Clear Wind Soothes the Spirit, Bright Moon Illuminates the Soul

The method of visualization is not to visualize the shape of clear wind and bright moon, but to visualize their divine intent.

Clear wind is refreshing and carefree, blowing gently without being fierce, awakening the spirit without harming the soul; the bright moon hangs in the sky, eternal, the essence of the Great Yin, nourishing all things.

Shi Xuan's soul seemed to be seated above the Sea of Consciousness. It was as if he had gone out in the early morning, and a clear wind blew towards him, invigorating his spirit. The clear wind blew through his soul, taking away the various acquired impurities that had accumulated over time. At the same time, anxiety, unease, excitement, anger, and other emotions, which arose from events, dispersed with the wind, no longer leaving behind imprints that obscured the true spirit, gradually revealing a clear and transparent soul.

Above his head, the bright moon was like a wheel, slowly rotating, drawing the internal energy into itself. Then, it was as if the heavens were showering sweet rain, and threads of moonlight essence fell, drenching the soul. Shi Xuan's soul, following the rhythm of the clear wind, absorbed the moonlight essence that fell upon it, nourishing his soul, and then the clear wind carried away the impurities.

After an unknown amount of time, when Shi Xuan felt that his soul had grown considerably and had reached saturation in absorbing essence, he ended his visualization and withdrew from his meditative state.

The soul is formless and intangible, while internal energy is formless yet tangible. There is a vast chasm between the two, and it is difficult for internal energy to directly nourish the soul. Even nourishing the soul with Qi and Blood is only possible due to the mysterious connection between the physical body and the soul. Therefore, visualization is needed to build a bridge between the soul and internal energy, transforming internal energy into essence that the soul can absorb. Of course, this is only one of the functions of visualization at this stage. When one's realm is higher in the future, through internal visualization, one can connect with the corresponding laws of heaven and earth, and then directly absorb the essence of heaven and earth and comprehend the laws of heaven and earth.

After Shi Xuan awoke from his meditation, he adjusted his breathing slightly and found that most of the internal energy accumulated today had been consumed. He quickly followed the Qi circulation route from the "Jade Pivot Twelve Rivers, Eight Lakes, Seventy-Two Great Rivers Qi Circulation Secret Record" in the "Treasure Record" to circulate his internal energy. Of course, at present, he could only follow the Minor Heavenly Cycle routes described in the Twelve Meridians and Eight Extraordinary Meridians. Shi Xuan concentrated his mind, controlling the internal energy to flow out from his Dantian. He felt that after this visualization, his control over internal energy had become more adept with the strengthening of his soul.

After circulating Qi through several Minor Heavenly Cycles, the internal energy continuously absorbed the heat dissipating from all parts of his body, doubling in strength. Compared to his previous Qi circulation methods, the efficiency had increased severalfold.

He continued circulating Qi through three hundred and sixty-five Minor Heavenly Cycles before stopping. This number of Minor Heavenly Cycles for a Major Heavenly Cycle was just right; the dissipated heat had been completely absorbed. Circulating further would likely convert the body's original essence.

Based on the internal energy accumulated from this Major Heavenly Cycle circulation and the internal energy consumed by strengthening his soul through visualization, Shi Xuan estimated that it would take more than four months to fill the Twelve Meridians and Eight Extraordinary Meridians. According to the "Jade Pivot Twelve Rivers, Eight Lakes, Seventy-Two Great Rivers Qi Circulation Secret Record," it would take about seven months to open the seventy-two minor meridians. As for how long it would take for his soul to grow to the Peak Soul Strengthening Stage, the previous Du Bai had no experience, so Shi Xuan could not estimate, as he had no idea of the strength of a soul at the Peak Soul Strengthening Stage.

The current troublesome issue was that the daily food required to replenish his consumption cost about two taels of silver, which could already pay for a good banquet at a restaurant. Shi Xuan, not demanding good cooking or ingredients, still spent two taels of silver, which showed how much he was eating. His neighbors were amazed by Shi Xuan's appetite, which had more than doubled.

In terms of time, Shi Xuan would need about seven hundred taels of silver to reach Great Accomplishment of Qi Nourishing Stage. However, after buying medicinal herbs for body tempering and his consumption over the past few months, he had less than four hundred taels of silver left, a deficit of three hundred taels. It was worth noting that an ordinary family in a Prefecture City earned only twenty to thirty taels of silver per year.

However, at this moment, Shi Xuan did not want to go out and find any work to earn money. He was currently at a stage where he could see obvious progress in his cultivation every day, wishing he could turn one day into two for practice.

Shi Xuan considered it and decided to sell this small courtyard. After all, once he reached Great Accomplishment of Qi Nourishing Stage, he would travel the world seeking immortality and the Dao. Apart from entrusting the Old Daoist Xu's clansmen to look after it, the small courtyard would eventually be sold. The value of the small courtyard was around two hundred and eighty taels. He was not in a hurry to sell it, and the money he had would last for seven to eight months. If he slowly found a buyer, he should be able to sell it at a good price. After deducting the fees for the Real Estate Agency, bribes to the Yamen, and deed tax, he should have about two hundred and forty taels of silver in his account.

Furthermore, after selling the small courtyard, he would need to rent a quiet place for about four months, which would cost another dozen or so taels of silver. Alas, it seemed he would still be short by about eighty taels. Well, if he were to steal from the rich, it would be no difficulty with his Daoist magic, and he wouldn't leave any clues. However, he was accustomed to obeying the law, and unless he was in dire straits, it would be difficult for him to make up his mind to do so. He would save this method for last, and if it came to that point, he would not have any psychological burden.

Thus, Shi Xuan put up a sign at the Real Estate Agency to sell the small courtyard, and at the same time, he asked Shopkeeper Liu to invite a friend who worked at the Yamen to have a meal together. This was to get acquainted, so that when he sold the house and went to the Yamen to register the deed and pay the deed tax, he wouldn't be overcharged too much.

Of course, Shi Xuan's main energy was still focused on cultivation. Every day, he diligently practiced the "Jade Pivot Twelve Rivers, Eight Lakes, Seventy-Two Great Rivers Qi Circulation Secret Record" and the "True Method of Clear Wind and Bright Moon Illuminating the Spirit" without any slackening. In five months, his soul's strength had advanced by leaps and bounds. He was no longer like when he first arrived, becoming exhausted after casting a spell or two. His internal energy had also made great progress. Not only had he filled the Twelve Meridians and Eight Extraordinary Meridians, but after several failures, he had finally opened one minor meridian, and then, uncontrollably, opened twelve more.

At noon on this day, after having lunch, Shi Xuan returned to his small courtyard. Before he could even sit down, he heard the sound of the door knocker. Shi Xuan thought it was someone from the Real Estate Agency bringing a potential buyer, as he had arranged with the Real Estate Agency to show the courtyard after noon, and not for more than an hour, due to his daily cultivation.

The Real Estate Agency had brought people to see the courtyard several times before, but they had never agreed on the price. Shi Xuan was not in a hurry, as the money he had would last for another two to three months.

Shi Xuan opened the courtyard gate, and to his surprise, the person outside was not from the Real Estate Agency, but an acquaintance – a handsome young man in his early twenties, wearing a brocade robe.

Before the Old Daoist Xu went out to seek immortality, he had created a martial art that cultivated both internal and external aspects, the "Returning to Truth Art," based on the "Returning to Truth Scripture," and left it within his clan. The Old Daoist Xu's clan was previously just a wealthy merchant family, often extorted by people from the Jianghu. Later, based on this martial art, they collected some secret manuals and produced several masters, gradually gaining a reputation in the Jianghu. They bought land and operated silk and cloth businesses, as well as illicit salt in secret, in Xia'an Prefecture, becoming a local power. However, because the Old Daoist Xu himself was not very skilled in martial arts, his written manuals were insufficient in injuring opponents, and he lacked good accompanying techniques. Therefore, the Xu family could only be considered a third-rate family in the Jianghu.

Ten years ago, when the Old Daoist Xu returned to Xia'an Prefecture, although he did not live with his clan, he did not sever ties with them. The Xu family greatly fawned over this Old Ancestor, not only sending him monthly tributes and gifts during festivals but also selecting many high-quality children from within the clan to be taught by this immortal-like Old Ancestor. Being able to learn even a little bit of immortal techniques from the Old Ancestor was considered immense fortune.

Unfortunately, although these children had good talent, they seemed to have little understanding of Daoist magic, but learned body tempering and Qi nourishing very quickly. The Old Daoist Xu himself had great expectations for his clan to produce another Daoist cultivator, but as this situation continued, he gave up his hopes and focused on teaching Du Bai. As for those children, after cultivating to the level of an Internal Art Master in the Qi Nourishing Stage, they were sent back to the Xu family, and the Xu family was not allowed to send any more children.

However, based on his experiences fighting or discussing with martial arts masters outside over the years, the Old Daoist Xu revised the content of the "Returning to Truth Art" and added the collected secret techniques and moves, which was considered a fulfillment of his obligation to the Xu family.

The young man who came to visit today was precisely the most talented among that batch of children – Xu Tianqi. He was sent over at the age of ten and reached the Qi Nourishing Stage in just six years. Unfortunately, after entering the Qi Nourishing Stage, he was not diligent in visualization cultivation, focusing only on internal energy cultivation. Moreover, he was practicing the Qi circulation method of the new "Returning to Truth Art." After two years, he made no significant progress in Daoist magic, and was subsequently sent back to the Xu family by the Old Daoist Xu.

In the Jianghu, anyone who reached the Qi Nourishing Stage before the age of twenty was undoubtedly a disciple of a prestigious sect with outstanding talent. Therefore, Xu Tianqi's realm as an Internal Art Master at the age of eighteen gained him considerable fame in the Jianghu. Xu Tianqi greatly enjoyed this feeling and subsequently roamed the Jianghu, having some fortuitous encounters, and thus forged a considerable reputation – praised by many as one of the top twenty masters among the younger generation. Xu Tianqi was actually secretly somewhat unconvinced, thinking that if his Xu family wasn't only considered second-rate now (after the "New Returning to Truth Art"), and even though he hadn't yet opened the Ren and Du Meridians, the starting points of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, his abundant internal energy alone should place him in the top ten. The title of one of the Four Young Masters of the Martial World was not out of reach.