Otherworld. A forest.
A clear day. A light breeze.
On a relatively flat patch of ground stood a simple folding table. On the table rested a brush stand, an inkstone filled with Cinnabar Ink, and a stack of Yellow Paper.
Gu Zhao had just finished testing all the Magic from the Tao Scriptures he had learned.
The Taoist Sects have a history spanning over two thousand years, marked by rises and falls, creations and extinctions, splits and mergers. First came the Southern Scripture and Talisman Sect, followed by the Inner Alchemy North and South Sects. Eventually, they formed the two major schools of Zhengyi Dao and Quanzhen Dao, along with their various branches.
Of course, over hundreds and thousands of years, Daoists traveled, exchanged knowledge, and learned from one another. With the exception of each sect's Ancestral Court, their teachings had long since become thoroughly intermingled.
The three Tao Scriptures his grandfather had taught him were a clear example of this.
The Shangqing Heavenly Heart Righteous Method.
The Shenxiao Yushu Zhan Kan Five Thunder Technique.
The Golden Locking Jade Technique.
One was a Contemplation Technique from the Shangqing Sect for Qi Nourishing and Refining God, which also recorded various Talismanic Techniques.
One was a Thunder Technique from the Shenxiao Sect, specializing in combat and documenting all sorts of Thunder Curses.
And one was an Inner Alchemy Technique from Quanzhen Dao, focused solely on teaching one to practice Breathing and Qi Refining to form a Golden Core.
As a result, Gu Zhao could be said to be a practitioner of multiple sects' Daoist Skills, achieving a Unity of God and Qi, with a coexistence of Body and Skill.
Of course, he had only been in Cultivation for ten years, and he'd had to balance it with his studies. He hadn't devoted himself to it full-time. Therefore, his Divine Sense was weak and his Magical Power was insufficient. Even a genius in the Dao couldn't reach the heavens in a single step.
And indeed, in his recent experiments, he found that there weren't actually many forms of Magic he could use.
The Shangqing Heavenly Heart Righteous Method was mostly composed of Talismanic Techniques. Its only combat Magic was the Fire Shield Technique, and the range and power Gu Zhao could muster were very limited.
The Shenxiao Yushu Zhan Kan Five Thunder Technique was indeed a combat Dharma Gate, but he couldn't cast the more powerful spells like the All Heaven Thunder God Curse or the Mutual Birth and Mutual Destruction Thunder Spell. All he could use were simple Curse Techniques like Palm Thunder and the Thunder-Expelling Curse.
The Golden Locking Jade Technique was an Inner Alchemy Cultivation Technique and contained no Magic. However, according to the Inner Alchemy Sect, as long as one's Elixir Qi was complete, Divine Techniques would manifest naturally.
Gu Zhao gave it a try. Soaring Clouds and Mist, Shrinking Inches, returning to youth, his Yang soul roaming free, invulnerability to water and fire, moving mountains and filling seas...
He couldn't do any of them!
Gu Zhao: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
With his current level of Dao Practice, all it amounted to was a strong and healthy body, sharp eyes and ears, jumping a bit higher, and running a bit faster.
SWOOSH!
Gu Zhao leaped onto a fork in a tree trunk. With a light tap of his foot, he landed on the branch of another tree.
"I guess this counts as learning a Lightweight Skill?"
Gu Zhao clicked his tongue. He figured that with the Martial Arts he'd learned from his grandfather, he could be considered a Martial Arts Expert now. At the very least, taking on someone like Ke Zhen'e shouldn't be a problem.
"Time to draw some Talismans!" Gu Zhao's eyes shone with anticipation.
'Martial Arts are just the beginning; Daoist Skills are the ultimate path,' Gu Zhao thought. 'I can't cast the Five Thunders Curse on its own, but what if I use a Five Thunders Talisman to help? Would that work?'
Although the Shangqing Heavenly Heart Righteous Method contained more Talismans, Gu Zhao decided to draw the Five Thunders Talisman first. After all, Thunder Techniques just looked the coolest.
Gu Zhao stood before the table and pulled out a sheet of Yellow Paper, placing it in front of him. He then swirled the high-end Wolf Hair Brush he had bought in the inkstone, letting it soak up the thick Cinnabar Ink. Only then did he lightly wipe the excess off on the edge of the inkstone and move the brush above the Yellow Paper.
He had tested it at home before. The ability of Cinnabar and Yellow Paper to store Magical Power was indeed better than that of ordinary ink and paper. Logically, the modern world had almost no Spiritual Qi, so he had no idea how the ancients had figured this out.
'But in any case, this is a good thing. It means there will only be more useful things to be found in the Tao Scriptures.'
Gu Zhao cast aside all distracting thoughts, focused his mind and gaze, and straightened his spine. He guided the Qi from his Dantian down to his feet, then up into his right arm, channeling power through his fingertips and Spiritual Power into the Wolf Hair Brush.
He began to draw!
Gu Zhao circulated the Magical Power in his body, infusing it into the Cinnabar as he began to draw the Talisman on the Yellow Paper.
First, he drew the Eastern Celestial Thunder, making nine dots with the brush. Next, he moved to the Southern Divine Thunder, making his stroke...
But as he made the second dot, Gu Zhao found he couldn't continue.
Unlike when he had drawn the Five Thunders Talisman at Yuanfa Palace, this time Gu Zhao had infused his Magical Power into the Cinnabar from the very beginning. He then discovered that as he drew the Eastern Celestial Thunder, each stroke formed a connection with the one before it.
Through this connection, the Cinnabar strokes infused with Magical Power acted like individual components, gradually assembling into some kind of whole on the Yellow Paper. During this process, his Divine Sense and Magical Power were being consumed at a steady rhythm.
In practice, this meant that as Gu Zhao drew the Five Thunders Talisman, each stroke became progressively harder to control than the last.
He barely managed to finish drawing the first part, the Eastern Celestial Thunder Rune, but failed shortly after starting on the Southern Divine Thunder.
With a single misplaced stroke, the entire construction collapsed. The rhythm of his Magical Power input was broken, and most of the Spiritual Power contained within the Cinnabar instantly dissipated, leaving only a small amount of natural residue.
"The Five Thunders Talisman really is difficult!" Gu Zhao grumbled.
His Magical Power wasn't depleted, but he had lost control during the process. Moreover, he felt a faint sense of exhaustion, both physically and mentally.
To put it bluntly, his Cultivation was still insufficient. It was the same reason he couldn't cast the All Heaven Thunder God Curse.
However, Gu Zhao wasn't disappointed. After all, he had managed to draw the Eastern Celestial Thunder, which meant he could at least control the thunder of one direction. And besides the Five Thunders Talisman that integrated all Five Thunders, the Shenxiao Yushu Zhan Kan Five Thunder Technique also contained individual Thunder Techniques.
So, Gu Zhao rested for a moment, then decisively put his brush to paper. After wasting two more sheets of Yellow Paper, he finally succeeded in drawing his first Talisman.
The Wind and Thunder Talisman!
Wind and thunder come from the east; they belong to the Wood element of the Five Elements and are an application of Celestial Thunder.
Gu Zhao formed the Celestial Thunder Seal with his left hand and picked up the Yellow Talisman with his right. As he shook it, he circulated the Magical Power in his body and began Chanting, "Star of Wood's virtue, spirit of the East. Follow my nine Qi, and expel all evil spirits."
A faint stream of Magical Power flowed into the Yellow Talisman. The Cinnabar on it flashed instantly, and then the Talisman abruptly burst into flames.
In the next moment, a fierce wind arose and a Thunderbolt crackled.
A gale blasted outward from Gu Zhao in all directions. A Thunderbolt also condensed above his head, and with a CRACKLE, it swept out along with the wind.
CRASH—
The gale swept through, shaking trees and sending leaves flying. After the Thunderbolt raged past, the area within ten meters of Gu Zhao was a complete mess. If he hadn't specifically controlled it to avoid the folding table, his experiments for the day would have ended right there.
After using it once, Gu Zhao understood. The Wind and Thunder Talisman's effect was similar to a repelling aura, used in combat to push back approaching enemies and maintain distance.
It was just like the Magic he had just tested: Palm Thunder was a single-target Attack, the Thunder-Expelling Curse was a group attack, and the Fire Shield Technique was a slow and bind with continuous damage.
Gu Zhao couldn't help but sigh. "It's exactly like playing a video game. Today's game designers are still just copying the homework of our ancestors. They haven't made any progress at all."
Thinking of this, Gu Zhao grew even more excited about the other Talismanic Techniques. At the same time, however, he was afraid he didn't have enough Yellow Talismans left.
Gu Zhao rubbed his chin. 'Should I go back to Yuanfa Palace tomorrow and... "borrow" some more?'