Chapter 178: Nine Cycles, Three Certifications
Although Qin Mu was sprinting at great speed, his mind was still churning with unprecedented activity. This meeting with the National Teacher of Yankang, though brief in conversation, had thrown his brain into a state of excitement.
Facing someone of unparalleled brilliance could stimulate you, pressure you, and elevate you.
For the National Teacher of Yankang, this was merely an ordinary conversation. But for Qin Mu, it held extraordinary significance. Simply standing before this legendary figure required immense courage; conversing with him demanded the mobilization of all one's wisdom.
Exchanging words with a wise person fills you with wisdom; associating with the mediocre makes you mediocre as well.
Qin Mu seized this opportunity from his dialogue with the National Teacher to place himself at the peak of his intellectual capacity, perfecting his Unified Cultivation Method.
Suddenly, his pace slowed. His primordial energy began circulating according to the improved Overlord Body Three Dantian Art. This current version of the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art was his perfected Unified Cultivation Method, into which he had blended the strengths of numerous techniques from the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture.
The original Overlord Body Three Dantian Art had no attributes. It was purely used to activate other techniques, and its power fell short when compared to techniques paired with specific divine abilities.
For example, the Eight Forms of Thunder Sound required the Tathagata Great Vehicle Sutra to unleash its full power. The Rain Execution Art needed the Black Tortoise Water Control Technique to be activated. The Thunderfire Blazing Art relied on the Vermilion Bird Fire Control Technique to fully manifest the power of thunder and fire.
The Overlord Body Three Dantian Art was a foundational technique; it had no matching spells or divine abilities.
This time, Qin Mu's enlightenment regarding the Unified Cultivation Method was based on the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art. By contemplating the scriptures transmitted on the Woodcutter's Stone, he stimulated various characteristics of the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art, enabling it to unleash the power of all kinds of techniques!
The Overlord Body Three Dantian Art had no attributes, couldn't temper the body, had no matching divine abilities, and couldn't directly transform into powerful offensive force.
With this realization of the Unified Cultivation Method, Qin Mu finally solved this problem.
Now, the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art was more about inclusiveness and absorption. Using his improved version to activate other spells, sword techniques, and combat skills, its power was in no way inferior to their original matching techniques!
This was the so-called Unified Cultivation Method from the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture.
Every cult leader of the Demon Cult had their own unique Unified Cultivation Method. The Young Ancestor's original intention was for Qin Mu to comprehend his own Unified Cultivation Method and then cultivate it alongside the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art. Although the cultivation speed would be slower, it would allow him to leverage the advantages of both techniques.
What the Young Ancestor hadn't anticipated was that Qin Mu would directly modify the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art itself, rather than comprehending a method based on the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture.
Qin Mu himself didn't know if this was good or bad, or the correct choice. He had cultivated the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art since childhood and was most familiar with it, so he subconsciously transformed it into his Unified Cultivation Method.
The most crucial point was that he had resolved the deficiencies of the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art in body tempering, spells, and combat skills.
Activating the improved Overlord Body Three Dantian Art, it now incorporated the Nine Cycles, Three Certifications Mystic Art, a top-tier body-tempering technique from the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture. Qin Mu had long envied the body-tempering methods of the combat technique school, but Master Ma, the Butcher, and the Cripple hadn't taught him any such techniques, so he had to search for them in the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture.
As the technique activated, Qin Mu immediately felt the extraordinary nature of the improved Overlord Body Three Dantian Art. His primordial energy circulated rapidly, then permeated his skin, muscles, bones, tendons, hair, and marrow.
Previously, his Overlord Body Three Dantian Art had only circulated within his body along relatively simple pathways. Now, it had penetrated every aspect of his physique!
Besides body tempering, the new Overlord Body Three Dantian Art also excelled in soul tempering and energy tempering.
Qin Mu walked slower and slower, gradually calming down, meticulously experiencing the shortcomings of his technique and correcting them.
The basic framework of his Unified Cultivation Method was established; what remained were only minor details.
He had significant deficiencies in body and soul tempering. Now, he felt as if his body was like parched land that hadn't seen rain for half a year, frantically absorbing moisture and nutrients.
The Nine Cycles, Three Certifications of the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture involved nine cycles of primordial energy and the physical body, and three certifications of the internal bones. The first certification was for dense and compact bones, the second for a body like iron, and the third for a physique like a mountain.
He was currently only at the stage of the first cycle and first certification.
Unknowingly, half a day passed. Qin Mu slowly walked to the Heavenly Record Tower. At the entrance, a secretary from the Imperial Library happened to pass by. He glanced at Qin Mu, his expression drastically changing, and quickly said, "Doctor Qin, you'd better regulate yourself immediately, or your life will be in danger!"
Qin Mu was puzzled, not understanding his meaning. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew against him, and he felt dizzy and lightheaded, swaying as if about to fall.
"Damn it!"
Qin Mu was startled. He quickly raised his hands and saw that his arms were as thin as sticks. He touched his face and could only feel a thin layer of skin, almost clinging directly to his cheekbones.
His originally well-fitting clothes had become somewhat loose.
Only then did he notice that over the past two hours, he had become terrifyingly thin, like a scarecrow made of dry twigs. Not only that, but his physical body was withering away!
Moreover, as he activated the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art, the rate of withering was accelerating sharply!
Once the energy stored in his body was completely depleted, it would likely be his death.
He had been so focused on perfecting the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art and cultivating the body and soul tempering techniques that he had neglected to monitor his own condition. Now he realized he was on the verge of total exhaustion.
"The new Overlord Body Three Dantian Art has a significant hidden danger. The cultivation speed is too fast, and I forgot that body tempering consumes one's own energy. The energy within the body is depleted without replenishment, placing an immense burden on the body!"
He was now at the Five Luminaries Realm, with a robust cultivation base. Yet, cultivating the new Overlord Body Three Dantian Art for body and soul tempering had drained his internal energy in less than two hours!
Qin Mu immediately stopped activating the Overlord Body Three Dantian Art, forcing his mind to clear. His brain spun rapidly as he pondered how to formulate a medicinal remedy to regulate his body, while dashing towards the Scholar's Residence.
Qin Mu rushed into his room, grabbed some money, and ran towards the Imperial Academy's storehouse, leaving the bewildered little fox and Dragon Qilin behind.
He purchased herbs from the storehouse and, without even returning to his lodging, began refining medicine on the road. He executed a dazzling series of techniques—extracting and refining the herbs—and had already concocted a furnace of spirit pills before he even reached the Scholar's Residence.
As soon as these spirit pills were formed, they emitted a faint, ethereal sound of Buddhist chanting, as if a Buddha were seated inside each pill, reciting sutras and praying.
The moment the pills were refined, Qin Mu opened his mouth and inhaled. A stream of pills formed a line and flew into his mouth.
While circulating the medicinal power, he ran towards his courtyard. Just as he reached the gate, he felt dizzy and blacked out, collapsing headfirst into the yard.
Fox Ling'er screamed and rushed over. Before losing consciousness, Qin Mu saw her arrive by his side and felt relieved. He said, "Help me catalyze the medicinal power..."
He didn't finish his sentence before passing out.
When Qin Mu groggily woke up, he felt the medicinal power of the pills in his stomach dissolving, like a blazing furnace sending waves of heat to his limbs and bones. He breathed a sigh of relief, a lingering fear in his heart.
The Unified Overlord Body Three Dantian Art was certainly good, but it was also extremely dangerous. If he hadn't managed to refine the remedial pills while still conscious, the consequences would have been unthinkable—he would most likely be dead!
"The Overlord Body Three Dantian Art overdraws the body during body and soul tempering. If I can't replenish it, I'll die."
Qin Mu opened his eyes and lay still, calculating. "Correcting this technique is very difficult. Touching one part affects the whole; modifying it would take an extremely long time. Since that's the case, it's better not to modify it..."
Fox Ling'er stood beside him, watching him nervously. Dragon Qilin crouched outside the window, trying to poke his head in to see if his meal ticket was still alive. But he was too big; the window could only accommodate one of his large eyes, and he couldn't squeeze into the room.
Qin Mu sat up, realizing he was lying on the bed. It must have been the little fox who used her demonic wind to put him there. He smiled and said, "No need to worry, I'm out of danger. Once I fully catalyze the medicinal power, my body will recover."
Fox Ling'er sighed in relief. "Young master, you scared me to death. In such a short time, you starved yourself. When you fell just now, I was afraid you wouldn't get up..."
Qin Mu calmly catalyzed the medicinal power. As the medicine dissolved and was absorbed by his body, he was temporarily out of immediate danger. However, his body was still in a state of depletion.
This was an internal deficiency caused by body and soul tempering. His physique had become stronger, but without sufficient nutrients to replenish it, it was like an airship flying in the sky. If a small alchemy furnace provided the power for the airship, it would inevitably fall from the sky and shatter.
That was exactly what had happened to him.
Soul tempering had drained his spirit, and body tempering had consumed his internal energy. The spirit pills he had refined replenished his spirit, preventing it from being completely exhausted. However, his body was still in a state of severe hunger.
Now, his spirit was fully restored, but his body remained emaciated, just skin and bones, frighteningly thin.
Qin Mu stood up and asked, "Ling'er, is there anything to eat? I'm very hungry now."
"Young master, do you want to eat the green ox?"
Dragon Qilin's huge eye rolled outside the window, and he said happily, "There's a wild ox on the back mountain. How about we catch it and roast it for you?"
This Dragon Qilin, no longer suffering from hunger, was full of mischief and always wanted to get back at the green ox.
Fox Ling'er laughed. "Young master, wait a moment! Dragon One, let's go get some food for the young master!" With that, she dashed out of the room in a puff of smoke, leading Dragon Qilin as they sped out of the Scholar's Residence.
"Sister Ling'er, where are we going to find food?" Dragon Qilin asked, puzzled.
"Can you swim?"
Fox Ling'er inquired. "There are a few big fish in Jade Dragon Lake, several zhang long. I've had my eye on them for a long time."
Dragon Qilin was delighted. "I've had my eye on them for a long time too, but the master didn't give the order, so it wasn't convenient to act. Don't worry, I'm an excellent swimmer. I can stay underwater for several days without coming up for air."
Fox Ling'er was overjoyed and went with him to the shore of Jade Dragon Lake. On the opposite side of the lake, a Taoist saw them and looked surprised. Before he could ask anything, he saw Dragon Qilin dive headfirst into the lake with a splash.
The Taoist's face changed drastically, and he quickly shouted, "Hey, lion! No bathing in the lake! Fox, you stop that lion!"
Fox Ling'er quickly urged, "Dragon One, hurry up, hurry up!"