Tao Qian swallowed the bait, thus interrupting his cultivation.
The intense sensation of information reassured him that he could indeed acquire the Bo Dragon Pearl Fragnt without any price to pay.
However, given the strong warnings from Rigui Daoist and having witnessed the transformation of the Immortal Realm into Purgatory, along with the mutation of great cultivators into monstrous beings, it was inevitable that so doubts lingered in his mind.
Not until the next mont did he witness an incredibly magical and inconceivable scene.
It was as if he possessed the perspective of "Inner Vision", watching the Bo Dragon Pearl Fragnt enter the belly of the Light Fish he had transford into, and seeing a thin line erge, with a hook-like shape trying to pierce into his body.
He saw the line was about to extract along with Tao Qian's soul.
But inexplicably, a power beyond imagination surged from Tao Qian's soul, effortlessly enveloping Tao Qian and the fragnt, whisking them away from the Immortal Realm which had beco Purgatory.
And the line connected to the strange fish hook managed only to whisk a big fish, covered in flesh whiskers and tentacles, off to an unknown place.
Accompanied by a peculiar sense of weightlessness, Tao Qian suddenly snapped back to reality.
Looking around, he was in the familiar cubicle of the bookshop.
"I'm back!"
He had just uttered these words when Tao Qian imdiately felt as if there was a furnace inside his belly.
An indescribable burning sensation spread through him.
Before he could do anything, a grand and vast drumming sound, capable of deterring all creatures, echoed in Tao Qian's mind.
Accompanying the drum beats, Tao Qian saw a phantom image of a beast.
The outline of the creature resembled a dragon mixed with a horse, with golden pupils, canine teeth, a black tail, and a white body, surrounded by wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, with rainbow lights weaving through it all.
"Bo Dragon!"
Blessed with insight, Tao Qian chanted the creature's na.
At the sa ti, Tao Qian could clearly see his body undergoing hair-raising, terrifying yet exhilarating changes.
His skin began to develop scales, whiskers extended from his chin, hair grew on his neck, his eyes slowly took on the gold vertical pupils, and fang-like canine teeth protruded from his mouth, with faint clouds of mist erging accompanied by slight thunderclaps, the cubicle started to dampen, and lightning resembling fine snakes began to Flashing...
Tao Qian watched all this happen with an extrely complex expression on his face.
He knew he was "mutating", but this was rely superficial.
What Tao Qian truly sensed was power.
It was a transcendent and incredible might for Tao Qian, being rely a mortal.
In a trance, Tao Qian felt as if he had transford into a "Bo Dragon", carrying the wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, traversing the heavens and the earth as a rainbow, looking down on all creatures.
The information that he had not had ti to examine in the Immortal Realm now reappeared before him.
[Record: Bo Dragon Pearl Fragnt.]
[Record Type: Alien.]
[Record Description: The Bo Dragon, an exotic beast born from the coupling of a dragon and a Bo, possesses the power of both bloodlines. It resides in the Yunng Great Swamp. At the new moon, it lies facing west, lifting its head to bellow until the rooster crows, startling tigers and leopards, clearing several hundred miles around. This fragnt represents one percent of its Dragon Pearl. Any life that consus it will obtain the Bo Dragon Bloodline, and should mortals ingest it, they can instantly enter the Energy-Introducing Realm and obtain the Bloodline Techniques and racial Divine Skills.]
[Note 1: If one consus this fragnt without the strength to completely refine the internal Source Qi, within a few breaths, they will be transford into a half-Bo Dragon half-human form, and their heart, mind, soul, and body will be contaminatingly mutated by the Bo Dragon Blood, thereafter becoming akin to Demon and Monster beasts, with no possibility of reversal.]
[Note 2: This fragnt harbors a certain Demon Seed. Once swallowed, one's life and soul will beco subject to the master of this Demon Seed, and they cannot defy its will.]
"Hiss"
This information both startled and frightened Tao Qian.
Until promptly, the familiar third note appeared.
[Note 3: The price has been exempted!]
This information was like a signal.
Tao Qian's body, which was digesting the power and undergoing mutation, suddenly encountered an irresistible force.
The Source Qi within the Bo Dragon Pearl Fragnt continued to suffuse Tao Qian's body, but the exotic beast characteristics gradually receded.
An unprecedented pleasure began to fill Tao Qian's heart.
Power!
A force far beyond that of mortals – unimaginable to mortals – was now completely and costlessly controlled by Tao Qian.
After an indeterminate amount of ti, the cubicle in the bookshop returned to its silent state.
The mist, lightning, raindrops, rainbow lights... all had disappeared.
Only a tall, pale scholar with smile lines and a distinguished deanor stood there.
With eyes gently closed, he felt the power he now possessed.
Who could have imagined?
That within this seemingly frail body was hidden the mighty bloodline strength of an ancient mythical beast.
And that wasn't all.
Beyond feeling the terrifying power within his blood and flesh, Tao Qian could also sense an unending flow of Source Qi coursing and cleansing through his body.
For a more direct perception, Tao Qian called upon his senses about himself.
It was the sa format that had appeared when he was reborn, but this ti, the content had grown by more than just one item.
[Record Na: Tao Qian.]
[Record Type: Abnormality.]
[Record: Gained the 'Undying' trait due to being beheaded and chanting an unknown fragnted formula, acquired the Power of Bo Dragon by consuming a Bo Dragon Pearl Fragnt, outwardly appears human but possesses the might akin to a young Bo Dragon, capable of rending low-grade demons and exotic beasts, displays an abnormal affinity for natural disasters like storms and lightning, has obtained one of the Divine Skills of the Bo Dragon, "Sound Attack," which can be released at the cost of depleting Source Qi, audible for miles, and makes a group of demons flee with ease.]
[Second Record: Has entered the Energy-Introducing Realm and is presently at the Body Refining Stage of Energy Introduction, with Source Qi continuously transforming his body; will step into the Blood Fusion Stage in so ti, at which point his body's divine skills will beco even more powerful.]
...
Information was direct, and its manifestation was just as straightforward.
Tao Qian's face couldn't help but reveal a radiant smile.
Although his first adventurous cultivation had its twists and turns,
he had been fortunate in that his gains were enormous.
It is said that the timid starve and the bold stuff themselves to death.
In that bizarre Immortal Realm, Tao Qian initially only wanted to consu a wisp of Bo Dragon Driving Origin Qi and be satisfied with just a taste,
as he was a new cultivator embarking on his first cultivation, content with just a nibble.
Unexpectedly, due to Xiao Hua Daoist's intervention, chance led to him being fed a Bo Dragon Pearl Fragnt.
Once he stepped into the Energy-Introducing Realm, compared to other cultivators who worked tirelessly yet still trembled with fear, Tao Qian could be said to have ascended to heaven in a single step.
His body had completely transford and could now be considered transcendental.
Even so, Tao Qian didn't beco arrogant. He kept reminding himself: still a newbie, must still be cautious and prudent, should continue to lay low and slowly develop in this bookstore.
What made Tao Qian sowhat helpless was that he now lived in a bustling area.
Even though he had stepped into the Cultivation World and gained power, he had nowhere to utilize it for the ti being.
He didn't even have the chance to experience releasing the Divine Power Ability he now possessed and see what it would be like.
"Setting aside the Power of Bo Dragon, what I'm most curious about is that Sound Attack Exotic Skill that's like the beating of a drum. I wonder what it would be like if I released it? Sothing similar to the Buddhist Sect's Lion Roar?"
"There's no ti tonight, but tomorrow evening I'll find so ti to test it out in a desolate wilderness or forest," Tao Qian planned in his heart.
In his mind's eye, he recalled the scene when he left the Immortal Realm, prompting him to speculate on so hidden, terrifying secrets.
"Who knows what being created the Immortal Fish Technique and how broadly it's been spread, how many people have cultivated it?"
"Those who can't freeload like I did probably aren't having a good ti."
"According to what Xiao Hua Daoist said, cultivating the Immortal Fish Technique brings benefits, but it also leads to addiction; as the addiction deepens, death becos inevitable, so unless one is really driven to desperation, one would not choose to cultivate it, sowhat akin to quenching thirst with poison."
"It's even worse for the powerful cultivators; if they've cultivated it, they face an even more tragic fate. They will be lured and manipulated by that unknown terrifying existence at will, just like tonight…"
Despite being a genuine cultivator now, Tao Qian couldn't help shivering when he recalled the purgatory-like scene.
Thinking of Xiao Hua Daoist, Tao Qian also rembered the words he said before leaving.
"Because of the upheaval with the Bo Dragon Pearl, he didn't have ti to teach that magic skill that is said to extend life by decades and enhance 'that' ability without much drawback, which is a bit unfortunate."
"He also asked to visit Southern Yue, but didn't disclose his whereabouts, only saying that we'd et again if it's fated, which sounds much like a polite brush-off, not unlike those 'plastic friends' I had in my previous life who often said 'I'll treat you next ti.'
But that's normal too; after all, it was the first ti we intersected paths, and while we hit it off well, basic caution is necessary."
"Kindness in a Daoist doesn't an they're naively kind-hearted or foolishly sweet."
"Moreover, he indeed isn't an ordinary person but a Daoist who indulges in and enjoys the company of Ghost Path practitioners."
While making these comnts, Tao Qian neatly put away the two Secret Books.
With a few steps, he was on his own humble and cold bed, sat cross-legged, and began to digest the variety of common Cultivation World knowledge imparted by Xiao Hua Daoist, comparing it with the mad ramblings in the Naless Secret Manual.
Tao Qian was well aware of his newcor status, keeping a low profile while also doing his howork.
Otherwise, once he delved deeper into the Cultivation World, it would be easy to capsize in the gutter due to ignorance.
"Most of the things recorded by Seeking Immortal Hermit Wu Ming in the Secret Manual are correct, but so knowledge is incorrect, and so lack detail."
"Like the Nine Cultivation Realms, the first realm is 'Energy Introduction,' which involves cultivators drawing various Source Qi into their bodies to transform themselves."
"Most cultivators fall at this hurdle, easily losing control with no guarantee of success, even the disciples of Great Sects only have a higher rate of success, but still, many cultivators inexplicably die."
"Even if one enters the Energy-Introducing Realm, there are still three stages to pass through: Body Refining, Blood Fusion, and Fetus Stabilization before one can Breakthrough."
"However, any cultivator who successfully enters the Energy-Introducing Realm will possess strength far beyond that of Mortals."
"It's just that due to different sourced Source Qi, the combat power of cultivators at the sa realm also shows a world of difference."
"If one introduces low-grade Qi filled with impurities, upon success, one might at best gain so diocre abilities like tough skin, horns growing on the head, night vision, a third hand, or a body odor that stinks to high heaven."
"If one introduces top-grade, pure Source Qi, like I have now, one might be powerful enough to dominate dozens or hundreds of inferior Energy-Introducing Cultivators."
"Of course, great power usually cos with a terrifying cost."
"If I couldn't freeload, I wouldn't dare consu that bait Fragnt. That would be a sure path to death…"
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