Otherworldly Affairs Office-Chapter 673: The Origin of Daoist Techniques (Subscription Requested)
In the bath barrel, reflecting on his gains over the past few days, Pei Yan, in a very good mood, leisurely enjoyed his bath while examining his new spoils—a set of six origin shards from the Daoist Plane, playing thoughtfully with the Dao Heart Stones.
The thought of acquiring new powers made Pei Yan's urge to devour them all the more unbearable. Fortunately, he had already instructed his companions not to disturb him before resting. Impatient, he quickly dried himself off, put on a coat, and sat cross-legged at the bedside to patiently absorb the Dao Heart Stones in his hands.
One piece, two pieces, three pieces... Completely immersed in the extraction and realization of new laws, Pei Yan ignored the passage of time outside. By the time he had absorbed all six Dao Heart Stones and reopened his eyes, gentle sunlight streamed through the window he had forgotten to draw the curtains for, warming his skin. Sensing the temperature of the sunlight with his hand, Pei Yan had a newfound understanding of this world.
The law-containing shards of the Foundation Plane lead one to comprehend a kind of supernatural power; the shards from the Hell Plane cause one to experience the agony of crossing from life to death; meanwhile, shards from the Daoist Plane gave Pei Yan an insight into the wonders of the world of nature. This joyful sensation made him eager to share and boast with others.
Not even bothering to button his pajamas properly, Pei Yan rushed out of the bedroom excitedly, dragging everyone to the courtyard eager to showcase his new abilities. Everyone in the investigation hall looked at him with great anticipation and interest. However, when he opened his palm to reveal two balls of fire appearing out of thin air and proudly displayed them to the crowd, everyone exchanged puzzled glances, momentarily speechless and unsure of what to make of it.
"Uh, did you accidentally awaken some kind of fire-related power?" In the awkward silence, Wang Wenze stepped forward, scratching his head in surprise and asking. He genuinely didn't understand what Pei Yan was so excited about; even if he had awakened a fire ability, it wasn't that impressive, given that any random ability of Pei Yan's now would be far more powerful.
"No!" Pei Yan shook his head excitedly and said, "I can control fire now!"
Feeling even more confused, Jiang Feiyang scratched his head and asked in bafflement, "What's the difference between the two?"
"Uh!" Pei Yan also didn't know how to explain it. After some head-scratching and contemplation, he finally said, "How to put it, this isn't some kind of supernatural power, or rather, it's not the kind from our world. After absorbing the Dao Heart Stones of the Daoist Plane, I realized one of the aspects is an understanding of fire. I'm able to transform my internal origin into fire, like this."
As he spoke, Pei Yan's palms turned, and two fireballs appeared once more in his hands. Then, with a push of his hand, the fireballs surged into the courtyard pond, splashing water everywhere. He continued excitedly, "Now I also have insights into wind and qi, just like... just like... ."
Momentarily in a state of excitement and with a muddled mind, Pei Yan wandered around as he spoke. When he glanced around, he suddenly noticed the distant spectators, disciples from Celestial Sword Manor, in a corner of the courtyard. Upon seeing them, Pei Yan was overjoyed and hastily rushed over, drawing a disciple's sword with a smile, saying, "Lend this to me."
The disciple wanted to refuse but had to swallow his pride because of Pei Yan's power. After acquiring the new sword, Pei Yan hurriedly ran back to the courtyard, closed his eyes, and felt the flow of qi within his body. He then shouted and tossed the longsword into the air. As it fell, Pei Yan clasped his hands together and gestured to the sword, suspending the descending longsword in mid-air.
Seeing this, Sword Stand Man and others, still clueless about what Pei Yan intended to do, also became interested. One by one, they widened their eyes in curiosity, watching. Pei Yan carefully lowered the sword's height, then tentatively stepped onto it with trembling feet. Amidst the startled exclamations of his teammates in the investigation hall, he wobbly flew into the air.
"Sword Flight!"
Listening to the cheers erupting from the crowd in the investigation hall, the disciples from Celestial Sword Manor, including Sword Stand Man, nearly coughed up blood. How could this be considered sword flight? There was no resonance with the longsword, making it impossible to break through the speed barrier or operate freely. He was merely forcefully levitating by holding both objects aloft with qi. Even Sword Stand Man couldn't understand whether these people were truly excited or mocking their sect. He also didn't understand why Pei Yan, who clearly had immensely swift mobility techniques and powerful attack strength, would be so excited about this entry-level trick.
Years later, when he had become a sect elder and met Pei Yan again, Sword Stand Man finally asked the question in his heart. Pei Yan replied without hesitation, "Emotions." Sword Stand Man, who grew up in the Daoist Realm and was accustomed to such things, would not understand the enthusiasm and obsession children, who had grown up watching mythological immortal sword TV dramas, had for this kind of cultivation.
Sword Stand Man did not understand, but Gu Shenghui understood a bit. He knew this was Pei Yan's youthful spirit resurfacing. Smiling at Elder Lin and the others, they shook their heads and returned to their rooms, letting the young people have their way.
"Very nice, sword flight!"
"Although it's a bit slow! And the fire control power is too weak; even Captain Hu's third-stage awakening was more powerful than this."
"So you can cultivate immortals now!"
After Pei Yan landed on the ground, a group surrounded him, chattering and asking questions. At this point, Jiang Feiyang squeezed through the crowd with his bulky frame and said, "I know what these law-containing Dao Heart Stones are."
Seeing everyone look toward him after he made this statement, Jiang Feiyang boasted gleefully, "Aren't these just like the spirit roots in cultivation novels? Pei Yan has an affinity with fire; that's a Fire Spirit Root. He has an affinity with wind; that's a Wind Spirit Root, then a Qi Spirit Root. Let me tell you, in novels, it's about setting up with the Five Elements Spirit Root and then becoming invincible, and Pei Yan would be unstoppable."
Although knowing Jiang Feiyang was largely talking nonsense, Pei Yan and his companions, who knew nothing about cultivation in the Daoist Realm, surprisingly felt his words made some sense. Even Pei Yan himself fell into contemplation, considering if it might actually be as Jiang Feiyang said, to try acquiring a Five Elements Dao Heart Stone.
Seeing Jiang Feiyang's words, Wang Wenze also got excited and advised, "Only gathering Dao Heart Stones isn't enough! Look at Pei Yan, the power of these techniques is too weak; they look good but aren't practical. What's important is the cultivation technique, like the Demon God Transformation from the Hell Plane. Only with a cultivation technique can you be unbeatable."
"Oh, that's reasonable, that's reasonable!" Everyone agreed in unison.
"It's easy to say; do you think they'll just give you a cultivation technique?" Jiang Feiyang sneered disdainfully.
"Did they just give you the Dao Heart Stones? No, they didn't, so you have to snatch them or find a way to exchange them. If that doesn't work, have Pei Yan keep digging pits for them; let me tell you, you don't have to worry about it. Do you believe Pei Yan is already calculating his plans?" Wang Wenze retorted with a cold snort.
"Oh, that's reasonable, that's reasonable."
Everyone agreed again and promptly turned their gaze towards a prime target in the courtyard. Feeling the scrutinizing gaze of the investigation hall team members, the disciples of Celestial Sword Manor felt a chill down their spines, shivering all over.
