I Shall Seal the Heavens - Volume 1 - Chapter 38

Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Qi Condensation Manual of the Sublime Spirit Scripture

Two months passed in the twinkling of an eye . Meng Hao had already been a member of the Inner Sect for an entire season . He did not continue to visit the Outer Sect often . Like a fish in water, Fatty had grown accustomed to surviving on his own, and was quite at ease .

Most of Meng Hao’s time was spent in the Magic Pavilion .

One day, he sat there cross-legged, a calm expression on his face as he read a bamboo text . He raised his right hand and began to make incantation gestures, causing a magical light to circulate around it and cast flickering shadows onto his face .

A Water Globe appeared, but then unexpectedly transformed into mist and dissipated into the surroundings . Meng Hao frowned, putting down the bamboo text . He reached into his robe and pulled out a glowing jade slip .

It was pure white and blurry inside, as if it were filled with mist . A closer inspection revealed that the surface was actually translucent, like crystal .

“Chen Fan, Xu Qing, Meng Hao . Come to the main temple hall on the East Mountain . ” The words were spoken by a dignified voice which transmitted out from within the jade slip . It was easily identifiable as belonging to Sect Leader He Luohua .

Meng Hao straightened up the bamboo texts, stood and strode silently out of the main door of the Magic Pavilion, making his way toward the top of the East Mountain .

At almost the same time as he walked out, two figures shot toward the peak . One had a warm, gentle face, filled with righteousness: Chen Fan . The other was beautiful but cold: Elder Sister Xu Qing .

Xu Qing cast a glance at Meng Hao . This was the first time they had seen each other since that evening the previous month .

The three sped toward the peak of the East Mountain, eventually arriving at the main temple hall . It had an ancient feel, the rich ornamentation giving the feeling that it had seen many ages pass . This was a very important place to the Reliance Sect, a place that throughout the generations, only Inner Sect disciples could visit .

Within the main temple hall were nine statues . The foremost one was of an old man, his expression not one of anger, yet still filled with might . His dark eyes seemed to shine with life . His left hand was lifted up in front of him, his chin raised as if he were staring down his nose at all creation . He seemed to emanate a sort of indescribable, domineering air . Behind him, eight statues were arranged neatly, all of them possessing the demeanor of transcendent beings .

Meng Hao had visited this place during his first seven days in the Inner Sect . He had kowtowed before these statues, and knew well that the calm, powerful old man was none other than Patriarch Reliance . The other statues were the other Patriarchs of the Reliance Sect .

Sect Leader He Luohua stood beneath the statues, his back toward Meng Hao and the others as they entered . He stared at the statues as if he were in a trance . It was impossible to tell what he was thinking . Next to him was Grand Elder Ouyang . He nodded to the three of them, a solemn expression on his face .

“Pay homage to the Patriarch,” he said, his voice profound .

Meng Hao, Xu Qing and Chen Fan bowed deeply to Patriarch Reliance, their faces somber .

“I joined the Sect when Patriarch Reliance had been missing for one hundred years,” said He Luohua . “At that time, the Reliance Sect was still in its glory days . ” He sighed and turned around . Meng Hao, Chen Fan and even Xu Qing gazed at him with shining eyes .

He was silent a moment, before slowly continuing: “You have read about Patriarch Reliance in the ancient records, and know how glorious our Reliance Sect used to be… We even had a complete understanding of the three levels of Foundation Establishment . I’ve called you here today to explain the complete truth .

“The former glory of the Reliance Sect was all due to Patriarch Reliance . Because of his Cultivation base, he dominated the entire State of Zhao . His reputation even shook the Southern Domain . All of that was because of one of the manuals of the Sublime Spirit Scripture . ” As He Luohua spoke, Chen Fan’s eyes began to shine brightly . Even Xu Qing’s grew sharp .

Only Meng Hao stared blankly; he had no idea what the Sublime Spirit Scripture was .

“The Qi Condensation manual?” said Chen Fan lightly . He was a senior disciple of the Inner Sect, and knew many secrets . Other things he had worked out through speculation .

“The Sublime Spirit Scripture is one of the three great classic scriptures in the Nanshan Continent,” continued He Luohua softly . “It was passed down through the generations since ancient times . Originally it was comprised of seven manuals, but most have been lost . One of them was the Qi Condensation manual, which describes how to establish a Flawless Foundation . The Foundation Establishment manual describes the method to Form a Purple Core, not a Crimson or Mixed Core . The Core Formation manual can enable one to develop a four-colored Nascent Form… In other words, each manual enables one to reach the strongest stage .

“That year, Patriarch Reliance obtained the Qi Condensation manual . The reason the heir to the Wang clan joined the Reliance Sect was because of the Sublime Spirit Scripture’s Qi Condensation Manual . ”

Meng Hao’s eyes glittered, and his heart began to race . He had heard Elder Brother Chen speak of the different levels of Foundation Establishment . Now that he knew how powerful this magic was that Patriarch Reliance had obtained, he understood why Wang Tengfei had joined the Reliance Sect .

“If I could obtain it…” The strong desire in his heart suddenly began to burn even hotter .

“Sadly, even I have never laid eyes on this Qi Condensation manual, let alone others,” said He Luohua . “The scripture was not handed down . It exists only in the memory of the Patriarch . ” Meng Hao remained silent, and Chen Fan’s face flashed with realization . Xu Qing raised her head to look at the statue of Patriarch Reliance .

Silence reigned in the main temple hall .

“Four hundred years have passed, and everyone in the outside world assumes that the Patriarch died during his meditation . Only myself and a few others know that the Patriarch… is absolutely not dead . ” As his words drifted out into Meng Hao’s ears, they seemed to transform into a thunderous roar .

“Four hundred years ago, the Patriarch’s Cultivation base had reached the late Nascent Soul stage . And yet, he was reaching the end of his life . In order to break through to the fabled Spirit Severing stage, one must be at least one thousand years old . If not, how can he defy the Heavens to sever his Spirit?

“The Patriarch chose to meditate in seclusion, in order to sever his Spirit body and be reborn . It was a meditation of… four hundred years .

“When he went into meditation four hundred years ago, the Patriarch left a command . Every one hundred years, he would send out some pieces of Vorpal Jade, formed from his own blood . Then, the outstanding members of the current generation of Inner Sect disciples could use the Vorpal Jade to enter his meditation zone . By kindling the Qi and blood inside the Vorpal Jade, they could have a chance, if lucky, to gain enlightenment of the knowledge he permeated throughout the area . Knowledge of… the Sublime Spirit Scripture . ” He Luohua’s words echoed out . Meng Hao lifted his head up, as did the others .

“Success is success . Failure is failure . If things had stayed the same, surely a disciple would have succeeded already . But two hundred years ago, the Patriarch experienced an accident in his cultivation . He almost lost his life . Afterwards, the chances of enlightenment in his meditation zone grew weak, and the restrictive spells stronger . He didn’t send any more Vorpal Jades out until five years ago… When he did, he sent out three pieces .

“Three pieces of Vorpal Jade indicate that three individuals may enter . It also reveals how powerful the restrictive spells are in the Patriarch’s meditation zone, and means that there are only three areas where enlightenment may occur . ” He Luohua’s voice reverberated throughout the main hall . He flicked his right sleeve, and three blood-red streaks shot toward Meng Hao and the others, to stop floating in front of them .

They were jade-smooth Blood Crystals, also known as Vorpal Jade .

“You three are the only disciples of the Inner Sect, and therefore I bestow these Vorpal Jades to you . Whether or not you gain the enlightenment of the Sublime Spirit Scripture will depend on your luck . ” With that, he flicked his sleeve again, and the statue of Patriarch Reliance began to hum . Its eyes shone with boundless radiance, and a vortex began to form in front of him .

“Enter,” said He Luohua, his voice sounding out like thunder . “I wish you luck in enlightenment . ” Meng Hao and the others seemed to transform into auroras as they gripped their pieces of Vorpal Jade and shot into the vortex, disappearing inside . Outside, the vortex remained, but without a Vorpal Jade, no one, not even a Cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage, could enter it .

Looking up at the vortex, Grand Elder Ouyang quietly said, “Who knows which of them will acquire the Sublime Spirit Scripture, or… perhaps they will all come up empty-handed . ”

“It depends on personal luck, there’s no use in thinking too much about it . ” He Luohua sat down cross-legged next to him and began to meditate .

When Meng Hao entered the vortex, a blinding light appeared in front of his eyes which forced him to close them . A rumbling roar sounded in his ears, and then he heard strange shrieks and screams coming from all directions . After what seemed like years, he felt his body suddenly tremble, and then the sounds ceased . The shrieking turned into silence . He opened his eyes to find himself standing on top of a sacrificial altar that was several meters tall . He looked around .

The place was enormous . Up above was black earth, dotted with small crystals that shone like stars, casting a dim light on the surroundings . Nothing was very clear, as if everything were covered with gauze . Various buildings rose up out of the fog .

“How desolate! It seems like no one has been here for hundreds of years . ” It was Chen Fan’s voice, drifting from some distance away . Eventually, he appeared, walking through the fog . In the direction from which he came could be seen another altar, several meters tall .

“The soil up above has restrictive spells cast on it . These are the Sect catacombs . ” Xu Qing appeared from another direction . Dressed in her silver robe, she appeared matchlessly beautiful .

“I entered the Sect earlier than both of you,” said Chen Fan . “Once I performed guard duty at the main temple hall, so I know a few secrets that you two don’t . These are definitely the Reliance Sect catacombs . Directly above is the Outer Sect . ”

Meng Hao walked off the altar to stand next to Chen Fan and Xu Qing . Looking around at the hazy images of buildings around them, he could see plenty of withered plants and flowers . Everything was deathly still .

“This fog is a restrictive spell,” said Meng Hao with a frown . “It’s making everything appear to be black and white . No color whatsoever . ”

“Precisely,” said Chen Fan with a serious look . “Don’t attempt to touch it . Because of the Patriarch’s weak state, he’s lost control of it . Let us use our Vorpal Jades to find our places of enlightenment . ” He looked at them . “We don’t know how much time we will have to gain enlightenment . Let’s all wait for each other, then leave together . Junior Sister Xu, Junior Brother Meng, I wish you success . ” He cast his spiritual power into the Vorpal Jade, whereupon it emitted a blood-red glow and began to drift away . Chen Fan followed, soon disappearing into the distance .

Xu Qing nodded at Meng Hao, then followed the blood-red glow of her Vorpal Jade in a different direction .

Meng Hao looked around, then was about to activate his own Vorpal Jade when suddenly, a shrill shriek rang out . It grew closer and closer, until it seemed to be only about thirty meters away .