The Purgatory Calamity
Chapter 160 - 145: Breaking Through! _1

Chapter 160: Chapter 145: Breaking Through! _1

Gradually.

His Aman had started to grow, yet no matter what, he couldn’t grow tall; he was unable to inherit his father’s formidable strength and was ridiculed by his clansmen as incompetent.

In order for Aman to become a strong warrior like him, he once again made sacrifices to the Ice Demon and, following the Ice Demon’s orders, he sought out Human Race boys and girls with particular birthdates.

In another part of the Human Race’s Fragment Land, he successfully found the boys and girls demanded by the Ice Demon, only to learn that the children specially gathered were intended to be offered to the Thunder Dragon by the Human Race.

Knowing full well the dangers of provoking the Thunder Dragon, he still harbored hopes of good fortune for his son’s robust growth.

He assumed the Thunder Dragon wouldn’t mind these children, so he brought them back to Ice-rock City, planning to sacrifice them on the altar to the Ice Demon.

But then...

"Whooosh!"

The scene changed again.

A huge green Giant Dragon arrived, enveloped in a brutally cold blizzard, spitting out clusters of explosive lightning orbs as large as millstones, devastating the entire Ice-rock City in an instant!

The offended Thunder Dragon annihilated the magnificent Ice-rock City, killed the chieftain Yanshan, and tore apart the Cyclops Clan’s Fragment Land.

To deter other clans, the Thunder Dragon banished the surviving Cyclops from the Third Realm directly into the Fifth Realm.

From then on, there were no more Cyclops clans in the Third Realm.

...

Time passed, though I’m not sure how much.

"Chieftain Yanshan, young Aman, Thunder Dragon..."

Pang Jian slowly awakened from a deep dream.

He was still sitting above the altar, but the ice wrapping around his body had already disappeared, and he found himself drenched, his forehead and cheeks covered in sweat.

The surrounding Great Stone Hall was no longer bitterly cold, and Ice Rock Island was not as frigid as before.

The six stone columns next to the altar had shattered at some undetermined time.

Even the altar he sat upon had cracks so large they were inconceivable.

"You’re finally awake."

Luo Hongyan, who had never left, beamed bright, radiant eyes and with a tilt of her mouth said, "Pang Jian, do you have any idea how long your meditative cultivation lasted this time?"

Pang Jian remained silent.

He was still sorting through his jumbled thoughts, remembering those scenes and contemplating the story of the Cyclops chieftain Yanshan and his son Aman.

He didn’t know whether what he had seen was the true past or merely a dream during his stupor.

Seeing that he didn’t respond and was filled with doubts, Luo Hongyan couldn’t help but say, "You’ve broken through."

Pang Jian’s body jolted as he stood up abruptly and asked in surprise, "Broken through?"

"Mm-hmm, you broke through two days ago, achieving the feeling of being one with nature’s spiritual energy," Luo Hongyan explained with a smile.

"Two days ago?!" Pang Jian was startled.

It felt to him like only a few hours had passed.

"From the moment you entered meditation until you just woke up, a whole five days have passed," said Luo Hongyan with a sigh. "During these five days, there were attempts of Cloud Sail to arrive, but I drove them away. The Unstable Ferry that was docked on Cloud Island also left in a hurry after the fleeing Individual Cultivators learned what had happened."

"You know, if you continued meditating, I was planning to forcibly awaken you," she continued.

"The commotion stirred up by Three Immortal Islands is too great. As those Individual Cultivators leave, the news is gradually spreading. It won’t be long before Blood Moon and other Sect forces send people to check."

"It’s very likely that those who come will be of the Spirit Condensation Realm," she added, quietly letting out a sigh of relief.

Gao Yuan, up above, had already tallied up the belongings of the deceased cultivators and had kindly urged her to leave several times.

She was well aware it was not appropriate to stay on Ice Rock Island for long, but with Pang Jian not yet awakened from his breakthrough, she could only forcefully endure.

Until now.

"I..."

Pang Jian opened his mouth as if to speak.

"Let’s leave Ice-rock City first, leave this Three Immortal Islands; we can talk about other things later," insisted Luo Hongyan, well aware that the longer they stayed, the greater the risk. Without another word, she stepped forward, took his arm, and forcefully lifted him into the air.

As soon as they landed on the Cloud Sail, which was already hovering over the ruins, Luo Hongyan instructed, "Gao Yuan, we can set sail now."

Gao Yuan, who had been agonizing inside for several days and nights hoping to leave as soon as possible, started up the Cloud Sail without a second word.

The Cloud Sail immediately flew away from Ice Rock Island below.

"Ice Rock Island doesn’t seem so cold anymore..." Pang Jian muttered.

"Isn’t that all because of you?" Luo Hongyan replied softly, smiling.

She then told him that due to his meditative cultivation this time, due to him absorbing the Extreme Cold Power through the altar, the cold energy that had been lingering outside all vanished into his body.

The altar, which was reconstructed by Ling Yun after it had crumbled, was now completely beyond repair, with both the columns and the surface unable to be restored.

"Innate Realm? So it was a breakthrough."

Gao Yuan, who was also at the Innate Realm, revealed a look of surprise and suddenly said, "The nature’s spiritual energy on Ice Rock Island has suddenly become much thinner. Could it be... because of your promotion?"

Pang Jian was stunned.

Luo Hongyan, on the other hand, nodded with a smile.

Gao Yuan exclaimed, "Unity of Heaven and Man!"

As a cultivator of the same level, he knew that advancing from the Marrow Cleansing Realm to the Innate would be a qualitative leap.

The process of promotion required immense support from spiritual power.

Back when he challenged the Innate Realm, he had prepared five hundred spirit stones and over a dozen spirit jade, constructing a spirit array inside a cave which continually absorbed spiritual power before he barely managed to break through.

During the rise to Innate, his Spiritual Sea expanded anew.

Yet, he was aware that cultivators with exceptional talent could ascend to Innate in a sudden epiphany.

Such ascenders voraciously gather the surrounding nature’s spiritual energy at the moment of their breakthrough.

To ascend to Innate in this state is known as "Unity of Heaven and Man," where nature’s spiritual energy will naturally flow into one’s body during the promotion.

For cultivators, ascending in the manner of "Unity of Heaven and Man" is fortuitous and the most mysterious and magical method available.

However, this profound method of ascension has both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage is that cultivation is not constant; a breakthrough that occurs incidentally is more in line with the essence of cultivation.

The downside is that without adequate preparation, if the environment is in a forbidden land or the nearby nature’s spiritual energy is scarce and impure, it is not only difficult to successfully break through, but there is also a risk of going into cultivation deviation during "Unity of Heaven and Man."

There are countless cases where one has inadvertently perished.

Moreover, during the state of "Unity of Heaven and Man," the ascender is oblivious to their own condition, existing in a state between waking and sleeping.

If there are no protectors nearby, the one in breakthrough is very easily hunted by ferocious beasts or strangled by foes.

Even passing cultivators can sense someone nearby breaking through in the way of "Unity of Heaven and Man" due to the anomalous change in nature’s spiritual energy, which might lead them to commit acts of murder for treasure.

In short.

Breaking through with "Unity of Heaven and Man" entails both gains and risks; while it’s filled with wonders, it also comes with the risk of death.

"What is Unity of Heaven and Man?"

Pang Jian asked, puzzled.

With a serene smile, Luo Hongyan first explained the mystery of "Unity of Heaven and Man," then said, "For core disciples of major sects at the verge of breakthrough in the Great Perfection stage of the Marrow Cleansing Realm, the sect would arrange protectors to accompany them meticulously."

"I have been following you all this time because I sensed that you could take the path of ’Unity of Heaven and Man,’ advancing to Innate in the most natural and harmonious way with heaven."

Glancing at Gao Yuan, Luo Hongyan huffed, "Making preparations early and searching for a cave to set up an array, locking it down to forcibly break through, is hardly the best way to advance."

At this, Gao Yuan chuckled awkwardly, "I don’t have a good sister, nor a constant protector by my side. Of course, I believe it would be difficult for someone with my talents to achieve that pure state of mind."

"Rather than desperately pursuing advancement through ’Unity of Heaven and Man,’ it’s better to take a steady approach and forcefully advance to Innate sooner."

Many who considered themselves of astounding talent sought to ascend to Innate through "Unity of Heaven and Man," traveling through famous mountains and rivers, yet wasting half their lives without realization.

Only upon facing reality and preparing to push through the realm by sheer postnatal effort did they realize they’d wasted decades in vain.

Their peers at the same realm often reached Hollow Profound or even Spirit Condensation within that timeframe, leaving them far behind.

Therefore, Gao Yuan believed his choice was correct.

"To ascend to Innate through a natural, accidental process is the finest way; to rush and force one’s way into Innate without waiting for an opportunity, turns out to be a lower path..."

Pang Jian muttered to himself.

The "Pot Heaven Nourishing Qi Spell" he practiced didn’t have any instructions on how to break through to Innate with preparations of postnatal methods.

The "Pot Heaven Nourishing Qi Spell" spoke of not needing to cultivate arduously after reaching Great Perfection in the Marrow Cleaning Realm.

Cultivators should wander far and wide, appreciate the beauty of nature, and the rivers and mountains, understand the complexity of human hearts, and marvel at the wonders of the changing seasons.

Then, at some moment, they would naturally and spontaneously enter the "Unity of Heaven and Man" and break through.

Pang Jian immediately understood that the "Pot Heaven Nourishing Qi Spell" was an extremely profound spell that followed the most orthodox and optimal path.

Luo Hongyan reminded in a soft voice, "Your advancement to the Innate Realm is different from others; what you drew in wasn’t just nature’s spiritual energy..."

She had always stayed in the Great Stone Hall.

She knew that Pang Jian, seated on the altar, had drawn a stream of Extreme Cold Power from the rocks of the entire Ice Rock Island, accompanying nature’s spiritual energy in his breakthrough.

That surge of cold power, within the rocks and deep underground of Ice Rock Island, could only be vaguely sensed by people like Gao Yuan.

Being so close to Pang Jian, watching him turn into an ice sculpture and observing the icy electricity-like cold power seep in, she naturally knew the full story.

"Mhm."

Pang Jian sat down on the Cloud Sail’s deck, with his eyes closed quietly sensing.

His mind quivered slightly!

His already vast Spiritual Sea, due to his breakthrough to the Innate Realm and the spontaneous refinement of spiritual energy during "Unity of Heaven and Man," had expanded by a full double!

The vast Spiritual Sea, brimming with pure spiritual power, was at his disposal at any time.

With a thought, he tried to channel the spiritual power from his Spiritual Sea, immediately feeling it flow into the eight extraordinary meridians and the twelve primary meridians at a speed several times faster!

His synergy with the spiritual power had reached a higher and more mystical state!

This meant that his cultivation of the Ground Flame Spell, Origin Sun Spell, Star Flow Skill, Moon Blade, and the three techniques of the Astonishing Spear could unleash power at a rate several times faster!

...