Chapter 52: Chapter 52: Return to the Sect Immediately
But after getting up, Jiang Xu thought of how much of a chatterbox Ding Shiping was, and a shiver of dread ran down his spine.
’If I don’t go to Hell, who will? If you want something good, you have to be willing to pay the price!’
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—
Steeling his resolve, Jiang Xu nervously knocked on Ding Shiping’s door.
CREAK—
The door was pushed open, and a confused Ding Shiping peered outside.
"Brother Ding, hello!"
Jiang Xu forced a smile and took the initiative to greet him.
Ding Shiping mumbled a couple of sounds in return, which counted as a greeting, but his persistent look of confusion made it clear he had no idea what Jiang Xu wanted.
Jiang Xu didn’t beat around the bush and got straight to the point.
"Brother Ding, I saw your technique yesterday, and it was incredible. I was absolutely amazed and haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.
I’ve come to ask if you would be willing to teach me your Seeking Technique.
I am sincere in my desire to learn. Name your price. As long as it’s something I can afford, I will pay it without hesitation!"
Understanding finally dawned on Ding Shiping.
He first led Jiang Xu into the room, then fell into deep thought.
After a long while, Ding Shiping finally looked up and held up one hand to Jiang Xu.
Jiang Xu was surprised, but he suppressed his excitement and said:
"Only five Spirit Stones? Brother Ding, you’re too generous! How can I possibly accept that?"
Ding Shiping shook his head.
Jiang Xu’s expression turned grave. After clenching his jaw for a long moment, he said:
"Fifty Spirit Stones is too expensive! You’re... alright, fine! I really do want to learn. If I scrape everything together, it might not be impossible to get that much!"
Ding Shiping continued to shake his head.
Jiang Xu’s face turned pale, his voice cracking as he spoke:
"Five hundred?! Brother Ding, are you crazy? Is this technique worth that many Spirit Stones???"
This time, Ding Shiping waved his raised hand from side to side.
Then, as if afraid Jiang Xu still didn’t understand, he took out a brush and paper and began to write.
"No Spirit Stones?"
Jiang Xu read the words Ding Shiping had written aloud, completely surprised.
Ding Shiping nodded and started writing again.
"This technique isn’t very valuable. It’s just an obscure technique I stumbled upon in my youth. If you want to learn it, Brother, I can teach you for free."
After reading it out loud, Jiang Xu immediately felt embarrassed.
"How can I possibly accept, uh..."
Jiang Xu couldn’t continue.
Because he saw that Ding Shiping had written another sentence.
"As long as you chat with me when you have time, or just listen to me talk..."
Suddenly, all of Jiang Xu’s embarrassment vanished.
At the same time, Jiang Xu felt a surge of pity for Ding Shiping.
’A chatterbox.’
’Normally, he can’t speak.’
’And when he could, no one would listen.’
’Jiang Xu figured the fact that this guy wasn’t depressed already was a testament to his immense mental fortitude.’
Seeing Jiang Xu’s silent agreement, Ding Shiping’s face lit up with a grin. He patted Jiang Xu on the shoulder and then pulled a book from his Storage Bag.
The cover was ancient, and the entire book looked dilapidated.
The pages within were yellowed and frayed at the edges, with holes in some spots.
Jiang Xu had only just begun to size it up when he saw Ding Shiping carefully flip it open to a page in the middle.
Compared to the others, this page was relatively well-preserved, and the text on it was still barely legible.
On the page were about a dozen small illustrated figures and a mere two to three hundred words.
Jiang Xu glanced at Ding Shiping, who just gestured toward the page with his chin.
"You learned the Seeking Technique from this one page?"
Jiang Xu was skeptical, but when Ding Shiping nodded with absolute certainty, he turned his gaze back to the page and began to study it intently.
As he looked, Jiang Xu found himself completely immersed.
The dozen or so small figures on the page began to float before his eyes like an animation, demonstrating the movements again and again.
Furthermore, a majestic voice began to resonate in his ears, endlessly reciting the mantra for the Seeking Technique.
The entire process unfolded before him as if he were experiencing it firsthand, leaving him utterly captivated.
After an unknown amount of time, Jiang Xu snapped out of his trance and opened his panel.
[Seeking Technique (Beginner): 0/100]
"Just now, what was that?"
After speaking, Jiang Xu saw Ding Shiping shrug and write:
"I don’t know what’s going on either. An old monk gave me this book a long time ago, saying it was a compendium of techniques. But out of the entire book, the Seeking Technique is the only one that can be learned.
The rest are just names. I see things like the Doubling Technique, the Sun Flame Technique, and the Spiritual Sense Needle, but the pages are all too damaged to learn from."
Reading this, Jiang Xu felt so much regret on Ding Shiping’s behalf that he nearly beat his own chest in frustration.
’The Doubling Technique... just the name screams Top Grade Technique. If the Skill Level got high enough, it might even be able to replicate the effects of a Divine Power like Heaven and Earth.’
’Sun Flame Technique... probably has something to do with the sun, so its power must be immense.’
’And the Spiritual Sense Needle... that’s even more incredible.’
’Divine Sense is something one only develops in the Foundation Establishment Realm! Cultivators at the Qi Cultivation Stage only have Spiritual Sense; they’re a world away from achieving Divine Sense!’
’Besides, this book had dozens of pages. One technique per page meant dozens of techniques.’
’And they might all be extremely rare techniques!’
’If I could get my hands on all of them and just hole up somewhere for a decade... wouldn’t I be able to do whatever I pleased?’
’Even Foundation Establishment cultivators probably wouldn’t be a match for me!’
"What do you think? Amazing, right? It might not be as convenient as a Jade Scroll, but it lets you learn quickly, and it’s reusable."
Jiang Xu nodded after reading it.
This was a completely different method from a Jade Scroll.
Who knew what method the creator of this book had used.
Seeing that Jiang Xu had learned the technique, Ding Shiping put the book away and wrote:
"We’re still waiting for Chairman Yan, so I won’t keep you for a chat now. Once we’re back at the sect, we can talk to our heart’s content!"
After writing, Ding Shiping ushered Jiang Xu out.
’...Why do I suddenly not want to go back to the sect anymore?’ Jiang Xu thought, standing outside the door.
...
「A new day.」
Today was the day Yan Chunyu was scheduled to return and lead them to the Endless Forest.
So, no one went out today.
Even Shan Lanlan, who hadn’t returned to her room for the past two days and whose whereabouts were unknown, was back.
Seeing Zong Ziqi smiling, Jiang Xu asked:
"Why are you so happy?"
"I managed to find some good stuff."
"What kind of stuff?"
"It’s a secret."
Jiang Xu scoffed and didn’t press the matter.
Everyone continued to wait for Yan Chunyu’s arrival.
But as time went on, Yan Chunyu still hadn’t returned.
Everyone was starting to get restless.
Another two hours passed, long after the agreed-upon meeting time, but there was still no word from Yan Chunyu.
Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what was going on.
Just then, a Sound Transmission Talisman suddenly flew out of Shan Lanlan’s Storage Bag.
Yan Chunyu’s voice came from the Sound Transmission Talisman:
"All missions are canceled! All of you are to return to the sect immediately. No delays!"
