Over the next few days, Ao Ding devoted himself to reading, studying all manner of cultivation methods and spells. Whenever he encountered something he did not understand, he went to knock at the Immortal Tomb and ask Sun Chen for an explanation.
Having rashly exercised his Divine Abilities and magical power, Sun Chen sat quietly in the burial chamber after his return, nurturing his qi and awaiting his Liberation by Violence. Even when answering Ao Ding's questions, he never appeared in person. Instead, he used a strand of divided consciousness to cast the "Spirit Aspect Light and Shadow Technique," conjuring an image with his appearance and voice before the tomb.
Those days were grueling for Ao Ding. He neither ate nor drank nor slept, chewing only a single golden bud each day to refresh himself. Yet his spirits soared, and he savored the hardship like honey.
The mysteries of the Great Dao, cultivation methods, and spells lay piled before him like a mountain of treasure.
Thinking back to his time at the Seven Spirits Sect, when had he ever enjoyed such an opportunity?
Ordinarily, several masters of the outer court suppressed him, stubbornly refusing to let him join. Apart from spending money to buy outer-court disciples' insights into cultivation, he could only steal lessons during repeated magical duels or use wagers to entice and pressure outer disciples into surrendering insights that did not touch on the Seven Spirits Sect's legacy.
It was precisely because Ao Ding had collected so many outer-court disciples' cultivation insights that Sun Chen disdained how those disciples of wildly varying quality had misled him, leaving him with a jumble of fallacies and no mastery.
But things were different now!
Book after book of orthodox methods leading straight to the rank of True Person lay before Ao Ding like common street wares, and a True Person taught him day and night, imparting his own insights.
That day, Sun Chen lectured on cultivating one's true essence. As Ao Ding listened, he held the Three-Qi Heavenly Crystal Stone in his right hand, carefully cleansing and refining it with True Heaven Golden Gang.
"We who seek truth and inquire into the Dao must practice orthodox methods.
"To seek one's true essence in order to realize the true method is orthodoxy.
"To seek external power in order to realize the true method is the left-hand path.
"To seek external power without pursuing the true method is a heterodox path."
Sun Chen's divided consciousness explained slowly, "Though it may run counter to common understanding, in the eyes of us True Persons, left-hand and heterodox paths have nothing to do with moral conduct or good and evil character."
The cultivation world's definition of orthodox methods did not depend on whether one's actions were good or bad, or one's morals lofty, but on whether one could realize the true fruit of the immortal Dao.
"An extreme example... if you slaughter countless living beings and, amid the killing, clearly perceive your own true nature, thereby attaining complete understanding and realizing the Dao through slaughter, that too is considered an orthodox method of the immortal schools-of course, your end would be for the Six Sects to join forces to hunt you down, surround you, and throw you straight into the Heavenly Prison. Orthodoxy has nothing to do with morality. It depends only on whether a method allows you to clearly perceive that true nature of your own.
"If you take a shortcut, deciding that perceiving your true nature is too difficult, and seek a spirit medicine or spiritual treasure bearing true nature, replacing your own true nature with that of a spiritual object, then that is a left-hand path outside orthodoxy. The 'Plague-Dispelling Dao' inherited by that Old Daoist Qi is just such a left-hand art. They nurture plague gods and epidemic ghosts, cultivating dharma bodies and Dao aspects. Though they share a common origin with orthodox methods and can also advance to become True Persons, the true nature they perceive belongs to plague gods and epidemic ghosts, not themselves. Of course, genuinely cultivating an orthodox method through plague gods and epidemic ghosts is not impossible either. The Pure Tenuity Sect's 'True Scripture of Deliverance from Plague through Nine Deaths and Ten Tribulations' is an orthodox method of ascending to immortality that uses one's own body to resolve plague poison and thereby refine one's own pure yang."
The True Person waved his hand, and azure light formed another scripture before Ao Ding, wrapped in clusters of azure lotuses.
When Ao Ding accepted it, the scripture sank into the center of his brow by itself.
Over this period, Sun Chen had already imparted more than fifty orthodox methods and wondrous formulas. Most belonged to the Pure Tenuity Sect, interspersed with orthodox scriptures from the other five sects.
Silently contemplating the scripture in his mind, Ao Ding asked intently, "The left-hand path and orthodox methods diverge in their Dao Paths. What about heterodox paths?"
"Heterodox paths..."
An indescribable look appeared on Sun Chen's face.
"Broadly speaking, we consider everything outside the immortal schools' Dao traditions that does not cultivate truth and inquire into the Dao a heterodox path. But there are distinctions even among heterodox paths. Some differ from the immortal schools but are nonetheless the wellspring of an entire Dao tradition. Others neither cultivate the Great Dao nor understand its fruits, pursuing power alone. What we disdain are those inferior heterodox paths that know no orthodox method and see no road ahead."
Ao Ding understood and asked no more.
If there were inferior heterodox paths, naturally there were superior ones.
What were those heterodox paths that cultivated orthodox methods and possessed their own foundations and principles for realizing the Dao?
Gods, buddhas, demons, ghosts, and devils.
As though understanding his thoughts, Sun Chen added,
"The Great Dao is one, transmitted along three thousand paths. Though broadly speaking we consider the traditions of gods, buddhas, devils, and ghosts Outer Dao and heterodox paths, in truth, how does what they seek differ from what our immortal schools seek? Buddhism speaks of 'emptiness,' the Demon Cult of 'self,' the Divine Dao of 'spirit,' and the ghost path of 'consciousness.' That is fundamentally no different from our provisionally naming the 'Dao' as 'truth.'"
After selectively explaining some cultivation principles of other traditions and the signature methods of the Buddhist Five Temples, the Demon Cult Four Aspects, and the Divine Dao Three Palaces, Sun Chen turned to ask what Ao Ding had learned that day.
"I learned eight more spells today. Retrieving objects from afar, entering souls through dreams, the Spiritual Illumination Spell..."
Ao Ding listed eight spells in one breath.
"I also read the 'Pure Subtlety Heavenly Heart Five Thunder Method,' the 'Azure Heaven Calamity-Delivering Spirit Chapter,' and the 'Purple Mansion Primordial Sovereign Supreme Ultimate Golden Register'..."
Sun Chen fell silent.
He had to admit that this boy's thirst for learning was far too strong.
In just a few days, he had learned fifty spells and finished the initial batch of cultivation methods Sun Chen had chosen for him.
Even if he had not mastered them completely, he at least understood the meaning of their texts and could ponder and cultivate them himself in the future.
That "True Person's Eye" really did defy heaven!
Over these past few days, Ao Ding and Sun Chen had worked out the changes to the "True Person's Eye" at the Mystic Gang Realm.
First, the True Person's Eye could still be used three times daily. If those three uses were spaced apart, allowing rest between them, each could last roughly an hour. But if he wanted one prolonged use, the limit was two hours. Any longer would place an increasing burden on the eye, causing Ao Ding to go temporarily blind.
Second, after Ao Ding performed "Hanging Upside Down to Observe Heaven," the True Person's Eye awakened a new ability. He could perceive the trajectories of laws flowing through heaven and earth and comprehend the "Three Heavens Great Grotto True Seals." Looking at Qianling Mountain, he comprehended true seals such as "heaven" and "mountain." Looking at the sky, he comprehended true seals such as "sky," "sun," "moon," and "cloud."
Third, the True Person's Eye's ability to perceive true nature and observe living beings had also improved. When Ao Ding cultivated a method, his left eye could carefully observe every trace of its circulation within his body, allowing him to make corrections and even find flaws.
Such powerful abilities gave Sun Chen a new conjecture about the "True Person's Eye."
Perhaps it was not an ordinary True Person's eye, but the heavenly eye of a Great True Person.
A dharma eye saw through the three realms and ten directions; a divine eye discerned the transformations of all things.
Looking at Ao Ding's faintly reddened left eye, Sun Chen sighed. "Don't push yourself too hard. You can study slowly over the next three years."
Ao Ding said nothing.
Three years would be too late. Before Liberation by Violence and reincarnation, he had to be capable of protecting himself, and even of playing a role at a crucial moment.
"Rest assured. Since I dared draw someone into my grudges, naturally I have a foolproof plan. Keeping you safe won't be difficult."
But what about Senior Sun Chen himself?
Ao Ding still said nothing.
He certainly did not want this senior to abandon Liberation by Violence at a crucial moment because he was a burden, protecting his escape at the cost of his own soul's utter destruction or something of the sort.
It had to succeed. It must succeed.
Nothing must go wrong with the Liberation by Violence.
Seeing that Ao Ding would not listen, Sun Chen felt rather helpless.
It was perfectly normal, was it not?
It would be stranger if a youngster actually listened to ordinary advice.
Ting-
Suddenly, the Heavenly Crystal Stone in Ao Ding's palm gave a melodious chime.
Both looked over. The Heavenly Crystal Stone had shed all its impurities and become a crystal disc two inches across.
"A little thick. It still needs refining. Let this humble Daoist help you refine it into a treasure blank..."
"No need to trouble you, Senior." Ao Ding stared at the Heavenly Crystal Stone, his left eye slowly opening.
A gilded flame ignited out of thin air in his palm. On closer inspection, a true seal meaning "fire" lay within it.
The fire seal of the Three Heavens Great Grotto Seals.
Then true seals for light, flame, blazing heat, and others appeared beside the fire seal. Numerous true seals with similar attributes intertwined, forming a rotating crimson seal array.
Seeing this, Sun Chen nodded inwardly. He understands how to combine true seals. Creating spells isn't far off.
True seals, divine writings of the Great Dao born of heaven and earth, could be considered the most primordial spells. The myriad arts of the immortal schools were all built upon true seals. However, as the Six Sects continued to develop, each had established its own system of true seals, and they now made little use of the Three Heavens Great Grotto True Seals. Even Sun Chen himself had mastered only thirty thousand Three Heavens Great Grotto True Seals.
A few days earlier, he had joked that there were only eighty thousand Three Heavens Great Grotto True Seals, and with the ability of Ao Ding's eye and his intensive pace of learning, he might understand all eighty thousand within a few years.
Of course, that was a joke.
True seals representing manifestations of the Great Dao, such as heaven, earth, sun, and moon, were laid plainly before all living beings and were easy to comprehend. But those more obscure laws were difficult to understand. Ten thousand was one threshold; beyond that, thirty thousand was another. Then fifty thousand was yet another threshold. The further one progressed, the slower one comprehended true seals.
The flames burned soundlessly, and the crystal disc gradually took the form Ao Ding wanted. Even the liquid burned out of it during this further refining was not discarded. Instead, Ao Ding wrapped it in his Divine Sense and used True Heaven Golden Gang to refine it into a mass of golden liquid.
Little by little, the golden liquid wrapped around the crystal disc's edge, forming a golden ring.
"Good, that will do-the treasure blank is ready."
Watching the single-lens Ai Dai gradually take shape, Sun Chen reminded him, "It's time to inscribe the Guangfa Spiritual Mirror Mystical Perfection Formula inside."
With his full attention focused, Ao Ding stared at the crystal disc using his left eye's spiritual power, and the first true seal emerged within.
He had already translated the Guangfa Spiritual Mirror Mystical Perfection Formula into "Three Heavens Great Grotto True Seals," thirteen hundred in all. Once he imprinted this secret formula within and lodged a strand of his divided consciousness there, it would automatically operate the formula's mysteries and begin analyzing cultivation methods.
His extensive study of true seals over these past few days had all been for this moment.
One, two, three...
True seals formed endlessly within the crystal disc. The spell formula he had memorized over and over these past few days arranged itself within in orderly fashion.
When the final Three Heavens True Seal was successfully inscribed, the seal-script space within the crystal disc collapsed with a crash. Then thirteen hundred true seals shone with golden light, and endless clouds and mist slowly unfurled, forming a spiritual domain.
"Now! Send in your divided consciousness!" Sun Chen shouted, and Ao Ding immediately cast the "Borrowed Staff Possession Technique."
This, too, was a common method among the immortal schools, allowing one to divide off Divine Sense and attach it to an object.
As a white filament shot from Ao Ding's brow and sank into the spiritual domain within the crystal disc, an entirely new fluctuation of spiritual power radiated from his palm.
"It worked." Ao Ding smiled. He could feel his connection to this monocle, as though they were one.
Immediately afterward, he placed the lens before his left eye. True Heaven Golden Gang automatically flowed from its edge, securing the lens like a frame and cord.
Sun Chen studied the youth wearing the single-lens Ai Dai. The originally handsome, spirited youth now seemed to possess an added measure of refinement and scholarly elegance.
"Not bad. What is this Dharma Artifact called?"
"The Cloud Aspect Primordial Truth Mirror." Within the vision of Ao Ding's left eye, countless white clouds and mists still churned, while a mass of Divine Sense and spiritual awareness floated within the mirror's space.
"A good name."
Sun Chen said no more and sent another cartload of cultivation texts out of the tomb.
Seeing the still-fresh ink of the writing, Ao Ding glanced at Sun Chen in surprise.
Sun Chen chuckled without speaking.
Had the entire Seven Spirits Sect come, many things would not have needed preparation-surely the Seven Spirits Sect's inner court would not lack Jade Casket Spirit Compendiums and Turtle Script and Cinnabar Scrolls?
But Ao Ding was different. To let Ao Ding cultivate the "Mystical Perfection Formula," Sun Chen had recopied who knew how many cultivation methods over these past few days.
"Once you return, transcribe them as soon as possible to activate your Mystical Perfection Formula. Have you chosen the three cultivation methods?"
"I have. The 'Golden Light Method,' the 'Northern Yin Netherworld Hell Method,' and the 'Immortal Nest Nine Palaces Scripture.'"
"The Immortal Nest Nine Palaces Scripture?" Sun Chen frowned slightly.
Why that one?
Admittedly, after generations of development by the immortal schools, the Nine Palaces Scripture had reached the level of a "Jade Casket Spirit Compendium." But what sensible person chose an orthodox method for constructing cultivation grounds and domains?
He was not a cultivator of the Golden Court Sect.
"The Nine Palaces Scripture has one subtle feature: it emphasizes application rather than an internal cultivation method, and uses the 'House-Building Technique' to classify the power levels of different spells. I like that very much. It will also help the Mystical Perfection Formula analyze Dao methods and spells in the future, and even sort them into categories."
Wouldn't using the Nine Palaces Scripture to establish a library inside the Primordial Truth Mirror be more convenient than using the Seven Spirits Sect's cultivation method?
"Since you have a plan, let's do that."
Sun Chen did not understand the Mystical Perfection Formula, nor did he understand the ideas of his fellow disciples in the Guangfa Sect. All he could say was... whatever made him happy.
"Right, go back early today to transcribe the cultivation methods. However, I'll give you an extra assignment today."
Sun Chen said, "Ordinary cultivators believe that spells for killing and taking lives, because of their immense power, are far harder to cultivate than summoning wind and rain, breathing fire, or controlling stones, and consume tremendous magical power. But in the eyes of us True Persons, killing is much simpler than summoning wind and rain. Why is that? Think carefully about this assignment while you transcribe and work through the cultivation methods."
Before you continue