Old daoist Yu Zhou smiled and nodded. “You’ve been practicing the Primordial Origin Qi Method. Do you know that once you master it, as long as you make progress in talisman techniques, your cultivation will also advance?”
“I do.”
That was something Xie Liang had mentioned to him before. The Primordial Origin Qi Method evolved from the Meditation Technique and took root in talisman techniques—it naturally complements them, so that advancements in one reinforce the other. When the Primordial Origin Qi Method reaches a new level, the talisman techniques rise in tandem; and when there’s a breakthrough in the talisman techniques, the Primordial Origin Qi Method improves as well. This is what makes the method so valuable.
“Then do you know which talisman drawing boosts one’s strength the fastest?”
This was a typical question in the empirical style—simple and straightforward, yet undeniably enticing. Yu Ci immediately earnestly sought an answer.
The old daoist smiled as he pushed over the jade slip from the desk, placed next to the square seal. Yu Ci took it in hand, and his spirit-mind swept over it: “The Heavenly Stems Earthly Branches Refinement Method?” (G: Changing Heavenly Celestials and Earthly Fiends to Heavenly Stems Earthly Branches. Sound better.)
That answer was absolutely beyond his expectations.
Seeing the old daoist’s beaming expression, Yu Ci frowned in thought, as if he had caught a thread of the matter.
There’s no doubt that the Heavenly Stems Earthly Branches Refinement Method is a massive work. It was originally pioneered tens of tribulations ago by an Earthly Immortal named Ha Shiyi, and over tens of thousands of years successive cultivators have added to and refined it, forming an entire sacrificial refinement system designed to elevate the levels of magical implements and enhance the resonance between cultivators and those implements. The basic sacrificial refinement techniques include 36 “Heavenly Stems” talisman formulas and 72 “ Earthly Branches” talisman formulas—a total of 108 formulas. Each formula is composed of hundreds or even thousands of relatively simple symbols, adding up to over 100,000 symbols that one must learn and comprehend.
If you count all the various steps, levels, and the different schools derived from it, the number of symbols involved easily exceeds a million—even tens of millions—making the system exceedingly intricate and complex.
Such an enormous system can never be completely mastered. One can only extract one or two branches to form a process that stacks up to 108 layers of talisman formulas for the purpose of sacrificial refinement. Even so, those who manage to complete a 108-layer sacrificial refinement in their lifetime have always been as rare as the morning stars. Not to mention how many people, having poured their hearts into sacrificial refinement of magical implements, neglected their own cultivation and ended their lives in regret.
Yu Ci had intended to take these lessons as warnings, but the old daoist’s remark steered his thinking in another direction:
“Indeed, the Primordial Origin Qi Method and talisman techniques complement each other, and the Heavenly Stems Earthly Branches Refinement Method is the largest talisman system in the world. In that sense, devoting one’s energy to the Heavenly Stems Earthly Branches Refinement Method is not only harmless—it actually allows both cultivation and the sacrificial refinement of magical implements to progress simultaneously… Remarkable!”
Yu Ci grew even more admiring of Xie Liang, the one who created the Primordial Origin Qi Method. However, the old daoist laughed and said, “Don’t mention such things in front of Junior Brother Xie. He would surely say that you’re narrow-minded and short-sighted. Junior Brother Qianbao, when he first learned this method, ended up using it in such a way that he spread it widely throughout the sect, distorting its original intent and causing him great anger!”
The old daoist chuckled as he spoke. Yu Ci laughed along a couple of times, but the mention of “short-sightedness” stirred something in his heart, reminding him of the immature thoughts he had before coming here.
Yu Zhou continued, “Junior Brother Qianbao has a particular fondness for collecting magical implements to use in sacrificial refinement—hence the name ‘Qianbao,’ with his original name long forgotten. In his early years he was so absorbed in the art of sacrificial refinement that he delayed his cultivation. Later, through the Primordial Origin Qi Method, he suddenly had an epiphany, integrating and refining all that he had learned in the first half of his life. Although it was sacrificial refinement, it was essentially cultivation—so that both progressed side by side, creating something truly unique. In this regard, you might consider learning from him.”
Listening to the old daoist, Yu Ci slowly nodded. Wasn’t this exactly what had been troubling him just moments ago? It turned out that the senior immortal had already solved it perfectly. He should have been delighted, yet another thought began to intertwine with his excitement—a flickering spark of inspiration that he couldn’t quite grasp.
It must be more than that…
At this point, Yu Zhou added, “However, the benefits of sacrificial refinement of magical implements are well known within the sect; they’re hardly a secret trick. What Junior Brother Qianbao wants me to convey to you is that he knows of a particular idea that Junior Brother Xie had when he created the Primordial Origin Qi Method.”
“An idea?”
The old daoist nodded slightly. “The Primordial Origin Qi Method was acclaimed by the sect’s senior immortal teachers as ‘the integration of three parts to perfection.’ Those two characters, ‘integration,’ refer precisely to a thought—a line of reasoning from Junior Brother Xie: to combine the essence of the three parts seamlessly without distinctions between moral, theoretical, and disciplinary aspects, thereby forming a completely unified whole. It isn’t as simple as saying, ‘Here is the moral section’s technique, there is the theoretical approach, and here are the insights of the disciplinary section.’ In short, it can be summed up as…”
“By observing one spot, you can know the whole leopard; by tugging one hair, the entire body moves.”
“Ah!” Yu Ci exclaimed.
Startled, the old daoist asked, “What’s the matter?”
This time Yu Ci truly lost his composure, but inspiration often strikes so suddenly. He nodded, then shook his head, feeling an intense restlessness—a powerful urge to test out a certain possibility. He turned to leave but then looked back and, bowing solemnly to the old daoist, said, “Please, Daoist Master, convey my thanks to Immortal Qianbao.”
His inspiration was already gushing like a spring, unwilling to be halted even for a moment, so he turned and left.
The old daoist called after him, but he didn’t hear a word.
*****
Once the surge of inspiration is unleashed, it is unstoppable. Yu Ci felt as though he were on the brink of madness, with countless thoughts flooding in one after another, leaving him no chance to catch his breath. He oscillated in this tide of inspiration, on the verge of suffocation at any moment, yet experiencing an unprecedented exhilaration.
It was late at night, and although there was no light in the quiet room, the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror on the desk emitted a faint blue glow. Yu Ci reached out and picked it up.
“By observing one spot, you can know the whole leopard; by tugging one hair, the entire body moves.”
That saying is truly excellent!
That very night, when Xie Liang imparted the Primordial Origin Qi Method to him, he helped Yu Ci align the “phenomena” with the “brush” in his mind, so that when the brush moved, both form and spirit stirred. Even though the detailed changes of his skin, flesh, sinews, veins, internal organs, and even the nuances of his soul and thoughts were innumerable, he could connect them all with a single stroke.
That, in turn, formed a completely unified whole.
But what if the concept of the “whole” were extended outward to include the external objects he possessed? Would the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror in his hand be part of that “whole”? And what about the Heart-Binding Horn, the Iron Claws, and the Pure Yang Talisman Sword?
Yu Ci believed it did. Although there might seem to be a distinction between self and object—given that form and spirit undergo constant renewal and objects are periodically replaced—as long as they belong to me and serve my purpose, there is essentially no difference. Grasping this concept means that external objects can also be considered a part of the “phenomena.” One can even add a connecting line to link them to the brush in one’s heart, allowing them to be depicted at will and manifested within the Void Within the Mind of the mind.
This “connecting line” was none other than the process of refinement.
Through refinement, the artifact could communicate with the cultivator’s essence and spirit, allowing its nature to merge with human nature. In such a state, the external artifact and the “manifestation” of the essence and spirit no longer needed to be distinguished.
Take, for example, the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror in his hand. After months of continuous refinement, it had long since become attuned to his thoughts. The “connecting line” had always been present in the “brush,” yet his own obsession had deliberately separated it. Now that his fixation was gone, everything became remarkably simple.
Yu Ci closed his eyes and immediately entered his “Void Within the Mind,” where he beheld boundless darkness and a lone, suspended moon.
The void was silent, with only deep currents surging in the depths.
At that moment, the “brush” in his heart, which had almost never moved before, trembled slightly. Ink instantly spread across the void, and hazy images gradually unfolded, layer by layer. Most of the images remained shrouded in darkness, yet their outlines hinted at mountains and rivers, trees and flowers, birds, beasts, fish, and insects—everything one would expect. It was like a mountain forest in the night: vividly real yet indistinct and elusive.
This was the Divine Map!
Although the Divine Map had yet to recover, its imprint—left by the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror—remained unchanged in Yu Ci’s mind. Now, by transferring it into his “Void Within the Mind” as a reflection of the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror, it became a perfect fit.
The “Void Within the Mind” underwent a massive transformation. Beneath the moon, the boundless darkness was no longer empty. A mountain forest world unfolded, its scenery constantly shifting as if it possessed a life of its own.
The once monotonous world had suddenly become vibrant.
Yet, this was not all.
For his guidance had not come from Daoist Master Qianbao alone, but also from his brilliant Senior Sister Meng Wei.
She had emphasized that before painting one’s heart image, one needed to first establish a structured framework governed by order and principles. Previously, the “Void Within the Mind” had been entirely empty, making such structuring impossible. But now, with the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror’s imprint enriching this vast space, Yu Ci finally had the materials to shape and transform it.
Following Meng Wei’s advice, he adopted the structure of “one positive, one negative; one Yin, one Yang; one dynamic, one static”—a balanced opposition that allowed for the greatest flexibility.
Now, it was clear: the “moon” within the Void Within the Mind was an imprint of his past cultivation, while the unfolding mountain forest was the reflection of his current possession—the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror. In contrast, the boundless outer void represented the unknown future he had yet to explore.
The moon and mountain forest symbolized what he already possessed, while the endless void signified what he sought to attain.
With this framework established—moon as the past, mountain forest as the present, and the infinite void as the future—a clear and coherent structure took shape.
As soon as the thought formed, the “Void Within the Mind” rumbled and trembled.
Yu Ci, however, paid no attention to this. His inspiration had not yet been fully exhausted. Now that past, present, and future all had their place, he asked himself—where did “I” belong?
The question was answered almost instantly.
His heart’s brush trembled once more, and the moon in the sky shifted, its radiant glow cascading down and illuminating the mountain forest.
At the heart of the forest, a small lake appeared, its surface shimmering with ripples. In the center of the lake, a faint, elusive figure swam beneath the water.
Yu Ci immediately “saw” the shadow, yet he could not describe it in words. All he could sense was a deep, primal tremor rising from the depths of his soul.
“That is my ‘mental image’!”
I did not paint it, but I have discovered it!
At that moment, an immense power erupted from within the Void Within the Mind, transforming into a dazzling brilliance that engulfed the entire world.
Yu Ci was instantly thrown out of his trance.
His eyes snapped open as a stream of spiritual light emerged from the crown of his head, twisting and shifting in the void, unable to settle into a fixed form. Yet, the layers of mist surrounding it were gradually peeling away, allowing its radiance to become increasingly clear and defined.
This was his “true spirit”—the shadow cast by his primordial spirit as it penetrated the cognitive mind.
The primordial spirit was the sun, the cognitive mind was the form, and the true spirit was the shadow. The clearer the shadow, the more substantial its source became.
Before he could fully process what had happened, he felt the force from his “Void Within the Mind” surging outward, pushing him forward with unstoppable momentum.
Yu Ci did not move, yet the invisible barrier before him shattered with a thunderous crash.
He had stepped directly into the mid-stage of Divine Connectivity in a single leap!
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