Half-Month Body Forging

After kowtowing, Ling Yun stood up and returned home.

The wooden house was small, consisting of two bedrooms and a living room.

Outside the house, the courtyard featured a stone table and stools, along with a neatly constructed trellis hung with grapes and gourds.

Not far away was a vegetable garden where he grew his own produce; whatever he couldn't finish, he would take to Nuoding City to sell.

A short distance beyond the garden, a river wound its way through the landscape, offering beautiful scenery.

At the stone table, Ling Yun took out the Basic Meditation Method given to him by Su Yuntao, only to be deeply disappointed. It was simple—far too simple.

Step one: Clear the mind and focus one's spirit.

Step two: Adjust breathing rhythm and physical state.

Step three: Sense the Martial Soul and meditate on its appearance.

The following are small tips for eliminating distracting thoughts, which make it easier to concentrate.

Note: Intermediate meditation methods involve simple soul power circulation routes.

There were less than five hundred words in total, and the rest consisted of six illustrations depicting a small figure in a seated meditation posture.

It was just that simple, just that crude.

Seeing the note, Ling Yun understood what Su Yuntao meant by giving him this meditation method.

Forget it! I only wanted to understand what merits the local meditation methods might have, but this has truly opened my eyes!

Ling Yun tossed the booklet aside and began practicing the Yin-Yang Creation Art, the cultivation method inherent to the Yin-Yang Mirror.

The technique had no upper limit; it all depended on one's personal comprehension.

The technique combined movement and stillness, consisting of thirty-six illustrations. Practicing according to them could mobilize the body's Bloodline Power and guide the Yin-Yang energy to temper the entire body.

Over the past three years, he had barely managed to cultivate up to the fifth illustration, and he began today's practice.

The first illustration: Five-Hearts-to-Heaven Chart.

After assuming the standard posture, the free-roaming soul power in the air poured in continuously. It possessed various attributes, acting like a massage for every cell in his body.

He used his intent to guide the circulation of soul power. The circulation route was clearly visible on the small figure in the illustration, and below the drawing were explanations detailing why it should be circulated that way and how many cycles to perform—everything was crystal clear.

The second illustration: Golden Rooster Stands on One Leg Chart. One foot supported his weight while the other leg remained taut, performing a vertical split toward the sky.

Void energy entered his body through the raised foot, washing over his entire frame before flowing into the earth through the supporting foot.

The third illustration: Mountain-Holding Seal. In a standard horse stance, he held his hands in a void-grasping position. Following the energy flow route in the picture, he condensed a vortex between his palms, ideally integrating the Yin-Yang artistic conception to turn the vortex into a Yin-Yang sphere.

This process could mobilize Yin-Yang energy to wash over the meridians throughout his body, familiarize him with the changes in force, and strengthen the meridians' capacity to withstand pressure.

The fourth illustration: Crane Spreading Wings. With one toe touching the ground and the other leg naturally bent and suspended, he spread his hands and slid them up and down. During this process, he coordinated his breathing rhythm to mobilize the soul power within his body, exercising his physical coordination.

The fifth illustration: Wave-Treading Chart. This required finding a pool or a river. Following the circulation route in the illustration, he lifted his energy to lighten his body, treading on water without sinking. This exercised the application of soul power, aiming to reach a state of doing as one pleases.

Once mastered, this could also be used for attacks. By stomping on the ground, the soul power within his body would be released from the soles of his feet, allowing the soul power to flow continuously like ocean waves, stacking together to erupt! The power was immense.

After finishing the five illustrations, every cell in his body felt invigorated. His spirit and energy were full and had improved significantly, reaching the requirements for practicing the sixth illustration.

He launched a challenge at the sixth illustration.

The sixth illustration: Blood-Moving Seal. He formed seals with his hands, involving ten different gestures, each of which would mobilize the Bloodline Power within his body. The further one progressed, the more Bloodline Power would be mobilized.

If the ten gestures could not be performed in one continuous flow, the process would be interrupted, and he would have to start over from the first illustration.

Less than ten minutes later, Ling Yun was drenched in sweat, steam rising from his body, his skin flushed red. The spirit and energy accumulated from the first five illustrations had been largely consumed, and he lacked the strength to continue.

He had only completed three gestures.

If one could complete the sixth illustration, one's spirit and energy would be incredibly full after finishing. If one couldn't, one was left with this current feeling of soreness—painful yet satisfying.

If I can master the Blood-Moving Seal, I should be able to challenge a thousand-year first soul ring.

Ling Yun felt the changes in his body, his spirits high, and after resting for a while, he continued to practice.

Starting from the first illustration.

Cultivation time always passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, the sun was setting. After finishing the final repetition, Ling Yun lay sprawled on the ground.

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, he recovered a bit of strength and set about making dinner, consisting of both meat and vegetables.

After eating his fill, Ling Yun carefully took stock of his supplies. The food he had purchased on his last trip to Nuoding City was still enough to last him another month.

With the moon bright and stars sparse, Ling Yun practiced the first illustration on his bed.

After settling into the posture, he focused his attention on the background of the illustration, the constantly shifting black and white.

Slowly, he entered a state of deep sleep.

In his sleep, his soul was stained with a wisp of black and white; as the colors shifted, his soul became more solid.

His body automatically absorbed the soul power from the outside world.

The next day, Ling Yun woke up feeling completely refreshed, his eyes seeing further and his perception becoming more sensitive.

After the Martial Soul awakening, it seems more in tune with the laws of heaven and earth, and the cultivation results have improved quite a bit.

Ling Yun carefully sensed the changes in his body before beginning his morning exercises.

After finishing his morning routine, he washed up, ate breakfast, and continued his cultivation.

Throughout the day, aside from eating and using the restroom, the remaining time was basically all spent by him on cultivation.

One day.

Two days.

Three days.

Ten days later.

"Hoo! Finally done!"

Ling Yun's face was full of joy; after ten days of hard work, he had finally completed the sixth diagram in its entirety.

At this moment, his energy was more vigorous than ever before, and his small body was filled with a sense of power.

He felt as if he could punch a Century-Old Bull Soul Beast to death.

His cultivation came to a temporary pause.

Ling Yun gave himself a break; striking a balance between tension and relaxation was the true essence of cultivation!

The next day, he conducted a deep cleaning of his home. He cleaned with extra care, placing items with sentimental value into a small box for safekeeping.

Three days later, he asked Shi Niu to help look after his wooden house and vegetable patch, then, while Shi Niu wasn't paying attention, he left behind five Silver Soul Coins.

Gold Soul Coins were still too eye-catching!

In Nuoding City, Su Yuntao began to compile his data. He had finished running through all the villages, and this year's Martial Soul Awakening ceremony had concluded.

In the main office sat an old man whose eyes were exceptionally sharp, filled with wisdom. His face was covered in wrinkles, and it seemed as if every line was written with a story.

"Master Ma Xiunuo, among those who awakened their Martial Souls in the villages I was responsible for this year, those who possess Soul Power are all here."

"There are twenty-three people in total, with six having Soul Power of level three or higher."

Ma Xiunuo took the documents and began to read. Multitasking, he asked while looking through them, "Six? That's more than last year! Not bad."

"I also awakened two with Innate Full Soul Power!"

Su Yuntao's words were shocking. Ma Xiunuo's gaze, which had been fixed on the papers, shifted to Su Yuntao. "Innate Full Soul Power! What are their names?"

"Where are they? Why didn't you bring them directly to the Martial Soul Hall?"

Ma Xiunuo was exceptionally agitated; Su Yuntao was being far too unreliable, not even knowing how to recruit talent for the Martial Soul Hall.

"Uh... it's a long story! I wanted to bring them to the Martial Soul Hall too..."

"..."

Su Yuntao explained the situation in detail. After listening, Ma Xiunuo sighed and said, "What a pity!"

"You did well, though! For geniuses like these, establishing a good relationship is also acceptable."

"Giving him the Basic Meditation Method was the right move."