The deep and resonant sound of the storm continually roared in the depths of the Blood Sea, causing waves of tumult, carrying an astonishing momentum.

In the depths of this Blood Sea, there was a hollow area, two figures, they seemed to have transformed into two bottomless pits, greedily devouring the surging Ancient Witch Qi around them at an incredibly frenzied speed.

With this absorption, Ling Chen’s body had turned entirely blood red, veins and arteries all bulging, making him appear like an Ancient Demon Lord.

Crack! Crack!

As the Ancient Witch Qi drilled into Ling Chen’s body, he was stunned to see that his bones, muscles, meridians, and so on were writhing, with black threads spreading throughout his body, like giant worms invading his skeleton, a chilling sight.

"What terrifying Ancient Witch Qi."

Ling Chen inhaled sharply, filled with shock; the energy contained in those strands of Ancient Witch Qi was almost terrifyingly pure and refined.

This stuff was too nourishing, so much so that even Ling Chen could barely withstand it!

Moreover, this Ancient Witch Energy was not merely pure energy—it included some mysterious forces that could easily cause one to lose their mind or even succumb to a Heart Demon!

Fortunately, the Human Emperor’s Avatar was nearby, controlling the rhythm and density of this Ancient Witch Qi. If Ling Chen showed any signs of being unable to sustain it, the Human Emperor would step in to alleviate the pressure.

With the strength of the Human Emperor’s Will, assisting Ling Chen to guard his mind and expel any Heart Demons was no difficult task.

After five days of such absorption, Ling Chen’s cultivation had reached the critical point of the Fifth Level of Sky Apex Realm, and his Ling Tian Sword Scripture had also broken through the prior Fifth Rotation of Refining Spirit to reach the Sixth Rotation of Spirit Sea Formation. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

The breakthrough in cultivation technique instantly allowed the amount of True Qi his dantian could store to more than double.

Five short days in this Blood Sea surpassed three months of arduous training.

"Next, it’s time to break through to the Sixth Layer of Sky Apex."

Ling Chen had lingered at the Sky Apex Realm fifth level for quite a long time. Although his current strength far exceeded his cultivation, the promotion of cultivation could not be neglected. Though one should advance steadily, one must decisively improve when the time comes.

Swish...

With Ling Chen’s channeling of energy, the True Qi in his dantian suddenly surged at high speed, and during this surge, the ocean of True Qi underwent a qualitative enhancement, rapidly skyrocketing.

When the True Qi transformed at high speed to a certain extent, a series of crackling sounds suddenly erupted within Ling Chen’s dantian—sounds that occur only when True Qi is compressed to its limit.

In the next moment, the flow of water in the Blood Sea fluctuated intensely, and after undergoing a series of violent tremors, Ling Chen’s aura finally exploded!

In this instant, Ling Chen slowly opened his eyes, two beams of sword light flickered in the void, and his aura had unequivocally risen to the level of the Sixth Layer of Sky Apex.

The promotion of cultivation not only lifted Ling Chen’s strength to another level. Though Ling Chen had been able to effortlessly leap levels to challenge and instantly kill a Half-Saint in theory, if he really encountered a Half-Saint powerhouse with deep foundations, he might not have been a match. However, now, Ling Chen possessed the confidence to fight.

Furthermore, this improvement was not only an enhancement of cultivation but also a substantial strengthening of the meridians, bones, and flesh. This Ancient Witch Energy, refined from the Essence Blood of countless powerhouses, tremendously enhanced his physical body, undoubtedly laying the foundation for forming a Saint Body in the future.

Ling Chen had already condensed a Perfect Sword Spirit Physique; however, this physique was offensive and not strong in defense. Now that this Ancient Witch Energy was refined by Ling Chen, if enough energy is gathered, it could potentially form the legendary Ancient Witch’s Body.

The character "Witch" has long been supreme in the Ancient Times, existing before the Three Emperors and Five Emperors. There were rumored to be numerous Ancient Great Witches, such as Zhu Rong and Gonggong, figures only existing in myths. Yet, myths are intertwined with reality; Ling Chen would never have believed them before, but now he was seven or eight parts convinced.

The Ancient Witch’s Body is a type of celestial spiritual body, far superior to a Perfect Sword Spirit Physique. However, such a physique cannot be cultivated merely by absorbing a small amount of Ancient Witch Energy; even the East Sea Witch God might not possess the Ancient Witch’s Body.

At most, it would be a Half-Witch Physique.

Nonetheless, Ling Chen did not expect to achieve an Ancient Witch’s Body, as he was not a Refined Body School powerhouse, making it an unlikely development. Strengthening his body and bolstering his defense would suffice.

With this thought, Ling Chen closed his eyes once again, stabilizing his cultivation on one hand and continuing to use this energy to strengthen his body on the other.

Another three days passed.

Under such wild and greedy absorption, Ling Chen’s body finally reached the limit of absorbing Ancient Witch Energy and could no longer continue. After all, he was not cultivating the Witch Fiend Sect’s techniques, and his Lingtian True Qi more or less clashed with Ancient Witch Energy, even though it had been converted. Over-intake would eventually result in some incompatibility.

Upon realizing this situation, Ling Chen immediately stopped absorbing Ancient Witch Energy further, or else his body could potentially develop some issues.

Watching as the Human Emperor’s Avatar continued absorbing energy, Ling Chen did not disturb him. Instead, he glanced toward the lower part of Witch Mountain Blood Sea, where the crimson hue grew richer, and the transmitted energy fluctuations were astonishing. "Is this where Senior Sister Xia is cultivating? Taking a look shouldn’t pose any problem."

With his eyes slightly narrowed, Ling Chen activated his True Qi and swam towards the lower part of the Blood Sea. Originally, the deepest area of this Blood Sea could only be withstood by the Witch God, but now, because Ling Chen’s body had absorbed a significant amount of Ancient Witch Energy, and his body strength was far greater than when he first entered, as long as he didn’t go below ten thousand meters into the Blood Sea, there shouldn’t be any major issues.

His body swam downward like a fish in the Blood Sea, and after descending about two thousand meters, Ling Chen clearly felt the pressure here increased more than tenfold. Even he dared not continue further.

Ling Chen could only push his vision to the limit, activating his Gold Sword Pupil at last, seeing in the very center of the Blood Sea, a particularly graceful and moving silhouette wrapped in an overwhelmingly vast energy, like a giant blood cocoon, with terrifying energy continuously flowing from all directions toward the blood cocoon.