Dao Equaling the Heavens
Chapter 222 - 159: The Sword Immortal without the Immortal Sword

Chapter 222: Chapter 159: The Sword Immortal without the Immortal Sword

Within the Grotto Heaven, the cave was a spectacle, and the Heavenly Altar was located in the center, with the Daoist temple’s ancient simplicity.

The Grotto Heavens of the Sword Control Sect were much the same, all featuring the combination of the Heavenly Altar and Daoist temple, only the surrounding environment slightly varied.

Above the Heavenly Altar was the soon-to-be-condensed yellow Earth Core Crystal. Chi Yu Zi, with his Divine Thought, took a look and said, "We need a day’s time. I’m afraid we’ll have to wait, Red Dust, are your injuries alright?"

"They’re just superficial wounds."

Gu Wen’s hands split open once more, the blood stopped by a healing cultivation technique, as he focused on running his cultivation technique, the wounds healed rapidly.

In pursuit of efficiency, Gu Wen did not meticulously treat every hidden injury, because that would take too much time. Leaving a hidden injury might only require a single pill for treatment, while perfectly healing the wounds on the spot would take dozens of times longer.

He didn’t have the leisure for that, which was also why most cultivators continually accumulated hidden injuries.

Dozens of breaths later, the wounds were completely healed. A scar as wide as a thumb extended from the right hand’s tiger mouth to the forearm, while the left hand bore three fine scars.

These were not all from the recent clash of magic, but an accumulation from battling the Qing python to now.

With no internal injuries upon introspection, Gu Wen opened his eyes and said, "I need to break through to the Seventh Transition Golden Core, then kill our way out. The Devil Clan surely has more than just these few members. Killing one more now means one less trouble later."

Another breakthrough?

Chi Yu Zi and Ao Tang were taken aback, it had only been a few days, and even if the Golden Core could only be considered a minor realm, this was still far too fast.

But this was good news for them. The faster Gu Wen grew, the more secure they were.

Boom!

The Grotto Heaven trembled slightly, someone was attacking it.

Gu Wen and his party did not pay attention. This wasn’t the first time, due to Chi Yu Zi holding a token from the Sword Control Sect.

They had control over the Grotto Heaven, all the Arrays placed within were under their control, and the simplest defenses were naturally included.

The Sword Control Sect’s Grotto Heaven was both a place where they could potentially be besieged and their safe house. Here, Gu Wen could comfortably break through to the Seventh Transition Golden Core.

Before the breakthrough, Gu Wen first swallowed fifty pills and a Demon Core from the Qing python, both refined by Ao Tang.

While assimilating the pill properties and taking in the Heavenly Marrow, he was also replenishing his mana.

Originally, the Heavenly Marrow was at a hundred and thirty years. Yesterday, after eating snake meat, he gained thirty years of Heavenly Marrow, totaling one hundred and sixty years.

Each pill was worth two years, so fifty pills amounted to one hundred years, and the Demon Core from the Qing python had thirty years, ultimately tallying to two hundred and ninety years.

[Heavenly Marrow two hundred and ninety years]

[Royal Jelly thirty years]

There was Royal Jelly as well?

Gu Wen was quite surprised, he didn’t dislike unexpected gains.

"Red Dust, are you ready?"

"I’m ready."

The breakthrough began. Chi Yu Zi first explained the key points, then handed over a handful of spiritual swords, turned into metal pills, to Gu Wen.

Actually, she planned to chew them in her mouth, as this was faster and could also utilize the Angri True Fire for refinement.

Gu Wen swallowed them in one gulp and released the Angri True Fire within his body. In an instant, dense cracks appeared on his skin. His clothes turned to ash, leaving only a pair of white underpants. These underpants were a vestment robe made with Yu Hua’s help.

The rest would require some waiting time, after all, drowsiness greatly affects efficiency.

Gu Wen couldn’t help but grunt a few times.

Pain! It was as if his flesh was being torn apart incessantly, every blood vessel and meridian being scalded with boiling water.

"Hold on, the Angri True Fire can speed up your refinement of fine iron, especially for anything below the Ninth Transition, it’s truly like traveling a thousand miles in a day."

"It should be twice the result with half the effort."

Gu Wen, enduring the intense pain, corrected.

No sooner had the voice faded, the Golden Core within vibrated, then gained a metallic luster.

Along with the infusion of fifty years of Heavenly Marrow, a seventh halo of light gradually condensed above the Golden Core.

It really was traveling a thousand miles in a day.

[Seventh Transition Golden Core, Golden Light Body Protection, Protective Cultivation Technique]

[Eighth Transition Golden Core requires one hundred and thirty years of Heavenly Marrow, and an unblemished Golden Core]

[Heavenly Marrow two hundred and forty years]

With a thought from Gu Wen, a thin layer of golden light appeared, his frail body now possessing some defensive measures to keep up with the iterations.

Upon opening his eyes again, half a day had passed.

Yu Hua was sitting cross-legged on the ground, dozing off, while Chi Yu Zi paced back and forth not far away. Seeing him regain consciousness from meditation, she gave a thumbs-up and pointed to the entrance of the Grotto Heaven.

"Two more presences have joined outside. It seems others have come to aid. For now, the Grotto Heaven’s secret realm Array can hold, but hiding is not a solution."

"There’s no need to hide, better to strike with one punch than to parry a hundred."

Gu Wen’s face showed a fierce light, his mana surged, and he didn’t know if it was a side effect of the Ninth Transition Golden Core, but he felt an even deeper battle lust than before.

He got up and checked his slashing dawn and Immortal Sword, then with a ringing sound, he sheathed the swords and strode towards the exit of the Grotto Heaven.

Chi Yu Zi followed half a step to the right, looking at the figure taller by half a body length ahead of her. Against the light, she saw the Immortal Sword, as white as snow and as cold as ice, slowly drawn.

Only when the Immortal Sword was completely unsheathed did the sound of the sword’s cry echo through the forest.

Gu Wen stood with the slashing dawn in one hand and the Immortal Sword in the other, facing the congregation of demons before him.

Beyond the original three elites of the Devil Clan, there was also a wolf and an ox, respectively at the seventh fourth stage and seventh fifth stage of foundation.

"You dare to come out."

The Wolf Demon, with disheveled hair, even though transformed into human form, still had its full set of sharp teeth unchanged. Bloodstains at the corner of its mouth not yet dry, and it held a human leg in its hand from who knows where.

It had heard of Gu Wen’s strength and didn’t rashly invade, but still couldn’t help taking two steps forward, standing in front of many fellow demons and said arrogantly, "You two may be strong, but two fists can’t beat four hands. There’s no need for Lord Tai Long to rush over, we alone can...."

A cold, indifferent voice came.

"Kneel."