Meng Hao's expression darkened as he looked at the two wooden swords, only three inches away from Shangguan Tu. But these three inches were like a barrier that Meng Hao, with his cultivation, found difficult to cross.
After all, at this moment, Shangguan Tu could no longer be considered a Qi Condensation cultivator. He was about to enter the Foundation Establishment realm. Once the elixir lake in his body condensed into a Dao platform, he would not hesitate to kill Meng Hao. Even if Meng Hao was at the ninth level of Qi Condensation, he would not be able to withstand a single blow.
This was the difference between Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment, and it was an eternal, unchanging truth between heaven and earth. If a Qi Condensation cultivator could not defy the heavens, they could not kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator!
It was like the opposition between a child and a strong man; even if the strong man was weak, he could still crush the child with one hand.
But now, a Foundation Establishment cultivator would appear right in front of Meng Hao in just half an hour. Meng Hao's chances were naturally very small, perhaps even nonexistent.
Moreover, as time passed, the shadow of death would descend even faster. Even if Meng Hao could escape now, half an hour later, as Shangguan Tu said, even if he ran to the ends of the earth, he would surely die.
"What do I do now?"
Blood vessels crisscrossed Meng Hao's eyes. At this moment, not only was he anxious, but Xiao Hu at the foot of the mountain also had a pale face. He suddenly realized the danger of this situation and gritted his teeth fiercely.
"Meng Hao!"
Xiao Hu cried out. He suddenly formed a hand seal and pressed it against his chest, instantly spitting out fresh blood. As his fresh blood gushed out, it immediately transformed into patches of red clouds.
At the same time, his most precious bead, which was no longer circling the blood orb, instantly flew out, heading straight for Meng Hao.
"This bead is my life; it will help you."
While his words still echoed, Xiao Hu's face turned pale, and he fell to the ground, unconscious. After the bead instantly absorbed Xiao Hu's blood clouds, it immediately radiated intense blood-red light. In a flash, it approached Meng Hao. Once close, the intense blood-red light expanded outwards, enveloping Meng Hao's body in its glow.
At the same time, an indescribable sensation instantly arose from the depths of Meng Hao's heart. It felt as if his cultivation had been forcibly elevated by one level in an instant.
The golden elixir sea within his body roared wildly, continuously expanding. It unexpectedly doubled in size in an instant, causing the originally boundless elixir sea to instantly become so full that it felt like it would burst from within Meng Hao's body.
This made Meng Hao, at this moment, appear to be sparkling with golden light all over, clearly extraordinary at first glance.
The demon core no longer undulated within but spun rapidly. With its rotation, powerful streams of spiritual energy now surged throughout Meng Hao's entire body, causing Meng Hao's mind to explode. A faint wisp of aura appeared in his mind!
This aura was extremely faint, like the trace of aura in his elixir sea many years ago when Meng Hao first sensed the first level of Qi Condensation.
Meng Hao did not know that this trace of aura that appeared in his mind at this moment was spiritual consciousness, which only Foundation Establishment cultivators could possess! Even Shangguan Tu, at this moment, not having fully stepped into Foundation Establishment, could not produce it.
Although Meng Hao was still not at the Foundation Establishment stage, he had now reached the tenth level of Qi Condensation. A banging sound resonated throughout his body, and a large amount of impurities instantly and continuously discharged. His body was still in the Qi Condensation stage, but it had undergone one more cleansing than others.
Tenth level of Qi Condensation!
Meng Hao's mind exploded. In an instant, his body seemed to become much stronger. It was as if at this tenth level, not only did spiritual consciousness appear, but also some strange power that strengthened his body.
One must know that the tenth level of Qi Condensation was an extremely rare level in the Cultivation World. In fact, for many years, numerous talented individuals had researched whether the Qi Condensation realm truly had a tenth level. And whether there were even eleventh or twelfth levels!
Theoretically, based on occasional mentions in some ancient fragmented scrolls, in the post-ancient era, Qi Condensation once had a total of thirteen levels! But in reality, among the legends after the ancient era, only a few individuals could coincidentally reach the tenth level. As for the eleventh level, it was extremely rare, and those who achieved it later became prominent figures in the Cultivation World!
As for the current Cultivation World, the tenth level of Qi Condensation had become a legend.
For many years, through the continuous research of generations of cultivators, they gradually found a way that most people could accept. The temporarily circulating theory stated that in the ancient era, Qi Condensation had a total of thirteen levels, but nine was the limit, and thus it did not conform to the will of heaven and earth. Therefore, it was weakened and stopped at the ninth level.
There was another opinion, but it was not widely accepted, being considered absurd. This opinion stated that the will of heaven and earth in the ancient era had died, and a new will of heaven and earth was born, which could only approve of the ninth level as the limit for Qi Condensation, cutting off the path to the tenth level of Qi Condensation. This was because the tenth level of Qi Condensation was considered to be seizing the fortune of heaven and earth, and thus was not permitted.
Because there was no longer a path, cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Condensation had no choice but to advance to Foundation Establishment. This was also why there were Foundation Establishment Pills, because in the ancient era, the ninth level of Qi Condensation was fundamentally not complete, and thus required external force!
If a cultivator could find the path, if they could absorb enough spiritual energy from heaven and earth, then they could once again continue on the path, stepping onto the tenth level of Qi Condensation or even higher levels of the ancient era!
The path was the key point. Unfortunately, after the ancient era, the path was broken. Some remnants remained in the primordial era, but by now it was almost completely severed.
Now, on Meng Hao's body, this scene clearly appeared. Not only was Meng Hao himself shaken, but even Shangguan Xiu, who was opposite him, revealed an expression of unbelievable surprise. He could not have imagined that Meng Hao, before his eyes, had reached the legendary tenth level of Qi Condensation.
"That's impossible! The tenth level of Qi Condensation is a legend. The so-called tenth level is a body refining stage. Although it exists theoretically, it has rarely been achieved throughout history. That's impossible!" Shangguan Xiu's face was filled with disbelief.
If Xiao Hu were not unconscious at this moment, he would also be shaken. Although this bead had recognized him as its master and their lives were intertwined, using it on him did not have such astonishing effects. It merely helped him to directly exert power beyond half a stage, regardless of his current level. For example, he was currently at the fifth level of Qi Condensation, but his actual combat power was that of half a step into the sixth level.
Meng Hao's hair fluttered without a breeze, his eyes gleaming. He took a deep breath, feeling his dantian ocean brimming, sensing that wisp of aura in his mind, and the power emanating from his limbs, body, and flesh. He could clearly perceive that his body seemed to be constantly growing stronger.