Ning Zhuo held the Huiyi Bi, examining it carefully.

The pen body was made of Huangluo Jade, a yellow-green stone with natural patterns intertwined, forming indistinct trigrams.

The pen cap was made of Kaishu wood, bearing charred marks like lightning strikes.

The brush tip was made of Qiushuang Baihao hair, and when held against the light, tiny silver gleams could be seen.

The entire Huiyi Bi exuded the aura of a Dharma artifact.

Ning Zhuo, along with Bai Jiyun, Liu Fushu, and Kong Ran, had exchanged much information during their banquet, learning many details about this pen.

“To forge a Huiyi Bi, one must endure tribulations.”

“This is a Golden Core-rank Huiyi Bi, meaning it has withstood at least three tribulations.”

“Among them, the most basic is the Heart Demon Tribulation, which tests the literary heart of a Confucian cultivator. Additionally, when Huangluo Jade is extracted from water, it is highly likely to encounter a Lightning Tribulation.”

“Judging by the pen cap, which uses lightning-struck Kaishu wood, it’s probable that the Huangluo Jade, after being retrieved from the water, was not fully protected during the Lightning Tribulation and was eroded by lightning energy. Therefore, lightning-struck Kaishu wood was used to compensate for this material flaw.”

“As for what the third tribulation precisely was—”

Given Ning Zhuo’s current proficiency in Confucian cultivation and artifact forging, he couldn’t discern it.

During the banquet, he also showed this precious pen to Bai, Liu, and Kong, but none of the three cultivators found any clues either.

Not knowing didn’t prevent Ning Zhuo from using it.

Immediately, Ning Zhuo activated his Five Elements Dharma Power and infused it into the Huiyi Bi.

Ning Zhuo was not a Confucian cultivator, so the Five Elements Dharma Power wasn’t perfectly suited for the Huiyi Bi. While it would affect the actual efficacy, it was still usable.

As the Dharma Power was inputted, the seven-inch and two-fen long pen body soon emitted a gentle jade glow, warm and clear.

Tiny electric sparks shimmered on the pen cap.

At the brush tip, the silver light became a few shades more intense.

Ning Zhuo had already reached some trade agreements with Bai Jiyun and Kong Ran, which included the demand for genuine works.

Ning Zhuo now wanted to test the pen. After some thought, he first took out a tiger skin.

This tiger skin was heavy and thick, very wide, and on it were two large tattoo-like talismans.

These were trophies Ning Zhuo had acquired after clashing with a Pi Family cultivator and slaying a tiger demon.

Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong had both pondered over the two talismans on this tiger skin, but gained little insight.

“Let’s see if using this precious pen will make a difference this time?”

Ning Zhuo first copied the “Ranxue Benteng Fu” (Blood-Burning Gallop Talisman).

This talisman was nearly circular, as large as a millstone, seemingly written with blood, and now its surface resembled the dark red of dried blood.

Upon closer inspection, many flame-like textures could be seen within the dark red patterns.

Ning Zhuo had already studied this demon talisman once and knew its structure.

Ning Zhuo began to copy.

He took the talisman’s heart as the starting point. The heart of the Ranxue Benteng Fu had an upper part resembling a blood drop and a lower part like burning flames.

As Ning Zhuo copied the talisman heart, he immediately felt an unholy impulse and blurted out, “Blood burns fire, fire boils blood.”

From the talisman heart emanated the talisman’s main脉络 (main veins).

The main veins of the Ranxue Benteng Fu were three thickest, dark red cinnabar lines, slightly twisted, radiating outwards from the center of the talisman.

As Ning Zhuo copied, it felt as if he was experiencing three boiling blood vessels, pulsating rhythmically with a heartbeat.

“Twisted, boiling, like magma flowing within—”

Finally, there were the auxiliary decorations. Between the three main veins were tiny, closely spaced patterns.

While Ning Zhuo copied, he primarily felt two sensations.

One sensation was like a strong wind blowing across his face, a slight tingling. The other was spatial裂空 (cracking), breaking through limits.

From this, he immediately understood: “There must be two types of talisman patterns. One is the ‘Fenglei Wen’ (Wind-Lightning Pattern), and the other is the ‘Liekong Wen’ (Space-Cracking Pattern).”

This was a depth he had not uncovered during his previous research on the talisman.

A moment later, Ning Zhuo looked at the Ranxue Benteng Fu on the talisman paper, making his final summary.

This talisman, externally, was indistinguishable from the one on the tiger skin. Ning Zhuo gently stroked the surface of the talisman and could feel a dynamic sense of impending explosion from its bold and powerful lines, as well as the determination and demonic nature of burning blood as a sacrifice for enhanced speed.

He infused Dharma Power and ignited the talisman paper.

As a result, the talisman paper simply burned, with no reaction.

The talisman crafting had failed.

Ning Zhuo was not surprised in the slightest.

He had merely copied it once, experienced its “Yi” (essence/meaning), and slightly enhanced his foundation in talisman crafting. Of course, it also encompassed paper-folding magic, but the gains in that area were even more minimal.

Ning Zhuo then proceeded to copy the “Qianchong Linpi Fu” (Thousand-Layer Scale Skin Talisman).

This demon talisman was basin-sized, not perfectly circular like the Ranxue Benteng Fu, but more like an octagon with sharp angles.

The color of the talisman pattern was not dark red, but a deep earthy yellow.

This talisman looked difficult to copy at first glance; its main veins were too dominant, almost overshadowing everything else. The talisman heart was tiny but had myriad connections to its surroundings.

To copy such a talisman, one had to start from the outside and work inwards.

Ning Zhuo began to copy.

The main body of the Qianchong Linpi Fu consisted of countless dense, regular rhomboid talisman patterns. When copying, they also had to be layered.

Strands of “Yi” transmitted to Ning Zhuo’s heart, making him feel as if he were touching a real, precious scale armor.

As these rhomboid talisman patterns continuously extended inwards, Ning Zhuo gradually reached the position of the talisman heart.

Around the talisman heart, there were three different talisman patterns, constructing three concentric rings.

The outer appearance of the rings was almost identical, only differing in size. However, this time, when Ning Zhuo copied, he felt three different “Yi” from them.

The outer ring made him feel like swirling waves, the middle ring like heavy mountain peaks, and the inner ring like a slowly moving tortoise.

The final embellishments filled the gaps between the scales and the three concentric rings.

While Ning Zhuo copied, he felt as if space itself was generating ripples.

“It seems these are all related to ‘Xukong Lianyi Wen’ (Void Ripple Patterns). These patterns can enhance resistance to spells.”

During the final summary stage, Ning Zhuo looked at the complete Qianchong Linpi Fu on the talisman paper.

Unlike the previous Ranxue Benteng Fu, this demon talisman was intricate, regular, complex, and full of order and solidity.

The layered rhomboid talisman patterns, combined with the three concentric rings of the talisman heart, exuded an “Yi” of ‘thousand layers to deflect force, myriad spells are hard to invade’. This was a point Ning Zhuo had not even touched upon in his previous research.

He used Dharma Power to ignite the talisman paper, and without surprise, he experienced his second failure.

But he suffered no backlash.

This was the advantage of using talismans.

The talisman itself would bear the consequences of a failed spell, not the cultivator.

After continuously copying two demon talismans, Ning Zhuo closed his eyes and sat cross-legged, beginning to rest.

He felt dizzy, his essence and spirit greatly depleted, and his body and mind exhausted.

“The consumption of copying with the Huiyi Bi is far greater than I imagined.”

“My physical body and soul foundation both exceed most Foundation Establishment cultivators. If even I can’t sustain it, others might only be able to copy one demon talisman before needing to rest.”

“However, the effect of copying is truly excellent!”

“My understanding of demon talismans has directly surpassed the sum of all my and my leader’s previous research.”

But if Ning Zhuo were to try and explain it, he couldn’t immediately organize his thoughts into words.

This was “Yi.”

Information that is difficult to fully articulate through words or text.

It can only be comprehended intuitively, not easily expressed in words!

True masters can explain it simply, but the subtle intricacies are often lost in the explanation.

A moment later, Ning Zhuo fully recovered to his peak state.

He tried copying again.

This time, it wasn’t the tiger skin, but a jade slip he pulled from his storage belt—the “Bingdiao Midian” (Ice Sculpture Secret Compendium).

This was a manual on mechanisms, personally gifted to Ning Zhuo by Ning Jiufan, elucidating Ice Sculpture Mechanism Art, which was Ning Jiufan’s primary cultivation focus.

Ning Zhuo had read it a few times before and knew that this Ice Sculpture Mechanism book was unique and special. All ice sculptures were carved from a single large raw material, formed in one piece, rather than assembled from individual mechanical parts in the usual sense.

Therefore, to sculpt the desired form, one needed to master the carving technique, one of the Hundred Arts of Cultivation.

Especially internal carving, which required carving all array patterns and talismans on the inner wall of the ice sculpture.

Ning Zhuo’s carving skills were relatively weak.

Hence, he only treated this compendium as a reference book and did not delve deeper.

While traveling, he indeed had no time to attend to this minor detail.

This time, the copying was mainly to test his limits and what impact it would have on his comprehension of “Yi” when pushed to those limits.

Ning Zhuo continued to copy until he was almost at his breaking point; his soul became weak, his entire Spiritual Sea empty, and subsequent thoughts were difficult to generate.

He only copied a little over 10% of the entire compendium.

But Ning Zhuo felt that he had gained a deeper understanding of carving techniques, mechanism art, and ice elemental cultivation!

However, Ning Zhuo found it difficult to quantify this level of gain.

After his second rest, Ning Zhuo actively contacted Sun Lingtong: “Leader, something good has happened!”

He told Sun Lingtong about Wenruan Yu’s letter, his participation in Chu Xuangui’s Xingyun Xiaoshi, and his subsequent trade intentions with Kong Ran and Bai Jiyun, and so on.

Sun Lingtong was genuinely pleased and also offered Ning Zhuo advice: “Xiaozhuo, your direction is correct. Confucianism is the lineage most skilled at learning.”

“If you want to gain more, you can also utilize the Luoshu Shuye (Pages of the Luo River Diagram) and Lingyin Liu (Spirit Concealing Willow).”

“You can also buy some elixirs and talismans to aid yourself. For example, Huiquan Yongliu San (Wisdom Spring Gushing Powder), Wudao Lingcha (Enlightenment Spiritual Tea), Xinjing Wuchen Fu (Dustless Heart Mirror Talisman), Dunwu Puti Xiang (Instant Enlightenment Bodhi Incense) and such.”

“If Kong Ran successfully trades with you, perhaps focusing on ‘Zaozhi’ (Early Wisdom), you can also use your innate talent to help you comprehend and learn quickly!”

Ning Zhuo couldn’t help but feel a little excited about the prospects Sun Lingtong described: “The elixirs and talismans my leader listed are all precious and expensive.”

“There are only tens of thousands of Huiyi Bi in the entire cultivation world. Each one forged must undergo tribulations.”

“Lingyin Liu is also a hundred-percent rare spiritual plant.”

“Not to mention the ‘Zaozhi Tianzi’ (Early Wisdom Talent), which is one in ten thousand!”

“Even an incomplete Luoshu Shuye is a Dao artifact.”

“With all these factors combined, my learning speed will definitely increase! But I can’t estimate exactly how much.”

In short, the future looked bright!

Ning Zhuo took out the pen case.

This was the Yunhan Tinghao Xia (Cloud-River Resting Brush Case), about one chi and two cun long, four cun wide, and two cun thick, rectangular and flat overall.

Its corners were rounded like circulating star orbits, without any sharpness, exuding a gentle and inclusive feel.

With a gentle push, the lid would slide open in the other direction. The opening process was extremely smooth, without any noise. When closed, it sealed perfectly, showing only a faint glimmering slit, like a line across the heavenly river.

The pen body of the Huiyi Bi had lost its jade glow and was very dim.

Ning Zhuo placed the Huiyi Bi into the pen case, allowing it to warm and recover for a while.

Ning Zhuo began his daily cultivation.

As usual, physical cultivation and comprehension of the Moran Xuejin Gong (Demon-Infested Blood Meridian Art) were the two main focuses.

His physical foundation was steadily improving with the help of the Taixi Ling (Embryonic Breath Spirit).

But his progress in comprehending the Moran Xuejin Gong was still slow. “If I could obtain the genuine work of the Moran Xuejin Gong, I wouldn’t have this trouble,” Ning Zhuo sighed bitterly.

The Three Sect Lords had left genuine works for each cultivation technique in the Molten Immortal Palace.

The “Yi” in these genuine works were True “Yi”! Therefore, the three genuine works were three true scriptures.

Even without the Huiyi Bi, ordinary cultivators, simply by coming into contact with them, could receive the灌溉 (irrigation) of True “Yi”, and their realm in the three cultivation techniques would continuously rise!

“These three true scriptures were originally hidden within the Buddhist Physician, Demon General, and Dao Master.”

“The true scripture of the Moran Xuejin Gong was, by chance, refined by Yuan Dasheng as a material.”

“My mother is dwelling within the Buddhist Physician. But I haven’t found the true scripture of the Jingtai Tongling Jue (Mirror Platform Spirit Communication Art) within the Buddhist Physician either.”

“As for the true scripture of the Wuxing Qilv Jue (Five Elements Qi Rhythm Art) within the Dao Master, I don’t really need it.”

Ning Zhuo was very profound in the Five Elements realm.

He was stuck on demonic cultivation!

“I truly am not suited for cultivating demonic arts.”

“When will the Honghua Faxiang (Red Flower Dharma Form) break through? Perhaps I can interrogate Lin You for the ‘Moxin Famen’ (Demon Heart Method) as an important reference.”

Time passed, arriving at late night.

Ning Zhuo finished his cultivation technique comprehension, feeling quite dejected and unable to sleep for a while.

He simply made ice cubes and tried to carve them himself.

Failure, failure, failure—

A string of failures led him into contemplation: “Although I have gained ‘Yi,’ when it comes to actual execution, there’s a huge gap between it and my expected standards!”

“My eyes are too high, my hands too low. I still need a lot of practice to gain practical experience before I can make effective progress in my skills.”

Thinking this, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck Ning Zhuo.

It seemed there was a very crucial point—

But precisely at this moment, his cave dwelling token vibrated slightly, conveying a message of being under attack.

Ning Zhuo’s thoughts were interrupted, and he couldn’t help but be surprised: “How could my rented cave dwelling within the Wanxiang Sect be under attack?”

Upon checking, he found the attack power was extremely weak, originating from an automaton puppet.

Inside the automaton puppet was a letter from Ban Ji.

Ban Ji stated directly in the letter that he wanted to have a bout with Ning Zhuo. The winner could choose one trophy from the loser as a reward.

“Who is Ban Ji?” Ning Zhuo felt puzzled.

“Come, investigate his information for me,” Ning Zhuo summoned the Kitchen Elder and instructed him.

When he resumed his contemplation, Ning Zhuo couldn’t find the fleeting inspiration he had just moments ago.

“Ban Ji has misled me!”

Ning Zhuo gritted his teeth, a hint of annoyance inevitably rising in his heart. At the same time, he had a premonition.

This Ban Ji seemed to hold significant importance for him.

If left unaddressed, it might well delay his development within the Wanxiang Sect.