บท 6: The Delights of the Copper Mirror
Elder Sister Xu was quite well known in the Reliance Sect. In fact, you could say that everyone knew her, because as of now, the Reliance Inner Sect only had two disciples.
Other than Elder Sister Xu, the only other disciple was the man currently standing next to Shangguan Xiu.
After Elder Sister Xu lent him her Immortal's Cave, it had a fear-inspiring effect on everyone, allowing Meng Hao to leave the square with the Spirit Stone and Spirit Condensation pills. Everyone watched him as he left.
As he walked off into the distance, his back soaked with sweat, he felt the glares behind him like invisible blades. They slowly dissipated as he walked quickly away.
In the time it takes three incense sticks to burn, Meng Hao walked without stopping. He didn't return to his room in the Outer Sect, but rather followed the white jade slip Elder Sister Xu had given him toward the Southern Mountain. At the foot of the mountain, he located the Immortal's Cave.
Outside of the cave, two large stone slabs towered up next to the mountain face. Everything was covered with green branches and vines; it appeared to be an entirely unordinary place, very different from Meng Hao's previous two dwellings.
The surroundings here were peaceful and lush. Not far away, a mountain spring flowed down, and the wind carried away the heat, replacing it with cool, fresh air.
Meng Hao stood in front of the mouth of the Immortal's Cave, looking completely content. Now he truly understood how precious such a cave could be, clearly much more than any other dwelling place. No wonder all the other Outer Sect disciples had looked so jealous and envious when Elder Sister Xu lent it to him.
"This is a place for Immortals," said Meng Hao. He waved his right hand, and the slip of white jade flew forward to the cave's green stone door. It slapped onto the surface, and a buzzing sound filled the air as the door slowly opened.
The Immortal's Cave was not very big, and only had two rooms. One room was for practicing cultivation, the other was sealed shut with a stone door. Meng Hao entered, and the green stone door slowly closed behind him. When it sealed, the white jade slip flew out and into Meng Hao's hand. Thereupon, a soft glow began to emanate from the craggy stone ceiling.
The more he looked around, the more satisfied he felt. Finally, his gaze fell upon the sealed stone door. Muttering to himself, he placed the jade slip onto it, and the door slowly opened. At that moment, an odor of thick spiritual energy suddenly wafted out. Meng Hao looked into the stone room, his eyes wide with shock.
"Sister Xu's Immortal's Cave, this… this gift is just too valuable." It took a while for him to recover his composure. He stared blankly into the stone room, at something that appeared to be the mouth of a spring. Out of it gurgled pure spiritual energy, multicolored and glowing as it curled up into the air. Who knew how long it had been accumulating in the stone room. As soon as the door had opened, it began to pour out, its aroma sweet in the nose and mouth. Even just a whiff would fill you with energy.
"So it's a Spirit Spring," Meng Hao murmured. It was something else he had never seen before, but had read about in the Qi Condensation Manual. Some springs in the world were Spirit Springs, which had no water. Instead, they flowed forth with spiritual energy. Not many existed, and most were occupied by Cultivators, considering how treasured was the spiritual energy they emitted.
The Spirit Spring was relatively small. When all its spiritual energy came out, it was only slightly thicker than outside. To anyone above the third level of Qi Condensation, it would not be very helpful. After the third level, the spiritual energy required was just too much; thus, it was only moderately useful.
Despite that, as far as Meng Hao was concerned, this gift was incomparably valuable, even much more so than a Dry Spirit pill. With this discovery, Meng Hao went nearly wild with joy.
With no time to think, he sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began his breathing exercises. After a few hours, the greater part of the spiritual energy that had accumulated here was gone. Meng Hao opened his eyes, and they flashed brilliantly.
"These few hours of meditation here were worth about a month of Cultivation outside. This accumulation of spiritual energy took quite some time to build up, and probably won't be like this again. Even still, practicing Cultivation in here, I will be able to achieve speed that's impossible in the outside world." He sighed. Looking around, he noticed that the walls were covered with strange markings that he didn't understand.
"The Spirit Spring can accumulate so much spiritual energy because of these markings. Elder Sister Xu must have used this method to build up energy then dispose of it all in one shot." Meng Hao thought for another moment, then had an inspiration. He again sat down and began to do breathing exercises.
The night passed quickly, and as the sun rose the next morning, Meng Hao opened his eyes. The spiritual energy in the stone room was very thin. But the Spirit Spring was still there. After some period of time passed, the spiritual energy would surely build up again.
Meng Hao took a moment to sense his cultivation level. It seemed that he had made an advancement worth nearly two months.
"If I can practice Cultivation in this fashion a few more times, I should be able to break through the first level of Qi Condensation and enter the second!" He sucked in a breath, excited. He very much wanted to break through the first level, because only by reaching the second level of Qi Condensation could one unlock the first Immortal Skill in the Qi Condensation Manual.
Thinking of Immortal Skills, Meng Hao left the stone room, closing the stone door as if it were some type of jewel or treasure. He decided to use Elder Sister Xu's method. He wouldn't stand guard next to the Spirit Spring itself. He would just wait for some time to pass, then come back to collect the spiritual energy.
Sitting there in the Immortal's Cave, Meng Hao rubbed his stomach. Thinking over the recent days, and looking down at his skinny belly, he realized that he hadn't eaten any wild animals recently. Not even wild fruits.
After becoming an Outer Sect disciple, he thought to himself, he hadn't been eating as much as when he was a servant. As long as you had enough Spirit Stones, you could take them to the Sect's Pill Cultivation Workshop to exchange them for Fasting Pills or Appetite Control Pills. It was said that one drop of such a pill would prevent hunger for days. Without them, people would have to spend time worrying about finding food.
After thinking about it for a while, Meng Hao decided to go out for a bit. The fresh wind blew past him into the surrounding jungle. As he walked, he pulled the copper mirror out of his bag of holding, as had become his custom.
By now, he was thoroughly convinced that the Treasure Pavilion Brother had tricked him. There was nothing unusual at all about this mirror. In more than half a month of study, he hadn't uncovered anything even slightly peculiar about it.
"Sadly, I only have a half of a Spirit Stone in my bag of holding. I bet I'll need to use it to bribe him to let me exchange it." He stretched his hand into the bag to pull out the Spirit Stone, feeling a bit dejected.
He suddenly froze in place, lifting his head up when he noticed a flash of color off in the distance in the jungle. It wasn't moving very fast. Meng Hao's eyes glittered. Based on his experience in the past months catching wild chickens, he knew exactly what it was. Wild chicken.
Without time to think about shoving the copper mirror and Spirit Stone back into the bag of holding, he shoved them into a pocket and leaped forward. Ever since spiritual energy had appeared in his body, Meng Hao realized that he was much more nimble than before. Despite still being somewhat frail, he now could burst forth with explosive force.
Especially nowadays, after reaching the first level of Qi Condensation, a leap like the one he just made propelled him forward very quickly. In the space of about ten breaths, he was able to snatch the alarmed wild chicken. He clasped it by the two wings so that it couldn't move about.
"I wonder how good old Fatty is doing recently," he said, thinking about the fat teenager as he lifted up the chicken. Maybe he would go find him and share a meal of wild game. Just as he turned, he suddenly felt something inside his robe growing hot.
Moments later, the previously quiet chicken in his hand started to struggle wildly and emit miserable squawking sounds. It moved around with such energy than Meng Hao almost couldn't keep hold of it.
The wild chicken struggled even fiercerly, squawking with incomparable shrillness. Then, a popping sound could be heard coming from its butt, which then suddenly exploded, sending blood and gore flying in all directions.
Everything happened so suddenly. Meng Hao stood there gaping. Ever since arriving on the mountain, he had caught quite a few wild chickens. But this was the first time he had seen anything like this. He looked down with shock at the dead chicken and its exploded rear. Then he looked around. Everything was still and quiet. Not even a shadow moved.
"What just happened?" Meng Hao shivered. The wild chicken's death had been quite miserable. It must have experienced incredible pain for its butt exploded.
Meng Hao took in a deep breath, suppressing the anxiety he felt. The wild chicken's death had been too odd and horrific. He felt as if a cold wind was blowing down his back.
"Something's not right," said Meng Hao. He tossed away the dead chicken, and then pulled out the mirror and the Spirit Stone. He remembered that just before the strange thing had happened with the chicken, something in his robe had started to grow hot.
"Could it be the Spirit Stone…" Then his eyes fell onto the copper mirror. His heart began to beat faster and a powerful radiance shone forth in his eyes.
"Don't tell me…" The hand holding the mirror began to tremble. He had no time to go eat with the fat teenager. Gripping the mirror, he ran as fast as possible into the jungle, trying to find another wild animal. He needed to know if the wild chicken's killer really was the mirror.
He didn't have to run for very long before a wild deer appeared right in front of him. It stood there looking at him stupidly, then angrily. Meng Hao immediately shined the mirror onto it.
The deer's expression changed immediately. It leaped to flee, calling out miserably, in a heart-rending fashion difficult to describe. Anyone who heard it could only imagine how miserable the creature must be. Meng Hao could clearly see the animal's flank as it leaped into the air. Before it could land, its butt exploded with a bang, its body twitching as it fell.
Looking at the dead deer, then back at the mirror, an unprecedented look of excitement appeared on Meng Hao's face.
"What a treasure! A real treasure!!
"It's so strange. A treasure that explodes the butts of wild animals…" Even though he didn't understand it completely, he was still very excited. Regardless of why the treasure did this, he had an itching desire to go test it out on some more animals.
บท 7: I Need Spirit Stones!
As he walked, he grew more and more excited. The road he walked was filled with blood and gore…
The blood and gore of scores of wild animals, whose butts had exploded violently.
"Bang!" Another furry animal in front of him screamed shrilly as an invisible attack struck its rear end, three times, until it exploded, sending a mist of blood spraying into the air.
"Boom!" A foraging giant condor, not even landed on the ground yet, shrieked miserably, as if it were experiencing a nightmare. Then its butt exploded.
"Bang, boom." That was a fierce, human-sized tiger that had been about to pounce on Meng Hao. In mid-air, it emitted a terrifying roar that changed into a horrific squeal, whereupon its butt blew open, showering gore and blood everywhere. Perhaps because it had so much fur, it actually exploded five times in succession.
"What a treasure. What a mighty treasure." Before he knew it, dusk had fallen, and Meng Hao's expression could not be more excited. He looked down at the copper mirror. Throughout the day, he had exploded the rear ends of over one hundred animals.
Fortunately, he was out in the multitudinous wild mountains, otherwise the stench of the blood and gore would be overwhelming.
"The mirror isn't completely effective, though. When I tried it out on that python, and the fish, it didn't do anything at all. It seems it doesn't work on animals with scales. But it's still awesome." He had tested it out in many ways and had discovered that it didn't work when inside the bag of holding. It only worked when he held it. He also got a strange, excited feeling when it was at work exploding wild animals' rear ends. It also looked like the corrosion was beginning to fade, as if it had been hidden away for years and finally was able to stretch its legs.
As dusk fell, Meng Hao found himself some distance out in the wild mountains. The night wind blew, and he took in a deep, excited breath. He was just getting ready to head back to the Immortal's Cave. After all, these mountains were filled with wild animals. Meng Hao had even heard that demonic beasts that practiced cultivation lived out here. Despite his excitement, he also knew that it could be dangerous.
He had come to this place while searching for wild animals, so the going had been slow. But on the way back, he could go much more quickly. Meng Hao sped along through the wooded mountains, and before long, a bright moon hung high in the sky. Soon, he could see that only three mountains lay between him and the Immortal's Cave. Suddenly, he felt a hot wind on his face, accompanied by an acrid odor. He stopped, his heart thumping, then retreated a few steps.
Roar!
As soon as he stepped back, the air about him shook with a mighty roar, and once again the hot wind and acrid odor swept over him. There in front of him was a monkey-like creature about the size of a human. Its red eyes radiated cruelty, and its entire body was covered with thick, luxuriant fur.
The fierce beast gave Meng Hao a bloodthirsty stare. Meng Hao's expression changed as he looked back at the creature. His mind reeled, as if he were about to be blown away by the creature's gaze. He could sense the creature's Cultivation base fluctuating.
"Second level of Qi Condensation!" Meng Hao took another step back, his expression horrified. This was no wild beast; it was a demonic beast. It must have been attracted by the reek of blood from all the slain animals.
There was no time for him to think. The long-furred monkey-like demonic beast leaped into the air, and then suddenly, its entire body was covered in fire, a fire that did not singe its fur in the least. It shot toward Meng Hao.
At this critical juncture, Meng Hao's expression changed. He wasn't sure if the copper mirror would be effective against the demonic beast, but there was no time for consideration. Even as it leaped into the air, he ducked to the side, pulled out the mirror, and shined it toward the demonic beast.
Then a miserable scream filled the air. In mid-air, a geyser of blood shot out of the demonic beast's butt. Its face twisted in horror, its eyes no longer filled with cruelty, but rather confusion. It was as if in the beast's entire life, it had never experienced anything so painful…. But, it didn't retreat. Moments later, more blood exploded out.
Now the confusion in its expression turned into complete astonishment. It stared in horror at the mirror held in the hands of the young man standing in front of it. It turned, covering its rear end with its claws. The fire went out, and it made to flee, but before it could go more than a handful of meters, its butt exploded again, this time, five explosions in succession. Its screams rang out as it ran about thirty more meters. Meng Hao felt the copper mirror trembling as if with excitement. A powerful boom rang out, shooting straight toward the demonic beast's rear end.
An incomprehensible scream rang out over the wild mountains as half of the demonic beast's body exploded. A cloud of blood and gore shot up, then slowly descended to the ground. Confusion filled its face as it gasped a few last breaths, then died.
Everything had happened so fast. The entire time, Meng Hao just stood there gaping. Finally, he took a breath, then looked down at the mirror, panting.
"Even demonic beasts can't avoid having their rear ends exploded. This mirror…" In his excitement, Meng Hao felt even more awe. He put it away, then looked over at the corpse of the demonic beast, his heart thumping.
"The Qi Condensation Manual has an introduction to demonic beasts. It says that they have a Demonic Core inside their bodies which contains spiritual energy. I should be able to just eat it." He quickly walked over to the corpse. Sure enough, in the abdomen of the creature he found a pristine Demonic Core, about the size of a fingernail. It emitted a delicate, fragrant aroma which left him feeling extremely comfortable.
Having retrieved the Demonic Core, Meng Hao hurried along his way. Unfortunately, demonic creatures were not common in these parts. He didn't see any more on his way back to the Immortal's cave. He felt a little disappointed.
By the time he got back, it was deep into the night. He sat down cross-legged and looked at the Demonic Core and the copper mirror, his eyes shining.
"I can just eat the Demonic Core, but I still have the Spirit Condensation Pill that the Sect distributed. I'll take that first, then take the Demonic Core." His mind set, Meng Hao put the Demonic Core and the copper mirror down next to him, as well as the Spirit Stone. With the Spirit Stone at his side, it would allow him to absorb a little more spiritual energy.
Next, he took out the Spirit Condensation Pill and swallowed it down. As soon as it entered his body, strands of spiritual energy began to spread out slowly. Meng Hao rotated his Cultivation base, quickly absorbing the power of the medicinal pill.
When he opened his eyes an hour later, they glittered brightly. Taking this pill was definitely much faster than actually practicing cultivation, he thought to himself. Unfortunately, the Spirit Condensation Pill just did not have enough energy. There wasn't anything he could do about that, though. His gaze shifted to the side and he picked up the Demonic Core and popped it into his mouth.
As soon as it entered his body, spiritual energy far outmatching that of the Spirit Cultivation Pill poured into him. It was almost too much to take in. He quickly rotated his Cultivation base and poured the energy into it. His body began to tremble, and strands of filth were pushed out of his pores. Eight or ten hours later, his head buzzed, and he felt as if his body would begin to float. Now, there was not a strand of spiritual energy inside him. The strand had fused to form a stream.
"Spiritual energy like a stream, the body excretes the mortal filth. This… Don't tell me this is the second level of Qi Condensation?" Meng Hao opened his eyes. They shined with an indescribable expression. He looked down at his body, then cast his senses inside and took a long moment to examine himself carefully. Sure enough, he had broken through the first level of Qi Condensation into the second.
"Demonic Cores really are incredibly effective." Meng Hao's eyes sparkled. He stood and strolled around the Immortal's Cave, enjoying the feel of the stream-like spiritual energy circulating through his body. He was incredibly happy.
"I am now a second level Qi Condensation Immortal!
"Too bad Demonic Cores are so rare. Otherwise, I would be able to practice Cultivation much more quickly. And it's all thanks to my treasured mirror." Meng Hao looked at the mirror. When he did, his body suddenly trembled, and he unconsciously rubbed his eyes. He looked even more closer, an incredulous expression filling his face.
The copper mirror lay there just like before. But there was no Spirit Stone on top of it. Instead, there was a Demonic Core!
"This… this…" Meng Hao's brain spun, filled with confusion. He felt as if he had lost his mind. He stared mutely at the Demonic Core sitting on top of the copper mirror and began to hesitate. He had placed a Demonic Core and a Spirit Stone onto the mirror. He remembered clearly. But, he had eaten the Demonic Core already. Suddenly, he wasn't so sure. Had he eaten the Demonic Core? Or had he eaten the Spirit Stone?
"I couldn't have eaten the Spirit Stone…" Meng Hao gaped for some time then slowly picked up the Demonic Core. He hesitated, then put it in front of his mouth and sniffed. The smell made him certain; what he had eaten moments ago was definitely a Demonic Core.
"What… what's going on? There's another one? Don't tell me I was mistaken, and the demonic beast actually had two Demonic Cores in it?" Meng Hao's felt even more confused. He shook his head, forcing himself to clear his thoughts. He looked at the Demonic Core, then the copper mirror. His body began to tremble and his eyes shone with an incredible brilliance, as if he had just glimpsed ten thousand pieces of gold. It seemed as if he would drop the Demonic Core at any moment.
"Could it be… the mirror absorbed the Spirit Stone and produced a second Demonic Core!" His voice quavered. He originally felt that the mirror's ability to explode wild beasts was powerful enough. He had never imagined that it would have an even more profound ability.
After a while, he recovered a bit, although his heart was still filled with a multitude of thoughts. Right now, he didn't have a Spirit Stone to test out, so his heart was filled with anxiety. He was filled with an aching desire to get one to experiment with.
"Spirit Stones. I need Spirit Stones!" His eyes shone like a ferocious wild beast. At this moment, Spirit Stones were more valuable than gold in his eyes. His desire for them was even stronger than his previous desire to become an official.
Spirit Stones are indispensable to Cultivators, especially Meng Hao. When worrying about personal gains and losses, one's heart will be filled with nervousness and anxiety. As of now, Meng Hao's desire to acquire Spirit Stones was stronger than anything he had ever experienced.
Unfortunately, the Reliance Sect was a small Sect. Other than the monthly Pill Distribution Day, there were almost no chances to get them, other than by taking them from others.
"There's one month until the next Pill Distribution Day." Meng Hao looked at the copper mirror, and his expression grew ferocious. Moments later, the ferocity disappeared, hidden away. Right now, his Cultivation base was only at the second level of Qi Condensation. Even if he wanted to take something by force, he wouldn't be a match for anyone.
"Back in Yunjie County, I had no money," said Meng Hao helplessly. "Now I'm an Immortal, and I still have no money." In his mind, he pondered how he could get his hands on more Spirit Stones.
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