Chapter 62

The gentle breeze blew, and the warm sunlight covered the earth. The clear, deep blue sky was cloudless, as clear as jade. The Eight Trigram Immortal Furnace, which burned with a fierce flame, disappeared from sight. A sword lay before him. The blade was black as ink. Looking at the result of his own efforts, Yang Qifeng's eyes showed disappointment. Twenty-one Earthly Taboo restrictions, still within the range of a low-grade magical artifact. Such a result was hard for him to accept. After a long time, a bitter smile appeared. Yang Qifeng realized he had overestimated himself. Among the three magical artifacts, two were of medium grade, and the remaining one, though still a low-grade magical artifact, contained twenty-four Earthly Taboo restrictions. It was already the strongest low-grade magical artifact, and just one more Earthly Taboo restriction would elevate it to a medium-grade magical artifact. He had once again overestimated his abilities. Without talent, one could make up for it with time, but Yang Qifeng lacked both. Yang Qifeng also realized that the twenty-one Earthly Taboo restrictions of this sword were largely due to the quality of its materials. Otherwise, it wouldn't even have twenty-one Earthly Taboo restrictions. With a dull sound, the long sword was gripped by Yang Qifeng. The sword had an ancient and simple design, its only feature being its pitch-black color, unique in its darkness. "You shall be called the Black Sword," Yang Qifeng casually named the sword in his hand. As a low-grade magical artifact, the Black Sword was destined to be a transitional item for Yang Qifeng, not worth the effort to give it a more elegant name. This time, the failure in artifact refinement had significantly shaken Yang Qifeng's confidence. He no longer dared to blindly refine the armor and weapons for his three hundred demon soldiers. Refining magical artifacts was not something that could be easily mastered. In the end, he would still need to seek the help of the Demon God. Yang Qifeng took up the Black Sword and began to swing it gently. As a low-grade magical artifact, it had limited power. When the Black Sword was swung, a faint glow of fire spread, with a considerable temperature, sufficient to deal with minor demons, but not strong enough for more powerful ones. In the current world, martial prowess was not at all low. Supreme-grade fully perfected magical artifacts were rare, but low-grade magical artifacts were not. As long as a demon reached the third realm of the Dao, they could refine a low-grade magical artifact through years of cultivation, even using brute force methods. Putting down the Black Sword, Yang Qifeng continued to sit in meditation, beginning his cultivation. Yang Qifeng aimed to stabilize his current cultivation. He practiced both the Dao of the body and the Dao of the spirit. In terms of body cultivation, he didn't need to spend too much effort. The cultivation of the Thirty-Six Transformations of the Heavenly Gang would naturally progress as long as he obtained the Demon God's essence. As the Thirty-Six Transformations of the Heavenly Gang advanced, the necessary magical powers would gradually be understood. Powers like the Dharma Body of the World, the Three Heads and Six Arms... these physical combat powers did not require him to practice them specifically. "One method mastered, all methods mastered" was the principle, though the Thirty-Six Transformations of the Heavenly Gang were not so extreme. His body cultivation had already reached the mid-stage of the Spirit Realm, but in the Dao of magic, he hadn't even glimpsed the shadow of the spirit. He was currently at the mid-stage of the Demon Core, and to reach the spirit, he needed to cross the major realm of the Yin Spirit. This time, the transformation of the Dao De Jing allowed Yang Qifeng to condense the three souls—Heaven, Earth, and Life. With the three souls set, only the seven spirits remained. The condensation of the seven spirits was much simpler than the three souls. A person's soul is the most fragile, and the three souls are the main foundation. If one of the three souls is missing, death is certain, but if one of the seven spirits is missing, problems will arise, but immediate death is not guaranteed. The sudden transformation of the Dao De Jing greatly benefited Yang Qifeng, helping him overcome the most difficult stage of Demon Core cultivation. The cultivation of the seven spirits was a broad and smooth path. It was just a matter of how long it would take for Yang Qifeng to complete it. Indeed, it was a matter of how long it would take, with no difficulties or obstacles along the way. For this, Yang Qifeng felt as if he had divine assistance, so smooth that it even made him a bit afraid. The words of the Blue Demon God were still deeply etched in his heart. The influence of the tribulation, no, Yang Qifeng did not believe that. The transformation of the Dao De Jing, if it were a great tribulation of heaven and earth, might be possible, but this time it was a tribulation targeting those who had not yet attained the Dao, and it did not affect the Demon God. In the sea of consciousness, a faint light shone brightly. In a certain place, ten shadows floated in the air. Three of them were relatively clear, standing at the top. They were completely naked, with black aura surrounding them. Faintly, one could see their faces, bird heads with sharp beaks, leaving a deep impression. These three shadows were all Yang Qifeng, and the seven shadows below were also him. However, compared to the three shadows above, the seven shadows below were ethereal and indistinct, with no form, like transparent figures slowly appearing and disappearing. Carefully observing everything, the seven shadows gradually brightened. Time slowly passed, and in the blink of an eye, ten days had gone by. Yang Qifeng opened his eyes again, and he calculated that there were still twenty days until the agreed-upon date. He stood up, took out the Black Sword, and began to practice one stroke after another. Based on his visualization, he practiced the Eight Methods of the Sword. Sweep, chop, flick, cut, slash, thrust, strike, and stab! Yang Qifeng practiced with great dedication. The Eight Methods of the Sword were the foundation of all sword techniques. Yang Qifeng did not blindly practice the Great Sun Sword Technique, even the simplified version, which had the first form broken down into three moves. For Yang Qifeng, who had never practiced sword techniques, the Great Sun Sword Technique was still too advanced. So he started from the beginning, gradually entering the field. The first thing to master was the Eight Methods of the Sword. He needed to build a solid foundation in sword techniques before considering anything else. There were no shortcuts in practicing the Eight Methods of the Sword. It required honest and repeated practice of the eight actions: sweep, chop, flick, cut, slash, thrust, strike, and stab, over and over again. In the end, they should become second nature, with every movement performed effortlessly. As a demon, Yang Qifeng had one advantage: he didn't need to worry too much about fatigue. With his talent, he could persist for five days without any problem. When tired, he just needed to sit in meditation for a while, and he would feel refreshed and ready to continue his practice. The twenty days passed quickly, and the Great Marsh Mountain God entered Yang Qifeng's residence. ...