Returning Immortal

Chapter 46 : Immortal Cultivation Method

Gwi Seongjin, who had withdrawn from the stone chamber where the Nine Palaces Peach Blossom Formation was installed, immediately entered the training room.

And he took out a box made of blue jade from the Qiankun Pouch.

Inside the blue jade box was a poison-repelling pearl.

The secret that a demonic creature's soul of the highest realm was sleeping inside it was known only to Gwi Seongjin.

Gwi Seongjin, who had carefully put the blue jade box into the Qiankun Pouch, took out a one-chi-sized red jade box from within it.

It was an antique jade box with talismans attached on all four sides.

Before opening the lid, Gwi Seongjin first looked inside the jade box with his spiritual sense.

As expected, nothing was visible.

When he had taken out the red jade box in the underground cave of the absolute forbidden zone, Gwi Seongjin had immediately known that the talismans sealing the jade box were not ordinary.

It was because his spiritual sense could not penetrate it.

So he had thrown away the bone powder without any lingering attachment and had attached only the talismans again.

Then, when the skull had asked him to take it out of the Xuan Tian Cave Mansion, he had immediately taken out the red jade box.

Fortunately, his prediction had been correct.

The skull cultivator, who had entered the red jade box, had been sealed by the power of the talismans and had been unable to move at all.

Rip!

When Gwi Seongjin tore off one talisman, the jade box began to stir.

It was because the power that was restraining the skull cultivator's legal power had weakened.

No matter how high a being's realm was, once it was trapped in the Qiankun Pouch, it could not release its legal power outside.

However, spiritual sense was an exception, but in a case where it was sealed with a talisman like this, even that was impossible.

The same went for Gwi Seongjin.

When all four talismans were attached, he could not see through the inside of the jade box no matter how much he exerted his spiritual sense.

The same went for when he had torn off one talisman.

But when Gwi Seongjin tore off the second talisman, the situation changed.

He was able to see the internal outline, albeit faintly.

"..."

When Gwi Seongjin tore off the second talisman and stopped his hand, only silence lingered in the stone chamber.

The jade box, which had been shaking, also held its breath and maintained its silence.

It seemed as if time had stopped.

When the silence became unexpectedly long, a spiritual sense finally flowed out from inside the jade box.

[Young cultivator! Has something happened that I can help you with?]

'Sly old fox.'

Gwi Seongjin, who had heard the skull cultivator's spiritual sense, grumbled in his heart.

It was because it had been shaking the box so much that it was stirring, but now it was speaking in a leisurely voice, pretending to be relaxed.

[I have something to ask.]

[It doesn't matter how many, so ask away.]

[Good. What I am curious about is the Soul Sealing Pearl.]

[Soul Sealing Pearl? Isn't that a pearl in which a demonic creature with high Dao power has sealed its own soul? Are you saying you have obtained it?]

[No. I heard about it from my late father in the past, and I'm asking because it suddenly came to mind.]

[So that's it. What kind of thing is a Soul Sealing Pearl... Phew! Where should I start the story.]

The skull cultivator, who had been hesitating for a moment as if organizing his thoughts, finally opened his mouth.

[No matter how deep a demonic creature's cultivation realm is, it cannot ascend to the spirit realm. Do you know the reason?]

[Isn't it because it cannot cultivate legal power?]

Gwi Seongjin answered, recalling the three-headed snake of the Xuan Tian Cave Mansion.

The two large snakes of the three-headed snake were demonic creatures that had formed an inner core, while the head in the center was a spiritual beast, a flood dragon.

Perhaps because of that, its divine power was also high compared to other demonic creatures, and it could even perform a strange consciousness secret art.

[Demonic beasts and spiritual beasts are completely different species, although they look similar. If they are at the same realm, the spiritual beast is much superior. Anyway, since a demonic creature cannot cultivate legal power, it cannot create a primordial infant, and ascension is also impossible.]

[Are you saying there is no way to ascend at all?]

[No. If a demonic beast undergoes a transformation of its bones and sheds its mortal coil, it can change into a post-heaven spiritual beast. If that happens, it can create a golden core in its upper dantian and even generate a primordial infant.]

[Like a pre-heaven spiritual beast such as a flood dragon or a nine-tailed fox?]

[Although it cannot be compared to them, in any case, a post-heaven spiritual beast is also a spiritual beast. I heard that if it creates a golden core in its upper dantian, generates a primordial infant, and goes through the form-changing lightning tribulation, it can ascend to the spirit realm. However, a demonic creature that has already become an adult cannot even have such a hope.]

[Still, since there is some hope, isn't that why it sealed its soul?]

[That's right. The only hope left for them is humans. I heard that a Transformation stage cultivator can not only handle souls skillfully, but some can also transform a demonic beast into a post-heaven spiritual beast.]

[That means... after turning a demonic beast into a post-heaven spiritual beast, it can be replaced with the soul in the Soul Sealing Pearl...]

[It is truly a heaven-defying secret art.]

[If it's a heaven-defying secret art, doesn't that mean it's that difficult? In that case, it seems a Transformation stage master wouldn't grant a request recklessly...]

[That's why a demonic creature sealed in a Soul Sealing Pearl approaches a cultivator of the Spirit Condensation stage or the Void Refinement stage, not a Transformation stage one. It teaches them secret arts or the location of treasures and asks them to grant its wish when they reach the Transformation stage.]

[Cunning.]

[However, the probability is very low. What is the possibility of a Spirit Condensation stage cultivator reaching the Transformation stage?]

[Still, it's not a loss for the cultivator, is it?]

[Of course. In any case, having a Soul Sealing Pearl will be of great help in cultivation... But you don't have to worry.]

[What do you mean by that?]

[Although you don't have a Soul Sealing Pearl, you have me to replace it, don't you? As I said in the Xuan Tian Cave Mansion, I know not a few cultivation methods and secret arts that raise one's cultivation.]

[Are you saying you don't have any spiritual medicines or spiritual herbs?]

[I also know that what you need most now are spiritual pills and spirit stones. But unfortunately, I was robbed of my Qiankun Pouch by a renegade in the past, so I don't have such treasures.]

'Spirit stones?'

Gwi Seongjin made a puzzled expression at the words that spirit stones could raise one's cultivation realm.

Looking at the Primordial Chaos Spirit Qi Art he was cultivating, the means to raise his realm were only qi circulation and breathing, spiritual medicines or spiritual herbs, and the pills prepared using them.

Spirit stones were necessary for deploying barriers or mechanisms, but they were of no help in raising one's realm.

[To think you can raise your realm with spirit stones, what do you mean by that?]

[What! Wh-what did you just say?]

[I asked if it was possible, since you said one can raise one's realm with spirit stones.]

"..."

The skull cultivator was silent for a long time.

Instead, he examined Gwi Seongjin with his spiritual sense, and then asked with a cautious expression.

[Could it be that the cultivation method you have learned... is a low-grade cultivation manual that forms spirit energy in the middle dantian?]

[Low-grade! What nonsense is that?]

Gwi Seongjin glared at the red jade box with a displeased expression.

This was an insult to all the ancestors of the Ghost Valley Sect, which had a history of five thousand years.

[Just answer my question. In which place is the dantian where you, little brother, form your spirit energy located?]

[Why are you curious about that?]

[It's an important matter, so please answer honestly.]

Asking a cultivator about their cultivation method was a great discourtesy.

Even so, the skull cultivator was asking persistently.

Feeling that something was unusual, Gwi Seongjin answered truthfully.

[The middle dantian.]

[As expected...]

The skull cultivator, who had been silent for a moment, asked Gwi Seongjin again.

[What is the name of the sect where you, little brother, cultivated?]

[It is called the Ghost Valley Sect.]

[Then, to what realm did the cultivator who reached the highest realm in the Ghost Valley Sect cultivate?]

[I know it to be the Spirit Condensation stage.]

Gwi Seongjin answered, recalling what he had heard from his father.

Two thousand years ago, the old ancestor who had founded the Ghost Valley Sect was at the peak of the Spirit Condensation stage.

But after that, it had continued to decline, and the Ghost Valley Master, who had entered the martial world a thousand years ago and had greatly spread its influence, was only at the early stage of the Spirit Condensation stage.

[You're saying there wasn't a single Void Refinement stage immortal.]

At the words 'Void Refinement stage', Gwi Seongjin's thick eyebrows furrowed.

Even a legal master of the Spirit Condensation stage who formed a golden core in their upper dantian was not easy to find in the mortal world.

When one reached the Spirit Condensation stage, one could refine a legal treasure in one's body and could live up to a whopping five hundred years.

But the Void Refinement stage?

[Are you talking about an immortal who creates a primordial infant and uses the primordial qi of heaven and earth at will? The one who lives for almost a thousand years...]

[You know well.]

[Unfortunately, among the ancestors of our sect, there is not a single person who has reached the Void Refinement stage. It seems it's time for you to tell me the intention of your question... Isn't that right?]

[Before that, I'll ask one more thing. What do you, little brother, think of your current cultivation speed?]

It was getting more and more ridiculous.

Even so, Gwi Seongjin endured and answered.

[As you know, I have a triple spirit root body.]

[I know.]

[Then what more are you curious about? You, cultivator, should also know well that if one has many spirit root attributes, it is difficult to form spirit energy, shouldn't you?]

[And you are cultivating with a low-grade cultivation manual.]

[Are you saying my cultivation speed is too fast? You don't have to think it's strange. I just reached my current realm by luck...]

Gwi Seongjin said, recalling the trials he had faced after being dragged to the Luminous Cult.

The fact that Gwi Seongjin's cultivation realm had increased by leaps and bounds was a relatively recent event.

Gwi Seongjin, who was born with a triple spirit root body, did not have a very good cultivation aptitude.

Still, he had cultivated steadily and had created a middle dantian, and in the year he turned nine, he had even created an upper dantian.

Of course, his parents were happy.

But a crisis had come.

Before the joy of creating an upper dantian had even cooled down...

He had suddenly collapsed for no reason.

But his condition was strange.

As if his soul had left him, Gwi Seongjin had just lain in his seat.

And for three years at that...

Gwi Seongjin, who had woken up in the year he turned twelve, could not cultivate for a while.

It was because his head was dizzy, as if a ghost had entered it.

Fortunately, as time passed, his condition gradually improved, and he was even able to cultivate.

But his cultivation realm had stagnated, and he had barely generated spirit energy before coming to the Luminous Cult.

His cultivation realm, which had been like that, had suddenly increased after being dragged to the Luminous Cult.

He had met a series of absurd fortuitous encounters.

Although it was not of his own will, he had obtained the Raging Fire Divine Lord's Pure Yang True Qi, and the Three-Eyed Toad's blood and the Child Ginseng, and on top of that, he had even eaten and refined the lesser evil ghost...

Truly, numerous fortuitous encounters had flocked to him and had created his current realm.

[It seems you, little brother, have misunderstood my words. What I meant was that your realm is too low for your aptitude.]

[Hahaha! You say funny things. Anyway, thank you for looking upon me, who is lacking, favorably. By the way, who decided the grade of the cultivation method?]

[It's not difficult. If you create a middle dantian and cultivate, that is a low-grade cultivation manual.]

[Then what about a middle-grade cultivation manual?]

[A middle-grade to high-grade cultivation manual directly draws spirit energy into the lower dantian and cultivates.]

[Who made the low-grade cultivation manual?]

[Do you know that there are martial artists who create a middle dantian and accumulate true qi there?]

[I know.]

[This is a secret, but a middle dantian can only be created if one has a spirit root attribute.]

[That means...]

[You're probably right. It means that if you give a martial artist who has created a middle dantian an immortal cultivation manual, they can also generate spirit energy. Although their cultivation speed will be slow because they are old...]

[So the so-called divine art ultimate skills that martial artists talk about are like that?]

[You're quick to understand. In conclusion, the low-grade cultivation manual was made by martial artists. It means it's not a true immortal cultivation method.]

[If one can cultivate spirit energy, isn't it an immortal cultivation method?]

[As you also know, with a low-grade cultivation manual, one cannot directly draw in spirit energy. One can only absorb external qi. Although you say you have condensed the pure energy from the external qi and have created spirit energy... external qi is external qi.]

[For that reason, with a low-grade cultivation manual, one cannot use a spirit stone that contains only pure spirit energy. Since one cannot absorb spirit energy from a spirit stone, one's cultivation speed is slow compared to other cultivators...]

[That's the reason why there isn't a single Void Refinement stage immortal among your ancestors.]

[There must be advantages too, right?]

[Of course. I heard that although the cultivation speed of a low-grade cultivation manual is slow, its safety is very outstanding.]

At the skull cultivator's words, Gwi Seongjin was silent for a long time.

It was because he didn't know how much to believe the skull cultivator's words.

[Then what about the Northern Nether Divine Art that was in the Xuan Tian Cave Mansion? Is that also a high-grade cultivation manual?]

Gwi Seongjin, who knew that the skull cultivator had been protecting the Northern Nether Divine Art, asked him directly.

The reason he had said 'high-grade' was to save the skull cultivator's face.

[No. The Northern Nether Divine Art is a supreme-grade cultivation method. It can draw all the spirit energy of the five elements into the upper dantian.]

[Is that possible?]

[It's not easy. But for some reason, it seems possible for you.]

[...It seems you, cultivator, are overestimating me. Anyway, thank you. I will think more about the matter of changing my cultivation method and will make a careful decision.]

[Don't delay it too much. As you also know, if you want to change your cultivation method, it's better to start when you're even a year younger.]

[I understand. By the way, thank you for your words today. I'll see you next time.]

[Little brother! Wait a moment.]

When Gwi Seongjin stopped his spiritual sense and was about to attach the talisman, the skull cultivator shouted hastily.

[What is it?]

[Can't you just go out of the box for a moment? It's too stuffy inside...]

[It seems difficult to grant that request.]

[In that case, at least tear off one more talisman. I'm about to die from suffocation.]

At the skull cultivator's spiritual sense, Gwi Seongjin gave a smile of unknown meaning.

It was because it was a trick whose inside was clearly visible.

[I can't do that.]

[Is there a reason?]

The skull cultivator's voice became a little cold.

It was because he had noticed Gwi Seongjin's evil intentions.

[As you know, I am just a low-level cultivator of the second stage of Qi Refinement. I don't know if my cultivation gets higher, but for now, I lack the courage to face you, cultivator.]

Gwi Seongjin said, fiddling with the second talisman he had already torn off.

It was an attitude that said he would attach it again if necessary.

[Are you saying you won't release me until your cultivation gets higher?]

[When the time comes, I will release you. So don't rush me too much.]

[Hahaha... It seems I have seen you as too naive.]

At the skull cultivator's words, Gwi Seongjin gave a bitter smile.

He was also acting to live.

[As you felt while we were talking a little while ago, my cultivation is shallow and my experience is also very lacking. So I hope you, cultivator, will help me a lot. Then, not only will I release the seal, but I will also gladly take you to the place where the Soul Nurturing Tree is.]

[Can you swear an oath?]

[I will promise, swearing on the heavens.]

[...I will believe you.]

Although he had no choice, the skull cultivator had no choice but to end it on a good note.

It was because only then could he aim for the next opportunity.

(End of Chapter)