Xu Qingtong was startled and was about to withdraw his divine sense, but it vanished in an instant. Then he felt a connection form between himself and the ring.
He gathered his divine sense and swept it toward the ring again. This time, it was not drawn away, and he saw the things piled inside.
The Storage Ring held a pile of roughly a thousand spirit stones. Yet these were very different from those in his Storage Bag. In both color and the richness of their spiritual qi, they far surpassed his own spirit stones.
Xu Qingtong guessed that the spirit stones in the Storage Ring were of a higher grade.
Besides the spirit stones, there was a pile of clothing that appeared to be the Anyang Sect's standard attire. The rest was a miscellaneous assortment of Jade Slips, Jade Boxes, jade bottles, and similar items.
The twenty or thirty jade bottles all contained elixirs. Some held more than a dozen, while others held only one. Xu Qingtong recognized none of them.
Words could be tossed around carelessly, but medicine could not be swallowed at random! Since he did not know what they were for, he would set them aside until he found out.
The Jade Boxes contained herbs, artifact-refining materials, and the like, none of which he could use for the moment.
Only the seven or eight Jade Slips remained. Xu Qingtong took one out and scanned it with his divine sense. It contained a cultivation art, but not the Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art he wanted, so he casually put it back.
He examined the other Jade Slips one by one. They contained strange tales of the cultivation world, insights into elixir refining, illustrated guides to medicinal ingredients, and similar subjects, but nothing he wanted.
Xu Qingtong could only put away the Storage Ring and send his divine sense into the Seven-Star Bracelet again.
Inside the Seven-Star Bracelet's stone chamber, he found a Black Jade Slip. It closely resembled the Jade Slip Dong Xuanzi had left behind: equally plain and unadorned, yet substantial and imposing.
He took out the Jade Slip, pressed it to his forehead, and gathered all his divine sense to scan its contents. With a boom, the contents surged into his mind. It was the Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art he had dreamed of obtaining.
Xu Qingtong focused and examined it closely. Sure enough, it was extremely similar to the Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art he practiced. Only a few subtle details differed; the rest was largely the same.
Xu Qingtong carefully studied the Qi Refining Stage portion of the Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art in the Jade Slip from beginning to end, repeatedly comparing it with the art he practiced.
Gradually, he discovered a problem. This complete art was intended for those with five spirit roots, emphasizing how the five elements generated and complemented one another. He, however, had only four spiritual roots. His five elements could restrain one another, but could not generate one another. That was why his cultivation progressed slowly and felt awkward and discordant.
Once he understood the crucial point, disappointment washed over Xu Qingtong. Guarding a mountain of treasure without being able to claim it left him feeling as though a fishbone were lodged in his throat. Fortunately, he soon found a glimmer of hope at the end of the art.
A passage at the end of the art read: "Among the people beneath heaven, many lack a complete set of five roots. Some lack one, others lack two... Those who wish to practice this art may replenish them with a Sinew-Building Elixir."
What followed was a recipe for the Sinew-Building Elixir. It listed five principal ingredients corresponding to the five elements, of which only one needed to be chosen. After that came twelve supplementary ingredients and the method for refining the Sinew-Building Elixir.
Xu Qingtong lacked a metal spirit root, so his principal ingredient was gengjin stone. Of the twelve supplementary ingredients, he knew only five; he had never even seen the others. Most importantly, he did not know how to refine elixirs!
He absolutely could not entrust the refining of this elixir to someone else, or his secret would be all too easily exposed. It seemed he could only wait until he got out, then slowly find a way to complete his spirit roots.
Having thought this through, Xu Qingtong stopped dwelling on it and turned his attention back to finding an exit. If he could not get out, thinking about anything else was useless. He mobilized his powerful divine sense and searched inch by inch, occasionally hacking at the surroundings with the Red Sun Sword.
At last, not far from the space between two pillars, he discovered something different. One patch of floor was noticeably harder than the rest, and the Red Sun Sword left no mark when he struck it.
Xu Qingtong unleashed several high-grade, mid-tier Fireball Talismans at that patch of floor, heating it until it glowed red. He immediately followed with several Water Arrow Talismans. White vapor rose from the floor, and then cracks spread across it.
He brought out the Red Sun Sword again and hacked away until a platform finally emerged from beneath the floor. Xu Qingtong cleared away the rubble on its surface, revealing its shape.
It was an octagonal formation platform, with a recess at each corner holding a spirit stone that had lost its luster. He removed the stones and replaced them with fresh ones. Immediately, a pillar of light shone from the center of the platform.
Delighted, Xu Qingtong looked around the stone chamber once more. Only after making certain he had overlooked nothing did he step into the pillar of light.
Light flashed, and Xu Qingtong appeared before the entrance to a great hall. He hurriedly activated a Shield Talisman to protect his entire body before looking around.
The hall stood in a valley, with a mountain behind it and another on either side, holding it tightly in their embrace. Its doors stood open, and one of the pillars at the entrance had toppled to one side.
Seeing no danger, Xu Qingtong decided to look inside the hall. He powered the Shield Talisman to protect his whole body and cautiously approached the entrance. Just as he neared it, sounds of fighting came from within.
Xu Qingtong did not dare hesitate. He quickly slipped to the side of the doorway and spread his divine sense to examine the hall.
Inside, two men were locked in fierce combat. Judging by their clothing, the burly man belonged to the Azure Sea Gate, while the other, a young man, belonged to Biluozong. Both were at the fifth layer of qi refining.
The burly Azure Sea Gate disciple wielded a steel trident, whirling it with a rush of wind, while the young Biluozong disciple controlled a flying sword that darted up and down. They were evenly matched, and neither could gain the upper hand.
After fighting a while longer, both were panting with exhaustion and had sustained wounds. The young Biluozong disciple said, "Fellow Daoist, we don't even know each other, and there's no grudge between us. Why must you press me so hard? If you push me too far, I'll drag you down with me even if it costs my life! Why should we throw away our lives over the grudges of the older generation?"
The burly man laughed. "Just hand over everything in your Storage Bag and crush your Jade Token, and I'll let you leave."
Hearing this, the young man knew there would be no peaceful resolution today, so he stopped talking. He recalled his flying sword, bit the tip of his tongue, and spat a mouthful of blood essence onto it. The sword immediately blazed with light. With another wave of his hand, he sent it straight at the burly man. Not daring to take it lightly, the burly man swung his steel trident to meet it.
With a clang, the steel trident struck the flying sword. The burly man staggered and stumbled backward, while the young man's face also turned pale. Gritting his teeth, the young man sent his flying sword slashing down again before the burly man could regain his footing. Left with no choice, the burly man held his steel trident crosswise in front of him to block.
Another crash rang out. The burly man was driven backward again and spat out a mouthful of blood. Dense cracks appeared across his steel trident. The young man was hardly better off; his face was deathly pale, and he swayed on the verge of collapse.
Though battered, the burly Azure Sea Gate disciple also noticed that the young man seemed like an arrow at the end of its flight. Ignoring his own injuries, he steadied himself, took a reverse grip on the steel trident, and hurled it at the young man like a throwing knife.
The young man had no strength left to resist. Seeing the steel trident flying toward him, he could only pull out his Jade Token, intending to crush it and teleport away.
The burly man seemed to have anticipated this. He suddenly let out a roar. Even Xu Qingtong outside the entrance felt his mind reel, let alone the Biluozong disciple caught in its midst.
With a thunk, the steel trident pierced straight through the young man's chest and pinned him to the ground.
The unfortunate Biluozong disciple's head slumped to one side, and the Jade Token slipped from his hand. His cultivation ended, and his life was extinguished.
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