After thoroughly stabilizing his realm, Lin Xiye slowly rose to his feet and walked out of the underground secret chamber.
Sunlight spilled over Lin Xiye like flecks of gold. Though his hair was still white and his face aged... his body brimmed with vast, surging vitality.
Having successfully broken through to the Body Tempering and Bone Refining Realm, Lin Xiye would not only live thirty years longer, but his strength had also increased tenfold.
The Body Tempering and Bone Refining Realm could unleash a million jin of force.
With such combat strength, Lin Xiye would even qualify to become an inner disciple if he returned to the Falling Rosy Clouds Sect.
Of course... there was no way Lin Xiye would return to the sect.
Leaving aside the sect's many cultivators, among whom the secret of the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror could easily be exposed...
Even if he could keep the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror a secret, Lin Xiye did not want to return to the sect and be bound by its numerous, troublesome rules.
By staying with the Lin Household, Lin Xiye not only enjoyed an exalted position and immense authority... he could also better protect the secret of the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror.
Joining a sect or another major cultivation faction was ultimately for cultivation methods, resources, and the occasional guidance of an expert.
Now that he had the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror, Lin Xiye could spend worldly gold and silver to upgrade cultivation methods, precious herbs... and even materials!
At that thought, Lin Xiye took out all the cultivation methods, materials, and precious herbs he had obtained over the years in the Falling Rosy Clouds Sect.
As a low-ranking outer disciple, Lin Xiye's current possessions could only be called pitifully meager.
All of Lin Xiye's possessions included a fragment of the Scarlet Flame Scripture that allowed cultivation up to the Body Tempering and Bone Refining Realm!
He also had two stalks of Spirit Tempering Grass and a palm-sized piece of refined steel ore.
These were all among the most common things in the cultivation world. Even added together, they were worth only two or three Spirit Stone fragments.
Of course, Lin Xiye did have quite a bit of worldly gold, silver, and treasure...
Whenever disciples below the Body Tempering and Bone Refining Realm completed various assigned tasks for the Falling Rosy Clouds Sect, the sect rewarded them with some worldly gold, silver, and treasure.
In fact, most Body Tempering Realm cultivators still used worldly gold, silver, and treasure as currency...
Only cultivators at the Spirit Nourishing Realm and above used Spirit Stone fragments, or even Spirit Stones, as their main currency.
"I hope the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror can complete this fragment of the Scarlet Flame Scripture a little..."
Lin Xiye took out two gold ingots and placed them on the surface of the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror once more.
Mysterious immortal light blossomed and spread once again.
The instant the two gold ingots vanished, Lin Xiye aimed the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror at the fragment of the Scarlet Flame Scripture.
Enveloped in light, the Scarlet Flame Scripture, which had originally consisted of only one thin page, gradually began to change...
In the cultivation world, the Scarlet Flame Scripture was one of the most basic and renowned cultivation methods! It was said to have been created by a mysterious immortal. Cultivated to its peak, it allowed one to control the world's fire and seek the pinnacle of immortality through the Dao of flames!
But the true Scarlet Flame Scripture had long since been lost. The Scarlet Flame Scripture that circulated in the world was merely a simplified version.
Yet even the simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture could be cultivated up to the Nascent Soul Realm!
The simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture was divided into four parts.
The first corresponded to the four Body Tempering realms.
The second corresponded to Spirit Nourishing and Foundation Establishment.
The third corresponded to Purple Mansion and Core Formation.
The fourth corresponded to the Nascent Soul Realm.
The simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture kept by the Falling Rosy Clouds Sect actually went only as far as the second part.
Let alone the Falling Rosy Clouds Sect—even across the entire cultivation world of the Jin Kingdom, there were probably few factions that could produce a complete copy of the simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture...
Rustle!
In just one breath, the light on the surface of the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror gradually faded, and the simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture, originally a single thin page, had astonishingly become a three-inch-thick tome that gave off an ancient air! (One cun was approximately 3.333 centimeters.)
On the tome's cover were seven vigorous characters containing the ultimate truths of heaven and earth-Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture, Volume One.
Lin Xiye picked up the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture and could not resist leafing through it.
But the moment he opened the first page, Lin Xiye was startled.
This Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture was the true, unsimplified Scarlet Flame Scripture created by that mysterious immortal.
This method... led straight to the Immortal Dao!
Of course, the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture in Lin Xiye's hands was only the first volume! Even so, its profundity far surpassed that of the complete simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture.
That was because the first volume of the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture alone could already allow Lin Xiye to cultivate to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
It also contained various Law Techniques and Movement Methods... none of which were in the simplified Scarlet Flame Scripture.
With the first volume of the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture, Lin Xiye would not have to worry about a Cultivation Method for at least the near future.
Lin Xiye set down the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture upgraded by the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror, then took out two more gold ingots and placed them on the mirror's surface.
Then, following the same procedure, Lin Xiye aimed the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror at the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture again.
Lin Xiye wanted to see whether he could continue upgrading the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture...
Unfortunately... although the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror once again gave off layers of light, the already upgraded Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture underwent no further change.
"Could this Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror only upgrade and strengthen each item once?"
"Or... were the two gold ingots no longer valuable enough to continue upgrading the first volume of the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture?"
Lin Xiye fell into thought. Then, gritting his teeth... he took out the piece of refined iron ore.
Lin Xiye decided to use the piece of refined iron ore as a resource and see whether he could upgrade the first volume of the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture again.
As the refined iron ore touched the surface of the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror... the first volume of the Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture instantly grew thicker and larger at a speed visible to the naked eye...
The first volume of the Scarlet Flame Immortal Scripture, originally only three inches thick, transformed in just two breaths into an ancient book half a chi thick and one chi in both length and width! (One chi was approximately 33.33 centimeters.)
The words on the cover had also changed-Scarlet Flame Dao Scripture, Volumes One and Two.
Seeing this, Lin Xiye roughly figured out the rules by which the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror upgraded all things.
The most crucial rule was that the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror could upgrade all things without limit, but the greater the upgrade, the more resources... had to be invested.
As for the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror's other abilities, Lin Xiye would have to continue exploring them.
But even the abilities the Immortal-Appraising Treasure Mirror had displayed so far could already be called heaven-defying.
With enough resources, Lin Xiye might even be able to upgrade an ordinary cultivation method directly into an immortal's secret manual!
With enough resources, Lin Xiye could even raise his Spirit Root aptitude... directly to earth grade, or even heaven grade.