Chapter 83: Chapter 82: Wealth in the Ancient City
The painting was not of some peerless beauty, nor was it a landscape of ink and wash. It was... a piece of wild, flamboyant calligraphy!
The sixty brief characters each seemed to pierce through the paper, their sharp edges exposed, ferocious and domineering!
It was as if they refused to be bound, struggling to break free!
What shocked Qin Li the most was the meaning of the characters themselves. They were the missing Cultivation Technique Mantra for the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, Only I am Venerable combat technique he had been desperately seeking!
Formless and shapeless, the whole body transparent and empty. Respond to things naturally, a hanging sound from the western mountain. A tiger’s roar and a monkey’s cry, the water is clear and the river is still. Overturn rivers and seas, fulfill your nature and establish your destiny. Heaven and Earth are one body, the five aggregates are empty. No self, no form, a seamless whole.
BOOM!
A feeling of complete and sudden understanding exploded in Qin Li’s mind. His eyes were glued to the mantra on the wall scroll, and he quickly memorized it.
Just then, Qin Li’s vision blurred. The wall was completely bare!
There was nothing there at all!
A storm raged in Qin Li’s heart. He reached up to touch his forehead—it was cold and damp. He had broken out in a cold sweat!
The night was as silent as still water. The torch in his hand had nearly burned out, but the lights in these rooms remained on.
Qin Li shook his head, descended the stairs, and continued deeper inside.
After something like that, it would be difficult for anyone to remain calm, and Qin Li was no exception. He couldn’t even tell if what had just happened was an illusion or reality.
But the help this short mantra provided to Qin Li was undoubtedly immense!
In that single moment, Qin Li had already completely broken through the first layer of the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, Only I am Venerable combat technique and entered the second!
It was an ineffable state, something that could only be understood intuitively. Although he hadn’t broken through to the Earth Level as a Martial Artist, Qin Li was confident that right now, he could defeat even a ninth-rank Earth Level Martial Artist in a head-on battle!
Back when he killed Qin Shisan, it was only by succeeding with a sneak attack, taking the prepared against the unprepared, that he managed to one-shot an Earth Level expert. When he fought Qin Feng, whose strength had already reached the ninth rank of the Profound Level, their power was comparable. In a direct confrontation, if Qin Feng had tried to flee, it would have cost Qin Li a great deal to forcefully stop him.
But now, Qin Li was confident he could kill Qin Feng instantly on the spot!
Hah!
Qin Li let out a long breath, his whole being suddenly energized and full of vigor. ’Real or illusion, who cares?’ he thought. ’The benefit I received, breaking through the first layer of the Only I am Venerable technique, is as real as it gets!’
With a gain like this, today’s trip hadn’t been in vain. This... was something that not even the Inner Core of a Celestial Level Spirit Beast could compare to.
Qin Li continued downward, passing through many empty rooms. He thought to himself, ’I wonder what kind of people lived in these vast Ancient Ruins back then.’
’I wonder where that Adventurer back then found the Only I am Venerable technique,’ Qin Li mused. And then it hit him—along the way, he had seen tables and chairs in some rooms, but no cups, plates, or utensils. He recalled that the same Adventurer had taken many Ancient Gold and Silver Vessels from this place, some of which even had spatial storage functions and had fetched a sky-high price at auction.
Understanding dawned on Qin Li. ’It seems this place has been explored before.’
At last, Qin Li walked out of the building. He pushed open a surprisingly light wooden door, and before him, a street appeared!
An ancient, desolate aura instantly filled Qin Li’s mind. He could almost see the people of Ancient Times walking this very street, clad in fine clothes on spirited horses, full of life and vigor.
The area ahead was dark and deserted. Qin Li let out a caterwaul, and like falling dominoes, lights spread out from his feet to both sides. Within a thousand-meter radius, everything was brightly lit!
"This is so advanced!" Qin Li exclaimed in admiration as he walked forward. He had only gone a few dozen meters when a shop to the side caught his eye. It was a jewelry store named "Wuji."
The calligraphy on the sign was simple, ancient, and powerful, clearly the work of a master. Compared to the signs Qin Li had seen in Yellow Sand City, this one was countless times better! The characters themselves carried a rounded, ancient charm.
Natural Daoist Law!
Qin Li could only use those three words to describe the calligraphy on the sign. He couldn’t help but feel a tremor of shock as the question resurfaced in his mind: ’What kind of people lived in this city back then? Why are there such tall buildings? Why does even the sign of a random shop look so extraordinary!’
’These voice-activated lights are still in perfect working order after tens of millions of years. I doubt even the Earth I came from, with all its advanced technology, could have managed this!’
’Because this was for civilian use!’
’A city this large couldn’t have been inhabited only by great figures; most of the residents must have been ordinary people. You can see the development and splendor of that era just from its public infrastructure!’
Qin Li reached out and pushed the jewelry shop’s door. The carved door, made of some unknown wood, opened silently. Inside, there was none of the decaying smell Qin Li expected; instead, a faint, fresh fragrance wafted out. Qin Li knocked on the door twice.
KNOCK! KNOCK!
The sound and the feeling in his hand seemed to silently tell Qin Li that it was still incredibly sturdy!
Inside the shop, soft lights flickered on, activated by Qin Li’s voice. A simple yet grand counter gave off a sense of solid substance. The counter was the color of natural wood, with transparent crystal inlaid in the center, glittering brilliantly under the lights!
Qin Li was left speechless. He muttered in his heart, ’Extravagant. This is just too extravagant! What kind of power would it take to afford decorating a shop this luxuriously?’
Qin Li narrowed his eyes and scanned the interior of the counter. ’If the counter itself is this lavish, how could the jewelry inside be anything less?’
A layer of soft, yellow satin lined the display case. On it rested a jade hairpin carved into a Phoenix. It was smooth and translucent, shimmering with a gentle light, appearing utterly lifelike!
The entire jade hairpin looked like a Phoenix spreading its wings to take flight. The head of the hairpin was the Phoenix’s head, its pair of deep green eyes startlingly vivid. The end of the hairpin was its tail, the carving exquisite and delicate. The whole phoenix jade hairpin exuded an elegant and noble air, giving one the feeling that it was a real Phoenix, dancing in the Nine Heavens!
The phoenix jade hairpin was displayed on a red coral stand. The coral was naturally formed and exquisitely beautiful, its color full and lustrous. Even after thousands, or even tens of thousands, of years, it still looked brand new!
Even standing outside the counter, Qin Li could still feel waves of Spiritual Qi emanating from the phoenix jade hairpin.
Next to the stand was a sheet of fine rice paper. Written on it in neat script were the origin and effects of this phoenix jade hairpin. Qin Li focused his gaze on it and couldn’t help but be astonished all over again.
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It’s snowing outside, and the temperature suddenly dropped. I caught a cold. I feel weak all over, my ears are ringing, and I have a runny nose. Woe is me... My constitution is so weak!
Brothers and sisters, please send some recommendation votes to comfort poor, sick Xiaodao...
Also, an announcement: Only I am Venerable will be going premium on the first of next month. Yep, Xiaodao is here to beg you all to save your guaranteed monthly passes for me. I’ll have an explosive release, just like I did back in the day with *Aojian*.
But for now, I need to get better... This is so tragic. My body can’t handle the wind and rain!
