NOVEL NEXT Chapter 4
Chapter 4: Guard Against the Unexpected
"Man is formed by innate Qi; refining Qi is refining oneself, purifying oneself, reversing the innate, to refine the perfect result of innate Qi where form and spirit are both wondrous."
After a long while, Lü Yang opened his eyes, his face showing joy.
Compared to the 『Ode of Yin-Yang Great Bliss』, the 『Innate Dao Book』 seemed to possess more of the complete heritage it ought to have.
The entire Dao Book started from mortal level, beginning with a set of innate exercises to temper the physique, even accompanied by a matching martial art called Innate Great Grappling.
Once the body was thoroughly refined, the cultivator must then begin to "reverse the innate," first refining the five viscera and six bowels, then the flesh, skin, tendons, and bones, until finally the entire physical form was completely refined into a strand of innate true Qi, thus becoming impermanent in form, immune to the harm of magic, and standing undefeated when fighting others.
Apart from this, the Dao Book also recorded many spells that could be used in conjunction with the innate true Qi.
Such as Heaven's Net Dust Mist, True Will Qi Sword, and Spirit Breath Gathering Techniques; the variety of spells and their diverse functions truly broadened Lü Yang's horizons.
However, just at this moment, Lü Yang, who had been reading with rapt attention, suddenly froze:
".Why is it gone?"
Instinctively, Lü Yang raised his head to look at Liu Xin, only to discover that the 『Innate Dao Book』 in his hands only contained the upper half, and the contents ended abruptly.
"Junior Brother, the Dharma must not be lightly transmitted."
Liu Xin chuckled lightly: "The second half of the 『Innate Dao Book』 involves the secrets of Foundation Establishment, and it is not included in the sect's welfare benefits; it must be exchanged with contribution points."
Hearing this, Lü Yang could only shake his head helplessly: "So that's how it is. It was Junior Brother's moment of rudeness."
"No matter, half of the Dao Book is enough for you to cultivate for now."
Liu Xin kindly patted Lü Yang on the shoulder: "Come, I'll take you to Mending Heaven Peak to choose a cave dwelling. Find a good place so we can interact more in the future."
Lü Yang nodded: "Thank you, Senior Brother."
Half an hour later, at Mending Heaven Peak.
In a secluded cave dwelling at the foot of the mountain, Lü Yang officially settled in, and the original furniture and items inside the cave dwelling were swept out as trash.
Watching this scene, Lü Yang had a multitude of thoughts surging in his heart.
"Seems like being a formal disciple isn't that easy either."
Mending Heaven Peak wasn't very large, and every year the Primordial Saint Sect had so many named disciples; even if the promotion rate was only one in ten thousand, it should have been enough to fill Mending Heaven Peak.
But in reality?
Along the way, Lü Yang found that Mending Heaven Peak was far from overcrowded — it was even a bit empty, with many cave dwellings left unused and without any disciples inhabiting them.
Where had all those formal disciples gone? Surely it wasn't because they couldn't afford to rent a cave dwelling?
Lü Yang shook his head, not dwelling on it further, and instead fetched a meditation cushion to sit down, lying with five hearts facing the sky, beginning his first cultivation session inside the cave dwelling.
Cultivation was fine before, but as soon as he started, Lü Yang immediately felt that compared to the outer sect, the density of spiritual energy here had nearly doubled, surging into his dantian, then circulating throughout his meridians, finally step by step integrating into his five viscera and six bowels, his flesh, skin, tendons, and bones.
The efficiency was so high that Lü Yang was visibly astonished.
In the same amount of time and using the same cultivation method, the amount of true Qi he could refine in a day at the outer sect, he could now refine in just one hour inside the inner sect's cave dwelling.
"No wonder it costs money to rent a cave dwelling in the inner sect."
It was easy to move from frugality to luxury, but hard to return from luxury to frugality; once one experienced the speed of cultivation inside a cave dwelling, it would be very difficult to endure cultivating elsewhere.
The next day, Lü Yang did not go out, instead staying cooped up in the cave dwelling, cultivating while reading the 『Innate Dao Book』.
"Although cultivation in this world also values talent, there is no such thing as a spiritual root; basically, as long as one is determined, anyone can embark on the path of cultivation."
Even so, cultivation was not any easier because of this.
Because although mortals had no spiritual root restrictions when embarking on cultivation, the grade of the true Qi they refined still determined their future potential.
This was the role of "Dharma."
The higher the grade of the cultivation method, the higher the grade of true Qi refined, and the greater the chance of reaching higher realms in the future; conversely, the lower the grade, the more likely one would encounter bottlenecks.
True Qi was divided into nine grades and thirty-six ranks, with lower grades being superior and higher ranks being stronger.
Generally speaking, true Qi below seventh grade had no hope of reaching Foundation Establishment, while those below third grade would find forming a Golden Core nearly impossible, and without first grade true Qi, condensing a Nascent Soul would be ten deaths without one life.
"Rogue cultivators really have no way to survive."
Lü Yang couldn't help but sigh, compared to the great sects with complete inheritances, rogue cultivators had no choice in picking cultivation methods — they could only practice whatever they happened to find.
Under such circumstances, no matter how high one's talent or comprehension was, one would still lose at the starting line and end up regretting it for a lifetime.
The difficulty of cultivation was evident from this.
Thinking of this, Lü Yang gradually furrowed his brows.
"The 『Innate Dao Book』 refines 'Innate True Qi' which ranks at sixth grade, first rank, giving the cultivator hope to achieve Foundation Establishment; strictly speaking, it's already not considered weak."
However, it still did not meet his expectations.
If he were just an ordinary cultivator, he could have accepted it.
But now he possessed the Mysterious Treasure 【Book of a Hundred Lifetimes】, a treasure with limitless potential for the future, and a cultivation method that stopped at Foundation Establishment could no longer satisfy his ambitions.
"If only I could obtain one of those peerless true heritages ranked at first grade..."
Lü Yang fantasized for a moment, then sighed: "Forget it, the road still has to be walked step by step. If the stride is too big, crack, you might tear something important."
"First, cultivate the 『Innate Dao Book』 and become a great cultivator of the Foundation Establishment Realm."
Once the foundation was built, one could live for three hundred years, almost equivalent to an entire dynasty of mortal history, and would be recognized as a "great cultivator" even within the cultivation world.
Once he had enough strength, he would then seek even higher inheritances, and upon obtaining them, immediately start anew.
Repeating this cycle again and again, one day, his dreams would surely come true.
As long as he remained patient and did not act recklessly, time would always be his best ally — this was the confidence the 【Book of a Hundred Lifetimes】 had given Lü Yang.
Ten days later, inside Lü Yang's cave dwelling.
A surge of white Qi rose and swirled, at times transforming into rolling black smoke, at times into an invisible Qi sword, and finally into a drifting, fairy-like human figure.
"I succeeded!"
Although the 『Innate Dao Book』 was profound, it was not difficult to cultivate; within just ten days, Lü Yang had successfully refined away his physical form and transformed his body into pure true Qi.
【Name: Lü Yang】
【Lifespan: 18】
【Cultivation: Qi Refining Stage One】
【Talent: Dual Cultivation Prodigy (White)】
【Cultivation Methods: 『Ode of Yin-Yang Great Bliss』 (Perfected), 『Innate Qi Refining and Body Shedding Technique』 (Perfected)】
【Divine Abilities: None】
【Treasures: None】
【Book of a Hundred Lifetimes Pages Remaining: 99】
Looking at the updated information on the Book of a Hundred Lifetimes, Lü Yang stepped on empty air, feeling his state had reached its peak; even the venereal disease from his original body had been cured without medicine.
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, as Lü Yang was basking in his success, his brows furrowed and he abruptly halted his movements, once again looking at the 【Book of a Hundred Lifetimes】 and falling into deep contemplation.
".Something's wrong."
It felt as though he had overlooked something.
Lü Yang subconsciously recalled — in this lifetime, he had not encountered any significant difficulties, smoothly became a formal disciple, and smoothly received the 『Innate Dao Book』.
In the next second, Lü Yang finally realized what he had missed.
【After harvesting you, Yu Suzhen had broken through to the Qi Refining Stage, but due to her deeply rooted venereal disease, the true Qi could not eliminate it. After being bedridden for several months, she eventually succumbed to her illness and died.】
In his past life, why did Senior Sister Yu die?
Since she was a formal disciple, she must have also received the 『Innate Dao Book』. If she had successfully refined it, shedding her body and transforming it into Qi, how could she have died from a venereal disease?
She didn't complete the cultivation?
"Impossible!" Lü Yang shook his head.
The 『Innate Dao Book』 was not particularly difficult to cultivate, and since Yu Suzhen had the capability to break through to the Qi Refining Stage, no matter how poor her talent was, it should have been impossible for her to fail within a few months.
"Unless, she didn't practice the 『Innate Dao Book』 at all!"
At that moment, Lü Yang felt as if he had plunged into an ice cellar.
The sound of his heart pounding had never been so clear, and his breathing grew rapid. The excitement on Lü Yang's face swiftly faded away:
"The 『Innate Dao Book』... was it specially prepared by Liu Xin for me?"
Lü Yang thought of the scene he had witnessed at the Treasure Refinement Hall.
That named disciple of the Treasure Refinement Hall, thinking he had achieved the Great Dao, only to realize he had walked straight into death — not only did he fail to break through, but he refined himself into a magical tool.
That scene then, and this moment now, were they not the same?
At that moment, a familiar and friendly voice suddenly called from outside the cave dwelling:
"Junior Brother Lü, are you there?"