Chapter 192 - 137: Tenfold Body Tempering
It had to be said, Zhao Shengping, being from the Guanxi Plain, was indeed more knowledgeable than the rest. He recognized at a glance that this was the Demon Cultivator’s technique—the Ten Thousand Swords Heart Slaying Body Tempering.
"..."
Chen Fan stood at the cave entrance, watching the scene before him. His expression was calm, and he remained silent.
’So this is the first time I’m learning that the Jiangbei Old Demon is a genuine Demon Cultivator.’
’I’d always assumed "Old Demon" was just a descriptor for his ruthless methods.’
As for whether she would make it through, he wasn’t entirely without worry.
After all, Qi Yue had repeatedly touched the diary Jade Scroll left behind by that person. The violent Sword Qi had ravaged her body on each occasion, and she had experienced that agony several times. Her pain tolerance was already much higher than before.
Humans are creatures that acclimate easily.
No matter how painful something is, as long as one endures it enough times, there are only two possibilities: a complete breakdown or complete desensitization.
During this process, one couldn’t take any Elixirs or activate any Exotic Treasures for protection. The only things to rely on were one’s own willpower and the limits of one’s tolerance for pain!
SHLIIICK!
A stream of Sword Qi pierced her from the back, shooting clean through her groin to exit the front.
Witnessing this, everyone involuntarily shivered and clutched their own crotches. Just watching was enough to cause a sympathetic agony, as if the pain was being shared directly with their own bodies.
...
「After an incense stick’s worth of time.」
There was no sign of it stopping.
The Sword Qi only multiplied. Stream after stream pierced through her body in succession. Qi Yue’s expression grew more and more contorted; it was obvious that bearing this pain was no easy task.
"Zhao Shengping."
Chen Fan frowned, turning to Zhao Shengping who stood beside him. In a low voice, he asked, "From what you know, how much longer is this Ten Thousand Swords Heart Slaying Body Tempering supposed to last?"
His confidence in Qi Yue was starting to waver.
’Even with the enlightenment from that Bamboo Slice and her built-up resistance to the pain, how can she possibly last this long?’ He was starting to worry that she might actually die from the agony.
"Normally, it should have been over after an incense stick’s worth of time."
Zhao Shengping took a deep breath. His voice was hoarse and his face was aghast as he stared at Qi Yue, who was being relentlessly pierced by dozens of streams of Sword Qi.
"To break through to the Martial King realm, one must satisfy a prerequisite."
"And that is to remove all impurities from the body."
"But that’s really more of a general term."
"How could anyone completely remove *all* the impurities in their body? So, generally speaking, once about ninety percent are gone, we say that the body is cleansed of all impurities. At that point, one can break through to the Martial King realm."
"Building on that, the more impurities are removed, the stronger the person becomes after breaking through to the Martial King realm."
"They’re stronger in terms of raw power."
"Their meridians are completely cleared, allowing Spiritual Qi to flow more freely. Their Dantian can also store more Spiritual Qi."
"Their potential is greater."
"In the future, their speed of both cultivation and learning Martial Arts will be greatly enhanced."
"In the Guanxi Plain, many people from major powers take a green elixir called the Martial King Pill when they break through. Its sole purpose is to clear out impurities, but as the saying goes, all medicine has its toxins."
"While the Martial King Pill can clear out a large amount of impurities, it also leaves its own toxins behind in the body."
"By taking multiple Martial King Pills and using other supplementary methods, one can clear out ninety-nine percent of the body’s impurities at most."
"And that’s the absolute limit."
"Currently, there is no known method to remove one hundred percent of the body’s impurities. If you had to name one, then theoretically, the Demon Cultivator’s Ten Thousand Swords Heart Slaying Body Tempering technique could do it."
"But that’s only in theory."
"After all, the time it takes for an incense stick to burn can cleanse ninety percent of impurities. To get to ninety-nine percent requires an hour. And to get to one hundred percent—a full Tenfold Body Tempering—you need three hours."
"The closer you get to completion, the longer it takes."
"Forget about Body Tempering for three hours. Basically, after just one hour, even if the person survives, they come out of it raving mad. Their mind is broken, and they’re left with horrifying side effects."
"What kind of side effects?" Chen Fan asked, his brow tightly knit.
"Phantom pain."
"They’ll feel stabbing pains in their body from time to time, even though they haven’t been injured. No Elixir works. Even Holy Water can’t cure it. There’s no way to suppress it; they can only endure it for the rest of their lives. It’s an incredibly torturous affliction."
"It’s a sickness of the mind, in a sense."
Zhao Shengping paused before explaining, "It’s somewhat similar to Phantom Limb Pain. That’s when you lose, say, part of an arm, but you can still feel it, and it’s in excruciating pain, even when you know full well the arm is gone."
"It’s like having countless ants crawling inside your heart—an unbearable itch that you can never scratch."
"The last Demon Cultivator I heard of who developed this phantom pain killed himself with his own sword at the age of thirty-seven."
Demon Cultivator.
A shortcut available to anyone.
If you’re unlucky—if you didn’t become an Architect, or an Alchemy Master, or any other kind of special Cultivator.
With no prestigious family and no powerful backing.
Without enough Ghost Stones to fund your cultivation, and without enough time left on your side.
And you refuse to live a life of mediocrity.
Then for someone like you, becoming a Demon Cultivator is the best answer. Anyone can walk the path of a Demon Cultivator. It’s the "special" path that even an Ordinary person can choose.
You gain cultivation speed and combat power that far exceed those of other Cultivators.
Even a Loose Cultivator has a chance to stand at the pinnacle of the continent.
The only price is that you might die a bit young, and your life won’t be a comfortable one.
...
"..."
Chen Fan remained silent, his face devoid of expression. The only thing he could do now was pray for Qi Yue. After all, she was a member of the Mortal Realm, and he had no desire to lose such a key commander.