Chapter 38 - 27: The Missing Cultivation Technique

Chapter 38: Chapter 27: The Missing Cultivation Technique

Inside the Grotto Heaven.

After confirming it repeatedly, Li Yinsheng finally came to a conclusion: he was indeed already a Daoist. He now possessed all the abilities and traits a Daoist should have. Moreover, when he tried to circulate the Magic Technique for breaking through to the Daoist realm within the Qingxuan Scripture, he felt nothing at all.

"So..." Li Yinsheng mused thoughtfully. "Is it because my current Cultivation is too profound, combined with the fact that the True Blood Secret Scripture I Minored in also has over eighty years of foundation, that I broke through so easily?"

This was the most reasonable possibility he could think of. After all, the journals left behind by senior Daoists recorded that having a more profound Cultivation and achieving success in a Minor path would make breaking through to become a Daoist much easier.

"HMM, this can be considered a piece of knowledge," Li Yinsheng said, rubbing his chin. "I’ve already broken through to become a Daoist, so I’m qualified to leave behind my own journal of insights. I’ll record it in there to remind future disciples.

"If one can cultivate the Qingxuan Scripture to the Eleventh Layer and Minor in the True Blood Secret Scripture up to the Seventh Layer, breaking through to become a Daoist will happen naturally and be extremely easy.

"No, I need to add a prerequisite: these two goals must be achieved before the age of fifty..."

He didn’t know if anyone would ever be able to use this piece of knowledge, but he figured he might as well record it just in case. After sitting cross-legged and cultivating for over another month, Li Yinsheng arrived at a new piece of knowledge: for a Daoist like him who broke through naturally, stabilizing their Realm afterward would be extremely easy.

Another difference between a True Cultivator and an ordinary Cultivator was that an ordinary Cultivator’s Soul and body were chaotic and entangled, dragging each other down. If the body was in a poor state, it would affect the Soul; if something went wrong with the Soul, it would implicate the body. A True Cultivator, however, had their Three Souls and Seven Spirits perfectly integrated. A Sea of Consciousness would naturally open up within their spiritual platform for the Soul to reside in. The Flesh Body and Soul remained inextricably linked, but they would no longer exert negative influences on each other.

For example, although ordinary Cultivators also possessed Divine Sense, it would be shackled by their own Flesh Body, resulting in a small range and a lack of precision. A True Cultivator was free from this limitation. Even if both parties had the same level of Cultivation, a True Cultivator’s Divine Sense would far surpass an ordinary Cultivator’s in both range and precision.

However, correspondingly, a recently broken-through True Cultivator would be somewhat unstable because their Sea of Consciousness was newly opened and their Soul had just integrated. Therefore, they needed a period of time to stabilize both their Soul and Sea of Consciousness. Li Yinsheng discovered that he didn’t have this problem at all. Despite having just broken through, his Three Souls and Seven Spirits were already perfectly integrated, and his Sea of Consciousness showed not the slightest sign of instability.

At some unknown point, the Qingxuan Divine Light that originally existed in his Dantian, resembling a cluster of hazy moonlight, had split in half. It entered his newly opened Sea of Consciousness, illuminating the entire space until it was completely translucent. The Qingxuan Divine Light originally had the miraculous effect of clearing the spiritual platform and resisting Illusion Skills. Now that he had broken through to become a Daoist and it illuminated his Sea of Consciousness, this effect was enhanced significantly. However, because his increase in Cultivation had also increased the total volume of his Qingxuan Divine Light, the amount remaining in his Dantian was about the same as before, even after being halved. Furthermore, he could freely draw upon the Qingxuan Divine Light located in both his Dantian and his Sea of Consciousness.

"Excellent. After breaking through to become a Daoist, my control over the Qingxuan Divine Light itself has also jumped several levels," Li Yinsheng murmured. He stared at the clear radiance on his fingertips and nodded in satisfaction. "In the future, when Washing Marrow and Cleansing Veins for my junior sister, the efficiency will be much higher, and the upper limit of the effects should also be greater."

The only drawback was that it would be more painful. However, since his junior sister had endured it before, there was no reason she would be afraid of this little bit of extra pain! He tried using the Qingxuan Divine Light for Washing Marrow and Cleansing Veins on himself, only to find the effects limited. It was likely because, after breaking through to become a Daoist, there were hardly any impurities left in his body. Following that, he tried circulating the True Blood Secret Scripture. After the True Blood Secret Scripture reached the Seventh Layer, both the quantity and the upper limit of his True Blood reached seven thousand drops. Moreover, when he broke through the Sixth Layer, he gained a new miraculous ability. This closed-door cultivation had truly yielded a bountiful harvest. Li Yinsheng felt extremely satisfied.

"Wait... the Sixth Layer. That means the corresponding external physical changes..." Li Yinsheng was suddenly startled as he remembered that issue.

The Third Layer of the True Blood Secret Scripture only affected one’s hair, but at the Sixth Layer, one’s Qi Blood would reach the teeth and lips, making a person’s "teeth like even shells, and lips like a radiant Pill." Heaven knew if this description of "lips like a radiant Pill" would make him look as though he were wearing lipstick. He hurriedly got up and went to the water’s edge to look at his reflection. He immediately breathed a sigh of relief. His lips had indeed become a bit rosier, but they gave off a lustrous hue resembling Red Jade, rather than the cosmetic red he had feared. There was absolutely no trace of the effeminate look he had worried about.

"Thank goodness. This way, I won’t have to manipulate my Qi Blood to adjust my complexion," he thought.

Nodding in satisfaction, Li Yinsheng sat back down and cultivated cross-legged, not intending to waste his remaining time. In truth, according to the journals left behind by senior Daoists, once their Souls were integrated and their Sea of Consciousness was opened, Daoists would all practice a Cultivation Technique to temper their Souls. This was something ordinary Cultivators, whose Souls and Flesh Bodies were still undifferentiated and chaotic, could not practice. All the journals mentioned that for a Daoist, the Soul and Sea of Consciousness were extremely important, making a Soul-tempering Cultivation Technique absolutely essential.

Strangely, however, none of them explicitly stated why they were so important. Li Yinsheng couldn’t dwell on this too much anyway. He had long since scoured the entire Xuanzhen Temple and hadn’t found a single so-called "Soul-tempering" Cultivation Technique. Therefore, for now, he could only continue to focus on cultivating the Qingxuan Scripture and the True Blood Secret Scripture. Once he got out and settled the matters at hand, he would go ask his Martial Uncle. Fortunately, as he practiced the Qingxuan Scripture, the Qingxuan Divine Light filling his Sea of Consciousness would actually slowly temper the Soul floating in the center of it. That should make up for the lack of a proper technique to some extent.

...

Inside Mu Xiaoyu’s bedroom.

After promising her senior brother that she would definitely take good care of these talismanic coins, Mu Xiaoyu suddenly felt that he seemed to have changed a little bit. She couldn’t quite put her finger on what the change was. If she had to describe it, it was as if... standing there in the lamplight, her senior brother had suddenly become a bit better-looking?

Could it be that because her senior brother had given her so many talismanic coins, his image in her eyes had become more handsome? She inwardly condemned herself, "Mu Xiaoyu, oh Mu Xiaoyu, how can you change your impression of someone just because of money?

"Even though Senior Brother was quite good-looking to begin with..."

"What are you looking at? Why aren’t you saying anything?" Li Yinsheng asked.

"It’s nothing," Mu Xiaoyu hurriedly shook her head. "I wasn’t looking at anything!"

Despite what she said, another thought flashed through Mu Xiaoyu’s mind, "Senior Brother’s teeth are so white and bright, even whiter than the white Jade Seal we had back home."

Li Yinsheng didn’t press the matter. Having just emerged from the Grotto Heaven, he had not only cultivated the True Blood Secret Scripture to the Sixth Layer but also broken through to become a Daoist. It was inevitable that his presence would feel somewhat different to others, even if he had done his best to adjust his aura the moment he came out. After chatting with Mu Xiaoyu for a few more sentences, Li Yinsheng prepared to leave and let her get some rest. She had already been resting for an entire day; whether the people from the Yellow Crane Temple came tomorrow or not, his junior sister would have to resume her normal cultivation.

However, seemingly noticing that Li Yinsheng was about to leave, Mu Xiaoyu hurriedly grabbed his sleeve. "Senior Brother... um..." she stammered coyly.

"What is it?" Li Yinsheng asked.

"Senior Brother, you’ve given me so many talismanic coins. Logically speaking, I shouldn’t ask you for anything else, but..." Mu Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment before mustering the courage to continue. "Could you give me a weapon as well? The kind that Cultivators use to fight."

"So you want a Magical Artifact. Don’t worry, I’ll naturally give you one in the future. But right now, you don’t have any Magical Power, so you can’t use Magical Artifacts," Li Yinsheng said with a smile.

"But those bad guys are coming tomorrow, and I want to help you fight them, Senior Brother..." Mu Xiaoyu said earnestly.

Li Yinsheng was taken aback. He wanted to tell her that with her meager level of cultivation, holding a Magical Artifact wouldn’t be of any use. But when the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back. Instead, he rubbed her head. "Alright, then I’ll give you a Magical Artifact."

He took out a snow-bright, three-foot Long Sword from his Qiankun Bag. The body of the blade was covered in graceful patterns resembling fallen leaves, while its edge was as cold as autumn waters.

"WOW!" Mu Xiaoyu’s eyes lit up. "What a beautiful sword!"

"This is a Lower Grade Magical Artifact I used to use, named the Cold Leaf Sword," Li Yinsheng smiled. "However, it can no longer keep up with my Cultivation, and I now have a better Magical Artifact.

"But after all, this sword has been with me for quite a few years, and I don’t want to see it gather dust. It’s just right to pass it on to you."

Mu Xiaoyu took the sword, a thoughtful look in her eyes.

...

Li Yinsheng had been gone for nearly half an hour. But Mu Xiaoyu lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep as she stared at the Cold Leaf Sword resting horizontally on the dressing table not far away.

"This is Senior Brother’s old Magical Artifact... Why would he give it to me?" Mu Xiaoyu wondered, her mind heavy with worry.

She had originally only wanted a Magical Artifact she could fight with. No matter how weak she was, when those bad guys attacked, having a weapon would be better than having nothing. However, she hadn’t expected her senior brother to directly give her his old Magical Artifact. If he had merely given her a hundred thousand talismanic coins just now, she wouldn’t have thought too much of it. But now, he had even given her the sword he had used for many years...

A terrifying guess inevitably rose in Mu Xiaoyu’s heart. "Could it be that Senior Brother thinks he might be in great danger tomorrow, which is why he gave me both the talismanic coins and his personal sword in advance?

"Isn’t that how it always goes in the tales of storytellers?

"A great hero is about to do something incredibly dangerous, something that will likely get him killed, so he entrusts his most important belongings—like the weapon he used his entire life—to a disciple or a loved one to prevent those precious items from being buried with him.

"Senior Brother couldn’t be thinking the same thing, could he?!"

The more Mu Xiaoyu thought about it, the more sleep eluded her. Looking at the Cold Leaf Sword that still emitted a faint glimmer in the darkness, she made up her mind: even if she hadn’t mastered her skills yet, she absolutely would not hold her senior brother back tomorrow! Even if it meant dying, she would face those bad guys together with him! Her father had always said that the Mu Clan had been brave and fierce for generations. Whether men or women, they could absolutely never be cowards who fled at the eve of battle!

"But then again... will dying hurt a lot?

"And Father and Mother would be heartbroken too, wouldn’t they?

"WHIMPER..."

...

Inside Li Yinsheng’s bedroom.

He let out a sigh as he looked at the four small objects on the table in front of him. There was a rough, uneven stone mirror, a pitch-black little flag the size of a palm, a perfectly square bronze brick, and a wooden wine goblet. These were the Middle Grade Magical Artifacts he had obtained from the other four people of the Yellow Crane Temple.

Mu Xiaoyu had asked him for a Magical Artifact so she could help him tomorrow. Even knowing perfectly well that she would be of no use, Li Yinsheng couldn’t bear to refuse her. However, none of these four Middle Grade Magical Artifacts looked like weapons in their normal state. They all had to be activated by Magical Power to unleash their might; if he gave them to Mu Xiaoyu, she could only use them to bludgeon people. Therefore, after some consideration, Li Yinsheng still decided to give his own Cold Leaf Sword to Mu Xiaoyu. At the very least, even without Magical Power, the Cold Leaf Sword was still a mortal Divine Weapon when picked up and swung around blindly.

"SIGH, these guys from the Yellow Crane Temple bought such flashy, impractical Magical Artifacts. If even one of their Magical Artifacts was a saber, spear, sword, or halberd, I wouldn’t have had to give my old partner to Xiaoyu," Li Yinsheng shook his head and sighed, feeling as though he had been scammed by the people of the Yellow Crane Temple.