Chapter 103: (1): Breaking Through the Marrow Cleansing Stage

He tossed a Spirit Surge Pill into his mouth and swiftly circulated his cultivation technique to absorb the medicinal power of the pill.

At the same time, the five elemental forces of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth formed a cycle within his body. Using the cycle's continuous regenerative force, he launched an assault on the bottleneck as solid as a rock.

Long Xuan immediately felt a vast power surging through his body, making him feel as if he was about to explode. His whole body throbbed with pain.

Sweat instantly poured from his body, and the intense pain caused him to tremble all over. He clenched his teeth, forcing himself not to cry out.

There was no other way. The breakthrough had to be done personally; his clones couldn’t do it for him.

He could only endure this inhuman torment himself.

Time flew by, and a month passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, Long Xuan finally opened his eyes, and a flash of brilliance flickered within them, as if his eyes were brighter than before.

A slight smile appeared on the corners of his mouth. He clenched his fists and felt the power that came with his new realm. The smile on his face grew even wider.

“So this is the power a Gu cultivator gains in the Marrow Cleansing Stage? It's at least ten times stronger than a Gu cultivator in the Spirit Gathering Stage. No wonder geniuses who can fight across levels exist in this world, but I’ve never heard of anyone who can fight across large realms.”

“The gap between major realms is as vast as the difference between heaven and earth, an insurmountable chasm.”

Long Xuan was both shocked by the power of a Marrow Cleansing Stage Gu cultivator and increasingly excited.

The difficulty of breaking through with the Ten Absolutes Body was greater than he had imagined. It took him five Spirit Surge Pills to finally break through in one go, but he was, fortunately grateful for being well-prepared.

From now on, he was a Gu cultivator in the Marrow Cleansing Stage.

No longer just a small Gu cultivator, he could now be considered a minor expert.

In a powerful family like the Long Clan, there were only about a hundred Marrow Cleansing Stage Gu cultivators, which showed just how valuable this realm was and how rare it was in this region.

By passing this hurdle, he had surpassed 99% of the Gu cultivators in this world.

Even the Gu Kings, who are rarely encountered, might not be able to keep up with his star-stepping speed, despite being a major realm above him in the Spirit Sea Stage.

His current strength was more than enough to protect himself in this place, and it would be difficult to encounter any danger from others. He could officially declare that he had graduated from the novice village.

Cultivating in the Marrow Cleansing Stage requires a vast amount of spiritual energy, so typically, only one Marrow Cleansing Stage cultivator resides on each peak to meet their daily cultivation needs. This is why the family rewards each Marrow Cleansing Stage Gu cultivator with a mountain peak.

The peaks vary in size, and the concentration of spiritual energy also differs slightly, but it’s first-come, first-served. Unless the Gu cultivator occupying the best peak dies unexpectedly, the mountain remains in their possession until then. Later arrivals have to settle for less.

Some peaks have large herb gardens, fish ponds, ranches, and other income-generating assets left by their previous owners. These different assets also add value and are considered when selecting a peak.

The wealth of each peak varies, and even if a Gu cultivator can’t manage the assets on their peak, they can delegate the task to mortals. Most Gu cultivators do just that.

Long Xuan first looked at the peaks closest to the clan’s center and the ones with the largest areas, only to find that they were all protected by formations, indicating they were already occupied. Many mortals were working hard on them.

All the large, wealthy peaks had already been taken, leaving only the smaller, poorer ones on the outskirts. Long Xuan frowned slightly.

This was the consequence of his own actions. By submitting a large number of Spirit Surge Herbs to the family, he had caused a recent surge in newly advanced Marrow Cleansing Stage Gu cultivators in the Long Clan, leading to all the good peaks being taken. What was left for him were the small, poor peaks.

Long Xuan’s mood immediately soured. Reluctantly, he could only choose the best among the lesser options, but none of the remaining peaks satisfied him.

So, he continued to expand his search, gradually moving farther and farther from the clan’s center.

No one would choose a location far from the clan for their cave dwelling. The spiritual energy was thinner, and if there were an attack by demonic cultivators or a war, the peaks on the clan’s outskirts would be the first to be attacked. Due to the distance, the clan wouldn’t be able to provide timely assistance.

Therefore, everyone chose peaks close to the clan. Only Long Xuan, with his many secrets and love of solitude, would consider a location far from the clan.

Eventually, Long Xuan’s gaze settled on a particularly large peak.

This peak was enormous, at least ten times larger than the largest occupied peak near the clan. The land was so vast that it seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see.

Although this peak was massive, it was incredibly far from the clan. No Long Clan Gu cultivator had ever established a cave dwelling on this peak, and there were no signs of human activity.

This also meant that there was no herb garden, no fish pond, and no income-generating assets on this peak. The new occupant would have to start from scratch and set everything up on their own.

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