NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 373: The Watershed
Chapter 373: The Watershed
After advancing in cultivation, what is the first thing one must do?
Of course, it’s to test their newfound strength!
Xu Lian felt a little strange. Every time he had advanced in rank before, he could clearly feel himself becoming stronger. But this time, after ascending from Sage Realm Stage 5 to Stage 6, he barely sensed any significant improvement in his power.
What was going on? Why did this happen?
“O, I want to give it a try.”
Xu Lian moved.
With a flick of his left hand, he unleashed the power of his divine bone and the might of his divine body, executing a forbidden technique from the Sacred Spirit Record : Calamity Finger!
This was his strongest attack, excluding the use of the Sword of Destruction .
As always, Time Supreme simply raised a jade-like hand and blocked his strike.
The tip of Xu Lian’s finger touched the palm of her hand, causing rust-like corrosion to appear on her flawless skin. However, the corrosion didn’t spread further. A faint, milky-white glow emanated from her hand, instantly dispelling the rust.
“It’s the same as before,” she said calmly. “Your strength corresponds to that of a Supreme Realm Stage 1 cultivator. If you utilize the elevation rules of the Divine Kingdom Laws, your power would be equivalent to that of a Supreme Realm Stage 2 cultivator”.
Xu Lian frowned. “How can that be? When I was at Sage Realm Stage 5, I already possessed the strength of a Supreme Realm Stage 1 cultivator. Now that I’ve advanced to Stage 6, why am I still at the same level?”
Time Supreme gave him a placid glance. “What did you expect?”
“…” Xu Lian chuckled wryly. “I thought that Sage Realm Stage 6 would correspond to Supreme Realm Stage 2, Stage 7 to Stage 3, Stage 8 to Stage 4, and Stage 9 to Stage 5. And if I applied the ascension rules of the Divine Kingdom Laws, I could even ascend one level higher.”
Time Supreme asked, “Do you really think that’s possible?”
Xu Lian paused and thought. It seemed highly unlikely. If advancing one stage in the Sage Realm equated to advancing one stage in the Supreme Realm… wouldn’t that mean that Sages were essentially equal to Supremes? This clearly didn’t make sense.
But what exactly was the problem?
Time Supreme explained, “The reason you possess the strength of a Supreme Realm Stage 1 cultivator at Sage Realm Stage 5 has little to do with your actual cultivation level. It’s mainly because of your divine left arm bone and your divine body.
Since neither your divine bone nor your divine body has undergone any enhancement, advancing from Sage Realm Stage 5 to Stage 6 hasn’t significantly increased your overall strength.”
Xu Lian’s eyes widened as the realization dawned. “So even though my cultivation has advanced from Sage Realm Stage 5 to Stage 6, since my divine bone and divine body haven’t grown stronger, my overall power hasn’t changed much?”
Time Supreme replied, “What else did you think?”
Xu Lian continued to press, confused. “When I advanced from Sage Realm Stage 2 to Stage 5, my strength grew from Quasi-Supreme to Supreme. Doesn’t that mean that as my cultivation improves, my divine bone and divine body should also become stronger? Why hasn’t that happened this time?”
Time Supreme patiently elaborated, “When you advanced from Sage Realm Stage 2 to Stage 5, you likely crossed a critical threshold, a watershed moment for both your divine bone and divine body. That’s why they underwent significant improvement.
This time, however, your advancement from Sage Realm Stage 5 to Stage 6 represents only a minor increase in rank. The leap wasn’t big enough for your divine bone and divine body to reach the next turning point. That’s why they didn’t strengthen further. Do you understand now?”
Xu Lian nodded repeatedly. Your explanation finally made everything clear.
Essentially, this was a process of quantitative changes leading to qualitative leaps.
When he had advanced from Sage Realm Stage 2 to Stage 5, the substantial leap triggered a qualitative transformation in his divine bone and divine body.
But this time, moving from Sage Realm Stage 5 to Stage 6, the incremental change wasn’t significant enough to trigger another qualitative leap in his divine bone or divine body.
Xu Lian asked, “In your opinion, how many more watersheds for my divine left arm bone and divine body can I go through before I become a Supreme? When you used the strongest divine bones of the Divine Race and the Time Laws before reaching the Supreme Realm, how many watersheds did you cross in total?”
The Time Supreme replied, “Based on my past experience, I crossed three major watersheds related to the strongest divine bones of the Divine Race and the Laws of Time before ascending to the Supreme Realm. From your current situation, it seems likely that you’ll follow a similar path.
“When your cultivation reaches Sage Realm Stage 7, you will cross the second watershed for your divine left arm bone and divine body. They will grow significantly stronger, and your strength will be equivalent to that of a Supreme Realm Stage 2 cultivator.
“When your cultivation reaches Sage Realm Stage 9, you will cross the third watershed for utilizing your divine left arm bone and divine body. At that point, your strength will rise to the level of a Supreme Realm Stage 3 cultivator.
“Of course, these estimates don’t take into account the ascension rules of the Divine Kingdom Laws. If we were to include them, your strength would increase by another level.”
Xu Lian was somewhat surprised. “So even before you became a Supreme, your strength was already comparable to that of a Supreme Realm Stage 3 cultivator?”
The Time Supreme nodded. “That is correct. However, there’s one thing you need to understand: advancing from Sage Realm Stage 9 to the Supreme Realm is itself a massive watershed for both divine bone and laws. It’s the equivalent of at least three minor watersheds. By then, your strength will be at least on par with that of a Supreme Realm Stage 6 cultivator. And if we take into account the ascension rules of the Divine Kingdom Laws, your power will soar even higher,”
Xu Lian felt dizzy as he processed her words. It almost seemed like the Time Supreme was trying to flatter him into pushing harder toward becoming a Supreme. “O, if you keep praising me like this, I might get arrogant and let my ego get inflated… Too bad I don’t have a tail to wag.”
The Time Supreme’s tone remained cool and detached. “I am not praising you – I am merely stating facts. Those who master the power of the Laws will far surpass ordinary Supremes once they ascend to the Supreme Realm. This has been the case since ancient times. That’s why Supremes who wield laws are referred to as Great Supremes.”
Xu Lian chuckled. “Alright, I’ll work hard and strive to reach your level soon. Your years of nurturing me… will eventually bear fruit.”
Time Supreme’s beautiful eyes turned frosty.
Xu Lian stopped himself quickly, knowing when to draw the line. Aside from Sister Xiya, O was undoubtedly the person he respected the most – so much so that he felt indebted beyond repayment. He could only offer himself in devotion.
There was no way he could bear to see O remain alone like this – it pained him deeply. Such an ethereal beauty who had cultivated for over a thousand years without a Dao companion was truly a pity. He couldn’t think of anyone in the world who would be worthy of pairing up with such a goddess-like figure. Thus, he resolved to take matters into his own hands.
Time Supreme rose from the mist of chaos, her white robes untouched by worldly dust. Her otherworldly presence made her seem as though she didn’t belong to this mortal realm, but rather resembled a true immortal fairy.
“O, what are you doing?” Xu Lian instinctively took a few steps back, fearing that she might strike him.
Fortunately, Time Supreme didn’t attack. Instead, she waved her hand and projected countless miles away onto the scene before them.
Xu Lian’s eyes widened in shock. Three Supremes clad in golden dragon robes were locked in combat with three others wearing black dragon robes. Their Supreme techniques unleashed chains of order that flew chaotically through the air, causing heaven and earth to collapse and space itself to shatter. The scene was apocalyptic!
Recognizing the dragon robes worn by the six Supremes, Xu Lian exclaimed, “These are the Supremes of the Yin Dynasty’s Royal Family and the Yu Dynasty’s Royal Family?”
Time Supreme glanced at him. “When the Qian Dynasty launched a surprise attack on the Liang Dynasty, the Yin Dynasty seized the opportunity while the Qian Dynasty drew the attention of all the major forces across the land. They attacked the Yu Dynasty with the aim of seizing several exclusive cultivation resource zones.”
“The Yin Dynasty is also ruthless?” Xu Lian muttered, feeling speechless. The Yin Dynasty was the maternal home of Sister Xiya and Tantai Youxuan, no wonder they were so domineering.
Time Supreme waved her hand again, revealing scenes from various parts of the world.
In the direction of the Heavenly Demon Sacred Land, a towering man with cascading purple hair, covered in mysterious runes, and exuding the aura of a demonic god held the Demon Prison Tower aloft. He faced off against five Supremes in an intense battle. Clearly, this man was an unparalleled heavenly demon released from the Demon Prison Tower, possessing terrifying strength.
In the direction of the Blood Sea, the entire sea surged, blotting out the sky and reaching as far as the foot of Fire God Mountain. A Supreme with blood-red hair and crimson eyes stepped onto the crimson waves and launched an attack on Fire God Mountain. An elderly Supreme on the mountain angrily confronted him in single combat.
In cities like Taizhou Prefecture, Pingyang County, and Green Bamboo Town:
A red-clad female ghost stood on a double-masted ship at the ferry dock, waving a soul-summoning banner that fluttered violently. The earth trembled, the sun and moon dimmed, and eerie winds howled furiously. In the caves beneath the riverbank, blood-red coffins erupted from the ground, converging toward her. As the coffins shattered, ancient-dressed corpses emerged, their greedy gazes fixed on the vast lands before them.
The common people of these small towns fled in terror, dragging their families with them. Even the “Night Watchmen” of the Ghost Soul Sect were running for their lives. Likewise, the Quarry Patrol Inspectors stationed by the Yi Sect in various towns saw the dire situation and fled as well. Obviously, they had encountered someone formidable.
“This…”
Xu Lian was completely stunned by these visions.
The Time Supreme sighed softly. “The true era of chaos is about to begin.
In this Strange Era, all the top-tier factions are struggling desperately to survive, like taut strings – seemingly calm on the surface but ready to snap at any moment.
When you plundered all the materials needed for the Qian Dynasty to refine Metamorphosis Elixir, you cut off their lifeline. In desperation, they launched a surprise attack on the Liang Dynasty, effectively lighting a fire in the middle of the chaotic era.
Seeing the Qian Dynasty and the Yin Dynasty making their moves, other restless factions at the top couldn’t sit idly by. They seized the opportunity to rise up, each pursuing their own goals.”
Xu Lian was at a loss for words. Judging from this, his act of plundering the Qian Dynasty might very well have triggered the onset of this chaotic era.