Volume One

Chapter Seven: Dispute over Legacy, Surging Undercurrents

The golden light gradually faded, and the heavy Spiritual Pressure within the stone hall slowly dissipated.

Lin Xuan stood in place, closing his eyes to concentrate. In his mind, the profound methods of the Basic Chapter of the Ancient God Body Refining Technique, along with a vast amount of information regarding the Realm divisions, resource recognition, and taboos of ancient Body Cultivators, were rapidly being organized and settled. That greyish ring, neither metal nor jade, automatically slipped onto his left index finger; it was cold and heavy. With a slight thought, he knew it contained a Storage Ring space of about three zhang square, which was currently empty. He tucked the dark red metal piece and the beast-hide scroll into his robes.

Inside the stone hall, one could hear a pin drop. Only the sounds of heavy, suppressed breathing rose and fell.

Everyone's gaze was glued to Lin Xuan, especially the inconspicuous ring on his left hand and the slight bulge at his chest. Greed, jealousy, shock, and disbelief... like physical flames, burned silently in the air.

The core Legacy of an ancient Body Cultivator! Three items suspected to be secret treasures! Just like that... taken by a boy of unknown origin, neither immortal nor martial?

The muscles on Sun Miao's withered Face twitched slightly, and a burning light flickered repeatedly deep in his eyes, eventually forced down by him into a deep complexity. He spoke slowly, his voice raspier than usual: "The stone tablet Legacy is obtained by the predestined. Little Friend Lin's ability to trigger the resonance of the stone tablet and obtain the Legacy is his own Opportunity and fate."

These words were said steadily, but anyone could hear the reluctance and suppression within. Behind him, Chen Feng and other Yunni Sect Disciples had varying expressions; some frowned, some had wandering gazes, while Su Qingyue pursed her lips tightly, her eyes moving between Lin Xuan and the stone tablet, her thoughts unknown.

The Loose Cultivators and strongmen didn't have so many scruples.

"Senior Sun! This isn't according to the rules!" A scarred Loose Cultivator with a Face full of rough flesh and at the fifth level of Qi Refining couldn't help but speak out, staring intently at Lin Xuan. "We all came to explore together and shared the dangers. Why should he take all the benefits for himself? Shouldn't this Legacy and these treasures be brought out for everyone to study together? Or... be distributed according to contribution?"

"Exactly! Without us opening the entrance and everyone coming in together, could he have made it here?" another Loose Cultivator with a sharp chin and monkey-like features chimed in, his eyes gleaming with thievery. "Kid, be sensible and hand the things over. We can still discuss giving you a share, otherwise..."

"Otherwise what?" Wang Mang stepped forward, his iron-tower-like body blocking the front side of Lin Xuan. His bell-like eyes glared at the two Loose Cultivators as he said in a booming voice, "I didn't see you being so active when we were fighting the Puppets just now! Brother Lin got the Legacy by his own ability. Are you jealous? Want to rob him? Ask my fists first!"

Li Dali also quietly moved to Lin Xuan's other side, pinching several strangely colored Medicinal Pills in his hand, sneering: "Want the things? Sure, try my unique 'Seven-Step Drop' and 'Gut-Rotting Powder' first. I guarantee they're fresh and hot!"

The atmosphere instantly became tense. The Yunni Sect Disciples subconsciously gathered, faintly splitting into two factions. One faction, led by Chen Feng and Su Qingyue, maintained a neutral and wary posture; a few others in the second faction had flickering eyes, seemingly moved by the idea. The Loose Cultivators were even more restless, and it looked like someone was about to lose their patience.

"Enough!" Sun Miao suddenly gave a low shout, and his Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Spiritual Pressure was released with a boom, like cold water poured over their heads, instantly clearing everyone's minds. "This place is full of dangers. The Legacy has been decided; it has its own Karma. If anyone dares to cause internal strife again, don't blame this old man for being impolite!" His gaze was like a knife, sweeping over the leading Loose Cultivators, finally landing on Lin Xuan, his tone softening slightly. "Little Friend Lin, since the Legacy has chosen its master, it belongs to you. However... this place was first discovered and organized for exploration by my Yunni Sect. According to the customs of the cultivation world, if the inheritor is willing, they can appropriately share some information on the Cultivation Technique that doesn't involve the core, or give the discoverers some compensation to fulfill the requirements of morality."

These words sounded polite, but they were actually needles hidden in cotton. Sharing information "not involving the core"? How would that be defined? Compensation? With what? It was clear he saw Lin Xuan was alone and wanted a piece of the pie, or at least to get some tangible benefits. Otherwise, the Yunni Sect's Face and the result of Sun Miao leading the team only to return "empty-handed" could not be explained.

Lin Xuan slowly opened his eyes, a trace of dark gold flowing within them before returning to deep darkness. He looked at Sun Miao, then swept his gaze over the people with various expressions around him, sneering in his heart. Having trained in the Million-Year Martial Dao Tower, what kind of treacherous human hearts had he not seen?

He raised his left hand and shook the greyish ring, his voice calm and steady: "Senior Sun is right. This ring is a storage treasure with a space of three zhang, but it is currently empty." He paused, and under everyone's disappointed and suspicious gazes, continued, "As for the Legacy, the Ancient God Body Refining Technique is indeed one of the fundamental methods of ancient Body Cultivators, but what I obtained is only the 'Basic Chapter'. The content mainly consists of methods for guiding Qi to temper the body and honing the Foundation. Moreover, it has extremely high requirements for the Cultivator's Physical Body Aptitude and requires specific Earth Vein Evil Qi and Heaven And Earth Treasures. For ordinary Cultivators or even Martial Artists, rashly practicing it would be harmful and of no benefit."

He spoke with half-truths. The Basic Chapter was real, and the high requirements were real, but the claim that it was harmful was false; it was just that the compatibility would be extremely low, leading to half the result with twice the effort. As for the metal piece and the scroll, he didn't mention them at all.

"Oh? Only the Basic Chapter? And special requirements?" Sun Miao's gaze was sharp, as if judging the truth of Lin Xuan's words. He could feel that Lin Xuan wasn't lying, or at least not completely. This caused the greed in his heart to lessen slightly, but his disappointment grew. A Body Cultivation Technique with harsh requirements and only a Basic Chapter had its value greatly reduced for the Yunni Sect.

"Correct." Lin Xuan nodded. "However, Lin is not someone who doesn't know right from wrong. Being able to enter the ruins this time was all thanks to the efforts of Senior Sun and all my fellow Daoists. I am willing to transcribe the parts of the Ancient God Body Refining Technique Basic Chapter regarding 'identification and preliminary guidance of Earth Vein Evil Qi', the 'three basic Body Tempering medicinal bath recipes', and the safety path information for some areas of the ruins' outskirts, and hand them to Senior Sun as a token of gratitude for the discoverers and this exploration."

The conditions he offered were very calculated. Identifying and guiding Earth Vein Evil Qi might be useful for prospecting veins and finding special mineral deposits; the basic Body Tempering medicinal bath recipes, while not very useful for mainstream Cultivators, could be used to train low-level strongmen or strengthen the Physical Bodies of Outer Sect Disciples; the safety path information was something tangible that could reduce casualties in subsequent explorations. This information had practical value for the Yunni Sect without involving the core Legacy, and it wouldn't cause Lin Xuan significant loss.

Hearing this, Sun Miao fell into contemplation. This proposal could be considered a way for both sides to back down gracefully. If he truly tried to force him, not to mention Lin Xuan's eerie strength and the power he showed when triggering the stone tablet earlier, internal strife in these ruins of unknown danger was also a huge taboo. Being able to get some practical information would be enough of an account for the Sect upon his return.

But those troublemaking Loose Cultivators weren't having it. The scarred man shouted: "Senior Sun! Don't listen to his nonsense! Who knows how much he's hiding! And that metal piece and scroll are definitely treasures! At least let everyone see them!"

"Right! Everyone present should have a share! What does giving it only to the Yunni Sect count for!" The monkey-faced one also clamored.

Sun Miao's eyes turned cold, and he was about to berate them. Suddenly, from the dark passage behind the dark golden stone tablet deep in the stone hall, a low and dense "clack-clack" sound echoed, as if something was crawling over in a swarm, and at a very high speed!

"On guard!" Chen Feng reacted the fastest, shouting sternly as the Yunni Sect Disciples quickly formed a defensive formation.

The Loose Cultivators also stopped arguing and drew their weapons, nervously looking toward the dark passage.

In the next second, a scene that made one's scalp tingle appeared!

Dozens, even hundreds of fist-sized, dark red insect-beasts, shaped like spiders but with metallic chelae and tail stingers, swarmed out of the passage like a tide! Their compound eyes flickered with a crimson light, and they emitted "hissing" screeches. Moving as fast as lightning, they lunged at everyone in the hall!

"It's Gold-Eroding Ants! The ruin guardian insect-beasts recorded in ancient books! They can gnaw through spiritual power shields, and their tail stingers carry a paralyzing poison! Be careful!" Sun Miao's Face changed, and he quickly cast several fire Talismans, which turned into a wall of fire to temporarily block the insect tide.

But there were too many insect-beasts. The fire wall could only block a portion from the front, while many Gold-Eroding Ants crawled along the walls to bypass it at high speed!

"Ah—!" A Loose Cultivator standing on the outer edge was accidentally approached by several Gold-Eroding Ants. His protective spiritual light was instantly gnawed through, and a tail stinger pierced his calf. He screamed, and half his body immediately went numb as he collapsed. In an instant, he was submerged by more Gold-Eroding Ants, emitting hair-raising sounds of gnawing!

"Form a formation! Use area-of-effect Spells! Don't let them get close!" Su Qingyue shouted. Her long sword danced, and her icy Sword Qi swept down a patch of them, but the carapaces of the Gold-Eroding Ants were hard, often requiring several strikes to kill.

The hall instantly fell into chaos. The individual threat of a Gold-Eroding Ant wasn't too great, but their numbers were terrifying. They were fearless and carried a paralyzing toxin; once they got close and entangled someone, it would be extremely troublesome. Everyone used their own methods, and the light of Spells, the glint of blades and swords, and the explosions of Talismans rang out together.

Lin Xuan's gaze narrowed. The aura of these insect-beasts was similar to the previous Puppets, leaning toward Earth Vein and blood vitality power, with a strong resistance to spiritual power. With a thought, he didn't use his Source Martial Spiritual Energy but relied purely on his Physical Body's strength and speed. Using his fingers like blades, his figure wove through the insect swarm. Every finger strike, palm chop, and kick landed precisely on the fragile joints or compound eyes of the Gold-Eroding Ants. His strength was concentrated at a single point, killing the enemies instantly. His efficiency was actually higher than many Spells!

Wang Mang roared repeatedly, his fists swinging like the wind, smashing the approaching Gold-Eroding Ants to pieces. But he had a large build and was a large target; soon, several were hanging on him, their chelae tearing his flesh. Fortunately, his internal martial arts were deep, and he could still hold on for now. Li Dali constantly threw out various medicinal powders; some could repel insects, while others were corrosive, managing to block a patch around him.

As a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, Sun Miao handled it much more calmly. On one hand, he used exquisite Spells to clear large patches of the insect swarm, and on the other, he protected several Disciples who were in dire straits. But out of the corner of his eye, he was always watching Lin Xuan.

He saw Lin Xuan moving freely through the insect swarm with concise and efficient actions; not a single Gold-Eroding Ant could truly get close to him. Those insect-beasts seemed to be somewhat... wary of him? The density of their attacks on him was significantly lower than on others.

"This boy... indeed has a very deep connection with these ruins!" Sun Miao thought to himself.

The insect tide seemed endless, and the pressure on everyone grew greater. Their spiritual power and physical strength were being consumed rapidly.

"Junior Martial Uncle Sun! There are too many insect-beasts! Should we retreat for now?" Chen Feng shouted for instructions. His arm had been stung, and his movements were starting to slow down.

Sun Miao looked at the deep passage from which Gold-Eroding Ants were still emerging, then glanced at the dark golden stone tablet and Lin Xuan. A flash of decisiveness crossed his eyes: "We cannot stay here long! Chen Feng, Su Qingyue, cover each other and retreat toward the entrance!"

He then looked at Lin Xuan and quickly transmitted his voice: "Little Friend Lin, I agree to your previous proposal! Quickly transcribe the information for me! I can protect you as we retreat together!"

Lin Xuan was currently crushing several Gold-Eroding Ants in front of him with a palm strike. Hearing this, the corner of his mouth curved imperceptibly. He was already prepared and took out a blank Jade Slip from his robes (actually from his Storage Ring), pressed it to his forehead, and in an instant, branded the promised information into it before tossing it to Sun Miao.

Sun Miao caught it, scanned it with his Divine Sense, and after confirming it was correct, his expression softened slightly: "Good! Follow me closely!"

Once the order to retreat was given, everyone lost their will to fight. While fending off the insect tide, they moved awkwardly toward the entrance of the stone hall. The insect-beasts pursued them relentlessly, leaving behind several corpses that had been paralyzed and gnawed along the way.

In the chaos, no one noticed that the monkey-faced Loose Cultivator had a flash of viciousness and greed in his eyes. He deliberately slowed his pace and fell to the back of the group. Taking advantage of the moment when Lin Xuan's back was turned to him while fending off the side insect swarm and Wang Mang and Li Dali were temporarily entangled by a few Gold-Eroding Ants, a poisoned short sword gleaming with an eerie blue light suddenly appeared in his hand. His figure lunged out like a venomous snake, stabbing straight toward the back of Lin Xuan's heart!

"Kid! Leave the ring and the scroll behind!"

This sneak attack was fast and ruthless, from a tricky angle, and launched during the chaos. It looked like it was about to succeed!

Su Qingyue happened to look back and see this scene. In her horror, she could only cry out half a sentence: "Watch out!"

It was as if Lin Xuan had eyes in the back of his head. At the moment the short sword was about to hit his body, his body twisted at an incredible angle, and the short sword grazed the hem of his robe at his ribs. At the same time, his left hand shot out like lightning, accurately grabbing the attacker's wrist!

"Crack!"

The sound of a wrist bone shattering and the attacker's scream rang out simultaneously! The short sword hit the ground with a "clang".

Lin Xuan's gaze was cold. He pointed with his right hand, and a dark golden light flashed as he instantly struck the Shanzhong Acupoint on the man's chest. A strand of refined Source Martial Spiritual Energy penetrated the body. It wasn't fatal, but it instantly sealed most of the blood and Qi circulation in his body!

The attacker's scream stopped abruptly. His eyes rolled back, and he slumped down like a pile of mud, instantly covered by several Gold-Eroding Ants that had caught up. Soon, there was no more sound.

All of this happened in a flash. By the time others reacted, the attacker was already dead.

Lin Xuan didn't even look at the corpse being rapidly submerged by the insect swarm, as if he had just swatted a bothersome fly. He turned and continued to retreat with the group, his pace still steady.

Su Qingyue looked at his indifferent back, the chill in her heart growing deeper. Sun Miao's eyes flashed with deep wariness. This boy not only had eerie strength, but his Heart-Nature was also decisive and ruthless, not to be underestimated.

Everyone finally fought their way out of the stone hall and returned to the plaza. The Gold-Eroding Ants behind them stopped at the entrance of the stone hall and did not come out. Their crimson compound eyes only flickered inside the doorway, emitting unwilling hisses.

Counting the numbers, of the twenty-odd people who entered the stone hall, only fifteen remained. Nearly thirty percent were lost, and most were injured, looking disheveled and lingering with fear.

Sun Miao's Face was grim. He looked at the deep entrance of the stone hall and the other silent passages in the distance, saying in a heavy voice: "The danger here far exceeds expectations. We have already gained something, so we should not stay long. Everyone, return the way we came immediately!"

This time, no one had any objections. Even if an ancient Legacy was good, one had to have a life to take it.

The team followed the path they came from, quickly retreating toward the entrance of the ruins. The path that felt long when they arrived seemed much shorter now that they were eager to return.

Lin Xuan walked in the middle of the team, the greyish ring on his left index finger still cold. In his mind, the essence of the Ancient God Body Refining Technique Basic Chapter flowed slowly, faintly echoing with the dense and ancient Spiritual Qi of this place. He hadn't had time to check the metal piece and the scroll in his robes, but since they were placed together with the Legacy stone tablet, they were certainly not ordinary items.

He glanced at the cold back of Su Qingyue walking ahead, then at Sun Miao, who had a somber expression and was lost in thought. Finally, he felt the increasingly active Source Martial Spiritual Energy within his body.

The journey to the ruins seemed to have come to a temporary close.

But the true storm would likely only begin once they left the ruins, about to unfold in this world of Spiritual Qi rejuvenation.

(End of Volume One, Chapter Seven)

[Next Chapter Preview]:

Dispute over Legacy, Surging Undercurrents! Lin Xuan uses thunderous means to deter the small-minded and safely retreats from the ruins with the secret treasures and Legacy!

Returning to Qingshi Town, how will Sun Miao report? Can the news of the ancient Body Cultivator Legacy's appearance be kept secret? What kind of uproar will it cause?

Has Zhao Long received the news? How will the anger and greed of the inner Sect elite be unleashed?

Su Qingyue's mindset is completely shaken. How will she Face this "former fiancé" who has overturned her understanding time and time again?

And Lin Xuan, holding the Ancient God Body Refining Technique, the mysterious metal piece, and the scroll, what kind of leap will his path of Martial Dao Spirit Transformation take?

Greater Opportunities and crises are quietly gathering outside Qingshi Town...

Next Chapter: Changes on the Return Journey, Hidden Killing Intent!

Lin Xuan: "Leaving the ruins is where the true trial begins. If you want to rob me, come at me."