As Zhang Fan watched Luo Xiaoxiao successfully enter the stone statue, he turned to look at the crowd in the great hall. They were all trying desperately, and only Liu Mu had managed to enter a stone statue.
"Truly worthy of being the top figure among those who can cultivate a golden Nascent Soul. I wonder which power they hail from?" Zhang Fan murmured softly, then looked towards Lin Haotian and Wuchen Sword Immortal.
Lin Haotian had chosen the ancient giant spirit race stone statue, hundreds of feet tall. He was currently taking difficult steps, trying to approach the statue. However, a powerful repulsive force seemed to surround it. Even with Lin Haotian's Saint Body at minor success, it was hard to resist, and every step was an immense struggle.
Finally, he felt the repulsive force reach the limit of his physical body. Blood began to seep from every pore, staining his bronze skin crimson. He let out a furious roar, fully activating his Saint Body at minor success, and transformed into a giant hundreds of feet tall to confront it.
"The path of body refinement is not about blindly tempering the physical body; you must also study the structure of the body, the composition of blood. You need the confidence to shake the heavens and the earth, and also the meticulous patience to discover and explore from the minute details." Lin Haotian, who had been tense, gradually relaxed upon hearing this. He seemed to gain some enlightenment, and his posture gradually straightened.
If he only knew how to resist, with his Nascent Soul cultivation, how could he possibly withstand the methods left behind by a Soul Transformation cultivator?
Zhang Fan glanced at him and then ignored him. He walked behind Wuchen Sword Immortal and transmitted his voice, "The Dao cultivated during the Nascent Soul stage is vastly different from that of the Incarnation stage. Do not think of comprehending it at this current stage. What you need to do is to sense his Dao principles and find your own path forward."
With a gentle word, Wuchen Sword Immortal felt as if he had been enlightened by a sudden revelation. He looked at the stone statue again and found that what he saw was completely different from before. When he stopped being fixated on one point and followed Zhang Fan's guidance, he gradually found his direction.
With Zhang Fan's guidance, Lin Haotian, Wuchen Sword Immortal, and Tianhua Heavenly Monarch successively resonated with the Dao principles of their stone statues and successfully entered them.
The successive success in resonating with Dao principles naturally attracted the attention of many. They examined carefully and discovered that the four individuals who had achieved this resonance were all Zhang Fan's disciples and followers. Upon reflection, their hearts churned like stormy seas, and their gaze towards Zhang Fan became somewhat fearful.
If he could only resonate with Dao principles himself, it would merely indicate his exceptional talent. However, he could guide others, and what's more, the Dao cultivated by these three were completely different from Zhang Fan's. What did this signify?
Regarding the fearful gazes cast upon him, Zhang Fan merely shook his head and smiled. For him to do these things was as simple as a top university professor solving elementary school problems; it was not worth mentioning.
"Master, you guided them to successively resonate with Dao principles, yet you didn't guide me. Do you not consider me a person?" the Blood Demon Flood Dragon asked, patting its bulging belly as it ambled around the hall. It had examined every stone statue, but felt none were suitable for it.
"After eating the Form Transformation Immortal Grass, you truly consider yourself human?" Zhang Fan shook his head and said, "You possess the Blood Dragon bloodline within you and walk the path of bloodline evolution. The inheritances in this hall are all Dao principles of human cultivators and are not suitable for you."
"Then I came here in vain?" The Blood Demon Flood Dragon's plump face was filled with disappointment as it sighed.
"Cultivate the Blood Dragon Body Refinement Technique I taught you diligently. It is superior to any inheritance here," Zhang Fan said, then turned and walked towards the stone statue at the far end.
A Nascent Soul cultivator had tried countless times and failed. Even his Dao heart could not bear it, and despair had set in.
But when he saw Zhang Fan's figure, he suddenly thought of something, and a glimmer of hope reignited in his heart.
He quickly walked up to Zhang Fan and knelt down decisively, pleading, "Senior Zhang Fan, please offer some guidance. I am willing to follow you for life, serving you diligently."
Zhang Fan looked at him expressionlessly, his demeanor calm and indifferent. He said nothing.
With the first, there were soon a second and a third. In a short while, over a dozen Nascent Soul cultivators knelt before Zhang Fan, begging for guidance. Some even willingly offered to be slaves, just to obtain a single truthful word to break through their bottleneck.
Zhang Fan looked at the group of Nascent Soul cultivators before him. The weakest among them had reached the Five Tribulations realm, while the strongest had reached the Eight Tribulations realm, making them top-tier experts on the World Heart Continent, enjoying endless glory wherever they went.
If one could recruit such a group of powerful individuals, even a force like the Flying Immortal Manor would be willing to pay a considerable price.
Shen Feichen also noticed this scene. Seeing such a spectacle, he finally understood that no matter how much the Six Royal Palaces valued Zhang Fan, they had ultimately underestimated him.
If he were willing, he could likely establish a top-tier force comparable to their Six Royal Palaces in a very short time. Given enough time, perhaps all except the Canghai Hall would be surpassed by Zhang Fan.
However, this was merely what Shen Feichen thought. The Wu Shan Star Domain was too small and limited their vision. A group of top Nascent Soul cultivators following him was not a trivial matter for a top force, but for Zhang Fan, his heart remained unmoved. He said lightly, "Dao cannot be easily imparted. As Nascent Soul cultivators, you must all understand this principle."
"For each of you, there is hope of entering the stone statue, but that lies within yourselves. If you place this hope on me, you will undoubtedly extinguish this last sliver of opportunity."
After speaking, Zhang Fan walked directly towards the stone statue at the far end of the hall, leaving a group of Nascent Soul cultivators looking at each other in dismay.
Zhang Fan's tone was gentle, but it plunged the group of Nascent Soul cultivators into despair. They had fought their way to this point and become a fortunate few, finally arriving alive on the second level of the Da Luo Hall.
If they had not reached this point, they could have maintained a more relaxed mindset. But with the Dao principles of Soul Transformation so close yet out of reach, such torment was enough to drive most Nascent Soul cultivators with weak Dao hearts to madness.
Most cultivators had given up. Only a very small number of cultivators carefully pondered Zhang Fan's words, returned to their stone statues, and continued to try.
...