Chapter 5

The old man who had summoned thirty-six dragon roars from the nine heavens was already a genius that appeared once in three hundred years.

Then, what about Lin Yang, who had summoned eighty-one dragon roars from the nine heavens?

Apart from the term 'demon,' the old man could not think of any other word to describe him!

"Actually, eighty-one dragon roars that correspond to the number nine... It's unbelievable, truly unbelievable! It seems that this young man is indeed a once-in-a-thousand-years demon-level figure!"

The old man turned around, and two beams of intense light shot from his eyes, as if he had seen a mountain of gold treasure.

"I never expected that during my escape, I would still encounter such a shocking piece of jade. If he is willing to become my disciple, he will surely be able to carry on the tradition of my school. Perhaps, he can even expand and revitalize my school. In this way, I can give an account to the ancestors of my school..."

Originally, the old man only intended to teach Lin Yang a set of ordinary cultivation techniques to end this connection. But at this moment, he had the idea of taking on a disciple.

And once this idea arose, it truly could not be suppressed!

The old man's change in attitude was quite normal. If it were any other cultivator, they would be eager to take Lin Yang as a disciple. It was just that now only the old man was present. Otherwise, there would likely be a dispute over who was more qualified to take Lin Yang as a disciple, and they might even fight to the death.

One must know that for cultivators, the most important thing is the continuation of the tradition.

Often, they would rather die than not find a suitable person to pass on their tradition.

Who would not like a once-in-a-thousand-years demon-level figure with high potential and great talent like Lin Yang?

The old man, who had excellent self-cultivation, quickly calmed down. Ignoring the strange occurrences outside, he pulled the curtains shut and quickly returned to the bedside. He placed his right index finger on Lin Yang's yintang point and softly called, "Wake up."

Lin Yang, who was in a deep sleep, actually opened his eyes.

"How did I fall asleep?" Lin Yang was a bit embarrassed, his face full of confusion.

The old man did not tell him what had happened just now. He only said, "The body tempering and soul shaping have successfully ended. Your talent far exceeds my expectations. Therefore, I plan to change the previous arrangement. Now, I give you two choices: one, as previously mentioned, I will teach you a set of ordinary soul cultivation techniques and the soul awakening technique. Two, become my disciple and a direct descendant of the Mingyuan school. I will teach you everything I have learned without reservation, allowing you to inherit my tradition!"

"I choose the latter," Lin Yang said without hesitation.

"Don't rush to make a decision. Let me finish speaking."

The old man waved his hand, signaling Lin Yang to be patient.

"If you become my disciple and join the Mingyuan school, you will face many troubles and dangers, and even the risk of death! Think carefully and do not act impulsively."

Hearing the old man's words, Lin Yang couldn't help but recall the scene when he met him last night.

At that time, the old man was covered in wounds, as if he had suffered a thousand cuts. From this, it was clear that the old man was not exaggerating but speaking the truth.

Choosing the former would certainly not bring any danger. But with just a set of ordinary soul cultivation techniques, it would not be easy to cultivate to the Qi Listening stage and learn the soul awakening technique.

However, if he chose the latter, although the chances of him cultivating to the Qi Listening stage and learning the soul awakening technique would greatly increase, it would be a path filled with dangers and thorns!

To fight or not to fight?

Lin Yang fell into deep thought.

The old man did not urge him, waiting quietly for an answer.

The intensive care unit fell into silence.

Lin Yang did not think for long. A few minutes later, he made his decision and knelt before the old man, "I humbly request that you take me as your disciple. Even if the path ahead is full of thorns, I will still dare to face it!"

The old man did not immediately agree but calmly asked, "Have you thought it through?"

"I have thought it through," Lin Yang's tone was very firm.

"Good, good, good. I never thought that on my escape, I would still receive a disciple with extraordinary talent. It seems that heaven has not abandoned the Mingyuan lineage!"

A trace of satisfaction appeared on the old man's face. He then reached into his pocket, took out a jet-black jade slip, and handed it to Lin Yang.

"In this jade slip, not only are all the cultivation techniques and spells of the Mingyuan lineage recorded, but also my insights from years of cultivation. Although I have taken you as a disciple, I do not have the time or energy to teach you. Moreover, if I stay by your side, it will surely bring you trouble, which is not what I want. So, in the future, you will have to explore on your own. However, the path of cultivation is always 'the master leads you to the door, but cultivation is up to the individual.' Only the path you explore and understand on your own is your true path!"

Lin Yang nodded in agreement, took the black jade slip, and studied it in his hands. But he couldn't figure out where to see the cultivation techniques, spells, and cultivation experiences on this ordinary jade slip without any engravings.

"The jade slip is not read like that," Lü Wenqi shook his head and smiled. He then taught Lin Yang how to use his divine sense to view the contents of the jade slip and asked him to try immediately.

For ordinary people, using divine sense to view the contents of a jade slip was an impossible task. But for Lin Yang, who had successfully completed body tempering and soul shaping, it was not a problem.

After several failures, Lin Yang quickly grasped the knack of controlling his divine sense and smoothly injected a strand of his divine sense into the black jade slip in his hand.

"Wow..."

When Lin Yang used his divine sense to see the contents of the black jade slip, he couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

He never expected that inside this small, palm-sized black jade slip, there would be a vast and boundless world.

In this space of dozens of square meters, countless books and bamboo slips were piled up.

As soon as his divine sense approached, these books and bamboo slips would automatically open. However, what puzzled him was that some of these books and bamboo slips had content, while others were blank.

Lü Wenqi's voice then entered his ears, "I have cast a small spell on this jade slip, allowing you to see only the cultivation techniques and spells you can currently practice. The blank ones will only appear when your cultivation reaches the appropriate level. I did this to prevent you from overestimating your abilities and rashly practicing techniques you cannot control, leading to a disastrous outcome... Now, withdraw your divine sense. You can study it in detail later. Now, I will explain the basics of cultivation and the situation of the Mingyuan lineage to you."

"Yes."

Lin Yang responded, withdrew his divine sense, and sat up straight, listening attentively.

Knowing that time was short, Lü Wenqi did not waste words and went straight to the point:

"According to the levels outlined in the 'Jingyuan Ke' of the 'Ji Lu Tan,' the path of cultivation is divided into nine grades, and because a calamity occurs every three grades, it is called the 'Three Calamities and Nine Grades.' The nine grades, from lowest to highest, are: Heart斋, Yuan督, Qi Listening, Guarding Stillness, Fasting, Fetal Breathing, Inner Alchemy, Primordial Spirit, and Freedom..."

"The soul cultivation lineage uses soul power instead of spiritual energy for cultivation. In today's world, spiritual energy is becoming increasingly scarce. Therefore, more and more cultivators are beginning to practice soul cultivation. Although the methods of cultivation vary, there is one basic and most important thing that is the same—collecting ghosts!"

"There is a folk saying, 'People nourish jade, and jade nourishes people.' It is said that some jade, when worn for a long time, can not only make people feel refreshed but also have the effects of extending life and preserving youth. In fact, what produces these effects is not the jade but the ghost spirit residing in the jade!"

"As everyone knows, after a person dies, they become a ghost. After becoming a ghost, they either fall into the cycle of rebirth within seven days or temporarily remain in the human world due to unfulfilled wishes. If it is the latter, they need a host to reside in. Among various hosts, jade and some ancient antiques are the best. Other materials, such as grass, wood, iron, and stone, will lose their effectiveness after a few days, months, or years. At that time, the ghost spirit residing in them will face the fate of disintegration and complete disappearance."

"Soul cultivators, in addition to refining their own soul fire, must also collect suitable ghost spirits and settle them in a 'Jade Mountain' refined with secret techniques. By leveraging the magnetic field reactions between the two souls, they achieve a win-win effect of people nourishing ghosts and ghosts nourishing people."

After roughly explaining the basics of soul cultivation to Lin Yang and answering a few related questions, Lü Wenqi sighed softly and began to narrate the situation of the Mingyuan lineage.

"The reason why the Mingyuan lineage suffered the disaster of being wiped out was all because of the 'Dongyue Huangquan Jing.' This soul cultivation technique was discovered a few years ago by us and several other soul cultivation sects in an ancient relic in the southwest dedicated to the Great Emperor of the East. What is strange is that the 'Dongyue Huangquan Jing,' which was meticulously protected, recorded very ordinary techniques with many errors. If one were to practice it, it would not only be inefficient but also prone to causing mental derangement. Therefore, since the day we obtained it, we put it aside and ignored it. However, a few months ago, there was suddenly a rumor that the Mingyuan lineage had obtained an ancient technique of great power! Thus, the sects that had explored the relic with us came to demand a look at the 'Dongyue Huangquan Jing'..."

Lin Yang was so engrossed that he blurted out, "Since the technique is ordinary and full of errors, why not just show it to them?"

"We did just that at the time..." Lü Wenqi sighed deeply, his eyes full of anger: "However, those sects did not believe that what we showed them was the real 'Dongyue Huangquan Jing.' They insisted that we were deceiving them with a fake. Arguments broke out over this. In the end, those sects joined forces and suddenly attacked the Mingyuan lineage..."

Although Lü Wenqi's account of the Mingyuan lineage's catastrophic experience was brief, Lin Yang could still imagine the intense and tragic scene from the few words!