Cultivation: I have an equipment slot

Chapter 366 Swallowing Souls and Nourishing Souls
The heavenly palace and the magnificent palace descended upon us with a devastating force.

The power of heaven and earth erupted, attempting to suppress Zhang Yan.

But Zhang Yan's power of annihilation is even more terrifying.

Wherever it went, everything was destroyed!

Click!

The moment of impact, a celestial palace shattered, and the invisible force of annihilation was unstoppable!
Click, click, click!

More and more celestial palaces were destroyed, and the power of heaven and earth surged, yet it could not shake Zhang Yan in the slightest.

The three spirit swords shone with dazzling light, pointing directly at Jiang Nian!
boom!
The power of annihilation was overwhelming, and all the celestial palaces were submerged and vanished into nothingness.

Zhang Yan, with overwhelming momentum, gripped the Azure Dragon Tremor-Slaying Wood Sword, piercing through the void and soaring upwards!
"Young Master Zhang!"

"Please show mercy!"

Upon seeing this, Xia Yubing quickly called out.

"Young Master Zhang!"

"I surrender!"

Jiang Nian immediately conceded defeat.

That terrifying power of annihilation was so strong that even his trump card couldn't withstand it. If he had been a step slower, he would have been completely wiped out!

laugh!
As the power of annihilation struck, Jiang Nian's Dharma form melted away like ice and snow.

In the blink of an eye, Jiang Nian's true form was revealed.

"Brother Jiang!"

Upon seeing this, the disciples of Qingyun Dao Sect turned deathly pale.

"stop!"

The four peak Dharma Aspect Realm experts were furious, and they all unleashed their Dharma Aspect power.

hum!
But in the end, Zhang Yan's power of annihilation dissipated, and his magical power was also withdrawn into his body.

Only the Azure Dragon Tremor Sword in his hand was held against Jiang Nian's neck.

Even without being touched, the sharpness of a fourth-grade top-quality magic weapon caused a line of blood to appear on Jiang Nian's neck.

“Young Master Zhang…”

Jiang Nian's face was deathly pale, and even his voice was trembling.

Zhang Yan's sword strike just now was absolutely enough to kill him!

"Young Master Zhang."

Xia Yubing came over and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Jiang Nian was unharmed.

The other four peak Dharma Aspect Realm cultivators also withdrew their Dharma Aspect power.

Subsequently.

Zhang Yan then retrieved the Azure Dragon Tremor Sword.

Click!

However, as soon as it was withdrawn, a crack appeared on the blade.

"This……"

Everyone's expressions changed slightly.

It was just a magical battle, yet even the magical artifacts were damaged.

"The sword was damaged just now."

"That's why I couldn't stop."

Zhang Yan offered an explanation.

"I see."

"However, this sword is Young Master Zhang's treasure; I fear it will be..."

Xia Yubing looked apologetic.

"It doesn't matter."

"After returning to the sect, I will reforge this sword and transform it into a fifth-order sword."

Zhang Yan shook his head and said.

"I almost forgot."

"Young Master Zhang is also a fifth-level weapon refiner."

"Junior brother has offended me greatly. Please, young master, enter the river first."

Xia Yubing exclaimed in surprise and invited Zhang Yan to enter the Crimson Dragon Blood River.

Zhang Yan nodded, and he and Xia Yubing fell into the River of Blood.

river bank.

The remaining disciples of the Qingyun Dao Sect looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Senior Brother Jiang."

"We will enter the river first."

The disciples lowered their heads and all fell into the river of blood.

"That's unreasonable!"

Jiang Nian looked at the Blood River winding back, his face ashen.

He had thought that Zhang Yan's nascent soul had fallen from the tenth level.

He would then have the opportunity to rise to fame by stepping on Zhang Yan.

As it turned out, Zhang Yan's strength remained as monstrous as ever. Even after he used his trump card, he was no match for Zhang Yan.

In the end, he was routed, his Dharma form perished, and he was nearly beheaded by a single sword strike.

"I must avenge this!"

Jiang Nian thought with a venomous look in his eyes.

Pfft!
In the end, Jiang Nian fell into the river of blood.

Below the River of Blood.

Zhang Yan occupied the bend in the river and sat cross-legged on a rock at the bottom of the river, where the blood energy was most concentrated.

The water in the Blood River is extremely viscous, like lava.

The water, when washed over a cultivator's body, could quickly scrape away a chunk of flesh.

Only by constantly resisting with magical power can one persevere. During this process, the pure blood essence from the Crimson Dragon will be integrated into the Dao body.

Thus, the Dao body is tempered.

The area where Zhang Yan was located had a denser concentration of blood energy, and the impact was even more powerful.

Zhang Yan could only resist this force by fully activating the power of his Nascent Soul.

"The effect of this blood and qi."

"Several times more powerful than the Lei River."

"If the tempering is completed, my Dao body will be comparable to the late stage of the Dharma Aspect Realm!"

"Gather the surrounding blood energy," Zhang Yan thought to himself.

The last time the body was tempered.

Still in the Golden Core stage.

He gained significantly more benefits from this body tempering.

boom!
The blood energy surged forth, creating a booming sound.

Zhang Yan sat cross-legged at the bottom of the river, unmoved.

Although he was only at the Nascent Soul stage, his physique was actually stronger than Xia Xiyan and the others.

It can withstand a much stronger amount of blood and energy.

Zhang Yan sat with his eyes closed.

Within his mind, however, he was recalling the battle he had just fought.

"The three-colored spirit ring has withered away."

"My magical power has also deteriorated."

"If it weren't for the magic power I left behind, I'm afraid I would have really capsized in the gutter today."

Zhang Yan thought to himself.

Jiang Nian was right; Zhang Yan's current combat strength was indeed affected by the Nascent Soul stage.

It's no longer possible to reverse the severance of the late-stage Dharma Aspect Realm.

However, Jiang Nian's ambitions are too great. For Zhang Yan, who is currently at the mid-stage of the Dharma Aspect Realm, suppressing him is still a piece of cake.

In the end, Zhang Yan did it intentionally.

This was all to leave Jiang Nian with a profound lesson.

"Ugh!"

"And the Azure Dragon Tremor-Slaying Sword."

"I pushed this sword to its limit for this one strike, and the blade shattered."

"If it is to be used again, it must be transformed into the fifth rank, otherwise it will definitely be destroyed."

Zhang Yan sighed inwardly, and then thought of the Azure Dragon Tremor-Slaying Sword.

Although he never mentioned it himself.

But who can accept their strength declining?

The repeated setbacks left Zhang Yan somewhat frustrated.

The only good news.

That is how one can temper their body in this river of blood.

A blink of an eye.

A day has passed.

"Ok?"

Zhang Yan was absorbing blood energy and integrating it into his own body when he suddenly discovered a faint spiritual consciousness.

"Fellow Daoist Xia?"

Zhang Yan carefully examined the body and discovered that it was Xia Yubing's spiritual consciousness, so he asked her through telepathy.

"Young Master Zhang."

"I have a heartfelt request."

"I am at the eighth level of the Nascent Soul stage. If I obtain the Golden-Patterned Bodhi, I can achieve the ninth level."

"However, my Qingyun Dao Sect has not produced a ninth-level Nascent Soul cultivator for two thousand years."

"I know very little about the Nine Revolutions Nascent Soul, so I want to sense Young Master Zhang's aura and comprehend the mysteries of the Nine Revolutions."

Xia Yubing transmitted her voice across the Blood River.

"Fellow Daoist Xia, please do as you please."

"Just don't bother me."

Zhang Yan replied.

"Thank you, Young Master Zhang."

Xia Yubing thanked her happily.

Although Zhang Yan is no longer a tenth-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, a ninth-stage Nascent Soul cultivator can still stand out among the crowd.

Take Xia Yubing, for example, the senior sister of the Qingyun Dao Sect.

They even had to humble themselves and beg Zhang Yan.

Because the golden-patterned bodhi seed is, after all, an external object; one must be strong oneself to forge iron.

In contrast.

Jiang Nian, however, was arrogant and dismissive of Zhang Yan even before obtaining the Golden Bodhi.

"This pair of senior and junior brothers."

"The difference in temperament is enormous."

Zhang Yan shook his head and thought to himself. The blood river flowed on, and time passed.

Zhang Yan must unleash his magical power to resist the blood energy.

The projection of the Nine Revolutions Nascent Soul was right behind him, and Xia Yubing could comprehend it at any time.

"but."

"Xia Yubing recommended me to join this bay before."

"Given her statement, perhaps she was prepared in advance?"

Zhang Yan then thought of another suspicious point.

From the moment they entered the secret realm, Xia Yubing seemed to know that there was a treasure trove in this direction.

Then, things went even more smoothly. They found the Blood River and even arranged a location for Zhang Yan.

"It seems."

"The Qingyun Dao Sect is not entirely selfless either."

"Xia Yubing may have known all along that there was a river of blood here."

Zhang Yan had a guess in his heart, but he didn't say it out loud.

He is now in the same boat as the Qingyun Dao Sect.

In this way, he can actually gain more benefits.

Since it's a battle among the four major immortal sects anyway, why not take advantage of the benefits?

Let's just say that.

Some interest to help Xia Yubing.

"This is a Nine-Turn Nascent Soul."

"Indeed, it is infinitely mysterious."

Amidst the River of Blood, Xia Yubing sighed inwardly.

Nine turns and eight turns, although there is only one turn difference.

But this turn was more difficult than turning from the first turn to the eighth turn.

When she broke through to the Nascent Soul stage, even after exhausting all external factors, she was only at the eighth stage of perfection.

If it's simple.

In the entire cultivation world, there are only two such individuals.

Moreover, Zhang Yan is above Shen Ning of the Imperial Sword Sect, so being able to comprehend Zhang Yan's Nascent Soul aura is a great opportunity.

"Junior Brother Jiang."

"It's really disappointing."

Xia Yubing couldn't help but think of Jiang Nian and slowly shook her head.

Boom boom!

The blood river was turbulent with undercurrents, its waters surging and its blood energy churning endlessly.

There were ten figures in total, but as time passed, they all changed.

Wow!
A vortex of blood energy appeared around Zhang Yan.

The vortex was ten zhang in size, and the blood energy within it was several times more concentrated than that of the other nine locations.

The crystal-clear river water lapped against Zhang Yan's body with a force powerful enough to shatter a hundred-foot-tall boulder, bringing a sharp pain.

"Only in this way."

Only then can we go further!

Zhang Yan gritted his teeth and persevered.

It was the same back in the Lei River, like being pierced by a thousand needles.

Having undergone the baptism of blood and qi, his flesh and blood were now radiating a faint bloody glow.

Blood and qi mingled with flesh and blood, like a large net binding flesh and blood within, as if forged through countless trials.

The magical power surged within it, becoming increasingly smooth and nourishing.

In addition to its blood energy, this river of blood also contained a trace of spiritual power.

During the rinsing process.

The spiritual energy then merged into Zhang Yan's meridians, replenishing the magical power within his nascent soul.

Zhang Yan kept looking inward, his gaze fixed on the back of the Nascent Soul.

pity.

The withered tricolor spirit ring remained dull and lifeless.

"It's just absorbing blood energy, isn't it?"

"With such a big commotion, are you afraid others won't know?"

On the other side of the Blood River, Jiang Nian was filled with resentment.

However, compared to the vortex that Zhang Yan had condensed, the blood energy here was just a trickle.

"I'm coming too!"

Jiang Nian thought for a moment, unwilling to be outdone by Zhang Yan, so he released his Dharma power and, like Zhang Yan, condensed a vortex.

laugh!
However, as soon as his Dharma power left his body, it was immediately washed away by the Blood River.

boom!
Even Jiang Nian's own body was sent flying backward by the surging blood wave.

A moment later, Jiang Nian returned to his original position, looking disheveled.

He extended his spiritual sense and looked around the Blood River.

"Fortunately, no one noticed."

"Zhang Yan is only in the late Nascent Soul stage, so why is his Dao body so resilient?"

Jiang Nian thought to himself with jealousy.

But in this river of blood, Zhang Yan is destined to be the most dazzling.

Even from hundreds of feet away, one could feel the vortex fluctuations of Zhang Yan.

It's always been like this.

Six days later, Zhang Yan's Dao body was still submerged in blood energy.

However, it is distinct from the surrounding river water, its surface radiating a luster, as clear and translucent as glass.

It's come to this point.

The surrounding river of blood was no longer of much use to him.

"It's only been six days."

“Young Master Zhang has already refined it to its peak.”

Xia Yubing took in the whole scene and marveled at it.

"Leihe has been training his body for a full year."

"Although it was extremely painful, it was also incredibly beneficial, leaving me with a broad and promising path."

"Now that the Blood River tempering technique is being used, the results are twice as good with half the effort."

Although everyone was envious, only Zhang Yan knew the reason behind it.

The Dao body has been tempered to its ultimate state.

But everyone remained in the River of Blood.

Zhang Yan, not wanting to stand out, also remained in the Blood River.

Two more days have passed.

hum!
Zhang Yan suddenly heard a faint sword clang.

"Azure Dragon Tremor-Slaying Sword?"

Zhang Yan took out the Azure Dragon Tremor-Slaying Sword.

It was this sword that emitted the sword's cry.

"Why?"

"Will it make any unusual movements?"

Zhang Yan was puzzled.

Then, his spiritual senses detected that the sword spirit within the Azure Dragon Tremor Sword was emitting a sense of excitement.

Followed by.

A wisp of divine soul power surged forth from beneath the stone where Zhang Yan sat cross-legged.

Woo!
This wisp of divine soul power wailed in the river, transforming into a palm-sized, hornless dragon covered in red scales.

"This is……"

"The Soul of the Crimson Dragon?"

Zhang Yan examined it for a long time and found that its shape was very similar to that of the red dragon, and guessed.

This river of blood was formed after the Red Dragon fell.

If the power of blood and qi is left behind, then the power of the soul may also remain.

That's why Zhang Yan made that guess.

But why would this divine soul power, hidden within the boundless river of blood, suddenly appear?
Zhang Yan made the Azure Dragon Tremor Sword float in the air on its own.

hum!
The Azure Dragon Tremor Sword trembled once more, and the soul of the Crimson Dragon drooped its head and merged into the sword.

This sword has already recognized Zhang Yan as its master.

Zhang Yan saw the changes clearly.

After the soul of the Crimson Dragon merged into the sword, it was devoured by the sword spirit within it.

However, the sword spirit didn't devour everything. After a moment, it spat out some remaining scales, causing them to disappear into the blood river.

After devouring the soul of the Crimson Dragon, a flash of blue light appeared on the sword.

Consequently, some of the cracks on it were also eliminated.

"The Red Dragon possesses a trace of true dragon blood."

"Although there aren't many, they are still real dragons."

"The Azure Dragon's spirit is incomplete; it is devouring the Crimson Dragon's soul to nourish itself!"

Zhang Yan suddenly understood.

He was merely tempering his own body within this river of blood.

Unexpectedly, there was a pleasant surprise!
The palm-sized Crimson Dragon Soul is only a small part.

A moment later, another palm-sized Crimson Dragon Soul emerged from the river, only to be devoured by the Azure Dragon Zhenmu Sword.

Zhang Yan had anticipated this, but simply observed without interfering.

But he knew.

This River of Blood belongs to the precious land of the Qingyun Dao Sect.

"Fellow Daoist Xia."

"You saw it too, didn't you?"

Zhang Yan asked telepathically.

"I know."

"Young Master Zhang's spirit sword was damaged because of my junior brother."

"This Crimson Dragon Blood River can benefit the spirit sword, which is perfect."

"Young Master Zhang, please absorb it with peace of mind."

Xia Yubing's voice reached Zhang Yan's ears.

Because of the battle with Jiang Nian, the Azure Dragon Zhenmu Sword developed cracks.

Now that it can be repaired with the soul of the Crimson Dragon, it can be considered as karmic retribution.

With Xia Yubing's permission, Zhang Yan confidently used the Azure Dragon Tremor Wood Sword to absorb the soul of the Crimson Dragon.

The cracks in the sword were quickly repaired.

However, the changes in the Azure Dragon Tremor Sword were not yet over, and the fluctuations of the sword body were still increasing towards the fifth rank!

(End of this chapter)