Volume One: First Steps on the Path Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Mysterious Heaven Finger

Ye Junze, wholly absorbed in his cultivation, no longer paid any attention to the outside world. The space around him reverted to its previous state before his arrival—dark and tranquil, as if this was its true nature. If not for the faint sound of his breathing, anyone would have thought this was a realm of utter lifelessness.

At this moment, Ye Junze followed the instructions of his cultivation manual. With the support of the Illusory Void, the Anze Spirit-Gathering Array, and the meditation mat, he felt his progress had become markedly faster than before. This change filled him with joy, and he devoted himself even more earnestly to cultivation. Sensing he was on the verge of a breakthrough, he knew he had to seize this opportunity.

In this darkness, time seemed to lose all meaning. It was impossible to know how long had passed; Ye Junze had already circulated his energy through many cycles. Just as he completed one more cycle, a sudden stirring arose within his dantian. This feeling was not unfamiliar after two years of cultivation—for Ye Junze, it often signaled an impending breakthrough.

Curious, he turned his inner vision toward his dantian. There, the pale purple energy mass formed from cultivating the “Xuantian Dao Canon” began to revolve violently, drawing in the surrounding spiritual energy with increasing intensity. Seeing this, Ye Junze continued to circulate his energy, helping the mass absorb more spiritual power. The energy mass’s absorption grew even faster. Eventually, it seemed to reach saturation, unable to take in any more.

At that moment, the energy mass began to change. Though still spinning, its transformation was now visible to the naked eye. With each rotation, the cluster shrank in size, yet this smaller form felt more powerful, not weaker, as if it now brimmed with even greater strength. The purple light surrounding it became more condensed and radiant.

As the energy mass compacted further and finally became solid, its rotation slowed and then ceased. When it stopped, Ye Junze felt a newfound lightness in his body. After a moment’s reflection, he realized he had likely stepped into the initial stage of Qi Refinement in the “Xuantian Dao Canon,” just as his teacher had described.

Then, an anomaly occurred. The familiar golden light from the day before once again appeared, radiating from every part of Ye Junze’s body. In a brief instant, the golden light converged into a single point, and soon, a familiar scene unfolded in Ye Junze’s mind.

He focused intently. This time, the golden light revealed a spell—surely a reward for his recent breakthrough. Shaking his head, Ye Junze set aside all other thoughts. The display was organized in the familiar way. At the top, it read: "Xuantian Finger, an auxiliary spell of the Xuantian Dao Canon; may be learned upon the practitioner's first breakthrough." Below was the detailed method for cultivating this spell.

After reading through the instructions, Ye Junze found the technique surprisingly clear and straightforward. If others who had struggled with the Xuantian Finger knew of his thoughts, they might have ganged up on him in protest. After all, they had endured countless hardships to master it, while he found it so easy. Wasn't that just asking for trouble?

Fortunately, Ye Junze’s thoughts were known to no one. Once he had committed everything to memory, the golden words dissolved and seemed to sink back into his body, perhaps to resurface with his next breakthrough.

Seeing this, Ye Junze quickly turned his attention to practicing the Xuantian Finger.

According to the instructions, the spell would strengthen the fingers to the point where they could shatter gold and cut through jade. In time, the fingers would become as deadly as any weapon; with mastery, the practitioner could even project the Xuantian Finger’s energy from afar, defeating enemies at a distance. Enthralled by the description, Ye Junze wasted no time and began his practice.

He circulated his spiritual energy through the key acupoints in both hands as described. At first, the energy did not flow smoothly into the points. Realizing something was wrong, Ye Junze paused to reflect. He remembered the manual said to channel the energy through each point sequentially, while he had tried to force it in all at once. No wonder it hadn’t worked. He silently vowed to be more careful in the future.

He tried again, this time following the proper sequence. As expected, the effect was much better, and Ye Junze was delighted. Calming his mind, he guided the energy into the final acupoint. When the energy successfully entered, it seemed to resonate with the other points. Suddenly, all the points emitted tiny sparks of light, which connected in a mysterious line.

Seeing this, Ye Junze knew he had succeeded. Withdrawing his inner vision, he looked down at his hands, now faintly glowing with a purple light—the sign of initial mastery described in the manual. Watching his success, a smile broke across his face. His efforts had not been in vain.

Still pleased, Ye Junze realized he had yet to test the Xuantian Finger’s powers. As the thought struck him, his eyes sparkled with anticipation. Facing the empty space, he called out, “Meng Yuan.”