Cultivation: I Can Steal Lifespan from Spirit Beasts

Chapter 134: The Three Realms of the “Divine Dream Method”; A Temporary Respite

The morning breeze drifted through the window lattice, gently brushing against Wang Ba.

He sat quietly on the wooden bed, a sheet of golden paper laid out before him.

As a transcript, this golden page recording the Divine Dream Method lacked the corresponding ‘True Intent’ of the technique.

Although it recorded every detail of the cultivation process, mastering it without the True Intent was as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

This was precisely why some cultivators were bold enough to carry transcripts of their cultivation methods in their Storage Bags. Apart from the convenience of studying them at any time, they knew that even if the transcripts were seized, it was almost impossible for the thief to master them.

Of course, regarding this point, Wang Ba felt there might be exceptions.

Perhaps due to Ji Lin’s high praise for the Divine Dream Method, Wang Ba was filled with anticipation. He eagerly read through the entire golden page in detail.

After finishing, Wang Ba felt a mix of delight and disappointment.

He was delighted because this powerful technique, designed to pair with the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture, was indeed profound.

He was disappointed because, strictly speaking, this was not a technique for direct combat.

It leaned heavily towards support and utility.

If one were to classify it using terms understandable to a Qi Refining cultivator, the Divine Dream Method would likely fall under the category of ‘Illusions.’

It certainly aligned with the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture’s ability to deceive and cloud the minds of others.

Most critically, this technique could only unleash its true potential when driven by the Yin Spirit power cultivated through the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture.

“This technique is divided into three realms, corresponding to the three layers of the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture.”

“The first realm: Mortal Sense.”

“The second realm: Heart Sense.”

“The third realm: Absolute Reality.”

Wang Ba studied the first realm, which contained numerous small tricks for manipulating Yin Spirit power.

Mastering the first realm allowed one to fully utilize Yin Spirit power to blend perfectly with the surrounding environment. As long as one did not come into direct contact with the opponent’s spiritual power or Divine Sense, they would remain undetected until their Yin Spirit power ran out.

The flaw in Wang Ba’s previous disguise—being exposed by changes in light and shadow—would no longer exist.

Of course, the first realm was of little practical value to him now.

The enemies he faced these days were mostly Foundation Establishment cultivators. Any Foundation Establishment cultivator could see through the camouflage of the first realm with a single sweep of their Divine Sense.

Its utility was greatly diminished.

As for the second realm, ‘Heart Sense’, it required cultivating the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture to the second layer before it could be cast.

It could bypass the five physical senses and directly deceive the opponent’s mind, implanting thoughts and illusions into their soul and consciousness.

It appeared to be an illusion technique, yet it was far more bizarre than ordinary illusions.

However, while this ability seemed powerful, it had many limitations.

First, it consumed a massive amount of Yin Spirit power. Furthermore, the implanted thoughts and illusions could not deviate too violently from the opponent’s inherent cognition.

The golden page provided an extremely apt example of this.

For instance, if the opponent was clearly male, one could not forcibly implant the cognition that they were female. This would cause their cognition to collapse, snapping them out of the deceived state.

Moreover, the target would develop a natural resistance to the Yin Spirit power, making subsequent attempts to deceive or cloud their mind increasingly ineffective.

Of course, if the user was patient, they could gradually guide the opponent while in a deceived state, slowly leading them to discover that they actually did not mind becoming the opposite sex…

Secondly, the stronger the opponent’s soul, the lower the probability of successfully implanting thoughts.

Wang Ba understood this without needing it explained; otherwise, this technique would be too terrifying.

There were other restrictions as well, which Wang Ba skimmed over and committed to memory.

As for the third realm, ‘Absolute Reality,’ Wang Ba struggled to understand it.

Although he recognized every character, the meaning transcended his comprehension. It seemed to involve esoteric concepts like “replacing falsehood with truth” and “inverting the void and the real.”

Wang Ba’s strength lay in not overthinking things. He didn’t waste time agonizing over the meaning. Instead, he directly expended 17.8 years of Lifespan and smoothly mastered the first realm, ‘Mortal Sense.’

He could clearly feel that his proficiency in manipulating Yin Spirit power had improved significantly.

Influenced by this, his perception of the soul within his own body became increasingly distinct.

Once he could fully perceive his own soul, it would mean that among the three treasures of Essence, Qi, and Spirit, his ‘Spirit’ had reached Perfection.

As for the second realm, like the second layer of the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture, it did not yet appear in his list of consumable options.

Having taken stock of his gains, he opened his Heavenly Gate Task Token. The mandatory task was indeed marked as complete.

Because Bu Chan had submitted information on two Incense Path cultivators and prevented another from infiltrating the Eastern Sage Sect outpost via Body Seizing, she received a Reward of five hundred merit points.

Additionally, he and Bu Chan split four hundred Spirit Stones equally.

Wang Ba didn’t care much about these rewards.

He had once thought of diligently accumulating merit points to one day join the Heavenly Gate Sect as an inner disciple. However, after learning from Yu Changchun that even inner disciples had their soul auras recorded by the Profound Soul Path, he had completely abandoned that plan.

The Heavenly Gate Sect was not his final destination.

Shaking his head, Wang Ba stood up from the wooden bed. In the short time he had been studying, Bu Chan had already put on her silk socks and tied a bamboo winnowing basket to her waist. She was now in the spirit field, picking fruits.

Her graceful figure flitted lightly among the verdant spirit plants, like a sprite dancing in the woods.

Wang Ba stood by the window, quietly watching the beautiful scene, losing track of time.

…

Eastern Sage Sect Outpost.

Amidst the cloud-shrouded peaks.

The Fan Ming divine beast was currently on its last breath.

The chains binding it had multiplied, and its body was now plastered with yellow paper Talismans. Even so, guards watched it constantly, vigilant against another rampage.

On a mountain peak opposite the beast.

Ning Daohuan sat cross-legged on a prayer cushion, his expression gloomy as he looked down at the black-robed cultivator kneeling before him.

“We lost another Golden Core Elder. Lu Yuansheng, what do you have to say for yourself?”

The black-robed cultivator prostrated himself, his body tense.

“This disciple is guilty. I misjudged the situation. I thought that after our subordinates captured the small fry, we would need to wait and bait the line a while longer before the big fish appeared. I did not prepare for a sudden counterattack. I never expected Elder Gong to…”

“This disciple asks the Sect Leader for punishment!”

“Hmph! What use is punishment now!”

Recalling how he had been forced by Pang Xiao of the Mountain Sea Sect to spit out the meat already in his mouth, a flash of humiliation and rage passed through Ning Daohuan’s eyes. It quickly settled into a glint of cruelty.

“Don’t say you didn’t expect it; even I, the Sect Leader, didn’t expect these natives to form an alliance so quickly… It seems I was too focused on refining ‘Fan Ming’ and overlooked these people.”

“But it matters not. I have memorized the auras of everyone who appeared today. Sooner or later, I will settle the score with them, one by one!”

“The Sect Leader will surely annihilate the four Sects!” the black-robed cultivator flattered hurriedly.

Ning Daohuan snorted coldly.

“Spare me the nonsense. I ask you, have you discovered the secret behind the Spirit Poultry in Ji Lan’s possession? Why was that bird able to incite Fan Ming into a frenzy?”

At the mention of serious business, the black-robed cultivator quickly raised his head, revealing a blood-red skull of a face, devoid of a single scrap of flesh.

“Reporting to the Sect Leader. Last night, this disciple requested an Elder from the Profound Soul Path to perform Soul Searching on a captured Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Eastern Sage Sect’s Myriad Beast Department. We actually found a clue.”

“Oh?” Ning Daohuan’s face was as still as a deep pool, betraying no emotion. “Speak.”

“Yes.”

Lu Yuansheng spoke rapidly. “This matter dates back over five hundred years, to the Sect Leader two generations prior to the last—Daoist Horn-Pot.”

“Over five hundred years ago?” Ning Daohuan frowned slightly.

“Precisely,” Lu Yuansheng continued. “Daoist Horn-Pot began as a beast tamer. Years ago, while traveling through the three states of Sen, Fu, and Chen, he accidentally discovered the Fan Ming primordial spirit in this location. He also obtained the ‘Spirit-Locking Bell,’ an artifact capable of controlling it. He immediately moved the Eastern Sage Sect here and established the fourth-grade ‘Fan Ming Grand Formation’ with the beast as its core.”

“I know all this. Skip to the part about the Golden Core realm Spirit Poultry,” Ning Daohuan interrupted impatiently.

“Yes,” Lu Yuansheng said. “It is actually quite simple. Although the Spirit-Locking Bell could control the Fan Ming primordial spirit, the consumption was enormous and unsustainable. Even with Daoist Horn-Pot’s Golden Core cultivation, he could only use it briefly for mountain defense.”

“Daoist Horn-Pot was ambitious and talented; he refused to waste such a divine resource. Thus, he searched everywhere for a way to borrow Fan Ming’s power more efficiently.”

Hearing this, Ning Daohuan nodded slightly. “His thinking aligns with mine. This Daoist Horn-Pot had some vision. Did he succeed?”

Lu Yuansheng shook his head. “No… Daoist Horn-Pot, utilizing his beast-taming background, sought to cultivate a Spirit Poultry vessel suitable for hosting the Fan Ming primordial spirit. He hoped to channel its power through a living body.”

“To this end, he introduced many Spirit Poultry varieties from the Nine Spirits Sect, eventually selecting the ‘Rare Fowl’ as the maternal base. He promoted this breeding program heavily within the Myriad Beast Department. Unfortunately, due to his advanced age, he only managed to breed a single pair of second-grade Low Grade Spirit Poultry before he passed away.”

“The plan was apparently shelved by subsequent Sect Leaders due to its immense cost.”

“What a pity. These later generations were truly short-sighted,” Ning Daohuan sighed, a rare display of emotion. Then, realization dawned. “So, Ji Lan and his cohorts succeeded in creating it?”

“It would seem so. Though, it appears they were not completely successful.”

Ning Daohuan nodded. The aura of that Spirit Poultry had only been around the mid-Golden Core stage, and even that was likely due to the enhancement of the Fan Ming primordial spirit. Without the spirit’s possession, the bird’s true realm was probably early Golden Core at best, perhaps even just Foundation Establishment Perfection.

Thinking of this, Ning Daohuan, who had been unable to fully control Fan Ming due to the lack of the Spirit-Locking Bell, suddenly saw a path forward.

“Send people to the Nine Spirits Sect. Inquire if they have high-grade Spirit Poultry for sale. If they do, acquire them by any means necessary.”

“Also, have that captured Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Myriad Beast Department breed Spirit Poultry for me. If he is willing to work, I will spare his life. If he succeeds, I will reward him!”

“The Sect Leader is benevolent!” Lu Yuansheng prostrated himself, praising loudly.

“Also… regarding the Mountain Sea Sect. Halt operations for now,” Ning Daohuan added suddenly.

Lu Yuansheng was stunned. “But Sect Leader, we have already prepared everything. We are just waiting for…”

“Stop it,” Ning Daohuan said coldly.

“…Yes.”

Seeing the steely resolve in Ning Daohuan’s eyes, Lu Yuansheng quickly lowered his head.

Ning Daohuan’s expression softened slightly, and he spoke as if explaining to himself.

“Not long ago, I received news that the cultivation world of the ‘West Sea State’ was exterminated overnight by cultivators from another continent. The entire Wind Descending Continent is now on high alert. If we rashly move against the Mountain Sea Sect at this juncture, we might attract the attention of those old monsters…”

He suddenly realized he had said too much and stopped.

But hearing this, Lu Yuansheng felt a chill run through his heart.

The West Sea State… He had seen it on the Heavenly Gate Sect’s map of the Wind Descending Continent.

It was the westernmost nation of the continent. Due to its proximity to the ocean and abundant resources, its cultivation world typically boasted three or four Nascent Soul True Lords in every generation. It was clearly far stronger than the State of Chen or even the Heavenly Gate Sect.

Yet such a powerful nation had been annihilated overnight?

The news delivered a massive shock to his system.

“Enough. You may leave. Focus on handling the Spirit Poultry matter properly. For the next few years, we will slow our pace.”

“Yes! This disciple takes his leave.”

Lu Yuansheng collected himself, bowed respectfully, and retreated.

Ning Daohuan watched Lu Yuansheng leave, then slowly stood up and walked to the edge of the cliff.

He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing toward the west. His eyes seemed to pierce through infinite space as he let out a long, heavy sigh.

“Soul Formation…”