His eyes revealed a thoughtful expression; the sect’s Divine Skills could not possibly be a lethal method—there must be some underlying rationale.
He repeatedly reviewed the spell, which he had already memorized by heart, but still could not find a solution to the Dharma technique. After pondering for a while, he inevitably recalled the Sect Leader’s earlier words: if there were any uncertainties in his cultivation, he should come and inquire.
Standing tall, he stepped out from the array gate of his cave mansion, mounted his escape skill, and flew swiftly toward the mountain gate.
Reaching the area beneath Dragon Abyss Marsh, he activated a Dharma talisman, transforming into a stream of golden light that leapt into the Floating Heavenly Palace. Upon entering the palace, the Dharma talisman seemed to be guided by something and turned toward the side hall he had visited previously. After several turns, it descended moments later.
He strode to the grand hall, bowed to the duty Daoist boy, and said, "Sect disciple Zhang Yan seeks an audience with the Sect Leader. Please kindly report this."
The Daoist boy, having seen Zhang Yan before, returned the gesture and said, "Junior Master Zhang, please wait a moment; I shall report to the Sect Leader promptly."
Soon after, the Daoist boy returned and conveyed the message: "Junior Master Zhang, the Sect Leader summons you inside."
Zhang Yan stepped inside, entered the hall, and saw Sect Leader Qin seated atop the jade platform. He hurried forward to pay his respects and said, "Disciple Zhang Yan greets the Sect Leader. The purpose of my visit today is to seek guidance from the True Master regarding a doubt I have."
Sect Leader Qin smiled and said, "You have chosen the Purple Cloud Divine Thunder technique. I anticipated that you would come. Step forward."
Zhang Yan moved several steps closer. Sect Leader Qin extended a finger that gently touched Zhang Yan’s brow, and in an instant, it seemed as if infinite marvelous techniques were imparted into his sea of consciousness.
Withdrawing his hand and waving his horsetail whisk, Sect Leader Qin continued, "To master this thunder technique is actually quite simple. You need to refine a piece of artifact stone and use it to purify the essence thunder. The method for crafting this stone has already been transmitted to you. Go back and cultivate diligently."
Having received transmission of the Dharma technique, Zhang Yan had achieved the purpose of his visit. Seeing Sect Leader Qin close his eyes and remain silent, he respectfully bowed again and departed at a measured pace.
Exiting the Floating Heavenly Palace, he rode his sword and flew away. He then carefully pondered the key points transmitted by the Sect Leader, and soon comprehended their profound mysteries.
It turned out that all things in existence operated under the dual principles of Yin and Yang, following transformations within the Five Elements that generated and counteracted one another. The artifact stone, called the "Ride Gold Essence Stone," could suppress rigid and vigorous energy, rendering it gentle and tame. By simply passing the fierce thunder energy through it, cultivators could utilize it effectively.
This method seemed deceptively straightforward, yet without guidance, disciples could not grasp the technique. During cultivation, one would inevitably experience great hardship. Even so, success in mastering the Dharma technique was far from guaranteed.
Zhang Yan couldn’t help but ponder that what Sect Leader Qin imparted was clearly a secret technique not recorded in the Mingcang Sect texts.
The Mingcang Sect’s thousand-year heritage contained few techniques that could decisively overcome barriers with ease—likely only the True Master Sect Leader would know them.
It seemed that Qi Yuntian probably knew many such concealed secrets, enabling him to cultivate numerous powerful Daoist Skills.
At this thought, Zhang Yan suddenly considered the Twelve Divine Abilities of the sect. It’s possible that all of them contained similar secret methods—if he gained the Sect Leader’s trust, even a casual pointer could save much unnecessary effort. He believed he would need to come and seek advice frequently in the future.
His tunneling light streaked swiftly across the void, and a moment later, he arrived back at Zhao You Heavenly Pond. However, rather than returning to the main hall, he activated the array gate and entered directly into the artifact refining cave mansion, landing before the Fish-Dragon Treasure Tripod.
He selected a suitable hidden ember within the furnace, waved his wide sleeve, and at once, the furnace roared to life. Flames surged high, blazing intensely.
Refining the "Ride Gold Essence Stone" was not difficult. Having previously refined the Life Protecting Banner here, he now no longer needed anyone’s assistance—he could refine it on his own.
As for the dozens of heavenly materials and earth treasures required for its sacrificial refinement, they might be challenging for other sect disciples to collect, but for him, they were commonplace. The items left behind by Gui Congyao alone were more than enough to meet the requirements.
He casually issued a spell to summon the Mirror Spirit to gather the materials, while he himself sat on a cushion.
After waiting for a few breaths, the array gate opened, and the Mirror Spirit stepped in, bowed, and said, "Master, you commanded me to locate the treasures—all are now here."
Zhang Yan said, "Bring them for me to see."
The Mirror Spirit made a gesture, and dozens of sacrificial refining materials floated into the air.
Among these were mud soil, steel sand, gold stone, exotic jade, refined gold, cave energy—most of which belonged to the elements of metal and earth.
Seeing that all the materials specified in the Dharma technique were assembled without any omissions, Zhang Yan nodded in approval and instructed firmly, "Zhang Jing, keep an eye on the furnace fire. If the flames change at all, remember to report to me immediately."
The Mirror Spirit responded loudly in affirmation.
Zhang Yan pointed with his finger at several points, first using a seed stone refined from blended sands as the primer, placing it into the furnace. Then he released a surge of vigorous Elixir Evil, driving the furnace fire, patiently performing sacrificial refinement.
For about three days and nights, the furnace body jolted, accompanied by loud reverberations. He realized that the seed stone had formed. The Elixir Evil churned ceaselessly; he kept operating the process. Following instructions from the spell, he sequentially added the dozens of treasure materials into the Fish-Dragon Treasure Tripod.
After another seven days, the furnace tripod started to shake violently, white Qi surged upward, and a stream poured out from the vent of the lid.
With a casual wave of his hand, Zhang Yan opened the furnace door. Inside, he saw a roughly angular auspicious stone suspended in mid-air, rolling unsteadily amidst the smoke.
He extended a finger, releasing a sharp aura that struck the stone. With a loud burst, it shattered into numerous fragments, revealing a rounded, polished jade stone about the size of an infant’s fist.
Zhang Yan’s spirit lifted. With a flip of his hand, the "Ride Gold Essence Stone" landed in his palm. Holding it before his eyes for closer inspection, he found the object exquisite and translucent, with fine apertures reminiscent of ant tunnels, crystalline and lustrous. He couldn’t help but nod in satisfaction.
Had he been more meticulous in refining this item, its appearance could have been even more pristine. However, since it was solely for his own refinement of thunder energy, its external appearance was inconsequential—he was content as long as its functionality remained intact.
Taking the refined stone, he stood and returned to the main hall, settling in.
Retrieving a piece of Gang Sand, he split it open and guided the thunder Qi to pass through the stone once, slowly absorbing it into his body. This time, the thunder Qi was indeed gentle and tame, no longer aggressive and uncontrollable like before.
Not only that, the thunder Qi that passed through the stone also seemed to harmonize with the accumulated thunder radiance in his body, assimilating it as well.
Zhang Yan’s heart was filled with joy; he had initially planned to find a way to expel the thunder Qi. Now, he was spared the additional effort.
Glancing at the pile of Gang Sand, he uttered a sharp command. The Star Sword Ball swiftly activated, transforming into sixteen streaks of sword light that spun and danced. Driven by his will, they slashed at the Purple Profusion Gang Sand. In an instant, sixteen streaks of purple Qi surged upward.
Zhang Yan inhaled deeply, drawing all sixteen streams of thunder Qi into his body and began to harmonize them through his cultivation technique.

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