**Chapter 112: Breaking Through the Five Stars Barrier**
"Your melody contains so many elements, Young Master!"
Fu Qingyun lightly plucked her pipa, her own melody testing the depths of Qin Mu's music. She discovered that Qin Mu's melody contained Buddhist chants, demonic sounds, and divine tones—a strange mixture. There was also killing intent and the clash of blades, as though swords were whirling and horses galloping.
The Heavenly Demon Sect's Great Cultivation of the Heavenly Demon Scripture contained chapters on music, but nothing this complex or fragmented. She could recognize that Qin Mu's melody incorporated the Heavenly Demon Sect's musical cultivation technique—the Heavenly Demon Rainbow Garment Melody—but that was only one part of his music.
Obviously, Qin Mu had entered a marvelous state from which he couldn't extricate himself. He was comprehending something far deeper, attempting to fuse various elements together.
Fu Qingyun understood his intention and felt relieved.
This state of "madness" was rare—it could only be reached during profound enlightenment.
Without madness, there is no life; without madness, there is no enlightenment.
Fu Qingyun held her pipa, her fingertips producing melodies that grew increasingly urgent. She was guiding Qin Mu, attempting to help him merge all his arts into one.
Earlier, the girls from the Listening Rain Pavilion had competed with Qin Mu in musical combat. While it was mostly playful, it had greatly helped Qin Mu—the pressure and competition forced him to constantly refine his melody.
She, however, used a combination of guidance and opposition to help Qin Mu achieve faster and better fusion.
Her musical accomplishments were far superior to those of the Listening Rain Pavilion girls. Under her guidance and pressure, Qin Mu progressed rapidly.
Qin Mu's incorporation of the Heavenly Demon Rainbow Garment Melody into his playing also benefited her immensely. Although she had been taught the melody as part of the Great Cultivation of the Heavenly Demon Scripture, her knowledge was incomplete. While guiding Qin Mu, she also received his guidance, learning the parts of the melody she had never mastered.
After a long time, Fu Qingyun noticed that Qin Mu was gradually emerging from his trance state. Their melodies harmonized, and they played together—a dragon and phoenix in concord.
Just then, more than a dozen girls excitedly emerged from a room carrying a large bell. The bell was taller than a person, with Hu Ling'er perched atop it, calling out: "Let's ring the bell together—that should shatter his demonic music..."
Fu Qingyun stopped playing, torn between laughter and tears. She scolded, "Do you want to kill the Young Master? This is utter foolishness—put the bell back!"
The girls trudged away dejectedly and carried the bell back. Hu Ling'er also looked downcast, clearly unhappy that she hadn't gotten to blast Qin Mu with the bell.
Qin Mu came to his senses and looked around in surprise, only then realizing he had caused quite a commotion. He hurriedly apologized to Fu Qingyun.
"The little girls were thoughtless and nearly disrupted your cultivation, Young Master. Please don't blame them."
Fu Qingyun smiled. "Hasn't the Young Master eaten yet? You've been at this all night—dawn is approaching."
Qin Mu quickly summoned the little fox spirit, who was perpetually eager for chaos, and went to eat together.
The young man in fine clothes folded up his unfinished meal, took the empty dishes, and washed them clean. Several girls hurried over to grab them, saying, "How can the Young Master do such menial work? Let us handle it."
Qin Mu smiled. "The Dao knows no high or low—how can work be noble or base? I've already washed them. There's no need for you to dirty your hands."
Fu Qingyun asked, "What realm is the Young Master currently in?"
Qin Mu ignited his hands with fire, burning away the water droplets. "Still the Spirit Embryo Realm."
Fu Qingyun frowned slightly. The Spirit Embryo Realm was somewhat too low—it would be very difficult to enter the Imperial Academy. Even when the Academy made exceptions, they usually only accepted warriors who had opened the Five Stars Divine Treasury.
With just the Spirit Embryo Realm, he likely couldn't pass the Academy's entrance examination.
She had originally thought Qin Mu was at least in the Five Stars Realm, since three years ago when she had last seen him, he was already in the Spirit Embryo Realm. She hadn't expected that in three years, Qin Mu had made no progress.
What she didn't know was that although Qin Mu's realm hadn't advanced, his cultivation had increased dramatically. Moreover, his Spirit Embryo had awakened four times, allowing his four types of vital energy to circulate freely. His vital energy was so abundant that even among warriors, he stood out.
"The Imperial Academy opens in two days, Young Master. You should attempt to break through the barrier—try to succeed within two days."
Though Fu Qingyun said this, she felt uneasy in her heart. Breaking through the barrier in two days was almost impossible—it was nearly an unachievable task.
Qin Mu nodded and smiled. "In two days, I will definitely succeed!"
Fu Qingyun drove the girls away. "None of you are to bother the Young Master for the next two days. Little fox, you stay away too—let the Young Master contemplate in peace."
Hu Ling'er had no choice but to leave with them. As they went, the girls told the little fox: "Sister Ling'er, we'll teach you the art of charm—it's quite fun..."
When Qin Mu had emerged from the Great Ruins, he had been attempting to break through the Five Stars Divine Treasury and enter the Five Stars Realm. During his recent intensive study of the Great Cultivation of the Heavenly Demon Scripture, he had gained considerable insight.
The Scripture contained methods for opening the Five Stars Divine Treasury. It said: "Forgetting form to nurture qi is the golden elixir; facing the scenery with a mindless heart is the great return. Forgetting form transforms qi, qi transforms spirit—this is the great Dao penetrating three barriers.
"The Crimson Palace blazes like a half-moon furnace; the Spirit Embryo sits still on the great mystical altar. Cinnabar is the blood of the red phoenix; quicksilver is the liver of the black turtle.
"Gold and lead are gathered into the earthen cauldron; wood and mercury fly and reside in the mud pill. The Flowery Pool is within the Sea of Qi; the Divine Chamber lies within the Yellow Court."①
The golden elixir was the golden light within the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury's Golden Sea. Qin Mu had already achieved the state of the Spirit Embryo sitting still on the mystical altar—his Golden Sea was empty, vital energy circulated, and the mystical altar imprint had formed beneath his Spirit Embryo.
Now, his Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury contained only a mystical altar formed by vital energy arrays, with the Spirit Embryo at its center.
The Five Stars Divine Treasury was also called the Five Elements Divine Treasury. It was located between the two breasts, associated with the heart, which was also called the Crimson Palace.
The cinnabar and quicksilver in the Great Cultivation of the Heavenly Demon Scripture were metaphors. Cinnabar represented fire, quicksilver represented water, gold and lead represented metal, wood and mercury represented wood, and the earthen cauldron represented earth—corresponding to the Five Stars: Mars (the Fiery Star), Mercury (the Watery Star), Venus (the Luminous Star), Jupiter (the Year Star), and Saturn (the Earth Star).
The Scripture stated that opening the Five Stars Divine Treasury required determining the star positions.
The star positions referred to the five celestial bodies—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—corresponding to the five stars within the human body's Five Stars Divine Treasury. Each person's physical constitution, development, and gender differed, causing the positions of the five stars within their divine treasury to vary.
Therefore, one needed to use the five celestial stars to calculate the five stars within the human body, determine the star positions, and then use vital energy to strike them.
Qin Mu took from his bundle a thick stack of paper, a charcoal pencil, and an abacus, along with ten volumes of Calculations. He unfolded the paper, which was covered in dense mathematical formulas. He was using the method of elemental calculations to determine the Five Stars positions—he had been working on this for some time and was nearing completion.
The abacus clicked rapidly. By the time the sun had risen three poles high, Qin Mu stretched lazily, stood up, and moved around to loosen his body.
On the first sheet of paper, he had drawn a heart surrounded by dense text and formulas, with five lines extending outward to form an equilateral pentagram around the heart. Each point was labeled with its elemental attribute—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, or Earth.
Qin Mu had converted the principles of generation and restraint into numbers, calculated the star positions, and finally determined the exact location of his Crimson Palace.
After moving around, Qin Mu began to walk slowly, circulating his vital energy to make it surge powerfully. As he walked, his vital energy passed through his Spirit Embryo, growing more and more abundant. He walked faster and faster until the room was filled with the sound of wind. The wind grew stronger, blowing open the windows and doors. Qin Mu simply walked out of the pavilion into the courtyard and continued pacing as if no one else was around.
Finally, his vital energy circulation reached its peak. Within his Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury, the Spirit Embryo on the mystical altar stood up, both hands raised toward the heavens. Five streams of vital energy shot into the sky of the divine treasury, pairing off and merging into five stars.
Threads of vital energy connected these five stars—connecting adjacent points and opposite points to form a pentagram pattern. The stars gradually brightened, and then, with a hum, shone downward from the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury like a mirror, illuminating the Ren and Du meridians, shining down his throat, and finally landing upon his heart chamber.
Qin Mu's vital energy erupted in a torrent, surging down along the illuminated path, crashing upon the spot bathed in light.
A thunderous sound rang in his ears as an invisible gate within his heart chamber burst open. The invisible barrier was shattered by his vital energy blast and vanished completely. A divine treasury had been opened!
A divine sound resonated in his mind, but before it could disrupt his vital energy circulation, the Five Stars Divine Treasury was already fully open!
Qin Mu halted his steps. Half a month of accumulated effort had been transformed into this powerful strike. It felt truly exhilarating!
"Why has the Young Master come outside instead of meditating?" Fu Qingyun approached, her voice carrying a hint of reproach.
Qin Mu opened his eyes. His aura was steadily rising, his cultivation growing more profound. He smiled. "I've broken through the barrier."
Fu Qingyun's heart skipped a beat. She stared at him in disbelief, stammering: "The Young Master broke through what?"
"I shattered the barrier of the Five Stars Divine Treasury," Qin Mu said with a smile.
Fu Qingyun felt dizzy. "But... I only just left your room a short while ago..."
① Adapted from "The Song of Happiness" by Song Dynasty Taoist Bai Yuchan, a Taoist cultivation method.