Chapter 81: Arrival at the Central State Borders, Cao Xuan Breaks Through!

Unlike most of the anxious people aboard the whale-dragon vessel, Cao Xuan was completely untroubled. At this moment, he was circulating the Rune Cloud Technique, absorbing the Foundation Establishment cultivation pill while simultaneously examining and organizing his own cultivation level.

“Hm, I hadn’t realized this before, but my ‘spirit’ is lagging so far behind!”

After taking the Foundation Establishment cultivation pill, Cao Xuan could naturally sense the increase of energy within his body. If spiritual energy and true essence were obvious, essence and spirit were far more subtle; how much they grew was not something he could usually discern. Yet under the synchronized amplification of the Foundation Establishment pill, the three seemed to have progress bars, giving him a clear and tangible indication.

“So this is where the bottleneck of Foundation Establishment lies!”

Even though Cao Xuan hadn’t received Yu Wan’s instruction, he was no fool. In this moment, he understood the importance of synchronizing essence, energy, and spirit.

“My energy increases constantly through daily cultivation. Essence has likely risen thanks to the nightly ‘duels’ with Li Yao, Lin Miaoxuan, and Chen Qianru. But as for spirit, there’s no clear path to improvement.”

Cao Xuan felt fortunate—thank goodness he’d drawn the Foundation Establishment cultivation pill. Otherwise, during this breakthrough, he would have realized his internal ‘spirit’ was seriously lacking. At that point, even if he were a hair’s breadth from the peak of Foundation Establishment, he’d be unable to break through no matter what, without knowing the reason, inevitably leading to restlessness and agitation.

Through this internal observation, Cao Xuan understood that if he forced a breakthrough now, at best he’d suffer minor deviation; at worst, he might sustain hidden injuries that would ruin his chance at reaching the Golden Core.

“The path of cultivation truly is fraught with hardship at every step!”

Once again, Cao Xuan felt the perils of the cultivator’s journey.

Time passed, day after day, and half a month went by in the blink of an eye. By then, the whale-dragon vessel had already left the borders of Yun Province, even traversing over half of the Thirteen Provinces of Eastern Wilderness, and was about to enter Central Province.

What began as anxiety among the group gradually settled into calm. Half a month had passed, and since Cao Xuan had not immediately failed his breakthrough, it signaled that he was steadily balancing essence, energy, and spirit. At this stage, even if he failed to break through in the end, any injuries would not be severe. With a month or so of recovery, he might well reach the peak of Foundation Establishment again. And with this experience, perhaps next time he could directly reach the pinnacle of Foundation Establishment—close to Yu Wan’s level—just a step away from the Golden Core, entering the so-called False Core stage.

“Senior Brother Cao truly is a peerless talent!”

At this moment on the deck, Ye Caixuan was propping her chin in her hands, speaking to Li Yao.

She left some words unsaid: Cao Xuan seemed to have no record of purchasing pills, meaning that all his cultivation pills were likely self-refined. Thinking of the supreme-quality pills that once appeared in Qingshan Market, she could already guess they were made by Cao Xuan himself.

Li Yao held her chest with pride and said, “Of course! My Junior Brother Cao is unmatched in the world. You all have no idea—he’s developed a cultivation method…”

She stopped herself, quickly covering her mouth.

Xing Mengfan and Ye Caixuan looked over, curiosity written all over their faces.

The three of them—female disciples—had agreed to meet on the deck for some fresh air and to deepen their friendship. After all, they were soon heading to Central Province for the Azure Cloud Conference. Whatever else happened, the Azure Cloud Sect of Yun Province needed to stand united.

Remembering that Li Yao’s cultivation had once been on par with theirs—mid-Foundation Establishment—yet now she had reached the late stage, Ye Caixuan, though reserved, didn’t ask. But Xing Mengfan was different. Though she was as silent as a taciturn girl, it did not mean she couldn’t speak; she simply avoided unnecessary words. Now, faced with something that piqued her interest, she spoke up in a childlike voice: “What cultivation method?”

Upon hearing Xing Mengfan’s voice, both Ye Caixuan and Li Yao paused in surprise. Looking at her petite figure, cherubic face, and ample curves, coupled with that sweet, youthful voice, Li Yao couldn’t help but hug Xing Mengfan.

“Wow, you’re so adorable!”

Xing Mengfan’s expression was one of helplessness—this was exactly why she preferred not to speak. As long as she kept silent, she seemed aloof; but once she spoke, people treated her as a child!

“You… still haven’t answered me,” Xing Mengfan said, her gaze sidelong as her head rested against Li Yao’s chest, sounding resigned.

Li Yao continued to ruffle Xing Mengfan’s hair, momentarily at a loss for words, stammering, “Th-that’s a secret of our Rune Peak!”

“You’re lying!” Before Li Yao finished, Xing Mengfan exposed her flatly.

“Haha… what are you saying? I don’t understand a word!”

Xing Mengfan rose on tiptoes and pressed her head against Li Yao’s chest, saying, “Your heart rate just hit 130. According to our Demon-Expelling Peak’s guidelines, you’re lying!”

Li Yao hurriedly released Xing Mengfan, who stumbled back a couple of steps.

Xing Mengfan paid it no mind, continuing to stare straight at Li Yao. She was uninterested in most things, but anything that could improve her cultivation was of great interest.

Li Yao, exasperated under her scrutiny, finally blurted out in embarrassment, “It’s… it’s about dual cultivation with Junior Brother Cao. But only because we both practice the Rune Cloud Technique can we do that.”

“But your two techniques are different from Junior Brother’s—how could you dual cultivate with him?”

Ye Caixuan now wore a look of understanding—so it was dual cultivation. She knew of such methods, but this kind of practice also required refining the foreign true essence gained. If the true essence from dual cultivation was slower to acquire than what one could attain by solitary practice, it was pointless. Thus, Cao Xuan and Li Yao’s dual cultivation method must be quite remarkable.

Ye Caixuan cared little, Xing Mengfan showed no expression, and Li Yao thought the matter had passed. She had no idea that Xing Mengfan had not given up; in her heart, she thought, “Li Yao still hasn’t told the truth. Perhaps this dual cultivation method isn’t limited to Rune Peak at all.”

Li Yao had no idea that Xing Mengfan’s way of detecting lies wasn’t limited to listening to heartbeats.

“Looks like I’ll have to find an opportunity to seek out Senior Brother Cao myself!”

…

Five more days passed, and the whale-dragon vessel had officially entered Central Province.

Roars, howls, and strange hisses echoed through the sky, where all manner of colossal exotic beasts could be seen—flood dragons, flying tigers, giant eagles, and many more. Some, like themselves, were headed for the Azure Cloud Sect’s conference in Central Province, but more were simply part of the region’s normal trade routes.

At this time, nearly everyone from Yun Province’s Azure Cloud Sect stayed inside the ship’s cabins, avoiding unnecessary contact to prevent conflict with others.

Not far from Cao Xuan’s cabin, in a few adjacent rooms, Liu Yu and Jin Tiehua were playing chess to pass the time and strengthen their camaraderie.

“So this is Central Province? Just now, several powerful auras flew by—those must have been Golden Core cultivators!” Jin Tiehua sighed with admiration, and Liu Yu, his initial arrogance gone, replied with emotion, “Without this whale-dragon vessel, we might never have reached Central Province.”

He gripped a white chess piece, the desire for greater cultivation burning within him. In his eyes, even the likes of Li Yao and the other female disciples paled in importance before the pursuit of his own Dao.

In that instant, he even felt the urge to remain in Central Province.

Secretly, Liu Yu thought, ‘Yun Province is too small. Only this vast land of Central Province suits me!’

He had hardly finished his reflection when, suddenly, the spiritual energy that had enveloped the whale-dragon vessel for nearly a month vanished. They even sensed the illusion of a spiritual energy drought.

“Hm? Cao Xuan’s breakthrough is over!”