Blood Taisui (1)
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Ten days later, the Abbey Dean of the Changling Temple had returned. Martial Uncle Ling Wu brought Shen Ping and the two Daoist children out to welcome them. The temple master of Changling Temple had white hair and a youthful face. He was wearing a Daoist robe with two rows of flying cranes. Behind him were the other disciples. The group of people had solemn expressions.
They exchanged a few pleasantries. Temple Master Chang Ling’s gaze landed on Shen Ping. “You must be Ling Zhen.”
Shen Ping hurriedly bowed and said, “Disciple Ling Zhen greets Master.”
After bowing, he followed closely behind the Abbey Dean and Martial Uncle. They arrived at the Ancestral Hall.
The Temple Master of Changling first offered incense and kowtowed. After paying his respects, he sat on the armchair and sighed. “Junior Brother Ling Wu, I brought the disciples of the temple to the capital this time and received bad news. I heard that the Imperial Preceptor of Great Zhao had told the Emperor that there were too many Daoist temples in the world and it would affect the dragon blessing of the dynasty. Therefore, from next year onwards, every Daoist temple has to receive a letter of appointment from the dynasty before they can continue to be passed down.
“If one wants to obtain the document, they have to get into the top 50 in next year’s Daoist temple competition. My Changling Temple has been established for less than 200 years. There are less than 10 disciples in the temple, and the highest cultivation is only 100 years. How can we enter the top 50?
“Changling Temple was passed down to me, and its end is also in my hands. I’ve let the founder down.”
When Martial Uncle Ling Wu heard this, he frowned. “The Imperial Preceptor is simply a devil. He actually proposed such a remonstrance. Isn’t he afraid that the Daoist temples in the world will suppress him?”
The Temple Master of Changling shook his head, “The most powerful factions did not step forward. It’s useless for the other Daoist temples to object. There must be something fishy about this matter. I’m worried that even if we really enter the top 50, we might not be able to obtain the letter of appointment. It’s the Great Zhao’s misfortune to have such an Imperial Preceptor.”
Martial Uncle Ling Wu nodded. “I think we should discuss this with the Ancestral Masters.”
The Temple Master of Changling hesitated for a moment before saying, “Alright, I’ll personally enter the Nether Division to discuss with the Ancestral Master when the auspicious day is chosen. However, at this juncture, I’m afraid that there will be a storm in Great Zhao. Next, we have to increase the strength of the disciples in the temple and recruit new disciples to strengthen the foundation of the Changling Temple. I’ll leave this to you, Junior Brother.”
Martial Uncle Ling Wu hurriedly said, “Yes, Senior Brother. By the way, the new Ling Zhen hasn’t been tested yet. I’ll have to trouble Senior Brother tonight.”
At night, Shen Ping stood in front of the patriarch statue. As the temple master chanted, the eyes of the patriarch statue suddenly lit up. Immediately after, an invisible pressure enveloped Shen Ping.
Not long after, the Dao bone test was over.
“Ling Zhen, your Dao bone belongs to the Yin category. It’s obvious that you can’t cultivate the Five Elements Technique. I’ll teach you the ‘Great Yin Talisman Scripture’. Although this technique doesn’t belong to my Changling Orthodoxy, if you can master it, you’ll be able to make a name for yourself in the field of talismans in the future.” The ruddy-faced Abbey Dean said slowly.
Shen Ping thanked him and asked, “Master, other than meditating and comprehending the Dao every day, is there any other way to cultivate?”
The Temple Master of Chang Ling laughed. He was not surprised at all. Most of the disciples who had just embarked on the path of cultivation could not wait to possess profound cultivation. Unfortunately, there were no shortcuts to cultivation.
“Ling Zhen, since you are an Elementary Scholar, you should know that the sea of learning is boundless. It’s the same for cultivation. You have to take things one step at a time. Don’t be impatient.”
Shen Ping did not give up and came to Uncle-Master Ling Wu’s room again. He did not forget that the Abbey Dean had said that he had to increase the strength of the disciples in the temple as soon as possible.
“What your master said is correct. Of course, other than daily cultivation, there are indeed other ways in the world to quickly improve your cultivation. One of them is to slay demons and devils. As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Every time you slay a demon or a ghost, it will bring benefits to all living beings in the world. The dragon blessing of the dynasty will protect you and speed up your cultivation. The second is the Vitality Pill. Different Vitality Pills have different effects. If you can find natural treasures and other strange items, the effect of the Vitality Pill will be extremely high.”
Martial Uncle Ling Wu pondered and said, “These two methods are known. There’s another method which is relatively rare. It’s said that there’s a strange thing called the Blood Taisui in this world. Its blood contains all kinds of wonders. If you can obtain it, you will become a genius of the Dao Bone in a short period of time. Your cultivation speed will be extremely fast, and you won’t have any bottleneck in absorbing vitality.”
Shen Ping couldn’t help but mutter, “Blood Taisui.”
Smack. Martial Uncle Ling Wu flicked his head. “Ling Zhen, even your Martial Uncle and the Patriarch have never seen such a strange thing. Don’t think too much. Just cultivate obediently. Also, don’t think about killing demons. Without the cultivation of a naturalized Daoist priest, your small body is not enough to fill the gaps between those demons’ teeth.”
Shen Ping scratched his head. “Yes, Martial Uncle. I will remember your teachings.”
Next, he stayed in Changling Temple and focused on cultivating the “Great Yin Talisman Scripture”. This technique sounded very profound, but in fact, the spells recorded in it were relatively basic. For example, paper effigies, incantations, soul-stirring spells, and so on. The most powerful ones were soul-settling charms.
However, even basic spells required a lot of time to master. But with Shen Ping’s attainments in talismans, he had completely mastered all the spells in just two months. Moreover, he had even created powerful spells such as the Five Elements Talisman and the Yin-Yang Talisman through the spells inside.
It could be said that in just half a year of cultivation, although his cultivation was less than a year, his combat strength was comparable to those Daoist disciples who had cultivated for decades. In fact, in a real fight, with his True Spirit and self-created spells, even the Eldest Senior Brother of Changling Temple, who had more than a hundred years of cultivation, was not his match..