Chapter 972: Chapter 420: Soul-Breaking Needle Advancement; Fourth Rank Middle Grade Body Refining Pinnacle_3

Buzz!

A buzz like it came from the depths of the Nine Nether resounded.

The upgraded Soul-Breaking Needle quietly hovered in the air, its entire body still pitch black, yet blacker and purer, as if it could swallow all light.

Its size seemed smaller than before, yet it emitted a deadly threat targeting the Divine Soul.

Xu Ping even felt a slight sting in his Divine Sense when approaching it!

"What formidable power!"

Xu Ping was slightly startled himself, "Its quality is definitely among the top tier among Heaven-Reaching Spiritual Treasures!"

"Even... surpasses my life-bound flying sword, the Canghua Divine Wood Sword, by a slight margin!"

Xu Ping carefully sensed and calculated, reaching an exhilarating conclusion:

"With the current prowess of this needle, if a sneak attack succeeds, it could pose a great threat to the Divine Soul of a Nascent Soul Perfect Cultivator!"

This was undoubtedly an extremely terrifying trump card.

"If only I could find a few more Moon Shadow Stones of the same quality to further integrate, there might be hope to elevate it to that legendary treasure’s level!"

A hint of fervor flashed in Xu Ping’s eyes.

However, he also knew how elusive such an idea was; Moon Shadow Stones of this quality are only encountered by chance.

To have gained one this time was already a stroke of immense luck.

After all, who would have thought someone would use Moon Shadow Stones to craft the shell of a Fourth-rank Top-grade Puppet?

Xu Ping beckoned with a hand, retrieving that extremely dangerous Soul-Breaking Needle back into his body for nurturing.

Then he immediately sat cross-legged, striving to restore his nearly depleted mana and Divine Sense.

With the upgrade of the Soul-Breaking Needle complete, his focus needed to shift to further disassembling and researching that Fourth-rank Top-grade Puppet, and attempting to draw Fourth-rank Top-grade talismans.

The latter was equally challenging; but if successful, whether for personal use or trading, the value would be immeasurable.

...

Outside, time flowed peacefully like water.

Two more years passed.

During this period, the situation on the outer sea unexpectedly remained calm.

The Star Palace showed no signs of activity, and Hongyi sent news indicating no major moves.

This allowed Xu Ping to breathe a sigh of relief and focus on cultivating.

On this day.

In the underground caverns, vitality surged like dragons.

Where Xu Ping sat cross-legged, crimson golden vitality smoke steamed from around his pores, vaguely forming dragon-shaped shadows swirling and roaring.

Beneath his skin, the sound of rushing vitality was like great rivers, roaring thunderously.

A brutish, domineering, and power-filled terrifying aura spread out.

He slowly opened his eyes, a flash of crimson blood appearing and disappearing in his gaze.

"Two Dragon Blood Fruits... finally pushed my vitality and physique to the peak of Fourth-rank Middle Grade, and the foundation is far beyond ordinary!"

Xu Ping carefully felt the tsunami-like power within him, nodding in satisfaction.

The Dragon Blood Fruit had matured again, and after spending a month, he finally absorbed and refined both, the benefits naturally went without saying.

"With my current vitality and physique, the number of perfectly controlled Fourth-rank Middle-grade Puppets has also increased to six, slightly enhancing the Puppet Array’s power."

"However, wanting to genuinely enter the Fourth-rank Upper Grade threshold, and touch upon that level of body nirvana..."

Xu Ping carefully estimated, "Probably still needs... four Dragon Blood Fruits of the same quality!"

This means, at least thirty more years of patience and cultivation are required.

"Thirty years... it’s not too long."

Xu Ping’s gaze was deep, "By then, if ten Fourth-rank Middle-grade Puppets can form an army array... within the Nascent Soul Realm, those that could threaten my existence would be exceedingly rare!"

He even had confidence that if all his cards were played, even facing Yunan Patriarch, the number one figure in the outer sea, without using that legendary treasure, he had confidence in suppressing him.

"Legendary treasure..."

Upon mentioning these words, Xu Ping’s eyes flashed with deep apprehension.

That is indeed another level of power, refined painstakingly by Divinity Transformation Cultivators; to a Nascent Soul Cultivator, it is a dimensional strike.

If Yunan Patriarch were to wield such a treasure, he knew he was absolutely not his match.

"However, wanting to kill me... is utterly impossible!" Xu Ping was absolutely confident in this regard.

Unable to defeat, but he would certainly be able to escape.

Then, Xu Ping closed his eyes again, beginning to refine the medicinal effects remaining in his body.

Though it couldn’t strengthen vitality, it could bolster the foundation, enhancing his chances of a breakthrough.

...

In a blink, another ten years passed.

Deep within the Star Palace, at the core of the forbidden area.

This was a mysterious space bathed in endless starlight.

At the center of the space, a massive pool seemingly carved from a piece of star core sat quietly.

At this moment, in the Star Pond, a man and a woman sat facing each other, their figures half-immersed in the vast star essence fluid.

The man’s face was majestic, surrounded by countless star rivers, it was the Star King.

The woman’s appearance was peerless, cold as the moon, her radiance falling, she was the Moon God.

These two supreme rulers of the Star Palace were at a critical juncture in cultivation.

Buzz!

A grand wave, indescribable, suddenly spread from the Star Pond center.

Not a sound, nor mana, but a higher level of ripple concerning cosmic fortune.

At this moment, in the void of the Wind Origin Realm, the intangible cosmic fortune seemed to be drawn, beginning to converge slowly at the Star Palace’s core.

Like rivers flowing into the sea.

This phenomenon, low-level cultivators were utterly oblivious to.

Only within the Star Palace, a few Great Cultivators skilled in calculating and speculating, their cultivation at late-stage Nascent Soul, abruptly felt a heart palpitation during meditation, vaguely sensing a change in the indescribable "flowing" of the world.

However, they were baffled without understanding the essence, feeling it unfathomable, born with reverence in their hearts.

The cultivation of Divinity Transformation cultivators, inducing a realm’s fortune to bolster, this was a sign touching upon the origin of the world.

In the Star Pond, the Star King and Moon God’s aura began to steadily climb, propelled by this vast fortune, ascending toward a higher, more profound realm.....