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墨書 Inktalez
The Abode of the Sect Leader on the Twenty-Eighth Floor
Ling Xuzi frowned in confusion, "How is it possible that everyone passed safely?"
"Exactly. I've racked my brain and still can't figure it out. There is only one possibility: that person intervened. Only he has that capability," Spirit Stone said.
Ling Xuzi pondered carefully and had to admit that Spirit Stone made a valid point. He sighed, "That complicates things. That person... do you know his identity? If it's him taking action, we have no choice but to give up."
Spirit Stone was indignant, "Even if he has a special identity and extraordinary cultivation, he is still a member of the Nine Li Sect. As a member of the Nine Li Sect, he cannot disregard the Sect Leader. Senior Brother summoned him for questioning; we should clarify right in front of everyone. To undermine us behind our backs is simply unreasonable!"
Ling Xuzi smiled bitterly, "Do you think I can summon him? Would he even come? He ignores the Zhu Feng Ling entirely. Back then, it was our Nine Li Sect that owed him; if it weren't for him and his disciple, our Nine Li Sect would have been nearly defeated by those Demons at the Mountain Gate. Before Ancestor passed away, he left a will stating that as long as he is alive, he can roam freely in Nine Li Cave Heaven, and no one is allowed to trouble him. Moreover, his current cultivation is almost the highest in our Nine Li Sect; we still rely on him for many matters! Forget it; there’s no evidence for this matter. We’ll have to think of another plan."
Spirit Stone nearly twisted his beard off in frustration and said gloomily, "If I had another plan, would I still be so worried?! We sacrificed three thousand-year-old Spirit Cypresses from Spirit Cypress Valley to help these disciples open their celestial gateways. If we had just five hundred more years, those three Spirit Cypresses could have produced how many High-Quality Spirit Tool Flying Swords! What a loss of Great Opportunity! Why isn’t there anyone as capable as our Old Six?"
Ling Xuzi glanced at him and chuckled, "Now you’re calling us Old Six; before, you never stopped calling me a 'freak.'"
Spirit Stone did not respond, clearly tacitly agreeing. He was becoming increasingly interested in this disciple.
"Since you can gamble, you must be able to lose as well. Junior Brother, let it go," Ling Xuzi sighed.
Spirit Stone looked unhappy but knew he had no choice; how many Elixirs could withstand being squandered by those youngsters? The Six Spirit Salty Ritual was incredibly powerful, but the problem was that expanding the number of disciples practicing it was difficult; it was very selective! It seemed these disciples were not suitable for practicing the Six Spirit Salty Ritual; even if they were unwilling to accept defeat, they had no choice. He sighed and finally nodded slowly.
********
A gentle stream of cool warmth flowed out from the Upper Dantian Purple Palace and slowly descended along the Ren Meridian. A few days ago, this kind of warm coolness had appeared in Li Hong's meridians. It started from the Upper Dantian Purple Palace, circulated throughout his body’s meridians, and returned after one Great Circulation. Each time the Great Circulation was completed, the Multicolored Light Sphere in the Upper Dantian Purple Palace grew brighter and larger.
Wherever this coolness traveled, there was a refreshing sensation akin to drinking ice water on a hot summer day. It didn’t feel cold at all; instead, the meridians it passed through felt pleasantly washed by warm water.
It was a strange sense of contradiction but undoubtedly represented progress; this indicated that the second part of the Six Spirit Salty Ritual had been thoroughly stabilized.
After the cool air returned to the Upper Dantian Purple Palace through the Great Circulation, it entered the central Multicolored Light Sphere, tightly adhering to the surface of the red Essence Blood mass. Now, it could be said that this mass in the center of the Purple Palace had transformed into four layers. The innermost layer housed the Fire Separation Pearl, where the Celestial Candle Dragon Soul resided, colored green; the second layer was Li Hong's own Essence Blood mass, blood-red; the third layer was the newly emerged light white cool air substance; and finally, the outermost layer was the original Multicolored Light Sphere. The four layers did not interfere with each other but complemented one another.
If the original Multicolored Light Sphere represented what was absorbed from the outside world, then this newly appeared light white substance was something Li Hong had cultivated himself. Just like his Essence Blood, Li Hong felt a deep connection to it. However, he did not know what this substance was.
The second chapter of Six Spirit Salty Ritual clearly recorded that this substance should exist and named it "Awareness." Li Hong did not understand what Awareness meant and had never heard of such a term. He had encountered many strange terms during his cultivation journey; as long as his practice was correct, he did not delve deeper into their meanings.
After finishing his practice, the sky remained a clear deep blue. It was still early. The forest was very quiet. Strangely, there were no small insects in Nine Li Cave Heaven. The absence of their soft chirping left the forest lacking in vitality. But soon, a few clear chirps of birds broke the silence, and a gentle breeze rustled through the leaves. The forest awakened.
Li Hong moved his arms and legs a bit and followed a small path to the Small Pavilion behind him.
Behind the pavilion was a small clearing with two large jars and two stone locks placed there. Leaning against the back wall of the house was a water bucket on a shoulder pole. Li Hong hoisted an empty bucket onto his shoulder and looked up at the left side of the second floor. The window there was wide open, and snoring sounds floated out. Li Hong chuckled as he carried the empty bucket around the Small Pavilion toward the waterfall.
As he stepped out of this area, he heard the roaring sound of water—the place where he lived on top of the mountain had Restrictions that blocked out the sound of the waterfall from outside. Next to the waterfall, the stone bridge was very slippery with moisture, and misty droplets splashed onto him. Li Hong wiped his face; it felt refreshingly cool. He walked to the middle of the small bridge and stretched one empty bucket straight into the waterfall over the railing.
The rushing water filled that empty bucket immediately. Li Hong filled another one as well, and by the time he turned back to walk, his clothes were already soaked through, dripping water from their hems. Unbothered by this, he focused his mind, allowing cool air to circulate throughout his body. Milky white steam rose from his clothes, which dried in an instant.
After six trips back and forth, Li Hong's clothes had been soaked and dried six times. When he finally poured water into one of the large jars for the last time, his clothes were clean and neatly pressed as if they had been washed and ironed. He grinned widely and carefully removed all his clothes, stacking them neatly on a clean porch before walking to the large jar to grab a ladleful of water to pour over his head.
The icy water slid down from his head to his shoulders—cold yet comfortable. He picked up a piece of cloth and vigorously scrubbed his body. Recently, his skin had become smoother; that once-deep scar on his back was now barely noticeable.
After thoroughly scrubbing his entire body, Li Hong walked naked to the porch to get dressed. From above came Chuxiong's complaint: "Big Brother, why are you fetching water again? Didn't we agree that today would be my turn?"
Li Hong laughed: "By the time you wake up from your nap, all will be cold."
Chuxiong chuckled as he jumped down from the second floor, quickly stripping off all his clothes before heading to another large jar to start bathing while humming nonsensical tunes loudly—his off-key singing made Li Hong shake his head in disbelief.
Once they both finished washing up and donned clean white silk robes, dawn began to break slightly. Chuxiong placed a hand on Li Hong's shoulder and drooled as he asked: "Big Brother, what do you think we should have for breakfast today?"
"You only think about eating," Li Hong said with a smile.
"What do you mean? Are you saying I'm not working hard? I, your younger brother, have been diligently cultivating until dawn before taking a short nap!" Chuxiong exclaimed exaggeratedly.
The two floated down the mountain.
********
Four disciples gathered at the Three-Story Pavilion to listen to Spirit Stone talk about Talismans.
Li Hong knelt behind a table, seemingly focused on listening to Spirit Stone's teachings, but in reality, he was repeatedly zoning out.
There was no further discussion about the experiment. He had quietly asked Spirit Stone where those boys had gone. Spirit Stone casually replied, "Sent down the mountain to guard the Taoist temple," and refused to mention it again.
This was fine; at least they had preserved their lives. However, thinking about the Celestial Candle Dragon Soul within him, Li Hong began to worry again. Such a heavy Great Secret weighed on his heart, and his master, Master Uncle, and the others were all seasoned individuals. What if they discovered...
"Old Six! Chu Hong!"
Li Hong suddenly snapped back to attention and saw Master Spirit Stone glaring at him. He hurriedly responded, "Yes, disciple is here."
"What do you mean 'here'? I clearly see you lost in thought!" Spirit Stone shouted angrily, almost poking Li Hong's forehead with the Fire Rat Fur Spell Pen in his hand.
Beside him, Chuxiong lowered his head and whispered, "Master is asking you what famous Mid-Level Spirit Talismans our sect has. Quickly answer..."
"No need for you to remind him!" Spirit Stone shouted with bulging eyes. "I already said it, yet he is daydreaming!"
Li Hong stammered, "Disciple knows I was wrong..."
"Hmph! Fine, I don't believe you were actually listening just now. Tell me, what are the famous Mid-Level Spirit Talismans of our sect? If you get even one word wrong, your master will definitely punish you heavily, hmph!"
Li Hong felt a surge of joy inside; he had heard Chu Xi talk about this topic before. He quickly replied, "The famous Mid-Level Spirit Talismans of our sect mainly include the Separation Fire Talisman, which can unleash boundless flames with just a bit of spiritual energy. They are categorized by the type of fire into Thunder Fire Talisman, Stone Fire Talisman, True Fire Talisman, and so on. Additionally, there is the Fire Shield, which acts as a protective barrier, as well as the Fire Wall and several others. These are classified according to their functions."
Spirit Stone listened and said curiously, "How come you know it so clearly if you didn't pay attention?" He shot Li Hong an unhappy glare. "I'll give you credit for being clever this time, but if you zone out again, don't blame me for punishing you."
His expression softened a bit as he continued, "Each of the Nine Major Sects of the Immortal Sect has its own unique Talisman skills, but when it comes to fire manipulation, only our Nine Li Sect excels in it; there are no other competitors. Penglai specializes in water talismans, which directly counters our Nine Li Sect. It's said that water can extinguish fire, but there's no need for you to worry. Water can indeed extinguish fire, but it depends on the type of water and fire involved. For example, if someone tried to use water to extinguish our Stone Fire Talisman, that would be a huge joke—like adding fuel to the fire; it would only burn stronger. Moreover, our Nine Li Sect has high-level fire talismans like True Sunfire and Samadhi True Fire Talismans that cannot be extinguished by any water unless they use the Forbidden Spirit Talisman Nine Yin Water. Hehe, but that's a Forbidden Spirit Talisman. Just think about it: using a Forbidden Spirit Talisman against a High-Level Spirit Talisman would be a huge loss for them; it's simply not worth it. Besides, our Nine Li Sect also possesses Forbidden Spirit Talismans—hehe, who’s afraid of whom?" Spirit Stone said this while proudly stroking his yellowed mouse whiskers.
It sounded like there was some tension between their sect and Penglai? Otherwise, Master wouldn't keep emphasizing it... Li Hong thought to himself.
"Alright, although this is off-topic, it's all very important. One day when you encounter these situations, you'll realize that every word from your master is not in vain." Spirit Stone seemed to sense Li Hong's thoughts and concluded this segment about the conflict between their sect and Penglai with a hint of meaning in his words. He then added, "Additionally, there's a secret I will share with you now; make sure to remember it."
Upon hearing the word "secret," Li Hong became especially attentive.
"You all know that each sect has its own unique Spirit Talismans that sometimes end up outside their control. So I want to ask you: why aren't you afraid that others might replicate those unique Spirit Talismans by following the instructions? Why aren't you worried that someone might use your own Spirit Talismans against you?" Spirit Stone's gaze was sharp as he looked at his four disciples.
Indeed! There was something strange here. If someone could replicate low-level Spirit Talismans just by following instructions, what about others? For instance, if Fifth Senior Brother took out a Mid-Level Spirit Talisman drawn by Master to exchange for Elixirs and someone from another sect got hold of it and replicated it exactly—wouldn't that mean our unique skills could be learned by others? But looking at Master and Fifth Senior Brother, they seemed completely unconcerned about this; what could be the reason?
"Hehe, that's an unspoken secret among us." Spirit Stone said proudly: "In fact, each sect's method of activating their Spirit Talismans has two approaches. One is the common method where spiritual energy is infused into the Spirit Talisman to activate it; this is how low-level Spirit Talismans are generally used. The other method is more complex—it involves combining specific movements (gangdou), incantations, and hand seals. Some Spirit Talismans require silent recitation of incantations along with hand seals; others may only need movements and silent recitation without seals—each has its own differences. But generally speaking, the higher the level of the Spirit Talisman, the more complex its activation method becomes; conversely, the more complex its activation method is, the higher its level. The various Immortal Sect factions often have their Spirit Talismans leak out into the world; however, what gets leaked is merely a single Spirit Talisman—the accompanying movements, incantations, and seals remain closely guarded secrets. Do you understand now?" Spirit Stone looked at his four disciples present.
Li Hong felt enlightened as if a fog had been lifted; so that's how it is...
Chuxiong listened in confusion and muttered to himself: "Drawing a talisman could kill someone! And I have to remember every movement and incantation associated with each talisman? I'm doomed; I'll never learn this in my lifetime..."
"What nonsense are you spouting!" Spirit Stone exclaimed angrily as he flicked his mouse whiskers. "Can't your thick skull think properly? These things follow patterns! You don't need to memorize each one individually!"
Chuxuan spoke up: "Master, I understand now. Is it true that they are essentially similar but differentiated by low-level, mid-level, and high-level classifications?"
Seeing Spirit Stone nodding affirmatively, Chuxuan continued confidently, "Even if the Spirit Talisman that flows out is used by others, it's just like a blind person riding a blind horse. They can only utilize its basic functions, such as conjuring a Fire Shield to protect themselves. However, if they truly encounter someone from our Nine Li Sect, we can use our sect's secret techniques, spells, and seals to turn their Spirit Talisman against them. In that case, using our own Spirit Talisman would be like turning the sword's hilt around to strike them. Isn't that right?"
"Old Eight is absolutely correct! That's exactly it! So when our sect's Spirit Talisman flows out, at most it can only be used by outsiders. Using it on our own Nine Li Sect members would be a huge joke. Of course, you must not let your guard down; after all, our sect has been established for over ten thousand years, and it's possible that some methods have already leaked out. But generally speaking, this is common knowledge and consensus among all Immortal Sect members. If someone truly knows our Nine Li Sect's secrets, we won't let it slide. We will definitely demand an explanation," Spirit Stone said with a somewhat sinister smile.
Chuxuan chuckled along. However, Li Hong remained silent; demanding an explanation? It probably wouldn't be that simple—there would likely be an investigation and even silencing of witnesses.
"Old Six, do you think this approach is inappropriate?" Spirit Stone immediately noticed Li Hong's subtle expression.
Li Hong remained silent.
"Hmph! You should know that each Immortal Sect has been established for over ten thousand years. If everyone turns a blind eye, then every sect's unique skills would have long been in the hands of those Demon Sect bastards! Undermining our sect's foundation is also an enemy act! When dealing with enemies, we must not show mercy or kindness. One day you will understand that the Cultivation World is not so peaceful!" Spirit Stone declared firmly and loudly, "You must remember what I said today."
"Yes," Li Hong replied respectfully, but to be honest, he felt somewhat unconvinced.
A single Nine Li Sect has such outstanding talents. For example, Master Spirit Stone—although he had never witnessed his methods against enemies, Li Hong knew he couldn't even match a small finger of his. Then there was that eccentric senior; judging by the situation, he seemed much more formidable than Master Spirit Stone. As for the hidden experts scattered throughout Nine Li Cave Heaven, there were countless unknowns. Not to mention the entire Immortal Sect! That was the alliance of the entire Cultivation World. Who would dare to challenge the Immortal Sect? Perhaps only the Demon Sect could do so, but it was said that the Demon Sect consisted of sneaky and underhanded cultivators who never dared to walk in broad daylight, especially not in front of Immortal Sect members...
"Alright, that's enough for today. Now you all start drawing talismans; I need to check your homework from these past few days," Spirit Stone said.
Upon hearing this, Chuxiong's face immediately fell long; his thick eyebrows almost knitted together. He hesitantly picked up the Spell Pen and secretly glanced at Li Hong, continuously passing obvious signals for cheating back and forth.
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