Water-Fire Harmony

"Profound Mirror above, let all transformations merge in darkness."

"Today, I offer this demon spirit as sacrifice."

"I beg for your insight and beseech you to bestow talismanic reinforcement!"

After reciting the prayer for the [Sacrificial Ritual of Holding Talismans], Chen Heng immediately flicked a drop of fingertip blood essence toward the Water-Fire Twin-Headed Snake atop the Profound Mirror Altar.

His luck was not bad. The Chen household's demon-hunting team had recently captured a mid-stage first-rank Water-Fire Twin-Headed Snake.

Uncle Fu, the old servant, had spent only one hundred merit points from Chen Heng's identity token to claim it.

Before long.

The Water-Fire Twin-Headed Snake on the Profound Mirror Altar weathered and scattered at a visible rate, turning into wisps of ghostly light that seeped into the altar's patterns.

At the same time, Chen Heng felt a warm current pour in through the crown of his head.

The Water-Fire Twin-Headed Snake atop the Profound Mirror Altar completely vanished along with it.

Upon the surface of the Profound Mirror in his sea of consciousness, four ancient talismans appeared: [Water-Fire Harmony].

This time, Chen Heng had already been on guard. The four ancient talismans once again transformed into a stream of gray Lu Qi and fused into every limb and bone of his body.

He guessed that the rank of the demon beast determined the quality of the Lu Qi.

As before, the ancient talismans bearing the words [Water-Fire Harmony] remained upon the spiritual platform in his sea of consciousness.

Before long, Chen Heng grasped the reinforcement effect of this Lu Qi: control water and command fire as easily as moving one's own arms, balancing and harmonizing them so that they brought out the best in each other.

Everything was exactly as he had anticipated.

After obtaining this brand-new Lu Qi reinforcement, Chen Heng once again came to the courtyard of the small lodge specially used for practicing techniques.

He focused his mind and calmed his breath, forming hand seals as Water-element true essence surged within him.

He guided the rolling spiritual power through a full circulation within his body according to the incantation of the Verdant Water Barrier.

The water spiritual energy dispersing through the surroundings swiftly rushed toward Chen Heng's body.

In the blink of an eye, a mass of clear green water gathered before him. He drew circles with both hands, guiding the water into a whirlpool that flowed around him and formed a barrier.

It was precisely the Verdant Water Barrier whose casting range Chen Heng had previously been unable to control.

With the reinforcement of the Lu Qi [Water-Fire Harmony], his control over water flowed as smoothly as water itself, greatly reducing the difficulty of casting the Verdant Water Barrier.

Moreover, he could freely adjust its protective range. If the spiritual power supplied by his true essence was sufficient, he could even wrap it around his entire body and ward off attacks from every direction.

Shortly afterward.

Under the Lu Qi's reinforcement, Chen Heng began testing the current casting effects of the Flame Heart Finger.

Before long, he had tested the technique's effects after receiving the Lu Qi reinforcement.

The advantages of this technique had been further strengthened. It consumed less spiritual power, cast faster, and possessed greater might.

Chen Heng felt that he could fire it more than five times in ten breaths, reaching the level of mastery.

A technique's level of mastery could generally be divided into five realms: beginner, minor accomplishment, mastery, major accomplishment, and perfection.

Because the reinforcement effect of the Lu Qi [Water-Fire Harmony] was so excellent, he spent the entire day frantically practicing the three techniques of Flame Heart Finger, Verdant Water Barrier, and Water Fire Heaven-Reaching Staff Technique.

He did not stop until he had exhausted all the true essence in his body.

Only then did Chen Heng return to the second-floor cultivation chamber of Green Bamboo Lodge in satisfaction and activate the formation restrictions.

He sat cross-legged in meditation, his eyes half-closed and his five centers facing heaven.

He began circulating the Water Fire Defense Scripture, absorbing and refining spiritual energy to restore his true essence.

Under the reinforcement of the Lu Qi [Water-Fire Harmony].

The water and fire spiritual energy within Green Bamboo Lodge's range, which had originally found it difficult to coexist.

Actually merged together, gathering into an invisible vortex of spiritual power that circled above Chen Heng's head.

The true essence that had previously required several days to fully recover.

Now returned to normal in less than half a day.

Chen Heng was initially startled, then continued cultivating.

He wanted to know just what level his current cultivation speed could reach under the reinforcement of the Lu Qi [Water-Fire Harmony].

After half a month of secluded cultivation, Chen Heng emerged from the cultivation chamber with delight written all over his face.

He had already reached a conclusion: his current cultivation speed should rival that of a cultivator possessing a superior seventh-grade Water-Fire Spiritual Root.

This Lu Qi had made up for his greatest current shortcoming.

After all, everyone knew that the grade of one's Spiritual Root could not be improved.

After leaving seclusion, Chen Heng ravenously enjoyed Spirit Cuisine to nourish his body.

After all, Qi Refining cultivators had not yet reached the stage of abstaining from food. They could not escape the mundane and still needed to eat, drink, relieve themselves, and sleep.

Well, sleep could be replaced with meditative trance.

All this Spirit Cuisine had been carefully prepared by Uncle Fu, the old servant. Although he was a Spirit Planter.

He had lived for several decades, and making a few ordinary signature Spirit Cuisine dishes was as easy as turning over his hand.

Even Chen Heng himself knew how to make one classic dish of fire-roasted beast meat.

After three rounds of wine and five flavors of dishes.

Once Chen Heng had eaten and drunk his fill, he looked at Uncle Fu, the old servant standing by his side, and calmly asked, "Uncle Fu, has anything major happened in the household recently?"

"Mm, you may also tell me of any interesting news concerning the households and well-known Rogue Cultivators around the southern foothills."

After hearing this, the old servant began weighing his words inwardly.

As a servant assigned to attend an outstanding descendant of the household, he naturally could not shut his ears to affairs beyond the window and devote himself solely to bitter cultivation.

What was more, Chen Heng had long instructed him to consciously gather such information.

Before long.

Having chosen his words, Uncle Fu slowly began, "Reporting to Young Master, two fairly major matters have recently occurred within the household."

Chen Heng said nothing, merely signaling for him to continue with his gaze.

"First, not long ago, the household spent no small amount of spirit stones to purchase a second-rank superior Jade Marrow Paste for Young Master Mingyun, reconnecting his severed right arm."

"However, Young Master Mingyun seems to have suffered a shattered Dao heart. He voluntarily applied to leave the Azure Profound Sect and now holes up in a mountain cave abode, refusing to see anyone."

"This has stirred up considerable criticism within the clan. They believe Young Master Mingyun... has let down the household's trust."

Upon hearing this, Chen Heng tapped the tabletop lightly with his fingertip, lost in thought.

In this cultivation world, most cultivators believed that before Foundation Establishment, the physical body was the precious raft that carried one across the world and could not be lightly damaged.

Even if a severed limb could be reattached, it would greatly damage one's foundation and be exceedingly unfavorable to cultivation.

Chen Mingyun probably believed that Foundation Establishment was beyond hope in this life, which was why he had given himself up to despair.

As for leaving the sect, with his foundation damaged, Chen Mingyun had surely already lost the Azure Profound Sect's trust. This action could also be considered a way of fulfilling him.

"Uncle Fu, continue!"

Only then did Uncle Fu continue, "The other major matter concerns the youngest cultivator of the household's Xing generation. The Thirteenth Elder, Chen Xingyun, who entered the Azure Profound Sect over a decade ago, recently sent a letter."

"However, this old servant is lowly in status and does not know the contents of the letter."

"However..."

"Speak without reservation!" Chen Heng said calmly.

"This Elder Xingyun possesses a superior Lightning Spiritual Root. She entered the Azure Profound Sect at thirteen, and seventeen years have passed since then. She has likely already cultivated to the great circle of Qi Refining."

"She should be seeking aid from the household to accumulate sect contribution points, exchange them for a Foundation Establishment Pill, and pursue Foundation Establishment."

Hearing this, Chen Heng looked at the old servant beside him with slight surprise.

News that a Foundation Establishment Seed in a cultivation household was about to attempt Foundation Establishment was generally kept extremely secret, lest rival households learn of it and strike from the shadows.

How could even an old servant know of it?

Uncle Fu was worldly and shrewd, and he saw at a glance what Chen Heng was thinking.

He hurriedly explained, "Back when Elder Xingyun was found to possess a superior Lightning Spiritual Root, she intended to secretly enter the Azure Profound Sect not long afterward. Yet while traveling there, she was ambushed by hostile forces."

"Elder Xingyun nearly died on the road back then. The matter caused a tremendous uproar."

"The patriarch, who had ignored worldly affairs for many years, flew into a towering rage and executed several traitors who had colluded with outsiders and leaked household secrets."

"Every elder in the clan who is somewhat advanced in years knows of this matter."

"Young Master, you likely had not yet been born at the time, so you do not know the details."

After hearing Uncle Fu's further explanation, Chen Heng finally understood the origins of this clan aunt, Chen Xingyun.

She was a true direct descendant of the Chen household, a direct descendant among direct descendants.

Her bloodline descended from Chen Mengyun, the ancestor who founded the Chen household, as well as Chen Xiaoting, the Heavenly Thunder Venerable who possessed a superior Lightning Spiritual Root, expanded and strengthened the Chen household, and was its only cultivator in several centuries to break through to the Violet Palace realm.

A Violet Palace Venerable could enjoy a lifespan of five hundred years.

Unfortunately, that ancestor had died a century ago during the demon beast upheaval in the Moon Gazing Mountain Range, beneath the claws of a fourth-rank great demon.

A fourth-rank great demon could refine its transverse bone and speak human language. It was a powerful demon beast on the same level as a human Golden Core True Person.

Otherwise, the Chen household's circumstances would be far better than they were now.

After chatting to this point, Chen Heng suddenly lost interest and waved for Uncle Fu to withdraw.

He then returned to the second-floor cultivation chamber and had a proper night's sleep.