Chapter 36: An Immortal Touches My Crown, Longevity Granted for a Price

Chapter 36: The Immortal Touches My Crown, Enlightenment at a Price

Following the directions provided by Feng Xueyue, Zhang Fang successfully located the Dream Pavilion. After paying the 100-point entry fee, he was led by an attendant into a private cubicle.

The space was small, containing nothing but a single yellow meditation cushion.

The attendant stopped at the entrance, gestured for Zhang Fang to enter, and said, "Sir, you need only sit cross-legged on the cushion to receive the assistance or answers you require."

Zhang Fang complied, sitting on the cushion as instructed, and the attendant politely closed the door behind him. The moment the door shut, the voice of the Reincarnation Tower echoed in his mind:

[You have come to the Dream Pavilion. Do you seek to resolve a problem encountered in your cultivation, to merge martial arts techniques, or do you have other needs?]

I can merge techniques here too?

Zhang Fang silently noted this information and replied in his mind, "My 'Everlasting Sacred Qi: Yang' has reached a level cap and cannot be upgraded further. I wish to know the cause of this problem and the method to resolve it."

[Do you wish only to resolve the current problem, or do you seek to obtain all information related to cultivating the 'Everlasting Manual'?]

[To resolve the problem: 2,000 Reincarnation Points required!]

[To obtain all information related to cultivating the 'Everlasting Manual': 10,000 Reincarnation Points required!]

Zhang Fang did not answer immediately this time. Instead, he asked cautiously, "What does 'all information' include?"

[It includes the cause of your current cultivation bottleneck and the solution, as well as how to elevate this technique to a higher realm after remedying its defects. Every step required is included in 'all information related to cultivating the Everlasting Manual.']

In other words, I can not only learn how to fix my current problem but also see my path of growth for the future?

After confirming this, Zhang Fang gritted his teeth and made his decision: "I want all the information!"

[As you wish!]

As the voice of the Reincarnation Tower faded, Zhang Fang suddenly felt a chill. He realized that his surroundings had shifted; the narrow, enclosed cubicle of the Dream Pavilion had transformed into a mystical mountain paradise shrouded in mist.

Beneath him was an open clearing. Ahead lay a natural cave dwelling carved into the mountainside. The rock face was inscribed with the large seal script characters for "Nine Immortals Mountain," while directly above the cave entrance were the words "Peach Blossom Spring Cave."

Suddenly, the sound of steady, unhurried footsteps echoed from within the cave.

Zhang Fang focused his gaze and saw a Taoist with a crane-like appearance and youthful complexion emerging from the cave. He held a whisk in his right hand and radiated an ethereal, immortal aura. Seeing Zhang Fang sitting cross-legged at the entrance, he smiled faintly and said, "The 'Everlasting Manual' I passed down was originally a method of quiet cultivation meant for comprehending the supreme truths of heaven and earth. Yet, later generations have taken a different path, combining it with worldly martial arts systems to walk a road from martial arts to the Tao. It is interesting, indeed. But your foundation is too poor; I fear you will not go far on this path."

Zhang Fang was startled and asked instinctively, "May I ask who you are, Master?"

"I am Guangchengzi."

As he spoke, Guangchengzi whipped his whisk with his right hand, draping it over his left arm. Without any visible movement, he seemed to teleport from several yards away to stand directly before Zhang Fang. He flipped his left palm and pressed it firmly onto the top of Zhang Fang’s head.

[10,000 Reincarnation Points deducted!]

[Guangchengzi has imparted information related to the cultivation of the 'Everlasting Manual.' Please clear your mind and receive this information with focus.]

Hearing the prompt from the Reincarnation Tower, Zhang Fang was startled, but he quickly dismissed his distracting thoughts, closed his eyes, and opened his mind to fully absorb the information being transmitted through the "head-touching" technique.

As a massive influx of information surged into his mind, Zhang Fang finally gained a clear understanding of the cultivation of the 'Everlasting Manual.'

First, the 'Everlasting Manual' itself was not a martial art; one could even say it had nothing to do with martial arts. However, its characteristic of being perfectly in tune with nature aligned closely with the philosophy of "entering the Tao through martial arts."

Therefore, as long as it was paired with compatible worldly internal energy techniques, it could be transformed into a martial internal strength. This type of internal power was named "Everlasting Sacred Qi" by its two originators, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling.

Since the "Everlasting Sacred Qi" could be created in various ways, there were naturally differences in quality. The factors determining its strength were three-fold: the specific fragment of the 'Everlasting Manual' used, the martial internal technique it was merged with, and the degree of compatibility between the two.

The general outline of the 'Everlasting Manual' and its seven diagrams of cultivation each had their strengths, with no inherent superiority among them.

As for the compatibility, after receiving the "transmission" from Guangchengzi, Zhang Fang could now check the compatibility rate of any internal technique manual he possessed with the 'Everlasting Manual.'

The problem Zhang Fang faced lay entirely in the martial internal technique he had used for the merger.

In the world of *Twin Dragons of the Great Tang*, the protagonists did not encounter such problems because the internal technique they merged with the 'Everlasting Manual' was the "Nine Profound Great Technique," a unique art belonging to one of the world's four grandmasters, the Chess-Sword Master Fu Cailin. Leaving aside the four great classic books, it was undeniably one of the top-tier internal techniques in that world.

Conversely, the technique Zhang Fang had used, the "Embryonic Breathing Technique," was essentially common fodder in the world of *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils*.

The gap in quality between the two was beyond measure!

The only reason Zhang Fang had succeeded in merging them initially was that the "Embryonic Breathing Technique," which focused on mimicking the breathing of a fetus, was perfectly aligned with the entry requirements of the first diagram of the 'Everlasting Manual.'

However, as his cultivation grew, the drawbacks of this imperfect merger began to manifest.

Ultimately, the attribute represented by the first diagram of the 'Everlasting Manual' was "Yang," not "Life." While the concept of "Yang" includes aspects of "Life," the latter is not the entirety of the former. When Zhang Fang’s "Everlasting Sacred Qi" reached Level 3, it required the "Yang" aspect to emerge from the initial "Life" foundation. The weak foundation provided by the "Embryonic Breathing Technique" could no longer support further growth.

If he wanted to continue leveling up, he would need to find a high-level internal technique with "Yang" attributes to merge with his "Everlasting Sacred Qi: Yang."

To go further, he would first need to find the general outline of the 'Everlasting Manual' and have it translated into a language he could understand. Then, he would need to find an internal technique with high compatibility and strong inclusivity to merge with it.

Only then could he merge the remaining six cultivation diagrams in the order of Yin, Metal, Wood, Earth, Water, and Fire, eventually uniting them all to unleash the true power of this ancient classic.

After integrating all the information imparted by Guangchengzi, Zhang Fang opened his eyes to find he had returned to the private cubicle in the Dream Pavilion.

Thinking of a possibility, Zhang Fang flipped his wrist and immediately took out the *Yijin Jing* manual. He saw that its description had changed:

*Yijin Jing*: The supreme martial arts classic of Shaolin, possessing the power to turn decay into magic. Legend says it is the heritage left by the founder, Bodhidharma. Written entirely in Sanskrit. (Compatibility with the 'Everlasting Manual' general outline: 98%!)

According to the information from Guangchengzi, if the compatibility between an internal technique and a part of the 'Everlasting Manual' reached 40%, it met the prerequisite for fusion. 60% was considered an excellent choice, 80% represented extreme compatibility, and anything over 90% was a rare treasure among all martial arts in the world! If one ever found such a technique, there was no need for hesitation; merging it would be the correct move!

A 98% compatibility rate was, for a cultivator of the 'Everlasting Manual,' a near-perfect technique for fusion!

So, the *Yijin Jing* was not incompatible with the 'Everlasting Manual'; it was simply incompatible with the "Everlasting Sacred Qi: Yang." Of the eight parts of the 'Everlasting Manual,' the *Yijin Jing* was compatible with its general outline!

Good thing I didn't sell it, or I would have regretted it to death!