Flawed Cultivation Method

The Senior Brother put down the food basin, tidied his daoist robe, and gestured for Pan Yun to sit opposite him. "Come, I'll check you."

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow. She circulated her cultivation technique and looked at him again. She saw that his Blood Essence was full, and his aura was upright and orderly. He was at least an honest and kind person.

Pan Little Black, who had run over at some unknown time, nimbly walked to Pan Yun's feet and lay down.

Pan Yun glanced down at it, then sat down opposite the Senior Brother, cross-legged.

She also wanted to know what was wrong with her cultivation technique.

The Spirit Being and Xuan Miao had mentioned it more than once, but they couldn't pinpoint the fundamental reason.

The Senior Brother smiled, not minding her scrutiny. After she sat down, he said, "Meditate first, and circulate a Lesser Heavenly Cycle. I'll take a look."

Pan Yun's eyelids drooped slightly. She breathed in and out, and soon entered a meditative state, circulating her cultivation technique.

The Senior Brother was astonished. He rubbed his eyes uncertainly, and after confirming she was truly in meditation, he sat up straight in shock, his gaze on her as if it were shining.

He couldn't help but look at Tao Ji and Xuan Miao. Tao Ji and Xuan Miao nodded at him. That's right, she was just that talented.

The Senior Brother collected his thoughts, pondered for a moment, then beckoned and formed a hand seal, waiting. The surrounding qi seemed to become active, surging towards Pan Yun along with the Senior Brother's hand seal.

First, it was the qi around them, then it spread out ten steps, twenty steps, fifty steps... The qi in the valley also surged forward, rising with the summons, like a white silk ribbon winding upwards, approaching Pan Yun...

Miao He, who had come looking for the cat, stumbled in. Seeing Pan Yun, who looked like she was draped in white silk, she stopped in surprise, not daring to cause any more trouble.

Tao Ji and Xuan Miao glanced back at her. Miao He immediately stood up straight, tightened her stomach, and put on a well-behaved expression.

Tao Ji waved at her, and Miao He turned and ran.

Tao Ji: ...

Why are the disciples still so lively?

He was troubled.

Tao Ji turned back to look at the two people sitting opposite each other. Pan Yun was absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy as if she were swallowing clouds and mist.

Not only was her body greedily absorbing it, but Pan Little Black was also activating the Spirit Realm in her Mud Pill Palace, actively absorbing spiritual energy from the outside and channeling it into itself.

In other words, Pan Yun's body was currently circulating two cultivation techniques. However, the Spirit Realm's absorption was hidden beneath her massive absorption of spiritual energy, making it unnoticeable, and thus, not suspected.

Who knew how long it had been since one person and one realm had encountered such dense spiritual energy?

Oh, they hadn't encountered it since the birth of this world. It turned out that not all places in this world were as spiritually barren as the capital. There were also places like Sanqing, with spiritual energy as rich as a secret realm.

She wondered if there were many more such blessed lands?

Pan Little Black sighed comfortably, lying on the ground motionless. If only the place Pan Yun lived in the future could always be like this.

The three people present didn't notice the Spirit Realm, nor did they suspect Pan Yun's Mud Pill Palace, because a lot of the spiritual energy she absorbed dissipated after one circulation. While a good amount reached her Dantian, an equal amount scattered throughout her limbs and bones.

Despite the considerable intake, it didn't yield the corresponding cultivation effect.

Although the Senior Brother couldn't directly see the situation within her meridians, by observing the spiritual energy around her and looking at the hazy internal vision, he could judge about seventy to eighty percent based on his experience.

The Senior Brother quietly waited for her to complete two Lesser Heavenly Cycles before retracting his hand seal, letting the spiritual energy dissipate.

Pan Yun slowly opened her eyes, her heart filled with astonishment. She glanced at the Senior Brother's hand. Without formations, he could summon spiritual energy from heaven and earth with just a hand seal?

The Senior Brother asked with a smile, "Who is your Master, little fellow daoist?" How could they mislead their disciples like this?

Pan Yun shook her head. "I learned it myself. I don't have a Master."

The Senior Brother was relieved when he heard this. He pointed at Xuan Miao and said, "I heard from these two that you are skilled in talismans. Would you be willing to become Junior Sister Xuan Miao's disciple? In our Sanqing Temple, Junior Sister Xuan Miao's skill in talismans is the most formidable."

Pan Yun and Xuan Miao said in unison, "No!"

Although the Senior Brother was regretful, he didn't blame them and quickly accepted. "Alright, if you're not willing, then you're not willing."

Despite her unwillingness, the Senior Brother was still willing to explain the issue with her cultivation technique. "Although some of us cultivators achieve enlightenment on our own, they are a minority. Most people will end up like you, figuring it out themselves, and in the end, they'll cultivate the wrong path."

Pan Yun looked confused. How could it be wrong? This set of cultivation techniques was taught in schools in her previous life. The entire nation was learning it.

Some people had reached the second Hou with this cultivation technique, nearing the third Hou. It was said that once one reached the third Hou, they could live for thousands of years, ride the clouds, and become almost immortal.

Pan Yun didn't dare to hope for the legendary realms of the fourth, fifth, sixth, or seventh Hou. Her goal was set at the third Hou: to ride the clouds, live freely for thousands of years.

And now, someone was telling her that the cultivation technique she was practicing was wrong?

Pan Yun didn't believe it. Moreover, these were ancient people. Could ancient people be more powerful than someone from the future like her?

That's what she thought, but her mind was in turmoil. One moment she thought about the nation's emphasis on and urgent research into Spirit Realms, and the next she thought about the rapid and uncontrollable mutations of plants and animals in her previous life...

She knew that her previous life's nation lacked many inheritances and techniques, but she didn't know that even the national standard basic technique, practiced by so many people, was also wrong.

It was the only cultivation technique that could reach the second Hou.

If even that was wrong...

While Pan Yun was worrying about her homeland in her previous life, Pan Little Black raised its head and meowed, "Worry about yourself first."

Pan Yun immediately collected her thoughts and reacted. In her shock, she had relaxed the barrier on the Spirit Realm, allowing it to glimpse her thoughts.

Pan Little Black snorted. "Glimpse? The Mud Pill Palace is churning right now. That voice penetrates right through me. I can't help but overhear."

Clearly, she was the one who actively created the noise and kept disturbing it, wasn't she?

Pan Yun collected her thoughts and looked up at the Daoist priest sitting opposite her.

Seeing her teary-eyed and bewildered, Senior Brother quickly comforted her, "Don't be afraid. If you made a mistake, you made a mistake. Fortunately, we found out early, so we can just correct it."

Fearing she might cry, he spoke softly, "It's like a child learning to write. If they hold the pen wrong while learning, they can correct it once they realize. Even though their hands have a memory and it's harder to change, you're so smart. You could cultivate on your own when you knew nothing, so this little thing should be a piece of cake for you."

But she wasn't just starting to cultivate. This psychological memory wasn't just eight years; it also included her past life.

Pan Yun took a deep breath and forced a smile, "Daoist priest is right, I will definitely be able to change."

What could be harder than her father's exoneration?

It was just changing her cultivation technique.

She would change it!

Pan Yun looked at the Daoist priest with complete trust and asked, "Then what cultivation technique should I switch to?"

"First, tell me how your current technique works. I'll see if I can find something similar."

Pan Yun immediately explained it to him.

Senior Brother listened intently at first, but his brow furrowed tighter after a moment. He felt like he had seen this cultivation technique before, but couldn't recall where.

He stopped Pan Yun, "Let me think, let me think..."

Senior Brother sat on a rock, deep in thought, a troubled expression on his face. Where had he seen it before?

After a long silence, Tao Ji saw that it was completely dark and said, "Pan Yun, I'll take you to find a room to rest. Senior Brother will find you when he remembers."

Pan Yun left reluctantly.

The black cat remained motionless, still lying there. It was mocking her in Pan Yun's mind, [I thought you trusted him so much, telling him your cultivation technique and asking me to stay behind and eavesdrop.]

Pan Yun followed Tao Ji with a touched expression, but inwardly sneered, "If you had the guts, you wouldn't have stayed. If I've misjudged him, we'll both be ruined."

A cultivation technique that could be learned upon entering the sect in her past life, in exchange for a dedicated doctor's examination and solution. Wasn't that a bargain?

Her only concern was whether he genuinely wanted to help her solve her problem.

Also, Xuan Miao and Tao Ji had always seemed a bit strange towards her. Although Xuan Miao had explained it away, claiming she was just keeping a promise, Pan Yun remained half-convinced.

Pan Yun rummaged through her pack and took out her small bundle, then followed Tao Ji to the adjacent courtyard.

He said, "We have few people at Sanqing Temple. The front is where we worship the Three Pure Ones, Immortal Master Ge, and Minister Li. Cultivation also happens in the front. The back two courtyards are divided into the male courtyard here and the female courtyard over there.

The place we just came from is the kitchen. It doesn't have walls and is built on the cliff. Although it's spacious, you need to be careful, especially when it's dark, so you don't fall."

Pan Yun asked, "Why isn't there a wall?"

"Why build one?" Tao Ji replied matter-of-factly, "It's spacious. When chopping wood, you can watch the sea of clouds from the cliff. How joyful is that?"

Pan Yun thought about it and agreed.

"Fewer people came out today, it must be because tomorrow is the first day of the month, and Senior Brother will be checking homework, so they're cramming. Miao He... she's probably restless and hungry. I asked Miao He to come and get you."

Tao Ji pushed open the door to the female courtyard and shouted, hands on his hips, "Miao He, Miao He--"

A window on the left opened, and Miao He poked her head out, seeing a dark figure in the courtyard. "Master?"

"Hurry and light a lamp, and take your Senior Sister... Sister Pan Yun to her room to rest."

Miao He responded, brought out her oil lamp, and said happily to Pan Yun, "Sister Pan Yun, we prepared a room for you earlier. Follow me."

Miao He pushed open a room next door and went in first with the lamp.

Seeing Pan Yun follow Miao He, Tao Ji waved and left, "Remember to get some food for Pan Yun from the kitchen later."

Miao He acknowledged.

The room wasn't large. To the left of the entrance, along the wall, was a small bed without a mosquito net, just bare.

On the bed were a pillow and a quilt, both neatly folded. Below the window was a table and a stool. Diagonally opposite, near the back window, was a screen, behind which was a chamber pot.

Pan Yun indicated she could manage the effort of getting up at night.

By the door was another window, the front window. Under the front window was also a table, on which sat a bronze mirror.

Miao He placed the oil lamp on the table and said to Pan Yun, "This bronze mirror was a gift from Fourth Senior Sister."