From a martial arts disciple to a god through countless trials and tribulations

Chapter 232 The Return of Destiny to Heaven
The mountain breeze dispersed the light mist, revealing a continuous expanse of green mountains. The long-dormant southern wilderness began to revive.

The Holy Son of the Southern Wilderness led a group of great demons back, causing the Ten Thousand Mountains to tremble.

As if spring had returned to the earth, all things stirred, and countless little monsters that had been lying dormant were now emboldened to emerge from their hidden caves.

But many great demons died in the mouths of the Chilong God. Their descendants and clans, upon learning of this, dared not weep openly, but hid their sorrow deep in their hearts, only shedding tears secretly in the dead of night...

"Woo..."

Chen Xuan was cultivating on Tiger Mountain when he occasionally heard suppressed sobs carried on the wind. He would listen for a while, but his expression remained unchanged.

Continue to cultivate the true scriptures.

Chen Xuan fought many battles in the Guyao Mountains. In each battle, he basically achieved his objectives and gained a large number of spoils.

"The number of Five Elements Spirit Pills obtained from Hua Liuli is enough to fully cultivate the Five Elements Mountain and Sea True Scripture and integrate it into the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body."

The Qingqiu Fox and the remnants of the Wu Taotie that Chen Xuan killed were all cauldrons of different levels, numbering no less than ten.

Logically speaking, a Qi cultivator refining the immortal Qi essence within the body of a first-level Qi Refining Realm cultivator cannot completely master a Qi Refining Realm Scripture; there will be a slight difference.

In addition, Chen Xuan exchanged pills that accelerated his cultivation, which consumed even more energy.

Therefore, he basically needs to consume the flesh and blood of a second or third level cauldron to cultivate a cauldron true scripture.

Even so, he has more than enough resources in the Five Elements for the time being.

During his two and a half years of Qi cultivation, Chen Xuan obtained many of the Five Elements Classics of Mountains and Seas through the Mysterious Cat Lady in the Lesser Underworld and other means.

Water Virtue: The True Scripture of the Roaring Serpent.

Fire Virtue: Phoenix True Scripture, Roc True Scripture, Bifang True Scripture.

Tu De: Dang Kang Zhen Jing...

The "Dang Kang True Scripture" is the Qingnang Mountain and Sea inheritance that Hua Liuli obtained from the old monster.

Old Zhang was reluctant to reveal the secret easily, but Hua Liuli used torture and all sorts of tricks from the tales of the strange and supernatural to successfully obtain the first half of the true scripture.

Chen Xuan began cultivating the Phoenix True Scripture, which could lead to Nirvana, and he was quite looking forward to it.

"Buzz!"

He held a Fire Virtue Elixir in his mouth, eating it like a candy. Soon, a brilliant crimson glow flowed across his skin, and the meridians and bones beneath were clearly visible, as if carved from red jade.

The cultivation method of the cauldron is to nurture the treasure body.

Nine transformations, ultimately reaching the ultimate perfect state in a certain direction of immortal energy.

"I cultivate the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body, therefore, I only need to infinitely strengthen the immortal body," Chen Xuan muttered to himself.

However, the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body, which integrates and refines hundreds of scriptures, is unparalleled.

Therefore, the final state of the Nine-Nine Unity Divine Body that Chen Xuan will be able to cultivate is an unknown.

After all, there are no two identical Five Treasures Warrior Immortal Bodies in the world.

For example, the Mountain Spirit Goddess also read the Shangyang Secret Manual. If she were to study and cultivate it, the true scripture she would integrate with would certainly be different from Chen Xuan's.

"Wow..."

Chen Xuan sat cross-legged on the cliff, his body radiating arcs of flame, entering a state of selfless cultivation, activating his extraordinary comprehension, and continuously studying the profound mysteries of the Phoenix Scripture.

"As expected of a true scripture that can reach the [Supreme Heaven] realm, its profoundness surpasses even the Heavenly Mandate Scripture."

Chen Xuan sighed. He had read the Phoenix Scripture many times before, but it was only when he actually cultivated it that he truly felt its mystery and vastness. This scripture exhausted the essence of fire.

Legend has it that among the true scriptures of the Fire Virtue lineage, the Phoenix Scripture consistently ranks among the top three... and is even qualified to compete for first place.

According to the words of the immortal Liu Jiao, this is "Jiang" among the first batch of Qi cultivators of the human race. He obtained the ancient true scripture from the bloodline of the phoenix bird and is the root of the human race's fire virtue inheritance. Its greatness is self-evident.

"His innate talent has been improved to the highest level, and his cultivation speed has increased several times over."

As soon as Chen Xuan started cultivating, he felt that he was far superior to the past. At the same time, he thought, "My comprehension of cultivation is higher than that of the Immortal Seed, at least one whole level higher."

With the aptitude of a Southern Immortal Seed, he has cultivated for at least twenty years and is now at the peak of the cauldron, seeking divine travel.

"The cauldron has nine levels of heaven, each level more difficult than the last."

"But if I bury myself in hard work, I'm afraid I can reach Nanmian's current level in less than ten years."

Chen Xuan calculated in his mind that it took him ten months to advance to the peak of the Cauldron Realm, which was extremely difficult and even exceeded the difficulty of the first few levels of the Cauldron Realm. Considering the overall difficulty, it was not an exaggeration to say that it took him ten years to reach the peak of the Cauldron Realm.

If that's the case, then his cultivation speed will be more than twice as fast as that of the Southern Crown Immortal Seed, which represents the ultimate in innate talent.

"In the end, I entered the Qi Refining Realm too late, but fortunately, the Qi Refining Realm has spiritual treasures from mountains and seas like the Peaches of Immortality, which can be used as a cauldron to break through a realm."

Chen Xuan thought to himself, "If I could establish a close relationship with the Qingnang Dojo, explore the Hidden Mountains and Seas, and steal spiritual treasures from heaven and earth, it would be a good path to progress."

Time flows by in the mountains.

In a short while, he learned the little phoenix's magic trick.

Half a day later, he mastered the Ascension Chapter of the Phoenix True Scripture and obtained the Nirvana Power of Phoenix Qi.

"Jiang Qinghuang can undergo Nirvana in an instant by using the feathers of the Divine Roc, but ordinary Phoenix Qi cannot achieve such an immediate effect."

"At least the level of the cauldron is needed to achieve the same effect as Jiang Qinghuang."

Chen Xuan studied the Phoenix Qi and, with a slight exertion, a phoenix with a wingspan of over a hundred meters emerged from the flames, its feathers sparkling and beautiful, exuding an aura of imperial nobility.

"Huh? What happened?" At the foot of Tiger Mountain, the Azure-feathered Luan Bird, dutifully guarding the gates of the supreme Holy Son, felt a sense of unease.

"The Phoenix Qi of the Chu Kingdom," the Golden-Winged Roc, a man of great knowledge, said in a deep voice.

This is the invisible pressure of the phoenix, commanding all birds. Although its level is extremely low, it still causes the bird-like monsters to have a subtle feeling, and they have an innate sense of fear in their blood.

These two top-tier mountain lord demons have defected to the north, unable to return to their southern homeland. Now they have taken refuge in Tiger Mountain, voluntarily serving as the left and right guardian beasts.

Chen Xuan made great strides forward.

Three days later.

Master the Daoist scriptures and cultivate the [Phoenix Heavenly Feathers].

"Click..."

Two orbs of light suddenly appeared on Chen Xuan's shoulder blades, producing a tingling and numb sensation. The next moment, two huge and magnificent wings spread out, each a full ten feet long, with each feather shining with a glass-like luster, as if carved from red gold.

"Wow!"

Chen Xuan spread his wings and soared into the sky. As the phoenix wings vibrated, the air was torn apart, and streams of crimson-gold air, accompanied by flames, shot out, bringing unparalleled speed.

"Just a few days ago, I mastered the Phoenix Qi, and now it's become the Phoenix Dao Canon?" The Azure Feather Luan bird looked up, its heart trembling.

"Could the Holy Son of Man be both a divinely ordained being and a seed of immortality?" On the other side, the Golden-Winged Roc speculated, feeling incredulous; such a thing was too astonishing.

“No, we’ve spied on Nanmian of Xiaoqingtian. His immortal seed is not as good as His Highness the Holy Son…” Qingyu Luan bird shook its head and said, believing that even if Nanmian had an immortal seed, he could not compare to Chen Xuan’s cultivation speed.

"At this cultivation speed, one can master the Phoenix True Scripture in a month, and catch up with Nanmian in a few years." The Golden-Winged Roc nodded, very satisfied, and continued:
"The stronger the Holy Son is, the stronger we are."

"call!"

Chen Xuan's wings left two crimson arcs as he traversed the sky and surveyed the earth for a full quarter of an hour before returning to Fox Mountain.

"The Taoist canon passed down from the Phoenix True Scripture is extraordinary."

Chen Xuan carefully studied the Daoist Canon. He could clearly sense the emotions within it. It seemed that there was a kind of "intelligence" hidden in its wings, but it was very weak and far inferior to the Heavenly Mandate Daoist Canon.

This feeling was subtle, as if an "outsider" had entered into one's own body, giving one a vague sense of unease... This feeling was somewhat similar to the dragon soul mark on Chen Xuan's wrist.

"The Daoist Canon is now complete; it is time to continue cultivating the [Phoenix Immortal Fire Divine Body]."

For Chen Xuan, the upcoming cultivation will be extremely challenging.

Firstly, the Divine Body of the Cauldron recorded in the Phoenix True Scripture is extremely extraordinary, comparable to the Water Virtue [Black Tortoise Demon-Subduing Divine Body] that the old tortoise has been seeking.

Of course, Chen Xuan was currently refining the rudimentary form of the Phoenix Immortal Fire Divine Body, which was inferior to the perfect divine body in the old tortoise's final form. Secondly, Chen Xuan sensed that the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body was subtly reacting, rejecting the Phoenix Daoist Canon.

"After the five elements of the immortal body are perfectly integrated, adding another element of fire will cause imbalance? Will the immortal body be destroyed?"

Although many early versions of the Shangyang Secret Manual have been passed down in the world.

However, those who cultivate this path fail to complete it and ultimately end in failure; it is an extremely dangerous path.

"Cannot be combined? Force it to be combined!"

Chen Xuan's expression was firm. Without the experience of predecessors to refer to, he could only feel his way across the river by trial and error on his own.

"Wow!"

Countless crimson-gold seal characters danced across Chen Xuan's body, one circle after another, all manifestations of the profound meaning of the Phoenix Sutra.

About ten days later.

Within a radius of more than ten miles, thousands upon thousands of flames in the shape of black birds appeared, dancing gracefully. Some were four-legged roc birds, their eyes flashing with the lights of thousands of homes, while others were golden-feathered Bifang birds, their feathers dripping with golden flames. Countless black bird flames swam around the mountaintop, resembling a dazzling crimson galaxy.

"What is Your Highness, the Second Prince Chen, doing? It's terrifying!" Five or six tiger-shaped ghosts who had just returned to Tiger Mountain stared in disbelief, then covered their heads and fled down the mountain.

"Tiger, Tiger, your house has been burned down by our benefactor, the Holy Son!" The four-tusked elephant was beaming with joy, both happy to see Chen Xuan again and worried about the Tiger family's house.

Then, the four-tusked baby elephant was kicked hard in the buttocks by the tiger, and rolled down the mountain quickly like a round watermelon.

A group of minor monsters from the Southern Wilderness stopped at the foot of the mountain, gazing up at the summit of Tiger Mountain, which was shrouded in the brilliant flames of the Black Bird, their mouths agape.

"Where are your fathers?" asked the Golden-feathered Roc, standing on one side of the mountain path like a loyal guardian.

"A large group of Chu people have arrived in Red Raven City, including some human cauldrons. Father has gone out to check on the situation." Tiger Da, carrying a large sword on his back, crossed his arms and glanced sideways as he replied, feeling a little apprehensive about the two unfamiliar "gatekeepers."

"..."

At the mountaintop, Chen Xuan was in a dilemma, his brows furrowed into a deep frown, and he clicked his tongue and muttered to himself, "I can't integrate. It's too difficult."

"cough!"

He spat out a mouthful of five-colored blood. This immortal body, which could withstand the killing moves of the Cauldron Sword Official, was now covered with cracks and was about to be destroyed in the "hard melting".

The Heavenly Mandate Scripture follows a path similar to immortal energy and divine soul.

However, the Classic of Mountains and Seas is specifically for cultivating the physical body.

Chen Xuan had previously cultivated the Five Elements Immortal Body because the Heavenly Mandate Scripture had little impact on the physical body and was relatively easy to master. However, the Mountain and Sea Scripture was different; it was extremely resistant and could not be integrated into the Immortal Body.

"No wonder those cultivators before me couldn't master the Shangyang Secret Manual; it's probably meant for immortals to refine."

Chen Xuan pondered for a moment, then changed his approach:

"If we can't merge for the time being, then let's each go our own way, one body with two sides, and bloom on both sides."

Chen Xuan came up with a new method: no longer forcibly integrating the Phoenix Scripture into the Heavenly Mandate Scripture.

"What is ordained by Heaven shall be ordained by Heaven, and what is in the mountains and seas shall be in the mountains and seas."

Chen Xuan decided to use the Phoenix True Scripture as a foundation to create a "second" version of the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body from the Mountain and Sea series. The True Scriptures of the Crying Serpent, the Roc Bird, and others were all integrated into this new immortal body.

Two sides in one body.

The front depicts the Celestial Body of Destiny.

The reverse side features a mountain and sea-themed immortal body.

"Wow..."

As soon as Chen Xuan had an idea, he acted immediately. However, this was an extremely difficult and dangerous attempt. Even though Chen Xuan had exceptional comprehension of cultivation, he still encountered many problems.

Many times, he needed to pause his cultivation and contemplate for several hours before he could find a way to break the deadlock and continue cultivating.

The longest period of contemplation Chen Xuan endured was three whole days. He sat on the cliff, lost in silence, as if he had given up on cultivation.

But he quickly set off again, solving all the problems he encountered, and firmly believing: "The path of destiny is full of unknowns and has no end in sight. The path of mountains and seas, however, is incredibly mature, and the predecessors have already reached the end of some paths."

"The right way is to pursue two paths simultaneously."

The path of destiny is fraught with immense karma; the highest level Chen Xuan has encountered is only the Immortal Rank, and the road ahead is shrouded in darkness.

However, the Mountain and Sea Road is said to have three thousand great paths, some of which lead to the Supreme Heaven, which is above the ranks of immortals.

For example, the Fire element is represented by the "Phoenix True Scripture," the Thunder element by the "Yinglong True Scripture," and the Wind element by the Qingqiu element by the "Nine-Tailed True Scripture"...

Time is like running water.

More than ten days later, a group of Qi practitioners from the State of Chu arrived at the foot of Tiger Mountain.

With the banners of the Black Bird fluttering and the Demon Suppression Division clearing the way, a magnificent carriage pulled by eight crimson beasts came to a stop. In addition, a large group of people from the Chu Kingdom's aristocratic families accompanied Jiang Qinghuang.

"Are two top-tier demons serving as gatekeepers for the Holy Son of the Southern Wilderness?" The cultivators of the Demon Suppression Division felt their hair stand on end and were sweating profusely. They had arrived at a terrifying cave of demons.

The Golden Roc and the Luan bird, one on the left and one on the right, stood guard on Tiger Mountain like sculptures, their aura terrifying... Only the Jiang family's palace in the Chu Kingdom was worthy of such a high-level ceremonial procession.

“This…” Pei Yuanyong was shocked. He was now the deputy general of the Demon Suppression Division. Having experienced the baptism of war, he was considered a promising young man among the Chu disciples of the same age. But at this moment, when he thought of Chen Xuan, a feeling of things being different arose in his heart.

“He has reached an unattainable height.” More than two years ago, Pei Yuanyong, on behalf of his family, secretly extended an invitation to Chen Xuan.

At that time, Pei Yuanyong's realm was one realm higher than Chen Xuan's when he first entered the Daoist Canon, but now he has been left far behind and can't even be seen from behind.

Pei Yuanyong was melancholy. He was quite talented, only slightly less so than the top few geniuses in the Chu Kingdom. He had once focused solely on cultivating the true scriptures, hoping to make a final push into the mortal world before his lifespan ended.

However, when war came, it was difficult to remain unaffected, so he abandoned his unrealistic idea of ​​escaping the mortal world early on. In the past two years, he has spent a lot of time learning magic tricks and fighting skills, gradually shedding the title of "a good-for-nothing Taoist".

"Chen Xuan, the Holy Son of the Southern Wilderness, is a true descendant of the Chu Kingdom, yet he has reached the pinnacle of the Southern Wilderness... A few months ago, the Thunder Dragon God brought the Heavenly Tribulation Decree all the way to the royal city. What an unprecedented praise!" A member of a noble family remarked with emotion.

"Heh, he better not betray us. Yuzhi is a tiger, and the Southern Wilderness is an even more troublesome dragon." An old man with white hair sneered and continued, "With Emperor Jiang gone, the Jiang family can't hold on alone. The important matters of the country still need us noble families to guard them together."

This group of upper-class Qi cultivators from the Chu Kingdom, representing over a dozen ancient families, came to the Southern Wilderness with Jiang Qinghuang, who had been invited, for the purpose of "cooperation," hoping to gain benefits from it.

"Chen Xuan is only in his early twenties. He must be a puppet pushed out by the monsters of the Southern Wilderness. They say it's a cooperation, but in my opinion, the wolfish ambitions of these great monsters of the Southern Wilderness are obvious..." The white-haired old man sneered. Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine. He turned his head sharply, and cold sweat poured down his forehead like soybeans.

The Golden-Winged Roc and the Azure-Feathered Luan were staring coldly at the white-haired old man.

The oppressive aura emanating from the two top-tier cauldrons was as terrifying as a towering mountain. The white-haired elder, a low-level cauldron from a prestigious family, was so frightened that his entire body turned cold, his legs went weak, and he slid to his knees, utterly pathetic.

"Luan bird, you live in the southern wilderness, eating a city a day for twenty days straight, leaving no smoke from cooking fires for thousands of miles around?" The Golden-Winged Roc said casually, its eyes like golden lamps.

"An ancient kingdom of rat spirits, their flesh and blood sour and bitter, gradually grew tired of them after eating millions of them," the Azure Feathered Phoenix sneered, its fierce gaze sweeping over the white-haired old man. It coldly commented, "Humans are the masters of all creatures, born with near-immortal energy, making them the perfect tonic for delicate skin and tender flesh..."

Although the Azure-feathered Luan Bird is skilled in music and etiquette, its personality remains tyrannical and cold, retaining its ghostly nature.

The Chu cultivators' eyelids twitched as they listened to the Golden Roc and the Luan bird's undisguised whispers to each other, and their scalps tingled with fear... Each of the ancient families had sent several cauldrons to the Southern Wilderness, but at this moment they felt that these two birds raised by Chen Xuan could slaughter them all.

The Chu cultivators began to pray that Chen Xuan was a kind and powerful man who could control these lawless monsters.

"Wow..."

The carriage curtains were drawn back, and Jiang Qinghuang stepped down in a white dress.

"General, we've arrived..." She held a communication talisman in her sleeve, looked up at the top of Tiger Mountain, where a brilliant black bird firelight enveloped the area, as red as the evening glow.

Ordinary people might not be able to discern the source of this imagery from any sacred text.

However, Jiang Qinghuang speculated that Chen Xuan was cultivating the "Phoenix True Scripture," and that his level was higher than hers. He was already condensing the "Phoenix Immortal Fire Divine Body"... But this divine body seemed different from what was recorded, which puzzled her.

"Come on up," Chen Xuan's voice rang out, and immediately the fiery imagery on Tiger Mountain vanished.

After a while.

Chen Xuan descended the cliff and arrived at Xin Hu's house halfway up the mountain. There, he met with the great demons, including the Mountain Lord and the Three-Tailed Fox, who were already there. They met with the Qi practitioners from Chu.

"So many people." Chen Xuan frowned slightly upon seeing the large group of Qi practitioners behind Jiang Qinghuang, his tone revealing a hint of displeasure: "What do you want?"

(End of this chapter)