Zhang Sheng picked up a blank sheet of jade paper. With a flick of his finger, a streak of azure sword qi shot forth, and a visualization chart appeared upon the surface.
He handed the jade paper to Wei Yuan and said, "After much deliberation, I have decided to teach you the *Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Chart* as your foundation for Body Casting. Examine this visualization chart carefully first. When cultivating, you must use it as a bridge to communicate with heaven and earth, drawing in the spiritual qi of the world to temper and cast your body. To be able to commune with heaven and earth and borrow the power of providence while still in the Body Casting stage makes this a supreme art indeed. Yet fortune and misfortune go hand in hand; the perils during cultivation are also far greater than with other methods. No matter what you see or feel while cultivating, you must guard your true heart and divine sense at all times. On no account must you panic or succumb to fear."
After giving these meticulous instructions, Zhang Sheng brought out three medicinal pills and added, "These three Heart-Cleansing Pills are something I went out of my way to obtain for you; they can slightly improve your physical aptitude and spiritual roots. There are still three days left before the worship of the Patriarch. Taking one each day fits the time perfectly and will benefit you when you pay homage before the Patriarch's statue."
Wei Yuan committed the visualization chart to memory and began to cultivate according to the technique.
According to the *Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Chart*, the physical body was the foundation of all things. The first step in cultivation was to manifest the visualization chart within the sea of consciousness; the scope and size of the chart signified the quality of one's foundation. Then, using the visualization chart as an anchor, one would draw upon the spiritual qi of heaven and earth along with one's own providence to temper and cast one's body. Once the physical body and the primordial spirit were fully tempered and transformed into an immortal embryo, the visualization chart would kindle life, becoming like a real world. Reaching this step meant great completion in Body Casting, and one could begin to condense a Dao Foundation.
Wei Yuan possessed extraordinary mental fortitude, and after just a moment, he entered a state of selflessness, forgetting both object and self.
Zhang Sheng then took out a Heart-Cleansing Pill and an incense burner, placing the burner in front of Wei Yuan before setting the pill inside. A bed of charcoal lay within the burner, and under the gentle smolder of the coals, a wisp of medicinal fragrance drifted out from the burner's opening, gathering into a single thread that entered Wei Yuan's nose as if guided by spirit.
Darkness had originally enveloped Wei Yuan's vision, but upon smelling the wisp of medicinal fragrance, the scent entered his body and instantly transformed into threads of gentle warmth that slowly spread through his limbs and bones, bringing an unspeakable comfort. With the aid of the pill's fragrance, a speck of light began to sprout within his sea of consciousness, illuminating a small world. In the center, a large rock faintly took shape, upon which perched a jade toad, while not far above hung a full moon.
Having successfully manifested the visualization chart, the wisps of medicinal fragrance found their course, flying one after another into the chart. Each thread of fragrance made the visualization chart clearer and more stable.
Wei Yuan continuously circulated the technique. After an unknown amount of time, his vision suddenly blurred, and the scenery underwent a complete change.
At this moment, Wei Yuan felt as if he had become that very jade toad, his eyes beholding only the full moon in the sky as he constantly inhaled and exhaled toward it. The sensation was so intensely real that for a moment Wei Yuan could hardly distinguish whether he was human or toad.
Fortunately, he kept Zhang Sheng's instructions firmly in mind, accepting whatever strange phenomenon occurred with composure, keeping his true heart undisturbed.
Now, in the eyes of Wei Yuan transformed into the jade toad, the full moon in the sky was no longer a flat, counterfeit disc, but a colossal sphere that seemed within arm's reach. Wisps of moonlight continuously spilled from the moon, swallowed mouthful by mouthful into Wei Yuan's belly, turning into part of his body.
After another stretch of time, as he continued swallowing and breathing the moonlight, Wei Yuan suddenly felt his body expand by a circle, while this small world became cramped and narrow—so much so that even turning around proved difficult.
Right then, Wei Yuan heard the chime of a singing bowl. His divine sense pulled away from the jade toad and returned to his physical body, followed by Zhang Sheng's voice sounding in his ear: "That will do."
Wei Yuan drew his cultivation to a close and stood up, only then noticing morning light already brightening outside the window. Without his realizing it, an entire night had passed.
Zhang Sheng inquired about what happened during the circulation of the art, gave guidance on several crucial points, and told Wei Yuan to rest. Wei Yuan had not yet reached the point where cultivation could replace sleep, so he returned to the bedroom and lay down, waking naturally two hours later.
Over the days that followed, Zhang Sheng taught Wei Yuan general cultivation knowledge during the day, while at night Wei Yuan cultivated on his own.
On his second session of cultivation, Wei Yuan was far more proficient. Soon he forgot both object and self, transforming once more into the jade toad.
He felt again the cramped space around him, as though he had been shut inside a cage where even turning around was a struggle. Unable to move freely, Wei Yuan could only strive to inhale and exhale the moonlight. With every gulp of moonlight swallowed, Wei Yuan felt his body condense and solidify a little more. As he kept swallowing, he suddenly noticed what seemed like a colossal silhouette looming faintly within the full moon. Immediately afterward, a familiar wisp of black qi appeared in the moonlight, swallowed down into Wei Yuan's stomach along with the moon's radiance.
Once the black qi entered his belly, Wei Yuan found that his perception instantly expanded a fraction, finally crossing that invisible boundary to extend into the void. Drifting within the void were numerous invisible particles that could be drawn by consciousness and merged into the earth beneath him. As more and more particles were drawn in, the ground beneath Wei Yuan finally expanded a bit, and the constraints upon him lessened accordingly.
At this time, within Wei Yuan's sea of consciousness lay a patch of land about a zhang across. Upon it rested a boulder, where a snow-white jade toad lay perched, raising its head to inhale and exhale the moonlight. Now, along the edge of the ground beneath the rock, a palm-sized patch of land had appeared, slowly solidifying from illusion into reality.
Just as the newly formed ground solidified, Wei Yuan was awakened by Zhang Sheng. As usual, Zhang Sheng asked about the cultivation process, then deduced that the shadow Wei Yuan saw in the full moon was a reflection of his own providence, and the black qi mingled within the moonlight had been drawn directly from Wei Yuan's providence.
On the third day, cultivation proceeded as before. From the very beginning, Wei Yuan saw the shadow within the full moon, and as he inhaled and exhaled the moonlight, he continuously absorbed the black qi; correspondingly, another ring of new land grew around the ground beneath him.
Three days of cultivation passed in the blink of an eye. All the Heart-Cleansing Pills were used up, and next came the Grand Patriarch Worship Ceremony.
Early that morning, Wei Yuan finished getting ready early, then meditated quietly for an hour under Zhang Sheng's guidance to align his heart with sincerity before heading toward the Patriarch Hall.
The Patriarch Hall stood atop a towering mountain of rugged, perilous peaks. A plunging waterfall cascaded from the ninth heaven, ultimately pooling at the foot of the mountain into a glassy Mirror Lake. Colorful flowering trees bloomed everywhere on the mountain, exuding an exotic fragrance; should a mortal linger on this mountain for a brief moment and breathe the fragrance of these immortal trees, their lifespan would be extended by ten years. Winding upward through the mountains was a stairway paved in green jade, leading straight to the summit.
Zhang Sheng carried Wei Yuan along with a Daoist art. In the span of a single breath, Wei Yuan's vision would blur, and by the time it cleared, they were already a hundred zhang away. Straining to observe, Wei Yuan finally realized that during those moments of blurred vision, the surrounding scenery was actually rushing backward at blistering speed—it was simply too fast to make out.
Even at Zhang Sheng's speed, it took a while to reach the front of the Patriarch Hall. By this time, several hundred people had already gathered on the plaza before the hall.
The Patriarch Hall stood a hundred zhang tall, its pair of red-copper gates towering thirty zhang high. One could hardly imagine what manner of immortal would require gates of such height.
At this moment, the hall doors stood wide open. Inside, the statue of the Patriarch rose thirty zhang high, resembling a young cultivator with even a hint of youthful innocence. It was said that the Patriarch had not yet reached the age of twenty when he established his Dao Foundation, so his appearance became fixed and remained unchanged until his passing. The statue held one hand behind its back and clutched a scroll in the other, while four immortal swords floated around its figure.
The sculpture was exceptionally lifelike, its lapels seemingly fluttering in the wind. That alone was impressive, yet the four immortal swords hung in midair without any support whatsoever.
A Daoist master of ceremonies led Wei Yuan outside the hall, where he waited alongside all the newly accepted disciples for their names to be called.
The master of ceremonies called out names one by one. The new disciples paid their respects in batches, grouped by region, some in groups of five, others in groups of seven or eight.
The sect entrance guide distributed to the new disciples had already detailed the procedure for worshipping the Patriarch: disciples were required to kowtow seven times, then silently recite the sacrificial address in their hearts. The address was roughly a thousand characters long, primarily recounting the Patriarch's deeds, describing the current state of affairs in the mortal realm, and expressing one's true intention in entering the Palace to cultivate. The entire address contained no cultivation incantations, yet if a new disciple was sincere of heart, with both foundation and providence being superior, they might win the Patriarch's favor and receive a boon.
Back then, Zhang Sheng had received two strands of sword qi from the four immortal swords, using them as his anchor to establish an immortal foundation, causing a sensation at the time.
Chapter 31