“No—”
Wang Yu shook his head.
“To serve the Holy Sect, to work for Senior Disciple Su, Wang Yu feels nothing but honor. I would gladly give my life, offer my body, and shed blood if needed.”
“Very good. I see you’re at the second layer of Qi Refining. That’s enough to begin learning spells. I’ll pass this Ice Sword Technique to you. It may come in handy when recruiting others.”
Wang Yu quickly accepted a thick manual. Inside, not only were the intricacies of the spell explained, but there was also a general introduction to the fundamentals and classifications of spells.
He hadn’t expected to actually receive such a benefit. It was a bit surprising. Since Steward Duan had nothing more to say, Wang Yu tactfully took his leave.
Only after returning to the stone hut did he begin to study it.
Cultivators in the Qi Refining stage could use first-rank spells, which were divided into low, mid, and high grades, corresponding to the early, middle, and late sub-stages of that realm.
Foundation Establishment corresponded to second-rank, Core Formation to third-rank, and so on.
Besides spells, there were also categories like “Treasure Arts,” “Divine Abilities,” and “Mystic Techniques.” These were not part of the basic knowledge and were not elaborated upon.
The Ice Sword Technique given by Steward Duan was beyond Wang Yu’s expectations. It was actually a mid-grade spell. Once mastered, it could form ten ice swords to attack enemies, with power comparable to a high-grade spell.
But Wang Yu didn’t feel particularly overjoyed. Knowledge could be copied. It held value for those in power, but not so much for him.
For him, it was nothing short of a ladder to change his fate—extremely precious.
It also implied that if he failed to meet Steward Duan’s expectations, he would undoubtedly die.
After a moment of thought,
Wang Yu removed the Blood-Burning Technique from Slot 2 and replaced it with the Ice Sword Technique.
[Idle Slot 2: Ice Sword Technique]
[Ice Sword Technique (0/100): 144 practices a day, master in 30 days.]
Wang Yu: “…144 practices, that’s once every 10 minutes?”
The word beast of burden got stuck in his mind, but he dared not think too deeply.
When a cultivator trains in techniques or methods that match their spiritual roots, they get twice the results with half the effort. But training in arts that don’t match their spiritual roots results in merely average efficiency.
Spiritual roots are categorized by the five elements, from which all things derive. Wasted Spiritual Roots, while considered trash, can actually cultivate any attribute of method or spell. At worst, the pace is normal. They don’t become a burden.
Heavenly Spiritual Roots offer excellent potential, but the path is often fixed with little room for deviation. That said, learning spells that don’t align with the root is still possible, it’s just a matter of slower or faster learning.
“Ice Sword Technique. Thirty days means 4,320 repetitions. Seems my comprehension is far better than my spiritual root aptitude.”
When normal cultivators train in spells, comprehension is just one part. They must also repeatedly practice and experience the technique.
Qi Refining cultivators have limited spiritual power and physical endurance. No one could train tirelessly like Wang Yu. This was no longer about diligence—this was pure mechanical repetition.
Every ten minutes, a flash of insight and practical experience with the Ice Sword Technique would appear in his mind. Even the muscle memory for forming the hand seals developed automatically. It was both mysterious and bizarre.
Since he had no hope of advancing to the third layer of Qi Refining in the short term, Wang Yu decided to fully master the Ice Sword Technique first. It was his only offensive spell and needed to be as refined as possible.
Day 20 of his Spirit Slave life.
Since Wang Yu stopped using the “Life Burn Seal” from the Blood-Burning Technique, only ten wisps of Blood-Burning Qi remained in his body. Over the past eight days, four new wisps of pure spiritual energy had been generated through the idle slot, slightly raising his cultivation.
At this moment, in the stone hut—
Wang Yu’s hand seals changed rapidly. Within a one-zhang radius around him, the temperature plummeted. After three breaths, a four-foot-long, hiltless ice sword condensed in midair.
Whoosh—
The ice sword plunged into the stone floor, leaving behind wisps of cold mist as the freezing energy spread.
Its power was enough to cut gold and pierce jade. Its speed rivaled that of an arrow. The only downside was the long casting time and significant energy cost. After one cast, he was nearly drained.
“It’s still not ready for actual combat. In two more days, I should be able to use it as a trump card.”
After making his judgment, Wang Yu silently circulated the Blood-Burning Technique to recover his spiritual power. To use it multiple times and sustain a full battle, he would at least need to break through to the third layer of Qi Refining.
Another day passed. During the Morning hour, lectures resumed.
Wang Yu officially began to take action. He approached a pair of fellow townsmen from Stone Lake City. These two had deliberately avoided learning to read, and as a result, had remained in the corners, merely observing.
This kind of behavior was no different from waiting for death. When the time came for them to hand over spirit sand, it would be their time of reckoning. Convincing them to join Steward Duan’s faction would not be easy.
After all, their refusal to learn even basic characters was rooted in a fear of becoming like the other spirit slaves, whose appearance had become ghostly from cultivation.
Wang Yu’s attempt to recruit them was in fact paving the way for himself. His situation appeared better, but it was merely temporary stability bought with his own lifespan.
If he wanted to escape his current state, what harm was there in playing the villain just once? Better a dead companion than a dead self.
“You two friends, do you recognize me?”
The two civilians from Stone Lake City looked wary. Both were around sixteen years old. At first, they were stunned by Wang Yu’s appearance, unable to recognize him by face alone. But then, they recalled him from the last time Steward Duan had praised him in high profile.
The two were completely different matters.
“You... you're Young Master Wang Yu of the Wang Clan from Stone Lake City?”
“I am.”
Wang Yu let out a quiet sigh and patted one of them on the shoulder, lowering his voice.
“I noticed you two a long time ago.”
The pair became tense, unsure of what he was trying to do.
“This is the Blood Reversal Sect, located in the Crimson Kite Demonic Domain. Give up any thoughts of escape. Unless the demonic sect is destroyed tomorrow, you may as well accept your fate sooner rather than later.”
After saying that, Wang Yu paused to observe their reactions.
The fact that they dared to take risks proved that their willpower was strong and they would not easily surrender to fate. However, their lack of vision meant they were actually the easiest kind to manipulate.
The Wang Clan was quite famous in Stone Lake City, largely due to several notorious young masters from the main branch. Wang Yu himself also had a fair amount of fame, with a reputation for kindness often spread among the people.
He had not deliberately done anything. It was simply the result of a modern person’s values and a relatively comfortable environment that had allowed him to maintain that image.
Now that he had become a spirit slave, Wang Yu was changing day by day. He was already burdened by a harsh survival crisis. In such conditions, people changed most easily.
Among the spirit slaves housed in the stone huts on Cold Blood Peak, only the batch from Stone Lake City was newly arrived. Their numbers matched Wang Yu’s needs.
The older spirit slaves had all pledged themselves to the three stewards already. He had no way to alter that.
The number Steward Duan provided matched the count from Stone Lake City precisely. That was no coincidence, but a deliberate test.
He wanted to see whether Wang Yu could take control of this group.
In interpersonal dealings, the greatest taboo was being overly intimate with strangers. Thus, Wang Yu did not say much. After exposing their cautious thoughts, he added another layer of pressure.
“You have, at most, two months.
“This month, focus on learning the characters of the Blood-Burning Technique, and grasping the principles of cultivation. If by next month you cannot use that knowledge to break through to the Qi Refining stage, then your fate…”