“It’s fine,” Dongfang Zheng reluctantly put the ancient manual into his storage ring and casually started browsing through other books.
Besides the large coffin, the main burial chamber also had bookshelves placed in front of the four walls, naturally filled with books. Li Tan glanced casually; most of them were martial arts techniques, while cultivation methods were relatively fewer, interspersed with various other practical books.
Dongfang Zheng made a surprised sound while searching, “There are actually so many Xuan-tier cultivation methods! Whose tomb is this?”
“Who knows?”
Li Tan murmured indifferently at the spot.
Dongfang Zheng held a martial arts manual, puzzled, “So many Xuan-tier cultivation methods suggest the tomb owner’s cultivation might be above the Master level. Why would such a powerful expert build his tomb in such a remote place? Honestly, no one would bury themselves in a desert, right?”
“Maybe he had unique tastes. Why bother thinking about it too much?” Li Tan shrugged it off.
Dongfang Zheng couldn’t figure it out but didn’t stubbornly dwell on it, continuing to gather other items.
Li Tan stood still for a while before slowly walking to the coffin and gently placing his hand on it, immediately feeling a bone-piercing coldness.
“There are really restrictions here,” Li Tan murmured softly.
Restrictions, in fact, are another name for formations, specifically distinguished from common formations.
He carefully injected his true qi into the coffin wood, but before he could go deep, he encountered significant resistance. If this restriction had been placed within the last hundred years, Li Tan would have been powerless. However, since it had lasted for thousands of years, it had weakened to a state similar to the outer seal. Therefore, Li Tan managed to temporarily lift it after some effort.
Pushing open the coffin lid, he found a skeleton and a stone-like object resembling a book.
Li Tan ignored the skeleton and picked up the stone book, examining it carefully.
If his guess was correct, this unassuming stone was the most precious item in the entire tomb. It likely contained the old man’s lifelong knowledge.
Earlier, Li Tan had scanned all the books on the shelves with his spiritual sense, discovering only Xuan-tier martial arts and cultivation methods. He hadn’t seen any techniques above Xuan-tier.
He guessed correctly that those higher-level items would be inside this stone book.
Such stone books were made from materials used to record precious texts and were valuable themselves. Li Tan had actually obtained one before, which contained a very powerful cultivation method, although it was completely useless to him, so he eventually discarded it.
Li Tan easily removed the restrictions within the stone book and accessed its contents.
The content wasn’t complicated, containing three items: cultivation methods, martial arts techniques, and magical arts.
The cultivation method was called Cheng Xu Qian, a high-level Xuan-tier method, which held no interest for Li Tan but would be a treasure for the Tianlang Sect.
The martial arts technique was called Fei Jian Jue, a low-level Di-tier method, quite decent. However, Li Tan already had something similar, the one he used last time in the forest, which was of a higher tier. Therefore, Fei Jian Jue wasn’t particularly useful to him.
The magical art was called Qi Men Dun Jia, marked as low-level Di-tier.
Despite being low-level Di-tier, Li Tan was immediately stunned. Initially shocked, then ecstatic, but eventually puzzled.
It is said that Qi Men Dun Jia was a legendary celestial-grade mystical technique created by the first human emperor during a pivotal moment in human history ten thousand years ago. At its peak, it was even reputed to have slain an emperor of the Yao race.
Hence, Li Tan was so astonished, and his confusion also stemmed from this.
Qi Men Dun Jia was a legendary Tian-tier magical art, so why was it marked as Di-tier here?
Could this Qi Men Dun Jia be fake, a counterfeit?
To find the answer, Li Tan accessed its content and quickly discovered the truth: this Qi Men Dun Jia was incomplete.
After confirming this, Li Tan’s confusion was resolved, though he felt somewhat disappointed.
After all, although this made sense, obtaining a complete Qi Men Dun Jia from such a place seemed too fantastical for anyone, yet there was still a sense of loss from missing out on something important.
However, the disappointment was only slight; overall, joy still prevailed.
Although it was incomplete, the Di-tier level was already very high. Magical arts were inherently scarce, and Di-tier ones were especially rare, sufficient for use over a long period in the future.
However, magical arts not only consumed a substantial amount of true qi but also demanded a certain level of spiritual power, necessitating a cultivation breakthrough to at least the Master level to be usable. Although Li Tan had already laid a foundation in spiritual power thanks to the Huang Tower, it would still be challenging to employ such techniques at the Innate stage—mastery would require reaching the Master level at minimum.
Currently, he was still some distance away from breaking through to the Master level.
Li Tan excitedly replicated the Qi Men Dun Jia fragment into the Huang Tower. It should be mentioned here that techniques of this level couldn’t be directly copied and required special materials for replication—specifically this kind of stone. Although Li Tan currently lacked such replication stones, one layer of the Huang Tower could serve a similar function, directly storing the information. This was a memory that appeared in his mind not long after his rebirth.
Li Tan replicated the Qi Men Dun Jia fragment from the stone book using a specific method. The replicated content didn’t appear as a floating book but formed a glowing orb the size of a ball.
When he tried to touch the orb, the content of the Qi Men Dun Jia fragment immediately appeared in his mind. After confirming its accuracy by comparing it with the original stone book, Li Tan deleted the Qi Men Dun Jia content from the stone book.
This wasn’t due to selfishness or unwillingness to share with the Tianlang Sect, but because the Tianlang Sect couldn’t use Qi Men Dun Jia anyway, and keeping it posed certain risks. In the Nine Provinces, the saying “possession of a treasure brings danger” was common knowledge.
Li Tan withdrew his spiritual sense and shifted his attention from the stone book to Dongfang Zheng, who was frantically collecting books, calling out to him.
“What’s up?”
Dongfang Zheng turned his head to look.
“Look at this.”
Li Tan held up the stone book.
“What is this?” Dongfang Zheng came over, looking at the stone book with confusion. “What is it?”
It seemed Dongfang Zheng and the others hadn’t encountered stone books before, which wasn’t surprising, as they were quite advanced. Even in his prime, Li Tan couldn’t use them freely.
Li Tan, having had a convenient teacher, explained briefly.
After learning about the stone book’s purpose, Dongfang Zheng’s eyes sparkled with excitement, “So what’s inside it?”
Li Tan shook his head, “Not sure, probably cultivation methods and martial arts practiced by the tomb owner.”
“If they placed Xuan-tier outside, then what’s inside must be Di-tier stuff!”
Dongfang Zheng exclaimed in surprise.
Li Tan nodded, “That makes sense.”
Eagerly, Dongfang Zheng grabbed the stone book but soon turned into a frowning face, “How do you even read this thing?”
Such stone books were usually read with one’s spiritual sense, but Li Tan had slightly modified the restrictions inside.
Although the remaining cultivation methods and martial arts weren’t as valuable as Qi Men Dun Jia, they were still Di-tier items, which could still bring danger due to the saying “possession of a treasure brings danger.” Therefore, Li Tan didn’t want Zhang Zhi and the others to obtain them too early.
Li Tan answered Dongfang Zheng, “I heard from my master that special methods are required to unlock the restrictions on this kind of stone book.”
Dongfang Zheng’s face lit up with anticipation, “Then quickly unlock it!”
Li Tan shook his head, “I don’t know how.”
Dongfang Zheng’s face immediately turned dark.
Li Tan added, “However, these restrictions, like the outer seal, weaken over time if not reinforced. I just noticed that the restriction on this stone book will completely disappear within ten years at most.”
Dongfang Zheng sighed with some disappointment but quickly regained his spirits.
Ten years wasn’t fast, nor was it slow. The important thing was that he would definitely have the opportunity to see it within his lifetime.
However, guessing what he was thinking, Li Tan generously said, “I haven’t fully grasped the things my master taught me yet, so I don’t need this. You can take it.”
Dongfang Zheng didn’t refuse, readily nodded, and accepted the item. After that, the two collected their weapons and left the tomb along the original path.
Emerging from the water, Li Tan used his true qi to dry his wet clothes before heading toward the camp with Dongfang Zheng.
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