Chapter 16: Incense Fire

"This is troublesome. Techniques capable of forging an Upper Grade Dao Foundation are basically impossible to leak; at the very least, one must be an Inner Transmission disciple of a side sect to obtain one."

Chen Ci paced in the courtyard, tapping his forehead lightly; he had severely underestimated the difficulty of acquiring Daoist cultivation methods in this world.

There are five realms of cultivation in this world: Sensing (Innate), Qi Refining, Dao Foundation, Golden Core, and Primordial Spirit. Only sects that have produced two or more Primordial Spirit realm Longevity True Monarchs can be called Immortal Sect Upper Schools.

Sects with only one Primordial Spirit realm Longevity True Monarch, or those that have produced Golden Core True Persons, are merely side sects.

Below the Dao Foundation realm, all are of the miscellaneous schools.

The fundamental Great Art of the He Mountain Sect, the *He Mountain Scripture*, is quite famous among the side sects; although they have never produced a single Primordial Spirit realm expert, they have produced many who attained the Golden Core.

Although they are of the side sect variety, they have produced many who attained the Golden Core.

Although the disciples under their banner often act unlawfully, they have produced many who attained the Golden Core.

*Cough*, scratch that last point.

Lin Banshan stated clearly that even within his Wenxiang Sect, there are only a single-digit number of Golden Core True Persons, but he smiled and said nothing regarding the specific count.

Moreover, the best Qi Refining techniques circulating on the market can only open two hundred acupoints and forge a Middle Grade Dao Foundation, and the price is so high that it is impossible to obtain without the combined strength of an entire clan.

Only above a Middle Grade Dao Foundation is there a chance to form a Golden Core.

The Liang Kingdom is located in the southwest of the Jade Bottle Continent, which is considered remote among the remote; it is even some distance from the He Mountain Sect's main altar, somewhat akin to being exiled by the imperial court to the southern seas. The only major sect forces present are Longhu Mountain and the He Mountain Sect.

"Thank you, He Mountain Sect, thank you, Sect Leader, for bestowing upon me this wondrous method to step onto the immortal path."

"I have decided to follow closely in the sect's footsteps and cling tightly to the sect's thigh."

Chen Ci muttered to himself.

He had just chatted with Lin Banshan for a long time, feeling that the two were like old friends at first sight, as close as brothers. He asked Brother Lin if he could gift his brother from a different father and mother a map of the surrounding area, only to be scared off by a flat price equal to two months of income.

Thirty thousand taels of silver—might as well go to Fuyun Market.

One month, fifteen thousand taels of silver in income!

One could take one hundred and eight wives, divorce them, and then take another one hundred and eight wives.

"That's about five hundred plus Spirit Pearls, which converts to only five hundred plus catties of Five Elements Divine Sand—damn it, that's not even enough to cultivate until opening the Hundred Apertures!"

Chen Ci blurted out a "Holy crap."

I'm tired, let it all be destroyed.

But fortunately, I have my Gold Finger; with perseverance... the future should still be promising.

"*Sigh*, regardless, at the very least it can save ten years of effort. Time to practice; I happen to have two catties of fresh Five Elements Divine Sand on hand, so I'll make up for the cultivation I missed these past few days."

Chen Ci spat out a breath of turbid air; a little bit of floating wealth clearly could not shake his Dao Heart in the slightest.

"Next month—no, better make it the month after next—I'll go to the West... *cough*, Fuyun Market again. My understanding of this world is still too little."

"Why did my time spent on Qi-eating and technique practice take so long this time?"

Chen Ci opened his eyes; the sky was already slightly bright, clearly past the Chou hour.

Gazing inward slightly, he felt one acupoint pulsing faintly, and the True Qi within his body flowing more smoothly than ever; the Three Yin True Qi he had been painstakingly cultivating seemed to have undergone a subtle change.

Opening his panel, having been in this world for nearly a month, his fundamental cultivation method, the Three Yin Qi-Eating Method, had finally made some progress.

Three Yin Qi-Eating Method: 30/100

"It hasn't been easy!"

This is a small step for the progress of the Three Yin True Qi, but a giant leap for Chen Ci on his cultivation path.

"It is time to look forward to Longevity... *cough*, look forward to the Dao Foundation realm."

Without attaining a Middle Grade Dao Foundation, there is no hope for forming a Golden Core.

"I need a technique that can refine two hundred acupoints... the Red Dragon Temple, the Liang Kingdom main altar, must surely have one."

"As for the He Mountain main sect, I'd better forget about it."

Among the disciples of the He Mountain Sect, excluding the Sect Leader and the elders of various peaks, the disciples are divided into True Inheritors and Inner Gate disciples.

The Outer Transmission and Registered Disciples outside the mountain gate are actually somewhat like temporary, off-the-books workers; unless they perform some heaven-shaking meritorious service, there is basically no possibility of being bestowed a technique. To the He Mountain Sect, they are just laborers destined for drudgery.

Heaven-shaking meritorious service... You, go and break through the Longhu Mountain Liang Kingdom main altar.

Chen Ci shuddered violently; forget it, I still need to plan this out carefully.

"With my cultivation increased by one acupoint, the speed of refining my Dharma Artifact has also increased by a fraction, though it's not very obvious. If it weren't for my close connection with the Five Yin Evil Qi Bag, I wouldn't even have noticed."

Chen Ci pressed down on the slightly dissatisfied Five Yin Evil Qi Bag and scolded, "It's good enough that you have enough fat pigs to eat, stop being so picky."

The Five Yin Evil Qi Bag instantly felt aggrieved and stopped moving.

Even for mountain folk, it is impossible to catch wild beasts every single day and deliver them to Sanyin Temple on time.

Unless Chen Ci went into the deep mountains and great marshes himself, to places where tigers and leopards gather, there is no way to keep the Five Yin Evil Qi Bag satisfied.

Only a stable breeding industry can provide a stable source of flesh and blood.

Five Yin Evil Qi Bag: Five-fold Prohibition / 16/100

"It feels so good to be supported by others; if I could be supported in my cultivation like those disciples of immortal families, that would be a truly wonderful life."

Chen Ci closed his Gold Finger and sighed.

He then leaned back on his recliner, feeling somewhat bored, and suddenly felt a bit lost.

Cultivating immortality is actually quite boring.

Getting up in the morning, first an hour of Stone Lock Primordial Power, then spending a quarter of an hour at noon practicing the Soul Fixing Talisman, and in the afternoon, either refining the Five Yin Evil Qi Bag or practicing the Small Heavens Qi Absorption Pill Method; come evening, another hour of Stone Lock Primordial Power.

Can't use it all up; a day's time simply cannot be used up.

Even in the middle of the night, one must cultivate immortality; the Hai, Zi, and Chou hours are used for Qi-eating and technique practice, painstakingly cultivating the Three Yin True Qi.

Thinking about it carefully, except for that one trip to Xishan Prefecture, it seems like every day for this past month has been spent living like this; although it is incredibly fulfilling, it feels like something is missing.

"Although my ambition for Longevity is great, lying flat is truly relaxing... No wonder the brothels and gambling dens in Xishan Market are so prosperous. Should I give myself a break too?"

"Bang, bang, bang."

"What is it?"

Chen Ci asked with a hint of laziness.

"Master, the Liu family of the county gentry wishes to come to the temple to worship the gods and pray for blessings; should we receive them?"

Worship the gods and pray for blessings?

Sanyin Temple doesn't offer that service, does it?

His predecessor enjoyed quiet and didn't care for the few copper coins of incense money from commoners; furthermore, the gods enshrined in the temple were the Five Malignant Gods, not any righteous deities, but rather the sort of ghost-gods, so there were truly not two people who came to properly offer incense and pray for blessings.

"Tell them Sanyin Temple does not receive outside guests, and let them go elsewhere."

"The Liu family says they are willing to offer five hundred taels of incense money—very well, Master, I shall go and send them away now."

Chen Ci shook his head and gave a scoffing laugh; a mere five hundred taels of silver might have caught his eye in the past, but now, as a local tycoon with a monthly income of fifteen thousand taels, it was nothing.

However, sigh, I just happen to want to take a day off today.

"Xian Zhi, fetch Master's dharma robes."

In the front hall of Sanyin Temple, Liu Chongjing sipped some coarse tea and looked at the layout of the deity statues in the hall, feeling slightly regretful about coming here to pray for blessings.

His Liu family also had some heritage; his ancestors for three generations had served as third-rank high officials in the Liang Kingdom court, but by his generation, the literary energy had been exhausted, and he currently only held the title of a scholar, yet he also knew that there were indeed divine and strange matters in this world, and that there were immortals and gods among the mortals.

In the past, when chatting with some friends, he had heard that the Temple Master of Sanyin Temple had great divine powers, but he was not clear on the specifics; seeing it today, it did not look like any blessed land, and as soon as he entered, he felt a chill, and if it were not for his page boy's strong recommendation, he reckoned he would not have entered.

"Heming, is the True Person Chen you spoke of truly extraordinary?"

"Master, I once witnessed the True Person's divine powers, but I dare not assert just how extraordinary they are, as I was only a beggar at the time... Master, True Person Chen has arrived!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Chongjing perked up, and just as he was about to stand, he saw a young Daoist walk in with large strides; his appearance was handsome and unlike an ordinary person, and his figure was well-proportioned and tall; as he walked, there was no air of an immortal, but rather a dignified and awe-inspiring presence that was quite intimidating.

He inexplicably wanted to recite a poem, but lacking the literary talent, he could only raise his hands in a salute: "Greetings, True Person Chen."

"I am unworthy of the title 'True Person'; please sit, Gentry Liu."

Chen Ci gestured for the incense guest to sit and got straight to the point: "Worshiping the gods or praying for blessings—do you need to prepare for a while, or shall we go straight through the process?"

Liu Chongjing: "..." That's not right, shouldn't there normally be some psychological preparation first?

"True Person Chen, may I ask if you have any methods for warding off evil and driving away ghosts?"

After hesitating for a moment, Liu Chongjing gritted his teeth and asked in a low voice: "I feel that my family may have encountered something evil."

Encountered something evil?

That's perfect; my expertise is exactly suited for that.

Chen Ci thought to himself.

(End of chapter)