The trials in the Earth Spirit Zone were, for Jiang Chen, practically a formality. Each day he would win just one or two matches—never more.
But even so, no one had managed to defeat him yet. Not a single soul had even come close.
In the end, everyone had to accept the inevitable: this worldly freak of talent belonged in the Heavenly Spirit Zone, not down here with them.
Three months had passed, and Jiang Chen hadn't wasted a single one. He trained hard every day. His goal was to use this window to push forward and break through to the fifth level of the Spirit Realm as soon as possible.
In the Earth Spirit Zone, the fifth level of the Spirit Realm existed, but barely. There were precious few who had reached it.
In the Heavenly Spirit Zone, however, the fifth level was the absolute minimum. The sixth level would be commonplace.
There were even rumors of geniuses at the Heavenly Spirit Realm.
Jiang Chen knew he had plenty of trump cards, but going up against geniuses at the Heavenly Spirit Realm? He had zero confidence.
That was precisely why he trained even harder. He understood that once he reached the Heavenly Spirit Zone, he'd no longer enjoy the overwhelming advantages he'd had in the Mystic Spirit Zone and Earth Spirit Zone.
The Heavenly Spirit Zone was where the sects' handpicked elites gathered.
"To dominate all the young generation of the four great sects, it looks like I'll need to push myself even harder," Jiang Chen muttered after careful consideration. With his current cultivation, conquering the Heavenly Spirit Zone was simply out of reach.
The "Nine Transformations of Gods and Demons" had progressed to its second layer, and as time passed, Jiang Chen drew upon the golden essence daily to temper his flesh and blood.
Then one day, something suddenly popped into his head.
"Wait—how did I forget about the Thundercloud Wood?" He recalled that on the ninth floor of the Myriad Magnetic Mountain, there stood a piece of Thundercloud Wood, along with a Thundercloud Golden Cicada.
Never mind the Golden Cicada for now—the Thundercloud Wood itself had an extraordinary range of applications. Chief among them was its ability to temper the golden body.
Jiang Chen had gained so much from the initial five trials that the Thundercloud Wood had slipped his mind entirely.
He slapped his thigh in frustration. "What a colossal waste! A magnificent piece of Thundercloud Wood, just sitting there unused. If I refine it, I can consolidate an Indestructible Golden Body. Combined with the tempering from the Nine Transformations of Gods and Demons, that's a double guarantee!"
In that moment, ideas flooded Jiang Chen's mind.
He wasted no time. Extending a thread of consciousness, he reached out to communicate with the Thundercloud Golden Cicada. He knew that if the Cicada refused, there was no way he could get his hands on the Thundercloud Wood.
The Thundercloud Wood grew on the ninth floor of the Myriad Magnetic Mountain. Although the Mountain was now under his control, summoning it in its entirety with his current cultivation was completely out of the question.
Moreover, manifesting the Myriad Magnetic Mountain in a place like this would cause a sensation.
He had to get the Golden Cicada's cooperation first. Then he could coax the Myriad Magnetic Mountain into revealing one one-hundred-thousandth of its form.
To summon the entire mountain, one needed cultivation at least at the Origin Realm—there was virtually no other way.
But calling forth just one one-hundred-thousandth, enough to fit within this courtyard? That he could attempt.
Of course, the prerequisite was the Golden Cicada's help.
"Brother Human, you're already the master of the Myriad Magnetic Mountain. And I'm the one who told you that! You haven't even thanked me, and now you want my Thundercloud Wood?" The Thundercloud Golden Cicada sounded distinctly aggrieved upon hearing Jiang Chen's request.
Jiang Chen grinned shamelessly. "I don't need much—just a small piece. It won't affect your living space on the Thundercloud Wood at all."
"Really just a small piece? Then can you promise you won't ask for more later?"
"Well… the Thundercloud Wood grows pretty fast. Once it becomes a towering tree—even sprouts an entire Thundercloud Forest—I definitely won't be able to resist."
The Cicada thought for a moment, tilting its tiny head. "Ten years. I'll give you some this time, but you can't ask again for ten years."
Ten years wasn't all that long for a martial artist.
"Deal—ten years. But don't be stingy. It's got to be enough for me to actually use! Think about it, Little Cicada. I've got plenty of enemies right now, and I need the Thundercloud Wood to boost my strength. If I can't keep up and somebody takes me out, the Myriad Magnetic Mountain could be snatched away. And then you'd end up in someone else's pocket. You know how greedy humans are. With your noble bloodline, someone will definitely try to devour it. Believe it or not?"
The Thundercloud Golden Cicada shuddered, suddenly nervous. "Brother Human, you won't devour my bloodline, right?"
Jiang Chen flashed a wide grin. "I promise I won't hurt you."
The Cicada mumbled unhappily. "That still means you might make all sorts of demands on me."
Jiang Chen didn't deny it. The Golden Cicada's bloodline was extraordinarily noble, and refining it would grant access to its inherited techniques—most notably, the False Death Divine Ability, the Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell.
For any martial artist, that ability was worth half a lifetime.
"Little Cicada, I won't lie to you—I'm extremely eager to learn your inherited technique: Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell. But I absolutely will not harm your true body. If the day comes when I need to borrow a drop of your blood, that's a possibility."
The Thundercloud Golden Cicada let out a soft sigh. "Fine. Compared to other humans, you really are one of the good ones. Once my bloodline evolves to perfection down the road, I'll consider lending you a single drop. And don't underestimate what one drop of Golden Cicada blood can do—it's enough to give you access to our ancestral memories."
Jiang Chen was elated. "Let's not look that far ahead. For now, I'll take the Thundercloud Wood."
The Cicada bloodline was still a distant prospect. What he needed right now was the Thundercloud Wood.
Before long, the Thundercloud Golden Cicada produced a piece of Thundercloud Wood roughly the length of an arm. Jiang Chen was well pleased and laughed. "Little Cicada, I thought you'd skimp and give me something fist-sized. I didn't expect you to be so generous."