Igniting Spiritual Light, Life Spirit Embryo

Chapter 5

At Baiyun Temple, Li Changmeng sat by the doorway, blood dripping onto the wooden statue in his hands.

The once plain effigy was now streaked with crimson, exuding a thick, metallic scent.

"Success!"

Another drop of blood fell, and at that moment, Changmeng sensed a faint resonance between himself and the statue.

Originally featureless save for its outstretched limbs reaching toward the heavens and its firmly planted stance upon the earth, the coagulated blood had now vaguely shaped a face upon it.

Clutching the statue, he felt a surge of joy—after a full month of bloodletting and spiritual refinement, his Golden Body was finally complete.

Tempered by spiritual energy, his enhanced blood had forged an unshakable connection with it. Even Baiyun Daoist had marveled at his cultivation talent.

With preparations complete, Changmeng rushed back to his chamber.

Cross-legged, with a jade slip in his left hand and the Golden Body in his right, he entered a state of energy sensing.

As usual, he first filled his dantian with ambient energy, stabilizing his foundation, before directing the accumulated reservoir upward.

Spiritual currents surged through his meridians, pressing toward the sealed gates of his Mud Pellet Palace.

Boom—

Waves of energy battered the barrier. An excruciating pain wracked his body, forcing a groan from his lips.

The Mud Pellet Palace housed his consciousness. Breaking through its natural defenses required suicidal resolve.

"Mere illusions! Break!"

Suppressing the instinctual fear, he forced the attack onward. A wave of dizziness nearly dragged him into unconsciousness.

Crack—

A sliver of light pierced through. Then—

CRASH!

The gates burst open. A brilliant radiance flooded out, revealing a soul-avatar—identical to Changmeng himself.

His Spiritual Light had ignited.

Unlike orthodox methods that merged soul and body, his unorthodox path required transferring his consciousness into the Golden Body.

Through the blood-forged resonance, his soul slipped into the statue. The moment he released his grip, his consciousness was momentarily trapped within.

Seizing the jade slip, Changmeng activated the binding ritual. Lingering soul-energy would dissipate rapidly if not secured.

A searing pain, like countless blades flaying his flesh, struck as spiritual energy engulfed the statue. Inside the wooden form, organs, bones, and meridians began materializing.

A miniature Mud Pellet Palace took shape, anchoring his soul within.

The fusion was complete.

The fist-sized statue now bore Changmeng's exact features. Its tiny eyes blinked curiously, observing the original body that still sat in meditation, maintaining the ritual.

"A type of external avatar," the embryo mused. Though weaker than a Nascent Soul and vulnerable to mortal hands—a flaw of faith-based cultivation—it would suffice.

Exhaustion overwhelmed his original body. Setting the statue beside him, Changmeng collapsed into a dreamless sleep.

Yet the embryo felt no fatigue. Nurtured by residual energy, it instinctively began to cultivate on its own.

"Mosquito legs are still meat."

Though its efficiency without faith amplification was barely 1% of the main body's, it would suffice—for now.

While Changmeng slept, his embryo diligently absorbed faint traces of spiritual energy.