Who Can See the Heavenly Tome First

Ji You had actually known the wonders of cultivating the Dao and seeking enlightenment since he was in Yuyang County.

But this was the first time in his past and present lives that he had truly come into contact with martial arts and felt the exhilarating thrill of a solid blow.

Especially when spirit energy was incorporated into martial skills, which he found quite marvelous.

Then, one day, as the sunset's glow permeated the sky, Ji You emerged from the Sword Testing Forest and headed to the Immortal Cuisine House for a meal. With his purse feeling rather light, he only ordered a Stir-fried Immortal Seed Gathering and a Cold Tossed Golden Spirit Grass to appease his rumbling stomach.

He wondered if Kuang Cheng had run out of money yet. He should check on him another day...

Just as a full stomach could be uncomfortable, so could a full wallet. Ji You couldn't stand to see a suffering money bag, feeling that he had to save it, even if it meant overeating himself.

After eating, the fierce bandit Ji returned to his courtyard.

There was still charcoal left from last night in the brazier, now burning white. Ji You cleared away the ashes, added new charcoal, and ignited it with spirit energy. He then soaked a towel in hot water to wash himself, including his face.

Bathing was extremely inconvenient in ancient times, with most people using bathtubs. But Ji You was accustomed to showers, so he planned to "borrow" some money in a few days and go to the blacksmith to have a leaky kettle made into a showerhead for bathing.

After cleaning himself, Ji You changed his clothes and headed against the encroaching night towards the Dao Comprehension Ground. He found it already crowded under the setting sun's afterglow.

Some people were popping spirit pills with one hand and forming incantations with the other, their minds seemingly elsewhere.

Chu He and Lu Qingqiu, in particular, had been sitting there all day. Around them lay empty pill bottles, some on their sides, others nearly depleted, along with spirit stones that had lost their luster.

The disciples of the Outer Court of the Celestial Academy all aimed to enter the Inner Court.

Once one could sense the Heavenly Tome, securing a spot in the Inner Court was practically guaranteed, so no one wasted any time.

Yet, as cultivators at the Perfection of the Lower Three Realms, they should have had the highest potential for enlightenment, but at this moment, they were racking their brains, unable to sense the Heavenly Tome.

The path of cultivation was truly profound and mysterious.

However, even if they couldn't sense the Heavenly Tome, they naturally had other methods.

That was to continuously stack auxiliary pills, not demanding to sense the Heavenly Tome, but first sensing the Heavenly Dao.

Thus, after this day, a mystic light appeared on Lu Qingqiu's brow, and the one on Chu He's brow shone even brighter.

The first realm of the upper five realms was called Profound Comprehension. As the name suggested, it meant understanding the profound mysteries of the Heavenly Dao. Each deepening of their perception would earn them a feedback of mystic light from the Heavenly Dao.

When nine lights gathered on the brow, a cultivator was considered to have successfully crossed the threshold into the upper five realms.

These two had meditated for a day, witnessing the instantaneous moment of existence arising from non-existence at the dawn of creation. Having glimpsed the threshold, they had already exhausted their pills.

Ji You moved past the crowd and found a spot to sit on the ground.

His Spirit Core had issues, but his spiritual sense and comprehension were decent. Though he didn't know if he could break through, he could naturally try to comprehend the Dao.

As he sat down, dozens of nearby students couldn't help but break their meditative state and slightly open their eyes.

"Is that the rogue cultivator from the countryside?"

"He wasted a whole day in the Sword Testing Forest and finally remembered to seek enlightenment?"

"Without auxiliary spirit pills, and willingly wasting most of his time practicing useless martial arts, it's truly baffling."

"After all, he's from a remote place. This must be a whim. Little does he know, if he falls behind now, he'll only be able to watch dust in his wake for the rest of his life."

Chu He and Lu Qingqiu also heard the surrounding discussions, but they didn't even lift their heads.

At the same time, Ji You began to extend his spiritual sense outwards, striving with all his might towards the boundless deep space, exploring the faint light within the darkness and ignorance.

This was the method of sensing that Instructor Cao had spoken of.

He had sought out Instructor Cao last night to get a head start on comprehending the Dao. However, Instructor Cao's explanation had been vague, and he couldn't describe it in detail, only saying that if one comprehended, then one had comprehended.

Ji You had also asked how to confirm if one had comprehended.

Instructor Cao had replied that if one had comprehended, then one had comprehended, which had angered Ji You so much that he snatched two taels of silver from him as punishment.

Old Cao, having been robbed, became much more sincere and told him to try his best to send his spiritual sense upwards. The closer to the heavens, the stronger the perception.

However, sending one's spiritual sense flying was an extremely taxing endeavor, consuming both spirit energy and stamina. Most people couldn't last half an hour before needing to stop and rest.

But if they relaxed their focus, all their previous efforts would be in vain, and they would have to start all over again.

The only difference was Chu He and Lu Qingqiu. They could use spirit pills and spirit stones to quickly replenish their energy, naturally making them much faster than others.

At three-quarters past the hour of the Monkey (7:45 PM), Ji You slowly opened his eyes, his forehead glistening with sweat. He realized that comprehending the Dao with his spiritual sense was even more strenuous than practicing martial arts.

"No wonder everyone says the upper five realms are a process of accumulating pills."

"Only those like Chu He and Lu Qingqiu, who start by consuming pills and stones, can continue when they are about to reach their limit..."

However, Ji You had vaguely heard that the only pills that could directly affect spiritual sense were refined by the Pill Sect within the Seven Great Immortal Sects. Because they were rare and valuable, they were incredibly expensive, beyond the reach of even those from slightly less affluent families.

Continue.

Ji You closed his eyes again, his spiritual sense continuously soaring.

His method was a bit more rudimentary than others: each time, he would go a little higher than the last, pushing his limits.

But the boundless deep space was truly boundless, and human strength always had its limits.

After several attempts, Ji You felt a splitting headache each time.

At this point, some exhausted disciples opened their eyes again and looked at Ji You, panting.

"He's been sensing for half an hour straight?"

"Lu Qingqiu and Chu He can't even sense it for half an hour, what's so surprising?"

"He came after practicing martial arts and has already exhausted his stamina. When stamina is weak, spiritual sense becomes frail. Yet, he could still persist for half an hour."

"You can tell from his pale lips that he's at the end of his rope. Look at Chu He and Lu Qingqiu; after taking the medicine, their Dao comprehension time far exceeded an hour. How can you compare?"

The crowd looked over upon hearing this and saw the same spiritual light between Lu Qingqiu's and Chu He's brows, flickering intermittently.

As for Ji You, despite repeated attempts, he hadn't managed to break through.

Earlier, some people had secretly called the three of them rivals, earning a glare from Chu He.

Now, it seemed he wasn't wrong; not everyone could be a match for someone from the Chu family.

But just then, the fierce bandit Ji You's brow suddenly relaxed, his face slowly easing, causing his cheekbones to lower slightly.

However, soon his relaxed brow furrowed sharply again, and it never loosened even a fraction afterward.

Lu Qingqiu was already exhausted and slowly opened her eyes. She looked at Ji You, who was sweating on his forehead, observed him for a while, and then turned to Du Zhu beside her.

"How long does he usually last?"

"His first attempt was close to half an hour, the second was half an hour, and now he's already exceeded that."

Exceeded half an hour? Lu Qingqiu frowned at the words.

She could only last half an hour at a time without using spirit stones to replenish her energy.

This Ji You, after practicing martial arts for a day and coming here exhausted, could still persist for over half an hour. It seemed he did have some skills.

He wasted a day practicing martial arts today and definitely wouldn't go tomorrow. If he also meditated from morning till night, he might even surpass her own Dao comprehension time, which was achieved without relying on pills or spirit stones.

This was precisely the importance of taking pills and spirit stones.

Just then, Ji You suddenly exhaled, lowered his head, and gasped for a long time, feeling somewhat dizzy.

He had flown higher this time, but he knew it would be difficult to advance even half a step further. However, this was an excellent way to train the strength of his spiritual sense, which would also greatly benefit his martial arts.

His spiritual sense had been depleted too much today, and without any pills to replenish it, he could only stop here