Chapter 45: Cultivating the Mixed Element Geomagnetic Memorial

Shen Yan flew swiftly, only relaxing and slowing down once that prickling sensation on his back finally vanished.

“It seems my last use of Sun Mingshuo’s jade token tipped off Yu Qing, which is why he tried to ambush me outside the barrier,” he mused. “That means Yu Qing hasn’t actually discovered I killed Sun Mingshuo and his two companions. Otherwise, Jingyun Island wouldn’t be this quiet. After all, if he caught me, he’d have leverage over Yang Yun. He would’ve already sent people to seal off Jinzhou Bay.”

“So, Yang Yun and Yu Qing are still locked in a stalemate, and their confrontation will continue for a while yet.”

Quickly, Shen Yan had deduced the current situation on Jingyun Island. After pondering for a moment, he decided to head to Xiaolan Mountain Market first to cultivate earth arts, and only return to Jingyun Island once he succeeded.

By then, with the power of earth and water at his command, he wouldn’t need a token to dig his way into Jingyun Island from the seabed.

...

Upon returning to Xiaolan Mountain Market, Shen Yan used the Celestial Serpent Concealment Art to change his appearance, transforming into a cold-faced middle-aged man. After paying a spirit stone as entry, he didn’t go to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion to sell the items from the Man brothers’ storage pouches. Instead, he simply took out some spirit stones and rented a cave residence with a ground fire chamber.

To practice the “Primordial Geomagnetic Canon,” earth-element materials were required, and unlike water-element items, these needed to be melted with earthfire before use.

Having bought a mid-grade jade cauldron from the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, Shen Yan finally began to cultivate the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon.

Seated in the quiet chamber of his cave, Shen Yan produced the “Primordial Geomagnetic Canon” he had acquired from Feng Jun’s cave and began to study it intently.

“So that’s it. Once the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon is mastered, not only can one perform the most effective earth-escape techniques, but also command geomagnetic force, which restrains all metal-type objects!”

“More than that, geomagnetic force also suppresses practitioners of lightning arts, causing even the most powerful thunder spells to miss their mark.”

This effect of the geomagnetic force was what Shen Yan valued most, for Yang Yun herself cultivated thunder magic.

Though he didn’t know the specifics of her skills, if he could master the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon, he would have far greater confidence in facing Yang Yun.

After thoroughly digesting the Qi Refining section of the Canon, Shen Yan sat cross-legged before the jade cauldron, constantly channeling his mana into it.

Beneath the cauldron, earthfire blazed furiously, refining away the impurities in the earth-element spiritual materials.

“Still not enough,” Shen Yan muttered, frowning as he withdrew a pile of spirit stones from his storage pouch and crushed them one by one. Instantly, the spiritual energy in the chamber thickened to a new level.

“Once I fuse Triple-Layered Earth and Red Dragon Sand into the Heart of the Spirit Eye, I can forge the embryonic earth-element core for channeling geomagnetic force.”

Sitting cross-legged upon a mat, Shen Yan drew a deep breath and directed the spiritual essence from his Celestial Emperor Seal into the jade cauldron.

At that moment, the previously calm cauldron suddenly emitted a strong suction force, causing the spiritual energy in the formation to surge and ripple.

Shen Yan continued to pour his mana into the mysterious cauldron, and as time passed, he snapped his eyes open.

The earth-element embryo was complete.

Somewhat fatigued, Shen Yan opened the cauldron to find that the Red Dragon Sand and Triple-Layered Earth had vanished. The previously translucent Heart of the Spirit Eye had turned a dusky yellow, quietly radiating spiritual essence from within the cauldron.

“It worked!”

Retrieving the earth-element embryo and reclaiming the cauldron, Shen Yan took out twenty low-grade spirit stones from his pouch, crushed them, and replenished his mana.

Now unable to enter the restricted area of Jingyun Island to seek spiritual items, he knew he should conserve the energy within the Celestial Emperor Seal.

After a while, Shen Yan felt reinvigorated. Sensing that the spiritual energy in the chamber had peaked, he did not hesitate to swallow the earth-element embryo in one gulp and began practicing the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon.

In an instant, as the technique circulated, a surge of heat rose from his dantian, spreading through his limbs and bones, merging with the spiritual energy drawn from the outside world. It transformed into Shen Yan’s own earth-element mana, eventually returning to his dantian and being absorbed by the earth-element embryo.

“Still not enough!”

His dantian was filled with earth-mana from the embryo, yet it was still insufficient for completing the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon.

However, he could clearly sense that with one final push, he could break through.

Without hesitation, he mobilized the spiritual essence from the Celestial Emperor Seal, driving through the earth-element embryo in a single surge.

“Break for me!”

With spiritual energy from the outside world combined with the Celestial Emperor Seal’s power, the once-solid earth-element embryo fractured inch by inch, dissolving at last into a stream of obscure mana that merged into Shen Yan’s body.

“The Primordial Geomagnetic Canon—success!”

Shen Yan opened his eyes, an involuntary smile appearing on his face.

To complete such a major sect-defining technique as the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon in just a day filled him with even greater respect for the Celestial Emperor Seal.

“Unfortunately, the spiritual essence required for the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon far exceeds that of the Water Origin Technique. To advance both arts equally, I’d need to consume all the energy stored in the Celestial Emperor Seal.”

“Once my foundation is steady, the next steps are to refine an earth-elemental magical weapon and practice earth-based spells.”

To deal with Yang Yun, Shen Yan allowed himself no relaxation in strengthening his combat power.

At present, his water techniques included Condensing Ice Art, Water Bullet Technique, and Spring Rain Transformation.

From the Qi Refining section of the Primordial Geomagnetic Canon, he could learn Earth Escape and Geomagnetic Force.

In addition, there was the Celestial Serpent Concealment Art he had repaired using the Seal’s essence.

Upon careful consideration, Shen Yan realized that although he had learned several spells, only Water Bullet Technique could truly threaten Yang Yun.

Since he was now in Xiaolan Mountain Market, he decided to learn a sword technique to threaten her. After all, the Flowing Cloud Sword was a top-grade flying sword, and he had been using it as an ordinary implement—truly a waste of its potential.

After spending half a day consolidating his new realm, Shen Yan left his cave, intending to sell the materials from the Man brothers’ pouches to purchase a sword art.

However, just as he reached the door, he suddenly sensed an inexplicable gaze upon him.

“A bandit cultivator? Or surveillance from the three great families targeting outsider cultivators?”

As the saying goes, a guilty conscience makes one suspicious. Possessing such a treasure as the Celestial Emperor Seal, Shen Yan was always vigilant, wary of even the faintest disturbance.

Thus, he had always been exceedingly cautious about his own safety, never letting himself fall into danger.

Quietly, he drew the Flowing Cloud Sword, ready for anything.

But, unexpectedly, the feeling of being watched vanished after a short while.

Still, Shen Yan did not let down his guard. Feigning ignorance, he made his way toward the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, all the while fully spreading out his spiritual sense to detect any further surveillance.