Wei Zhong floated in the air. A wisp of bright light flew from between his brows and transformed into a book before him.
The book was an ancient thread-bound volume, its cover bearing four large characters: "Time Treasure Record."
Looking at the Time Treasure Record, Wei Zhong immediately understood that this was the root of his transmigration here, and the reason he could trade lifespan for levels.
Before Wei Zhong could react, the book had already opened. On its pages was the image of a baby lying in a young woman's arms, crying loudly.
Was this my past life?
Everything displayed within the treasure record was something that could only exist in that world.
When one image ended, another followed. The Wei Zhong in the picture was learning to walk, shuffling forward while holding onto a wall.
Then came kindergarten, elementary school, and all the ages and experiences that followed. In the blink of an eye, Wei Zhong's entire previous life had played before him.
It continued until the day he had gone to work, when the scene suddenly broke off.
In the next instant, it shifted to the small courtyard beside the Yan family's outer Spirit Fields—trading lifespan, killing the wicked disciple...
Everything he had experienced since coming to this cultivation world was displayed within, ending here in this tower.
The treasure record then closed and carried Wei Zhong's body upward toward the dome overhead.
Wei Zhong's figure began to merge into that dazzling radiance.
Once Wei Zhong vanished, the light within the tower also disappeared without a trace. Everything returned to how it had been when he entered.
No one outside had any way of knowing what had happened.
If Lu Yibin had been tracking Wei Zhong, he might have noticed the slightest trace. But at this moment, stationed on guard within the mine tunnel, he knew nothing of it.
Wei Zhong felt his vision swallowed by intense light and could not help closing his eyes. When he opened them again, he was already in an unfamiliar place.
The Time Treasure Record merged into Wei Zhong's brow. He touched it, but could no longer find any trace of it.
Is my realm still not high enough?
He had no idea what rank of treasure it was. With his Qi Refining cultivation, he could not even detect it.
Wei Zhong sighed regretfully, then looked around himself and cried out in surprise.
"This is... a grotto-heaven?"
Wei Zhong stood at the entrance of a small courtyard. High above, an artificial "sun" formed from a magical artifact cast down light, illuminating this grotto-heaven brightly.
"What dense spiritual energy."
Wei Zhong felt as though he were in a paradise brimming with spiritual energy. He had never experienced spiritual energy this rich before.
This grotto-heaven even came with its own spirit vein, leaving Wei Zhong utterly astonished. Unfortunately, his realm was too low for him to discern the rank of the spirit vein.
The surrounding spirit land was somewhat desolate. The spirit plants in the fields had long since withered, leaving only a tall, decaying spirit tree. Several mushrooms grew upon it—the very Jade Marrow Mushrooms Wei Zhong had searched for so bitterly.
The oldest among them was already more than five hundred years old, nearly the entire mushroom transformed into jade.
There were no fewer than eight that were between three and five hundred years old, while those of lower age numbered more than a dozen.
Wei Zhong was delighted. He had not expected to obtain so many Jade Marrow Mushrooms here. Now he would not need to worry about the spiritual herbs needed to refine Foundation Establishment Pills.
Not only that, there was an enormous surplus. If he sold these mushrooms outside, who knew how many spirit stones they would fetch? Wei Zhong's wealth would likely multiply several times over.
Of course, Wei Zhong would not do something so foolish. Even a single Jade Marrow Mushroom was rare in the outside world. Taking out so many at once, and of such high quality, would be nothing but courting death.
Without rushing to pick them, Wei Zhong stepped into the small courtyard.
The courtyard had no formation protecting it and looked like an ordinary residence. Wei Zhong pushed open the door and entered.
There were two flower beds in the courtyard. It seemed the previous owner had also loved cultivating spirit plants.
Passing through the front yard and entering the house, he first came upon a hall that appeared to be for receiving guests. To the left was a cultivation room, containing a desk with two jade slips and a palm-sized black stone upon it.
Wei Zhong walked over, picked up the jade slip on the far left, and pressed it to his forehead. In an instant, he began reading the information within.
"My name is Bai He. I have pursued the Dao for a thousand years..."
The jade slip recorded the life story of a senior named Bai He. Born from humble beginnings, he had endured countless hardships before cultivating all the way to the Spirit Transformation realm.
He had been an absolute great cultivator of this Human Realm. With only one step remaining, he could have overcome the tribulation and ascended to the higher Spirit World.
However, just as he was preparing to ascend, the Human Realm suddenly suffered a cross-realm invasion from the Demon Race and the Devil Race.
As one of the Spirit Transformation Cultivators supporting the Human Realm like pillars holding up the sky, he had no choice but to set aside his ascension. Joining forces with the other Spirit Transformation Cultivators, he led the human race in resisting the invasion of the two races.
The war between both sides lasted for more than a century. At last, over one hundred and thirty years after the invasion began, the great war erupted in full.
This final battle stretched on for six years. Although the human race ultimately won and drove the demons and devils back to their homeland, they too had suffered grievous losses.
The major sects of that time had nearly been wiped out to the point that their lineages were severed. Even the Human Realm's top combat forces had perished seven or eight out of ten. Though Senior Bai He had survived by sheer luck, he had still suffered extremely severe injuries.
Thus, he left his inheritance behind in this grotto-heaven, then departed in search of a way to heal his injuries.
But once he left, he never returned.
Wei Zhong sighed. He had not expected the Human Realm to have such a history. The Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain Range was probably a remnant problem from that time.
Picking up the other jade slip, he found that it indeed recorded a cultivation technique.
"Spring Autumn Water Refining Art."
Wei Zhong read through it and discovered, to his surprise, that this technique encompassed every realm from Qi Refining to Spirit Transformation.
According to the Human Realm's classification of Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow, Foundation Establishment corresponded to Yellow Rank, Core Formation to Profound Rank, Nascent Soul to Earth Rank, and Spirit Transformation to Heaven Rank.
This Spring Autumn Water Refining Art was undoubtedly a Heaven Rank cultivation technique.
Nor was that all. Bai He's notes stated that this technique was an inheritance from the Spirit World. He possessed only the upper and middle sections; the lower section could directly lead to the three realms of Void Refinement, Body Integration, and Great Ascension.
If a descendant learned this technique, they could seek out its later portions after ascending to the Spirit World.
He also said that this technique far surpassed mortal methods. He even speculated that its upper limit was likely far beyond Great Ascension, and that it might contain later immortal arts—the cultivation methods practiced by true immortals.
Wei Zhong was shaken by the description. He was merely a small Qi Refining cultivator who had yet to glimpse even Foundation Establishment or Golden Core. How could he dare hope for anything more?
Still, after reading the entire thing, Wei Zhong understood that he had struck it rich.
One fortuitous encounter had granted him a method that could carry him all the way to Spirit Transformation. He would never again need to worry over cultivation techniques.
Wei Zhong had originally planned to begin searching for a technique to replace the Azure Wave Art after reaching Foundation Establishment. Now, he would not need to go through all that trouble.
The jade slip contained not only cultivation methods, but also all manner of matching spells and secret arts. Even a cursory look left Wei Zhong thrilled beyond measure.
He could not help sighing. The Azurewood Sect had truly wasted all those years controlling this secret realm. This inheritance had remained here for who knew how long, yet it had still fallen into his hands.
The inheritance was not finished yet. The rest would be posted this afternoon. That stone was the key.
Before you continue