This was the idea of the Variant Immortal School!
A sharp glint flashed in Xu Qing's eyes. There wasn't much content in this jade slip but every word was like a gem, concisely expressing the system of the Variant Immortal School.
Although the specific method wasn't described in the jade slip, Xu Qing could tell a thing or two from the generalization of these words.
'This method is similar to the Divine Fusion School, but one is storing the divine and the other is fusing with the divine. The former involves maintaining the intact human body, outlining the divine in the sea of consciousness, aiming to break through using the method of storing the divine, and achieve the status of a Variant Immortal.'
'The latter involves gradually abandoning the human body, replacing it with a divine body, and ultimately becoming purely divine, becoming a human god.'
'This train of thought… is indeed stunning. No wonder Chenyun said that the Variant Immortal School was once the number one school in Imperial Academy.'
Xu Qing pondered and looked at the empty surroundings. He understood that there should be a fatal flaw in this method. This flaw was the reason why the Variant Immortal School had declined.
'The requirement for its cultivation is probably extremely high!'
'Moreover, refining the soul into threads to weave a god or a divine creature will definitely pose a huge risk. Its cultivation speed is probably not fast either.'
'That's why Chenyun said that this idea is unrealistic.'
"Perhaps no one has succeeded before?"
After Xu Qing analyzed the situation, he looked at the school head who was rummaging through the pile of jade slips and asked his question.
"Who said that no one has succeeded before?" The voice of the school head was filled with dissatisfaction.
"8,000 years ago, Li Xuanfeng of the Variant Immortal School successfully weaved an earth child in his sea of consciousness and revealed it to the outside world. His combat strength increased to an astonishing extent."
The tone of the school head was filled with pride. However, as soon as he finished speaking, one of the three lazy disciples sitting at the door spoke faintly.
"True, Ancestor Li Xuanfeng cultivated for a full thousand years, almost reaching the end of his lifespan before he managed to weave a divine creature of Spirit Repository Realm with his soul. It's indeed quite impressive."
The school head glared.
"Although it's a little slow, after Ancestor Li Xuanfeng succeeded, he became very powerful with the help of the divine storage technique in his sea of consciousness!"
"That's right, that's right. After that, he was beaten to death by a nonhuman race's Spirit Repository who had only cultivated for 500 years." Among the three disciples, another sighed.
The school head's eyes widened even more, revealing dissatisfaction.
"Also, 5,000 years ago, our school's ancestor, Chen Daoze, succeeded as well. With a thought, the divine creature stored in his sea of consciousness covered his entire body, shaking heaven and earth."
"Yes, yes, yes. After that, Ancestor Chen Dao couldn't turn back… The specimen is still under the white tower. Teacher, the Divine Fusion School wants to buy it. Why don't we sell it?" The person in the middle of the three sighed and persuaded.
"Don't mention the Divine Fusion Style to me. What kind of concept is that? It's a mess. Does a monkey become a human after wearing human clothes?!"
The school head flicked his sleeve, his words revealing intense disdain for the Divine Fusion School.
The three disciples each sighed. One of them looked at Xu Qing and sighed with emotion.
"Student, I advise you to leave quickly. The three of us cannot escape. We were foolish back then, thinking that a declining place must have treasures, trying to reap the benefits without putting in the effort… But we didn't expect to be fooled by this old guy, who said that only core disciples could learn. So, we ended up signing a lifelong contract."
"We can't leave. We can only stay here."
"You shouldn't be from the Imperial City, right? So, you don't know the details of this place. I advise you not to be rash."
When the school head heard this, it was unknown if there was a change in his masked face. He habitually snorted and squatted down, continuing to search for things in the pile of jade slips.
The entire white tower fell silent.
Xu Qing hesitated. He looked at the three disciples and then at the school head before bidding farewell and leaving.
After walking some distance away, Xu Qing turned his head and looked at the white tower of the Variant Immortal School.
It was located in the east, which held quite a significant meaning within the Imperial Academy. This area was bustling with activity, one could imagine that this tower was also extremely lively in the past, with many students coming and going.
However, now, it was empty, the glory of the past was only in the past. Very few people asked about it now.
From their attitudes, the three students were telling the truth. They had indeed been tricked into joining the place and were resentful because of it. The sect head probably felt guilty, so he could only habitually snort to preserve his last bit of dignity as the head of the Variant Immortal School.
"I wonder what kind of state the two successful ancestors they mentioned were in when they created a divine image in their sea of consciousness and reflected it outside?"
Xu Qing pondered and walked into the crowd, disappearing.
Time flowed by and another half a month passed.
Xu Qing had basically visited all the schools in the Imperial Academy and his accumulation of knowledge was also increasing day by day. However, these were all generalities. His time and energy caused him to be unable to gain a microscopic understanding of every school.
In the end, he didn't choose to join any school.
The main factor influencing his decision was that he kept on thinking of Summer Immortal.
These two words seemed to possess a strange power, causing his mind to constantly linger around them.
At the root of it all, Xu Qing knew it stemmed from the sentence his master uttered to him after refining the iron rod.
'It was forged by me using the Summer Immortal's method recorded in the ancient books. Hence, I call it an immortal artifact!'
At this moment, with the moon shining faintly in the sky, Xu Qing sat cross-legged in the courtyard of Ning Yan's residence, gazing at the bright moon in the clear sky. Scenes of his encounters with his master flashed through his mind from the moment they met until now.
"At that time, when Master said the term 'Summer Immortal', I didn't understand and thought that it was just a theory of forging magic artifacts."
"However, after I arrived at the Imperial Capital, my conversation with the third princess caused me to have some doubts. This lasted until my experience in the past month in the Imperial Academy, especially when I visited the Variant Immortal School…"
When the moonlight landed on Xu Qing's body, it was as though a layer of veil was draped over him, causing his entire body to emit moonlight. However, when this light spread out ten feet, it turned purple.
"Why does Master know the Summer Immortal's method… and is proficient in it?" "His words seemed to have planted a thought in me. It is like a seed that started to sprout as I understood the situation in the Imperial City."
Xu Qing lowered his head and took out the iron rod, placing it in front of him as he stared at it carefully.
As time passed by, an hour later, the sound of footsteps accompanied by a melody drifted in from outside the mansion.
The captain was swaying as he entered.
He was clearly in a very good mood and had drunk alcohol. At that moment, he walked under the moonlight and passed by the courtyard. When he saw Xu Qing, he grinned.
"Little Qing, how is your study going on in the Imperial Academy? I feel like I haven't seen you for some time."
"Let me tell you, I've discovered a good place recently. You know about the Mortal World Tower, right?" As he spoke, the captain, who reeked of alcohol, walked to Xu Qing's side and patted Xu Qing's shoulder.
"The Mortal World Tower is not bad."
Xu Qing lifted his head and looked at the captain.
"I've been there before. When I departed that place, I encountered an assassination attempt. I told you about it."
The captain blinked and laughed.
"That's right. I have been investigating your assassination attempt."
After saying that, the captain took out a flask of wine and passed it to Xu Qing.
In order not to disturb Eldest Senior Brother's elegance, Xu Qing didn't inform him about the clay fox.
He took the wine flask and took a sip, feeling a little dizzy immediately after.
This was the Mortal World Tower's Drunken Immortal.
"Is there something on your mind?" The captain took the flask and took a sip. He then looked at Xu Qing and asked curiously.
Xu Qing pondered about it and spoke softly.
"Senior Brother, Master… what's his background?"
As soon as Xu Qing finished speaking, the captain's hand that was holding the wine flask paused. After he put it down, he gazed into Xu Qing's eyes.
Their eyes met. Sensing Xu Qing's serious expression, the captain smiled.
"The old man's background is very mysterious. Look at the disciples he took in."
"I am the number one heaven's chosen of the Wanggu Continent!"
Xu Qing blinked and nodded seriously in agreement.
The captain was satisfied and continued to speak.
"You are the second heaven's chosen of the Wanggu Continent!"
"Old Second, hehe, her marriage fate is extraordinary. You should have guessed it too, right? I had some doubts before and made sure to verify it when I returned to Fenghai County."
"And that scoundrel, our third brother. Let me inform you, he may appear insignificant now, but trust me, he's full of schemes and harbors quite a few secrets. I suspect… he's somehow connected to the Ghost Emperor!"
"As for the Ghost Emperor, no one knows his race and origins, but his weapon has the Divine Realm's mark on it. He has killed cultivators of the Divine Realm before."
"Tell me, how could such a great expert back then have no background? However, it just so happens that this is the case. So, I have a bold guess that he might have come from…"
As the captain spoke, he lifted his hand and pointed at the sky.
Xu Qing's pupils contracted. In the sky, other than the god's fragmented-face, there were other things in the starry sky further away.
"Holy land!"
The captain burped and smiled.
"This is my guess. Also, regarding Master, let me inform you a secret."
"Once, in a past life, I encountered someone who seemed very familiar to the old man. It wasn't just a resemblance in appearance, but rather an inexplicable feeling…"
When Xu Qing heard this, his gaze froze.
"Moreover, when I first became his disciple in this life, I also recalled that I seemed to have seen him more than once. However, many of my memories have been lost."
The captain shook his head and stood up, stretching his back.
"Little Qing, don't think too much. You should learn from me, be happy. If you can manage to be happy every day, that's the highest state of being alive."
After saying that, the captain swayed as he trekked toward the house. After taking seven to eight steps, he stopped in his tracks and stood under the moonlight with his back facing Xu Qing.
"Little Qing, do you still recall what I uttered to you when you became Master's disciple in the Seven Blood Eyes?"
"Bow once to the ancient sovereign, three times to heaven and earth, and nine times to the master."
"Ancient Sovereign Mystic Nether started a great undertaking, so we need to bow once to him."
"Heaven and earth bear the weight of history, so we need to bow three times to them."
"However, the high and mighty ancient sovereign hasn't graced you. The sea of bitterness of all living beings in heaven and earth didn't spare you. Only a teacher can take you to the sky and tread on the ground. He shall grace you in this life and help you to cross into the next. He will do his best to walk the Great Dao together with you, so you need to bow nine times to him!"
Under the moonlight, in the courtyard, the captain's voice contained the feeling of time, echoing throughout this life.
"In this life, not only are we traveling together, but our master is also traveling together with us!"
