Chapter 12: Five Inches of the Divine Chamber

Inadvertently, the substance was drawn into Wang Zhenling’s nose and mouth; instantly, his entire being shuddered.

Even the Heaven-Piercing Lotus Seed within his divine chamber vibrated, drawing all these bubbles toward it in a single motion.

Following this, the seed exhaled, releasing pure energy that fell upon his primordial spirit like a gentle, ceaseless drizzle.

Wang Zhenling’s expression shifted slightly. This situation was just like when he had previously pilfered the official fortunes of the government; the Heaven-Piercing Lotus Seed was converting that fortune into power he could cultivate.

Yet, this was but a small bottle, and the amount of spiritual energy it provided to nourish his primordial spirit was equivalent to several days of his own cultivation!

At this moment, he finally understood what these were: "This is collected incense and vow-power..."

...

"Damn it... we left in such a hurry that we didn't even take the collected incense and vow-power... This Wang Zhenling has ruined our sect's grand plan; he truly deserves to die!"

Having managed to escape with his life in a wretched state, the Divine Envoy Wu Zhong was once again stamping his feet and cursing Wang Zhenling.

However, reflecting on the power Wang Zhenling had unleashed, he felt a chill in his heart. If Wang Zhenling had been capable of such power during their previous encounter, he would have died at his hands long ago!

"To think he even destroyed the Guardian God General... This Wang Zhenling is truly remarkable. Especially his ability to project his primordial spirit and invoke the authority of officialdom to augment himself. Who knows how he managed that!"

The other Envoy of the Five Sections remarked, "This matter is of great importance. It seems we must report it to the Great Heavenly Lord."

The group looked dejected. It seemed they had no choice but to report back and request reinforcements. Otherwise, given the current strength of the Chengtian Sect in Liang Province, they were simply no match for Wang Zhenling.

Yet, the Wuji Mountains were of vital importance. The entire focus of the Chengtian Sect in Liang Province was in Xiami County, and their entire strength in Xiami County was concentrated here.

Should they fail to complete the Great Heavenly Lord’s plan, the consequences would be severe.

Just then, Commander Luo suddenly laughed aloud, "Don't you think that the more formidable this Wang Zhenling becomes, the more interesting things will get when the Emperor summons him to the Hongdu Gate Academy?"

Wu Zhong was furious: "You still want him to enter the Hongdu Gate Academy? I think we should petition the imperial court to have that Wang Zhenling executed instead..."

As Wu Zhong fumed, the other Envoy of the Five Sections’ eyes flickered, and he began to smile: "Not bad, not bad at all. I, for one, would like to see how this Wang Zhenling reacts when the imperial envoy arrives in a few days. I wonder if he will obey the decree!"

Commander Luo chimed in, "If he refuses to obey the decree, that is defiance of the Emperor. A charge of lèse-majesté alone would be enough to have his head. If he does obey and enters the Hongdu Gate Academy, he will fall right into our grasp. By then, are you afraid he won't be obedient? Even extracting the secret of how he invokes fortune to augment himself won't be difficult!"

Upon hearing this, smiles appeared on everyone’s faces. Although they had been left in a sorry state by Wang Zhenling, the thought that he would soon be乖乖 obeying them made their moods lift.

Wu Zhong, capable enough to be a Divine Envoy, was no fool; he had merely been blinded by rage. Now that he had regained his composure, he gave a cold snort: "Letting him join our sect is letting him off too easily!"

"The big picture comes first; the Great Heavenly Lord's plan is what matters most! With Wang Zhenling's help, we can bury the Golden Dragon Slip in the Wuji Mountains without anyone noticing..."

...

At night, Wang Zhenling practiced alone once more. The Heaven-Piercing Lotus Seed continuously drew fortune from the county court, gathering it into his sea of consciousness to construct his divine chamber step by step.

Seven or eight days had passed since the battle at Dongji Mountain, and all loose ends had been tied up. With the Moon Soul Pearl and that bottle of incense and vow-power, Wang Zhenling’s primordial spirit had not only fully recovered but had grown significantly stronger.

Wang Zhenling was no longer in a rush to break through to the Divine Germination stage; he preferred to spend time solidifying his foundation and carving his heavenly palace with greater precision.

Back in the village, Wang Zhenling had acted with caution; even when stealing fortune, he had maintained a sense of decorum so as not to appear unsightly. But now, in the county court, sensing that his tenure as a county lieutenant would not last long, he acted without any inhibitions.

He plundered the county’s fortune with reckless abandon, showing no mercy. If he did not act now, he feared he would have no such opportunity in the future.

Large swaths of fortune were drawn into his sea of consciousness by the lotus seed, constantly reinforcing the heavenly palace of his divine chamber. Although the Lunar Palace was not yet fully forged, his divine chamber had already expanded to over two inches, nearly double the size of a standard Divine Germination stage chamber.

The five stages of Primordial Spirit Projection are: Divine Germination, Divine Growth, Divine Concealment, Divine Darkness, and Divine Brilliance.

A Divine Germination chamber is one inch, while a Divine Growth chamber is three inches!

Wang Zhenling, having not yet completed his chamber, had already reached five inches, surpassing the span between Divine Germination and Divine Growth.

"Perhaps, once I truly reach the Divine Germination stage and finish forging the chamber, its scale could reach nine inches! By then, my cultivation and magical power will likely rival that of a Divine Growth expert! Even now, my cultivation surpasses that of an average Divine Germination expert," Wang Zhenling thought to himself.

This was the brilliance of the Nine Heavens Primordial Yang Longevity Creation Diagram!

A point of white light emerged from Wang Zhenling’s crown, transforming into a lifelike primordial spirit. In an instant, it appeared in the room, circling it once before fixing its gaze on an inkstone resting on the table by the window.

It was a very ordinary inkstone made of refined clay, shaped like a crouching tiger—simple, ancient, and charming. It was not of the style popular in this world; rather, it had been custom-made by a master potter whom Wang Zhenling had specifically commissioned. Its texture was as fine as a baby’s skin. It possessed the qualities of holding water without drying out, resisting freezing in the cold, and grinding ink without damaging the brush hairs; its moisture surpassed water, rivaling the finest stone inkstones.

Wang Zhenling had found the inkstones of this world to be inferior and had requested the craftsmen who supervised the government’s pottery works to create it. Because the high-end clay items made for the government in this world were crafted from finely washed clay as raw material and then fired. It was said that in Wang Zhenling’s previous life, the original refined clay inkstones were made from Han dynasty roof tiles...

Of course, none of that was the point.

The point was that this inkstone weighed a little over a pound, less than two. At this moment, Wang Zhenling’s primordial spirit circled the room, floated over, and gently touched the inkstone, attempting to lift it.

However, the primordial spirit was ethereal and lacked physical force. Despite exerting all his power, he could not even lift the inkstone!