Chen Du stood outside the Three Pure Ones Hall, tightening the last incense banner in his hand. Deep within his consciousness, the panel had reopened:
[Name: Chen Du]
[Realms: Eighth Stage Evolver - Immortal Dao - Golden-Nature Fruition Position - Early Foundation Establishment Realm / Pseudo-Eighth-Order Evolver - Martial Dao Martial Immortal Realm / Pseudo-Eighth-Order Evolver - Factor Direction -Freedom Realm / Pseudo-Eighth-Order Evolver - Immortal Dao - Body Integration Peak Stage]
[Current Status: True Spirit Descends]
In terms of the Golden-Nature Fruition, he has officially entered the Eighth Stage, the early stage of Foundation Establishment.
Their Martial Dao, gene cultivation, and old Immortal Dao are all still at the Pseudo-Eighth Tier. Although they have not truly crossed that threshold, they are not far off.
With four paths advancing simultaneously, and given another opportunity, it's not impossible to advance to the Eighth Stage on all of them.
Continue reading:
[Talent 1: World's Spiritual Endowment
Level: Lv2 (1/4)
Ability 1: Infinite Awakening Lv2 (3/4)
[Talent 2: Myriad Worlds Traversal
Level: Lv2 (1/4)
Ability 1: Gate of Traversal Lv2 (3/4)
These two talents steadily improved as he entered new worlds time and time again.
[World's Spiritual Endowment] and [Myriad Worlds Traversal], one grants him opportunity, the other provides him with a way out; they are the foundation of his ability to traverse countless worlds.
[Talent 3: Divine Revelation Reading
Level: Lv3 (6/8)
Ability 1: Martial Arts Creation Lv12 (978/3986)
[Talent 4: Achieving the Dao Through Anger
Level: Lv3 (4/8)
Ability 1: Martial Arts Creation Lv10 (486/1994)
[Talent 5: Stunning Everyone with a Single Cry
Level: Lv3 (3/8)
Ability 1: Lie Dormant Lv8 (215/496)
These three talents are the most useful and easiest for him to master.
[Divine Revelation Reading] is the main focus, and it's already approaching Lv4. The Martial Arts Creation is only one experience point away from the major bottleneck.
The Achieving the Dao Through Anger and to make a name for Stunning Everyone with a Single Cry, along with the auxiliary [Divine Revelation Reading], continue to serve as his trump card for both battle and Lie Dormant.
It was with these tools that he was able to repeatedly deduce, break through, and turn the tide in desperate situations.
[Talent 6: Hundred-Lifetime Reincarnation
Level: Lv2 (0/4)
Ability 1: Hundred-Lifetime Body Lv3 (0/8): After death, the user can be reborn once. Currently, there are a total of twenty-nine uses available.
[Talent 7: Reincarnation Inheritance
Level: Lv2 (0/4)
Ability 1: Inherited Body Lv3 (0/8): Upon being reborn, one can inherit 60% of their previous cultivation level and take two items with them.
Upon seeing this, Chen Du's gaze narrowed slightly.
He was reborn twenty-nine times, inheriting sixty percent of his cultivation, and was also able to take two items with him.
Compared to before, its foundation has become even stronger.
Between life and death, his tolerance for mistakes grew ever greater.
This gave him even more confidence in his trip to the Celestial Master Realm.
Even though this is Ninth Tier world, he can afford to wait.
[Talent 8: Beyond Cause and Effect
Level: Lv1 (1/2)
Ability 1: Outside Cause and Effect Lv2 (0/4): Within 150 years, no one will be able to find you through causal deduction!
[Talent 9: Child of Fortune
Level: Lv1 (0/2)
Ability 1: Overflowing Fortune Lv1 (1/2): Your Overflowing Fortune, giving you an advantage in battles against opponents of the same or lower rank. Your luck is exceptionally good!
The Beyond Cause and Effect and effect has almost reached level two, extending to 150 years.
The Child of Fortune are also slowly accumulating, their talents perfectly suited to the Celestial Master Realm, a place where Dao Resonance manifest.
With these, his search for places where power is stored, the transformation of Dao Resonance, and the acquisition of secret manuals will only be smoother.
He exhaled softly and put the panel away.
The incense banners have all been replaced, and the Three Pure Ones Hall appears even more solemn in the twilight.
He looked up at the high-rising eaves of the palace, knowing in his heart that he was about to take everything from this ancestral temple of Daoism.
In the blink of an eye, he had already spent more than a month in the Celestial Master Realm.
He had also figured out the cultivation system of the Celestial Master Realm, which was of the same lineage as the Celestial Master’s Mansion of Mount Longhu, emphasizing "Dao Initiation the Dao through the methods and controlling the methods through the Dao."
It differs from the pure Golden-Nature Fruition of the Red Sun Immortal Realm, and is also quite different from the Evolution Factor Path of Blue Star.
Chen Du combined the Celestial Masters' Mansion inheritance from Li Mo's memories with his own understanding of the Dao of Immortal Dao, and quickly sorted out the nine realms of the Celestial Master Realm.
The first stage, "Mind Illumination," Dao Initiation. It involves purifying the mind and refining one's nature, removing worldly impurities, and seeing one's true self. Only then are one qualified to discuss cultivation.
Cultivators at this level can discern evil spirits by observing their aura, use talismans to exorcise ghosts, and protect the homes of ordinary people, corresponding to the First Tier.
In the second stage of Altar-Opening, once the mind is clear, one can set up the altar, nourish it with essence and blood, and offer incense to the gods, thus inviting a wisp of the Dharma intent of the ancestral masters of the Celestial Masters' Mansion's Mansion into the altar.
Within a radius of one hundred paces of the altar, no evil spirits may intrude. The one who completes the altar can be called a formal Dharma Master, corresponding to the Second Tier.
The Third Realm: Evil-Driving. Once the altar is established, one can control the power of incense offerings and draw talismans to create soldiers. Cultivators at this realm can descend the mountain to Subdue Demons and Exorcise Evil, and subdue minor demons and monsters with less than a hundred years of cultivation. In the mortal world, they can receive incense offerings from ten thousand people, corresponding to the Third Tier.
The Fourth Realm Thunder Method. In Daoism, Thunder Method is the master of punishment. Cultivators at this realm can summon heavenly thunder with a single talisman by using their mind to manipulate the true meaning of thunder.
The Celestial Master’s Mansion of Mount Longhu has been renowned for its Thunder Method since ancient times. Only those who have mastered this level can be considered to have entered the ranks of the Celestial Masters' Mansion's true disciples. This corresponds to the Fourth Tier.
The fifth stage of internal alchemy involves refining an internal elixir after mastering external techniques. Cultivators at this stage use themselves as a furnace to refine essence into qi, then refine qi into spirit, and finally form a Dao elixir in their dantian.
On the day the elixir is completed, lifespan increases greatly, and all evil spirits find it difficult to approach, corresponding to the Fifth Tier.
The Sixth Realm Primordial Spirit, once the Dao elixir is formed, requires continuous nurturing and cultivation, and eventually, the elixir can be broken through to become a spirit, and the Primordial Spirit can leave the body.
Once the Primordial Spirit is formed, one can travel thousands of miles in spirit, traverse mountains and enter seas, and draw upon the power of a mountain or land for one's own use, corresponding to the Sixth Tier.
The Seventh Realm, Union with the True, involves merging Primordial Spirit with the true meaning of heaven and earth, with the Dao Resonance accompanying every gesture.
Cultivators at this level are already at the Earth Immortal First-Rate, capable of using the "power" of a city or region to suppress demons, corresponding to the Seventh Tier.
The Eighth Realm: Celestial Master. This realm is also known as the "Heavenly Master Position," which refers not only to cultivation level but also to the "status and achievement."
Those who cultivate to the Heavenly Master Realm can draw upon the incense offerings of an entire clan or religion for their own use, achieving physical sainthood and making their words lawful.
Among the patriarchs of Longhu Mountain throughout history, very few have attained this level of enlightenment, corresponding to the Eighth Stage.
The Ninth Realm Grand Heavenly Master: In ancient times, a single person could suppress an entire nation, possessing a boundless Dao Resonance and an immeasurable Dharma body.
Legend has it that the last Grand Heavenly Master in the Celestial Master Realm was able to open the heavens with a single thought and utter forbidden words with a single utterance, corresponding to the Ninth Tier.
These nine realms, from Mind Illumination to Grand Heavenly Master, progress step by step, each realm subtly conforming to the rules of this world.
Chen Du compared this with his own path of cultivation, and gradually gained a better understanding of the situation.
He could sense a mysterious resonance between the [Cangming Abyss] Divine Foundation within his True Spirit and the "Heavenly Master Position" of this world.
If he can obtain enough Dao Resonance in this Celestial Master Realm, he might even be able to push his Eighth Stage realm to an even higher level.
The Celestial Master’s Mansion of Mount Longhu has been a place of continuous incense offerings for thousands of years, making it an excellent place to accumulate Dao Resonance.
His trip was absolutely right.
As night deepened, the Celestial Masters' Mansion fell into a deep silence. Only the occasional distant sound of the night watchman's drum could be heard, like the lingering echo of drums striking a bluestone slab.
Chen Du changed into the slightly worn Daoist robe that Li Mo usually wore and quietly left the house.
Sun Xiaolu was already fast asleep, but he was still mumbling something like, "Eel... don't run away."
Chen Du followed the corridor northwards, avoiding the Daoist priests on night patrol.
Although he wasn't familiar with the Celestial Masters' Mansion, Li Mo had lived there for sixteen years, and every alley and side door seemed to be etched into his bones.
He passed through two moon gates, then circled a courtyard filled with old cypress trees, and finally arrived at the Celestial Master's Ancestral Hall.
The Ancestral Hall is not large, but it is extremely solemn.
The door was a black lacquered door with copper nails, and the threshold was so high that it reached above the calves.
The hall houses statues of Celestial Masters from various dynasties. The Celestial Master at the very top, with three heads and six arms, holding a golden whip, is the tallest. The gold paint on the statue is mottled, and the incense ash in the incense burner is thickly layered.
Chen Du stood quietly outside the door for a moment, making sure no one was around, before gently pushing the door open and going in.
The sound of the door hinges turning was exceptionally clear in the silence, startling the ever-burning lamp on the incense table, causing it to flicker slightly.
He walked up to the statue of the Celestial Master and looked up at it.
The statue had lowered its eyes and brows, yet its face exuded an aura of quiet authority.
For tens of thousands of years, disciples of the Celestial Masters' Mansion have offered incense here day and night. The thoughts, vows, and Dao Resonance of countless people have been imbued in this small Ancestral Hall.
Chen Du closed his eyes, immersing his mind in the True Spirit, and then gently activated his talent [Become a God on the Spot].
In an instant, the entire Ancestral Hall seemed to be "lit up" by something, and an extremely ancient and rich Dao Resonance slowly seeped out from the statues, incense burners, offering tables, floor tiles, and even from every wisp of lingering incense smoke.
They were like golden smoke, like old dreams rising from the depths of time, enveloping Chen Du completely.
Chen Du felt as if he were standing in the middle of a long river formed by incense and Dao Resonance, where every wisp of smoke carried the prayers of his predecessors and every speck of dust had heard the chanting of scriptures hundreds of years ago.
This force is too ancient, and too heavy.
Without pausing for a moment, he immediately activated his second talent [The World as a Book].
The Dao Resonance surged, as if being kneaded, arranged, and written by an invisible hand.
Countless golden rays rose from his body, eventually coalescing into semi-transparent scrolls, which then disappeared into his brow like flying birds.
That was an extremely complete Dharma manual... "The Supreme Ten Directions Five Thunder Golden Light Fire Cloud Orthodox Golden Light Mantra".
Chen Du only glanced at it briefly, but he felt his soul being illuminated by the scripture.
This divine incantation can be cultivated to an extremely high level, with the highest combat power comparable to the Eighth Stage. It protects the body with golden light, making one impervious to all evil, and can also injure people with golden light, destroying all evil spirits. It is one of the core true teachings of the Celestial Masters' Mansion that has long been lost.
Having received the benefits, he dared not linger and tiptoed out of the Ancestral Hall.
But just as he turned to go back into the house, and had just reached the gate of the courtyard, a muffled "boom" suddenly sounded in the night sky, as if someone had knocked on the top of the sky.
Chen Du suddenly looked up and saw an extremely thick golden light soaring into the sky from the direction of the Ancestral Hall, like a golden dragon churning in the clouds, turning the entire sky above the Celestial Masters' Mansion into a bright gold.
Within the golden light, a phantom image of a Celestial Master was concealed, exuding overwhelming power. The entire Longhu Mountain was alarmed.
"The power of the Celestial Master... This is the power of the Celestial Master!"
In the distance, one of the elders on duty cried out in alarm.
Immediately afterwards, several terrifying auras awakened simultaneously from the depths of each peak and rushed toward the Ancestral Hall.
The Lord of the Manor and several True Immortals were startled awake from their meditation. They broke free of their meditation and stared at the golden light that lingered in the night sky, their faces filled with shock, forgetting even to breathe.
How many years has it been since the Celestial Masters' Mansion produced Celestial Master? This golden light is like the manifestation of the patriarch, or the return of an ancient Celestial Master.
These people didn't know what had happened, but they were utterly shocked.
Chen Du had already slipped back to that dilapidated little house, lay down fully clothed, and closed his eyes to pretend to sleep.
Outside, chaos reigned, but in the darkness, he subtly curved the corners of his mouth into a smile.