Emotional outbursts are always temporary; eventually, one must return to a steady path.
Yu Ci, utterly exhausted, lay on the ground, indifferent to the mud and water beneath him. With his limbs splayed out, he stared blankly at the misty sky. The raindrops brushing his cheeks gradually calmed his over-excited emotions.
The sensation of the storage ring in his palm was real, but the ring was now empty.
Once reason took over, the pain in his heart became prominent: it was too much, too excessive! In his ecstatic state earlier, he had emptied everything from the ring and then kicked it around in a frenzy. What were once clear spoils were now in disarray. If any valuable items were damaged, the loss would be significant.
However, what Yu Ci most wanted to know was how the divine cultivator’s belongings compared to his own. Perhaps this would open a window to an unknown world and temporarily satisfy his curiosity.
Driven by this thought, Yu Ci turned over and sat up. Seeing the scattered items within a radius of ten or so yards, he moaned and then burst into laughter. His mood was so subtle it was hard to describe.
The rain gradually ceased, but since the spoils had been soaked in mud, a small portion had become unrecognizable. Regardless of whether there were valuable items among them, Yu Ci decided to clear them away and began sorting the remaining items.
The first valuable item Yu Ci found was a stone box containing shrimp whisker grass. Opening the lid, he clicked his tongue in admiration. Inside the box, several layers of shrimp whisker grass were neatly arranged, each with complete roots and stems, indicating high quality. This was probably because Daoist Yan had carefully selected them.
A rough glance revealed at least seven to eight hundred stalks in the stone box. Combined with Yu Ci’s own finds, this was more than enough to exchange for a Three Yang Talisman Sword. This alone made him feel that the risk he had taken was worth it.
Next, he found eight jade items. One was a jade slip, about four inches long and two fingers wide, with a yellowish hue. Yu Ci set it aside first. Then there were seven small jade tokens, each palm-sized with ordinary material but intricately engraved with complex patterns typical of talisman-making. Yu Ci immediately thought of the talisman patterns commonly used among cultivators.
These were jade talismans! Made from jade and pre-carved with talismanic patterns, they stored talismanic power to be activated during battles—a very useful technique. As this related to his expertise, Yu Ci was particularly attentive. He carefully examined and identified the talismanic systems on each piece before carefully storing them in his storage ring.
The last item that intrigued him was a pocket-sized dagger, about an inch long. It resembled a piece of art, with a sharp blade and a complete handle. However, with such a size, it was unlikely even a strong man like Daoist Yan, let alone a newborn baby, could use it.
Yu Ci initially thought it was just a trinket, but after a brief test, he found the blade extremely sharp, cutting through stone like clay. Its material was exceptionally sturdy, even capable of withstanding the sharpness of the Nine Yang Talisman Sword. After inspecting it for a while without grasping its full potential, he decided to set it aside for now.
At this point, the clutter was sorted. Useful items included seven jade talismans, the jade slip he kept, and the previously acquired Nine Yang Talisman Sword. Was this the full extent of the divine cultivator’s possessions?
Yu Ci felt both excitement and disappointment. However, he quickly dismissed his greedy thoughts, calmed his mind, and focused on the jade slip.
During his time with the Twin Immortal Sect, he had seen such items more than once. He knew these were used by cultivators to store various types of information and techniques. But, like the storage ring, without the ability to discern and interpret, the common person could not understand their secrets. If it weren’t for this, he wouldn’t have just taken a bound copy of the “Celestial Qi Gathering Secret Talisman Manual” when he stormed into the Immortal Zi Lei’s palace years ago.
With a slight mental effort, a series of well-organized pieces of information flowed into his mind from the jade slip, faster than reading any book. Yu Ci soon realized that the jade slip contained not a cultivation method but Daoist Yan’s “Refinement” technique—a complete process for refining the Three Yang Talisman Sword into a Pure Yang Talisman Sword.
This was quite interesting. Yu Ci had come to the Sky Rift Valley at great risk to obtain a Three Yang Talisman Sword and find a way to improve his own talisman techniques, ultimately advancing his cultivation. After this arduous battle, he not only acquired the talisman sword but also the method to refine it to a higher grade. More importantly, he had broken through the barriers of the “Three Mortal Obstacles,” becoming a true cultivator. The marvels of the world were indeed unparalleled.
Yu Ci did not continue reading. Instead, he placed the jade slip and the Nine Yang Talisman Sword into the storage ring. He then moved all the items he carried—such as the “Celestial Qi Gathering Secret Talisman Manual” and his portable treasure pouch—into the ring as well, which made him feel considerably lighter.
Only then did he shift his gaze to the headless corpse of Daoist Yan. He decided not to handle it further, leaving the body where it lay for wild beasts and birds of prey to scavenge. If he had died, Daoist Yan would have received no better treatment.
Next, Yu Ci returned to the forest clearing where the incident had occurred.
The rain had extinguished the campfire, and Daoist Yan had been so occupied with chasing him that he had not cleaned up the site. The twenty-two dismembered bodies were still lying where they had fallen, with the strong stench of blood still lingering. While it had not yet attracted others, it had drawn a few wild animals eager to feast on the unexpected meal.
Yu Ci used his sword to drive away the beasts but felt momentarily dazed when he looked back at the corpses.
However, he was decisive and quickly gathered the bodies together, added some dry firewood around them, and placed Daoist Yan’s head at the front.
With everything ready, he stood beside the pile of bodies, calmed his mind, and began to draw symbols in the air with his hand. He created a soul-conducting celestial crane, connecting it to the sun and moon, and then added swirling clouds and a flying dragon, all forming a complete spirit-ensuring talisman that glowed with a bright light and covered the corpses.
Only then did he approach, raise the Nine Yang Talisman Sword, channel his true qi into it, and ignite a blazing fire. The flames enveloped the remains, turning them to ashes.
In these wild and desolate mountains, burial was nearly impossible. He could only use an ancient ritual, hoping that their souls might find rest in the heavens.
As the fire blazed, Yu Ci stood beside it, with twenty-two stone boxes neatly arranged at his feet. He held his sword as a gesture of respect and silently prayed for a moment. Then, he picked up one of the boxes, opened the lid, and revealed the neatly arranged shrimp whisker grass inside.
After a brief hesitation, he decided to throw the precious herbs into the fire. With one box followed by another, he soon had all twenty-two boxes opened and the shrimp whisker grass cast into the flames.
The stone boxes contained from dozens to several hundred stalks each, totaling about fifteen hundred, all thrown into the fire along with their original owner, turning to ash.
Perhaps within this pile of ashes lay hidden selfish desires or base thoughts, but their owner was dead—dead in the midst of joyous laughter. As the only surviving person among them, Yu Ci felt he should make some gesture, and this was the best way he could manage.
Therefore, Yu Ci did not feel he was wasting resources, nor did he think his actions were particularly noble. He simply felt at ease. By using this method, he distinguished himself from the greedy and murderous Daoist Yan and earned the right to offer peace to the deceased.
****
Night fell again. Yu Ci sat in the central depression on the mountaintop, with the full moon hanging overhead, casting its clear light upon him.
This was his new refuge, a place he had spent most of the day finding—a secluded spot on the mountaintop, two hundred miles from the battlefield. It was nestled in a pine forest on the peak of a mountain, within a naturally formed rocky depression. The rear was protected by a protruding cliff, providing shelter from the wind and rain. The area was surrounded by pines, making it virtually invisible from below. With the cliff above, even someone flying overhead would have to search hard to find this location.
Although it lacked a few escape routes compared to his previous location and wasn’t as secure, Yu Ci didn’t mind. He was eager to understand his actual progress in cultivation, and finding such a secluded and quiet spot was proof of his patience.
Yu Ci intended to enter meditation immediately but found his mind restless and unsteady. After some thought, he suddenly realized the problem and, smiling, took out the Mirror of Divine Insight from his storage ring. He had developed the habit of using the bronze mirror for meditation over the years, and its absence had left him feeling uneasy.
Seeing the residue of burnt incense on the mirror, he felt a burst of childlike amusement. He tapped the mirror’s surface and made a funny face at it, saying, “Old friend, I still need you to keep an eye on me!”
The mirror remained silent, but Yu Ci laughed heartily. Holding the mirror firmly, he began his meditation.
Sitting under the moonlight, bathed in its radiance, he breathed deeply, drawing in and expelling air with measured ease.
Cultivating both intention and breath, Yu Ci drew the essence of the sun and moon through his breathing. The pure moonlight essence was absorbed and circulated through his internal organs, generating five-colored clouds that nourished his body.
The connection between the body’s vital energy, organs, and mind was subtle. As the vital energy from his organs flowed, his brain also sensed it. A cool sensation rose from the Niwan Palace, forming a moon within his mind, illuminating his entire body.
With the moon as his spirit and the qi as the clouds, Yu Ci had been practicing the “Nine Palaces Moonlight True Art” for nearly twenty years. The moon in his mind’s palace had become an automatic process. The essence of the moonlight naturally infused him, seamlessly connecting with his entire body’s qi and blood, enriching his spirit and enhancing its strength.
However, today was different. Normally, the bright moonlight would reside in the Niwan Palace, guiding the vital energy of his organs up and down. Now, the moonlight, influenced by the moon’s essence, spontaneously moved out of the Niwan Palace, traveling from the bedroom to the bright hall, and rising to the celestial palace, seemingly to traverse the Upper Realms.
With each shift of the moon, immense changes in energy occurred. The response from his flesh, organs, and meridians was minute but profound. It was like the faintest sound in the dead of night, seeping into every inch of his flesh and blood.
Yu Ci’s mind naturally aligned with the moonlight, flowing through the Nine Palaces, experiencing the novel sensations.
Perhaps due to his complete immersion, he gradually lost awareness of his physical location and ceased to focus on the Nine Palaces. In a daze, he felt as if he were within the moonlight, drifting through the boundless void, moving with its rise and fall, waxing and waning.
As he traversed, he felt a sudden change. The boundless void remained, but the moonlight became a vessel, floating him through a sea of stars. The journey was illuminated by spiritual light, with constellations spread across the sky in a dazzling display.
The moon moved among the stars, with no end or beginning, and the surroundings were filled with an endless starry sea, brilliant and vast.
Yu Ci attempted to sense his surroundings, but his thoughts had no anchor. He felt as if the void was not empty but filled with countless spiritual entities interwoven in a chaotic yet indiscernible manner.