Chapter 36: Prison Suppressing Divine Body (Part 2)
This sort of thing had happened countless times before in the Xiyan Ancient Sect. Many past geniuses had started with the same idea. They would first use the Moon Vortex Sun Wheel Technique to quickly advance through the initial realms. Then, once the Moon Vortex Sun Wheel Technique could no longer advance their Foundation Establishment, they would switch to a different Longevity Technique.
However, once these geniuses fell into the trap, they could never escape the influence of the Moon Vortex Sun Wheel Technique, as its method for circulating Blood Qi was completely unique.
It was precisely because of this that the Xiyan Ancient Sect later disapproved of its disciples cultivating this technique. For particularly talented disciples, the sect had an explicit order: they were absolutely forbidden from cultivating it!
"I have my own plans," Li Qiye said with a smile, not elaborating further. 'Of course, I can't reveal the real secret. If an expert found out I possess the flawless Moon Vortex Sun Wheel Technique, the consequences would be unimaginable!'
Nan Huairun knew that Li Qiye was neither ignorant nor arrogant, but he simply couldn't figure out the source of his confidence!
"I hear Second Senior Brother will be arriving in a few days." The main reason Nan Huairun had come today was to deliver this piece of news to Li Qiye.
Li Qiye nodded without asking any more questions. In truth, he couldn't care less about this so-called Second Senior Brother, the disciple of Sect Leader Emperor Zhou Yong.
After seeing Nan Huairun off, Li Qiye once again immersed himself in his Cultivation. 'Hard work can make up for a lack of talent; a slow bird must take flight early.' Even though he possessed Unrivaled Techniques like the Moon Vortex Sun Wheel Technique and the Kunpeng Six Transformations, he couldn't afford the slightest bit of laziness.
The Territorial Expansion Realm also had three levels, from lowest to highest: one, Foundation Establishment Technique; two, Absorbing Essence Qi; and three, Expanding Territory!
Once the Palace Knocking Realm reached Perfection, it meant that the Foundation Establishment Techniques for both the Life Wheel and the Life Palace were set in stone, their respective Dao Foundations having been completely forged.
At this point, a Cultivator could choose to cultivate other techniques—be it a Life Technique, a Longevity Technique, a Secret Technique for combat, or a Body Technique.
All future Cultivation Techniques would be cultivated upon the foundation of this initial technique, which was why the first level was called "Foundation Establishment Technique."
Currently, Li Qiye was cultivating the Martial Arts Qimen Saber Technique. He wasn't in a hurry to learn other Cultivation Techniques; right now, he needed to temper his physique. He had to make his body stronger.
For a Cultivator, having a powerful Life Wheel and Life Palace was far from enough. A powerful physique was also essential.
The Life Wheel and Life Palace are determined at birth and cannot be changed. The physique, however, can be altered; it can be made stronger through Cultivation.
Innate physiques also vary in quality. The worst is called a Mortal Body, and the best is an Immortal Body. In ascending order of quality, they are: Mortal Body, Postnatal Body, Innate Body, Emperor Body, Sacred Body, and Immortal Body!
A person could be born with a Mortal Body, a Postnatal Body, an Innate Body, an Emperor Body, or even a Sacred Body. However, no one could be born with an Immortal Body. The Immortal Body is the absolute limit of all physiques, which is why it is unheard of for anyone to be born with one!
When it comes to physiques, the Innate Body is a major dividing line. If someone is born with an Innate Body, it means they have a chance to cultivate it into an Emperor Body, a Sacred Body, or even an Immortal Body.
In terms of advancement, an Innate Body can be cultivated to become an Emperor Body, then a Sacred Body, and perhaps even an Immortal Body!
A Postnatal Body, however, cannot do this. For example, Xu Hui's Golden Eagle Body is a type of Postnatal Body. It belongs to the raptor-series of Postnatal Bodies and is considered quite a good one.
With a powerful Body Technique, someone with a Golden Eagle Body like Xu Hui could cultivate it into a Celestial Carving Body or even a Divine Eagle Body. While the ultimate state of such a physique might not be weaker than an Emperor Body, a Postnatal Body like this could never be cultivated into the final, ultimate form—an Immortal Body!
Cultivating a Golden Eagle Body into a Celestial Carving Body is called "strengthening," whereas cultivating an Innate Body into an Emperor Body is called "advancement"!
Innate Bodies, such as the Sacred Body, all come with their own set of restrictions. For example, a Golden Bull Body, which is an Innate Body, can advance through Cultivation to become a Tyrant Body, which is an Emperor Body. However, it cannot be cultivated into any other type of physique—not even another one at the same level.
The physique one is born with dictates the path of its cultivation. This is something that cannot be changed by Cultivation Techniques or Body Ointment.
However, the workings of the Azure Heaven are truly mysterious! Whether it's a Golden Eagle Body or a Golden Bull Body, even through the most Heaven-Defying Cultivation, neither can escape the inherent limitations of its own category.
And yet, there is one physique that can: the very one looked down upon by countless others—the Mortal Body.
A Mortal Body can be cultivated into a Celestial Carving Body. It can also be cultivated into a Golden Bull Body. In fact, a Mortal Body can even be cultivated into the legendary Immortal Body! Before its Cultivation begins, a Mortal Body is completely without restriction! Therefore, when cultivating a Mortal Body's physique, there are absolutely no limitations on the choice of Body Technique.
Take a Postnatal Body, for example. If it is a fire-affinity physique, it must be paired with a fire-affinity Body Technique. Cultivating a water-affinity Body Technique instead would create a fatal flaw in the physique.
The Mortal Body has no such requirement. Before one begins, any type of Body Technique can be chosen!
Of course, cultivating a Mortal Body into a Postnatal Body, let alone an Innate Body, is no easy feat. First, one needs a sufficiently powerful Body Technique. Second, one needs to put in constant, unwavering effort—ten times more than anyone else! Third, one needs a massive amount of Body Ointment. The more the better, and the higher the level, the better!
Cultivating a Mortal Body into an Innate Physique is an extremely difficult task, one that requires an immeasurable amount of effort and dedication.
For someone like Li Qiye, who possessed a Mortal Body, Mortal Fate, Mortal Wheel, it was feared that no one would be willing to invest their time and resources in him. For a person of such aptitude, teaching them a Body Technique or providing Body Ointment for Body Tempering would be seen as a complete waste.
Li Qiye knew that cultivating a Mortal Body into any other physique was an incredibly arduous path. However, his Dao Heart had never once wavered. In his possession was the Body Book, one of the Nine Great Celestial Books—a treasure that even Immortal Emperors throughout the ages had coveted!
Besides, Li Qiye's Dao Heart was as solid as iron. 'If someone has succeeded before, then I can succeed as well.' Take Mingren Immortal Emperor of the Xiyan Ancient Sect for example. Countless later generations claimed he was born with an Immortal Body. Many said that his Daytime Celestial Body was innate.
Li Qiye, of course, knew this was complete nonsense. 'I personally trained Mingren Immortal Emperor, so I know the truth better than anyone.' The Mingren Immortal Emperor who possessed the Daytime Celestial Body was not born with an Innate Body, let alone a Sacred Body or an Emperor Body. He started with a Mortal Body!
This was a fact that even the Xiyan Ancient Sect would find difficult to accept, but it was the truth. In his youth, Mingren Immortal Emperor was a mere Mortal Body. It was Li Qiye, in his form as the Yin Ya, who possessed the Body Book, one of the Nine Great Celestial Books. He imparted the 'Yang' character from the book to him, and Mingren Immortal Emperor eventually cultivated one of the Twelve Immortal Bodies: the Daytime Celestial Body.
Today, the Body Book unfurled within Li Qiye's mind, all of its Mystical Meanings coming to the surface. Throughout the ages, no one had grasped more of the Body Book's secrets than he. The mysteries within it had allowed him to create countless legends!
He had been studying the Body Book from the Desolate Era until the present day. During the time of the Black Dragon King, in particular, his research had reached an unparalleled depth. It was only later, when a problem arose with his own condition, that he had the Black Dragon King erase all of its secrets from his mind!
The original Body Book consisted of only six characters, born from the primordial chaos. It was only after Li Qiye spent countless ages in contemplation that he was finally able to unlock all of the book's secrets.
The six characters of the Body Book are: Yin, Yang, Hard, Soft, Clear, and Hun! Although the Body Book contains only these six characters, they give rise to the ultimate Mystical Meaning behind the physiques of all living beings!
In a distant age, the legend of the Twelve Immortal Bodies already existed. In reality, very few people across the eons knew that this very legend originated from the Body Book!
When cultivated to their ultimate peak, each of the Body Book's six characters can give rise to two different Immortal Bodies! Of course, any given person can only ever cultivate one of these.
Take Mingren Immortal Emperor, for example. Back then, Li Qiye taught him the 'Yang' character. At its peak, the 'Yang' character can produce two Immortal Bodies: one is the Daytime Celestial Body, and the other is the Sun Body! Mingren Immortal Emperor cultivated the former, becoming one of the Twelve Immortal Bodies through the Supreme Yang Profound Meaning—the Daytime Celestial Body!
After countless generations of deduction and endless ages of contemplation, Li Qiye came to understand that while the Body Book could be used to cultivate any physique, the most powerful of all were ultimately the Twelve Immortal Bodies.
In the past, Li Qiye had taught Mingren Immortal Emperor the 'Yang' character. Now, however, Li Qiye had grasped the ultimate Mystical Meaning of all six characters. This time, the one he chose to cultivate was not 'Yang,' but 'Hun'!
Furthermore, Li Qiye had locked in his goal. He would cultivate the 'Hun' character to its absolute, most ultimate extreme! From within the 'Hun' character, he would cultivate one of the Twelve Immortal Bodies: the Prison Suppressing Divine Body!
Li Qiye was well aware that cultivating the Prison Suppressing Divine Body to Great Perfection would be an extremely long process. None of the Twelve Immortal Bodies could be mastered overnight; at minimum, it would take several hundred years, and at most, thousands or even tens of thousands of years.
But Li Qiye's Dao Heart was like iron. Even though he was born with a Mortal Body, he was confident that as long as he persevered, one day, he would successfully cultivate the Prison Suppressing Divine Body!
The Mystical Meaning of the Body Book surfaced in Li Qiye's mind. He channeled the Mystical Meaning of the 'Hun' character, and the profound meaning of the runes flowed like a river into his Life Palace.
At that moment, Li Qiye's True Destiny, which was circulating his Blood Qi, also swallowed the Mystical Meaning of the 'Hun' character. Refined by the True Destiny, the secrets of 'Hun' were integrated into his Blood Qi.
Li Qiye's entire body shuddered. In that instant, it seemed as if everything had slowed down, as if time itself was crawling to a halt!