"Get up and speak," Shi Yi said, waving his hand dismissively.
"Yes, sir."
The old man in green robes with white hair said nothing more. He rose slowly from the cold ground, his movements deliberate.
"This town lies deep in the Great Wilderness, already close to that mountain range. The Mountain Treasure—how many are fighting for it now?" Shi Yi asked, his tone probing.
"Exalted One, the mountain range where the Mountain Treasure emerged has descended into chaos, like a boiling pot. Countless ferocious beasts and human factions are locked in battle there. Corpses litter the fields—it's no exaggeration," the old man replied respectfully.
In his eyes, Shi Yi's personal strength was unremarkable, hardly a match for him. But Shi Yi had backing—formidable backing that even his own patron could not afford to provoke.
As for Shi Yi's patron, that was a matter left unspoken for now.
The old man's own patron was steeped in legend. Long ago, the first sacrificial spirit of the Stone Kingdom was said to be a mere stone that later ascended to godhood. Now, in the Lower Realm's Eight Domains, all mountain and stone-based sacrificial spirits were its descendants. This was why stone-based sacrificial spirits were not to be insulted—their lineage traced back to a deity.
"Are the major tribes and clans in this town also sending people to seize the Mountain Treasure?" Shi Yi pressed.
He wasn't referring to the handful of locals—old and young, dragging their families along—but the powerful tribes and clans behind them. Had they dispatched forces to claim the treasure?
"Exalted One, the people in this town are merely bringing their younger generation to gain experience and temper themselves. The true experts have long since ventured deep into the Great Wilderness," the old man answered meticulously, revealing all he knew.
"Elder, as a being who attained the Dao through mountain stone, do you know what this so-called Mountain Treasure actually is?" Shi Yi asked, his brow furrowed in curiosity.
"The Mountain Treasure…"
The old man fell silent, as if wrestling with some unspoken burden.
Just as Shi Yi began to think the elder might be unwilling to speak, the old man continued unhurriedly, "Exalted One, the so-called Mountain Treasure is nothing more than artifacts from the Upper Realm, buried deep in the endless Great Wilderness. Hidden from the sun's light, they cannot be found without special methods. Every few centuries, one or two such treasures emerge."
What Shi Yi didn't know was that the old man's earlier silence wasn't due to any hidden concerns. Rather, he was puzzled why Shi Yi would ask something so widely known in the Upper Realm.
Still, despite Shi Yi's apparent ignorance on this matter, the old man harbored no doubts about his identity. There was no need to question it—the faint, shimmering willow branch in Shi Yi's possession was proof enough. It granted him near-unlimited authority in the Lower Realm's Eight Domains.
"Now that the Mountain Treasure has appeared, what about the four great disaster beasts? Aren't they vying for it?" Shi Yi asked, still puzzled.
"Exalted One, since the Vermilion Bird and Zhu Yan departed, the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow and Qiongqi have remained in seclusion, rarely showing themselves. But they've been quietly keeping tabs on the Mountain Treasure," the old man replied.
"I understand. Thank you for your efforts, elder."
Shi Yi asked no further questions. To press more would be impolite. With a wave of his hand, he allowed the old man's spiritual body to return to its true form.
A spiritual body was distinct from a law body. A law body was the humanoid form assumed by non-human races, while a spiritual body was a clone, typically nurtured through one's Heavenly Passage and possessing strength one realm below the original body.
Generally, only those who reached the Venerable Realm—Human Emperors in the Lower Realm—had the power to nurture a spiritual body. These clones could act in their stead, navigating the mortal world and avoiding unforeseen dangers.
Nurturing a spiritual body wasn't overly complex. It could be based on the original body or cultivated through precious techniques. For instance, a Qilin Precious Technique could produce a Qilin spiritual body. But the foundation for all of this was the Heavenly Passage—the true root of a cultivator's power.
Shi Yi now understood how naive his earlier plan to break through with nine Heavenly Passages had been. It was only thanks to Liu Shen's promise that he had gritted his teeth and, with supreme perseverance, achieved ten Heavenly Passages.
"The Vermilion Bird, Zhu Yan, Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow, and Qiongqi… Now that Zhu Yan and the Vermilion Bird are gone, the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow and Qiongqi lurk in the shadows. What are they planning?" Shi Yi murmured to himself.
As his thoughts wandered, a sudden realization struck him. With his Supreme Bone's double pupils, he could analyze anything he had seen in his past life—people, events, objects. He had even recalled a Daoist scripture he had merely glanced at, using it to forge a unique path to ten Heavenly Passages.
So, could he now use his double pupils to recall details about Perfect World?
What treasures lay hidden within the Mountain Treasure currently being fought over?
Who might become his enemies in the future?
What great opportunities remained undiscovered?
At this thought, the mysterious double pupils in Shi Yi's eyes surfaced, their boundless power surging into the depths of his soul. Like peeling back layers of silk, he began sifting through memories of people, events, and objects from his past life.
It should be noted that Shi Yi was no show-off. His cautious nature meant he kept his double pupils hidden in daily life, revealing them only when needed. To the untrained eye, he appeared ordinary, his eyes bearing a single pupil. Unless he revealed it himself, no one would suspect he possessed the double pupils.
An hour later, Shi Yi rubbed his sore eyes, a trace of exasperation on his youthful face. He was at a loss for words.
Was I foolish?
Was I stupid?
Was I… bad?
I really…
Was I that obsessed with women?
Honestly, Shi Yi wanted to slap himself and bash his head into the ground a few times.
Using his double pupils, he had meticulously combed through his soul's memories, especially those tied to Perfect World. After exhaustive effort, he was forced to accept a harsh truth: he had been a casual fan, a "cloud viewer" who thought he understood the story but, in reality, knew next to nothing.
In his memories, he hadn't read a single chapter of the Perfect World novel. He had watched less than half of the animated series. Instead, he had spent time on… colorful videos featuring the female leads and supporting characters.
But this wasn't entirely his fault. He hadn't known he would transmigrate, let alone into the body of Shi Yi from Perfect World. And besides, with a full-scale nuclear war breaking out, who had time to update an anime?
Back on that blue planet, Shi Yi had only watched up to episode 85, where the Sun God Tree ascended to the heavens. After that, the world had descended into catastrophic nuclear conflict.
So, Shi Yi deeply regretted not at least skimming the Perfect World novel. Now, he was clueless about the future.
All he knew was that his younger brother, Shi Hao, would become the future Desolate Heavenly Emperor, that Liu Shen was a powerful ally, and that Yun Xi and Yue Chan were exceptionally beautiful.
The one silver lining was that, while he hadn't read Perfect World, Shi Yi was a die-hard fan of Primordial Chaos novels. During a phase of obsession, he had even studied Daoist scriptures extensively. Though he had only glanced at most of them, he had skimmed through all thirteen of the Daoist True Scriptures.
After that fervor faded, he had retained only six words: "The Dao that can be named…"
But now, Shi Yi was no longer the same. With his double pupils, he could perfectly recall every character of those Daoist scriptures, even from a fleeting glance.
For instance, by simply closing his eyes, the thirteen scriptures, radiating the true intent of the Dao, would appear in his mind:
The True Scripture of MoralityThe True Scripture of NanhuaThe True Scripture of ChongxuThe True Scripture of TongxuanThe True Scripture of DonglingThe Scripture of Constant Clarity and StillnessThe Yellow Court ScriptureThe Scripture of Great PeaceThe Scripture of Saving PeopleThe Jade Emperor ScriptureThe Scripture of the Hidden TalismanThe Scripture of the Heart SealThe Harmony of the Zhou Yi
Since Shi Yi had unearthed these scriptures from his soul's memories using his double pupils, they had transformed into thirteen profound texts, hovering in his soul sea. One by one, these supreme scriptures, radiating the true intent of the Dao, formed a circle, protecting his still-fragile soul at the center.
It was these thirteen Daoist scriptures, their resonant Daoist tones echoing in his soul, that had enabled Shi Yi to forge ten Heavenly Passages—distinct from those of this world. Infused with the forces of earth, water, fire, wind, the nine palaces, the eight trigrams, yin-yang, the five elements, and the foundation of cosmic chaos, these passages had laid the strongest foundation imaginable.
My past life's memories are useless now. The people in this town are only here to train their younger generation and won't venture deeper into the Great Wilderness.
Shi Yi's gaze grew profound. He noticed that the townsfolk were already planning to return home. Despite traveling with them, he had gleaned no useful information about the Mountain Treasure. Perhaps they, too, were ignorant of its secrets.
It seems the path ahead is one I must walk alone.
With that thought, Shi Yi stepped out of the courtyard and left the town. His pace was neither fast nor slow as he headed toward the blood-soaked region where the battle for the Mountain Treasure raged.
"The Mountain Treasure…" he murmured.
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