For three full days, Ji Yuan was solely focused on cultivating the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing, his entire body enveloped in a dense aura of water energy.
The vast essence of water energy, accumulated from past consumption and refinement of Water God Pills, surged forth from his physical body under the circulation of this scripture. It not only cleansed all internal hidden injuries but also elevated his physical strength to a new level.
Even in terms of flexibility, it improved by thirty to forty percent compared to three days prior!
If before cultivating this scripture, Ji Yuan had some doubts about the integration of the first six layers of the Xuan Tian Sword Art, and the sword energy nurtured in his spiritual purple mansion circulating through his meridians, then after cultivating the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing, all his doubts vanished.
Now, his physical body and meridians, tempered by this scripture and infused with a large amount of water energy essence, had become far more resilient than before, perfectly capable of bearing the weight of the sword energy lake within his purple mansion.
Upon the completion of the three days, Ji Yuan had successfully cultivated the first layer of this scripture. Although it was only at a minor accomplishment level, it would only take another ten to half a month to elevate it to a great accomplishment.
This was not only due to his frequent observation of the Great Dao Briefs and his cultivation of the more profound Xuan Tian Dao Jing but also inextricably linked to his innate affinity for water.
While cultivating the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing, he clearly felt it was easier than cultivating the Xuan Tian Sword Art.
This was not only because this scripture was far less profound and difficult to understand than the Xuan Tian Sword Art, but also related to his own innate talent.
In other words, Ji Yuan's talent in water-attributed scriptures was no weaker than his talent in sword cultivation, and might even be superior.
"It's time!"
He muttered to himself. With a tremor of vital energy within his body, the thirty-six Heavy Water Beads around him immediately floated into the air, slowly revolving around him.
Under the circulation of the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing, although he had not yet refined this treasure, a faint connection had already formed between them. He immediately sensed the seven layers of restrictions inscribed within the thirty-six beads.
Magical artifacts in the world, from their inception, are inscribed with at least one restriction, with nine restrictions being the maximum; exceeding this makes them into Dharma Treasures.
Regardless of whether it is a magical artifact or a Dharma Treasure, the more restrictions it possesses, the stronger its power will be, and naturally, its quality will be higher.
Although these thirty-six Heavy Water Beads only possessed seven restrictions and still belonged to the category of magical artifacts, the design of these restrictions was quite ingenious and profound. They could form a whole, unleashing a power several times, or even more than ten times, their own.
Moreover, each Heavy Water Bead possessed seven restrictions. When thirty-six layers of seven restrictions were interconnected, their power would be no weaker than that of Dharma Treasures with ten to twenty restrictions.
However, the difficulty of refining them also increased several times!
In just an instant, Ji Yuan understood that to refine this set of Dharma Treasures, he had to simultaneously refine the restrictions of all thirty-six Heavy Water Beads. If he were to refine them one by one, it would be utterly ineffective.
He pondered for a moment, then took out several pills to restore vital energy, fearing that his vital energy would be insufficient during the refinement process, leading to all his efforts being in vain and having to start all over again.
However, it seemed he was overthinking. After cultivating the Xuan Tian Sword Art, the vital energy within his body had become very pure. Now, with the cultivation of the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing, even though it was only at the initial stage of the first layer, the quantity of vital energy surpassed that of cultivators in the same realm.
Coupled with his innate affinity for water, the process of refining this treasure was extremely smooth. It only took over half a day, with the consumption of vital energy being only sixty to seventy percent, before he successfully refined the first layer of restriction.
At this moment, the thirty-six Heavy Water Beads circled around him, each bead emanating a misty watery glow, carrying a sense of gravitas within its extreme softness.
Ji Yuan was eager to test the power of this treasure, but after some deliberation, he could only put it aside for now.
Given his current cultivation realm, and having only refined one layer of restriction, he could at most simultaneously activate six Heavy Water Beads, which was already his limit.
To truly fully activate all thirty-six Heavy Water Beads, he would likely need to reach the second realm, and even then, it would require the late or even peak stage before there was a slight possibility.
This was even with him cultivating both the Xuan Tian Sword Art and the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing, which would result in his vital energy being far more pure and abundant than cultivators in the same realm.
Otherwise, it would likely require at least the early stage of the third realm to barely be able to activate them.
After all, Dharma Treasures were not designed for cultivators in the second or third realms; only after forming a Golden Core could their true power be unleashed.
Over the next three days, Ji Yuan did not leave his quiet room for even half a step. He was either contemplating the Xuan Tian Sword Art or cultivating the Jiu Yuan Zhong Shui Jing. Occasionally, when he had free time, he would also deepen the refinement of the first layer of restriction on the thirty-six Heavy Water Beads.
Only then did he realize that individual energy was limited. The cultivation techniques and Dharma Treasures alone occupied almost all his time.
During this period, he didn't even have time for alchemy or studying the Great Dao Briefs, let alone crafting talismans or delving into array formations and artifact crafting.
Because of this, Ji Yuan became even more expectant of the legendary Incarnation Technique, wondering if it truly possessed such miraculous effects as Qian Ni Chang had claimed.
After noon on the seventh day, calculating that the trial in the Demonic Tower should be completed, he finally ended his period of seclusion and pushed open the door, stepping out of his room.
To his surprise, everyone was gathered in the courtyard, and each of them had a grim expression.
"I was just about to call for you, I didn't expect you to come out yourself."
Zhao Yuan Song turned to look, forcing a somewhat strained smile.
Seeing his expression, Ji Yuan immediately had a guess. He glanced at everyone and said, "Is it related to the Divine Profound Sect?"
As he spoke, he walked over to everyone and sat down on an empty chair.
A moment later, Qian Ni Chang sighed, "A group of people arrived from the county town this morning. Because there was only one person at the second realm, the surveillance from various factions didn't pay them much attention."
"Who would have thought that in the market of the Vast Ocean Tower, these people got into a conflict with another faction, and only then did they reveal their true cultivation levels."
Her expression was somewhat helpless. These people had clearly used concealment techniques. There were a total of seven people, six of whom were at the second realm, and one was even at the third realm.
If they hadn't gotten into a conflict with others and thus revealed their true cultivation, no one in the county town would have known that the people from the Divine Profound Sect in the neighboring Chong Yuan Prefecture had already entered the city and were roaming right under their noses.
"Can you confirm it's the Divine Profound Sect?"
Ji Yuan raised an eyebrow and then asked.
Upon hearing this, Qian Ni Chang nodded. The techniques displayed by these people were indeed consistent with the Divine Profound Sect, making it extremely difficult for outsiders to imitate.
Moreover, a third realm cultivator leading six second realm cultivators, such a force would have no need to impersonate the Divine Profound Sect.
Firstly, possessing such power would mean they already had their own established strength, and if exposed, it would bring about their own doom.
Secondly, the Divine Profound Sect itself had many enemies. If they were to impersonate them rashly, they would likely suffer a sneak attack before gaining any benefits.
Ji Yuan pondered for a moment and then said in a low voice, "It seems these people from the Divine Profound Sect have guessed something."
Otherwise, they wouldn't have suddenly returned. Even if they couldn't find any clues around Qian Yu City, they would normally have continued their pursuit.
However, he had long anticipated this. After all, although all traces were erased at the time, any discerning eye could see something amiss.
When the pursuers didn't find what they were looking for on the target, and there happened to be a group of people nearby with the strength to seize it, suspicion would inevitably arise, regardless of how one looked at it.
"There's another matter. Fan Su Liu, the son of the County Governor, wishes to see you."
Qian Ni Chang pointed out. This person had summoned her before and mentioned it multiple times.
However, this Young Master Fan likely only knew of such a person's existence but not their identity.
If they were unwilling, they could simply stall for now. In a few days, after their plans bore fruit, they could directly head to Fei Yun County without needing to interact with him.
"It's not impossible to go. Perhaps we can even have this Young Master Fan help us fend off the Divine Profound Sect."
Ji Yuan mused.
Although they were the ones who took action, the other party also benefited. They should naturally share some of the pressure.
After a short while, he already had some ideas in mind, and he didn't care if his identity was exposed.
After the time it took for an incense stick to burn, Ji Yuan, accompanied by Qian Ni Chang, took a carriage to the County Governor's mansion.
Speaking of which, this County Governor was a rather controlling individual. Since he took office as County Governor, the yamen in the city had become a mere formality, and all official duties were moved to the County Governor's mansion.
Only for trivial matters concerning the city's residents would the few people in the yamen be utilized.
There were even more officials and constables in the County Governor's mansion than in the yamen.
"The County Governor has three sons. The eldest and second sons are already married and have families outside the city. One is a general in the Tiger Wolf Camp directly under the county, and the other holds a position in the bureaucracy of the prefecture capital."
On the way, Qian Ni Chang said with a somewhat solemn expression.
As for the youngest son of the County Governor, Fan Su Liu, whom they were about to visit, he possessed extremely strong talent in cultivation. At just over thirty years old, he had successfully reached the second realm and, in a few years, advanced to another minor stage.
The speed of his cultivation progress was sufficient to be considered a young prodigy in some sects.
After all, cultivators and martial artists were different. The most crucial factor in whether one could embark on the path of cultivation was enlightenment. Even if one had studied Taoist scriptures since childhood, it was possible to spend a lifetime without igniting the soul light and thus becoming a cultivator.
The time taken to ignite the soul light had little to do with one's innate talent.
Historically, many great cultivators, even powerful beings who roamed freely across the land, took more than ten years, or even longer, to painstakingly generate a single wisp of soul light in their early stages.
However, in their subsequent cultivation, they advanced rapidly, eventually leaving all their peers, who were called astonishingly talented, far behind, standing alone at the peak.
Reaching the second realm in his thirties and the mid-second realm before forty, this talent was already sufficient to be called a young prodigy.
Given time, if his realm were sufficient, coupled with abundant cultivation resources and a bit of luck, there would be at least a twenty to thirty percent chance of successfully breaking through to the third realm.
Although reaching the third realm was called the three realms of Foundation Establishment, being able to cultivate to the Ming Dao realm already granted the qualification to look down upon one's peers.
After all, even with Ming Xin Xuan, whose branches were spread across dozens of cities, large and small, in Luo Xia Prefecture, and whose business even extended to a prefecture, there were only six or seven third realm cultivators nominally belonging to the three major factions.
Normally, a major sect in a prefecture would have at most two or three third realm cultivators stationed there, while weaker forces would only have one or two third realm cultivators.
Qian Ni Chang smiled and said, "This Third Young Master has an excellent reputation. He often performs chivalrous deeds and enjoys making friends from all walks of life."
However, the smile she displayed did not carry much sincerity; instead, it held a hint of mockery.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan immediately understood. It seemed this so-called good reputation was likely somewhat undeserved.
He only hoped that this person was not truly seeking fame and deceiving the world, as such individuals were the most difficult to deal with, their appetites being far too insatiable.
Hypocrites were the most troublesome in this world. It was better to deal with straightforward villains who were direct. Not only were they circuitous, but one also had to guard against being stabbed in the back.