CHAPTER 40: OPPORTUNITY TO ENHANCE COMPREHENSION

When Lei Xuan and the others appeared, Qu Yong finally felt his anxious heart settle completely.

Lei Jun stepped forward and explained the situation.

He omitted the part where Qu Yong was knocked out, only saying that Qu Yong had been besieged by two disciples of the Yellow Sky Sect, and that he himself had stepped in to help, utilizing the force of the earthly fire to eliminate the two enemies.

Qu Yong looked at Lei Jun with gratitude, nodding repeatedly.

"Most of the other demon persons from the Yellow Sky Sect had also been executed, with only a few having escaped. In a while, we would pursue further and finish the cleansing."

Li Xuan looked at Lei Jun and Qu Yong, nodding slightly, "You two did very well. Next, rest and recuperate first to avoid having your bodies invaded by the raging Yang Qi."

Lei Jun and Qu Yong responded in agreement and left the Xuanyang Cave Heaven with Li Xuan and the other Celestial Master Mansion disciples.

Outside the cave heaven, Yangshan Manor had suffered some degree of damage.

Fortunately, with so many Tao Palace buildings, and with additional manors and villas on the outskirts, Lei Jun and the others still had somewhere to stay, so they didn’t need to sleep out in the wild.

Lei Jun arrived at the villa arranged for him and quietly rested to recover.

Qu Yong, on the other hand, was not so lucky.

There were three swollen bruises at the back of his head, so he even worried about bumping them when lying on his side—lying on his back was simply out of the question.

He could only sleep on his stomach.

Fortunately, once out of the cave heaven, good medicine was readily available in the manor, so after applying the medicine, these miserable days wouldn’t last too long for Qu Yong.

After a few days, Li Xuan summoned him for questioning.

"The attack by the demon persons from the Yellow Sky Sect was truly unexpected. You’ve had a tough time, but at least you’re unhurt."

Li Xuan started with a few warm words, then asked, "However, battling to the death with the enemy is not the same as sparring with fellow disciples. Everyone reveals their true skills. Since you’ve always been with Lei, in your view, how is he doing right now?"

Qu Yong replied, "Lei has made very rapid progress. It’s been just over two years since he officially joined the mansion through the transcendence ritual, and he’s already reached the advanced Foundation Establishment realm.

He’s got significant skill with talisman arts, is skilled in talisman crafting, and has accumulated quite a few Spirit Talismans.

But Lei’s physical condition is indeed not entirely right; his physique and vitality are comparatively weaker than cultivators of the same advanced Foundation Establishment realm."

He paused, then continued, "If that weren’t the case, the two of us, going two-on-two, would have been able to fight off those two Yellow Sky Sect demon persons at the same Foundation Establishment realm; we wouldn’t have needed to rely on the power of the earthly fire to defeat them."

*So it really was the Green Stone Ink...* Li Xuan, upon hearing this, nodded thoughtfully.

......

In the following days, the Celestial Master Mansion was busy rebuilding Yangshan Manor and clearing out the remaining Yellow Sky Sect disciples.

Ten days later, the Celestial Master Mansion Elder in charge held a grand public ritual, openly punishing some captured demon persons of the Yellow Sky Sect and offering sacrifices to Heaven, Earth, and the Ancestral Masters.

In Lei Jun’s eyes, the meaning of this act, apart from displaying the Celestial Master Mansion’s legitimacy and denouncing the Yellow Sky Sect as heretical, was more about restoring the manor’s reputation after the attack.

*Even if it was just a branch manor, nearly having their own home ransacked by the Yellow Sky Sect made everyone in the Celestial Master Mansion extremely angry.*

The Golden Barrier Talisman and the Banishing Gold Talisman, attack and defense at Yangshan Manor... Before the Celestial Master Mansion could fully uproot the Yellow Sky Sect and cleanse its portal, *the back-and-forth between the two sides was far from over.*

This group of young disciples, Lei Jun included, after recovering for a while at the manor, were all sent back to the main residence at Dragon Tiger Mountain.

"Luckily, it was just a scare and no irreversible harm was done."

Yuan Mobai spoke gently, comforting like a spring breeze.

Lei Jun didn’t hide anything; he took out the Supreme Pure Golden Bamboo, "Master, this time I stumbled into Xuanyang Cave Heaven and made some extra gains—all thanks to your blessing."

Yuan Mobai glanced at the Supreme Pure Golden Bamboo, but didn’t take it. He just smiled and said,

"When I was in Xuanyang Cave Heaven, I really did come across some essence of the Earth Fire Solar Flare.

But back then it was still weak, and now it has properly formed.

I have no use for it, so I left it in Xuanyang Cave Heaven to let whichever disciple of our sect fate would favor take it.

I didn’t expect it to end up in your hands. Truly, there is a deep karmic connection between master and disciple."

He gave Lei Jun a few pointers on the essential techniques and precautions for refining the Huo Sui Yang Yu, then let the matter drop.

Lei Jun returned to his own courtyard, spent another few days quietly resting to reach the peak of his essence, qi, and spirit, and then officially began refining the Huo Sui Yang Yu within the Supreme Pure Golden Bamboo.

In the thatched hut outside Xuanyang Cave Heaven, Lei Jun and others had together bathed in the burning Yang Qi inside the manor, receiving its nourishing baptism and invisibly laying a solid foundation.

*Otherwise, for his body to adapt to the heat and yang of the Huo Sui Yang Yu, far more preparation would have been needed.*

Now, per Yuan Mobai’s instructions, Lei Jun slowly guided the Huo Sui Yang Yu out of the Supreme Pure Golden Bamboo using his own mana.

Before the Huo Sui Yang Yu could once again manifest, Lei Jun led the searing Yang Qi directly into his body, allowing it to settle onto his already-forming Tao Foundation Altar.

Lei Jun, at the advanced Foundation Establishment cultivation realm, already had eight gates and six curtains on his Tao Foundation Altar.

The next step towards Foundation Establishment Perfection was to divide and erect the left and right six halls.

These phantom left and right six halls all followed the prototype of the real altar, namely Liandu Hall, Shenhu Hall, Shoudu Hall, Jingmo Hall, Pudu Hall, and Songjing Hall.

At this point, Lei Jun had successfully established the first hall: the Songjing Hall.

As for the actual effects of the Songjing Hall on a real altar, that was another matter.

In this world, among the Taoist Talisman Sects, Foundation Establishment cultivators who condensed the Songjing Hall on their Tao Foundation found its effect was to constantly help the cultivator silently recite the Taoist Scriptures, whether sitting, standing, lying down, or sleeping, unconsciously enhancing cultivation bit by bit, slow and steady.

"To nurture spiritual objects, the most suitable would ideally be Liandu Hall or Pudu Hall—but for now, the Songjing Hall will do."

Under Lei Jun’s control, the golden-red Huo Sui Yang Yu transformed into a thread of golden light, darting into the Songjing Hall of his Tao Foundation Altar.

The illusory hall was immediately flooded with golden light.

Lei Jun’s mana circulated and merged with it, instantly flowing through every part of his body.

A more apparent effect went straight to Lei Jun’s consciousness.

He looked inward, and could vaguely see his divine soul spirit slowly being coated in a layer of golden light.

Lei Jun turned his mana, and within his Tao Foundation Altar, the golden light gathered, surprisingly starting to congeal into the embryonic form of a brand new hall.

*Good, in this way, his cultivation speed could pick up by that much more...* Lei Jun nodded to himself, calming his thoughts and cultivating quietly.

According to his initial estimation, based on his current aptitude and talent, it would have taken Lei Jun around six years to go from advanced Foundation Establishment to Foundation Establishment Perfection.

With the help of the Green Stone Ink, he could confidently cut that down to about four years.

This trip to Xuanyang Cave Heaven, with the nurturing and washing from the Earth Fire Solar Flare, might shorten it further to between three and four years.

Now, with the Huo Sui Yang Yu, the process would speed up again and again.

As long as nothing major went wrong, Lei Jun now felt certain he could half that time again, reaching Foundation Establishment Perfection within the next year and a half!

He still had Misty Cloud Crystals on hand; after making some preparations, he could challenge the catastrophic abyss of the Third Heavenly Layer and attempt to break through to the Third Heavenly Layer Altar Stage.

"This is truly one hell of a best lot." Lei Jun let out a long breath.

*There was one other thing that stuck with him.*

*Having the Huo Sui Yang Yu inside him, one reason his cultivation advanced so quickly was that his spiritual soul and thoughts seemed much sharper than before.*

*That made Lei Jun wonder if this opportunity could also be the turning point for increasing his comprehension?*

*But with only this single Huo Sui Yang Yu, it probably wasn’t enough...* Lei Jun pondered carefully and then shook his head.

*However...*

*Reflecting on the wording of the lot, there was something else he’d kept in mind.*

*Opportunities could be expanded.*

*Was this Huo Sui Yang Yu not alone?*

*Considering the appearance, half the shape of a Taiji Yin Yang Fish and its completely Yang and scorching nature, it was only natural for Lei Jun to wonder—if there was a Yang Fish, could there also be a Yin Fish?*