Forging Immortality through the Dao Seed

"All disciples of the Dao Institute who have passed the assessment, gather in front of the Legacy Pavilion within half an hour!"

A grand voice suddenly rang out, centered around the Legacy Pavilion, spreading swiftly and sweeping throughout the four quarters.

Within every small courtyard, cultivation room, and even hidden caves.

A myriad of eyes suddenly opened, their expressions varying from excitement, unease, to astonishment, differing from one person to another.

The seventh Temporary Institute.

Coach Wang sat atop a meditation cushion, his eyes lightly closed.

His voice echoed continuously inside the preaching hall as he expounded the Dao principles.

However, at this moment, his voice abruptly ceased.

Coach Wang looked towards the direction of the Legacy Pavilion with a complex gaze and couldn't help but say, "So soon? This cohort... has far too many talents, I just wonder how Junior Brother Zhang's cultivation is progressing. Considering his talent, he should hopefully rank within the top twenty."

Upon regaining his composure.

He quickly scanned the faces of the forty-plus people in the audience and offhandedly said:

"You have three days. If you can't master the Visualization Method within these three days, then you should abandon any ties with Dragon Lake Dao Institute and be content to lead an ordinary mortal life."

Upon hearing this, the crowd displayed expressions of despair and disappointment, with intermittent sounds of sobbing.

...

...

Inside the cultivation chamber.

The moment the last Accumulative Spirit Pill was swallowed, a blush abruptly ascended Zhang Jing's face.

An overwhelming surge of spiritual energy erupted like a torrent.

Whoosh!

The illusory river within Zhang Jing's body began to flow faster and faster, continuously refining spiritual energy into a pitch-black spiritual power.

The spiritual power diffused within his Dantian and surged rapidly.

As if it would boil over at any moment.

The Gather Spirit Light contracted and expanded incessantly. The spots it passed over stabilized the spiritual power, but the intensity became increasingly heavy and oppressive.

In an instant.

As if it had reached its limit.

The spiritual power roared and boiled, then under immense pressure started to gradually merge bit by bit.

"Qi Refinement, second layer!"

An excited expression flashed across Zhang Jing's face, and his aura suddenly soared.

Subsequently, with a deep breath-

The expression on his face returned to calm, as he continued to cultivate the Five Viscera Water Element Guide without haste.

Only after the changes inside his Dantian were fully completed and spiritual power restored to stability, did Zhang Jing slowly open his eyes and carefully sense the transformation that came with reaching the second layer of Qi Refinement.

The spiritual power was more abundant, the fluctuations more intense, and both his spiritual sense and physical body had significantly enhanced.

To verify the effect.

Zhang Jing controlled the spiritual sense to outline the Dao pattern of the Ice Blade Spell, feeding spiritual power into it.

Within a mere few moments, a trembling blade edge appeared in his hand. The terrifying sharp aura passed directly through the skin and into the bone marrow.

Just as he thought!

A look of realization flashed in Zhang Jing's eyes.

Though it was the same spell, employing it at the second layer of Qi Refinement meant possessing more formidable spiritual sense and power. Hence, the difference in power was like night and day.

Gazing at the Ice Blade Spell in his hand, Zhang Jing gave a small smile, then summoned the Five Spirit River.

In an instant, an even broader and more turbulent Spirit River astoundingly appeared, encircling Zhang Jing. Five peculiar-looking fishe of spells were swimming about happily in the river.

Inspired by a thought.

Zhang Jing slowly released the Ice Blade Spell in his hand into the Spirit River, and in a blink of an eye, it transformed into a noticeably larger fish.

"Indeed, the capacity of the Five Spirit River has increased with the advancement of my cultivation... can it now accommodate eight spells?"

A thought struck him and the Jade Talisman slowly appeared in his sight.

Seeing the somewhat messy skill information on it, Zhang Jing could not help but raise an eyebrow: "It looks like I need to categorize these skills and organize them."

Next, under his control, the Jade Talisman began to flash.

After a short time.

Dharma Seeds:

[Low-Level Dharma Seed: Heart Eye (Non-Upgradeable)]

Cultivation Techniques:

[Five Viscera Water Element Guide · Level Two (71/400)]

Skill Traits: Five Spirit River (Mid-Level)

[Pure Lotus Visualization Method · Level Two (161/300)]

Skill Traits: Gather Spirit Light (Low Level)

[Blue Bird Qi Gathering Clause · Uninitiated (0/50)]

Low-Level Spells:

[Ice Blade Spell · Level Three (2/120)]

Skill Traits: Sharp Edge (Low Level)

[Ice Light Curse · Level Three (8/120)]

Skill Traits: Heavy Light (Low Level)

[Wave Walking Sky Control Technique · Level One (33/40)]

Skill Traits: Cold Breath (Low Level)

Special:

[Ghost Jiao Void Dao Accumulation - Broken (Non-Upgradeable)]

"I have learned quite a few magical skills."

Zhang Jing's eyes revealed a hint of a smile.

Furthermore -

He made a motion as if pulling something from the storage pouch at his waist.

The next moment, a flying sword enveloped in a dark, spiritual light emerged before him, swiftly darting around the room, and releasing waves of sharp energy.

The power of this flying sword now even surpasses that of the man in black back then.

"After advancing in recovery, I can control the flying sword much more smoothly and its power is almost comparable to the Ice Blade Spell empowered by the [Sharp Edge] trait."

Zhang Jing nodded in satisfaction.

In this way, his primary method of fighting enemies will involve using the Magic Artifact.

The Five Spirit River would serve as a supportive measure and a mean to change the dynamics of the situation, storing different types of spells depending on the situation.

The combination of the two is sufficient for Zhang Jing to handle most situations.

But at this moment.

A grand voice suddenly rang in his ears.

Zhang Jing was initially confused, followed by an immediate realization.

"It seems that the Dao Institute is about to announce the ranking competition method for this assessment. Looking at the time, it's indeed about right."

He immediately got to his feet and was about to leave.

...

...

Before he reached the Legacy Pavilion.

Zhang Jing was able to discern from a distance the towering pillars standing in the plaza, magnificent and lofty. Even from a distance they exude an oppressing sensation.