In the main body of the Yanfu Netherwheel Dao Book, the practice of Fate-Casting with Spiritual Construct was laid out in full, along with just how difficult and dangerous it truly was.
Jing Qian, in forging the Qingping Sword Casket, had already completed this critical step of Fate-Casting with Spiritual Construct. It was an extraordinary stroke of fortune.
For cultivators at the Ninth-Rank Fatebinding Realm, daring to gamble their own meager lifespan to suppress a Spiritual Construct and shift its Life Measure burden was nothing less than a high-stakes wager.
Early on, it granted enormous advantages, allowing one to snowball strength rapidly.
But should their Longevity Realm cultivation falter, collapse was swift and merciless, their path ending halfway.
Like that Pure Yang Ruins cultivator, Chi Ling, who fell into a senior's trap and was forced into stagnation, draining away her lifespan to no avail.
For Jing Qian, however, the risk of Fate-Casting through Spiritual Construct was manageable because he carried the Longevity Pattern, which allowed him to shoulder the cost.
When he invoked the Cycle-Seeking Fate Divination, the truth of his Spiritual Construct's Life Measure was laid bare.
He saw the threads of the Qingping Edge interwoven with the sword casket in his sea of consciousness.
And within the Qingping Sword Casket itself, Life Measure glimmered clearly.
That Spiritual Construct carried a Life Measure of two taels, two qian.
Of that, a full one tael, five qian was already occupied by Qingping Edge.
This meant Jing Qian no longer needed to pay that burden from his own Life Measure, saving him one tael and five qian, enough space to accommodate one more Heaven's Mandate Fate!
And that was not the Sword Casket's limit.
The remaining seven qian of its Life Measure would not go unused.
According to the secret art of the Hidden Sword Casket, every Life Pattern he bound to the sword casket would not only augment its power with a new divine effect, but also shift one qian of Life Measure onto the casket itself.
Bind seven patterns, and he could fully utilize the remaining seven qian.
The Sword Casket's might would then soar even further.
Thus, before condensing his Dharma Form, this became Jing Qian's most important line of cultivation.
...
Beyond the Sword Casket, he uncovered another surprise, another Spiritual Construct quietly bearing Life Measure for him, completely without his knowledge.
Had he not mastered Fate Calculation, he might never have discovered it.
When the Void Furnace evolved, the Civet Spirit Seal it had consumed was transformed into the Furnace Spirit of his Tushita Furnace.
Until today, Jing Qian had not understood its function. He thought his very first Spiritual Construct had simply been swallowed, converted into fuel for his Life Furnace.
But in the divination, he saw clearly the one tael, three qian Life Measure of the Tushita Furnace pattern was now fully carried by the Furnace Spirit Civet.
This was another, unusual form of Fate-Casting with a Spiritual Construct, but its effects were wholly invested in his Life Furnace. He would need to explore its potential further.
The significance of the Spiritual Construct was undeniable.
Whether or not one possessed a Spiritual Construct didn't just mean a difference in combat strength; it fundamentally shaped the path of cultivation itself.
Jing Qian needed a new Spiritual Construct.
The more Life Measure burdens Spiritual Construct could carry on his behalf, the more patterns he could forge.
For most cultivators, managing even one successful Spiritual Construct Fate-Casting was already a monumental challenge.
Spiritual Construct offered boundless advantages, but the strain it placed upon lifespan was immense; few dared attempt a second or third.
Yet within the Yanfu Dao Book, Jing Qian found clear guidance on exactly this matter…
Before fully achieving the Dragon-Elephant Realm and condensing his Dharma Form, Life Patterns remained independent of one another. This period was the only true window for accommodating an extra Spiritual Construct.
Once that stage was passed, once the realm was higher, the system complete, and the Dharma Form solidified, then only a single Spiritual Construct could ever be integrated.
Missing that chance meant losing an immense chunk of potential Life Measure, forever capping one's path and making further breakthroughs drastically harder.
To truly master the Yanfu Dao and even glimpse the Upper Third Realms, one had to complete Fate-Casting with Spiritual Construct.
Naturally, the Yanfu Dao had its own exclusive method for doing so.
This secret transmission, the Eternal Seal of the Revolving Heavenly Son, stood shoulder to shoulder with the Pure Yang Ruins' Hidden Sword Casket.
Through this method, one could forge a Spiritual Construct known as the Seal of the Revolving Heavenly Son.
The seal had six faces, each capable of imprinting a Life Pattern and carrying its corresponding Life Measure.
If the Qingping Sword Casket specialized in gathering patterns to nourish a single sword, pursuing the sharpest edge of slaughter
Then the Revolving Heavenly Son Seal specialized in sheer foundation. Heavy with Life Measure, it propped up the entire path of cultivation. When perfected, it could carry six Life Patterns at once, vastly reducing the Life Measure burden.
If Jing Qian one day engraved six Heaven's Mandate Fates upon it, the seal alone could shoulder a full nine taels of Life Measure!
These two methods of Spiritual Construct Fate-Casting embodied opposite extremes.
One, pure offense.
The other, pure foundation.
Moreover, the Revolving Heavenly Son Seal directly aligned with the methods of Dharma Form condensation described in the Dao Book. Its integration would be seamless.
As long as he successfully forged this Spiritual Construct, he would be able to condense an unshakable Dao foundation. His rise to the Dragon-Elephant Realm would be flawless.
The day the Seal of the Revolving Heavenly Son was complete would be the very day he ascended to Dragon-Elephant!
In the Void World, Jing Qian exhaled a long, steady breath.
The Dao Book's revelations had filled the single greatest gap in his cultivation.
Now resources abounded, his domain was established, his Life Furnace burned bright, and the sea itself was full of "good friends and family."
Wealth, companions, Dharma, and land, he had them all.
His path was about to cross into a new realm.
He focused his mind upon the Sumeru Dao Stele, and his personal information appeared before his eyes:
Host: Jing Qian
Life Measure: 5 taels 1 qian / 9 taels 9 qian
With two Spiritual Constructs now shouldering his burden, six powerful Life Patterns only consumed 5 taels, 1 qian of his Life Measure.
The remaining 4 taels, 8 qian gave him more than enough room to assemble all the patterns demanded by the Dao Book's path.
Jing Qian rose and walked to the Void Furnace, giving it a sharp kick.
Clang!
A crisp note rang through the Void World.
The furnace did not so much as twitch.
He chuckled softly, then formed a seal with his fingers.
A glyph of power appeared, sinking into the furnace.
For the first time, Jing Qian's aura linked with the Life Furnace he had forged through burning his own body.
Within the Dao Book was a dedicated Life Furnace Chapter, filled with methods for feeding the fire and tending the hearth.
Upon reading it, he realized he had never truly controlled this cauldron.
Now, with his new method, he put theory into practice.
His fingers flashed with seals, and power surged forth
And the Void Furnace trembled faintly.
Moments later, a small black cat burst out, fur bristling, yowling as it tumbled.
"Fuuuuuck! Alright, alright, I give! Enough already, Master, spare meow!"
Such was the difference that a supreme inheritance made Jing Qian subdue the Furnace Spirit with ease.
Then, folding his arms, he asked coolly:
"So tell me, haven't you been skimming off quite a lot of my Fate-Flame?"
He narrowed his eyes.
"If you don't cough up a hundred strands of Fate-Flame today… Don't blame me for getting creative with punishment."
The little black cat nearly collapsed when it heard Jing Qian's demand.
It had only skimmed a little Fate-Flame, taking advantage of his ignorance of how to manage a Life Furnace. Barely nine-tenths, at most!
But this Void World was already dirt-poor; where was it supposed to squeeze out a hundred strands of Fate-Flame?
With a wail, the cat burst into tears, sobbing as it howled:
"I really don't have it, Master!"
"Please don't kill me!"
"Aaaah!"
Jing Qian used the chance to carefully examine his Furnace Spirit, the little Xili.
Only now, with new knowledge in hand, did he realize what a rare fortune it was to even have a Furnace Spirit. Such a thing usually only appeared in a Fifth-Grade Titled Furnace.
His own Life Furnace was but at the white-flame tier, and so its Furnace Spirit's intelligence was like that of a seven- or eight-year-old child, still unreliable.
Now that he had cornered it, the poor thing wept without end.
"Enough already," Jing Qian said, voice calm. "Stop your bawling. Tell me, are you connected to the Great Kitchen yet?"
The black cat sniffled and stammered:
"I am connected, Master… but they say I've no name, no rank, no specialty. They won't let me in."
Jing Qian thought for a moment, then said:
"Try again later. Tell them your Hearth-Master can read fate."
Then he added coldly:
"Now, however many Fate-Flames you have, hand me half."
The little black cat squirmed, dragging its paws, unwilling to part with them. At last, it coughed up twenty-four strands of Fate-Flame, tears practically squeezed from its eyes.
Jing Qian didn't relent. He spoke again:
"Send me to the Sea of Fate-Emptiness of Spirit and Soul."
This time, Xili didn't put on a show. Raising its tiny paws, it gathered a wisp of power and struck him with a brand of Fate-Flame.
Since receiving the Yanfu transmission, Jing Qian had gained a deeper understanding of the process of Fate-Burning.
Now that he fully controlled his Life Furnace, he no longer needed ritual methods. With the Furnace Spirit's aid, he could enter the process with ease.
The clumsy Three Sacrifices Fatebinding method could now be cast aside.
In the next instant, his spirit leapt
And he stood once more above the River of Karmic Flame.
This secret place, in the Dao Book, had a specific name: The Sea of Fate-Emptiness of Spirit and Soul.
It was the gathering-place of Dao-Wheels, the locus where Fate-Flames ignited Life Measure, linking to Life Patterns.
During his fifth Fatebinding, he had relied on the might of the Sumeru Dao Stele to shatter the barrier and break through here.
But this time, his entry was utterly different.
Hovering above the river, Jing Qian began to chant an incantation he had learned from the Yanfu Dao Book.
The chant was harsh and twisted, long and foul-sounding. As his power wove it into the air, it echoed back and forth across the fiery current.
To mortal ears, it would have been agony like claws raking their hearts.
But to Jing Qian, it was sweetness itself, like hearing the music of Heaven.
With the chant, the Karmic Flames below surged wildly.
Jing Qian's Worldly Insight sight flared
And he saw a colossal palace rising out of the inferno.
With it came an overwhelming radiance, scattering the karmic flames like black rain falling from the sky.
Without hesitation, Jing Qian's spiritual body strode forward, stepping into the rain and alighting before the palace gates.
The entire structure was wrought from white bone, inlaid here and there with black jade.
Above, a massive plaque hung high, three characters etched in black on white: Yanfu Palace.
Inside, six black-jade statues stood in solemn silence, mouths sealed, eyes closed.
Beneath them, five great cauldrons sat in a row.
Jing Qian stepped closer. Within each vessel swirled pure streams of power in gold, violet, blue, green, and white, five hues of Fate-Light dazzling his eyes.
These cauldrons held the Life Patterns of every grade, from White Fang to Golden Root, drawn directly from the River of Karmic Flame itself.
Each pattern resonated perfectly with the methods laid out in the Yanfu Dao Book.
This palace, Jing Qian realized, was the ancestral sanctuary of the Yanfu Dao.
It rested eternally within the Sea of Fate-Emptiness, summoning from the Karmic River every pattern whose essence matched its law.
For disciples of the Yanfu Dao, entering this place during Fate-Burning was an unparalleled fortune.
This, Jing Qian thought, was the true foundation of a Dao-lineage.
Even among the twelve great lineages of the Academy, only a rare few possessed such a sanctum of this caliber.
No wonder, when he stripped the Dao Book from the ghosts, he had immediately resolved to make it his root inheritance, his pillar on the path.
He knew full well: a transmission of such depth, yet absent from all records of the Divine Dynasty behind it lay unfathomable cause and fate.
But fear never once crossed his mind.
If he hesitated, if he surrendered this chance and settled for some lesser scripture, sooner or later his heart would fester with demons. His Dao would never be whole.
After stepping once into the Yanfu Palace, Jing Qian's conviction grew even firmer; he knew he had chosen the right path.
The Dao Book recorded that beyond the Yanfu Palace, there were other such fortune-grounds scattered through its teachings, each one brimming with pivotal opportunities for cultivation.
If he truly were the only inheritor of the Yanfu Dao, then the depth of fortune accumulated here was beyond imagining.
If there is karma behind this, let it come crashing down upon me, he thought.
Otherwise, to consume so many top-tier resources without giving anything back wouldn't that make him nothing but a shameless freeloader?
...
Jing Qian compared the Life Patterns listed in the Dao Book against those swirling in the great cauldrons of the palace.
With the aid of Worldly Insight, every thread of information entered his mind clearly, without omission.
For a time, his vision swam, dazzling him with possibilities like a gambler rifling through endless playing cards.
The Dao Book listed ninety-seven Life Patterns compatible with the Yanfu Dao.
They encompassed mountain-sea patterns, spirit-ghost patterns, and spirit-treasure patterns, yet not a single living-being pattern.
During his ten days of secluded contemplation, Jing Qian had already determined his choices.
Now, after careful observation, he found no reason to change.
He strode straight to the golden cauldron.
Seven golden patterns drifted within, each brimming with wondrous power and overwhelming might.
Yet after one glance, he walked away.
It wasn't that he disdained the Golden Root patterns, but Jing Qian was no longer the naïve cultivator of old.
With the Sumeru Dao Stele in his possession, bearing the authority of Heavenly Mandate Insight, Golden Root was not his ceiling.
His goal was to elevate all of his patterns toward the Heavenly Mandate tier.
The Yanfu Dao's core patterns had to be capable of reaching that height.
But none of the seven Golden Root patterns in the cauldron had the complete set of three unique patterns required to form a Heavenly Mandate.
For Jing Qian, they were dead ends. No reason to waste his path on them.
Better to follow the example of Qingping's Edge, raise it step by step through his own accumulation, until it transcends naturally.
...
He turned from the golden cauldron and likewise passed by the violet cauldron without pause.
To him, the Violet Eye patterns were the least cost-effective.
It took ten complete patterns to achieve wholeness and unlock Heavenly Mandate Insight, yet the lifespan cost was immense.
Instead, he walked up to the blue cauldron, reaching within to pluck out a single strange pattern.
He swallowed it whole, drawing it into his sea of consciousness:
Shadowstep (Yingdun)
Tier: Blue Blood
"Slanted shadows stretch, five lakes and misty waters for wandering; when the ghost-shadow flees, dragons coil and serpents rise with thunder!"
For the first time, Jing Qian awakened a Blue Blood pattern, and he had deliberately chosen a movement art.
At this stage, his offensive methods were already complete.
No matter how broad the Yanfu Dao's inheritance, its killing arts could not match the pure lethality of the Pure Yang Sword-Casket.
For defense, he had Sumeru's suppression peerless among peers. No need to overlap.
For resources, he had the Tushita Furnace anchoring his Life Pattern. More than sufficient.
For detection, Worldly Insight reigned supreme far beyond his needs.
Thus, what he lacked was simple: a method of flight and escape.
The Shadowstep pattern, walking within shadows, once mastered, would allow even a Dragon-Elephant cultivator to soar through the heavens with speed that defied gods and ghosts alike.
...
Seated cross-legged in the Yanfu Palace, Jing Qian began absorbing the pattern.
At once, the shadow behind him trembled faintly.
In the Void World, one of the twenty-four strands of Fate-Flame burning around him abruptly extinguished.
His sixth Fatebinding had borne fruit.
But this was not his limit; he still had twenty-three strands remaining. Enough to refine twenty-three more patterns.
Having secured the first Shadowstep, he immediately activated the Sumeru Dao Stele, drawing forth an opportunity for Life-Casting.
Then, without hesitation, he reached into the blue cauldron once more
and pulled out a second Shadowstep, beginning its reforging and ascent.
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