Chapter 4: Hard to Defend Against

"A Lady is formed from the primordial qi; cultivating qi is cultivating oneself, purifying one's essence, reversing back to the primordial state, thereby refining the primordial qi into a perfect fruit of both form and spirit."

After a long while, Lu Yang opened his eyes, his face lit with delight.

Compared to the Yin-Yang Grand Joy Ode, the Primordial Dao Scripture truly bore the appearance of a complete transmission.

The entire scripture began with ordinary mortals, first teaching a set of primordial exercises to forge the body, even including a complementary martial art named Primordial Grand Grasp.

Once the body was fully cultivated, the cultivator must begin "reversing the primordial"—first transforming the five viscera and six bowels, then the skin, flesh, tendons, and bones, until finally the physical form was utterly dissolved, turning the body into a single strand of primordial true qi, henceforth able to gather or disperse at will, immune to dao arts, and invincible in combat from the very outset.

In addition, the scripture recorded many spells that could be paired with primordial true qi.

Such as Heavenly Net Misting Smoke, One-Mind True Qi Sword, and Spirit Breath Absorption Technique—the variety and diversity of these spells opened Lu Yang's eyes wide.

Yet just then, Lu Yang, who had been utterly absorbed in reading, suddenly froze:

"Where did it end?"

Lu Yang instinctively looked up at Liu Xin, only to realize the Primordial Dao Scripture in his hands contained only the first half—the text ended abruptly.

"Brother, the Dao is not lightly bestowed."

Liu Xin chuckled softly: "The second half of the Primordial Dao Scripture concerns the secret of Foundation Establishment—it's not included in sect benefits; you must exchange contribution points for it."

Hearing this, Lu Yang sighed helplessly: "I see. My apologies, Brother—I lost my composure."

"No matter. The first half is enough for you to cultivate."

Liu Xin patted Lu Yang's shoulder warmly: "Come, I'll take you to Bǔtiān Peak to choose a cave dwelling—pick a good spot, so we can visit each other often."

Lu Yang nodded: "Thank you, Senior Brother."

Half an hour later, Bǔtiān Peak.

At the foot of the mountain, in a secluded cave dwelling, Lu Yang officially settled in; all original furniture and objects inside were cleared away as trash.

Watching this, Lu Yang's thoughts churned endlessly.

"Even formal disciples don't have it easy."

Bǔtiān Peak wasn't large; each year, Chūnshèng Sect had countless provisional disciples—even with a one-in-ten-thousand chance of promotion, it would still fill Bǔtiān Peak to bursting.

But in reality?

As Lu Yang walked along, Bǔtiān Peak wasn't even crowded—it was nearly empty, with many cave dwellings left vacant and unoccupied.

Where had all the formal disciples gone? Surely not because they couldn't afford to rent a cave?

Lu Yang shook his head, chose not to dwell on it, brought out a meditation cushion, sat down, crossed his legs in the five-pointed posture, and began his first cultivation within the cave.

He hadn't realized it before, but now that he cultivated, he felt nearly double the amount of heavenly and earthly spiritual qi rushing toward him, flooding into his dantian, then flowing through his meridians throughout his entire body, finally penetrating from outside to inside, step by step merging into his five viscera, six bowels, skin, flesh, tendons, and bones.

The efficiency was so high that Lu Yang was stunned.

In the same time, with the same technique, the true qi he could produce in one day in the outer sect could now be cultivated in just one hour within the inner sect cave.

"No wonder inner sect caves cost so much to rent."

It's easy to go from frugality to luxury, hard to return from luxury to frugality; once you've experienced the speed of cultivation inside a cave, you can never tolerate cultivating anywhere else again.

The next day, Lu Yang didn't leave—he stayed in the cave, cultivating while reading the Primordial Dao Scripture.

"Though cultivation in this world still depends on talent, there is no such thing as spirit roots; anyone with determination can enter the path of cultivation."

Even so, cultivation was by no means easier.

Although ordinary mortals faced no restriction from spirit roots, the quality of the true qi they cultivated still determined their ultimate potential.

This is the role of the "method."

The higher the cultivation technique, the higher the quality of true qi produced, the greater the chance of reaching higher realms; conversely, the more likely one would hit a bottleneck.

True qi has nine grades, thirty-six levels—the lower the grade, the more superior; the higher the level, the stronger.

Generally, true qi below seventh grade cannot achieve Foundation Establishment; below third grade, it's nearly impossible to form a Jin Dan; and for anyone not of first grade, attempting to condense a Nascent Soul is certain death.

"It's hopeless to be a lone cultivator."

Lu Yang couldn't help but sigh; compared to well-established sects, lone cultivators had no choice in techniques—they just practiced whatever they could get.

Under such circumstances, even the highest talent and insight were doomed from the start, ending in lifelong regret.

The difficulty of immortality cultivation was plain to see.

Thinking of this, Lu Yang slowly furrowed his brow.

"The 'primordial true qi' extracted from the Primordial Dao Scripture ranks sixth grade, first level; cultivators can hope to achieve Foundation Establishment—strictly speaking, it's not weak."

But it still fell short of his expectations.

If he were merely an ordinary cultivator, it would suffice.

But now he possessed the 【Hundred Lifetimes Book】, a miraculous treasure, promising a future full of potential—a technique that capped at Foundation Establishment could no longer satisfy his ambitions.

"If only I could obtain a supreme transmission ranked first grade…"

Lu Yang imagined it, then sighed: "Forget it. One must walk step by step—take too big a stride, crack, and you'll tear your groin."

"First, cultivate the Primordial Dao Scripture, become a Foundation Establishment Grand Master."

Once the foundation is established, one gains immortality and lives three hundred years—nearly equivalent to a dynasty in mortal terms, and even in the cultivation world, one earns the title of "Grand Master."

Once he gained strength, he would seek higher transmissions, obtain them, and immediately restart.

Repeating this cycle, there would come a day when his dream would come true.

As long as he had patience, avoided rashness, time would always be his best friend—that was the confidence the 【Hundred Lifetimes Book】 gave Lu Yang.

Ten days later, Lu Yang's cave.

A white qi rose, swirling and misting, suddenly turning into rolling black smoke, then into an invisible qi sword, finally forming a graceful, immortal-like figure.

"I've succeeded!"

Though profound, the Primordial Dao Scripture was not difficult to practice; within just ten days, Lu Yang had successfully dissolved his physical form and transformed his body into true qi.

【Name: Lu Yang】

【Lifespan: 18】

【Cultivation: Qi Refining Stage 1】

【Talent: Dual Cultivation Genius (White)】

【Cultivation Method: Great Joy Art of Yin and Yang (Perfected), Innate Qi Refining Form-Transformation Art (Perfected)】

【Divine Abilities: None】

【Treasures: None】

【Pages of the Book of a Hundred Lives: 99】

Watching the updated information on the Book of a Hundred Lives, Lu Yang stepped on empty air, feeling his state was at its peak; even the venereal disease of his original body had been cured without medicine.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Lu Yang, who had just been feeling triumphant, frowned, abruptly stopped his movement, then looked at the 【Book of a Hundred Lives】 again, falling into inexplicable contemplation.

"No."

It seemed something had been overlooked by him.

Lu Yang subconsciously recalled that in this life he had encountered no difficulties, smoothly becoming a formal disciple, and smoothly receiving the Innate Dao Scripture.

The next second, Lu Yang finally realized what he had overlooked.

【After Yu Suzhen drained you, she broke through to the Qi Refining realm, but alas, the venereal disease was deeply rooted; her true qi could not be expelled. She lay in bed for several months and finally died from severe illness.】

In the previous life, why did Senior Sister Yu die?

Since she was a formal disciple, she must have also received the Innate Dao Scripture; as long as she successfully cultivated it and transformed her form into qi, how could she possibly die from a venereal disease?

Did she fail to cultivate it?

"Impossible!" Lu Yang shook his head.

The Innate Dao Scripture is not difficult to cultivate; since Yu Suzhen had the ability to break through to the Qi Refining realm, even if her aptitude was the worst, it would be impossible for her to fail to cultivate it within a few months.

"Unless, she did not cultivate the Innate Dao Scripture!"

In that instant, Lu Yang felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

The sound of his heartbeat had never been so clear, his breathing became rapid, and the originally excited expression quickly faded from Lu Yang's face:

"The Innate Dao Scripture... was it prepared specifically for me by Liu Xin?"

Lu Yang thought of the scene he had seen earlier in the Treasure Refining Hall.

That registered disciple of the Treasure Refining Hall thought he had achieved the Great Dao, but the result was seeking his own death; not only did he not break through, he instead refined himself into a magical treasure.

Was that moment then exactly like this moment now?

Just then, a familiar and affectionate call suddenly came from outside the cave dwelling:

"Junior Brother Lu, are you there?"

(End of this chapter)