Chapter 3

Waking up, Zhou Shu stretched lazily, feeling refreshed all over.

On the table beside him, several plates of spiritual food and a few pills were already prepared.

Every day, three meals of high-quality spiritual food and grains were provided to enhance physical constitution and slightly increase spiritual power.

The pills also had their uses: two Huangya Pills for consolidating cultivation, one Qingxin Pill for calming the mind and preventing heart demons, and three Peiyuan Pills to slightly increase cultivation speed.

These things would be delivered on time.

This was the benefit of being a personal disciple; there was no need to work hard to find them, and various resources would not be lacking.

After eating the spiritual food haphazardly and practicing spiritual power control for two hours, Zhou Shu walked down the mountain.

The mountain path was rugged, but with a light body talisman attached to his leg, even the steepest path felt like flat ground. This first-grade talisman, which required two low-grade spirit stones to exchange, was something others were reluctant to use, but he didn't care at all.

On the way, many fellow disciples greeted him proactively, and he responded with a smile.

Zhou Shu maintained good relations with the disciples on Tianyun Peak, whether they were outer disciples or inner disciples. As someone who had lived two lives, he knew the importance of interpersonal relationships; if he wasn't careful, it could easily lead to trouble.

Unlike other geniuses who were aloof, he was very approachable and often shared his pills with other disciples, earning him the reputation of being the most down-to-earth genius, with excellent relations on Tianyun Peak.

But there were also those who ignored him.

For example, the disciple weeding and digging in the spiritual field occasionally looked at Zhou Shu with deep resentment, as if he wanted to eat him alive, but on the surface, he acted very calm, as if he hadn't seen him.

Zhou Shu remained calm, smiling it off.

He could understand. Outer disciples were different from him. He only cultivated every day, and the resources he needed would naturally be provided, and in abundance. Outer disciples, on the other hand, were busy with miscellaneous tasks, farming and mining, working for six to seven hours a day, and in the end, the resources they obtained were less than one-tenth of his.

It was very unfair.

But this was how the sects in the cultivation world operated; only those with sufficient talent could receive sufficient cultivation.

Waving goodbye, Zhou Shu bypassed several mountain paths and arrived at a desolate hillside.

The hillside was covered with boulders, with hardly any grass, and the spiritual energy was very thin, so almost no one came here. However, there was a thatched cottage on the hillside and a small patch of newly cultivated spiritual field.

Beside the spiritual field, a tall youth was performing the Cloud and Rain Technique.

The Small Cloud and Rain Technique was a must-learn technique for most outer disciples, perfect for irrigating the spiritual field.

"Hey, need any help?"

Zhou Shu approached quickly, smiling and patting the youth on the shoulder.

The youth turned around, grinning and showing a row of white teeth, "No, such a good opportunity for practice, why would I let you take it?"

"Then I'll insist on helping you."

Zhou Shu feigned resentment, extending his hand, and a misty cloud formed, spreading a moistening aura.

The youth raised his hands in surrender, stopping the technique, "I give up, be careful, don't overwater the new field."

Zhou Shu nodded with a smile, carefully controlling the mist to irrigate the spiritual field.

The youth was named Yang Hei, an outer disciple, with a stubborn personality, and the only good friend of Zhou Shu. They met by chance, but their personalities matched, and they became close friends, getting along very well.

Yang Hei had entered the sect a few months earlier than him, with very poor talent, arguably the worst in the sect, and hadn't even been given a piece of spiritual field, completely left to his own devices by the sect. However, he didn't get discouraged; he cultivated several pieces of spiritual fields himself and lived an optimistic and carefree life.

After a quarter of an hour, the clouds dispersed and the rain stopped.

Yang Hei was checking the seeds of the spiritual grains, and Zhou Shu walked over, tossing him a jade bottle, "Peiyuan Pills, I have another thirty, take them and cultivate well."

Yang Hei took the jade bottle, frowned, and looked up, "Why don't you use the pills? No wonder you're still at the first level of the Qi Condensation stage. I'm almost catching up to you! You're a genius, don't let others mock you."

Zhou Shu sat on the ground, a hint of pride in his smile, "Let them laugh. I'm cultivating my meridians. Once my qi meridians are sufficient, I'll soar to the sky."

Yang Hei shook his head, "Do you really need to open so many meridians? With your guidance, I opened two hundred, and I feel it's enough. More might not be useful."

Zhou Shu lay back, looking at the sky, "It's useful, you'll see in the future. I've set a year for myself. This year will be used to lay a foundation, not just meridians, but also spiritual power control, etc. As for cultivation, I'll put it aside for now. You should do the same. If possible, try to open two hundred and fifty meridians at the first level of the Qi Condensation stage; it will be much easier in the future."

Meridians can only be opened when one first enters the cultivation world, gradually nurtured by spiritual power, growing and developing with the spiritual power to become complete and good meridians.

As a cultivator's cultivation increases, for example, reaching the fourth or fifth level of the Qi Condensation stage, although the difficulty of opening meridians decreases, the newly opened meridians are like infants, unable to withstand the cultivator's spiritual power, and may become damaged or even useless meridians, far inferior to those opened at the first level of the Qi Condensation stage.

Yang Hei thought for a moment, "I'll try my best, but my talent isn't as good as yours, I don't know how far I can go."

"Talent is important, but technique is also important," Zhou Shu sat up and smiled, "What problems do you have this time? I also need your help with something."

The two chatted for half an hour, and Zhou Shu got up to leave, heading back to the top of Tianyun Peak.

Yang Hei shouted from behind, "Next time, let's go to the Clear Water Pond. I've caught a few silver-tailed fish there, they're first-grade spiritual fish, we can roast them and eat them!"

Zhou Shu smiled, nodded, and waved goodbye.

The sky was gradually darkening, and there were few people on the road. This was the time when most cultivators were cultivating.

Morning and evening classes, cultivators would go to the Cloud Gathering Platform in the middle of Tianyun Peak, where the spiritual energy was abundant, suitable for cultivation.

However, Zhou Shu didn't need to go. At the top of Tianyun Peak, under the mat he often sat on in the bamboo forest, there was a spiritual vein, providing a steady stream of spiritual energy, with better effects than the Cloud Gathering Platform.

Back at the peak, Liu Yuzhe hadn't returned, but there was a new message on the communication jade tablet.

"Disciple, your master is refining a magical treasure with the other peak masters in the Heart Inquiry Hall. It will take about a month, and I cannot leave. Practice the Listening to the Waves Sutra on your own, and if you have any questions, use the communication talisman to inform me."

Zhou Shu pondered for a moment. Why did all the peak masters suddenly need to refine a magical treasure, and why would it take so long? Could something have happened to the sect?

After thinking for a while, he couldn't come up with anything, so he shook his head and put it out of his mind.

Not in a position, don't meddle in politics. As a disciple, he just needed to take care of himself. Moreover, he had planned to practice the Listening to the Waves Sutra on his own, and his master's guidance might not be as good as his own deduction.

After resting for a while, the little figure in his mind appeared again.

Days passed one by one.

Each day of deduction made the complex Listening to the Waves Sutra gradually clearer.

How to make the spiritual power flow, how to harmonize the meridians...

The cultivation method diagram gradually unfolded in his mind, revealing its full outline.

Every point that needed attention was clearly marked with specific solutions. As long as he followed the steps, he could perfectly master the Listening to the Waves Sutra.

It was time.

Zhou Shu sat on the spiritual vein and began his first practice.

Peng, peng...

As the spiritual energy entered and transformed, the tidal waves of spiritual power began to surge, one wave after another, undulating in the meridians and the sea of qi.

"The tidal waves are much larger than before, but I should be able to withstand them, right?"

Zhou Shu was a bit concerned because in this deduction, he hadn't calculated the body's endurance. Since the Listening to the Waves Sutra was given to him by Liu Yuzhe, and his master said there was no problem, he didn't want to overthink it.

Moreover, if he included the body's endurance in the deduction conditions, the deduction time would at least increase tenfold.

The time was too long, and he couldn't wait.

Pa!

A light sound came from inside his body, the tidal waves surged, and a long-closed fine meridian opened with a sound!

Zhou Shu's heart was filled with joy, "It really works. I just started practicing and already opened a meridian, but isn't it too fast?"

The joy hadn't faded when another light sound came.

Another meridian opened.

"This..."

Zhou Shu's joy turned to confusion. He knew very well that he was only at the first level of the Qi Condensation stage, and even the strongest cultivation method wouldn't produce such a result.

There must be a problem, and he must stop practicing!

But it was too late.

Pa, pa, pa...

A series of light sounds continued to come from inside his body, meridians kept opening, and in less than a few breaths, all three hundred and sixty meridians were fully open, connected in one breath!

But the tidal waves of spiritual power didn't stop, continuing to surge wildly.

Peng!

The meridians couldn't withstand this force and burst suddenly!

In a few blinks, the rampant tidal waves of spiritual power shattered all the meridians, even continuing to surge inside his body, causing chaos.

Pu, blood spurted out like a fountain, and Zhou Shu began to bleed all over.

But at this moment, he had already fainted, losing all consciousness.