Start getting stronger by modifying your breathing method

"The true ultimate?"

A strange glint flashed in Hu Qi's eyes.

This information is not unfounded.

The reason he knew all this was...
It is because, within the scope of his knowledge, there truly exists an ultimate truth.

That was the pitch-black ring that he had seen floating above everything when he used the Eye of Truth to peer into the origin of the Crimson Panel.

Its name is 'Strange Ring', and it is very likely to belong to the primordial level.

It is suspected to be the true creator.

Hu Qi possessed an aura emanating from the Qi Huan.

Perhaps this is why the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld called Hu Qi "Qi Zi".

At the same time, Hu Qi also understood why the other party had attacked him.

As the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld who governs the cycle of reincarnation in the realm of mountains and seas, he is different from other Heavenly Venerables.

Its perception of reincarnation is more subtle. Perhaps the other party noticed Hu Qi's existence a long time ago, but because it was trapped in the core area, the extent to which it could intervene was limited.

Furthermore, since the lower dimensions simply could not bear too much power, the originally broken Black Spirit Banner was placed in the Nightmare World.

This was all a pre-planned outcome.

It will surely fall into Hu Qi's hands.

Even in its damaged state, the Black Spirit Banner possesses a power that is not something an ordinary person can refuse.

The facts did not differ from the calculations of the Underworld Celestial Venerable.

Hu Qi did indeed refine it and place it in the Mind Realm. Although he sensed something was wrong after entering the real world and tried to seal the Black Spirit Banner, it was to no avail.

In some respects, the Underworld Celestial Venerable did succeed.

The only thing I didn't expect was the existence of the scarlet panel.

This caused the attempt to merge and take over Hu Qi's identity to fail.

The reason why the Underworld Celestial Venerable did this was not for any other reason, but for one reason only.

That is, they want to improve their own strength.

Because whether it's the True Spirit level in the Mountain and Sea Realm or those few Void Lords in the Void Sea who are comparable to True Spirit level.

Both of them entrust their true spirit imprint to the Void Sea and the Heavenly Dao of the Mountain and Sea Realm, which are both above the half-step pseudo-origin initial realm.

That is, the second realm of the True Spirit.

Doing this can help one break through and advance to the True Spirit level.

However, it also has a very serious drawback.

That means that after advancing to the True Spirit level, it is impossible to continue to increase power. The first realm of True Spirit, the Reflection Origin Realm, is the limit that all True Spirits can reach.

This is also why Hu Qi asked the Celestial Venerable of Evolution if there were any other realms above the True Spirit level, and the Venerable replied that there were none.

In some respects, that is indeed true.

After all, whether it is the Void Sea that enshrines the True Spirit Imprint or the Heavenly Dao of the Mountain and Sea Realm itself, no matter how powerful they are, they are only existences of the second realm, the 'Transformation Origin Realm'.

This principle is like the height of a fountain; it will never exceed the setting of the sluice gate.

Given their limits, it's impossible for these True Spirits who rely on them to advance any further.

But Hu Qi is different.

He is suspected to be connected to the one and only primordial being, and to be able to entrust the mark of the true spirit to it.

This also means that Hu Qi has the opportunity to become a third being comparable to the Heavenly Dao of the Mountain and Sea Realm and the Void Ocean.

And this is precisely the purpose of the Underworld Celestial Venerable.

She wanted to use this opportunity to break free from the control of the Heavenly Dao of the Mountain and Sea Realm and reach a higher realm.

As for why they waited until Hu Qi advanced to the True Spirit level before making their move, there are perhaps two reasons:

Firstly, his body was still too weak to withstand the fusion of her power;

Secondly, premature intervention may lead to unnecessary complications.

Unfortunately, despite their meticulous planning, the other side ultimately failed.

"Qi Zi..."

Hu Qi's eyes flickered.

Hu Qi didn't know much about the so-called final primordial 'Ring' itself.

It's merely that the true spirit resides within it and receives some feedback.

However, based on the information currently available, it is highly likely that his ability to obtain the Crimson Panel is not a coincidence.

There may be deeper reasons behind this.

However, Hu Qi didn't think much of it.

He never gets caught up in internal conflicts.

Moreover, there's no point in thinking about these things now. We can try to obtain more detailed information about the 'odd ring' later before making any calculations.

Think about this.

He refocused his attention on the scarlet panel.

Their gaze finally settled on the Divine Limit Heart Sutra.

The current modification value still has 180 units, which is more than enough to continue improving the Divine Limit Heart Technique.

The True Spirit level is different from other realms.

Once this level is reached, the level of life has already undergone a qualitative change.

There is absolutely no such thing as an unstable foundation.

"Crimson, upgrade the True Spirit Chapter of the Divine Limit Heart Technique to the Perfection of the Origin Reflection Realm!"

The moment the thought was uttered, the numbers in the modification value column began to jump rapidly.

At the same time, Hu Qi felt the power within his body sublimate once again, and the rich light of true spirit spread out like a tide.

His connection with the True Spirit Mark grew stronger, and his aura rose steadily.

The sensation of that 'strange ring' gradually became clearer, and it could even be sensed in the dark without using the power of the Eye of Truth.

In addition, Hu Qi even vaguely sensed that something was quietly being conceived deep within that light of true spirit.

The light of the true spirit originated from the strange light emitted by his soul after advancing to the True Spirit level.

This change means that his soul is brewing something unknown.

Based on the information he had previously obtained, Hu Qi already had some guesses in his mind.

After a while, all the changes gradually subsided.

He looked at the panel again:
-

[Skill: Divine Limit Heart Technique (True Spirit Chapter 9: Perfected Origin Realm) Trait: Light of True Spirit]

……

[Modified value: 90 units (51%)]

In the blink of an eye, Hu Qi broke through from the initial stage of Yingyuan Realm to the peak.

The cost was a full 90 units of modification value.

The remaining modification values ​​are insufficient to support the next upgrade.

Clearly, the required modification values ​​would be even more astonishing if one were to attempt to break through to the second stage of the True Spirit level, the Origin Transformation Realm.

I checked my body's condition.

At this moment, he could clearly sense the special power within his body.

There were originally two layers of power sealing him.

Firstly, there was the seal placed by the Netherworld Celestial Venerable, but Hu Qi removed it directly after Hu Qi advanced to the True Spirit realm.

Secondly, there is the sealing of the Void Sea's will.

The Void Sea is a True Spirit Level Second Realm Transformation Realm existence.

Naturally, he is incomparable to the Celestial Venerable of the Underworld.

With Hu Qi's newly advanced True Spirit level power, he naturally had no way to resist.

Under its restriction, it can only exert power at the level of a true god.

But now, with his strength increasing...

The seal seemed to have loosened, allowing him to unleash power that had reached the Dao Lord realm.

However, Hu Qi did not immediately use the Crimson Panel to modify and get rid of this negative state.

Instead, they put away the panel.

There are still 90 units left to modify the value, so the Divine Limit Heart Technique cannot be improved any further.

Moreover, this True Spirit Level Second Realm, Origin Transformation Realm, is somewhat different from other realms.

In addition, there were lessons learned from the past.

Hu Qi felt that these modified values ​​were not reliable.

He needs to accumulate more modification values ​​in case of any unexpected events during his promotion.

For him, this place was a perfect pasture to harvest modified values.

That's why he's not in a hurry to leave.

In the blink of an eye.

His figure had faded from the spot, and when he solidified again, he was already high in the sky.

Looking down with downcast eyes.

Below, thousands of mountains and valleys stretched out like a dragon's spine, with countless cities scattered like stars in the sky.

Just like the black jade stones scattered on a chessboard, dividing the vast territory into the boundaries of tribute from various countries.

Spiritual veins, like silver ribbons, could be vaguely seen winding through the clouds, and the entire continent was so vast that it seemed to stretch to the horizon.

However, that wasn't what Hu Qi cared about.

It's something else entirely.

From his perspective.

Strands of black mist, invisible to the naked eye, rose from living beings, mountains, rivers, and all things.

The world may seem normal, but it is not.

This is a world of countless sands within the Void Sea. He can clearly perceive that outside this world, there are countless similar worlds surrounding it.

It was fine before.

Now that Hu Qi has advanced to the True Spirit level, he sees things more clearly than ever before.

The Void Sea and the Heavenly Dao of the Mountain and Sea Realm are mutually opposed.

The Void Sea was born in the Realm of Mountains and Seas, one being yin and the other yang.

The Void Sea itself is like a mirror. The Mountain and Sea Realm contains countless worlds, and these worlds also exist within the Void Sea.

However, one difference is that every creature here contains that black energy within its body.

These black wisps are somewhat similar to the source of the black mist, carrying a dark aura of despair, decay, and misfortune.

This is also the main reason why all living beings in this world possess modification values.

Hu Qi stood with his hands behind his back, calculating with one hand, and then a hint of amusement flashed in his eyes.

"West Niu Hezhou, Lingshan, Lion Camel Ridge... This world is quite interesting. Could it be Journey to the West?"

The memories he had just extracted from the soul of the patrolling demon king had now been completely digested by him.

Furthermore, with his current level of attainment, he is in harmony with heaven and earth.

With a simple calculation, he could easily obtain more detailed information. However, the result surprised him somewhat.

However, it is also within reason.

The myriad realms and countless worlds are constantly evolving. The stories and legends known to ordinary people may be the result of an invisible force projected from a higher world.

This place is called the State of Wei, and there are as many as eight hundred dynasties like this in this territory.

The most powerful of them all was the Lion Camel Kingdom.

This territory, characterized by its crisscrossing mountains and scarce plains, is also known as Lion Camel Ridge.

On the surface, it appears to be a human dynasty, but in reality, it has long been secretly controlled by the demon race.

The humans here are nothing more than food for these demons.

At an even deeper level, there is the tacit approval of countless Buddhas.

This place is somewhat similar to the Journey to the West he knows.

The only difference is.

In Hu Qi's eyes, whether it was a human, a demon, or a Buddha, it was all just a facade.

These creatures are neither human nor demon in essence; they merely possess the form of something else.

In essence, they are all some kind of beings nurtured by the Void Sea.

It belongs to the dark side of existence, which is the opposite of reality.

But for him, this was actually a good thing.

This is because even the weakest of these creatures possess 'modification values' within them.

Now that he has reached the True Spirit level, his understanding of the Great Dao has become increasingly profound.

It was precisely because of this that he finally glimpsed a sliver of the true nature of the modified value.

It was not the soul or origin he had previously thought of, but a more abstract concept.

If it could be summed up in two words, it would be 'existence'.

The 'existence' here is like the amount of ink used to describe a character in a storybook, or the weight a character occupies in the plot of a film or television series.

The stronger a creature is, the more profound its 'existence' becomes.

Even beings at the True Spirit level cannot extract such a thing.

However, Hu Qi, who possesses the Crimson Panel, can plunder this 'existence' by hunting and devouring it, and then convert it into modified values.

This also explains why some beings, as long as a wisp of their soul remains, cannot acquire all the modified values.

It's simply because their 'existence' has not yet been completely stripped away.

Unlike the mortal beings in the realm of mountains and seas who may have no 'existence' whatsoever.

Here, even the weakest creature contains a trace of modification value.

Therefore, for him, this is a natural pasture for modifying values.

Thinking of this, Hu Qi lowered his eyes and looked down.

He casually reached his right hand to his side.

A long, jet-black banner appeared out of thin air and was firmly held in his palm.

It was the Black Spirit Banner, a genuine artifact originating from the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld.

"--what!"

Suddenly, a wisp of the remaining seal drifted out from the banner, instantly disintegrating into nothingness, leaving only a faint scream.

That is the imprint of the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld and the spirit of the Black Spirit Banner itself.

This thing is hidden too well.

In the past, before he entered the realm of true spirit, he could not perceive the existence of this spirit.

But things are different now; with a flick of the wrist, it can be completely erased.

This banner ultimately belonged to him completely.

The last missing line on the banner was also repaired by Hu Qi himself.

As for the existence of the banner spirit, although it could increase the power of the true weapon, Hu Qi didn't need it at all. All he needed was a handy tool, nothing more.

He flicked his wrist, and the black banner swayed, its surface surging like ink waves.

hum!
A jet-black color, like thick ink poured from the sky, suddenly spread.

In the blink of an eye, it enveloped the entire Lion Camel Ridge.

Lion Camel Ridge stretches for 80,000 li, and besides the eight hundred dynasties, countless villages are scattered throughout, and demon palaces appear and disappear.

At this moment, streaks of black flames ignited from the bodies of countless living beings.

This is the fire of the spirit, which burns the 'spirit'.

Every living thing possesses a spirit within its body; once this fire is unleashed, there is no way to escape it, nor can it be extinguished.

The more powerful the creature, the more intense the damage from the black flames.

Only truly inanimate objects can be immune.

……

Time goes back to before.

The moment the mountain patrol demon king was killed.

Lion Camel Cave.

It is called a cave, but in reality, the space inside is enormous, like a miniature world of Mount Sumeru.

Deep inside the cave, the air was as thick as congealed blood.

That wasn't darkness; it was a kind of gloomy aura that had accumulated countless resentments and despair.

What clung to the rock face was not moss, but a layer of dark red flesh that throbbed slightly, like the entrails of a living creature, slowly oozing a foul-smelling viscous liquid that dripped onto the piled-up bones below, making a sizzling, corrosive sound.

As far as the eye could see, countless white bones and skulls were piled up to form undulating hills.

Human hair was trampled into thick sheets of felt, covering the ground.

The rotting flesh mingled with the dust, emitting a nauseatingly sweet and foul odor.

Even more horrifying, human tendons as thick as a child's arm were wrapped around the withered, strange tree. They had long since dried out and, under the glow of the eerie green ghost fire, reflected a strange, dry, and gleaming silvery sheen.

This place is truly a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood; every breath is filled with the smell of death.

However, in the very heart of this blood-soaked, hellish place, there is a relatively 'peaceful' spot.

Three enormous stone pedestals, carved from single blocks of black rock, stand atop a high platform made of stacked skulls.

Three terrifying, humanoid creatures sat atop it.

The leading blue-haired lion monster sat in the center, its body the most imposing, its mane as blue as indigo flames.

At this moment, one of his giant claws was gripping a mortal leg bone that had been gnawed in half, while his other hand held up a huge stone bowl filled with scarlet liquid. He tilted his head back and gulped it down, blood mixed with the liquid overflowing from the corner of his mouth and dripping down his tangled mane.

"happy!"

His voice, like muffled thunder, echoed in the cave, causing dust to fall from the ceiling.

At the lower end, a large, yellow-tusked elephant demon with six tusks easily lifted a charred human sacrifice from the stone table with a flick of its trunk and put it into its mouth.

The sickening sound of bones cracking was clearly audible.

He ate slowly and deliberately, his demeanor seemingly composed, but occasionally a glint of bloodlust would flash in his eyes.

Compare the two.

The golden-winged roc, sitting on the other side and draped in golden feathers, has the most elegant posture.

He picked up his wine glass, a crystal glass, but the liquid inside was as red as blood.

Take a sip.

"Brother, this Lion Camel Cave has quite a unique scenery."

The roc chuckled, its voice sharp.

Upon hearing this, the Green Lion Spirit casually tossed the clean leg bone he was holding into the air, which landed on Skull Ridge in the distance, causing a series of rumbling collapse sounds.

He laughed.

"If you're happy, my dear brother, then we three brothers can roam freely here without anyone interfering. Even Yama, the King of Hell, would have to give way. Come, have another bowl!"

"Okay, eldest brother, second brother!"

The thick, pungent smell of blood mingled with the aroma of alcohol, lingering in the air.

Ghostly flames leaped from the cave walls, casting the enormous, distorted shadows of the three demon saints onto the wall behind them. The shadows danced with the flames, resembling a chaotic dance of demons.

But at this moment.

—Bang! !
The bronze wine cup was slammed to the ground, splashing blood-red wine everywhere.

The Green Lion Spirit suddenly stood up.

The originally calm azure demonic flames around him suddenly surged as if swept by a hurricane!
The dark cave was bathed in a ghastly green light, and the throbbing flesh and tangled tendons on the walls cast twisted and swaying shadows, as if the entire demonic cave had awakened.

"Brother, what has angered you?"

The yellow-toothed old elephant spirit put down the pale bone artifact in its palm and curled its long trunk.

"The soul fire of one of my patrolling demon kings has been extinguished."

The blue-maned lion's voice was squeezed out from between its teeth, and its chilling killing intent caused the temperature inside the cave to drop sharply.

The Golden Roc raised its eyelids slightly, its dark golden pupils showing no emotion, but it did not interrupt.

"Huh? Is that so!"

The old elephant spirit with yellow tusks was somewhat surprised.

You should know that this is Xiniu Hezhou, at the foot of Lingshan Mountain, which is Buddhist territory.

The three demons are causing trouble here. If it weren't for the tacit approval of those behind them, how could they be so unscrupulous?

The Buddhist community would never take action against them.

In this situation, given the strength of all three of them.

Before the arrival of the pilgrims, they were absolutely free as long as they did not leave Lion Camel Ridge.

But now someone actually dares to kill the patrolling demon king of Lion Camel Ridge, which is simply a blatant provocation.

"How dare you kill my patrolling demon king in Lion Camel Ridge! I'd like to see which ignorant fool you are!"

Before he finished speaking, the green-haired lion raised his hand, and a black wooden token engraved with twisted runes appeared out of thin air.

It was the life tablet that the mountain-patrolling demon king entrusted with his soul.

The next moment, the wooden sign shattered in mid-air with a 'crack', and the flying fragments transformed into a murky curtain of light.

The light screen flashed rapidly through fragments of the demon king's memories before his death: a giant claw slammed down, killing a human wielding two hammers.

Then, the camera suddenly shifted to the meteorite on the ground to one side.

The moment the camera focused on the meteorite.

——Crack!
The meteorite crystal also suddenly cracked open!
Billions of dazzling rays of light burst forth from it, instantly engulfing the murky light curtain.

In the center of that endless light, a blurry yet supremely majestic figure took a step forward.

What's most unsettling is that the figures in the light and shadow seem to transcend the barriers of time and space.

The moment he appeared, he suddenly looked up.

He looked at the three demons outside the light screen.

--puff!

As if struck hard on their souls by an invisible hammer, the three demons—the green-haired lion, the yellow-toothed elephant, and the golden roc—trembled violently, their faces turned pale, and they all let out a suppressed groan!

Their demonic energy surged uncontrollably, and the black stone seats beneath them shattered under the impact originating from the soul level, sending fragments of stone flying everywhere! (End of Chapter)