Chapter Fifty-Seven: The Incomplete Blueprint

“What… what is happening?!” Yue Qi stared in shock at the scene before him. This thing had absorbed both his spiritual energy and mental power—how could it have changed like this?

“I don’t know…” Bai Lian shook her head. “But it doesn’t seem to be anything sinister. The fact that it requires both spiritual energy and mental power to activate suggests the original owner didn’t want it to be easily taken by others…”

“Then what on earth is this thing, so shrouded in mystery!” Yue Qi felt a bit annoyed as he picked up the paper. But as soon as he touched it, the spiritual energy within him surged uncontrollably toward the yellow paper in his hand!

“Lian’er, stay back!” Yue Qi had no idea what effect this force might have on ordinary people, so he quickly rolled away, making sure Bai Lian didn’t come near him.

“What’s going on?!” Bai Lian was just as baffled. Even though she was more knowledgeable than Yue Qi, she had never encountered such a situation before.

“This thing is absorbing my spiritual energy! Lian’er, step back! I can’t believe a piece of paper could get the better of me!” With a determined bite of his lip, Yue Qi sat cross-legged. He took out the pouch of high-grade spirit stones he had just put away, ready for emergencies.

The paper, which he had held in his hand, now floated in midair. Yue Qi carefully controlled the flow of his spiritual energy to prevent it from draining too quickly. The pouch of spirit stones was already open, ready in case he exhausted his reserves.

As it absorbed Yue Qi’s energy, the yellow paper began to emit a strange glow. Bai Lian stood dazed, her face puzzled. This kind of phenomenon reminded her of the refining of a magical treasure, but what exactly was happening to Yue Qi?

At this point, the first high-grade spirit stone in Yue Qi’s hand was nearly depleted! However, he managed to control his spiritual energy well with his mental power, keeping a balance between what was being drawn and what was being replenished, so for the moment, he wasn’t in any danger.

The patterns on the yellow paper grew sharper! With his eyes closed, Yue Qi couldn’t see, but Bai Lian could—there appeared to be a five-element wheel: wind, thunder, water, fire, earth. Each was a different color and arranged in perfect order. Yet, she noticed that only the wind element glowed with a vivid green; the other four elements were dim and dull by comparison.

“Could it be a cultivation technique?” Bai Lian wondered silently. It seemed possible—after all, what kind of technique required the consumption of spiritual energy to learn? Surely, it couldn’t be an ordinary five-element spell…

Just then, Bai Lian sensed a powerful pressure enveloping her. Though it carried no malice, it was undeniable—an uncontrollable force seemed to be surging toward her.

“Is it mental power?” Bai Lian moved a bit farther from Yue Qi, both to avoid interfering and to protect herself.

At that moment, beads of sweat appeared on Yue Qi’s forehead—not from the drain of spiritual energy, but from the strain on his mind!

He had already used up four high-grade spirit stones, and there was no sign of stopping with the fifth! It was a terrifying amount; those four stones held nearly fifty times the spiritual energy found in Yue Qi at his peak. Put simply, if he could absorb all that energy, he could leap from the early to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment in one bound!

Suddenly, the yellow paper floating in the air began to fade, but the black lines drawn upon it became even more pronounced…

Yue Qi’s consciousness erupted to its full extent. The five elemental patterns swirling in the air around him danced like musical notes, forming a mesmerizing spectacle. Yet beneath this beauty was a perilous ordeal only Yue Qi could truly comprehend! The moment the yellow paper vanished, the black five-element symbols seemed to gain sentience, frantically transmitting information to Yue Qi, who could only absorb it all. Had his mental power been any weaker, his mind would have been overwhelmed and shattered by the torrent of information…

At last, the strange vision in the secret chamber subsided. The five-element images that had floated in the air rushed into Yue Qi’s mind and disappeared without a trace…

Yue Qi’s body gave only the slightest tremor before regaining its calm. Five spent spirit stones lay abandoned at his side—all consumed in the ordeal.

Seeing Yue Qi’s current state, Bai Lian couldn’t help but worry. Everything that had just happened was so bizarre, and Yue Qi still hadn’t awakened. Was he injured in some way…?

Such are the curious thoughts of women. Bai Lian even wondered if Yue Qi had been possessed. She remembered her master once warning her that ancient demonic beings could seize the bodies of cultivators!

Of course, Yue Qi had not been possessed. The reason for his lingering unconsciousness was something else…

It felt as if a new memory had suddenly been implanted in his mind—a strange sensation. Yue Qi carefully recalled the information transmitted from the yellow paper, the scenes flickering before his eyes like a film.

“Five Elements Tossing Heaven and Earth… what a bold name…” The phrase flashed through Yue Qi’s mind, seemingly left by the yellow paper.

“Could it be a five-element technique?” he wondered, and continued to review the rest.

“Heaven is Qian, earth is Kun, thunder is Zhen, wind is Xun, water is Kan, fire is Li, mountain is Gen, marsh is Dui…”

“Qian corresponds to heaven, Kun to earth, Dui to marsh, Li to fire, Zhen to thunder, Xun to wind, Kan to water, Gen to mountain. According to the principle of yang turning left and yin turning right, heaven is exalted and earth is lowly; heaven is above, in the south, the four trigrams of yang arranged on the left in counterclockwise order from Qian to Dui, Dui to Li, Li to Zhen; Kun is below, in the north, the yin trigrams of Xun, Kan, Gen, Kun arranged on the right clockwise from Qian to Xun, Xun to Kan, Kan to Gen, Gen to Kun…”

Yue Qi was absorbed, but the text ended there. He clearly remembered every word written on the yellow paper now imprinted in his mind.

“Could this be an incomplete technique?” he wondered. His exhausted mental power was finally recovering, and Yue Qi emerged from his trance.

“Are you all right, Brother Qi?!” As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Bai Lian’s concerned gaze. Flustered, he pulled her into his arms and gently kissed her, tasting the sweetness of her lips…

After a long moment, their lips parted, both faces flushed as their eyes met, filled with tenderness…

Swayed by her gentle gaze, Yue Qi couldn’t resist and kissed her again, only to be stopped by Bai Lian.

“That’s enough! I’m being serious!” Bai Lian chided him softly, then continued, “What exactly happened just now? Why did you react that way?”

Yue Qi was fully aware of what had happened, since his mind had been entirely focused and it was as if he’d witnessed everything himself.

He told Bai Lian everything that had transpired within him, including the existence of the mysterious technique.

“Five Elements Tossing Heaven and Earth? I’ve never heard of such a spell…” Bai Lian frowned. “But from what you’re saying, it sounds quite powerful. Still, it seems incomplete.”

“Yes, it’s incomplete. If I’m not mistaken, there should be five parts to this technique, and I’ve found only one…” Yue Qi nodded.

Bai Lian said nothing. What she had seen earlier matched this—the five elements' symbols, with only the wind element glowing faintly…

“By the way, Lian’er, tell me about five-element spells. I’ve only learned second-tier spells so far. When I break through to the next stage, I’ll need the right techniques to learn higher-level spells…” Yue Qi said. In the Azure River Sword Sect, only first and second-tier spells were freely available to disciples; to learn anything beyond that required sufficient strength.

“Well… how should I put it?” Bai Lian thought for a moment before replying. “You’re at the Foundation Establishment level, so you’re learning second-tier spells. I, with my greater spiritual power, am already able to study third-tier spells…”

“And so on. But once we reach the Core Formation stage and have mastered fourth-tier spells, we reach a bottleneck with the five-element spells…”

“A bottleneck?” Yue Qi asked, puzzled. “Are there no fifth or sixth-tier spells?”

“There aren’t…” Bai Lian shook her head. “After that, to make our spells more powerful, we have to return to the origin and seek the very source of the five elements…”

“The source of the five elements? What is that?” Yue Qi found this more and more mysterious.

“Well, it’s the essence of the five elements. And to break through from Core Formation to Nascent Soul, we need to rely on that essence as well,” Bai Lian explained.

“Uh, well…” After all her explanation, Yue Qi still didn’t fully understand. Helpless, he asked, “Then, Lian’er, can you at least tell me if this Five Elements Tossing Heaven and Earth I’ve obtained is any good?”

“I can’t say for sure…” Bai Lian shook her head. “Not only is the technique incomplete, but even if you were to complete it, its power would still need to be tested. But since it dares to bear the name of the five elements, I doubt it’s weak.”

“Oh, Lian’er…” Something else occurred to Yue Qi. “When do cultivators usually create their own techniques?”

“Usually after reaching the Nascent Soul stage, though there are some talented Core Formation cultivators who can do it. But self-created techniques are always best suited for the creator; if someone else tries to use them, they might not even measure up to the most basic five-element spells, since everyone’s understanding of the elements is different…” Bai Lian replied.

“I see…” Yue Qi nodded thoughtfully, then looked around at the scattered treasures. “It seems we haven’t missed anything. Let’s go.” With that, he climbed the ladder and left the secret chamber.

Bai Lian glanced at the box that had held the yellow paper, picked it up, and followed Yue Qi from the room.