Chapter 76: Chapter 76: Wood Gathering Skill

Liu Shuang was much more composed than before. The two little girls beside her were the nominal disciples she had selected at the apprenticeship ceremony at the end of last year.

The two were cousins and, as it happened, were distantly related to Wang Ping’s second martial brother, Liu Zixiu. One was named Liu Ling, a descendant of Liu Zixiu’s from a later generation, and the other was named Zhao Yu’Er.

When the two girls performed their bows with practiced formality, Yu Lian found it particularly amusing. She deliberately flew down from the eaves on a cloud, circling the two children and giving them quite a fright.

Watching the two children, Wang Ping couldn’t help but recall the scene when his master, Yu Cheng Taoist, had brought Liu Shuang and Yang Zhiping up the mountain. Back then, Liu Shuang had been reluctant, yet now her Dao Heart was firm. Meanwhile, the ever-steady Yang Zhiping had remained in the mortal world.

"Care to join me for a cup?"

Wang Ping pointed to the seat beside him. He tried his best to treat Liu Shuang as an adult, but in his heart, he still saw her as a child.

"Thank you, Master." Liu Shuang sat down with perfect decorum, and the two young girls stood even more properly behind her.

The three of them sat around the Stone Table and chatted for a short while before Zhao Qing found an excuse to leave. After he left, Wang Ping first sized up the two young girls and asked, "Have you begun your training?"

"Replying to Grandmaster, we have already begun." It was Liu Ling who answered.

Wang Ping nodded. He didn’t ask how their training was going, as he could tell from their expressions that the elder sister, Liu Ling, was certainly doing better. She seemed to be waiting for him to ask for details so she could receive his praise.

"Yu Lian, take them out to play!"

"Oh!"

Yu Lian spoke in a human tongue, her vertical pupils fixed on the two children. "Let’s go. Where do you want to go? With me, there’s no place in Qianmu Temple you can’t visit."

"I... I’ll just stay by my master’s side."

"Me too!"

"..."

Yu Lian was speechless. She turned to Wang Ping and said, "They’re no fun and can’t read the room. I’m not taking them." With that, she flew up to the eaves on a cloud and went back to her nap.

Liu Shuang was about to say something to smooth things over, but Wang Ping just smiled. "Let them be. Now, let’s talk about you. Your Marrow Cleansing must be at its most critical stage, right? How are the preparations for your Foundation Establishment Materials?"

"Replying to Master, I sense that I can complete the Marrow Cleansing within the next two years. The Foundation Establishment Materials are also ready, and the Spirit Gathering Array was set up a year ago... Grandmaster passed the ’Wood Gathering Skill’ to me half a year ago. I am currently studying the first part, Sensing Spirit, but I’ve made no progress."

"Let me see it."

"Yes!"

Part of the reason Liu Shuang had come was to ask her master for guidance. She took out an ordinary bamboo scroll. The cultivation technique on it was written in common cinnabar ink.

Wang Ping took it and first glanced at the length of the text on the scroll. It was a lengthy text of several thousand characters, divided into three parts: the Sensing Spirit section, the Gathering Spirit section, and the Entering Realm section. He took a moment to commit the contents to memory, and the screen panel immediately responded:

[Wood Gathering Skill (Sensing Spirit): Sense the Wood Spirit Qi in the mountains and forests.]

[1: Meditate and practice Qi Cultivation in a place with dense Wood Spirit Qi. One day, you will be able to sense it. Alternatively, have an Entering Cultivator first inject a strand of Wood Spirit Qi into your Qi Sea. After you complete one Grand Circulation with it, you will most likely be able to sense it. However, you must refine this strand of Wood Spirit Qi and make it a part of your Qi Sea as quickly as possible.]

[Note 1: Digesting the Wood Spirit Qi in coordination with Marrow Cleansing will yield better results. Those with average aptitude can typically digest it completely within one to two years.]

[Note 2: Not recommended for those with inferior aptitude.]

’This guide is quite good,’ Wang Ping thought. ’It’s infinitely more practical than the scroll’s lengthy sermon on how to feel harmony between man and nature. Still, the first part sounds precarious. Without someone to help inject a strand of Wood Spirit Qi, one might never be able to sense the Wood Spirit in their entire life.’

Wang Ping glanced at the slightly nervous Liu Shuang and then called up his memory of the Gathering Spirit section:

[Wood Gathering Skill (Gathering Spirit): Gather the sensed Wood Spirit Qi into the Qi Sea, then use it to flush the meridians throughout your body until a Wood Spirit Vein is formed. Do not exceed 3 times a day. Success can be achieved within eight years. (Progress 0/100, Today’s Progress 0/5).]

[Note 1: Absolutely do not exceed 3 times a day, or you will be assimilated.]

[Note 2: Practicing this alongside the Qi Gathering of the early-stage Foundation Establishment has unexpected benefits, but it will slow down the time it takes to reach Foundation Establishment.]

’This is similar to the ’Wood Spirit Skill’ I practice, but fundamentally different,’ Wang Ping mused. ’The spirit gathering of this technique has a certain uncontrollable quality, as it uses wild Wood Spirit Qi that hasn’t been guided by the Locust Tree Divine Soul. That must be why the daily limit is three times.’

Wang Ping had entered the path of cultivation through the Wood Spirit, so his perspective on certain matters had long since fundamentally changed. He understood what "Wood Gathering" really meant. In simple terms, it was gathering the Wood Spirits of the mountains and wilds, forcibly drawing them into one’s body and fusing with them to enter the realm.

Theoretically, if one fused with enough Wood Spirit Qi, it was even possible to advance to the Second Realm. However, doing so would likely turn a vast area into a deadland, and even if one succeeded in advancing, they would immediately face heavenly retribution.

’However, if what Tongyu Taoist said is true—that advancing the ’Taiyan Talisman’ to the Fourth Realm can obscure the secrets of heaven—then it might be worth a try.’

Wang Ping suppressed his wild thoughts and called up his memory of the final section, Entering Realm:

[Wood Gathering Skill (Entering Realm): Construct an array to gather the spiritual qi of a forest filled with Wood Spirit Qi to a single point, temporarily forming a Spirit Vein. Then, combine your own Spirit Vein with this one to complete a leap in your level of existence.]

[Note 1: The opportunity is fleeting. There can be no hesitation when fusing with the Spirit Vein. Any hesitation will lead to failure. As long as your resolve is firm, failure is nearly impossible.]

[Note 2: Fuse with the Spirit Vein first and worry about digesting it later. Do not hold back. After a successful fusion, immediately enter secluded cultivation to practice Qi Cultivation until you have completely digested the Spirit Vein.]

[Note 3: A forest can only be used for Gathering Spirit once every hundred years. Otherwise, a spiritual qi riot may occur, and the resulting wave of energy would be powerful enough to destroy a city.]

[Note 4: It is also possible to fuse with a naturally formed Wood Spirit.]

The array part was simple enough. Wang Ping was already preparing to set up the Nine Extremes Array. He planned to use this grand array’s subsidiary arrays to divide Qianmu Temple into seven major districts: Gold Spirit, Wood Spirit, Water Spirit, Fire Spirit, Earth Spirit, as well as Taiyin and Taiyang. The Wood Spirit district would be the core, which was precisely where his Thousand Wood Peak was located.

With Wang Ping’s cultivation as an Entering Cultivator, he could gather a Wood Spirit Vein once without harming the foundation of Qianmu Mountain. It was just as the guide said, though: he absolutely could not make multiple attempts within a certain period.

’Of course, the best method would be to use the grand array to naturally nurture an Innate Spiritual Vein!’

Once he had a plan, Wang Ping looked at Liu Shuang and said, "Let’s go. Take me to your Dao Field. I’ll help you sense the Wood Spirit first."

"Thank you, Master!" A look of joy spread across Liu Shuang’s face.

...

Liu Shuang’s Dao Field was located deep in the forests on the north side of Qianmu Mountain, a location particularly suited for her cultivation of the ’Wood Gathering Skill’.

She was an intelligent person to begin with, so she immediately understood Wang Ping’s plan after he explained it once. Moreover, her decades of cultivating the Dao had forged sufficient patience.

A strand of Wood Spirit Qi entered Liu Shuang’s body. Her first Grand Circulation ran very smoothly, after which she successfully sensed the presence of the Wood Spirit Aura. The pleasant surprise was enough to jolt her out of her meditative state.

’Six whole months!’

Every day, she had followed the method recorded in the cultivation technique. After finishing her Marrow Cleansing, she would sit numbly in her room, trying to sense the ethereal and illusory Wood Spirit, but she had always come up with nothing. The uncertainty of the unknown had caused her immense pain and doubt.

At this moment, she felt a little like crying. Her master was right here beside her now. When he wasn’t around, she had to grit her teeth and persevere through everything on her own.

Seeing Liu Shuang’s emotional turmoil, Wang Ping gave a stern warning, "You still have to persist in your Qi Cultivation. You can do it together with your Marrow Cleansing. By the time you complete your Marrow Cleansing, you’ll have more or less mastered the Sensing Spirit section!"

"Yes!"

"Also, absolutely do not do any extra practice each day."

"Yes!"

After giving his instructions, Wang Ping had Liu Shuang run one more Grand Circulation to be sure. Confirming there were no issues, he returned to his own Dao Field. He was going to be busy for a long time to come—busy earning money to buy materials, and also practicing his Sword Array and Talismans.