The Legend of Min Hong

Then another wave of Primus aura surged into the 'Yuan Wonder Gate' creating a deep gully in its wake before creating a massive crater-like depression within it.

Then, the Primus aura within Min Hong's meridians began to convert the incoming stream of ancient Qi into Chaos Qi, as it sent them gushing into his 'Yuan Wonder Gate' through the deep gully previously created by the Primus Dao aura, like a flash-flood passing through a narrow street. 

The Chaos Qi continued to flood into Min Hong's 'Yuan Wonder Gate' as it began to accumulate within the massive crater and continued to fill it up.

Then when it reached the brim of this crater, the Primus Dao aura then created a second massive crater-like depression, tearing a deep gully from the filled depression, linking it into the second depression as it began to fill up. 

Then Min Hong's aura rode from 1-Star Qi Sea stage and began to surge towards the 2-Star Qi Sea stage.

Then when the second depression filled up, Min Hong's aura finally reached the 2-Star Qi Sea stage.

Then the Primus Dao aura the continued its digging process while the Chaos Qi also continued to fill it up as Min Hong's aura kept climbing;

3-Star Qi Sea stage…

4-Star Qi Sea stage…

5-Star Qi Sea stage… 6-Star… 7-Star… 

Then when it reached the 8-Star Qi sea stage, eight octagonal arranged pits that were already filled to its brim with Chaos Qi was already formed with a deep gully linking each of the eight pits together to form a circular ring.

But then, Min Hong furrowed his brows slightly as he began to wonder where the ninth depression will be formed. But he soon got his answer. 

The Primus aura then created a ninth massive depression right in the centre of the ring of Chaos Qi-filled pits.

Then the Primus Dao aura created eight deep gullies, one from each of the Qi-filled Pits all linking to the massive depression at the centre.

This uniqueness truly shocked Min Hong to his core, as he marvelled once again at the variant nature of this technique. 

Then about half an hour later, the ninth massive depression finally got filled to its brim with Chaos Qi and Min Hong once again erupted with the aura of a 9-Star Qi Sea stage.

Then his eyes snapped open as a subtle shockwave rippled out of his body in a ring-like fashion with him at the centre of it all.

Then he smiled faintly and spoke in a low voice;

"I will be thirteen in the next three months and now I have a mental and soul cultivation in the Mid-grade Bronze Rank level which is equivalent to the strength of a 4-Star Nascent Soul stage expert."

"But with just my physical and Qi cultivation at the Peak King and Qi Sea stage alone, I already possess a battle power equivalent to that of a 5-Star Dan Formation stage."

"When I return from challenging the third and fourth level of the Pagoda of Ascension, my battle power should surge up to that of 6-Star Dan Formation stage expert."

"Finally, if I was to include my, martial techniques, divine abilities, soul and mental power, then no one under the Nascent Soul stage would be a match for me."

"But should I use the Primus Dao Qi to cultivate to the Peak of Dan Formation stage?"

"No, you shouldn't…" Little Wu floated out as he answered Min Hong's rhetorical question. 

"Unh…Why did you say that?" Min Hong was surprised when Little Wu floated out and actually disapprove of his idea.

But then he sensed Little Wu's aura, there was something strongly valiant and heroic about it. Apparently, Little Wu had seen an increase in bloodline purity.

"Since you have cultivated both the Warrior and Qi Creation stage using the Oblivion Dao Qi, and you also cultivated the King and Qi Sea stage using the Chaos Dao Qi, using the Primus Dao Qi for your Dan Formation stage for cultivation would not be the best method."

"This is because of the calm, reserved and tender nature of the Primus Dao which would not be useful to your body cultivation which uses energies of the exact opposite nature for cultivation."

"Then asides from that, having a Dan Formation cultivation made up of Primus Dao Qi and an Emperor stage cultivation made up of another Dao does not make a good pattern."

"Moreover, one way or the other, I believe that following this pattern would allow you to possess greater compatibility with your Daos, thereby improving your rate of their comprehension. This is why I fell you should not use the Primus Dao Qi." Little Wu explained.

"Furthermore, you already possess the Empyrean and Devil's flame seed within your flame nascent soul, and according to your Old Man, those were two of the top three flames in existence."

"So, I would prefer you search for the one at the top of the list; the Nihility flame, and merge them together to create the new strongest flame and use it to cultivate." He added.

"That sounds perfect. Moreover, I can sense that a Nihility flame seed is close by, but I don't know where specifically it is within this Empire and neither do I know how long it would take me to find it." Min Hong looked to Little Wu as he explained.

"There is another way we can achieve the best result…" An idea popped into Little Wu's head.

"Unh… what is it?" Min Hong's expression brightened significantly as he eagerly asked.

"If we don't find the Nihility flame on time, you will have to cultivate your soul and then achieve a breakthrough. That way, you can use the tribulation lightning, which is the strongest of all lightnings cultivate."

"The 'steal' attribute of your technique would automatically kick in and help you trap the lightning until you are able to completely absorb it." Little Wu explained.

"Yeah, that sounds absolutely perfect. We will do as you have said…" Min Hong happily replied.

"Alright. Since you have reached the Peak of the second stage of cultivation, you should go and take the third and fourth trial of the Pagoda. Furthermore, how is your conversion of the 'Dawn Sovereign' bloodline progressing?" Little Wu inquired. 

"That's right… I have not even paid much attention to it… The condition of my internal body should have at least increased its rate of purifying my bloodline…"

Min Hong then shut his eyes and sent his consciousness into his body in a bid to find the blob of golden blood. 

When Min Hong found the blob of 'Dawn Sovereign' bloodline, it was within his marrows and virtually all the blood cells within his marrows were now golden in colour, radiating a fearsome and mysterious aura.

From what Min Hong could sense within his body, he could tell that he had almost achieved a purity of about 12 percent.

"I seem to have achieved about 12 percent bloodline purity of the 'Dawn Sovereign' bloodline." Min Hong responded to Little Wu before adding; "What about you…what bloodline purity level have you achieved, because I could feel and sense great changes oozing from your aura?"

"That's good news… you should be able to notice its effects in battle from now on. But as for my bloodline purity, I just broke into the 25 percent purity level. It is all thanks to you and the opportunity to meditate in front of my ancestor's statue."

"Otherwise, I don't think I would be able to achieve this level of purity in 20 years, if I had done it on my own."

"Moreover, the ancient aura and energy has also been tempering my soul and as a result, I have also seen improvements in other areas of cultivation. So, I am truly grateful…"

Little Wu cupped his hands towards Min Hong as he supported it with a slight bow.

"It is nothing to be thankful for. After all, you have also been doing your best to ensure that I become the best possible version of myself."

"Moreover, you are the only one that I don't know which way I could help. So, if this helps you, then it is not even enough to be thanking me for…" Min Hong responded. 

"Alright it is time to challenge the third and fourth level of the Pagoda of Ascension… uhm, one more thing… I noticed that one way or the other, my true physical body was present within the Pagoda of Ascension, do you know how that came to be?"

Min Hong asked the question that has been stumping him for a while now.

"Well, since the Pagoda is a treasure left behind by the 'great creator' who must have surely comprehended the Karma Dao."

"Then I guess it is not your true physical body, but rather it used the Karma Dao to link your mental body to your physical body."

"Thus, making whatever injuries you suffer within the Pagoda affect your physical body in the outside world."

"That is the fearsome power of the Karma Dao. The ability to manipulate fate threads and easily control people's destiny from the comfort of their homes is truly mysterious."

"Moreover, such experts are nearly impossible to kill, since they would have sensed it long before it happened. But that is just my theoretical perception of it."

"It won't be farfetched to say an expert on the level of the 'great creator' would also be able to transport your physical body over to the Pagoda leaving a makeshift clone in your place instead."

"Moreover, all these are not importance at this point, so you should focus on raising your strength. When you're strong enough, you will know all these things." Little Wu explained. 

Min Hong acknowledged Little Wu's opinion as they both returned to the 'Realm of Creations'. Upon arrival, they were greeted by Little Lin and Old Pops, who didn't even bother to start a conversation.

Then with a wave of his sleeves, a gentle ripple appeared swallowing them all as they vanished from the spot, leaving only the echoing voice of Little Lin behind. 

They reappeared at the same spot they were the last time they came here, about a mile of the gates of the Pagoda of Ascension, as Min Hong instantly began to approach the Pagoda.

But when his first step landed, a pure and potent aura with the pressure of a 7-Star Dan Formation stage expert weighed down on him, plunging his first step about an inch deep into the ground.

Min Hong was greatly alarmed as he looked back at the great elder for an explanation.

The great elder then smiled faintly as he spoke;

"I already told you that you have been greatly underestimating the Pagoda of Ascension a lot."

"The pressure of the aura you face each time you enter any level of the Pagoda of Ascension will always be different and will always be at the Peak of whatever cultivation stage your total battle power falls within. If your total battle power falls within the 1-Star Nascent Soul stage, you will face the aura pressure of a Peak Nascent Soul stage expert." He explained. 

"Moreover, just like I have advised you earlier, you have to allow the aura pressure temper you. It will help you consolidate your cultivation base and also temper your mental and soul strength. Furthermore, for this next stage, you will be granted some unique picking chances."

The great elder gave Min Hong the difficult news and also consoled him with the good news. 

Min Hong nodded and faced the Pagoda once more.

Then he let go of himself and relaxed all his tensed-up muscles, this action exposed his body, Qi, mind, soul and even the 'Dawn Sovereign' bloodline to the aura pressure of the Pagoda of Ascension.

Instantly, a mouthful of blood surged into his mouth, as he forcefully swallowed it back. 

Then he gritted his teeth as he took his second step.

The moment he did this, bullets of sweat shot out of his pores as his back became instantly drenched in sweat.

Then as if trying to add more water to the hot oil, the sun in the sky then intensified as the temperature of the environment turned up a notch.

The moment this happened, Little Wu directed a questioning gaze towards the great elder, who noticed the look and explained;

"The Pagoda of Ascension is a treasure beyond the human level of comprehension and would definitely be unique in the way it does things."

"I mostly suspect it has its own special rules of operation and the increase in temperature and heat was one of them."

"But I know one thing for sure, since it is the 'great creator' who left it here to groom the successor of the 'Realm of Creations', everything that happens would definitely be for the tempering and growth of the successor."

"So, this could be classified as part of his training. Moreover, the 'great creator' wouldn't be looking to kill him now, or would it?" He explained.

"I guess not, but whatever the case may be, I think the boy is ready for it. Moreover, he is not the type to back down in the face of hardships."

"In fact, as long as it is improving his cultivation base, he will gladly welcome the challenge with open arms and his widest smile."

Little Wu looked to Min Hong's back as he smiled and praised. 

After about ten minutes. Min Hong had already crossed the halfway point of the one -mile-long landscape, as the aura pressure he was feeling rose from that of a 7-Star Dan Formation stage expert to that of an 8-Star Dan Formation expert.

Now the depth of each step was already about two inches deep, and he was now completely drenched in sweat. 

At this point, it felt like Min Hong was carrying a heavy mountain above his head, with two large hills chained to each of his legs.

Moreover, it felt like he was stepping into bubble gum, as for some strange reasons, the sand on the ground seemed to be grabbing a hold of both his feet.

After another thirty minutes, he finally got to the massive gates of the Pagoda of Ascension.

But was already too exhausted to push it open.

After all, he had just gone through an insanely difficult one-mile walk.

But since he was not mandated to open the gates without his cultivation, he activated his physical body cultivation as his aura erupted like a volcano that had been sealed for aeons. 

Instantly, his fatigue vanished like it was just a figment of his imaginations.

Then he pushed hard as his muscles popped and his bones creaked, then about ninety dragon tattoos responded to Min Hong's current thoughts.

Their eyes snapped open as a savage and domineering aura erupted from them, gushing into the surroundings. 

The dragon tattoos then latched onto his bones as innumerable tiny little droplets of golden blood detached from the blob of the 'Dawn Sovereign' bloodline blood.

It then diffused into his muscles and tendons as its rate of purification surged once more, decreasing the time taken by half a day per 0.1 percent purity.

With this new found strength, the door finally gave way. 

The moment these massive doors opened; Min Hong was blasted by the aura of a Peak Dan Formation stage expert.

But this time he had already activated his physical body strength, so he only felt like he was walking within a waist-deep river of water flowing in the opposite direction of his advancement. 

He looked around for a bit, before walking up the staircase in front of him.

On getting to the top of the stairs, the usual active teleportation portal was waiting for him.

Without delaying any further, he stepped into the portal and vanished from the spot.

When he reappeared, he found himself standing in front of two big incoming long spears with spine tingling momentum. 

Everything was so abrupt, that he had only a glimmer of a second to think.

So, he just fell back and relax his body, allowing the aura pressure of the Pagoda of Ascension to increase his falling speed.

The moment fell the two spears bolted past his face, taking along two strands of his eyebrows, before stabbing 6 inches deep into the ground sending rocks flying everywhere. 

Min Hong quickly touched his pants and felt it for leakages and sighed in relief when he found none.

Then he did a swift kick-up and looked towards the direction which the two spears came from.

Then he saw two demons with extremely muscular bodies, naked upper bodies with abs and biceps that could put the bodybuilding world to shame. 

They had legs like that of a werewolf, with two empty eye sockets containing only a deep-purple glow, two bat-like ears and strong horns protruding from the front of their skulls.

They were about ten feet tall each and though they were very muscular, they also looked malnourished and were both radiating the cultivation aura of a 7-Star Emperor stage. 

The moment Min Hong saw this, he knew right there and then, that the trials just got immensely serious and threatening.

He released every shred of power within his physical body, as his bones and muscles began to crack and pop, bulging and growing.

Then Min Hong grew about 2 feet taller, reaching about 7 feet in height. He was almost as muscular as the demons. 

The two demons bolted towards him with their 8-inch-wide hands and claws about 2 inches long.

Min Hong saw the incoming duo and just stood there without moving an inch.

The moment they entered the range of about 10 feet from him, Min Hong released his aura, as the overbearing aura of a dragon mixed with another unique aura of a royalty of some sort.

The instant the aura weighed on the demons; their cultivation level instantly dropped two stages.