CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 42 MAGIC TRANSMISSION

Beichen Sword Sect disciples, upon achieving Foundation Establishment and cultivating a sword seed, must then refine a sword embryo.

This stage in unorthodox sects is commonly referred to as Core Formation.

If referred to by the methods of Mystic Sect and Ancient Dao, it is known as crossing the threshold of Refining Qi and Transforming God.

Therefore, Foundation Establishment is merely like a carp leaping over the dragon gate; only after this leap can the ordinary carp transform into a dragon.

This also is what the world often says, ’Once I swallow a single Golden Core, my fate is no longer controlled by the heavens’ – the Golden Core Realm.

In principle, Core Formation is not much different from Foundation Establishment; both involve absorbing heavenly materials and treasures seeking rebirth, transcending the ordinary at once.

Foundation Establishment is like laying the foundation, Core Formation like building the house. The refining of the core palace versus the casting of the Dao Body, the consumption of heavenly materials and treasures, and cultivation resources naturally exceed the previous thousandfold, greatly increasing the difficulty of reconstructing the Dao Body and breaking through realms.

Take Tie Dan for example, in the Refining Essence to Qi stage, all kinds of gold essence iron seeds are smelted to produce Divine Gang True Qi, casting the sword in the belly with the "Divine Gang Qi Refining Sword Casting Skill," ultimately forging the Divine Gang Sword Embryo. Now in Core Formation, it’s not only about casting the sword in the belly, but also forming the sword spine, sword body, and sword sheath of the Dao Body and Taoist Body in one go.

If naturally born with a Dao Seed and the favored by fortune, can succeed at once, breaking through the shackles, forming a Golden Core, naturally that’s best.

But if talent, resources, and luck are lacking, and one fails to break through, the Foundation Establishment body, with limited Qi Acupoint Inner View capacity, cannot accommodate a vast amount of True Qi.

The heavenly materials and treasures sought with great effort before become entirely wasted, as the Spiritual Qi quickly disperses back to the heavens and earth, and one must start over from scratch.

People of the Immortal Palace don’t mind; if they fail, they try again. As masters of wealth across the seas! Supported by the world’s livestock and resources! Lacking a bit of heavenly materials and treasures?

Form! If not once, then form again! Practice makes perfect after all, form and form until it succeeds!

Compared to the many without sect guidance and relying on luck in cultivation, mixed and loose cultivators, the Mystic Sect is slightly better, though not by much.

With sect guidance, orally passed secret techniques and Heart Sutra, sharing Core Formation experiences, can improve the success rate somewhat. But resources are indeed limited, hence they can only meticulously select and cultivate the Dao children with the best talent and fortune.

While people like Yue Peng and Zhou Feng, whose talent is slightly lacking and who cannot earn enough resources for cultivation, as Outer Mountain disciples, they remain stuck for years at the peak of Foundation Establishment, unable to progress. The only thing they can do is mingle in the Jianghu, practice all over, fighting and seizing opportunities.

Your own materials you must fight for, your own Golden Core you must earn.

If no matter how hard you fight you can’t seize it, then fighting and killing will lead to death.

Seeking the Dao is so difficult indeed...

"Watch the Taibai Star in the morning, look at the Changgeng shadow at dusk, observe this Divine Sword Diagram, and cast my Nine Luminaries Sword.

This "Nine Luminaries Sword Scripture. Divine Gang Divine Sword" is the true inheritance of our Sword Sect, a cultivation technique for Refining Qi and Transforming God.

You should assist it with "Qi Refining Sword Casting Skill," cleanse and refine the Divine Gang Sword Embryo, forge the Taibai Sword Embryo, observe the stars and cast the sword.

From sword embryo, sword infant, sword god, sword heart, step by step, realm by realm, refining continuously until reaching the Divinity Transformation Realm, achieve Human Sword Unity, and the Dao will open."

Now besides the sect’s expenses, Chen Huzi has to loot here and there for disciples’ healing spiritual medicine, thus he is often not in the mountain.

With the senior brother gone, usually, it’s Tie Dan who helps with changing the medicine, and Zhou Feng teaches the scriptures and advises on cultivation methods.

Indeed, the cultivation techniques of the Beichen Sword Sect are not so convoluted; strictly speaking, one part is Qi Refining, the other Sword Casting, and then nothing else...

Um, the sword is given to you, go out and chop people yourself...

"That’s not necessarily true, there are still other secret transmitted methods... cough, cough, cough..."

Zhou Feng endured the pain, drank some medicine, and spoke after catching his breath,

"This sword casting scripture naturally can be learned by all Sword Sect disciples, regardless of Inner or Outer Door, Honzan or outer mountain. After all, even if one perishes, as long as the sword embryo is cast, there is still the Soldier Dissolution Skill, which can be used for opening furnaces and sword casting.

However, as for the fighting sword spells, various sword techniques, swordsmanship, sword moves, sword arrays, fighting sword skills like sword light shadow, alchemy formulas and secret techniques for sword casting, only the true sword transmission disciples of Honzan are taught.

We from the outer mountain must wait until you have refined a sword infant and become a True Man, made contributions in the mountain, or formed close relations with others and become one of our own, then can be awarded instruction from the Sword Master.

Our master has fought for the sect, expanded Guangxia Mountain, and guarded the sword casting furnace; only then was he granted the Sword Control Technique and the Flying Sword Magical Treasure."

Tie Dan was puzzled,

"Why not transmit it all at once, why divide into inner and outer?"

Zhou Feng gave a bitter smile, and drank another sip of medicine,

"Who in the world doesn’t distinguish between close and distant? The skills you refine, the treasures in your hands, all sorts of secret teachings, of course, are prioritized for one’s close relatives and descendants. The Demon Palace fell to where it is today precisely because of the simple principle of ’close or distant’.

If not for this "Sword Casting Skill," being so dangerous and hard to refine, yet highly beneficial if successful, such a Divine Skill wouldn’t fall into the hands of people like us.

Indeed, our Sword Sect does have powerful Divine Skills and a renowned reputation, which invites schemes.

The Demon Palace and Demon Sect, with their undying intent to destroy us, lack the capability, so they often target disciples, using severe torture, soul-searching, and spirit-snatching to force the secrets of our Sword Sect. Even our peers from the Mystic Sect occasionally send reincarnated old ghosts to steal our secret manuals.

Because of this, the rules of Honzan have increased over the years, and many of the Ninth Peak Sword Masters only accept their close relatives as disciples, easily not daring to spread secret swords outside in fear that outsiders might uncover their core skills. Even the Sect Leader position of our Sword Sect has rotated among the Combat Chief Four Divisions, Heavenly Authority, Heavenly Xuan, Heavenly Mechanism, and Heavenly Authority peaks many generations. Even the Sword Monarchs of Divinity Transformation are not exceptions.

So according to the rules, the complete "Nine Luminaries Divine Sword," and the "Sword Control Skill," shouldn’t be passed down until reaching the sword infant realm.

But our master doesn’t care about these; he has to work for the mountain ordinarily, and doesn’t have much time to split a scripture up and piece it back, so he just tosses it to us to ponder slowly on our own."

"Just two cultivation techniques, with bothersome rules about what to transmit or not, really troublesome..."

Tie Dan was also helpless.

The ordinary person content with this true scripture might already be very satisfied, delving into it day and night in painstaking practice. But someone with extraordinary talent like him just finds it...boring.

Over the past month, Tie Dan has already memorized the "Sword Casting Skill," "Sword Control Technique," and "Nine Luminaries Sword Scripture" by heart. The Taibai Sword Shadow was something he learned instantly, and forging the sword embryo was also not difficult.

Now, all he does is temper sword energy, hone the sword blade every day. Additionally, refining the golden dragon fragments previously gathered from the Shi family, the Divine Gang Sword Embryo has begun to take shape.

Thus, observing the stars to cast the sword in the morning and evening, during the day and night, he roams around slaying demons to obtain cores. And "Blood Jade Technique" is even more domineering; relying on nutrients from demon core essence blood from beast meat, his qi and blood reverse flow, strengthening body and bones, spurring Tie Dan to grow visibly taller and his frame sturdier by the day.

Now Tie Dan feels he is well-rested and ready to fight another battle, to go out and avenge Senior Brother Yue.

What? Who to avenge?

At the end of the day, it’s those people from Dui Country and Jiuning Mountain, just kill them all.

Of course, Tie Dan hasn’t lost his head, realizing his senior brothers are still laid up, they need someone to care for them.

Moreover, after fighting the Commander previously, Tie Dan understands well enough that if he faces those mages with a full array of magical treasures, talismans, elixir pills, divine beasts, and thug protectors, seriously cultivating an inner refining Golden Core, he’s likely at a disadvantage.

After all, skills like Divine Gang Sword Qi and Taibai Sword Shadow, although powerful, at his current level of cultivation, he can’t unleash them many times, and if his Sword Control is anticipated by others, seventy percent of his skill would be gone.

Although not afraid in a one-on-one with the Demon Palace, the Demon Palace never fights one-on-one, which is very awkward...

So, to seek revenge, it’d be best to learn a bit more powerful techniques and acquire handy magical treasures.

But unfortunately, Zhou Feng is also only at the Foundation Establishment Stage, cannot teach Tie Dan any new skills, and is also completely broke with nothing good at hand.

"You have exceptional root bone and talent, given time, your achievements will far surpass ours; just diligently temper the sword embryo, and the world is yours to conquer, so no need to rush.

I have nothing to teach you; you have already learned that White Tiger Leaping Over the Stream move, and this "Five Tigers Breaking Door Saber" manual has some skills and routines, you can look at it.

Also, there’s this "Threading Needle Sword Technique" from Senior Brother Yue, it’s not a sword technique, but a method used for training disciples’ precision in Sword Control in the Honzan, so have a look."

"Thank you, Senior Brother..."

"Oooh—!"

Yes, Xiao Liu next to them vomited again; he exhausted his Essence Blood, his body is too weak, the demon cores given to him cannot be absorbed or digested, and that extremely dangerous Blood Jade Technique, which almost killed Tie Dan, cannot be cultivated either...

Thus, Tie Dan had to suppress his urge to take revenge, help Zhou Feng back to bed to rest, and went to assist Xiao Liu by wiping his body and decocting medicine.