Cultivation: I Have Studied Abroad in the Modern World
Chapter 366 - 219: Is This the Golden Core? Another Divine Skill Descends!

Chapter 366: Chapter 219: Is This the Golden Core? Another Divine Skill Descends!

Zheng Fa once heard a saying, roughly that those who desire to be distinguished in front of others must suffer in their absence.

This time, he had truly understood it.

He had been in seclusion forming his Golden Core for half a year... no, including the time in the modern era, it actually added up to a year.

It was certainly not easy.

Not that he was being arrogant, his accumulation of Spiritual Power was sufficient, he was well-versed in the Secret Technique for Core Formation, and his Divine Soul far surpassed that of an ordinary Golden Core; the process of forming his Golden Core should have been easier for him than for others.

But as soon as he actually began the Core Formation, Zheng Fa knew it was not going well:

The Fusang Wood required too much Tai Chu Gang Qi, but the acupoints all over his body couldn’t bear it!

An imprecise description would be that he was covetous, but his stomach couldn’t hold it all...

He even thought he might explode when he first started trying.

In his anxious state, Zheng Fa recalled the cultivation method from "Tianhe True Technique" for refining acupoints.

Over the past year, he could be described as multitasking, on one hand forming the Golden Core, and on the other refining his acupoints. It sounded simple, but in practice, it was quite grinding:

Whenever the Golden Core’s reaction was too strong, he would have to refine his acupoints.

But refining acupoints required an even higher cultivation level, so to a certain extent, he had to continue forming the Golden Core to improve the quality of his Spiritual Power.

To put it simply, the approach was basically akin to ’too much water then add more flour, too much flour then add more water’...

At first, he was not proficient and somewhat flustered, but he later found a rhythm:

In the Jiushan Realm, he would seize the moment to form his Golden Core.

But in the modern era, due to the lack of Spiritual Energy and insufficient Tai Chu Gang Qi, the progress in forming the Golden Core was slow, which allowed him to have spare time to refine his acupoints.

Back and forth, after a whole year of toil, he finally condensed a golden and round top-grade Golden Core!

When the Golden Core was formed, the bright red fruit at the top of the Fusang Wood in his Dantian suddenly shrunk, swallowing all the Tai Chu Gang Qi around Zheng Fa, and then exploded, producing a sun.

Zheng Fa, blessed with a responsive heart, cast spell after spell, and the sun surged through his Three Gates and Nine Acupoints, integrating the Nine Yin Thunder Evil he prepared into his body, then shot out from the crown of his head, hanging high in the sky.

With the completion of the Golden Core, the first thing to change was his Divine Sense—previously, after advancing to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, his Divine Sense had already surpassed a hundred miles, matching that of an ordinary Golden Core Stage. Now, with the official Core Formation, his Divine Sense experienced another surge in growth, extending over an area of five hundred miles.

Zheng Fa felt slightly dissatisfied in his heart, since before, his Divine Sense had been increasing by tenfold, but he also understood the reason—the peak of Divine Sense in the Golden Core Stage was a thousand miles, and now his Divine Sense’s strength had already surpassed that of an average mid-stage Golden Core.

One could only say that if the range of the Divine Sense were to leap forward once again, most people would likely have to break their Core and form a Nascent Soul; in his case, perhaps it could happen during the Golden Core Late Stage.

Although the scope of coverage had not changed much, Zheng Fa could still feel another significant difference:

The precision of the Divine Sense.

He could even sense the new particles being produced within his Golden Core.

Although not clearly visible, he had a vague feeling of nurturing something new... It was strange.

Following that, came a transformation in his state of mind:

When he opened his eyes, the way he viewed his surroundings had already changed—there was more indifference, less reliance, and he could even feel a certain transformation in humanity itself.

He slowly closed his eyes, then opened them again, his smile tinged with either melancholy or clarity: "Complete self-contentment, so this is what it is like."

So-called completeness—means having no desires.

Zheng Fa only had a superficial understanding of biology, but he also knew that much of a person’s personality was controlled by biological nature, such as hormones, neural structures...

Although previous cultivation would also change his physical body, beginning with the Golden Core, it was another kind of profound transformation:

From the perspective of survival, he no longer needed to acquire energy and matter from the outside world. This was not only a change in perception but a complete alteration of his biological instincts.

This was probably what was referred to as shedding the mortal coil to ascend to immortality, a fundamental change which even surpassed what Zheng Fa had imagined previously, making him feel a little world-weary but also joyful.

A poem spontaneously emerged in his mind: "I have a bright pearl, long locked by worldly dust. Today the dust disperses, light blossoms, illuminating mountains and rivers with splendour!"

So this is what a Golden Core is like...

...

"Is this what a Golden Core is like?"

On Ten Thousand Immortals Island, Master Pang stared blankly at the "sun" overhead, his face a picture of bewilderment.

Elder Yuan, standing to the side, hesitated for a moment but still nodded slightly.

"Then what on earth did I condense before..." Master Pang murmured to himself, "A bird’s egg?"

Yuan, standing quietly with her head bowed, seemed to fare better, for even though what she had condensed was the Dragon Tiger Yuan Dan, which focused on dense and abundant Spiritual Power, since Master Pang had already formed his Nascent Soul, he was not really in the same league as Zheng Fa.

But... she was still at the Golden Core Stage!

No, she doesn’t lay eggs!

Zhang gently touched her head and sighed, yet she also felt relieved—luckily, she had been quick to progress!

Otherwise, she would’ve been constantly self-conscious!

It’s said that one can’t judge a Golden Core merely by its size, but they were all Nascent Souls; how could they not see—Zheng Fa’s Golden Core was not just an issue of size. There was that inexhaustible Vigorous Evil Qi, the Spiritual Power being refined within the Golden Core, and the faint aura of might radiating from the Golden Core.

Its size was just the surface; in fact, the Golden Core’s largeness was because of Zheng Fa’s excessive refinement and the abundance of Vigorous Evil Qi, some of which was even overflowing!

Zheng Fa’s Golden Core was immensely large and pure, certainly not just for show.

While Master Pang was muttering to himself, the smirk on his face simply could not be hidden.

There were also two outsiders present—Xiao Yuying and Lady Xuanhua.

Xiao Yuying squinted, tilting her head upwards, silent.