Cultivating the 108,000 Apertures Together

"Ladle?"

"Feather bug?"

"Eating wood?"

Wu Chao wanted to strike up a conversation with Zhang Xuezhou, exchange information, and see if they could cooperate, but as soon as he reached Zhang Xuezhou's side, Brother Rulai had already explained everything.

This left him speechless.

In a simple explanation, it would indeed be sufficient to clarify everything with just a few words from Brother Tathagata.

If you were to ask Wu Chao to recount the story, he could only go on to describe it in more detail; there was nothing more he could say.

"It doesn't eat wood, it prefers to eat spirit wood!"

Hearing Zhang Xuezhou's low exclamation, Wu Chao had no choice but to sit closer and correct him.

"This kind of insect is very rare. I've only seen it twice. What kind of spirit wood are you feeding it?" Wu Chao asked, trying to make conversation.

"I found it while I was passing by. I took it in because it looked pitiful," Zhang Xuezhou said. "I don't know what kind of spirit wood it used to eat. I was just feeding it meat!"

Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. He had finally managed to solve his own food and drink problem, and now another customer was coming to eat and drink.

While this kind of Incantation Technique medium is useful, the cost of cultivating it is not low. Even he, who was just copying others, was having a headache. Where could he find spirit wood for the sleepyhead to eat in the short term?

"If you can't try them one by one, then you'll have to feed it some good spirit wood," Wu Chao said. "This little thing is especially suitable for casting spells. With it by your side, you can even clearly see the surroundings using your Divine Sense!"

"Sounds pretty good," Zhang Xuezhou said. "I knew this little thing and I were destined for each other!"

"Feed it as soon as possible. It's small and gets hungry quickly after the spell is cast. It will starve to death in three to five days," Wu Chao said.

"Can you only endure hunger for three to five days?"

Zhang Xuezhou rubbed his stomach, feeling that sleepiness and he were truly inseparable.

He had just managed to fill his stomach to avoid going hungry when he suddenly became sleepy.

"Do you have anything to eat?" Zhang Xuezhou asked. "It's so pitiful that the little thing died!"

"You really found it?" Wu Chao asked in a low voice.

"If I told you that I had gone through a life-or-death struggle to get my hands on it, I'm afraid you wouldn't believe me," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"You're exaggerating a bit. How many old men died to get it?" Wu Chao said.

"There are a few, I think!"

"Is that miserable old man dead?"

The harder it is, the more you can endure it!

Zhang Xuezhou chatted casually with Wu Chao, exchanging information from time to time, and he also obtained some useful information from Wu Chao.

This allowed Zhang Xuezhou to get entangled with Brother Tathagata in a very short time.

"Master, please have mercy and save this little creature!"

Zhang Xuezhou's eyes burned as he looked at the thick wooden staff that his senior brother, Tathagata, was carrying.

This wooden staff is thick and long. Years of handling have given it a faint luster, much like a wooden chair or stool that has been used for a long time. But if no one points it out, no one would think it is a superior type of Dragon-Subduing Wood.

"Senior brother, wouldn't it be considered killing to stand by and watch someone die?" Wu Chao's accomplice asked.

"My wooden staff... well, since I've already asked you for some meat, let it gnaw on it for a while, that will prolong its life for a while. As for what happens after that, there's nothing I can do to help!"

After pondering for a few seconds, Brother Tathagata agreed.

He also mentioned the consequences of gnawing on the Dragon-Subduing Wood.

"This staff of mine is forged from five-hundred-year-old Dragon-Subduing Wood. While not exactly rare, it is certainly a precious item," said Senior Brother Tathagata. "These feathered insects always gnaw on the good parts but not the bad. If you eat my Dragon-Subduing Wood, you'll need to feed it even better spiritual wood next time!"

"This bug has another quirk: if you don't feed it, and it's strong enough, it'll definitely fly out to find something to eat on its own. Who knows, it might even end up clinging to my senior brother's wooden staff!"

Seeing that the sleepy bug had climbed onto Brother Tathagata's Dragon-Subduing Wood, Wu Chao, with a smug look on his face, recounted another consequence.

This is something that Brother Tathagata had not considered.

This made him hold his wooden cane and look at the sleepy creature clinging to it, thinking that the little thing was quite a nuisance.

"It's a bit too much to afford to raise them," Zhang Xuezhou complained.

"As long as the benefits of casting the spell outweigh the costs, there shouldn't be any problem with raising it," Wu Chao whispered.

"Benefactor, saving one at the cost of another is also a grave taboo of killing. Such a sinful act is better left to you to convert to the teachings of my sect!"

Brother Tathagata, however, felt somewhat sorry for the staff.

He watched as the sleepiness rapidly gnawed out a hole in the staff, and then kept crawling into it, making him feel that the price of his compassion was a bit too high.

If he gets targeted by these insects in the future, his staff will be useless.

This made him mention the bad possibility in advance.

"What is your doctrine?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

Smack!

Wu Chao made a pinching motion and made a sound imitating an insect being crushed, indicating that this was the doctrine of the Western Sect.

"Junior brother, your obsession is too strong. If you were to convert to my sect, I would simply send it to Mount Ling to fend for itself. There are some spiritual trees growing there. If it doesn't consume too much, it can grow to the end of its life," Senior Brother Tathagata said solemnly. "The staff in my hand is an inanimate object; once it's gnawed, it's gone. The growing spiritual trees, on the other hand, grow by consuming, and are consumed again, creating a perfect cycle that ultimately won't harm either side."

"Manqian, I think what they said makes a lot of sense," Zhang Qian interjected.

"I think that makes a lot of sense," Zhang Xuezhou nodded.

"Then, benefactor..."

Brother Tathagata reached out and stroked the wormhole on the staff, then looked at Zhang Xuezhou.

This made Zhang Xuezhou stroke his chin and ponder for a few seconds.

"When will the master return to Mount Ling?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"I came to the Eastern Land to participate in some worldly affairs. If things go smoothly, I should return to Mount Ling in three months," said Brother Tathagata.

"Not going well?" Wu Chao asked.

"Senior brother has cultivated for a hundred years. Although he has shortcomings, he is indeed unmatched in the eighth realm. As long as the two school leaders you mentioned are willing to accept defeat, this matter will surely go smoothly," Senior Brother Tathagata said, shaking his head.

"I don't believe you can beat Jin Chang," Wu Chao retorted, Qi Ingestion. "He can hide in the shadows; he's incredibly skilled!"

Wu Chao's question to Zhang Xuezhou was simple; the two of them exchanged a few words of cryptic conversation and the matter was resolved.

However, it was very difficult for Zhang Xuezhou to figure out Wu Chao's affairs. It was hard to use riddles, which led Wu Chao to make a few unreasonable attempts before finally revealing what he and his senior brother, Tathagata, had come to the East to do.

Wu Chao even winked at Zhang Xuezhou.

"The Master once met this Jin Chang and mentioned that although he has some strange aspects, I can defeat him openly and honestly, and victory is assured," Senior Brother Tathagata said earnestly. "You must know that true strength is the righteous and magnificent power that sweeps away everything, not the strangeness that hides in the shadows!"

"If he is in your shadow, and uses the shadow to fix your body in place, how can you break free from him?" Wu Chao asked.

"A bright flame can illuminate everything and also vanquish all evil spirits!"

Perhaps driven to desperation by the Wu Chao, and wanting to give the Wu Chao more confidence, Brother Tathagata chanted a spell and reached out, a bright flame beginning to burn in his palm.

"I specialize in physical cultivation, and my only skill is this fire. In my entire life, I've only honed this True Solar Fire, so it's not difficult to counter the Shadow Puppet Technique you mentioned!" said Senior Brother Tathagata.

"Only a tiny bit of fire!" Wu Chao scoffed.

"My body has 108,000 acupoints, and this True Fire of the Sun can spew out from 96,000 of them, covering every part of my body. If he is not controlled by those 12,000 acupoints, he will surely be defeated," said Brother Tathagata.

"What do you mean by 100,000 or 80,000? All I know is that the human body has 360 orifices. Don't try to fool me again," Wu Chao said.

"The 360 acupoints are the main acupoints, but the ultimate cultivation inevitably involves 108,000 acupoints in subdivided fields. This is the ultimate learning, second only to Divine Ability powers. When you reach the Divine Ability Realm, the sect leader will surely impart the corresponding ultimate technique to you," said Senior Brother Tathagata. "Not everyone possesses this ultimate technique. Without corresponding research, he wouldn't even be able to grasp the connections between my 12,000 acupoints."

Brother Tathagata walks the upright and righteous path of cultivation, rarely beating around the bush when discussing related topics.

Wu Chao could hardly believe it, and he didn't care what Zhang Xuezhou and Zhang Qian were hearing.

But Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but feel a stirring in his heart.

He is currently cultivating the 108,000 acupoints of this specific subfield.

As a technique of the Heavenly Court, this was naturally a top-tier technique from the glorious era of the Immortal Court, and also the ultimate skill to be learned.

However, Zhang Xuezhou only witnessed these nine methods of avoidance; when he inquired with Dong Zhongshu and others, he had never heard of such cultivation techniques.

Although both belong to the Grain Avoidance technique, the Grain Avoidance technique of the Great Han Dynasty only involves the refinement of 360 major acupoints and 1080 minor acupoints. The Grain Avoidance techniques of various schools last for about three to fifteen days, which is far from the time limit of the Heavenly Court Grain Avoidance Technique.

This was the first time he had ever heard of such a technique, and also the first time he had ever seen a cultivator who practiced 108,000 acupoints outside of the secret realm of Western Kunlun.