The Nine Capturing Demon Scroll hovered ethereally in front of him, enveloped by what looked like immortal spirit Qi, amidst auspicious clouds and radiant lights cascading down in streams of color.
Zhang Yan sat calmly on the couch, eyelids lowered, inhaling and exhaling, as delicate strands of essence Qi drifted out from the Jade Scroll and were absorbed back into his body to be refined.
He operated the mental method as described in the "Ming Dao Can Shen Qi," using all this essence Qi to enhance his physical body.
Although the Nine Capturing Demon Scroll had swallowed the entirety of the essence Qi from two Xuan Guang Third Realm Demon Kings, it returned very little back to him. Nonetheless, it was sufficient for him to step onto the first threshold of this Dharma technique.
About six hours later, the essence Qi had traveled throughout his body, vibrating the acupoint barriers, merging above and below, and a cluster of essence Qi had formed in his lower abdomen.
Upon examining inwardly, he discovered this essence Qi was compact as an egg, seemingly ethereal yet tangible, with faint traces of white light flashing within.
According to the God Contract, acquiring this essence cluster signified his entry into the first realm of this Dharma technique.
He moved his limbs slightly, sensing a subtle difference in his physical body compared to before, though he couldn’t pinpoint what specifically had changed. After pondering, he took a Dharma Sword from his Sleeve Bag, pinched a spell, made it fly in the air, and then had it slice down on his arm.
With a muffled thud, he felt a slight numbness in his arm. He rolled his sleeve up to his eyes and saw only a red mark on his skin, not a single scratch.
His eyes faintly gleamed with joy. This Dharma Sword originally belonged to Chen Chizhong of the Yuan Yang Sect. Though it was just a common Magic Artifact, it had been meticulously crafted. Without the protection of the Xuan Guang, such a sword strike, if not fatal, would certainly draw blood and wouldn’t merely cause numbness without harm.
His eyes flashed, he stood up, gripped the sword hilt, and slashed at his arm several times, yet the sword did not budge him.
Afterward, he discarded this Dharma Sword and activated the sword ball hidden in his Ancestral Acupoint. A sword light flashed, tearing open his arm easily, causing bright red blood to flow. He focused on the wound, only moved the mental method of the God Contract, and the essence Qi cluster in his abdomen heated up, emitting a rush of spiritual energy to the wound, which healed perfectly in just an instant.
He exhaled lightly, sat down again slowly, and thought that this indeed was a Powerful Dao Skill, focusing all its Daoist Cultivation on the physical body. As long as the essence Qi in his abdomen remained intact, his flesh wouldn’t perish. With the increase in cultivation, his body would grow even tougher. As he speculated, one day he might attain a steely, ironclad body like the avatar of the Jiu Kui Demon King, providing another means of self-preservation.
However, he knew well that any technique is dependent on the practitioner, just like the powerful avatar of the Jiu Kui Demon King, who was still killed by him. Encountering a Sword Cultivator of equal cultivation, a single sword strike could still penetrate his defense, hence only increasing Daoist Cultivation was the real foundation.
While engrossed in thought, he felt a slight pause in the sea boat beneath him, indicating it had come to a halt.
Along this journey, the sea boat would stop for a period at each island, raise the local flag on the ship’s side, ensuring a smooth journey ahead. Thus, he was not surprised. Just at this moment, however, he heard a gentle knock on the door, followed by a voice saying, "Is the honored guest in? Jing Shu seeks an audience."
Zhang Yan waved his sleeve to open the door, and said with a smile, "Manager Jing, if you have something to discuss, please come in and talk."
Manager Jing cautiously walked in, his gaze towards Zhang Yan still containing a trace of fear. First, he bowed, then produced an item, offering it respectfully above his head, and said, "Honored guest, I have a treasure here, which was used by the Jiu Kui Demon King on that day. Miss Shan obtained it unintentionally. She said this item ought to belong to you, the honored guest. The maid’s unwarranted possession has already been punished, and she now commands me to deliver it. Additionally, she wishes to personally express her gratitude for saving her life that day, if that is permissible?"
Zhang Yan glanced and found it was actually the Yin Transformation Furnace.
He had seen through its nature long ago, that although it was a Dharma Treasure, it was crude, refined from Five Elements Divine Sand, and could only gather some Green Yin Fire to use against cultivators below the Xuan Guang Realm. Nonetheless, for him, it was hardly worth mentioning, a mere low-grade Spirit Artifact. He couldn’t help but mock inwardly, wondering why such a fuss was made over it.
Having encountered numerous Dharma Treasures in his time, his standards were naturally high, and he hardly considered this item noteworthy. Unbeknownst to him, though the Jiu Kui Demon King called himself a Demon King, he was still a Loose Cultivator and lived in poverty. Even his Divine Weapon was only a manifestation through Lifebound Essence via an object. It was merely an avatar, yet possessing such a Dharma Treasure was already commendable.