Chapter 31

After swallowing the mystic pearl, Zhang Yan immediately sat down to practice and refine it.

Luo Xiao walked around the cave several times, her gaze landing on Du You. She remembered that when he fell, he seemed to be trying to take something out, which piqued her curiosity.

She walked to Du You's side, bent down, and searched his body, eventually pulling out a sleeve pouch from his sleeve.

"Hmph, I've heard that the Du family of Helin has influence across the three major sects of Donghua Continent. Indeed, they are wealthy, using a Heavenly Bag for a disciple who hasn't even opened his meridians yet."

A Heavenly Bag is a magical tool used by mystic cultivators to store personal items. In a sect, only disciples with cultivation at the Bright Qi stage and who have earned merit can obtain one. Even the Xuan Guang stage disciple she had once killed didn't have one, so she never expected Du You, who hadn't opened his meridians, to have one already.

After searching the bag, she didn't have high hopes, thinking that finding some pills would be a consolation. However, the results were quite surprising.

First, she took out a dark inkstone, then discovered a cloud-patterned vermilion brush.

She exclaimed in surprise, "Hmm, could these be Du De's 'Soul-Dispelling Inkstone' and 'Proclamation Brush'?" She kicked the unconscious Du You in anger and spat, "Phew, fortunately, I acted quickly, or I might have fallen for your trick."

After feeling the magical items, a smile crept onto her lips. "I didn't expect this kid to have already refined these two magical items. Hmph, I wouldn't dare to forcibly take such treasures from others, but this kid who hasn't opened his meridians is no match for me."

She reached out and roughly wiped away the trace of blood essence on the two magical items, making them ownerless. Although this would reduce their power, she didn't care; as long as they could be used now, she could refine them again later.

"With these two treasures, even if I can't defeat Du Bo, I can retreat gracefully."

After putting the two magical items away, she continued to search the sleeve pouch, only to find even greater surprises. "Hmm, a Cloud-Dwelling Flying Boat? What a good thing!"

"Xuan Wu Gold Dagger? Falling into your hands is truly a waste of a pearl!"

"Great Yuan Pill? So many? What a generous kid..."

"This is... Evil Salt Powder... Phew!"

Luo Xiao, as if afraid of being contaminated, threw a packet of powder to the side. She continued to search and found a pile of miscellaneous items, including several Daoist books. Her gaze fell on one of them.

"Taiyi Golden Book?"

Luo Xiao was startled. This was a famous cultivation technique among human cultivators. It was said that once mastered, one could melt gold and iron and form a sword from qi at the Bright Qi stage. If one could cultivate all the way to the Xuan Guang stage, the Xuan light generated around the body could rival a flying sword.

Du You had come to open his meridians, and to ensure success, he had brought Daoist books, pills, and magical tools. This Daoist book was obtained by his mother, Du Luo, after using many favors from the Du family, from a high-ranking cultivator.

Du You treasured this Daoist book, which his mother had given him before he left, and kept it close to his body.

Luo Xiao glanced at Zhang Yan, who was already in a meditative state, and smiled, "Zhang Daoist, this Du young master is quite generous to you. Even I am a bit envious of your luck. This is a Bright Qi stage cultivation technique that can only be practiced by those with upper-middle quality meridians. Let's see if you have the fortune to open your meridians this time."

Zhang Yan had already closed his five senses and five perceptions, completely ignoring Luo Xiao's words.

The cultivation technique of the Mystic Inner Canon was extremely dangerous. Although he had already familiarized himself with the technique from the broken jade, he still didn't dare to be careless, carefully guiding the qi to flow through his meridians.

After swallowing the mystic pearl, a cold, refreshing flow sank into his dantian, as if he had swallowed a piece of ten-thousand-year-old mystic ice. His blood vessels in his limbs suddenly contracted, and the cold air rushed to the top of his head. Then, the mystic pearl released a warm current, which traveled from his chest to his abdomen and down to the soles of his feet.

The two qi currents, one yin and one yang, occupied the upper and lower parts of his body, not seeming to come from the same source but rather like enemies facing each other across a river.

Zhang Yan knew that this was because the mystic pearl, born from the union of two clam kings, had not yet reached its most perfect state. However, it was precisely at this moment that it was most suitable for him to swallow it. If he had waited any longer, the yin and yang would have merged, and the clam would have broken the pearl, leaving no hope.

The first step in opening the meridians was to carefully guide the two qi currents to merge, making the essence within the mystic pearl usable for him.

At first, he carefully extracted a thread of qi from each of the yin and yang currents and slowly merged them. This was a test of his control over the qi. When the two qi currents intersected, the amount extracted from each must be equal, not more or less.

However, he soon found that with his previous experience in controlling qi, this was incredibly easy. He boldly extracted over a hundred threads of qi and circulated them through his meridians.

Before long, he had completely merged the two qi currents, storing them in his abdomen, heavy like lead or mercury.

At this point, all the conditions required for opening the meridians were in place.

Next, he needed to circulate the heart method, using the primordial true qi to wrap the mystic pearl's medicinal power, traveling through various meridians and secret acupoints, breaking through the various constraints that limited his body, and cutting the shackles that bound him from the path of immortality, thus creating a body suitable for cultivating high-level Daoist techniques and becoming an immortal.

Focusing his mind, Zhang Yan began to circulate the already familiar Mystic Inner Canon through his meridians.

Soon, he discovered that the Mystic Inner Canon was tailor-made for refining the mystic pearl. Every part of his body, even the most hidden acupoints and meridians, was repeatedly cleansed as the technique circulated. Not a single bit of the medicinal power within the mystic pearl was wasted; it was completely refined into every corner of his body, leaving no part untouched.

At this moment, he felt his heart beating like a drum, the surging blood roaring in his ears like a tide. Every acupoint was pulsating, and the qi circulating beneath his skin seemed to want to burst out, as if a hammer was continuously striking various parts of his body, causing even his bones and tendons to vibrate.

He ignored these sensations, focusing his mind and moving the qi with all his attention.

When the entire technique circulated smoothly and the qi returned to the various dantians, he suddenly felt the surroundings become quiet.

This was a state of extreme stillness, as if the universe had not yet opened, and nothing had been created.

He was in a state of vague forgetfulness, his mind and consciousness almost non-existent.

In this state of emptiness, after an unknown amount of time, a point of spiritual light rose in his heart, asking, "Who am I?"

The answer came, "I am who I am, I am not who I am, I am who I am, I am still who I am."

This enlightenment was followed by a sound like the clash of swords, or perhaps a rusted, mottled lock falling to the ground.

Suddenly, as if a constraint had been removed, his body felt incredibly light!

Luo Xiao, who had been guarding Zhang Yan, suddenly stood up, her beautiful eyes sparkling with joy. "With the mystic sound, the golden lock falls. Congratulations, Daoist friend, you are now one of us!"

She looked up and saw a chaotic mist-like aura appearing behind Zhang Yan, indistinct and difficult to discern, vast and immeasurable.

This was the aura that appeared after Zhang Yan opened his meridians.

Luo Xiao was stunned. Even with her knowledge, she was puzzled. What kind of aura was this?

The aura determines a person's meridian quality after opening, divided into upper, middle, and lower grades.

Lower-grade auras can have various strange and unique qualities, such as wind, clouds, thunder, lightning, flowers, birds, beasts, and insects. Middle-grade auras are divided into the five elements. The highest-grade auras are only yin and yang.

Zhang Yan's aura was a mist-like gas, similar to the "mist quality" found in lower-grade auras.

Could it be... a lower-grade aura?

Impossible!

Luo Xiao shook her head. She couldn't believe that the aura opened by combining the Mystic Inner Canon and the mystic pearl would be a lower-grade one.

A thought crossed her mind. Could Zhang Yan's aura be above the upper grade? This idea startled her.

Although mystic cultivators use all methods to open their meridians and achieve an upper-grade aura, this not only depends on the effectiveness of the elixir and the quality of the meridian-opening technique but also on one's destiny and insight.

Achieving an upper-grade aura is already rare. If someone like Zheng Xun could open a mixed upper and lower-grade aura, it was considered to have a bright future. Upper-middle-grade auras are even rarer, and upper-upper-grade auras are only heard of in legends, but those who have such an opportunity are all highly respected figures in the mystic world.

This is not without reason. The higher the grade of the aura, the more cultivation techniques one can practice. Lower-grade auras, although unique and strange, limit the choice of cultivation techniques, making it very difficult to find a suitable one.

If Zhang Yan's aura were to surpass the upper grade, Luo Xiao's gaze would be filled with complexity. She couldn't imagine what kind of achievements this person would have in the end. For the first time, she wavered about whether to dissolve the essence blood vow.

At this moment, Zhang Yan showed more movement. The chaotic mist-like aura gathered and converged into his眉心, finally forming a faint vertical mark there, leaving Luo Xiao even more puzzled.

Auras are manifestations of the qi in the meridians, how could they form a tangible mark? She suddenly realized that her knowledge was not enough to understand the various incredible phenomena occurring in this person.

Zhang Yan opened his eyes, and the burst of spirit light momentarily illuminated the entire cave.

He stood up, feeling incredibly light and agile, as if he were floating on a cloud. Everything was different; it was as if he had a new body.

In fact, he could no longer be called a "person." With his immortal meridians opened, he had already taken a step into the ranks of immortal cultivators.

After returning to Cangwu Mountain, he would ask a senior to evaluate his aura, and then he could enter the upper academy to practice even higher-level Daoist techniques and methods!

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