"If the other party were to brand your origin soul during the process of plucking and replenishing, it would indeed leave endless hidden perils. Master Mawu, of course, would never do such a thing. After the dual cultivation, only a few lingering threads of emotion will remain, causing some minor disturbance to your origin soul. That, combined with the loss of your vitality, may indeed hinder your future cultivation to a degree, making Core Formation and Nascent Soul breakthrough more difficult for you than for others. But you will remain yourself, and the sect will compensate you in other ways."
With that, before Cultivator Gong could speak, Sect Master Yu moved his lips slightly, silently conveying a few words.
Cultivator Gong froze, hesitation flickering in his eyes. He lowered his head and fell into silence, looking as though he had been swayed.
Another elderly cultivator offered a Daoist bow and asked in a raspy voice, "Senior Brother Sect Master, if I agree to cultivate this technique, may the benefits extend to my descendants?"
Sect Master Yu returned the bow and said solemnly, "If Junior Brother Zhao leaves behind any bloodline in the future, the sect will certainly look after them..."
He then conveyed another message via voice transmission. The old man nodded slightly, though he did not commit immediately.
At that moment, He Mu—who had been standing motionless at the side without showing the slightest reaction, even when Cultivator Gong exposed the secret of plucking and replenishing—suddenly spoke up. "Reporting to the sect master: according to the disciple's reading, it seems nearly impossible for Qi Refinement disciples like us to reach the third layer. Is it merely that my knowledge is shallow and I have failed to grasp the profundities of the technique?"
Sect Master Yu looked at Qin Sang and the other two with a slight smile. "You saw correctly. Once the three of you cultivate to the third layer, you will indeed face a bottleneck when condensing the jade cauldron. Moreover, this secret art requires the dual-cultivation partner to be at least at the Foundation Establishment stage. Precisely for this reason, whichever of you three condenses the jade cauldron first will receive the sect's full support to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage. That is one part of your compensation. Aside from that, the sect can also grant you one wish."
The hall fell quiet. Everyone understood that the sect master's offer was genuinely generous; otherwise, there would have been no need to go to such lengths.
Chu Wenjian suddenly drew himself upright like a sword leaving its sheath, raised his head, and declared in a clear voice, "Disciple begs the sect master's forgiveness. My heart belongs to the Grand Dao, and I am confident in achieving a Golden Core on my own strength without issue. I refuse to become a cauldron."
Cultivator Gong took a deep breath, angrily swept his sleeve, and said resolutely, "This Gong would rather die than help someone cultivate a plucking-and-replenishing technique!"
Sect Master Yu nodded, neither offended nor insistent, and merely looked at the rest.
"I'll do it!"
"I'll do it!"
Two voices rang out in unison—one was He Mu, and the other was Qin Sang.
Hearing that the sect would help them reach the Foundation Establishment stage free of charge, Qin Sang no longer hesitated for a second.
What if his sea of qi ended up slightly smaller? Would he not still be a Foundation Establishment cultivator?
At worst, he would simply avoid confronting other Foundation Establishment cultivators head-on. The Ten Directions Yanluo Array and the ebony sword could also make up for some of the gap.
As for Core Formation and Nascent Soul, they were entirely out of reach for Qin Sang anyway. All he could do was daydream about them occasionally while advancing step by steady step.
As long as he broke through to Foundation Establishment, his lifespan would increase by over a hundred years, and all possibilities would open up!
What surprised him was that He Mu had reached a decision just as quickly.
Qin Sang glanced sideways at He Mu and saw that while his face seemed perpetually devoid of expression, his eyes were fixed on Sect Master Yu, filled with profound longing.
Seeing this, Qin Sang sighed inwardly.
If he ever reached He Mu's state—having exhausted every method without being able to break through to Foundation Establishment—he would certainly make the same choice, even without the aid of the jade Buddha.
Cultivator Zhao hesitated for a moment before saying, "Senior Brother Sect Master, I am also willing to try."
The remaining two Foundation Establishment cultivators exchanged glances, conversed with Sect Master Yu through voice transmission for a few moments, and ended up agreeing as well.
Once Cultivator Gong and Chu Wenjian departed, the five remaining cultivators followed Sect Master Yu out of the hall and flew toward the rear mountains of Shaohua Mountain. Eventually, they arrived before a row of cave abodes lining a high cliff. Each chose one and stepped inside to begin their bitter cultivation.
After sealing his cave abode, Qin Sang pondered the situation in secret. Judging by Sect Master Yu's words, only one of the five of them would qualify to serve as the cauldron—namely, the one who cultivated to the third layer the fastest and condensed the jade cauldron.
To think he even had to compete with others just to be a cauldron! Qin Sang gave an inward sigh, retrieved the jade slip, and carefully studied the technique.
The first layer seemed simple enough. Giving up one's previous cultivation and switching to this technique, as one's cultivation progressed, the origin qi in the body would condense into jade liquid. There were no bottlenecks to speak of; like switching to any other technique, one merely needed to follow the steps.
And indeed, Qin Sang took only a month to master the first layer.
The second layer allowed one to form the embryo of the jade cauldron and accumulate the jade liquid.
Having reached this point, Qin Sang understood clearly.
In truth, from the moment one began cultivating this technique, one was already a cauldron.
However, because the jade cauldron was not yet complete and the origin qi jade liquid was only a thin layer, being plucked at the second layer would easily cause the fragile cauldron embryo to collapse. That would scatter all of one's primal yang and sweep away one's origin qi until it ran entirely dry. Not even a Nine Yang Pill could save them; the cultivator would become genuine medicinal dregs, thoroughly reduced to a cripple.
Plucking at that stage was no different from draining the pond to catch the fish, and the benefits to the plucker would be far inferior to doing so at the third layer.
Only after Qin Sang mastered the second layer and extended his spiritual sense into the jade slip to view the third layer's secrets did he discover that during the third layer, the practitioner would constantly face the influence of the heavenly demons of desire. Only then did he realize why they had to be screened by the Treasure Gourd Illusory Realm in the first place.
The heavenly demons of desire clouded the mind, stirring up inner passions and carnal lust—humanity's most primal instincts, virtually indistinguishable from inner demons.
Unless one possessed an extraordinarily steadfast mind, becoming entrapped by the heavenly demons of desire would make it impossible to free oneself, rendering completion of the third layer entirely out of the question.
Qin Sang studied the jade slip for a long time, sensing that the third layer was incomplete, as though a portion had been deliberately erased, even if the overall cultivation process remained intact.
Casting aside all stray thoughts, Qin Sang focused intently on the technique in the jade slip, carving it deep into his mind. Then, he calmed his heart, entered meditation, and began to cultivate.
An illusory realm of red dust, the seduction of heavenly demons.
The moment he began cultivating, Qin Sang fell into the heavenly demon illusion, and inner demons sprang up all around him. Before his eyes were disorienting, alluring sights, and endless wanton sounds echoed in his ears, while an eerie fragrance provoked the deepest passions and desires of the human heart.
If it had been anyone else, even if they could preserve their true nature within the heavenly demon illusion, they would have had to pause after holding out for a time to stabilize their mind and shake off the illusion's lingering effects.
Otherwise, once a flaw appeared in their state of mind, the damage would be irreparable.
Yet just as in the Treasure Gourd Illusory Realm, Qin Sang's mind remained remarkably lucid. He viewed the sights as nothing more than fair flesh draped over white bone, entirely impervious to their seduction.
Because of this, Qin Sang had no need to worry about the heavenly demons of desire. He cultivated day and night without pause, and the jade cauldron within his body took shape at an astonishing speed, the jade liquid gradually filling it to the brim.
Chapter 127