The wonders of the True Origin Scripture opened Xu Qingtong's eyes. He had two primordial spirits and powerful divine sense. If he cultivated the True Origin Scripture as well, wouldn't he climb another step atop a hundred-foot pole and advance even further?
Unable to contain his excitement, Xu Qingtong began cultivating the True Origin Scripture. According to the scripture, that which apprehended things was called the heart; what the heart recalled was called intent; when intent remained steady, the spirit became clear, and when intent fell into disorder, the spirit became confused. A person's intent could control his primordial spirit, and his primordial spirit could control his divine sense.
He sank his awareness into his Niwang Palace and looked at his two primordial spirits. I'll start practicing on you two!
Following the True Origin Scripture, Xu Qingtong directed his spiritual thoughts to temper and forge his primordial spirits. The two furry fellows were like lumps of modeling clay, flattened one moment and stretched long the next.
Children were playful by nature, and Xu Qingtong was no exception. He circulated the True Origin Scripture, rubbing and pinching his primordial spirits, kneading them this way and that. Gradually, he grew familiar with the method of controlling divine sense and the principles of transforming primordial spirits.
More than half a month passed, and Xu Qingtong reached a bottleneck in his cultivation of the True Origin Scripture. He could already mold his two primordial spirits into whatever shapes he imagined. Yet once he stopped circulating the True Origin Scripture, they slowly returned to their original forms.
Xu Qingtong racked his brains, but no amount of pondering yielded an answer. Suddenly, he remembered something Dong Xuanzi had said: "Apply intent externally, and unite intent with spirit!" Did that mean attaching "intent" to the outside of the "spirit," controlling its form and becoming one with it?
Sure enough, once he applied intent, the spirit gained a framework, flesh, and blood, and no longer reverted to its original appearance. However, once that conscious intent disappeared, the primordial spirit still returned to its original form. How could he unite intent with spirit? Dong Xuanzi had not explained that in detail. With no other choice, he could only keep practicing, using his intent to control his primordial spirit and mold it into the shape he wanted.
Xu Qingtong had no idea how many times he practiced before, at last, he felt the intent attached to his primordial spirit vanish for no apparent reason. Yet even after a long time, the primordial spirit did not return to its original form. He thought it over, and understanding suddenly dawned.
So, enough "deliberate" practice became "unconscious" action. It was like practicing calligraphy when he was little. At first, every lift, press, pause, and turn, along with the movement of the brush, had been under his deliberate control. After enough practice, deliberate action became unconscious. Even without consciously controlling the brush, he could write beautiful characters as naturally as water flowed into a channel.
To test his conjecture, Xu Qingtong studied the True Origin Scripture again. This time, he unexpectedly discovered that after explaining the first level, Dong Xuanzi did not stop, but continued on to the second. After listening to the second level, Xu Qingtong understood. Only once he mastered the first level of the True Origin Scripture would Dong Xuanzi impart the second.
Clearly, his earlier realization had carried him through the first level of the True Origin Scripture.
Xu Qingtong could not help feeling a little disgruntled. Why wouldn't that old Daoist Dong Xuanzi give him the entire cultivation method? Why squeeze it out bit by bit, as though pressing oil? If he dropped dead, wouldn't the method be lost forever?
Casting aside his distracting thoughts, Xu Qingtong resumed cultivating the True Origin Scripture. This time, he decided to forge his primordial spirit into his own likeness. The shapes he had forged before-leaves, swords, and the like-had been relatively simple and easy to manage. This time was different. He intended to forge a primordial spirit that looked exactly like him.
It was easier said than done. After forging the torso and limbs, Xu Qingtong felt that the task had outstripped his strength. When he tried to sculpt the head, he failed.
His next several attempts all ended in failure without exception. An overwhelming weariness washed over Xu Qingtong, and he stopped cultivating and lay down on his bed to rest.
As the sayings went, haste made no progress, and a craftsman who wished to do good work must first sharpen his tools. After resting for a while, Xu Qingtong took out the True Origin Scripture again and began studying it. Its second level explained the method of controlling divine sense in much finer detail.
Then Xu Qingtong recalled a detail. During his previous attempts at forging, he had used intent to control one primordial spirit's transformations while the other cultivated the Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art. Could he have the other primordial spirit help?
At that thought, Xu Qingtong sprang up, sat cross-legged, and sank his awareness into his Niwang Palace. He used his intent to make one primordial spirit begin transforming, while the other became a master sculptor and assisted from the side.
This time, he finally succeeded in forging one primordial spirit into his own likeness. Then he repeatedly forged and restored it, restored and forged it, until intent and spirit became one, and a brand-new version of himself appeared in his Niwang Palace.
Looking at the primordial spirit that resembled him exactly, Xu Qingtong smiled in satisfaction. With a shift of his intent, the primordial spirit opened his eyes. Delighted, Xu Qingtong had him blink, lift his legs, wave his hands, and perform other movements. He carried them all out smoothly, without the slightest awkwardness.
Why not strike while the iron is hot and forge the other primordial spirit into my likeness too? Xu Qingtong thought. After a brief rest, he circulated the True Essence Formula again and began forging his second primordial spirit.
Xu Qingtong discovered that the primordial spirit in his own likeness was far more nimble than the furball-shaped one, and the efficiency of the forging improved markedly as well. In less than an hour, the other primordial spirit was finished too. He tried erasing the strand of intent within that primordial spirit, who quickly reverted to a furball. With another shift of intent, the furball turned back into his likeness. He controlled the two primordial spirits as they tussled and played inside his Niwang Palace, finding it more and more entertaining.
After playing for a while, Xu Qingtong began pondering again. Since his primordial spirits could take on his appearance, could they practice spells as he did? With that thought, he directed one primordial spirit to begin practicing the Object Manipulation Technique according to the Cultivation Basics Guide. Yet he had barely begun before he realized he had been far too naive. His primordial spirit had only the outward appearance, not the inner structure. Without meridians or a dantian, how the hell could he cultivate?
Xu Qingtong thought, If I could forge a primordial spirit exactly like my physical body, I could cultivate a cultivation art and practice spells at the same time. My aptitude is terrible, but if both primordial spirits could cultivate simultaneously, even if I couldn't catch up with those who have a single spiritual root, surely I wouldn't fall too far behind!
To carry out his plan smoothly, Xu Qingtong brought both his magic power and his energy to their peak condition, then began another round of forging his primordial spirit.
Five days later, after tireless effort, Xu Qingtong finally succeeded. A primordial spirit exactly like his physical body appeared in his Niwang Palace. Over those five days, he had endured countless failures. His eyes were bloodshot from the strain, and his face was utterly haggard. Several times, he had wanted to give up, but in the end, he persevered.
As the sayings went, Heaven did not forsake those who labored with devotion; each measure of tilling yielded a measure of harvest, and effort always brought its reward. Forging his primordial spirit this time not only made him more proficient in applying the second-level mental method of the True Origin Scripture, but also strengthened his resolve to pursue immortality!
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