Chapter 258: Chapter 253: Be the Fakest Human, Dig Up the Truest Treasure
By the well, Chengxin held a Compass in her palm and carefully circled the rim.
She measured the distance with her steps, then said in a troubled voice, "This thing... it’s buried... deep under the well. Looks like... it was... randomly... formed, a natural... occurrence. However..."
"What’s wrong?" Zi Shan said anxiously. "If it’s buried under the well, can’t we just dig it out? Digging is something Lv Yun is very good at! Lv Yun, you..."
At this, Zi Shan turned to look at Song Ciwan, about to urge her to act. But in that moment, her gaze swept across the ground around them.
The small courtyard was a mess. Lv Yun’s spellcasting had torn it apart, leaving the ground covered in overturned soil and rocks. Some patches of earth were even curled up and cracked.
Later, Song Ciwan had used the Yin Yang Inversion Mirror on her, and though it had interrupted Lv Yun’s spell, the damage done could not be undone.
Zi Shan and Chengxin were long used to Lv Yun’s bad temper, so they hadn’t paid any mind to the mess. But now, for some reason, Zi Shan suddenly couldn’t stand it. She frowned and said, "Lv Yun, what were you doing? Why did you make such a mess of the ground?"
Song Ciwan mimicked Lv Yun’s tone and huffed, "You two were slow. I came in first, so of course I had to do a thorough investigation to see what secrets this courtyard holds."
Zi Shan said, "So did you find anything? This courtyard... there’s no one here?"
She had finally, belatedly, remembered to ask this question. Song Ciwan secretly mobilized the Talent in her Sea of Consciousness, invisibly tracing the character for "Doubt" as she replied, "No one. There’s nothing at all."
With the "Doubt" Character Technique activated, Zi Shan’s and Chengxin’s perceptions were invisibly guided by Song Ciwan. They would start to doubt their own judgments and lean toward believing everything she said.
Of course, this guidance had its limits. It could only create a subtle bias, not a complete, diametrically opposed reversal of their thoughts. Otherwise, even if Zi Shan and Chengxin hadn’t been suspicious before, they would have realized by now that there was something wrong with the Lv Yun impersonated by Song Ciwan.
The real Lv Yun was still being held in Song Ciwan’s palm, struggling violently.
But Song Ciwan possessed the Infinite Power Divine Technique, which she had cultivated to the Mastery Realm. This boundless strength was fused into her very flesh and blood, becoming an instinctual part of her.
No matter how Lv Yun struggled, Song Ciwan’s hand remained perfectly still. Her ring finger pinned Lv Yun down firmly, rendering all her struggles futile.
For Song Ciwan, suppressing Lv Yun wasn’t the hard part. ’The real challenge is controlling the Yin Yang Inversion Mirror.’
The reversal power of the Yin Yang Inversion Mirror was about to spiral out of control. Song Ciwan continuously poured her True Qi into it, doing her best to hold on.
She had no intention of killing Lv Yun just yet.
’A Maid from a major clan like her... who knows if she has some special mark on her. If Lv Yun dies, the Second Young Master might sense it immediately... That would just be making things harder for myself for no reason.’
She also wanted to use this window of time to see what this treasure under her family’s well actually was.
’Besides, if Lv Yun stays alive, there’s another benefit: my Heaven and Earth Scale can continue to harvest her "human desires" without end.’
[Human Desire. The hatred, fury, and resentment of a Quasi-Deification Stage Cultivator. Weight: twenty-one taels. Available for trade.]
[Human Desire. The hatred, fury, and panic of a Quasi-Deification Stage Cultivator. Weight: twenty-nine taels. Available for trade.]
[Human Desire. The fury, hatred, and resentment of a Quasi-Deification Stage Cultivator. Weight: nine taels and eight maces. Available for trade.]
...
Lv Yun’s emotions were so intense, it was as if she were unleashing a lifetime of accumulated rage all at once.
By this point, the Heaven and Earth Scale had already collected ten clusters of Human Desire from Lv Yun. The heaviest weighed twenty-nine taels, while even the lighter ones were still over ten taels.
’Though the weight of these Human Desire Qi Groups is starting to drop significantly, it doesn’t matter. Human Desire from a Quasi-Deification Stage Cultivator is far more valuable than an ordinary person’s. Her nine taels are probably worth ninety of Xie Yunxiang’s!’
Chengxin was still by the well, measuring carefully. Her steps were light as she continued in a troubled tone, "Can’t... dig directly. This thing... it seems to be... connected... to something... deeper... underground... I also... don’t know... what it... could be, but I... have a feeling... there are... other... secrets."
"We... maybe... should... go back... and report... to Sister Qing... Feng... and let her... decide."
Zi Shan immediately became indignant. "We came all this way, and you want to leave without even trying? To just scurry back with our tails between our legs? Even if Sister Qing Feng doesn’t blame us, I’d still lose face! Chengxin, set up the Array! You can’t just leave without even giving it a shot!"
Chengxin said, "Then maybe... I should first... send a message... to Sister... Qing Feng... and let her... decide."
Hearing this, Zi Shan hesitated for a moment. Just as she was about to speak, Song Ciwan cut in at the perfect time, "You two, dilly-dallying and second-guessing everything. If you waste any more time, the treasure might just run away! Chengxin, you should listen to Zi Shan."
Chengxin’s resolve wasn’t very strong to begin with. After being persuaded by both of them, she found herself in a strange situation. She had been able to stick to her own opinion when Zi Shan was talking, but the moment "Lv Yun" spoke, she suddenly felt it made a lot of sense.
"Okay," Chengxin said. "Then wait for me to begin the Array Formation. Lv Yun, get the Yuan Magnetic Technique ready. Zi Shan, you prepare the Star Positioning Technique. When I give the signal, you both act immediately."
Song Ciwan and Zi Shan quickly retreated several steps, giving Chengxin space.
Chengxin stood by the well, lost in thought for a moment, then began the Array Formation.
The process that followed was, needless to say, both precise and profound. Song Ciwan was interested in learning about Arrays, so logically, this was the perfect time for her to carefully observe Chengxin’s Array Formation and study her methods and the mysteries within.
But as she retreated to the side, Song Ciwan couldn’t afford to study Chengxin’s Array. ’I have something more important to do.’
’Before Chengxin finishes the Array, I have to learn Lv Yun’s signature Cultivation Technique, the Yuan Magnetic Technique!’
’In the Cultivation Realm, how does one truly impersonate someone else, achieving a perfect, flawless resemblance?’
’Matching their appearance and aura on the surface is definitely not enough.’
’The truly difficult things to imitate are her Cultivation and her Cultivation Technique!’
Gripping Lv Yun in her palm, Song Ciwan chose to sell one of the clusters.
[You have consumed one thousand Primordial Pearls and traded Human Desire—the hatred, fury, and panic of a Quasi-Deification Stage Cultivator, weighing twenty-nine taels—to obtain the first two levels of the designated Cultivation Technique, the Yuan Magnetic Technique.]
’The Yuan Magnetic Technique is actually an Earth Level Top Grade technique! I consumed a thousand Primordial Pearls and sold the heaviest cluster of qi from Lv Yun, yet I only managed to get the first two levels of the technique.’
A torrential flood of information rushed into Song Ciwan’s mind, causing a blurry white light to nearly blind her vision.
Song Ciwan split her focus several ways, struggling to control the Yin Yang Inversion Mirror and suppress Lv Yun while simultaneously and rapidly memorizing all the secrets of the Yuan Magnetic Technique.
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