Mortal: Starting with the Golden Jade Book

Since creating the Spirit Void Array Talisman, Lin Zui was invigorated, believing that he had solved the biggest problem in constructing an array within his body. However, when he actually began to construct the array in his dantian, he realized that he had been too happy too soon.

The five spiritual root vortexes separated from the "Five Elements Transformation Technique" appear to be independent, but in reality they are interdependent and inseparable, forming a delicate balance with ingenious craftsmanship.

Forcing a variable into this delicate balance can easily disrupt it and cause the entire system to collapse.

Lin Zui tried a few times and quickly realized the seriousness of the matter. Helpless, he could only stop trying in his dantian and instead practice by continuously constructing magic arrays in some less important parts of his body using the Lingxu Array Talisman.

I plan to wait until the day in the future when I can control the Spirit Void Array Talisman with ease before returning to my dantian to construct the array.

As Lin was engrossed in his research, the days passed by one by one, and another year went by in the blink of an eye.

this day.

Outside Lin Zui's room, Senior Brother Wang was pacing anxiously back and forth.

Lin Zui has been in seclusion for a long time. Previously, he would emerge from seclusion once every month or so to learn about information inside and outside the sect. But this time, he has been in seclusion for more than three months without making any moves.

He received an important message that Lin Zui had specifically instructed him to send, so he rushed over to report it. However, after sending several transmission talismans, he received no response, which made him feel hopeful.

Could this guy have died because of something wrong with his training?

If that's the case, then will he be free again?

Having never been controlled by anyone, the feeling wasn't very obvious. But after two years of being at the mercy of others, Senior Brother Wang realized that all those cultivation techniques, secret arts, spirit stones, and magic treasures were nonsense. Freedom was the most precious thing!

If he could truly regain his freedom, he wouldn't be interested in seeking immortality anymore. He would rather return to the secular world, become a living god, receive offerings from mortals, and live a comfortable life. Wouldn't that be great?

Why bother being a lowly steward in this Yellow Maple Valley, being ordered around and exploited?

However, once Lin Zui is no longer there to keep him in check, those guys he tricked into becoming his colleagues will definitely not let him off the hook. He'll have to find a way to get rid of them...

Senior Brother Wang got lost in his thoughts and gradually drifted off into daydreams until a familiar voice transmitted into his mind, pulling him back from his endless fantasies.

"Come in!"

Those two simple words shattered all of Senior Brother Wang's illusions. Realizing that Lin Zui had already emerged from seclusion, he quickly composed himself and went inside.

"Master, Junior Brother Han applied for a leave-of-valley token at the Hundred Machines Hall a few hours ago and has already left the valley."

"Oh? Has he gone anywhere else recently?"

"No, apart from going to Yuelu Hall a few months ago, it seems to be to inquire about the formula for Foundation Establishment Pill, I have basically stayed in the Hundred Herbs Garden and rarely leave."

Lin Zui nodded. It seemed that Han Li's trip this time was to Wanbaolou to buy magical artifacts and talismans in preparation for the Blood Forbidden Trial.

Just a few days later, on his way back to Huangfeng Valley, he encountered Senior Brother Lu, who had the Wind Spirit Root, killing and robbing him. After a fierce battle, Han Li narrowly won and not only obtained two Foundation Establishment Pills, but also took advantage of Senior Sister Chen's advances.

However, in the original story, Han Li seems to have used a small sword talisman to kill Senior Brother Lu. Now that the talisman is in his own hands, the outcome of this battle is hard to say.

After thinking it over, Lin Zui decided to go and see. If there was a chance, he could try to get closer to the old demon.

"Go and check on Chen Qiaoqian and her Daoist partner, Senior Brother Lu. If they are found to have left the valley in the next two days, come back and inform me immediately."

"Yes, Master!"

After seeing off Senior Brother Wang, Lin Zui stopped thinking about Han Li. He looked inward at his dantian and saw the Five Elements Vortex slowly circulating without any cultivation technique activating it. A look of satisfaction appeared on his face.

At this moment, runes faintly flickered on the five spiritual root vortexes, and miniature magic arrays composed of countless spiritual void array runes were perfectly embedded within them.

The spiritual energy absorbed by the spiritual root vortex passes through the spiritual void array symbol, driving the array to operate. The array, in turn, propels the spiritual root vortex to rotate continuously, absorbing and refining spiritual energy in a cycle that repeats endlessly.

Although the efficiency of absorbing and refining spiritual energy is only about one-third of that of meditating and cultivating, the advantage is that it is not limited by time or place and does not require control. Even if Lin Zui is fighting or sleeping, the spiritual root vortex can operate on its own and continue to absorb and refine spiritual energy. In other words, it is equivalent to being able to meditate and cultivate for four hours every day.

Four hours may not seem like much, but Lin Zui's daily routine included much more than just cultivation. Even during seclusion, he couldn't possibly dedicate all his time to cultivating his magical power, not to mention the many times when he couldn't cultivate at all. On average, he could barely cultivate for four hours a day.

So although it took more than a year to build the magic array, it was definitely worthwhile in the long run. Roughly estimated, it could increase one's cultivation speed by at least 50%.

The only problem is that the existence of the formation also restricts Lin Zui's freedom to cultivate on his own. For example, if he wants to refine pills to increase his cultivation speed, or if he needs to break through a bottleneck, he must remove the formation first, otherwise he may conflict with the formation, which is a small trouble.

Fortunately, Lin Zui was already extremely skilled in using the Spirit Void Array Talisman. Having successfully constructed the array once, rebuilding it again was not a problem; it would only waste a little time, which Lin Zui did not care about at all.

Cultivation requires no worry, so the time saved can naturally be used for other things.

However, most of the secret techniques in the "Five Elements Transformation Technique" can only be practiced after reaching the seventh level of Qi Refining. There is no shortage of mid-to-high-level talismans for the time being. It would be better to continue studying the other formations in "Yu Feng's Formation Explanation" and, while the time is still hot, build more auxiliary formations in your body to improve your combat power as much as possible.

Without hesitation, Lin Zui composed himself and quickly immersed himself in the thought again.

……

three days later.

In a forest on the edge of the Taiyue Mountains, two figures were locked in fierce combat, fighting back and forth.

Both men appeared to be young men in their early twenties. One of them was dressed in white, with a handsome and graceful appearance, but his expression was somewhat ferocious and sinister. He waved a large blue flag, and as the light flowed, a swarm of blue wind blades instantly rushed towards the other side.

The other person was dressed in a black outfit, with dark skin and an ordinary appearance. He had a dark blue dragon-shaped shield on his right forearm. The shield was roughly inverted triangle shape, with a ferocious dragon head at the top. The dragon's body was coiled to form the shield, and the dragon's tail hung down along the back of his hand. Judging from the faint, chilling light emanating from the dragon's tail, it was obvious that being pricked by this thing would definitely not be pleasant.

With a raised shield, he blocked more than a dozen wind blades. As he flung out several fireball talismans with his left hand, he swiftly closed in. Amidst the smoke from the exploding fireballs, his dragon tail suddenly extended and stabbed towards the white-robed youth.

But the opponent had clearly anticipated this, and with a swift movement, dodged the attack in the blink of an eye.

However, before the opponent could catch their breath, a dragon's roar was heard, and the eyes on the dragon's head shone brightly. The shield that was coiled on the dragon's body suddenly came to life, transforming into a dragon-shaped chain that wrapped around the opponent.

The young man in white was startled and quickly manipulated the cyan flag to defend himself, creating a wind shield to protect himself firmly.

The dragon-shaped chains continued unabated, binding and restraining the white-robed youth along with the wind shield. The spear-like dragon tail repeatedly thrust towards the youth, but was blocked entirely by the wind shield, resulting in a stalemate.

Behind a tree not far away, Lin Zui, with invisibility and concealment talismans affixed to his body, had been watching from the shadows for quite some time.

The two people fighting so fiercely were naturally Han Li and Senior Brother Lu, who had the wind spirit root.

Having anticipated this scene, Lin Zui had intensified his surveillance of Senior Brother Lu three days prior. Upon discovering that he had taken Chen Qiaoqian away from Huangfeng Valley, he decisively concealed his tracks and followed them.

Similar to the original story, Senior Brother Lu subdued Chen Qiaoqian when she was off guard and brought her to the vicinity of this cave with the intention of committing a crime. However, he happened to run into Han Li, who was resting there. Knowing that there was no way to resolve the matter peacefully, the two of them did not waste any words and immediately began a life-or-death battle.

However, the battle did not proceed as it did in the original story. Despite having the advantage in cultivation, Senior Brother Lu not only failed to overpower Han Li, but was also caught off guard by Han Li's unique magical artifact, almost suffering a crushing defeat.