Shennong Sequence

Zhao Yun and Xin Ruyin strolled through the immortal city, stopping and starting intermittently.
Sometimes Zhao Yun would look at the rare and precious trinkets sold by street vendors, and sometimes he would choose an exquisite hairpin for Xin Ruyin and gently insert it into her hair;
Sometimes Xin Ruyin would think of adding a magic ornament to Zhao Yun that was suitable for his current level. With the combination, the two of them looked like a perfect match, a handsome man and a beautiful woman.

They walked through the bustling marketplace, feeling the vibrant atmosphere of the immortal city; then they found a famous restaurant specializing in immortal cuisine for a meal, and afterwards listened to cultivators playing and singing enlightenment songs. This relaxation allowed their tense minds, which had been focused on cultivation for many days, to finally unwind.

The next day, their leisure time came to a temporary halt, and the two returned to their busy lives—Xin Ruyin had to go to the Wanwu Academy to handle matters concerning the Spirit Beast Garden, while Zhao Yun had to return to the Treasure Medicine Storehouse to stand guard.

All things considered, Zhao Yun had been out of duty for more than ten days due to his seclusion and rest, and there was a considerable amount of work piling up in the medicine storehouse:
There were cultivators queuing up to exchange for spiritual medicines, as well as medicinal herb requisition forms submitted by various academies of sects, all waiting to be processed.

Fortunately, he is now full of energy after his breakthrough, and even though he worked overtime on his first day back at work, he managed to get all the backlogged tasks done.

During this time, many cultivators privately complained that Zhao Yun's sudden leave of absence and the lack of replacement delayed their alchemy and medicine preparation, and even affected their trips home to visit relatives.

However, Zhao Yun was immersed in the joy of his breakthrough and was in a very good mood, so he didn't bother to argue with these people. He just smiled and apologized a few times before continuing to handle his affairs.

Once all the miscellaneous matters had settled down, Zhao Yun once again focused his mind and returned to his daily cultivation.

After all, the cultivation of yellow sprouts has only just begun, and the path to gathering the power of all spirits is still very long...

"After the union of dragon and tiger, water and fire, and the perfect harmony of water and fire, and after the rigorous refinement of lead and mercury to cultivate one's true nature, one can concentrate the mind and enter a state of tranquility for cultivation..."

"As one's skill deepens, the true nature that condenses one's true self will slowly shrink and eventually condense into a 'millet pearl'. Within the pearl, there is a hidden, shimmering white light flowing, like a mustard seed containing stars or a speck of dust containing the universe—this is the initial sign of the condensation of the Yellow Sprout Seed, and also the first hurdle of the fourth stage of Foundation Establishment, 'Nurturing the Yellow Sprout'."

"At this point, the most crucial step is to harmonize the five elements and lay a solid foundation for the yellow sprout seed."

"Furthermore, this yellow sprout is not the sprout of ordinary plants, but rather the medicinal properties of the human body transformed from the Three Flowers and Five Qi of a cultivator. It is a 'Dao Sprout' that grows within one's own inner world, nourished by true nature. Its essence symbolizes 'Earth' – the pivot of the Five Elements, capable of governing the wonders of metal, wood, water, fire, earth, heaven, earth, darkness, and yellow, condensing all the scattered essence of origin and transforming it into nutrients for the growth of the yellow sprout..."

"To put it simply, it means using one's own true nature to govern the three treasures of essence, qi, and spirit, allowing the original sources of liver wood, heart fire, spleen earth, lung metal, and kidney water hidden in the five internal organs to converge into a five-colored torrent in the inner world, gradually injecting it into the true nature of the three treasures, waiting to nurture the seed of yellow sprout!"

However, Zhao Yun did not need such complicated procedures.

He already possessed the innate talent of the Five Elements Converging at the Origin, and was further protected by the powerful divine ability of the Five-Colored Auspicious Clouds, which was condensed from the origin of the Five Elements. Therefore, the process of condensing the Yellow Sprout Seed within his true nature was not difficult for him.

Unlike ordinary cultivators, there's no need to traverse famous mountains and rivers, delve into the earth's veins and spiritual caves to collect and refine the five elements' power and essence. Zhao Yun's mind stirred slightly, and the five-colored auspicious cloud, which usually resided between his five internal organs and could manifest countless variations of the five elements, carrying the five energies, fell into his inner world like a stream of light.

Upon entering, it intertwined with the yin-yang fire that burned in a mix of black and white, hot and cold, and was wrapped in five-colored auspicious clouds along with the creative energy in the inner world. It also mingled with the innate true nature in the center of the inner world. The three intertwined and rotated into the shape of Tai Chi, and began to slowly refine the true nature with gentle fire and temper it with fierce fire!
When the fire is simmering, the power of the five elements in the five-colored auspicious clouds seeps into the true nature like spring rain nourishing the fields;
During the Martial Fire, the Yin-Yang Fire transforms into the phantoms of dragons and tigers, tearing and removing impurities from the source. Each scorching action allows the true nature and the power of the Five Elements to merge more closely.

This step is the most challenging in terms of mental fortitude; it requires patience and waiting, and cannot be rushed or delayed even for a moment.

Only when the Yin-Yang Fire gradually polishes and merges the Five Elements and Three Flowers with the True Nature that represents the essence of the body, making the two completely inseparable, can a delicate yellow sprout True Nature Millet Bead be born!

When the true nature millet pearl is like the chaos within its shell, the primordial chaos of its birth, that is when the yellow sprout seed truly takes shape, and only then can it be considered to have truly entered the realm of the fourth stage of Foundation Establishment!
As for when the yellow sprout seed will completely solidify, it all depends on the cultivator's own foundation.

Those with a deep foundation need to be tempered repeatedly in the Yin-Yang Fire for a period of one hundred days, allowing their true nature to absorb the essence of the Five Elements, in order to grow strong and full.

Those with shallow roots may sprout a fragile yellow seed in one or two days, or perhaps ten days.

However, such a rapidly formed Dao bud will likely face many detours if it wants to absorb the power of all spirits to advance into a Heavenly Medicine. It may even shatter its origin when trying to reach a higher realm... or it may not be able to transcend the category of a Great Medicine at all.

Therefore, the faster the Yellow Sprout Seed condenses, the higher the cultivation level is not necessarily.

On the contrary, cultivators with shallow foundations cannot withstand the profound tempering of water and fire forces during the process of refining lead and mercury; they can only quickly extract a small amount of superficial true nature and physical medicinal properties.
Such a shallow medicinal property is far less powerful than the profound foundation of those with deep roots. It takes a long time to refine it and cultivate its full potential!
Therefore, in this stage of cultivation, slow is fast. Only by calming down and carefully refining one's skills can one build a solid foundation.

Zhao Yun also understood this principle well. During the time he was refining the Yellow Sprout Seed, he not only tempered and consolidated his own foundation and cultivation once again,
Along with this advancement in his cultivation realm, his inner world was also quietly undergoing changes.

The originally cramped space is slowly expanding as the true nature and the power of the five elements merge. There are even faint runes of law flowing within the embryonic world, as if it is about to evolve into a more complete small world structure.

Time flies like an arrow; it passes in the blink of an eye.
The 100-day mark is quietly approaching.
On this day, Zhao Yun focused his mind and clearly perceived the changes within his inner world:
Besides that vast, profound, and tranquil sea of ​​magical power, at the fusion of the five elements, the innate three elements, and true nature, a peculiar fluctuation is gradually brewing—

It's not just a simple medicinal property, nor is it a simple "activation." It's more like a rhythm with vitality, a true life rhythm like the throbbing of an embryo, with each tremor revealing a mysterious vitality.

To Zhao Yun's even greater surprise, when this life force resonated with and merged with his material transformation method, it sparked a completely new understanding of the Great Dao! (End of Chapter)