According to some cultivation texts, when one's inner medicinal foundation reaches a certain level, one can begin to cultivate minor spells. Daoist spells generally fall into several categories: manipulating the primordial energies of heaven and earth, invoking deities to perform rituals, talismanic inscriptions, and the use of one's own spiritual power.

Recently, I’ve often found myself lamenting that I can't even perform a simple spell. It’s not that I haven’t been cultivating; it’s just that... well, it's quite frustrating!

Invoking deities—until I figure out why the primordial energy of heaven and earth is so turbulent, I have no intention of attempting it. If I were to rashly attempt it and fail, it wouldn’t be worth the risk. As for manipulating the primordial energy of heaven and earth, I don’t have the ability to do so, nor the method to harness such wild and intense energy. My own spiritual power is too shallow to even think of using it. For now, the only thing I can manage is talismanic inscriptions.

Talismans can control evil energy. In addition to the primordial energy, talismans can also control evil through spiritual consciousness. Therefore, a person with strong spiritual consciousness, even without any major cultivation achievements, can still use talismanic inscriptions. So, as a cultivator, I’m not really anything special. But of course, that’s only true for now!

Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind. Every time my Xuanhuang Flag activates, a storm of thunder and rain follows. So, if I hold the Xuanhuang Flag in my hand, could I control it to release lightning?

At this thought, I immediately sprang into action. There were still a few hours before my scheduled meeting with Cao Kui and Cheng Fan, so I focused my spiritual consciousness, and the Xuanhuang Flag appeared in my hand.

I infused my vital energy into the Xuanhuang Flag and shouted toward a flowerpot in my room, “I’ll zap you, zap, zap, zap!”

Nothing happened! What’s going on?

After thinking for a moment about the methods and hand gestures for controlling magical tools described in Daoist texts, I quickly grabbed a book on thunder-based spells from my collection.

Thunder magic involves talismans and incantations used to summon rain, clear skies, exorcise demons, and guide the souls of the departed. Thus, when the heart aligns with the Dao, it becomes the master of all, allowing one to command the magic.

While there are many types of thunder spells, to truly master them, one must cultivate the spiritual light and primordial spirit within, transforming one's divine essence to wield them.

This is all so profound! Aligning the heart with the Dao, cultivating the spiritual light and primordial spirit, transforming the divine essence—spells are servants of the heart, and the heart is the master of spells. It seems that thunder magic is governed by the mind, with primordial energy merely acting as the conduit.

In a book titled Daoist Magic’s Return to the Source, I suddenly came across some details about thunder magic, including hand gestures, secret gestures, thunder incantations, divine transformation techniques, methods to summon thunder and fire, and a series of other techniques.

What caught my attention the most were the six thunder hand gestures described in the book.

It didn’t seem too difficult! My curiosity got the best of me, and I couldn’t resist trying it out for myself.

For safety, I recalled the Xuanhuang Flag into my Mud Ball Palace and began following the Cloud Thunder technique’s hand gestures. I focused and carefully mimicked the gestures in the book: I bent my right index finger, placed my thumb over it, then pressed the tip of my thumb against the "chou" pattern, and curled my middle, ring, and pinky fingers...

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

As soon as I completed the hand gesture, I suddenly felt the space around me fluctuate, and a strange primordial energy gathered in my hand. However, to my disappointment, no lightning appeared. The strange energy was absorbed by the Xuanhuang Flag in my Mud Ball Palace.

Inside my spirit palace, the Xuanhuang Flag seemed quite excited after absorbing the energy. A soft yellow glow began to shimmer across the flag's surface. Intrigued, I repeatedly performed the Cloud Thunder hand gesture, and each time, a flow of energy was drawn from my hand into the flag. The flag’s patterns became clearer.

What delighted me even more was that the Xuanhuang Flag suddenly emitted a wave of strange spiritual consciousness, which enveloped the mysterious symbols it had imparted to me. For the first time, those cryptic symbols seemed to come alive, slowly emitting a soft golden light.

An ancient, solemn intent flowed through my mind.

How strange!

I was ecstatic!

However, no matter how many times I performed the Cloud Thunder hand gesture, those mysterious symbols remained still. Seeing that the time I had agreed upon with Cao Kui and Cheng Fan had arrived, I stopped my actions. The Xuanhuang Flag and the cryptic symbols fell silent once again.

This whole experience felt both surprising and magical! If I could uncover the secrets behind those mysterious symbols, I was certain my cultivation journey would undergo a tremendous transformation.

I was so eager to explore more!

Although I had failed this time, it was still a promising start. Even though I felt impatient, I wasn't one to act recklessly. I knew that this required time and patience. I calmed my emotions, took out a few of the talismans I had drawn, and walked out of my room.

I greeted my third uncle, telling him I was going to stay at a classmate’s house for the night. Then, I hurried out the door, chuckling to myself.

Although I had visited Cao Kui’s house a few times before and even stayed overnight, my third uncle strongly disapproved of me staying out, fearing I might get into trouble.

By the time I arrived at the supermarket behind the school, Cao Kui and Cheng Fan were already there.

I laughed, "You two, why are you so eager to see a mummified corpse? Aren’t you scared of it?"

"Scared? Nah! We're just gonna watch from a distance," Cao Kui answered with ease, clearly forgetting how terrified he was this morning. After bringing along my Calming Talisman, he’d suddenly grown bolder.

I thought for a moment and then handed a Calming Talisman to Cheng Fan.

“Wow, such beautiful lines, such harmonious patterns. Who drew this?” Cheng Fan exclaimed, holding my talisman. “It wasn’t you, was it? You’ve always been into this kind of stuff. What a waste! You should be drawing professionally with your talent!”

“Damn! Since when did you become such a chatterbox?” I chuckled. Cheng Fan seemed really engrossed in drawing now, as he critiqued my Calming Talisman.

Well, I liked it! Heh.

The school’s perimeter wall was a two-person-high iron fence, easy to climb for the three of us. We had snuck out plenty of times during school hours. After buying some snacks for the night, the three of us quickly scaled the fence and found a quiet spot on the campus to hide.

As the sky slowly darkened, the school’s classrooms were pitch black, not a single window lit up. The large trees on campus swayed slightly in the wind, and leaves drifted through the air. The entire school looked a bit desolate.

Unfortunately, my spiritual consciousness still couldn’t extend to every corner of the school; I could only sense everything within a ten-meter radius. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have to wait around like this! Looks like I need to speed up my cultivation! I’ve been slacking off lately!

"Hey, do you guys think we’ll really see a mummified corpse? Why is there no one around the school?" Cheng Fan asked softly, bored, looking at me and Cao Kui.

I thought to myself, this guy’s probably already scared, huh?

I grinned and said to Cheng Fan, “If something weird happens, just run! I don’t want to get my blood drained by a mummified corpse.”

I was just teasing him, of course. Cheng Fan was the smallest of the three of us and slow to run, but after hearing my warning, he didn’t seem worried at all.

Could it be that my Calming Talisman is working too well on him? Maybe I should make some extra talismans and sell them for a little extra cash. The Calming Talisman is perfect for preventing motion sickness and calming nerves... What a great product!

Lost in thought, I suddenly felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end…