Daoist Competition

It can be said that if a cultivator obtains the sect’s legacy, passing this checkpoint is not easy, but compared to the dangers of refining medicine and condensing pills, it is far more relaxed.

But Zhang Yan has achieved a first-class Elixir Formation, whether or not he has a teacher’s guidance, he has no precedent to follow.

He thought to himself: "Considering the two seniors in the sect, who also had no established method to reference, yet managed to forge a path forward, it’s truly remarkable."

Aside from the sect’s ancestor master, the Mingcang Sect had two other seniors who achieved the first-class Elixir Formation, but they were a result of fortuitous circumstances, and achieving the same feat again may not be as desirable.

As for condensing the True Imprint of Dharma Power, they all relied on a Dharma Treasure left by the founding ancestor master of the sect, consequently leaving no Condensing Seal Technique within this realm.

A hundred years ago, when great changes occurred in the Mingcang Sect, this Dharma Treasure was taken by a fierce character, thus severing this path.

Since those who achieve first-class Elixir Formation are rare throughout history, there was originally little attention paid; only later, when Zhang Yan successfully formed a First Grade Golden Core, did the few members who survived that past upheaval remember this critical point, realizing the fierce character might have done so intentionally.

Zhang Yan, although lacking the aid of a Dharma Treasure, held the Broken Jade in his hand, and thus was not intimidated.

Despite his confidence, he remained extremely cautious when taking action; to perform the True Seal, he first needed to understand its intricacies clearly.

He took a deep breath, reached into his sleeve, grasped the Broken Jade, and plunged his heart and spirit into careful deduction.

At this moment, what he deduced was not only those two True Seals but also the Condensing Seal Technique seen in Jingluo Academy. This Dharma technique comprises over three hundred types, all left by predecessors of the Mingcang Sect,

and he felt extremely fortunate; luckily, he was in the Mingcang Sect, which has accumulated profound heritage over ten thousand years, whereas if he were in a small sect, finding just a few techniques would already be considered good.

Nonetheless, most of these Dharma techniques are Lower Methods, Middle Methods are few and far between, and Upper Methods are nonexistent.

Fortunately, he only sought to explore the rationale, to find differences and similarities, rather than to reference them, so the quality difference did not matter much.

As time slowly passed, another two years went by inside the Little Pot Mirror.

By now, within the jade, Zhang Yan had been deducing for nearly a hundred years. Besides trying to condense the True Seals bestowed by Zhong Muqing and Sect Leader Qin once over, he had rehearsed over three hundred types of True Seal condensation techniques one by one before ceasing.

By this point, his understanding of the True Seal was profound; within this realm, none could surpass his knowledge.

Why such True Seal condensation, where it is long, where it is short, he already grasped comprehensively.

The True Seal of Dharma Power gifted by Zhong Muqing was ever-changing and immeasurably useful; if condensed using this method, the cultivation of divine skills would progress much faster than usual, significantly enhancing one’s combat power.

Meanwhile, the True Seal granted by the Sect Leader discarded all extraneous branches, leaving only the trunk, known as the singular Great Dao.

Both techniques have merits.

Zhong Muqing’s technique left a True Seal likely favored by a highly combative individual, hence taking this path.

Whereas the Sect Leader’s True Seal, if focused earnestly on cultivation, leads to breakthroughs far superior to others, its future potential enormous and incalculable.

But this is not to say there is no combat aspect in the latter; purely in terms of Battle Array, it is far less than the former.

The former emphasizes technique, the latter the Dao, and it cannot be easily said which is superior.

At this moment, Zhang Yan had already decided upon the path he should take and did not intend to replicate the former but to carve out his own unique route.

He adjusted his posture, let his heart and spirit once again sink into the Broken Jade, and began practicing his own thoughts.

However, this time, the days spent took far longer than anticipated.

Even with the previous hard work as the foundation, he barely managed to spend over a year, essentially forty-plus years within the jade, repeatedly attempting and overcoming countless setbacks before deducing a technique for condensing the True Seal.

Yet upon reaching this point, he encountered a curious situation.

Each time he condensed the True Seal using this method, the resulting outcomes varied.

Upon meticulously investigating the cause, he realized: "Apparently, even the slightest variation in the condensation of the True Seal alters the outcome, with no fixed formula to follow."

Given this understanding, he sensibly decided not to labor over it, instead putting away the Broken Jade, seated resolutely on the cushion, and commenced executing the spell.

The Golden Core beneath trembled upon receiving guidance, gathering all the Elixir Evil within, and operated per the condensation method of the True Seal.

In an instant, the glazed tile-like Golden Core emitted five-colored brilliant hues, its radiance reflecting as a phantom-like True Seal emerged from above, resplendent like a radiant cloud, transparent and crystalline, surrounded by mist, with countless talisman bird seals and erosion texts manifesting one by one.

As this talisman imprint became more true, with the talisman bird script becoming increasingly clear, limitless Essence Qi began to burgeon from within.

Zhang Yan’s spirit suddenly revived, for this Essence Qi was refined from all the Elixir Evil during True Seal condensation; if utilized timely, his cultivation techniques and divine skills would be substantially enhanced, so when Hua Dan cultivators pass through this checkpoint, their abilities spike by a considerable margin.

He judged that although he practiced numerous Daoist skills, only a few truly prevailed over opponents, with the "Five Elements True Skill" forming the foundation of his cultivation, most vital above all, hence improving this technique was optimal.

Thus, without hesitation, he immediately guided the flowing Essence Qi within and continuously elevated this cultivation technique.

This technique steadily soared upward, its power rising layer by layer.

Zhang Yan nearly suspected the technique might consume all the Essence Qi in one go, but his body jolted as he discovered further elevation of this technique was considerably slow, so he halted its momentum, refraining from further exhausting Essence Qi, looking instead to advance the Purple Cloud Divine Thunder technique.

This technique proved exceedingly formidable; since performing it, no one had managed to confront it head-on, and fortifying this divine skill had long been planned.

With Zhang Yan’s first-class Elixir Formation, the Essence Qi was naturally vast and majestic like the Sea Abyss; when the Purple Cloud Divine Thunder’s divine skill could no longer progress, he noticed considerable residue remained.

He estimated roughly that the Five Elements True Skill absorbed about sixty percent of the Essence Qi, while the Purple Cloud Divine Thunder consumed twenty percent, leaving another twenty percent yet.

If the Essence Qi generated during today’s True Seal condensation was not wholly used up, it would slowly dissipate after the seal formed, not remaining, so he decisively allocated the Essence Qi to the "Lan Yun Technique," the "Xuanhuang Dragon Capturing Hand," and the "True Fixing Leisurely Skill."

After an indeterminate time, the moment the Essence Qi depleted, the originally unstable True Seal suddenly shuddered, solidifying as it fell into the Golden Core, merging and vanishing.

He was momentarily dazed, pulled out once his mind cleared, and stood abruptly, activating the Mysterious Skill, laughing heartily.

At this point, he had condensed the True Seal, stepping into the Third Realm of Hua Dan!

...

...(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) and vote for recommendations and monthly tickets; your support is my greatest motivation.)