Chapter 13: Refining Essence and Blood

"Craving Earth Qi."

"Craving Sunlight."

"Craving Water."

"Craving Spiritual Qi."

"Craving Vitality."

These were the thoughts that Lin Donglai summarized as frequently emanating from the mysterious Dao Seed.

When it craved Spiritual Qi, Lin Donglai needed to work hard at practicing the Primordial Nourishing Breathing Technique. After all, he had no spirit stones; however, when practicing this technique, synchronizing his breathing rhythm with that of the Dao Seed itself created a synergistic effect, significantly increasing the speed at which he could inhale and exhale spiritual energy.

When it craved sunlight, he would find a secluded place and strip naked to bask in the sun.

When it craved water, he would drink.

When it craved Earth Qi, he would stand barefoot on the soil in a standing pole posture. This technique for tendon transformation and marrow cleansing emphasized a stance "like the twisted roots of an old tree."

When it craved vitality, he would head into the small woods, where the mysterious Dao Seed would absorb life force on its own. If that wasn't enough, Lin Donglai would go and cut some wild grass, as he could also supplement his needs by absorbing the vitality within the weeds.

However, the effect was far inferior to the semi-spiritual or low-grade spiritual herbs purchased with spirit stones.

Because he practiced barefoot every time, his eccentric behavior led some people to gossip behind his back, claiming he was a "muddy-legged" peasant who couldn't shake his old habits. Paradoxically, this earned Lin Donglai a certain level of notoriety among the disciples.

Even Elder Qin had personally asked Lin Donglai why he didn't wear shoes to the academy, questioning if he had sold the boots provided to outer disciples to exchange for spirit stones.

Lin Donglai could only explain that walking barefoot allowed him to better sense the heavens and earth, comprehending the concept of the Unity of Heaven and Man, thereby better practicing the Tendon Transformation and Marrow Cleansing Stance.

Elder Qin did not believe that a "spiritual seedling" who had not even completed the Qi Induction stage could sense the Unity of Heaven and Man. However, seeing no other abnormalities, he simply said, "In that case, it truly is your own technique. Although you also possess a low-grade Five-Element Root, you do have a low-grade Wood Constitution, which is stronger than an ordinary low-grade Five-Element Root. Perhaps you really can, like a tree, draw some inspiration from the earth. It could be considered a release of your true nature."

"But next time, it's best not to sunbathe with your bare buttocks exposed. Those who fly high can still see you."

...

Since Elder Qin's inquiry, Lin Donglai continued to follow his own ways. He simply put more thought into sunbathing; he brought several mirrors to reflect sunlight into his room from the outside, so he no longer had to lie naked on the large blue stone.

With the completion of the Tendon Transformation, he commenced the great undertaking of Marrow Cleansing.

Marrow cleansing was not merely about the bones; it also included blood transformation. Within the Tendon Transformation and Marrow Cleansing Stance, there was a method called [Bone Vibration]. During breathing, one would emit low-frequency sounds from the throat, resembling the guttural purring of a tiger or a leopard.

This method could easily damage the internal organs, but fortunately, the air roots of the mysterious Dao Seed were constantly breathing and nourishing his physical body, making him unafraid of minor injuries.

Judging by the progress of Ding Zhen and the others, Lin Donglai's marrow cleansing was not slow.

After the cleansing, his bones gradually became lighter, and his ordinary bone marrow, having absorbed spiritual energy, transformed into spiritual marrow.

The spiritual marrow was responsible for producing blood, specifically "Essence Blood."

The success or failure of marrow cleansing could only be verified through this Essence Blood.

The step to cultivate the Innate Fetal Breathing required consuming Essence Blood to "refine essence into Qi."

Without sufficient Essence Blood, one could not refine essence into Qi.

Only after refining the Innate Fetal Breathing could one guide external spiritual energy into the body to complete Qi Induction.

For an ordinary person, as long as they could condense nine drops of Essence Blood through marrow cleansing, they could basically achieve Fetal Breathing. However, it was best to retain three drops; otherwise, their primordial essence would be severely damaged.

Essence Blood was something practitioners frequently had to consume—for example, when refining magical artifacts... or using life-sacrificing secret techniques.

Refining his Natal Dao Seed, for instance, required the use of Essence Blood.

Lin Donglai had currently condensed five drops. Since starting the marrow refinement, he could basically condense one drop every three days. By touching his heart, he could faintly feel the change brought about by the marrow cleansing: the Essence Blood was heavier and more spiritual than ordinary blood.

Of course, the greatest credit went to the spiritual food in the cafeteria. Without it, the consumption required to condense Essence Blood would be so great that even eating a cow a day in the mortal realm might not make up for it; he could easily refine himself into a skeletal ghost.

However, refining the Dao Seed required seventy-seven to forty-nine drops of Essence Blood to succeed; these five drops were merely a drop in the bucket.

Lin Donglai intended to complete the refinement before achieving Fetal Breathing to avoid any unforeseen complications, though he worried about not completing Qi Induction before the second hundred-day assessment.

"Donglai! We have to find a way to earn some spirit stones! Otherwise, even if we are a day late with Qi Induction, we'll still be demoted to laborers just the same."

"I've only condensed five drops of Essence Blood so far! If I take Marrow-Nourishing Pills, I can condense one drop every seven days, but those ten pills are already gone. Without the pills, it takes half a month to condense one drop. The effect of the ordinary spiritual food in the cafeteria is getting worse and worse. If only we had the proper spiritual meals from the second floor along with the Marrow-Nourishing Pills..."

Having taken medicinal pills, Ding Zhen found it difficult to endure such slow cultivation. However, he was too embarrassed to ask Xue Hong for spirit stones again, and he wasn't close with the others.

His roommates in the same courtyard, Luo Jie and Yu Jiang, also didn't seem to have any surplus spirit stones.

Lin Donglai also wanted to earn some spirit stones now to acquire spirit stones and spiritual herbs to stimulate the mysterious Dao Seed into growing another tiny root. With such a double effect, he would surely be able to complete the refinement of the Dao Seed before the second hundred-day assessment.

However, he had no immediate way to earn money: "Only those at the first level of Qi Refinement receive the outer disciple stipend. Although we have joined the sect, we aren't truly outer disciples yet... We have to go to Lingxi Peak to learn the hundred arts of cultivation. Do you have any leads on how to earn spirit stones?"

Ding Zhen nodded and urged, "Lai-ge, there are ways! Beyond Lingxi Peak is the Outer Sect Hall. Any outer disciple can take on missions!"

"Even though we haven't achieved Qi Induction and can't receive the one-spirit-stone stipend, we can still take missions to earn spirit stones!"

"Like helping to pick up fallen spiritual rice in the spirit fields, or helping to weed the fields, or catching insects in the orchards. You can earn half a spirit stone a day."

Hearing this, Lin Donglai shook his head. "Half a spirit stone a day? It's better to focus on practicing the Primordial Nourishing Breathing Technique. It pairs perfectly with the Tendon Transformation and Marrow Cleansing Stance. I've gained some insights recently; how about I share them with you? It might help shorten your Essence Blood condensation time."

But Ding Zhen countered, "Lai-ge, I've calculated it. Even if going for a day costs me a day of cultivation, for me, it's worth it."

"I only need to work for four days. Using two spirit stones to buy ten Marrow-Nourishing Pills, I can definitely succeed in marrow cleansing. It's much faster than cultivating on my own. This way, I can also go to Lingxi Peak earlier to learn a trade! Or find missions at the Outer Sect Hall to earn spirit stones! At the very least, I'll have the one-spirit-stone monthly stipend!"

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, and noting that the mysterious Dao Seed's roots were craving vitality and spiritual Qi more and more frequently, Lin Donglai realized that refining his Essence Blood and the Dao Seed was also a priority. He said, "Fine. I'll have to become a spiritual farmer eventually anyway. It's good to go and see ahead of time to understand how it works!"

The next morning, before dawn, around the third quarter of the Yin hour, Lin Donglai got out of bed.

The route required bypassing Lingxi Peak and heading toward Merit Peak, where the Outer Sect Hall was located.

Since they hadn't achieved Qi Induction, they had no travel talismans. They could only set out early to find suitable missions.

Joining them to perform tasks was another "spiritual seedling" named Zhong Xuan. He also possessed a low-grade Five-Element Root, but he was very sociable and frequently visited the various seedling courtyards to spread news. It was he who had discovered these leads for earning spirit stones.

(End of Chapter)