Chapter 73: Chess Piece Stealing the Elixir

Qiu Feng had left with the two boys a long time ago. Ji Yuan waited at the original spot until he was completely sure they were gone. Only then did he return to the edge of the Jade Water Pool, feeling an almost irrepressible excitement, constantly toying with two white jade slips, one large and one one small.

As expected of Jade Arm Peak, everything seemed to be related to jade: the blue jade ring, these white jade slips, and even the jade hairpin on Qiu Feng’s head. Ji Yuan had just noticed faint mystical light shimmering around them.

“Oh, I forgot to ask Wei Wuwei about something!”

Ji Yuan slapped his forehead and chuckled at the realization. Wei Wuwei wasn't really that close to him; if it had been about little Yin Qing, he would never have forgotten.

By the side of the emerald-green deep pool, Ji Yuan sat down, placed the green bamboo pole beside him, and began to read the contents of the two white jade slips with crossed legs.

This method of recording, called “transmitting spirit through objects,” was mentioned in both *Tongming Records* and *Heretical Teachings*. It was a distinctive technique for immortal cultivation, but rarely used in ordinary circumstances due to its demanding nature. The medium could be gold, iron, stone, jade, or various other materials. The higher the cultivator’s cultivation level and the stronger their magical power, the less demanding the requirements for the medium. *Heretical Teachings* even mentioned individuals who could transmit spirit through flowing water or clear wind, which was truly extraordinary.

As for the two white jade slips in Ji Yuan's hand, they were made of excellent quality white jade, likely due to Jade Arm Peak's immense wealth. Such high-quality materials naturally placed minimal demands on the spellcaster.

After all, the "Heterodox Art of Spirit Binding" was an incomplete text that Qiu Feng had failed to restore after more than a decade of research. Ji Yuan didn't think he could succeed immediately, so he set it aside and instead held the larger white jade slip in his hand.

Several large characters were carved on it, reading "Jade Arm Minor Cultivation." Additionally, there were wave-like patterns on its front surface.

Reading this jade slip was far less demanding than reading something like the Heavenly Talisman Scripture. The reader simply needed to channel spiritual energy into the slip, and a divine sense would naturally guide their mind to conjure detailed content in their consciousness.

Even though it was just a basic Qi cultivation technique, its content far surpassed the "Qi Guiding Art" he had learned previously. If one were to compare them, the "Qi Guiding Art" would at most be a fraction of the Qi cultivation technique's content, which comprehensively explained the fundamental principles of immortal cultivation.

It was said that there was a vast universe outside and a miniature universe within one's body, with the sun, moon, and stars connected to various vital points. The exploration of this internal miniature universe was still endless, and its complexity might even rival that of the vast external universe.

The Qi cultivation technique involved connecting the five elemental energies of the internal organs and manifesting things like heart fire and kidney water within the internal universe to refine spiritual energy. To Ji Yuan, these concepts were profound and mysterious.

“No wonder most of the top innate masters in the martial arts world ultimately died with regret, stuck at their martial arts peak,” he mused. “This is beyond what one could imagine by studying internal martial arts and meridians.”

With that thought, Ji Yuan began his first Qi cultivation in two lifetimes. The "Minor Cultivation" referred to the initial stages of Qi cultivation for immortal practice, also collectively known as "Nourishing Qi." This involved cultivating the crucial yin and yang energies of heart fire and kidney water within the internal universe, and then using them to refine and nourish his magical power.

However, the two biggest hurdles in immortal cultivation—first, sensing spiritual energy and guiding it into the body, and second, internalizing yin and yang within the miniature universe—presented almost no difficulty for Ji Yuan.

Unlike other cultivators who struggled to perceive their internal organs and visualize a universe within themselves during the foundational stage—with their visualized universe being no bigger than a single room—Ji Yuan merely entered a slight meditative state. As he thought of his body becoming a universe, the entire world within his meditation expanded into a vast and boundless cosmos.

Mountains, rivers, lakes, sun, moon, and stars all manifested one by one...

Ji Yuan didn't linger on the beautiful scenery but quickly began the crucial cultivation. He silently recited the incantations to aid the mysterious guidance, stimulating the vitality of his organs to connect and manifest the universe.

‘Heart Fire manifest.’

As this thought arose.

On a gigantic peak somewhere in the universe, a celestial fire ignited from high above, like a great sun. Ji Yuan seemed to feel the endless heat. He wasn't as excited as he had initially imagined; though emotions were present in his meditative state, they were assimilated by the vast universe, making his inner fluctuations as calm as the cosmos itself.

‘Kidney Water manifest.’

The next thought arose.

Roaring...

In the same location within the internal universe, rivers gathered on the earth, their waves surging.

The situation differed significantly from what was described in "Jade Arm Minor Cultivation," or rather, it was utterly transformed. However, Ji Yuan felt this was likely not a bad thing.

‘Qi transforms into Yin and Yang!’

In one of the most critical steps, the surging waves on the earth and the blazing sky, an immense force of water ascended from below while raging flames pressed down from above.

One red and one translucent converged at the summit of the gigantic peak in this universe, amidst an astonishing momentum.

Ji Yuan was like an observer, completely unmoved by the astonishing spectacle before him, watching as the fire and water at their convergence point gradually vaporized and transformed, forming one white and one black.

These two colors slowly rotated as they met, forming a peculiar vortex, like a gigantic Tai Chi diagram, but missing the two dots of the "twin fish."

‘Yin and Yang form the Cauldron!’

This was the most critical step, and even Ji Yuan couldn't help but feel a tremor at this moment.

“Boom~~”

Everything in the original internal universe seemed silent, yet at this moment, Ji Yuan distinctly heard an explosive sound, and the entire universe seemed to tremble.

At the summit of the gigantic peak, at the center of the Yin-Yang Tai Chi, a massive alchemy cauldron emerged amidst infinite ripples of profound mystery.

“Phew...”

Ji Yuan's external body exhaled softly, mainly because the descriptions in *Tongming Records* were too daunting, constantly speaking of difficulties, even mentioning some who failed to form a cauldron after a thousand explosions.

Now that the cauldron was formed, Ji Yuan could temporarily relax. Unless a cultivator suffered exceptionally severe damage, this internal alchemy cauldron would not disappear; it would reappear whenever visualized.

Ji Yuan visualized the majestic alchemy cauldron within his body, standing atop a peak. By the looks of it, his aptitude couldn't be considered poor at all.

A smile appeared on his face. With a thought, the spiritual energy around him seemed to vanish into thin air, only to reappear before the alchemy cauldron, drawn in through its numerous holes...

The night at Old Birch Mountain passed quietly. As dawn approached, Ji Yuan felt the first wisp of elixir qi overflow, followed by a continuous stream of elixir qi emanating from the cauldron's star-like pores.

Originally, Ji Yuan wouldn't have needed to supervise this step at all. The elixir qi would seep out, transform into the visualized universe, and merge into the vital points that connected his physical body with his internal universe. This time, having initially broken through a major bottleneck and with the cauldron already formed, the opened vital point corresponded to the Qi Sea in his physical body, which was now his Elixir Residence.

In terms of immortal cultivation, Ji Yuan currently possessed an acre of Dantian space. Although martial artists also used the terms Qi Sea and Dantian, this Dantian was not that Dantian; the names were the same, but their inner essence was completely different.

However, something that astonished Ji Yuan happened at this moment. One black and two phantom chess pieces streaked like meteors across the visualized alchemy cauldron. Before the streams of elixir qi could even form magical power, 70% of it was already divided. Ji Yuan had to quickly collect his thoughts and forcefully guide the remaining pitiful 30% into his Elixir Residence, otherwise, not a single trace might have been left.

Ji Yuan opened his eyes, extended his right arm, and formed a sword-finger. A semi-illusory, semi-solid black chess piece appeared at his fingertip. It looked completely unchanged, as if the painstaking refinement and subsequent consumption of elixir qi had no effect on it. The same applied to the two purely illusory chess pieces.

Ji Yuan's emotions were complex; for a moment, he didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

“Sigh... never mind, never mind... After all, they are my own things, and this ‘elixir pilfering’ isn't uncontrollable. Besides, the Elixir Residence in the Qi Nourishing realm isn't very large yet...”

"Elixir pilfering" was a cultivation term Ji Yuan had invented himself, absolutely unique to him.

The sky was already dim with the approaching dawn. Ji Yuan exited his cultivation state and looked around, finding himself enveloped in thick white mist, his clothes exceptionally damp.

He patted his behind and stood up.

“Hehe, time to go!”

***

At this very moment, in the Tiger Cave of Mount Niu Kui, nearly three hundred li away from Old Birch Mountain, the enormous beast lying dormant seemed to suddenly sense something. In the darkness, a pair of huge, ghostly green tiger eyes opened slightly.

“Sir used ‘the Way of Man’ to refer to my former deviant demonic path, where my demonic qi was born from malevolence and evil, thereby further consuming my already insufficient spirituality and increasing my malevolence and karmic debt. Over time, a demon would form, and calamity would be unavoidable. The Way of Heaven should be about the complementary nature of Yin and Yang. Hmm, my realm has loosened another bit! Hehehehe...”

Amidst the terrifying, hoarse laughter, the fierce tiger bared its dreadful maw, revealing pale fangs faintly visible in the gloom.

At the same moment, half a mountain away on Mount Niu Kui, a clear fox's cry echoed towards the morning glow; and in a certain household in Ning'an County, Yin Zhaoxian's furrowed brow, creased even in his sleep, relaxed slightly.