The Life-Damaging Seedling Pulling Technique had only three tiers. Cultivating the first tier required consuming twenty years of lifespan, which could increase a person's spiritual affinity by twenty to thirty percent, achieving the effect of elevating spiritual root potential.
Completing the cultivation of the second tier required consuming one hundred eighty years of lifespan, which could once again increase spiritual affinity by fifty to one hundred twenty percent.
Completing the cultivation of the third tier reportedly required consuming three hundred years of lifespan, allowing spiritual affinity to continue increasing by more than a hundred percent.
In theory, as long as a person was willing to discard five hundred years of lifespan, they could completely elevate the worst inferior spiritual root into the worst medium-grade spiritual root.
Meanwhile, a low-grade spiritual root could also be elevated into the worst high-grade spiritual root.
As for whether a high-grade spiritual root could continue to be elevated upward, that remained unknown, purely because the original creator of the technique, the Hundred Losses Demonic Path, had also suffered a cultivation backlash and died suddenly. Among the disciples he used for experimentation, none possessed high-grade spiritual roots.
This was perhaps a bizarre divine technique that changed medium and low spiritual root potentials.
The reason it was bizarre was that for the vast majority of people possessing merely inferior spiritual roots, it was impossible to cultivate to the Foundation Establishment Realm within their entire lives, and their maximum lifespan rarely exceeded a hundred years, making it difficult to utilize this method to elevate into a low-grade spiritual root.
This was also why those with sufficient lifespan inherently possessed strong potential and did not need to practice it, while those with insufficient lifespan fundamentally could not practice it.
However, Chen Dengming's lifespan limit had now reached 148 years, and he still had 66 years of disposable lifespan. Moreover, his spiritual root affinity was not the worst among low-grade ones, so there was indeed a very high probability that by consuming only a dozen or so years of lifespan, he could elevate his spiritual root to the level of a medium-grade one.
That very day, Chen Dengming began attempting the Life-Damaging Seedling Pulling Technique inside his room.
Since it was a Daoist technique, it naturally also required spiritual qi to be executed.
However, the founder of this method had perhaps also considered that some people possessed low potential and found it difficult to become cultivators, hence also recording another set of dharma gates that came at the cost of consuming the spiritual qi inside spirit stones.
Chen Dengming took out two low-grade spirit stones that he had dug back from the burial spot outside the gathering place, placing one into his mouth and holding it against his tongue.
As for the other one, he placed it atop his crown, the heavenly spirit, and then began using his Xiantian True Qi to guide the spiritual qi within the spirit stones.
Before long, the spiritual qi within the two spirit stones began to stir restlessly, with his tongue and the crown of his head sensing it the most intensely.
He only felt as though ice-cold, pure spiritual qi was infiltrating the tip of his tongue, or following the heavenly spirit at the crown of his head to infiltrate his brain. His entire person began to turn icy and clear starting from the head, and his ability to sense spiritual qi was rapidly increasing.
At this moment, it was as if a great many cyan and white small circular dots had emerged within the dark space in an instant, swarming toward his tongue and brain and causing both locations to present dual cyan and white colors, gathering a multitude of spiritual qi.
Yet accompanying this was the rapid consumption of his essence, Qi, and spirit.
With a night passing thus, Chen Dengming felt exhausted in body and mind after concluding his cultivation, but he faintly felt that his ability to sense some of the spiritual qi in the surrounding air seemed to have grown slightly stronger.
Only, this feeling was not very obvious, resembling a psychological effect more.
He drew his broken blade and scrutinized his appearance against the light-reflecting blade body.
His countenance remained handsome, without the slightest change.
Yet the fatigue between his brows was plainly evident, and a few strands of white hair had also appeared among his temples.
The Youth Preserving Pill was not a miraculous medicine; it only preserved one's youthful appearance and was not immortal youth. When essence, Qi, and spirit were consumed to a certain degree, certain traces would still manifest on one's appearance, though such traces would also be controlled to the maximum extent by the medicinal power.
It really is visible abbreviation of one's lifespan.
Chen Dengming sighed inwardly, then concentrated to observe the information within the panel, discovering that the spiritual root attributes had indeed undergone subtle changes, but his lifespan had correspondingly changed as well.
Xiantian Eighth-Stage martial artist [Chen Dengming] Lifespan: 84/152 Spiritual Roots: Gold, Wood (Low-grade 90/100) Martial Arts: Chen Family Martial Arts General Outline ( Perfection 29/100) Daoist Techniques: Gu Refining Chapter (Proficient 0/100), Three Yuan Spirit Gathering Technique (Initial Mastery 3/100), Life-Damaging Seedling Pulling Technique (Initial Mastery 10/100)
My lifespan limit has increased by another four years, becoming one hundred fifty-two years. It seems the effect of practicing martial arts to prolong life works just the same when studying Daoist techniques.
Mastering the Life-Damaging Seedling Pulling Technique will also increase my lifespan. This Daoist technique should not be of the same tier as the Three Yuan Spirit Gathering Technique, otherwise the life-prolonging effects could not stack either.
My own elapsed lifespan has changed from 82 years to 84 years, while the affinity of the gold and wood spiritual roots has changed from low-grade 87 to 90. Consuming two years of lifespan could actually increase spiritual root affinity by 3 points?
Calculated this way, I only need to cultivate for another three to four days, continuing to consume six to eight years of lifespan, and my low-grade spiritual root can be elevated into a medium-grade spiritual root?
Chen Dengming's gaze flickered slightly, feeling quite satisfied with this result.
His spiritual root was originally also the best among low-grade spiritual roots.
Losing nearly ten years of lifespan could elevate it into a medium-grade spiritual root; this kind of loss was still within what he could endure.
However, since he was already exhausted in body and mind at the moment, Chen Dengming did not continue grinding the seedling pulling technique.
Instead, he took out that previous bottle of Pure Spirit Pill obtained from the Immortal Master, poured out a single pill, and consumed it.
A moment later, he felt that his sensing ability toward the spiritual qi in the surrounding air seemed to have grown much stronger.
Amidst his concentration, the panel information surfaced.
Spiritual Roots: Gold, Wood (Low-grade 100/100)
This Pure Spirit Pill indeed appears capable of elevating affinity for spiritual qi and enhancing sensing ability, but it still seems unable to break through the category of low-grade spiritual roots?
I heard the cultivation speed of a medium-grade spiritual root is ten times stronger than a low-grade one. It seems once the spiritual root grade breaks through, a qualitative leap will occur, which is something the Pure Spirit Pill cannot accomplish...
Chen Dengming pondered and deliberated, not wasting the medicinal pill as he practiced the Three Yuan Spirit Gathering Technique once while taking advantage of the medicinal effect's duration. Before a single session of cultivation had even concluded, the medicinal effect had already passed.
He took a towel from his bundle to wipe away the sweat on his body, ate some dry rations, and promptly poured out another Pure Spirit Pill, sitting cross-legged on the bed to begin meditating and continuing his cultivation.
Experts were all cultivated through diligent practice, enduring loneliness. Even with a golden finger like being able to prolong life simply by practicing martial arts, one still had to diligently practice martial arts every day to grow stronger step by step.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
The Luo Family.
A succession of courtyards with red walls, green tiles, and blazing lights was arranged and set up in the layout of a spirit gathering formation, entirely converging the spiritual qi from the first-rank spirit vein of Lüoshan City within this massive cultivation family, causing spiritual qi to be abundantly rich throughout the entire interior of the Luo Family.
Inside an elegantly and peacefully arranged room, steam billowed.
Lüo Bing was bathing in fragrant broth filled entirely with spirit spring, breathing in and out to accumulate strength for her breakthrough to the Qi Cultivation Tenth Level shortly.
Her skin was as white as mutton-fat jade, resembling the finest ivory besides. Her figure was slender and graceful, charming like a hyacinth. At present, her delicate, silky hair drifted within the pool, brushing past certain undulating contours, her poise exceptionally alluring.
A few maidservants waiting nearby were adding water to the fragrant broth, and one of her personal maids was recounting some matters recently learned.
"I hear that the husband-to-be is about to come out of seclusion. This time, the husband-to-be has prepared for so long to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm; this time he should be able to succeed."
Lüo Bing shook her head with a calm expression, saying, "The Luo family did not obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill. Luo Ping possesses only a medium-grade spiritual root; without a Foundation Establishment Pill, I'm afraid it will still be very difficult for him to break through this time. If he has not broken through before I break through Foundation Establishment, then my engagement to him—"
The remaining words Lüo Bing ceased to utter, yet the crowd of maids and attendants all understood as well, each of them holding their breath in silent awe, not daring to ask further.
This engagement had originally been a familial political alliance to begin with; to speak of much affection between the two parties was impossible.
If Luo Ping failed his third attempt to break through Foundation Establishment, it would prove his future potential was limited after all, and the Luo Family would naturally make other choices and trade-offs. This was not something even Lüo Bing could determine; even the seemingly infinitely glorious daughter of the Luo Family might not necessarily lack her own helplessness.
The personal maid cleverly diverted the topic, smiling, "Miss, do you still remember that mortal you brought back? He displayed the waist token you gave him, attracting the attention of Xu Ning from the Golden Character Workshop. Xu Ning invited him to join the Golden Character Workshop, seemingly also wishing to strike up a relationship with you through that mortal."
Lüo Bing languidly turned around, revealing a smooth, clean spine as she sprawled across the edge of the water platform, her impressively scaled, proud assets bearing the pressure of half her body, making one somewhat heartache-stricken over whether this was a waste of heavenly treasures.
She couldn't be bothered to voice opinions on such trivial matters.
A mortal with conflicting dual spiritual root potential would probably halt at the Qi Cultivation Fourth Level at most in the future.
If not for the Youth Preserving Pill and Gu techniques, she might not even remember his name, and as for Xu Ning, he was merely an insignificant person.
Reading her expression, the maid smiled, "How could this mere mortal possibly be qualified to strike up a relationship with you, Miss? Xu Ning also lacks all discernment.
However, this servant heard that this mortal has recently been gathering some of the Gu creatures you mentioned last time, likely intending to refine that Golden Silkworm Gu as well."
"Oh?"
Lüo Bing's willow eyebrows lifted slightly, a look of interest surfacing on her cheeks flushed rosy by the steam of the hot water.
Ever since acquiring the art of the Gu path, she had also been researching it during her recent leisure time.
Yet this path was after all too unorthodox, and numerous Gu creatures were indeed fierce and ferocious in appearance and unappealing. Only the Golden Silkworm Gu had aroused her interest, and she was recently searching for resources to refine it, preparing to initiate an attempt.
Thinking of the demeanor the mortal had displayed when executing Gu techniques during the Ascension Convention, Lüo Bing nodded slightly. "It's a pity he is merely a mortal lacking spiritual qi; if he were to become a cultivator, he would be of some use...
Still, since he actually has the money to gather materials for the Golden Silkworm Gu, it seems he has some tricks up his sleeve. If you have gathered a complete set of materials, go sell a portion to that mortal and summon him up the mountain. I'd like to see what methods of refinement he has."
Although she said that, she harbored no particular expectations.
According to the recorded method for refining the Golden Silkworm Gu, it needed to involve some delicate operations regarding spiritual qi.
She herself lacked the confidence to succeed in refinement upon a slight attempt, let alone a mortal who did not yet possess spiritual qi.
Selling materials for Chen Dengming to try was merely a casual game, after all.
As for giving away materials for free, that was impossible; resources were never meant to be wasted.
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