Open the Grand Rite, Seek Dawn Radiance

Three days later, at dusk.

Lu Xuan sat cross-legged in the courtyard of the quiet residence, his eyes shut and his mind sinking inward.

"Boom!"

In an instant, his heartbeat thundered like war drums, pumping blood through his body and bringing forth an endless vitality that seemed impossible to exhaust.

It was strength enough to fight tigers and leopards barehanded, to slaughter wolves and jackals.

This was the first realm of cultivation—the Embryonic Breath Realm.

With Embryonic Breath perfected, essence refined, the physical body had reached the pinnacle of mortal men.

His predecessor had cultivated for three years before attaining this realm.

Unfortunately, after failing at Qi Refining, he had fallen into despondency. He had forcibly contemplated the Dao Scripture in search of the cause of his failure, only to exhaust his mind and die, allowing Lu Xuan to enter this body.

The Heaven-Observing Sect Dao Scripture was profound and wondrous, truly possessing great power. Forcing oneself to observe and contemplate it carried genuine risks.

Fortunately, though the mind had died and the soul dispersed, the body remained, leaving Lu Xuan with an excellent foundation.

"So this is cultivation..."

Though he had fully mastered this strength over the past days, whenever he clenched his fist and felt power surge through him, Lu Xuan could not help but sigh.

That was also why he had insisted on opening the Qi-Refining Grand Rite for a second time.

Cultivation was too wondrous, enough to make one sink into it. Having lived two lives, he had to pursue it.

"By my reckoning, it should be about time..."

Lu Xuan opened his eyes, looked toward the darkening sky, and slowly rose.

After three days of calming his mind and gathering the spiritual materials for the Grand Rite, the air was clear and the clouds dispersed today. It was the perfect time to begin.

If he leaped over it, the sea and sky would stretch boundless before him. If he could not, Lu Xuan would accept it.

At the very least, he had already witnessed the splendor of cultivation.

With that thought, Lu Xuan gently stroked the jade talisman at his waist.

"Whoosh!"

In an instant, a white cloud shot down from the vault of heaven and landed in the courtyard. Lu Xuan leaped onto it and rode the cloud eastward.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, Lu Xuan descended from the cloud before a towering green mountain.

The mountain was immense, rising amid the surrounding peaks like a giant pagoda.

There were no roads upon its slopes. Only a hall had been built atop its summit, covering several mu of land and stretching broad and wide.

By now, the sky had already darkened. Brilliant halos of light glowed within the hall, outlining its majestic silhouette. It alone shone upon this mountain, an especially beautiful sight.

The hall doors stood wide open. Within, only a middle-aged Daoist sat bent over a desk, reading with a contented expression.

"Hmm?"

But at that moment, hearing the sound of Lu Xuan riding the clouds, the Daoist immediately raised his head and looked over.

"Greetings, attendant."

Lu Xuan stepped through the hall doors and gave the Daoist a clasped-hands salute.

"So it is a Hibernation Academy candidate. What business brings you to Righteous Qi Hall at this hour?"

The middle-aged Daoist rose and returned the salute, asking warmly.

He was already middle-aged, yet his cultivation was only at the Embryonic Breath Realm. He was no great Qi-Refining master. The only reason he could serve as an attendant here was due to the Heaven-Gazing Sect's belief that the Immortal Cult valued life and extended grace to all things.

Thus, it extensively employed Embryonic Breath cultivators and even mortals as sect attendants, servants, cultivators of spiritual plants, and apprentice Daoists for alchemy and artifact refinement.

This kept the mountains from becoming too desolate, while also giving many mortals and Embryonic Breath cultivators a spiritual wage with which to support their families.

After all, for an Immortal Cult, many matters simply did not require mortals, or even Embryonic Breath cultivators, to handle.

A single formation or spiritual treasure could replace countless laborers, completing tasks automatically with ease, efficiency, and no mistakes.

For example, his post as an attendant of Righteous Qi Hall merely involved registering documents, compiling records, and issuing orders. Why would it require an Embryonic Breath cultivator? Many sects had long since allowed the Cosmic Register Formation to govern everything.

But Mountain-Lifting Prefecture was no peaceful land. Mortals and cultivators alike had difficult lives, so the Heaven-Gazing Sect did its utmost to establish as many minor official posts as it could.

Thus, every minor sect official was extremely conscientious and responsible, with a respectful attitude, terrified of making a mistake and losing this spiritual job.

"I came today to request a Ritual Chamber."

Lu Xuan removed the jade talisman from his waist and handed it to the middle-aged Daoist.

"A Ritual Chamber?!"

The middle-aged Daoist was startled.

A Ritual Chamber, as its name implied, was a place for opening Grand Rites and Minor Offering Rituals.

The person before him possessed a Dormant Academy Jade Talisman but had not succeeded in Qi Refining, so he must have failed at Qi Refining before.

Now that he was requesting a Ritual Chamber, it had to be for a second attempt at Qi Refining!

But over these past years, how many had succeeded in Qi Refining on their second attempt? Could they even fill the fingers of one hand?

Though he knew his position meant he should not ask too much, looking at Lu Xuan's jade-like face, beautiful as one beyond mortal ken, he still could not help but offer a reminder. "Candidate, a second attempt at Qi Refining carries immense risks. Are you truly certain you wish to request this?"

"Thank you for your kind concern, attendant, but please compile my record and issue the order."

Lu Xuan smiled, without the slightest hesitation in his words.

"Candidate, though the sect does not prohibit the use of Ritual Chambers, spiritual materials will not be provided this time..."

Seeing Lu Xuan's tone was so resolute, the middle-aged Daoist found it inappropriate to persuade him further and could only remind him about the spiritual materials.

"I understand."

"Since that is so, please register your name. I shall compile your record. What standard of Ritual Chamber would you like?"

The middle-aged Daoist did not dare advise him further, afraid of provoking Lu Xuan's impatience. He immediately took out a jade register, respectfully offered a jade brush, and asked gently.

"The Qi should face east, and it need only have a view of the Great Yang."

Lu Xuan answered.

"Please wait a moment, candidate."

The middle-aged Daoist nodded. He accepted the jade register bearing Lu Xuan's name, added several strokes of his own, then searched beneath the jade desk for a few breaths before handing Lu Xuan a jade token.

"Few have opened Qi-Refining Grand Rites these days, so the Ritual Chambers are quite empty. This is the finest one. I shall have a Daoist boy lead you there."

The middle-aged Daoist tapped the golden bell upon the jade desk. A young Daoist boy, somewhat similar in appearance to the middle-aged Daoist, emerged from the rear hall. He respectfully saluted Lu Xuan, then led him through the empty, winding corridors toward the mountain summit.

"Candidate, please board the cloud."

After leaving the hall and entering the rear mountain, they had reached the summit. Amid the vast Cloud Sea, countless pavilions and towers could be seen looming in and out of sight.

These pavilions and towers hidden in the clouds were the Ritual Chambers used to open Grand Rites.

The Heaven-Gazing Sect gathered the righteous Qi of heaven and earth. Thus, Grand Rites had to be opened in the sky, lest they be tainted by the Turbid Qi of the earth.

Lu Xuan followed the Daoist boy onto an exceptionally pure white auspicious cloud. They flew for roughly ten breaths before finally stopping at a Cloud Pavilion that faced east, unobstructed by the mountains, with a view of the Great Yang.

The Daoist boy departed, and Lu Xuan entered the Cloud Pavilion alone.

"Clang!"

In an instant, a bell seemed to ring within the Cloud Pavilion, and a mysterious power began circulating through it.

Lu Xuan stood inside the pavilion and raised his eyes. Between heaven and earth stretched a boundless Cloud Sea, with only a Great Yang standing before him.

The mountains around him were silent. It seemed as though he were the only person there, while all the pavilions and towers once hidden in the Cloud Sea had vanished.

This was the wonder of the Heaven-Gazing Sect's Ritual Chambers—screening off the Heavenly Cycle.

Even if hundreds or thousands of people occupied the same cloud layer, during a Grand Rite, one would sense only oneself and would not affect anyone else's Qi Gathering.

But it was said that this only applied to the Qi-Refining Realm. At higher realms, Grand Rites could no longer be opened in the same place at the same time. One had to seek out a truly silent place.

Yet at this moment, for Lu Xuan, there truly was no one else in this world but him.

He sat cross-legged within the Cloud Pavilion, waiting for night to fall while closing his eyes in thought.

"Qi is divided into turbid, mixed, clear, righteous, and source... Source Qi cannot be obtained without the right time, place, and human harmony. It is rare in all the world. True Qi is already a superior and wondrous foundation."

"Precisely because of this, gathering it is extremely difficult. Even though my predecessor and the others were cultivation seeds carefully selected by the Heaven-Gazing Sect, after nine years of training, only seventy-two out of two hundred sixty-two succeeded in gathering Qi and entered the inner sect."

"The Immortal Cult Dao Scripture once said that among the Five Elements, Water Qi cannot be gathered and makes the great Dao difficult to ascend; Metal Qi cannot be refined and leaves one controlled by others..."

"Beyond those, there are only Wood, Fire, and Earth Qi. Yet neither my predecessor nor I belong to the Five Elements. The Immortal Cult has only some attainment in Fire Qi; the rest of these Qis are merely mediocre within the Immortal Cult..."

"What the Immortal Cult excels in are Yin-Yang Temporal Order, Cosmic Stars and Moon, and Central Balance, Supreme Clarity..."

"Cosmic Stars and Moon is exceptionally mysterious. Without peerless talent and harmony with the heavens, it cannot be obtained. Central Balance, Supreme Clarity is the easiest to gather, but it requires a cultivator with a tranquil heart, upright and steady. Neither my predecessor nor I could likely be called upright and tranquil by nature..."

Lu Xuan's thoughts stirred as he questioned his own heart once more.

"Once favor or disgrace descends upon me, my heart will naturally change. I fear I would have to kill and see blood..."

"In that case, only Yin-Yang Temporal Order suits me best."

"What my predecessor sought was Temporal-Order Qi. Thus, he thought through the passage of the four seasons, wishing to know where Qi came from. In the end, his mind ran dry. Though I too wish to seek time's passage, I do not wish to contemplate the four seasons or wait upon the years. To force it would only spoil its beauty..."

"At present, only Yin-Yang remains..."

"Yin-Yang Qi is wondrous and extraordinary, a supreme method. Yet the paths of Yin and Yang are vast and profound. If I greedily seek everything, I fear I would die in an instant..."

"Pure Yang and Pure Yin, Great Yang and Great Yin, are likewise not things this world can seek. Only by opening another bypath can I seek the transformations of Yin and Yang..."

His thoughts grew ever clearer, and the decision Lu Xuan had already made became increasingly distinct.

"In my previous life, I was frail and sickly, believing death was certain. Never did I imagine I would be reborn into this world..."

"Reborn in this body, yet lacking Qi Sensitivity, I had thought I could only turn to cultivating the Golden Armor Jade Body, with no hope ahead. Never did I expect the Jade Disc to attach itself to me, leaving me a chance to alter my fate..."

"Opportunities for change always exist, like the morning sun—I wish to seek the Great Yang, but the Great Yang cannot be obtained. Then I should seek its subtle transformation, such as Dawn Light. One ray of light shines through ten thousand hardships; it perfectly suits my heart..."

"This shall be—Dawn Radiance True Qi!"