My Core is the Boss-Chapter 154.1: Backdoor

Lord Great Wisdom said to Qi Yuan, "Hmm... Since you don't want to destroy your Golden Core, why don't you destroy other's core and use it to form your Nascent Soul instead?"

Qi Yuan swept his gaze over everyone. In the end, he said bitterly, "Their Golden Cores are too weak, unworthy of me."

Some of the prodigies became sour.

A prodigy couldn't help but say, "We may be lacking in talent, but I condensed an Earth-grade Golden Core using ten thousand years of Profound Yin Energy. Once my Golden Core emerges, everything within three li will turn into Profound Yin. Fellow Daoist, do you still call this weak?"

When the show girls heard this, their faces were brimming with envy. For ordinary cultivators, being able to form a Golden Core at all was cause for celebration. Those able to form Profound-grade, Earth-grade, or Heaven-grade Golden Cores were one in a hundred million.

In the Hundred Nations, were there not well over a billion living beings? Yet apart from Qi Yuan, the highest among them was Kang Fulu's First-grade Golden Core.

Qi Yuan glanced at that prodigy and said with a face full of regret, "Weak."

Three li turning into Profound Yin? What kind of crap is that?!

Heck, Qi Yuan could've chopped the prodigy up even when he was only at the Qi Refinement realm!

The prodigy sneered coldly. "Your Golden Core is just that good, huh? Why don't you show us, then?" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Qi Yuan shook his head. "If I do that, I'm afraid all of you will die."

A Star Golden Core was not something one could casually summon.

Naturally, everyone thought Qi Yuan was just bragging.

The prodigy mocked, "Just say that you're chickened out!"

The other prodigy laughed. "Lu Cha, maybe his core is Immortal grade, that's why he looks down on yours."

Qi Yuan didn't bother responding. These people were too young. It would take them a few thousand years before they could be considered his white moonlight. He really couldn't care less.

Thus, Qi Yuan continued seeking guidance from Lord Great Wisdom. "Their Golden Cores are too weak. I really can't bring myself to like them. Is there any other method?"

Lord Great Wisdom said, "Do you know what being a Nascent Soul means?"

Qi Yuan froze. To be honest, he really didn't know. Generally speaking, wasn't it just destroying the core to form the infant, with the soul taking residence?

"Actually, I don't know either," Lord Great Wisdom said. "But based on my many years of reading ancient texts, I speculate that the Nascent Soul is the foundation of the Yin Spirit. As everyone knows, once one steps into the Yin Spirit realm, one can give birth to a primordial soul and roam the Great Void. How do you think this primordial soul is born?"

One would assume it was the cultivator's spirit, but it was far more profound than that.

Upon reaching the Core Formation realm, one could project the soul outside the body. The primordial soul was a higher existence, capable of entering the legendary Great Void.

Qi Yuan couldn't help but ask, "Are you saying, the primordial soul evolves from the Nascent Soul?"

Lord Great Wisdom shared his discovery with Qi Yuan. "Exactly. That's my conjecture as well. Since both contain the word 'soul', there must be a connection! Which is to say, the primordial souls of all Yin Spirits and even Yang Spirits are Nascent Souls."

Upon hearing this, Qi Yuan stared wide-eyed at the star projections in the firmament. "So immortals and gods are all Nascent Souls?"

Lord Great Wisdom said gravely, "Don't tell anyone else. There are tremendous karmic consequences involved."

The show girls and the prodigies all fell silent. Immortals and gods are Nascent Souls? What a bold claim!

"Rest assured. I won't tell anyone else," Qi Yuan said, sweeping a glance over everyone on the flower boat.

For some reason, everyone present felt a chill in their hearts.

Lord Great Wisdom nodded. "Do you know what my Nascent Soul is?"

Qi Yuan asked, "What is it?"

Lord Great Wisdom's expression turned sorrowful. "My Dao companion suffered qi deviation and perished. Her body condensed into a Golden Core. I took her hair and refined it into an external elixir, which became my Nascent Soul. Hopefully, when I advance to the Yin Spirit realm one day, it can give birth to her primordial soul."

Qi Yuan fell silent. He wasn't good at comforting people and simply said, "Best wishes."

"I'll take that as a blessing," Lord Great Wisdom's eyes flashed with sharp light. "One day, she will be reborn from my Nascent Soul, rising from the flames!"

Qi Yuan's thoughts drifted far away. He thought of the Five Ancestors in the Five Elements Forbidden Land, who had sacrificed themselves for his sake.

Based on Lord Great Wisdom's theory, if Qi Yuan stepped into the Yin Spirit realm, could those old acquaintances emerge from his Nascent Soul?

Of course, Qi Yuan was only indulging in these thoughts.

Then, Lord Great Wisdom said, "Golden Core and Nascent Soul coexisting is already an act against heaven. You may suffer heavenly retribution. Take care, fellow Daoist."

Qi Yuan nodded. "Mhm."

The True Sun Fire had already been ignited upon his Star Golden Core. The sky was the limit. Given enough time, he could surely devour all the stars. Even without reaching the Nascent Soul realm, he could still become stronger by simply upgrading his core.

Thus, even if he didn't perfect the Qi Yuan Scripture, he could slowly grow into a peak expert across the myriad worlds.

Why bother forming a Nascent Soul if he could become invincible through his Golden Core alone?

However, Qi Yuan had ambition: he wanted to strengthen himself in every aspect. Hence, perfecting the Qi Yuan Scripture and forming a Nascent Soul were a must.

Qi Yuan said sincerely, "Thank you for guiding me. I've learned a lot from you."

The path of the Nascent Soul was not yet fully clear, but Qi Yuan already had many ideas.

***

Night fell, and Qi Yuan returned to his cave residence.

Iceberg Empress sent more than a hundred cultivation techniques to Qi Yuan. They all came from her sisters. Among them were four Heaven-tier techniques, dozens of Profound-tier ones, and countless Jade-tier techniques.

Qi Yuan instantly went from a pauper to a temporary rich man. With so many techniques, it should be enough to upgrade the Qi Yuan Scripture, right?

Qi Yuan immediately devoted himself wholeheartedly to the great undertaking of revising his cultivation method.

Time flew by. The day of the Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle drew closer and closer.

More and more prodigies arrived in Cloud City. Every day, one could see prodigies flying through the skies above the city.

Qi Yuan paid no attention to the outside world, focusing solely on perfecting the Qi Yuan Scripture.

One day, he suddenly woke up with a start, muttering to himself, "In two more days, it'll be the Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle..."

To be honest, the Qi Yuan Scripture had reached a critical juncture. He didn't want to participate in the Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle. Still, he recalled that placing in the top twenty would grant qualification to enter Moonwatch Continent. Let's not forget the sect master's instructions.

Qi Yuan's gaze hardened. "Looks like I still have to take part in the prodigy battle."

Thus, he emerged from his cave residence.

Outside, Kang Fulu was having a heart-to-heart conversation with a catgirl.

Jiang Ya was sitting on a bodhi tree not far away, seemingly pondering some difficult problem.

Seeing Qi Yuan, Kang Fulu seemed surprised. "Junior Brother, where are you going?"

Qi Yuan replied, "To participate in the Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle."

"Today?” Kang Fulu was horrified. He slapped his thigh, thinking he had forgotten the date. When he checked the calendar, he stared at Qi Yuan in confusion. "Isn't it two days from now? Why are you going now?"

Qi Yuan said softly, "I'm going to see if there's any back door I can take."

"Back door?" Kang Fulu looked even more puzzled. He called out to Jiang Ya in the distance, "Is there a back door for the Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle?"

Jiang Ya snapped out of her thoughts and glanced at Qi Yuan. "The Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle is jointly decided by three Yin Spirits. There is no back door."

"There is no back door in the world to begin with," Qi Yuan said matter-of-factly. "But when enough people walk in, one appears."

For some reason, after saying that, he felt the line sounded a bit strange.

Kang Fulu stared at Qi Yuan, dumbfounded. "Junior Brother, I wish you success in finding a back door."