Chapter 148: Xuanying Treasure Pagoda [5]

Atlas followed the process he was familiar with.Once the azure blue qi mist was moved to the top half of the dantian space, Atlas started compressing it.

He used his will to harden the qi into a sphere that got smaller and smaller as its power compacted.

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However, even as it shrunk it still grew. With space freeing up inside of Atlas' dantian, more qi from the outside world was being purified and entering it. This qi then became a part of the process, contributing to the ever-growing ball of compressed energy.

This process was very much like forging a blade. He heated the metal to the perfect temperature and then took it out of the forge, hammering it down endlessly before quenching it and adding more metal to start the process again.

The qi was becoming just as hard as the earthly qi in the bottom of the dantian, but it maintained a sort of ethereal property that only the sky could have. Once the ball of compressed qi became large enough to fill the entire upper half of Atlas' dantian once more, he paused.

At this stage, he could either start the compression stage again and make the qi even more concentrated, or he could stop here and continue into the next step of the process.

Both had their own benefits, but Atlas already knew what he wanted to do.

Despite knowing that he could create a stronger qi, he refused. The key to these two stages of Earth and Sky Sage was balance, after all.

It wasn't about filling his dantian with the strongest qi possible. It was about creating a harmonious environment within which a world could eventually be formed.

His sky qi already matched his earth qi in strength and density. The twin seeds of the tree in the center of his dantian would not be able to take the strain of more energy.

Atlas moved his will into the compressed qi ball. As of now, though the mass was blue, it was not a sky. It did not have the properties of the sky that was only just below the Heavens.

To give it those properties was the next step of this breakthrough.

It was a different process depending on the Dao that one practiced. Atlas used both fire and water, but he chose to use his comprehension of the Dao of Water in this instance.

Under his control, the solidified qi mist slowly liquified. It turned into white clouds in the blue and formed a gradient as its strength and density shifted in proximity to the earthly qi.

Rain showered down onto the earth from the clouds above.

It created an ocean that rose and rose and rose. As it grew, it faded into the background and defined the sky itself.

The clouds remained, raining down the excess energy they carried to bring more prominence to the sky. After all, the more corporeal and "real" one's dantian sky was, the stronger one's foundation would become.

Atlas remained in the midst of this process, overseeing it so that it took place properly, for several hours. He didn't realize when Aeon removed her hands from his back and allowed him to take full control.

The overwhelming qi could no longer affect him. As the sky took shape, there was no more room in his dantian for more energy to be absorbed. Everything being absorbed from the outside world was being circulated and expelled as if Atlas was merely a sponge in the path of a river.

The breakthrough ended when the sky was completely turned immaterial and incorporeal. The entire dantian was filled with strong qi that was much more reinforced and pure than before. Even Atlas' body found itself strengthened to an extent.

Speaking of his body…

It had become a natural step of the process at this point. A starry blue light invaded Atlas' body and latched onto a specific part.

This time, it was his internal organs. The Heavenly Unification Law strangely took the steps of bone forging and viscera consolidation in an irregular order, but Atlas wasn't complaining.

In the end, his body was strengthened every time and that was all that mattered.

Enduring the pain wasn't so difficult this time, as it was nowhere near the feeling of being swallowed by the abyss outside the Tower. Atlas felt only an uncomfortable tingle in his organs for several minutes before it ended.

When he opened his eyes, he felt like he had entered a new body.

He stood up slowly, taking special care to control the strength in his legs. It was an old joke among cultivators that overzealous people always ended up with their heads in the ceiling because they stood up too fast after a breakthrough.

"You're faster than expected. Smart, too. I was almost excited to see your head in the ceiling."

Atlas rolled his eyes as Aeon mentioned exactly what he was just thinking about.

"Thank you for your help. I wouldn't have been able to reach this stage for several more years if it weren't for you."

He bowed slightly and genuinely gave his thanks, but Aeon only shook her head.

"There's no need for that. This is my way of thanking you, so your gratitude defeats the purpose."

She smiled slightly, flicking her hand.

"Plus, it isn't over yet. I have one final gift for you."

Atlas abruptly held his head as he felt a stroke of vertigo. His world stopped spinning quickly, but he still looked at Aeon questioningly.

"I placed this hidden dimension inside of an array technique I created," Aeon answered.

"The reason you felt nauseous is because time in this space has slowed down considerably. Your body needed a moment to adjust."

"Time has slowed down? Is that truly possible?" Atlas asked in surprise. S~eaʀᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"It is if you progress far enough in the Dao of Time. Perhaps you can pursue it in the future."

She said it as a joke, but she didn't realize that Atlas was genuinely considering it. The Five Element Technique only covered him for the Mortal Realms. The technique he received from the Heavenly Unification Law when he became an Immortal…

He truly hoped that the Dao of Time was included in it.

"I have given you a year. Your body may not be able to handle the strain of a longer dilation. When you leave this place, only one month will have passed in the outside world. What you do with this time is up to you, and when you want to leave, simply walk through the wall and you will arrive back where we met," Aeon explained.

"You are leaving?" Atlas asked.

"I have been trapped here for many years, so I would rather not stay," she responded jokingly.

"I have many things to do in the outside world. I must see how it has changed in the past millennia and gather my strength once more."

She ruffled his hair one more time, not caring if he liked it or not.

"We will meet again if fate permits it."

She was a woman who truly made Atlas feel like he was a child again. Her behavior reminded him of an older sister he never had, which was confusing.

Nevertheless, at the end of the day, he was the past Heavenly Emperor. He also had several millennia of experience under his belt. He wasn't going to overcomplicate a moment like this.

Cupping his hands and bowing, he bid her farewell.

"If fate permits."

When he raised his head once more, she was already gone.

'It really is a mystical power of space.'

The Voidwalker. She was a person unlike what Atlas could have ever expected her to be, but that was nothing like a bad thing.

She was a kind person who made Atlas feel like he should be the one owing her, and more importantly, she was a very strong person who viewed him very favorably.

Whether he viewed it emotionally or from an unbiased standpoint, his interaction with her was one of the best he'd had in this Tower.

And though she didn't want to hear it…

'...truly, you have my gratitude.'