The Ancient Underworld Pearl.

As a Divine Material, it carried Xuanming Qi, which was supposed to be found in Hell and was the most powerful energy there. It would make a Yin Cultivator ecstatic. Such a strong energy had formed this Ancient Underworld Pearl, a Quasi-Divine Material, that had a sea of Xuanming Qi inside.

"Swish."

A plume of black Xuanming Qi billowed out of the pearl.

The surrounding Essence Qi was condensed and black raindrops fell from the sky. An energy that could freeze people's souls was spread, frosting the ground. This energy could even freeze a Golden Core.

In the meantime, Chen Fan was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed inside the Juehan Palace.

Chen Fan didn't leave right away after getting the Ancient Underworld Pearl. He closed the gate of the Juehan Grotto-heaven to cultivate. There were thousands of years of chilly mist in the area, which became Chen Fan's resource.

Then…

As the Essence Core spinned, plumes of Spirit Qi were gathered from all directions. The Spirit Qi present was more abundant than in normal areas and was more than ten times denser than on Earth. Every time Chen Fan took a breath, claps of thunder were heard and he sucked in Spirit Qi in large amounts.

When the Spirit Qi entered his body, it became True Essence that was added on top of the Essence Core in layers, making the Essence Core spin faster and shine brighter. It even started to show a hint of golden color.

"Immortal Cultivators call it a Golden Core, Buddhists call it a relic, Spirit Beasts call it a Monster Core… They're actually the same thing. It's an energy core inside a body that provides endless power like an engine."

Chen Fan pondered.

The formation of a Golden Core was different according to the cultivation arts, level and potential of each cultivator. The Golden Core had nine levels. The ninth-grade Golden Core was the best while the first-grade was the worst. Chen Fan was probably able to make a superior-grade Golden Core right then.

"But this is not enough. How would the engine of a racer car be the same as that of a motorized tricycle? Only a super-grade Golden Core can surpass all the Saints and make for a supreme foundation. That's my ultimate goal."

As he thought of this…

Chen Fan immediately took out the Ancient Underworld Pearl and placed it in front of his chest, gently initiating it with his Dharmic Power.

"Boom!"

Raging waves suddenly appeared inside the pearl and a shadow of the Xuanming River floated in the air. Black water ran in the sky and shook the dimension. There were countless drops of Xuanming Water in the river and each of them could freeze a mountain.

There were thousands of drops which could turn the mountains in a thousand miles into glaciers.

"Whoosh."

Once this drop of Xuanming Water entered his body, it immediately turned into Xuanming Qi, filling Chen Fan's dantian and turning him black. Frost could be seen through his skin.

His Essence Core spinned.

There was a terrifying suction force on the pearl; it absorbed all the Xuanming Qi in Chen Fan's body.

One drop, two drops, three drops…

As he absorbed more and more Xuanming Water, the transparent Essence Core gradually became black as if dyed with ink; it carried an energy that seemed to have come from Hell.

"A super-grade Golden Core is powerful because it can take in any Essence Qi or treasure in the world. It can also create different kinds of Divine Powers and Dharma Powers. The Dharma Form is also way stronger than that of a normal Golden Core.

"Some people put a flying sword inside their bodies and their Golden Core turns into an indestructible Divine Sword, which is comparable to a Heavenly Treasure. Some infuse the essence of a river into the Golden Core and make a long river. Some initiate the Golden Core with the blood of a Divine Beast and form a Divine Beast Dharma Form, or even become a Divine Beast…"

Only a super-grade Golden Core had that many types of incredible Dharma Forms and Divine Powers, which was why it could be used to dominate the universe.

"And now, I'm going to form a Xuanming Golden Core!"

Chen Fan narrowed his eyes.

As more and more Xuanming Water was infused into his body, the form of his Essence Core started to change. It went from a ball the size of an egg to a liquid state, becoming a crystal-like black water current in the end.

The black water current was short at first.

Once it appeared, Chen Fan's body seemed to be a bit overwhelmed. His bones let out some crackling sounds, as if the current were carrying ten thousand tons of energy.

"Whoosh."

The black water current not only ran inside Chen Fan's body, but also appeared around him.

The Xuanming Water flowed in the air, running from one side to the other and forming a ring shape. This black water current could turn into a hundred-mile river to shatter a mountain and crush a Golden Core.

This was a Dharma Form, or a Divine Form, to be exact!

Every Golden Core Cultivator had a Dharma Form, which was the most powerful thing he had. Chen Fan's ability to show the Kun Peng Dharma Form and the Chaotic Divine Tree was a kind of Dharma Form Power. Each Golden Core Cultivator practiced different cultivation arts, that was why their Dharma Form would also be different, but they had one thing in common: All Dharma Forms were illusory, unreal.

Just like Chen Fan's Kun Peng Body.

It was only formed by Dharma Power; it wasn't a real body with flesh and blood.

But a Divine Form was different. A Divine Form was transformed directly from a super-grade Golden Core and it was tangible. If the Golden Core was a flying sword, the Divine Form could send out flying swords as its Dharma Treasure. If the Golden Core formed an ancient cauldron, the Divine Form would be an invincible cauldron…

All those Divine Forms were different corresponding to every unique Golden Core.

Rumor had it that someone had created a giant sun deep in the universe. Once it was let out, it could burn everything in a three thousand-mile range; even a Nascent Soul Heavenly Lord would have to run away from it.

"If I can complete the Xuanming Golden Core, the Divine Form will probably be a long Xuanming River, which can be extended to a hundred miles across the sky. It will be able to destroy a dozen mountains with one attack," Chen Fan pondered.

This was already a divine-grade Essence Core which was as powerful as the other ones. And yet, Chen Fan wasn't satisfied at all. He was the reincarnation of a Celestial Lord and a normal divine-grade Essence Core was nothing to him.

"Crack, crack."

Countless beams of light shone in front of Chen Fan. The Twelve Sky Art Paintings appeared again and stopped when the third one appeared, the "Zetian Painting." There was a beast that looked like a turtle and a snake. Its head and tail were entangled while it stood in Hell.

A Xuan Wu.

It was one of the most powerful Divine Beasts and the Water God that controlled the North. It was also known as the Xuanming Incarnation. This was a legendary Divine Beast that truly dominated the universe, and even Chen Fan had yet to see it. The real Xuan Wu was a Deity Beast. There was only one of its kind; the others were only beasts that had the Xuan Wu's blood.

It was unclear whether the Xuan Wu in the Twelve Sky Art Paintings was the real one or not, but it was still extremely powerful.

"Boom!"

When the painting appeared…

The entire Xuanming Golden Core in Chen Fan's body started shaking as if it had seen its master. The black water then began to combine and a tiny model of a beast was gradually formed.

Dots of light were lit up on the tiny Xuan Wu, which corresponded to the mysterious acupoints on Chen Fan's body. Then, the acupoints opened one after another. The Xuan Wu was indeed the most powerful Divine Beast. It needed much more acupoints than the Kun Peng and the Thunder Loch did. At the same time, it became more terrifying.

"Whoosh."

There was a storm of Essence Qi in the sky.

The Spirit Qi inside the Juehan Palace was gathered, forming a giant funnel with the palace as the center. Chen Fan didn't use any Spirit Stones or Treasure Pills this time, as he had the Ancient Underworld Pearl.

Whenever the Spirit Qi wasn't enough…

One drop of the Xuanming Water popped out and became Xuanming Qi, to be infused into Chen Fan's body. Ordinary Golden Core Cultivators couldn't bear such a terrifying energy. Only Chen Fan's phenomenal-success Divine Body could form a Xuanming Essence Core to absorb the Xuanming Qi endlessly.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

As the drops of Xuanming Water kept being refined…

More acupoints in Chen Fan's body were lit up. In the end, when the Xuanming River shrank to half its length, all of the acupoints let out beams of light together and formed the Xuan Wu Dharma Form.

After that, the Xuan Wu Dharma Form merged with the tiny Xuan Wu inside his body.

"Boom!"

The Grotto-heaven shook.

The Xuanming Essence Core in Chen Fan's dantian was completely set and it became a beast that looked like a turtle and a snake! It was standing in Hell and was surrounded by black water. Once it appeared, even the Ancient Underworld Pearl shook slightly. All the Water Element Energy in the world seemed to be cheering in its presence.

"That's it! After going through the Thunder Tribulation, the Xuanming Golden Core will be done! The Xuan Wu Divine Form will double its power and it will be able to crush all the other divine-grade Golden Cores.

"By then, I'm afraid I won't be able to call it Xuanming Golden Core. It should be named Xuan Wu Golden Core."

Chen Fan slowly opened his eyes and he looked excited.

Once this Xuan Wu Essence Core was completed, the True Essence inside his body became several times more powerful. It might even be ten times stronger after the Thunder Tribulation. Besides, the power of his body and Divine Soul had also increased because of the third Sky Painting. He felt like he could break a mountain ten thousand feet tall with a punch.

Right then, Chen Fan had fulfilled most of the purposes of his trip, but he wasn't satisfied yet. As the reincarnation of a Celestial Lord, how would he settle for a divine-grade Golden Core?

"Phew."

Chen Fan repressed his desire to become a Golden Core Cultivator, then he closed his eyes and started cultivating.

This time, he used another cultivation art, the Azure Thearch Longevity Art. A tiny Essence Core was formed with his cultivation, which was green and it carried a large amount of Wood Element Essence Qi. It was only the size of a grain at first, but as he cultivated, it became larger and a Chaotic Divine Tree appeared inside it.

Chen Fan was forming a second Essence Core!