"What's wrong?"
The Lao Mountain Taoist heard Song Lin's voice and immediately used the Wall-penetrating Skill to come through.
At this moment, Song Lin's ancient text was floating mid-air, unnoticed by the Lao Mountain Taoist.
"Master, I'm fine."
The next day, Song Lin got up and practiced his cultivation exercises as usual.
This continued for another six months.
On this day, deep within the dense forest.
Song Lin stood before a dozen human corpses.
In front of him knelt a man.
This man was bare-chested, his back covered in knife scars, and his whole body was flushed red, resembling a boiled shrimp.
Suddenly, the man stood up, brandished a long blade, and began swinging it with loud, sharp cracking noises emanating from his body.
"Hah!!"
With a furious roar, the man cleaved a tree, wide enough for a man's arms to encircle, clean in two.
"Master! I have comprehended Innate True Qi and successfully broken through to the Great Grandmaster Realm!"
The man, named Yangg Xing, now knelt down before Song Lin with his head lowered.
What is called the Great Grandmaster, in truth, is what mortal martial artists refer to as the Meditation stage.
Mortal martial artists temper their muscles and bones and practice martial techniques to a certain level, after which they can refine essence into Qi and generate Inner Strength.
A martial artist with Inner Strength can face dozens of opponents alone.
Although martial artists excel in close combat, they are slightly inferior to Taoist disciples at the Meditation stage, as Taoist disciples can wield talismans and magic artifacts.
Take Song Lin's Three Yang Fire Sword, for example—even the burly man before him could not withstand it.
"Very well, continue collecting materials for the Hidden Dragon Breath Emission Powder, and recruit more people."
"Yes, Master!"
These people were mountain bandits from Black Wind Village captured by Song Lin to test the medicine.
Out of eighteen people, only one survived, but the effectiveness of the Hidden Dragon Breath Emission Powder was successfully proven.
Upon ingestion, the powder could temporarily unleash one's potential.
The downside was that frequent use would lead to drug resistance, allowing the body to sustain itself at most until the Fetal Breathing Stage—but that was sufficient.
In this world, the general cultivation level wasn't high; even the Lao Mountain Taoist was estimated to be around the Fetal Breathing Realm, with his techniques largely centered on illusions.
Returning to the Lao Mountain Taoist Temple.
Song Lin inspected the information recorded in the ancient text, having accumulated roughly one-third more karma.
He then grabbed a package wrapped in oil paper, untied the string, revealing a cluster of ghostly green powder, which he inhaled deeply through his nose.
Hoo!
The ghostly green powder, like a waft of cyan smoke, flew into his nostrils.
A clear stream of energy coursed through his entire body, instantly making Song Lin feel his mind sharpened and his thoughts quicker than usual.
Soon, he entered Meditation again.
Clearing his mind of distractions and guarding his Spirit Platform tightly.
In no time, he truly achieved the True State of Constant Meditation.
After this, he no longer needed to sit deliberately; his essence would automatically transform into True Qi.
The thumb-sized True Qi expanded to the size of two fingers.
This signified his progression to the pinnacle of the Meditation stage.
Ending his practice, Song Lin slowly opened his eyes.
Name: Song Lin
Realm: Meditation
Taoist Realm: One Year
Divine Skills: Bat Bright Eyes Technique.
Items: Three Yang Fire Sword, Qi Nourishing Pill, Hidden Dragon Breath Emission Powder.
His Taoist Realm had increased by six months.
Though he couldn't take his cultivation realm out of this world, at least he had gained breakthrough experience.
Returning to the real world, Song Lin believed he could reach the True State within half a month.
"If I want to cultivate to the Fetal Breathing Stage, I'll need more Hidden Dragon Powder. Yangg Xing should gather more materials. I still have five Qi Nourishing Pills left."
Three days later.
The Lao Mountain Taoist sought out Song Lin and said, "I have decided to teach you our sect's secret techniques."
With that, he handed over a booklet titled .
It contained techniques like Chasing Stars and Grasping the Moon, Producing Wine from Nothingness, Summoning Moon Immortal, Wall-penetrating Skill, Bat Night Brightness, Qi Refining Skill, and two unfamiliar talismans: Avoiding Filth Talisman and Fire Light Talisman.
The latter two appeared to be combat-related techniques.
"The first three are illusion techniques. If mastered to perfection, they can confound the enemy's mind. The Avoiding Filth Talisman dispels evil ghosts, while the Fire Light Talisman is used for killing foes. The Wall-penetrating Skill is for escaping."
The Lao Mountain Taoist explained while demonstrating.
He retrieved a piece of talisman paper and tossed it into the air.
The talisman paper ignited spontaneously, emitting dazzling golden light that illuminated the entire room.
In an instant, Song Lin felt all the yin energy dissipate entirely.
The technique proved to be exceptionally useful, relevant even for worldly matters, such as inspecting altars in the real world three days later.
The other talisman, colored crimson, transformed into a fireball the size of a human head.
"What realm are you in now?"
"I just entered the True State of Constant Meditation a few days ago."
"Barely enough to cast two spells. Study carefully when you return, and do not act impatiently. If there's something you don't understand, ask me."
The Lao Mountain Taoist nodded approvingly and placed the booklet on the table, his expression suddenly darkening.
"Master, is something troubling you?"
"Do you know why Lao Mountain is called Lao Mountain?"
"Oh?" Song Lin was puzzled, but his heart tensed. This was surely tied to significant karma.
"Eighty years ago, during the Southern Dynasty, people and livestock from the foothills would often disappear, leaving only corpses with no flesh or blood remaining. The elderly believed it was the work of demons."
"Later, people sighted rats dressed in green robes. These rats stood as tall as men, upright like humans, and spat green pearls. The pearls emitted miasma, causing any living being that touched it to die from decayed skin."
The Lao Mountain Taoist narrated the story.
The authorities sent constables into the mountain to hunt the demon, but they failed, suffering heavy losses.
Eventually, a Taoist master arrived—a Great Grandmaster named Zhigang.
In the mountain, the master encountered the green-robed elder, and the two engaged in an epic battle.
In the end, both sustained severe injuries, but the master managed to seal the demon in a cave.
Afterward, the master established the nameless Taoist temple on the mountain. Due to the demon's presence, the mountain became known as Lao Mountain, a name later corrupted into Lao Mountain.
The people on the mountain naturally became known as Lao Mountain Taoists.
"That Taoist master was my own teacher. He later succumbed to his injuries, passing away. The Miasma Demon took the opportunity to escape, vowing revenge."
Decades had since passed; the once-young Taoist disciple was now the new Lao Mountain Taoist.
Though the Miasma Demon had yet to return, this remained a thorn in his heart—a lingering threat. He knew that once the demon regained its strength, it would seek vengeance.
"As for me, I am nearing the end of my days. So you must practice diligently!" The Lao Mountain Taoist let out a deep sigh and then passed through the wall.
Only the silent Song Lin remained.
This was undoubtedly a major karmic issue in this world, the key to transcending this realm.
If killed by the demon, all memory, divine skills, and even recorded Taoist techniques—like the Bat Night Brightness Skill—would vanish entirely, wasting an entire thread of karma.
This matter could not be taken lightly.
Over the next six months, Song Lin displayed remarkable diligence, pestering the Lao Mountain Taoist daily to practice the drawing methods for the Avoiding Filth and Fire Light Talismans.
The Lao Mountain Taoist admired his hard work, showing him more favor than his other disciples.
Meanwhile, Song Lin secretly instructed Yangg Xing and others to expand their influence.
Two more years passed, and Song Lin mastered the Eight Secret Skills.
Over three years, with the continuous aid of Hidden Dragon Breath Emission Powder and Jiachen Qi Nourishing Pills.
Song Lin covertly broke through to the Fetal Breathing Realm, successfully initiating Small Circulation movement through his meridians.
The volume of his True Qi surged, its quality and recovery speed greatly improving.
Inside the Lao Mountain Taoist Temple, a young Taoist sat cross-legged.
His breathing was long and serene, and his skin emitted a faint cyan radiance.
Suddenly, his eyes opened, flashing golden light.
"Ack!"
Song Lin spat out fresh blood, his complexion pale.
Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Song Lin reflected on the experience.
"Too eager for progress—while the Fetal Breathing Stage grants a lifespan of 120 years, my situation might limit me to just 60."
The reason was excessive use of Hidden Dragon Breath Emission Powder and insufficient digestion of Qi Nourishing Pills, leading to pill poison accumulation. He almost succumbed to Qi deviation several times, leaving internal injuries.
The difficulty and peril of cultivation were evident.
However, none of this truly mattered, as this was merely an illusory world. As long as he didn't die, all was fine.
Now, he had gained valuable experience for breaking through to the Fetal Breathing Stage.
Returning to the real world, Song Lin was confident he could break through more perfectly and efficiently, with no lingering injuries.
"The three-day mark is near, just enough time to leave."