Chapter 19: The First Glimpse of the Immortal Path

“Away on a trip?” What a convenient excuse. Qin Haoxuan secretly suspected that the Sect Master wasn’t on a trip at all, but was well aware of the situation. With three Purple Seeds involved, it was like choosing between the palm and the back of his hand. Since the Discipline Hall was willing to take the heat, the Sect Master probably just wanted to hide away.

“Oh, right. Elder Xu Yunzi also gave me some spiritual medicine,” Xu Yu said, taking a few high-quality herbs from her small bag and offering them to Qin Haoxuan. “He said he didn’t want to sentence you like that either, so these are compensation, so you don’t fall behind on your basic cultivation while in confinement.”

Qin Haoxuan gave a wry smile and pushed the herbs back. Ever since he had consumed the One-Leaf Golden Lotus, he felt like he was about to explode. More spiritual medicine? He would probably die for real. He absolutely could not accept them.

“Why not? Are you afraid of being indebted to him?” Xu Yu asked, staring at the herbs in her hand. “I know Elder Xu Yunzi is trying to appease my anger and get on my good side. If he’s willing to give them, I’m willing to take them. But I won’t forget what happened just because of these herbs…”

Qin Haoxuan reached out and patted her head with a smile. “You’re pretty smart, you know that? But that’s not the reason. It’s just a bit of a waste to eat them here now. I’ll find a better time later.”

Xu Yu put the herbs away and then asked worriedly, “I heard that newcomers here are always bullied by the older prisoners. Did they bully you? If they did, just tell me! I’ll get revenge for you…”

“Wherever I go, I’m the one doing the bullying.” Qin Haoxuan took the notebook and a few books that Xu Yu passed through the bars with one hand and gently patted her head with the other, a fond smile on his face.

“We get along just fine. They’re very friendly. Seeing that I was new, they even shared a lot of their food with me! Right?”

Qin Haoxuan turned and said to the group of old-timers with a grin.

“This junior brother and we are like old friends at first sight!”

“Yes, yes, old friends at first sight!”

…

The old-timers, who had just been thrashed and had concluded that Qin Haoxuan was a Xiantian Martial Artist, were starving and didn’t even have the strength to speak. They all wanted to grind his bones to dust and secretly swore to get revenge once they reached the Eighth-Leaf stage, but for now, they didn’t dare to offend him and could only agree with whatever he said.

“Oh, that’s good then.” The observant Xu Yu noticed the bruises on their faces and bodies and their submissive attitude. She quickly guessed that they had suffered the same fate as Yuan Shanhu, failing to bully Qin Haoxuan and getting taught a lesson by this monster instead. She couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.

Every extra second in the Lava Cellar was a torment for the still-weak Xu Yu. After giving a surprised glance at Qin Haoxuan, who seemed to be enjoying himself, she quickly left the dreadful place.

Opening the notebook, he saw Xu Yu’s elegant handwriting filling more than a dozen pages. He was deeply touched. The thoughtful girl knew that he had been sleeping in the morning and in confinement in the afternoon, having missed the lectures entirely, so she had recorded every detail of Elder Chu’s lesson for him.

The first line was about the first two realms of cultivation: the Immortal Seed Realm and the Spirit Sprout Realm. Knowing very little about this, Qin Haoxuan started reading from the beginning.

“Before the Immortal Seed Realm, there is the step of ‘Induction,’ which is sensing the Immortal Seed within one’s body to guide qi and shatter the seed, thus entering the realm. The Immortal Seed Realm is divided into three stages: Seed Shattering, Rooting, and Sprouting.”

“The Rooting Stage is much more difficult than the Seed Shattering Stage. It requires absorbing or cultivating a large amount of spiritual energy to water the Immortal Seed, allowing the sprout within it to grow roots that anchor themselves in the Dantian.”

“The Sprouting Stage is even more difficult. It requires causing the rooted seedling to emerge from the crack in the seed. This step requires more than ten times the spiritual energy of the Rooting Stage.”

After reading this, Qin Haoxuan, unlike other disciples with weak seeds, did not feel worried. Instead, he felt a great sense of relief. The Immortal Seed Realm was ultimately a process of accumulation. As long as he had enough spiritual energy, breaking through to the Spirit Sprout Realm would not be difficult.

For other disciples with weak seeds, this process was a long one. But for Qin Haoxuan, who had the Immortal-Slaying Poison Valley as his backing, this was the least of his problems.

Besides the detailed explanation of the realms, there was also a lot of basic cultivation knowledge, such as burning pine resin during meditation to enter a state of tranquility faster, or sitting with the “five hearts facing heaven” to slightly increase the speed of spiritual energy absorption. This information was of great benefit to the clueless Qin Haoxuan.

In the latter pages of the notebook, alchemy was explained in detail.

Every cultivator had to learn alchemy. Pills were not just a way to quickly increase one’s strength; they were also a cultivator’s food.

The grain provided by the sect contained very little spiritual energy, not enough to meet the needs of the body after the Sprouting Stage. Moreover, this supply would only last for half a year, after which disciples had to be self-sufficient.

There were only two ways to avoid starvation. The first was to refine a basic pill called the Immortal Origin Pill. Just as steamed buns were the staple food for mortals, the Immortal Origin Pill was the staple for cultivators. The second was to grow spiritual herbs. After submitting the basic sect contribution, the rest could be traded with alchemy disciples for pills.

After the sect cut off the food supply, disciples not only had to be self-sufficient but also had to submit contributions to the sect.

Every month, both alchemy and herb-growing disciples had to submit a fixed amount of contribution. At the beginning of the month, the sect would estimate the approximate harvest and demand 70% of it. If a disaster struck and the harvest was insufficient, one would have to sell their own pants to make up the difference, or face the risk of expulsion.

Reading this, Qin Haoxuan sighed. This is brutal.

After a month of hard work, 70% of one’s income had to be handed over to the sect, leaving only 30% for oneself. Failing to submit enough could lead to expulsion. It was no different from gangsters collecting protection money.

A thought suddenly occurred to him. With his huge appetite, would that 30% be enough for him to eat?

Since he began cultivating, especially with the Dao Heart Seed Demon Art, his appetite had increased dramatically. He had just easily eaten the meals of nearly ten people. If he continued to practice this art and his cultivation deepened, what would happen then?

Qin Haoxuan, who could obtain rare treasures with ease, now began to worry about his daily bread. He had thought that by joining a large sect like Taichu, not only would his family be provided for, but he also wouldn’t have to worry about food. He had never expected this.

The notes mentioned that only elders and above were exempt from growing herbs and paying contributions. Everyone else, even the Purple Seed disciples with limitless potential, was no exception. Reading this, Qin Haoxuan felt a little better.

It made sense. The sect’s operating expenses and the resources needed by the elders all came from these contributions.

The following records in the notebook gave Qin Haoxuan a deeper understanding of the cultivation world.

All new disciples started as ordinary disciples. After accumulating a certain amount of sect contributions, they could be promoted to Gray-Robed disciples, who had to contribute 10% less.

Besides contributions, another way to become a Gray-Robed disciple was to reach the Tenth-Leaf Spirit Sprout Realm.

Above Gray-Robed were Brown, Azure, Orange, Crimson, Gold, and Purple-Robed disciples. Each level up reduced the contribution by another 10%.

After reading this, a strict pyramid-like hierarchy formed in Qin Haoxuan’s mind, further motivating him to cultivate diligently. The elders of the sect had also worked their way up through this system. If they could do it, why couldn’t he?

If he didn’t strive, let alone facing Zhang Kuang’s future revenge, he wouldn’t even be able to feed himself. What was the point of that?

Continuing to read, he found that besides the two compulsory courses of herbology and alchemy, there was another important subject: making Spiritual Talismans.

These were not the paper charms used by charlatans, but genuine jade slips. The creator would use a special technique to carve their own spiritual energy onto the jade. Talismans were divided into offensive/defensive and auxiliary types.

For cultivators, making talismans was an extremely important skill. Even Grand Ancestor-level experts could not guarantee they wouldn’t encounter powerful enemies or dangers in the future. In a life-or-death situation, a pre-made talisman could be a lifesaver.

Qin Haoxuan skimmed over the offensive and defensive talismans, his gaze ultimately landing on the auxiliary ones.

There were countless types, each with its own wonderful use. For example, a Swift Travel Talisman could allow an ordinary person to travel a thousand miles in a day, and an Earth Evasion Talisman could allow one to escape into the ground. But what interested him most was the Spirit Gathering Talisman.

It was the most basic of the auxiliary talismans but was not easy to make. Its function was to instantly enrich the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in a small area. Although this enrichment was still too thin for cultivation, it was often used on spiritual herbs and crops to increase their yield and potency.

This is good stuff! If he could make a few of these, his food problem might be solved. However, the notes said that carving talismans was no simple craft; it required extensive knowledge of runic symbols, a subject as complex as alchemy.

Closing the notebook, Qin Haoxuan sighed. Cultivation was truly not simple. He had thought it was just about meditating and accumulating spiritual energy to break through realms. Now it seemed it was a vast and profound field of study, and he had only scratched the surface.

The mysterious veil of cultivation had finally been lifted a corner for him. This partial understanding piqued his curiosity, and the sect’s promotion system, in particular, ignited his competitive spirit.

Qin Haoxuan rubbed his slightly tired eyes. After setting a goal to be promoted as quickly as possible, he opened the other books Xu Yu had brought.

These were the textbooks for new disciples. The content was simple, mostly case studies compiled by senior members of the sect to warn new disciples of common pitfalls, helping them avoid detours and potentially fatal mistakes.

The path of cultivation was fraught with danger, and many disciples died during their training every year.

One case, in particular, sent a cold shiver down his spine.

It recorded a Spirit Sprout Realm disciple who, after obtaining a Vermilion Fruit, rashly swallowed it whole without refining it into a pill to neutralize its potent properties. He instantly exploded and died from the violent medicinal power.

After reading the editor’s commentary, Qin Haoxuan broke into a cold sweat, sighing with relief.

Only then did he understand. Body Tempering Cultivation allowed one to directly consume spiritual herbs and then endure repeated beatings to drive the unabsorbed medicinal power into one’s organs and meridians.