Chapter 258: Chapter 24: Nascent Soul Stage? Raising Nascent Soul Stage!
After Li Mo’s ascension to the Nascent Soul stage, he couldn’t help but feel a profound clarity of thought. Shortly after, his body and soul began a deep metamorphosis, brimming with latent potential.
The Dao body subtly nourished his body and soul, the Da Ai Mi Tian entered a state of dormancy, and the Tattooed Beast also fell into a silent, unresponsive slumber.
Li Mo closed his eyes and attuned himself to his inner and outer world, realizing the distinct shift brought about by the Nascent Soul stage.
As the Fourth Realm, the Nascent Soul stage touches upon the threshold of becoming an immortal. Once this boundary was breached, one naturally entered a higher plane of existence.
When his body and soul underwent the full baptism, Li Mo would be one step closer to becoming an "Immortal."
He understood that the transformation would take at least 20 to 30 years, and what he needed to do was wait patiently for the conclusion of this metamorphosis.
"Cultivation knows no passage of time. If I were to achieve the status of a Land Immortal, wouldn’t every seclusion require hundreds of years to sustain?"
Li Mo sighed softly but quickly suppressed these stray thoughts.
He turned his gaze to the Creation Book, where the Soul-devouring Demon Infant’s divine skill was still taking shape. The blank pages generated by breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage caught his eye.
There were twelve blank pages in total, one of which was consumed by imprinting the Soul-devouring Demon Infant.
The number of blank pages did not surprise Li Mo; as his cultivation realm progressed, the number of blank pages obtained would only continue to increase.
He needed to consider how to maximize their value.
Li Mo fell into deep thought, but no matter how he contemplated, the issue of fostering Dao bodies couldn’t be avoided. However, having too many Dao bodies was bound to lead to complications.
"Once my cultivation base stabilizes, I’ll need to deeply reflect on the matter of Dao body fusion."
By now, Li Mo’s name was widely recognized throughout the Cultivation World.
Even in distant black markets, Loose Cultivators would have heard of the extraordinary Daoist Qingtian, a Sub-Device Sect prodigy.
His Innate Five Dao Body constitution was heralded as peerless within his generation.
If Li Mo were to imprint organs in large quantities, causing his number of Dao bodies to soar to seven or eight types, external evaluations would certainly take a darker turn.
Even for a reincarnated Immortal, an unending accumulation of Dao bodies simply seemed unnatural.
Through Dao body fusion, the relationships between organs could be harmonized, making it impossible for outsiders to discern the truth. Even the Twelve Immortals would struggle to perceive it.
"I’ll test it using the Leakless Body during my seclusion—it’s the perfect time to solidify my foundation."
Li Mo’s Leakless Body aligned well with his other Dao bodies. Besides, the Leakless Body’s effects were relatively minor, so even if it was lost, it wouldn’t be a cause for regret.
"With the Mayfly Soul in hand, there’s a fair chance Dao body fusion will succeed."
Li Mo glanced around. The cave had been left in ruins under the destructive rampage of the Soul-devouring Demon Infant. He tidied up his secluded environment before resuming his cross-legged meditation.
The Soul-devouring Demon Infant remained in a state of intense hunger, relentlessly consuming Turbid Blood Spiritual Power.
Li Mo observed his Nascent Soul for a moment, confirming that the hunger was merely the Soul-devouring Demon Infant’s instinct. Even if it were deprived of Spiritual Power, it would not rebel.
He nodded in satisfaction.
Compared to ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators, Li Mo would undoubtedly find it easier to ascend to the Divine Separation stage, as he could bypass the typical step of tempering savagery.
Nevertheless, Li Mo couldn’t help but worry about how to acquire a suitable Divine Separation stage technique.
He hoped to replicate his approach from the Sub-Device Sect by allowing his Primordial Dao Seed to absorb as many Divine Separation stage techniques as possible, thereby completing his own Magic Technique.
Relying solely on Demon Sect Skills might result in flaws within his cultivation of Beast Artifacts.
"It’s truly vexing. The Immortal Sects are so scattered, scattered like isolated islands with little to no interaction. How am I supposed to plan this out?"
Li Mo pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.
Fortunately, he was relatively young, leaving him with ample time to maneuver.
Once he passed the Uncertainty Period Death Disease at 400 years old, the next tribulation, the Fate Knowing Period Death Disease, wouldn’t arrive until he was over 1,000 years old.
At present, Li Mo was merely a little over a century in age, giving him plenty of leeway.
While privately reconfiguring his cultivation system, the Turbid Blood Spiritual Power began reaching optimal levels, causing his body to exude an aura that seemed almost tangible.
The cultivation of the Corpse Infant stage primarily involved integrating the new Nascent Soul into the Circulation Cycle.
Typically, a Nascent Soul cultivator would need at least ten years to attune with the Nascent Soul, ensuring it could seamlessly assist in the inhalation and exhalation of Spiritual Power.
Li Mo, however, was different. After adapting to the Soul-devouring Nascent Soul, it became akin to an organic part of his body, producing no hint of resistance.
The Soul-devouring Demon Infant crouched within his body, absorbing Spiritual Power through its gaping mouth. After running a peculiar internal cycle, it emitted the refined Spiritual Power within the temple.
Li Mo examined the newly produced Spiritual Power, his expression turning slightly strange.
The Turbid Blood Spiritual Power appeared compressed, with tiny crystalline granules interspersed throughout, significantly elevating its quality beyond that of the Core Formation Stage.
By the standards of Spirit Stones, these granules were comparable to the lowest-grade Low Grade Spirit Stones.
"Could it be that an Immortal’s body houses its own Spirit Vein..."
Li Mo clicked his tongue in astonishment. However, the Turbid Blood Spiritual Power’s qualitative transformation suggested an intriguing possibility: he could leverage the Soul-devouring Demon Infant to wear down the hardened exterior of a Flawless Golden Core.
He repeated the Circulation Cycle, employing meticulous and persistent effort to fill the temple completely.
It wasn’t until the Soul-devouring Demon Infant’s imprinting was complete that Li Mo temporarily emerged from his meditation. The divine skill he cultivated was named [Hidden Phase Dao Seed].
According to the Taoist Sect’s teachings, the phrase "Hidden Phase" was tied to the essence of spirit, energy, and soul, with its principles even referenced in the foundational techniques of the Demon Sect.
"To enter deep meditative absorption, one must embody Ma Yin Hidden Phase. This illustrates that deep meditation follows as a result of achieving Ma Yin Hidden Phase."
"Ma Yin Hidden Phase entails the closing of the Yang Pass, marking the completion of the Small Circulation stage."
Li Mo’s Hidden Phase Dao Seed worked in harmony with the End-of-the-World Dao Seed.
The End-of-the-World Dao Seed could burn corpses to deduce the cultivation techniques practiced in their lifetimes; in contrast, the Hidden Phase Dao Seed extracted the Spiritual Power within corpses.
This power was refined into pure Spirit Stones.
Li Mo’s expression grew slightly exasperated, unsure of how he should evaluate the Hidden Phase Dao Seed.
In the ancient Cultivation World, when spiritual energy was still pristine, the Hidden Phase Dao Seed would have allowed Li Mo to obtain a limitless supply of Spirit Stones.
Unfortunately, views toward Spirit Stones differed greatly across the modern Immortal Sects.
What was considered a valuable Mid-grade Spirit Stone in the Sub-Device Sect might be deemed worthless within the Heavenly Sword Sect, primarily due to differences in cultivation systems.
Using the Hidden Phase Dao Seed to support cultivation, however, didn’t necessarily align with Li Mo’s spiritual attributes.
Li Mo attempted to activate the Hidden Phase Dao Seed, selecting a resident of the Corpse Mountain Mini World as his target.
The resident was reduced to ashes in an instant, and Li Mo noticed that over 80% of their residual pre-death Spiritual Power had concentrated within their Middle Dantian.
Under the influence of divine skill, this Spiritual Power gradually transformed into a blend of Mountain Spirit Qi.
Li Mo, without waiting for the Spiritual Qi to condense into Spirit Stones, directly channeled it into the Corpse Mountain Mini World.
As the Mountain Spirit Qi sank into the earth, it gave rise to three Low Grade Spirit Stones, providing marginal sustenance to the small world.
Li Mo felt a pang of disappointment and prepared to withdraw his consciousness.
Just then, he noticed the Spirit Stones emitting weak Spiritual Qi, resembling a natural Spirit Stone vein.
This revelation piqued his curiosity.
Li Mo raised an eyebrow, and the ten or so eyes on the Soul-devouring Demon Infant’s forehead all opened simultaneously.
The greatly enhanced Divine Sense locked onto the Spirit Stone, observing as its faint Spiritual Qi steadily nourished the Corpse Mountain Spirit Pattern.
Indeed, even with just three Low Grade Spirit Stones, they functioned with all the properties of a Spirit Vein.
A Spirit Vein, of course, referred to a Spirit Stone vein that generated Spiritual Qi. Reburying ordinary Spirit Stones underground would accomplish nothing.
"As expected of a Dao Seed’s creation, it could never be mediocre."
Li Mo’s face lit up with joy.
If the Hidden Phase Dao Seed could establish a small Spirit Vein in the Corpse Mountain Mini World, the growth rate of Spirit Patterns could accelerate significantly.
Forget about Mid-grade Magical Treasures—he could even look forward to High Grade Magical Treasures.
A thought crossed Li Mo’s mind: the Hidden Phase Dao Seed didn’t require entire corpses; a single Middle Dantian would suffice.
Sending instructions to Zhang Guo, tens of thousands of Plant and Tree Cultivators dispersed across the mountain range.
The Plant and Tree Cultivators burrowed into grave mounds, extracting the residents’ Middle Dantians, which Li Mo then drew into the Melting Furnace to activate the Hidden Phase Dao Seed.
A massive influx of Spiritual Qi surged into the Corpse Mountain Mini World.
A small Spirit Vein slowly took shape, containing at least ten thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones.
The density of Spiritual Qi in the Corpse Mountain Mini World increased by 50%, and the variety of Spiritual Qi also diversified, reducing the time required to generate the second Spirit Pattern by a full century.
Li Mo had thoroughly exploited the Corpse Mountain Mini World’s corpses.
The stripped Middle Dantians were transformed into Spirit Stones; stomachs distilled into Corpse Wine; the Spider Demon’s Multiple-Armed Spine consumed brains; and the remainder was buried to nourish the earth with Spiritual Power.
The Corpse Mountain Mini World’s resource chain became increasingly well-developed.
One could only imagine the miserable fate awaiting Li Mo’s enemies in the future.
"Not bad. The ecosystem is becoming more diverse."
Li Mo surveyed the Corpse Mountain Mini World, observing the varied Spiritual Qi produced by the Spirit Vein as it subtly reshaped the environment.
The range of spiritual materials generated would also grow more abundant over time.
However, the Spirit Qi output of a small Spirit Vein was inherently limited. It would likely take four to five centuries for the Corpse Mountain Mini World to undergo any significant transformations.
Li Mo resumed his focus on stabilizing his cultivation base.
It took him a decade to fill the temple with Turbid Blood Spiritual Power.
To advance to the Corpse Infant stage, he needed to continuously feed Spiritual Power to his Nascent Soul until it could bear the burden of one of his Three Souls.
At the moment, the Soul-devouring Demon Infant was truly an infant, fragile and immature.
Li Mo attempted to feed the Soul-devouring Demon Infant, but if it overconsumed Spiritual Power, it would become oversaturated, impairing its ability to absorb Spiritual Power.
On the other hand, if he delayed feeding it for too long, the Soul-devouring Demon Infant would start clamoring incessantly for sustenance.
Li Mo couldn’t help but find the situation absurd—the Nascent Soul’s behavior was almost identical to that of a human infant.
No, to be precise, after the dramatic transformations of Heaven and Earth, even mortal infants were born with a vastly reduced need for nourishment.
Thus, the Nascent Soul resembled a typical infant to an even greater extent.
"What a bizarre and surreal world this is—sooner or later, it’ll drive cultivators to madness."
Li Mo let out a series of self-deprecating chuckles, his mind sinking into contemplation on Dao body fusion, specifically concerning the Primordial Dao Body and the Leakless Body.
These two Dao bodies shared many commonalities, providing him with ample ideas.
Simultaneously, he divided his focus to feed the Soul-devouring Demon Infant, grateful that Nascent Souls required no excretion. Otherwise, with three Nascent Souls in his possession in the future, he’d be running himself ragged, with scarcely a free moment to spare.
Unbeknownst to him, two decades passed by.
The Dao bodies successively completed their metamorphoses, the most prominent being the emergence of the Innate Saint.
With the addition of the Mud Pill Palace and Lower Dantian, all Five Dantians expanded to varying degrees, and the Soul-devouring Demon Infant revealed features of the Five Phase Soul.
The Yin Yang Pupils on the Soul-devouring Demon Infant’s brow manifested the words "Soul Decline," and as it inhaled and exhaled, dense smoke streamed from its nose and mouth.
The smoke twisted and coiled around its body, forming grotesque, menacingly large mouths.
"Phenomena accompanying one’s life force—isn’t that supposed to appear in the Nascent Soul-Stage Nascent Soul?"
Even though Li Mo had been anticipating it, he still marveled at the growth potential of his Nascent Soul. What kind of existence would his Externalized Dharma Body ultimately become?