Seeing Han Li so sensible, Li Huayuan showed a hint of satisfaction on his face. He then reached out and made a light grasping motion in the air. Instantly, a red glow flew from his hand, swept up a jade slip, and brought it back to him.
Without even looking at it, Li Huayuan handed it directly to Han Li. Using the same method, he retrieved seven or eight more items before finally stopping. By then, Han Li was holding a large pile of items, his eyes darting around as he tried to take everything in.
“These cultivation techniques are all ones that allow for rapid progress in spiritual power and are relatively easy to practice. Choose one as your main technique. The rest must be returned to their original places. Let me know once you’ve made your selection,” Li Huayuan said indifferently to Han Li before sitting cross-legged on a meditation cushion in the stone chamber.
Han Li felt his eyes were overwhelmed by the choices. Although there weren’t many techniques, each had its own distinct characteristics.
For example, one of them, the “Return to Origin Art,” not only allowed for a relatively fast increase in spiritual power but also came with a highly practical minor supernatural ability called “Origin Spirit Armor.” This ability could add an extra layer of defensive magic during combat and even condense spiritual armor using spiritual power for additional protection, making it an excellent life-saving technique. Moreover, the armor’s defensive capabilities would gradually improve as the Return to Origin Art advanced.
Another jade slip recorded the “Illusion Spirit Technique,” which was also quite impressive. Its attached supernatural ability, “Phantom Shadow,” allowed the user to create an identical doppelganger at any time to confuse enemies. The higher the cultivation level, the more doppelgangers could be created, further baffling opponents.
Aside from these two techniques, the minor supernatural abilities attached to the other methods, while not particularly powerful, were extremely effective for escaping and preserving one’s life. It seemed the creators of these techniques were well aware that they couldn’t compete with others in direct confrontations, so prioritizing survival was of utmost importance.
However, after browsing through all of them, Han Li was startled by a golden page inside a jade box.
The style and size of this page looked all too familiar. Han Li was certain it was identical to the silver page he possessed, with the only difference being that this one appeared slightly thinner. Instead of the strange patterns, it was covered in dense ancient text. Upon closer inspection, however, it turned out to record an ordinary technique called “Condensation Origin Art,” with a similarly mundane auxiliary supernatural ability called “Spirit Gathering Technique,” which merely accelerated the gathering of spiritual energy during cultivation.
After examining the golden page repeatedly, Han Li felt a wave of doubt rise in his heart. Yet, he knew now was not the time to ponder mysteries, even though he had a strong urge to take out the silver page from his storage pouch for comparison.
He had to make a decision quickly, or his master might grow suspicious.
With this in mind, Han Li weighed the golden page in his hand and quickly made his choice. He spoke to Li Huayuan, who was meditating with his eyes closed, “Master, I have made my selection. I choose this technique!”
Upon hearing this, Li Huayuan opened his eyes and was slightly taken aback upon seeing the golden page in Han Li’s hand. However, he said nothing and simply nodded before leading Han Li out of the stone chamber.
Back in the main hall, the young woman was waiting for the master and disciple. Upon seeing them, she smiled gently and asked, “Well, have you made your choice?”
“Thank you for your concern, Master’s Wife. This disciple has already chosen,” Han Li replied respectfully.
“Then I can rest easy!” the young woman said, beaming with joy once more, seemingly even more concerned about the matter than Han Li himself, which left him slightly puzzled.
“Good. Now that you’ve repaid your debt to your master’s wife, it’s time to discuss formally accepting you as my disciple. Are you truly willing to enter my tutelage and officially become a disciple of Li Huayuan?” Li Huayuan suddenly asked with a stern expression.
A shiver ran down Han Li’s spine, and he hurriedly stepped forward and knelt, saying, “This disciple, Han Li, is absolutely sincere and dares not harbor any falsehood.”
Although Han Li spoke these words, he secretly thought to himself, “If you treat me sincerely, I will naturally reciprocate with utmost sincerity and fulfill my duties as a disciple. But if you have any ill intentions, I won’t be foolish enough to let you manipulate me!”
Naturally, Li Huayuan was unaware of Han Li’s thoughts; otherwise, he would have likely struck Han Li down on the spot.
“Good. As cultivators, we value simplicity. From today onward, you are officially my disciple, Han Li. I hope you will diligently pursue the path of immortality and not bring disgrace to the name of Li Huayuan!” Li Huayuan’s expression softened, and he spoke with a smile.
Afterward, Han Li and Li Huayuan engaged in the typical interactions of a kind master and devoted disciple. Shortly after receiving some instructions from Li Huayuan, Han Li took his leave.
As he was exiting the cave dwelling, he ran into that Senior Brother Yu again. This time, the senior brother insisted on escorting his junior brother part of the way. However, having already endured the other’s incessant chatter the previous day, Han Li had no desire to subject himself to further torment. He repeatedly declined the offer until, with a look of regret on his face, the senior brother finally relented, allowing Han Li to escape and fly away on his artifact.
Standing on his small boat, Han Li couldn’t help but reflect on everything that had happened over the past two days.
His master, Li Huayuan, had left a much better impression on him compared to before. His attitude was completely different from during their previous encounter in the forbidden area. Han Li wondered whether it was due to his indirect role in saving the master’s wife or the fact that he had successfully built his foundation, finally earning the recognition of this Core Formation cultivator.
Regardless, Han Li felt that this trip had not been in vain. Not only had he gained a powerful backer in the world of cultivation, but he had also obtained a golden page, which might hold the key to unlocking the mystery of the silver page.
Even if it didn’t, Han Li wasn’t overly concerned. At worst, he could simply cultivate the “Condensation Origin Art” recorded on it. Although the technique lacked any major supernatural abilities, Han Li had other plans for ensuring his safety, so he wasn’t particularly worried about it.
Upon returning to his cave dwelling, Han Li immediately entered his bedroom and eagerly retrieved both the golden and silver pages from his storage pouch, carefully comparing them.
The silver page remained unchanged. When Han Li placed it alongside the golden page and overlapped them, their size and outline matched perfectly, clearly indicating they were related.
Han Li held one page in each hand, weighing them separately. The silver page was slightly heavier. It seemed the feeling that the golden page was thinner wasn’t an illusion—they truly differed in thickness.
Tilting his head in thought, Han Li suddenly held the silver page up to his eyes, carefully examining the strange patterns on it while running his fingers over them repeatedly.
His eyes flickered uncertainly, as if a significant dilemma was troubling him.
Yet, determination soon surfaced on his face.
He suddenly placed the page between both hands and gently rubbed them together. Instantly, the silver page was enveloped in a ball of blazing red flames, casting a reddish glow on Han Li’s face. Unfazed, he stared intently at the page within the flames. Under the intense heat, the surface of the page began to melt.
Suddenly, Han Li’s expression shifted, and delight spread across his face. As the surface melted away, the silver page revealed a golden glow—there was indeed something hidden inside!
Seeing this, Han Li carefully controlled the flames to avoid damaging the golden layer within. However, his worries proved unnecessary. The newly revealed golden page seemed completely unaffected by the scorching flames, showing no signs of distortion.
Once an entirely new golden page was fully exposed, Han Li waved his hand, and the flames vanished immediately. With a pounding heart, he began to read the newly revealed page.
After just reading the beginning, he froze, his face turning extremely grim.
The page actually contained instructions on how to manipulate flying swords and cultivate sword radiance—a sword cultivation technique. Although it seemed quite profound, it was far from what Han Li had been hoping to find.
It appeared the barefooted man from the Giant Sword Sect had practiced what was recorded here. While these skills might have been treasures for Qi Condensation cultivators, to Han Li, who had now successfully built his foundation, they were rather ordinary and failed to capture his interest.
Still unwilling to give up, Han Li examined the golden page repeatedly. He even tried burning it with intense flames once more, but no further secrets revealed themselves.
After spending most of the day on this futile effort, Han Li grew increasingly frustrated the more he looked at the golden page.
Having gone to such great lengths only to obtain something useless was immensely disappointing. The term “sword radiance” particularly irritated him, as he already cultivated the Green Origin Sword Radiance. Did he really need to practice another sword radiance technique?
With a dark expression, Han Li suddenly grabbed the page and tossed it into the air. He then raised his right hand, and a bowl-thick green sword radiance shot out, striking the page directly. He intended to destroy the thing completely to spare himself further annoyance.
Instead of the expected explosive sound, a soft “thud” was heard. The green sword radiance vanished without a trace upon hitting the page, as if swallowed whole.
“This is…” Han Li was astonished, but then a thought struck him, and he suddenly became excited.
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