Chapter 440 – Above ascendant
“Above the Ascendant stage…” Situ Nan stopped flying and looked at w.a.n.g Lin.
Situ Nan answered, with a heavy tone, “The realm above the Ascendant stage is not something most cultivators know of because there are simply too few people at those realms.”
“The Ascendant stage is a peak and at the same time a door. Most cultivators are stopped at this door, unable to continue their cultivation before their lifespan reaches its end.
“However, once you break through that threshold and touch the next realm, your lifespan will increase by countless folds. Although it can’t last as long as the heavens and earth, it will increase by a lot. I gained some understanding of the next realm before escaping into the heaven defying bead, which is why I was able to survive for tens of thousands of years in there.
“But this doesn’t mean that my life is infinite. If my time comes and I still haven’t made a breakthrough, I’ll still die.
“It’s not that there hasn’t been people who have managed to escape the heavens’ reincarnation cycle, but most of the time they are low level cultivators. It is simply too difficult for those who have reached the Ascendant stage to escape the reincarnation cycle. The heavens’ reincarnation cycle produces different amounts of power based on the cultivator’s cultivation level. This is why I said that low level cultivators have a much easier time escaping the heavens’ reincarnation cycle with the premise that there is a high level cultivator helping them.”
w.a.n.g Lin nodded. He recalled when he helped Li Muwan fend off the heavens’ messenger.
Situ Nan took a deep breath and revealed a hint of regret. “After the Ascendant stage are the three realms of Nirvana Shattering.”
w.a.n.g Lin’s eyes lit up. “The three realms of Nirvana Shattering?”
“That is correct. The first generation Suzaku, Yu Wuyou, told me about the three realms of Nirvana Shattering after he got the rewards from the Cultivation Alliance. If he hadn’t told me, then I wouldn’t have known until I became the next Suzaku.” Situ Nan sighed as he recalled the past.
“The three realms of Nirvana Shattering. The first realm is Nirvana Scryer, second realm is Nirvana Cleanser, and third realm is Nirvana Shatterer.”
w.a.n.g Lin took a deep breath, then he frowned and asked, “What about after the three realms of Nirvana Shattering? Is that the peak?”
Situ Nan shook his head and said, “How could it be so easy? The three realms of Nirvana Shattering are only considered the second step for cultivators. However, someone at the Nirvana Shattering stage can be considered a powerhouse in the Cultivation Alliance. People are rarely willing to mess with them. Rumor has it that the old monsters in the Cultivation Alliance have even managed to breakthrough past Nirvana Shattering.”
w.a.n.g Lin pondered a bit, then he looked toward Situ Nan and asked, “Are you a Nirvana Scryer?”
Situ Nan bitterly smiled and said, “How it could it be so easy? There are two thresholds between the Ascendant stage and becoming a Nirvana Scryer, which are the Yin Yang Cleansing stages.
“The Yin Yang Cleansing stages involve a change in domains. It’s not the same as it going from non-corporeal to corporeal but a deeper understanding. I can’t explain it too much, but only after your domain has gone through the Yin Yang Cleansing stages can you become a Nirvana Scryer.
“Before I was forced to hide inside the heaven defying bead, I touched the border of the Yin Cleansing stage. Although I wasn’t able to cultivate while trapped, my understanding of my domain had increased, so I completed the Yin Cleansing stage. Once I have gone through the Yang Cleaning stage, I will only need to find a place to go into closed door cultivation to become a Nirvana Scryer.”
w.a.n.g Lin’s eyes lit up and he asked, “What cultivation level is Zhuque Zi at? Is he also at the Yin Yang Cleaning stages before Nirvana Scryer?”
A hint of disdain appeared in Situ Nan’s eyes and then he said, “Him? Late stage Ascendant. I’m afraid he will not even be qualified to reach the Yin Yang Cleansing stages, so there is no need to even think about him becoming a Nirvana Scryer. However, he is considered a very special kind of Ascendant cultivator. Although he is still weaker than cultivators at the Yin Yan Cleansing stages, he is not someone a normal late stage Ascendant cultivator can match.”
w.a.n.g Lin’s eyes lit up and he said, “The Suzaku Seal from the Cultivation Alliance!”
Situ Nan revealed hint of appreciation in his eyes and slowly said, “Yes, he is a t.i.tled Ascendant cultivator and can be considered a top Ascendant cultivator because he controls a special technique from the Cultivation Alliance.
“Ye Wuyou obtained a powerful technique after coming back from the Cultivation Alliance called the Suzaku Seal. It is very powerful and would have been amazing if not for the fact that it costs lifespan every time it is used. Unless an Ascendent cultivator has comprehended the Yin Yang Cleansing stages, then they will find it difficult to match the current Suzaku.
“However, the techniques given by the Cultivation Alliance are also ranked just like celestial treasures. The Suzaku Seal is only a low quality technique, but it still greatly increases the power of whoever is holding the t.i.tle.
“Unfortunately, the Suzaku Seal can only be used once you control the Cultivation Planet Crystal. Once you control both, your strength will increase by a lot.
“The Suzaku Tactic that each generation of Suzaku learns is what the first generation Suzaku, Ye Wuyou, managed to learn from the Suzaku Seal. Not only does the Suzaku Seal increase cultivation speed, but once you have the Cultivation Planet Crystal, it will increase the compatibility between you and the crystal so that you can reach the strength of a t.i.tle Ascendant cultivator faster.”
w.a.n.g Lin pondered a bit. His eyes lit up and he asked, “You said earlier that celestial treasures are also separated in ranks?”
“Of course. Celestial treasures that require celestial spiritual energy to use are split in low, mid, and high quality!” Situ Nan’s eyes became serious as he said, “There is also a rumor that there is a rank above celestial treasure that is very powerful and one has to be at least a Nirvana Shatterer to use it. I think the heaven defying bead is that kind of treasure.”
w.a.n.g Lin touched his forehead. He pondered a bit and then took out the celestial sword. He looked at Situ Nan and said, “Check what rank this sword is at!”
After seeing the celestial sword, Situ Nan’s eyes lit up, he waved his right hand, and the sword flew to him. He held the sword and touched it with his left hand as he slowly a.n.a.lyzed it.
w.a.n.g Lin was very calm. He trusted Situ Nan a lot or else he wouldn’t have let him check the celestial sword.
Shortly after, Situ Nan suddenly opened his eyes. He filled the sword with celestial spiritual energy, which caused it to glow. This glow was more than several times more powerful than when w.a.n.g Lin used it.
Situ Nan whispered, “Good sword!”
He casually swung it with his right hand.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of heaven-shattering explosions came from the air. Then a very large, rift-like wound opened up in the sky.
Fierce cold wind came out from the rift and in the blink of an eye the entire ground was frozen over.
“Good sword!!” Situ Nan touched the sword. He turned his head toward w.a.n.g Lin and asked, “Where did you get this sword?”
“The Celestial Realm. It belonged to an old friend.” w.a.n.g Lin’s eyes were calm the entire time.
“This is a mid quality celestial treasure. Unfortunately, the sword spirit inside it can’t completely merge with the sword, so its power is limited. In addition, this shouldn’t be the only sword. I could feel that something was missing when I swung this sword. There should be four swords. Once they are combined, they will be like a high quality celestial treasure!
“Unfortunately, once a celestial treasure reaches mid quality, they have a soul mark. This is not the same as our souls but a technique to use the treasure. Without it, we can’t activate its full power.
“Good sword!” Situ Nan liked it so much that he almost didn’t want to let it go.
“Mid quality celestial treasure?” w.a.n.g Lin slightly frowned. He thought that it would be a high quality celestial treasure.
Situ Nan’s eyes widened and he said, with disatisfaction, “What? Is a mid quality celestial treasure not good enough for you? In the entire universe, there aren’t that many mid quality celestial treasures, and cultivators can only refine up to low quality celestial treasures. Almost all of the mid quality celestial treasures now are from back before the Celestial Realm collapsed.
“A large amount of the celestial treasures that cultivators have are low quality; there are very few mid quality ones. Once you leave here, you will see how rare mid quality celestial treasures are. Just one is enough to start a war!”
w.a.n.g Lin’s expression slightly changed. He thought back to the Celestial Realm when he saw sword saint Ling Tianhou and some old freaks fight over the celestial swords like crazy.
Those people’s cultivation levels were definitely beyond Ascendant, so Situ Nan’s words had a certain amount of logic to them.
“Mid quality celestial treasures are already rare, but high quality celestial treasures are even more rare. This old man has cultivated for a very long time and even traveled to a few cultivation planets, but I haven’t see a single high quality celestial treasure. You sure are lucky, brat.” Situ Nan snorted.
Situ Nan raised his head and asked, “Do you have the tactic for this sword?”
w.a.n.g Lin pondered a bit and said, “I had some clues, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to find it.”
Situ Nan quickly asked, “Oh? Tell me about it.”
w.a.n.g Lin shooked his head. “Things of the past. There’s no need to bring it up.”
Situ Nan smiled, then he looked at w.a.n.g Lin and said, “How about gifting me this sword?”
w.a.n.g Lin looked at Situ Nan and asked, “Are you being serious?”
Situ Nan hesitated a bit, then he let out a sigh and threw the sword back to w.a.n.g Lin. “Forget it. If it was someone else, I’d just steal it, but if it’s your things, this old face would feel too embarra.s.sed.”
w.a.n.g Lin smiled. He caught the sword and said, “This sword isn’t mine; otherwise, gifting it to you would be fine.”
Situ Nan snorted and said, “If it wasn’t for the fact that this old man’s bag of holding was gone and I had nothing right now, I wouldn’t care for it. This old man had two low quality celestial treasures.”
w.a.n.g Lin’s eyes lit up and he said, with a smile that was not a smile, “Zhuque Zi has a lot of celestial treasures!”
“Not only are all of Zhuque Zi’s celestial treasures low quality, they were also all gathered by the first generation Suzaku. I feel too embarra.s.sed to steal them.” Situ Nan revealed a look of pity.
“Situ, what quality do you think this treasure is?” w.a.n.g Lin pondered a bit, then he slapped his bag of holding and the beast trap appeared. He threw the beast trap, causing the G.o.d Slaying War Chariot to appear before him.
The soul spirit on the chariot quickly appeared with its fierce eyes open and began to roar.
Situ Nan was startled when he saw the chariot, but then his eyes started s.h.i.+ning brightly.