Chapter 85: The Azure Emperor’s Glazed Cauldron (2)

Absolute was initially awed by this cauldron in the sea of consciousness, but with his broad experience, he soon identified its true purpose. He had originally intended to explain it to Jiang Feng, but before he could, Jiang Feng blurted out something utterly clueless, making Absolute laugh so hard his features practically disappeared, his delight uncontainable.

“What are you laughing at, Absolute?” Hearing the laughter, Jiang Feng hurriedly entered the sea of consciousness. He still thought the cauldron was a useless trinket, suspecting Absolute was amused by Xuán Xingzi’s stinginess.

It took Absolute a long while to stifle his laughter. He finally said, “This cauldron is a white Nether artifact. At first, I was taken aback—Xuán Xingzi never bothered to fashion himself a proper palace, yet he’s gifting you such a peerless treasure. I was about to tell you this, when you, silly boy, claimed it was for refining pills. That’s what made me laugh. Just think, to use such a massive cauldron for alchemy, how much material would you need? This cauldron is meant for tempering oneself. With it, you become like a pill—casting yourself inside, you undergo endless trials until your cultivation surpasses the cauldron’s limits. From what I can tell, you’ll need to reach at least the sixth level of the True Nether Realm to shatter it.”

For practitioners of Nether Power, what matters most? Not artifacts, nor elixirs, and certainly not strange curios—it’s cultivation! Only by elevating your cultivation can you wield high-tier Nether artifacts, withstand the adverse effects—and backlash—of potent elixirs, and activate those rare and wondrous treasures.

Regardless of status, high cultivation grants one an endless span of years to squander. Yet, all conventional means of advancing—elixirs, Nether arts, even cultivation methods—yield slow progress, requiring immense power and resources to achieve mastery. This cauldron, however, is a shortcut. While it’s often said there are no shortcuts in cultivation, sometimes, a method arises that challenges that belief—such as the Stellar Shift Absolute once taught Jiang Feng.

Thinking of the Stellar Shift sent a reflexive shiver down Jiang Feng’s spine, his body recalling the terror of that explosion. He quickly asked, “Absolute, using this cauldron to raise my cultivation sounds promising, but will it be like your Stellar Shift, leaving me in constant fear of bodily detonation? If that’s the price, I’d rather do without such cultivation.”

Absolute chuckled lightly. “Not quite. Of course, there are minor risks—just as in ordinary cultivation, you’re always at risk of going astray.”

At this moment, Xuán Xingzi interjected, “This Azure Emperor Lapis Cauldron can greatly accelerate your progress. And yes, as you mentioned, it can also refine pills. In fact, you could even use it to sacrifice the most wicked, irredeemable villains, refining them into potent elixirs.”

In Xuán Xingzi’s eyes, since Jiang Feng could wield a devastating art like the Stellar Shift, it wasn’t unthinkable he might attempt to refine living beings. His comment was a test—should Jiang Feng’s eyes betray any excitement, Xuán Xingzi would reclaim the cauldron, never to yield it again, regardless of the Jiang family’s protests.

On the journey home, Jiang Feng finally grasped how deeply the common folk of Jiuyan Town revered martial might. Nearly everyone who saw him would flock over in worship, then offer their most prized possessions, begging to be accepted as his disciple. In just a few days, Jiang Feng transformed from the Jiang family’s hot potato and eternal scapegoat, into Jiuyan Town’s master of Nether arts—a living legend and role model.

Left with no alternative, Jiang Feng resorted to his twenty-fifth style: Shadow Dance Soul-Shatter Step, taking to the skies to escape his frenzied admirers.

While flying, Absolute’s voice suddenly sounded in his mind, “By the way, kid, that string of lies you told your grandfather recently—quite the imagination you have, dragging the Nether Prison into it.”

Jiang Feng fell silent. After a long pause, he replied, “Senior Absolute, the truth is, I’ve always kept a secret from you. Sealed within my body, there really is a Nether Prison.”

“Really?” Absolute’s eyes widened, but his expression soon relaxed into a smile. “I played along well, didn’t I? Come now, kid, why lie to me? How old are you, and you think you’d have a Nether Prison sealed inside you?”

Yet, to Xuán Xingzi’s slight disappointment, Jiang Feng’s eyes showed nothing but deep fear at the mention of refining the living. Swallowing nervously, Jiang Feng said, “Refining people alive is simply too horrifying. I could never do such a thing.”

Could there really be hope for Jiang Feng? Xuán Xingzi mused, but soon let the thought go. Even if Jiang Feng harbored such intentions, he would never find the method—such forbidden alchemy had been lost for ages. Chiding himself for overthinking, Xuán Xingzi’s demeanor softened, and he smiled, “Since that’s so, the Azure Emperor Lapis Cauldron is yours.”

Then, as if remembering something, he added, “However, I did imprint a sliver of my spirit within it. You’ll need to break through it to use the cauldron. But with your cultivation, I’m certain you can manage.”

“Very well—Heavenly Profound Divine Palm!”

Jiang Feng didn’t hesitate—after all, the trinkets around were mere gold and silver, easily replaced. He summoned his Nether power, forming over a dozen palm imprints that shot forth, engulfing the cauldron in a violent barrage.

“Kill!”

From within the cauldron, a roar erupted, startling Jiang Feng and putting Absolute on edge. “That spirit fragment is formidable—you must be cautious!” Absolute warned.

The cauldron spewed forth countless phantom palms, meeting Jiang Feng’s attacks head-on.

Crash after crash rang out as the two forces collided, each explosion a thousand fireworks in the sky. Below, the resplendent Langya Hall was largely reduced to rubble, shards of gold and jewels flying everywhere.

Jiang Feng grunted, forced back over ten yards before steadying himself, while the cauldron remained unmoved.

In a direct contest of strength, the Azure Emperor Lapis Cauldron held the upper hand.

The spirit within the cauldron unleashed an unparalleled, tyrannical palm wind—evidently, after being refined in this white Nether artifact for countless years, it was no ordinary spirit, its quality astoundingly high.

“Xuán Xingzi’s spirit is truly extraordinary,” Jiang Feng thought absently. He then unleashed his Sonic Slaughter Eight Dragons—a technique now powered by Nether force at the eighth level of the Illusory Nether Realm, its might astonishing even to him.

Sensing danger, the cauldron seemed to gain a mind of its own, whirling in the air. Within, Xuán Xingzi’s spirit bellowed, “Five-Fire Divine Power—Burn the Heavens and Earth!”

At this shout, torrents of flame burst from the cauldron, instantly igniting the eight sonic dragons. Each exploded on contact, vaporized without resistance.

Thunder split the sky! The earth trembled! The heavens cracked!

The eight dragons were obliterated, not even time to scream, dispersing back into mere sound waves.

“Unbelievable—even the Eight Dragons Sonic Kill can’t break this spirit?” Jiang Feng was stunned. Exhausted from previous battles in Cangsong Pavilion, he now felt a surge of weariness and frustration—a rare urge to give up.

But Absolute’s voice spurred him on. “Hurry and seize this cauldron! Even if you insist on using it for alchemy, I know countless techniques—including those for refining the living. Don’t give up now. If you could chew through someone as tough as Fang Ping, you can handle a mere spirit!”

“Fine, I’ll give it my all!” Jiang Feng’s body flared with Nether force, which condensed into a minuscule, dazzlingly blue needle.

This was the Profound Heaven Divine Needle, a secret Nether art.

With a flash, the needle shot toward the cauldron, directly piercing the spirit within.

Jiang Feng had forged the needle using sixth-level Illusory Nether force, compressing immense power into a single strike. Catching the spirit off guard, before it could react, he unleashed the attack.

Though it seemed a mere needle, it contained terrifying might. Piercing the spirit within, it blazed with a searing radiance.

“Aaaah!” The spirit screamed. Even Xuán Xingzi, standing nearby, winced—this sliver of spirit was linked to him. He watched helplessly as it tried to expel the needle, but to no avail. Suddenly, the needle expanded, its light intensifying, and the spirit was torn apart, shattered into fragments.

There was no rain of blood, no flying limbs, but Xuán Xingzi could well imagine the force contained within that needle.

The spirit was blasted to dust, and the power it had refined within the cauldron suddenly ran wild, erupting like a volcano—bursting through the roof before exploding in the sky.

In truth, when masters above the Illusory Nether Realm die, if their Nether force isn’t resolved, it explodes and dissipates into the world.

Jiang Feng cared nothing for the shreds of Nether force in that spirit. He’d risked enough with the Stellar Shift—he had no interest in such paltry gains.

“Well done,” Xuán Xingzi praised, clearing his mind of dizziness. “From now on, the Azure Emperor Lapis Cauldron is yours. Go home to the Jiang family—they are your kin, after all. I doubt your feud with Jiang Lei will affect your bond with the old master. Now, you’re the most sought-after figure in the Jiang family.”

Jiang Feng smiled and bowed. “Thank you, Senior Xuán Xingzi.”