Chapter 60: Triple Inversion + Heaven-Communing Divine Talisman = Ascension?

Even before he was struck by lightning, Wu Xian remembered seeing a post on a web forum discussing the ranking of the Eight Extraordinary Techniques in terms of strength.

Among them, the strongest was naturally Qiti Yuanyuan, which possessed the most mystical aura and was hailed as the absolute pinnacle of mystical arts.

As for the weakest, opinions varied wildly, and no definitive consensus had ever been reached.

However, if judged by a voting mechanism, the mastery of Tongtianlu (The Way of Heavenly Talismans) firmly occupied the absolute bottom spot, and by a margin of several streets ahead of the second-to-last.

So, the question arose: was Tongtianlu really that weak?

Wu Xian had not been sure in the past, but based on the talisman knowledge he had learned from Celestial Master Zhang Jingqing during this period, he had gained an entirely new perspective on talismans, which he had previously only half-understood.

First of all, talismans (Fu) and registers (Lu) were two different concepts.

A register necessarily involved talismans, but a talisman did not necessarily constitute a register.

In Taoism, the meaning of a talisman referred to the primordial patterns condensed from the Qi of the Great Dao at the dawn of heaven and earth by the Primordial Heavenly Emperor, which were then copied and traced so that the shape of the spiritual talisman harmonized with the Daoist Qi—hence the meaning of accordance. Only thus could it release great magical power and mystical techniques to cope with various situations.

As for registers, they were rosters of ghosts and deities, recording their names, attire, functions, and the methods for summoning and commanding them. Because these methods required the use of corresponding talisman incantations, they were also called legal registers.

Generally speaking, wanting to use a true legal register required drawing talismans first, a process that could be described as utterly tedious.

The talisman maker had to open an altar, perform rituals, burn incense, bathe, and even choose auspicious days and times, along with a series of other ceremonial rules. Only talismans drawn in this manner could achieve the effect of instantly casting spells.

Yet Tongtianlu, one of the Eight Extraordinary Techniques, brutally shattered these rules.

It was not restricted by mediums, nor did it require opening an altar, performing rituals, or paying homage to heaven and earth. Instead, it was available whenever needed, as if a casual stroke of the brush was enough to make the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth obey one's command.

Putting everything else aside, based on this point alone, Tongtianlu fully deserved the title of an Extraordinary Technique.

Moreover, judging by Lu Jin's performance in the anime, Tongtianlu also possessed the function of fusing talismans of different attributes and storing them simultaneously, which made it even more heaven-defying!

Just imagine, if a person truly mastered Tongtianlu and casually drew several hundred talismans every day to store them up, after years and months of accumulation, their firepower would be practically infinite—even more absurd than carrying an armory around with oneself.

At this thought, Wu Xian glanced again at the Five Thunder Talisman he had already drawn in his hand. His gaze flickered slightly as he pondered something, lacking the overwhelming joy of having just successfully initiated into the practice of Tongtianlu.

"Tongtianlu, Tongtianlu... If the focus isn't on the register, could it really have something to do with reaching the heavens? But isn't that ambition a bit too grand?"

Wu Xian muttered to himself. According to the latest manga chapters he had seen before transmigrating, "Na Duo Tong," the company representing the authorities, had already begun formulating plans to restrict the spread of the Eight Extraordinary Techniques. Meanwhile, evolutionary versions of the Eight Extraordinary Techniques were beginning to show faint traces of emergence.

Not to mention Funhou Qimen, whose methods of advancement had basically been fully displayed, Zhang Lingyu's words had revealed that the truly terrifying aspect of Tongtianlu did not actually lie in the "register," leaving much room for imagination.

Considering that this divine technique had been comprehended by Lu Jin's close friend, Zheng Zibu of the Maoshan Shangqing Sect, and that Zheng Zibu happened to know some of the inner secrets regarding the San Yi Sect incident of that year, it was hard not to think deeply in this direction.

Speaking of which, it was necessary to mention the cultivation principle of the San Yi Sect's unique secret technique—the Triple Inversion of Life.

In the worldview of the Outsider universe, the birth of a human being consisted of congenital primordial Qi materializing into the four limbs and a hundred bones, while this primordial Qi would consequently gradually transform into acquired Qi, slowly flowing away with the passage of time until death.

The philosophy of the Triple Inversion of Life was to inversely refine the human body back into the state of congenital primordial Qi, thereby achieving the ultimate goal of ascending to become an immortal and attaining eternal youth.

Unfortunately, apart from the legendary founding patriarch, no one in the hundreds of years of the San Yi Sect's history had ever truly reached the realm of the third tier.

Even the brilliantly talented Zuo Ruotong had only managed to break through forcibly with the help of Wu Gensheng.

Once past the third tier, Zuo Ruotong was able to achieve complete spiritualization of the body and nurture form through spirit. Judged purely by external manifestations, calling him an immortal was no exaggeration.

The only flaw was that Zuo Ruotong, even after entering the third tier, still could not achieve the absolute unity of the congenital state, and constantly needed to expend a massive amount of mental energy to maintain the inverted state.

Once this state was undone, the injuries and illnesses caused by his cultivation of the inversion would not be healed; he remained a mortal flesh-bound body that would still age and die.

To a certain extent, this proved that the notion that reaching the third tier allowed for ascension was a colossal lie. This was also the primary reason why the San Yi Sect gradually declined and even vanished from the Outsider world.

As a disciple of the San Yi Sect, Wu Xian naturally did not wish to see such a thing happen.

However, if he wanted to prevent it, he had to make up for the flaws of the Triple Inversion of Life, or find a cultivation method that could complement the Triple Inversion of Life, giving it the possibility of "reaching the heavens."

Viewed in this light, the ability of Tongtianlu became quite intriguing.

Putting aside everything else for the moment, the fundamental ability of Tongtianlu was actually to freely mobilize the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth. Therefore, when a practitioner cultivated to the third tier of the inversion and entered the state where "I am Qi itself," there would no longer be any difference between themselves and the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth.

At that time, one could utilize Tongtianlu's mobilization ability to strengthen one's own Qi, thus harmonizing and complementing the natural heaven and earth.

It was much like water turning into ice, and the ice reverting to water through the process of inversion. By means of Tongtianlu, this water could be made to merge with the ocean, and the ocean could freeze into ice once more. Just how massive would the improvement be for such a person? Could this be considered another form of "reaching the heavens"?

"Hoo—"

Exhaling heavily, Wu Xian temporarily put a stop to his brainstorming session.

No matter what, it was still far too early to think about these things. After all, his current level of the inversion had only reached the second tier; he was still a distance away from even achieving the regrowth of severed limbs like Senior Uncle Xichong.

To verify his previous hypotheses, Wu Xian needed to at least reach Zuo Ruotong's current realm—the so-called reshaping of the three Dan fields.

Only then could he use Tongtianlu to merge his body with the heaven and earth, thereby reaching the true third tier and perhaps even surpassing it.

"It's time to accelerate my progress a bit. The other Eight Extraordinary Techniques should also be added to my cultivation schedule one by one.

Especially *Enchaining Spirits and Dispatching Generals*—it would be best to preliminarily master it before entering the mysterious space next time, just so that certain Reincarnators stop mocking me every day for only knowing how to freeload.

Come to think of it, *Enchaining Spirits and Dispatching Generals* requires capturing some spirits to quickly get familiar with it. There's no opportunity sitting around in the San Yi Sect all the time. Where should I go to find masterless spirits?"

Wu Xian frowned, pondering slightly for a moment, when his eyes suddenly lit up.

"Right! Why am I being so narrow-minded? Spirits might be hard to find, but aren't specters and resentful ghosts everywhere these days?

If worst comes to worst, I can go hunt down the evildoers of the Quanxing sect. Beat them to death and directly extract their souls and bind their spirits; my proficiency level will definitely skyrocket!"

The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Wu Xian could not help but curl the corners of his mouth. He decided that once he cultivated Tongtianlu to the minor accomplishment stage, he would apply to Zuo Ruotong to travel outside, and then begin preparations for his cultivation plan of *Enchaining Spirits and Dispatching Generals*.

"Hmph! Let's see who dares to call me a freeloading parasite in the mysterious space from now on!"