The night had fallen, and the moon shone brightly above.
Li Chejing sat cross-legged in the courtyard, deeply immersed in his qi cultivation. He was focused on condensing the Celestial Whirl Chakra of the third stage.
As described in the Supreme Yin Breathing Meridian Nourishment Sutra , the human body held endless marvels, including twelve meridians and three dantians.
“The lower dantian houses the essence, the middle dantian houses the qi, and the upper dantian houses the consciousness.”
Among the six chakras, the Profound Scenery, Celestial Whirl, and Jade Capital, known as the Three Challenges of the Embryonic Breathing realm, were particularly challenging.
The key was to manifest these chakras from nothingness within the different dantians, forming a spiritual chakra.
The remaining three chakras were less complex. For instance, after condensing the Profound Scenery Chakra which was located at the Qihai point in the lower dantian, one only had to focus on their breathing pattern, and the Radiant Lure Chakra would naturally emerge in the Qihai point.
Once the Celestial Whirl Chakra, situated in the Juque Court[1] which was the body’s reservoir of hidden qi, was condensed, it would allow mana to flow freely throughout the body.
When mana was channeled to the eyes, it would grant far-reaching vision. To the feet, it would bestow extraordinary agility, enabling remarkable feats such as walking on walls as easily as if they were flat ground.
After cultivating for a quarter of an hour, Li Chejing felt his Qihai acupoint at full capacity. His two spiritual chakras orbited each other, entwining as he performed a hand seal.
Channeling qi through vital points like the Shimen, Guanyuan, Shenque, and Mingmen acupoints, he focused on converging this energy in the Juque Court to form the spirit chakra.
Lu Jiangxian, using his divine sense, observed Li Chejing from afar, casting a protective Meditation Spell and joining forces with Li Tongya and Li Xiangping, who were safeguarding their youngest brother.
As Li Chejing prepared for his breakthrough, Lu Jiangxian suddenly sensed a presence behind him. A powerful aura, far off in the distance, was rapidly approaching Mount Dali.
Weighing the strength of both sides, Lu Jiangxian made a swift decision. He retracted his divine sense back into the mirror, ceasing even to absorb the moonlight shining through the roof window.
The mirror lay dormant in the ancestral hall’s darkness, indistinguishable from a real bronze artifact.
In mere moments, a stream of blue light soared over the Li Residence. Lu Jiangxian, feeling the aura fading into the distance, was about to sigh in relief when he noticed the blue light turning around before coming to a halt in the sky above the Li Residence.
————
Si Yuanbai, having advanced in his cultivation since leaving Qingsui Peak, set his sights on confronting the notorious pig demon on Mount Dali. He boarded his flying shuttle and traced the Guli Road southward.
“The spiritual energy at the northern foot of Mount Dali was disrupted by the great war, plunging the earth vein into chaos. Now, after three hundred years, the energy has begun to recover, drawing the attention of numerous demons.”
Approaching Mount Dali, Si Yuanbai noticed several villages peppering the foot of the mountain, particularly along the banks of an unnamed river. The area seemed lively.
“The war purged the region of demons, disrupting the spiritual energy. It has since become a haven for mortals.”
Surveying from above, Si Yuanbai’s attention was suddenly drawn to a small village below. He sensed a flicker of mana there.
Expecting a minor demon, he activated his dharma eyes for a clearer view. Under the moonlight, he saw a handsome young man sitting in meditation, accompanied by two other youths, all radiating mana.
“How remarkable. A young man is breaking through a bottleneck without any elders to oversee.”
After a quick scan revealing no other significant mana fluctuations, Si Yuanbai mused, “Perhaps he’s the offspring of a fellow Daoist after a fun one-nighter.”
Meanwhile, Li Chejing, unaware of the observer above, felt blessed. His continuous efforts were paying off; he had finally figured out the riddles in the scripture. Mana quickly converged in the Juque Court, and a crystalline spirit chakra began forming with practiced ease.
“What a promising youth!” Si Yuanbai murmured in approval as he stroked his beard.
The path of immortal cultivation is fraught with challenges. Spiritual orifice was merely one of the foundational factors; other things like fortune, comprehension, willpower, family background, sect, and techniques mattered too.
“This young man’s got exceptional understanding and talent, and his techniques are profound. But in this secluded mortal village, how much can he really access in terms of immortal resources and secret techniques? His potential might be limited to mere qi cultivation, amounting to little more than dust and ashes. In this arduous journey of immortal cultivation, I wonder how many young talents have succumbed along the way,” he mused.
Si Yuanbai descended his shuttle. Performing a hand seal and casting an invisibility spell, he sat on a rock in the courtyard, observing the scene leisurely.
Just then, an elderly mortal approached the courtyard. The youth, acting as the guardian, greeted, “Father.”
As Si Yuanbai heard the youth, his expression shifted to one of curiosity. It was rare to find someone with a spiritual orifice, but he had found three in a single family. He could not help but wonder if those three children were truly the offspring of that seemingly ordinary old man.
Observing their pure mana, Si Yuanbai speculated that they must have been training with a profound technique.
He was convinced that these children were likely the unintended offspring of a fellow Daoist cultivator. He speculated that they had been left in this village to train from a young age because their father was reluctant to bring them into his home.
“With all three children possessing spiritual orifices, their father must have at least attained the Foundation Establishment realm.”
While it was true that higher realms of cultivation made childbearing more challenging, the likelihood of those children possessing spiritual orifices was significantly greater. Among those who had attained the Qi Cultivation realm, perhaps one or two in ten of their offspring might have a spiritual orifice. This probability soared to around five in ten once a cultivator attained the Foundation Establishment realm.
Considering that all three children possessed a spiritual orifice, it was highly probable that their father was a cultivator who had attained the Foundation Establishment realm.
Si Yuanbai dismissed the possibility that their father could be a cultivator who had attained the Purple Mansion realm. Aside from the ancestors of various immortal sects, the entire Yue State could scarcely muster a handful of such esteemed cultivators.
Besides, a cultivator of the Purple Mansion’s caliber would not bother settling in a small village like this. Even if they were to father an illegitimate child, they could easily bring the child into their own home without fear of judgment. Such a child would likely be revered as a prized descendant.
The young man concluded his cultivation and joyfully announced, “Father, I’ve made a breakthrough!”
The Li Family erupted in celebration, but Si Yuanbai, observing from afar, contemplated the situation.
The Guli Road leading to Mount Dali has been populated by mortals, yet for three hundred years, no cultivator has stood guard due to the war. Now, as the earth’s veins realign and the spiritual energy gradually returns, this land should rightfully fall back under the governance of a sect.
Maybe I should recruit this family into our clan, utilizing them to secure this area. We could also leverage the power of that senior who has attained the Foundation Establishment realm to help suppress the demons here.
The Azure Pond Sect, ruling over the five southern counties of Yue State, has a well-established system of governance. The sect usually dispatched disciples to manage the cities, while the rural areas were controlled through the intricate web of bloodline marriages within the immortal cultivation clans.
This system involved using pills and magic artifacts to compel the clans to cultivate raw materials and provide manpower from those with lower levels of cultivation. The sect would then annually recruit the most talented disciples from these clans to strengthen its ranks. This approach, widely recognized as effective in the cultivation world, had been employed by the Azure Pond Sect for over five hundred years.
Additionally, this could be an opportunity to build a favorable relationship with that cultivator who has attained the Foundation Establishment realm.
With that thought in mind, Si Yuanbai performed a hand seal to undo his invisibility spell and descended gracefully into the courtyard.
Li Chejing, still feeling the rush of his breakthrough and the flow of mana through his body, suddenly noticed a figure in a green robe materializing before him.
The figure who appeared was clad in azure garments, seemingly in his thirties or forties, with a handsome appearance. He wore a friendly smile, and at his waist hung a shiny sword, adding to his elegant and ethereal demeanor.
Immediately sensing potential danger, the Li brothers instinctively shielded Li Mutian, with Li Tongya cautiously inquiring, “May I ask who you are, sir?”
1. One of the points along the Ren Meridian, close the point under your lungs. ☜