Chapter Fifty-One: A Grand Gamble

He Yunxuan claimed this was an entirely new path, so naturally, Song Changsheng placed immense hopes on it.

After quietly finishing the text, Song Changsheng was instantly shocked by He Yunxuan’s wild ideas, to the point where he even doubted the authenticity of this cultivation method. It was simply too insane.

“To use one’s body as the eyes, the dantian as the foundation, acupoints as banners, bones and meridians as patterns, and to transform oneself into a walking formation—can this truly be achieved?”

Song Changsheng gazed in disbelief at the golden characters within his sea of consciousness, feeling that whoever conceived this method must have been a complete madman.

According to this cultivation method, even the slightest mistake would at best rupture the dantian’s energy sea, resulting in the total loss of cultivation.

For a cultivator, losing one’s cultivation is a fate more agonizing than death.

Yet, putting aside all the dangers, Song Changsheng had to admit that this method was exquisitely ingenious, far surpassing his family’s formation inheritance and faintly alluding to the very source of the Dao.

This was not something a third-rank, lower-grade formation master like He Yunxuan could have devised; it must have incorporated the essence of the Formation Dao Academy’s legacy.

With Song Changsheng’s understanding of formations, he was certain that this method was indeed feasible, and if it succeeded, it would go down in history, its name revered by generations of formation masters!

The reason was simple.

Formation masters, relying on formations, could defeat enemies several times stronger than themselves. However, setting up formations required extensive preparation and time. In many situations, there was simply no opportunity to lay out a formation, meaning a formation master could seldom unleash their full potential.

But if He Yunxuan’s method could be cultivated, the practitioner could deploy a formation akin to a domain at any moment.

The potential this held in actual combat was unimaginable—a walking formation, enough to send chills down one's spine at the mere thought.

However, this was a road never before envisioned; no one knew what challenges lay ahead or how to resolve them once encountered.

There was no experience from those who had gone before, only the blind groping of pioneers.

This was a high-stakes gamble, wagering one's path and very life itself!

If successful, invincibility among peers would be no empty boast. But if one failed…

“Only death awaits!” Song Changsheng’s gaze grew resolute. The road to immortality is long, with cultivators as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, and geniuses as countless as stars in the sky.

He was but one of the least remarkable among them. In Lingzhou, a tiny corner of the world, his talent might stand out, but across the entire Great Qi, or even the whole human cultivation world, his meager gifts were barely worth mentioning.

If Song Changsheng wished to contend with those peerless geniuses, he had to work harder, seize every opportunity, and become stronger.

When he was born, Song Xianming named him “Changsheng”—Longevity—not only as a heartfelt blessing for his future, but as the earnest hope of the entire Song clan.

They wished that Song Changsheng, true to his name, would one day ascend to the highest peak, overlooking all beneath him.

Song Changsheng had always treated longevity as his goal. This was his great opportunity—where risk and fortune coexisted. If he chose to shrink back, “Longevity” would forever be lost to him.

In his previous life, there was a saying in his hometown: “When a man dies, he faces the sky like a bird; but if not, he could live for ten thousand years.”

There was nothing to fear in death—he had already died once; at worst, he’d do it again.

Cultivation is like rowing upstream—advance or perish. This opportunity, he had to seize!

“The higher my cultivation, the harder it will be to practice this method. I must prepare early, and before reaching Foundation Establishment, carve the first formation.”

Though resolved, he could not act recklessly.

Cultivating this method required many prerequisites. If he didn’t fulfill them, his death would be both inevitable and miserable.

“Most of the materials Senior He mentioned I already possess, and the rest I can exchange for in my family’s treasury. The only real trouble is Dragonblood Orchid and Heart-Guard Pill.

Dragonblood Orchid, while rare and sought-after, appears on the market every year. But as for Heart-Guard Pill, it hasn’t been seen in over a decade—this is troublesome.”

As Song Changsheng calculated the materials he needed, his brows knit tightly together. He pondered for a long time but found no solution.

“Forget it, I’ll ask Fellow Daoist Zhu another time. He’s well-connected and might have a lead.” With a sigh, Song Changsheng could only set the matter aside for now.

There’s a difference between not fearing death and courting death. The necessary preparations had to be made, and in the end, failure could only be blamed on his own ill fortune.

After withdrawing from his sea of consciousness, Song Changsheng brought out the jade slip containing the Transforming Spiritual Qi Technique. Aside from the “Body Carving Formation” method and the Lu Wu Bell, this was his most valuable gain.

Once he mastered this secret art, his combat power would certainly rise to a new level!

...

Song Changsheng resumed his methodical daily life. Apart from refining magical tools, he spent his days cultivating the Transforming Spiritual Qi Technique and studying He Yunxuan’s legacy.

His schedule was tightly packed every day.

Time slipped quietly by, and in the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

During this period, Song Changsheng’s abilities improved greatly, and he had gained entry into the Transforming Spiritual Qi Technique.

The Earthfire Sect had also, for once, been uncommonly quiet—presumably, the family’s counterattack had occupied their efforts, leaving them with no strength to trouble Song Changsheng.

This was, of course, excellent news for him. However, what puzzled him was that Zhu Yiqun had been completely unreachable during this time.

If he didn’t trust Zhu’s character so much, he’d have suspected the fat man had absconded with the magical artifacts…

At dawn, as the sun rose and mists swelled, Song Changsheng had just finished his morning cultivation and was preparing to study the Daoist scriptures when the communication jade token at his waist suddenly vibrated.

He sent a wisp of spiritual power into it, and a long-missed voice came through: “Changsheng, meet me at the usual place.”

A trace of delight appeared at the corner of Song Changsheng’s mouth—the fat man had finally resurfaced.

After notifying Song Luyuan in advance, he hurried to the pavilion where he often met Zhu Yiqun.

Today, Zhu Yiqun was dressed in a purple brocade robe, his plump figure resembling those pampered landlords from the mundane world.

Upon seeing Song Changsheng, he immediately rushed over and gave him an enthusiastic bear hug, making Song Changsheng shudder and break out in goosebumps.

“What’s gotten into you? I’m not some maiden—why hug me so tightly? Don’t tell me you have certain… proclivities?” Song Changsheng said with a look of disdain.

“Get out of here, you’re the one with those proclivities! I’m all man, through and through,” Zhu Yiqun quickly retreated, patting his chest.

“You know yourself best. Where have you been lately? I was starting to think you’d run off with the goods.”

At this, Zhu Yiqun’s round face immediately fell. “That’s a long story. You almost never saw old Zhu again…”

...