Chapter 5: Spirit Seal
How did humans acquire power before the existence of Spirit Patterns?
Lu Xianbei looked expressionlessly at Qing Ji, momentarily stunned; she hadn’t really considered this question before.
Although the number of urban legends was not significant before the night began to grow long, they certainly existed.
In the face of urban legends, humans, wanting to protect themselves, would surely come up with various means.
Manufacturing weapons should count as one; although ordinary weapons cannot truly eliminate urban legends, they can fend them off. If it’s a weapon made through alchemy, it would have a certain lethality against urban legends.
Spell formulas and talismans should also count; some lower-tier spell formulas and talismans can be used if one has the potential for spiritual abilities. Even without Spirit Patterns, mastering spell formulas and talismans can provide a certain combat effectiveness.
Could someone directly devour the core of urban legends? If one can properly control the intake, reaching a semi-urban-legend state might also work against them.
Like the residents of Peach Source, praying for protection from high-tier urban legends is also an option.
It’s said that certain spiritual ability users have mastered the technique of “invoking gods.”
Perhaps some people even tame and keep urban legends as pets.
And… and…
Seeing Lu Xianbei lost in thought without speaking for a long time, Qing Ji interrupted her reverie, “Alright, I guess you’ve thought of many possibilities. I can responsibly tell you that all the methods you can think of have been attempted by someone.”
“What I want to tell you is limited to methods related to Spirit Patterns.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Xianbei looked at Qing Ji and thoughtfully nodded.
All of those have been tried?
That’s true; throughout history, countless wise individuals have existed. Whatever I can think of, surely others have too.
Lu Xianbei collected her thoughts, straightened in her seat like a primary school student waiting for instruction, and prepared to listen as Qing Ji explained.
Good girl.JPG
Qing Ji glanced at Lu Xianbei and said earnestly, “According to the records in Dachunyang Palace, the first person to possess Spirit Patterns appeared about a thousand years ago. This timing may not be entirely accurate, but it shouldn’t be far off.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Xianbei suddenly thought of something, her eyes sparkling slightly.
A thousand years ago would have been the Song Dynasty, when tattoo culture thrived. “Dreams of Eastern Capital” mentioned that tattoos were often seen on youths in the streets.
The birth of Spirit Patterns may be related to the trends of that time.
Lu Xianbei thought to herself, pursed her lips, and concentrated to continue listening to Qing Ji’s explanation.
“Before that, there were three methods to acquire power closely related to Spirit Patterns, namely totems, Spirit Seals, and the consumption of urban legends.”
At this point, Lu Xianbei raised her delicate white hand to interject, “Ancestor, I can understand totems and the consumption of urban legends, but what exactly is a Spirit Seal?”
From a certain perspective, Spirit Patterns are a type of totem. The urban legend core and alchemical materials needed to draw Spirit Patterns also share similarities with consuming urban legends.
As for Spirit Seals, Lu Xianbei had never heard of them before.
Qing Ji waved his hand, signaling Lu Xianbei to be patient, and patiently explained, “Spirit Seals can actually be considered a variant in the process of transforming a totem into a Spirit Pattern.”
“In simple terms, with the help of a visualization chart or by directly observing urban legends up close, one can imprint authority into their body using their thoughts to acquire power, which is very similar to Spirit Patterns.”
“The success rate of this method isn’t high, right?” Lu Xianbei frowned.
The same thing seen by different people, influenced by their subjective consciousness, will yield different perspectives.
It’s like LSP must see everything with a hint of yellow, and a Minotaur warrior must view everything with a tinge of green.
Moreover, relying solely on thought to leave an imprint within the body is certainly less stable than Spirit Patterns, Lu Xianbei thought.
“A bit clever,” Qing Ji nodded. “Relying on a visualization chart that might not be entirely accurate and differing insights from different individuals, the number of those who can condense a Spirit Seal is already extremely low. Even if one manages to condense a Spirit Seal, they can only gain a small part of the authority.”
“Furthermore, viewing the visualization chart is equivalent to directly peering into the true form of an urban legend, which carries great risks. A moment’s carelessness could lead to being possessed.”
I get it, I get it! Directly gazing at a deity leads to SAN value zeroing, right? Lu Xianbei scoffed internally.
“Based on my observations in Dachunyang Palace, Spirit Patterns were likely created by someone who grasped the mysteries of Spirit Seals, totems, and the consumption of urban legends, later refined by many successors. This became a method of acquiring power,” Qing Ji stated.
Hmm, that makes sense! Lu Xianbei nodded.
Most technologies in this world undergo a process from non-existence to existence. Currently effective and widely applicable technologies are the results of countless individuals cautiously experimenting, summarizing experiences, and boldly innovating.
According to “The Book of Siye,” Spirit Patterns are a miracle born from deep research and analysis of urban legend authority, restored using urban legend cores and alchemical materials.
Compared to the subjective consciousness involved in Spirit Seals, which relies heavily on memorization—a method fraughtwith risks and high failure rates—Spirit Patterns are clearly superior.
If urban legends are compared to movies containing a wealth of information, then Spirit Patterns are the HD pirated version, while Spirit Seals are merely fan edits.
The only real advantage might be that practicing Spirit Seals doesn’t require urban legend cores and alchemical materials.
But, what if the first person to draw Spirit Patterns simply failed to practice Spirit Seals in frustration and ended up tattooing the visualization chart onto their body? What if, during the tattooing process, a little of the urban legend core accidentally mixed into the ink, resulting in unexpected success?
After all, sometimes luck can lead those who recklessly take risks to peak achievements.
Lu Xianbei pondered, growing increasingly suspicious, and asked, “But how does what you’re saying relate to treating Spirit Pattern loss of control?”
“Hey,” Qing Ji chuckled meaningfully, appearing somewhat smug. “That’s because I’ve practiced Spirit Seals…”
Lu Xianbei’s eyes lit up, sitting up straight; her intuition told her that Qing Ji was about to divulge something significant.
“…but I didn’t fully succeed.”
Lu Xianbei, “…” What are you even saying?
Seeing a look of scorn appear in Lu Xianbei’s eyes, Qing Ji gave a cold laugh. “It’s not that I can’t learn it; rather, because Spirit Patterns are unique, no matter how many Spirit Seals I practice, they will be devoured by Spirit Patterns.”
“However, even though I didn’t completely succeed, I discovered that Spirit Patterns and Spirit Seals can coexist. This means that if one successfully practices Spirit Seals, a spiritual ability user would essentially possess multiple Spirit Patterns.”
Possessing multiple Spirit Patterns at the same time? A name suddenly flashed through Lu Xianbei’s mind: “Zhang Shuo.”
According to information provided by the Urban Legends Chat Group, this member of the Solar Eclipse Society with the code name “Xianyi” was one of the two spiritual ability users participating in the ambush on Lu Ming whose spirit energy fluctuations reached A+ or above.
And he possesses more than four Spirit Patterns.
Could that guy be someone who practiced Spirit Seals, allowing him to maintain control over multiple Spirit Patterns simultaneously? Lu Xianbei wondered.
“If the multiple Spirit Patterns one possesses can interact with each other in terms of restraint or complementarity, then when one Spirit Pattern loses control, others can suppress or correct it,” Qing Ji explained.
“Minor Spirit Pattern loss of control can be treated with methods such as incense, but that kid Zhang Hainan dares to claim he is the number one in the world, so he must have mastered a method to treat severe Spirit Pattern loss of control. I suspect he used Spirit Seals.”
“As far as I know, Dachunyang Palace preserves the visualization chart, and I have also taught him the method to practice Spirit Seals.”
“So, what do you think? After hearing all this, don’t you want to learn?”
Lu Xianbei, “…”
Why would I learn that?
Practicing Spirit Seals requires viewing a visualization chart, and one could easily end up with SAN values hitting zero.
Right now, the symptoms of Spirit Pattern loss of control aren’t severe. Shouldn’t they be treated with incense?
Lu Xianbei thought, staring intently into Qing Ji’s eyes, and said earnestly, “Of course!”
Having more skills can’t hurt; learn it first—whether it’s useful or not can be considered later.
“Unfortunately, I can’t teach you right now.”
Lu Xianbei, “…” Old man, is this some sort of joke?
Deceiving an ignorant girl…uh, no, I should say the role I’m playing in front of the Ancestor should probably be that of a young woman?
d*mn it, deceiving a young woman, how mischievous! Lu Xianbei thought with vigor.
Seeing her peach blossom eyes clouded with annoyance, Qing Ji sighed with a wry smile. “It’s not that I don’t want to teach you; it’s just that I don’t have the visualization chart. If I were to draw one from memory, it would likely contain errors.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Xianbei nodded in agreement.
She had already experienced Qing Ji’s unique drawing style; if she practiced based on his drawn visualization chart, it wouldn’t just be errors; it would definitely have major deviations.
It’s like looking at BIGMOM and trying to imagine her as an empress.
“However, I believe you still have a chance to condense a Spirit Seal, as you have a natural advantage over others…” As he spoke, Qing Ji looked at Lu Xianbei, his gaze lowering to her chest and abdomen.
What does this mean? Don’t look at me like that; your gaze is very strange!
Under Qing Ji’s scrutiny, Lu Xianbei frowned and cautiously crossed her arms in front of her, blocking his view.
“Isn’t there some kind of power from that hundred-armed giant within you? If you can glimpse the true form of the hundred-armed giant, perhaps you could condense that power into a Spirit Seal and siphon its authority.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Xianbei’s heart leapt with joy, but she quickly sighed in resignation.
It sounds easy, but that thing isn’t like a monkey at the zoo that you can just see whenever you want!
Let alone glimpsing the true form of the hundred-armed giant, even finding an image to look at would probably be very difficult.
Moreover, even if I had the chance to encounter the hundred-armed giant, I wouldn’t dare to observe; if it got upset, one punch could knock me senseless. Lu Xianbei thought.
————
A moment later, Lu Xianbei bid farewell to Qing Ji and returned home.
Opening her eyes and staring at the ceiling, she remained silent for several seconds before silently letting out a sigh.
Just before leaving, she suddenly thought that after Ling Tai Purification becomes the vessel for the God Realm Prototype, perhaps she could allow the Ancestor to enter the God Realm Prototype, that way, at least he wouldn’t be too lonely.
But after briefly weighing this thought, she opted not to say it out loud.
“When will I be able to get the final shard from Dachunyang Palace? It remains uncertain. It’s better not to let the Ancestor hold too many expectations in advance.”
Lu Xianbei muttered to herself, rising and heading to the bathroom, beginning her nightly routine, preparing for rest.
————
3:17 AM
Lu Xianbei lay on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
She couldn’t sleep.
Perhaps it was the shock from Li Xuan’s distorted face that left a significant mark on her; now, as soon as she closed her eyes, Li Xuan’s figure filled her vision.
What an effective wake-up call!
Lying there lost in thought, Lu Xianbei vaguely heard sounds coming from the headphones worn by Wang Ying, her eyes brightening, and she sat up.
Unable to sleep, she might as well get up and play with the “ball”!
Lu Xianbei thought and turned to the nightstand where Wang Ying’s headphones lay, silently picking them up and gently placing them on her own head.
“Everyone knows about ‘Single kn*fe Society’…”
Hearing a comedy skit fragment come from the headphones, Lu Xianbei rolled her eyes, picked up the spare phone connected to the headphones, turned off the skit, and switched to “Advanced Mathematics Online Course Recording – 1.”
“Function definition: a correspondence relationship between variables (one-to-one correspondence)…”
“Hmm!” Hearing the clear lecture voice in her ear, Lu Xianbei nodded in satisfaction and put the headphones back on the plump figure.
Half an hour later.
She took off the headphones again, placed them on herself, and switched “Advanced Mathematics Online Course Recording – 1” to “Appreciation of Ancient Art in Z Country – 1.”
Even for fetal education, the Lu family’s children should develop comprehensively in virtue, intelligence, and beauty!
Moreover, according to the Void’s remarks, Wang Ying’s current state is similar to that of a living corpse. Giving him a variety of auditory experiences might yield unexpected effects!
Lu Xianbei thought, listening to the content being played in the headphones, confirming that everything was fine before putting them back on Wang Ying.
Half an hour later.
“Let’s do some English listening practice…”
————
Meanwhile, not far from Li Xuan’s home at the Eight Days Express Hotel.
In a clean and tidy suite with the lights off, Huasang sat cross-legged on the bed, a black iron ruler resting on her knees, her eyes closed as she gradually entered a meditative state.
She felt a bit puzzled and wanted to ask that mysterious senior for answers.
Her thoughts transformed into a thin fog, blown away by the wind. In a daze, a massive turtle-snake illusion appeared in her mind.
Just as she thought she would see that mysterious senior and enter a deep meditation like before, a sudden, unknown sound drilled into her ears.
She heard a slightly Tianjin-accented male voice beside her say, “Everyone knows about ‘Single kn*fe Society’… Liu, Guan, Zhang, they swore brotherhood in the Peach Garden, those three… just like brothers, then those three went to protect Tang Seng on his journey to the west. This story is in ‘Dream of the Red Chamber’…”
The voice was intermittent and unclear.
Huasang, “？？？”
What the heck? What’s happening? Where did that voice come from?
After a moment of confusion, she perked up her ears to listen carefully, determining that the voice had vanished. She centered herself, eyes on the nose, nose on the mouth, mouth on the heart, heart on the dantian, and spent several minutes before finally entering a meditative state again.
“Function definition: a correspondence relationship between variables (one-to-one correspondence)…”
That voice reappeared in her ear, and it felt like her radio suddenly changed frequencies.
Half an hour later.
“During the Qin and Han Dynasties, important artistic creations were conducted under government supervision…”
Thus, her focus was once again shattered, and her meditative state instantly collapsed.
Huasang, “…” A strange issue had arisen.
Being disturbed by that unknown voice, she felt her already scarce energy nearing exhaustion…
