Divine Tang Era

Little Magpie's daily routine is very regular now.

She went to Jiusi Academy to study in the morning and to Mo Family Martial Arts School to practice martial arts in the afternoon. She enjoyed both academic and martial arts training. In the morning, Yun Niang would take her to school, and in the afternoon, the martial arts school disciples would take her back.

Every time she came back, she would demonstrate the boxing techniques she had practiced to her mother, and today was no exception.

After practicing martial arts for a period of time, she had mastered the basic techniques of the Mo Family Martial Arts School.

"The initial stance is like a mountain, a primordial energy pillar, opening heaven and earth to subdue demons. A cloud dragon explores the sea to subdue monsters, bringing rain that breaks through the earth's mantle. Embracing the moon in one's arms, one's true self resides, like a monkey shrinking into its body, its breath flowing endlessly. A single punch blasts open the path between life and death, like Kua'e carrying a mountain, reversing yin and yang..."

Each move of the Demon-Subduing Fist was executed with natural grace and a unique childlike charm.

After finishing her practice, Little Magpie proudly tilted her chin and asked, "Mommy, look how amazing I was today!"

"Of course, our Que'er is the best," Yun Niang said with a smile.

Hearing her mother's praise, Little Magpie puffed out her chest proudly. She knew she was really amazing; all her fellow disciples said so. The black bear sneezed beside her, seemingly unimpressed. This infuriated Little Magpie, who plopped down on its back and began wildly punching its head.

The black bear shook its head, playing with her.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, the dog paused, its eyes looking outside. It then darted out from under the magpie and ran towards the door.

"Where are you going? Don't wander off." Little Magpie hurriedly followed.

"Be careful, don't fall," Yun Niang warned from behind.

The black bear ran to the door, but instead of going out, it stood up and fiddled with the latch, signaling for the door to open. Little Magpie's eyes lit up, and she turned and shouted, "Mother, brother's back! Open the door quickly!"

Upon hearing her words, Yunniang hurriedly ran out of the house.

As soon as the door opened a crack, the black bear burst out like the wind, followed closely by the little magpie.

Xu Dan had just entered the city when a dark shadow pounced on him. Before he could even get a good look, the black bear stood up, lay down, and stuck out its tongue to lick his face. He was caught off guard and got licked right in the face.

"Don't be so enthusiastic, okay?"

Xu Dan disdainfully pressed down on its head, and the black bear, wagging its tail, ran happily around him.

"Brother!" Little Magpie opened her arms and rushed over.

Xu Dan quickly hugged her and asked, "Have you been a good girl at home?"

"I'm a very good girl. I tell Black Bear stories every night, and he loves listening to them," Little Magpie said earnestly.

The black bear couldn't understand the dog; it didn't like listening to stories at all, but unfortunately, no one asked it if it liked them or not.

When Xiao Que'er first came to Xu Dan's side, she always addressed him as "Brother Xu" with a sense of unfamiliarity and distance. After spending some time together, she came to accept him and began to call him "Brother Xu" affectionately. Now, dropping the "Xu" and directly calling him "Brother," it's clear that their relationship has taken another step forward.

Xu Dan patted her head and took her little hand as they walked towards Yun Niang, who was standing at the door watching them and smiling.

The black bear ran and jumped around the two of them happily.

As the sun sets, the sky is ablaze with rosy hues, creating a beautiful twilight.

After finishing their meal, they returned to the house. Xu Dan removed the jade pendant from his neck, the one that housed the spirit child. This jade pendant was no ordinary item; it was formed from the jade of an ancient giant tree. The wood contained life force, and being buried in the ground, it belonged to Yin. Yin gave rise to Yang, transforming into jade—a top-tier object for a spirit to inhabit.

At Mingfeng Tower, Xu Dan thought the maid was taking out ordinary things, but he didn't expect them to be anything but ordinary.

That's true. As the original poster, if you bring out something ordinary, wouldn't you be laughed at?

The spirit child was fast asleep inside the jade tablet, its ethereal body much more solid than before, proving the jade tablet was indeed a treasure. It wasn't good to keep the spirit child on his person all the time; if someone discovered it, it might cause trouble. So Xu Dan placed the spirit child in the wooden house inside the Hidden Mystic Cauldron.

As soon as he left Xu Dan's body, the spirit child immediately woke up.

After looking around and finding no danger, he fell fast asleep again.

After placing the jade plaque down, Xu Dan took out the quiver he had bought from the market and began to slowly wipe it clean.

The quiver looked ordinary, but he always felt there was something indescribable, something mysterious about it. This feeling lingered in his mind, growing stronger with each passing moment of polishing.

This kind of thing should ideally be carried on the back, cleansed day and night by the flow of qi and blood, so that the quiver and the body and mind are in harmony, and it can be used with ease.

Xu Dan found it troublesome, and the quiver was too long, making it uncomfortable to carry on his back. So he could only take it out every night, wipe it with a cloth soaked in tung oil, and let his blood and energy nourish the quiver so that the two would be in harmony.

After wiping the quiver, he then wiped the arrows inside.

Now, inside the quiver, there are four long arrows, each with a different colored fletching: one is as white as snow, one is as green as moss, one is as red as fire, and one is as black as ink.

The arrowhead was an ancient bronze color, and the shaft was ebony, made of some kind of hardwood, which was incredibly hard.

Each long arrow shaft is engraved with a pattern, which, after extensive research, is now known to be the four mythical creatures: Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, White Tiger, and Azure Dragon.

Xu Dan slowly polished the long arrow. After a period of maintenance, the long arrow became brand new and shiny, as if it had just been made.

I don't know if it's just my imagination, but every time I brush against the four auspicious creatures pattern on the arrow shaft, I feel like the Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, White Tiger, and Azure Dragon are glowing, as if they're about to fly out of the arrow.

After wiping the long arrow, I fed the chubby Jade Dragon and carefully collected the insect pills it had excreted.

Perhaps because he'd drunk too much, Xu Dan no longer resisted the insect pills that Pangpang had left behind, treating them like tea leaves. He'd only share a little with Yunniang, Xiaoque'er, and Heixiong when making tea, and then put the rest away. After all, these things could be sold for money.

After finishing his chores, Xu Dan's mind calmed down, so he took out the Nine Cauldrons Divine Transformation Technique to study.

"The Nine Cauldrons represent Qi and Blood; Qi and Blood represent the Dao."

The Dao is the primordial essence, the pivot of heaven and earth. Refined into truth, it is established as a great furnace and cauldron. Within it nourishes lead and mercury, outwardly manifesting as the trigrams Li and Kan, gathering and circulating Yin and Yang, harmonizing the dragon and tiger, to return to the original Yang. Within Yang, the nine numbers are generated. Sensing the Qi of Yin and Yang, it is divided into nine cauldrons. When the nine cauldrons are completed, the golden elixir is formed.

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At the transition between Chen and Si (辰巳), the essence of the liver is gathered, and its name is Qingjin Dan (青金丹); at the transition between Wei and Shen (未申), the essence of the heart is gathered, and its name is Hongye Dan (红液丹); at the transition between Zi and Wu (子午), the essence of the spleen is gathered, and its name is Huangya Dan (黄芽丹); at the transition between Xu and Hai (戌亥), the essence of the lungs is gathered, and its name is Xihua Dan (西华丹); at the transition between Chou and Yin (丑寅), the essence of the kidneys is gathered, and its name is Taiwei Dan (太微丹).

One who possesses this elixir can live to be a hundred years old.

The Five Elixir Refining Method is a long-term practice. It involves taking true qi to refine qi, thus creating qi within qi, from which spirit is generated, and where the spirit is, the form is also present.

"Following the major cycles to refine true qi, and following the minor cycles to refine primordial qi, one can certainly achieve longevity and prolong life. However, it is not as good as refining the five qi in one day, forming the great elixir in ten days, extinguishing all thoughts to guard true breath, retaining qi to nourish the primordial spirit. It begins in the five internal organs, then in the remaining palace, where spirit arises from qi, and one refines the spirit to unite with the Dao."

The entire Nine Cauldrons Transformation Divine Skill is written in the mysterious and esoteric tone of Taoism. If it weren't for the annotations below and Xu Dan's experience of living two lives, he really wouldn't understand it. To put it simply, the Nine Cauldrons Transformation Divine Skill is about mobilizing qi and blood, refining the five internal organs (heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys), generating the qi of the five elements (metal, wood, water, fire, and earth), and fusing and refining them to nourish and strengthen the soul.

Xu Dan had already memorized the technique, but now, after reviewing it again to reinforce his memory and finding no errors, he put the book away and began cultivating the Nine Cauldrons Divine Transformation Technique.