Chapter 51: Test Subject 005 — The Shadow Spirit Immortal

Without the slightest hesitation, and under Xia Ye's instruction, Tu Junfang swallowed the medicinal pill and immediately entered a state of meditation.

Meanwhile, a flash of light gleamed in Xia Ye's eyes, his gaze instantly narrowing as he began to observe closely.

As the medicinal pill transformed into liquid and slid down the throat, it immediately split into two streams. One stream flowed down into the limbs and bones, while the other surged straight upward all the way to the Niwan Palace...

The upper dantian, the Niwan Palace, is the dwelling place of the soul and the repository of inherent "nature force." The "ghost immortal" state he aimed to achieve is a spiritual body, making this aspect of transformation naturally the most crucial priority.

However, compared to the soul, Tu Junfang's physical body underwent changes first under the scouring of the medicinal power. The meridians throughout his body began to grow tough, his skin, flesh, tendons, and bones strengthened accordingly, and the internal yang energy instantly surged, faintly emitting a wave of fiery warmth.

This was Xia Ye's deliberate design. After all, a preliminary transformation alone could not possibly make him directly reach the point of "abandoning the physical body." Therefore, both "yin and yang balance" and "the mutual sustenance of nature and life" had to be accounted for simultaneously; otherwise, making further progress would be exceedingly difficult.

Through previous experiments, he had decided to transform Tu Junfang's physical body into a pure "vessel," a "cocoon," or a "chrysalis shell," allowing Tu Junfang's soul to slowly cultivate within it, merge with the three corpses, and await the moment of "metamorphosis."

This was the most suitable path for achieving the status of a "ghost immortal." After all, the physical body would be discarded sooner or later; making it play as much of a role as possible before that time perfectly matched the legendary "corpse-release ascension to immortality," where ultimate cultivation allows the true spirit to break free from the shackles of the flesh!

Therefore, a physical body sufficiently strong and capable of nurturing the soul was of utmost importance. Xia Ye spared no effort, simply reshaping it into a "tempered body of hard Qigong" comparable to that of any grandmaster, completely supplementing his lacking masculine vigor...

In this way, the soul and the three corpses residing within could develop wantonly without any reservations. The powerful yin qi generated in the process would be nothing to worry about, and at the same time, he would receive sufficiently powerful protection until he was completely "fully grown."

Approximately twenty minutes passed...

Tu Junfang's physical body had already completed its transformation.

His originally gloomy and slightly thin physique had become as solid as iron with intertwined muscles, and a single glance could evoke a sense of explosive power.

Of course, Xia Ye also knew that as a successor of the Three Demons Sect, Tu Junfang's practice in hand-to-hand combat and physical control might be somewhat deficient, and he might find it hard to adapt to this sudden change in the short term...

However, this was precisely a part of the "metamorphosis." To successfully merge the soul with the three corpses, one needed sufficient control over everything within oneself. The test had already begun!

Next, once the transformation of the physical body was complete, the true qi changed accordingly. Since Tu Junfang's true qi was already fused with his three corpses, transforming the true qi was actually transforming the three corpses.

In an instant...

Gurgle, gurgle!

Wisps of gray-black, mud-like true qi emerged and condensed on their own. Tu Junfang's three corpses instantly manifested, hovering right around him.

"Hmm..."

Seeing his three corpses appear, Xia Ye immediately narrowed his eyes. For the past month, he had been conducting research using that cluster of the "three corpse aggregate." After all, its nature was the same yet more complex, making it easier to study, so he had not bothered to touch Tu Junfang's actual three corpses.

Seeing them now, however, he instantly grew interested. Because the secret arts of the Three Demons Sect could completely lure out a person's three corpses, they could condense into specific forms, and these forms represented the host's three desires of "greed, anger, and ignorance."

"The green bamboo snake's bite, the hornet's stinger on the tail, neither is truly venomous, the most venomous is a woman's heart... Old Tu, oh Old Tu, your desires are truly 'venomous' enough!"

The next second, Xia Ye raised an eyebrow and muttered to himself in his heart.

As could be seen, among Tu Junfang's three corpses, the upper corpse, soaring to the sky, took the form of a hornet; the middle corpse, standing upright, took the form of a green snake; and the lower corpse, prostrate on the ground, took the form of an enchanting woman. It truly echoed that old saying!

Of course, this did not mean this guy was a "completely venomous person," but merely represented the desires churning in his heart, among which:

The upper corpse loves ornate decorations, which corresponded to the inner preferences and obsessions of the host—namely, "greed." Its form as a hornet traditionally carries the implications of being "creative" and "persevering," which combined with his own greed for the Three Demons Sect's techniques.

The middle corpse loves savory tastes, corresponding to what the host vainly attempts to extract yet is difficult to obtain—namely, "anger." Its form as a green snake carries the implications of "mystery," "wealth," and "opportunity," perfectly matching his persistent exploration and study of the "method of the three corpses."

The lower corpse loves lustful desires, corresponding to the obscured, ignorant inner aspect of the host's nature—namely, "ignorance." Its form as an alluring woman represented the most primitive "obscurity" and "procreation," corresponding to his inner heart, which faced a directionless path yet instinctively desired to move forward.

Viewed in this light, it further proved Tu Junfang's purity in "exploration" and "research." His essence was of the same kind as Xia Ye's, both constantly probing into domains unknown to themselves.

"Since that's the case, I should push you along even further."

Xia Ye smiled softly, and immediately Tu Junfang's three corpses changed again. The three of them rapidly melted and fused into one, transforming in the blink of an eye into the shape of a "pill," which then burrowed back into his body.

Subsequently, this "pill" split into three once more, falling respectively into his upper, middle, and lower dantians. There they bobbed up and down, bathing in the nourishment of "nature," "life," and "qi," beginning an extremely slow yet persistent process of growth.

This was the "Three Corpses Pill Method" that Xia Ye had modified by referencing Taoist "Internal Alchemy Methods." Its essence was likewise an "alchemy method," capable of borrowing the "endless" characteristic of Taoist internal alchemy cultivation to help him break through the original shackles of his technique!

Once both the "physical body" and "true qi" had been transformed, only the metamorphosis of the "soul" remained. At this moment, the medicinal power that had previously penetrated into Tu Junfang's Niwan Palace began to take effect, and his soul started to undergo changes...

In a flash, guided by the medicinal power, the abundant yang energy within his body began to surge toward the soul, causing him to furrow his brows and feel bursts of sharp pain, which he struggled desperately to endure.

For Tu Junfang, soul cultivation was his greatest foundation. The slightest mistake could cause his cultivation to collapse—lightly resulting in the wasted efforts of the past thirty-odd years, or severely causing his soul to scatter into oblivion!

Yet, witnessing Xia Ye's miraculous methods, seeing the other four people reach unimaginable realms under his transformation, and recalling the aspirations in his own heart, he felt no fear whatsoever and was completely willing!

And so, slowly...

The energies of yin and yang intertwined within his soul, gradually fusing into one under the protection of the medicinal power without causing the slightest damage to his soul, and the essence of his soul sublimated accordingly.

When he opened his eyes following the guidance of the vital energy, he unexpectedly found himself floating in mid-air, while directly below him sat another version of himself in meditation, with wisps of black vapor connecting him to his own eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.

"This is..."

Xia Ye smiled faintly:

"This is the 'Yin God'!"