Manifest Sage Method

Yan Qihu and the other independent cultivators had no choice. If they wanted a share of that thirty percent, they had to go in first and scout the way.

More than a dozen independent cultivators entered the Daoist temple with pounding hearts and utmost caution. The disciples of the great clans followed close behind, while that young lord was surrounded in the middle, guarded layer upon layer.

Xu Yan had heard Fang Che and the others discussing it earlier. This young lord was named Huangfu Ziyang, one of the direct descendants of the Huangfu Clan, one of the Twelve Great Clans of Nine Star Kui Island.

From behind came Huangfu Ziyang's questioning voice. "Why haven't Huangfu Yang and the other two returned yet?"

Xu Yan's heart gave a jolt at those words.

"Young lord, they've been gone for three days. Could they have died outside?" someone beside him asked with a frown.

"Bring the Life Engraving Stone!" Huangfu Ziyang barked.

At once, a fifth-layer Pulse Opening youth beside him took a palm-sized piece of jade from his Qiankun Bag.

As he activated it with Dharma power, more than fifty names quietly appeared on the Life Engraving Stone. Huangfu Yang and the other two were among them, but their names had already turned blood-red!

"Young lord, look!" The person beside him was startled and stared wide-eyed.

Huangfu Ziyang's face immediately darkened, his voice icy. "Three pieces of trash!"

Once they learned that the three men were dead, the people of Nine Star Kui Island immediately began discussing it.

Those three had volunteered to go out and receive the other disciples of Nine Star Kui Island. And now, they had ended up dead outside.

"Young lord, should we use a secret art to track the divine sense imprints of those three?" someone beside him asked cautiously.

"No need. Take the spiritual treasures here, then follow me to Spirit-Sealing City immediately!" Huangfu Ziyang snapped.

As Xu Yan walked ahead, their conversation rang in his ears, his thoughts whirling a hundred times over before he secretly let out a breath of relief. Fortunately, he had discarded the Qiankun Bag in advance. Otherwise, if they truly investigated, he would have been exposed on the spot.

They did not suspect Xu Yan, nor did they question him, even though he had come from that direction as well.

In the eyes of these clan members, Xu Yan was merely an independent cultivator who had just opened his pulses. How could he possibly have the ability to kill those three?

After walking through the Daoist temple for a while, the group found that no hidden restriction killing arrays had been laid here. Only then did they truly loosen up and begin looting in earnest.

There were four halls in total: the main hall, the pill chamber, the Library Pavilion, and the rear hall.

Naturally, Xu Yan and the other independent cultivators did not get first pick of the many spiritual treasures.

Many Dharma artifacts had been placed in the main hall and rear hall. Most were claimed by the clan members, leaving only a dozen or so low-grade Dharma artifacts and one high-grade Dharma artifact. Fang Che and the others could only helplessly collect them, unable to say much.

Then came the Library Pavilion. These clan members, however, had little interest in the Daoist texts and cultivation methods inside.

Yan Qihu and the other independent cultivators naturally treasured them greatly.

Xu Yan also wandered through the Library Pavilion. Many of the Daoist texts here were methods from the ancient era. Dragon Spine Mountain had always been the most ancient region of Cang Province. Across endless years, countless great upheavals had occurred here, burying many Daoist sects along with them.

Immortal Treasuries were formed naturally by the mighty forces of heaven and earth, like tiny worlds within a palm, containing many Daoist lands from across endless ages.

Some even held the burial grounds of ancient great powers. Opportunities here were countless, and each time they opened, what lay within was vastly different. What they could evolve into depended entirely on the will of heaven.

Xu Yan took a Daoist text from a shelf. Three ancient characters were written upon it in Edict Script: Manifest Sage Method.

"It seems to be a Mystic Gate Daoist text..."

Xu Yan was immediately intrigued, because the writing within was all in ancient Edict Script, just like his own [Miaoyuan] Edict Script.

By the end of the ancient era, Qi Refiners no longer used Edict Script to write. This meant that the Daoist text had been written in an exceedingly distant age.

When he opened the text, the writing crawled like clinging ants and insects, making his head spin just from looking at it.

Xu Yan was not proficient in Edict Script and could understand only a portion of it.

The more he read, the more surprised Xu Yan became. This Daoist text was for cultivating the Mystic Gate "Manifest Sage" Dharma Eye, and it could also enhance a cultivator's divine sense.

Mystic Gate Dharma Eyes possessed endless wondrous uses. Whether in breaking techniques and arrays, seeking dragons and locating acupoints, observing meridians, or divining hexagrams, they produced remarkable effects. Some Dharma Eyes, once cultivated to great mastery, could even evolve into divine abilities for attack and killing.

For Xu Yan, this was absolutely something he desired.

He immediately closed the Daoist text and placed it into his Qiankun Bag.

Other than this text, the other Daoist texts in the Library Pavilion were nothing special. One could not chew more than one could swallow, and Xu Yan already had the divine abilities of the Eight-Nine Profound Art to rely on.

After taking a Daoist text on swordsmanship divine abilities called Hundred Sword Art, Xu Yan left the Library Pavilion.

He possessed the high-grade Dharma artifact, the Green Pattern Dharma Sword, but had only ever used the sword's innate abilities. Without any sword art to cultivate, it was somewhat like using a great talent for a small task.

Voices drifted from the pill chamber. Hearing the commotion, Xu Yan headed over as well.

It seemed that most of the people had gathered there.

The place was filled with a rich fragrance of pills and heavenly treasures. Most of the medicinal ingredients and pills had already been taken away, so Xu Yan walked over in puzzlement, wondering why these people were still here. He found them all gathered before a gateway.

Deep within the pill chamber was another tightly shut door that had yet to be opened.

The door was made of stone, with a black ancient Eight Trigrams array disk embedded at its center. Array runes visible to the naked eye flickered in and out across the stone door.

Xu Yan narrowed his eyes as he watched. The Miaoyuan Edict Script in his palm glimmered faintly. The treasure was clearly behind that door.

"Do you recognize this array?"

Huangfu Ziyang asked a clan disciple beside him.

This Nine Star Kui Island disciple was named Murong Yan. He clearly knew a little about Mystic Gate arrays, but faced with this ancient array disk, he was utterly at a loss, staring at it without any clue.

"Young lord, should we try breaking it by force?"

At that moment, someone made the suggestion.

After all, the array outside the ancient temple had been forcibly broken. They could simply copy the gourd by drawing the ladle.

"This is an ancient array. Before knowing its effects and abilities, how can we take such a risk?" Murong Yan swept his sleeve and frowned.

"Then do you have another method?" the man who had proposed it shot back.

Seeing him fall silent, the man immediately looked around and said to an independent cultivator, "You, try it. Attack this array disk with a divine ability!"

"Huh?" The independent cultivator's expression immediately turned panicked. He hurriedly cupped his hands and bowed. "Young Master Huangfu, my cultivation is insufficient. I cannot bear such a heavy responsibility. I shall take my leave first!"

Terrified, the independent cultivator immediately flew away on Mystic Qi.

The proposer's face darkened as he shouted, "I'll do it myself!"

With that, he directly brought out a ring-pommel saber. It was a high-grade Dharma artifact. Seeing this, everyone retreated three zhang away.

Without another word, the man gritted his teeth, raised the ring-pommel saber, and struck with all his strength at the ancient array disk on the stone door.

Bang!

With a deafening blast, the blade struck the array disk with a metallic clang, sending sparks flying in every direction. For the brief span of ten breaths, nothing seemed to happen. The ancient array disk remained completely undamaged, without even the faintest blade mark.

Though he had failed to break it open, there seemed to be no backlash from the restriction either. Just as the saber-wielding cultivator thought so and relaxed inwardly—

Suddenly!

One rune on the stone door began to hum violently. The saber-wielding cultivator's eyes widened, every hair standing on end as he hurriedly tried to retreat.

He had barely taken one step when a beam of golden light shot forth, instantly piercing his forehead!

Blood sprayed out. A finger-thick bloody hole appeared between his brows. His pupils slowly scattered, and with a bang, he collapsed to the ground.

The people around him stared at the stone door in terror and instinctively retreated several more steps.

"This array possesses killing power. Forcing it open will only trigger an even greater killing intent!"

Murong Yan declared loudly.

Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he spotted Xu Yan staring intently at the stone door. A thought seemed to strike him, and he immediately said, "Isn't this Half-Immortal Xu? I heard that Fellow Daoist has considerable attainments in Mystic Gate arts. Would you care to try this ancient array disk?"

At those words, everyone in the pill chamber turned their gaze toward Xu Yan.

Xu Yan's thoughts churned as he silently walked over.

He extended his left hand, gently stirred the Edict Script in his palm with divine sense, then lightly placed it upon the array disk.

In an instant, many words surfaced in his mind.

[Eight Gates Celestial Cycle Array Disk: An ancient Mystic Gate locking disk, ever-changing and wondrous beyond measure.]

Xu Yan sensed it slightly and found that the [Wondrous Method] Edict Script on his left palm was more active. In the past, when searching for and identifying treasures, the [Fortune Edict] Edict Script on his right palm had been more active.

This Wonderful Dharma Blessed Fate Edict Script can even unravel arrays?

Xu Yan was startled. He tried sending several strands of divine sense into the ancient array disk. With the aid of the Wondrous Method Edict Script, he actually found the correct array eye almost at once!

With a few more attempts, this ancient array disk could be opened.

Seeing this, Xu Yan immediately withdrew his divine sense. His thoughts raced, but his face remained as still as an ancient well. He then shook his head, turned around, and sighed. "This ancient array disk is far too complex. My attainments are shallow. Though I wish to help, I lack the strength."

Murong Yan did not seem surprised at all upon hearing this. He casually said, "I thought that with Half-Immortal Xu's abilities, you might be able to unravel this ancient array disk. It seems I thought too highly of Fellow Daoist."

Xu Yan's eyes darkened slightly, but he remained silent.

Murong Yan had likely asked him to test the ancient array disk because he feared that the young lord would suspect Murong Yan of holding back. Thus, he had wanted Xu Yan, another Daoist who knew a little of Mystic Gate arts, to say the same.

Sure enough, after Xu Yan said this, Huangfu Ziyang frowned deeply. Several breaths later, he spoke as well.

"Forget it. Let us head to Spirit-Sealing City first!"