Chapter 130: Third Calamity Perfection, Spirit-nurtured Person
Toad Mudflat, with fog lingering year-round, dense and unyielding.
Among the menial laborers, there were rumors that this fog seemed related to the Five Viscera Temple’s mountain-protecting array, hence the situation.
However, whether it truly was, no menial laborer could confirm. Everyone only knew they were shrouded in fog, unable to even see the full view of the Five Viscera Temple, just like ants in an anthill who only know to keep their heads down and walk.
Fang Shu and the others, as immortal seeds, were in the same situation.
Though the group had entered the immortal sect, they still could not glimpse the full picture.
In the blink of an eye, everyone had settled in Toad Mudflat for dozens of days.
Over these dozens of days, aside from sitting in meditation for cultivation and wandering the mudflat, they had not contacted any other areas of the Five Viscera Temple.
The immortal sect had only provided them with a free bunk room house, with no other preferential treatment. Their daily meals had to be figured out by themselves.
In this situation, compared to the menial laborers in the Five Viscera Temple, aside from having no daily duties, there was almost no difference.
But even though everyone felt “unvalued,” not a single one had the thought of going down the mountain.
This day.
Fang Shu sat cross-legged in the stone house, with stone walls on all sides within a foot, extremely cramped.
This place resembled a quiet room, but was not a quiet room.
After the seven people moved in to the bunk room, following some discussion, they transported stone blocks to the four corners of the stone house and built four corners themselves.
Normally, when Fang Shu and the other seven wanted to use this narrow corner, they still had to coordinate with each other.
Though the stone room’s space was cramped, the setup crude like a latrine, the spiritual energy inside was real.
Fang Shu sat in meditation. He did not need to temper his body or inhale moonlight; with each breath in and out, rolling spiritual energy poured from the outside into his lungs and then merged into his qi and blood, enhancing his cultivation.
The spiritual energy here was exactly why the immortal seeds, despite great disappointment with immortal sect life, still had no thought of going down the mountain.
Compared to Gu Ling Town, this place was like Gu Ling Town compared to the mortal world. Its abundant spiritual energy made Fang Shu and the others, upon first arriving, somewhat unaccustomed for a time.
In the first few days, they felt dazed, their heads somewhat dizzy.
Especially Wu Dan. After experiencing disaster, he was particularly sensitive to his own body and anxiously asked Manager Sun, who had led them, whether he had fallen ill.
After Wu Dan was mocked by Manager Sun, everyone realized this condition was merely the few of them being “drunk on spiritual energy,” just like poor people who had long gone hungry suddenly eating their fill every day, feeling bloated.
From Manager Sun’s mouth, they also learned that the spiritual energy on Toad Mudflat belonged to a branch vein among the branch veins of the Five Viscera Temple’s spiritual vein.
The spiritual energy in other areas of the temple was even denser than here, but the group currently had no qualification to experience it.
Cultivating in such dense spiritual energy naturally yielded delightful results for the immortal seeds’ cultivation.
Gurgle!
Fang Shu continued circulating energy in the cramped corner. His breathing was muffled, faintly carrying the sound of wind and thunder, and his qi and blood boiled like boiling.
Clusters rolled upward, condensing into essence smoke signals that even corroded the narrow stone walls with faint sizzling sounds.
Finally, he abruptly opened his eyes and spat a single word from his mouth: “Zha!”
His tongue flashed like thunder as a breath of turbid qi erupted from his chest and abdomen, striking a pit into the stone wall before him.
At this moment, his muscles throughout his body were like mercury, surging densely with a natural sheen, and his eyes shone brightly as if lit by candles within the pupils.
Such signs indicated he had now succeeded in refining essence, his physical body raised to perfection, worthy of the term “treasure body.”
As Fang Shu slowly withdrew his energy, the qi and blood on his body gradually calmed. A thick joy indeed appeared on his face.
On the dao talisman in his mind, text changes were emerging:
【Realm: Third Calamity Perfection（Can Refine Qi）】
In less than half a year since breaking through to third calamity refining essence human immortal, he had already perfected the third calamity cultivation and could attempt to plant a spiritual root for a refining qi breakthrough!
The reason for such rapid progress, aside from the arduous cultivation over these dozens of days, was most importantly the different environment here compared to down the mountain.
On Toad Mudflat, every breath he took was equivalent to breathing spiritual energy, exceptionally sweet.
It was precisely this superior spiritual energy condition that allowed him to reach third calamity perfection within a hundred days!
In his joy, Fang Shu murmured to himself in his heart: “Merely Toad Mudflat can greatly increase my cultivation speed. If the surrounding spiritual energy were even denser, and with some spiritual medicine nourishing the body…”
He immediately realized that what the dojo master had said about noble family disciples “refining essence in a hundred days” was indeed no empty words.
Immersed in the joy of breakthrough, savoring it for a long time, Fang Shu sorted his thoughts and immediately lifted the stone slab, leaving this cramped corner.
He walked into the bunk room.
He looked around and found the stone slabs of the other three corners all sealed, with no one else in the room.
His roommates were either cultivating or out.
He walked to the doorway and checked the sky.
Though Toad Mudflat’s sky was perennially overcast, day and night could still be distinguished.
Seeing it was still early before nightfall, Fang Shu wrapped himself in the robe nearby and hurriedly left the stone house, heading toward the depths of the mudflat.
Now that he had successfully cultivated to third calamity perfection realm, though not yet polished and the fire gas not dispelled, it was time for him to plan for planting spiritual root and refining qi.
Fang Shu pressed the pouch at his waist and headed along to the medicine hall and other places on Toad Mudflat.
Not long after.
He appeared on a street where everyone wore grey robes, their faces hidden under hoods, making expressions unrecognizable.
Someone like Fang Shu, not wearing a grey robe, immediately drew gazes from many on the street, some clearly ill-intentioned.
But Fang Shu did not mind.
As a newly arrived immortal seed on Toad Mudflat, they were not menial laborers and did not even have the grey robes the menial laborers wore, nor were they willing to buy them, their situation quite constrained.
But within a hundred days, they were in a safe environment. As long as they did not take the bait, no one would risk actively harming them.
Thus, though Fang Shu had the manner and air of a greenhorn, as long as he was cautious, there was no major issue.
Of course, on this outing, he had still disguised himself, not only using immortal merit to shrink his frame but also applying ointment to alter his appearance.
He now looked entirely like a honest youth fresh from the village.
Not long after, Fang Shu arrived in front of the Toad Mudflat medicine hall.
He looked around the medicine hall for a dozen breaths, then hunched and awkwardly left.
Then he walked and stopped at street vendors and small shops, finally arriving at a place like a bookstore or inn, with a plaque over the doorway named “Imperial Quiet Rooms.”
This was the shop on Toad Mudflat for renting quiet rooms. Rumors said the quiet rooms were set with an array called the spirit gathering array.
Thus, though also on Toad Mudflat, the spiritual energy in the quiet rooms was at least thirty percent denser than other spots on Toad Mudflat.
The higher-priced quiet rooms inside had even denser spiritual energy, the first choice for menial laborers arduously cultivating magic or in seclusion for breakthrough, and superior in safety.
Fang Shu had come now not only to scout in advance but also to find Manager Sun.
The Sun-surnamed man who had led the immortal seeds dozens of days ago was from the miscellaneous affairs hall and normally handled the business of this official imperial quiet rooms shop.
Besides leading them, he also bore the responsibility of teaching the immortal seed menial laborers.
However, to receive his teachings depended on affinity.
Fang Shu held a stack of “affinity” in his hand. Feeling the pinch, he sorted his appearance, bowed, and stepped inside.
After some words, without complication, he was allowed to crowd by the bookshelf in the shop and browse the books there for about the time of a cup of tea.
Fang Shu eagerly flipped through the Five Viscera Temple classics and soon his gaze shifted, landing on the various introductions about spiritual roots.
