Spiritual veins were the foundation of cultivation.
The higher the grade of a spiritual vein, the faster one could absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and naturally, the faster one could cultivate.
Spiritual veins were divided into ten grades: grades one through nine, and the divine grade above the ninth.
Yet Lin Mo had only half a spiritual vein in his body, not even enough to qualify as first-grade.
This was also the main reason his parents had sold him to the First Saint Sect as a menial servant.
The number of spiritual veins a person possessed was essentially determined at birth, though there were ways to increase that number through acquired means.
But the cost was far too high, and the requirements were extremely stringent.
As such, this was not a privilege ordinary people could enjoy.
Even if Liu Ziyan really was willing to pour a fortune into improving the grade of Lin Mo's spiritual veins.
Given his innate limitations, coupled with his advanced age, increasing their number would only do so much, and he might not even survive the ordeal.
That was also why Lin Mo was reluctant to cultivate again.
"I really don't understand how that Female Demon's mind works. Can't she just give me a quick death?"
Back when he clung to life and feared death, he had needed to tread carefully and exhaust every ounce of his strength just to scrape by in the First Saint Sect.
Now that he wanted to die, Liu Ziyan refused to kill him.
Who was Lin Mo supposed to appeal to for justice?
Still baffled, Lin Mo returned to his dwelling.
It was a small wooden cabin on the patch of grass to the right of the Purple Heaven Palace's entrance.
The cabin occupied barely a dozen square meters, but it had all the necessities for daily life.
The sun had just risen, and he stood on the grass outside the cabin.
Bathed in the newly risen morning sunlight, Lin Mo felt warmth spreading through his body, and hope that he might keep living suddenly stirred in his heart.
"If this old candle of mine, flickering in the wind, could blaze with searing light once more, that wouldn't be bad. What a pity, though. What a pity..."
"Miracles don't favor the unfortunate."
With a soft sigh, Lin Mo returned to the cabin, his body stooped.
He unfurled the Yang Volume of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art that Liu Ziyan had given him, and rows of profound, obscure text and diagrams met his eyes.
It recorded the cultivation method of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art, its precautions, and its advantages and drawbacks.
Strangely enough, despite his spiritual vein not even qualifying as first-grade and his limited comprehension, Lin Mo actually understood this volume of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art, a cultivation art counted among the finest of the evil path!
And without the slightest difficulty!
"Wait... what's going on? Is this really something an old man like me can understand?"
Lin Mo was stunned.
As if realizing something, Lin Mo immediately focused his mind inward and examined his spiritual vein.
Yet nothing unexpected had happened.
He still had only half a spiritual vein.
His cultivation remained at the second level of the Qi Refining Period.
"Wait...!"
Though his spiritual vein had not changed, Lin Mo discovered that the yang energy within him was unusually vigorous!
Not only that, his meridians and bones faintly radiated an aura as scorching as the sun.
Coupled with the unprecedented fact that he could understand the cultivation method of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art despite his poor aptitude for immortal cultivation.
Lin Mo reached a bold conclusion that filled him with wild joy!
"Could it be... I've awakened the pure yang sacred body?!"
Lin Mo abruptly opened his eyes. Those cloudy eyes, weathered by the long years, had actually become considerably clearer.
Overwhelmed with excitement, his body trembled slightly as well.
Over the past century, Lin Mo had spent little time cultivating because his spiritual vein was so useless.
Instead, he had read quite a few books.
It was no exaggeration to say that he had read practically all the countless books in Liu Ziyan's study.
Among them was a book introducing the various special constitutions found on the Heavenly Abyss Continent.
According to that book, the Heavenly Abyss Continent had a special constitution of utmost yang and unyielding strength, known as the pure yang sacred body.
It was a latent special constitution that had an exceedingly small chance of awakening only when subjected to an onslaught of yin energy of sufficient intensity.
That chance was less than one in hundreds of millions.
Even the odds of being struck by lightning while walking down a sunlit road were far higher.
"So that's why I wasn't drained dry after battling that Female Demon all night. I actually awakened the pure yang body by a twist of fate while battling Liu Ziyan!?"
That explained it. That explained everything!
"Hehehe... Hahahaha! Heaven has eyes after all!"
Lin Mo's eyes widened as he burst into near-maniacal laughter, making no effort to conceal the excitement and wild joy in his heart.
Only moments ago, he had been lamenting that miracles never favored the unfortunate. He had never expected his words to come boomeranging back so quickly.
According to the book, the pure yang sacred body not only offered a terrifying cultivation speed like a dragon sucking up water, but also bestowed supreme talent and comprehension.
Beyond that.
Anyone who awakened the pure yang sacred body would also possess extraordinarily vigorous masculine yang energy.
This made them constantly exude a unique masculine appeal and charm.
Coming back to his senses, Lin Mo, who had already let go of every attachment to this world, rekindled his desire to keep living.
With the pure yang sacred body, turning his fortunes around like a salted fish flipping over was no longer some fool's dream.
Lin Mo immediately stopped wasting time and began studying the Yang Volume of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art that Liu Ziyan had given him.
With the heaven-defying comprehension granted by the pure yang sacred body, the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art, which ordinary cultivators found both obscure and unfathomably profound.
Was as clear and bright as a broad, open highway in Lin Mo's eyes.
Following the cultivation method described in the scroll, Lin Mo took only a few days to achieve initial mastery of the Yang Volume of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art.
A cultivation art was like the foundation of a house.
The sturdier the foundation, the larger and taller the house one could build upon it.
The same principle applied to cultivation arts. The higher an art's grade, the more spiritual power its practitioner could hold compared with someone at the same cultivation level who practiced a lower-grade art.
Thus, since the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art was itself a top-tier art, Lin Mo naturally cared little whether it belonged to the evil path.
"Huh...?"
Just as he was about to put away the Yang Volume of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art, Lin Mo noticed a hidden line of text at the end of the scroll.
Curious, Lin Mo extended his consciousness into the jade scroll once more.
An aged voice promptly sounded beside Lin Mo's ear. "To whoever cultivates this art in later generations, congratulations. You've fallen into a trap."
"?"
A question mark popped up in Lin Mo's eyes. What did that mean?
"I am the Evil Demon Emperor, creator of the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art. The Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art is one of the world's finest dual cultivation arts, sought after by countless millions of evil cultivators across the continent."
"But under pressure from my Dao companion, I had no choice but to make a few small alterations to the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art."
"For anyone who cultivates this art, the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art will bind itself to the yin or yang energy of their first dual cultivation partner. Should they change partners afterward and absorb different yin or yang energy, they will trigger a backlash from the Yin-Yang Evil Demon Art."
"In mild cases, their realm will fall and their cultivation will suffer greatly. In severe cases, their foundation will be harmed, leaving irreversible damage that makes further advancement all but impossible."
"???"
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