After spending some time playing with snowballs amidst soft laughter with Xue'er and Yuechan, the two decided to return to Xichen Palace. The sun was leaning toward its setting, casting its golden rays through the snowy mist, bestowing upon the valley an ethereal glow.
As for Xue'er, she was left alone in Phoenix Perching Valley. The time was not yet right to take her out of this sacred place, as the energies of the land were still interacting with her blood and lineage. Even so, Xichen did not neglect her—he granted her the fifth and sixth stages of the [World Ode of the Phoenix]—something he had no intention of giving to the Phoenix Empire at this time.
He knew this would massively enhance her power, and that she would at least reach the late stage of the Sovereign Profound Realm with this, which would lay a strong and solid foundation for his next battle for the throne.
Upon arriving at the palace, he showed no desire for small talk or pleasantries with Yuechan. He merely gave a slight nod as he passed her, then entered his private quarters with confident strides.
The moment Xichen lay down on his bed inside his spacious chamber, dimly lit by the fading twilight filtering through the celestial silk curtains, he closed his eyes for a moment before speaking in a low, resolute voice:
"System, open the Heavenly Treasure Chest."
Seconds passed, then the system's voice rang inside his mind with its familiar metallic tone:
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for opening the 'Heavenly Treasure Chest'! The following items have been obtained:]
• Ashura Martial Intent
• Celestial Tyrant Manual
• Spatial Ancestral Symbol
Xichen quickly opened his eyes and stared at the glowing system screen before him. Slowly, information began to flow into his mind, and the more he read, the more his eyes widened with faint astonishment, as if he could hardly believe the rewards he had received.
▸ Ashura Martial Intent
Ashura Martial Intent… it was not merely a technique or a spiritual comprehension, but an entire existential realm—the Ashura Battlefield—where his consciousness would be drawn to fight real battles, not mere illusions.
There, he would be killed countless times, resurrected each time, facing opponents who vastly overpowered him. But in every death, he learned. In every return, he matured. Over time, a pure, lethal, authentic intent for battle would crystallize within him—the intent of life-and-death combat. This intent alone was enough to hone any cultivator's skills to the brink of madness.
And the astonishing part? Time inside that world was independent of the outside world, meaning Xichen could spend months, even years, fighting within those battles… while only a few hours passed in reality.
▸ Celestial Tyrant Manual
Next came the Celestial Tyrant Manual… a purely physical technique, but not like any other.
It was a detailed description of a threefold system of physical transformation, comprising:
The first seven stages of body refinement, beginning with Tempering Marrow, where the body was reshaped from its very foundation.
Then the Eight Inner Hidden Gates, which unlocked the body's true power, granting the user the ability to transcend their innate limits.
And finally, the Nine Stars of the Dao Palace—the highest stage, attainable only by those who had nearly embodied a complete celestial physique.
Compared to this technique, the Great Way of the Buddha seemed like a simple prelude, nothing more. In fact, merely opening the Eight Gates in this manual surpassed the twelfth stage of ancient Buddhist techniques… as for the Nine Stars? That was something beyond imagination.
▸ Spatial Ancestral Symbol
As for the final reward… it was the most mysterious and perhaps the most powerful of them all.
The Spatial Ancestral Symbol—one of the legendary symbols from the Martial Universe. It was not merely a tool for teleportation or spatial manipulation, but the very essence of space itself, as if the laws of spatial reality had become part of his being.
Compared to the World Piercer, the known spatial symbol, this symbol surpassed it in depth, stability, and comprehensive control. It granted him the ability to:
Teleport instantly without any trace or sign.
Move parts of his body, or separate and reconstitute them in the same instant.
Partial multiple existence—to be present in more than one place at the same time, even if only partially.
And perhaps, later on… to fold spacetime itself.
When he absorbed all of this, Xichen took a deep breath, but showed no surprise on his face—only silence. The silence that precedes a great storm.
Then… suddenly, three heavenly lights appeared before him, a vortex of light forming out of the void within the room, and they surged toward him:
The first was a deep crimson, blazing, roaring with the call of battle… Ashura Martial Intent.
The second was celestial gold, glowing with power and tyranny… Celestial Tyrant Manual.
The third was a radiant purple, pulsating with the resonance of space and time… Spatial Ancestral Symbol.
The three lights entered his body all at once. The golden light embedded itself into his bones, imprinting every vertebra and muscle with the verses of the Celestial Tyrant. The Ashura light plunged deep into his soul, causing him to momentarily glimpse flashes of thousands of battles in distant realms…
As for the Spatial Symbol, it settled quietly into his spine, as if his body had now become a landmark of the void itself.
Xichen sat motionless… but within him, everything was boiling.
"Exhale~" — after a relatively long while, Xichen unconsciously released the breath he had been holding and quickly calmed his mental state. He sat down in the lotus position and took out several medicinal pills to begin training in the Celestial Tyrant Manual.
...
To get more chapters please visit my p@treon :
[email protected]/Akasaki_Ryujin
For support :
https://ko-fi.com/akasaki_ryujin
_
Note: A new chapter will be released every 300 Power Stones.