Chapter 25: Opening the Violet Mansion

The dense primordial energy of heaven and earth made Ji Ning take a deep breath, and he could feel the true essence within his dantian surging and growing continuously: "Such pure and rich primordial energy! Just by pushing open the door of this stone chamber, the leaked primordial energy is already this dense—what must it be like inside?"

"Don't rush in; there might be danger inside," Ji Jiu Huo quickly warned. "I'll send a Gu insect in to scout."

Ji Jiu Huo opened his mouth, and a black wasp immediately flew up, buzzing swiftly toward the distant stone chamber, entering directly through the entrance. After about ten breaths, the black wasp flew back out, and Ji Jiu Huo opened his mouth again to swallow it.

"What's it like?"

Everyone looked at the clan leader Ji Jiu Huo, who smiled and said, "I've checked; there's no danger inside. Come, let's go in and have a look! Follow behind me—even if there's some hidden danger the scout missed, I'll die first. Ji Ning walks at the back!"

"Right, Ji Ning at the back." Everyone looked at Ji Ning.

Ji Ning had no choice; he didn't argue and obediently took the last position. Ji Jiu Huo and Granny Ying were the first to enter, and their delighted voices came back: "What treasures! What treasures!" "A celestial must have cultivated here, definitely!"

This made Ji Ning's heart itch—what was inside?

"Come in, all of you. I've swept it with my elemental energy; no danger," Ji Jiu Huo said.

Immediately, the others filed in, and Ji Ning quickly followed.

"Such dense primordial energy!" As soon as Ji Ning entered, he felt the incredibly rich primordial energy, causing all his pores to open wide, greedily absorbing it. Even in the air of the room, a faint green color full of vitality was visible—a sign that the primordial energy was so dense it had begun to show its color.

"Ji Ning, close the stone door. Don't let this primordial energy leak out. This stone room is special—once the door is shut, the primordial energy won't escape," Ji Jiu Huo said.

"Yes." Ji Ning understood this; after all, it was only when they pushed open the door that the primordial energy had leaked out. With a rumble, the stone door closed.

Ji Ning looked around curiously.

The room was about ten zhang in diameter, with a side door leading to other chambers.

"Look," Ji Jiu Huo pointed to a large pool in the room. The pool held a thin layer of green liquid, flowing slowly, brimming with endless vitality. The incredibly dense primordial energy in the surrounding air was emanating from this liquid.

"I'm certain," Ji Jiu Huo said confidently, "that the entire yuan stone mine was formed because a celestial set up a formation here to absorb the boundless primordial energy from the surroundings, accumulating it over the years. But to that celestial, what he needed wasn't the ore, but this—"

Ji Jiu Huo pointed at the thin layer of green liquid at the bottom of the pool, his voice full of confidence: "Primordial liquid! This is the true essence of primordial energy, pure to the extreme!"

Ji Ning held his breath.

Primordial liquid?

If the primordial energy in top-grade ore was already very pure, placing little burden on the body and increasing cultivation speed tenfold, then this primordial liquid—the essence of primordial energy refined to the utmost—placed no burden on the body at all and could be completely refined and absorbed in a short time.

For instance, some reincarnated celestials, their memories sealed, become mortals. But once their memories awaken, relying on their comprehension of the Dao and their powerful souls, they might obtain a legendary 'Nine Revolutions Golden Pill.' This pill contains a vast amount of primordial energy, also placing no burden on the body, allowing for unrestrained absorption.

A reincarnated celestial, upon awakening their memories and swallowing a Nine Revolutions Golden Pill, could, with its primordial energy, become a celestial again within a single day!

To cultivate and advance?

A powerful soul! Realm! Techniques! Primordial energy! All four are indispensable! Reincarnated celestials possess the first three, so with a Nine Revolutions Golden Pill, they can instantly become celestials again. Without it, even they must cultivate slowly, step by step. An ordinary mortal who eats a Nine Revolutions Golden Pill would be burst apart by its vast energy!

The Nine Revolutions Golden Pill is a legend.

But primordial liquid, which Ji Ning had read about in books, could rival the Nine Revolutions Golden Pill if there was enough of it.

"The celestial who cultivated here," Ji Jiu Huo said excitedly, "must have accumulated a great deal of primordial liquid in this pool. Through cultivation, he refined most of it, leaving only this thin layer at the bottom. Yet even this thin layer is probably worth as much as the entire wealth of my Ji clan! And such primordial liquid is something my clan couldn't buy even if we wanted to."

Everyone present was thrilled.

They all understood that primordial liquid could save the long labor of refining energy. It was monopolized by major sects and great clans, bestowed only on truly prodigious talents or top experts, allowing them to avoid wasting time slowly refining primordial energy. How could the Ji clan ever obtain such a treasure?

"Clan leader, with this, can you break through to become a Wanxiang Adept?" Ji Ning pressed.

"Our Ji clan's cultivation techniques are rather poor," Ji Jiu Huo shook his head. "Theoretically, a breakthrough is possible, but in reality, no one in our clan's history has ever become a Wanxiang Adept. I've cultivated for nearly four hundred years; if I were to become one, I would have done so long ago. This primordial liquid is useless for me and Granny Ying. It's most useful for you, Ji Ning!"

"Yes, Ji Ning, you're the best fit," Granny Ying also looked at Ji Ning, her eyes full of expectation. "With your talent, staying in our Ji clan is a waste. You have to struggle slowly, refining primordial energy. In a top-tier clan, your cultivation would be much faster."

"Ji Ning, you use it," Ji Yichuan also spoke. "Don't be modest. I know your realm—I think even we are a step behind you in terms of insight. With this primordial liquid, you can reach a higher level."

"Mm." Ji Liuzhen, Ji Jiu Huo, and the others all looked at Ji Ning expectantly.

Ji Ning felt warmth in his heart.

Such a rare treasure...

Everyone was leaving it for him.

"Clan leader, I won't be modest either," Ji Ning said directly. "I'll use this primordial liquid to cultivate now." His divine body training was difficult to break through, and even if it did, it required the power of the Lunar Star and the Solar Star. This primordial liquid was more suited to his qi-refining path. His realm was already sufficient; he could open the Violet Mansion!

"Good." Ji Jiu Huo and the others were filled with excitement and anticipation. To them, the primordial liquid would only marginally increase their strength. But for their clan's most prodigious genius, Ji Ning, it would likely lead to a great leap in power.

"I'll check the side room to see if there's anything else," Ji Jiu Huo said quickly.

There was a side chamber next door.

Inside, there was only a stone bed, a stone chair, and a stone table. Nothing else.

"It seems this was indeed just a celestial's meditation retreat. This room was where he rested and read celestial texts," Ji Jiu Huo said. "The other room was where he cultivated."

"Really nothing."

"No other treasures."

Ji Yichuan and the others examined carefully, but the stone chambers consisted only of one main room and one side room, simple and clear at a glance. They also swept through with elemental energy and found no hidden treasures.

"Let's go." Ji Jiu Huo and the others returned to the main room, looked at Ji Ning, and instructed, "Ji Ning, cultivate here. Remember to close the stone door. There's a mechanism on the door—once closed, it can't be opened from outside. We'll wait for you on the ground above."

"Alright." Ji Ning nodded.

Ji Jiu Huo and the others soon left, leaving Ji Ning alone in the stone chamber. He stepped forward and pushed the stone door shut, sealing it tight.

Cultivation was a serious matter; caution was necessary. Being interrupted at a critical moment could be dangerous.

"This time... I should be able to open the Violet Mansion." Ji Ning looked at the pool of primordial liquid, brimming with spiritual essence. Without further hesitation, he sat cross-legged on the edge of the pool and began to circulate the Water Element Art. Though a simple technique, it was sufficient to open the Violet Mansion.

But after opening the Violet Mansion, Ji Ning would need to switch to a new qi-refining technique; otherwise, with such a poor technique, it would be difficult to become a Wanxiang Adept. It was only theoretically possible. As for becoming a Primordial Daoist? Even theoretically impossible!

But Ji Ning wasn't worried. His main focus was divine body training, and he would eventually leave Mount Yan, so he could naturally obtain higher-level techniques.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..." As Ji Ning circulated the Water Element Art, he began to absorb the primordial energy from the surroundings. The primordial energy in the stone chamber was incredibly dense, constantly condensing into true essence.

Ji Ning opened his mouth.

Inhale!

Immediately, part of the primordial liquid in the pool rose up, guided by his divine will, and flew directly into his mouth, entering his body. Once inside, the primordial liquid rapidly transformed into primordial energy, this extremely pure energy rushing into his dantian and converting directly into true essence in one smooth motion. It placed no burden on his body, allowing him to convert it endlessly.

"Rumble..." The water-green true essence in his dantian surged like endless waves, madly converging and accumulating!

"More." Ji Ning opened his mouth again and inhaled, drawing primordial liquid directly into his body.

Within his dantian, a storm raged. The true essence, which would normally take time to accumulate slowly, quickly reached its peak. The endless true essence spun wildly, compressing, as if the dantian space was too small to hold any more.

"Boom!"

In an instant, it was as if Pangu had split heaven and earth! The once chaotic, undifferentiated dantian exploded with a thunderous sound!

A dense mist of water spontaneously formed around Ji Ning, who sat cross-legged by the pool. At that moment, he could even more clearly touch the 'Dao,' but the sensation quickly faded.

"Opening the Violet Mansion! With the Violet Mansion formed, the foundation for immortal cultivation is laid." Ji Ning murmured to himself.

Where his dantian once was, inside his body,

there was now a vast, boundless void space, filled with endless purple mist. This strange realm, halfway between the real and the illusory, was the Violet Mansion! Everyone's Violet Mansion was the same when first opened, but the realms one could reach later depended on one's own fate.

"Inhale!" Ji Ning opened his mouth, and the primordial liquid in the pool flowed into his body like wine, continuously.

In that boundless void space filled with purple mist, the first drop of elemental power began to condense. Soon, a large amount of elemental power gathered, forming a small puddle, then a small lake... The elemental power converged and accumulated, and the lake expanded continuously...