The Situation in Yue Province and the Treasure Appraisal Catalog

Arriving before the pavilion, Xu Yang was blocked by a restrictive barrier. A transparent screen enveloped the building, and when Xu Yang reached out to strike it with his palm, a rebounding force surged forth, knocking him backward.

Staring at this barrier, a thought struck Xu Yang. He took out the Qiankun Bag he had just received, probed it with his divine sense, and immediately imprinted his mark upon it, refining it as his own. The space inside the bag was quite small, no larger than a parcel, containing two sets of disciple robes, a jade slip, a black token, and three spirit stones.

Xu Yang took out the token and used his divine sense to imprint his mark into it; the token immediately acknowledged him as its master. Xu Yang kept the token on his person and walked toward the barrier again. Sure enough, the barrier did not react, allowing Xu Yang to pass through and enter the pavilion.

Inside the pavilion, Xu Yang looked around and saw that the decor was extremely simple, consisting only of a square table and two chairs, a stark contrast to the exquisite and elegant exterior. Xu Yang did not care for such material things and immediately headed up the stairs to the second floor.

The situation on the second floor left Xu Yang quite satisfied. Although the area was not large, it contained a small spirit-gathering array. Xu Yang quickly stepped into the array and immediately discovered that the spiritual energy within was abundant, far better than anywhere else.

Excited, Xu Yang immediately sat cross-legged to practice, and soon he entered a state of self-forgetfulness. The air within the array fluctuated, stirring up a faint breeze.

After a session of cultivation, Xu Yang opened his eyes and sighed with a mix of joy and helplessness. He realized that although the spiritual energy in the array was decent, it had been accumulated over time. Now that he had absorbed a portion, it had thinned out significantly. Relying solely on the spirit-gathering array to condense energy was not enough to satisfy his absorption needs, though it did at least accelerate his cultivation speed.

Suppressing his frustration, Xu Yang flicked his hand to take out the items he had received earlier. The clothing and spirit stones were put away, and he picked up the jade slip, projecting his divine sense into it.

A moment later, Xu Yang put down the jade slip with a look of realization; he finally had some understanding of the sect he had joined. Combined with the jade slip left behind by Old Man Tianjue, Xu Yang finally had a rough grasp of the cultivation world in Yue Province.

The sect Xu Yang had joined was called the Bailian Pavilion, the largest sect in the Wu Kingdom. It specialized in the art of artifact refining. Other cultivation families and the royal family of the Wu Kingdom were all subordinate to the Bailian Pavilion, making it one of the largest powers in Yue Province.

The Bailian Pavilion, Baicao Hall, and Hundred Beasts Sect were collectively known as the three righteous powers of Yue Province. Additionally, there were two devil dao sects, the Demon Fire Sect and the Blood Prison Sect, as well as the neutral Loose Cultivator Alliance. These major powers each controlled a nation, with a constant flow of resources and talent, dominating the entire cultivation world of Yue Province.

At present, the righteous and devil factions in Yue Province were in a standoff, and the atmosphere was becoming increasingly tense. Fortunately, the three righteous powers kept the devil faction at bay, maintaining a peaceful situation in Yue Province. Otherwise, Xu Yang would have had to consider leaving the Yue Province cultivation world to avoid disaster.

As a major power, the Bailian Pavilion naturally treated its disciples well. New disciples could go to the Scripture Depository to select a Qi Refining stage cultivation technique suited to themselves, and they would be issued one spirit stone every month. If they could advance to the seventh level of the Qi Refining stage and become inner sect disciples, there would be further rewards from the pavilion.

The Bailian Pavilion was divided into the External Affairs Hall, Internal Affairs Hall, Artifact Refining Hall, Alchemy Hall, Scripture Depository, and Punishment Hall. The External Affairs Hall was where the sect posted missions; disciples could accept these tasks and receive rewards upon completion, such as medicinal pills, talismans, magic tools, spirit herbs, and refining materials.

The Internal Affairs Hall was where the pavilion hosted guests, held competitions, distributed spirit stones, and registered new disciples. The Artifact Refining Hall and Alchemy Hall were, as their names suggested, the places for refining artifacts and pills; the medicinal pills and magic tools used by the disciples mostly came from these locations.

The Scripture Depository was a vital area of the pavilion, housing the sect's cultivation techniques, classics, and spell manuals, and was guarded year-round by an elder. The remaining Punishment Hall was where disciples who violated sect rules were disciplined, and the disciples of the pavilion feared it greatly.

Having clarified these details, Xu Yang put away the jade slip and planned to visit the Scripture Depository tomorrow. He began to practice again, and the spiritual energy within the small spirit-gathering array quickly converged toward him.

The next day, after a night of cultivation, Xu Yang found that his cultivation had consolidated significantly and was progressing toward the fourth level of Qi Refining. However, the spiritual energy in the small spirit-gathering array had been completely absorbed, and he would have to wait for it to slowly accumulate again.

Shaking his head, Xu Yang thought to himself, "The speed of gathering spiritual energy is too slow. It seems I must find other ways, otherwise, my cultivation speed will be too sluggish." With this thought, Xu Yang walked out of the pavilion.

Arriving outside, he followed the map in the jade slip and headed straight for the Scripture Depository. An hour later, Xu Yang arrived before a small three-story building with the words "Scripture Depository" carved on it. Looking at it, the small building was extremely inconspicuous and appeared plain and gray. If not for the inscription, Xu Yang would have thought he had gone to the wrong place!

At this moment, two disciples were guarding the door. Xu Yang stepped forward and cupped his hands, saying, "Two senior brothers, I am a new disciple and wish to enter the Scripture Depository to select a cultivation technique. Please open the door."

Hearing Xu Yang's words, the two exchanged a glance, and the taller one said, "Show me your identity token so I can verify it." Xu Yang took out the token and handed it to him. The man took the token and probed it with his divine sense, scanning it quickly.

"Indeed, you are a newly joined disciple and are permitted to enter the Scripture Depository once. You may go in! But remember, you can only choose one cultivation technique, and you must not damage anything inside, or you will face punishment according to sect rules." The man said this while returning the token to Xu Yang.

Xu Yang nodded to him to show he understood and stepped into the pavilion. Once inside, Xu Yang found that the area was not large, with only seven or eight bookshelves, and the entrance to the second floor was blocked by a restrictive barrier. Xu Yang quickly browsed through the shelves and discovered that they did not contain only cultivation techniques and spell manuals.

There were also books on artifact refining, alchemy, talismans, and more. Xu Yang even saw illustrated guides to spirit herbs and materials, as well as books on the customs and geography of the various nations in Yue Province.

After a general look, he came to the bookshelf containing cultivation techniques. He picked one up at random, only to find it was the Burning Heaven Art for fire-attribute spirit roots. Xu Yang put it back and pulled out another; the four characters "Song of the Canglang" caught his eye—this was a water-attribute technique.

Xu Yang felt helpless and had to put it back in its place. He then checked the manuals on the shelf one by one. He saw that there were plenty of techniques for the five elements, such as the Golden Sword Art and Wood Vine Technique, and even techniques for mutated spirit roots like Thunder Blast and the Mysterious Ice Technique. The only thing missing were techniques for non-attribute spirit roots.

It wasn't that there were none at all; Xu Yang did find the Qi Refining Secret Record, but he had already practiced this technique and no longer needed it. Only then did Xu Yang truly realize the frustration of having a Void Spirit Root.

As one of the major powers in Yue Province, the fact that the Bailian Pavilion did not have a cultivation technique for a Void Spirit Root showed just how rare such techniques were. It seemed he would have to continue practicing the Qi Refining Secret Record.

Fortunately, the flaws of the Qi Refining Secret Record had been resolved by the small black sword, otherwise, he would have been in a sorry state. However, he couldn't leave the Scripture Depository empty-handed, could he? Thinking of this, Xu Yang turned and walked to a bookshelf. He reached out and picked up a thick book, glanced at it for a moment, and then walked out of the Scripture Depository with it.

The guards at the door saw Xu Yang come out and said, "Junior brother, tell us which technique you have chosen so we can register it." Xu Yang raised his hand and said, "Well, I didn't choose a cultivation technique; I chose this Illustrated Guide to Heavenly Treasures. You can record that."

The two guards were dumbfounded. They hadn't expected Xu Yang to choose an illustrated guide to treasures. It was truly foolish; he had passed up cultivation techniques and secret arts to choose a book of little value. The guard blankly took the guide, registered it, and returned it to Xu Yang.

Xu Yang put the guide into his Qiankun Bag, bowed to the two, and turned to leave. The two guards looked at each other. One of them, a short and stout man, rolled his eyes, formed a seal with his hands, and a green light flew from his palm, striking a large rock outside the Scripture Depository.

The rock emitted a white light that flashed and vanished. The two stared at the white light, saying in a daze, "The stone shows white light; this junior brother really didn't take any other cultivation techniques or secret arts, he really just took a treasure guide. What is he thinking?"

Xu Yang left the Scripture Depository and returned to his pavilion. From a distance, he saw Huo Lian standing in front of the building. He immediately quickened his pace and said to Huo Lian, "I did not know you were coming, Senior Brother. I have been remiss, please forgive me."

Huo Lian waved his hand and said, "No need for such formalities. You went to the Scripture Depository, didn't you? Did you choose any cultivation techniques or secret arts?" Xu Yang smiled bitterly and said, "Senior Brother knows that I have a Void Spirit Root. There were simply no techniques in the Scripture Depository that I could practice!"

"So, I chose a treasure guide to broaden my knowledge. After all, I have just joined the sect and everything is very unfamiliar; I don't know anything!" Xu Yang said, taking out the treasure guide.

Huo Lian looked at the guide, a flash of contempt crossing his eyes. He smiled at Xu Yang and said, "Don't be too discouraged, Junior Brother. Master will think of a way for you. That is why I have come today, under Master's orders, to bring you some things."

As he spoke, Huo Lian took out a Qiankun Bag and placed it in Xu Yang's hand. Seeing this, Xu Yang looked grateful and said to Huo Lian, "I am sorry to trouble you to deliver this personally. I am deeply grateful. Please, come inside, I must treat you properly."

Huo Lian waved his hand and said pointedly to Xu Yang, "Thank you for your kindness, Junior Brother, but I must go into seclusion to practice, so I won't disturb you. However, if you have any matters in the future, please do support me!"

Xu Yang straightened his expression and said to Huo Lian, "Please rest assured, Senior Brother. I will certainly follow your lead."

"Haha, you are too modest, Junior Brother!" Hearing this, Huo Lian looked satisfied, patted Xu Yang on the shoulder, and turned to leave with a hearty laugh.