Chapter Four: A Glimpse of the Path (Part One)

As the night deepened and weariness set in, the birds had all returned to their nests. Shi Jun and Hu Hai sat cross-legged on the bed, facing each other, carefully studying the booklet given to them by the Old Ancestor of the Yellow Springs.

After their encounter with the malevolent spirit, all three realized that with their current strength, it would be exceedingly difficult to resolve the challenges ahead. Though none of them spoke of it openly, when night fell, the three split into two groups, each occupying a separate room to ponder methods that might quickly increase their power.

Motuo, being “formally trained” and classically educated in the arts of the Demon Realm, discussed some basic cultivation concepts with Shi Jun and Hu Hai. He concluded that what they needed most was a solid foundation. However, his own experience and knowledge were quite ordinary, and he was unsure whether the demonic arts he had mastered would suit these two “mortals.” Thus, after giving them a simple introduction to the Demon Realm’s basic practices—such as sitting meditation and contemplation—he excused himself, citing the difference in their cultivation methods, and retreated to his own room for solitary practice.

Shi Jun and Hu Hai, bewildered by Motuo's rambling explanations, were at a loss as to how to proceed. Fortunately, Shi Jun remembered that the Old Ancestor of the Yellow Springs had once given Hu Hai a booklet on cultivation in the Netherworld. The two of them squeezed together and began to pore over the small volume with utmost attention.

After a bout of discussion, they concluded that although Hu Hai had the assistance of the Spirit of Return, he still had significant deficiencies in controlling its powers and their transformations. Shi Jun's situation was even more troubling. He possessed extraordinary spiritual strength—enough to astonish even the Old Ancestor—as well as the mysterious Eye of Insight and Heart of Contract, yet he could not control or wield these abilities at will. If not for the unexpected manifestations of power at critical moments, he would have no effective means to threaten an enemy in combat. Should the power of his intuition fail to erupt at a crucial time, he would be left with no choice but to take a beating and await death. This was a fatal flaw that could not be ignored in the perilous adventures that lay ahead. Therefore, he urgently needed to master several practical combat spells that could be wielded freely.

The booklet from the Old Ancestor of the Yellow Springs systematically set forth several foundational mental disciplines for cultivating spiritual power in the Netherworld. These were quite suitable for Hu Hai, whose innate spiritual strength was limited; only by laying a solid foundation through practice could he hope to learn more advanced arts and improve his control over magical treasures. For Shi Jun, however, the booklet was of little practical use. What he lacked most was, first, a systematic understanding of the magical system; second, the special incantations and hand seals required to channel and transform spiritual power—what might be called techniques and skills; and, most importantly, he had not the slightest clue how to guide the material power inherent in all things and draw it to himself. After all, only the fusion of spiritual power and material force—the primal source of power—was the true might of the universe.

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“Old Shi, do you remember the Old Ancestor saying that aside from the spells cultivated by practitioners themselves, there is another kind of formidable attack using magical treasures?” Hu Hai raised his index finger and waved it. “Something like my Spirit of Return: powerful, easy to use. Maybe you should consider cultivating some magical treasure of your own.”

Shi Jun gave a wry smile at this. “Right now I barely know a few basic spells, let alone how to cultivate a magical treasure. I’ve heard that to do so, you must first master the art of channeling material power and rely on special spiritual items. I’m still a long, long way from that.”

“I don’t think it’s impossible,” Hu Hai countered. “Didn’t the Old Ancestor say that as long as you find the right materials and imbue them with some runes and hand seals, you can create a magical treasure? Your spiritual power is already considerable, and you’ve learned both the Art of Object Control and the Spirit Disruption Technique. If you could combine them, maybe you could come up with something powerful!” Hu Hai didn’t fully understand the theory, but his faith in Shi Jun’s abilities was unwavering, so he spoke with unrestrained optimism.

“Well, it’s not entirely out of the question. But it will take time. Let’s wait until the business with the malevolent spirit is settled before we talk about it,” Shi Jun admitted, a little tempted by the idea, but he was preoccupied with the immediate danger, so he decided to set the matter aside for now.

“Look, the book says that gold, wood, water, fire, and earth are the five fundamental elements of the universe—the root attributes of all matter and spiritual power. That sounds a lot like the ancient theory of the Five Elements! Each overcomes another and is in turn overcome. We humans are associated with earth, so maybe you should try making an earth-type magical treasure first?” Hu Hai, still fascinated by magical treasures, reminded Shi Jun persistently.

Shi Jun took the booklet and flipped through it. He read, “The way of mutual generation and overcoming among the five elements is ordained by heaven. It is the foundation of all creation and destruction in the universe: metal overcomes wood, wood overcomes earth, earth overcomes water, water overcomes fire, fire overcomes metal; metal creates water, water creates wood, wood creates fire, fire creates earth, earth creates metal. All laws and phenomena arise from this.”

Further down was a lengthy exposition on the basic attributes of the five realms—Celestial, Demonic, Spirit, Nether, and Human: “Celestials, Demons, and Nether Spirits mostly originate from humans, transcending their bodies by harnessing the five elements. Celestials gather the power of metal and are mostly of the metal aspect; demons gather the power of fire and are mostly of the fire aspect; nether spirits gather the power of water and are mostly of the water aspect. Humans are the root of all, formless but close to earth; monsters are the essence of all things, gaining the power of wood and are mostly of the wood aspect.” By extension, among the beings of the five realms, the general rule was that Celestials overcome monsters, monsters overcome humans, humans overcome spirits, spirits overcome demons, and demons overcome Celestials. No wonder Motuo, always so confident, was helpless and flustered when faced with those of the Netherworld.

Seeing Shi Jun engrossed in reading, Hu Hai leaned over and said, “See, I was right. We humans are the bane of those ghostly spirits. As long as we work a bit harder, those guys won’t be our match…” He tossed his head with a smug air, as if he were the very model of wisdom and valor.

“Enough of that! It’s not that simple. There’s still the matter of relative strength. Earth may overcome water, but a handful of sand can’t block a whole lake, can it? Even if we really are their nemeses, we still need to have the requisite power,” Shi Jun responded coolly.

“That’s true,” Hu Hai conceded, slumping down. He recalled that if not for Shi Jun’s sudden display of power that night, he himself would have fallen into the spirit’s hands. Frustrated, he muttered, “So according to you, how long will it take for us to deal with that smirking bastard?”

“Well, to desire too much is to achieve nothing. But if it’s just the immediate crisis we need to handle, there may yet be a way,” Shi Jun said, after pondering for a moment, looking up with a smile.

“I knew you’d have a plan! Out with it, quick!” Hu Hai cried impatiently.