True Sorcery

Consume 10 points of Origin.

Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture (Beginner)!

"Tenfold consumption?"

Zhou Yi's expression changed. A First Order spell alone had ten times the boost of martial arts techniques. Wouldn't higher-level immortal cultivation methods require an ocean of Origin?

He had thought that saving up 150 points of Origin would be enough to learn several techniques, yet the Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture alone had nearly drained it all.

Zhou Yi had already planned out his daily 2 points of Origin: 1 point for Stance Training, to build strength and erase hidden injuries, and 1 point converted into vital energy to increase his Internal Force.

If he cultivated Purple Sun Sword Qi, he would be lucky just to have enough Origin to use each day, let alone save any.

"Growth in Internal Qi cannot stagnate, so I can only reduce the consumption on Stance Training. Hidden injuries in my body may become shackles when I break through in the future, but there are countless masters in the world—there must be a solution. I won't reach the peak of the acquired realm anytime soon, so there's no need to think that far ahead for now."

"I'll max out Purple Sun Sword Qi first. Tenfold effort will surely bring tenfold rewards!

Consume 20 points of Origin.

Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture (Minor Achievement)!

Consume 80 points of Origin.

Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture (Perfection)!

Countless insights into cultivating the Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture appeared in Zhou Yi's mind.

True Person Ziyang was a sage of the Daoist sect. In the secular martial world, he would at least have been an existence akin to an Earthly Immortal. The cultivation method he created was already an immortal art, as proven by its ranking after entering the Gateway to Myriad Wonders.

Zhou Yi silently comprehended the mysteries of the sword scripture as the Internal Qi in his Dantian continuously compressed according to an abstruse method.

A vast amount of information flooded his mind, making his head feel as though it would split apart. It took a full half hour before he gradually digested it.

Half a day later, a glint flashed through Zhou Yi's eyes, and a sharp aura burst from his body.

"Sword Qi! Sword Qi! No wonder the Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture gained the Gateway to Myriad Wonders' recognition. Internal Force can be transformed into Sword Qi, but Sword Qi is no longer Internal Force!"

The thumb-sized mass of Internal Qi in Zhou Yi's Dantian was continuously refined, taking half a day to condense into a strand as thin as a hair.

With a flick of his finger, the hair-thin Sword Qi shot three feet from his body and lightly slid across the wall.

A nearly invisible seam had appeared, faintly allowing light from outside the wall to shine through.

"A ranked spell is terrifying indeed!"

With a thought, Zhou Yi recalled the hair-thin Sword Qi into his body, where it quietly floated within his Dantian.

The mysteries of Sword Qi lay not only in its power far surpassing Internal Qi, but also in its ability to move with his will—flexible and ever-changing, as if it were alive.

Zhou Yi guided the Purple Sun Sword Qi upward from the Zhaohai Acupoint along the Foot Shaoyin Meridian.

Within the Yin Qiao Meridian, one of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, there were many blockages, but the Purple Sun Sword Qi easily broke through them.

One strand of Sword Qi was exhausted, opening at least one-fifth of the meridians.

"Hahahaha!"

Zhou Yi could not help throwing back his head in a long laugh, feeling utterly exhilarated.

"Husband, have you gained something from your cultivation?" Chen Jinyu's voice suddenly sounded by his ear.

Zhou Yi looked at the sky and realized it was already evening.

He had become so absorbed in martial cultivation that he had completely forgotten the time.

Chen Jinyu had instructed the servants not to approach, lest they interrupt his cultivation, affect his insights, or even cause him to suffer cultivation deviation.

"I gained a little, just a little!"

Though Zhou Yi spoke modestly, he could not suppress the delight between his brows.

Since arriving in Guo Bei County, the chaotic state of the world had kept Zhou Yi constantly on guard, forever thinking about how to grow stronger.

Later, he learned that this world contained not only martial masters, but also masters of Daoist arts, Thousand-Year Tree Demons, and even the legendary underworld.

The feeling of oppression and urgency became even more intense.

Now, ninety percent of that pressure had vanished.

The Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture was a Daoist immortal art. Once mastered, it might not make him invincible beneath heaven, but at the very least, preserving his life would not be a problem.

Zhou Yi suddenly thought of Xiahou the Swordsman. Purple Sun Sword Qi restrained demons and evil beings, yet Xiahou had been instantly killed without any ability to resist. There had to be some reason he did not know.

The Thousand-Year Tree Demon had cultivated for more than ten times as long as a human, and over those thousand years, who knew how many evil arts it had learned? Only a mighty Daoist master could destroy it.

Yan Chixia's origins were far from ordinary. He cultivated both Buddha Dao and Daoism, yet even he was helpless against the Tree Demon.

"Anyway, that old demoness cannot leave Black Mountain. Tree Spirits have long lifespans, but they also possess enormous weaknesses..."

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind, all within an instant.

Zhou Yi smiled at Chen Jinyu. "I'll teach you how to make wine now."

"My martial cultivation will require vast resources in the future, and this secret formula can conveniently be exchanged for money. It will also give you something to do, so you won't get bored alone."

Chen Jinyu said happily, "I'll learn. I just hope it isn't too difficult."

They talked late into the night.

Chen Jinyu became deeply interested in Zhou Yi.

She had been intelligent since childhood and was skilled at reading people's hearts.

Growing up in a large household, she had learned to restrain herself and earned a reputation for being gentle, graceful, and virtuous.

"I'm not telling you to make it yourself. I'm hiring people to open a workshop. You only need to collect the money."

Zhou Yi's method of making money was simple: purifying alcohol.

The principle was equally simple—distill away the water in the liquor and increase its alcohol content.

Zhou Yi had watched the process online. After several days of experimentation and wasting dozens of jars of wine, he finally made a Distiller.

Although Chen Jinyu knew nothing about business, merely smelling the fragrance of the liquor was enough for her to conclude that Zhou Yi's wine-making method was a priceless treasure.

"Husband, may I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"The Purple Sun Sword Qi Scripture and this wine-making method are both secret arts worth ten thousand gold. Why did you give them to me so easily?"

"My heart is devoted to martial cultivation, and I cannot be bothered with mundane affairs. I may have very little time to accompany you in the future, so this gives you something to do as well. If you want to practice martial arts, learn them. If you want to do business, open a wine workshop."

"Perhaps years or even decades may pass without us seeing each other. Just don't blame me when that happens."

Zhou Yi was telling the truth. Compared with immortal cultivation and the prospect of living forever, wealth was truly no better than dung.

Zhou Yi also taught Chen Jinyu a few business tactics.

What hype was, what hunger marketing was...

No matter how much Chen Jinyu learned, Zhou Yi announced one month later that he was entering seclusion to cultivate martial arts.

Another month passed.

The Golden Saber Sect held a Wine Tasting and invited powers of all sizes from Guo Bei County.

"Immortal's Brew" became an instant sensation.

Even if martial artists had not cultivated Internal Qi, Stance Training alone greatly strengthened their physiques.

Ordinary liquor tasted no different from plain water to them.

Immortal's Brew perfectly made up for that.

Its taste might not match the fine wines produced by renowned brewers, but in terms of potency, it was unmatched beneath heaven.

In just one month, Immortal's Brew became famous throughout Jiangzhe.

The wine workshop expanded without pause. It worked day and night, and before the brewed liquor could even be placed in storage, eager merchants would haul it away.

Even making money by the bucketful could not describe the wine workshop!

Half a year later, an entire street had been bought and converted into wine-making workshops, after which mountains of gold and seas of silver flowed into Guo Bei County.

Chen Jinyu also gained a name in the martial world: the Wine Fairy.