However, first it was necessary to organize what this body had learned.

With this thought, the tortoise shell suddenly trembled, emitting a beam of clear light. This light did not dissipate, but instead condensed into a human form. The figure began to perform movements, each one clearly visible.

This was the content of the Six Yang Diagram Explanation, and also the lesson that Edward Clark was studying. According to memory, the thirty-six movements of the Six Yang Diagram Explanation were relatively widespread— even ordinary martial artists could perform more than half of them. But without the accompanying incantation, it was merely a basic martial arts foundation. Only with the incantation did it become a true foundational internal cultivation method!

Edward Clark was delighted in his heart. He hadn’t expected that with the tortoise shell and these transformations, it was as if all his previous cultivation had been summarized and refined.

Edward Clark hurriedly closed his eyes and focused his thoughts. He felt that, in the depths of his mind, the thirty-six movements before his eyes gradually condensed into a single character.

Once this character formed, it immediately shone with brilliant light and emitted a strange sound. Edward Clark was startled, only to feel that the mysteries contained within the character flowed into him, and he instantly understood everything.

Moments later, the clear light had not yet faded and still had some strength left. He saw a scroll of scripture appear, each word shining with golden light, eight corners radiating beams, countless profound meanings flowing through his mind. In a short breath, the essence condensed and also formed a character.

After the two characters were formed, the clear light could no longer hold on and vanished like smoke, leaving only the two characters unmoving, floating in his mind, each one seeming alive, allowing him to instantly grasp their meaning.

“It’s the True Script!” Edward Clark was both surprised and delighted. In his previous life on Earth, he had read related content and knew that the real True Script was formed from innate primordial energy, condensed with divine charm, revealing its true form.

In other words, it was a projection of the rules!

He hadn’t expected that in this world, the Six Yang Diagram Explanation and a scroll of scripture also contained the shadow of the Dao!

Chapter 3 Discussion

In the blink of an eye, several days passed. On this day, upon waking, it was early morning, and the dawn clouds were like fire.

Edward Clark woke up. After this sleep, he felt truly alive. After several days of tempering, he no longer felt that sense of estrangement. He pushed open the window and looked out.

This Daoist temple was very simple, built with rammed earth and stone on the outside, designed for survival in troubled times, and thus had considerable defenses. There was a main hall, two side halls, and two rows of rooms. At its peak, it could house a hundred people.

Edward Clark paused for a moment, then went to the bookshelf and casually pulled out a scroll to read.

“...Twelve hundred Jade Maidens, dressed in red, are responsible for longevity and harmony, recording the three souls and seven spirits of a certain person, not to be far from them, governing longevity and illness, dispatching twelve hundred Jade Maidens to ensure longevity and prolong life, recording souls and spirits, not allowing the essence to leave the body, ensuring peace...”

Edward Clark read a few more scrolls. In fact, there was only one scroll, which was Daoist technique, but merely a method of talismanic incantation to summon spirits, not a true path of cultivation.

This was not unfamiliar to Edward Clark; in his previous life on Earth, he had studied it thoroughly in university.

The style of writing in this world was much the same, and when he recalled it while reading, a True Script in his mind would emit a subtle wave, and its mysteries would flow forth.

With the two True Scripts, the profundities of the Six Yang Diagram Explanation and this Daoist scripture were all in his mind.

He stood up straight and left the room. At this time, only Mr. Harris had gone out to gather firewood. In the Daoist temple, there were only him and Junior Sister, making it very peaceful.

Seeing the temple so quiet, he couldn’t help but smile softly.

Yesterday he had tired out Junior Sister, so he let her sleep a bit longer. Edward Clark didn’t wake her, but took out paper and brush to leave a note, saying that he was gradually recovering and was going out for a walk, so she shouldn’t worry.

After writing, he picked up the inkstone to press down the paper, and was about to head outside alone.

The corridor was not deep, and the eaves were covered with yellow mugwort about a foot long. After just a few steps, he heard voices. Edward Clark listened and then entered under the steps of the west wing.

At this time, the hall was chilly, and wisps of wind blew through the corridor as he listened.

“Mr. Harris, pawn this, exchange it for gold and silver... My father has some connections in the city. If we pawn the gold bracelet and visit some of my father’s old acquaintances, maybe we can avoid this forced conscription.” As she spoke, there was the rustling sound of unwrapping a bundle.

There was silence for a while. After a moment, Mr. Harris’s bitter voice was heard: “You mentioned this yesterday, and I thought it was just a passing thought. Now you bring it out again... You have this intention, but he may not understand. This is a one-sided wish. Do you understand?”

Alice Bennett smiled upon hearing this and said, “Mr. Harris is right, but I have to do this. This is fate, whether good or bad, don’t you think so?”

Hearing this, Mr. Harris’s voice gradually lowered: “Ah, since you have this resolve, what else can I do? Go ahead, I won’t stop you. I just hope you can avoid this calamity...”

“The moss in the courtyard is slippery, and it rained again yesterday. Don’t slip...” As Alice Bennett spoke, it sounded like she was about to come out. Edward Clark quickly turned and headed up the mountain.

The Daoist temple was on the mountain. After walking a while, he reached the summit. The morning mist in the mountains was thick, turning everything outside white. Looking down—

There was a vast forest on the mountain, and a little farther away was a village, only three hundred meters from the hill. A river wound through the small village, providing it with drinking water and irrigation. This small river was a branch of the entire “Yi River.”

Edward Clark gazed at the Yi River, lost in thought. He once again recalled the urgent matter at hand.