Chapter 98: The First Encounter with the Dharma Body

How long had it been since reaching the sixth level of Qi Refinement? Just over four months. At his original pace of cultivation, breaking through to the seventh level would have taken at least another year and a half to two years. Yet now, having unexpectedly gained the aid of predecessors, that time was greatly shortened. If he could find a way to obtain a few Boundary-Breaking Pills, Song Yan even contemplated attempting to break through to the seventh level within half a year! Given his current cultivation, it was indeed possible.

A flicker of pride crossed his heart, but he quickly calmed himself. "If I recklessly accumulate spiritual power and acquire another Boundary-Breaking Pill, I could indeed break through rapidly. But such haste might destabilize my foundation. It’s better to advance steadily and build a solid base."

He reined in his spirit, summoning the sword case from the Two Instruments Pearl and refining it once more with sword qi. Previously, disciples of the Yan clan at the Sword Forging Manor deemed the sword case useless because Senior Yan Gui had forged it as part of a set with the Twin Linked Flying Swords. Using the flying swords alone was fine, but the sword case by itself served no purpose. Moreover, some filial descendant had extracted the Twin Linked Flying Swords from inside, leaving the sword case to gather dust ever since.

The sword case had no name—not even in Senior Yan Gui’s memories was one given. For now, Song Yan dubbed it the Useless Sword Case. It could only hold two flying swords, possibly designed originally to nurture the “Green Plum” and “Bamboo Horse” swords. Coincidentally, Song Yan now possessed only “Unbound Boat” and “Linked Branch.”

“To my two predecessors, now that Linked Branch has returned to the sword case, we may be considered fated,” he murmured. “If I acquire a more powerful sword nurturing artifact in the future, I’ll give ‘Linked Branch’ its own case. For now, they must squeeze together.”

A flash of spiritual light, and both Linked Branch and Unbound Boat entered the case. The sword case was exquisitely slender, and after refinement, it was light and unobtrusive on his back. To Song Yan, sword cases, sword gourds, and similar items were essentially cultivators’ specialized “space bags” for magical tools, each with unique properties. Still, this was his first time using one, and it felt somewhat novel.

He activated it with spiritual power—whether by his imagination or not, the speed of summoning the flying swords from the sword case seemed just a bit faster than from a space bag. Taking advantage of this, he practiced sword techniques for a while before sheathing the swords again.

Next, he withdrew an ancient withered lotus seed from his space bag. He had previously requested it from Wu Duo under the pretense of collecting. He wanted to try again, to see if he could use sword qi to cultivate an ancient lotus, coaxing it to sprout a lotus seed.

If it really worked… Considering the value of the Moon-Supporting Ancient Lotus, just selling the spiritual item alone could make him wealthy. Unfortunately, fate was not on his side. This time, the moment his sword qi infused with wind and thunder entered the seed, it swiftly dispelled the decay within the withered seed—along with the faint life force that remained.

His excitement instantly faded into calm. “Hmm…” It seemed that last time had been fortunate luck. But as an outsider, he couldn’t discern whether the withered seed’s vitality was insufficient or if the method of maturing it with sword qi and thunder inherently required luck. They say, “You can plant flowers with all your heart, yet they won’t bloom; but you plant willows without care, and they flourish.” It was all a matter of timing and destiny.

Still, obtaining a Moon-Supporting Lotus Seed by chance was already a great gain, enabling many possibilities. After organizing some miscellaneous items, he finally picked up the jade slip sent by Sheng Nian.

“The Clear and Bright Great Light Dharma Image…” Such a title was difficult to unearth even among many righteous sect elders. It was likely a Buddhist cultivation method. Anian had said it was scavenged from a certain demonic cultivator.

“When I return to the sect, I’ll check the library. If it’s some secret method of the Buddhist School, that could be troublesome…”

A cursory glance revealed it was a cultivation method for “Dharma Images.” Song Yan had heard the term before, vaguely recalling it related to the true spirit or the laws of heaven and earth cultivated by great masters. Simply condensing a tangible form using spiritual power or other means was more properly called a “Dharma Body.”

Carefully reading through, he concluded this method cultivated a Dharma Body. He guessed the founder was likely a cultivator from ancient times, when spiritual energy was abundant and resources plentiful. It was said that cultivators reaching the Golden Core or Nascent Soul stage were far more common then, so distinctions between Dharma Image and Dharma Body were probably negligible.

Yet after studying it, Song Yan felt somewhat relieved. This method used pure spiritual power as the framework, with demonic energies, ghost qi, yin qi, and other demonic forces forming the meridians and flesh, condensing into a tangible Dharma Body. Regarding these demonic forces, the method only briefly mentioned that if one lacked such powers, one could slay demonic cultivators to seize and absorb them.

“What a formidable predecessor…” Song Yan thought. The creator of this method truly practiced “using the enemy’s methods against them.”

Slay demons, seize demonic powers, forge the Dharma Body, then slay demonic cultivators.

“However…” The wording throughout the method was harsh and violent.

“Clearly, this predecessor harbored extreme hatred for demonic cultivators…”

After a general understanding, Song Yan decided to experiment casually. Though he lacked demonic power, he could at least try to forge the Dharma Body’s skeleton using spiritual power.

Streams of pure spiritual power surged forth, gathering slowly behind him according to the method described.

Before any substantial form appeared, he casually dispersed it.

“The spiritual power consumed in cultivating this Dharma Body is astonishing.”

This stage was called “Forming the Ethereal Skeleton” in the method. Even forgetting the ghost and demonic qi he did not possess, merely forming the skeleton was beyond his current ability.

He roughly estimated that with his present spiritual reserves, he could barely complete a quarter of it. Moreover, this “Forming the Ethereal Skeleton” could not be done incrementally like sculpting clay over days; it must be completed all at once.

“At least…” he mused, “it would require spiritual power at the ninth or tenth level of Qi Refinement…”

Song Yan stored away the jade slip without dismay. The path of cultivation was one of steady progress.

Sitting alone in the courtyard, he slowly began to restore his spiritual power.

By evening, he received news from Yan Xun—Liang Feng’s matter had been resolved. The plot with the demonic cultivators to seize the foundation of Linghua Valley was indeed a dead end. However, aid from Senior Yu Zhen prevented a major disaster.

Moreover, Liang Feng had diligently served Linghua Valley for over twenty years, contributing significantly and indelibly. In the end, his spiritual resources were confiscated, much of his cultivation nullified, and he was expelled from Linghua Valley.

With the Liang Feng incident concluded, the group’s business at Mount Beiya was also drawing to a close. They would soon set out to return to their sect.

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