Chapter 202 - 119: The 3 Yuan Worldly Bodies, A Refining Chamber in the Fire

"Five Elements Primordial Divine Light..."

Xuzhuang toyed with the jade slip. He hadn't expected that, in addition to some expositions on the Five Elements Dao, it would also include a Dao skill—the very one that was Zhou Jun's specialty, the Five Elements Primordial Divine Light.

The Gold Divine Light was incomparably sharp; the Wood Divine Light, tough and vigorous; the Water Divine Light, vast and mighty; the Fire Divine Light, scorching and fierce; and the Earth Divine Light, indestructible. Each of the Five Elements Divine Lights had its own wondrous uses. With deep cultivation, they could even generate and transform into one another, offering endless variations. It was more than capable of handling any situation and could only be described as a Superior Dao Skill.

Xuzhuang could also faintly deduce that if the Five Elements Divine Light was taken a step further, the five lights might merge into one. He couldn't imagine what kind of power it would possess then. 'Would it have the might to sweep away anything and everything, to annihilate all of creation?'

Xuzhuang pondered for a moment, then suddenly took out a grain of Five Elements True Sand. With a light pinch, he transformed it into a wisp of pure essence, which he gently inhaled before closing his eyes and entering a meditative state.

After refining it for about a quarter of an hour, Xuzhuang suddenly twitched his shoulder. A thin, hazy, platinum radiance rose up, wavered in the air, and after a dozen or so breaths, slowly turned the color of water. Then, the process accelerated: water generated wood, wood generated fire, fire generated earth, and earth generated gold. The five colors flowed in a ceaseless cycle.

At a certain moment, when the light once again transformed into the radiance of Gold, a thought suddenly crossed Xuzhuang's mind. The golden light condensed into a single line and swept past his eyes, passing over a teapot. The teapot didn't move an inch, but within Xuzhuang's Dharma Eye, it had been cleaved by a minuscule slit.

"So there's this method of casting it too. Interesting." A barely perceptible smile touched Xuzhuang's lips.

The power and profundity of this Five Elements Primordial Divine Light went without saying. However, the skill itself had a peculiar aspect: it had two cultivation methods. Those with a foundation in Five Elements Dao Techniques and possessing Five Elements Magical Power could cultivate it directly. This was the orthodox method.

There was also an External Refining Method. With this, even those who didn't cultivate Five Elements Dao Techniques could master this Dao skill by using Five Elements Spiritual Objects, five-elemental essences, and the like. The power achieved through this method was not necessarily weaker than the orthodox way. In fact, if one used a particularly potent Spiritual Object, the skill could even be stronger than when fueled by one's own Magical Power.

Of course, the orthodox method was the fundamental path. The External Refining Method consumed the refined five-elemental essence with each use, making it unsustainable in the long run. Moreover, practitioners of the orthodox method could also use the External Refining Method to augment the Dao skill's power. The difference between the two was still immense.

This was perhaps why Zhou Jun had offered this Dao skill. After all, Xuzhuang did not cultivate Five Elements Dao Techniques and couldn't use the orthodox method. For him, this Dao skill seemed to be more of an academic curiosity. But Zhou Jun could never have known that an anomaly like Xuzhuang existed in the world.

Xuzhuang pondered for a moment, then with a flip of his hand, stored the jade slip in his sleeve. He now genuinely had the idea of cultivating a true Five Elements technique, and as it happened, he already possessed a rather profound one: the *Five Elements Origin Union Art*.

During the hundred days he had spent with Zhou Jun, although he was the one guiding Zhou Jun's Dao techniques, it wasn't difficult to deduce from the bits and pieces of information Zhou Jun let slip that the *Five Elements Origin Union Art* had more advanced chapters, or that the entire art was derived from an even more profound Dao technique.

In truth, if Xuzhuang had offered a great reward to exchange Dao techniques with Zhou Jun, it would not have been difficult to accomplish. But he was, after all, a senior. If he were to ask a junior, it might seem somewhat coercive, and his character would not allow him to do such a thing.

Of course, Xuzhuang wasn't being needlessly scrupulous. Dao techniques were merely stepping stones on the path to the Great Dao. He was confident that with the Tai Su True Inheritance—a path that pointed directly to Pure Yang and offered the hope of attaining Immortal Merits—the *Five Elements Origin Union Art* was sufficient for studying the Five Elements. Whether he sought further opportunities or deduced them himself in the future, Xuzhuang was not lacking in confidence.

Setting aside the matter of cultivation for the time being, Xuzhuang took out the leather scroll map that Dongguo Yi had sent him. He unrolled it for a look and thought to himself, 'So it's here.'

The Fire Vein recorded on the map was located in a mountain range south of the Central Plains. It wasn't too far, and making a trip there wouldn't be a major issue.

Xuzhuang rolled up the leather scroll and stood up. He didn't rush to leave, however. Instead, he turned and walked toward the depths of his cave abode, and before long, he arrived at his personal cultivation chamber.

Upon entering the chamber, one could see a young Daoist sitting serenely cross-legged on a Profound Ice Couch in the innermost part of the room. His face was calm, but between his hairline and glabella, a speck of golden flame flickered up and down. This golden light pierced through the crown of his head, seeming to form a divine halo that made him appear lofty and majestic.

Nearby, another young Daoist sat before a small table. On it were two jade jars. One was filled to the brim with black and white game pieces. The other jar was stranger; it was half-full of game pieces made from all sorts of miscellaneous materials—gold, stone, iron, wood—all soaking in a shallow layer of clear water.

The young Daoist was seen picking up a white piece from the jar of black and white pieces. With a gentle rub, the piece transformed into a translucent ice crystal in his hand. The Daoist seemed to savor the feeling for a moment before tossing the ice piece into the miscellaneous jar and picking up another.

If an outsider were present, they would be stunned to discover that the two young Daoists in the chamber, as well as the Xuzhuang who had just entered, all shared the exact same appearance, the exact same clothes, and the exact same aura.

Xuzhuang saw that the other two were busy. Not in any hurry, he casually sat down in front of the Xuzhuang toying with the game pieces and took out the *Five Elements Origin Union Art* to study it.

The three of them went about their own tasks in silence. A full day and night passed without a sound. Suddenly, the divine halo above the head of the Xuzhuang on the Profound Ice Couch retracted. All the golden light converged into the speck of golden flame, which came to a rest on his glabella, looking as if a fiery, exquisite jewel had been dotted between his brows with golden sand.