Immortal Creation.

Chapter 688 The Chess Player's Vision

Ning Zhuo took the initiative to send over his visiting card, but after waiting a day without receiving a response, he knew what was going on.

He wasn't surprised at all. Because before taking this action, the big-headed boy had already anticipated this possibility.

"It seems that Yu Heye doesn't take me seriously."

This reaction is perfectly reasonable.

In Yu Heye's eyes, Ning Zhuo was just a Foundation Establishment newcomer who was attracted by the Flying Cloud Tournament.

Where did this little punk come from?
He doesn't even know Ning Zhuo!
Liu Fu hadn't even properly investigated Ning Zhuo. Who would pay for that investigation? How much money is appropriate to spend on a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator?
Although Ning Zhuo demonstrated some methods, was it worth it?
So far, it's not worth Yu Heye's side paying more attention to.

"Moreover, the more one cultivates the 'Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art,' the stronger one's combat power becomes, and the more difficult it is to control oneself, greatly increasing the probability of going into demonic possession."

"Only those with exceptional spiritual attainment can control this rebellious state."

“Yu Heye has reached the limit of his cultivation. According to intelligence, he is already too busy to take care of himself. He probably spends most of his daily cultivation time controlling his dantian and adjusting his state to avoid going into qi deviation.”

“In this situation, his attention will naturally not be on me.”

Yu Heye's side doesn't take Ning Zhuo seriously and doesn't investigate him, but Ning Zhuo wouldn't make such a mistake.

He even bought a portion of the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" to study it.

The main gate of the Myriad Manifestations Sect naturally does not have a branch of the Complete Book Pavilion, but there is one of the sixteen halls called the Transmission Hall, which has a similar function to the Complete Book Pavilion.

The greatest advantage of the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" is its combat power. Anyone who practices this art will have a rapid and fierce progress in their early cultivation, and their combat power will often surpass that of others of the same level.

There are two drawbacks.

First, the possibility of going mad from practicing the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" is very high, far exceeding that of other techniques of the same grade.

Secondly, the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" has a relatively low upper limit, only allowing cultivation up to the Nascent Soul stage. It is a technique that only reaches the Nascent Soul stage.

Ning Zhuo's understanding of the Five Elements was extremely profound. He understood the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" after only reading it once.

These demonic arts primarily cultivate the middle dantian (energy sea) and lower dantian (essence sea), focusing on replacing spiritual energy with essence and blood, and replacing the five elements' spiritual energy with the internal organs.

Normally, even Ning Zhuo cultivates his own magical power by transforming external spiritual energy through the Five Elements Technique. The category of a spell depends on the cultivation method. Wood-element techniques produce wood-element magical power. Ning Zhuo's Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique is five-element magical power.

The "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" is based on the five internal organs. The five elements of the five internal organs are categorized, and cultivators extract spiritual energy from them and output it through their essence and blood, which is a source of magic power that is closer to what cultivators use.

These essences and blood can be quickly transformed into the five elements of magical power, and similarly, the five elements of magical power can also be transformed into essences and blood, filling the body.

With such a cultivation mechanism, it's as if the Sea of ​​Essence is another Sea of ​​Qi, and the Sea of ​​Qi can also be seen as a special kind of Sea of ​​Essence.

With two dantians combined, the cultivators of the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" naturally possess outstanding strength. This essence and blood, flowing from the five internal organs, can be rapidly transformed into magical power of the five elements (metal, wood, water, fire, and earth), and can be used as easily as one's own limbs.

The individual elemental powers of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth can also be replenished, transforming into essence and blood to strengthen the physical body and enhance close-combat power.

Therefore, practitioners of the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" are usually skilled in both ranged and melee combat.

However, due to the principles of this technique, practitioners are prone to going astray and becoming possessed by evil spirits.

The reason is obvious—single-line magic power transformed into essence blood is not produced by oneself, and it needs to be nurtured for a long time in order to be assimilated.

The conversion of essence and blood into magical power will cause a significant decline in the physical body's foundation. The physical body is the foundation; if essence and blood are drained too severely, it is equivalent to a serious injury, resulting in negative effects in all aspects and creating a chain reaction of deterioration.

Furthermore, the interactions between the five elements are complex and interdependent. These elements, stored in the dantian, pose a threat and require cultivation techniques to harmonize and arrange them to prevent internal conflict.

For example, Ning Zhuo's Five Elements Qi Rhythm Formula forms a five-element tornado vortex in the Dantian, transforming and coexisting in this way.

The Five Elements Magic Power of the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" is not only stored in the Qi Sea and Dantian, but also mixed in the body! After all, the transformation of essence blood and Five Elements Magic Power cannot be completed instantly; even if the time is short, it still takes time.

The mixed power of the five elements and the essence of blood in the body is a big deal!

If not handled properly, it's like a powder keg, ready to explode at the slightest carelessness. Even if it doesn't explode, the small frictions and minor wear and tear from each other accumulate and cause continuous physical torment.

Therefore, cultivators who have successfully mastered the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art" often suffer from internal injuries.

After paying the price and mastering the entire "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art", Ning Zhuo had a much greater chance of dealing with Yu Heye.

This also added a significant section to his experience in utilizing the Five Elements.

"Although my understanding of the Five Elements is quite profound, I have very little experience in its practical application. After all, I haven't been cultivating for very long."

"Perhaps I should collect a large number of Five Elements-based cultivation techniques to enrich my experience base."

"With enough of this accumulation, I will be able to create my own Five Elements-based cultivation techniques."

Ning Zhuo was moved by this and thought of this step.

His mastery of the Five Elements is far beyond the norm, allowing him to create spells on the spot. Creating a cultivation technique is much more difficult than creating spells from scratch. However, as long as he has rich theoretical and practical experience, he can make up for the biggest gap and create his own cultivation technique.

"Write this down first, and do it when you have time in the future!"

At present, Ning Zhuo's main task is to deal with Yu Heye.

This is still a bit troublesome.

Ning Zhuo was fully confident in defeating Yu Heye, a late-stage Golden Core cultivator. Furthermore, Ning Zhuo had now mastered the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art," making him virtually invincible against Yu Heye's primary fighting techniques.

Let's leave those aside.

Once Ning Zhuo uses his supernatural power to hang by a thread, directly controlling Yu Heye and making him kneel on the ground and call him "Dad" would be an easy thing for him.

Because Yu Heye is not a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Basically, anyone who has reached the Golden Core stage is susceptible to the control of supernatural powers. (Of course, there are exceptions, such as Zhu Xuanji and Linghu Jiu.)
But Ning Zhuo had no intention of doing so.

As long as he challenges Yu Heye and the two fight to a result, Ning Zhuo will inevitably attract attention and be taken seriously, which will trigger a lot of public opinion, continuous investigations, and recruitment by various forces.

In this way, Ning Zhuo's every move will be observed and analyzed by a large number of cultivators.

Under such circumstances, how could he possibly plan to secretly infiltrate Shuyu Zhai?

Being high-profile and making a name for oneself is fine, but not now.

Ning Zhuo himself also needs to make a name for himself, but he is waiting for the right opportunity.

The preliminary test of Xingyun before the Flying Cloud Assembly is an important part of the Myriad Manifestations Sect's gradual development, which encourages cultivators to compete for prowess.

Ning Zhuo also planned to make a big splash in this area, but not now.

The timing isn't quite right yet.

"Within the Myriad Manifestations Sect, the eight main peaks are undergoing a process of renewal, with the Purple Thunder Peak weakening and the Flowing Cloud Peak becoming the target of the new generation."

"If I rashly step forward and show myself, I will be targeted by both major camps and various forces." This "targeting" encompasses many things, such as enticement, coercion, and suppression.

Where there are people, there are rivers and lakes.

Once Ning Zhuo demonstrates his value, a vortex will inevitably form around him.

At that point, it won't be a matter of Ning Zhuo not wanting to get involved or not. He will be forced to get involved, simply because his existence makes him someone that no one can afford to underestimate.

He's human too, and a strong one at that! A strong person like him will naturally stir up trouble in this world.

Ning Zhuo wasn't unwilling to get involved; he was waiting for the right opportunity.

What is the right time to mature?
Right now, it's far from over!

First, Ning Zhuo needs more detailed information.

Therefore, he has been waiting for Wen Ruanyu to finish her report these past few days.

In Ning Zhuo's view, Wen Ruanyu's strength was not limited to his Golden Core cultivation level or his mastery of the four arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting as a Confucian scholar. Wen Ruanyu's most outstanding ability was his political talent!
For so many years in Baizhi Immortal City, he has been in charge of internal affairs as a representative of the Myriad Manifestations Sect, serving as the deputy to the city lord.

He governed the White Paper Immortal City for a long time, accumulating a wealth of experience. In the process of governing, he must have coordinated various forces, witnessed the two sides of human nature, and experienced the constancy and fickleness of people's hearts.

Wen Ruanyu was simply unfamiliar with the current situation of the Myriad Manifestations Sect. Even though he had been away for a long time, he still had connections within the sect.

Given a little time, he can quickly grasp the current situation of the Myriad Manifestations Sect.

Wen Ruanyu absolutely supports Ning Zhuo.

This would be a very important source of intelligence and a reference for Ning Zhuo's actions.

Ning Zhuo had gathered enough intelligence and analyzed the situation thoroughly, but the timing was not yet ripe.

He still needs to wait for the right entry point.

In the context of the Myriad Medicines Sect, the entry point is Lin Shanshan. In the context of the Two Kingdoms, the entry point is first Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei, then Mu Lan. The situation in the White Paper Immortal City is somewhat special. The entry point was already arranged for him; he was the savior everyone was eagerly awaiting!
What is the entry point for the Myriad Manifestations Sect?
The Feiyun Conference is just a huge opportunity for everyone, but it's not a starting point.

The close friends mentioned in the jade slip messages of Wen Ruanyu, Yang Sanyan, and the Buddhist physician Meng Yaoyin are closer to the concept of "entry point".

Wen Ruanyu represents the general public outside the mountains. Meng Yaoyin's identity is also like this; she is someone from outside the main peak.

Yang Sanyan represents the Zhuxie Hall, which is one of the sixteen halls and a place where practical work is done.

Meng Yaoyin's closest friends are cultivators on the main peak, and Ning Zhuo might be able to join the main peak through this channel.

Ning Zhuo was willing to get close to Shen Xi because these people might be a starting point.

In the future, new entry points may emerge.

As for which one Ning Zhuo will ultimately choose, he doesn't know yet; it depends on the situation.

"The two major forces of the Myriad Manifestations Sect, the old and the new, are bound to engage in a fierce contest! And this year's Flying Cloud Tournament is the best stage for such a showdown."

Ning Zhuo had already figured this out from Zi Lei Peak and Liu Yun Peak by analyzing intelligence on his own.

However, his understanding of the Myriad Manifestations Sect is far from in-depth.

He needs to continue waiting and observing. Once the situation becomes clear and he sees which side has a better chance of winning, he will generally join that side.

“I am an outsider; my family is far away in the Kingdom of Nandou.”

"Join the winning side, and I'll be the winner!"

Who would want to lose?

Within the Myriad Manifestations Sect, Ning Zhuo, an outsider, was only in a position to choose, making him very flexible.

Ning Zhuo's cultivation level is weak, but that doesn't mean his abilities are weak.

His more than ten years of forbearance in Fire Persimmon Immortal City honed his political talent.

It was this talent that enabled him to make many correct choices, thus allowing him to thrive in the Myriad Medicines Sect, the Two Kingdoms, and the White Paper Immortal City.

He often manages to take advantage of the situation, use the enemy's strengths to defeat the enemy's weaknesses, and achieve victory against the odds.

"It's not time for me to make a choice yet. Getting my mother's belongings is the most important thing right now."

Ning Zhuo's purpose has always been very clear.

So his real problem now is—how to deal with Yu Heye without making a big splash or attracting attention.

Shen Xi's involvement undoubtedly made the problem even more complicated.

How should Ning Zhuo present himself in front of Shen Xi, and to what extent? This will be a great test of Ning Zhuo's political acumen!
Su Lingkou gathered the intelligence and came to Shen Xi with a worried expression: "Cousin, the situation has changed! Yu Heye has made his move, and many of his Foundation Establishment subordinates are challenging the newly arrived cultivators."

"The martial arts hall quickly accepted these challenges, which means they had obviously used their connections and made prior arrangements."

"The people Ning Zhuo brought are completely useless!"

"Many people were scared off; there was no question of ten mid-grade spirit stones."

"Cousin, Ning Zhuo's plan has failed. All our money is in Ning Zhuo's hands."

Shen Xi shook his head and smiled, "This contest has only just begun."

"Do you think that this 'golden opportunity' that Ning Zhuo has spotted was something no one has seen before? No one has done it before?"

“Cousin, you need to know that the forms of mountain strongholds are established by convention and evolved naturally. Such evolved things often emerge in accordance with the trend and are mature.”

"Like this time, Yu Heye's dispatch of his Foundation Establishment subordinates to conduct a martial arts challenge is a mature response. Many precedents have been thwarted in this way."

Su Lingkou's eyes lit up: "Cousin, as expected of you, you predicted it all along!"

Shen Xi shook his head again: "I could have expected it, and Ning Zhuo certainly had thought of it long ago, but he still did it this way. So, what I'm really curious about is how he will respond."

Su Lingkou's expression changed, and a smile appeared on her face: "I think Ning Zhuo will personally take to the field and fight against these Foundation Establishment cultivators. His combat strength is already quite outstanding, otherwise he wouldn't have the courage to provoke Yu Heye's side like this."

Shen Xi said noncommittally, "Let's wait and see."

Take action personally?

That is impossible.

Under Su Lingkou's silent observation, Ning Zhuo made no move whatsoever, not even a hint of it.

(End of this chapter)