Taking the Jade

The jade carving wore a stone robe and Daoist gown, its hair bound beneath a Daoist crown. Only the skin over its entire body had been carved from Jade in Stone, truly bringing both stone and jade to their utmost limits.

Its left hand was clenched into a fist, its right formed a palm, its arms naturally held before its chest as it gazed up at the heavens. Its jade eyes were utterly blank, yet they seemed to hold two transparent eyeballs like crystal and diamonds. At a single sweep of its gaze, Divine Might spilled forth, making all living beings prostrate themselves.

Compared with the faceless stone carvings Xiang Yang had seen before, this jade Daoist's features were clear. He had a long, beardless face, austere yet carrying three parts gentleness. At first glance, one might have mistaken him for a living man. His craftsmanship had nearly attained the Dao.

"This is the jade carving that Daoist made back then. Look behind it—there are three or four chunks of stone that were cut away. Any one of them contains the Jade in Stone the little master needs."

The emerald radiance was formed from the jade carving's own color and a trace of the Daoist's lingering Primordial Spirit power. Unless one had achieved Great Success in Primordial Spirit, it was impossible to remain unaffected by this Divine Radiance.

Still covering his eyes, the young village chief spoke with some difficulty. Though his true qi was pure and his cultivation astonishing, he had ultimately acquired this power by chance. His cultivation of the spiritual path had only improved passively, and he still found it difficult to escape the jade carving's influence.

Following the young village chief's words, Xiang Yang circled to one side. Sure enough, he saw chunks of leftover material,