Time trickled by as Ning Chuan stood on the cold metal platform. He took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the surging joy of obtaining the Five Thunder Talisman.
"Enough to threaten a Title Douluo..."
That appraisal result rang through his mind like a great bell. While it gave him an immense sense of security, it also brought a deeper sense of vigilance.
A trump card might be powerful, but the cost and risks of using it had to be considered with utmost caution.
Tang Hao, the despondent blacksmith who lived in seclusion in Holy Soul Village and spent his days with alcohol, was in essence also the Clear Sky Douluo who had once shaken the continent.
Even though his severe injuries had yet to heal and his Soul Power Level had plummeted, the foundation, combat awareness, and danger perception of a Title Douluo were far beyond those of ordinary Soul Masters.
If he rashly used the Five Thunder Talisman, could he truly severely injure or even kill Tang Hao in a single strike? If not, the consequences of enraging a Title Douluo would be catastrophic.
At that point, he might be able to flee instantly through the Heavens Trash Station, but what about his parents and little sister? What about all of Holy Soul Village?
Keep a low profile, endure, and build his strength.
That remained the unchanging core strategy at his current stage.
After storing away his gains, Ning Chuan shouldered the Four-Meter Long Rake again.
Although his points had risen to 20, he was still dirt poor. Continuing his work as a "scavenger" was imperative.
Rather than rushing to explore more distant garbage heaps, Ning Chuan turned his attention to the area where he had just found the Storage Ring.
"Generally speaking, valuable items do not appear alone. Since that area could 'produce' a Storage Ring containing such a rich inheritance, perhaps other 'inheritances' from the same source or a similar environment are scattered nearby as well."
With that thought in mind, Ning Chuan carefully wielded his rake and focused on clearing the waste surrounding that area.
Crack! Clang!
Fragments of shattered artifacts, ashes of charred talisman paper, jade chips that had lost their spiritual radiance...
Large amounts of trash were raked out and broken down, turning into negligible points and basic materials. His points slowly ticked upward: 21... 25... 28...
The process was tedious, but Ning Chuan had plenty of patience.
His mental power remained highly focused, and he did not overlook even the slightest abnormal energy fluctuation.
Hard work paid off.
As he cleared away a pile of metal wreckage tangled in rotten threads, the rake teeth touched something hard yet resilient, with a texture similar to the Storage Ring from before!
Ning Chuan's heart stirred. He moved even more gently and carefully pushed aside the covering debris.
An ancient-looking bracelet slowly emerged.
The bracelet was dark cyan, made of neither metal nor wood. Its surface was engraved with patterns even more intricate and dense than those on the ring. Those patterns were not entirely still; they slowly flowed like living meridians, emitting spatial fluctuations more obscure and profound than those of the Storage Ring.
"Another spatial artifact?!" Surprise flashed in Ning Chuan's eyes, but he was even more cautious as he carefully raked the bracelet onto the platform.
"Station, scan this bracelet! Fully assess its condition and risks!"
"Scanning..."
Target: Intact Inheritance Bracelet (Grade: top-grade Spirit Artifact) Origin: Higher cultivation plane (same origin as the Storage Ring) Status: Core restrictions intact, energy abundant, currently dormant. Multiple layers of information encryption and traces of soul binding detected (rendered invalid by the original owner's death). Currently ownerless. Risk Assessment: Low (the bracelet's functions focus on storage and inheritance; it has no active offensive capability). Value Assessment: Extremely high! A massive information stream has been detected inside, suspected to be an inheritance repository of cultivation techniques and manuals.
An Inheritance Bracelet! A repository of cultivation techniques and manuals!
Ning Chuan felt as though his real heart had started pounding wildly again.
He had just acquired a powerful offensive weapon and a large quantity of Spirit Stones, and now he had gained a treasury of knowledge? His luck was simply too good!
"Station, safely open the bracelet. Prioritize reading its catalog or summary information!"
"Command confirmed. Beginning to crack the information encryption layers..."
The silver light projected by the platform grew more condensed, like the finest carving blade, stripping away the bracelet's complex rune defenses thread by thread.
The process took much longer than opening the Storage Ring. Clearly, this bracelet's defenses were of a much higher level.
A full quarter of an hour passed before the prompt sounded again. "Encryption layers cracked. Successfully connected to the core information repository."
"Beginning transmission of summary information..."
In an instant, a massive, orderly, systematic torrent flooded into Ning Chuan's mind!
This was not scattered knowledge, but a complete inheritance system divided into clear categories!
Basic Qi Refining Essentials (covering basic five-element cultivation techniques and guidance methods for common mutated spiritual roots)
Hundred Solutions to Foundation Establishment (Foundation Establishment insights from different schools, analysis of advantages and disadvantages, and risk warnings)
Glimpse into the Golden Core Path (core-forming methods, strategies for handling lightning tribulations, and classifications of Golden Core quality)
True Explanation of Nascent Soul Cultivation (nurturing the Nascent Soul, out-of-body journeys, and the basics of incarnations)
Introduction to Formations, True Transmission of Talismans, Essentials of Alchemy, Guide to Artifact Refining (the four major auxiliary professions, from beginner to mastery)
Miscellaneous Talks on the Six Arts of Cultivation (an encyclopedia of miscellaneous fields such as spirit plants, beast taming, puppetry, divination, music, escape techniques, and more)
Illustrated Guide to Common Races, Records of Strange Objects (general reference works to broaden one's horizons)
Essentials of Practical Combat (combat techniques and insights from different paths, including sword cultivators, body cultivators, spell cultivators, and soul cultivators)
Collection of Life-Saving Escape Techniques, Complete Guide to Breath Concealment, Disguise and Camouflage Arts (survival-oriented skills)
A dazzling array, encompassing everything!
From the most basic art of drawing qi into the body to the seemingly unreachable Nascent Soul Stage; from mainstream combat cultivation to obscure miscellaneous arts; there were even records of a broader world!
Although most high-level cultivation techniques were currently as incomprehensible to him as heavenly scripture, Ning Chuan felt that the completeness of this system and the depth and breadth of its knowledge far surpassed the collections of any sect on Douluo Continent, even Spirit Hall!
This was practically a mobile library of cultivation civilization!
More importantly, the basic qi refining and Foundation Establishment techniques, along with the vast number of miscellaneous arts and survival skills, held great reference value for his current stage.
The Soul Power system of Douluo Continent and the spiritual energy of cultivation systems might share common ground in their essential nature.
The principles and techniques in these cultivation arts concerning energy circulation, body tempering, and spiritual refinement could all be absorbed and adapted by him to optimize his Soul Power cultivation and Martial Soul usage!
In particular, the Collection of Life-Saving Escape Techniques and Complete Guide to Breath Concealment were exactly the abilities he urgently needed right now!
"This is the true priceless treasure!" Ning Chuan exclaimed unconsciously.
Knowledge was power, and systematic knowledge was even more a staircase leading toward the path of the strong!
He did not rush to study the specific contents in depth, as that would require a long time.
Instead, he first had the Station archive the entire catalog and summaries for convenient retrieval and study whenever needed.
"Station, estimate the approximate time needed to fully master the knowledge within this Inheritance Bracelet."
"Based on the Station Master's current mental power level and comprehension ability, the preliminary estimate is:
Mastering the foundational portion (qi refining, Foundation Establishment, and introductory auxiliary professions) will require approximately 1–2 years of real time with Station-assisted acceleration; Mastering the core portion (up to the Golden Core Stage) will require 5–10 years; Fully mastering and integrating everything (up to the Nascent Soul Stage and all miscellaneous arts) will require several decades or even longer.
Ning Chuan took a deep breath. Rather than being intimidated by the long timeframe, he became even more excited.
This meant that for a long time to come, he would not need to worry about cultivation techniques or the direction of his development.
As long as he proceeded step by step and absorbed this knowledge, his path of growth would be clear and solid.
"It seems that, besides continuing to accumulate points and resources, my next priority will be spending a great deal of time in the Station learning this knowledge."
Before leaving the Station, Ning Chuan took one final look at his points. Some had been consumed in opening the bracelet, leaving him with 15.
He was still poor enough to jingle, but his mindset had completely changed.
His consciousness returned to his body. Outside the window, dawn had not yet fully broken.
Lying in bed, Ning Chuan's mind was filled with countless thoughts.
The deterrence of the Five Thunder Talisman and the hope brought by the Inheritance Bracelet made his plans for the future clearer than ever.
"Tang Hao remains a threat, but he is no longer a sword hanging over my head. He is a goal I need to surpass."
"I already gave my little sister the Foundation Establishment Pill, and its effects were remarkable. Next, I need to guide her in building a solid foundation. Perhaps... I can select some gentle body-tempering methods from the Inheritance Bracelet and incorporate them into the Spirit Rhino Bull Fist before teaching her?"
"As for myself, I need to begin systematically studying cultivation knowledge, drawing on its strengths to optimize my Soul Power cultivation, especially by mastering one or two practical life-saving methods as soon as possible."
"I need to maintain contact with Ning Yuan of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect as a potential resource channel, but I must be extremely cautious."
"As for Spirit Hall... Yu Xiaogang's theories can, for now, serve as a window into this world's mainstream understanding."
With his thoughts sorted out, Ning Chuan's heart finally settled completely.
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