Martial Dao Imprint

"The Baptism has begun!"

Outside the Ancestral Hall, Fang Zhongwu stood guard.

His eyes were fixed on the beam of light piercing the sky above the Ancestral Hall, and he was even more nervous than Fang Yuan himself.

"A Baptism accumulated over a century is already the limit of what you can withstand right now."

Fang Zhongwu had traveled abroad in his youth, venturing beyond the Great Zhou Dynasty and even into the Hundred Kingdoms.

He knew that the personal disciples of some great sects, as well as members of Aristocratic Clans with inheritances stretching back tens of thousands of years,

would have their meridians cleansed and bodies tempered through various means before Foundation Establishment, so they could display their finest talents when they broke through.

Fang Zhongwu had been preparing for this day for a long time.

"If the Light Pillar reaches seven zhang, Yuan'er's talent will already be among the best, and this opportunity won't go to waste."

Not everyone who entered the Ancestral Hall to receive Baptism enjoyed the same amount of resources.

The Ancestral Hall would release Auspicious Light to automatically assess the recipient's talent and potential.

The greater their talent and potential, the more energy they could absorb, the better the effects of cleansing their meridians and tempering their body, and the longer it would last.

Otherwise, the opposite was true.

Over the years, many talents had entered the Ancestral Hall, but only a handful had truly been able to enjoy and digest a century's worth of accumulated energy.

The remaining energy would be stored in the Ancestral Hall.

"It's already passed seven zhang. It's reached nine!"

Fang Zhongwu had been watching the Light Pillar closely. His expression shifted from calm to astonished, then to profound shock.

"The Light Pillar hasn't stopped. It's still rising, and it's speeding up!"

After the Light Pillar surging out of the Ancestral Hall reached a height of nine zhang, it paused for a moment, then climbed rapidly, like an elevator rising toward the clouds.

The commotion at the Ancestral Hall startled every member of Fang Family Village!

Even the surrounding towns could vaguely see it.

In the distance, a Light Pillar shot into the sky, grand and imposing. Auspicious beasts seemed to circle it, and it radiated an air of righteousness.

"It's been so many years. Our Fang Family Ancestral Hall has never witnessed such a blessing."

An old man stared blankly at the scene before him, his eyes reddening as tears streamed down his face.

"Our Fang Family is about to rise to greatness!" someone exclaimed.

The powerful members of the Wangdu Fang Family living in seclusion there sighed. "Fang Lian's defeat was no disgrace."

"Among the younger generation to come, Yuan'er is unquestionably the leader. No one can contend with him."

Outsiders couldn't see what was happening inside the Ancestral Hall.

But the Light Pillar reflected the blessing within, and its height roughly measured the recipient's talent.

"It's a full ninety-one zhang!"

Once the Light Pillar had finally settled, a faint purple glint passed through Fang Zhongwu's eyes as he determined its final height.

"The Ancestral Hall has accumulated more than a thousand years' worth of Baptism. Yuan'er's talent far exceeds my expectations." Fang Zhongwu marveled.

A thousand years was only a measure of scale, not a precise indication of time.

Just as a thousand-year-old Treasure Herb mainly described the potency of its medicinal properties,

it didn't necessarily mean that the herb had existed for more than a thousand years. It could have been older or younger.

The Ancestral Hall had been empowered by generations of powerful members of the Fang Family, blessed by the incense and faith of worshippers, and nourished by the energy of heaven and earth.

The energy it accumulated in a year varied from one era to another.

Fang Zhongwu now had reason to suspect

that a thousand years' worth of Baptism was the Ancestral Hall's limit, not Fang Yuan's.

After all, the Light Pillar had risen at a truly astonishing speed.

"Have every Foundation Establishment expert and above in the village take up positions throughout the area at once. Strictly control everyone entering and leaving."

Fang Zhongwu's expression turned stern as he immediately gave the order.

"So comfortable."

Inside the Ancestral Hall, Fang Yuan remained seated cross-legged with his eyes closed.

Streams of radiance descended from above, falling onto his body.

His consciousness was clearer than ever, his mind unburdened. He felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring, body and soul at ease.

"The True Qi inside me is gradually transforming into True Essence."

Before long, Fang Yuan's awareness sank inward, and he noticed the changes taking place within his body.

The dense, mistlike True Qi slowly sank, falling in an endless drizzle like tiny raindrops.

As more and more "raindrops" gathered in his Dantian, they gradually pooled into a sheet of water, brimming with immense energy.

At the same time,

a rumble of thunder seemed to sound inside his Dantian. A small, dry pool opened at its base, and the True Essence poured into it.

"Foundation Establishment cultivators open a Qi Spring in their Dantian to hold True Essence. It can contain far more than True Qi."

Fang Yuan focused intently on guiding the True Essence toward the Qi Spring. The True Qi, condensing into rain above, fell down as well.

"Next, I need to condense my Divine Sense."

The True Qi in his acupoints had transformed into True Essence, and now it needed to be guided by his Divine Sense for the first time.

Rumble...

But Fang Yuan sensed that something was wrong.

A faint rumble of thunder continued inside his Dantian, and just a moment ago, a flash of lightning had passed through it.

The Dantian was the foundation of a cultivator. It couldn't tolerate any uncontrollable factors.

As the rumbling grew louder, lightning flickered now and then through the dense, mistlike True Qi, making the Jade Cup shrink away to the side.

At the same time,

inside the Ancestral Hall,

Ancient Runes and Dao Rhythm gathered around Fang Yuan in ever greater numbers, while the interwoven patterns on the walls grew denser and more complex.

Most striking of all, an imprint woven from lightning and Ancient Runes appeared above his head.

It seemed to contain countless bolts of Heavenly Lightning and buried earth, with corpses strewn everywhere. It was soul-stirring and unfathomably mysterious.

At that very moment, the commotion outside the Ancestral Hall was even greater than within.

Dark clouds blanketed the sky, gloomy as still water. Thunderclaps shook the heavens again and again, lightning flashed, and even the gale seemed to wail.

The demonic beasts and livestock raised in Fang Family Village were all huddled in corners, trembling.

The clouds overhead showed signs of spreading even farther, making the powerful figures concealed beyond Fang Family Village shudder.

"Martial Dao Imprint!"

Fang Zhongwu looked up. The Light Pillar and lightning shimmered against one another, and the Dao Rhythm they gathered felt very familiar to him.

"Yuan'er has condensed a Martial Dao Imprint!"

Fang Zhongwu's pupils quaked. His excitement surged, and he could no longer hide the joy on his face.

Inside his Dantian,

three round bodies, like planets, revolved around one another. One shone brightest, radiating golden light like a miniature sun.

Though bright as a miniature sun, it still paled beside the imprint above—like the Lord of Ten Thousand Thunders, wielding heaven and earth's laws of punishment and slaughter, suppressing all things.

The imprint was remarkably similar to the one above Fang Yuan's head.

"He's only just stepped into Foundation Establishment, yet he's already condensed a Martial Dao Imprint. His talent is monstrous. Perhaps even heaven and earth cannot tolerate him."

Fang Zhongwu stared at the imprint in a daze, murmuring to himself.

"Get lost!"

Noticing that outsiders were trying to spy on the Ancestral Hall, Fang Zhongwu shouted under his breath. His voice boomed like thunder, striking deep into their souls.

"What astonishing cultivation. We can't afford to provoke him!"

Several Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivators hidden nearby felt their consciousness shudder. They no longer dared to extend their Divine Sense and quickly retreated.

"An extraordinary phenomenon has descended from the heavens. It must be a peerless genius breaking through to Foundation Establishment."

About a hundred li away, a white-robed old man gazed at the dark clouds laced with lightning above Fang Family Village and murmured.

The commotion outside the Ancestral Hall lasted for about a quarter of an hour.

Then the dark clouds overhead gradually dispersed, and the Light Pillar shooting into the sky withdrew into the Ancestral Hall.

"It's over."

Fang Zhongwu breathed a sigh of relief.

The phenomenon had faded, which meant the person inside had completed the breakthrough.

But he still felt that something was off. He hadn't sensed the person's aura, and the duration and range of the phenomenon seemed insufficient...