Chapter 42: Overnight Crash Course for a Rookie Celestial Master

Chapter 42: Overnight Crash Course for a Rookie Celestial Master

After finishing Ghost-Hunting Notebook, Pei Ye pulled out the book Basic Handbook of Primordial Qi Cultivation from the shelf.

It was called a basic handbook, and the contents really were basic and easy to understand, practically idiot-proof instruction.

Primordial qi, the original substance that gives rise to and constitutes all things in heaven and earth.

Theoretically speaking, the qi of heaven and earth, whether spiritual energy, yin energy, baleful energy, or demonic energy, could all be refined into primordial qi.

Celestial Masters needed primordial qi for everything they did. It was the key to their ability to dominate heaven and earth.

Pei Ye read the basic handbook over and over several times before trying to cultivate according to the methods described within.

After quite a while,

“I am probably one of those once-in-a-billion geniuses with unparalleled talent and foundations from cultivation novels.”

Her narcissism was not entirely without reason.

The handbook stated that entering meditation and cultivating primordial qi for the first time generally required three to five days for a person of average talent.

Someone with excellent talent, such as Zhu Chun’an, had taken seven or eight hours.

Someone with poor talent would need two or three months before succeeding.

Pei Ye had used only a few minutes.

The cultivation system of primordial qi was clearly incompatible with everything she had learned during the first half of her life, yet she picked it up at an astonishing speed.

It was as though she was not learning something new but rather recovering a forgotten skill she had stored away long ago.

However,

How could that possibly be?

Pei Ye sneered and shook her head.

She carefully reread the basic handbook once more. Only after discovering that the reading function of Love and Raising a Child had completely recorded it did she switch to another book.

Pei Ye did not choose books that obviously looked profound and advanced. Instead, she selected several books bearing words such as “basic,” “beginner,” and “for novices.”

Only by laying a solid foundation could one build a towering structure above it.

The two books Pei Ye was currently holding were titled Several Beginner Techniques for Talismans and Five Fundamental Talismans Every Beginner Must Learn.

“Talismans, using symbols and diagrams to record names and secret scripts upon talisman paper or silk, summon gods and command ghosts, subdue demons and suppress evil, cure illnesses and eliminate disasters...”

The creation of talismans emphasized sincerity of heart and channeling qi while writing the talisman.

The former could be understood literally.

The latter was the true source of a talisman’s various mysterious powers.

Otherwise, no matter how skilled the drawing, it would still be nothing more than an ordinary sheet of useless paper.

“...Using the essence qi of the Dao, spreading it through bamboo slips and ink, gathering the essence qi of all things...”

In summary, the talisman itself was merely the visible form.

What truly produced the effect was the essence qi attached to it, namely primordial qi.

The book also confirmed this point.

If a Celestial Master’s strength and cultivation were sufficiently high, they could use a finger as a brush and draw talismans in midair within an instant.

Pei Ye had neither talisman paper nor cinnabar ink, so she could only use her finger as a substitute brush and simulate drawing talismans on the tea table. Strangely enough, although she clearly remembered the complete method for drawing the basic talisman known as the Dispelling Gloom Talisman, the moment she began drawing, she would immediately forget the next step. The primordial qi gathered at her fingertip would also break apart. Yet as soon as she withdrew her hand, the forgotten steps would once again appear clearly in her mind. After consulting the related books, she discovered that this was a common problem encountered by all beginners and required one to calm down and practice repeatedly.

“So that’s how it is...”

Just moments ago, she had cultivated primordial qi in mere minutes and thought she was a genius.

(:з」∠)

Then reality informed her she had been overthinking things when it came to drawing talismans.

For a beginner’s mandatory talisman, the Dispelling Gloom Talisman, she spent more than two hours before barely managing to complete a single one.

When she looked up at the time, it was already three-thirty in the morning.

“Staying up late is bad for your health, so I might as well stay up all night.”

She spent another five-plus hours memorizing every book on the bookshelf, planning to study them one by one after returning home.

“My stomach is hungry. Time to go out and find something to eat.”

The food in Zhu Chun’an’s refrigerator should be left for him.

It was not easy for a single young man to find time to go shopping.

Just as she stood up, a familiar presence entered the range of her mental domain.

“Lei Yating?”

Why was she here?

Naturally, she was here to look at apartments!

As the female lead of The Stunningly Beautiful Good-for-Nothing Little Celestial Master Has a Red Packet Group, calling her the beloved daughter of the Heavenly Dao within this novel was no exaggeration.

She possessed the mysterious Red Packet Group golden finger. Through a series of fortunate coincidences, she had joined a QQ chat group of heavenly immortals and had even cultivated primordial qi. Naturally, “Papa Heavenly Dao” would arrange for his “beloved daughter” to come into contact with Celestial Masters, so the cheerful, kind, generous, and helpful Zhu Chun’an became the perfect candidate to guide Lei Yating into the circle of Celestial Masters.

One link connected to the next, each link tightly interlocking with the others.

There was no true affection in the world, only schemes that won people’s hearts.

The sweet-novel setting of “Papa Heavenly Dao” doting on his “beloved daughter” truly never went out of style.

Pei Ye did not go out, lest Lei Yating run into her and make things difficult to explain.

She picked up her phone and left a WeChat message for Zhu Chun’an, then waited until Lei Yating and the real estate agent entered the apartment across the hall before leaving.

Lei Yating had not originally intended to rent a place here.

This morning, however, she had been chatting casually in the group when the God of Wealth told her that heading northeast from the school would bring good fortune.

There happened to be a real estate agency in that direction.

Acting on impulse, she went inside and discovered that an elderly couple planned to move overseas to enjoy retirement with their son. They wanted the agency to rent out their city-center apartment.

The price was not expensive, nearly half the market rate.

The requirements were also simple. The tenant only needed to maintain good relations with neighbors, avoid causing trouble, and refrain from subletting the apartment to multiple unrelated tenants.

After considering it, Lei Yating decided she wanted the place.

After viewing the apartment, she immediately signed a five-year lease agreement.

Once the contract was signed and the security deposit along with several months’ rent had been paid, she received the keys.

“Wonderful! The God of Wealth was right. My luck really has improved!”

Lei Yating rolled around on the sofa.

Remembering the elderly couple’s request, she decided to visit her neighbors and introduce herself first.

There were five households on this floor.

She pressed the doorbell of the apartment opposite hers, but no one came out even after a long wait.

“They’re probably at work?”

Lei Yating slapped her forehead in annoyance, silently cursing her own stupidity.

What time was it now?

Office workers were either out working or spending Saturday at home catching up on sleep. It would not be appropriate for her to disturb them so abruptly.

Humming a tune, she went to the supermarket downstairs and bought a blender, starch, seasonings, coffee powder, sugar, and tools for rolling small pellets...

According to her calculations, after grinding a Slimming Pill into powder and dissolving it into water for dilution, then adding starch and other ingredients to form small pellets, she could make thirty portions while maintaining the effectiveness. Each portion could then be divided into seven pellets.

Originally, she had wanted to dilute it even further to reduce the potency.

However, this morning she had privately contacted the alchemy attendant of Supreme Lord Lao and completed a trade.

The attendant gave her several pill formulas and also gifted her a basic alchemy furnace.

In exchange, she would purchase the snack gift package Nezha had requested earlier for the attendant.

It was an extremely worthwhile deal.

As a result, Lei Yating specifically requested the formulas for the Slimming Pill, Beauty Preservation Pill, Snow Skin Pill, and Beauty Pill.

The attendant found it strange.

“Why would cultivators like us need these kinds of pills?”

Lei Yating replied, “Female cultivators love beauty just like everyone else.”

The attendant did not respond after that.

Apparently, he was no longer surprised by such things.

Alchemy was not easy.

No matter how talented Lei Yating was, she still needed time to experiment and learn.

Fortunately, the alchemy furnace given by the attendant was considered a top-grade treasure in the mortal world, allowing her to avoid many detours during the refining process.

Before she became proficient at refining those pills, she could still rely on the stockpile she had obtained earlier to maintain supply.