Ancestor Worship Ceremony

Zhang Sheng picked up a blank jade paper, shot a stream of green sword qi from his fingertip, and a visualization diagram appeared on the jade paper.

He handed the jade paper to Wei Yuan and said, "After careful consideration, I've decided to bestow the Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Diagram upon you as your body-forging foundation. Study this visualization diagram closely first. When cultivating, you will use this diagram as a bridge to communicate with heaven and earth, drawing in spiritual energy to forge your body. Being able to communicate with heaven and earth and borrow the power of fortune during the body-forging stage is truly a supreme cultivation technique. However, where fortune lies, danger also lurks; the perils during cultivation are far greater than with other techniques. No matter what you see or feel during your cultivation, always guard your heart and spirit, and absolutely do not panic or fear."

After giving detailed instructions, Zhang Sheng took out three Pills and said, "These three Heart Cleansing Pills were specially sought for you by me. They can slightly improve your root bone aptitude. There are still three days until the ancestor worship ceremony. You can take one each day, which will be beneficial for your worship of the Ancestor statue."

Wei Yuan memorized the visualization diagram and began to cultivate according to the technique.

According to the Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Diagram, the physical body is the foundation of everything. The first step in cultivation is to manifest the visualization diagram in the sea of consciousness. The size of the diagram signifies the quality of the foundation. Then, using the diagram as a medium, one draws in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and their own fortune to forge the body. Once the physical body and primordial spirit are completely forged and transformed into an immortal embryo, the visualization diagram will ignite with life, becoming like a real world. At this stage, body-forging is considered complete, and one can begin to condense the Dao Foundation.

Wei Yuan possessed exceptional mental fortitude and soon entered a state of self-forgetfulness.

Zhang Sheng then took out a Heart Cleansing Pill and placed an incense burner in front of Wei Yuan, before putting the Pill into the burner. The burner was lined with charcoal, and under the heat of the embers, a wisp of pill fragrance drifted out from the opening, forming a line that, as if possessing sentience, entered Wei Yuan's nostrils.

Wei Yuan's vision was initially pitch black. Upon smelling the wisp of pill fragrance, it transformed into strands of warmth that slowly spread through his limbs and bones, bringing an indescribable comfort. Empowered by the pill fragrance, a glimmer of light began to sprout in his sea of consciousness, illuminating a small world. He could vaguely discern a large rock in the center, upon which a jade toad was perched, with a full moon hanging not far above it.

After successfully manifesting the visualization diagram, the wisps of pill fragrance found their direction and flew into the diagram one by one. Each wisp of fragrance made the visualization diagram clearer and more stable.

Wei Yuan continuously circulated the cultivation technique. After an unknown amount of time, his vision suddenly blurred, and the scenery changed completely.

At this moment, Wei Yuan felt as if he had transformed into the jade toad. His eyes were fixed on the full moon in the sky, and he continuously inhaled and exhaled towards it. The sensation was incredibly real, to the point where Wei Yuan momentarily couldn't distinguish whether he was human or a jade toad.

Fortunately, he remembered Zhang Sheng's admonition: no matter what strange phenomena he encountered, he should accept them and remain undisturbed in his original heart.

In the eyes of Wei Yuan, who had transformed into a jade toad, the moon in the sky was no longer a flat, artificial disc but a massive sphere that seemed within reach. Strands of moonlight continuously overflowed from the moon, and Wei Yuan greedily swallowed them, making them a part of his body.

After another unknown period, while swallowing the moonlight, Wei Yuan suddenly felt his body grow a size larger, and the small world around him became cramped, making it difficult even to turn around.

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

Wei Yuan stopped cultivating and stood up. He then noticed that the sky outside the window had brightened with the dawn. Unbeknownst to him, a whole night had passed.

Zhang Sheng inquired about his cultivation process and pointed out some crucial details before letting Wei Yuan rest. Wei Yuan had not yet reached a point where cultivation could replace sleep, so he returned to his bedroom and slept. He naturally woke up an hour later.

From then on, Zhang Sheng taught Wei Yuan cultivation common sense during the day, while Wei Yuan cultivated on his own at night.

During his second cultivation session, Wei Yuan was much more proficient. He quickly entered a state of self-forgetfulness and once again transformed into the jade toad.

He again felt the confinement of the surrounding space, as if he were trapped in a cage, making it difficult to even turn around. Wei Yuan couldn't move and could only focus on swallowing the moonlight. With each mouthful of moonlight he swallowed, Wei Yuan felt his body becoming more solidified. As he continued to swallow, Wei Yuan suddenly saw a colossal shadow faintly appearing within the moon. The subsequent moonlight contained a familiar wisp of black energy, which Wei Yuan swallowed along with the moonlight.

As the black energy entered his abdomen, Wei Yuan found that his perception immediately expanded slightly, finally breaking through the invisible barrier and extending into the void. Many invisible particles floated in the void, which could be guided by consciousness and integrated into the ground beneath him. As the number of guided particles increased, the ground beneath Wei Yuan finally expanded a little, and the constraints on his body correspondingly lessened.

At this moment, there was a patch of land about ten feet in diameter in Wei Yuan's sea of consciousness. On the land stood a large rock, and a snow-white jade toad was crouched on the rock, looking up and swallowing moonlight. Now, a palm-sized area of land had appeared at the edge of the land beneath the rock, slowly solidifying from the ethereal.

As soon as the newly formed land solidified, Wei Yuan was awakened by Zhang Sheng. As usual, Zhang Sheng inquired about the cultivation process and then judged that the shadow Wei Yuan saw in the moon was a reflection of his own fortune, and the black energy mixed with the moonlight was drawn from Wei Yuan's own fortune.

The third day of cultivation proceeded similarly. From the beginning, Wei Yuan saw the shadow in the moon and continuously absorbed black energy while swallowing moonlight, and a new ring of land appeared beneath him accordingly.

Three days of cultivation passed in the blink of an eye, and all the Heart Cleansing Pills were used up. The next event was the ancestor worship ceremony.

On the morning of this day, Wei Yuan tidied himself up early and, under Zhang Sheng's guidance, meditated for half an hour. With a sincere heart, he then headed towards the Ancestor Hall.

The Ancestor Hall stood atop a high mountain. The mountain's rocks were rugged, and a waterfall cascaded from the heavens, eventually forming a mirror-like lake at the foot of the mountain. The mountain was covered with various flowering trees, emitting exotic fragrances. If an ordinary person were to stay on this mountain for a moment, inhaling the fragrance of the immortal trees and flowers, they could extend their lifespan by ten years. A path paved with green jade wound its way upwards, leading directly to the summit.

Wei Yuan was carried by Zhang Sheng using Daoist Arts. In a single breath, Wei Yuan's vision would blur, and when it cleared, he would be a hundred feet further. Wei Yuan tried hard to discern what was happening and finally realized that when his vision blurred, the surrounding scenery was actually flashing by at an incredible speed, making it difficult to distinguish due to the sheer velocity.

Even with Zhang Sheng's speed, it took a while to reach the front of the Ancestor Hall. Hundreds of people had already gathered in the plaza before the hall.

The Ancestor Hall was a hundred feet tall, and its two red copper gates alone were thirty feet high. It was unclear what kind of immortal being would require such grand gates.

The hall doors were now wide open. Inside, the Ancestor statue was thirty feet tall, appearing as a young cultivator, even possessing a somewhat youthful look. It was said that the Ancestor had not yet reached adulthood when he condensed his Dao Foundation, so his appearance remained fixed until his death. The statue had one hand behind its back and the other holding a scroll, with four immortal swords floating around it.

The statue was incredibly lifelike; its robes seemed to flutter in the wind. That was understandable, but the four immortal swords floated in mid-air without any visible support.

Wei Yuan was led outside the hall by a Daoist Priest in charge of ceremonies, where he, along with all the newly accepted disciples, waited to be called.

The Daoist Priest in charge of ceremonies called out names one by one. The new disciples offered their worship in batches, grouped by region, with some groups of five and others of seven or eight.

The newcomer's guide issued to the new disciples already outlined the procedure for worshiping the Ancestor. Disciples were required to kowtow seven times and then silently recite the sacrificial text in their hearts. The sacrificial text was about a thousand characters long, primarily recounting the Ancestor's deeds, describing the current human world situation, and expressing the disciple's original intention for entering the sect to cultivate. The entire text contained no incantations, but if a new disciple could be sincere and upright, with a good foundation and fortune, they might gain the Ancestor's favor and receive a gift.

In the past, Zhang Sheng received two streams of sword qi from the four immortal swords, which he used as a foundation to achieve his immortal Dao Foundation, causing a sensation at the time.