Chapter 1101: Summoning Spirit Ghost Sign One Sentence Succeeds, Astonishingly Talented Top Student

Under the cover of night, Mei Siyi spoke without any hesitation.

"Gui Jian Shu has three major thresholds for entry."

He had imposed so many restrictions on Xu Xiaoshou, forcing him to fight Tai Xu, a soul, using only Gui Jian Shu. Even Mei Siyi felt that Xu Xiaoshou had no chance of winning.

But the outcome didn't matter.

In Mei Siyi's view, as long as Xu Xiaoshou could make rapid progress in Gui Jian Shu under intense pressure—without even mentioning Yu Hun Gui Shu—with his age and potential, he was destined to reach the pinnacle someday.

As soon as Mei Siyi spoke, Xu Xiaoshou turned to look at him.

Gui Po was no exception; her soul form perked up her ears, surprised that this old sword immortal was teaching his sword techniques so openly, without shying away from outsiders. It was quite the display of noble character.

Excellent!

This was so typical of the ancient Jian Xiu!

Gui Po had no real intention of secretly learning Gui Jian Shu; she knew her own limits. But if she didn't eavesdrop a bit to prepare for Xu Xiaoshou's upcoming moves, she would be doing a disservice to the high moral standards of the ancient Jian Xiu.

Mei Siyi clearly understood Gui Po's intentions but still didn't speak through telepathy. Instead, he explained openly and fairly:

"The first step is to enter the Dao with 'Wan Wu Ji Jian,' deeply sensing the 'Ling' of all things. All things have Ling, whether alive or dead. Those with heightened spiritual senses or soul bodies different from ordinary people can easily achieve this. Those with dull talent may never cross the threshold in their lifetime."

His figure hovered in the air, his robes fluttering in the wind, and his Jian Yi surged with every word he spoke.

Before long, the entire illusory world began to distort under the influence of his Jian Yi, as if everything had received a command: grains of sand floated up, and the wind fell silent.

"Up."

Mei Siyi raised his hand.

Specks of dim light were drawn out from the sand and stones on the long street, the moss on the walls, and even the tiny, imperceptible creatures floating in the air.

"This is... 'Ling'!"

Gui Po's pupils contracted. From her expertise in soul cultivation within the refining Ling path, she had quickly interpreted what Mei Siyi had done.

All things have "Ling." When Ling takes form, it can give birth to a "Ling body" and produce "Ling Zhi."

A simple example is how a spiritual herb, after long nurturing, might reach a certain grade and develop Ling Zhi, becoming a treasure that can cultivate on its own and know to seek fortune and avoid disaster.

For instance, when one of the nine ancestral trees, Long Xing, receives blood, its status rises to the supreme level.

But that's the evolution path for strong life forms.

For non-life forms or weak life forms, going from "no Ling," to "birthing Ling," to "forming Ling," could take millions of years.

Things like grains of sand or mayflies—achieving true Ling Zhi might not be impossible, but it's one in a billion.

Formed "soul bodies" are easy to find, and Gui Po could locate them effortlessly.

But unformed "Ling"... especially the Ling being drawn out from sand and wandering winds—it left Gui Po utterly shocked.

She had made achievements in the soul path, but even she couldn't so easily detect such weak Ling as Mei Siyi had just done!

And now...

For the ancient Jian Xiu, this was merely one of the three major thresholds for entering Gui Jian Shu.

Xu Xiaoshou had to achieve this level instantly, without any prior exposure, matching Mei Siyi's standard.

Gui Po suddenly felt like the world was a joke—almost ridiculously absurd!

No wonder...

No wonder the ancient Jian Xiu had gone extinct...

Oh, well, not entirely extinct—there were still two big figures right here.

But for the ancient Jian Xiu to be on the brink of extinction in this era, there was definitely a reason for it!

Gui Po looked at Xu Xiaoshou with eyes full of amusement, wondering what he could learn from this.

After hearing Mei Siyi's words, all she felt was confusion, and she didn't believe Xu Xiaoshou could master this "summoning Ling" technique after just one sentence, without any "heart formulas," "oral incantations," or "techniques."

"This is 'Ling'."

Mei Siyi glanced subtly at Gui Po's soul form as it shifted from shock to amusement, then turned his gaze to Xu Xiaoshou without elaborating further.

In the ancient Jian Xiu path, many things could only be understood, not explained.

If Xu Xiaoshou's soul body wasn't strong enough, and his "Wan Wu Ji Jian" hadn't reached the point of sensing "Ling," then Mei Siyi could say more, but it would be useless—Xu Xiaoshou would have to start from the basics.

But clearly, based on Xu Xiaoshou's earlier "Mu Xia Shen Fo," his foundation was solid.

If his soul body wasn't powerful, his mental body couldn't be either, and he wouldn't have been able to visualize such a terrifying "Mu Xia Shen Fo" image without backlash!

"This is 'Ling'."

Xu Xiaoshou didn't actually need anyone to explain it.

The moment Mei Siyi raised his hand, the knowledge in Xu Xiaoshou's mind was activated. He understood how this was done, the principles behind it, and why it was one of the three major thresholds for practicing Gui Jian Shu.

"Is this how it works?"

Facing Gui Po's mocking gaze, Xu Xiaoshou pondered for a moment, then imitated Mei Siyi by raising his right hand into the air and lifting it high.

"Up!"

With a whoosh, the long street under the night sky lit up as if thousands of lights had been ignited at once. Countless, endless specks of "Ling" floated densely in the air.

Their brilliant glow truly rivaled the moon, like fireflies in full blaze!

Mei Siyi's hand trembled suddenly, and his expression froze.

Xiao Kongdong's jaw dropped and then snapped shut, nearly biting his tongue.

Gui Po, a mere soul body, stared wide-eyed in shock, as if she were the one seeing a ghost instead of being one—her face full of utter disbelief.

"Suspicion received, passive points: 3."

"It's that simple."

Xu Xiaoshou's lips curved up, and he smiled at Mei Siyi. "I've got some insight into 'Wan Wu Ji Jian,' so I can skip this step.

He had already mastered "Wan Wu Ji Jian" back when his "Jian Shu Jing Tong" was at its lowest level.

As that passive skill continued to upgrade, Xu Xiaoshou had reached a peak of perfection.

Along his journey, constantly battered by various experts... and later, with "Perception," he endlessly trained his mental resilience; with "Huan Mie Yi Zhi," he triggered "Mental Awakening" to strengthen his soul and mental body. Drawing out so much "Ling" at once was effortless for him, like second nature.

"Just some insight..." Even though Mei Siyi had anticipated Xu Xiaoshou's soul strength might be impressive, he was truly startled by this display.

This was way more than "some insight"!

Your mastery of "Wan Wu Ji Jian" is already on par with mine...

Your mental and soul bodies, based on your performance with "Mu Xia Shen Fo," might be a bit behind mine, but not by much...

Mei Siyi was stunned for a good while before he nodded slightly and said calmly, "Not bad."

Uh, is that just "not bad"...? Xiao Kongdong, standing nearby, couldn't help but twitch his mouth. He thought to himself that Xu Xiaoshou's display was already at the level of someone who's practiced Gui Jian Shu for days—this was more than "not bad"; it was excellent!

A genius!

Undoubtedly a genius!

He was a genius in "Xin Jian Shu," and now in "Gui Jian Shu" too!

For a moment, Xiao Kongdong even considered becoming Xu Xiaoshou's master and nurturing him fully, but he quickly suppressed that wicked thought.

Goodness, that would mean jumping generations!

Senior Wu Xiu wouldn't allow it, nor would the teacher, and Mei Siyi... well, he might just kill me!

"Impossible!"

"Absolutely impossible!"

Gui Po rubbed her eyes and looked again, only to confirm that the "thousands of lights" weren't an illusion from Jian Shu—they were real.

She glanced silently at Xu Xiaoshou, and her previously stagnant thoughts began to stir.

"How could he master 'summoning Ling' without the proper 'oral incantations' or 'circulation heart formulas'?"

"Could there be some profound truth hidden in Mei Siyi's teachings that I didn't catch?"

Gui Po carefully recalled what Mei Siyi had said earlier, and she realized his explanation of "summoning Ling" was just this simple sentence:

"Enter the Dao with 'Wan Wu Ji Jian,' deeply sensing the 'Ling' of all things. All things have Ling, whether alive or dead. Those with heightened spiritual senses or soul bodies different from ordinary people can easily achieve this. Those with dull talent may never cross the threshold in their lifetime."

She broke it down word by word, pieced it together, and even analyzed the explanatory parts that followed, but found nothing.

In the end, she even included the initial "first step," but still couldn't find the answer she wanted.

"Does it require the motion too?"

After seeing Xu Xiaoshou's results, Gui Po didn't want to miss this chance to learn secretly.

She prided herself on having decent talent in the soul path and more years of cultivation experience. If she could grasp the deeper meaning in Mei Siyi's words, she could probably summon Ling as easily as Xu Xiaoshou.

So, while the other three were focused on Xu Xiaoshou, she subtly raised her hand and contemplated that "oral incantation" in her mind.

Silently, she thought:

"Up!"

A silent breeze drifted through the air.

Gui Po only saw a few vague, large dead spirit bodies. As for the Ling from grains of sand, mayflies, or dust particles, she saw none!

"This can't be right..."

Gui Po furrowed her brow, wondering if she needed to say it out loud to match the "oral incantation."

No sooner thought than done.

She silently recited Mei Siyi's "profound" words again, then spoke as clearly as possible, keeping her voice low:

"Up!"

In an instant, the conversation among the three in front stopped.

Three piercing gazes turned in the night, passing through the empty air in front of Gui Po and landing on her soul form's face.

Gui Po felt her face burning visibly, as if she could hear the sound of steam rising from it.

That abrupt "Up"...

It was so awkward!

Xu Xiaoshou's expression grew complicated, then twisted.

Mei Siyi's cheeks puffed slightly, the flesh on both sides twitching upward a little, but he quickly composed himself.

But Xiao Kongdong couldn't hold back...

"Pfft!"

His mouth opened wide, and he burst out laughing on the spot.

"Wahaha!"

Endless mockery turned into invisible pressure invading Gui Po's soul body. She forced down her embarrassment and muttered, "Why can't I do it?"

"Heehee, heeheeheehee..." As soon as she said that, Xu Xiaoshou couldn't restrain himself either.

His strange laughter made Mei Siyi, who was barely holding it together, tense up. Mei Siyi immediately suppressed any chance of losing control and smacked Xu Xiaoshou hard with his paper fan.

"What kind of laugh is that... Pull yourself together. Everyone has a desire to learn."

Xu Xiaoshou clutched his head and wiped away tears, thinking to himself, Teacher, you haven't heard Elder Qiao's laugh. Are you looking down on... er, not hearing the laugh of Elder Qiao, the top of the four sacred palace disciples?

Xiao Kongdong finally stopped laughing, rubbed his head, and shook it with a smile. "A-Po, give us ancient Jian Xiu some face, will you? Gui Jian Shu isn't that easy to practice."

Then how did Xu Xiaoshou do it in one go...? Gui Po pursed her lips and looked away.

"The second step!"

Mei Siyi's words brought everyone back to the serious matter.

Seeing his students' attention on him, he restrained his Jian Yi and manifested it visibly as air waves, gathering it into his eyes.

In an instant, two small, dark swords formed from Jian Yi appeared in Mei Siyi's pupils.

He swept his cold gaze around, and the faint light from the swords in his pupils illuminated the "Ling" he had summoned earlier.

"Jian Yi returns to the body, intent resides within. Open the eye as a window, using a method similar to 'Xin Jian Shu,' but focused on the soul level. Activate 'Gui Qian' in the eyes to command the 'Ling' of all things."

Gui Qian—a new term... Xu Xiaoshou's mind stirred, and he quickly found similar experiences in his mental knowledge base.

"The feeling of 'Wan Wu Ji Jian' seeking 'Ling' is like focusing attention on the soul level..."

"Transfer that feeling, converge Jian Yi in the pupils, turn the intangible into tangible, and manifest those two dark swords—that's 'Gui Qian'..."

"'Gui Qian' is equivalent to the 'ruling power of the spirit' in 'Xin Jian Shu's 'Mu Xia Shen Fo,' but now it's the 'ruler of souls'—more precisely, the decree in the hands of the 'ruler of souls,' which can enslave the 'Ling' of all things."

While he was searching his knowledge base, Gui Po, the eager student stealing lessons, was also paying close attention.

She didn't understand the earlier parts.

But the latter part clicked for her. She thought, Isn't this just "soul seal"?

When she commanded ghost spirits, she had to use a "soul seal" to become their master and issue orders.

In Xiao Kongdong's eyes, those two dark swords were just another interpretation of "soul seal" in the ancient Jian Xiu tradition.

This technique was already familiar to Gui Po; she knew it well. She immediately turned her gaze to Xu Xiaoshou, a slight smirk on her lips.

Unlike the earlier step of sensing Ling, forming a "soul seal" truly required skill and experience!

Back in the day, without a teacher, she had explored soul path cultivation on her own.

Just finding the sensation for forming a "soul seal" had taken her half a year—harder than a novice refining Ling for the first time and guiding Ling Qi through their meridians!

It had taken Gui Po several more days to condense her first soul seal, which was already impressive for her talent.

But that initial "soul seal" could only control weak, unresisting souls like those of chickens or ducks. It wasn't until half a year later that it grew strong enough to command larger, combat-capable ghost spirits.

Mei Siyi held a similar view.

He didn't have exceptional talent for Gui Jian Shu cultivation; he was just average. So, based on experience, he knew "Gui Qian" might be conceptually challenging for a beginner in Gui Jian Shu. He had just finished explaining and was about to add more details.

But to his surprise, Xu Xiaoshou, after sorting through his mental knowledge, was already acting.

"Is this how it works?"