The Ancestral Rites Ceremony

Zhang Sheng picked up a blank jade sheet. A streak of azure Sword Qi shot from his fingertip, and an image for contemplation appeared on the sheet.

He handed the jade sheet to Wei Yuan and said, "After careful consideration, I've decided to teach you the Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Diagram as the foundation for your Body Forging. Study this image carefully first. When you practice, you'll use it as a bridge to commune with Heaven and Earth, drawing in their spiritual energy to temper your body. To commune with Heaven and Earth and borrow the power of fortune while still at the Body Forging stage is truly an exceptional cultivation method. But fortune and misfortune lean on each other, and the dangers of practicing it are far greater than those of other methods. No matter what you see or feel while cultivating, you must always guard your mind and consciousness. Never panic or give in to fear."

After carefully explaining everything, Zhang Sheng took out three pills and said, "These three Heart Cleansing Pills were specially obtained for you. They can improve your Root Bone aptitude a little. The ceremony to pay respects to the Ancestor is in three days, so you can take one each day. They'll help when you pay respects to the Ancestor's statue."

After memorizing the image for contemplation, Wei Yuan began practicing according to the cultivation method.

According to the Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Diagram, the body was the foundation of all things. The first step in cultivation was to manifest the image for contemplation in one's sea of consciousness; its size determined the quality of one's foundation. Then, using the image as an anchor, one drew in the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth and one's own fortune to temper the body. Once the body and Primordial Spirit had both been fully tempered and transformed into an immortal embryo, the image for contemplation would kindle with life, becoming like a real world. Reaching this stage meant Body Forging was complete, and one could begin to condense a Dao Foundation.

Wei Yuan had an unusually steady disposition. Before long, he had forgotten both himself and the world around him.

Zhang Sheng took out a Heart Cleansing Pill and an incense burner, setting it in front of Wei Yuan. Then he placed the pill inside. A bed of charcoal lined the burner, and as the charcoal roasted the pill, a wisp of its fragrance drifted from the burner's vents, gathering into a thin stream that seemed to have a mind of its own as it entered Wei Yuan's nose.

Everything before Wei Yuan had been pitch-black. Now, as he breathed in the pill's fragrance, it entered his body and immediately turned into threads of warmth, slowly spreading through his limbs and bones. The feeling was indescribably pleasant. With the fragrance's help, a glimmer began to emerge in his sea of consciousness, illuminating a small world. He could just make out a great rock at its center, with a jade toad crouched atop it, and a full moon hanging not far above.

Once the image for contemplation had successfully manifested, the wisps of pill fragrance found their way into it, one after another. Each wisp made the image clearer and more stable.

Wei Yuan continuously circulated the cultivation formula. After an unknowable span of time, his vision suddenly blurred, and the whole scene changed.

Wei Yuan felt as though he had become the jade toad. His eyes saw nothing but the full moon in the sky, and he kept breathing in and out toward it. The sensation was so real that, for a moment, even Wei Yuan could hardly tell whether he was a person or a jade toad.

Fortunately, he remembered Zhang Sheng's instructions. Whatever strange visions he encountered, he would accept them as they came, keeping his mind undisturbed.

Now, in the eyes of Wei Yuan, who had become the jade toad, the moon in the sky was no longer a flat, false moon. It was a gigantic sphere, seemingly close enough to touch. Wisps of moonlight continually spilled from it, and Wei Yuan gulped them down, making them part of his body.

After another unknowable span of time, Wei Yuan, still breathing in the moonlight, suddenly felt his body grow larger. The small world around him had become terribly cramped; even turning around was difficult.

Just then, Wei Yuan heard the chime of a bell. His consciousness withdrew from the jade toad and returned to his body. Then Zhang Sheng's voice sounded beside his ear. "That's enough."

Wei Yuan ended his cultivation and stood up. Only then did he see the dawn light beyond the window. Without realizing it, he had cultivated through the entire night.

Zhang Sheng asked about what had happened as Wei Yuan circulated his energy, then gave him pointers on a few key details before sending him to rest. Wei Yuan had not yet reached the point where cultivation could replace sleep, so he returned to his bedroom and went to bed. An hour later, he awoke naturally.

During the day, Zhang Sheng taught Wei Yuan the fundamentals of cultivation. At night, Wei Yuan practiced on his own.

Wei Yuan was much more practiced the second time. He quickly forgot both himself and the world around him, once again transforming into the jade toad.

He felt the surrounding space grow cramped again, as though he had been shut inside a cage where even turning around was a struggle. Unable to move, Wei Yuan could only keep breathing in the moonlight. With every mouthful, he felt his body grow more substantial. As he continued, he suddenly saw a colossal shape faintly emerge within the full moon. A familiar wisp of black energy appeared among the moonlight, and Wei Yuan swallowed it down.

Once the black energy entered his belly, Wei Yuan found that his perception had immediately expanded a little. At last, it passed through the invisible barrier and extended into the void. Countless invisible particles floated there. His consciousness could draw them in and merge them with the ground beneath him. As the number of particles he drew in grew, the ground beneath Wei Yuan finally expanded a little, and the restraints around him eased in turn.

At that moment, a patch of land about a zhang across lay in Wei Yuan's sea of consciousness. A great rock stood upon it, and a snow-white jade toad crouched on the rock, raising its head to breathe in the moonlight. At the edge of the land beneath the rock, a new patch the size of a palm had appeared, slowly turning from illusion into reality.

As soon as the new patch of land solidified, Zhang Sheng woke Wei Yuan. As usual, he asked about the cultivation process, then concluded that the shadow Wei Yuan had seen in the full moon was a reflection of his own fortune, while the black energy mixed in with the moonlight had been drawn from that fortune.

The third day of cultivation proceeded much the same. From the very start, Wei Yuan saw the shadow in the full moon. As he breathed in the moonlight, he continually absorbed black energy, and a ring of new land formed beneath him in turn.

Three days of cultivation passed in a flash, and all the Heart Cleansing Pills had been used up. Next came the ceremony to pay respects to the Ancestor.

Early that morning, Wei Yuan finished getting ready. Then, under Zhang Sheng's guidance, he meditated for half an hour, settling his mind and focusing his thoughts, before heading to the Ancestor Hall.

The Ancestor Hall stood atop a high mountain, its crags jagged and striking. A waterfall plunged from the heavens and gathered into a mirror-like lake at the mountain's foot. Trees in full bloom covered the slopes, their varied blossoms filling the air with exotic fragrances. A mortal who stayed on the mountain for even a short while and breathed in the scent of its immortal flowers could live ten years longer. A flight of steps paved with blue jade wound up the mountainside, leading straight to the summit.

Zhang Sheng carried Wei Yuan along using Daoist Arts. With each breath, Wei Yuan's vision blurred, and when it cleared, they were already a hundred zhang away. Wei Yuan strained to make sense of what was happening and finally realized that, when his vision blurred, the scenery around him was actually rushing past at tremendous speed. It was simply moving too fast for him to make out.

Even at Zhang Sheng's speed, it took them a little while to reach the Ancestor Hall. By then, several hundred people had gathered in the plaza before it.

The Ancestor Hall stood a hundred zhang tall, and its two red-bronze doors reached thirty zhang. Wei Yuan wondered what kind of immortal would need doors so enormous.

At that moment, the hall doors stood wide open. The statue of the Ancestor inside was thirty zhang tall and depicted a young cultivator who even seemed somewhat youthful. It was said that the Ancestor had attained the Dao Foundation before he reached twenty, so his appearance had remained unchanged until his passing into immortality. One hand rested behind his back, while the other held a scroll. Four immortal swords floated around him.

The statue was so lifelike that its robes seemed to flutter in the wind. That alone was remarkable, but the four immortal swords had no support whatsoever. They simply hung in midair.

A ritual officiant led Wei Yuan outside the hall, where he waited with all the other newly accepted disciples for their names to be called.

The ritual officiant called out the names one by one, and the new disciples paid their respects in batches, grouped by region. Some groups had five people, others seven or eight.

The instructions distributed to the new disciples had already laid out the steps for paying respects to the Ancestor. Disciples had to bow seven times, then silently recite a ceremonial text. About a thousand words long, it mainly recounted the Ancestor's deeds, described the current state of affairs in the mortal world, and explained the disciple's reasons for entering the sect to cultivate. The text contained no incantations, but if a new disciple could settle his mind and focus his thoughts, and had excellent foundations and fortune, he might win the Ancestor's favor and receive a gift.

Back then, Zhang Sheng had received two streaks of Sword Qi from the four immortal swords. He had relied on them to establish his Immortal Foundation, causing a sensation at the time.