Chapter 722 - 568: Epiphany
Ji An did not hypocritically refuse; the price he offered was absolutely fair. The other party was willing to bear the cost of converting Spirit Stones, which spoke volumes, and their interaction was very harmonious.
He took out talismans and counted out enough to hand over to the other party, "Fellow Daoist, please count them again."
Wan Jinrong accepted the talismans, and without any pretense, began to count.
If the number is incorrect, it could be clarified face-to-face. If after leaving, it was claimed that the number was incorrect, it would imply ulterior motives.
"No problem."
Wan Jinrong put away the talismans, turned his head to look at the window, and said with a smile:
"The double hour is late, I take my leave now, I shall trouble fellow Daoist another day."
The two were now initially acquainted; although they got along very well, it was not suitable to stay overnight.
Ji An escorted the other party out, arriving beyond the Magic Array.
A red cloud mist rose beneath Wan Jinrong’s feet, and he transmitted his voice:
"Purifying Talisman and Spirit Stabilizing Talisman will be consumed in large quantities in the future; fellow Daoist might as well keep more in hand."
After speaking, he cupped his hands and raised his voice:
"Thank you for the generous hospitality, we shall meet again!"
Without waiting for Ji An’s response, he rode the cloud away, leaving a long fiery tail in the sky, the Spirit Light splendid, a truly beautiful sight.
Ji An’s gaze was deep. The other party’s hint was quite clear, the situation was tilting towards the unknown.
The fiery trajectory in the sky had completely dispersed, a bright moon sneaked out, its cold light shining on the earth.
"The True Demon Tribulation," Ji An sighed faintly and turned to return to the Grotto Mansion.
He recalled a very philosophical saying from a past life: Life is like an electrocardiogram, if it is smooth sailing, it proves you are done for.
The tree wishes for calm but the wind will not cease, wanting to cultivate quietly is very difficult.
...
In the Quiet Chamber of the Grotto Mansion, the Gourd Stone emitted a warm glow and hovered in the air. The sun, moon, and stars on its surface were constantly rotating, and flowers, birds, insects, and fish seemed to come to life, changing every moment.
In the Little World, Ji An strolled to the Red Spirit Field, where Spiritual Peaches, Dragon Blood Fruit, Li Fire Immortal Apricot, and Lingxiao Cloud Tree were all bearing abundant fruit.
Some of the Spirit Plants had reached Tier Three, and the Spirit Fruit would take a few more years to reach maturity.
The stalks of the Pearl Blood Rice had completely withered, without a trace of moisture, and the heavy rice ears bowed humbly.
He loaded Spirit Stones into the collecting Magical Artifact, then hung a specially made large-capacity Storage Bag to start the artifact.
The Magical Artifact flew in the air, quickly harvesting Spirit Rice, the stalks were shattered and tossed in the sky, slowly falling again.
In about a quarter hour, several acres of Spirit Field were harvested.
Ji An removed the Storage Bag and placed it in the warehouse, also taking out the Spirit Stones that powered the Magical Artifact, setting them aside.
He formed a hand seal to release the Flame Fire Spell, Spirit Light rippling like water waves spreading out. Wherever it reached, the lifeless stalks and the underground roots turned into flying ash.
Next, he did not plan to continue planting Pearl Blood Rice, as the warehouse held over thirty thousand kilograms of Spirit Rice, enough for a long period of consumption.
He planned to plant various Spirit Medicines in the vacant Spirit Field.
In the talisman heritage he acquired, there was the refining technique for all Five Element Talisman Paper and Cinnabar. He could not always rely on external purchases.
The Business Alliance issued an urgent task which emptied all sorts of materials for Purifying Talisman and Spirit Stabilizing Talisman from the shop.
Any action by a major force would have a significant impact on him.
Relying on oneself was better than relying on others. He needed to refine his management to maximize output from the Little World.
𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶
He took out a Blank Jade Slip, pressed it to his forehead, and recorded the various Spirit Medicines needed to make Talisman Paper, ensuring that in the future the Little World could be self-sufficient in creating Talisman Paper.
Ji An retrieved a Wooden Box, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. The Fire Element Spirit Tea that could improve comprehension was worth having.
In the future, he would certainly practice the Bing Fire Divine Thunder, with the help of Li Fire Immortal Apricot, Phoenix Dance Danxia Tea, and Top-grade Fire Dao Seed, his speed would undoubtedly be rapid.
He calculated the distance and threw down the seed of the Phoenix Perch Wood, then performed the Earth Vein Spirit Ascension Technique.
Soft yellow Spirit Light spread like a thin film, covering the red essence of the soil.
A rumbling sound emerged from deep within the earth, the seed slowly submerged into the ground, and large millstone-sized golden lotus patterns emerged from the surface, with Magic Intent nurtured by the Dao of Ji Earth rising up.
Ji An then successively released the Green Dragon Water Moon Skill and Azure Sky Yangming Skill; the Cyan Lotus Treasure Banner transformed into a Cyan Dragon to join in the fun, the Spirit Power transformed Cyan Dragon accompanying him in a double flight.
Refreshing Spirit Rain drew silver threads, the bright Moon of Taiyin in the west, the golden sun in the east, the sun and moon in the sky, radiating brilliance.
The nourishment of Water Element, the vigorous growth of Wood Element, and the warm brightness of Fire Element intertwined together.
At this moment, the Yin Yang Power harmoniously coexisted, as if water and fire were compatible.
Ji An couldn’t help but be amazed; before, he had never simultaneously released the Green Dragon Water Moon Skill and Azure Sky Yangming Skill, not expecting they could create such a wonderful scene.
The dazzling sun and bright moon gradually faded, everything became dim, and when all light and shadows disappeared, the Phoenix Perch Wood seedling had grown to more than two feet high.
Ji An seemed oblivious to it all, his gaze unfocused, recalling the touch he felt earlier.
During that time, the Yin Yang Power wasn’t just mutually diminishing; both Spiritual Mechanisms were continuously dispersing but also constantly growing, maintaining a constant value.
He recalled the Core Formation process, where Yin and Yang meet and Dragon and Tiger harmonize to refine a higher quality Golden Core.
Dragon refers to the liver, Tiger refers to the lungs, but in human visceral Five Organs, Dragon and Tiger do not operate independently.
The liver belongs to Yang, yet resides in a position of Yin, where kidney Qi transmits liver Qi, forming the image of Mother and Child Generating.
The lungs belong to Yin, yet reside in a position of Yang, where heart liquid transmits lung liquid, forming the image of Marital Incompatibility.
Liver Qi rises, kidney Qi nurtures the liver, Pure Yang Qi ascends; lung liquid descends, heart liquid nurtures the lungs, Pure Yin Liquid descends.
This dynamic balance of Qi rising and liquid descending is precisely the essence of Dragon and Tiger Harmony.
During cultivation, if one can grasp this balance, ensuring that kidney Qi does not get lost and heart liquid does not dissipate, then Mother and Child reunite, cherishing each other, continuously refining until finally achieving the Immortal Golden Core.
Back in the days of core formation, he was rather confused, only knowing that he should do it this way, but did not understand the reasoning behind it. Now, he feels more deeply about the matter.
At the same moment, the Divine Mansion within his body lights up, and his body seems to transform into a large trumpet, emitting the sound of a dragon’s roar and tiger’s howl.
In an instant, the wind and clouds surged within the Red Spirit Field, Spiritual Qi wildly gathered towards him.
The invisible air membrane among the Spirit Fields kept trembling but ultimately did not shatter.
Ji An understood, although the Little World seems thriving now, it still lacks something.
There is an invisible air membrane among all Spirit Fields, and the balance of the Power of the Five Elements relies entirely on the Gathering Essence Tree for adjustment.
If one day, the Power of the Five Elements here begins to circulate on its own, and is able to self-regulate, the Little World will undergo metamorphosis.
At that time, it would be akin to having two modes of circulation, greatly enhancing the stability and balance of the Little World.
Thinking of this, Ji An felt he understood the true purpose of the Gathering Essence Tree.
Perhaps condensing Earth Mother Qi and Gathering Spirit and Returning to the Origin is merely a facade, while absorbing Spiritual Qi from the void to evolve the Five Elements for world stabilization is its valuable aspect.
Cultivators and all living beings have lifespans, Spiritual Veins will deplete; does it also have a lifespan? So does the world have a lifespan?
It should have one; otherwise, why do so many Little Worlds fall apart?
Ji An’s thoughts continued to disperse, he felt as though his consciousness had left his body, suspended above the nine heavens.
Unaware of how long had passed, that ethereal feeling disappeared, and his consciousness returned to his body.
Habitually introspecting his body, a sudden look of delight appeared on his face.
The Magical Power stored within the Golden Core was much more than the day before, equivalent to several decades of arduous cultivation without Pill assistance.
"I had an epiphany! The effect is so strong, having more of these, wouldn’t it rapidly elevate my cultivation?"
He again released Green Dragon Water Moon Skill, Azure Sky Yangming Skill, Cyan Dragon’s Roar, and Sun and Moon in the Sky; Spirit Rain sprinkled down silently, nourishing everything.
This time, there was no epiphany as before.
Unwilling to give up, he released Earth Vein Spirit Ascension Technique, the resonance earlier was caused by the gathering of three magic techniques; still, nothing happened.
"Haha, too much wishful thinking."
Ji An laughed at himself a few times, escaping back to the Gathering Essence Tree, took a Pill refined from the Howling Moon Wolf Inner Core, and then started to circulate the Five Elements Reincarnation Scripture.
He clearly felt that compared to Pills refined from the Kuimu Ape and Earth Dragon Beast Inner Core, this Pill was much purer, with six-tenths less Blood Evil Power contained within.
The situation in Central Continent had unexpected changes, which were originally thought to occur a hundred years later.
If he was not mistaken, some sealings of a Demon Cave were loosening, prompting the Business Alliance to gather numerous cultivators to suppress it.
Wan Jinrong’s hint before leaving undeniably confirmed this, the other party repeatedly mentioned the ancestor, and a Golden Core Cultivator’d call someone an ancestor must be a Nascent Soul Cultivator.
The other party’s information should be quite accurate.
The higher the cultivation, the more calmly one can face the tremendous changes in the future.
A night without words.
The next day, Ji An awoke from his sleep, roasted a Tail Spirit Fish, ate some pastries, drank a pot of Spirit Tea, and left the Gourd World with ease.
He wore the Gourd Stone Pendant close to his neck, walked out of the Grotto Mansion, and rode the clouds to rapidly fly to Cloud Sea Immortal City.
The Spiritual Energy Vortex at the peak of the Immortal City was still rotating powerfully, various Spirit Lights rendered the sky colorful and dreamlike.
Ji An’s mind connected to his Dantian, linked with the Upper Stone Turtle:
"Friend, it’s time to get to work!"
The Stone Turtle, like a sculpture, opened its rolling eyes, slightly tilted its head, seeming to sense something.
In the next moment, it moved out of the Dantian, appearing on Ji An’s palm, and then its body completely became ethereal.
The Stone Turtle extracting Dao Rhyme is something he cannot help with, nor does it require his assistance.
Riding the clouds, he dived down to the place where Zhang Jun frequently appeared.
Zhang Jun approached him, "Senior, what instructions do you have?"
The other party had never actively sought him before, but now they’re here for sure with an important matter to entrust.
Ji An took out the prepared Jade Slip from yesterday, seriously said:
"Go to various shops selling Spirit Plants and buy Spirit Seeds, I will come to find you in a few days."
Saying this, he handed out a Storage Bag:
"Inside are two hundred pieces of Middle-grade Spirit Stones, if it’s insufficient, please advance some of your own money."
Zhang Jun’s voice was filled with joy: "Understood."
The closer the connection between both sides, the happier he became.