Under the watchful eyes of the two people beside him, Ji Yuan slowly raised his palm, gazing at the round bead held in his hand.
After a moment of contemplation, he infused a stream of spiritual power into it. Immediately, the mystical patterns on its surface began to glow brighter, bit by bit.
A few breaths later, a warm current flowed out from the bead and into his body. Within his mind, it coalesced into a seemingly solid, thick tome.
This tome was about a foot thick, emitting a faint halo and carrying an aura of profound mystery.
The moment Ji Yuan’s consciousness touched it, vast amounts of information emerged and poured into his soul light.
It was a long time before he slowly regained his senses, breaking out in a cold sweat. For nearly half an hour, he had been completely defenseless.
If anyone had attacked then, he would have been unable to retaliate. Even the Profound Sky Spirit Devouring Pagoda within him couldn't have protected him without his direct control or prior intention.
However, the worst did not happen. Neither Li Buwei nor Zhou Lianying made any opportunistic moves.
As his pounding heart subsided, a vast and profound set of cultivation principles surfaced in Ji Yuan’s mind. The beginning of it read: ‘Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method’.
It was an extraordinary cultivation technique that used water element magic to cultivate the divine sense!
Ji Yuan, who hadn’t held high expectations for the inheritance here, was now overjoyed.
After all, he already possessed the Profound Sky Dao Scripture and the Nine Yuan Heavy Water Scripture. Both were powerful techniques, and the former, in particular, was divided into the Dao Law Scroll and Sword Art Chapter, each capable of leading one to the Great Power realm.
He understood the principle of not biting off more than one could chew. Even if another extremely high-grade technique were placed before him, even that 'Lesser Yellow Scripture' from Crimson Heart Daoist, he would not have diverted his attention to study and cultivate it.
But this Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method was different. It specialized in cultivating soul light and divine sense. At its highest levels, it could even increase the success rate of condensing the Nascent Soul!
Furthermore, cultivation techniques that focused on the divine sense were incredibly rare in the world. Even powerful sects with thousands of years of history might not possess one or two.
The mere existence of this method, if revealed, could attract the covetous eyes of cultivators at the peak of the Three Realms, or even Golden Core Great Cultivators.
This was because the stronger a cultivator's divine sense, the higher the probability of breaking through bottlenecks. Moreover, this Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method had the added benefit of increasing the success rate of condensing the Nascent Soul!
"How is it?" Li Buwei asked impatiently.
As long as the inherited technique was of sufficiently high grade, any other opportunities, even spiritual springs that could enhance physique and spiritual roots, would be secondary.
Although he already had a complete inheritance, due to certain special circumstances, his spiritual power, while extremely pure, was far less in quantity than that of ordinary cultivators.
He possessed even less spiritual power than some rogue cultivators with incomplete techniques.
What he most desired now was a high-grade cultivation technique to compensate for his deficiency in spiritual power quantity.
"It's a spirit-refining technique called the ‘Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method’," Ji Yuan replied after a moment of thought, deciding not to conceal it.
This Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method could be considered both a cultivation technique and a secret art.
It was divided into three parts: upper, middle, and lower. The upper part strengthened soul light, the middle part cultivated divine sense, and the lower part condensed the Nascent Soul. When all three were combined, the Nascent Soul could roam the Nine Heavens, becoming impervious to water and fire, and resistant to all evil.
Upon hearing this, Li Buwei appeared slightly disappointed. He understood the preciousness of this technique, but it didn't quite meet his expectations.
"Does the inheritance mention where that spiritual spring is located?" Zhou Lianying asked. She didn't fully grasp the value of the technique but was more concerned about the spiritual spring.
She was willing to take a gamble, even risking great danger to follow him, all for the sake of improving her physique and spiritual roots with the help of that spiritual spring.
Ji Yuan nodded and turned to walk behind the bamboo hut. The other two quickly followed.
However, when the three of them passed the bamboo hut and arrived at an open space, they found that there was no spiritual spring to be seen, only a dry, deep pit.
Ji Yuan was not surprised by this scene. In an environment left unattended for thousands of years, it was not unusual for a spiritual spring to dry up.
"You don't need to be too disappointed. The inheritance mentions that the so-called spiritual spring that can improve physique and spiritual roots was artificially created." He explained as he saw the disappointment on their faces.
The legendary spiritual spring was merely a spring with abundant spiritual energy. Its miraculous effects were entirely due to the former owner of this place, who was a master alchemist.
All the effects were achieved through the alchemist's elixirs, refined from numerous rare spiritual herbs, and then specially prepared with over a hundred types of spiritual materials in conjunction with a spiritual spring.
Theoretically, as long as one found a spring with abundant spiritual energy and possessed the spiritual materials and elixir formulas recorded in the inheritance, an identical spiritual spring could be created.
After a moment of contemplation, Ji Yuan handed over the inheritance bead in his hand and said, "After you accept the inheritance, you will understand everything."
Seeing this, the two were stunned. They hadn't expected him to be so generous as to share the inheritance for them to receive together.
They both admitted that if it were them, they would have guarded it fiercely, and Li Buwei even believed he would kill to keep it secret.
A spirit-refining technique was enough to make powerful sects lose face, and even Golden Core Great Cultivators would directly intervene to seize it!
After confirming multiple times that he was not joking, the two finally accepted the inheritance bead and received the transmission one after another.
Ji Yuan had initially intended to keep the inheritance entirely to himself, only sharing it with his closest kin.
However, after receiving the inheritance, he understood that to leave this cave abode, one would need a soul light equivalent to the late stage of the Spirit Nurturing Realm to open the teleportation formation to the outside world.
And to achieve a soul light of that level, relying solely on himself, even with the Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method in hand, would take at least several years.
This was also assuming he could break through to the mid-stage of the Spirit Nurturing Realm within those years.
Furthermore, Ji Yuan estimated that at least three people cultivating this method together would be needed to reach the requirement in a short period, jointly activating the teleportation formation here.
This was why he had shared the inheritance without reservation. To condense a Golden Core within thirty years, he absolutely could not be trapped here for years!
In about a quarter of an hour, the two had successively received the inheritance, and a thoughtful expression appeared in their eyes.
The inheritance contained not only the Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method but also instructions on how to refine spiritual springs, various accompanying elixir formulas, and the method to leave this place.
After receiving the inheritance, Li Buwei and Zhou Lianying finally understood why Ji Yuan had shared it without hesitation.
Although the spiritual energy here was abundant, staying for several years was something neither of them was willing to do.
Moreover, cultivators in the first to third realms, before forming a Golden Core, could not sustain themselves solely on spiritual energy, nor could they forgo the necessities of eating and drinking.
Even though they had brought辟谷丹 (Bigu Pills), they were not enough for several years of consumption. They would likely starve to death eventually.
"There are three bamboo huts, one for each of us. Let's cultivate diligently," Ji Yuan said.
According to his estimation, just mastering the initial stages of this technique would greatly boost their soul light. With the three of them working together, it should be enough to reach the late stage of the Spirit Nurturing Realm.
Li Buwei and Zhou Lianying nodded, feeling a sense of eagerness.
On one hand, they wanted to leave this place quickly. On the other, they were eager to see if this technique was as miraculous as it seemed.
A short while later, the three of them each chose a bamboo hut, opened the door, and stepped inside.
As soon as Ji Yuan entered his room, he was inwardly astonished, marveling at the craftsmanship of a Golden Core Great Cultivator.
Inside the small bamboo hut, in the center, sat a pale green meditation cushion that emanated a gentle spiritual light and contained extremely pure spiritual energy.
On a low table nearby, an incense burner and a tube of incense were placed. Even unlit, they released a fresh and pleasant fragrance.
A mere whiff calmed the mind and dispelled all distracting thoughts.
Furthermore, the entire bamboo hut had been inscribed with special restrictive formations. Merely staying inside, one could feel spiritual energy spontaneously flowing in, constantly nourishing the body.
After closing the door, Ji Yuan sat down on the meditation cushion. He immediately felt his mind clear, his thoughts far sharper than usual. Matters that previously required deep contemplation could now be understood in just a few breaths.
He didn't even need to calm his slightly excited emotions. Simply lighting a stick of incense brought his mind to complete peace, with no stray thoughts arising.
Closing his eyes, the Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method appeared in his mind. He carefully reviewed and comprehended it repeatedly.
This wondrous method was exceptionally suited for him. The core principle was to use water element power to nurture and gradually strengthen soul light.
Ji Yuan himself had a natural affinity for water, and one of the primary techniques he cultivated was water-based. Besides having the Thirty-Six Heavy Water Beads as a magical treasure, he also possessed a Great Dao magical artifact that was cultivated in tandem with his life.
Half an hour later, feeling that he had memorized one-third of the core principles and some of the upper section, he began to cultivate the wondrous technique.
Soon, streams of water vapor appeared within his body, then continuously surged upwards, eventually enveloping his soul light.
As the Myriad Origin Manifesting Spirit True Method circulated, golden light began to emanate from Ji Yuan's soul, which was the incense and wish power he had absorbed into his soul light from consuming Water God Pills in the past.
A portion of this incense and wish power was directly absorbed by his soul light, while the remaining, larger portion integrated into his soul, absorbing gradually over time.
Now, as he began cultivating the spirit-refining technique, this incense and wish power was immediately stimulated. With the circulation of the wondrous method, it was continuously absorbed by his soul light, bit by bit.
In a short while, Ji Yuan began to enter a state of flow. He concurrently focused on comprehending the core principles and the upper section, while circulating the wondrous method to nurture his soul light.
Under the combined effect of the wondrous method and the incense and wish power, his soul was steadily and rapidly improving.