Chapter 72: Chapter 72 Refining Shape!
Autumn had deepened. Only one month remained before the 153rd autumn of the Daji Dynasty would pass.
In previous years, from this last month of autumn until the arrival of the following spring, was the time to execute criminals.
Autumn and winter were seasons of execution. Thus, under this particular solar term, even a place with moist air like the southwest border became somewhat dry, and many leaves had turned yellow.
Yellowing leaves from the neighbor’s yard spun and drifted into Chen Ku’s courtyard in the outer city.
At this moment, Chen Ku had not manifested his Spirit Ape, yet his mere presence exuded an ape-like aura.
Every movement he made was infused with the essence and demeanor of an ape.
This signified that Chen Ku had achieved an initial mastery of the Spirit Ape Force. Concurrently, the Skyward Strike technique of the Furious Ape Mighty Staff also progressed to Minor Achievement.
If an Apprentice of Force Transforming with ordinary talent were to systematically advance their cultivation to the Unity of Intent and Force and train their techniques to Minor Achievement, it would require at least two years, even with the aid of a Secret Technique like the Fundamental Diagram for spiritual cultivation.
However, Chen Ku had received too many blessings on his path of cultivation.
Yet, Chen Ku had accomplished this in less than three months.
His Cultivation Realm had reached ’Unity of Intent and Force’—the second of the Internal Tri-Integration—thereby satisfying the conditions to complete the third diagram of the Transformation Diagram.
SWOOSH~~
As certain aspects of Chen Ku’s cultivation and spirit flashed, meeting the conditions, it was like the final turn of a key unlocking a treasure.
The Transformation Diagram unfurled like a scroll from his Heart Sea, revealing a new, blank canvas.
[Diagram Master: Chen Ku]
[Already Transformed Evil Qi: Skinny Dog Transformation (Transform), Crocodile Transformation (Transform), Spirit Ape Transformation (Transform), Fierce Tiger Transformation (Shape-Shifted), White Elephant Transformation (Shape-Shifted), Huang Gun Transformation (Shape Shifting), Blood Blade Transformation (Shape Shifting)...]
[Transformable Evil Qi: Ferocious Beast Level Evil Qi (forty-five strands), Wild Beast Level Evil Qi (ninety-nine strands)...]
[State: Human Form]
[Already Completed Transformation Diagrams: Three]
Chen Ku observed the Evil Qi accumulated over the past month and the newly unlocked third diagram. He could finally advance the White Elephant Transformation to the Transformation Level.
He had long understood.
Transform did not simply mean manifesting another body from within oneself; rather, it was a new form created through the transformation of Evil Qi.
Just as after he achieved Transformation Level with the Skinny Dog, he could add another five hundred jin to his original five hundred jin of strength. This was the enhancement brought by the second body transformed from thirty-six strands of Evil Qi.
To date, only his Skinny Dog, Spirit Ape, and Crocodile transformations had reached the Transformation Level, allowing them to manifest a physical form.
Even his Fierce Tiger Transformation had not yet been upgraded to the Transform stage and could not be manifested externally.
Now, he had finally accumulated enough Evil Qi to manifest another Ferocious Beast Level incarnation.
The choice was naturally the White Elephant.
The White Elephant form he could initially take already granted him the Power of One Elephant. If he could manifest an additional White Elephant... With a mere flex of his arms, Chen Ku would embody the Irresistible Power of Two Elephants.
"White Elephant Transformation! Transform!"
Instantly, thirty-six strands of Ferocious Beast Level Evil Qi ignited and poured into the White Elephant Transformation. A stream of white vapor then emerged from Chen Ku’s chest, coalescing in the courtyard to sketch out a three-meter-tall white elephant!
"Done, retract!"
One couldn’t expect the White Elephant to perform delicate tasks. Advancing it to the Transformation Level was purely for the power boost of an additional elephant.
Thirty-six strands of Ferocious Beast Level Evil Qi were exchanged for the Power of Two Elephants.
Chen Ku, wielding a thousand-jin iron stick and possessing the Irresistible Power of Two Elephants, merely shook the iron stick in his hand and felt that with a single strike, he could smash any demon, ghost, or Inner Qi expert into a bloody pulp.
Previously, with over ten thousand jin of strength, he only had an eighty to ninety percent chance of victory when ambushing Huang Gun. Now, possessing the Irresistible Power of Two Elephants, Chen Ku was confident that even in a direct confrontation, no burst of Inner Qi from Huang Gun could withstand his twenty thousand jin of force!!
Moreover, this twenty thousand jin was the enhancement from just the White Elephant transformation.
When Chen Ku factored in the two thousand jin from the Fierce Tiger Transformation, another two thousand jin from the evolved Skinny Dog Transformation, and his own fifteen hundred jin, his maximum strength, after the full enhancement from the third Transformation Diagram, would reach...
Twenty-five thousand five hundred jin of strength!
And this was purely raw physical strength.
If that strength of over twenty thousand jin were converted into Force Power through cultivation, accompanied by Divine Intent, and channeled through a thousand-jin weapon to execute the Absolute Skill Level ’Skyward Strike,’ the resulting force... Just imagining it, the power was terrifyingly immense! A single strike could instantly reduce a large elephant to a pulverized mess with effortless ease!
Thrilling! Absolutely thrilling! This surge in strength feels incredible!
Chen Ku felt his own power.
Yet, he had not forgotten the most anticipated thing. He looked toward the third diagram.
[Divine Skills: Fetus Transformation Refining Shape]
Divine Skills!
Chen Ku was extremely eager to know what kind of miraculous power this Divine Skill possessed.
He focused his mind, connecting with the three diagrams.
Instantly, the three diagrams lifted into the air, seemingly from nowhere, and hovered above Chen Ku’s Heart Sea, arranged like the legs of a tripod.
[The Diagram Master has cultivated the three Transformation Diagrams. As a result, the Divine Skill ’Fetus Transformation Refining Shape’ has manifested. It is currently deducing the outcome of the refining shape process based on the transformations within the three diagrams...]
[Skinny Dog Transformation: Contains the bloodline of a Moon-Eating Heavenly Dog, capable of swallowing the sun and moon after Returning to Ancestry... Assessment: Excellent quality of Half-Demon]
[Fierce Tiger Transformation: The white-browed fierce tiger, king of all beasts, assessment: ordinary Ferocious Beast quality]
[White Elephant Transformation: Long-tusked, long-nosed, ten thousand jin of immense strength, assessment: excellent Ferocious Beast quality]
[After Fetus Transformation Refining Shape, the three types of Evil Qi will be refined into a single entity. This will form a new creation, primarily of excellent quality with other qualities as supplementary, retaining the strengths of all three transformations while discarding their weaknesses.]
Chen Ku was astonished by the explanation for this Divine Skill, a form of ’Fetus Transformation Shape Shifting’, and was momentarily speechless.
Is this... Evolving through devouring? Transformations can also devour each other and evolve? With excellent quality as the primary component? Does this mean the Skinny Dog Transformation can devour the Fierce Tiger Transformation and White Elephant Transformation to form... I don’t know, possibly a new creature... yet it would retain the advantageous characteristics of all three transformations... a new kind of transformation?
Chen Ku stared at the annotations under these three diagrams for a long time, convinced he hadn’t misunderstood.
The first thing he thought of was the various strange creatures found in the ancient Classic of Mountains and Seas and folk myths: creatures with a human head and snake body, three heads and six arms, fish body, snake head, and six legs; or various six-legged, four-winged, faceless Strange Beasts.
The next thing he thought of was... a creature composed of parts from various great mythological Divine Beasts.
Dragon!
Chen Ku gasped at his own bold idea.
"Really, is it possible?"
His gaze, now fervent, fixed upon the three diagrams.
If it really was possible, then... Of course, he would opt for better quality... The immense strength of ten thousand jin from the White Elephant must be retained; it was currently his most powerful transformation. But the Fierce Tiger, in comparison, was far inferior without any special bloodline or immense strength, and all its stats were rather ordinary.
Chen Ku pondered for a moment, then immediately killed a bait mouse, converting it into Evil Qi and adding it to the selection.
[Bait Rat Transformation! Immune to All Poisons! Capable of consuming all medicinal herbs!]
Skinny Dog, White Elephant, Bait Rat... What kind of being will Fetus Transformation Refining Shape create from these?
[This Fetus Transformation Refining Shape attempt can primarily refine into an ’excellent quality First Realm Demon’ transformation... It requires the Evil Qi from either a First Realm Demon or the Evil Qi from a human in the Inner Qi Realm, as materials for it to take form.]
Chen Ku looked at these requirements.
The only sources he had that could meet this requirement were the Evil Qi of Blood Blade and Huang Gun. However, he had only suppressed Blood Blade’s Evil Qi so far, not truly possessed it... As for Huang Gun... compared to the potential outcome of Fetus Transformation Refining Shape, Huang Gun’s Evil Qi seemed a small price to pay.
Therefore, Chen Ku directly injected Huang Gun’s Evil Qi into the crucible of the three Transformation Diagrams...
[Undergoing Fetus Transformation Refining Shape...]