One divination a day, a trainee celestial master

Jiang Shou desperately suppressed the urge to laugh wildly to the sky. This first wisp of true essence, like a drop of tangible dew, gently landed at the bottom of his dantian.

Although it was only a tiny bit, it was the first strand of true essence that Jiang Shou had genuinely cultivated himself using his own techniques! This was completely different from the system directly bestowing it upon him! It meant that he truly possessed the life-sustaining machine to make a living in this world!

As he slowly finished his practice and exited the breathing state, he was pleasantly surprised to find that even though he wasn't circulating the Zhou Tian Xin Fa (a mental cultivation method) from the "Inner Landscape Chapter,"

The [Guardian of Oneness - Dao Seed] deep within the dantian was still spinning on its own at a slow yet steady pace!

With each slow rotation, a tiny wisp of true essence overflows from the Dao Seed and drips into the bottom of the Dantian!

Once Jiang Shou concentrates his mind and begins to circulate his energy according to the mental technique, the vortex of energy will instantly accelerate, and the speed at which true essence is generated will also increase exponentially!

Jiang Shou felt a mixture of shock and joy as he sensed the "millet grain" tirelessly circulating in his dantian.

"This doesn't look like a kidney stone at all..."

Jiang Shou swallowed hard, the smile on his lips even harder to suppress than an AK.

"This is clearly a fully automatic perpetual motion machine with both 'passive mana regeneration' and 'active mana regeneration acceleration' effects!"

……

Jiang Shou calmed himself down and refocused his attention on the "Taishang Shouyi: Inner Landscape Chapter" on his lap.

Now that he had taken the first step into the path of cultivation, he needed to figure out exactly how far he could progress with this technique. He continued to turn the pages, following the path that had turned bluish-green.

The pages of the book detail the nine realms of cultivation in the "Inner Landscape Chapter":

First Realm: Dao Seed, the First Qi Born. Jiang Shou touched his lower abdomen, a smile playing on his lips. This step was the most difficult and dangerous, but fortunately, he had the Suihan Token, a "first recharge bonus," which took care of everything, allowing him to easily skip the beginner's hellish difficulty.

The second stage: The sprouting of Qi. Nourished by the true essence day and night, the seed of Dao gradually begins to sprout. The form of the true essence within the dantian also changes, condensing from scattered "droplets" into continuous "wisps of silk." As long as the microcosmic orbit is continuously circulated, the true essence accumulates to a certain degree, and the inner landscape will become completely stable.

The third stage: The initial gathering of the three flowers. The essence, qi, and spirit within the body begin to blend and nourish each other. At this stage, the cultivator's spiritual consciousness begins to awaken, their five senses and six perceptions far surpass those of ordinary people, and their mind is as firm as a rock, difficult to disturb by external things.

The fourth realm: The Five Qi Return to the Origin. The Qi of the five internal organs returns to the Dantian, and the true essence undergoes a qualitative change. The physical body begins to transform, entering the so-called "semi-spiritual body" state. Ordinary evil Qi and yin evil things cannot even get close to the body.

Jiang Shou watched with great interest; the first four realms sounded like the foundational stages for strengthening the body and honing one's skills.

Then look down.

Fifth Realm: Golden Elixir Reversion. True essence condenses within the dantian, transforming into a "Dao Embryo." Upon reaching this realm, one can break free from the shackles of the mortal body and command the myriad laws of heaven and earth. Below this line is a smaller annotation: [Requires the use of the *Taishang Shouyi·Daoshu Pian* (Supreme One's Guardian: Daoist Techniques Chapter) to perform this.]

"Huh?" Jiang Shou's eyes lit up. A Daoist manual? Controlling all laws?

These words alone exude a world-destroying aura. Is it like in novels, where one can conjure thunder in their palm or spew Samadhi Fire from their mouth? I wonder if there are any techniques like "a universe within a sleeve," "a mustard seed containing Mount Sumeru," or "shrinking the earth to an inch" that allow for instantaneous teleportation?

Jiang Shou swallowed hard, his mind immediately becoming active.

But it's not among the old man's belongings. Even this "Inner Landscape Chapter" might have been hidden by the patriarch in the old plaque above the door. So where is this "Taoist Arts Chapter," which sounds even more impressive?

"Am I supposed to wait for Lord Suihan to randomly assign me a task and give me directions?" Jiang Shou raised his head, his eyes darting around the room.

Could it be hidden under a table leg, under the offering table in the main hall? In the ancient well in the backyard? Or perhaps... Jiang Shou's gaze passed through the window and fell into the eyes of the three solemn clay statues of the Three Pure Ones in the main hall.

"How about... I take a hammer first thing tomorrow morning and crack open the clay statue of our ancestor to see if there are any hidden compartments?" The moment this treasonous thought crossed Jiang Shou's mind, he shuddered and quickly prayed silently to the statue. He couldn't afford to be reckless; if he didn't find the secret manual and instead got struck by lightning and turned to charcoal by the ancestor, it would be a huge loss.

"By the way, Fat Tiger!" That little fat cat even knows there's something hidden in the old signboard. What secrets in this Taoist temple could possibly be kept from it? It seems I'll have to increase my investment in frying fish and try to pry this cat's mouth open as soon as possible.

Pulling his wandering thoughts back, Jiang Shou suppressed his urge to search for treasure and continued flipping through the remaining realms.

Sixth Realm: Divine Condensation of the Supreme Mystery. Spiritual awareness is greatly opened, enabling one to perceive destiny and calamities, calculate the course of heaven and earth, and understand the changes of Yin and Yang. [Requires the use of "Supreme Guardian of Oneness: Heavenly Secrets"].

"Good heavens, besides Taoist arts, there's even a fortune-telling book called 'The Heavenly Secrets'." Jiang Shou exclaimed inwardly.

Seventh Realm: Returning to Emptiness and Merging with the Dao. True essence transforms into nothingness, touching upon the Great Dao of Immortality. [Requires the assistance of the "Mysterious Qi Pill" for breakthrough]. "They've even come up with pills..."

The Eighth Realm: Supreme Forgetfulness. The mind and spirit are unhindered, breathing in harmony with heaven and earth. This step requires no cultivation techniques; the annotation simply states: "[Requires a special opportunity]".

Ninth Realm: Limitless Primordial Chaos. The Great Dao is perfected, and one ascends to heaven in broad daylight. [Requires a special opportunity].

Jiang Shou closed the ancient book and let out a long breath.

The later realms were far too distant for him. Things like returning to emptiness and merging with the Dao, or ascending to heaven in broad daylight, sounded like myths and legends. He hadn't even touched the threshold of "one wisp of Qi," and had only just accumulated a drop of true essence in his dantian.

"You have to eat one bite at a time, and you have to cultivate immortality step by step." Jiang Shou patted his cheeks and comforted himself. "I can't be too ambitious. I need to master the small circulation of energy in front of me first."

He carefully put away the "Inner Landscape Chapter" and the mysterious blue round tablet together.

Just as he finished putting away the book, Jiang Shou suddenly slapped his thigh.

"Oh right! Turn in the quest!"

This morning, he split open the old plaque and obtained the cultivation technique and the mysterious cyan round token—a legitimate mission issued by the Winter Decree. He was so focused on studying the Dao Seed and the technique that he almost forgot about claiming the reward.

Jiang Shou quickly reached into his robes and pulled out the Suihan Token.

Sure enough, the divination text on the back of the wooden plaque was emitting a soft bluish light.

As Jiang Shou gazed at them, the words melted away like ripples on water, transforming into a shimmering blue light that effortlessly flew into his brow.

A cooling sensation travels along the meridians throughout the body, gently cleansing every part of the body.

As the blue light faded, Jiang Shou immediately closed his eyes and focused his inner energy on his dantian.

At the bottom of his dantian, besides the small drop of true essence he had condensed through his own circulation, there was a large ball of true essence energy, about the size of an olive!

This pure and warm essence floated quietly below the dantian, radiating gentle fluctuations.

Jiang Shou sensed the ball of true energy he had picked up for free, and couldn't help but smile.

Based on the speed at which he circulated his microcosmic orbit and the true essence overflowed from his Dao seed, this olive-sized ball of true essence is at least equivalent to the effort he put into five days of tireless and arduous cultivation!

"This cheat is really good... I knew it, there's no way to level up in a game by just killing monsters, you have to do the main quests to get more experience."

Jiang Shou held the Suihan Token in his hand as if it were an ATM that could endlessly dispense experience pills.

Jiang Shou stroked his chin, his smile gradually becoming somewhat "shrewd" and unrestrained.

Although yesterday's mission to summon the soul at the hospital was a loss and almost failed, the temptation of the reward for this "Cold Season Order" mission, which directly replenishes the cultivation progress bar, is too great.

"If I could take on a casual quest every day, like treasure hunting or smashing plaques, this path of cultivation wouldn't seem so difficult. Hehehe..."

From the dimly lit room came the young abbot's slightly smug laughter.