After submitting his graduate exam, Liu Yufei didn't need to wait for the results; he knew for certain that he had failed this time. It wasn't that his academic performance was poor; on the contrary, he had always been a top student, excelling in every exam year after year. Even the principal had predicted that Liu Yufei would be the top scholar this year. No one could have predicted, as the saying goes, "no one knows when the weather will change," that just one day before the exam, he would come down with a high fever. No matter how much medicine he took, it wouldn't subside. With his body temperature soaring to thirty-nine degrees Celsius, he still had to go to the examination hall. Normally, the exam would have been effortless for Liu Yufei, but now his mind was completely blank, filled only with a heavy, dizzying sensation. Thus, this was the first time in his life he had faced failure on a graduation exam day. Despite this failure, Liu Yufei's parents didn't blame him at all. Even his teachers at school sympathized with him, and the principal himself told Liu Yufei's parents that if he was willing, he could retake the exam next year. Liu Yufei's parents were extremely grateful for this.
After spending several days dazed at home, Liu Yufei called his girlfriend, Xia Yujie, to meet up. The moment Liu Yufei saw Xia Yujie, she resolutely broke up with him. Liu Yufei had somewhat anticipated this, as in the past few days, despite facing such a huge setback, Xia Yujie, his girlfriend, hadn't visited him or even called. After the exam failure, he was dealt yet another blow. If the exam failure had caused him agony, what truly broke his heart was the fact that Xia Yujie had been toying with his feelings.
Three days after breaking up with Xia Yujie, Liu Yufei still remembered what she had told him that day: "Liu Yufei, listen carefully. I, Xia Yujie, have never loved you. The only reason I became your girlfriend was to find an excuse for you to do my homework every day. Otherwise, how could I ever love someone like you? Your family has no power, no influence, and you refuse to look in a mirror. How could I possibly love someone who looks like that? Anyway, I managed to pass the university entrance exam this time, all thanks to your help. Haha... goodbye!"
In the following days, Liu Yufei's mood grew even more depressed. His family, concerned about his recent failure, worried that he would simply wallow in sadness at home every day. So, they gave him three thousand yuan to travel and clear his mind. Liu Yufei looked at the three thousand yuan in his hand, knowing it was money his older brothers, working away from home, had sent to their parents. Otherwise, his parents wouldn't have had such a large sum.
Liu Yufei thought to himself that instead of staying home feeling miserable every day, he might as well go traveling to relax. After all, the woman who had broken his heart had already left him. After several days of contemplation, Liu Yufei decided to travel to Kunlun Mountain in the Northwest. This place held many attractions for Liu Yufei: Buddhist scriptures, Buddhism itself, flora, fauna, and ethnic minorities. It was also the origin of many ancient Chinese myths and legends. Ever since he was a child, Liu Yufei had heard tales of Kunlun being the dwelling place of immortals, and this made him feel incredibly drawn to it.
Lưu Vũ Phi went on a three-day tour. The scenery of Kunlun, its Buddhist culture, and the cultures of its ethnic minorities all broadened his horizons. This trip left him very satisfied, and the pain in his heart gradually faded away. Today was the last day of his Kunlun tour, and also the most famous scenic spot in Kunlun: Yaochi. Legend had it that when Xiwangmu (Queen Mother of the West) left Kunlun to return to the divine realm, she took everything she could with her. Only Yaochi remained, unable to be taken, and thus still existed in the mortal world. As Lưu Vũ Phi walked, he imagined, wondering if the legendary Xiwangmu was real. If she truly existed, perhaps when she returned to the divine realm, she might have dropped half a divine artifact or even a whole one. If he could pick it up, wouldn't that be a treasure worth a thousand years? However, he was merely daydreaming. Thousands of people visited Kunlun every year; if there truly were any divine artifacts, they would have long been taken.
He continued walking and pondering until he suddenly realized he had strayed from his tour group. Now, there wasn't a soul in sight, and he found himself on the peak of a promontory right by the mountain's edge. Seeing this, he hastily ran back, but to his surprise, after running for an hour, he still returned to the same spot. A sudden fear welled up in his heart regarding this place. While Lưu Vũ Phi's mind was blank and wandering, he had walked into the center of a formation. Now, if he wanted to leave, he would need to know the method; otherwise, there was no hope of getting out. He never imagined such a restrictive formation existed. This was a courtyard where Xiwangmu had set up the Immortal Trapping Formation for her cultivation. Xiwangmu had created this restriction back then, fearing outsiders would enter and disturb her cultivation. And Lưu Vũ Phi was the first living person in over ten thousand years to have entered it. Now, Lưu Vũ Phi was like someone standing before a treasure vault, unable to find the entrance. All Lưu Vũ Phi needed to do was tap the rock next to the Formation Eye, and he could enter the treasure vault immediately.
Lưu Vũ Phi thought to himself, since he couldn't find a way out yet, he might as well rest a bit and wait for someone to rescue him. Lưu Vũ Phi saw only a single rock nearby. Without a second thought, he walked over and sat down. This truly was fate's design. The moment Lưu Vũ Phi sat on the rock, his eyes blurred, and the surrounding scenery suddenly spun wildly and intensely. What startled him so much that he jumped was that the scene before his eyes made him feel as if he were dreaming. It was breathtakingly beautiful, truly beyond words to express its absolute splendor. Only four words could describe it: a land of immortals. This place also had animals Lưu Vũ Phi had never seen or heard of before. These creatures seemed completely unafraid of humans; when he suddenly appeared, they merely glanced at him, seemingly unfazed by his abrupt arrival. At that moment, a tall, majestic creature approached—a mythical Qilin. Beside it was a little red bird, a very beautiful one, its entire body fiery red except for its lovely seven-colored tail feathers. The little red bird spoke, "Human, greetings. You are the first person to reach this place in over ten thousand years. Do humans perhaps need assistance?"
At this moment, Liu Yufei's head buzzed. He truly hadn't expected to arrive in a land of immortals, and what was even more inconceivable was meeting a small bird that could speak human language. It was truly like a dream. Liu Yufei was so startled he was dazed, staring blankly at the little red bird, unable to speak. The little red bird saw Liu Yufei just staring blankly at it for a long time without saying anything, so it angrily said, "You rude human, are you listening to me or not? Why aren't you answering? You're despising the noble bloodline of my Phoenix!"
At this moment, Liu Yufei was even more dumbfounded. Could this talking little red bird really be the legendary divine beast Phoenix? How could it be so much worse than its legendary image? It didn't look like a Phoenix at all! The Phoenix saw Liu Yufei just staring foolishly at it without answering, and it was completely enraged. Before his gaping, foolish expression, it transformed into a magnificent, brightly colored bird about a foot in size. It spread its two wings, each about a foot long, and with a gentle flap, created a gust of wind that sent Liu Yufei tumbling backward... splashing into a small nearby pond.
Liu Yufei couldn't react in time and swallowed several mouthfuls of water. This, however, sobered him up, and he stammered as he looked at the Phoenix's large body, "Are you really the legendary Phoenix? What kind of place is this? Is anyone else living here? Can I pay my respects to the master of this place?"
The Phoenix replied, "Of course I am a Phoenix. This is where the Queen Mother of the West cultivated immortality. Apart from us, who couldn't ascend back then due to insufficient cultivation, there's no one else here..."
Liu Yufei exclaimed in shock, "Heavens! I can't believe the Queen Mother of the West actually exists in this world... I always thought myths were just to fool people. So what are the animals here called?"
"They can tell you that themselves." At this moment, the Phoenix had transformed back into a little red bird.
Liu Yufei asked, "They can talk too?"
"Of course we can. We are divine beasts, not some low-level creatures." The one who answered was a tall, majestic divine beast.
Liu Yufei felt it resembled a Qilin, so he cautiously asked, "Are you a Qilin?"
The divine beast said, "Of course. Otherwise, what other beast would be as majestic as I am? Let me tell you, there are also Taotie, Five-Colored Immortal Cranes, Three-Headed Divine Hounds here... but they don't like interacting with others."
Liu Yufei said, "So there were originally so many divine beasts here?"
Hearing him say that, all the divine beasts revealed lonely eyes. Fenghuang finally spoke: "There were originally many of us. Over ten thousand years ago, when Xi Wangmu returned to the Divine Realm, she took the divine beasts with profound cultivation with her. As for us, we were merely small beasts with no cultivation whatsoever, so she couldn't take us along. But we have also cultivated here for over ten thousand years. If no one cultivates to the Divine Human realm, then no one will take us to ascend with them. If we ascend by ourselves, we can only go to the Immortal Realm and become immortal beasts. Furthermore, the entrance here has been sealed by Xi Wangmu. Without the cultivation of a Divine Human, there's absolutely no way to break it. However, it's truly good now. We have finally seen someone enter. As long as you cultivate to the Divine Human realm and ascend, you can take us with you then..."
Liu Yufei was now lost in thought, feeling as if he were dreaming. Not only had he managed to reach Xi Wangmu's immortal land, a place of cultivation only found in novels, but he could now also cultivate to become an immortal and achieve eternal life.
Liu Yufei said to the divine beasts, "Don't worry. I believe that if I've been able to reach this place, it's like the predestined affinity spoken of in Buddhism. If I can truly cultivate to the Divine Human realm and ascend to the Divine Realm as you say, then I will definitely take all of you divine beasts with me..."
Hearing him say this, all the divine beasts joyfully thanked Liu Yufei. Liu Yufei asked, "How should I cultivate? I've never cultivated anything before."
Fenghuang said, "You don't need to worry about that. I will take you to the Cultivation Chamber. There, you'll find secret manuals for cultivation." After speaking, it flew towards a mountain cave.
A moment later, they arrived. Liu Yufei saw that both sides of the mountain cave's passage were inlaid with luminous pearls. At the sight of them, Liu Yufei's heart almost cried out, "If someone from the outside world could get just one of these luminous pearls, they'd be set for life!"
At this moment, Fenghuang had already flown with Liu Yufei to a cave chamber. Inside the chamber, he saw several ancient characters. Liu Yufei didn't understand them, so he asked, "Fenghuang, I don't recognize this kind of writing. If all the secret manuals use this script, then I won't be able to read them."
Phượng Hoàng said, "That's no problem. The cultivation incantations are carved on jade slips. You just need to project your consciousness into them to understand. Let me introduce you to this room first. What's in front of you is the Artifact Forging Chamber, specifically used for forging magical artifacts. There are also some materials for crafting spirit treasures. To your left is the Alchemy Chamber, which contains medicinal herbs for pill refining, along with some precious mature spirit herbs. All sorts of spirit herbs were brought here over ten thousand years ago. To your right is the Cultivation Chamber, where the spiritual energy is most abundant. Finally, there's the Storage Chamber, which holds various items such as First-Grade, Second-Grade, Third-Grade, Fourth-Grade, and Fifth-Grade divine pills. First-Grade divine pills can increase your divine cultivation primordial energy, while Second, Third, and Fourth-Grade pills further boost primordial energy. The Fifth-Grade pill is what we call the Marrow Cleansing Pill. This item is used to cleanse toxins from the body and strengthen the meridians within. If you wish to cultivate divinity, this first step is crucial. Outside, there are also some immortal cultivation techniques left by Xi Wangmu, as well as items she refined: the Seven-Colored Exquisite Pagoda, the Seven-Colored Divine Sword, a Seven-Colored Battle Armor, and an item Xi Wangmu acquired during her travels across the world back then, called the Jiangshan Sheji Map… There's also a powerful flying sword, and the Pangu Axe, the Number One Divine Artifact of Shenzhou, which pairs with the Sky-Shattering Art. When Xi Wangmu obtained it back then, she had to return to the Divine Realm before she could even cultivate with it. Otherwise, this Pangu Axe would have already been taken by her to the Divine Realm. This place also has a storage ring called the Qiankun Ring, which can store items. There's also the Jiangshan Sheji Map; it's said that the time flow inside is completely different from the outside. Xi Wangmu mentioned that thousands of years pass inside for every single year outside. I've told you about all the items here. You can take one Marrow Cleansing Pill first. Later, when you cultivate Xi Wangmu's Seven-Colored Divine Art, and once you cultivate to the Seven-Colored Divine Body, it will be time to ascend to the Divine Realm. As for the other incantations, don't touch them yet. Wait until you reach the Divine Human realm. At that point, you can study the Sky-Shattering Art a bit; who knows, it might help you advance another level…”
Liu Yufei asked, "Can I take a few more divine pills? That way, my cultivation will increase faster, right?"
"You fool! Divine pills cannot be consumed recklessly. You're right, taking many divine pills can increase your magical power, but this power isn't cultivated by you personally. In the future, you'll easily suffer qi deviation. You are our hope for ascending to the Divine Realm. At most, you can only take one Fourth-Grade pill and one Third-Grade pill, and that's it." Phượng Hoàng immediately scolded him upon hearing his words.
Liu Yufei felt a little unconvinced in his heart, secretly thinking, "I thought you could take as many divine pills as you wanted." However, since Phượng Hoàng said not to take them, he didn't. He didn't want to suffer qi deviation in the future.
Phượng Hoàng retrieved a Marrow Cleansing Pill from the pill chamber and handed it to him. He didn't hesitate, swallowing it immediately. Before he could even think, a fragrant aroma spread through his mouth. He felt that this item tasted much better than many dog meat dishes outside. It was fortunate that Xi Wangmu didn't know his thoughts, otherwise, she would have descended from the Divine Realm and beaten him to a pulp.
Soon, Liu Yufei felt a sharp pain in his stomach, followed by a rumbling sound from within. He wondered if Fenghuang had intentionally given him a laxative; otherwise, why would his stomach hurt so much? Unable to bear it any longer, he quickly ran out of the cave dwelling, found a secluded corner, and began to purge. About ten seconds later, Liu Yufei was almost completely exhausted. Not only did he smell the foul odor from below, but even his body, from every pore, exuded a stench as if he had just crawled out of a mud pit. Unable to stand the smell on his body, he rushed to the small lake and quickly washed himself clean.
Liu Yufei thought to himself, "I didn't realize my body had so many toxins. It seems this divine pill isn't bad at all." After the detoxification, although his outward appearance hadn't changed, his formerly dark skin was now fair and rosy, like a newborn baby's. Moreover, he felt incredibly comfortable, as if he could float away.
Seeing that Liu Yufei had undergone a complete transformation, Fenghuang led him to the Cultivation Chamber. She found the Jade Talisman of the Seven-Colored Divine Art and instructed him to use his entire mental intent to comprehend its inner meaning. He was to regard it as his own body, not merely an object, and afterwards, the jade talisman would transmit its meaning directly into his mind.
Liu Yufei took the jade talisman and followed Fenghuang's instructions with his whole heart and mind, but half an hour later, he still felt nothing! He wanted to ask Fenghuang if she had taught him incorrectly, but then he remembered that Fenghuang herself was about to ascend, so she certainly wouldn't deceive him. Therefore, it must be his own method of thinking that was wrong.
Liu Yufei pondered Fenghuang's words for a moment longer and then realized he had misunderstood. He had been trying to think of the jade talisman as a person, not an object, but failed to see it as a conduit. This time, he stopped viewing the jade talisman as any particular thing and instead poured all his mental intent into it. Sure enough, a moment later, the incantations within the jade talisman began to appear in his mind, one after another, and he found he couldn't forget them even if he tried.
He found that he couldn't fully comprehend the latter part of the jade talisman's content. He decided to go out and ask Fenghuang about it. Fenghuang told him that his cultivation level was insufficient to understand the later content. So, he consumed another Fourth-Grade Pill and entered the Painting of Rivers and Mountains. Before he could carefully observe his surroundings inside, the divine pill took effect. He felt a surge of heat emanating from his Dantian, growing hotter and hotter. He quickly recalled the incantation he had just read from the jade talisman: "First Qi transforms into Yang, Second Qi transforms into Yin..." Slowly, he felt the surge of heat follow the incantation he recited, and as he grew more and more comfortable, he entered his first meditative trance.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but when he awoke from his meditative trance, he found his body had become much lighter. Even while sitting, he felt as if he could float away. He knew he had reached the Bigu state, so he continued to cultivate according to the next incantation.
His mental intent once again immersed itself in the jade talisman. Immediately, even more profound and mysterious incantations appeared. This time, at the end of the incantations, there were also a few sentences about the Seven-Colored Divine Art itself. These described the methods of initiation, cultivation, magic arts, grand accomplishment, pill refinement, artifact crafting, and formation arrays.
He began to enter meditation again. Waking up three times, he still found that he hadn't reached the final level of Great Completion. According to the jade talisman, only by cultivating to the Qicai Guiyi Budie Shenti (Seven-Colored Unity Undying Divine Body) could one be said to have reached Great Completion.
Disbelieving this, just as he was about to enter meditation again to understand the Qicai Shenjue (Seven-Colored Divine Art), he suddenly became clear-headed. He realized he was still very far from reaching the final level, mainly because his state of mind hadn't met the requirements of the Budie Shenti (Undying Divine Body). He thought that since he couldn't continue cultivating for now, he might as well try to study the Potian Jue (Heaven-Shattering Art) left behind by Xi Wangmu, which he hadn't cultivated yet. After all, Pangu Dadi, that venerable ancient deity, was the first great god, tens of thousands of years older than Xi Wangmu.
Liu Yufei emerged from the Jiangshan Sheji Tu. He went to the storage room to retrieve the Pangu Fugin (Pangu Axe Handle) and then returned to the Jiangshan Sheji Tu. When he poured his entire mind into it, a much more profound cultivation technique was transmitted from the Pangu Fugin. He began to study it but couldn't comprehend its meaning. Finally, he studied the Qicai Shenjue and combined it with the Potian Jue, eventually achieving a breakthrough.
The time spent cultivating the Potian Jue was even longer than that for the Qicai Shenjue. He didn't know how many years he had spent sitting in the Jiangshan Sheji Tu, as all that time he had been in meditation.
Liu Yufei wanted to personally investigate if any changes had occurred between the Potian Jue and the Qicai Shenjue. When he activated the Qicai Shenjue, he found that the seven-colored radiance on his body was no longer visible. Instead, a transparent radiance now emanated from him.
He thought about going outside to see what the world was like after so many years. Since his sudden disappearance, his parents must have been greatly distressed. He pondered back and forth, wanting to return home to see if anyone was still there. After all, he himself didn't know how much time had passed outside. Thinking this, he immediately decided to return home.