Chapter 9
Early the next morning.
As the sky began to lighten, Xiao Minghuang hurriedly knocked on Ye Ruoshui’s door.
The little maid, still drowsy and clad in a thin, translucent gauze robe, yawned as she opened the door.
Xiao Minghuang entered the room, closed the door behind her, and under the faint morning light, glanced at the full curve beneath the nearly transparent gauze robe of the little maid, her gaze finally settling on the other’s sleepy face.
“Ruoshui, Sister has a treasure for you.”
Ye Ruoshui rubbed her heavy eyes, her long eyelashes fluttering like a pair of butterflies about to take flight.
“What is it?”
Xiao Minghuang pulled out a white rod from her bosom and directly stuffed it into the little maid’s arms.
“Sister has been busy with cultivation lately and hasn’t had time to teach you. Practice on your own for now.”
With these words, Xiao Minghuang pushed the door open and quickly left.
Leaving behind a bewildered Ye Ruoshui.
The smooth, glossy jade still carried a faint warmth. She sniffed and could still catch a hint of orchid fragrance.
The scent intoxicated her, making her linger.
But the function of this jade rod left Ye Ruoshui utterly perplexed.
“???”
She pondered until dawn, still clueless.
Only when the warmth and fragrance on the jade dissipated did Ye Ruoshui take the white jade rod into the sunlight for a closer look.
The jade was cylindrical, slightly shorter than her forearm, with smooth, rounded ends and irregular bumps along the rest of its length.
Staring at the strange jade, the little maid thought for a long time but still couldn’t figure it out, so she went to ask the older maids in the mansion.
The elderly palace maid glanced at Ye Ruoshui, her eyes filled with scrutiny. After a moment, she lowered her head and whispered a few words into her ear.
“This thing… it can bring you happiness. At my age, I’ve never married, all thanks to this…”
As she spoke, Ye Ruoshui’s small face visibly flushed, turning a delicate pink, as if steam was rising from the top of her head.
Unable to contain herself, she stomped her feet, lowered her head, and darted back to her room. She threw herself onto the bed, rolling back and forth, then wrapped herself in a blanket, rolling into a corner. Only her small head peeked out, her pupils filled with little stars.
“Did Her Highness give this to me because…”
…
Meanwhile, in another part of the palace.
After sending out the cultivation technique, Xiao Minghuang immediately returned to her training room, eagerly inquiring of the system.
“System, where’s my compensation?”
[Ding!]
[Detected that the host has successfully gifted an opportunity!]
【Congratulations, host! You have triggered a ten-thousand-fold critical strike compensation and obtained the Heaven-tier supreme cultivation technique, 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》!】
Hearing the system’s voice, a flash of pleasant surprise crossed Xiao Minghuang’s eyes.
She hadn’t held much hope for this multiplier, but unexpectedly, a ten-thousand-fold critical strike had occurred!
With a thought, a jade slip appeared in Xiao Minghuang’s palm.
The golden tome was entirely golden, yet it shimmered with a faint purple light, exuding an indescribable sense of nobility.
“A Heaven-tier supreme cultivation technique, truly extraordinary!”
Xiao Minghuang took a deep breath.
Cultivation techniques, martial arts, elixirs, and spiritual roots are all categorized into four tiers: Yellow, Mystic, Earth, and Heaven. Each tier is further divided into four grades: Low, Mid, High, and Supreme.
Within the Southern Territory of the Eastern Pole, Mystic-tier techniques are considered rare.
Earth-tier techniques are once-in-a-century occurrences, and when they appear, even the major sects would covet them.
As for Heaven-tier techniques, they are unheard of.
The power of these three tiers of techniques is incomparable.
Within the same major realm, a martial artist cultivating a Mystic-tier technique would almost certainly be unable to defeat one cultivating an Earth-tier technique.
As for the capabilities of Heaven-tier techniques, since no one has ever seen a martial artist cultivating a Heaven-tier technique in battle, their true power remains unknown.
“The 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》… this name sounds familiar, as if I’ve heard it somewhere before.”
Xiao Minghuang’s delicate brows furrowed slightly as she pondered. After a moment, she recalled a legend she had heard in her childhood.
In an ancient era so distant that its exact time is unknown, the Great Xia was once a powerful and immortal dynasty.
During that era, a certain exceptionally talented ancestor of the Great Xia created a cultivation technique. With this technique, he roamed the Eastern Pole, rarely encountering any rivals.
The technique created by this ancestor was the 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》!
Legend has it that the current national classic of the Great Xia, the 《Dragon Origin Scripture》, was modeled after the 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》.
However, this is just a legend and may not be entirely accurate.
Based on her previous experiences with the system’s returned items, Xiao Minghuang could roughly deduce that the items compensated by the system were somehow related to the items she had given away.
For example, when she gave away a Mending Pill, she was compensated with a Creation Heaven-Mending Pill, which had a similar effect but was of a higher grade.
“Now, I must focus on improving my strength as quickly as possible. The reason the Emperor Xia tolerated my crippling of the Seventh Prince is because I demonstrated extraordinary talent. If my cultivation progress falters, Emperor Xia might abandon me and instead support the Second Prince or the Sixth Prince.”
Steadying her mind, Xiao Minghuang opened the 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》 and began to read it carefully.
The Great Dao is simple, and the Great Sound is silent.
This Heaven-tier technique was not voluminous, consisting of only a dozen or so pages. Yet, it contained the complete cultivation path from the Body Tempering Realm all the way to the Divine Transformation Realm.
As for the higher realms beyond, such as the Life and Death Realm, even the ancestor who created this classic had not reached them.
In the Southern Territory of the Eastern Pole, the highest known cultivation level is that of the Spirit Sword Sect’s leader, who is only at the Nascent Soul Realm.
If Xiao Minghuang could cultivate this 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》 to its utmost, she would be unrivaled within the Southern Territory.
Thinking of this, she hesitated no longer. Pressing the golden tome to her forehead, the contents of the scripture flowed into her mind.
Perhaps it was because the creator of this technique was an ancestor connected to her by blood, or perhaps it was because her comprehension had been greatly enhanced after taking the Creation Heaven-Mending Pill. Regardless, she encountered no bottlenecks in her cultivation. No matter how ancient or profound the text, she understood it at a glance.
In just a short quarter of an hour, Xiao Minghuang had already fully mastered the body tempering section of the 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》.
Besides learning the specific method of drawing qi into her body, she also discovered an ancient secret that was unknown to others!
The Body Tempering Realm is the first stage on the path of cultivation and the foundation of the cultivation journey.
This realm requires mobilizing the qi and blood throughout the body, drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, refining the bones and meridians, and nourishing the physical body.
In simple terms, it means giving life to flesh and blood, seizing the creation of heaven and earth, and adding it to oneself, thereby achieving the purpose of cultivation.
If one cultivates to the peak of the ninth level of the Body Tempering Realm, the ultimate strength can reach one hundred thousand jin.
Of course, this is just a theoretical value. In reality, even if one doesn’t reach this level, they can still continue to cultivate and break through to the Qi Refining Realm, though their foundation won’t be as solid as others.
However, in practice, almost no one can train their strength to such an extent. Generally, reaching forty to fifty thousand jin is enough to prepare for breaking through to the Qi Refining Realm.
Moreover, even if one cultivates to the extreme, the strength only reaches ninety-seven thousand two hundred jin.
This is because the cultivation methods for the last three minor realms of the Body Tempering Realm have been lost since ancient times.
The complete Body Tempering Realm actually has twelve levels!
Each minor realm can increase strength by up to ten thousand eight hundred jin. At the twelfth level of the Body Tempering Realm, the strength can reach one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred jin!
None of the current cultivation methods have any record of this.
Xiao Minghuang’s 《Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture》 was derived from ancient texts of the primordial era, so it contains the complete cultivation method.
“I have taken the Creation Heaven Mending Pill, and my foundation is incomparably solid. I already have ninety-seven thousand two hundred jin of strength. If I cultivate the Body Tempering Realm to the twelfth level and achieve the ultimate state of body tempering, wouldn’t I always be three minor realms ahead of my opponents?”
Xiao Minghuang murmured to herself. These additional three minor realms would provide her with an even more solid foundation, allowing her to challenge opponents of higher levels.
Even if she encountered prodigies from major forces, she would have nothing to fear!
Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Ruu
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