Chapter 27: Entering the Void God Realm

Fang Han, Lin Dong, Meng Qi, and the others were also rapidly improving their cultivation levels.

Shi Jian practiced while keeping a close eye on the group chat; everyone’s situation was developing in a positive direction. Although they had not yet fully matured, they were all individuals of extraordinary intellect. Now that they had joined the chat group and learned of their own futures, they were handling the affairs of their respective worlds with even greater ease. Shi Jian believed they would grow much faster than in the original stories. Soon, he would be able to "leech off the group members"! A wonderful life was beckoning him, and Shi Jian felt that his days were becoming increasingly prosperous.

However, even with the backing of the chat group, Shi Jian did not slacken in the slightest. Mountains crumble and seas dry up; in the end, one must rely on oneself. Only when one is truly powerful is one truly secure. After seeing that the cultivation of the group members was on the right track, Shi Jian once again immersed his mind in his own practice.

After training under a waterfall for several more days, Shi Jian successfully broke through to the Limit of the Blood-Moving Realm. Beneath the cascading water, he threw a fierce punch; the powerful wind generated by the strike tore through the valley floor. His punch went against the flow of the waterfall, forcibly parting the water down the middle. Several thousand catties of rock plummeted from the mountain peak, and as they collided with him, carried by the force of the waterfall, Shi Jian did not activate a single bone inscription. Instead, his physical body emitted a crystalline luster that blocked the massive boulders. His flesh had been refined to the point where his internal organs were crystalline, his bones were white as jade, and his blood energy could protect his body automatically.

This was the secret of the Limit of the Blood-Moving Realm. A practitioner at this limit did not need to activate bone inscriptions; a layer of precious light would naturally manifest upon their physique. A slight flex of his arms yielded a divine strength of one hundred and eight thousand catties.

After reaching this realm, Shi Jian did not immediately seek out the Willow Deity. Instead, he spent a day or two consolidating his cultivation. Only after he had fully adapted to this state did he go to pay his respects.

"Willow Deity, I have reached the realm you spoke of, and I have come to see you," Shi Jian said as he arrived at the entrance of Stone Village, addressing the charred willow tree.

The willow tree sensed his arrival and stirred from its slumber. "You have reached the Limit of the Blood-Moving Realm?" There seemed to be a ripple of surprise in the Willow Deity's tone. It was fast—too fast. Shi Jian had been at ninety thousand catties of strength not long ago; in just over ten days, he had reached the limit! Breaking through the limit was not as simple as merely adding ten thousand catties of force. The process of pursuing the Limit of the Blood-Moving Realm was one of tempering the body, treating it like iron, and refining it a thousand times over. The higher the density of the iron, the harder it was to increase it further. The energy and resources required to go from ninety thousand catties to the limit were likely enough to cultivate several prodigies of the ninety-thousand-catty tier. The Willow Deity had assumed it would take Shi Jian at least a year or two.

Yet, he had completed it in barely ten days. The speed was truly astonishing.

Upon hearing the Willow Deity’s words, Shi Jian displayed that layer of protective radiance—the hallmark of the Limit of the Blood-Moving Realm.

"You have done very well. Your progress has far exceeded my expectations," the Willow Deity remarked with genuine amazement now that the fact was laid before it. Shi Jian’s potential was beyond its predictions.

"Since that is the case, I will fulfill my promise and send you to a place where you can enhance your combat prowess. There, you can exert yourself to the fullest and engage in life-or-death battles with true prodigies."

The Willow Deity transmitted its voice. Blindly cultivating in seclusion could not produce a true genius. Only through hardship and trials could a prodigy be forged. Shi Jian naturally knew what place the Willow Deity was referring to, but he feigned ignorance. "I wonder where you speak of, Willow Deity?"

"The Spirit Realm," the Willow Deity replied, confirming Shi Jian's earlier guess. "It is said to be a spiritual world constructed by the deities worshipped by our ancient ancestors. It allows the human spirit and will to enter. The spirit is the most mysterious aspect of a being; if your spirit is reborn in the Spirit Realm, it is no different from your true body being reborn."

The Willow Deity continued to explain, "Once the spirit is honed and returns to reality, it brings all the insights back to the physical body, allowing them to cultivate together, as if the true body had been training in the Spirit Realm. That is the value of the Spirit Realm!"

The Willow Deity rarely spoke so much. The fact that it did so showed how much importance it placed on the Spirit Realm. Although he already knew this information, Shi Jian listened intently, nodding frequently.

After explaining the concept of the Spirit Realm, the Willow Deity urged Shi Jian to set off immediately. "Since you have reached the Limit of the Blood-Moving Realm, let us enter the Spirit Realm to train. Tell the people in the village, and we shall depart!"

"Understood!" Shi Jian replied solemnly.

He went to see the old village chief and informed him of his plan to cultivate in the Spirit Realm. He also handed over the task of explaining bone inscriptions to the village children to Little Bud. Little Bud was exceptionally gifted, and his progress in learning bone inscriptions had long surpassed the other children, so teaching them would be no problem. The old village chief agreed to everything, though he gave many repeated instructions for Shi Jian to be careful and stay safe. Shi Jian nodded, promising to take care. He did not say goodbye to the others in the village, as he would only be away for a while.

After the farewells, Shi Jian returned to the Willow Deity. "I am ready, Willow Deity. Let us depart!"

"Very well."

The Willow Deity responded, and the willow branches on its body suddenly surged, transforming into brilliant manifestations of order. Five magnificent branches pierced the firmament, and a gloomy mist of light emerged. A gate of laws appeared within it.

Shi Jian suddenly felt his consciousness sway, and in an instant, he passed through the hazy portal into a strange world. After the sensation of haziness faded, a desolate world appeared before him. Across the vast land lay stretches of ruins. Palace after palace had collapsed, leaving only a scene of devastation.

"Is this the Spirit Realm?" Shi Jian was astonished to see this world for the first time. A world so real, with such tactile sensations... and yet, it was a spiritual world. It was like a virtual reality game come to life!

"There was turmoil in the ancient times, and this spiritual world has fallen into ruin, which is why there are so many remnants," the Willow Deity sighed, looking at the debris. "There are many people like you who manifest here, including many prodigies. It is like a true kingdom! Here, you can fight to your heart's content!"

Shi Jian nodded. "I understand!"

"Walk that way. Head in that direction, and you will soon enter the true place of tempering." The Willow Deity pointed in a direction and then fell silent.

Without the slightest hesitation, Shi Jian strode in the direction indicated. The surrounding scenes of ruin grew sparser, and the buildings that appeared became more intact. Shi Jian walked out of the ruins and arrived in a world of light. A golden channel shone upon him, transporting him to another location.

In this realm, crowds of people moved about. This was the initial area of the Spirit Realm. Only after completing one's training here could one use the rune channels to travel to higher-level regions. The channels here were paved with rune bones. When Little Bud first came here, he had even tried to dig some up.

Shi Jian’s eyes lit up as he looked at the rune bones scattered everywhere. If he remembered correctly, breaking records in the Spirit Realm would yield rewards, wouldn't it? Now that he had reached the limit of his physical body, he could certainly try to break a few records. Even better, he possessed the strength of a Giant Elephant! His pure physical strength could reach two hundred thousand catties—a divine power that surely had no equal in the past or future. He could completely shatter the records of the Spirit Realm.

Break a record at the one-hundred-thousand-catty limit, then break it again for every catty added thereafter... Hiss, could the Spirit Realm even provide enough precious bones?