Junior sister, I really need to control you

Since she already had a Qiankun bag, she spent sixty or seventy talismans in one go and bought two portions of every snack she was interested in.

One was for herself, and the other was bought for Li Yinsheng.

If she weren't worried about the food spoiling, she would have spent all two hundred coins she brought.

After Li Yinsheng lowered her collar and put her feet on solid ground, Mu Xiaoyu carefully hung up the Qiankun bag before asking, "Senior brother, what else did you buy?"

"It's nothing, just a thousand Nourishing Essence Pills," Li Yinsheng said.

"A thousand!" Mu Xiaoyu exclaimed in surprise. "Are we going to eat them as food? Can the two of us finish them?"

“Without me,” Li Yinsheng shook his head, “you’d be the one eating.”

"Uh..." Mu Xiaoyu counted on her fingers, "I only eat four or five Nourishing Yuan Pills a day when I cultivate, a thousand pills can last for two hundred days, which is more than six months..."

"It won't take that long to eat," Li Yinsheng shook his head.

"Did I miscalculate?" Mu Xiaoyu wondered.

“The consumption has increased.” Li Yinsheng took out the Quenching Yuan Lock from his Qiankun Bag.

Within the chilling blue light emanating from his palm, a cloud of earthy yellow mist solidified.

"Don't move." Li Yinsheng patted Mu Xiaoyu's head with his other hand, and in her bewildered gaze, gently pushed the cloud of earthy yellow mist into her chest.

Mu Xiaoyu only felt as if a gust of wind had blown across her chest, and then watched as the clouds disappeared into her without her noticing anything.

There was neither discomfort nor the comfort of a small stream of heat generated during practice.

"Senior brother? Is this a magic artifact? I don't seem to feel anything." Mu Xiaoyu's eyes were filled with increasing doubt.

“You should practice first,” Li Yinsheng said. “Let me see your standing meditation and breathing exercises.”

"Oh."

Mu Xiaoyu took two steps back, planted herself firmly in a three-pronged stance, and focused on her breathing exercises.

Compared to when her legs were shaking badly during the initial standing meditation, she has already taken on a certain appearance after only a few days of practice, with a steady posture and orderly breathing.

Li Yinsheng made a hand seal, slightly activating the Tempering Yuan Lock within her body.

Mu Xiaoyu suddenly felt as if a heavy sandbag had been placed all over her body.

From shoulders to arms, from elbows to wrists, from waist and abdomen to thighs, and even from knees to ankles, every part of my body felt heavy and sluggish, and I suddenly sat down on the ground with a thud.

Suddenly sitting on the ground, Mu Xiaoyu was not in a good enough state to react to what had happened, and could only look up at Li Yinsheng blankly.

"Senior brother, I fell down..."

Li Yinsheng reached out and helped her up: "Falling is normal, you'll be fine after a while."

"I feel so heavy," Mu Xiaoyu said, raising one arm.

Her arm felt like it was filled with lead, a feeling that wasn't unfamiliar to her—these past few days, after each training session, she experienced a similar feeling of heaviness throughout her body, in addition to soreness.

But she hasn't practiced her skills yet today!

She tried lifting her leg again, and it still felt like it was made of lead.

At this moment, she finally realized what was happening and stared wide-eyed at Li Yinsheng: "Senior Brother! Is it a problem with that magical artifact!"

"To be precise, it can't be called a problem; this is the intended effect," Li Yinsheng said.

"Wasn't this supposed to be a magical artifact that could help me accelerate my cultivation? How could it be like this?" Mu Xiaoyu exclaimed in shock.

“This is to help you accelerate your cultivation,” Li Yinsheng asked. “Haven’t you heard that ordinary martial artists practice martial arts? They wear iron sand armor and can carry heavy loads during training, which will help them temper their bodies faster.”

"So..." Mu Xiaoyu's voice trembled slightly as she finally realized what was happening, "This magic artifact is equivalent to the iron sand armor used by cultivators?"

“That’s right,” Li Yinsheng nodded and smiled, “However, the Tempering Yuan Lock is a hundred times better than the Iron Sand Armor.”

"First of all, the burden it places on you is constant and even, covering your entire body without any blind spots or places that are too heavy."

"Secondly, the weight it applies to you can be adjusted through its restrictions. For example, you are currently only carrying 60 pounds, but at its highest, it can be adjusted to 1,000 pounds."

"A thousand jin!!!" Mu Xiaoyu's voice was shrill and distorted, "I'm going to die, right? I'm going to be crushed to death!"

"Don't be afraid, the weight will be increased gradually. You'll have to reach a thousand catties when you've mastered the Qingxuan True Scripture to the third level," Li Yinsheng comforted him. "For now, use sixty catties to get used to it, and I'll help you increase it to seventy catties tomorrow."

"Senior brother, how about we return this Qi-tempering lock?" Mu Xiaoyu raised her leaden arms, grabbed Li Yinsheng's clothes, and looked obedient.

"This stuff costs a thousand talismans, it's so expensive. Little Fish bought so many snacks today, she wanted to save her senior brother some money."

"Junior sister, have you forgotten? This Qi Refining Lock is a free gift." Li Yinsheng patted her head with a loving expression.

"Besides, what's there for me to be stingy with a mere thousand talismans? It can help you speed up your cultivation, which is more important than anything else. We can't be poor in cultivation, and we can't let our child suffer."

After a pause, Li Yinsheng added, "In addition, this magical artifact can be used not only when you are cultivating. With the heavy load on your body, as long as you move, whether you are running, walking, or eating, it will have a certain effect on tempering your physique."

Spring is in full bloom, the sun is shining brightly, and whether in the center of the temple or on the distant mountain peaks, the scenery is lush and beautiful.

But Mu Xiaoyu felt that everything in front of her was rapidly turning gray and lifeless.

But she still didn't give up.

She continued to tug at Li Yinsheng's sleeve, becoming even more obedient as she asked, "Senior brother, does this magic artifact need to be adjusted in weight frequently?"

"Of course, as your physique improves, the weight must also increase to ensure that the effect does not diminish," Li Yinsheng said.

“It would be too much trouble for you to have your senior brother adjust the weight so often. I would feel bad if it affected your cultivation,” Mu Xiaoyu blinked her big eyes. “My senior brother told me how to adjust the weight. Whenever I feel it is too light, I can increase the weight myself.”

"Oh?" Li Yinsheng looked at Mu Xiaoyu with a half-smile. "Junior Sister is so self-aware?"

"Mm!" Mu Xiaoyu nodded repeatedly, "Xiaoyu is very self-disciplined!"

"So diligent?"

"Yes! Little Fish is very diligent!"

Li Yinsheng first gave an appreciative smile, then shook his head with regret: "What a pity. All magical artifacts require magical power to operate. Junior Sister doesn't have magical power, so naturally she can't adjust them."

Mu Xiaoyu froze.

"However, as I said before, once you've mastered the Qingxuan True Scripture to the second level, you'll be able to condense your magical power. Junior Sister, you have the Tempering Yuan Lock to assist you, and you have plenty of Nourishing Yuan Pills. As long as you're willing to work hard, it won't take too long to reach the second level."

Li Yinsheng comforted him.

Mu Xiaoyu's expression changed several times, but finally, as if resigned to her fate, she took a deep breath and said firmly, "Alright! I will definitely work hard to cultivate and reach the second level as soon as possible!"

"Junior Sister, what ambition you have!" Li Yinsheng laughed. "With such ambition, what is there to worry about in achieving immortality!"

"Hehehe..." Mu Xiaoyu gave a slightly embarrassed, silly smile after being praised by Li Yinsheng.

"It's only Shen Shi (3-5 PM) now. If we practice until Zi Shi (11 PM-1 AM), we can practice for another four hours. Junior sister, don't waste that time..."

“No…” Li Yinsheng shook his head, “Since Junior Sister just said she is diligent, then let’s practice until 1-3 AM today. After all, we didn’t practice this morning, so we need to make up for it.”

"Come, junior sister, let's start cultivating together, beginning with the stance you just fell down from!"

Mu Xiaoyu: ……

With tears welling up in her eyes, Mu Xiaoyu gritted her teeth, planted herself in a trembling three-pronged stance once more, and began to breathe heavily under the immense pressure all over her body.

In order to quickly develop magical power and control this damned magical artifact, I must practice!

Looking at Mu Xiaoyu gritting her teeth and cultivating, Li Yinsheng nodded in satisfaction.

However, there was something he accidentally forgot to tell Mu Xiaoyu.

Manipulating magical artifacts does require magical power, but it's not enough to just have magical power; one must also master the incantations corresponding to the restrictions within the artifact.

However, since my junior sister is cultivating so diligently, let's not disturb her for now.

Chapter 13 Body Refining Techniques, True Blood Secret Manual

Late at night, on the third floor of the Xuanzhen Temple's Sutra Repository.

Li Yinsheng held a bright lamp, activated it with his magic power, and illuminated the surroundings as he carefully examined the bookshelves containing cultivation techniques.

Half an hour ago, he had already taken Mu Xiaoyu, who was exhausted from practicing, back to her own room.

The effects of the Tempering Yuan Lock were far better than he had expected. After Mu Xiaoyu finished practicing today, he carefully checked her progress and found that, despite consuming ten Nourishing Yuan Pills, her cultivation results were 40-50% stronger than before.

Although it's still not enough for the Taoist exam, it's already very fast.

At this rate, even though my junior sister lacks innate talent, her cultivation speed in the first three levels will not be much slower than that of someone with innate talent.

After all, even if ordinary disciples have talent, they don't have access to the Tempering Yuan Lock or the unlimited supply of Nourishing Yuan Pills.

After sending his junior sister to rest, Li Yinsheng returned to his room, merged the Blood Refining Pivot with his heart, and refined it.

After refining it, he also cultivated for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Although tempering his blood and qi with the fire element was indeed unbearably painful, as if boiling water was being poured into his limbs and bones, it was also quite effective in tempering his blood and qi.

However, he did not continue his cultivation.

He had only cultivated the Qingxuan True Scripture before because he didn't want to be distracted and hinder his cultivation.

But now that we have the Blood Refining Pivot, it would be more beneficial to supplement it with a body-refining technique.

Although he has the Blood Refining Pivot, he can temper his blood and qi on his own while cultivating, even without body-refining techniques. However, he guards the entire Xuanzhen Temple's Scripture Pavilion, so he is not lacking in cultivation techniques.

He's now actually a little worried about having too many choices.

Apart from the Zhenguan cultivation method, which has been lost, all other cultivation methods in the Sutra Repository are well preserved, including many high-grade body-refining methods, each with its own unique characteristics.

"The Five Chariots and Three Vehicles to the Life-Giving Technique uses sheep, deer, and oxen pulling carts as metaphors for transporting and circulating Qi and blood throughout the body. It is divided into five stages: Sheep Chariot (Minor Vehicle), Deer Chariot (Middle Vehicle), Ox Chariot (Major Vehicle), Great Ox Chariot (Upper Vehicle), and Great White Ox Chariot (Supreme Vehicle)..."

"That sounds interesting, but it's clearly stated that it can't be used as a supplementary cultivation method. If you want to practice it, you have to abandon your original cultivation method and switch to pure body cultivation. I won't learn it!"

"Golden Skin and Jade Bones Longevity and Qi Cultivation Scripture? Hmm, seven parts body refinement, three parts qi cultivation, its main effect is to preserve youth and prolong life. It's not good for combat, but it's quite helpful for dual cultivation... What's the use of this? I won't learn it!"

"The Jiao She Yi Jin Fa? Uh, it requires the gallbladders and tendons of so many snake-like demon beasts? That's too expensive. And it mixes body cultivation and poison cultivation methods together, isn't it just a case of biting off more than you can chew?"

"The Buddha Speaks of the Sutra of the Mighty Warriors Moving Mountains... How come there are Buddhist techniques here? Buddhist techniques emphasize complete sets; once you learn one book, you have to learn the whole set. You can't just not learn it!"

"Demon and ghost skin-changing techniques? Holy crap! How did demonic cultivation methods infiltrate this place? How come the seniors in the temple collect everything?!"

"The Three Yang Bone Refining Technique... Three Yang? This sounds somewhat compatible with the Bing Fire Qi of the Blood Refining Pivot. Let me take a closer look... Tsk! Limited to women only? Why?!"

After searching for a long time, Li Yinsheng finally selected a body-refining technique that he was satisfied with.

“The True Blood Manual,” Li Yinsheng stared down at the crimson book in his hand, “It uses the power of pure blood and qi to refine one’s own essence blood, further refining it into true blood… It’s actually a body cultivation technique that focuses on blood refining! And it can also be used as a supplementary cultivation method!”

As far as he knew, there were many branches of body cultivation, including those that focused on refining blood, tendons, bones, skin, and internal organs.

While these schools of thought each have their own strengths and weaknesses, and are not ranked in any particular order, the Blood Refining path is generally recognized as the most comprehensive and also the most difficult to master.