Chapter 29: The Deity Summoning Art, Fang Qinglan’s Heart Begins to Stir
The Yellow Court Classic recorded a great many spells. However, only a handful were both easy to learn and suitable for Li Yanchu’s current level.
After all, he was still only at the early stage of Qi cultivation, and his spirit power was far from abundant. Especially at this stage, Daoist spells didn’t carry much offensive power. While they might seem mysterious and impressive, in actual combat their effectiveness was still inferior to Li Yanchu simply wielding the Jiaoslayer.
“Aha! This is it!” Li Yanchu’s eyes lit up.
The spell that had caught his attention was the Deity Summoning Art. Among the common folk, this technique was also known as divine-summoning.
But this version came from the Zhengyi Daoism tradition, not illegitimate teachings nor heretical practices, and allowed one to invoke a legitimate deity from the Celestial Court.
“Isn’t this just like what Daoist Master Simu did?”
Li Yanchu thought of the movie Mr. Vampire IV[1] and Daoist Master Simu[2] stamping the ground to invite the ancestor spirit to possess him, then going on to thrash a zombie that no one else could handle. This was a spell that could temporarily boost combat strength.
Li Yanchu studied the cultivation method of the Deity Summoning Art in detail, and quickly committed it to memory. According to the Yellow Court Classic, however, legitimate gods of the Celestial Court did not possess human bodies. That kind of possession was something only illegitimate gods and demonic entities engaged in.
This Deity Summoning Art was about invoking divine power, not divine possession. The greater the cultivator’s Daoist cultivation, the greater the divine power they could call down.
But divine power was a heavy burden, and not something easily borne by just anyone. It placed great demands on one’s mental state and moral character. Those with impure hearts or selfish intentions could not invoke the power of legitimate gods at all.
As he read on, Li Yanchu suddenly thought of a question, Does this world also have a Celestial Court and an Underworld?