Chapter 463: The Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong Administrator

As they walked into the center of the leaves, everyone fell silent, even their whispered transmissions ceasing, and they sat quietly in a circle around a stone platform.

There was already one person there.

An elderly man with a kind face, dressed in a simple gray robe, emitted no aura, his expression vacant, like a puppet, gazing blankly at the sky.

Jiang Ding involuntarily held his breath.

Without exaggeration, the man before him was the most outstanding genius among billions of beings in this realm over the past three thousand years.

With his Soul Transformation cultivation, he built upon the foundations of ancient sages, led and participated in the Void Refining battlefield, thereby laying the foundation for the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's dominance.

As to why he now sat vacant and lost in thought, Jiang Ding had his own suspicions.

If nothing unexpected occurred, he was likely simulating the path for the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong to reach Void Refining.

As a peak Soul Transformation cultivator, only such an endeavor could make him neglect sleep and food even for his projections, awakening only at specific times.

Dong, dong, dong…

The melodious bell of class rang out, waves of sound spreading outward like tangible ripples.

"Teacher, hello!"

Jiang Ding and all the Jin Dan and Foundation Establishment cultivators rose in unison, bowing deeply, just as they had in elementary school countless years ago.

There was no substantive difference between the two.

"Oh, is it class time again?"

"Where did I leave off last time?"

The gray-robed elder's vacant expression flickered slightly with life, his eyes clouded with confusion; after a moment, he came to: "Students, open the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong edition of 'Nascent Soul Formation,' page 7642."

Jiang Ding immediately contacted the library and opened the relevant pages of 'Nascent Soul Formation.'

This was the universal textbook for doctoral students in the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's Daoist studies.

Though merely a universal textbook, its confidentiality level was extremely high—no physical copies existed, and lower-level cultivators had to pass knowledge-preparation checks before each reading, to prevent qi deviation or exploitation by external forces.

"The Nascent Soul of a cultivator is a highly condensed product formed by the fusion of essence, qi, spirit, spiritual energy, and magic power—a semi-ethereal lifeform artificially created by generations of cultivators for immortality, inherently attuned to and capable of controlling spiritual energy."

"The Nascent Soul can already exist independently of the body for long periods; the physical form is merely a dwelling, no longer essential—but one must also recognize that the body remains critically important to the Nascent Soul, as the foundation for further advancement…"

Yuan spoke slowly.

His voice was soft and soothing, beginning with principles and explaining to the surrounding cultivators the formation, history, and current research on the Nascent Soul.

To each listener, it sounded different, tailored precisely to their understanding and Gong Fa.

Often, just a few words would make an obscure problem suddenly clear.

All Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong instructors, including Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun, had him as their teacher; their teaching methods and attitudes toward students were all modeled after his.

Yuan was the one who perfected the educational philosophy inherited from the Sixth Administrator, Wu, who was already deceased.

One could even say that, in pure teaching ability, he surpassed Void Refining.

His deficiency lay in lacking Void Refining lineage.

He could only stand alone, confronting the accumulated Dao knowledge of the Badaxian Sect spanning countless millions of years and countless Dao masters, and thus was often at a disadvantage.

Time passed slowly.

Without noticing, three months slipped by during the lectures.

"... In the Nascent Soul formation stage, one must pay special attention to the changes and movement patterns of heavenly and earthly spiritual energy, to master and gather their power."

"This training should begin now."

Yuan's lecture paused, and he asked: "Do any of you have questions?"

He generally did not teach specific Gong Fa, arrays, or talismans—those were the domain of Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun and others.

But if questions arose in those areas, they could still be asked.

"Teacher, in the Jin Dan Pian of the Wan Hua Ci Yuan Jing, the seventh chapter…"

Jiang Ding seized the opportunity, asking about a few difficulties he'd encountered since switching his cultivation method—he felt it wasn't flowing smoothly, but couldn't pinpoint exactly why.

"Here…"

Yuan spoke briefly, pointing out the issue.

"And here, here, here… I also don't fully understand."

Jiang Ding showed no shame, listing seventeen or eighteen places where he felt his understanding was inadequate, and asked his teacher for clarification.

Occasionally, after several explanations, he still didn't grasp it, so he asked again.

"If this were in sword cultivation, you could think of it as a sword…"

Yuan was extremely accustomed to this kind of teaching—he repeated the problem from every angle, quickly finding the method that would make it easiest for this student to understand.

Teacher and student exchanged back and forth.

Soon, another month passed.

"Jiang Ding, how is your progress on developing your Nascent Soul secret technique?"

Just before class ended, Yuan suddenly asked.

"Extremely difficult!"

"Progress is extremely slow!"

Jiang Ding perked up, looking up with intense eagerness: "Even with partial lineage, the Great Sun Nascent Soul technique is still too hard—for both Teacher Zhang and me."

"Our knowledge and Daoic heritage are insufficient; the difficulties we've encountered exceed imagination—we may need to enter dormancy and endure generations of researchers before succeeding."

This was the joint conclusion reached by Zhang Zhang Junsheng and him after months of research.

The Great Sun Nascent Soul technique was already among the pinnacle Nascent Soul-level techniques in the realm; even Zhang Zhang Junsheng, a rare genius among men and a standout among Nascent Soul cultivators who oversaw a research direction of the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong, was still insufficient.

Of course, Jiang Ding had not rashly made a request.

Cultivators' time was always precious, especially for those at the peak, on the verge of breakthrough—often, just a few hundred years could mean the difference.

To waste one's final years distracted by other matters, watching one's lifespan end pointlessly—wouldn't that be tragic?

To rashly ask others to spend a great deal of time and a great deal of lifespan helping oneself is really somewhat impolite.

"Let me do it."

Yuan nodded: "I will set aside some time to help you all, but I am very busy and will not be permanently stationed at the laboratory. If you encounter related difficulties, you may come find me, and we can discuss them together."

"Thank you, Teacher!"

Jiang Ding was overjoyed beyond expectation, stood up, bowed deeply, his heart full of gratitude.

"It's nothing—this is also for my own Dao."

Yuan waved his hand, looked up at the sky, and sighed softly.

"Refining Void, it's fucking hard!"

He cursed out loud directly.

"I sat in seclusion for several thousand years, and the Immortal Gate Academy of Sciences has been stuck on this problem for several thousand years. The more we research, the more we feel it's arduous; the road ahead is hazy and distant, with no concrete path in sight."

"How on earth did the predecessors of the Jiudaxian Sect manage to work it out?"

"Could it really be that there exist prodigies and heroes beyond our imagination, who forcibly carved out a great Dao out of a fog of confusion?"

Jiang Ding listened obediently.

This kind of topic was far too remote and abstruse for him; he understood nothing, and speaking up would only embarrass him.

(End of chapter)