Wen Zhong thought Di Xin didn't know the white dog wasn't really a white dog.
Di Xin knew Wen Zhong didn't know that he already knew the white dog wasn't really a white dog.
So Di Xin was putting on an act.
Wen Zhong was putting on an act, too.
From Wen Zhong's behavior after returning, Di Xin could tell that he was probably safe for the time being, but not absolutely safe.
He couldn't afford to overlook any detail. If he let his guard down even once, he'd be done for.
After Wen Zhong left, Di Xin eagerly opened the silk scroll and read the text on it very carefully.
He didn't care how advanced the cultivation technique was. He could only use it as a starting point to cover for the Magic Power he might reveal in the future.
And to his surprise, the more closely he read, the more he learned.
He had gained his Magic Power by taking Spirit Pills rather than through proper cultivation. In other words, even though he had reached the middle stage of the Human Flower Realm, he knew nothing about cultivation techniques.
"So this is how cultivation works. Primordial Energy is formed by absorbing spiritual energy and converting it in the Qi Sea..."
"So cultivating Primordial Energy is actually this difficult..."
"The requirements for talent are much higher than I imagined..."
Di Xin read as he sighed in amazement.
Although this was his first time encountering a cultivation technique, understanding it wasn't a problem at all. If he had never encountered Primordial Energy and his body had never produced any, things might have been different.
It was really a process of comparing theory with practice. With the Primordial Energy in his body as a foundation, the theoretical concepts came naturally.
After reading for a full half-hour, Di Xin finally put away the cultivation technique and tucked it into his robes. Then he began pacing around the Imperial Garden.
"Great King, I couldn't find that big white dog. I suspect it was some vicious dog from somewhere that had cultivated a few Demonic Arts. With me here, it absolutely won't dare enter the Royal Palace again."
Before long, Wen Zhong returned to the Imperial Garden after making a round somewhere and reported back to Di Xin.
For a minister, making arrangements, taking action, and reporting back were the bare essentials.
"Good. The safety of the Royal Palace rests in the Grand Tutor's hands." Di Xin spoke very politely.
"I wouldn't dare! Great King, you honor this old minister too much!" Wen Zhong hurriedly bowed.
"By the way, Grand Tutor..."
As if he had only just remembered something, Di Xin took out the cultivation technique and asked Wen Zhong to explain a few difficult points.
Most of his questions were about basic concepts in the technique.
For example, what was the Qi Sea?
What was One Heavenly Cycle?
What were the Lesser Heavenly Cycle and the Greater Heavenly Cycle?
And where was this acupoint, or that one?
He looked every bit like a complete novice.
Wen Zhong didn't mind the trouble. Whenever the Great King asked, he answered each question in detail.
In his view, it was perfectly normal for someone encountering a cultivation technique for the first time not to understand these things.
Only after asking more than a dozen questions in a row did Di Xin finally stop. He changed the subject again. "Grand Tutor, how long will it take me to gain the strength to defeat that white dog?"
"Well..."
Wen Zhong considered how to phrase his answer. He couldn't help finding it amusing. Having a goal was a good thing, but choosing the white dog as that goal was simply too funny.
Still, it made sense. The Great King was determined to cultivate, so he must have some motivation. And that motivation was the dog.
"Is it hard to estimate?"
Seeing that Wen Zhong wasn't answering, Di Xin couldn't help pressing him.
Wen Zhong didn't dare tell the Great King that he would never defeat the white dog in his lifetime. That would be far too discouraging, so he could only give him a vague answer. "As long as the Great King cultivates day and night, ten or eight years should do it. After all, that dog may have absorbed the essence of the sun and moon and cultivated for five or six hundred years before it could change the size of its form. Ten or eight years would already be very fast."
"Uh, that'll still take a long time... Fine, I'll cultivate day and night, then..."
After a moment of bewilderment, Di Xin murmured to himself.
"Great King, you still have state affairs to handle and the realm to govern. Your Dragon Body is what matters most. You mustn't cultivate day and night!"
Hearing Di Xin say that, Wen Zhong panicked. He had only been bluffing. He thought the Great King might have taken up cultivation on a whim and wouldn't stick with it for long. If the Great King really neglected everything else just to cultivate, Wen Zhong himself might end up being branded a treacherous minister.
"Fine, fine. I'll know my limits. Grand Tutor, let me ask you this: roughly how long would it take to cultivate Primordial Energy?"
Di Xin readily agreed, then asked another question.
"Well... This old minister can't say for certain. The faster ones might manage it in ten days or so, while the slower ones might need ten or eight years. Given the Great King's aptitude, cultivating Primordial Energy within three or four years would be the best-case scenario. So the Great King should prepare himself."
After considering his answer again and again, Wen Zhong finally gave Di Xin a reply.
"Three or four years? That's far too slow!" Di Xin frowned slightly as he said it, but inwardly he thought, This is bad. If it normally takes three or four years to cultivate Primordial Energy, then revealing too early that I already have it will still leave a loophole.
After thinking it over, he asked again, "Grand Tutor, is there any way to cultivate Primordial Energy faster?"
"Well..."
Wen Zhong thought for a moment, then offered a solution. "There is a way. You need to take precious Spirit Pills, but the ingredients for Spirit Pills that can aid cultivation are all rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, and extremely valuable. The process of refining them is also very difficult. The slightest mistake can ruin the pill. So getting these pills isn't easy."
Wen Zhong paused, then continued, "Moreover, taking these Spirit Pills has a drawback..."
"A drawback? What drawback?" Di Xin looked at Wen Zhong.
Wen Zhong explained, "Taking Spirit Pills can shorten the time it takes to cultivate Primordial Energy, but it differs from normal cultivation. It makes you dependent on the pills and slows your progress in ordinary cultivation."
"For example, after taking Spirit Pills, your progress in cultivating with a technique will be slower than normal. This slowdown lasts and usually continues throughout your entire cultivation career. So some people would rather spend longer cultivating their Primordial Energy at the beginning than use Spirit Pills. Unless they have enough pills to support their cultivation, but... that's simply impossible. Spirit Pills are so rare. Who could get their hands on many of them?"
"So that's how it is?" Di Xin nodded slowly. He had only learned this today.
But it seemed that Spirit Pills weren't a problem for him.
"Since we're talking about Spirit Pills, I may as well mention another approach, so the Great King can learn a little more."
As if something had just occurred to him, Wen Zhong added another sentence.
Before you continue