Chapter 50: The Source of All Techniques

Somehow, Li Si felt completely relaxed. The sensation was quite clear, and this time he didn’t even need to cast the Calamity-Dispelling Curse to be sure.

“There shouldn’t be a problem, right? After all, I still have the top-tier Mind-cleansing Aura on me, and not a single Steadfast Mountain Seal has been used up.”

Thinking this, Li Si still felt uneasy. Taking advantage of others not paying attention, he secretly cast a low-tier Disaster Warding Aura on himself.

Yes, the kind that only consumed 180 points of Magic Power.

Besides that, he could also cast the 1000-point annual enhanced version, the 2000-point annual deluxe version, the 3000-point annual Plus version, the 4000-point annual sport luxury light-extravagance version, the 5000-point rose gold classic limited-edition Pro version, and the 6000-point version…

Alright, he couldn’t make up any more. He really wasn’t a good merchant after all.

“It’s fine? That’s really great.”

“Senior Brother Xu, I want to go south again. There’s still a lot of supplies left in that abandoned village. While it’s still early, I’ll go make another trip to move them.”

For a moment, Li Si looked spirited and promptly requested permission from Xu Shen. Well, now he had to perform well; otherwise, how could he trick that advanced Fiend-Slaying Sword Qi from Xu Shen’s hand just to take a look?

Really, just one look was enough.

But Xu Shen actually disagreed.

“Junior Brother, let this matter rest. Don’t harbor any more greed. Once greed arises, no one can save you out in the wild. Moreover, the destruction of that Evil God Idol will surely draw serious attention from the Evil God Cult. From any perspective, they’ll think there might be a Nascent Soul True Cultivator in this area, or perhaps our Honorable World-Guarding Sect.”

“If they send an army to suppress us because of this, do you think we can withstand it?”

“Now, Senior Brother Ji, please take Junior Brother Li and clear away all the traces he left earlier.”

“Alright!”

Ji Chang agreed readily.

Li Si, however, felt a chill down his spine. The Evil God Cult could actually send an army to sweep through? Ah, how was anyone supposed to survive in this world?

“Senior Brother Ji, how large is the Evil God Cult’s army?”

Li Si hurried to catch up with the now-silent Ji Chang and asked softly.

“As large as you can imagine. Hundreds of years ago, the Evil God Cult already supported puppet kingdoms in many regions.” Ji Chang glanced at Li Si and pulled out two low-quality, -500-security-feeling Heart-Calming Talismans. He tossed one to Li Si and prepared to use one on himself.

This was a necessary preparation before going out, like offering cigarettes when meeting someone—first giving oneself a buff of being handsome, generous, easy-going, rich, and ready to boast freely without charge.

But what kind of person was Li Si?

He calmly pushed back the low-quality Heart-Calming Talisman and, with a wave of his hand, cast a low-tier 180-point Magic Power version of the Mind-cleansing Aura on Ji Chang.

Of course, Ji Chang might not recognize its value, or even if he did, what could he do? Besides feeling envy, jealousy, and shouting “YYDS,” he could do nothing.

“Hmm?”

Ji Chang frowned slightly. After all, he was an old Foundation Building Cultivator. Though his realm and cultivation had declined later, his insight remained. This Mind-cleansing Aura felt clear, bright, and sharpened all five senses. In motion and stillness, the whole world seemed to change, making him wish he had wings to fly…

“Is this—a Half-Step Divine Ability?”

“What?” This time it was Li Si’s turn to be confused. Wasn’t this just a low-tier Heart Cleansing Curse?

Ji Chang studied Li Si carefully, confirming that he genuinely didn’t understand. That made sense—how long had he been practicing Dao Techniques? Even an old Foundation Building Cultivator like himself couldn’t master a Half-Step Divine Ability, and no one expected him to.

“Junior Brother Li, no wonder Master holds you in such high regard, even personally helping you unblock all your meridians and acupoints, bestowing you with Fate/Luck, giving you a name, and enabling you to build your foundation overnight. I wasn’t convinced before, but now I am.”

“Wait, Senior Brother Ji, what’s a Half-Step Divine Ability? Also, how do you know I’ve built my foundation?” Li Si almost didn’t react in time.

“Master told us personally this morning. How could that be false?”

Ji Chang snorted, not finding this particularly shocking, though he certainly felt envy and jealousy. Ah, he had been the Old Madam’s disciple for three hundred years and never received such an honor—having her personally ‘assist’ in unblocking all meridians and acupoints…

Damn it all!

Ji Chang wanted to curse but forcibly suppressed the emotional turmoil. He was an old Foundation Building Cultivator; he couldn’t make such a low-level mistake.

Then, he decisively stopped dwelling on the matter. After all, Junior Brother Li offered this “little panda”—ah, the Mind-cleansing Aura was awesome and impressive, so he let it go. As they walked, he explained to Li Si.

“The so-called Half-Step Divine Ability lies between Divine Ability and Dao Technique. We Cultivators practice methods daily, also called Dao Methods, which emulate heaven and earth in seeking the path to longevity, not involving killing. But the path of Cultivation is long and full of calamities, hence we have techniques to guard the Dao. These guarding techniques aren’t limited to Dao Techniques; they also include Talisman Techniques, Formation Arrays, Pill Techniques, Beast Taming, Sword Control Techniques, and so on.”

“Basically, unless one is a Cultivation genius, it’s enough to choose two or three guarding techniques. Among all guarding techniques, the first choice must be Dao Technique, followed by others.”

“The reason is that Dao Technique is the source of all techniques. Without learning Dao Technique, other guarding techniques cannot be mastered thoroughly.”

Hearing this, Li Si forgot about how the Old Madam knew he built his foundation, because what Ji Chang said now was very important. For example, according to this reasoning, the language in his original world was like emulating heaven and earth, seeking the way of survival in human interactions, while mathematics was like Dao Technique—the source of all techniques. He understood now…

Ji Chang continued, “Dao Technique is called the source of all techniques because, regardless of time, place, or situation, using the appropriate Dao Technique could be applied. Before the Evil God invaded, some sects reportedly revered Dao Technique exclusively. From birth to death, all aspects of life—eating, drinking, even relieving oneself—relied on Dao Technique. They researched hundreds of thousands of Dao Techniques, attempting to solve everything with them.”

“For instance, cooking had a Royal Meal Curse, sweeping had a Dust Curse, even going to the toilet had a Sleight-of-Hand Curse. Actually, this was extreme. While Dao Technique could be applied universally, focusing only on application without efficiency was unreasonable. For example, in large-scale fixed defense, how could Dao Technique compare to Formation Arrays? When short on manpower, Dao Technique couldn’t match Talisman Techniques. Pill Techniques, Sword Control Techniques—all had their own strengths…”

“Then, Senior Brother, if I master Sword Control Technique to the extreme, can I become a Sword Immortal?” Li Si couldn’t resist interrupting.

Ji Chang gave him a strange look.

“What kind of idea is that? There’s a ‘Technique’ character in Sword Control Technique—did you eat it? The word ‘Technique’ determines the scope of Sword Control Technique, no different from Dao Technique, Talisman Technique, Pill Technique, or Formation Arrays. Long life and sustained vision are what make an Immortal. The path to longevity requires emulating heaven and earth—heaven and earth as they are, you as you are. Do you think a world filled only with whooshing sword energy everywhere could last long?”

“So, we practice the 【Heaven-Turning Scripture】. The core methods of other Cultivation sects also have a ‘Scripture’ character in their names.”

“Guarding techniques can involve various clever tricks, adaptability, decisiveness in killing, but Cultivation methods must prioritize stability. Let me put it this way: methods with a ‘Scripture’ suffix in their names are genuine, containing longevity methods, though not necessarily precious. If a method includes ‘Earth’ and ‘Scripture’ characters, it’s already quite valuable. If it includes ‘Heaven’ and ‘Scripture’ characters, it’s basically the top-tier, most precious foundational scripture.”

“Of course, excluding counterfeits.”

Ji Chang spoke with considerable pride here, but Li Si secretly scoffed. If it were truly so powerful, how did they end up in such a state, beaten by the Evil God?

Ji Chang seemed to know what Li Si was thinking and said, “The matter of the Evil God’s invasion is reportedly quite complex. I don’t know the details and can’t discuss them with you in the wild. But that doesn’t diminish the strength of our Floating Cloud Sect’s 【Heaven-Turning Scripture】. Do you think being a World-Guarding Sect is a joke? There are only twelve in this world.”

“Never mind, I’ve digressed. You just need to know that for Dao Technique, comprehending and mastering it to the extreme becomes a Half-Step Divine Ability, because the effect released is extremely powerful, already close to a Divine Ability—hence the term Half-Step Divine Ability.”

“As for Divine Abilities, they are deeper extensions of basic Dao Techniques. Above Divine Abilities, there are Primal Divine Abilities, and above those, Law Divine Abilities. But those are heights we can hardly reach in this lifetime, so no need to discuss them.”

Ji Chang finished hastily and took out a talisman paper, slapping it on the ground. A blue light instantly shot out, accurately locking onto the route Li Si took that morning.

“This is the Track-Finding and Trace-Erasing Talisman. It can be used for tracking and for erasing traces. You seemed to gain a lot today, but if we don’t handle the traces, it will surely lead to disaster. After returning today, I’ll teach you the Track-Finding and Trace-Erasing Curse. You’re always running outside; if someone picks up your trail, you won’t even have time to cry.”