Surging Mana

"Finally, I made it!"

Li Qingyun rose with a long laugh, his pale face brimming with delight.

A faint layer of bright yellow aura burst forth from his body as well!

Inside his heart, the plump Spirit Devouring Gu Silkworm that had been curled up and struggling finally burst apart after devouring far too much!

Its round body exploded into a mass of spiritual slurry!

The spiritual slurry glowed with dazzling yellow light. Pumped out from his heart, it swiftly spread throughout his body, rapidly nourishing Li Qingyun's flesh.

Tendons stretched, bones lengthened, blood vitality was born, and his body gradually grew stronger...

Listening to the strange sounds of his bones ringing and tendons tightening, Li Qingyun felt a faint realization arise within him.

"My essence seems to have been raised and sublimated a little!"

He recalled the legends concerning the Spirit Devouring Gu. This special Gu worm had only two possible endings:

Either it devoured everything from its host, then transformed into a butterfly and split free of the body, becoming an entirely new spirit butterfly.

Or its Gu-planting master removed it early through a spell, seizing the essence of mana it had absorbed and turning it into nourishment to improve the person's aptitude!

How could Cui have imagined that all her schemes would instead end up benefiting Li Qingyun!

In her eyes, a bastard son of a marquis's household without a Dao Bone Spiritual Root could not possibly cultivate any mana even after enduring ten years in the temple. This Spirit Devouring Gu would likely remain dormant for its entire life.

"Cui also ordered me to write home every month and report my cultivation progress in detail. She wanted to monitor the Spirit Devouring Silkworm's devouring progress while she was at it!"

"Today, I have withdrawn from the traces and leapt out of the cage. One day, there will be repayment..."

Li Qingyun thought coldly.

Specks of yellow light flickered faintly over his body. They were the outward manifestation of mana returning to him.

At this moment, nourished by the yellow-glowing spiritual slurry of the Spirit Devouring Silkworm, the countless pores across his body began continuously expelling black impurities and greasy filth.

The room filled with a sour stench that even he could not bear to smell.

He felt that his condition had never been better.

The blood vitality and essence this body had lost after being harvested by that demoness were slowly recovering.

Moreover, now that his blood vitality had fused with the aura of mana, it shimmered with threads of yellow light. It was vigorous and flourishing, even stronger than before.

The yellow-glowing spiritual slurry left behind after the Spirit Devouring Silkworm burst had all become nourishment for his body!

On top of that, the Precious Furnace Qi Absorption Art already had the minor effect of improving the basic aptitude of Lingbao Temple disciples.

With the two effects combined, Li Qingyun's so-called Dao Bone Spiritual Root had faintly improved by a trace.

Though it was not obvious, at least he was no longer completely cut off from the path of cultivation. Compared to his former utterly useless constitution, he was slightly better by the tiniest fraction.

Others cultivated only after possessing a Dao Bone Spiritual Root, allowing them to cultivate mana.

Yet Li Qingyun relied on the cheat-like mysterious Dao image phantom in his mind to first generate mana, then feed it back into his body and gradually improve his aptitude.

Of course, acquired effort could at most make up for a portion of one's deficiencies. Truly shedding one's mortal form and exchanging one's bones across an entire level was almost impossible.

Unless he could obtain those rare heavenly treasures recorded in Dao scriptures and mystical manuals, treasures capable of helping cultivators transform their very essence!

"Haha, I should head to the pond near the Bamboo Lodge and have a proper bath..."

Li Qingyun could not help laughing aloud.

Mana circulated through his body in an instant, and faint light glimmered beneath his feet. His figure abruptly accelerated as he dashed toward the pool to the east of the Bamboo Lodge.

Even without cultivating any movement technique, merely circulating mana allowed him to move far faster than an ordinary person.

Behind the mountain were countless streams and pools, even several hot springs, making them natural bathhouses for the temple's disciples.

The disciples within the temple were a mixed bag, filled with poor-rooted trash like He Xiao and Li Qingyun. This gave the place a little more of the flavor of mortal life.

So many people still had to eat, drink, relieve themselves, bathe, and sleep. In truth, there was not much difference from before they had climbed the mountain and entered the temple.

The next day, Li Qingyun continued staying in the Bamboo Lodge, meditating.

As he meditated, he carefully studied the Precious Furnace Qi Absorption Art, which only contained its first three layers.

"At my speed, reaching the third layer of Qi Refining will only take a few days..."

With that mysterious Dao image phantom in his mind, his cultivation now was somewhat like being on autopilot. He merely needed to maintain his meditative posture.

That morning, with the Spirit Devouring Gu no longer causing trouble, he finally accumulated one furnace of mana and successfully crossed the threshold into cultivation.

Strands of bright yellow mana swirled in his dantian, easily carrying him into the Qi Refining Realm!

Within the sea of qi in his dantian, threads of bright yellow qi gathered and formed the outline of an ancient Precious Furnace.

This Precious Furnace was the unique cultivation phenomenon produced when one had successfully cultivated the Precious Furnace Qi Absorption Art.

Li Qingyun had smoothly stepped into Qi Refining Layer One as well!

Now, he was filled with enthusiasm for meditation. So long as his body could endure it, he would be willing to sit until the end of time.

His roommate, He Xiao, only returned to the room that morning. His steps were somewhat unsteady, and he still reeked of alcohol.

Seeing Li Qingyun still sitting there meditating like a fool, he could not help clicking his tongue in amazement. He teased him a few times, but when Li Qingyun refused to listen, he could not be bothered to say more.

This roommate of his climbed into bed again and snored away, filling the entire room with the smell of liquor.

He Xiao lived quite freely in Lingbao Temple. From the moment Li Qingyun moved in, he had seen him attending one feast after another, reveling in drunken pleasures.

The two unfinished talismans on the table seemed to have been forgotten by He Xiao, still left exactly as they were.

"Brother He's little life in this temple, tsk tsk..."

Enduring the alcohol fumes filling the Bamboo Lodge, Li Qingyun continued meditating by himself, occasionally adjusting his posture and easing his slightly numb body.

He wondered whether he should go into the forests outside and find a quiet, deserted place to meditate and cultivate.

But he was immersed in the joy of his cultivation rising at breakneck speed, so unwilling to move that he did not even want to shift an inch.

Before he knew it, the autumn sun stood high in the sky. It was already noon.

Li Qingyun's cultivation surged wildly, with astonishing results!

At this moment, within the unknown depths of the sea of qi in his body, more than three hundred strands of mana rose from the Precious Furnace like clouds. At his command, they coursed through the meridians and acupoints of his body like soaring serpents and flashes of lightning.

Endless and unceasing, cycling again and again, as easily controlled as his own arms and fingers.

A total of three and a half furnaces of mana!

The Precious Furnace Qi Absorption Art mentioned that cultivation sects in this world all used "furnaces" as a unit for measuring mana, roughly gauging a cultivator's cultivation and strength.

One furnace marked entry, Qi Refining Layer One. From then on, one was separated from mortals and became a true cultivator.

Ten furnaces of mana meant the second layer of Qi Refining;

Twenty furnaces of mana meant the third layer of Qi Refining...

By the same reasoning, in terms of mana alone, the ninth layer of Qi Refining was around eighty furnaces of mana.

Qi Refining Great Perfection, meanwhile, was ninety-nine furnaces of mana!

"With the boost from that Dao image phantom, I generate one point of mana every second while meditating. It takes roughly an hour and a half to condense one furnace of mana. At present, without outside interference, my daily limit is six hours of meditation, which means four furnaces of mana!"

"At this pace, Qi Refining Great Perfection will take only about a month!"

"Still, this body's talent truly is too mediocre. After meditating for six hours, with mana continuously crashing through it, the meridians and acupoints throughout my body cannot withstand it. I cannot grind cultivation recklessly. Otherwise, I would meditate until the end of time."

"Also, the speed at which my cultivation rises is simply too shocking. If I encounter an expert within the temple, I might be exposed immediately. There is no way to explain this aptitude of mine! So I must learn a method to conceal my cultivation..."

After meditating all morning, Li Qingyun carefully analyzed his own situation, and his heart gradually became clear and bright.

At lunchtime, Li Qingyun wanted to ask He Xiao to go with him. He called out twice, but seeing no response, he went to the Dining Hall alone.

When he returned after eating, he saw that He Xiao had already gotten up and had even bathed in a nearby pool.