Dao Disciple: Second Realm

Late at night, Chen Xian sat cross-legged, the last three Qi Induction Pills quietly laid out before him.

"Seven Orifice Qi Refining... Elder Wu said that completing each cycle would condense a strand of Dao Power, and once forty-nine strands are accumulated, one can reach the fourth level of Dao Disciple."

He murmured to himself, took a deep breath, and picked a pill from the box.

Placing the pill in his mouth without swallowing, the medicinal power began to melt slightly with the help of saliva.

Threads of pure Dao Qi gradually spread through his mouth.

Instead of letting that energy flow through his meridians and sink into his dantian, he forcibly locked the Dao Qi in his mouth using his Dao Consciousness.

In his mind, he silently recalled Elder Wu's demonstration during the lecture.

The mouth and nose connect, the nose connects to the eyes and ears.

Though the seven orifices of the human body resonate with each other, they are not directly linked like water pipes.

Between the two eyes and two ears, there is no straight path—only by breaking through with Qi can it be done.

The first step, guiding Qi into the nose, was bearable aside from a faint choking sensation like drowning.

Next, the Dao Qi followed the meridians straight into the left eye, causing a slight sourness in the eyeball, and a line of turbid tears silently slid down the eyelid.

However, when it came to the step of moving from the left eye to the right eye, Chen Xian was thoroughly stumped.

Between the mouth, nose, eyes, and ears, there are connections like the posterior nostrils, the Eustachian tube, and the nasolacrimal duct.

But between the two eyes and two ears, there are none.

Though only a nasal bridge separates the two orifices, it felt like a mountain range—to pierce through, he first had to puncture the "Orifice Membrane" of the left eye.

"Hiss..."

As he tried to draw the gathered Dao Qi out from his left pupil, a piercing, heart-wrenching pain suddenly exploded.

It felt as if a red-hot steel needle was forcing a hole through the center of his pupil.

His vision instantly blurred, a hazy white mist covering the eyeball.

To guide Qi out of the orifice, he had to shatter this mist barrier!

"This old man has seen all kinds of storms in his life—how could a mere fourth-level Dao Disciple block my way?"

Chen Xian gritted his teeth fiercely in his heart, manipulating that stream of Dao Qi into a sharp needle, stabbing viciously at the mist membrane!

The first strike—the mist membrane didn't budge.

Pain! Agony shot straight from his eyeball to his brain, half his head feeling as if struck by a heavy hammer, like a migraine attack.

"Again! Break for this old man!"

Chen Xian shut his eyes tight, roaring in his sea of consciousness.

The Dao Qi, like a needle, pierced once more.

Finally, he seemed to hear an extremely faint "pop"—the mist membrane blocking the Dao Qi was forcibly drilled open into a small hole.

His blurred vision cleared for a moment, and the Dao Qi squeezed through the gap, floating before his eyes like rootless fire, faintly on the verge of dispersing.

Chen Xian dared not delay, quickly controlling this wandering Dao Qi to attack the right eye.

From inside out was a stab; from outside in was a chisel.

He chiseled several times in a row until the pain became unbearable.

Another muffled "pop" sounded, and the Dao Qi broke through the mist membrane of the right eye, returning to his body.

Yet as soon as this surge of energy entered his body, it couldn't sustain itself and dissipated into nothing in an instant.

Chen Xian let out a long sigh, suddenly feeling a warmth on his face.

He wiped it with his hand, and between his fingers was full of red—a filthy blood mixed with black impurities.

He didn't understand why filthy blood was flowing from his eyes, but cultivation couldn't be abandoned halfway. He simply wiped his face and continued charging the orifices.

Though the process was arduous and painful, as the gap in the mist membrane expanded, each strand of Dao Qi stayed longer and longer in his body.

Until the last bit of medicinal power in his mouth was nearly spent, an extremely condensed strand of Dao Qi finally completed the full cycle through the seven orifices, gathering in his mouth, and was then swallowed into his dantian, transforming into Dao Power.

Chen Xian looked inward at himself—in his dantian, a fourth strand of Dao Power was now firmly settled.

Fourth level of Dao Disciple—it had come so smoothly!

"Hm? This Dao Power... is it a fifth the thickness of the first three?"

Suddenly realizing that the fourth strand of Dao Power was unusually thick, Chen Xian was startled.

According to Elder Wu, ordinary disciples who toil all night only condense one or two hair-thin wisps of Dao Power.

And a complete strand of Dao Power requires accumulating forty-nine such wisps to succeed.

Yet this one breath of his was worth ten times the effort of others.

Sure enough, the [Mystic Jade Sword Bone] was still at work.

Bone structure, talent, and medicinal pills—all are nearly indispensable for cultivation. Fortunately, he had them all.

"At this rate, I can complete one layer in five days and step into the Third Realm Heaven of Dao Disciple within half a month. The Dao Master Realm... is within reach!"

The blackish-red blood scabs on his face piled layer upon layer, sticky and rank. Chen Xian prepared to get up and wash.

But the moment he stood, a sudden dizziness struck his mind.

It wasn't like the feeling of depleted blood energy—more like the visual discomfort a nearsighted person feels when suddenly putting on high-precision glasses.

He stood still, closed his eyes, and let himself adjust. When he opened them again, the world had completely changed.

The debris on the floor, the fine hairs on a spider crawling along the windowsill—every detail was razor-sharp.

The usually quiet late night had become abnormally noisy. Close by, he heard the rustling of a gecko climbing the wall. Far off, a hundred meters away, he could even faintly make out the heavy snoring of disciples in a neighboring courtyard.

Chen Xian's heart surged with joy. His sight and hearing had all sharpened; he guessed his sense of smell and taste were the same.

So the true secret of the Second Realm Heaven of Dao Disciple was the five-sense enhancement that came from opening the Orifice Membrane through Seven Orifice Qi Refining.

Understanding dawned on him. The Seven Orifice Qi Refining of the Second Realm Heaven seemed more inclined toward body tempering.

The First Realm Heaven drew qi into the body, the Second Realm Heaven tempered the seven orifices, so the Third Realm should strengthen Dao Consciousness—after all, reaching the Third Realm Heaven allowed one to control artifacts.

With a clear concept of the requirements for each Dao Disciple realm in mind, Chen Xian felt a wave of relief.

He washed the grimy blood from his face and didn't sleep until a fish-belly white appeared at the edge of the sky, sinking into a heavy, exhausted slumber.

He slept until the afternoon.

Chen Xian was woken by a series of urgent knocks at the door.

"Disciple Jian Shan (Duan Cui) requests an audience with the Grand-Uncle Master!"

The voice outside called out three times before Chen Xian abruptly sat up, remembering he had business today.

He quickly threw on an outer robe, left the room, pushed open the courtyard gate, and saw the two men about to turn and leave.

"You two, come in."

Duan Cui, whose expression had been dim at the thought of being stood up, suddenly brightened.

Jian Shan was even quicker, grabbing Duan Cui and pulling him into the courtyard. "Didn't I say the Grand-Uncle Master wouldn't stand us up? Look at you, all antsy!"

"Sit." Chen Xian pointed at the stone stools and asked with a smile, "You two are here for those candied hawthorns, right?"

The two nodded eagerly.

"Heh, my apologies. This old man got lost in cultivation last night. The candied hawthorns aren't ready yet. Sit first, and I'll prepare them now."

Chen Xian smiled, turned, and went back into the house to fetch the pot and hawthorns.

"The Grand-Uncle Master is truly diligent. At his age, he still cultivates through the night. I need to work harder too," Duan Cui couldn't help but remark as he watched the busy old man.

Jian Shan wasn't listening at all. He fidgeted on the stone stool, unable to sit still.

He was dead set on stealing the technique!

Seeing the Grand-Uncle Master bring out a pile of ingredients and even plan to work openly in the courtyard, he elbowed Duan Cui and lowered his voice: "Hey, the Grand-Uncle Master is about to start making those candied hawthorns. Should we sneak a look?"

Duan Cui frowned and said seriously, "The Grand-Uncle Master said he won't teach us the secret method for now. We should avoid looking out of respect."

"Ah, you're too rigid!"

Jian Shan cursed under his breath, "If the Grand-Uncle Master didn't want us to see, he'd do it behind closed doors. This is tacit permission! If you won't go, I'll go myself."

With that, Jian Shan rubbed his hands together, plastered a smile on his face, and sidled up behind Chen Xian.

Duan Cui sat in place, his expression conflicted. In the end, he stayed put on the stone stool, staring straight at the corner of the courtyard without looking away.