Chapter 1745: Profound Box (I)

When their ancestor Li Tongya was young, the market on the island at the heart of the lake had happened to suffer a calamity. He had later slipped inside and used an art of water manipulation to retrieve a jade box from the formation core. The box was pale green and densely covered in profound patterns, but it was empty.

Although their ancestor had not obtained the treasure once held inside, he noticed that the box was made from an unusual material and could be used to store treasures. Therefore, he kept it with him. It had been passed down through the family ever since, eventually being used to hold the sword law.

Li Ximing knew nothing of swordsmanship and had rarely handled the box; under ordinary circumstances, he should not have recognized it. However, when the Li Family unified Moongaze and dismantled the forbidden formation on the island at the heart of the lake, Li Xijun had taken out the jade box to examine it while studying the island's formation. Li Ximing happened to glimpse it, leaving an impression in his memory.

How could Li Ximing not be astonished to see a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator handling a similar object with extreme caution and presenting it to him so gingerly? Yet this was not the time to question him in detail. Li Ximing formed a hand seal and activated [Radiance Under Heaven]. The invisible Light of the Six Directions immediately gathered at his fingertips as he began making careful calculations.

Yan Dushui did not notice Li Ximing's brief daze. He took a black jade slip from his sleeve, placed it in Li Ximing's hand, and whispered, "Please place this talisman against the center of your eyebrows, fellow Daoist. Only then will you be able to see the spirit item... This object is exceedingly strange. If this piece of [Soul-Tuning Mulberry Wood] had not bound it here, it would likely have drifted away to parts unknown long ago.

"However, lifting this object may diminish your fate slightly... I will not take even a sliver of the [Soul-Tuning Mulberry Wood]. It will all be given to you as compensation, fellow Daoist!"

With the Immortal Mirror in his possession, Li Ximing could already see everything clearly. Even so, he solemnly accepted the jade slip and used the talisman with a thoughtful expression.

The spirit item before him possessed extraordinary mystics. Even when a mighty Purple Mansion Realm cultivator swept it with his spiritual sense, the stump appeared completely empty, without the slightest trace of anything unusual. Only when the Light of the Six Directions passed over it did a few anomalies emerge.

The Light of the Six Directions in his hand was Bright Yang's sole Fate Divine Ability, used to measure heaven and earth and divine the workings of the cosmos. Ordinarily, it could sense the qi flows of fate that permeated heaven and earth and filled every corner of existence.

If observing the world through spiritual sense was like looking into an empty room containing various objects, then observing it through the Light of the Six Directions was like standing within a vast ocean with those same objects beneath one's feet. The difference was not particularly significant.

Yet within this cave dwelling, his spiritual sense perceived nothing but emptiness in every direction, while the Light of the Six Directions sensed a similar void above the tree stump. That immediately made the difference apparent. If even the 'water' was missing from the ocean, could the anomaly be any more obvious?

Banished Essence can swallow qi flows. If this object were forged into a weapon, it could probably pass straight through someone's body before they even realized what had happened!

After marveling inwardly, he opened the jade box and silently pushed it forward. Naturally, he could not touch the spirit item directly with his divine ability, so he used only the [Light of the Six Directions] to nudge it little by little before gently lifting it.

The mana of Li Ximing's divine ability immediately began pouring out at a terrifying rate, as though he were lifting a mountain forged from profound stone. The Light of the Six Directions shook violently, yet it only caused the feather to flutter slightly.

That slight movement made Yan Dushui's eyes light up. His heart pounded as he thought, The lord was indeed correct! This object cannot be lifted by divine abilities or perceived through spiritual sense. Only the governing order of heaven and earth, where all living beings find their place, and the unity of heaven, earth, and man can sense it... Fortunately, [Radiance Under Heaven] works!

Yet while Yan Dushui was overwhelmed with delight, Li Ximing's expression abruptly changed. Moving the feather was causing his own Fate Divine Ability to rapidly weaken, and the Light of the Six Directions was steadily diminishing. The process was genuinely eroding his cultivation in his Fate Divine Ability!

What a terrifying rate!

His scalp prickled with alarm as the mana of his divine ability poured into it like a waterfall. The feather finally drifted into the jade box. Strangely, the spirit item that had seemed impossibly heavy became as light as a plume the moment it entered the box, without the slightest weight.

But by then, Li Ximing's face had turned deathly pale, and the talisman at the center of his eyebrows had crumbled to ash. Forcing himself to endure, he used the Light of the Six Directions to gather some of the cave dwelling's black essence and seal it inside the box to nourish the feather. Only after regulating his breathing for several moments did some color return to his face.

That was close... If the talisman between my eyebrows had not shielded me from so much of it... I probably would have suffered internal injuries.

After ensuring that nothing was wrong within his body, he sealed the jade box and handed it to Yan Dushui. "Congratulations!"

Yan Dushui's eyes reddened slightly. He nodded heavily, pointed at the wooden stump on the stone platform, and said, "The [Soul-Tuning Mulberry Wood] is yours to take, fellow Daoist."

Although the [Soul-Tuning Mulberry Wood] could be retrieved with a divine ability, Li Ximing still examined it carefully several times before reaching out and putting it away. He surveyed the surroundings, committed the various runes to memory, and thought, This place is long and narrow, rather like a coffin.

Suspecting that the substance drifting through the surroundings might be valuable, he collected some of the black qi into a bottle. Meanwhile, Yan Dushui appeared deeply conflicted as he surveyed the area alongside him. The old man seemed reluctant to leave, yet also hesitant about something. Eventually, he stepped forward.

The incense flame in the front hall burned brightly, and the incense stick had shortened slightly. The darkness within the hall seemed even denser than before, leaving them unable to see their hands before their faces.

Li Ximing paid closer attention and discovered another passage on the opposite side. Seeing that Yan Dushui had no intention of taking him further inside, a thought stirred in his mind. As he slowly walked forward, he secretly activated his Immortal Artifact once again.

In an instant, the mist before him dispersed, revealing every detail of the patterns upon the walls. Six stone lamps in the passage on the opposite side appeared before his eyes, extending into its depths. A smooth stone wall stood at the end of the passage.

Faint lines upon the wall seemed to depict a sinister minor formation imbued with the profound mysteries of the Shamanic Talisman Dao.

This place is not particularly large... It is merely a single residence.

Li Ximing had no time to investigate further. The two crossed the threshold and appeared outside, where the cave dwelling was once again shrouded in an impenetrable, hazy darkness. When they finally withdrew from the place and entered the great void, they looked back to find that it had seemingly vanished without a trace.

A strange look crossed Li Ximing's face as he silently committed the location to memory. He turned toward Yan Dushui, but the old man had noticed nothing.

Clutching the box in his arms with a despondent expression, Yan Dushui murmured, "A treasure passed down by my ancestors for thousands of years has ended up in someone else's hands."

Li Ximing knew that Yan Dushui had no choice but to hand it over to Nine Mounds, which had orchestrated the entire matter from beginning to end. Yet with little lifespan remaining and no capable juniors to succeed him, what else could Yan Dushui possibly do?

Li Ximing offered a few words of comfort. "An ancestral treasure is passed down so that later generations can preserve their clan... It does not truly matter whose hands it ends up in... Other families could only dream of an opportunity to establish ties with Nine Mounds."

Ultimately, these were merely polite words. In truth, even Li Ximing felt little sympathy at that moment. Instead, his attention settled upon the jade box in Yan Dushui's hands.

After offering a few words of consolation, he allowed some envy to show on his face and asked, "This journey has truly broadened my horizons. But... what exactly is this box? It can so easily contain an object of Banished Essence, which is said to be utterly beyond detection!"

Still deeply unsettled, Yan Dushui hurriedly turned toward him and forced a smile. "Daoist Master Lingdu of Nine Mounds borrowed this object for me specifically for this matter... You are not the only one unable to discern its origins, fellow Daoist. I cannot identify it either."

Li Ximing nodded and said nothing more. The two traveled silently toward Nine Mounds Mountain in tacit understanding. Only when the mountain covered in crimson leaves came into view did Yan Dushui say wistfully, "You are right, fellow Daoist. Generations of my ancestors tried, yet none could retrieve this object. Without this jade box, it was no different from entering a mountain of treasures only to return empty-handed. Leaving it there would have served no purpose..."