Chapter Fifty-Five: The Ninefold Transformation Accelerates, the Dao Body Sublimates

Volume Two: The Separation of Clear and Turbid — The First Opening of Heaven and Earth

The appearance of the First Dawn elevated Pangu's understanding of the laws of Heaven and Earth to a new level. He noticed that after the appearance of light, Heaven and Earth had undergone some subtle changes — the cohesive force of the Celestial Dome strengthened, the stability of the Great Earth increased, and the speed of Clear-Turbid separation also accelerated. Light was like a catalyst for the movement of Heaven and Earth.

At the same time, his own Ninefold Transformation was also affected. The rhythm of the Ninefold Transformation accelerated under the light's illumination; each transformation was sharper and more thorough than before. The form-consolidation transformation made his sinews and bones tougher; the spirit-clarification transformation made his Spirit-Consciousness more lucid; the breath-circulation transformation made his Primordial Qi flow more unimpeded.

Through the acceleration of the Ninefold Transformation, the Dao Body began a new round of sublimation. This was a profound transformation. His Dao Body became better adapted to the rhythm of Heaven and Earth; he could perceive every breath of Heaven and Earth and participated in every growth of Heaven and Earth. He and Heaven and Earth were no longer two independent existences.

This sublimation greatly enhanced Pangu's capacity to withstand pressure. The daily stretching and compression of one zhang per day no longer constituted a burden for him. He could devote more energy to observing and contemplating the movement of Heaven and Earth, rather than being troubled by bodily adaptation problems.

The Ninefold Transformation accelerated; the Dao Body sublimated. Nourished by Heaven and Earth, Pangu was undergoing a metamorphosis he had never experienced in Chaos. Even as he grew stronger and wiser, he was also drawing closer to becoming the master of this world. But this was also consuming his Origin; every moment of sublimation was burning the Origin-power of his Innate Primordial Spirit.

The Ninefold Transformation, catalyzed by the external surroundings of Heaven and Earth opening and closing, began to operate at a faster speed. Before, one round of the Ninefold Transformation required an entire day; now, it could be completed in less than half a day. Pangu's body, through the accelerated transformations, continuously adjusted and adapted; his meridians grew thicker, his bones harder, his Primordial Qi Sea vaster. His body was transforming from a structure belonging exclusively to Chaos into a structure belonging exclusively to Heaven and Earth — his body was resonating at the same cadence as Heaven and Earth.

The phenomenon of accelerated Ninefold Transformation began with one early-morning metamorphosis. In the first transformation of that day, Pangu felt an unusual urgency — like an invisible hand pushing his body to complete the metamorphosis at a faster speed. The first transformation came earlier than its usual awakening moment; the second followed closely, barely giving his body a chance to catch its breath; the third, the fourth, the fifth — the entire sequence of the Ninefold Transformation was compressed into a shorter time frame. Heaven and Earth were growing and needed him to grow at a matching, faster speed.

The accelerated Ninefold Transformation was no longer as gentle as before. Each transformation was accompanied by violent energy surges, like small energy bombs detonating within his body. That energy surged madly through his meridians, from his dantian to his four limbs, from his four limbs to his head, and from his head back to his dantian, forming an ever-accelerating circuit. He was being pushed toward some critical point — a threshold that had to be crossed. On this side of the threshold, his body was old; on the other side, new. The accelerated Ninefold Transformation was the force pushing him from this side to that.

When all nine transformations were completed within the shortened time span, Pangu's body settled into an entirely new state. That state defied description in language — it was not stronger, nor faster, but more 'permeable'. His body was like a piece of pottery thoroughly fired; all impurities had been burned away in the accelerated transformations, leaving only the purest parts. A more direct connection now existed between Heaven and Earth and himself — no longer needing to deliberately recognize and parse information from Heaven and Earth; that information directly permeated into his existence, becoming part of him.

The acceleration of the Ninefold Transformation was not merely an increase in cadence; it was also changing the very nature of the transformations. Before, the Ninefold Transformation had been separate adjustments of the body's many parts — first the bones, then the meridians, then the internal organs, each completing its change in turn. The accelerated Ninefold Transformation became one whole-body harmony — every part began to change at the same time, answering and supporting the others, completing the metamorphosis in a single rhythm. It was a symphonic harmony — when all instruments sounded together, the sound was not chaotic but magnificent.

The sublimation of the Dao Body brought, in Pangu's perception, an unprecedented 'sensation of lightness'. Not that his body had grown lighter — the weight of Heaven and Earth had not diminished in the slightest — but his sense of existence had grown lighter. Before, he could feel that his body was a heavy, space-occupying entity; now, the boundaries of that entity had grown blurred; his existence was no longer confined within his skin but was permeating and diffusing into the surrounding space. He felt himself transforming from 'an individual called Pangu' into 'a region called Pangu'.

After sublimation, Pangu discovered a fact that delighted him — he could now partially supplement his energy through Heaven and Earth's own energy circulation. Before, his energy could only be drawn from his own Origin — a well from which water could only be scooped out. Now, there was a new energy source — the Primordial Qi flowing between Heaven and Earth had begun to freely enter and exit his body; a small portion, as it flowed through his meridians, was absorbed and transformed by him. Though that portion of supplementation was negligible, far from sufficient to offset his consumption, it at least demonstrated one thing — he was no longer an isolated being cut off from Heaven and Earth; he had begun to merge into Heaven and Earth.

After acceleration, the Ninefold Transformation caused Pangu's body, after each transformation was complete, to radiate residual heat like a vessel just forged. The surface of his skin, for a brief period after the transformation was complete, would maintain a warm state, that warmth radiating outward from within him and forming a minute thermal field around him. The reach of that thermal field was not large — it could only cover the space within arm's reach of his body — but it was sufficient to form faint rising air currents in the air close to his skin. Those air currents lightly brushed past his skin, carrying away some heat and letting him slowly cool, preparing for the next round of transformation.

Throughout the entire process of accelerated Ninefold Transformation, Pangu maintained a lucid consciousness. His consciousness was like an uninhabited stone tower in the midst of a storm — however fierce the energy-storm outside, within the tower there was still calm. He observed the changes in his body — watching his meridians being stretched wider amid the surge of energy, watching his bones rearreach under pressure, watching his Primordial Qi Sea, in its expansion, contain more Primordial Qi. He was not enduring the change; he was witnessing it — witnessing, with his lucid consciousness, the metamorphosis of this body from old to new.

After sublimation, Pangu discovered that his body had acquired a new ability — he could use his intent to directly convert the Primordial Qi within his body into specific energy forms, without needing to go through the processes of meridian conduction and external release. That energy could directly form an invisible protective layer on the surface of his body — not hard like the shell of the Chaos Egg, but a supple energy-field that could deform with external pressure, neither shattering nor collapsing. That protective layer not only enhanced his capacity to bear the heavy pressure of the Celestial Dome but also allowed him, without moving his body, to fine-tune the distribution of pressure by adjusting the local thickness of the protective layer.

The most notable change brought by the accelerated Ninefold Transformation was the thorough renewal of the energy circulation within Pangu's body. The original energy circulation pathways were like country paths — narrow and winding, capable of accommodating only small amounts of Primordial Qi. The new circulation pathways were like river channels that had been widened — broad, straight, and smooth; Primordial Qi could flow through them at several times its previous speed. It was like a river channel long blocked suddenly being dredged; the pent-up energy was released in a single instant, filling every living mote of his body with unprecedented vitality. Though he clearly knew that this vitality was only a phased burst and could not be sustained permanently, in the short term it indeed greatly enhanced his supporting capacity.