Chapter 75: Performance of Magic

"Did you feel that?"

In a coffee shop, Yan Bingxuan withdrew her finger from Chen Mobai's right wrist. He was shivering constantly and quickly drank the scalding hot coffee on the table. He then let out a long breath.

"Is this your Ice Spirit Qi?" Chen Mobai raised his hand, looking at the faintly bluish pulse on his wrist and the still numb coldness in his right arm. He couldn't help but scrutinize the beautiful Yan, whose skin was so fair it was almost translucent. He wondered, "Does she not feel cold, constantly circulating this Ice Spirit Qi through her meridians?"

"The Frost Condensation Method, a technique for improving spiritual roots, strengthens the meridians," Yan Bingxuan calmly answered his question, seeing the doubt in Chen Mobai's eyes. "Among the Three Treasures of Foundation Establishment, the Meridian Guarding Pill's purpose is to prevent meridians from rupturing under the impact of powerful spiritual energy. While cultivating the Frost Condensation Method to purify my spiritual root and transform it into an Ice Spiritual Root takes many years, it strengthens my meridians to the point where I don't need a Meridian Guarding Pill to withstand the impact of liquefied spiritual energy at the Foundation Establishment level."

Chen Mobai had not known this. This meant that although spiritual root enhancement techniques required cultivators to lie dormant for fifteen to twenty years in the early stages, they also laid a deep foundation for advancing to higher realms in the future.

"Do other spiritual root techniques also have this effect?" Yan Bingxuan nodded and then shook her head. "Most do. Techniques for transforming into unique spiritual roots generally require meridian strengthening. Other Heavenly Spiritual Roots, being single-attribute, naturally possess the Five Elements within the body and don't particularly need this function."

"Heavenly Spiritual Roots truly are blessed!" Chen Mobai sighed. According to data from the Immortal Sect's Imperial Medical Academy, cultivators with unique spiritual roots were almost guaranteed to reach Foundation Establishment if they practiced the corresponding cultivation methods. However, if they wished to form a Core, they still needed opportunities and their own innate talent. For those with Heavenly Spiritual Roots, even if they did nothing but cultivate in their immortal cave daily, there was a fifty percent chance of forming a Core. With the aid of Core-forming spiritual medicines from the Immortal Sect, the probability increased to sixty or seventy percent. However, when it came to forming a Nascent Soul, Heavenly Spiritual Roots were actually less advantageous than ordinary spiritual root cultivators who progressed step by step through arduous cultivation. This was likely because their early stages were too smooth, leading to insufficient tempering and a greater susceptibility to succumbing during tribulations of inner demons.

"So, does that mean my 'Ice Arts' can never be practiced?" If Chen Mobai were to cultivate this spell, he would first need to strengthen his meridians, and he didn't have the time for that!

"Let me see!" Yan Bingxuan picked up her phone and read the full text of the "Ice Arts" that Chen Mobai had sent her. She carefully compared it to her own "Profound Ice Art," deducing the meaning of the vaguely described "Ice Breath" and explaining her extensive understanding. However, her verbal communication skills were indeed average, and Chen Mobai didn't quite grasp much of what she said.

"Let me demonstrate it for you." Yan Bingxuan noticed a cultivation gym directly across from the coffee shop and suggested they go to that professional venue so she could personally demonstrate the Ice Arts for him.

"Let's go." Chen Mobai immediately ordered two more scalding hot latte coffees to avoid his arm freezing up again when he experienced the Ice Spirit Qi.

Inside the cultivation gym, under Yan Bingxuan's guidance, he rented a spell practice room for two hours. Chen Mobai, who had never been to such a place, found the 138 good deeds points bill a bit expensive. A spell practice room was a spacious, empty room specifically designed for practicing spells. The walls were covered with targets and secured by sturdy restrictions, making them difficult to damage.

After Yan Bingxuan entered, she skillfully put on protective gear, then opened a complimentary bottle of mineral water from the room and sprinkled it into the air. *Whoosh!* Yan Bingxuan exhaled softly. Standing beside her, Chen Mobai felt a chill pierce his very bones and couldn't help but circulate his spiritual energy to warm his qi and blood. "Crackling!" At that moment, the sound of water freezing rang out. Under Chen Mobai's widened gaze, Yan Bingxuan lightly raised her fair hand. The mineral water sprinkled into the air instantly transformed into a ring of ice spikes with her breath, falling precisely around them, forming a perfect two-meter diameter circle, unevenly shaped like a mini-iceberg.

"You saw it once and you got it?" Chen Mobai felt disheartened. He had been practicing these Ice Arts for nearly half a month without any clue. Yet, Yan Bingxuan, who had only just seen them today, didn't even need practice; she just picked them up and succeeded on her first try.

"This isn't your 'Ice Arts'; it's the 'Ten Profound Ice Transformations' that I cultivate, but the principles are the same." Yan Bingxuan's words made Chen Mobai feel a little better; otherwise, the confidence he had painstakingly built after breaking through to Qi Refining Level Seven would have been shattered.

"Just now, I used the Ice Breath from the spell you gave me to perform the Ten Transformations. Now, I'll activate it using my own Profound Ice Art. Watch closely." At this point, Yan Bingxuan levitated another bottle of mineral water above her head and unscrewed it. The moment the water began to scatter, it instantly froze into its dispersed shape, like a giant ice flower, as if in a northern grotto-heaven at tens of degrees below zero. Chen Mobai reached out to touch it, but with a "ping-pong" sound, Yan Bingxuan took a step back, and the formed ice flower fell to the floor, shattering into hundreds of ice shards.

"Did you notice the difference?"

"Yes, your activation with the Profound Ice Art was faster. The Ice Arts also had an additional exhalation process." Chen Mobai had been observing Yan Bingxuan's movements with his spiritual sense, and with full concentration, he naturally noticed the difference between the two activations of the Ten Profound Ice Transformations.

"The Ten Transformation spell set accompanying the Profound Ice Art involves giving water myriad forms, then molding ice into various shapes as needed, just like the core of your Ice Arts," Yan Bingxuan explained. "The only difference is that I've already refined the Ice Spirit Qi within my body, so my spiritual energy can complete the shaping the moment it touches flowing water. Your Ice Arts, however, simulate Ice Spirit Qi, but your dantian and meridians cannot withstand the cold of true Ice Spirit Qi. Therefore, you need to complete the process of transforming Five-Element spiritual energy into Ice Spirit Qi in the Twelve-Story Pagoda area. But your Twelve-Story Pagoda also cannot withstand Ice Spirit Qi. So, for this Ice Breath, you must instantly exhale it at the subtle moment just before it fully forms. This way, the transformation into Ice Spirit Qi completes precisely as it leaves your mouth, neither harming your body nor preventing you from shaping water with ordinary spiritual energy. This spell is quite interesting. Its true essence is almost identical to my process of transforming my Metal-Water spiritual root into an Ice spiritual root. However, its creator likely intended it only for combat, which is a bit narrow-minded."

After Yan Bingxuan finished speaking, Chen Mobai solemnly thanked her. Indeed, her clear explanation was invaluable. Her practical demonstration, hands-on approach, and unreserved sharing of insights finally made Chen Mobai, who had been completely bewildered by "Ice Breath," understand it thoroughly.