"Failed!"
Zhang Fan stopped practicing the True Intent of the Lightning Sword. The Dao patterns he had been carving for half a year were beginning to strain his immense divine consciousness, yet the Golden Core Dao patterns of the Lightning Sword were still a far cry from complete.
Furthermore, the carving speed of Golden Core Dao patterns slowed drastically in the later stages. In the final month, Zhang Fan could clearly feel that the Lightning Sword Golden Core Dao patterns had made no progress whatsoever; he was wasting his efforts.
"Could it be that these nine Golden Core Dao patterns are truly the limit for Golden Cores in this world, and it's impossible to break through no matter what?"
For the first time, Zhang Fan felt doubt.
In the past, Golden Core realm cultivators could at most carve nine Golden Core Dao patterns. Zhang Fan had previously attributed this to their insufficient strength and fortune.
But Zhang Fan felt he was different.
In terms of internal conditions, his Nascent Core was more powerful than that of ordinary Golden Core cultivators. Even after carving nine Golden Core Dao patterns, he still felt his Nascent Core was incredibly stable, capable of supporting more Dao patterns.
Simultaneously, during the Nascent Condensation stage, he had cultivated the Minor Accomplishment Divine Body, making his physical strength comparable to the most powerful peak Golden Core realm experts, able to withstand the impact of extreme Dao energies.
His divine consciousness power also far surpassed cultivators of the same level, being comparable to the top-tier Golden Core realm cultivators.
In terms of external conditions, he had the aid of the Yuan-level immortal fruit, the Ziwu Yuanguo, and the superior cultivation environment of the Golden Light Immortal Mansion. Yet, even with all this, he could not break the limit and carve the tenth Golden Core Dao pattern. This failure struck Zhang Fan a heavy blow.
"Forget it!"
As Zhang Fan ceased carving the Lightning Sword Golden Core Dao patterns, the unformed Golden Core Dao patterns shimmering with lightning light atop his Nascent Core began to dissipate. In less than half a day, the Dao patterns he had painstakingly carved for half a year vanished entirely from his Nascent Core.
"Hmph!"
Even with Zhang Fan's composure, anger flared. His Nascent Core vibrated slightly, and the solidified clear stream wrapping around it instantly shattered and dispersed.
Zhang Fan prepared to end his cultivation and go for a walk outside to soothe his unwillingness.
"En?"
Just as Zhang Fan was about to rise, he suddenly noticed that the clear stream he had dispersed was gathering again. It began to rotate, and beside his Nascent Core, it condensed into a bead the size of a dragon's eye, resembling his Nascent Core.
"What is this?"
This sudden sight froze Zhang Fan in place. Then, he reacted, and his eyes erupted with an incomparably joyous gleam.
"Could this be a second Nascent Core?"
Zhang Fan was filled with disbelief. After all, every life form, regardless of its kind, could only condense one Nascent Core. He had never heard of a cultivator condensing two Nascent Cores in his current or previous life.
"Whether it's a Nascent Core or not, I'll know if I try."
Zhang Fan stepped out of the Golden Light Immortal Mansion and soared into the sky, reaching an altitude of several thousand meters. Here, white clouds drifted, and fierce winds howled, making his robes flutter and rustle.
With a casual wave, the ancient bronze sword appeared in his hand. Zhang Fan attempted to mobilize the power of both Nascent Cores and unleashed a powerful sword strike!
Boom!
A deafening explosion echoed through the sky. A long rainbow pierced the void, leaving a sword mark several kilometers long in the sky thousands of meters high, its sharp sword intent lingering.
"So strong!"
Zhang Fan's eyes were filled with surprise. The power of this single strike was a level stronger than the full-power attack of a cultivator like Dao Venerable, who had condensed a Grade Two Upper-tier Golden Core. It was comparable to some weaker Grade One Golden Cores.
It's important to remember that although he had carved nine Golden Core Dao patterns, they were still merely on his Nascent Core, not yet condensed into a Golden Core. Previously, relying solely on the Nascent Core's spiritual power, he was only on par with Dao Venerable. It was only through his physical strength that he could overwhelm him.
Now, empowered by the Nascent Core condensed from the Ziwu Yuanguo, his strength had directly advanced by a level.
Zhang Fan sheathed the ancient bronze sword and practiced the moves from the Thirty-Six Forms of the Battle Emperor. He did not use any of his physical strength, relying entirely on his spiritual power. Each move and every stance unleashed incredibly potent energy.
No matter how Zhang Fan exerted himself, the Nascent Core condensed from the Ziwu Yuanguo remained as stable as a rock, showing no signs of cracking, with spiritual power continuously flowing from it.
"Haha, exhilarating!"
Zhang Fan stood in the void, letting out a heaven-shattering roar!
"I didn't break through the limit of nine Golden Core Dao patterns, but I unexpectedly condensed a second Nascent Core."
After confirming that the second Nascent Core could withstand his body's power, Zhang Fan dove down and returned to the Golden Light Immortal Mansion. This time, he would go into seclusion again to carve another Nascent Core containing nine Golden Core Dao patterns.
After careful consideration, Zhang Fan decided to carve the Lightning Dao's Golden Core Dao patterns onto the second Nascent Core.
During the Nascent Condensation stage, cultivators initially form their Nascent Core, stepping onto the path of the Golden Core Dao. Their understanding of the True Intent of the Dao is extremely shallow. Some cultivators, by chance, break through to the Heaven and Man realm and condense a Nascent Core, but because they cannot comprehend the True Intent of the Dao, they can never break through to the Golden Core realm.
Most cultivators in the Nascent Condensation stage can only comprehend one or two True Intents of the Dao, ultimately only condensing a Grade Three Golden Core.
Being able to comprehend four or more True Intents of the Dao in the Nascent Condensation stage and condensing a Grade Two Golden Core marks a cultivator as an outstanding figure among the Golden Core realm.
As for those who comprehend seven or more True Intents of the Dao and condense a Grade One Golden Core, they are prodigies within the Golden Core realm. This can be seen from the number of Grade One Golden Core experts in the Wushan Star Domain; they are incredibly rare.
In every era, the number of Grade One Golden Core cultivators in the Wushan Star Domain does not exceed a handful.
Furthermore, cultivators comprehending two Daos simultaneously in the Nascent Condensation stage are practically nonexistent.
Comprehending the True Intent of the Dao is already an extremely difficult task. Achieving mastery in one Dao is challenging enough. No cultivator would waste time comprehending the True Intents of other Daos.
Take Xue Jing for example. During his Nascent Condensation stage, he cultivated the Blood Sea Dao and comprehended six True Intents of the Blood Sea Dao. With his talent, comprehending six True Intents of the Blood Sea Dao was his limit. If he were to try and comprehend other Great Daos at this point, he would be influenced by the Blood Sea Dao, and the difficulty of comprehension would increase thousands of times over.
Therefore, in the Nascent Condensation stage, every cultivator focuses solely on comprehending one Dao.
Even if they, through various fortunate encounters, condensed a second Nascent Core, they could only abandon it because they could not carve Golden Core Dao patterns onto it.
But Zhang Fan was different...
...