As the Firecrown Pill continued to dissolve, more and more spiritual energy was released into Zhao Yunxiao's body. This naturally made it increasingly difficult for him to maintain control while circulating it through his spiritual meridians.
Not only was the energy chaotic and difficult to restrain, but it also possessed a fiery nature that burned down more of Zhao Yunxiao's essence energy with each passing moment.
Having to actively circulate something akin to liquid fire within himself – this was an experience that tore at both mind and body.
Thankfully, it did not take too long for the Firecrown Pill to fully dissolve.
Once all of the released energy had entered his spiritual meridians, Zhao Yunxiao could finally stop stalling. He immediately directed all of it towards the intended destination – his brain.
As could be inferred from its name, the Mind Gate was positioned in a cultivator's brain, allowing for the unlocking of mental potential far beyond that of others and greatly increasing their perception capabilities.
This unbelievably powerful boost made it one of the two greater gates among the Six Gates of Self-Actualisation.
But it had its downside as well.
In fact, in contemporary times, many cultivators had come to regard the Mind and Heart Gates as greater gates more because of the sheer difficulty of opening them. As a result, a majority actually chose to attack the other gates first. By doing so, they sought to not only get past the psychological barrier of breaking through their first gate, but also gain more strength in preparation for the opening of the more difficult greater gates.
Zhao Yunxiao had been tempted to do so as well, but decided against it after weighing his options.
Despite the difficulty of doing so, opening the greater gates first was still the ideal route. This was because increased perception and vitality could greatly support the opening of the other gates. One made the process easier, while the other made the opened gates stronger.
He knew the limitations of his mediocre talent better than anyone else. Because of that, he had always focused heavily on strengthening his foundations. He already had enough things to worry about, so the last thing he wanted was for a shaky foundation to cause him even more trouble.
As someone who believed in strengthening one's foundations, Zhao Yunxiao steeled his resolve and decided to attack the greater gates first, despite the difficulty.
If he failed, he could always try again.
But for any of the Six Gates of Self-Actualisation that he had opened with great difficulty actually ended up being weaker than they should be, that would create a permanent stain on his cultivation of the body strengthening system. Not to mention the actual physical impact of creating a weaker foundation, he might also end up constantly reminding himself of how he was lacking in comparison.
Should he fail to manage this thought well, it could even end up becoming a heart demon!
As for the choice between the Mind Gate and the Heart Gate, Zhao Yunxiao chose the Mind Gate without hesitation.
Because not only would the increased perception from opening the Mind Gate help with opening the other gates, but it could also make up a little for his lack of talent when learning techniques of the essence cultivation system!
Thinking of the potential benefits, Zhao Yunxiao steeled his resolve once more.
Boom-!
He could almost swear that he heard an explosion go off in his head as the cumulated energy from the Firecrown Pill violently assaulted his spiritual being, tearing open a chasm where it could reside within.
"Argh!" Zhao Yunxiao groaned in agony despite having already braced himself for this.
He wanted to clench his fists so tight that they bled, but had to consciously refrain from doing even that. The last thing he wanted was for the blood from his wounds to taint the medicinal bath.
Instead, he had to force his muscles to relax while both his insides underwent the greatest tribulation of pain that he had ever experienced in his life. This only further exacerbated the strain that he was feeling – both physically and mentally so.
His breathing quickened.
His body trembled.
His closed eyelids quivered.
Pain and fatigue assaulted him, threatening to rob him of his consciousness once more.
But this time, he did not allow his consciousness to slip away. Instead, he started chanting a mantra that he had never practised in his life – the mantra of the Zodiac Scripture.
Right from the beginning, the Zodiac Scripture had been created with the intention of being cultivated in parallel with the body strengthening system. In its essence, this was a technique that both aided and relied on a cultivator's body strengthening cultivation.
Considering that, how could it not comprise methods to help attack the Six Gates of Self-Actualisation, especially when they comprised the very foundation of the body strengthening system?
The sound of ancient words filled the room – many of them words that Zhao Yunxiao was speaking for the very first time in his life. Yet he spoke with absolute clarity, relying on nothing but his memories as he emulated Long Shiqian while thinking of the completed scripture.
Unfortunately, chanting the mantra of the Zodiac Scripture did not ease the pain that Zhao Yunxiao was feeling by even the slightest bit.
But that did not mean it was completely useless either.
Under the effect of the mantra, the rate of progress skyrocketed as the cumulated energy from the Firecrown Pill suddenly became easier to direct. This allowed Zhao Yunxiao to quickly gather all of it into the spiritual chasm in his mind.
The newly formed spiritual chasm swallowed everything up like a hungry beast – not just sucking in the energy released from the Firecrown Pill, but also devouring Zhao Yunxiao's own essence energy in tandem.
These two sources came together like yin and yang, separate yet unified. Slowly but surely, the compressed energy started to take on the form of a gate.
After the gate took form, the spiritual chasm slowly closed back on itself, tightly sealing itself around the frame of the spiritual gate.
And then, the gate slowly opened.
Boom-!
Yet another explosion went off in his head.
But this time, there was no pain. Instead, the explosion was actually caused by the surge of essence energy that flooded into his mind.
Zhao Yunxiao's eyes shot open.
His heart was pounding fast – a result of overexertion in his attempt to endure the earlier strain, coupled with a strong sense of excitement.
First attempt at opening the Mind Gate, success!
With that, he had successfully taken his first step, officially embarking on his journey into the body strengthening system!
His mind was now sharper than ever, and he could feel the limit of his perception increasing. As for exactly how much the difference was, that was something that he would have to test out.
Huu-!
Zhao Yunxiao took deep breaths to calm himself, soaking for a few more minutes before leaving the medicinal bath and struggling over to the bedroom.
As his mind relaxed, his overexertion immediately took over.
Without washing up, he fell right into his bed, and his consciousness rapidly slipped away.
***
By the time Zhao Yunxiao opened his eyes again, the sun was already hanging high up in the sky.
Unlike his usual self, he did not get up immediately. Instead, he continued lying on the bed while organising his thoughts.
With the Mind Gate opened, his next goal was naturally the other greater gate – the Heart Gate.
However, there was no rush. Before doing so, he had to first allow his body to get used to the opened Mind Gate. If he failed to consolidate his cultivation properly, he could easily lose control of the flow of essence energy within his body, which might even result in cultivation deviation.
That aside, there were still a few other things queued up on his priority list.
But at the same time, he had already put aside his sect jobs for a while now. Continuing to do so would end up in a reduced income, which was not a sustainable way forward.
Fortunately, now that his perception had improved due to the opening of the Mind Gate, Zhao Yunxiao finally gained the confidence to try something that he had been thinking about for some time.
A few minutes later, two Zhao Yunxiaos left his residence at the same time.
Zhao Yunxiao himself left for the Lightwind Pavilion to fill his empty stomach. On the other hand, Zhao Yunxiao Two headed for the Alchemy Chamber, where he would be spending the day working on the sect job.
It was already noon, so there was understandably nobody at the Lightwind Pavilion.
After eating his fill of the food that Gu Qiansi had prepared in advance, Zhao Yunxiao left a short note at the pavilion stating that he had succeeded in his endeavour yesterday, but would be busy for another ten days or so.
Ten days.
This was the amount of time that he had taken to forge the Penta-Edge Grimoire Halberd.
With enough spare materials leftover, Zhao Yunxiao now intended to make a second attempt at forging the same halberd, mainly for contingency purposes.
Even if nothing else, the ability to arm his clones with the same weapon during battle would greatly increase the moves in his arsenal.
And who knows?
He might even end up with a better quality one if things turned out well!
With that thought in mind, Zhao Yunxiao cheerfully made his way to the Forge to set his plan into action.
***
"On guard!"
Gu Qiansi did not hesitate to strike right after giving her warning, her sword piercing through the air like a viper pouncing towards its target.
"Wait!" Zhao Yunxiao Two shouted while hurriedly rolling forward to dodge the attack by a hair. "Time out!"
"Hmm?" Gu Qiansi paused, sensing something amiss. "What's wrong?"
This was the first time that Zhao Yunxiao had reacted in such a manner, so she could not help but feel confused.
"This is not me!" Zhao Yunxiao Two raised his hands in surrender.
"Are you treating me like an idiot?" Gu Qiansi narrowed her eyes at him.
"Yeah, what are you talking about, Senior Martial Brother Zhao?" Lu Zhiying poked her head out from behind Gu Qiansi.
"Ah, sorry. I mean to say that this is a clone of mine," Zhao Yunxiao Two calmed down upon seeing that Gu Qiansi had stopped her offence, and started dusting his clothes.
"This is a clone?" Gu Qiansi started looking around them. "Stop hiding and come out then."
"I can't," Zhao Yunxiao Two answered. "Didn't you see the note I left at the Lightwind Pavilion? I will be busy forging equipment these ten days, so I am using a clone to get some things done in the meantime."
"Wait, you can do that?" Gu Qiansi asked in surprise.
Wasn't the Earthen Clone Technique meant for short-distance, temporary control? Their current location was not exactly anywhere near to the Forge.
She had never heard of anyone using it in such a manner. The way Zhao Yunxiao was doing it, this earthen clone could almost be considered a summoned avatar!
"Well, I am still trying to get used to it as well," Zhao Yunxiao Two confessed. "So, don't get too rough. Otherwise, the clone might be forcibly dispelled."
"Wow! This way, you can just stay in the safety of the sect while freely exploring the world with your clone!" Lu Zhiying remarked. "How nice! I want to learn this clone technique too!"
"It's not as simple as it seems," Gu Qiansi rubbed her temples. "You can't usually do that with clone techniques..."
"Yeah, it's completely different," Zhao Yunxiao Two added with a sigh. "Despite how it looks, you can't share in the physical senses of your clones. This means that by relying solely on clones, I would never be able to truly enjoy what the world has to offer. Being able to sense everything yet unable to see, hear, smell, taste, or touch anything... in a way, that might be more agonising than blissful ignorance."
"Is that so...?" Lu Zhiying was disappointed for a moment, but that was quickly replaced by a look of determination. "Well then, leave it to me to improve the clone technique. One day, I will make it such that we can truly explore the world with it!"
"Hah, how about getting all your fundamentals right before talking big like that?" Zhao Yunxiao Two patted her head nonchalantly.
"Bleah!" Lu Zhiying stuck her tongue out in protest. "Just you wait. I will definitely do that someday!"
Zhao Yunxiao Two merely smiled in response.
It was not that he did not believe in Lu Zhiying's talent, but this was not exactly a novel idea. If such a thing were really possible, the countless predecessors that came before them would have already done so.
For Lu Zhiying to accomplish something like that, she would essentially have to surpass their ancestors to accomplish an unprecedented feat, earning herself a place among the big shots of the cultivation world!
It was not wrong to have goals. But when goals were set at too unrealistic a level, they would just end up fizzling out as unattainable dreams!