Celestial Master

The Great Sun Nine Refinements Visualization Method is easy to enter but hard to master.

The first three layers use essence to ignite Spiritual Fire, manifest the Great Sun, forge the spirit, and extract divine thought.

The middle three layers use divine thought to stimulate the soul, nurturing the Yin Spirit.

The final three layers condense the Nascent Soul, where its mysteries first emerge.

"Spirituality, the dissipating force of the soul; thought, the idealistic force of the mind—both are originally ethereal concepts. Through the forging of essence and Spiritual Fire, they transform into formless, intangible divine thought."

Gu Jinlai flipped through the book, involuntarily sinking into it.

The first layer of the Great Sun Nine Refinements Visualization Method requires visualizing the Great Sun, reflecting spirituality, and achieving Spirit Fusion between the two, so as to reach the goal of transforming Spiritual Fire into the sun.

Once spirituality manifests, it is ignited with essence, manifesting the Great Sun, making the visualized Great Sun blazing and majestic, forging the spirit and extracting divine thought.

"The entire foundation of the Great Sun Nine Refinements Visualization Method lies in visualizing the Great Sun. Only when the Great Sun is formidable can it use less essence and spirituality to more efficiently forge the spirit and refine more divine thought."

Gu Jinlai closed his eyes.

In his mind, fragments of knowledge about the Great Sun flashed by continuously.

The Great Sun Nine Refinements Visualization Method records the Great Sun as a fireball.

A super fireball.

High temperature, intense light, and a preliminary concept involving radiation.

Its structure could be a Great Sun Divine Crystal, a Golden Crow Divine Bird, or underground magma.

Before understanding the true nature of the Great Sun, anything with high temperature and bright light could be regarded as the Great Sun, as the core of visualization—merely a matter of magnifying it.

But the people of this world do not understand the true nature of the Great Sun...

He does.

Core, radiation zone, convection zone, photosphere, chromosphere, corona.

Take the sun outside Blue Star as an example.

The core temperature reaches 20 million degrees, with pressure equivalent to 260 billion atmospheres, constantly undergoing the thermonuclear reaction of four hydrogen nuclei fusing into one helium nucleus.

According to the mass-energy conversion formula E=mc², every second, 600 million tons of hydrogen undergo thermonuclear fusion into 596 million tons of helium, releasing energy equivalent to 4 million tons of hydrogen.

These are the foundation of all light and heat.

"I once did a solar science program and studied the sun's birth in detail. Though most of the details are now forgotten, but..."

Gu Jinlai glanced at the Pure Light in his Spiritual World.

These memories still settled in his mind, and the Pure Light's washing would handle them for him.

Cultivating the Great Sun Nine Refinements Visualization Method requires using essence as fuel to ignite Spiritual Fire, inevitably causing severe damage to one's vitality. Gu Jinlai could not do this in Changjun City.

He planned to find a safe place, have Gu Xiangyang bring people to act as Protectors, and then proceed with the conversion to the Great Sun Nine Refinements Visualization Method.

Just as he packed up and was about to leave Changjun City, a knock came from outside.

Gu Jinlai sensed for a moment, then went to the small courtyard and opened the door.

At the courtyard entrance, three people were already waiting.

One Embryonic Pill, two Gang Condensation.

Gu Jinlai recognized one of the Gang Condensation cultivators.

It was the middle-aged man from last night whose young master had been taken by a Demon Beast.

"Elder Gu."

The middle-aged man stepped forward quickly.

Beside him, a youth who appeared to be twenty-three or twenty-four bowed respectfully: "Jiang Xiyu thanks Elder Gu for his life-saving grace."

Clearly, he was the young master who had been taken by the Demon Beast.

"A small favor, no need for such courtesy."

Gu Jinlai said.

"A small favor to Elder Gu, but a life-saving grace to me."

Jiang Xiyu took a sword case from the old man behind him. Inside lay a sword flowing with cold light: "A humble gift, hardly expressing my gratitude. Please accept it, Elder Gu."

Gu Jinlai glanced at it and could guess—this sword...

Was definitely a top-grade sword.

Exactly what he needed.

He looked at the Embryonic Pill old man behind Jiang Xiyu.

Having an Embryonic Pill as a guard meant Jiang Xiyu's identity was no simple matter.

His family likely had a Spirit Refining elder.

After a moment, he seemed to guess something: "Surname Jiang? From the Jiang family of the Capital City?"

"The Jiang family has spread its branches in the capital Starlight City for three hundred years, with no small number of branch lines. I am merely one of them."

Jiang Xiyu said.

A branch line.

But still, a son of the Jiang family.

If he wanted to leave Changjun City, it would be hard to avoid leaving traces that Lin Xiao or Zhou Yunyi could pick up on.

He intended to refine Qi into Spirit and walk the Path of the Celestial Master. During the period of Qi and Blood Deficiency, he would inevitably be weak. If Lin Xiao and Zhou Yunyi were constantly watching him, his situation would certainly be perilous. But if he could slip out of Changjun City unnoticed and hide in the capital...

Give him some time to craft a few protective items, and Lin Xiao and Zhou Yunyi would no longer be able to threaten his safety.

"The sword is unnecessary. If you truly wish to thank me, why not use the Jiang family's channels to secretly send me to the capital?"

Gu Jinlai said. "You've heard of my situation. Lin Xiao presses me relentlessly, while the elders of the sect stand by with folded arms. This state of affairs leaves me disheartened. The rumors that I've suffered a Qi deviation are true, because I intend to refine Qi into Spirit and walk the Path of the Celestial Master. Celestial Masters are not skilled in combat. Once I reach the capital, I should be somewhat safer."

Using the Jiang family's channels to send him to the capital...

Jiang Xiyu hesitated.

Gu Jinlai had saved his life. This debt of gratitude had to be repaid.

But he had no desire to interact much with a man of the Demonic Path like Gu Jinlai, so he had wanted to gift a High-grade Treasure Sword to settle the favor.

Now Gu Jinlai was proposing to use the Jiang family's channels to go to the capital...

Jiang Xiyu pondered for a moment, then said, "Is Elder Gu's claim of switching to the Celestial Master Path true?"

"Of course it's true. I lost the will to involve myself in the disputes of the Purgatory Demonic Sect long ago. Half a year back, I requested a transfer to Changjun City. Though I said it was to avoid Lin Xiao, I also intended to distance myself from the clamor and focus on the Celestial Master's art of artifact forging."

Gu Jinlai said. "I've studied the Celestial Master Path day and night. A month and a half ago, the itch to try refining Qi into Spirit got the better of me, which is why I suffered such a severe loss of vitality. And today, I even exchanged my demon beast merits for a Celestial Master technique. If I weren't truly set on switching to the Celestial Master Path, why would I waste my merits?"

Jiang Xiyu found this quite surprising.

What Gu Jinlai had exchanged his merits for—with the Jiang family's connections at the Demon Refining Hall, they could easily find out. He wouldn't be reckless enough to lie about this.

If he truly hadn't exchanged for a Spirit Nurturing Pill to restore his cultivation, but instead for a Celestial Master technique...

Then it really might be that he intended to specialize in the Celestial Master Path and step back from the front lines.

"My foundation in Spirit Refining remains, and after years of study, coupled with this newly acquired Celestial Master technique, it should take me no time to complete the visualization and enter the Celestial Master Dao."

Gu Jinlai added.

Jiang Xiyu exchanged a glance with the Embryonic Pill realm expert beside him.

Seeing the old man give a slight nod, he finally said, "Elder Gu has saved my life. Whatever you ask, I will do my utmost to fulfill. I will make the arrangements immediately."

"Thank you."

Gu Jinlai cupped his hands and let out a long breath.

Star Prefecture was still nominally under the control of its governor.

As one of the Four Great Families in the capital of Star Prefecture, the Jiang family still wielded immense influence even in Changjun City.

In just half a day, they had already arranged a channel for Gu Jinlai to leave in secret.

At nightfall.

On a carriage, Gu Jinlai narrowed his eyes and gazed at Changjun City, shrouded in darkness.

This city held no good memories for him.

But it was the first place he had stayed since crossing over.

"Leaving in a rather sorry state."

Gu Jinlai murmured to himself.

But...

"I will come back."

(The solar data here differs from Earth's; please do not draw parallels.)