Taking Shape

Half an hour later.

Cheng Buzheng sat cross-legged on the bed. His eyes suddenly flew open, a glint flashing through them as he sensed that his magic power had recovered to its peak. His gaze naturally swept around the room.

Of the nine Spirit Stones before him, two had already turned into Waste Stones—the two Spirit Stones absorbed by the Small Plate.

Now.

His escape spell was complete. He wondered whether two Spirit Stones would be enough to take it a step further.

This was a matter of life and death. Today, after reading a large number of cultivation-travel accounts, he had discovered that the Qi Refining Realm was an extremely dangerous stage. Most evil cultivators were in the Qi Refining Realm, and there were also countless low-level cultivators looking to reap without sowing.

As a result, Qi Refining cultivators faced the greatest risk of running into trouble when traveling outside. At the same time, he had noticed that very few cultivators used the Earth Escape Technique to travel.

After all, traveling with the Earth Escape Technique made one look like a mole. How could that compare to the dashing sight of Artifact Flight?

But most Qi Refining cultivators who were killed had been flying on artifacts. Clearly, traveling with the Earth Escape Technique was the safer choice.

He would need to carefully consider how many zhang underground he should travel to avoid attracting attention. After all, cultivators had different levels of cultivation, and their Divine Sense could probe different distances.

To ensure that his Great Cause of Longevity went smoothly, he made up his mind and immediately set to work. His will linked with the Small Plate, while his Divine Sense wrapped around two Spirit Stones.

Deep in the Sea of Consciousness, the patterns on the Small Plate glimmered faintly.

In an instant.

The panel floating above the Small Plate changed.

Master of the Heavenly Jade Disc: Cheng Buzheng

Realm: Qi Refining Level 1

Cultivation Method: First-order Mid-grade (Ordinary). Crimson Fire Technique (Beginner)

Spell Techniques: First-order Low-grade (Ordinary) Purple Crystal Bracelet (Not yet learned), First-order Low-grade (Fine) Earth Escape Technique (Perfection)

Spiritual Power Value: 2

The Spiritual Power Value had now risen to two, while the two Spirit Stones wrapped in his Divine Sense had turned into Waste Stones, just like the previous pair.

At that moment, four Waste Stones lay quietly before him.

Cheng Buzheng paid no mind to the Spirit Stones turning into Waste Stones. His entire attention was fixed on the panel.

With a nervous, uneasy heart, he gazed at the panel above the Small Plate. The little man formed from his Three-Colored Soul extended a finger and gently pressed it against the Earth Escape Technique.

At once.

The patterns on the Small Plate flickered faintly, then went dark. The Spiritual Power Value on the panel, however, remained unchanged.

He had anticipated this result, but it still left him feeling rather disappointed.

He pondered for a moment.

"I can't use the remaining five Spirit Stones. I need Spirit Stones to buy Bigu Pills, to buy pills that improve my cultivation, and to buy Spirit Materials. There are simply too many things that require Spirit Stones.

"Since two points of Spiritual Power aren't enough to advance the Earth Escape Technique, leaving them unused would be a huge waste. I might as well spend them on the Purple Crystal Bracelet."

Although the Purple Crystal Bracelet spell was powerful, it was extremely difficult to cultivate. Almost no Qi Refining cultivators in the sect knew it.

To learn this spell, one had to be familiar with Spirit Patterns and condense more than a thousand of them in a short time. The difficulty was plain to see.

But once mastered, it was an exceptionally powerful spell.

Cheng Buzheng's gaze fell on the Purple Crystal Bracelet on the panel. Once he learned this spell, he would have all his techniques covered: attack, defense, control, and escape. He would no longer have any weak points.

"Then I can move on to the next step: take on a task, accumulate Spirit Stones, and quietly build up my strength. That's not a bad plan either!

"Although it differs slightly from my original plan and the order has changed, the general idea is still the same."

Having reached this point, Cheng Buzheng no longer hesitated.

Memories of the Purple Crystal Bracelet churned through his mind. He immediately drew out the complete memory of the spell and condensed it into a seed.

Then he placed it directly into the Recessed Nest at the center of the Small Plate. The little man formed from his Three-Colored Soul floated above the Small Plate, extended his index finger, and gently pressed the Purple Crystal Bracelet spell on the panel.

At once.

The Spiritual Power Value on the panel dropped to zero, while the patterns on the Small Plate below lit up faintly. Waves of white light coiled around the seed in the Recessed Nest.

The seed was wrapped in white light. As the Small Plate worked through its deductions, the light slowly faded, eventually forming a purple bead.

The purple bead was the same size as the bead formed from the Earth Escape Technique. It glowed with a faint purple radiance, and countless purple characters could just barely be seen darting and drifting within it.

Cheng Buzheng glanced at it, then swallowed it without hesitation.

In an instant, purple light shone from his soul. His entire soul glittered with purple radiance, like a divine being appearing in the mortal world.

Countless rays of purple light enveloped his soul, as if a divine being were being born, about to descend into the world and save its people.

His consciousness was immersed in a vast white world. With neither day nor night, he practiced the Purple Crystal Bracelet without pause. He went from clumsy fumbling to considerable proficiency, and he could no longer remember how many years had passed.

The sun and moon turned, year after year. He had no idea how much time went by. Perhaps it was an instant; perhaps it was ten thousand years. Time had lost all meaning. At last, he cultivated the technique to the Perfection Realm.

Outside, Cheng Buzheng was immersed in comprehension. His body followed his mind, practicing the spell over and over as well. He went from clumsy fumbling to the beginner stage, then cast it successfully in an instant. Advancing from beginner to perfection took no more than the blink of an eye. He had mastered it completely.

After cultivating the spell to perfection, Cheng Buzheng abruptly opened his eyes.

Magic power surged within his dantian, guided by his thoughts. A Small Disc gradually took shape, formed from dense red cloud layers.

Cheng Buzheng urged his magic power on, and the Small Disc grew larger and larger until it was the size of a millstone. That was the limit of this spell; it could grow no bigger. He then began refining the details of the Small Disc.

The basic form of the Small Disc was complete. It had an inner circle and an outer circle. He pondered for a moment.

Cheng Buzheng decided to attach blade-like right triangles, like dorsal fins, to the Small Disc's outer ring, filling it with nine rings of them.

This way, the Purple Crystal Bracelet would not only move faster when attacking, but would also have powerful cutting force.

With magic power sustaining it, the Purple Crystal Bracelet spinning at full speed would be a true killing weapon.

The Purple Crystal Bracelet was shaped from magic power. Seeing that the first step was complete, Cheng Buzheng knew he could proceed to the second.

His Divine Sense stirred. Countless threads of it scattered, swimming like tadpoles as they searched for their respective nests. Everything came together naturally, as if he had done it countless times before.

In the blink of an eye, countless threads of Divine Sense imprinted themselves onto the Purple Crystal Bracelet. At once, dense patterns interlaced within the Small Disc, condensing like its veins.

These patterns were Spirit Patterns—the very core of this special spell.

This spell was a Special Spell Technique, half spell and half Artifact Refining Technique, combining the essence of both.

Normally, he should next have absorbed the essence of a spiritual treasure to complete the spell. After thinking for a moment, Cheng Buzheng's thoughts stirred, and he pressed the Purple Crystal Bracelet floating before him against the back of his right hand.

A Small Disc appeared on the back of his right hand, with an inner circle and an outer circle lined with triangular blades. With a thought, the pattern faded from view.

Cheng Buzheng focused his mind and entered his Sea of Consciousness to check the panel.

Master of the Heavenly Jade Disc: Cheng Buzheng

Realm: Qi Refining Level 1

Cultivation Method: First-order Mid-grade (Ordinary). Crimson Fire Technique (Beginner)

Spell Techniques: First-order Low-grade (Fine) Purple Crystal Bracelet (Perfection), First-order Low-grade (Fine) Earth Escape Technique (Perfection)

Spiritual Power Value: 0

Sure enough, after being deduced, the Purple Crystal Bracelet's quality had also risen. Seeing the ordinary-quality Crimson Fire Technique, Cheng Buzheng had an immature idea.

Thinking of how he had only five Spirit Stones, he temporarily suppressed it and gathered the five Spirit Stones left on the bed.

Then he closed his eyes and began another night of cultivation. It was a daily necessity.

The night passed uneventfully.