For cultivators, aside from the abundant Five Elements energy in the outside world, spirit stones had to be mentioned. Spirit stones were ores containing the energies of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Absorbing the Five Elements energy within these ores was several times faster than absorbing it from the air.
This was also the most commonly used method for cultivators to fight or rapidly restore their spiritual power.
Based on the amount of energy contained within them, these ores were divided into four grades: low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and supreme-grade.
The book also mentioned cultivation realms, which were generally divided into eight tiers.
These eight stages were: Qi Gathering, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, Fusion, Divine Connection, Profound Spirit, and Mahayana. Each realm was further subdivided. The Qi Gathering stage was divided into ten levels: one, two, and three were the early stage; four, five, and six were the middle stage; seven and eight were the late stage; and the tenth level was the great perfection realm. Breaking through it would lay a solid foundation for cultivation and allow one to enter the Foundation Establishment Realm.
The realms of Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, Fusion, Divine Connection, Profound Spirit, and Mahayana were each divided into four levels: early stage, middle stage, late stage, and great perfection. So long as one broke through the bottleneck at each level, one could advance to the next stage.
The Qi Gathering stage was when cultivators first stepped into the Cultivation World and began absorbing Heaven and Earth energy, preparing for Foundation Establishment. A cultivator's body had not yet undergone any changes at this stage, and their lifespan was much the same as that of ordinary people—at most a little over a hundred years.
But once a cultivator successfully established their foundation and entered the Foundation Establishment Realm, they had truly entered the gate of cultivation. Ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators could live for more than two hundred years, more than twice as long as ordinary people. Thus, every cultivator longed to successfully achieve Foundation Establishment.
If one was fortunate enough to enter the Core Formation stage, their lifespan would grow even longer, reaching five or six hundred years. Calling them Immortals on Earth was entirely fitting. Core Formation cultivators possessed extraordinary methods and vast divine abilities.
Beyond that was the Nascent Soul stage. If one entered the Nascent Soul stage, their lifespan could exceed a thousand years. It was said that Luoxia Sect's Founding Patriarch had lived for more than thirteen hundred years.
The higher one's realm, the longer one's lifespan. The book did not record exactly how long Fusion and Divine Connection cultivators could live, because the cultivator who wrote it had only been in the Foundation Establishment Realm.
It was said that the highest-ranked cultivator to appear in the entire Great Liang Kingdom had been Luoxia Sect's Founding Patriarch, who had cultivated to the great perfection of the Nascent Soul stage. But whether there were higher-level cultivators in other countries was not explained in the book.
"Introduction to Immortal Cultivation" also described the weapons used by cultivators. All kinds of weapons played a crucial role in cultivator battles.
From low to high, they were divided into: magic artifacts, spirit artifacts, magic treasures, ancient treasures, spirit treasures, and Vast Desolation Profound Treasures.
Magic artifacts were generally used only by Qi Gathering stage cultivators and were divided into low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and supreme-grade magic artifacts.
Spirit artifacts could be used by both Qi Gathering stage and Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators, and were likewise divided into low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and supreme-grade. However, even cultivators at the Qi Gathering peak could not control spirit artifacts for long, because they consumed too much spiritual power. If used in battle, and the opponent could not be swiftly killed, one might instead be captured after exhausting one's own magical power.
Magic treasures could only be refined by Core Formation cultivators. After being refined, they had to be nurtured within the body for a long time, making them Connected by mind with their owner. Their power was countless times greater than that of spirit artifacts. Yet there were not many magic treasures in existence, and every cultivator regarded one as their second life, making them exceptionally precious.
Spirit treasures were said not to be objects of this realm and possessed inconceivable divine abilities. Even in the entirety of the Great Liang Kingdom today, not a single spirit treasure existed.
Ancient treasures were magic treasures refined by cultivators of antiquity. Compared to modern magic treasures, they possessed greater might and could be used without long periods of nurturing.
Vast Desolation Profound Treasures were treasures naturally formed by Heaven and Earth, not refined by cultivators, and contained Heaven and Earth laws. Ordinary cultivators could not wield them. This was merely a rumor; no one had ever seen one.
There were also talismans, which likewise possessed offensive power. Ice Needle Talismans and Fireball Talismans, for instance, sealed spells within specially made talisman paper. When used, they could be activated with the slightest infusion of spiritual power. They were simple and practical, the finest weapons for low-level cultivators in battle. But they were extremely difficult to make, so each one was quite costly.
Among talismans was a type called Beast Talismans. Demon beast souls were refined into talisman paper through special methods, and could be activated with spiritual power to control the demon beast souls in attacking enemies. But they were even more difficult to refine.
There was another type of talisman called a Talisman Treasure. Only cultivators at the Fusion stage or above could create it. Using special methods, they sealed part of the power of their own life-bound magic treasure into specially made talisman paper, allowing low-level cultivators to use part of the power of the original magic treasure for attack or defense.
When creating a Talisman Treasure, part of the original magic treasure's power would be lost, and the refiner needed to nurture it for a long time before it could recover. Thus, Talisman Treasures were rarely passed down.
When a Talisman Treasure was used, some of its power would be lost. Once its power had been completely exhausted, the Talisman Treasure became useless. Although Talisman Treasures had limited uses and were somewhat like chicken ribs to Fusion stage cultivators, some Lineage or sect cultivators would still create a few when they felt their end was approaching, leaving them behind for their descendants.
After reading "Chronicles of Luoxia Sect" and "Introduction to Immortal Cultivation," Qin Fengming finally gained a general outline of cultivation, and the questions that had troubled him for so long were answered.
What disappointed Qin Fengming was that he had not found the "Virtual Spirit Root" mentioned by the old man surnamed Wei. But since he could cultivate, that alone showed that he was far superior to ordinary people. With that in mind, Qin Fengming made up his mind that no matter how poor his aptitude might be, so long as he put in a hundredfold effort, he would surely gain something.
In the blink of an eye, forty days had passed. That day, a young man dressed in gray summoned Qin Fengming.
The young man appeared to be at Qi Gathering Stage Four and introduced himself as Liu.
Qin Fengming did not dare delay and immediately followed the young man into the Artifact Refining Hall. Only after entering did he discover that the great hall was empty, containing nothing at all. The sight left him stunned.
Seeing his astonishment, the young man gave a chuckle. "Junior Disciple Brother Qin, everyone entering the Artifact Refining Hall for the first time feels as strange as you do."
As he spoke, he raised a hand, and a jade token appeared in it, identical to the one Qin Fengming possessed.
He tossed the jade token, and it flew straight toward a corner of the great hall. After flying nearly two zhang, it unexpectedly hovered in midair. A moment later, green light blazed from the jade token, and a light curtain abruptly appeared before them. With a soft bang, a passage appeared in the light curtain.
Without another word, the young man drifted inside.
Qin Fengming did not dare be negligent and hurried after him.
After entering the light curtain, Qin Fengming found a downward passage. The entrance was about one zhang high and more than half a zhang wide. The young man said nothing and raced straight into the tunnel.
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