The Heavenly Emperor's Blessing

All the Origin Profound Qi converted by the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment flowed into Zhou Wuji's divine aperture.

Through the Northern Dipper Tianshu Scripture, he circulated and transformed the eleven strands of Origin Profound Qi.

At the Northern Pole Sect's Eighth-Rank Qi Ingestion stage, one first opened the divine aperture between the brows, then the seven apertures of the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, advancing to the seventh rank.

Finally, one opened the Baihui acupoint at the crown of the head, bringing spiritual communion to all nine apertures and reaching the sixth grade.

The nine opened apertures in the head were connected to form the upper Dantian.

Dantian meant a treasured ground that had become capable of nurturing an inner core.

Completing the upper Dantian marked perfection of the sixth grade.

Opening the heart aperture meant advancing to the fifth grade.

Opening all five apertures of the five organs brought the five elements together to form the middle Dantian. With essence brimming and spirit full, this was Fifth Rank Perfection.

The next step was opening the Qihai aperture, reaching the fourth grade.

Opening the five apertures of Shenque, Guanyuan, Guilai, Huiyin, and Weilü and connecting them into the lower Dantian marked perfection of the fourth grade.

Zhou Wuji had cultivated under Daoist Yiyuan since childhood. As a direct disciple, he knew quite a bit about the Northern Pole Sect's cultivation realms below the fourth grade.

The Northern Pole Sect placed the greatest emphasis on cultivating the spirit. Thus, opening the apertures necessarily began with the divine aperture between the brows, followed by the seven apertures and the Baihui acupoint, using the spiritual communion of these nine apertures to nurture the spirit.

This was also the foundation of all cultivation.

The Northern Pole Sect believed that the seven apertures corresponded to the seven stars, and each aperture was highly distinctive.

The left eye corresponded to Tianshu, the right eye to Tianxuan, the left ear to Tianji, and the right ear to Tianquan.

The eleven strands of Origin Profound Qi converted through the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment first flowed deep into his left eye, opening the secret aperture hidden within it.

They then flowed into his right eye, left ear, and right ear, opening four apertures in succession and consuming more than ninety percent of the Origin Profound Qi.

Each time an aperture opened, Zhou Wuji sensed the corresponding star's Spiritual Qi.

Though named Tianshu, the Northern Dipper Tianshu Scripture actually used Tianshu as its foundation and also contained methods for harnessing the other six stars of the Northern Dipper.

As Zhou Wuji established Spiritual Qi connections with the corresponding stars, he naturally put the corresponding methods into operation.

But at this point, Zhou Wuji knew there was no possibility of opening a sixth aperture. He immediately guided the remaining Origin Profound Qi back to his divine aperture, forming a somewhat imperfect cycle.

Daoist Yiping, who was presiding over the initiation, noticed Spiritual Qi surging around Zhou Wuji, faintly establishing some kind of resonance with the stars high above the nine heavens.

His aged eyes lit up, and his slightly plump, round face filled with joy. Wuji had actually received the Heavenly Emperor's blessing and resonated with the Big Dipper Seven Stars. This was tremendous good fortune!

Fate was fickle. A genius of exceptional aptitude might not necessarily achieve anything.

Those who truly achieved greatness were bound to possess fortune as vast as the heavens.

Receiving the Heavenly Emperor's blessing during an altar initiation was an auspicious sign and a special honor for the entire lower court.

As the officiant, this alone was enough for him to boast about for the rest of his life!

Thinking of his senior brother Yiyuan, who had died unexpectedly, Daoist Yiping could not help growing a little emotional again. If his senior brother's spirit in heaven saw Wuji blessed with such tremendous fortune, he would surely feel deeply comforted...

Zhiyuan, who sat quietly with his eyes closed in the Heart-Questioning Hall, suddenly sensed an unusual surge of the world's Origin Qi.

After a moment's thought, he swept his fly whisk. The Heart-Questioning Mirror before him shone brightly, displaying the scene inside the North Pole Heavenly Emperor Hall.

Zhiyuan spotted Zhou Wuji at once and saw strands of Stellar Spiritual Qi surging around him, faintly forming a mystical resonance with the Big Dipper Seven Stars in the sky.

As a fourth-grade Spirit Artifact, the Heart-Questioning Mirror could directly reflect changes in the state of the world's Origin Qi.

Moreover, this was inside the lower court, precisely within the Heart-Questioning Mirror's reach.

Zhiyuan was somewhat surprised. He had read accounts of divine blessings during initiation in the records, but this was his first time witnessing one himself.

Truthfully, he was rather shocked.

This statue of the North Pole Heavenly Emperor was actually a special Spirit Artifact. Having absorbed the devotion of countless believers over several hundred years, it possessed formidable might and also served as the hub of the lower court's formation.

However, the statue of the North Pole Heavenly Emperor clearly had no connection to the North Pole Heavenly Emperor himself.

As the head of the lower court, Zhiyuan had detected no unusual changes in the statue's Law Power.

"Was it really the Heavenly Emperor's blessing?"

Zhiyuan truly found it hard to believe. Why would the North Pole Heavenly Emperor, high above the nine heavens, pay attention to a mere eighth-grade cultivator?

Even a first-grade Heavenly Master amounted to little before the Heavenly Emperor!

Zhiyuan could not figure out the key to it, but he did not dwell on it.

Heaven and earth were vast, and the Great Dao was mysterious. Countless things defied explanation; he need not fixate on them.

Reporting it to the upper court would also count as a tremendously auspicious sign. It was a good thing for the lower court, for him, and for Wuji.

Zhiyuan had already considered Zhou Wuji promising material. After this incident, Zhou Wuji's standing in his mind rose considerably.

Daoist Yiping, who presided over the initiation ceremony, naturally had no idea that Zhiyuan had already witnessed everything.

Finally, Daoist Yiping gave Zhou Wuji a Tianshu Demon-Warding Token.

The round token bore Zhou Wuji's Daoist name, with the Northern Dipper Tianshu Demon-Warding Runes below it, along with the sect's seven-star emblem.

Its reverse, however, was blank. Only after Zhou Wuji advanced to the seventh grade could the Tianshu Demon-Warding Token be sent to the Heavenly Master's Manor to receive a seal and become an official ordination certificate.

Only then would his status as a Daoist priest receive recognition from the imperial court and be entered into the Jade Register.

Once the ceremony was complete, Daoist Yiping eagerly took Zhou Wuji to see Zhiyuan and personally reported the good news.

Zhiyuan offered a few words of praise and encouragement before finally saying, "The Heavenly Emperor's blessing is Wuji's great good fortune, but such things invite envy and resentment. You and Wuji must keep it secret.

The old Daoist thought for a moment, then said, "The lower court will cover Wuji's expenses for learning Law Techniques. He will also receive ten Golden Yang Pills as a reward. I hope you cultivate diligently and strictly observe the precepts."

"Thank you, Abbot." Zhou Wuji bowed with clasped hands in thanks. "This disciple will never disappoint your high expectations..."

Zhiyuan was quite pleased with Zhou Wuji's compliant attitude and offered a few more words of approval.

Leaving the Heart-Questioning Hall, Daoist Yiping was beaming. He said to Zhou Wuji, "I've been at the lower court for almost twenty years, and this is the first time I've seen the abbot so generous.

"Those ten Golden Origin Pills alone are worth fifty taels of gold. Though they're seventh-grade pills, even I can't bear to take them!

"Waiving the fees for learning Law Techniques will save you another several dozen taels of gold. The Seven Stars Demon-Slaying Sword alone costs sixty taels of gold!"

Zhou Wuji was somewhat surprised to hear this. "That expensive?"

"The Seven Stars Demon-Slaying Sword is one of our sect's fundamental Secret Methods. It involves methods for channeling the Spiritual Qi of the Big Dipper Seven Stars. It isn't merely a demon-slaying Law Technique."

Daoist Yiping emphasized, "This method is compulsory at the eighth grade. Other Law Techniques and talismanic incantations, such as the Heart-Purifying Divine Incantation, are entirely a matter of personal preference."

"What if someone can't come up with that much money?" Zhou Wuji asked curiously.

"They can owe it for now, but the lower court charges twenty percent interest." Daoist Yiping looked a little embarrassed as he spoke of this.

The other lower courts apparently were not so exacting. Only Yunyang Lower Court was this ruthless about collecting money.

"The teachings aren't lightly imparted." Having just benefited from Zhiyuan's generosity, Zhou Wuji voiced his agreement, though inwardly he felt the old man was a little unscrupulous.

Whether Zhiyuan could hear him or not, he should not speak ill of others behind their backs. More importantly, doing so served no practical purpose. It was merely indulging his tongue, and thoroughly unwise.

Daoist Yiping nodded repeatedly. Even behind someone's back, this martial nephew spoke so tactfully. He was clever and dependable!

Back at Flying Profound Hall, Daoist Yiping was tired after half a day of bustling about. He told Zhou Wuji to rest first; he could collect the Law Techniques from the Transmission Hall tomorrow.

Zhou Wuji returned to his side room, washed briefly, then undressed and went to bed.

Lying in bed, Zhou Wuji silently circulated the Northern Dipper Tianshu Scripture. Endless Origin Qi from heaven and earth flowed in through his five apertures-the divine aperture, both eyes, and both ears-and circulated throughout his body under the divine aperture's guidance.

He felt that his level of Origin Qi had increased by almost threefold.

If the Origin Qi he circulated after opening his divine aperture had been one hundred, then with the addition of the apertures in both eyes and ears, the total he could circulate now reached four hundred.

For him, this was an enormous improvement in cultivation.

Opening the four apertures in his eyes and ears also made his hearing and sight exceptionally keen.

In the darkness, he could even make out the lines on his palm by the faint moonlight filtering through the window.

Not only had his eyesight improved, he could even discern details such as an object's material and weight.

According to the sect's Secret Method, Tianshu in the left eye represented observation, while Tianxuan in the right eye represented insight.

Tianji in the left ear represented cleverness, while Tianquan in the right ear represented wisdom.

These descriptions were rather abstruse, but Zhou Wuji felt that his hearing had indeed improved.

Even lying in bed, he could hear two mice squeaking underground.

Most sounds mice made were high-frequency and inaudible to ordinary people. That he could hear them proved that opening both ear apertures had greatly expanded the range of sounds he could hear.

When he stopped circulating True Qi, his sight and hearing immediately dropped a level.

He could no longer make out his palm lines or hear the mice squeaking.

Stripping away the abstruse descriptions in the Secret Method, his hearing and sight really were keen now. This allowed him to gauge spatial distances more precisely and would be an enormous help in combat.

This improvement alone would be enough for him to kill those mutinous soldiers at White Stone Ferry head-on without taking a scratch.

The improvement in his True Qi, meanwhile, raised his combat strength by at least a tier.

Zhou Wuji opened the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment and glanced at his own page. His attribute data was all very simple.

He glanced at his lifespan, which was detailed down to the number of days. It had increased by more than a hundred days.

Nothing else had changed.

He knew that the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment was like a clear mirror: it could reflect his condition with perfect clarity and accuracy, presenting it simply and directly in a way he could understand.

An idea suddenly struck Zhou Wuji. He could certainly make himself a more detailed stats panel, making it convenient to compare his condition at any time and track his cultivation progress!