Chapter 209: Keeping the Appointment for Longevity!

"Dragon scale?"

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately wanted to reject it, but the words that had just reached their lips they couldn't help swallowing back.

Thinking of the peculiarity of that scale, even scientists couldn't fathom it, couldn't research it thoroughly; adding to the recent strange rumors, everyone inevitably conceived an unimaginable idea.

Could it be that this is really a dragon scale?

"Whether it is or not still needs investigation; everything needs evidence."

If we say there really are dragons in the world, then the previous capital's heavenly tribulation, together with these frequent omens nowadays, could explain it; but all this is merely speculation by the people of the 749 Bureau.

"Continue the investigation, and increase efforts; the higher-ups are awaiting a result!"

"Dismissed!"

……

Ye Qin didn't know that he had successfully survived the heavenly tribulation and transformed into a true dragon; as the first true dragon in this realm, different omens appeared across the country, and naturally he would receive special treatment.

Apart from Longyuan Mountain, other places did have omens, but they received no gifts from heaven and earth, after all only Longyuan Village is nearest to Ye Qin; as the saying goes, when one person attains the Dao, even chickens and dogs ascend to heaven—if other places also received gifts, the heavenly way would be in chaos.

Inadvertently, the villagers again received a batch of benefits, but the ones who benefited most were still the animals of Longyuan Mountain, after all they had undergone part of the heavenly tribulation, and with the later sweet rain bestowal, their cultivation levels increased greatly.

In the mountains and forests, the mist was hazy, the purple aura not yet fully dissipated, enveloping the verdant leaves, weaving together a dreamlike scene.

Spiritual power condensed into droplets, flowing along the leaf veins' texture downward, the whole leaf soaked in it, responding in harmony with the surrounding environment.

Ye Qin's surroundings were wrapped in golden light; upon closer look, those faint glows were actually emanating from inside his body, at times even concealing the radiance of the dragon scale.

An ancient, vague aura pervaded the area; the animals dared not approach, only watching silently from afar, fearful that any sound would disturb Ye Qin.

All the spiritual power of Longyuan Mountain gathered here, entered Ye Qin's body, and was then absorbed by his golden core.

Ye Qin's golden core spun at high speed, constantly expanding, enlarging its domain; the spiritual power inside was like a vast ocean, unfathomably deep.

If it were anyone else or another animal, absorbing this much spiritual power would have caused their body to burst long ago; but Ye Qin's realm and cultivation level are such that even double the amount would pose no problem.

Golden threads wandered through the meridians, appearing chaotic at first glance, but upon careful observation they followed the natural Dao of heaven and earth, each stroke sketching an endless rhythm.

Ye Qin's body transmitted waves of swelling sensation, as if countless ants were gnawing; he could clearly feel his golden core continually enlarging, having endured the heavenly tribulation, so this pain was naturally nothing to him.

From the void came the sound of the Great Dao, echoing incessantly in his ears; at this moment Ye Qin fell into a wondrous state, arriving at an extremely special space.

A huge golden core manifested before him, already reaching saturation, almost occupying half his field of view.

Only a "crack" sound was heard, and suddenly spiderweb-like cracks appeared on it, rapidly spreading outward, as if something inside wanted to break free.

"Bang!"

That sound was extremely rhythmic, beat after beat striking Ye Qin's heart; seeing the golden core's rupture, he not only did not panic, but rather felt some anticipation, even accelerating the core's fragmentation.

As the saying goes, 'no destruction, no establishment'; his primordial spirit had already reached the perfect great completion realm, and with his transformation into a true dragon and successful heavenly tribulation, he finally welcomed the next realm——

Nascent Soul!

The golden core shattered into countless fragments, scattering in the void; inside was actually a lotus bud about to bloom!

The lotus's light shone, radiant and colorful, manifesting miraculously, unlike anything of this world, as if it came from the nine heavens beyond the realm; a powerful life force filled it, and even a faint heartbeat could be heard.

As the golden lotus emerged layer by layer, a faint greenish figure could be seen coiled within the gaps of the petals, condensing Ye Qin's most refined power; though small in form, it bore the aura of ancient wilderness.

In an instant, Ye Qin's breath halted for a beat.

"This is my Nascent Soul!"

Nascent Soul means cultivating the primordial spirit and manifesting an infant.

In the Alchemical Dao, refining the primordial spirit simply means: after forming an intangible, substanceless golden core, one uses the method of shattering the void to leave the elixir field, transforming into a pure, luminous spiritual pill, then seeking one's true nature to cultivate the primordial spirit, which is called 'clear mind'.

The yang spirit refines into purity, soaring upward to the mind to 'see nature'; seeking the yin spirit of the departed palace, they converge and unite in the Niwan palace, filling the room with rosy light, the whole body turning white, then returning to the abdominal primordial spirit, merging to become the life fetus.

Stacking the lotus platform, nurturing the life fetus in emptiness, then transforming the fetus into the primordial spirit, silently nourishing it.

However, Ye Qin's true form is a snake; after transformation he naturally cannot manifest as an infant, so his Nascent Soul takes the shape of the original small snake.

Daoism places great importance on maintaining the state of an 'infant,' 'red child'—that is, returning to simplicity and truth through cultivation to reach a realm of pure non-action, where the mind is like that of an infant.

Although Ye Qin is now a true dragon, returning to simplicity and tracing back to the source, his manifested Nascent Soul will appear as a green snake, not a dragon.

A tiny green snake emerged from within the golden lotus, affectionately coiling around Ye Qin's whole body; the originally radiant golden lotus also fulfilled its final mission, turning into several streams of light that flowed into the small snake's body.

After being nourished by the golden lotus, the little snake's form looked more solid, as if it had grown a bit.

One dragon and one snake shone together, like the sun and moon meeting; spiritual power arose, surging and mighty.

Ye Qin gazed at this existence akin to a miniature version of himself, his eyes full of novel sensations, his heart infinitely delighted; though the small snake's form had shrunk, its abilities had not.

After condensing the Nascent Soul, Ye Qin could feel his magical power greatly increase, and he could communicate with heaven and earth, deduce the beginning and end of all things, roam spiritually through the Great Void, the vast Great Luo—it was imminent.

Once the Nascent Soul is formed, the physical body and the Nascent Soul can separate and combine, shuttling between the material and spiritual realms.

The green snake wandered to and fro, eventually taking the place where the golden core originally resided, coiling itself, peacefully curling up inside Ye Qin's body, continuing to receive the cleansing of spiritual power.

Just as Ye Qin was making his breakthrough, the animals were instead attracted by something else beside him.

The Primordial White Bone had never returned to Ye Qin's body; now it had manifested in reality, not only that, but it had fully grown flesh and blood.

The animals gathered around, chattering, their beastly eyes full of curiosity and inquiry.

When Ye Qin opened his eyes, what he saw was the scene of the animals gathered together; in his verdant pupils, another shadow flickered, as if the small snake were swimming to and fro.

The Northeast Tiger was the first to notice Ye Qin had awakened; its low growl of a tiger's roar was full of the flavor of joy.

At this moment, Ye Qin's surroundings emitted no strong aura, seeming like an ordinary creature, not even a flicker of spiritual power; evidently he had entered the realm of returning to simplicity and truth.

Animals have an instinct for danger; although they don't know what happened to Ye Qin, they can sense that at this moment he is extraordinary, his aura even stronger than after his successful heavenly tribulation.

"What are you looking at?"

Faced with Ye Qin's question, the animals hastily made way; Ye Qin also clearly saw the scene within.

A graceful figure sat cross-legged, her eyes slightly closed, like a proud snow-defying plum blossom, standing in a secluded valley, serenely and elegantly blooming on its own.

Only see her supporting an ancient Daoist temple with one hand; her hands were lustrous white like jade, as if forged from ice and snow; the temple exuded an ancient, ethereal aura, matching the woman's demeanor, not like a mortal of the mundane world.

Ye Qin stared blankly at the woman's face, momentarily lost in thought.

The woman before him was no one else—it was Longling!

Ice skin and jade bones, coldly beautiful beyond vulgarity.

Sensing the fluctuating emotions of Ye Qin, the woman slowly opened her eyes; in an instant the whole hall shone, those pitch-black eyes as if countless stars had fallen into them.

However, upon closer inspection, these eyes lacked luster; though beautiful, they were like an empty puppet, missing a bit of soul.

"The Origin White Bone is formed by my contemplation based on Longling's remains; now that it has grown flesh and skin, it naturally resembles Longling."

Ye Qin surveyed the White Bone before him, his thoughts myriad for a moment, and he recalled that woman who had stunned the world a thousand years ago.

This time he succeeded in his tribulation, not only shedding his flood dragon body to become a true divine dragon, but the Origin White Bone also underwent an anomaly, growing flesh and blood, and could now be materialized, becoming his own Origin avatar.

This can be understood as a variant Divine Ability, equivalent to splitting off another self possessing part of the main body's power.

Ye Qin infused his mental power into it; the woman's behavior and actions were no different from an ordinary person's, but she was not Longling herself and had no independent thoughts; although she could act normally, she did not belong to the human realm.

Ye Qin can use the eyes of the Origin White Bone to observe and experience all things in the world; whatever she experiences outside will be fed back to him.

"Having this avatar will be very convenient later; it can substitute for me to go out into the world."

Thus, even if Ye Qin later cultivates in the mountains while the woman experiences the mortal world, both cultivation and tempering proceed without conflict—truly a case of killing multiple birds with one stone; the appearance of this Origin avatar has a major impact on Ye Qin.

Ye Qin's gaze fell upon the Shangqing Observatory; he remembered that during his tribulation, Longling's remains also underwent the baptism of thunder, and with the effect of the Origin White Bone, they too underwent some anomaly, finally resonating with the Shangqing Observatory.

At that time the situation was urgent, so he did not examine it closely; now extending his mental power, he saw Longling's remains seated solemnly on the offering platform, an unknown power swirling around them, the white bones gleaming with a jade-like luster; even without flesh and skin, they appeared sacred and extraordinary.

The Shangqing Observatory is filled with spiritual energy; the surrounding special energy magnetic field shines like sun and moon, possessing tremendous power.

Ye Qin felt a surge of vigorous vitality in the White Bone; although not yet apparent, given time and continued nourishment, letting the White Bone grow will surely bring about a tremendous transformation.

This is all due to the Origin White Bone, the thunder baptism, and the effect of the Shangqing Observatory working together to produce such an effect.

Sensing the changes transmitted from the white bones on the offering platform, Ye Qin's expression became thoughtful.

"Incense can gather the thoughts of all beings, giving rise to such a special creature as a guardian; if I harness the power of incense, combined with the effect of the Qing Observatory, perhaps there truly is a chance to resurrect Longling!"

"Just as in the ancient pact for longevity with Qin Shi Huang."

Thinking of this, Ye Qin's thoughts surged, his emotions somewhat exhilarated, but all this is merely his speculation; whether it can truly be realized still depends on subsequent actions.

Theoretically, Ye Qin's idea is not wrong, but resurrecting a life that has passed is too defiant of heaven, and no one has ever accomplished it.

According to Ye Qin's current cultivation level and ability, it is not impossible, but much preparation is still needed.

As Ye Qin pondered, the tranquil Nascent Soul within his body stirred slightly; the little snake opened its eyes, its gaze falling toward the southeast.

That is precisely the location of Zu Ci's tomb.

"Could it be that Zu Ci's tomb has undergone some change?"

Ye Qin was surprised; he immediately flew there. The mountain air was exuberant, the surrounding grass lush, green pines and jade bamboo, fragrant orchids and grass; the ancient tomb appeared unchanged externally, except that the surrounding vegetation was more luxuriant.

Ye Qin's eyes flickered with disbelief: "How could this be possible!"

He felt within it a familiar aura—undoubtedly a fragment of the temporal undulations!

The mountain resembled a fairyland, with ethereal spiritual mist pervading the tomb's surroundings; as the mountain wind blew, pine waves rose in succession.

Ye Qin again released his mental power to sense; indeed it was the temporal aura, without mistake.

A temporal fragment can only be entered once; thereafter one cannot re-enter. For so many years Zu Ci's tomb has shown no peculiar change, yet now it ripples with temporal traces—how could he not be startled?

"Could it be because I underwent the heavenly tribulation on Longyuan Mountain, and coincidentally Zu Ci's tomb is also in the mountains, thus also producing a magnetic field anomaly?"

"Or perhaps it is a gift from the Heavenly Dao afterward, and Zu Ci's tomb was also affected?"

For a moment, Ye Qin's mind filled with various doubts; the closer he approached Zu Ci's tomb, the more evident the agitation of his Nascent Soul became.

He tried to connect with this temporal aura, but it was as if an invisible wall blocked his inquiry; spiritual energy sank like a mud ox into the sea, eliciting no response.

"It seems he still cannot enter it."

Ye Qin couldn't help but feel disappointed: "If that's the case, why would Zu Ci's tomb erupt with temporal aura?"

He must clarify this point.

"Right, I can use the power of the Nascent Soul!"

Ye Qin seemed to have thought of something; his eyes flashed with brilliant light. Although he could no longer enter the temporal fragment himself, perhaps his Nascent Soul could.

A divine light flashed; the little snake swam out from within his body, hovering in midair. The little snake was no different from Ye Qin's former self, merely a miniature version.

After the Nascent Soul coalesces into form, the physical body and Nascent Soul can separate and combine; if he attaches himself to the Nascent Soul, perhaps success is possible!

This is also merely Ye Qin's speculation; whether it succeeds remains to be seen.

Ye Qin is a man of action; the Nascent Soul is him, he is the Nascent Soul. After his mental power envelops the Nascent Soul, his physical body remains motionless in place, as if fallen into slumber.

In fact, Ye Qin's soul has already entered the little snake; he feels no discomfort, quite adept, the Nascent Soul and he are one indivisible entity, with no distinction.

Ye Qin again released his mental power; after a brief moment he sensed the surrounding changes—the previous obstruction had vanished without trace.

Sure enough, there is hope!

Ye Qin found it hard not to become excited; the wish in his heart seemed to draw nearer.

"'Keeping the appointment for longevity, it is within reach!'"

(End of chapter)