Chapter 100: The Spirit of Youth is the Most Precious and Irreplaceable Thing

Lu Yuan stared at the old man in front of him, who wasn't throwing a fit or glaring.

The stubborn resolve in Lu Yuan's heart suddenly dissipated, and he even felt a bit off.

This matter... he had gone too far.

Dismantling the sect's heirloom treasure was unjustifiable no matter how you looked at it; it was an act of betraying one's ancestors and teachers.

"Later, just have that sword of yours take the place of these Sky-Blue Colored Glaze Beads, and it'll be fine."

The old man patted his round belly and suddenly chuckled.

Lu Yuan: "???"

Oh!!!

So he was waiting for this all along!!!

"Deal!"

"I'm going to inlay Qingwan's eyes!"

With those words, he turned and left, clean and decisive.

He left only Celestial Master He Xun standing to the side, his face full of question marks, his voice booming like thunder.

"What sword?!!"

"What the hell kind of riddle are you two talking in?!!"

"I don't agree!! I absolutely do not agree!!!"

"What sword could possibly be more powerful than a sect-inherited ritual tool?! Bullshit!!"

Lu Yuan's figure disappeared outside the hall door. He let out a long breath, expelling the foul air, his mental knot completely gone.

In this matter, no one lost and no one gained.

It wasn't about whether the Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword or the Sky-Blue Colored Glaze Beads were better or more valuable.

Of course, if one had to say, naturally the Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword was stronger.

But looking at it from another angle, everything Lu Yuan possessed, a hundred years from now, would all still belong to Zhenlong Temple anyway.

What taking place or not taking place, it was just shifting things from the left hand to the right hand.

However, the old man's words had actually lifted Lu Yuan's mood quite a bit.

Yes!

That's right, he was about to dismantle one of the sect's ancestral ritual tools.

On the surface, that looked like an unfilial descendant, no mistake.

But don't forget, in the future, Lu Yuan could repay the sect with countless top-tier ritual tools!

To speak without emotion, purely from a profit perspective:

Using the sect's top-tier ritual tool could make Gu Qingwan stronger, and once Gu Qingwan became stronger, she could better protect Lu Yuan.

If Lu Yuan was safe, he could earn more top-grade ritual tools from the system to nourish this lineage.

Lu Yuan could fill Zhenlong Temple's ritual tool treasury with treasures that would make all Daoist sects green with envy!

Purely from a profit standpoint, it was a huge win!

And speaking of emotion, this was for Gu Qingwan, who had saved Lu Yuan's life twice.

This matter... no matter how you looked at it, there was no problem.

Thinking this, Lu Yuan, who had felt some psychological pressure before, now felt completely fine.

One could only say...

The old man was indeed the old man.

The master was indeed the master.

Probably, when the old man saw his pathetic state earlier, he knew exactly what he was thinking.

With that one sentence, he had enlightened Lu Yuan.

Shaking his head, after exhaling the pent-up frustration in his chest, Lu Yuan began preparing the items needed for the eye inlaying!

……

"I don't agree!!"

"He Yin! I'm telling you, I absolutely do not agree!!!"

When Lu Yuan returned carrying all the necessary items, Celestial Master He Xun was hopping up and down in the side hall, spittle flying.

"It's true Master passed these beads to you, but I'm your senior brother!"

"Master is gone, I'm the senior brother, and now I don't agree!!!"

"This is a heavy weapon of the lineage's inheritance, how can it be dismantled to patch up the eye sockets of some evil entity?!"

"This is the biggest joke in the world!!"

The old man, slumped on the floor, just let out a satisfied belch, not even bothering to lift his eyelids.

Only when he saw Lu Yuan return did he slowly rise from the ground.

And the moment the old man moved, Celestial Master He Xun couldn't help but shudder, taking two steps back.

For a moment, Celestial Master He Xun, both cowardly and fierce, said:

"What!"

"Want to fight, is it?!"

"You might not be stronger than me now!! Don't believe me, try it!!"

After saying this, watching the old man approach step by step, Celestial Master He Xun still swallowed his saliva unbecomingly and roared with a fierce front but weak core:

"Even if you're still stronger than me, so what?!"

"Even if you beat me to death right here today, I still don't agree!!!"

The old man ignored him, walked straight up to him, grabbed his sleeve, and dragged him outside, asking Lu Yuan without turning his head:

"Where's that sword of yours?"

Lu Yuan was intently arranging the ritual items and immediately replied:

"By my bed, wrapped in cloth."

The Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword had already been seen by the old man before, so there was no need to hide it and not let people see it.

Last time he returned, Lu Yuan had openly placed it in his room.

The old man nodded and said:

"Lend it to me to play with for a couple of days."

Lu Yuan, without looking up, said:

"Just take it and use it, no hurry to return it."

For this level of ritual sword, Lu Yuan still had several more being nurtured in his system space, so he wasn't worried about using it.

If the old man liked it, he could just give it to him.

Finally, the old man dragged the still struggling furiously, fuming Celestial Master He Xun and disappeared through the door.

Now, only Lu Yuan and Gu Qingwan remained in the side hall again.

Lu Yuan finished placing the prepared items and looked towards Gu Qingwan, who stood quietly to the side, watching him all along.

Gu Qingwan seemed to have something to say now, her red lips parting slightly as she was about to speak, but Lu Yuan grinned and said:

"It's fine, this matter has nothing to do with you, don't overthink it."

"I took something from the sect, I'll naturally pay it back, it's not related to you."

"Alright, no more talking, I'm starting."

With that, Lu Yuan closed his eyes, his entire aura instantly settling into deep calm.

First step, Awaken the Spirit!!

Several breaths later, his eyes suddenly snapped open, a flash of sharp light within!

He bit his fingertip, and a drop of blood, crimson as agate, fell precisely onto the twelve Sky-Blue Colored Glaze Beads.

His hands formed the "Spirit-Invoking Seal," thumbs pressing middle fingers, remaining fingers held together like a sword, placed before his chest, as he softly recited an ancient incantation.

"Heaven and Earth are the furnace, Creation is the craftsman."

"Yin and Yang are the charcoal, All Things are the bronze."

"Now with my blood, I call your true name, Sky-Blue Colored Glaze, answer the oath and manifest!"

The incantation ended!

*Hum—!*

All twelve beads simultaneously erupted with brilliant light!

Thick azure light overflowed from the beads, like quicksilver spilling across the ground, instantly filling the hall.

Twelve pillars of light shot towards the ceiling, within them countless profound runes floated and swirled.

Second step, Select the Beads!!

Inlaying the eyes required two beads, but not just any two would do.

As stated in the *Dao*, inlaying the eyes required selecting "Yin-Yang Paired Beads," with complementary auras, to achieve perfection.

Lu Yuan closed his eyes again, his spiritual awareness spreading out like water ripples, carefully sensing the aura of each bead.

Some were as warm and gentle as spring sunshine, some as clear and cold as autumn moonlight, some as heavy and solid as mountains, some as lively and nimble as flowing streams.

The time it takes an incense stick to burn later.

He opened his eyes, his fingertips moving like lightning, precisely untying two beads from that silver thread.

The bead in his left hand, its internal mist milky white, starlight soft, this was the "Yang Bead," governing daytime vision, discerning colors, observing vitality.

The bead in his right hand, its internal mist pale purple, starlight clear and cold, this was the "Yin Bead," governing night vision, detecting fortune, seeing spiritual anomalies.

The moment the paired beads left the string, the remaining ten beads dimmed simultaneously, emitting a nearly inaudible mournful cry.

That connecting silver thread, at the break, seeped points of silvery light, like drops of blood falling, but they dissipated into the air halfway down.

A top-tier ritual tool passed down for centuries, its spiritual connections severed.

……

At the same time.

The old man, dragging Celestial Master He Xun, had just stepped into Lu Yuan's room.

Along the way, Celestial Master He Xun had almost used hands and feet together, nearly breaking free several times to charge back.

"Alright, alright, stop shouting, look at this!"

The old man impatiently picked up the long object placed by the bed, wrapped in tattered cloth strips.

With a surge of True Qi from his hand, those tattered cloth strips instantly turned to flying ash!

A divine sword was completely revealed before the two of them!

The sword body was entirely purple-gold, neither metal nor wood, its design ancient and imposing.

On the sword body, natural thunder patterns flowed slowly, as if a thunder marsh was sealed within!

Celestial Master He Xun, who had been cursing loudly, suddenly fell silent.

His entire body froze.

"...No... it can't be..."

He stared fixedly at this sword, his eyes wide and round, his Adam's apple bobbing frantically.

"This... this thing..."

"Where... where did he get this from???"

The old man put on a completely nonchalant look, shaking his head and swaying.

"Don't know, maybe the kid dug it out from some remote corner Nurturing Malevolence Site?"

Celestial Master He Xun's eyes bulged, anger rising.

"Nonsense!"

"If the Life-Severing Wang Family had this top-tier Daoist ritual tool, would they leave it in some small, broken Nurturing Malevolence Site?"

The old man couldn't be bothered to argue further, directly shoving that Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword into Celestial Master He Xun's arms.

"Here, don't just look, try it yourself."

The moment the Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword entered his hands, all the remaining words in Celestial Master He Xun's throat got stuck.

He subconsciously channeled True Qi into it.

*Zzzzt—!*

Blinding thunderlight exploded across the sword body, transforming into countless fine electric snakes slithering about, emitting teeth-grating crackling bursts.

A thunder punishment authority of utmost purity washed over them.

"Tsk..."

Celestial Master He Xun drew in a sharp breath of cold air, his expression completely changed.

"Good stuff!"

"Really good stuff... sky-topping good stuff!!!"

The old man to the side raised an eyebrow, looking at Celestial Master He Xun's pathetic state, and grinned:

"So, using this sword to exchange for those beads, do you think it's a loss?"

Celestial Master He Xun was taken aback, subconsciously stroking his beard with his free hand.

His other hand, however, couldn't put down the Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword, lovingly waving it about; wherever the sword edge passed, the air rippled with thunderlight.

"Hmm... this matter, well, that's another story..."

"……"

Halfway through this sentence, Celestial Master He Xun suddenly froze again, the Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword in his hand also stopping, no longer waving.

The next second, Celestial Master He Xun turned to glare at the old man:

"Almost let you lead me down the wrong path!"

"So what if this sword is stronger than the beads?!!"

"Those beads were passed down by our Patriarch, inherited for centuries!!"

"Can they even be compared?!!"

To this, the old man glanced sideways at Celestial Master He Xun and said:

"Why can't they be compared?"

"Ritual tools are meant to be used."

"It's just that some can be used longer, some shorter."

"You tell me, in this world, what ritual tool lasts forever without breaking?"

"It's a sect treasure, a family heirloom, but in the end, it's still a ritual tool!"

"It's not an antique vase placed on an altar for display, it needs to be useful!"

"Today, it can serve a heaven-sent purpose, why not use it?!"

The old man's words left Celestial Master He Xun feeling a bit stifled. Just as he was about to say something, the old man glared again:

"This isn't discarding it, this isn't losing it, and it's certainly not wasting it!"

"That young woman saved his life twice, just for that debt of gratitude, what's wrong with our sect taking out a ritual tool to reciprocate the kindness?!"

Celestial Master He Xun was completely silenced.

"……"

He understood the reasoning, but that mental hurdle just wouldn't let him pass.

His mouth opened and closed, still wanting to struggle a bit.

But the old man impatiently waved a hand.

"Stop fucking babbling."

"You can play with this sword for half a year!"

Celestial Master He Xun immediately said:

"One year!"

Old man:

"……"

"Fine!"

……

Meanwhile, inside the side hall.

Lu Yuan had already begun the third step.

Open the Orifices!

These orifices were not the physical eye sockets, but the soul's orifices.

He had Gu Qingwan's soul return to her original body within the coffin, then quickly stepped forward.

Lu Yuan brought together his index and middle fingers, fingertips swirling with faint azure light, gently tapping Gu Qingwan's cold brow, softly reciting an incantation.

"The soul has nine orifices, the eyes connect to seven."

"Now open the heavenly windows, admit clarity, expel turbidity."

"Yin and Yang enter their positions, Heaven and Earth establish the foundation."

As the incantation went on, the azure light at his fingertips, like a living thing, infused into her.

Fingertip azure light flowing, a pale golden point of light appeared on Gu Qingwan's brow.

The light point then slowly split into two, silently sliding down both sides of the bridge of her nose, finally stopping precisely at the center of where her eyes should be.

Within the originally empty, pitch-black depths of her eye sockets, an extremely minute azure vortex appeared in each, quietly rotating.

Fourth step, Fuse the Beads!

This was the most dangerous step in the entire process, to completely fuse the "spiritual marrow" of the Sky-Blue Colored Glaze Beads with the soul orifices.

Lu Yuan fetched a bowl of rootless water prepared earlier and gently placed the "Yang Bead" and "Yin Bead" inside.

The two beads didn't sink upon entering the water but instead floated three inches above the surface, rotating on their own.

His gaze sharpened, he suddenly bit his tongue, and a mist of blood containing pure Yang energy sprayed into the bowl.

Goodness gracious~~

Being a Taoist priest was really not easy, biting your tongue eight hundred times a day!

The moment the blood mist touched the water, the entire bowl of water instantly boiled!

Not the boiling of hot water, but a violent agitation of spiritual energy!

Azure and purple steam rose upwards, like two spiritual, intelligent flood dragons, coiling as they drifted towards Gu Qingwan.

Finally, they drilled into the vortexes at the center of her eye sockets.

Gu Qingwan's delicate body in the coffin trembled imperceptibly.

Her soul sensed two completely different feelings.

Left eye, as if soaking in warm spring water, comfortably warm.

Right eye, however, as if bathing in cool mountain breeze, utterly clear and empty.

The eternal gray-white mist in her vision began to churn violently, tearing apart; threads, wisps of long-lost color faintly appeared deep within the mist.

Fifth step, Dot the Eyes!

Lu Yuan held up a bead in each hand, both now radiating brilliant spiritual light, his expression solemn as he slowly brought them close to Gu Qingwan's eyes.

Stopping abruptly three inches from the eyeballs, he uttered a true word like thunder.

"With Heaven as the pupil, with Earth as the eye!"

"Admit stars into the gaze, hide the moon within the crystal!"

"Dispel illusions to see truth, connect with the unseen to reach the spiritual!"

"Dot the eyes, succeed!"

As the last two words fell, the two beads in his palms suddenly transformed into two masses of azure-purple liquid light, suspending themselves in the air.

The liquid light rapidly writhed, took shape, finally condensing into two flawless crystalline eyeballs.

The eyeball surfaces were smooth as mirrors, internal mist and starlight flowing endlessly; deep within the pupils, a miniature rune slowly rotated in each.

Left was the "Sun" rune, right was the "Moon" rune.

The next moment, the two crystalline eyeballs, as if drawn by an invisible force, automatically aligned and silently merged into Gu Qingwan's eye sockets.

Sixth step, Stabilize the Soul!

Lu Yuan quickly took out a "Soul-Stabilizing Talisman" he had drawn earlier using his own essence blood mixed with cinnabar; on the talisman paper was Gu Qingwan's birth date.

Talisman complete, it ignited without fire.

The ashes didn't scatter but instead transformed into two wisps of azure smoke, directly flowing into Gu Qingwan's eyes.

All steps, flowing like clouds and water, accomplished in one go.

Lu Yuan let out a long breath, looking at the stunningly beautiful woman lying quietly in the coffin, his voice carrying a trace of barely concealed tension and anticipation.

"Qingwan, open your eyes and see..."

"……"

……

Backyard.

Celestial Master He Xun, holding the Divine Firmament Thunder Punishment Sword, was having a great time practicing, sword light flashing with thunder, the momentum terrifying.

While feeling the matchless power of the divine sword, he glanced sideways at the old man who stood with hands behind his back, always gazing towards the side hall.

"I say, are you really not going to control this at all?"

The old man didn't answer immediately.

Another dozen seconds passed, he seemed to sense something, his tense shoulders relaxed slightly, as if putting down a heavy boulder.

Only then did he turn his head, his expression somewhat strange.

"Control what?"

Celestial Master He Xun stopped practicing with the sword, savoring the pleasure the divine sword brought, frowning:

"That evil entity was already unbelievably powerful; just breaking one evil curse on her head caused such a huge commotion."

"Now you're letting him use the sect's treasure to complete her original body's eyes. In the future, if he unlocks all the major acupoints on her body."

"And one by one completes all the missing parts... what kind of scene would that be? Have you thought about it?"

"Right now, her stability relies on Lu Yuan, that's why there's been no trouble."

"In the future?"

"In the future, will that kid Lu Yuan still be able to keep her under control?"

To this question pointing straight to the core, the old man just shook his head.

"Don't know."

"But my disciple says he has confidence, he wants to do this."

After saying that, the old man stretched lazily and turned to walk towards his own meditation room.

Celestial Master He Xun was dumbfounded and quickly said:

"Hey, where are you going!"

The old man yawned, his face full of sleepiness.

"Been up all night, tired, going to sleep."

Celestial Master He Xun curled his lip, somewhat anxious:

"No, I mean, how old is Lu Yuan, just a young brat, is confidence alone enough?"

"He wants to do this, so you really let him do it?"

"You really should advise him! Don't cause a huge mess!"

The old man, who had been walking forward, suddenly stopped.

He didn't turn around, but his voice was exceptionally clear.

"A young man's spirit is the most precious, non-renewable resource in this world."

"Since he has this kind of forward-rushing, sky-reaching spirit, I, as his master, should naturally help him achieve it!"

At this point, Li Xiuye suddenly turned his head, his face cold as he glared at Celestial Master He Xun and shouted loudly:

"Just like Master helped me achieve mine back then!!"

"He Xun!!"

"I'll tell you plainly, the things you said today, I am very unhappy with them!!"

"What do you mean 'I've figured it out'? What do you mean 'bowing your head isn't shameful'?!"

"Are you lecturing me?!!"

"What right do you have to lecture me?!"

"Just because you're a lofty Celestial Master now?!"

"So you want to prove your choice back then was right, and my choice was wrong?!!"

The old man's chest heaved violently, his voice echoing throughout the entire backyard.

"I tell you!!"

"I wasn't wrong back then!!"

"And I don't regret it!!"

"If I were given another chance, I'd still go against all the Daoist sects!!"