Eight-Nine Arcane Arts! Great Grade Heavenly Immortal Art!

Several hours later.

Xiao Yan sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion and drew a breath.

Then he drew another.

Bodhi sat beside him, waiting until he had puffed out his chest like a rooster before saying leisurely, "I told you to learn to absorb qi, not compete over who can inhale the loudest."

Xiao Yan let that breath out, his shoulders immediately sagging. "I thought Nine Breaths of Qi meant taking nine full breaths before each cultivation session."

Nine Breaths of Qi, one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Dipper Arts, allowed one to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, rapidly healing injuries and accelerating cultivation!

Somewhat speechless, Bodhi said:

"By that logic, would you master the Seventy-Two Transformations by doing seventy-two somersaults?"

The youth obediently shut his mouth.

Bodhi touched a finger to the space between Xiao Yan's brows, and several verses of an incantation entered his mind along with a cool sensation. This time, the instruction went beyond spiritual sight, explaining one by one how to rein in stray thoughts, discern the flow of qi, and cultivate.

Xiao Yan followed his instructions and settled his mind.

At first, he could only sense the qi vortex in his lower abdomen, then the Dou Qi slowly flowing through his meridians. Once his mind stopped chasing his breathing, tiny motes of light began to emerge faintly around him.

Some were warm, some cool, and some felt as heavy as grains of sand.

These were the forces between heaven and earth that could be used for cultivation.

The Patriarch drew over an exceedingly thin wisp, and Xiao Yan caught it, slowly circulating it along the path he had just learned. Wherever that energy passed, his formerly scattered Dou Qi gradually gathered together, and his qi vortex grew a little more compact.

Just as joy rose in his heart, a prickling ache and pressure came from deep within his meridians, as though several carts had suddenly crowded onto a narrow bridge that could only accommodate one person.

Xiao Yan hurriedly slowed the circulation, sweat already beading on his forehead.

Bodhi dispersed the excess qi, waited for him to settle himself, then asked:

"How does it feel?"

Xiao Yan replied:

"The spiritual energy of heaven and earth is coming in a little too quickly. My body doesn't seem able to hold it all."

Bodhi smiled.

"At least you understand that much."

The Patriarch raised a hand, and two simple cultivation diagrams appeared before him. One shone with clear radiance, while the other faintly outlined bones, sinews, and meridians.

"Absorbing qi is the doorway. To turn the qi you gather into something you can use, you still need a foundational cultivation art."

Xiao Yan wiped away his sweat and looked up, immediately overjoyed.

[Great Grade Heavenly Immortal Art]

[Eight-Nine Arcane Arts]

His hand froze in midair.

The first name reminded him of the monkey who had studied the Dao on Mount Fangcun. The second brought to mind Yang Jian, carrying his Three-Pointed Double-Edged Halberd, calling someone "Uncle" at every turn and taking an axe to a cousin with every swing.

"Master, these two arts are both..."

Bodhi smiled.

"Both can bring you to true attainment. Both can grant you longevity."

Xiao Yan's eyes brightened further.

Yet the Patriarch did not hurry him into choosing, first reaching out to point at the cultivation diagram on the left.

"The Great Grade Heavenly Immortal Art cultivates your nature and life, strengthening your very root. It gathers essence, qi, and spirit, draws together the five elements, and harmonizes yin and yang. Once mastered, it allows you to shed your mortal flesh and enjoy enduring life."

The clear radiance slowly flowed, the fine lines scattered throughout the diagram gathering one by one until they condensed into a sphere of pure, bright light.

"This art points straight to the Great Dao. Those with clear understanding can advance a thousand miles in a day once they grasp its workings. With your root established, studying other spells also becomes easier, as understanding one principle leads you to others."

Xiao Yan's heart burned with excitement as he listened. He asked:

"How fast can it be?"

Bodhi said:

"I once had a disciple who, after receiving the incantation, cultivated for three years and had already secured his root and forged a divine body. However, spiritual energy is thin on the continent where you now reside. To reach the same realm as him, you will likely need a few more years."

At those words, a monkey's furry face immediately sprang into Xiao Yan's mind. He said:

"You wouldn't happen to mean..."

Bodhi lifted his teacup and coughed.

"We are discussing cultivation arts."

"...Yes."

Xiao Yan obediently sat up straight, though his gaze stole another two glances at that sphere of bright light.

An immortal body in three years?

Even if the thin spiritual energy on the Dou Qi Continent slows my cultivation, I can definitely achieve it within ten years. That would still be beyond the reach of those so-called Eight Ancient Clans.

The Soul Hall, the Hun Clan, the Gu Clan... I'll be able to blast them dead with a single fart!

"However, attaining longevity does not mean you can sleep easy forever."

Bodhi gently swept his sleeve, and thunderbolts, raging flames, and howling winds appeared in succession around the sphere of light.

"This path seizes the creative power of heaven and earth. After you succeed, a lightning calamity comes in five hundred years, a fire calamity five hundred years after that, and a wind calamity another five hundred years later. If you cannot evade them, a thousand years of arduous cultivation may come to nothing overnight."

Xiao Yan's smile immediately froze. He remembered that Journey to the West really did seem to mention something like that.

Bodhi's expression remained calm as he said:

"Thus, besides your foundational cultivation art, you must also cultivate divine abilities to protect yourself and evade calamities. Arts of transformation and methods of riding clouds must all be taught separately. Memorizing this incantation will not make them come naturally."

With that, his fingertip moved toward the other diagram.

"The Eight-Nine Arcane Arts take a different path."

The bones and sinews within the diagram suddenly became distinct. Light slowly seeped into the flesh and meridians, and with every complete circuit, the human figure became a little more solid.

"They take the fleshly body as their foundation, tempering flesh and blood, refining bones and sinews, and nourishing vital essence. Each revolution brings its own transformation. At profound mastery, blades cannot harm you, and water and fire cannot assail you. Even if an opponent strikes you with a magical treasure, you will have the strength to meet it head-on. Sending your primordial spirit out of your body and Imitating Heaven and Earth will be effortless!"

"This is called attaining sagehood through the flesh!"

Xiao Yan could not help feeling his own arm. Just hearing those words gave him a sense of security.

"But their greatest marvel does not end there."

Bodhi swept his fingertip across the diagram, and the figure split at the shoulder, half its body dissolving into streams of light.

Xiao Yan's eyelid twitched, but a speck of golden light remained suspended between the figure's brows. The next instant, the scattered radiance surged back, bones and sinews rejoined, and flesh and blood regenerated. In moments, the figure was whole again.

"These arts use the body to nourish the spirit, then the spirit to preserve the form. Once the nine revolutions are complete and the primordial spirit is solidified, even if your head is severed and your body mutilated, you can circulate the arcane arts and rebuild your body, so long as your primordial spirit remains intact."

Xiao Yan's breath caught slightly. He suddenly remembered the story in Investiture of the Gods where the flower fox marten bit off half of Yang Jian's body, yet he still fought his way out of the wicked beast's belly.

Before, he had merely thought True Lord Erlang possessed tremendous abilities.

Only now, hearing the Patriarch break them down, did he understand just where that greatness lay.

Anyone else struck by a blade would have to hurry to find medicine. If he mastered these arcane arts, his opponent would probably have to think first about how to handle his next sword strike after landing that blow.

"Furthermore, eight is a yin number, and nine is a yang number. Multiplied together, they make seventy-two. Hidden within these arcane arts are the Seventy-Two Transformations."

Xiao Yan abruptly looked up, somewhat surprised.

"They include transformations too?"

Bodhi said:

"Naturally. Birds and beasts, rocks and plants—you can transform into them all. Used properly, you can even substitute objects for your body, deceiving enemies and escaping danger."

The Patriarch casually picked up a fallen leaf.

The leaf turned over and became a tiny person barely an inch tall. As soon as the little figure took a blow from his fingertip, only half a withered twig remained in its place, while its true body already stood on the other side of the teacup.

Xiao Yan stared, transfixed.

This was far more than just being able to take a beating.

It meant taking blows, transforming, and even leaving others unable to tell who they were actually hitting.

"Then if I chose the Heavenly Dipper arts and also cultivated the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts, wouldn't that mean..."

Bodhi explained:

"What these arcane arts contain are seventy-two transformations of physical form. The Earthly Fiend arts I showed you earlier—Commune with the Underworld, Command Spirits, Control Water, and Borrow Wind—each have their own methods. Do not confuse them with one another."

The Patriarch glanced at him.

"Besides, even if they are included in the cultivation art, you must still cultivate them yourself."

Xiao Yan nodded, though he could hardly keep the corners of his mouth from rising. Having the methods in hand was better than not having them.

"Are there any difficulties with it?"

Bodhi answered without the slightest hesitation:

"It is slow."

"You may suddenly grasp a principle in a single morning. But flesh, blood, bones, and sinews must be fully tempered layer by layer. The further you advance through the nine revolutions, the harder they become, and the more years and cultivation resources they consume."

Xiao Yan looked toward the sphere of light on the left.

One offered faster progress and a profound foundation for longevity. The other demanded more time and effort to hone, but could forge his body into a truly dependable means of protecting himself.

"What if I want to wield the five elements and fight at close quarters with a sword in the future?"