Within the courtyard.
Zhong Shenxiu wore loose clothes, orally instructing on the essential points of a spell.
He treated all equally, choosing a spell of the Returning Light Mirror, and passed it on to even two dogs.
This spell of Returning Light Mirror, on a basic level, could capture some images and replay them, lifelike.
At higher levels, it could transmit images and sounds over thousands of miles, serving as a means of contact and communication.
The reason why Zhong Shenxiu knew this Daoist Skill so well was that he had used a stream of Evil Qi in the world of Martial Artists to advance it to the sixth level, deeply understanding its various changes. Now, when teaching it, his understanding was profound.
"In truth," he summarized at last, "this kind of spell, if practiced by ordinary people without grasping the method, could easily harm the body. Try it out for now, but once you reach the Innate level and stimulate it with True Qi, you’ll indeed see its marvel..."
Speaking of real practice, naturally, it was best to use Evil Qi to fulfill one’s life’s Daoist Skill.
But as Evil Qi was fiercely dangerous without compare, ordinary people and Innate Martial Practitioners who dared to absorb it into their bodies faced certain death, only Gang Sha Cultivators could refine it with Mana to turn harm into benefit.
He only taught them the Returning Light Mirror, a spell without any combat capabilities, to avoid them showing off with a little understanding of spells, which would only lead them to seek their own suffering, ending up like that performing grandfather and grandson.
His profound intentions were something that Er Ha, with its dog-headedness, couldn’t appreciate.
He listened with a laughing demeanor, then suddenly, as if struck with understanding, sat cross-legged and breathed in and out.
Zhong Shenxiu keenly sensed a fluctuation of the world’s essence.
"Is this... achieving the Innate level?"
He nodded, "It seems being single-minded has its benefits too..."
Both Huang Xie and Er Ha were in fact at the level of Postnatal Perfection, and with the rich essence of heaven and earth here, combined with a decent cultivation technique, the chances of breaking through to the Innate level were quite significant.
"Arf, I’ve become Innate."
Er Ha leapt up and dashed around the courtyard, enthusiastically flipping its tongue in and out.
In the end, it was Huang Xie who couldn’t stand to watch any longer and slapped it, flipping it onto the ground eliciting a painful howl.
Zhong Shenxiu was indifferent, having another Innate subordinate was also a helping hand: "Cultivate well, and there will be a bright future when you return to your clan."
"Yeah, yeah, and there are many slender females."
Er Ha showed an infatuated expression that made Huang Xie cover his face, almost wishing he didn’t have this nephew.
The term 犬 was a word that evolved from the culture of the Second Yan Han Empire.
In ancient times, the wives of feudal lords were called consorts, but later this term evolved to also describe the wives and concubines of commoners as consorts.
Among the Quanrong Clan, it evolved into denoting slender canine tribe maidens.
No wonder Huang Xie found his nephew, who only had slender canines on the brain, displeasing to the eye.
Yet, being able to fight his way to the Innate level and return to the Quanrong Clan, he indeed had opportunities and status awaiting him, and there would be no shortage of slender females, the real worry would be future support.
After all, it was common for the Quanrong Clan to have multiple childbirths... Indeed prolific!
If he married several slender females, he would surely end up a poor soul.
Su Wei’s ears turned slightly red; she ran to the back hall, not wanting to speak to this dog anymore.
Su Tang bowed to Zhong Shenxiu and also excused himself.
Zhong Shenxiu laughed heartily and left through the doors, not asking Huang Xie to follow.
He had already become very familiar with the streets of Fufeng City.
After walking for half a day and confirming there was no one following, he entered a small alley.
When he emerged again, he had completely changed his appearance.
The face he had crafted was not that of Young Master Shen Xiu as this persona had become a wanted criminal in Fufeng Protectorate, too conspicuous to appear within the city; he did not want to engage in a fierce battle with the officials’ experts.
Moments later, Zhong Shenxiu, with an ordinary new face, entered a mountain goods store.
This was a warehouse that also accepted game brought in by mountain folk, with various cured pelts hanging from the wooden beams behind the counter.
"May I help you with anything?"
Upon entering the store, a servant approached with a bright expression.
Zhong Shenxiu ignored him and went straight to the shopkeeper behind the counter, "I need to buy three pounds of dragon bones, six taels of cinnabar, and a black dog skin three feet and three inches long, do you have them in stock?"
The shopkeeper, who had been fiddling with counting rods, slightly raised his head, "We have them in stock, but it will be a bit troublesome to prepare. Please follow me to the back parlor to wait."
After saying so, he led Zhong Shenxiu past the counter and into a back parlor.
The parlor was small, but the walls were thick, isolating almost all sounds from outside once the door was closed.
The room was sparsely furnished, containing only a rosewood table, several chairs, and a bronze mirror on the wall.
The shopkeeper widened his cloudy old eyes, staring at Zhong Shenxiu, confirming that he did not recognize this person.
Zhong Shenxiu did not speak, but tossed out a White Bone Token.
This was a token given by the White Bone Scholar last time; they had also contacted through this location a few times.
"So it is Young Master Shen Xiu; I apologize for the disturbance."
The shopkeeper’s eyes lit up; he quickly bowed and then left the room.
Zhong Shenxiu approached the bronze mirror, took it down, and discovered a seam in the wall behind it. Opening it revealed another mirror.
This mirror was an ancient bronze mirror, with its surface engraved with complex patterns, and a faint mana flowing through it— unmistakably a Magic Artifact!
Not only that, but it was specifically a Magic Artifact refined with the "Returning Light Mirror" Daoist Skill, capable of transmitting images!
’The White Bone Scholar is audacious, establishing the contact point within Fufeng City.’
Zhong Shenxiu ran his hand over the surface of the mirror.
The surface of the bronze mirror rippled like water, suddenly becoming hazy and emitting a faint glow.
It wasn’t long before the half-image of the White Bone Scholar appeared within it, looking at Zhong Shenxiu’s face, incredulously exclaiming, "Young Master Shen Xiu?!"
Zhong Shenxiu nodded and waved his hand over his face, transforming back into the appearance of Young Master Shen Xiu.
"Fellow Daoist, this spell of yours is interesting... not an Illusion Technique, but a true bodily transformation method; ordinary spiritual eyes would absolutely fail to see through it..."
The White Bone Scholar clicked his tongue in amazement, then became less enthused, "You took your time considering..."
Zhong Shenxiu’s previous contacts had been indecisive, which had already displeased him.
"I have made up my mind, though I aspire to achieve the Primordial Pill, provoking powerful enemies is unwise for this," Zhong Shenxiu slowly shook his head.
The face of the White Bone Scholar suddenly turned very unpleasant, "Are you mocking me?"
"Certainly not..." Zhong Shenxiu chuckled and played it off, "I shall not participate in the action, but I can cooperate on intelligence, for instance... I know the whereabouts of the Dragon and Tiger True Man..."
"What? You know where Zhang Taiyi is hiding?" The White Bone Scholar, clearly very surprised, eyes shooting sparks, "In that case, we can cooperate, what do you want? The latter half of the White Bone book?"
"That would be good, but I also want to ask, why are you targeting this Dragon and Tiger True Man? What makes you certain he has secrets that can help achieve the Primordial Pill?" Zhong Shenxiu inquired.
"Heh heh... The Supreme Dragon and Tiger Sect is one of the world’s notable Xuanmen orthodoxies, having even produced disincarnate immortals. The hidden Divine Skills and Spirit Pills are beyond your imagination. I am sure because I received a message... Zhang Taiyi is a True Disciple of the Supreme Dragon and Tiger Sect and has solid connections, otherwise, do you think an ordinary Divine Power Realm Cultivator could live so comfortably after deserting his sect?"