Novel Full Chapter 1470: Under-Neck Feathers (I)
Chapter 1470: Under-Neck Feathers (I)
Li Ximing rose and landed atop the white pool at the center, anticipation in his eyes. As he extended a hand, his spiritual sense connected to the grand formation.
“Rise!”
The water in the white pool immediately rippled. The words [Feather Transformation] at the bottom of the pool shone brightly. Six streaks of light leaped up from within, rushing one after another into his palm and transforming into six pure white long feathers.
Each feather measured fifteen centimeters long and was entirely snow-white. Though they were feathers, each one seemed cast as a single piece, like polished silver, with edges sharp as blades. The faint glow of mana within the cave dwelling illuminated fine scale-like patterns across their surface that rippled like water.
Mansion Water Purple Mansion spirit material [Under-Under-Neck Feathers]!
Li Ximing immediately took out a jade box and briskly placed the six [Under-Neck Feathers] inside. Then he drew up a portion of [Wall-Sinking Water] and gently sealed it within as well, to nourish the Purple Mansion Realm spirit materials.
Strangely enough, once the [Wall-Sinking Water] left the pool, it turned clear and transparent. It illuminated the six feathers in the box, making them gleam even more brightly, the water shifting like a living thing.
Now that he had the six [Under-Neck Feathers] in hand, Li Ximing felt greatly satisfied. Although he did not cultivate Mansion Water, these were still Purple Mansion Realm spirit materials, and six of them was no small amount.
Lowering his gaze, he calculated silently, Six white feathers amount to six hundred years, and the [Wall-Sinking Water] in the pool accounts for seventy percent, which is seventy years. That makes a total of six hundred seventy years… Six hundred seventy years ago, the Yuan Family fled south to Jiangnan, and the Azure Pond Sect had only just been established… yet there was already a cultivator of such profound Mansion Water attainment!
He stepped past the pool and connected with the formation. Crisp, glass-like chimes rang out, and six ornate doors appeared on the smooth walls surrounding the main hall, each facing a different direction.
They led to the other side halls!
Li Ximing stepped inside. The first area was a corridor that opened into another space altogether. Sweeping it with his spiritual sense, he found sixteen small chambers used for storing spirit items. Every place was spacious and tidy. The first room still bore traces of jars and bottles, while the rest were sealed shut, spotless, as if nothing had ever been placed inside or everything had been cleared out long ago.
Li Ximing could only push open the first door. After checking through it, he took out two boxes of [White Partridge Origin Spring]. This Foundation Establishment Realm Mansion Water specialized in nurturing other items. Back then, it had been used to preserve Tinglan’s [Heavenly Origin Essence]. Now it was empty, clearly because whatever had been stored there had already been taken.
The master of Zhen Tao Residence does not seem to have had any disciples or descendants. He built sixteen storage chambers for spirit items, used only one himself, and left none as cave dwellings for lower-realm cultivators…
But now that it has fallen into my hands, once we have enough people, we can renovate it and turn these sixteen storage rooms into cave dwellings for the younger generation.
He stepped out and moved to the side. A wave of heat rushed toward him. It was a refining workshop built of dark stone and black bricks. A furnace stood in the center, with all kinds of tools hanging around. Pitch-black Mansion Water flowed down in streams, running along the carved channels in the floor.
Beside it was another small pool, clearly used for quenching. The [Wall-Sinking Water] within differed from that in the main hall. It was clear and transparent, with a faint hint of blue.
So it really is a Mansion Water-based refining method. This black liquid must be Black Calamity Spirit Water, used outside for cultivating spell arts and stored in spirit bottles or dharma artifacts for combat…
Li Ximing was not well-versed in artifact refining, so he could not make much sense of it. He glanced around briefly, and finally spotted a dark, ink-colored long saber in the quenching pool nearby.
Li Ximing only needed a single glance to understand, An artifact forged with ancient techniques. Most likely a degraded spirit embryo.
He put it away and began calculating the Mansion Water Purple Mansion Realm cultivators in Jiangnan. After some thought, an idea quickly formed, Senior Chen Yin cultivates Mansion Water. Though his Dao lineage is no longer continued, there are no other Mansion Water Purple Mansion Realm cultivators left. I must meet him!
He soon moved on to the next area, which turned out to be the rear hall of the Zhen Tao Residence master.
Compared to the grandeur of the main hall, this place appeared simple. Though spacious, it was no more than a courtyard. The ground was mostly paved with plain, aged blue-green bricks, and the furnishings were ordinary. There was no bed, making it feel more like a study. Only a simple ink brush rested on the desk, laid over a sheet of paper.
Li Ximing swept his gaze across it and saw elegant, flowing strokes. He muttered, “In the depths of winter, the weak lie dormant. When the marsh rises, it gathers form. This is the image of Mansion Water. With Cold Essence and Valley Water both complete, how could Mansion Water fail to be realized? Yet alas, the Yu[1] seized the abyss, and the Profound Turtle lost its boundlessness. From then on, their natures could no longer align!”
The ink was pure black, without a trace of radiance. Yet the sheet of white paper, made of some unknown material, seemed like white jade after bearing these words, its curled edges emitting a faint glow.
The desk was otherwise empty. Apart from the brush and paper, it contained only a jade slip. It bore no seals or locks, and contained only a Qi Cultivation Realm method. When Li Ximing probed it with his spiritual sense, it felt utterly familiar.
The River One Qi Technique, the path to forming the Immortal Foundation [Boundless Ocean]!
Li Ximing quietly studied the writing. Then he took out a jade box, lifted the jade-like sheet, and placed it inside. He gazed at it for a long time as he thought, How could Mansion Water fail to be realized? Yet the Yu seized the abyss, and the Profound Turtle lost its boundlessness. From then on, their natures could no longer align!
[Boundless Ocean] was the Immortal Foundation achieved by the Li Family’s first Foundation Establishment Realm ancestor, Li Tongya. Not just Li Ximing, but every cultivator in the Li Family could recite it by heart, Pit Water [Boundless Ocean], known in ancient times as the [Jing Dragon King]… this must be the boundlessness spoken of!
Yu… so one of the manifestations of Pit Water is the Yu. The texts say: in the streams and ridges of Jiangnan, there are inch-long creatures that shoot water, striking a person’s shadow with qi, killing without cure… it fits.
Pit Water was the water of winding streams. Li Ximing had long accepted this without question, but now, upon reconsideration, something felt off. He pondered, Why change its name? How could Pit Water be known for boundlessness? There must have been a shift. Mansion Water is the water of lakes and marshes. Now that they have withered, it corresponds to the loss of that boundlessness…
I’ve never heard of clear suppression between Pit Water and Mansion Water. Only Unified Metal can harmonize the mansions. Yet Pit Water and Converging Water seem to have no method of reconciliation.
A chill crept into his heart. Though his cultivation was not particularly high, he understood more than enough.
Pit Water took the boundlessness of Mansion Water. [Boundless Ocean]… with the domineering nature of the Dragon Clan, how could they tolerate another Dao lineage claiming such a title? If Senior Xiao[2] seeks to realize Pit Water, the Dragon Clan will surely become a problem!
His gaze shifted slightly, but ultimately settled on the jade slip before him.
The River One Qi Technique… even if it has nothing to do with Lingyu Gate, it is still connected to the Chen Family of Ning State… And Chen Yin cultivates Mansion Water. Though the two Chen Families are not the same, the connection still lines up!
This left him silent. The Xiao Family and the Chen Family had long been entangled, with their ancestors linked in many ways. Everything seemed rooted in an old connection. He could already glimpse the many hardships awaiting Xiao Chuting on his path. Quietly, he left the hall and moved on to the next place.
Of the remaining three side halls, one was completely empty. It contained a circular altar-like structure carved with water patterns, but it too was vacant. Li Ximing pondered briefly and guessed, There must have been a spirit tree planted here. The master of Zhen Tao Residence likely took it with him before leaving…
1. 蜮(yù) is a creature from Chinese folklore said to shoot at a person’s shadow, causing illness or death. ☜
2. Probably refers to Xiao Chuting/Daoist Master Chuting. ☜