Eternal Tale
chapter-204

The power of the Five Elements began to circulate within his body, with each aperture breathing in and out the elemental energy of the heavens and earth.

For three continuous months, blood had soaked his robes, with only his defensive power holding the last line.

Chen Xun slowly opened his eyes underground, his gaze momentarily flickering with lightning and the light of the Five Elements before returning to normal.

With a quick spell, he cleaned the bloodstains from his robes, his face slightly pale from the severe injuries.

'The meridians in my body are too numerous; I can't imagine how many more times I will have to endure the pain of them breaking.” Chen Xun took a deep breath, his eyes filled with ecstatic joy. 'The Five Elements Immortal Path does not cultivate the meridians but instead opens apertures within the body to breathe in and out the elemental energy of the heavens and earth.”

Clenching his fist, he began to circulate the power within the forty apertures in his body, gathering the force of the Five Elements into his fist.

Chen Xun lightly punched the ground, releasing the power of the Five Elements. There was no sound, nor did the ground shake.

However, the surrounding spiritual energy was instantly crushed and cleared away, with the dirt and rocks in the punch's path being reduced to dust.

**Buzz!**

The earth trembled slightly and sank a bit, causing the big black ox on the surface to jump in surprise. What was his big brother doing underground?

The surrounding disciples could vaguely feel this sinking force, their eyelids twitching as they looked at the ground. What was going on? An earthquake?

Underground.

Chen Xun's eyes widened in realization. This power of the Five Elements was different from spiritual energy—it didn't cause as much commotion but rather had a subtle, pervasive effect.

A seemingly ordinary punch could silently disintegrate both a person and their spiritual energy without any flashy effects.

“Hmm, not bad. Forty apertures should be the limit for the Qi Refinement stage.” Chen Xun felt his body, grinning as he thought, “The Five Elements Immortal Path has finally produced its first Qi Refinement technique.”

However, there were still many issues to resolve. The framework of the spiritual energy Immortal Path remained, and he had to rely on the old techniques to reverse-engineer the broken meridians.

“No matter. It's a good thing I have the old ox to cover for me; my mind is on par with his.” Chen Xun chuckled, standing up and patting himself off. 'The Five Elements Immortal Path will slowly be perfected. Eventually, I'll be able to independently deduce the higher-level techniques.'

He could also use this time to develop techniques for the Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and Nascent Soul stages, which would allow him to truly harness the full power of the Five Elements.

Currently, his cultivation level was nothing more than that of a master in disguise, which was the real reason for their earlier retreat. After opening the Immortal Path, their strength had greatly diminished.

He would rather take risks in pursuit of the Dao, but if danger couldn't be avoided and he was forced to fall back to mortal status, at least the big black ox would be there to protect him.

However, he couldn't afford to face external threats at this stage—not even a hint of danger.

Leaving others with a positive impression without delving into details was the best strategy.

Through all these experiences, Chen Xun had become increasingly cautious, to the point where even the big black ox sometimes couldn't understand his intentions.

Clearing his mind, he began to rise to the surface, while the big black ox continued to study formation techniques, still able to sense where Chen Xun was.

“Old Ox!”

“Moo!”

The big black ox instantly dashed over to Chen Xun, nuzzling him and sniffing the air suspiciously, noticing something different.

Chen Xun hugged the ox's head with one hand and lifted its ear with the other, whispering mysteriously, “Old Ox, I’ve just created the first Qi Refinement technique of the Five Elements Immortal Path.”

'Moo?!' The big black ox looked at Chen Xun in amazement. No wonder he was the big brother.

“I'll grab a notebook to reorganize my thoughts and compile it into a manual.” Chen Xun stepped back, hands behind his back, gazing up at the sky with dignified air. “Ximen Black Ox, the abilities of this Dao Ancestor... No, forget it; you mere cattle wouldn't understand.”

“Moo~~~” The big black ox, full of reverence, let out a long breath, then knelt in front of Chen Xun, pleading for him to impart his wisdom.

“Seeing your sincerity, this Dao Ancestor will certainly not be stingy with his teachings.” Chen Xun felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction, his mind clear and focused. “Old Ox, you shall have a place among my disciples.'

“Moo moo~~” The big black ox jumped up in excitement, nuzzling Chen Xun with genuine happiness.

“Hahaha…”

Chen Xun laughed heartily, embracing the big black ox. It felt great to show off like this—something that would probably earn him a scolding if done in front of others.

The next day, as the sun began to rise, many disciples of the Chi Ling Sect were still resting, while some elders were in meditation, recovering their energy and spirit.

Chen Xun and the big black ox had already started their work.

Each attended to their duties—Chen Xun was drawing diagrams based on the changes in his body, mapping out the apertures in the order of meridian rupture.

He carefully noted down every precaution and experience related to opening the apertures, documenting them in a small booklet to ensure the big black ox would suffer less pain.

More importantly, this allowed him to review and reflect, preparing for the opening of apertures in the Foundation Establishment stage.

Meanwhile, the big black ox had categorized the formation techniques into several main types: protective formations for the home, formations to repel invaders, escape formations, and energy source formations.

It focused on mastering these four categories, using the Five Elements formation flags as the core and the Five Extremes formation as a supplement, dismantling and reconstructing all the formation techniques in the cultivation world.

Because of this, the most terrifying situation in the cultivation world finally came to pass...

People with better resources and talent than you were also more diligent, and those with longer lifespans were more efficient with their time.

In the days that followed, the big black ox successfully opened 40 apertures, prompting Chen Xun to joyfully buy three wolves from the market.

He even treated the sect elders to a meal, leaving them in high spirits and thoroughly impressed with this enigmatic senior whose depth they could not fathom.

Three years later, Chen Xun and the big black ox descended the mountain, leaving behind a few bottles of Foundation Establishment pills and some spiritual herbs for the Chi Ling Sect.

The sect master and elders saw them off with deep respect in their eyes.

Though they did not know Chen Xun's background or identity, they believed he was a true senior of the cultivation world.

He never bullied the weak or engaged in unfair transactions; rather, he showed great respect for the sect.

Chen Xun and the big black ox continued to roam the land, visiting various sects in a low-key manner, known only to a few elders and sect masters.

They offered large sums, not to steal any inheritance but simply to study ordinary techniques.

As a result, they were always welcomed with open arms. With their strength and generosity, their silent presence provided a hidden safeguard for the sects they visited.

This kind of favor was worth more than any amount of resources, just like back at Nine Palaces Mountain.

Jin Yu had even mentioned in a high-level meeting that the Moon Tower had two Nascent Soul cultivators as guests.

The occasional disturbances at Nine Palaces Mountain had only confirmed this, which was why, for hundreds of years, no major power dared to provoke them.

Chen Xun was well aware of this and tacitly acknowledged it.

For two hundred years, they wandered through the eastern countries, fully utilizing their accumulated knowledge. They had successfully opened all the apertures for the Foundation Establishment and Core Formation stages.

The Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, and Core Formation stages had a total of 120 apertures, forming a small internal cycle, which Chen Xun named the "Human Aperture."

During the Core Formation stage, the Jade Spirit chapter transformed, beginning to condense the power of the Five Elements.

However, this was a process of transformation, no longer requiring as much time.

Their current strength was undoubtedly greater than before, fully capable of suppressing and dispersing spiritual energy, far surpassing the scope of spiritual pressure.

In the presence of cultivators of the same level, they were invincible—spells would be dispelled and disintegrated before even reaching them.

Only the unaltered power of divine consciousness could pose a threat, but with their formidable defensive equipment, any attack would be in vain.

Their life-bound magical treasures had also reached their peak, with an age of 280,000 years!

With a gust of wind, a black coffin, an incense burner, and a suona, any cultivator's dreams of immortality would be shattered.