Even though Xuan Ji already had the information stored in his mind, he knew he needed to review and internalize it to truly make it his own. It was like gathering scattered puzzle pieces and putting them together to form a complete picture of knowledge. He closed his eyes to concentrate on the knowledge he got.
The Jade slip had three sections: Technique, Skills, and Information. Xuan Ji decided to start with the information section to understand his situation better.
The ring belonged to a cultivator named Li Jiang, who was at the gold core realm. After his sect was destroyed by another sect, he became a rogue cultivator. While being chased by his enemies, he accidentally discovered this cave and found the entrance to this hidden space.
Surprisingly, Li Jiang himself had no knowledge about the true owner of this place. This suggested that the information section was likely written by Li Jiang.
As Xuan Ji read more, he learned that he was in a unique space, similar to a miniature world. Powerful cultivators created such spaces as a place for rest or cultivation.
Li Jiang didn't create this space, but when he reached the peak of the nascent soul realm and failed to make a breakthrough, he had very little time left to live. So, he created the handprint lock on the gate to find an inheritor.
To Xuan Ji's relief, he discovered the way to exit this miniature world right after. It turned out that he simply needed to retrace his path and find the gate. Opening the gate was as easy as pushing a nearby button.
"That's a relief," Xuan Ji exclaimed. "I won't be stuck here for the rest of my life. And what's even better is that I only need to push a button to open the gate, unlike when entering one had to place a hand. Otherwise, I might have been trapped here forever. It seems Li Jiang believed that only the true successor could enter, and someone like me was unlikely, so he didn't bother with an additional lock." Xuan Ji thought as he continued reading.
Furthermore, the jade slip he found inside the wooden cottage didn't belong to Li Jiang either. Li Jiang also discovered the jade slip in the wooden cottage, just like Xuan Ji did.
"So, the jade slip doesn't belong to him either," Xuan Ji said keeping his eyes closed.
With no more information to discover, Xuan Ji eagerly moved on to the technique section without wasting any time. There, he stumbled upon on the only cultivation technique known as the Ancient Emperor Arcana.
This technique started from the Body Tempering Realm and guided cultivators to reach the pinnacle of the Soul Formation Realm, surpassing the nascent soul realm. In Xuan Ji's world, nascent soul cultivators were already rare and powerful, and Soul Formation cultivators could be counted on one hand. One could easily imagine the immense value of this technique.
The Ancient Emperor Arcana was more than just a technique. It enabled cultivators to find inner peace and tranquility, enhancing their focus and clarity of mind. This allowed them to control and cultivate Qi more efficiently, thus improving their cultivation speed. Moreover, the technique had the remarkable ability to enhance natural talents with each breakthrough.
Xuan Ji was astonished by this revelation. He knew that extremely rare herbs could alter one's talent, but he had never heard of a technique that could enhance talent. Even the cultivation technique he had learned from Frostbite's sect could only increase speed, not talent.
The existence of such a remarkable technique was truly astonishing. If news of it were to spread, the consequences could be disastrous, particularly when considering its potential to aid in reaching soul formation and its talent-enhancing properties.
"If I can cultivate this technique in my world, I am sure I will reach the pinnacle of cultivation in my world," Xuan Ji thought, a hopeful smile on his face. "I really hope to obtain it as a reward."
With these thoughts in mind, Xuan Ji turned his attention to the skills section. There, he discovered a variety of impressive skills. One of them was the Void-Step Footwork, a footwork skill that allowed cultivators to move like specters, effortlessly traversing short distances without leaving a trace. It was as if they could tear through the fabric of the void itself to travel.
He also found the Soaring Phoenix Sword Art, an elegant sword skill that mirrored the grace and agility of a soaring phoenix. Practitioners would wield their swords with swift and precise movements, capable of both defense and offense.
Another intriguing skill was the Stellar Palm Skill, a fundamental palm skill that enabled cultivators to channel Qi into their palms. This allowed them to unleash powerful palm strikes capable of crushing mountains and opponents.
Xuan Ji opened his eyes and put the jade slip in his space bag and started searching the house to find more things, but his efforts proved fruitless. He looked everywhere, even venturing to the boundaries of the land, but darkness was all he found.
He didn't dare to venture further into the darkness, not even considering it, especially since even Li Jiang himself hadn't dared to do so.
"The Qi here is dense. Instead of going back, I'll continue cultivating here. I can't even escape the cave, so I might as well stay," Xuan Ji thought as he returned to the cottage.
[Age 15: You decided to cultivate here until you reach the Body Tempering realm 5, which will allow you to escape the cave. While cultivating one day, you gained a new talent.]
"Ding! New Talent unlocked!"
"You've been rewarded with talent "Pigeon Whistling". It's the ability to communicate with pigeons through whistling."
"What? What kind of talent is this?" Xuan Ji exclaimed in frustration.
Xuan Ji had hoped for a talent that would speed up his cultivation, but instead, he received this seemingly useless talent.
Before he could dwell on his frustration, a sudden surge of electricity jolted through him and disappeared in an instant. He felt something new in his mind—the ability to talk to pigeons. Since there were no nearby pigeons, he chose not to test it out, despite feeling that this talent was utterly useless.