Chapter 115: The Great Perfection of the Heavenly Gang, The Perfected Physical Form

Standing within the Heavenly Palace, Fang Wang did not immediately begin his cultivation. Instead, he paced around, trying to calm his mind. For the past six months, he had been so intensely focused that he needed time to clear his head. Time was the one thing the Heavenly Palace had in abundance. Fang Wang fantasized about the immense power of the Tiangang Sacred Body to fuel his motivation for cultivation.

Several hours later, he began to meditate on the True Art of the Tiangang Sacred Body. The rolling spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged into his body as he reviewed the correct techniques for the art in his mind. The Tiangang method required the condensation of thirty-six celestial star acupoints within the physical body. Using these acupoints to absorb spiritual energy and refine the flesh not only forged a more powerful physique but also generated tremendous strength for combat. This process was unimaginably difficult. Human acupoints are fixed, and creating thirty-six new ones easily risked disrupting his internal balance; the body could barely withstand it. It required immense time to attempt and stabilize. Fang Wang had braced himself—the True Art of the Tiangang Sacred Body was surely going to set a new record for his longest seclusion in the Heavenly Palace!

However, he still underestimated the difficulty of the art. It took him thirty years just to complete the first Tiangang acupoint, making him realize the gravity of the situation. Having reached this point, he could only bury his head and cultivate. He was determined to bring the art to Great Perfection—a realm perhaps not even reached by the Ancient Saint who created it. Great Perfection represented the most flawless state of a technique, attained only by those who devoted their entire lives to studying a single path. Fang Wang continuously achieved Great Perfection in various types of peerless arts, which allowed him to maintain suppression over those at his own level and lethal power across higher realms. As one’s cultivation level increases, the difficulty of defeating enemies across realms grows, and even combat within the same realm becomes harder. Thus, cultivators must master diverse spells. With the Heavenly Palace, Fang Wang was essentially fast-forwarding through tasks he would have had to do much later in his life.

After mastering the first acupoint, the subsequent ones proved less difficult, which brought Fang Wang a measure of relief. Thus, years passed in rapid succession. Within the environment of the Heavenly Palace, Fang Wang maintained a steady state of mind; a hundred years of seclusion was not enough to make him restless.

Time flew. Five hundred years passed, and Fang Wang had refined twenty-five Tiangang acupoints. Even though he could clearly feel the qualitative transformation of his body, he could not control his emotions. Doing the same thing over and over was simply too monotonous! At first, he could practice the Heavenly Palace Halberd or his sword for entertainment, but now, nothing could pique his interest. Could the accursed Heavenly Palace not conjure someone to talk to him? Fang Wang took a deep breath and activated his Heart of Combat to continue his dry, repetitive cultivation. The Heart of Combat allowed him to cast aside distracting thoughts, but such a state consumed immense spiritual energy and was not suitable for long-term use.

In the blink of an eye, another three hundred years passed. Fang Wang refined all thirty-six Tiangang acupoints, achieving the Tiangang Sacred Body. His physical strength surged, his vitality roaring like a savage beast, yet he did not leave the Heavenly Palace. He had only mastered it; he had not reached the state of perfection! Now that he had come this far, Fang Wang felt he was close. His numb heart finally stirred with anticipation for the Great Perfection of the Tiangang Sacred Body.

Time flowed rapidly. The time required to progress from the mastery of the Tiangang Sacred Body to Great Perfection disappointed him once more. By the time he had completely refined the art to Great Perfection, he looked back and realized nine hundred and sixty years had passed since he first entered the Heavenly Palace! A mortal’s life span is only a few decades, rarely exceeding a hundred years. A Ning-Shen realm cultivator who lives past five hundred is considered long-lived, and when one accounts for the time spent gathering energy and attending to worldly affairs, a cultivator’s total time spent in actual training rarely exceeds three hundred years. In other words, it was impossible for a normal Ning-Shen cultivator to master the True Art of the Tiangang Sacred Body!

Fang Wang had no time to lament the difficulty of the mortal pursuit of immortality; his consciousness gradually returned to reality. The great hall was silent. The white-haired elder was meditating, while Xiao Zi and Zhao Zhen were busy with their own cultivation.

Seeing them upon opening his eyes, Fang Wang closed them again, his fists resting on his legs tightening involuntarily.

Rumble—

The entire underground palace suddenly shook violently, and a terrifying aura enveloped Xiao Zi, Zhao Zhen, and the white-haired elder. The elder opened his eyes, looked at Fang Wang, and asked anxiously, "What is the matter with you? Do not do anything reckless!" He assumed Fang Wang was losing his temper because he could not grasp the method.

Xiao Zi fanned the flames, saying, "Young Master, destroy this palace! What kind of inheritance is this? It’s just making things difficult for people on purpose!" It had already given up on the True Art of the Tiangang Sacred Body!

"Do not be impulsive! This is truly not about making things difficult. The True Art of the Tiangang Sacred Body is inherently hard to learn. His Majesty must have had profound intentions when he set this challenge!" the white-haired elder cried out urgently.

Fang Wang slowly unclenched his fists. With his eyes still closed, he said, "There is indeed a profound meaning. The thirty-six Tiangang stars have phases of change, yet they maintain a certain regularity."

Hearing this, the white-haired elder looked at Fang Wang in astonishment. These words...

Fang Wang slowly stood up and walked toward the palace gate. Xiao Zi hopped onto his shoulder, asking curiously, "Young Master, are we leaving?"

"Since we came here, we might as well walk around inside," Fang Wang said expressionlessly. Seeing his state, Xiao Zi’s snake eyes widened. Could it be...

Zhao Zhen drifted over, also noticing the abnormality in Fang Wang. Fang Wang’s appearance had not changed, but his temperament was entirely different; there was an indescribable sense of vicissitudes about him. Zhao Zhen had only seen such an aura in Guang Qiuxian, and even Guang Qiuxian could not compare to this. At a glance, Fang Wang gave off an impression of great age. That sense of sunset-like decay was something a youthful skin could not conceal.

Fang Wang brushed past the white-haired elder and walked toward the stairs step by step. The elder hurriedly followed. "Junior, have you forgotten your resolve? It has been less than a year—are you giving up already?" the elder glared, his tone full of disappointment.

Fang Wang did not look back. "I have not forgotten."

"Then why are you leaving?"

"I have learned it."

"Learned... what? You learned it?" The white-haired elder flashed in front of Fang Wang, eyes wide, staring intensely at him.

Fang Wang was expressionless, his numb gaze falling upon the elder, making the latter’s heart tremble. This gaze... he had only seen it in those ancient monsters who had lived for thousands of years. He hurriedly stepped aside, not daring to block the path.

Fang Wang continued forward. The white-haired elder followed by his side, questioning, "Did you truly learn it?"

Xiao Zi was shaking with excitement, and Zhao Zhen looked at Fang Wang in disbelief. The Mountain-River Heaven-Suppressing Fist might have been different—perhaps Fang Wang had learned something similar before and could draw inferences—but the True Art of the Tiangang Sacred Body was entirely different. Zhao Zhen was certain Fang Wang had never known it, otherwise, he wouldn't have come so far to seek the inheritance, and the inscriptions in the underground palace were incredibly complex.

Fang Wang did not speak; he directly activated the thirty-six Tiangang acupoints in his body. In an instant, an extremely overbearing aura erupted from him. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth rushed into his body through the tunnels, and the entire underground space shook once more. The white-haired elder’s eyes widened; he saw that Fang Wang was surrounded by a white flame of energy, causing his black robes to flutter.

"This aura... it cannot be wrong... it is impossible... how could it be..."

The white-haired elder’s lips trembled. Without even looking at the elder’s reaction, Xiao Zi and Zhao Zhen were already terrified. The aura of the Tiangang Sacred Body was so powerful that it unsettled demons and terrified evil spirits. Most importantly, as Fang Wang absorbed more and more spiritual energy, his aura continued to grow! The underground space began to collapse, prompting the white-haired elder to shout, "Fine, fine, fine! I believe you, stop quickly!"

Fang Wang ignored him, instead turning into a streak of white light and charging upward.

With a loud boom, Fang Wang burst through the streets of the ancient city and soared into the high sky. His overwhelming aura caused the entire ancient city to begin collapsing; fissures appeared in the streets, and buildings crumbled one after another, kicking up clouds of dust. The white-haired elder, Xiao Zi, and Zhao Zhen followed him out, gazing up at Fang Wang with various expressions.

Fang Wang stretched his neck, raised his right fist, and punched toward the starry universe above. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged with his punch, forming a visible shockwave that forcefully pierced through the sky, revealing a massive hole leading to the blue sky and white clouds beyond. Fang Wang flew through, and Xiao Zi, Zhao Zhen, and the white-haired elder scrambled to follow.

"Has your Young Master gone mad?" the white-haired elder asked, exasperated.

Xiao Zi retorted angrily, "It was your Majesty who set such a test! If it were you, wouldn't you go mad?"

The white-haired elder was so angry he could barely speak. "But it hasn't even been a year! This temperament is simply too poor!"

"Poor? Careful, or my Young Master's fist might land on you, old donkey. Let’s see if your soul body can withstand it!"

"..."

The white-haired elder realized that when it came to arguing, he was no match for a demon snake. This was outrageous!

On the other side, Fang Wang returned to the Falling Sky Secret Realm. He landed on a mountain peak and let out a furious roar.

"Ah—!"

His roar echoed throughout the entire Falling Sky Secret Realm, alarming the demons and ghosts in every corner. After howling for a long time, Fang Wang finally felt a sense of relief. He had been pent up for too long and needed to vent! He glanced sideways to see the white-haired elder, Xiao Zi, and Zhao Zhen approaching in the air nearby.

"There must be existences beyond the Ning-Shen realm in this secret realm! Call them out; I want to test my Tiangang Sacred Body!" Fang Wang said, his tone cold. He held no hostility toward the white-haired elder, but after sitting numbly for nine hundred and sixty years, his heart was filled with a lingering malice that he needed to release. To avoid harming them, Fang Wang was already restraining his emotions to the utmost.

The white-haired elder wanted to advise caution, but upon meeting Fang Wang’s gaze, he hurriedly said, "Naturally. There is a remnant army soul of His Majesty’s in the Falling Sky Secret Realm. Their general is at the ninth level of the Du-Xu realm. I shall summon him for you."

As he spoke, the elder’s lips moved, seemingly chanting a spell. Before long, the earth shook, and a powerful aura swept in from the horizon, followed by the sound of battle cries growing from faint to deafening, as if thousands of horses and soldiers were charging forward.

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

The sound of ten thousand voices shouting in unison echoed through the world, shaking the very soul. Xiao Zi and Zhao Zhen were so frightened that they instinctively moved closer to Fang Wang.