Chapter 324 – Rules Are Meant to Be Broken

With profound foundations, the required resources also rose accordingly. This matter caused Mu Lin to frown deeply, feeling quite troubled.

At the same time, Mu Lin did not hide this from Si Ye and Master Meng Rui.

The resources he needed still required their help and planning to secure.

“With a powerful Divine Soul, one portion of Gang Qi is not enough!”

Upon hearing Mu Lin’s troubles, Si Ye… was not disappointed. Instead, a smile appeared on her face.

This was naturally something to be happy about.

As a scion of a noble family, Si Ye understood one thing clearly: those who eat meat are brave and fierce, those who eat grains are wise and skillful, those who consume qi are divine and long-lived… In this world, eating more has never been a bad thing.

Only by consuming more can one become stronger and accumulate greater foundations.

Therefore, Mu Lin’s high demand for resources was precisely a reflection of his powerful Divine Soul.

Moreover, Si Ye had a personal motive.

‘Although my Chu Family established a connection with Mu Lin when he was weak, we haven’t given him many favors before. In fact, ever since the Clone Cultivation True Intent Diagram appeared, not only have we not given Mu Lin any favors, but we also owe him some favors. This situation is not conducive to maintaining our relationship with him.’

‘Originally, I was troubled about how to bring us closer, but now that you have needs, that makes things easier.’

While feeling pleased, Si Ye spoke up: “How much Gang Qi do you need? I’ll request it from the family right away.”

Yan Yunyu: “Me too. My authority has been raised to a level just below the heir’s. Brother Mu, I can allocate as much Gang Qi as you need.”

Master Meng Rui: “Let me help as well. Thanks to your puppet cultivation, I’ve earned quite a few Spirit Stones recently. I can spare some Heavenly Gang Qi.”

Thus, with the three of them speaking up, Mu Lin’s Gang Qi shortage was easily resolved.

In fact, in their eagerness to provide more Gang Qi and draw closer to Mu Lin, the three women eyed each other with some hostility.

Among the group, only Dongfang Ya remained detached, smiling as she watched the three compete from the sidelines… Chu Lingluo was also thinking about how to raise Spirit Stones to help Mu Lin obtain Gang Qi.

Seeing the atmosphere growing tense, Mu Lin immediately stepped forward to stop the conflict.

“Don’t rush. I need a lot of Gang Qi—at least ten portions, and up to thirty-three. All of you can help.”

Si Ye: “…”

Dongfang Ya: “…”

Meng Rui: “…”

Chu Lingluo: “Hmm, that’s a lot…”

Upon hearing the amount of Gang Qi Mu Lin required, everyone was shocked. Among them, only Chu Lingluo was troubled about how to gather the Gang Qi.

What shocked Meng Rui and the others the most was that Mu Lin’s Divine Soul could be so powerful as to bear such a large amount of Gang Qi.

“At least ten portions, up to thirty-three… Are you even human?”

It was Dongfang Ya who spoke, her gaze toward Mu Lin filled with strange complexity.

It must be understood that while Heaven Grade Gang Qi is powerful, it is also extremely difficult to bear. Ordinary cultivators, and even some minor geniuses, dare not refine Heaven Grade Gang Qi even if they obtain it—their Divine Soul foundations are insufficient, leaving them unqualified to bear such powerful Heaven Grade Gang Qi.

Only Prodigies can refine Heaven Grade Gang Qi into their Divine Souls.

And even for Prodigies, their Divine Soul strength has limits. Being able to refine one portion is already a source of pride.

If they could refine two to three portions, they would be considered top-tier among prodigies.

Five to seven portions would make them the strongest contenders for the position of heir in aristocratic families.

As for nine portions, that was the level of strength possessed by the direct disciples of major sects, and not all disciples from renowned sects could refine nine portions of Heaven Grade Gang Qi.

Nine portions was essentially the limit for prodigies in the mortal realm.

But Mu Lin? At a minimum, ten portions; at a maximum, thirty-three portions. This surpassed ordinary geniuses by thirty-three times. Even prodigies at the level of direct disciples were utterly crushed by Mu Lin.

Faced with someone whose Divine Soul was so profound, how could they not be shocked?

Especially when they thought of themselves, they felt somewhat disheartened.

“Master Meng Rui, how many portions of Gang Qi did you refine back then?”

“How many? Hah, you overestimate me. Back then, I had no family background, nor any good cultivation methods. Relying on tricks with puppets, I barely managed to refine half a portion of Heaven Grade Gang Qi. What about you?”

Si Ye: “I refined a full portion…”

In the past, Si Ye had felt some pride in the amount of Heavenly Gang Qi she had refined.

But now, compared to Mu Lin’s exaggerated Divine Soul, she just felt weary.

Fortunately, she quickly shook off this emotion and calmly said, “I understand your needs. I will collect Aurora Celestial Qi for you in the shortest possible time. However, because you require a large quantity, and Aurora Celestial Qi is of high quality, scarce, and difficult to gather, it will take some time.”

Hearing this, Mu Lin nodded understandingly:

“Collecting thirty-three portions all at once, and in a short time, is indeed a lot… Since it’s hard to gather, you don’t have to limit yourself to Aurora Celestial Qi. You can collect other types of Gang Qi as well, as long as it’s Xuanqing Gang.”

In truth, after fusing his cultivation methods into one and transforming them into the True Spirit Karma Diagram, Mu Lin’s foundation had become extremely profound. He lacked not only Gang Qi but also Baleful Qi.

Gang and Sha corresponded to each other, allowing spirit and flesh to merge and yin and yang to unite.

Fortunately, while Mu Lin lacked Gang Qi, he did not lack Baleful Qi—although the Grave Lord’s Realm had closed, Mu Lin’s Province City God was still stationed there.

At that moment, the Province City God had dispatched many Substitute Paper Figures to the front section of the Grave Lord’s Realm to collect Central Wuji Sha for Mu Lin.

“Thirty-three portions of Central Wuji Sha… I have a feeling that after refining all this Baleful Qi, my physical foundation will become as solid as a mountain.”

…

Since Central Wuji Sha was abundant, he would use it entirely to build his foundation.

As for Aurora Celestial Qi, since it was scarce, he would gather more and fuse them freely. Mu Lin spoke casually about this matter.

But after hearing this, Dongfang Ya angrily flicked her finger, using Spiritual Energy to give Mu Lin a sharp tap on the head.

“Fool! Didn’t I tell you that both Sha Refinement and Gang Condensation emphasize purity? How dare you let foreign energies enter your body, let alone your Divine Soul! Aren’t you afraid of conflicting forces tearing your Divine Soul apart?”

Mu Lin’s knowledge of cultivation was mostly taught by Dongfang Ya.

Now that he had made such a fundamental mistake, Dongfang Ya was naturally the most upset.

Meanwhile, Si Ye and Meng Rui were secretly chuckling. Clearly, they also thought Mu Lin lacked common knowledge of the cultivation world, which was why he had spoken so carelessly.

So utterly mistaken, it made the two women sigh in relief, thinking that although Mu Lin’s talent might be monstrous, he was ultimately still a youth, ignorant of many common principles.

‘Indeed, there is no one completely flawless. Mu Lin has great talent, but he is still too young and has much to learn…’

Just as they were thinking this, Mu Lin’s next words immediately froze Dongfang Ya’s movements.

And Si Ye and Meng Rui, who had been secretly laughing, were also stunned by his words.

Mu Lin: “Stop, stop, stop, don’t scold me. I wasn’t being reckless, nor was I impatient, and I certainly didn’t forget your teachings. I just think that my Divine Soul is strong enough to be like the ocean, capable of containing and accommodating different forces, which is why I want to refine different types of Gang Qi.”

“……”

“……”

“……”

Upon hearing this, all three women felt as if they were the clowns in the story.

At the same time, they were also at a loss for words.

—Whether it was Sha Refinement or Gang Condensation, it was best to cultivate only one type of Baleful Qi or Gang Qi. This ensured purity and safety, a principle that had been common knowledge in the cultivation world for thousands of years.

If anyone else dared to challenge this common knowledge, Dongfang Ya would have beaten them up and scolded them harshly.

But the one challenging it now was Mu Lin.

He had already clashed with the common knowledge of the cultivation world several times, but in the end, it was the Gang Qi, Baleful Qi, and the cultivation world’s common knowledge that had repeatedly given Mu Lin face.

Thus, when he said his Divine Soul could contain multiple types of Gang Qi… whether it was Si Ye, Meng Rui, or Dongfang Ya, none dared to refute him lightly.

‘What has always been true simply doesn’t apply to him… He truly can break the rules!’

…

Afraid of being proven wrong, none of the three women dared to offer advice easily.

However, out of concern for Mu Lin, Yan Yunyu was the first to speak up: “Brother Mu, as you said yourself, you only think it’s possible—you’re not completely certain. Therefore, there is still some risk. And since there is risk, and there’s no urgent matter at hand, it’s best to avoid it if we can…”

Before Yan Yunyu could finish, Mu Lin nodded and said:

“You’re right, I’m not completely certain. In that case, I’ll test it out before making a decision.”

With that, Mu Lin took out the Celestial Thunder Qi that the East Sea King had given him.

“I won’t absorb it all at once—just a little to test it out. If it succeeds without any issues, then everything will be fine.”

“But even if it doesn’t succeed, it’s no problem. I have the Substitute Paper Figure, which can easily transfer any injuries I sustain.”

Remembering how Mu Lin could even transfer injuries like a shattered skull or a ruptured heart, the women felt their worries ease.

Then, Dongfang Ya spoke up: “Test it in front of us. If the Gang Qi in your body conflicts, we can help.”

“Alright.”

With that, Mu Lin opened the bottle of Celestial Thunder Qi and inhaled a small amount into his body.

However, what he considered a small amount made both Si Ye and Dongfang Ya feel utterly exhausted after seeing how much he had absorbed.

“Is this a little?”

“That’s definitely too much. When I was Tempering Gang Into Soul, I only dared to refine this amount over three days.”

Meng Rui: “Quiet down. This may be a lot for us, but Mu Lin is different—for him, this truly is just a tiny amount… Besides, what we need to do now is wait quietly for him to refine it without disturbing… him…”

Before she could finish speaking, Meng Rui noticed that Mu Lin, who had closed his eyes while absorbing the Gang Qi, had now reopened them.

At the same time, a flash of lightning briefly flickered in Mu Lin’s eyes.

Seeing this, Si Ye and the others were left utterly speechless.

At this moment, they fully understood that in just the span of a breath, Mu Lin had already refined this wisp of Gang Qi.

They also realized that even an unusual type of Gang Qi could not hinder Mu Lin—just as he had said, his Divine Soul was as vast and boundless as the ocean, capable of containing all rivers!

This time, the speed at which Mu Lin refined the Gang Qi and the sheer strength of his Divine Soul completely shattered the worldview of the women.

Dongfang Ya, who was hit the hardest by this, even felt a hint of resignation creeping in.

“You succeeded, and so effortlessly… To think I was worried about a monster like you… Hah… I was being unnecessary.”

(End of Chapter)