Free Web NovelChapter 157: Chapter 157: Recording the Cloud Seal Celestial Book
In truth, Jiang Xu’s success had been something of a fluke.
The Profound Celestial Pill could enhance one’s comprehension and sharpen the five senses.
It could actually be taken in conjunction with the Foundation Establishment Pill.
This could slightly increase the probability of a successful Foundation Establishment.
Its effect was to let a Cultivator experience a weakened version of Divine Sense ahead of time, providing a spark of insight.
However, this effect had always been considered of little practical value, as very few Cultivators had ever managed to birth Divine Sense through it.
Yet, for Jiang Xu, it had illuminated the critical final step!
Within his Sea of Consciousness, the Spiritual Power that had been as tranquil as a lake’s surface was suddenly ignited by a blazing flame.
The formless, intangible fire of spirit raged, illuminating his inner world. Every thought, every memory, every emotional ripple transformed into a brilliant star in the firelight, twinkling with the flame’s dance.
In this refining process, his Spiritual Power gradually condensed into a purer, more powerful form of existence.
The core of Divine Sense, forged in the spiritual blaze, started as just a faint point of Spiritual Light. But as time went on, it gradually coalesced and took shape, like a dazzling star slowly rising in his Sea of Consciousness.
The birth of Divine Sense was like opening a brand-new door of perception. In Jiang Xu’s spiritual world, the reality previously limited to his five senses was suddenly magnified to infinity.
Jiang Xu closed his eyes, yet it felt as if he could see everything around him.
The gentle rustle of the wind through the trees, the trembling of every single leaf—it was all perfectly clear.
In the distant Marketplace, people bustled about. Their paths of movement, their emotional fluctuations, and even the subtle changes in the flow of Magical Power within their bodies were all laid bare before him like a vivid, unfolding image.
Further still, the flow of Spiritual Qi in the earth’s ley lines and the subtle fluctuations of energy between Heaven and Earth were reflected, thread by delicate thread, in his spiritual sea.
"So, this is Divine Sense?"
Jiang Xu slowly directed his Divine Sense, taking in his surroundings with a sense of profound wonder.
’I haven’t reached Foundation Establishment, I’m not even at Qi Cultivation Great Perfection, and I’ve already birthed Divine Sense?’
Jiang Xu was in a daze.
He truly hadn’t expected to be able to take this step.
His original plan had been to wait until his Spiritual Power reached the peak of Qi Cultivation, then cultivate step by step until his Cultivation also reached Great Perfection, and only then attempt the breakthrough to the Divine Sense stage.
But desperate times called for desperate measures.
He never would have known his own limits if he hadn’t been forced to push them.
For a while, Jiang Xu was like a child with a new toy, gleefully playing with his new ability before finally snapping back to reality.
’This is no time to be playing around.’
He had urgent business to attend to!
He had to see if he could finally perceive the materials for Elder Demon Su’s Array Formation!
But before that, there was something else Jiang Xu had wanted to do for a very long time.
He was going to examine the wall full of the Cloud Seal Celestial Book!
Jiang Xu stood his ground, hesitating slightly.
’Elder Li’s current state is probably a result of looking at this wall of runes.’
’If I end up like him after looking, I might not even know how I died when the time comes.’
’I can’t look at a whole room full of runes, but surely I can handle just one?’
Jiang Xu then focused his Divine Sense into a concentrated beam, directing it toward a single Celestial Rune invisible to the naked eye.
BOOM!
It was like a world-shattering crack of thunder erupting in his mind.
In his Sea of Consciousness, the Celestial Rune instantly became incredibly clear and three-dimensional. Its complex patterns and profound mysteries, previously invisible to the naked eye, unfurled like a scroll painting under the light of his spiritual fire.
The Rune seemed to take on a life of its own, leaping and spinning in his mind. Every line, every fleck was imbued with a profound rhythm, hiding within it infinite truths.
He could sense the wondrous rhythm within the Rune, like the orbits of stars, and the subtle channels that connected it to the Spiritual Qi between Heaven and Earth.
The obscure and complex knowledge of Talismans began to clarify in his mind.
Jiang Xu felt as if he could see the Great Dao contained within the Celestial Rune, as if he could hear the Laws of the universe being chanted by a thousand gods and buddhas.
He was utterly mesmerized, completely lost in its depths.
An unknown amount of time passed before Jiang Xu abruptly snapped out of it, his head drenched in sweat. The same Celestial Rune he had regarded as a priceless treasure moments ago, he now shunned like the plague.
Jiang Xu realized the gap between his own understanding and the Rune’s complexity was simply too vast.
While this Celestial Rune contained an immense wealth of profound rhythms and Laws that would benefit him endlessly if comprehended...
...it was for this very reason that his own life’s instinct would compel him to delve deeper and deeper, to become lost within it, never to emerge until he had grasped every last bit of its knowledge.
But that was an impossible task.
For a mere Tier One Talisman Maker to attempt to fully comprehend a single rune from the Cloud Seal Celestial Book—something only a Tier Three Talisman Maker could master—would take a terrifying amount of time. He would likely be trapped for a lifetime, unable to break free.
The only reason he had a chance to escape was because his Skill Level in the Talisman Dao for both the Cold Ice Talisman and the Exorcism Talisman had already reached the Master Level. He had discovered an overlap between his own insights and a portion of the knowledge within the Celestial Rune, which gave him an anchor to pull himself free.
Otherwise, he likely would have spent the rest of his life trapped here with Elder Li.
Even if Elder Demon Su failed to break through the Marketplace, Jiang Xu would have simply starved to death.
After all, even though Jiang Xu’s spirit had reached the stage of Divine Sense...
...his physical body had not yet reached the Foundation Establishment Realm, where he could sustain himself purely by absorbing Spiritual Qi through Fasting.
’The Cloud Seal Celestial Book is precious, to be sure, but my own life is more valuable.’
A lingering fear gripped Jiang Xu’s heart.
Though there was now a single Celestial Rune in his Sea of Consciousness, Jiang Xu had no intention of recording any more.
One was nearly enough to doom him beyond salvation. A second one would surely be the end of him.
’I should wait until my Talisman Dao Cultivation reaches the absolute limit of a Tier Two Talisman Maker before I try this again.’
Based on his experience, Jiang Xu felt that to study these runes, his Talisman Dao would have to reach a certain Realm, one high enough to resist the temptation of the knowledge they contained.
He gazed at the wall full of Cloud Seal runes, filled with a complex mix of emotions.
He had known they were precious before, but his understanding had been far too shallow.
Only after personally recording a single Rune did he understand just how priceless they truly were.
To put it bluntly...
Even a Nascent Soul Cultivator would be driven to madness by this wall of the Cloud Seal Celestial Book.
But realizing what an immense treasure this was only plunged Jiang Xu into deeper confusion.
’Who on earth would place these runes in such a small, unassuming shop?’
’What is Elder Li’s relationship to that person? Why would he pay such a heavy price for them?’
’And Elder Li... what state is he truly in right now?’
’If he’s truly lost in the runes, how did he have the presence of mind to speak?’
’Could it be... that Elder Li’s Talisman Realm has already reached a level where he can study the Cloud Seal Celestial Book at will?’
