume One: The Youth Enters the World Chapter Forty-Seven: The Stir and the Silence

Sitting on the ground, Fang Tian circulated his spiritual energy, intending to first break through his current realm and enhance his strength.

Before this, his cultivation had already approached the critical point of the second level of Spirit Gathering. Now, all he needed was to guide his spiritual energy into his meridians to break through into the third level.

Spiritual energy continuously gathered from his arms into his palms, flooding into the meridians there. After an hour, the meridians in his palms were filled and linked through, allowing the energy to circulate smoothly. Fang Tian had successfully reached the third level of Spirit Gathering.

"Now I have broken through three of the minor veins; only four major veins and the main vein remain. It seems I must work even harder," Fang Tian murmured, recalling the words the old man in the heavens had once spoken.

He remembered that the old man had explained that guiding spiritual energy into the meridians was also a way to open them. The hands and feet comprised the four minor veins, the limbs the four major veins, and the head was the main vein. With each meridian opened, not only did one's strength increase, but the body's functions were further enhanced.

Moreover, those who had opened the four major veins were far stronger than those who had only opened the minor ones; the difference in power was significant.

When the main vein in the head was opened, it would activate the other eight veins, and at that point, one could no longer simply absorb spiritual energy. To continue cultivation, one would have to use the energy within the nine veins to break through the nine key apertures, choosing one to assault. If successful, this would lead to the next realm: the Spirit Seed stage.

However, all this was still somewhat distant for Fang Tian at this moment. For now, he could only proceed step by step.

After his breakthrough, Fang Tian did not stop. Instead, he continued to practice the Body Refinement Spirit Conversion Technique, beginning the method of refining his body.

As usual, he first absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, then used it to temper his body, aiming to push the limits of how much spiritual energy he could contain. As the energy absorption continued, his body reached its capacity.

Upon reaching this limit, Fang Tian stopped absorbing and began to refine his body with spiritual energy. As time passed, the number of times he was able to refine himself increased from four hundred to even more.

Yet, something strange occurred: his absorption rate was much faster than before, causing his body refinement attempts to multiply at an unprecedented pace—more than twice as fast as before.

Although the process was still as excruciating as ever, his progress in body refinement was remarkably smooth, without any setbacks.

Logically, as the number of refinements increased, the process should have slowed and become more difficult. But instead, spiritual energy from within the sword’s space surged into Fang Tian like a rushing stream.

"Could it be that I am truly a Spirit Body? But that can’t be right—I grew up in Qingchuan Village. How could I be of the Spirit Clan?"

"Could there be a mistake? After all, my father is an ordinary man; there’s no reasonable explanation. My mother—my father never spoke of her—so whether she was of the Spirit Clan is unclear. Even if she was, it seems unlikely. Why would a member of the Spirit Clan have a child with a mortal like my father?"

"I just can’t make sense of this sudden change," Fang Tian muttered.

By now, his cultivation session had ended. His body refinement count had increased from four hundred to five hundred.

Sensing the changes in his spiritual energy, he felt power coursing through every part of his body.

He threw a punch into the air, and ripples seemed to spread through space itself, the sound of splitting air echoing all around.

Looking at his fist and then opening his palm, he gathered spiritual energy there, and a cluster of icy blue aura formed in his hand. This energy radiated a chilling force, lowering the temperature in his surroundings significantly. The coldness was even more intense and concentrated than when he’d previously practiced the Frost Sword Technique.

"This spiritual energy is so pure. It seems to contain tremendous power. Could it be that the Spirit Body can purify spiritual energy and then cultivate a single attribute to its extreme, causing it to evolve further? If that’s the case, my strength is bound to soar. I must test its power."

What Fang Tian failed to notice was that, though this energy was predominantly of extreme cold, a trace of another force was hidden within.

He walked over to a large stone block, placed his palm on it, and watched as the icy spiritual energy spread rapidly over the surface. In moments, the entire stone was covered in frost, exuding a bone-chilling cold.

With a light touch, the stone block crumbled like tofu, falling to pieces on the ground.

"Such power! No wonder the heavens restrict the growth of the Spirit Clan. Without such limitations, the Spirit Clan would be invincible!"

Fang Tian couldn’t help but marvel. He hadn’t expected his inexplicable awakening as a Spirit Body to grant him such formidable spiritual energy.

Looking at his hand, Fang Tian thought that if he faced Qi Liang again, even without relying on a spirit formation, he could now hold his own.

At the time, Qi Liang possessed the cultivation of the fifth level of Spirit Gathering, having already opened a major vein. By comparison, Fang Tian’s current strength had undergone a complete transformation.

Just as Fang Tian was marveling at his newfound power, the old man from the heavens materialized before him. He approached Fang Tian and said, "Xiao Tian, I’ve found a method left by the previous master for overcoming the heavenly tribulation. It’s a manual he recorded after speaking with a member of the Spirit Clan—out of curiosity, he noted down some important things and preparations. Take it and study it carefully."

"Old Sir, haven’t any of your previous masters belonged to the Spirit Clan? If there had been one, I’d be far more at ease."

"No, although I’ve encountered them, I still don’t know much about them. In the future, you may have to seek your own path. Perhaps you’ll need to visit the place where the Spirit Clan resides."

"It seems that’s the only way. If I can survive each awakening, so much the better," Fang Tian said with a nod.

With that, he took the manual, sat down, and began to read.

Seeing Fang Tian so focused, the old man simply waved his long robe and faded away.

After reading for a long time, Fang Tian came to understand how the Spirit Clan survived the heavenly tribulation. The manual explained that he was currently at the initial awakening stage, during which his body would automatically absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Once his body had absorbed enough energy to break through the first shackle, the will of heaven would sense it and send down heavenly lightning, marking the time to undergo the tribulation and complete the first awakening.

Having finished the manual, Fang Tian no longer doubted that he possessed a Spirit Body.

As for his origins, he resolved to search for answers once his cultivation progressed further.

"Since I still have time, I’ll ponder my martial techniques. I’ve had new ideas lately—let’s see if they work," Fang Tian murmured.

He prepared to practice his martial skills, seeking to further refine them.

Just then, he sensed movement outside. He had to withdraw from his stance.

He was puzzled—who would be passing through these woods in the middle of the night?

"It’s not suitable to cultivate here now. To avoid any accidents, I’d better go take a look," Fang Tian thought, and with a single thought, exited the space within the sword and returned to the outside world.