Spiritual Root

The plump man seemed to relish the reverent gazes around him, smiling amiably as he said, "Think nothing of it, think nothing of it..." Princess Dongyang led the way, with the plump man following behind. Just as they were about to enter the rear hall, he suddenly stopped and turned around. His small eyes, squeezed into slits by folds of flesh, swept across the crowd before he asked casually, "Which one is Qin Sang?" In an instant, the eyes of everyone in Chaosheng Palace snapped in unison toward Qin Sang. Princess Dongyang lifted her eyes slightly. Qin Sang had assumed the young man surnamed Han had broken his promise, his heart sinking with disappointment. Now, he hastily bowed and said, "Reporting to the immortal, I am Qin Sang." The young man appraised Qin Sang, grunted in acknowledgment, and pointed a finger at him. "Once the enthronement ceremony concludes, come find me." With that, he turned and stepped into the rear hall. Silence fell over the great hall, so absolute that a dropped pin could be heard. Qin Sang could feel the astonishment and envy in the stares around him, as well as the jealousy and hatred radiating from the heir apparent. Even Prince Dongyang, who was on the verge of becoming the sovereign of the realm, was staring intently at him. General Commander Mu leaned over and whispered, "The rumor that you saved an Immortal Master's life—was it truly genuine?" Commander-in-Chief Feng knew a few more details. "I recall he was somewhat leaner than this one, wasn't he?" Still immersed in his joy, Qin Sang paid neither of them any heed. Since the young man surnamed Han had not forgotten him and had gone out of his way to send someone, did that not mean there was a very strong chance he had agreed to his request? After a moment of silence, the Palace Master of Chaosheng Palace quietly reminded Prince Dongyang, "Your Majesty, the auspicious hour is almost past." "Oh? Oh!" Only then did the sovereign and his ministers within the hall recover their senses. Prince Dongyang hurriedly lifted the imperial jade seal with both hands, took a step forward, and placed it gingerly between the jade register and jade records. The enthronement ceremony began. The ceremonial rites were cumbersome. Later, they moved outside the hall to confer ranks upon the hundred officials, lasting for nearly six full hours. Fortunately, the mountain breeze was gentle and the winter sun pleasantly warm, making the ordeal bearable for all. In the end, Prince Dongyang ascended the throne as Emperor, establishing the era name Wude. Qin Sang was conferred the title of General Supporter of the Nation and enfeoffed as the Marquis of Jiang Prefecture. He received his honors with a calm demeanor, waiting patiently until the enthronement ceremony concluded. The new emperor led the civil and military officials down the mountain back to Yuyu Palace, while Qin Sang remained behind at Chaosheng Palace, led toward the rear hall by its Palace Master. Princess Dongyang—who should now be called the Grand Princess—was nowhere to be seen. Only the plump young man sat in the great hall upon an armchair, eyes shut tight and utterly motionless. He appeared to be sleeping, yet in truth, he was cultivating. The moment they entered the hall, the plump youth opened his eyes and waved his hand to dismiss the Palace Master. He then addressed Qin Sang lazily, "To cut a long story short, Senior Brother Han asked me to convey something to you. The Immortal Path is exceedingly hard to seek—not merely because of the countless perils that follow embarking upon it, but because one must possess a spiritual root to cultivate immortality in the first place. Yet among mortals, those with a spiritual root are fewer than one in ten thousand. In other words, should you choose the path of cultivation, your chances are vanishingly slim. If you remain in the mortal world, Chaosheng Palace will shelter three generations of your descendants, ensuring their wealth and honor. The choice is yours." Qin Sang was briefly taken aback, only just learning that cultivating immortality required something called a spiritual root. Immediately afterward, it occurred to him that he had already cultivated the Nether Scripture to the fifth layer, so he undoubtedly possessed a spiritual root. Naturally, he had nothing to worry about. Even so, Qin Sang asked a few more questions. "What sort of thing is a spiritual root?" "How would I know what it is?" The plump youth curled his lip, mystified as to why Senior Brother Han cared so deeply about a mere mortal, even instructing him to explain everything thoroughly. "Spiritual roots correspond to the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, matching the spiritual energy of the five elements between heaven and earth. Only by possessing a spiritual root can one comprehend the Heavenly Dao and cultivate spiritual power and true essence within the body. In short, without a spiritual root, one cannot even sense the spiritual energy of the world, much less cultivate. Furthermore, possessing a spiritual root does not guarantee our Han clan will take you in. If you possessed a pure heavenly spiritual root, let alone the Han clan, even the great cultivation sects would scramble to claim you. But if your spiritual roots are mottled and impure—a four-element root or even a five-element root—you will never achieve Foundation Establishment before you die. Even with Senior Brother Han's recommendation, it would be impossible for you to enter the Han clan's inner sect." Hearing this, Qin Sang—who had previously felt entirely secure—grew anxious once more. He inquired in meticulous detail, questioning the plump youth until the latter wore an expression of utter impatience, and finally gained a shallow understanding of cultivators. It turned out that the realm after a cultivator entered the threshold was known as the Qi Refinement stage, which involved refining essence into qi. During this process, one nourished the origin soul and transformed the mortal flesh, gaining several decades more lifespan than ordinary mortals. The Qi Refinement stage had thirteen layers in total. Upon reaching the tenth layer, one could begin preparing for Foundation Establishment. Cultivators of the Foundation Establishment stage possessed formidable combat prowess, and only at that stage could one truly be counted as a real cultivator in the world of cultivation. Those unable to establish their foundation held little value to a sect. Whether one could achieve Foundation Establishment depended partly on personal fortune and opportunities, but even more on innate talent—namely, one's spiritual root. A single spiritual root, or true spiritual roots such as dual and triple spiritual roots, offered a considerable likelihood of Foundation Establishment. But for pseudo spiritual roots like four- or five-element roots, the hope of Foundation Establishment was exceedingly bleak. The plump youth had made it abundantly clear to Qin Sang: those with spiritual roots were one in ten thousand, true spiritual roots were rarer still, and single spiritual roots were rarely seen in several decades. He told him not to harbor delusional hopes. If Qin Sang possessed a pseudo spiritual root, he could still go to the Han clan, but he would only be an ordinary person in the outer clan. Perhaps he might live a few years longer than a mortal and have ample food and clothing, but that hardly compared to being a noble prince or marquis in the mortal realm, backed by Chaosheng Palace to enjoy a lifetime of wealth and glory. Yet how could Qin Sang resign himself to giving up now? Qin Sang did not know whether the layers of the Nether Scripture corresponded one-to-one with the Qi Refinement stage, but it had taken him merely five years to reach the fifth layer. Surely that pace could not be considered slow. Did that not prove his talent was far from lacking? "Exalted Immortal, I have made my choice," Qin Sang said in a deep voice. "Please test my spiritual root." The plump youth had long grown impatient with Qin Sang. Hearing this, he snorted crossly, "Do you think the Immortal Path is so easy to seek? It seems you won't turn back until you run headfirst into a brick wall. Hold out your hand." With trepidation, Qin Sang extended his hand, worried both that his talent might fall short and that the youth might discover the demonic art within him. Unexpectedly, while Qin Sang was still fretting in secret, he suddenly heard the plump youth say coldly, "Devoid of a spiritual root, cut off from the Immortal Path. All right, you may leave." Qin Sang froze, having imagined that testing a spiritual root would require some wondrous immortal method. Yet the plump youth had merely placed a hand lightly upon his arm for a fleeting instant before pulling it back, concluding that Qin Sang lacked a spiritual root. "Impossible!" Qin Sang blurted out in dismay. If he lacked a spiritual root, how had he cultivated the Nether Scripture? How had he generated spiritual power? How had he driven the Purple Soul Bell and the Ice Silkworm Armor? "Why would it be impossible?" The plump youth snapped furiously, "I warned you long ago that those who possess spiritual roots in this world are one in ten thousand! Even within cultivation clans, those with spiritual roots are an extreme minority. If you have no spiritual root, then you have none. Cease your unreasonable pestering here!" Qin Sang's gaze turned slightly chilly. He did not know how he had offended this immortal; the man seemed to hold an intense dislike toward him. Seeing the plump youth turn to leave and push open the door, Qin Sang darted forward in a flash to block the threshold. "I want to see Immortal Master Han!"