Jingming Ancestral Master and the Miraculous Salvation True Lord Miaoji?
Xu Yang is utterly confused by these titles.
He takes out his phone.
Opens the browser.
After searching on the internet, Xu Yang learns that this Honorable Sage Xu Xun is quite a remarkable figure who can be ranked alongside the likes of Zhang Daoling from Dragon Tiger Mountain as one of the four Great Heavenly Masters!
He was a man from the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
According to the Daoist writings, Celestial Master Xu was an avid hunter in his youth. One day, while hunting a deer in the mountains, he saw a deer give birth and then die while licking its fawn. This caused Xu Xun to realize the impermanence of life, prompting him to return home and begin studying Daoism in the residence of the Jin Clan in the West Mountain. There, he met Wu Meng, a fellow Daoist from Yuzhang Province, from whom he learned the teachings of the Sanqing skill and achieved enlightenment, eventually founding the Jingming Sect.
There are several legends regarding Honorable Sage Xu on the internet.
Such as "Sage Xu Slaying the Flood Dragon".
And "The Family's Ascension to Immortality".
"Xu?"
"Yang?"
Xu Yang puts down his phone and blinks, muttering, "Could it be that my grandpa's actual surname isn't Xu, but instead, Xu? And that he is a descendant of Celestial Master Xu?"
"If that's the case, him claiming to be the Heavenly Master's successor isn't a boast after all!"
"In that case..."
"Doesn't that make me, Xu Yang, a successor to the Heavenly Master as well?"
Opening the Divine Ascension Scripture, Xu Yang's eyes are met with several small ancient seal characters.
Xu Yang stares at the text for a while, unable to recognize the characters, and looks up at Lady Ghost. Lady Ghost scans the text and writes down a line of blood-red characters -
"How wonderful is the primal Dao, the manifestation of the true text infusing vast forgiveness. At the beginning of the Dragon Han Calamity, it releases radiant colors. Thirty-two heavenly books, Five Elders Scarlet Letter Transmission, showing mercy to save life and death, emitting auspicious clouds. Within them is the secret to longevity, planting the seeds for the path to immortality. Opening the letters to reveal the profound mystery, diligently cultivating the essential vigor, looking up to the heavens to invoke the divine spirits, and riding the Qi to return to the Three Pure Ones... This is the general outline of the Divine Ascension Scripture, the meaning of which I do not know too clearly."
Xu Yang is astonished: "I didn't expect elder sister to be so learned. You can even recognize these ancient seals?"
Lady Ghost writes more blood-red characters: "When I was alive, I was born into a family of scholars. My father was a successful candidate in the imperial examinations, and I followed my father's footsteps in learning since childhood, proficient in qin, chess, calligraphy, and painting."
Perhaps feeling that the phrase "proficient in everything" sounds a little boastful.
Lady Ghost's finger wipes it away, replacing it with "slightly experienced in all".
"Impressive!"
Xu Yang praises and flips the next page of the Divine Ascension Scripture to continue reading.
The characters in the back, are not in the ancient seals.
And it looks...
A bit like things grandpa had copied down by hand.
It reads -
"The supreme secret chant, ten times to help others ascend, a hundred demons hidden within, naturally aligning."
"The red characters from the primordial chaos, the highest truth, ancestral calamities producing life in the heavens..."
Xu Yang recognizes every character in the text, but when combined, he doesn't understand even half a sentence. With a baffled expression, he exclaims, "Is this some kind of ancestral scripture? What the hell is written here? How am I supposed to cultivate it?"
In his view.
Practicing a martial art should be like the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms as described on the internet. Left leg slightly bent, right arm bent inward, right palm drawing a circle, then with a "ho" sound, push outward... Isn't that simple and clear?
Just at this moment -
"Ding!"
"Daoist skill Divine Ascension Scripture detected. Do you choose to spend 100 merit points to learn?"
A pleasant reminder chimes in Xu Yang's mind.
Xu Yang's eyes move slightly and he silently thinks "Learn".
In the next moment, the obscure and confusing cultivation phrases in the Divine Ascension Scripture are transformed into Xu Yang's memory.
With just a shift of thought, the profound meaning of the text is suddenly clear, and Xu Yang knows the meaning of each sentence.
"So that's how it is..."
"This Divine Ascension Scripture truly is a cultivation technique."
"Moreover, it is divided into chapters on cultivation and Daoist talismans... It also records the two Jingming Sect Secretly Transmitted Seals!"
Xu Yang closed his eyes, carefully comprehending, and after a while, opened his eyes excitedly, "Old man said my aptitude is too bad and I cannot cultivate Dao. It seems that the old man was wrong. This Divine Ascension Scripture is so simple! I just need to do this and that, then I can cultivate successfully..."
He excitedly said, "Lady Ghost, please help me close the shop. I'm going to cultivate and not run the business today!"
The female ghost drifted downstairs to close the door.
Xu Yang searched through the hidden compartment of the suitcase again, and found a black rusty iron seal that looked ordinary. Considering it was his grandfather's relic, he put it into his storage space along with the suitcase.
He went to his bedroom, sat cross-legged on the bed, and began meditating in the posture of "Five Hearts Facing Heaven" as recorded in the Divine Ascension Scripture.
Half an hour later, Xu Yang's legs went numb.
He gritted his teeth and lay flat on the bed, waiting for the numbness to subside, then thought, "What's going on? I've been practicing for half an hour, but I don't feel any Qi?"
A moment later, he got up and started cultivating again.
However, since he rarely exercised and mostly stayed home, his body might not be up to it. Every time he maintained the "Five Hearts Facing Heaven" posture for 40 to 50 minutes, his legs would become unbearably numb, forcing him to pause and rest.
He repeated this process until nightfall.
Xu Yang stumbled out of bed, bitter smile on his face, "It seems that my grandpa was right; my aptitude is too bad. I practiced all day and still don't feel any Qi... How can I even talk about cultivating Dao?"
He walked out of the bedroom and saw the female ghost sitting on the sofa watching TV, and suddenly a thought came to him.
"Wait!"
"If I can't cultivate on my own, what about using the system?"
Calling out in his mind brought up the system's attribute panel.
[Name]: Xu Yang
[Age]: 22 years old
[Cultivation Technique]: Divine Ascension Scripture
[Cultivation Level]: None
[Treasure]: None
[Merit Points]: 200 points.
[Storage Space]: 10 cubic yards.
When he looked at the[Cultivation Technique] column, sure enough, a small "+" sign appeared after "Divine Ascension Scripture."
Xu Yang had a thought and "clicked" the little "+" sign.
"Ding!"
"Merit Points -10, Mana Points +100."
The system's prompt sounded again, and Xu Yang felt a warm current emerge from within his body, flowing through his limbs, and finally settling in his lower abdomen.
On the attribute panel, the[Cultivation Level]column changed from "None" to "Qi Refining Realm First Layer."
"It works!"
Xu Yang was overjoyed!
As it was recorded in the Divine Ascension Scripture, once you can sense the spiritual aura of heaven and earth, absorb it into your body, and cultivate a strand of mana, you've entered the gate, reaching the first layer of Qi Refining. Once your mana grows to a certain level, you can proceed to the second layer of Qi Refining.
The female ghost, who was watching TV, suddenly looked up at Xu Yang.
Her beautiful face, hidden behind her long black hair, was full of shock.
He...
Actually succeeded in cultivation?
Impossible!
The Divine Ascension Scripture is one of the supreme cultivation techniques of Daoism. How could it be so easy to master?
Moreover, Xu Yang's body...
Was not suitable for cultivating Dao!
That is to say, he had "poor aptitude."
Lady Ghost, after all, was a Ghost King and could see this.
At this moment, Xu Yang's breath shook again!
Thrice!
Four times...
Lady Ghost brushed aside her hair and suddenly exclaimed, "Qi Refining Third Layer?"
Xu Yang consumed all 200 merit points, barely raising his cultivation level to the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm.
Xu Yang sensed the mana inside his body and spoke with a faint smile, "I've been practicing hard for half a day and finally reached the third layer of Qi Refining. Isn't this reasonable?"