Foundation

"Once you refine a talisman seed, you will be able to gather the qi of heaven and earth to regulate yourselves, and use a few minor techniques besides!"

"Once you form a qi seed, you will gain the ability to roam mountains and ridges, ride the wind, and command qi. That counts as obtaining a measure of fortune—a heavenly path for mortals!"

"But if you can harmonize your nature and life, unleash the brilliance of nature and life, illuminate yourselves, anchor falsehood, and sweep away all evil, then you may be called a True Person. Yet above True Persons are still exalted true persons, divine true persons, and other lofty realms. Alas, attaining the rank of a heavenly mortal is easy; attaining the rank of a True Person is difficult. As for obtaining the rank of a Daoist, it is as elusive as smoke!"

The Daoist on the platform wore a sighing look in his eyes.

His gaze swept across the Daoist children, lingering meaningfully on some of them.

"You were chosen from Qingping Temple as people of talent. Most of you possess innate gifts, and in the future, you may yet claim a place among the many seekers of the Dao. Heaven and earth are like a cage, and the struggle within is so brutal. If humankind wishes to gain a foothold between heaven and earth, it will need your strength as well!"

"Yes!"

Whatever thoughts they harbored, the many Daoist children all answered respectfully.

The old Daoist gave a slight nod, then said, "Today, this old Daoist will teach a foundational method I acquired by chance, called the Heavenly Origin Pure Spirit Codex. Its name draws upon the meanings of heaven and clarity. Among the twenty-two primordial glyph diagrams, you need only comprehend either the character 'heaven' or 'clarity' to use it to deepen your Dao resonance and condense a foundational talisman seed!"

At the old Daoist's words, a small number of Daoist children in the hall immediately became greatly excited. In particular, those who had comprehended 'heaven' or 'clarity' heaved deep sighs of relief.

The Daoist children who had not comprehended either 'heaven' or 'clarity' immediately wore pained expressions.

This meant they might miss today's opportunity.

Yang Huai's eyes remained steady. Though he had not comprehended the 'heaven' glyph, he had learned the 'clarity' glyph. He still had a chance to learn a foundational method today.

What luck!

Deep within his sea of consciousness, Qingli was already cheering.

With a sweep of his whisk, the old Daoist instructor wrote an incomparably intricate talisman diagram in the air, its strokes flying like dragons and dancing like phoenixes. Countless azure cloud patterns seemed to emerge and perish within it without end, while the force of the vast Qian Heaven unfolded from its depths. A single glance made most of the Daoist children nearly dizzy, their heads swelling with pain. Only a small number had bloodshot eyes as they stared fixedly at the Dao diagram, imprinting it deep into their memories and doing their utmost to remember its subtle transformations.

"This codex has upper and lower sections. The upper section is the Talisman Nurturing Chapter, while the lower is the Qi Seed Chapter. Today, I will focus on the Talisman Nurturing Chapter! Once you condense a Heavenly Origin talisman seed, you will be able to draw in the purest heaven-clarity qi of heaven and earth to nourish your soul and physique, cultivating pure, clear foundational dharma power. This foundational dharma power excels in being pure and flawless. Anyone can cultivate it!

"However, all foundational methods with such broad applicability share one well-known flaw!"

"That is, they're slow!"

Yang Huai raised his head and saw a Daoist child seated on one of the first twenty prayer mats mutter softly.

The old Daoist instructor turned his gaze toward that child as well, a trace of appreciation appearing in his eyes.

"Correct. But heaven and earth are vast, with countless rare treasures, and there are also Dao folk who gather all manner of innate fortune upon themselves. This flaw is nothing at all!"

Yet the faces of the Daoist children grew somewhat bitter at those words.

The wilderness was indeed rich in resources, with strange and dazzling heavenly materials and earthly treasures competing in splendor. But such precious treasures had never been within the reach of ordinary Daoist children. If they wanted them, they had to pay a price.

That price might be their lives.

The old Daoist's gaze swept over them. He had deliberately placed pressure upon these Daoist children.

He needed these juniors to understand that their own strength alone was insufficient if they wished to obtain such rare treasures. Only by humankind standing united, only by the many qi refiners banding together, could they break through the shackles of the upper ranks and make the road ahead ever broader, rather than slaughtering one another for selfish desires.

Though he knew such instruction would have limited effect.

"Enough. Remember the many cloud talismans this old Daoist is about to demonstrate. The Talisman Nurturing Chapter contains eighteen Heavenly Origin talismans in total. Remember any one of them, and it will be enough for you to nurture and refine a foundational talisman seed!"

"Of these eighteen Heavenly Origin talismans, the first seven are related to the primordial glyph of 'clarity'; the middle six are related to the primordial glyph of 'heaven'; and the final five contain the mysteries of both primordial glyphs, 'heaven' and 'clarity.' Several of these eighteen Heavenly Origin talismans combine the mysteries of multiple primordial glyphs, while only a few contain the pure mysteries of the primordial glyphs 'clarity' and 'heaven.' This old Daoist will introduce them one by one. Judge your own abilities and act accordingly!"

"This old Daoist advises you not to be greedy for too much. Sometimes, a purer Dao foundation is more conducive to climbing the steps!"

The old Daoist instructor introduced the mysteries of each cloud-patterned talisman on the platform one by one. Yang Huai's eyes likewise swept over the eighteen Heavenly Origin talismans in turn, and in the end, he chose the sixth.

This talisman was called the Heavenly Yang Golden Light Talisman.

It contained the mysteries of three primordial glyphs. Besides clarity, there were also yang and metal.

In the old Daoist's words, it was a talisman of utmost hardness and utmost yang. Once successfully cultivated, one would surely forge ahead with sharp intent, their edge laid bare.

It suited Qingli's primary fate perfectly.

Yang Huai focused on memorizing the Heavenly Yang Golden Light Talisman while also committing to memory the soul-nourishing method paired with the Heavenly Origin Pure Spirit Codex.

According to the old Daoist, cultivating this foundational talisman required four stages.

Strengthen the soul, subdue delusive thoughts, gather thoughts into a talisman, refine the talisman seed!

Some people with special gifts might skip the first stage of strengthening the soul and directly enter the stage of subduing delusive thoughts.

For example, Qing Xian, Daokongzi, and himself!

Subduing delusive thoughts and gathering thoughts into a talisman were completed as one. One needed to burn incense and pray, establish a ritual, and borrow the majesty of the temple's ancestral masters to cow the evil spirits of all heavens, passing through beneath the ancestors' protection.

Of course, one could also complete it alone through one's own wisdom and perseverance, but the chances of success were not high.

That was because the evil spirits between heaven and earth filled the primal qi of the five aggregates. When thoughts gathered into a talisman, it would draw down the spirituality of heaven and earth, quite possibly attracting the watchful gaze of countless evils. Without the ancestral masters' divine might for protection, there was a risk of demons and devils entering the body.

Refining the talisman seed in the end was comparatively simple. One merely needed to continuously comprehend the foundational talisman one had condensed. Upon reaching a certain level, it would naturally transform into a talisman seed through a specific secret art.

The old Daoist instructor from the Xi Huang Kingdom only taught for a little over an hour. Some Daoist children whose paths aligned with it listened as though intoxicated, but quite a number suffered miserably, able only to watch as others obtained foundational methods and steadily entered a finer state.

Some Daoist children, for reasons unknown, merely listened coldly from the sidelines, committing only the useful tips to heart.

Still others were quite disappointed.

After the old Daoist left, they could not help muttering, "This exalted true person Hidden Dragon Adept is truly stingy. Apart from a foundational method, he did not teach a single secret art or strange technique. What a disappointment!"

These were Daoist children who had gained Dao folk status early on. Each possessed a distinctive aura and seemed far from ordinary.

Yang Huai swept his gaze over these Daoist children, his heart filled with a sense of rich harvest.

He felt that once he returned, it would not take long for him to cultivate this foundational talisman and enter the gate of the foundational method.

After the old Daoist instructor departed, Yang Huai too strolled out of the inner hall. But not long after leaving, he saw several Daoist children in distinctly unusual clothing gathered together in discussion. One of them spoke without concealing his voice.

"This method of cultivation merely imitates the cultivation of those innate ancient gods! It looks profound, but in truth, it is utterly ordinary!"

"The path of qi refinement is far inferior to our path of the ancient gods!"

Among them, he saw a rather familiar figure.

Feng Ying!