Stop grinding, I'm really just a free spirit.

Chapter 39 The Drill Ground

After opening his eyes, Chen Bai did not rush to get up and leave the seclusion.

The lingering fragrance of sandalwood incense in the room had not yet dissipated, and the incense sticks in the bronze lamp had burned to the end, leaving only a small clump of grayish-white embers.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, feeling the nascent fetal breath slowly circulating in his dantian, and a sense of unprecedented peace welled up in his heart.

The transition from mortal to embryonic breathing may seem like a thin veil, but only those who have truly crossed it know that the two sides of that veil represent two completely different worlds.

He could feel that his five senses were much more acute than before—

The fine rust on the small bronze stove in the corner of the stone chamber, the faint breeze coming through the cracks in the wall, and even the hushed conversations in the neighboring courtyard were all so clear that they seemed to be right next to my ears.

This is the transformation brought about by fetal breathing.

The spiritual light transforms into spiritual consciousness, and the mortal body is transformed into the Dao body.

Chen Bai took a deep breath, gathered his scattered thoughts, and took something out of the pouch at his waist.

【Demon Essence Gathered】.

After the demon core was refined by the Guiyuan Creation Cauldron, all impurities were removed, leaving only the concentrated spiritual energy.

Chen Bai held the essence of demonic energy in his palm and slowly closed his eyes.

The dragon-snake-shaped embryonic breath in the dantian seemed to sense something, and its rotation speed suddenly increased, like a beast that had smelled its prey, becoming restless and excited.

Chen Bai did not deliberately guide him; he simply clenched his palms slightly, and a suction force naturally arose in his dantian, extending along the meridians to the Laogong acupoint in his palm.

laugh--

A very faint sound of airflow came from the palm of my hand.

The demonic essence suddenly shone brightly, and then an incomparably pure spiritual energy surged into the meridians through the Laogong acupoint, like a warm spring, flowing upwards along the three Yin meridians of the hand, passing the elbow crease, passing the Jianjing acupoint, and finally converging into the Dantian.

That newly born embryonic breath, like a seedling that has been parched for a long time and now receives sweet rain, greedily devoured and drank in this pure spiritual energy.

With each swallow, the embryonic breath expands slightly. It's like some kind of living thing, growing at a delightful pace, gradually increasing in size from the size of a millet grain to the size of a sesame seed, and then continuing to expand.

This process lasted for a full half day.

Chen Bai sat cross-legged, motionless.

The demonic essence in his palm gradually shrank from the size of a fist.

When half a day had passed and Chen Bai finally opened his eyes, the demonic essence in his hand had shrunk to only half its original size.

The embryonic breath in the dantian had grown from the size of a millet grain to the thickness of an earthworm, several times larger.

Chen Bai looked down at the demon essence in his hand, which had shrunk considerably. He first nodded in satisfaction, then couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle.

"The product is good, but unfortunately it's not very durable."

He weighed the demonic essence in his hand and secretly made some calculations in his mind.

This is just daily breathing exercises to consolidate one's cultivation. If one were to cultivate Taoist arts or engage in combat with others in the future, the consumption of spiritual energy would only be greater.

After entering the embryonic breathing stage, the demand for spiritual energy indeed increased by more than one order of magnitude.

He put the remaining demonic essence back into his storage bag and continued to practice his internal energy for another half an hour until the slightly unstable energy in his dantian due to the breakthrough completely stabilized. Only then did he truly stop cultivating.

The foundation for embryonic breathing has been stabilized. Next, it's time to cultivate Taoist arts.

Chen Bai took out four jade slips from his pouch and placed them in a row on the table.

【Ge Xianweng's Illumination Technique】, 【Crimson Flame Spirit Guiding Technique】, 【Green Raincoat Protection Method】, 【Grass Binding Spell】

Of the four lower-level Taoist arts, he had already mastered two of them, but the other two had been left untouched since he bought them and had not yet had time to practice them.

He first picked up the jade slip containing the Green Raincoat Protection Technique and probed it with his spiritual sense.

The method of this Taoist technique is not complicated. Its core is to use fetal breathing to condense a layer of spiritual light on the outside of the body to dissipate the force.

Chen Bai followed the method and circulated his embryonic breathing. A layer of light blue spiritual light surged from his body and condensed into a shape about an inch outside his body.

The light is clearly defined, just like the clear texture of a raincoat, with even the finest details of the straw-like patterns clearly visible.

In less than half an hour, the Green Raincoat Protection Technique had been activated and deactivated at will.

He put down the jade slip and picked up the knotted grass to form a binding spell.

This lower-level Taoist technique has a slightly complicated initial steps. It requires refining the grass seeds with fetal breathing before use. When using it, the grass seeds are scattered and incantations are recited to activate them. The grass seeds will then instantly grow into vines to entwine the enemy.

Chen Bai followed the method to refine a few grass seeds—the grass seeds were bought at the market and were not worth much money; a small bag would last a long time.

The method of refining is not difficult; it simply involves nurturing the grass seeds with fetal breathing, allowing them to adapt to the true qi of fetal breathing.

After nurturing it for fifteen minutes, he tried scattering a grain on the floor while chanting a spell.

The moment the seed hit the ground, it swelled violently, sprouting seven or eight thumb-thick vines that intertwined and grew wildly upwards, reaching over a meter in height in the blink of an eye. The vines were dark brown, rough in surface, and incredibly resilient. Chen Bai tested them with his short knife, and a single cut left only a shallow gash.

"It looks alright."

Chen Bai pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned his attention to another matter.

Crimson Flame Spirit Summoning Technique.

He now has two more demon beast essences at his disposal, and the trace of Xuan Yin Cold Flame left over from the previous trial has not yet been dissipated.

"However, this Xuan Yin Cold Flame is located in the 'Ding Fire' category, which matches the essence of that swamp leech."

Chen Bai pondered for a moment, "However, there is still one Jade Horned Antelope essence that I need to purchase a trace of spirit fire from the market."

Moreover, the Dao techniques used by cultivators practicing fetal breathing are far more powerful than they used to be.

He then realized that if he were to perform magic, it would be best not to try it here.

Although this small courtyard was rented, it was at least his place to stay. If he were to accidentally collapse the house, not to mention the matter of paying for the spirit stones, just finding another place to stay would take a lot of effort.

After a moment's thought, Chen Bai decided to rent a special cave dwelling for practicing magic.

On the west side of the market, there is a Dharma practice ground specifically for independent practitioners, where Dharma practice caves of different sizes are available for rent.

The cave dwelling has been reinforced with array formations on its walls and ground, making it capable of supporting cultivators at the embryonic breathing stage or even higher to practice their techniques within it.

The rent isn't cheap. It costs three spirit stones per hour, but it's sturdy and durable, so you don't have to pay for it if it gets damaged.

Chen Bai tidied up the things on the table, put them in his storage bag, and went out.

The execution ground was only a quarter of an hour's walk from the stone chamber he rented.

First, I spent fifteen minutes purchasing some materials.

When the circular building made of bluestone came into view from afar, there were already groups of two or three monks waiting in line at the entrance.

Most of these rogue cultivators had inconspicuous auras, but occasionally one or two carried a hint of murderous intent, clearly indicating that they were ruthless characters who had been fighting outside for many years.

Chen Bai walked calmly to the counter, took out six spirit stones, and slapped them on the table.

"Cave No. C, two hours."