The wooden door of Lin Mo’s shabby hut creaked shut, cutting off the noisy whispers of the outer sect disciples lingering outside. The small room was dim, with only a sliver of moonlight seeping through the cracked window, casting a faint glow on the straw mat spread across the dirt floor. Lin Mo sat cross-legged, his back straight, and pulled the tattered jade slip from his robes once more, his eyes burning with a mix of reverence and excitement.

He took a deep breath, calming his racing heart, and pressed the jade slip against his forehead again. The ancient, desolate aura surged into his mind once more, and the obscure characters of the Heavenly Immortal Art unfolded clearly in his consciousness, as if they were written just for him. Unlike the superficial introductory scrolls he had grabbed to hide his secret, this art was profound beyond measure, every sentence containing the truth of immortality that defied the common cultivation rules of the Azure Cloud Sect.

Lin Mo closed his eyes and began to follow the art’s guidance. He focused his mind, sensing the sparse spiritual energy floating in the air around him. Normally, a mortal without a spirit root could not draw in even a wisp of spiritual energy, but his Six Paths Immortal Root stirred silently, like a bottomless vortex. The spiritual energy, thin and scattered in the outer sect, suddenly rushed toward him frantically, converging into a gentle stream that poured into his limbs and bones.

The art’s first verse echoed in his mind: Forge the body with six paths, refine the soul with immortality. The spiritual energy traveled along the six unique meridians opened by the Six Paths Immortal Root, not the standard meridians taught in the sect’s basic techniques. A warm, powerful sensation spread through his body, washing away the years of fatigue and malnutrition, repairing the hidden injuries left by Wang Hu’s earlier bullying. His frail body gradually grew stronger, his bones emitting a faint, crisp sound as they were tempered by the immortal energy.

Outside the hut, the moon climbed high into the night sky, and the stars twinkled brightly. The outer sect fell into silence, all disciples lost in sleep, unaware of the miracle unfolding in the dilapidated hut. Inside, the spiritual energy around Lin Mo grew denser, forming a faint white mist that enveloped him. His cultivation base rose steadily, breaking through the initial stage of Qi Refining in an instant, then advancing to the middle stage, and showing no signs of stopping.

The Six Paths Immortal Root glowed with a soft, multicolored light beneath his skin, absorbing all attributes of spiritual energy—metal, wood, water, fire, earth, and even the rare yin and yang energies—without any conflict. This was the terror of the lost immortal art: it broke the shackles of single spiritual roots, allowing the cultivator to master all elements at once. Lin Mo felt his soul being purified, his perception of the world becoming sharper; he could even hear the faint rustle of grass blades outside the door, and the flow of spiritual energy in the distant mountains.

Just before dawn, a low hum echoed in the hut. Lin Mo’s cultivation base surged again, breaking through the late stage of Qi Refining and stabilizing at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, only a hair’s breadth away from the Foundation Establishment realm. He opened his eyes, and two beams of bright light flashed across them, quickly fading away. His eyes were no longer the dim, lifeless orbs of the past; they were clear, deep, and filled with a calm confidence he had never known.

He stretched his body slightly, and a series of crisp bone sounds rang out. The weakness and exhaustion that had plagued him for years were completely gone, replaced by surging power. He looked down at his hands, now firm and strong, and a faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. The Heavenly Immortal Art had lived up to its name; in just one night, he had gone from a mortal with no cultivation to a Qi Refining Great Perfection expert, a leap that would take ordinary outer sect disciples years to achieve.

As the first ray of sunlight pierced through the window, illuminating the dust in the air, Lin Mo stood up. He hid the jade slip safely in his robes, his gaze firm. The path of immortality had truly begun for him. Outside, the rumors about him would only grow louder, and more troubles would surely come, but he no longer feared them. With the Heavenly Immortal Art and his Six Paths Immortal Root, he would climb step by step, leaving the humble outer sect behind, and shock the entire Azure Cloud Sect—and eventually, the entire cultivation world.