Chapter 1012: A Shortcut
The general formula of Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick was profound and obscure, containing tens of thousands of principles and variations. Its method of profound energy circulation was exceptionally complex and changeable... and it could only be driven by ice profound force. Without ice profound force, it was absolutely impossible to cultivate successfully.
Whether it was the requirements for profound force or the method of circulation, it was far more complex and stringent than Star God Remnant Shadow... and its cultivation difficulty was several times higher.
This was the holy temple of the Ice Phoenix Realm, a sacred place where outsiders would never approach. Here, Yun Che could achieve complete concentration. After the initial difficulty, two hours of uninterrupted arduous training had brought his Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick from its nascent form to an elementary level. Now, in just three breaths, he could execute a single body flicker. The flicker speed far surpassed before, but it still left behind a distinct ice shadow.
After every few dozen attempts, he would close his eyes and re-contemplate the principles and variations of the general formula. Under his astonishing comprehension and concentration, he would almost always gain new insights each time, and when he executed it again, the progress was particularly noticeable.
The execution speed grew faster and faster, and the residual ice shadow became fainter and fainter.
This kind of sudden enlightenment was often something ordinary profound practitioners could only hope to encounter by chance. Some extremely advanced and complex profound formulas might require decades, centuries, or even millennia of contemplation before a single flash of insight would strike...
But Yun Che would close his eyes and concentrate for just a quarter or half an hour on average, and then gain new understanding.
It had been the same with Ice God Divine Art, the Yun Clan's Purple Cloud Art, the Golden Crow World-Incinerating Record... and now, cultivating Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick was no different.
After four hours, a figure of ice appeared in the holy temple, silently watching Yun Che, who was immersed in cultivation.
Four hours was undoubtedly an extremely short time for cultivation, but in her sight, the Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick that Yun Che executed repeatedly was several times more complete than it had been four hours ago. Although it was still just a prototype and not usable in actual combat, if such astonishing progress could be maintained, it was highly possible that within a month, he would achieve some initial success and reach the first stage of "no shadow."
And this process... it seemed that her guidance by his side was hardly needed at all.
Another execution of "Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick" was completed. This time, it was not only extremely fast, but also left almost no ice shadow residue. However, compared to what Mu Xuanyin had demonstrated earlier, it was still a world apart.
Yun Che sighed lightly, and suddenly, Mu Xuanyin's figure clearly appeared before him. He immediately stepped forward: "Master!"
"Follow me." Mu Xuanyin turned around.
Yun Che hesitated, seemed about to speak, then stopped, and followed.
But Mu Xuanyin suddenly stopped walking: "You have something to say?"
Yun Che also stopped, quickly organized his thoughts in his mind, and said seriously, "Master, your disciple profoundly understands that the path of profound cultivation should be taken step by step, and the most taboo is impatience. Moreover, progress in profound skills and techniques is sometimes more important than profound strength. But..."
"Aren't you going to ask me if there is a way for you to advance to the Divine Tribulation Realm within two years?" Mu Xuanyin's moon-like brows slightly furrowed.
"Yes!" Yun Che nodded. "Your disciple came to the Yinxue Realm following Senior Ice Cloud, and the reason... Master should already know. This matter is extremely important to your disciple. If I can reach the Divine Tribulation Realm before the Profound God Convention and gain eligibility to enter the Zhou Tian Realm, no matter how hard... even if I have to pay a great price, your disciple is determined to bear it. I beg Master to grant this wish."
Although the profoundly exquisite Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick had piqued his great interest, whether he could master it or not was not all that important to him. Because he belonged to Lan Ji Star, not the God Realm. After fulfilling his wish, he would leave the God Realm forever and return to Lan Ji Star... and his greatest longing in the God Realm was to see Mo Li.
And to see Mo Li... what he needed most was profound strength, not the Ice Phoenix God-Sealing Canon or Moon-Breaking Shadow Flick.
He had forcibly taken Mu Xuanyin as his master, restrained his temperament, and behaved properly before her, not out of greed for the Ice Phoenix bloodline, profound art, or the status of a personal disciple, but because in this Yinxue Realm, if there was anyone who could help him achieve the Divine Tribulation Realm before the Profound God Convention... it could only be Mu Xuanyin.
Mu Xuanyin slowly turned around, her icy eyes holding only the seemingly eternal cold light: "You are only at the initial Divine Origin Realm now. Wanting to break through to the Divine Tribulation Realm in two years—how could it be so easy!"
"..." Mu Xuanyin's words did not dishearten Yun Che; instead, they invigorated him.
Because she said "how could it be so easy," not "absolutely impossible."
This meant... she might actually have some special method!
"Master, no matter what method, as long as there is even a slight possibility... I am willing to try anything!" Yun Che did not avoid Mu Xuanyin's gaze, speaking resolutely.
"Is she truly that important to you?" Mu Xuanyin asked coldly.
"Yes." Yun Che nodded without any hesitation.
"...Alright." Mu Xuanyin suddenly nodded slowly, but the color in her icy eyes did not change at all: "Since you are so impatient, then as your master, I can only grant your wish."
As Yun Che stared in astonishment, a blue light suddenly appeared before Mu Xuanyin: "Mu Huanzhi, I permit you to temporarily use the holy temple's teleportation array. Within a hundred breaths, have Mu Feixue come to the holy temple to see me!"
As Mu Xuanyin's voice fell, the blue light also dissipated. Yun Che, dazed, said, "Mu Feixue?"
"If you want to cross two major realms of the Divine Way in just two years, unless you can enter the Zhou Tian Pearl, no matter how high your talent, no matter how extreme your cultivation, it is impossible. Although the Yinxue Realm has countless rare pills and spiritual herbs, it is absolutely impossible to achieve a leap to the sky."
Mu Xuanyin's tone shifted slightly: "But our Bing Huang God Sect, because of the Ice Phoenix God-Sealing Canon, does have a shortcut that can be realized!"
"Master, you... the 'shortcut' you speak of... could it be... is... is..." Yun Che's words became somewhat stammering.
"Do you know why among the highest level of women in our Bing Huang God Sect in terms of talent, cultivation, and status, most are single, and some never marry for life?" Mu Xuanyin countered.
"...Your disciple has heard that women bearing the Ice Phoenix bloodline, if they lose their primal yin, their cultivation and profound art progress will become slow, far from before. Coupled with the higher their talent and cultivation, the colder their temperament tends to be, so..."
Yun Che answered very quietly. He had heard this from Mu Xiaolan. Mu Bingyun had been single for thousands of years, and Mu Xuanyin had been for tens of thousands of years... ahem. And Mu Xiaolan had said that Mu Feixue, who bore the direct Ice Phoenix bloodline and had extremely high talent, would likely remain single for life like Mu Bingyun.
But now...
"Hmph, so you already know." Mu Xuanyin's peerless face bore a coldness that could freeze even the seas: "But that is only half the reason."
"The path of dual cultivation, although looked down upon by some so-called righteous profound practitioners who put on a moral facade, is by no means an evil path. If there is sufficient compatibility, the blending and complementing of yin and yang can greatly benefit the cultivation of both profound strength and profound arts. However, the Ice Phoenix bloodline inherited by our Bing Huang God Sect is an extreme yin bloodline, and the cultivated Ice Phoenix God-Sealing Canon is an extreme cold profound art, which will extremely reject external yang energy, making it absolutely impossible to achieve the blending and mutual generation of yin and yang. Therefore, if yin and yang unite, not only will the primal yin be permanently lost, but each time, only the male will benefit."
Yun Che: "..."
"And precisely because of the Ice Phoenix bloodline and the Ice Phoenix God-Sealing Canon, the primal yin of an Ice Phoenix woman is far more abundant than that of other women, and it will also contain extremely pure Ice Phoenix aura. If acquired by a male, it can greatly enhance his profound strength and also strengthen his ice constitution."
"Now, do you understand?"
Yun Che opened his mouth, and after a long while, said with some difficulty, "Is this the 'shortcut' Master speaks of? Betrothing Mu Feixue as your disciple's dual cultivation partner, also... to..."
"Correct!" Yun Che's reaction made Mu Xuanyin frown slightly: "If you want to break through to the Divine Tribulation Realm within just two years, seizing the Ice Phoenix primal yin is the most feasible shortcut!"
"Enough... primal yin..." Yun Che's mouth twitched. He shook his head, whether out of some psychological impulse or not, and asked blankly, "Then... about how many Ice Phoenix primal yins would it take to possibly reach the Divine Tribulation Realm?"
Mu Xuanyin was silent for a moment, then said faintly, "Among this generation of Ice Phoenix disciples, Mu Feixue possesses the finest Ice Phoenix primal yin. If they were all like Mu Feixue, a thousand might be enough."
"One... a thousand!?" Yun Che opened his mouth wide, almost biting his tongue.
Yun Che's reaction did not move Mu Xuanyin at all: "But there is only one Mu Feixue. There is no one among the younger generation who can compare with her. If we select from the divine temple, the Ice Phoenix Palace, and the various Ice Phoenix branch sects, at least three thousand Ice Phoenix female disciples who still retain their primal yin would be possible. Hmph, although the likelihood is less than ten percent, there should be no better method than this."
Three... three thousand!?
"~！#￥%..." Yun Che's scalp tingled and his legs went weak: "Too... too many..."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Yun Che suddenly came to his senses and shook his head firmly: "No, this method... your disciple... cannot accept it."
"Cannot accept it!?" Mu Xuanyin's brows suddenly sank deeply: "Why?"
The slight change in Mu Xuanyin's gaze caused the atmosphere to shift abruptly. A cold air shot from Yun Che's soles straight to the top of his head. He hadn't expected that his blurted refusal would provoke such a strong reaction from Mu Xuanyin. He could only brace himself and say, "For the sake of your disciple's personal profound strength progress, to cause so many fellow sister disciples to have their talents diminished... and to sacrifice their purity... your disciple... cannot do it."
"Sacrifice? Hmph!" Mu Xuanyin said coldly, "You are my, Mu Xuanyin's, personal disciple. To be selected is their honor! Where is the sacrifice!"
Yun Che had never dreamed that the only shortcut Mu Xuanyin had found for him would be this kind of method. Two years... three thousand Ice Phoenix primal yins...
It was simply unimaginable what those two years would be like...
Not to mention that there was less than a ten percent chance, even if it really could allow him to achieve the Divine Tribulation Realm in two years... what difference would it be from the vile practice of "stealing yin to nourish yang"!? In the Yinxue Realm, his reputation would become something awful, and if Xiao Yaohou, Xue'er, and the others found out...
And Mu Feixue...
"No," Yun Che shook his head again: "Your disciple still cannot do it. If it were extreme training, no matter how harsh, your disciple could bear it. But to use so many fellow sisters like this, your disciple..."
"Use?" Mu Xuanyin snorted disdainfully: "You saved Ice Cloud's life—wasn't it to use her to get to the Yinxue Realm? You suddenly changed your main force at Minghan Heavenly Lake and desperately sought to take me as your master—wasn't it to use me to help you break through to the Divine Tribulation Realm?"
"..." Yun Che opened his mouth, speechless.
"Do you know that in the Yinxue Realm, a woman with the Ice Phoenix primal yin is something even an emperor of a nation would not dare to covet? Yet I allow you to choose freely, and no one will defy it! This is not only the most feasible method for you to reach the Divine Tribulation Realm, but also a stroke of luck that others would not dare to dream of for ten thousand lifetimes. And you want to refuse!?"
"Hmph, do not think I do not know. You are less than half a jiazi in age, yet you already have several wives in the lower realm. Ice Cloud has also told me that you are unrestrained in temperament and never suppress your desires. In the Bing Yun Fairy Palace she founded, as the palace master, you have committed lecherous acts against the women of the palace in broad daylight. And now you pretend to be a saint before me!?"
"！#￥%..." Yun Che was dumbfounded... Oh my! How could Mu Bingyun have told her everything!?
"Your disciple... your disciple and they were all... mutual love, and besides..."
Just then, a cold and gentle wind slowly approached. Mu Feixue, clad in snow-white robes, drifted in like snowflakes.
Her arrival was like a sudden blossoming of a beautiful and icy snow-heart ice lotus within the holy temple.
"Feixue pays respects to the Sect Master."
She gracefully bowed beside Mu Xuanyin, without sparing even a glance at Yun Che, as if he did not exist at all in this world.
"Feixue, you have come at the right time."
Mu Xuanyin acknowledged Mu Feixue, but her gaze never left Yun Che. Her voice suddenly softened at this moment... and it was extremely gentle: "Che'er, today is only the first day of your apprenticeship, yet you dare to be so disobedient to me."
"Thi~s~i~s~n~o~t~u~p~t~o~y~o~u!!"