Ji Xia emerged from the Decaying God Tree, a silver-white mirror now in his hand. The mirror was about half the size of his palm, with the edges made of silver spirit gold, engraved with a mythical beast sleeping along the top edge.
At the sight of the beast, Ji Xia immediately recognized it. It was a white creature, with a form similar to the Qilin, two horns, a goat's beard, and three eyes—this was Bai Ze, the divine beast recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
According to legend, Bai Ze possessed the ability to foresee the future, understand the feelings of all beings, and comprehend the state of all things in the world. It was a highly esteemed and powerful divine beast, making it an apt engraving on this Xuanjian (Mystical Mirror).
"Bai Ze..." Ji Xia mused, "I wonder how strong this ancient beast is. Maybe, when I grow stronger and gather more spirit seeds, I will be able to summon Bai Ze to help me avoid danger and turn misfortune into fortune."
He thought for a moment before shaking his head, reminding himself inwardly: "I must not get ahead of myself. I can't rely too much on the God Tree. True strength comes from within."
He then took out two treasures from his pouch. One was a jade pendant created from the true spirits of the martyrs of Tai Cang, and the other was a single-bladed pair of scissors, which he had found in the Kiuquan King's treasury, engraved with the words Dragon Whisker Scissors.
With his limited ability in the Great Sun Spirit Eyes, Ji Xia had not yet been able to discern the true nature of these treasures. Now, with the Xuanjian, his first task was to uncover the true functions of the jade pendant and the scissors.
Holding the Xuanjian, Ji Xia aimed the mirror's surface at the jade pendant. Immediately, the sleeping Bai Ze figure on the mirror surface opened its eyes, and an unusual glow emanated from the silver-white mirror. The glow transformed into threads that slowly flowed into the mirror, which then projected a beam of white light onto the jade pendant.
In an instant, a series of images appeared on the mirror's surface.
The first scene revealed a vast land, where thousands of human laborers were working. They were carrying massive stones, which bruised and cut their flesh, yet they continued their labor, grimacing through the pain. Some had muscular bodies covered in scars, but they pressed on, undeterred.
The scene shifted, and countless enemies with dog-like heads and monkey-like faces swarmed toward them. Human warriors stood firm, their faces filled with determination, their feet surrounded by fallen bodies—victims of their struggle, yet they did not yield.
The next scene showed soldiers, their lips cracked, struggling to continue their training. They looked up to see a star ablaze with fierce flames descending from the sky. The earth split open, and life vanished in an instant.
...
The images continued to shift, showing memories of past suffering and struggle, projected from the Xuanjian, like a giant screen displaying scenes of great hardship and survival.
After a long while, the projections ceased. Ji Xia took a deep breath, now gaining a much clearer understanding of the catastrophes that Tai Cang had endured.
Before he could reflect further, a sudden white light shot out of the mirror and touched Ji Xia's body, delivering a piece of information into his mind.
Tai Cang's Jade Token
With this jade pendant, one receives the recognition of the spirits of fallen heroes from a nation and the acknowledgment of the domain spirit, granting the authority to enshrine local deities.
Number of deities that can be enshrined: 1Enshrinement Requirements: A cultivator at or above the Spirit Master realm, a demon, or a soul; one golden statue.Once enshrined, the deity cannot easily leave its domain of authority. If it does, its strength will dramatically decrease and the deity's position will be weakened.
"Enshrine a deity?" Ji Xia muttered in surprise. "This Tai Cang Jade Token has such an extraordinary effect!"
He was taken aback. "Recognition from the domain spirit? What exactly is a domain spirit?"
As the ruler of Tai Cang, Ji Xia had little knowledge of the vast and complex pantheon of divine beings in the endless wilderness. He knew that powerful gods, those ancient beings who predated the birth of history, were referred to as "divine spirits." These were beings of unimaginable power, like the great wind god worshipped by Tai Cang, the landfather who wielded immense authority, and the evil god Modo adored by the Kiuquan people.
From the few records Ji Xia had seen, he understood that these gods were awe-inspiring in their power. For instance, the great wind god was said to have two vast continents under his feet, each inhabited by countless lifeforms. His arms were each coiled with a celestial dragon, an immense force.
A "deity," however, was different. These were beings who held dominion over a region and were formally recognized and enshrined by those in power, provided they met certain conditions. According to the records Ji Xia had seen, the Dafu Kingdom had three such deities: one river god and two mountain gods. The Fuchong River, notorious for its violent tides, had been pacified by a water god enshrined by the kingdom.
Ji Xia, intrigued, thought, "Those nations with countless gods are so far from us. I don't need to think about them for now. In the surrounding areas, there are only a handful of deities. Even Dafu only has three."
His excitement grew, as the prospect of enshrining a deity seemed within reach. Holding the jade pendant in his hand, he examined it closely. Then his expression froze. "The enshrinement requires a cultivator at or above the Spirit Master realm?"
He gritted his teeth. "I got too carried away, I didn't notice the requirement for a Spirit Master. Where am I going to find one of those?"
The Spirit Master realm was no small feat. While in a powerful kingdom like Dafu, there were several Spirit Masters, Tai Cang had none. The three strongest individuals in Tai Cang were himself, Po Xian, and Ji Qianqing. He was strong in battle, but he had not yet reached the level of spiritual abilities. Po Xian and Ji Qianqing had just ascended to the realm of divine abilities, far from the Spirit Master level.
Ji Xia even wondered if, given Tai Cang's martial foundation, Po Xian and Ji Qianqing would be able to breakthrough to the Spirit Master realm even if they lived to old age.
"The Divine Ability realm cultivates the spiritual wheel, needing the cultivator to engrave martial techniques onto the wheel. The more powerful the techniques, the stronger the wheel. Some powerful cultivators even imprint six or seven divine seals. But Tai Cang's foundation is too weak, with too few divine techniques at the Divine Ability level."
Ji Xia realized the difficulty and couldn't help but feel a sense of discouragement. But then he remembered the Decaying God Tree.
"Right! I have the Decaying God Tree!"
"While strengthening a nation's foundation is tough, it's not impossible. There will come a day when I can enshrine a deity!"
He reassured himself, placing the Tai Cang Jade Token carefully back into his pouch. Then he took out the single-bladed scissors, once more presenting it to the Xuanjian. The figure of Bai Ze opened its eyes once again.
This time, the mirror surface was obscured by thick mist, and no images appeared. Instead, an influx of information surged into Ji Xia's mind.
He closed his eyes to process this new knowledge and then opened them again, staring at the scissors in front of him.
A look of realization crossed his face: "So, it needs to be nourished by essence blood."