Forge your destiny into a sword, slash your soul and ascend to immortality

Chapter 175 Lifespan Advancement
The second-grade [Wordless Stele] possesses formidable magical power, resembling a celestial demon descending to earth, making it irresistible.

In Jing Qian's eyes, this insect demon, at the [Earthly Fiend] level, probably wouldn't even qualify as [Zhong Shenxiu].

This time, with the power of the [Wordless Stele], it bravely ventured into the [Dao Yuan Divine Shuttle Universe]. Instead of being greeted with flower baskets and banners, it was met with a deadly sword light.

Jing Qian, wielding the powerful [True Illusion Immortal Sword Embryo], cleaved the insect demon in two with a single sword strike, leaving its flesh and blood scattered on the ground beneath his feet.

The [Possa Divine Court] trembled, perfectly absorbing the flesh and soul of the insect demon, and at the center of the land, a black iron gate materialized.

This is the foundation of a Tower of Babel, divided into five levels: black iron, bronze, blue crystal, purple jade, and gold.

Each level has a different level of control over the spatial passageways.

The black iron gate of Jingqian can only be closed for a maximum of one day and one night before it will open again.

Each opening lasts for ten days before it can be closed again.

Those who guard the tower, especially those guarding the black iron gate, are often forced to work ten days a week and rest only once a week, resulting in immense pressure from the insect swarm.

If the tower construction can make a breakthrough and the gate can be upgraded to the bronze level, then a single closure can last for a month.

In this way, one can work ten days a week and rest for one month. Between each major battle, there will be enough time to recover magical power, heal injuries, and improve cultivation.

This is the only way to maintain high-quality combat over a long period of time.

Therefore, the first step in building the Tower of Babel is to withstand the first wave of insect attacks and upgrade the spatial gate to the Bronze rank as soon as possible.

Moreover, gates of bronze rank or higher can use the divine power of the [Bosa Divine Court] to limit the cultivation level of insect demons that cross over.

Most high-tower families, after their gates are upgraded, will immediately stop the top three-rank insect demons from entering.

Everyone relies entirely on the insect swarms of mid-grade insects for resources.

However, Jing Qian didn't care at all how intense the insect swarm was.

He wished the insect swarm would come even more fiercely!
In his past cultivation, such high-quality opportunities to reap enemy lives and seize resources were far too few.

The endless stream of insect demons are extremely valuable magical materials for all cultivators.

However, Jing Qian's efficiency in utilizing these materials far surpasses that of ordinary people.

This is because, in addition to seizing the insect demon's physical body and magic power, he can also house its soul in the Life Stele space and harvest it a second time.

Furthermore, the experience gained from each major battle can be used to upgrade the [Pure Yang] title using the [Pure Yang Sword Anvil].

He was already not far from being a top-tier titled "Pure Yang God-Slaying Immortal-Extinction Lord".

Now he has a constant stream of insect demons to slaughter without restraint.

Before long, he will be promoted to a key title.

More importantly, the massive number of insect demons in this other world also possess lifespans; they are not immortal ghosts.

Although it is unknown why, the lifespan of each insect demon is pitifully short, which is seriously inconsistent with its level of cultivation.

He had to kill several second- or third-rank demon insects to extract a thousand years of his lifespan.

But for Jingqian, if the quality isn't good enough, they'll make up for it with quantity!
The black iron gate in front of him was wide open, and he wasn't going to close it until he was completely exhausted and collapsed from exhaustion!

A constant stream of insect demons crawled out of it, completely fearless.

Jing Qian sealed the sword formation tightly over the spatial passage, accepting all comers without reservation.

Any insect demons that dared to approach were easily killed on the spot.

His lifespan increased steadily during this process, and the black iron gate in front of him gradually turned cyan.

His process of forging the Tower of Babel was extremely smooth and effortless, completely unlike the intense pressure and thrilling excitement of other families.

Every demon, from its physical body to its divine soul, from its lifespan and essence to its combat experience, is being ruthlessly exploited by Jing Qian.

His strength was improving rapidly without him even realizing it.

……

【The Three Paths Woman】After three thousand years, she has returned to the northern sky.

Last time she caused quite a stir, but in reality, she was tricked by that rotten piece of trash called "Blind," taking the blame for everything. Not only did she completely offend the Empress, but she also didn't get what she wanted.

This return trip to the same place was incredibly stressful for her, yet she felt she had no choice but to come.

This matter concerns a crucial aspect of her own path, and she cannot afford to be careless!

However, for this wanted criminal of the Wuji Dynasty, infiltrating the heart of Tianjing Star will not be an easy task.

Fortunately, she was, after all, a highly skilled and cunning witch.

She was seen quietly guarding a trade route leading to [Tianjing Star].

Whenever a treasure ship carrying supplies passed by, the Three Paths Woman would break off a small piece from her own body and throw it into the depths of the consciousness of the people on board. These delivery cultivators would then carry it to the Heavenly Capital Star.

This tiny, subtle poison of consciousness lurks within the consciousness of a living person, intertwined with their thoughts and desires, utterly inseparable, and impossible to detect.

The Three Paths Woman used the method of ants moving house to gradually break herself apart and incorporate her into the bodies of more than three hundred traveling cultivators, thus mixing herself into the Heavenly Capital Star.

She cultivates the most bizarre and unique path of the Heavenly Demon Palace, the "Heart Demon Lord" path. Compared to the fundamental lineage inheritance, the "Supreme Heavenly Demon Strategy Book," which follows the path of the Supreme Heavenly Demon Lord, is more compatible with her temperament and aptitude.

……

[High Towers Area] On average, every hundred years, two or three new towers emerge and are fully established.

At the same time, one or two old towers will be unable to withstand the invasion of the [Hive Universe] and will be forced to collapse, resulting in the land being reclaimed.

All of this was under the Empress's control, forming a healthy promotion and demotion mechanism.

Any family that falls into ruin during the infighting will be dragged into a quagmire without the Empress's intervention, simply by the periodic insect hive invasions.

This time, the Su family's decision to rebuild the tower has also touched the hearts of many.

Outside the courtyard of No. 47, a number of curious people slowly gathered.

People gathered in small groups to discuss how many feet the new tower, which was enveloped by the [Possa Divine Court], could reach.

Some people even teamed up to act as bookmakers, setting up a small gambling operation.

Although no one could see through the changes within, given the Su family's decline in recent years, no one showed much confidence.

What no one knew was that beneath that divine protective barrier, Jing Qian was about to fly away in ecstasy!

At this moment, nearly six months have passed since he began his tower-building journey.

During these six months, he killed a total of twenty-five second-grade [Wordless Stele] terrifying insect demons and nearly three hundred third-grade [Heaven-Mending] insect demons.

As for the Earthly Fiends and Star-Picking Ranks below the third grade, he couldn't be bothered to count them.

On average, he can gain about 20,000 years of lifespan from each month of battle.

This one great battle alone brought Jing Qian's lifespan reserves to an unprecedentedly large number!

With a lifespan of 120,000 years, he'll probably live long enough for the world to change and things to be different by then.

Beneath his feet, the black iron gate had been upgraded to the blue crystal level in just one month. Once the gate was closed, it could last for up to a year without having to face the pressure of the insect swarm.

Beneath the portal, a tall tower already stands.

This is the tower that was slowly built up after the divine court digested the remains of many large insects. Now, its height has exceeded that of half of the towers in the entire [Tower District].

This achievement surpasses that of most families, a result of the entire clan pooling their resources to forge the Tower of Babel.

The first tower that Su Jin built herself was not as imposing as the tower in front of Jing Qian.

But Jingqian has not yet reached his own limit.

However, after slaying another second-grade [Wordless Stele] insect demon, he raised his hand and closed the spatial gate.

The series of battles had accumulated a vast amount of resources, which he planned to digest and improve before launching the next round of battles.

With the Blue Crystal Gate closed, Jing Qian's journey of building the tower officially came to an end.

Under his leadership, the entire process proceeded smoothly and without any risks.

However, as soon as the magical shield surrounding his Tower of Babel was removed, a commotion erupted among the onlookers.

A tall tower suddenly appeared, standing out like a crane among chickens, a third taller than its neighbors on either side.

"Does the Su family really have such a strong foundation?"

"But those two sisters sold their ancestral property?"

The surrounding chatter was deafening!
"Who struck first and seized this prime location!"

"Quickly send out a visiting card and find an opportunity to get in touch."

Jing Qian's high-profile construction of the tower attracted a great deal of attention.

Every change in the Tower District is enough to trigger a shift in the entire Wuji Celestial Empire.

Jing Qian himself was a lone figure, with no vested interests entangled with any faction, so he didn't have a deep understanding of this.

But before long, the heavy karma within the Celestial Empire will come to his aid and slowly affect him.

……

In the high hall of the Ministry of Personnel of the Celestial Empire, a messenger with a solemn face and no expression came to deliver a letter on behalf of his master.

His master was of noble status and held an extremely high position. This handwritten letter would be very effective even if it were sent to the Ministry of Personnel.

The Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, who was on duty in court, picked up the handwritten document and carefully read it. It read:
“Junyou, my nephew.”

"Now there is a junior member, Su Jing, who has been granted the position of [Lecturer of Tianbao Pavilion] through hereditary privilege. He is quite talented. I hope my nephew will take good care of him and assign him a suitable position as [Qin Yixing] to hone his skills and help him accumulate merits in advance..."

Junyou was the courtesy name of this Right Vice Minister. The fact that he could address him with such an intimate title and directly ask for an official position shows the close relationship between the two.

After reading it, the Vice Minister rubbed the letter in his hand, turning it into ashes.

He just opened his mouth and said:
"Please trouble Mr. Qin to inform the Duke that I will personally oversee this matter."

"After the next round of selection, I will take advantage of the selection of officials to make proper arrangements for Su's son."

……

External disturbances had no effect on Jingqian, who was in seclusion.

He had just exhausted all his fighting spirit and pushed the [Pure Yang Calamity Master] to another level, only one step away from true advancement.

Then, he turned around and went down one level of the Tower of Babel.

Directly beneath the blue crystal gate, a pool of [Fire of Evil] appeared.

Inside, there has been a thick layer of [Po Suo Shen Sha], which, if counted carefully, number more than 1,700.

This is still the result of a large amount of resources being used to build the tower itself.

Jing Qian sat cross-legged beside the [Fire of Evil] pool and began to inhale fiercely.

These precious [Fire of Evil] can also enhance his cultivation of the Lesser Three Thousand [Golden Nature Root Life Essence], which is a considerable supplement.

Without the cost of building the tower, his speed of accumulating [Fiendish Fire] can be further accelerated.

At the same time, a void rift opened up beside him, from which billowing Yin-Yang Fiends surged forth.

This rift leads directly to the Ghost Palace within the Great Black Heaven, and also transmits the Yin-Yang Sha accumulated by the temple over this period of time, allowing Jing Qian to digest and absorb it.

His two most reliable sources of [Fire of Evil] successfully contributed a total of three thousand [Fire of Evil]. This was far from enough to fill Jing Qian's cultivation gaps. He absorbed as much as he could, and in less than a month, he had completely digested all the [Fire of Evil].

As he became more and more at ease with his cultivation of the Earthly Fiends, the speed at which he devoured the Fiend Fire also increased.

After he finished absorbing the [Fire of Evil], his cultivation of [Golden Root Life Essence] officially broke through 135,000.

Only now did he finally have time to process his enormous lifespan.

Jing Qian's "Sword of Birthday Celebration" is his most important means of acquiring resources.

Over the years, the lifespan he has used to enhance his "fate" and "spiritual potential" has accumulated to nearly 20,000 years.

Without the [Sword of Longevity], relying solely on one's own [Lifespan] destiny to accumulate little by little would be far too insufficient.

It would be impossible to do this in less than a thousand years.

Awakening the [Longevity] destiny at the ninth rank and activating the birthday blessing power of the [Qingping Sword Box] was his most fortunate opportunity.

At this very moment, he possesses 120,000 years of lifespan, which allows him to indulge in a massive consumption spree!

He then unleashed the full power of [Sculpting the Source of Wisdom], transforming it into a beam of light that shone upon the [Azure Lotus Sword Box].

His own natal [Lingji] is the core of his swordsmanship.

Whether it's accumulating sword energy or gathering divine power, it has endless uses.

However, it was already quite an achievement that the [Qingping Sword Box] was gradually refined to the [Star-Picking] rank along with his advancement.

What limits the further advancement of the [Sword Box] is the amount of time spent exploring and accumulating experience.

At this moment, by burning his lifespan, Jing Qian compressed the power of time into an extremely short period of time and unleashed it all.

The power of the [Qingping Sword Box] began a rapid advancement.

Jing Qian's lifespan seemed to be decreasing rapidly, as if it were free!
Three hundred years, five hundred years, one thousand years!

His lifespan of 4,700 years was burned in one go.

Meanwhile, the [Qingping Sword Box] suddenly increased in rank by two levels!

[Inspiration: Qingping Sword Box]

[Type: Seeking One's Roots]

[Rank: Second Grade]

[Requirements for suppression: the appearance of spiritual treasures, the appearance of gods and ghosts]

[Lifespan burden: Two months/day]

Jing Qian felt that the sword energy inside the sword box was surging wildly, as if it had come to life.

A strange core, leading directly to the [Mountain of Immortal Qi], was born deep within the [Azure Lotus Sword Box].

From then on, the [Qingping Sword Box] possessed the ability to produce and consume [Sumeru Reincarnation Killing and Annihilating Immortal Spiritual Energy].

In addition to [Good Corn], Jing Qian now has another place to prepare [Immortal Spiritual Energy] in advance.

Furthermore, the numerous divine powers attached to the [Qingping Sword Box] have been comprehensively enhanced, and its benefits are too numerous to mention.

This was an ability that Jingqian should have accumulated and honed little by little over the next few hundred or thousand years of cultivation.

But at this moment, it was all unleashed by [The Shaping of Wisdom] in a very short time.

Jing Qian was immediately overwhelmed by the impact of the [Qingping Sword Box].

The sheer volume of insights was overwhelming and difficult to digest in a short time. It was only thanks to the powerful deductive abilities of the [Three Lives Eye] that this intense advancement was able to withstand.

He became somewhat arrogant; his rapid improvement in a short period of time, while incredibly efficient, came at an astonishingly high cost.

However, he overlooked a very important factor.

The rapid ascent to the [Spiritual Ability] rank also brought a sudden and significant increase in the lifespan burden.

His lifespan, defined by the metal element, can no longer be sustained.

This also caused him to temporarily halt the enhancement work on the other [Spiritual Machines].

No one dared to be as audacious as Jing Qian in crafting eleven [Lingji] statues.

After all, everyone's lifespan has an upper limit.

As cultivation progresses, the advancement of the [Spiritual Ability] rank is an inevitable process.

The resulting pressure on lifespan is a shackle that limits the unlimited expansion of each person's strength.

If one disregards the lifespan's capacity to withstand it, and endlessly refines [spiritual energy], then uses [spiritual energy] to endlessly share [fate], and then refines new [fate], one can achieve this.

By stacking these elements like nested dolls, everyone can eventually reach the level of the [Eternal Demon].

If it were anyone else facing Jing Qian's current predicament, their only option would be to abandon the refining of most of the [Spiritual Energy] and focus on one or two core [Spiritual Energy] pieces, making full use of the remaining [Lifespan] destiny.

But for Jing Qian, lifespan isn't enough, so he just spends money to max it out!
And so, he digested the many insights into swordsmanship that came with the advancement of the [Azure Lotus Sword Box].

On one hand, it once again activated the [Sculpting of Wisdom], illuminating the [Lifespan] destiny.

【The Shaping of Wisdom】is a powerful divine ability whose power surpasses both 【The Opportunity of Destiny】 and 【The Knowledge of Heaven's Mandate】.

It is the culmination of the power of the [Sumeru Great Way Stele].

Strengthening lifespan with [Wisdom Source Shaping] no longer requires consuming [Life Essence]; it can be easily achieved by directly consuming Life Essence.

Jing Qian did the math and realized that if he were to accumulate all his spiritual energy to a high level, his lifespan would still be significantly reduced.

Taking this opportunity to drastically enhance [Lifespan] will only bring benefits and no harm.

And so, Jing Qian began to recklessly squander his lifespan, frantically enhancing his [Lifespan] destiny.

The effect of the [Lifespan] destiny attribute immediately increased dramatically!

For Jing Qian, lifespan came easily, and he didn't hesitate to spend it without a second thought.

He immediately used up ten thousand years of his lifespan!
He had long harbored a question in his heart: what would it be like to forcibly elevate one's lifespan destiny to the level of "Heavenly Mandate"?
Among the many types of destiny, the lifespan destiny is the most unique.

Unlike all other destinies, it possesses an extremely powerful yet unreplicable force: "Time"!
Jing Qian's cultivation has reached a point where he can now begin to aspire to the upper three ranks of cultivation.

Thanks to his profound lineage and numerous extraordinary opportunities, he has already gained a preliminary understanding of the cultivation of the upper three ranks.

The so-called third grade of "Mending the Heavens" is to accumulate the foundation and authority for the two major realms that follow.

Cultivators must accumulate enough [Heavenly Mandate] and [Immortal Spiritual Energy] at this level before they can truly ascend the [Mountain of Immortal Qi] and attain the status of immortality.

Even for prodigies like the Forbidden Child and the Eternal Demon, who possess abundant destiny and have long since attained enlightenment in immortal spiritual energy, the cultivation of mending the heavens is still extremely important.

Building a solid foundation and increasing the number of characters on your "Destiny Tablet" is a highly cost-effective approach.

This is much easier than slowly cultivating up from the [Wordless Stele] after being promoted.

At the second rank level, cultivators ascend the [Mountain of Immortal Qi] and begin to inscribe the [Destiny Stele]. In essence, they are cultivating their own path of cultivation and their connection with the Great Dao of Space.

Whether in the mortal world, fishing in the void, or exploring the realms and heavens.

Still on the [Mountain of Immortal Qi], establish dimensions and plunder dimensions.

All of these involve extremely sophisticated applications of spatial principles.

In this respect, Jingqian's advantages couldn't be more obvious!
From the moment he entered the path, he devoted himself to exploring the power of space.

As for the higher-level cultivation of the First-Rank Dao Lord, Jing Qian gained new insights after experiencing the power of Yanfu, Gulong, and even Haoyumi.

Whether it is the path of the Lord of Calamity taken by the Pure Yang Heaven or the path of the Lord of Hell taken by the Jambudvipa Path.

Even other great lineages, such as the [Heavenly Demon Lord], [Maitreya Buddha Lord], [Extinction Lord], and [Creation Lord], etc.

Regardless of which path they choose, or whether they ultimately achieve success.

At the first-grade level, one of the most crucial aspects of cultivation is the control over the power of "time".

The first and second ranks represent the cultivation stages a cultivator reaches when they master the power of space and time.

Jing Qian counted all his powers, and apart from [lifespan], no other time-related attributes were displayed!
Therefore, he regarded the process of deeply enhancing his lifespan as an opportunity to gain a preliminary understanding of the power of time.

For Jing Qian, this may be another opportunity for a qualitative change in his spiritual practice!

When the "Ten Thousand Years of Life" is incorporated into the "Lifespan" destiny, the effect of this "Metal Root Destiny" increases dramatically, approaching a year per day.

Each year adds over 360 years to one's lifespan, a truly terrifying effect.

However, compared to Jing Qian's huge investment, the rate at which his [Lifespan] destiny increased was far lower than he expected.

A lifespan of ten thousand years is enough for Jing Qian to refine all his [destiny] to the [Heavenly Mandate] level.

However, it seems that this destiny has encountered a bottleneck in terms of lifespan.

Jing Qian carefully sensed it and felt that there was an insurmountable barrier preventing the [Lifespan] from continuing to advance.

This is the difference in status brought about by the immense power of time, something that Jing Qian should not be able to comprehend at this moment!

This is a power that should only be experienced by those at the first-grade level.

However, the emergence of the bottleneck itself also gave Jingqian a glimmer of hope!
The [Sumeru Great Way Stele] has already transformed countless impossible situations into feasible ones, breaking through countless bottlenecks.

Jing Qian had complete confidence in his own divine monument!
Even when faced with the bottleneck of advancing in lifespan, he believed that the Sumeru Dao Stele could reshape and shatter it.

All that's missing is a little investment in one's own lifespan!
These lifespans were easy to obtain, and Jing Qian found it incredibly satisfying to spend money on them.

Twenty thousand years!
Thirty thousand years!
Forty thousand years!
His lifespan seemed to be free, gushing out wildly.

Within Jing Qian's sea of ​​consciousness, the [Lifespan] destiny was also churning violently, as if it were about to explode at any moment!
The [Sculpture of Wisdom] was like a sharp thorn, carrying the immense magical power of burning lifespan, crashing into the bottleneck of [lifespan] again and again.

The bottleneck has finally been broken!
Jing Qian's gaze was sharp as a knife. He was completely focused, not daring to miss the slightest information, and kept his eyes fixed on the [Lifespan].

After he poured another ten thousand years of lifespan into his lifespan.

That thin bottleneck was finally broken through!
The once glittering lifespan destiny completely collapsed, turning into a cloud of golden smoke that enveloped Jing Qian's mind.

In his daze, he seemed to see an incredible place.

From the summit of the Immortal Qi Mountain, continuing upwards, at the very center of the great sun that illuminates the world, stands a unique clock.

Jingqian couldn't see it clearly; it was blurry, yet he still felt it was a sundial.

On this clock or sundial, sixty markings are neatly engraved.

These markings divide the entire dial into equal parts. If this were truly a clock, each marking would undoubtedly correspond to one minute.

For the Avenue of Time, there is no more tangible image than a clock.

And look at the clock's markings, they are colorful and vibrant, each with its own unique character.

The vast majority of the markings have completely different magical auras.

When Jing Qian, with the help of the [Sumeru Great Dao Stele], went mad and spent tens of thousands of years of his lifespan to destroy his own [lifespan] destiny.

Miraculously, he descended upon this illusory realm of the Great Dao.

Using the disintegrating clouds of his lifespan, Jing Qian miraculously landed on the clock and occupied a blank mark with his own aura.

From this day forward, he will completely occupy the 59th mark on the entire dial!

(End of this chapter)