Chapter 214 - 193: Le Family’s Secret, Rank 2 Spirit Water

Chapter 214: Chapter 193: Le Family’s Secret, Rank 2 Spirit Water

Half a quarter hour later, in a desolate mountain valley not far from where Le Mingcheng had fallen.

The mountain wind whimpered, sweeping up withered branches and dead leaves as it scraped across the bare, grayish-brown rock walls. Lu Zhao sat cross-legged behind a massive boulder, sheltered from the wind. He had retracted his aura until he was like an inert stone, and only his eyes glinted coldly in the gloom.

’Soul-searching a living Foundation Establishment Cultivator is too risky...’ Lu Zhao muttered, his gaze fixed on Le Mingcheng’s face, which was twisted in fear and indignation.

The Spiritual Soul of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator undergoes its first metamorphosis, granting it an exceptional tenacity that far surpasses anyone in the Qi Cultivation Stage. Even though his Divine Sense was stronger than that of a Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator, his Spiritual Soul was fundamentally still at the Early-stage Foundation Establishment level. If he were to forcibly Soul Search a living Foundation Establishment Cultivator, the slightest misstep could trigger a violent backlash. A light injury would be a tremor in his Spiritual Soul; a severe one would damage his Sea of Consciousness.

’Fortunately, while the Foundation Establishment Cultivator is dead, a remnant of his soul remains.’ A sharp glint flashed in Lu Zhao’s eyes. With no further hesitation, he sat down cross-legged and formed a hand seal. An eerie, blood-red light glowed at his fingertips as wisps of a bloody aura began to diffuse into the air. This was the Secret Technique derived from the Blood Shadow Corpse Refining Skill: the Blood Soul-Searching Skill!

"HUP!"

With the low shout, Lu Zhao jabbed his fingers, held together like a sword, toward the point between Le Mingcheng’s eyebrows. The bloody light at his fingertips flared, transforming into a crimson thread as fine as silk that instantly burrowed into Le Mingcheng’s head.

BOOM!

A silent, piercing scream, originating from the depths of the remnant soul, seemed to detonate within Lu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness! Le Mingcheng’s corpse convulsed violently. From his seven facial orifices, where dark-red blood had already dried and scabbed over, fresh trickles of foul blood began to seep out, mixed with even more viscous, nearly-black fragments of soul!

A torrent of chaotic memories, intense emotions, and vast amounts of useless information surged violently along the crimson thread and flooded into Lu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness!

Lu Zhao’s brow furrowed slightly. His Sea of Consciousness felt as if it were being pierced by countless steel needles, a throbbing, tearing pain washing over him. He endured the discomfort, his Heart Spirit as firm as bedrock. His powerful Power of Divine Sense transformed into an invisible sieve, rapidly filtering the deluge.

He wasn’t absorbing everything indiscriminately. Like a master fisherman, he precisely netted the most valuable "catch" from the turbulent, muddy waters. Most of Le Mingcheng’s memories from his time in the Qi Cultivation Stage were blurry and of little value. Lu Zhao’s Divine Sense swept over them, discarding them like a pair of worn-out shoes.

Soon, a vivid and deeply imprinted memory, like a blood-stained image frozen in time, materialized before Lu Zhao’s mind’s eye.

In the memory, Le Mingcheng had clearly just reached Foundation Establishment, his face still flush with elation. Opposite him stood Le Zhongshan—the current Patriarch of the Le Family and also his father. Le Zhongshan’s expression was solemn, but deep in his eyes, he suppressed an inexpressible excitement and fervor.

"Mingcheng, now that you have reached Foundation Establishment, you are a true pillar of our Le Family. It is time you learned of our clan’s greatest secret." Le Zhongshan’s voice was low and solemn, carrying the weight of history, as if he were brushing the dust from a long-hidden truth.

He slowly took out a Jade Token. It was of an ancient, simple design, made of a material that was neither gold nor jade yet was warm to the touch. Its surface held a sheen that spoke of its great age. On its face, two words in an Ancient Seal script were clearly visible: "Thousand Waters"!

"Our Le Family ancestor was an Inner Sect Disciple of the Thousand Waters Sect, the former Overlord of the Yue Country. He found this token beside the remains of a fallen Golden Core Elder from the Sect when he barely managed to escape the cataclysm that destroyed it!"

Le Zhongshan’s eyes burned with intensity. "According to the fragmentary notes our ancestor left behind, this Jade Token may be linked to a part of the Thousand Waters Sect’s core legacy!"

In the memory, ’his’ breathing quickened, and a fiery glow of utter disbelief erupted in his eyes.

’The Thousand Waters Sect! They were the Overlord of the Yue Country! How precious must their legacy be?’

However, Le Zhongshan’s next words were like a bucket of cold water. "Unfortunately... our ancestor spent his entire life trying to open it. Several generations of Le Family Patriarchs after him poured their hearts and souls into it, trying every method imaginable—dripping blood, applying a Divine Sense Brand, infusing it with Magical Power, even searching for specific locations... but none of them could make this token react in the slightest."

"It’s like a completely inert stone. Aside from displaying the two words ’Thousand Waters,’ it gives no other reaction."

The fiery glow in Le Mingcheng’s eyes dimmed instantly, replaced by a profound sense of loss. ’To stand before a Treasure Mountain yet be unable to enter... there is no greater agony in this world.’

"Until your great-grandfather’s generation!" Le Zhongshan’s tone shifted, his eyes flashing. "During a fortuitous encounter, your great-grandfather came upon an ancient secret, the kind of knowledge that typically only circulates among Golden Core Cultivators and those of higher station!"

"It stated that some of the most powerful Major Sects, in order to prevent their core legacies from falling into enemy hands, would establish extremely cryptic unlocking requirements. One such requirement could be a specific bloodline, or a specific Cultivation Technique!"

At this, the memory of Le Mingcheng’s heart skipped a beat.

Le Zhongshan continued, "Your great-grandfather guessed that since the Thousand Waters Sect was not a Cultivation Clan, a specific bloodline was unlikely to be the key. That left the most likely answer: a Cultivation Technique. However, our Le Family’s inherited Jade Sea Returning Essence Skill also originates from the Thousand Waters Sect, yet it can’t unlock the Jade Token’s legacy. This proves that an ordinary Cultivation Technique from the Sect is not enough. Therefore..."

Le Zhongshan’s voice trembled slightly. "The answer was practically screaming at us—only by cultivating the Thousand Waters Sect’s ultimate Cultivation Technique, the True Sea Water Manual of Ten Thousand Spirits, could this legacy Jade Token be unlocked!"

"The True Sea Water Manual of Ten Thousand Spirits?" Le Mingcheng exclaimed in disbelief. That was a legendary Cultivation Technique! While the Le Family’s inherited Jade Sea Returning Essence Skill also came from the Thousand Waters Sect, it was merely a derivative. The difference in power between the two was like heaven and earth!

"Exactly!" Le Zhongshan nodded heavily, his expression a mixture of yearning and helplessness. "An ultimate Cultivation Technique of that caliber was lost long ago when the Thousand Waters Sect was destroyed. Even if fragments of it survived, they would surely be in the hands of the top Golden Core-led Major Sects. It’s far beyond the reach of a minor Foundation Establishment clan like ours. The trail, it seemed, had gone cold once more..."