Condensing the Heaven and Earth Root

Condensing the Heaven and Earth Root

The more Li Fan read the descriptions of the Dao of immortality in the "Five Spirits Qi Induction Method," the more his scalp tingled with dread.

Before the Golden Core Stage, it was still relatively normal: absorb the spirit of heaven and earth, borrow the oddities of heaven and earth, glimpse the methods of heaven and earth.

But after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm, its tone gradually became frenzied.

Seize the essence of heaven and earth, drain the marrow of heaven and earth, Sacrifice Heaven and Earth Spirit...

Even, in the end, Defy the Natural Order.

Merely reading those words made one's heart pound in alarm.

The Heavenly Dao stood high above, giving birth to and nurturing all things.

For cultivators to cultivate in such a manner was no different from turning against Heaven, an act of monstrous rebellion.

Did cultivators truly not know what this signified?

Yet this method of cultivation advanced far too quickly.

The book recorded that after the Immortal Venerable transmitted his teachings, a great many mortals who had originally been unable to cultivate rose abruptly in merely a few decades.

Cultivators at the Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Spirit Transformation, and other realms sprang up one after another like bamboo shoots after rain.

The Cultivation World of that time was so prosperous that Golden Core cultivators walked everywhere, while Nascent Soul cultivators were worth less than dogs.

As for those cultivators who had originally persisted in cultivating by the ancient methods, watching their cultivation be effortlessly surpassed by mere mortals—how many could hold fast to themselves and refuse to try the Immortal Venerable's methods?

Thus, ancient cultivation methods gradually declined, while the new methods gradually replaced them.

A thousand years after the new methods became widespread, the Cultivation World's prosperity reached its peak as well.

Unfortunately, the principles of Heaven were clear: when prosperity reached its zenith, decline was inevitable.

Countless cultivators plundered the resources of heaven and earth with the greed of wolves and tigers, without restraint.

Even the increasingly frequent Heavenly Tribulations could no longer suppress the ever-growing number of cultivators.

And so, one day at last, the Heavenly Dao's counterattack descended.

The Great Heavenly Change occurred, and the Great Calamity descended.

From that day onward, immortal methods could no longer be cultivated together! The flourishing Cultivation World was as though struck by a blow to the head.

For a sliver of hope, cultivators plunged into endless slaughter against one another.

For a long time, the Cultivation World carried an air of desolation and decay.

It took several thousand years before it slowly recovered.

The cultivators of today had already grown accustomed to Heaven and Earth's malice.

Having drawn lessons from the past, they established an entirely new cultivation order upon the cultivation wasteland left behind after the Great Calamity.

Having finished introducing the origins of the present-day Cultivation World, the book then moved on to the method of "Five Spirits Qi Induction."

If a mortal who had yet to purge the miasma could not easily achieve Qi Induction, they could nurture their own Five Spirits, forcibly draw in Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy, refine it, and break through to the Qi Refining Stage.

The so-called Five Spirits referred to five emotions innate to every person.

Greed, fear, rage, hatred, and self-absorption.

These five emotions lay hidden within the human heart, inexhaustible and ceaseless from birth.

Five Spirits Qi Induction used these Five Spirits as motive power and fuel to cultivate the Heaven and Earth Root within the Dantian.

The Heaven and Earth Root connected a cultivator's Dantian to heaven and earth. Once it formed, the cultivator could use it to forcibly absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy and turn it into their own.

Compared to ancient cultivation methods, which depended entirely on aptitude, the Five Spirits Qi Induction Method emphasized stability.

Those with exceptional aptitude could cultivate a Heaven and Earth Root in a single day and night, embarking upon the path of cultivation.

Even someone entirely devoid of cultivation aptitude could, through day-after-day grinding effort, form their own Heaven and Earth Root within ten years at most.

Having mastered the method of Qi Induction, Li Fan thereafter kept a low profile and cultivated the "Five Spirits Qi Induction Method" at home every day.

Even though he had been mentally prepared for the possibility that his path of cultivation might not proceed so smoothly—

Three full years passed day after day, yet Li Fan still failed to achieve Qi Induction.

Li Fan knew his own cultivation talent very well. His aptitude was above average—not a genius, but certainly not poor.

There had to be another reason for his current situation.

The Profound Yellow Heart Refining Mantra... truly brings both fortune and misfortune beyond reckoning. Li Fan felt somewhat helpless.

Five Spirits Qi Induction required five emotions as fuel to drive the formation of the Heaven and Earth Root.

But Li Fan cultivated the Profound Yellow Heart Refining Mantra, and he accumulated very little of those five emotions.

Even if he did not deliberately circulate the Heart Refining Mantra, it was like an instinct, automatically grinding those negative emotions in his mind to pieces.

It was equivalent to advancing under a burden, which made Li Fan's progress extremely slow.

Li Fan had also tried achieving Qi Induction himself without relying on the Heaven and Earth Root.

But he clearly did not possess Xiao Heng's talent.

The spiritual energy outside his body utterly ignored him.

Without anyone else's guidance and relying solely on his own exploration, Li Fan truly had no confidence in how long it would take him to achieve Qi Induction.

So Li Fan still decided to honestly use the Five Spirits Qi Induction Method to break through to the Qi Refining Stage.

It was slower, but it was stable.

What Li Fan lacked least was time.

At the start of those three years, He Zheng Hao had occasionally sent people to inquire about Li Fan's cultivation progress.

But after Li Fan showed no progress for a long time, he rarely sent anyone anymore.

As for the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, because of Li Fan and Xiao Heng, although it no longer had the Myriad Flowers Merchant Guild as its backing, its business on the surrounding islands had instead improved.

No one wished to offend a merchant house that might have an immortal master behind it, so they avoided conflicts with the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion as much as possible.

Thus, over the past three years, the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion aggressively expanded its market, displaying a scene of thriving prosperity.

Yin Yuzhen's confidence swelled even further. Rubbing her hands together in anticipation, she attempted to return to Yelan Island and reclaim control of the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion's headquarters.

Li Fan only occasionally concerned himself with matters of the outside world.

The overwhelming majority of his energy was focused on cultivating the Heaven and Earth Root.

Unfortunately, this was indeed not something that could be rushed.

Li Fan estimated that, barring any accidents, he would still need around two more years to succeed.

Having stayed cooped up at home for a long time, Li Fan felt restless after prolonged stillness one day and wanted to go out for a walk.

Without alerting anyone, he changed clothes, put on a felt hat, and arrived at the marketplace on Liuli Island.

Compared to three years ago, the place seemed unchanged in every way.

The sounds of haggling, vendors calling out to attract customers, and people playing and joking rose and fell in succession.

Here, Li Fan felt the long-lost "flavor of people."

All manner of thoughts in his mind surged forth in great numbers, like withered saplings receiving nourishment.

In that single moment, the Heaven and Earth Root progressed more than it had during three days of secluded cultivation at home.

Li Fan suddenly understood.

For ordinary cultivators, seclusion and quiet, painstaking cultivation were necessary because ordinary people never lacked the Five Spirits that served as fuel.

But Li Fan's circumstances were special. The Heart Refining Mantra circulated in his mind at every moment, and these stray thoughts were all transformed into nourishment that strengthened his spirit.

The Five Spirits Qi Induction Method was clearly not as advanced as the Profound Yellow Heart Refining Mantra. It could not seize much for itself and could only pick up scraps.

Li Fan could not change this situation for now. If he wanted to accelerate the formation of the Heaven and Earth Root, he needed to increase the stray thoughts born in his mind each day.

Daily seclusion was clearly not an option. He needed to enter the secular world.

Having understood this, Li Fan could not help feeling delighted.

It seemed that perhaps he would not need two years before entering the Qi Refining Stage.

"Elder Li?" At that moment, a somewhat familiar voice came from behind him.

Li Fan turned around. After seeing the other person clearly, he paused for a moment before recalling who it was.

It was none other than Zhang Haobo, the captain of Liuli Island's Cangyuan Ship, whom he had met once before.