Chapter Nine: Refining the Tower of Myriad Phenomena

After the old immortal departed, Liu Junhuai remained lost in confusion for a long time. Deep down, he understood that some unseen force seemed to be guiding him. The great deity’s words had been entirely true—cause gives rise to effect, and effect stems from cause; all things are bound in cycles of karma. Since heaven had arranged so much for him, only tireless effort could make his life worthwhile. Everything that had happened since his deviation into madness had also taught him much. The deity’s final words were a warning to maintain a tranquil heart in all things, to proceed step by step, and to keep things orderly and clear.

Throughout the night, Liu Junhuai reflected on all that had occurred. When he began cultivating again, he immediately sensed the importance of his mental state. The absorption of spiritual energy became smooth and harmonious, the refinement of true essence proceeded naturally, the reserves within his dantian swelled steadily, and his cultivation level advanced in a stable climb.

A new day arrived, and Liu Junhuai found it exceedingly difficult to refine the golden light within his Mud Pill Palace. The initial attempt at refining it all at once nearly burst his skull, forcing him to unravel and absorb it strand by strand, like drawing silk from a cocoon. It was two days later by the time he finished, and with a turn of his consciousness, his divine sense spread out like a vast fishing net, covering a radius of ten miles—leaving him awestruck. Unbeknownst to him, cultivators typically only gained divine sense after establishing their foundation, yet he had achieved this at the fourth level of Qi Refinement. This was the true mark of a prodigy; if others knew, they might dissect him for study.

Then there was the matter of the Heavenly Eye. Whether looking within or outward, many of its functions overlapped with his divine sense. Liu Junhuai wondered if the Heavenly Eye was somewhat redundant, but upon reflection, realized this was a powerful technique with hidden wonders yet to be discovered. The Heavenly Eye itself had nine stages, divided into three phases: early, middle, and late. He was only at the first stage, so it was too soon to expect much from it.

And didn’t the “Compendium of Marvelous Phenomena” still await his recognition as its master? He seemed to possess no small number of treasures, and the thought filled Liu Junhuai with secret delight.

Still, he decided it was best to be prepared. If he failed to make the Compendium recognize him and was instead subdued by it, the loss would be too great.

The next day, Shen Yihuan paid a visit. He shared the latest news from the Shen family, left behind a bag of provisions, several healing medicines, and spirit stones, and departed after repeated reminders.

After a night of meditation, Liu Junhuai’s dantian and the false dantian in his sea of consciousness brimmed with spirit energy. A small pile of spirit stones lay ready at his side; all preparations for refinement were complete.

He placed the “Compendium of Marvelous Phenomena” on his lap, regulated his internal breath, and pressed his left hand upon it, letting a drop of essence blood fall—no reaction.

A second drop.

A third.

A fourth.

A fifth…

Even after more than a dozen drops, still nothing. Sweat beaded on Liu Junhuai’s brow. This wasn’t what the manual described—where had he gone wrong?

Another dozen drops, and still not the slightest response.

Gritting his teeth, Liu Junhuai struck his chest with his right hand, forcing out a mouthful of essence blood and spraying it onto the book.

At last, the book trembled gently. He quickly grasped it with both hands and exerted his cultivation technique.

Suddenly, a powerful suction emanated from the book, drawing in his spirit energy like a newborn taking milk—the strength and speed steadily increasing. Liu Junhuai carefully controlled the flow.

With a thunderous roar, the suction surged, and spirit energy rushed from his body into the book like a river in flood. Liu Junhuai began to feel overwhelmed, frantically absorbing more spiritual energy and grabbing handfuls of spirit stones, desperately refining and replenishing himself.

With his Heavenly Eye open, he could clearly see waves of spirit energy being drawn into the book—like a sluice gate flung open, it all poured in at once.

The golden orb stored in his sea of consciousness emptied, and his dantian was nearly dry. Just as Liu Junhuai was on the verge of despair, the suction abruptly ceased, and a ball of light shot into his dantian. He could clearly see a small golden book, no bigger than a fingertip, suspended within. Instantly, he sensed a faint, blood-bound connection between his consciousness and the golden book.

“Damn, I was nearly sucked dry,” Liu Junhuai gasped, collapsing to the floor and gulping for breath.

After quickly replenishing some spirit energy with his technique, he willed his consciousness into the book. Opening his eyes, he was stunned, drooling in amazement.

“Heavens, this is a whole world!” Liu Junhuai burst into joyous laughter.

Within this space was a suspended mountain.

It was as if a mountain had been sliced in two and the upper half inverted, suspended in the air to form a vast platform. Atop the platform stood a jade tower, its entire structure a deep blue, as if built from crystal, dazzling and translucent. The walls shimmered with an eerie light, shielding the interior from prying eyes.

The tower rose five stories, with a plaque above the main entrance inscribed in bold gold characters: Hall of Myriad Phenomena.

Stepping inside, a floating jade slip flew into his hand.

Probing it with his divine sense, Liu Junhuai found introductions to each level of the Hall of Myriad Phenomena.

The first floor was a storage space, divided into over a dozen rooms, where items would be automatically categorized and arranged.

The second floor was a library, its shelves filled with volumes on geography, botany, zoology, minerals, the arts of insects and poisons, witchcraft, alchemy, smithing, medicine, and more.

The third floor had five rooms, each set with a jade tablet: Pill Refining Room, Artifact Forging Room, Pet Room, Array Room, and Body Tempering Room. Each room had usage restrictions, only accessible upon reaching the requisite level.

The fourth floor was a training chamber. Jade tablets for various training arrays hung on the walls; activating one would transport the user into a corresponding training space.

The fifth floor was both a treasure vault and armory, but could only be unlocked upon reaching the Golden Core stage.

To enter the second floor or above, a specific type of spirit stone had to be set into a slot by the entrance.

At this, Liu Junhuai could only feel frustrated. To possess such a treasure and yet be unable to enter most of it—he would have to earn more spirit stones as quickly as possible. Such a powerful cultivation aid needed to be put to use! But first, he needed to raise his own strength—he was only at the fourth level of body refinement; outside, he would still be at others’ mercy.

Exiting the Hall of Myriad Phenomena, he composed himself and began cultivating with calm determination.

The “Ninefold Transformation Heart Method” emphasized the accumulation of vast magical power during cultivation, aiming for the true essence within to gather like mighty rivers flowing into the sea, calm on the surface but hiding enormous energy beneath. It was a comprehensive divine technique; the power of each transformation was different, but the foundation lay in the balanced progress of all five elemental attributes, so that their overwhelming might could disregard the sharpness of any single one.

Ordinary spiritual energy was richest in wood and earth elements. Absorbing it would not hinder progress, but was far less potent than internal energy balanced across all five elements. For now, though, it was his only option.

Five days later, having exhausted his spirit stones, Liu Junhuai successfully broke through to the fifth level of Qi Refinement, drawing a little closer to the first transformation of the Ninefold method.

After a night of consolidation, Liu Junhuai packed his belongings, preparing to venture deep into the mountains to gather cultivation resources. He would need to stockpile many more spirit stones before he could enter true seclusion within the Hall of Myriad Phenomena.