Chapter 274: Floating Spirit and Dominion of Qi

At Chicheng Grand Theater.

In the center of the front row, Chen Mobai rested his chin on his clenched right fist, his eyes narrowed, as he listened to the heavenly voice of Meng Huang’er during her rehearsal on stage. Beside him were Bian Yiqing and other student council members, including Hua Zijing.

Chen Mobai was a man of his word. Although he realized after talking with Meng Huang’er that he might have been tricked by Zuo Qiushi, he had given his word, and there was no reason to back down. Consequently, for the past few days, he had personally led the elite members of the student council, in response to Bian Yiqing's call, to help out at Chicheng Grotto-Heaven.

As expected, the Fusion of Divine Soul, which had been just short of completion, was finally perfected amidst Meng Huang’er's healing songs. Within his Sea of Consciousness in the Purple Mansion, a jade phoenix tree with two branches and over twenty green shoots had taken root. This represented the materialized form of Chen Mobai's divine sense, and could be considered his Natal Item. If he were cultivating the Tri-Unity Accord and using the Formless Puppet for deduction, this would be the appearance of his synchronized companion. It was a pity that the Grade 4 jade phoenix tree in Danxia City was occupied by True Person Shiqing; otherwise, he might have seriously considered switching to the Tri-Unity Accord. After all, Zhongli Tianyu was a prime example right before him. If he could truly transform the jade phoenix tree into his synchronized companion, he might be able to achieve Foundation Establishment completion in a short time, without even needing an Immortality Tree Fruit.

However, this was just a thought, as cultivating the Tri-Unity Accord had even more stringent requirements for innate talent than the Pure Yang Scroll. Chen Mobai had once used the Formless Puppet to deduce it, and found his compatibility with this grand divine transformation art to be very ordinary. The Pure Yang Scroll was still more suitable for him, as long as he had spirit stones, he could gradually elevate his fire spiritual root to a Heavenly Spiritual Root step by step, without needing to rely on vague concepts like compatibility or serendipity.

After completing the Fusion of Divine Soul, his Divine Manipulation Art had reached its final layer: 'Wandering Spirit, Controlling Qi'! At this level, he could already use his divine sense to interfere with both void and reality. Because after the division and fusion, Chen Mobai's divine sense seemed to have undergone a transformation, achieving a qualitative leap. With a thought, one green shoot from the jade phoenix tree, rooted in the center of his Sea of Consciousness in the Purple Mansion, detached from its branch and transformed into a wisp of invisible mental blade. This was the 'Divine Severance Slash'!

Against opponents whose divine sense cultivation was inferior to his, he could achieve an unconditional instant kill. Even against those with superior divine sense cultivation, he could use this move to disturb their minds and find a weakness to exploit for victory. If he had mastered this move earlier, he wouldn't have had to reveal all his trump cards just to barely win against Zuo Qiushi.

Chen Mobai carefully counted: the two branches of the jade phoenix tree now had twenty-three green shoots, meaning he could unleash twenty-three 'Divine Severance Slashes'. On the two branches, besides the green shoots, there were also two phoenix tree blossoms and fruits. If Chen Mobai were to use the blossoms and fruits to unleash the Divine Severance Slash, regardless of the cost to his divine sense origin, even a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator might not be able to withstand it.

However, his first thought was still to continue splitting the jade phoenix tree. After all, the Divine Manipulation Art could be repeatedly cultivated. Chen Mobai decided that after some time, once he adapted to the sudden two-fold increase in his divine sense after Fusion of Divine Soul, he would continue to split off more young phoenix tree seedlings, dividing his spirit and transforming his thoughts. Furthermore, with his increased divine sense, he could also consider refining the remaining half of the Green Wood Spirit Heart.

“President…”

Just as he was contemplating how to further enhance his strength, a familiar voice from outside reached him, waking him from his meditation.

“Oh, is the rehearsal over?” Chen Mobai woke up and opened his eyes. He looked at the stage and noticed that the performers were already packing up various props.

“Yes, you said to call you when the rehearsal was over, so you can go on another date with the big star, right?” Hua Zijing retorted, annoyed.

Originally, she wasn't on the list for this exchange conference, but Chen Mobai thought that he was completely unfamiliar with the student council's personnel, and leading the team personally would be very exhausting due to hands-on involvement. So he specifically requested her help. At the same time, he also had Shen Renyou, who was originally in charge of this matter, accompany them.

Bian Yiqing was very pleased when he saw the new student council president bringing two vice-presidents to personally help, thinking Chen Mobai was showing him great respect. However, at the end of that day's rehearsal, when Chen Mobai specifically went backstage and chatted with Meng Huang’er for a few moments, Bian Yiqing realized things weren't as he had imagined. But as a teacher, he wouldn't forcibly interfere in such matters. Nevertheless, given Chen Mobai's somewhat ambiguous relationship with that Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivator back in Danxia City, Bian Yiqing still subtly reminded Meng Huang’er a couple of times, telling her to clearly see a man's true nature before committing herself.

During this period, Chen Mobai and Meng Huang’er's relationship, which had been as bland as water, gradually warmed up. Starting two days ago, they even began going out for meals. However, during their first meal, both of them were a bit reserved. Meng Huang’er brought her senior brother Jiang Yuyuan, and Chen Mobai brought Hua Zijing to act as a buffer. Over the past few days, their cautious interactions had made Jiang Yuyuan and Hua Zijing, who were on the sidelines, feel very awkward.

Sure enough, as it was time for another meal, Hua Zijing was a bit reluctant. She certainly didn't want to be a third wheel. If it weren't for the chance to see the handsome Jiang Yuyuan, she wouldn't have done such a thing for anything.

“I have something to do today, so I’ll head back first.”

However, Chen Mobai had already completed the Fusion of Divine Soul, and the 'Wandering Spirit, Controlling Qi' realm, the final layer of Divine Manipulation Art, was still somewhat unstable. He felt it would be better to return and seclude himself for a few days.

“Huh?” Hua Zijing had already finished her makeup, and even unfastened her ponytail, styling her hair beautifully, all to leave a good impression on Jiang Yuyuan. But Chen Mobai said he wouldn't be going out anymore.

“What’s wrong?” Chen Mobai was a bit confused, but it was only then that he noticed how pretty Hua Zijing looked today. She wore a black dress, which perfectly accentuated her tall, fair figure, and with her long, dark hair spread over her shoulders, she was several times more attractive than her usual serious and dignified self in the student council.

“N-nothing.” Hua Zijing could only utter those three words through gritted teeth.

“Oh, then I’ll be leaving first. After personally observing for the past few days, I feel that your leadership abilities are perfectly sufficient to handle the task of maintaining order.”

“What do you mean by that?” Shen Renyou, who was beside them, hadn't quite grasped it yet, but Hua Zijing understood, and asked with wide eyes.

“I won’t be coming tomorrow onwards. On the day of the official exchange conference, just inform me, and I’ll come over to make an appearance and meet with the representatives from other Daoist Academies and Schools.” Chen Mobai stated his intentions very straightforwardly.

All the student council members nearby were stunned. What happened? Weren't you here to pursue Meng Huang'er? Why did you suddenly withdraw when you were about to succeed? Getting tired of the new and liking the old doesn't happen this fast!

But regardless of what they thought, after Chen Mobai had achieved his goal, he resumed his two-point-one-line cultivation life between the Myriad Treasures Cave and Little South Mountain. He didn't even return to the small cabin he had rented.

“Did you reject him?” Two days later, Jiang Yuyuan, who no longer saw Chen Mobai in the lower seats, asked Meng Huang’er beside him with a puzzled expression. The expression on her fair, pretty face was the most complex he had ever seen in his life. It contained resentment, lament, sorrow, confusion, vexation, and more… She didn't understand why this person had suddenly given up after pursuing her for only three to five days. Was it because she wasn't progressing fast enough? If only she had known, she should have gone to the date alone from the start. How could this person be so impatient!

Chen Mobai was completely unaware of the complex thoughts of Meng Huang’er and the others. After stabilizing his 'Wandering Spirit, Controlling Qi' realm, he excitedly took out the half of the Green Wood Spirit Heart that had been sealed away from his storage pouch. The blue solution in the glass bottle had been frozen into a solid block by Yan Bingxuan, resembling a giant sapphire. And at the very center of the sapphire was the half of the Green Wood Spirit Heart.

To ensure no one disturbed him, Chen Mobai specially rented a cultivation room at the Daoist Academy. Having had previous experience with absorption, he wasn't worried at all about refining this spiritual item. However, because there were three layers of seals, and to ensure the efficacy of the Green Wood Spirit Heart was not diminished, extra caution was required. Fortunately, with his Divine Manipulation Art perfected and his divine sense cultivation increased, he was able to perform the unsealing process with sufficient precision. Following the unsealing incantations that Qing Nu and Yan Bingxuan had previously given him, Chen Mobai systematically began dissolving the powers with which the two women had sealed the Green Wood Spirit Heart.

Time passed quickly. After completely absorbing the Green Wood Spirit Heart, Chen Mobai opened his eyes. If anyone had been in the cultivation room, they would have seen an invisible, formless blade seeming to flicker within his gaze, extraordinarily captivating. He sensed his Sea of Consciousness in the Purple Mansion. The Sea of Consciousness, which had previously been occupied by about a quarter of its space due to the growth of the young phoenix tree seedling, had now expanded again. The jade phoenix tree with two branches now only occupied one-sixth of the space in his Sea of Consciousness in the Purple Mansion.

Chen Mobai checked some information and found that the space in his Sea of Consciousness in the Purple Mansion was now comparable to that of Foundation Establishment cultivators at the fourth or fifth layer. In other words, when he was in the early Foundation Establishment stage, by refining the entire Green Wood Spirit Heart to open his Purple Mansion, he was able to elevate his divine sense to the mid-Foundation Establishment level. However, currently, only the Purple Mansion, the container, had expanded. His divine sense had not yet reached its limit.

But soon, Chen Mobai plucked a blossom-fruit from his jade phoenix tree, the materialized form of his divine sense, and divided his spirit to plant it on the other side of his Purple Mansion. As the Clear-Eyed Bamboo Spirit Dew dripped, a tender shoot slowly emerged. Once this young phoenix tree seedling matured, he could repeat the Fusion of Divine Soul process again, causing his divine sense to surge.

The two pools of Clear-Eyed Bamboo Spirit Dew that Wang Xingyu had refined this time were indeed free of pill toxins, as expected. He handed them over to Chen Mobai with a sigh of relief, stating that if it hadn't succeeded this time, he would have developed inner demons even when attempting Foundation Establishment. Chen Mobai thought Wang Xingyu's mentality was problematic. Alchemists on the Tianhe Realm side would brazenly declare that all losses from failed alchemy attempts were borne by the client, and if successful, they would take another twenty to thirty percent as a furnace opening fee. However, it was precisely because of this that the alchemists on the Tianhe Realm side were bolder than one another. They dared to refine any pill, and after it was produced, they didn't care about the amount of pill toxin. As long as it didn't kill anyone, it was considered a successful commission and alchemy.

At Little South Mountain, if Chen Mobai hadn't stopped them, the spiritual wines that Zhuo Ming and the two disciples from the Alchemy Department had experimented with would have been taken by his young apprentice to be sold in the shop. He tried to persuade them repeatedly, until he glared and cursed them, only then did Zhuo Ming reluctantly feed these spiritual wines to the spirit rats Liu Wenbo had purchased from the Spirit Beast Department. After this incident, Chen Mobai set a rule. All newly produced spiritual wines must be fed to spirit rats for over a year, and only after confirming no side effects could they be sold in his shop in Shenmu City. Although Zhuo Ming and Liu Wenbo didn't understand, in the Tianhe Realm, a master's word was law, so they could only obey.

After dealing with this matter, Chen Mobai kept thinking about the Void Stone spiritual mine, but this was still a top secret matter for the Divine Wood Sect. He could only pay a visit to Yan Jinye. Yan Jinye, as expected, knew some inside information. After all, she was the discoverer of Lone Soul Ridge and a direct descendant of Old Ancestor Zhou's lineage, so many things were not kept from her.

“Although the Void Stone spiritual mine at Lone Soul Ridge is not as good as the one at Five Elements Sect, it is far superior to the one at Mount Shaking Peak. It should be a medium to small-sized spiritual mine. Old Ancestor Zhou even personally made a trip there.”

After hearing this, Chen Mobai became even more curious. “Is the Void Stone spiritual mine at Lone Soul Ridge already being exploited?”

“I don't know about that,” she replied. “Old Ancestor Zhou is highly concerned about this matter, and the Hall Master of the Hall of Rewards is personally overseeing it. However, many Foundation Establishment elders in our Divine Wood Sect originated from the split with the Five Elements Sect, and it's unclear how many spies from the other three lineages are among them. If the movement is too large, it simply cannot be kept secret. It's probably the head of the Spiritual Vein Department leading a few trustworthy individuals to conduct small-scale mining.”

Hearing this, Chen Mobai nodded slightly. The fact that they could tell him such a thing showed that the Divine Wood Sect truly considered him one of their own. However, it was also understandable. After all, his background was clean. From Qi Cultivation to Foundation Establishment, his advancements had all occurred under the watchful eyes of the Divine Wood Sect. Combined with his exceptional talent, he was destined to be at least invincible below the Golden Core stage in the future. Therefore, the sect's upper echelons already viewed him as one of its future leaders.

After chatting with Yan Jinye for a while and obtaining the information he sought, Chen Mobai bid farewell and left. After mastering the Divine Severance Slash, he no longer had any short-term cultivation goals. Now, besides his regular practice of spells and sword arts each day, he focused on using spirit stones to advance the progress of his Pure Yang Dharma Body. Sometimes, he really considered directly consuming the Three Treasures of Foundation Establishment and just initiating Foundation Establishment with the Pure Yang Scroll. He wondered if he would ever encounter the serendipitous opportunity of Foundation Establishment through comprehending the Dao.

Just as Chen Mobai, bored, began comparing the dead sealed spirit spheres he had seen with the Myriad Treasures Map one by one, Hua Zijing finally sent him a message. The important figures from the Immortal Sect had arrived. This meant that this year's Chicheng Grotto-Heaven University Alliance Exchange Conference had finally begun.

“You look quite striking in that outfit.”

In the three-story student council villa, in the president's exclusive third-floor office, with Hua Zijing's help, Chen Mobai put on the red-and-black ceremonial robe that the Artifact Forging Department had urgently woven during this period. As he often spent time in the Tianhe Realm, Chen Mobai usually dressed in an ancient style, and his black hair had long since grown out. Paired with this wide-sleeved long robe, featuring a black base and red patterns, he resembled those villainous young masters from historical dramas. His entire demeanor combined grace and elegance with solemnity and dignity. Yet these two distinct temperaments perfectly blended in him, making Hua Zijing, who was used to Zuo Qiushi's muscular and imposing presence, her eyes light up. How could he look even better in formal attire!