Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

Lin Zhao subconsciously clenched his fist, his knuckles making a crisp cracking sound.

A strange lightness emanated from all parts of my body, as if I had shed some heavy burden, or as if I had been reshaped.

A power far greater than ever before surged from the depths—not just strength, but also speed, endurance, and the five senses, all of which were perfectly enhanced in a coordinated manner.

He lightly leaped out of the wooden tub, feeling the surging blood and energy within his body, and muttered to himself, "This medicinal bath has increased my strength by nearly fifty jin, breaking through the six hundred jin mark..."

His voice was filled with disbelief.

What is the origin of the "Taihe Yangyuan Jue"?

This auxiliary cultivation method, obtained from the Lin family's library and passed down by the first ancestor, has been practiced by many members of the Lin family over the past few hundred years, but they have all given up because of its despair-inducingly slow cultivation progress.

The first level takes ten years, the second level twenty years, the third level forty years—as for the fourth level, which no one has ever mastered, who knows how long it will take.

Lin Zhao vaguely felt that what was hidden behind this technique was probably far beyond his imagination.

The Lin family's children typically begin their cultivation at the age of ten, formally embarking on their path to immortality. However, theoretically, it takes seventy years to cultivate the "Taihe Yangyuan Gong" to the third level.

The clan history records that a centenarian elder eventually succeeded in the process, but the effect was merely to calm his mind and quiet his distracting thoughts.

This effect is negligible compared to the demanding difficulty of cultivation. A low-grade first-level "Heart-Cleansing Talisman" can achieve something similar.

Therefore, the entire Lin family regarded it as a useless thing and no one took it seriously.

But after Lin Zhao reached the third level, she discovered something different.

This practice is not just about harmonizing the body and mind and balancing yin and yang. Its deeper function is to nourish the source of life—that's the key!

What is the most fundamental difference between Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment? It's lifespan! And the length of lifespan depends entirely on the strength of one's life essence. The stronger the essence, the longer the lifespan.

Ordinary mortals, even with a lifespan of 120 years (two cycles of sixty years), often begin to experience a decline in their vital energy and blood around the age of 60, with their original essence being lost at an accelerated pace.

Qi-refining cultivators have already achieved a preliminary ability to solidify their origins. If they are free from illness and disaster, it is not difficult for them to live for more than a hundred years.

The Foundation Establishment stage represents a leap in life level, strengthening one's fundamental nature and allowing one to live up to 240 years (four cycles of sixty years).

As for those who have reached the Core Formation stage, their lifespan exceeds five hundred years, and they possess various secret methods for prolonging life.

Legend has it that some Core Formation cultivators have a lifespan of up to eight hundred years. As for Nascent Soul True Monarchs, they are beings who live for over a thousand years.

The Lin family previously speculated that this cultivation technique should be of the second rank—after all, it was left behind by the first ancestor who was in the Foundation Establishment stage.

Lin Zhao now suspects that the "Taihe Yangyuan Gong" is likely a third-tier cultivation technique that only Core Formation cultivators can access!

Looking across the entire Yunxia Mountain Range, with nearly 100,000 cultivators and seventeen markets, only the three major sects—Qianhuang Sect, Baicao Sect, and Heisha Pavilion—possess third-tier cultivation techniques.

This speculation is too astonishing. Lin Zhao dares not reveal even a single detail now.

This concerned a third-tier cultivation technique, something even a small Qi-refining family like the Lin family couldn't afford, let alone a Foundation Establishment family. He could only bury this thought deep in his heart.

Lin Zhao was frail and sickly from a young age. Later, the clan elders diagnosed him and believed that he had awakened a talent—his innate soul was too strong, far exceeding that of his peers, which caused his young body to be unable to withstand it, thus manifesting his illness.

In the world of cultivation, when a cultivator breaks through a realm, the enhancement of their life essence will subtly improve them. This influence can even be passed on to their descendants, giving them the opportunity to awaken special talents.

Those with exceptional talent are more likely to be born into the legendary "spiritual bodies." For example, the "Blazing Sun Spiritual Body" is formed when ancestors have cultivated fire-attribute techniques to an extremely high level, and the influence of their life essence accumulates generation after generation, eventually manifesting in a particular generation.

Those with spiritual bodies can achieve twice the results with half the effort when cultivating related techniques. While Core Formation is uncertain, Foundation Establishment is practically achievable if one is willing. Such geniuses are usually directly recruited and nurtured by the three major sects.

Lin Zhao possessed the souls of two lifetimes, and from a young age, her spiritual strength was several times that of ordinary people. Her spiritual strength was strong, but her physical body was weak. Because she was young and could not train her body, she suffered from constant illnesses in her childhood.

Later, Lin's father taught him the "Taihe Yangyuan Gong" step by step, which taught him to control and restrain his surging spiritual consciousness, and his condition gradually improved.

Looking back now, Lin Zhao's smooth progress in mastering this skill was partly due to his naturally strong spiritual awareness, which made it easy for him to enter a meditative state; and partly because he had been exposed to and practicing this skill since he was three years old.

In the world of cultivation, many profound techniques emphasize a solid foundation, requiring early training to build a strong base and increase compatibility. The higher the compatibility, the faster the cultivation will be later.

The problem is that ordinary children, whose minds are not yet settled, cannot comprehend the essence of a seemingly simple but actually profound three-stage cultivation method like the "Taihe Yangyuan Gong".

In other words, Lin Zhao's knowledge and wisdom from her previous life enabled her to gradually understand that the core of this technique is "subduing the mind," gradually suppressing distracting thoughts, purifying the mind, and ultimately achieving deep meditation.

This is the foundation of all methods, effectively resisting inner demons, preventing demonic possession, and paving the way for all subsequent cultivation.

Lin Zhao repeatedly compared the differences between herself and the Lin family elders after they reached the third level.

The key may lie in his age. He is only fifteen years old, which is the golden age when the source of life is most active and growing vigorously.

The centenarian elder recorded in the clan had long since begun to decline in vitality, and his life essence had become solidified, making it difficult to stimulate growth. Naturally, he could not feel the true effect of this technique in nourishing his life essence.

Lin Zhao was young, and his original potential was still rising and in a continuous upward phase, so he was able to keenly perceive the mysteries within.

This will undoubtedly bring him many indescribable benefits in his future endeavors.

---

At dawn, the sky was just beginning to lighten.

Lin Zhao sat cross-legged on the futon in the cultivation room, already in a meditative state.

As the Five Elements Rhyme Spirit Technique circulates throughout the body, the surrounding天地元气 (heaven and earth energy) is slowly drawn in, transforming into faint lights of four colors: red, green, blue, and gold. Like fireflies drawn in, these lights flow into the body in wisps and strands.

He possesses the spiritual roots of metal, wood, water, and fire, but lacks the earth element. In the cultivation world, this is considered a "pseudo-spiritual root."

The "Five Elements Rhyme Spirit Technique" he cultivated was the second-tier inheritance of the Lin family.

This technique progresses slowly, but its advantage lies in its balanced and peaceful nature, circulating according to the principles of the Five Elements, making it less prone to going astray or falling into demonic possession.

Those cultivators with three or two spiritual roots, who possess "true spiritual roots," have a significant advantage in cultivating single-attribute techniques, greatly increasing their chances of reaching Foundation Establishment. They are often directly recruited by the three major sects and given corresponding top-tier techniques based on their own spiritual roots.

Compared to the situation of those with pseudo-spiritual roots, it's a world of difference.