CHAPTER 260: CHAPTER 255: CORPSE FIRE SACRIFICIAL TECHNIQUE! TRANSFORMATION OF THE WICKED FLAME!_1

Star Pole Island added a Corpse Refiner Hall, and Jia Ren was not worried about the Corpse Demon Sect’s Magic Artifacts having no buyers. New Cultivation Techniques and secret techniques would continue to emerge in the Transmission Hall; the framework of Star Pole Island had been built, leaving the rest to be filled in by others.

"There are new secret techniques?"

The true form emerged from the Alchemy Room on Qingzhu Island, examining the two secret techniques that the Insect External Incarnation had brought. These were the four secret techniques most suitable for himself from Star Pole Island’s Transmission Hall.

First and foremost was Mirror Flower Water Moon, a Divine Skill which was sadly incomplete. Jia Ren was very familiar with the Xuan Guang Water Mirror, and he could clearly feel that this secret technique complemented parts of Water Moon. Could it be that Xuan Guang Water Mirror is a simplified version of Mirror Flower? It was quite common in the Cultivation World for Divine Skills to be simplified into secret techniques to reduce the difficulty of cultivation. Studying a secret technique as a prerequisite for a Divine Skill could lower the difficulty of learning the Divine Skill afterward. If the Xuan Guang Water Mirror was truly a simplified Divine Skill, could it compensate for the missing parts of Mirror Flower? Once he succeeded in repairing the Divine Skill, and once his Realm reached the Golden Core Stage, he would be able to cultivate a rare Illusion Technique Divine Skill: Mirror Flower Water Moon. An incomplete Divine Skill that couldn’t be cultivated turning into a real Divine Skill would increase its value a hundredfold.

The second secret technique was the inconspicuous Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique. This technique, discovered by the Corpse Demon Sect, was a demonic flame for Corpse Refining—useful but considered of low standing among secret techniques. Three days ago, while recording onto a Jade Slip, he realized he had underestimated the value of this secret technique. Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique could transform other flames into Corpse-Ritual Fire. Could Wicked Flame be transformed into Corpse-Ritual Fire? If successful, the Wicked Flame produced by the Suppressing Fiend Holy Fire Command, which sealed the Misleading Bizarre, could be converted to Corpse-Ritual Fire, continuously refining Flying Stiffs for twelve Hours at a time. Once he unraveled the core of Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique and truly mastered its applicability, the flame transformed from Wicked Flame would not only become Corpse-Ritual Fire but could also be turned into other types of flames. The vast future of the Perpetual Motion Artifact was waving at him.

The third secret technique was named Divine Concealment Technique, acquired from the Corpse Demon Sect Master—it was the same powerful secret technique that had mysteriously disappeared from his sight, used to ambush him. This secret technique had the dual effects of invisibility and breath-concealing, far surpassing the earlier obtained Turtle Breath Technique. There was no doubt that this was an extremely powerful secret technique for saving one’s life. Divine Concealment Technique was one of the secret techniques he had not shared with the inheritance of Star Pole Island. Truly precious secret techniques, he would not share with Star Pole Island, which he had created on a whim.

The last Soul Breaking Technique came from an Elder of Star Pole Island, in exchange for ten other secret techniques at an exceptional deal. It had the effect of peering into Spiritual Power and could break through low-level restrictions and Illusion Techniques, extremely practical in use. The Spirit Eye Technique was too low-grade; Soul Breaking Technique was far superior, and from now on, it could completely replace Spirit Eye Technique.

"Which secret technique should I prioritize learning? Or... perhaps I should refine Technique Demon Pills first!"

Mirror Flower Water Moon required time to complete, and the repaired Divine Skill couldn’t be cultivated until the Golden Core Stage, so there was no rush for now.

The Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique was indeed good, but compared to Corpse Refining and enhancing one’s Divine Soul, one was an internal enhancement, and the other relied on external objects.

Star Pole Island was relatively safe, and the other two secret techniques were temporarily not of immediate use.

Which was more important was obvious at a glance.

First, refine Technique Demon Pills, cultivate Star God Art, then refine Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique and other Spells, and finally complete Mirror Flower Water Moon.

He separated the three tasks into different priorities and proceeded accordingly.

Jia Ren put away the Jade Slip, diligently working on refining Technique Demon Pills every day. The large number of Technique Demon Pills that he refined would not go to waste; selling through Star Pole Island was a guaranteed profit.

Initially, the three Deputy Island Masters and the Elders of Star Pole Island still came to ask for opinions, but when they saw he only wanted to be a hands-off manager, they stopped troubling him. The only concern Star Pole Island had was the possibility of the Corpse Demon Sect knocking on their door.

「After a month, there was still no news from the Corpse Demon Sect.」

The ones most flustered were the spies that the Corpse Demon Sect had planted on the island; they had arrived at the Qunxing Archipelago early to gather intelligence, and after the Corpse Demon Sect’s escape, they had completely lost contact.

Without external threats affecting Star Pole Island, many dared to leave Star Pole Island, going out to hunt demons or trade in the Western Wasteland Domain.

"Success!"

Jia Ren walked out from Qingzhu Island, his face beaming with a brilliant smile. After more than four years of effort, he had been unable to make initial progress with Star God Art. It wasn’t until last night when the Proficiency Level of Technique Demon Pills reached Grandmaster Level, and he consumed a Grandmaster Level Technique Demon Pill. Assisted by the power of the Elixir, he finally made a breakthrough with Star God Art. He could now cultivate Star God Art, and the next step was to increase his Proficiency Level and strengthen his Divine Soul. Facts proved that Technique Demon Pills indeed had side effects, affecting the speed of Star God Art cultivation. A regular Technique Demon Pill significantly increased the later cultivation difficulty of Spells, but the enhanced quality of the Grandmaster Level Technique Demon Pill reduced side effects, only increasing the difficulty by fifty percent. This result was far beyond expectations; the decision to take it only after reaching Grandmaster Proficiency Level was not wrong.

Every day, Jia Ren devoted his time and energy to improve his Cultivation Level and Star God Art, making slow yet steady progress. The Insect External Incarnation, serving as the Sect Leader of Star Pole Island, was also making rapid progress in strength. The Sonic-Thief Mosquito King, with the assistance of a large number of Ancestor Insect Holy Pills, reached the Second Order Late Stage a few years ago. The combined strength of a hundred Sonic-Thief Mosquito Kings had already reached the Foundation Establishment Peak. The Qi Refinement Cultivation Level did not fall behind; with the help of a hundred Lower Grade Spiritual Root Sonic-Thief Mosquito Kings, the cultivation speed even surpassed that of Cultivators with a Top Grade Spiritual Root. With the Supreme Grade Elixirs provided by his true form, he cultivated at a rapid pace, advancing to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, hardly less advanced than his true form.

Apart from cultivating, Jia Ren was immersed in perfecting the Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique on Qingzhu Island, researching how to make it his own. The most powerful Third Rank Late Stage Flying Stiff stopped in front of Jia Ren, silent as a corpse. He sat cross-legged with the Suppressing Fiend Holy Fire Command, which had sealed a Misleading Bizarre, in front of him. Threads and wisps of Wicked Flame were extracted from the Suppressing Fiend Holy Fire Command; they danced in the palm of his hand without causing the slightest harm. As the Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique was activated, the Wicked Flame gradually transformed into the gloomy Corpse-Ritual Fire and quickly entered the body of the Third Rank Late Stage Flying Stiff. The Flying Stiff slowly absorbed the Corpse-Ritual Fire, forging its body and strengthening its physique.

"The conversion efficiency is somewhat low..."

Because he was just beginning to master the Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique, ten portions of Wicked Flame could only be converted into one portion of Corpse-Ritual Fire; the loss was substantial. No wonder the Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique is relatively unpopular; the fire used for the conversion cannot be ordinary flame but must be a Strange Fire, where ten portions yield only one.Too much input, too little gain...The Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique seemed more like... an imperfect secret technique. This secret technique, not having been around for long and lacking comprehensive refinement, was relatively rudimentary. Difficult to practice, with Strange Fire rare to find, and only applicable in Corpse Refining, the technique is inevitably limited.If not discovered by Jia Ren, it would have remained buried indefinitely. By raising his Proficiency Level and using Skill Breaking Points to break through and perfect his techniques, he could achieve in one year what others could not in hundreds.

The number of Spells he practiced daily increased, focusing on such secret techniques as Xuan Shui Escape, Seven Xuan Yuan Heavy Water, Xuan Guang Water Mirror, Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique, Star God Art, Divine Concealment Technique, and Soul Breaking Technique. The first few were the main secret techniques he practiced, with slow Cultivation progress. Xuan Shui Escape had already been elevated to Great Grandmaster Level and could stop once it reached Extraordinary Saint Level. The Seven Xuan Yuan Heavy Water had the slowest cultivation speed; after two more breakthroughs, Technique-Nearing-Dao Level could be achieved with the Nine Xuan Yuan Heavy Water, its power comparable to that of powerful offensive Divine Skills. As for the Xuan Guang Water Mirror, a strong insight secret technique, the Great Grandmaster Level Xuan Guang Water Mirror could even reflect Spells, which was critical for supplementing the Divine Ability Mirror Flower Water Moon. The subsequent techniques, such as the Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique, Star God Art, Divine Concealment Technique, and Soul Breaking Technique, would require a significant amount of time and effort to practice.

There were many fine secret techniques on Star Pole Island, but alas, he had too many secret techniques to learn. The time allocated for daily practice could not be changed. He also needed to craft Elixirs and Talismans, leaving too little time at his disposal. The cultivation of the seven powerful secret techniques took up a considerable amount of time, leaving no energy to practice other secret techniques.

"Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique!"

Jia Ren prioritized raising the Proficiency Level of the Corpse Fire Sacrificial Technique, which could help transform the technique into Inscriptions of Magical Instruments. Creating a new Corpse-Ritual Fire Inscription, he could craft artifacts that work in conjunction with the Suppressing Fiend Holy Fire Command, absorbing Wicked Flame and transforming it autonomously into Corpse-Ritual Fire.

The Corpse-Ritual Fire produced daily would continuously strengthen the Flying Stiff over twelve Hours, boosting its strength.With an endless supply of Corpse-Ritual Fire to enhance its power, the Third Rank Late Stage Flying Stiff would have no problem advancing further, becoming a Yaksha comparable to a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

"It’s a pity the Corpse Demon Sect has no sealed Bizarre Demons; otherwise, they could have served as fuel for the Suppressing Fiend Holy Fire Command..." Jia Ren scoured the treasures of the Corpse Demon Sect and found more than a dozen Evil-Sealing Artifacts, but not one contained sealed Bizarre Demons. Why would the Demon Sect, which has always been selfish, volunteer to confront Bizarre Demons and risk its safety for the benefit of others?When Bizarre Demons appeared in the territory of the Corpse Demon Sect, regardless of the type, they chose to flee without attempting to deal with them.How could one expect them to seal a Bizarre Demon?

"I almost forgot!"

"I can use the power of Star Pole Island to obtain the Bizarre Demons I desire..."

"By utilizing the power of Star Pole Island, I can understand the strength and abilities of the Bizarre Demons and capture them with the help of others."

Letting others bear the risks, Jia Ren only needed to pay with Spirit Stones, Sect contributions, and Suppressing Bizarre Artifacts.

Not until this moment did he realize the multitude of benefits that come with establishing a Sect.Establishing a Sect is different from joining one; rising from obscurity rather than living at the mercy of others, and the precious benefits and resources of a Sect can never fall into the hands of an ordinary disciple.The privileged class will not share treasures with those at the bottom.Having control over a Sect of one’s own changes the situation: being part of the privileged class.Resources not useful can be processed through the Sect in exchange for what is needed.He could have others act on his behalf through Sect missions for treasures he requires.Sealing Bizarre Demons could be outsourced at a cost.So far, the only downside has been sharing Cultivation Techniques and secret techniques, giving up some Magic Artifacts and Elixirs. In contrast to the conveniences and new secret techniques acquired, and having others toil on his behalf, this cost is inconsequential.

"No wonder ordinary people aspire to become those in power."

Just as Jia Ren was appreciating the conveniences of founding Star Pole Island, a disheveled figure rushed towards the Qunxing Archipelago.

"Haha, I’ve finally made the breakthrough!"

If one could clearly see the person’s face, they would realize that it was the Qunxing Island Master, who had disappeared for several years.

"Who are you, daring to intrude upon Star Pole Island uninvited!"