Sitting on the stone steps, Ouyang flipped through the book in his hands. The water spell Water Dragon and the fire spell Fire Phoenix fit the old man's requirements perfectly.
Heaven and Earth Essence could transform into the five elements and all things. In this world, it was almost omnipotent.
Spells used the true qi or true essence within a cultivator's body, circulated in a specific pattern, together with commands, talismans, formations, and a whole range of other methods.
By linking the Heaven and Earth Essence within oneself to the Heaven and Earth Essence between heaven and earth, one could give it tangible forms such as wind, fire, earth, water, lightning, wood, and metal to attack or defend.
The more profound the spell, the greater the demands on a cultivator's true qi reserves and comprehension of the Dao of the Five Elements.
Correspondingly, the spell would also be more powerful.
Spellcasters with profound cultivation could use Spell Arts to reshape the terrain, influence the weather, turn day into night, and bring torrential rain to an abrupt halt. They could turn heaven and earth upside down!
Truly, such terrifying power.
Yet spells were only one way cultivators used Heaven and Earth Essence.
There were three thousand Great Daos. Each person pursued a different Dao, and the transformations Heaven and Earth Essence could undergo were beyond the fathoming of gods and ghosts.
Ouyang understood none of that profound stuff. His understanding of Spell Arts amounted to clapping his hands together and getting whatever he shouted for.
He forgot a spell after using it once, then read it again after forgetting.
Take the Water Dragon he had just used last time, for instance. Now, not even a shadow of it remained in his memory.
He picked up the book and read through the Water Dragon Art's circulation route. The moment he closed the book, he had already forgotten most of it.
That tiny bit of root bone he had really seemed downright poisonous.
Suddenly, the doors to the rear hall opened, and Dongxu Zi and Hu Tutu came out.
Ouyang tucked the book back into his pocket. He was about to ask Hu Tutu whether things had gone smoothly when he noticed that her eyes were as red as a rabbit's.
She had clearly just cried and looked utterly pitiful.
???
Ouyang stepped forward, grabbed Dongxu Zi's beard, and snarled, "Old man, I already agreed to your terms. Have you gone back on your word again?"
"Hey, ow, ow, ow! Can't you get your facts straight before laying hands on me? What does this have to do with me?" Dongxu Zi cursed furiously as he pried at Ouyang's hand.
"Senior Brother, it has nothing to do with Grandpa Sect Master. It's my own fault!" Hu Tutu sniffled, her voice thick and nasal.
Then Hu Tutu reached out a little hand and tugged at Ouyang's clothes. Looking at him pleadingly, she said, "Senior Brother, can we go back to Little Mountain Peak? I want to go back now."
Ouyang looked at Hu Tutu, then released Dongxu Zi's beard and scooped her up. "Don't worry, Tutu. Your senior brother is here. I've got your back. Go ahead and tell me. No old fossil would dare bully you."
As he spoke, Ouyang cast a sidelong glance at Dongxu Zi, who snapped irritably, "You might as well call me out by name, brat!"
Ouyang was about to talk back, but Hu Tutu reached out a little hand and covered his mouth.
Seeing how considerate Hu Tutu was, Dongxu Zi felt deeply comforted. Suddenly remembering something, he pulled a Paper Crane from inside his robes and handed it to her. "By seniority, I'm your senior martial uncle. Since this is our first meeting, I'll give you this Paper Crane!"
Hu Tutu accepted the Paper Crane and whispered, "Thank you, Grandpa Sect Master, Senior Martial Uncle."
Ouyang curled his lip. "You're stingy enough to kill someone. For a first-meeting gift, you actually gave her a scrap of paper?"
"Get lost, get lost, get lost! Just seeing you shaves years off my life, brat. Hurry up and scram!" Dongxu Zi waved impatiently at Ouyang as he cursed. Then he swept his fly whisk through the air and vanished before them.
"Both such penny-pinchers. No wonder they're martial brothers!" Thinking of his own master, Ouyang couldn't help muttering a curse.
He turned toward the Paper Crane in Hu Tutu's hands and gave a soft sound of surprise. Taking it from her, he could distinctly sense his own true qi within it.
Was this the Paper Crane that delivered a message to me yesterday?
That old fellow really wouldn't part with a single feather! He even gave away used things as gifts.
The Paper Crane fluttered its wings and rose from Ouyang's hand. As though it recognized him, it kept circling and flitting around him.
Hu Tutu also found the fluttering Paper Crane fascinating. She gently raised her hand, and it obligingly landed in her palm.
Suddenly, the Paper Crane flashed with white light and disappeared from Hu Tutu's hand. She raised her hand and stared in surprise at the new Paper Crane design on her index fingernail.
"Senior Brother, this Paper Crane is actually a magic treasure!" Hu Tutu told Ouyang delightedly.
"Huh? A magic treasure? Don't tell me the old fellow refined it again after the Paper Crane flew back yesterday?" Ouyang immediately understood.
Magic treasures were essential equipment for cultivators.
Whether for fighting enemies or defending themselves, a high-grade magic treasure could drive any cultivator wild.
A magic treasure's rank was closely tied to its quality, but broadly speaking, there were five grades:
Magic artifacts, magic treasures, spirit treasures, Dao artifacts, and Dao treasures.
A Dao treasure was exceedingly precious. There were only a handful in the entire Cultivation World. Even the Azure Cloud Sect, one of the Nine Great Sacred Lands, could not resist the temptation if it received news of one.
Every Dao treasure represented the pinnacle of a Dao. The Dao resonance contained within it was enough for a cultivator to advance from an ordinary mortal all the way to the legendary Immortal Realm!
An immortal! That was the realm every cultivator dreamed of reaching!
Ouyang had naturally seen all kinds of magic treasures and magic artifacts.
But he had only ever seen one spirit treasure: a longsword his master had brought back from outside for Bajie.
Apparently, it was an extremely rare, supreme-grade spirit treasure. Ever since receiving that sword, Bajie had practically wanted to hug it to sleep every night.
Ouyang could only look on enviously, though, because all he had was a rope that did not even qualify as a magic artifact. Only cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Realm or above could wield magic treasures.
As someone eternally stuck at the Qi Refining Stage, Ouyang could control nothing but a rope. He could not even use the magic artifacts intended for Qi Refining Stage cultivators.
Ouyang thought for a moment, then said to Hu Tutu, "Tutu, summon it!"
Hu Tutu nodded and gently closed her eyes. White light appeared in her hand again, and the Paper Crane reappeared in her palm.
Ouyang picked up the Paper Crane and sent a steady stream of true qi into it.
The moment the Paper Crane touched Ouyang's true qi, it was like a fish finding water. It leaped with joy, frantically absorbing his true qi.
Unfortunately, the Paper Crane's body was simply too small. It stopped after absorbing it for only a short while.
Ouyang withdrew his true qi. The Paper Crane before him had absorbed 1,000 points of his true qi. Unless he reclaimed those absorbed points, he would lose them forever.
But for Ouyang, who earned at least 1,000 true qi points every time he idled, that loss was neither an itch nor an ache.
Come to think of it, there hasn't been any response from this idle session for two days. It's been running for quite a while!
After absorbing the true qi, the Paper Crane glowed all over with a white halo. Suddenly, it lifted its head, and a clear crane cry rang out from its beak.
The Paper Crane had completed its transformation from a magic treasure into a spirit treasure, fully awakening its intelligence!
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