Chapter 1120: Li Family Background

Chapter 1125: The Li Family's Foundation

The giant flower, invisible to others, in the sky above the Western Regions, suddenly trembled and became somewhat blurry.

Especially among its twelve beautiful petals, two had completely vanished, and of the remaining ten, another two were blurring!

The two vanished petals had, in fact, appeared on Li Mengtu's forehead.

As the disciple of the Poison Monarch, and with this inheritance specifically tailored for him, Li Mengtu's preparations had naturally been exceptionally thorough.

He knew what this inheritance was before anyone else. He had even seen several similar totems long ago and had contemplated each one.

It could be said that all his preliminary preparations were complete. He had put considerable effort into understanding poison, in particular.

All this accumulated knowledge was now unleashed, giving him a significant advantage in grasping the inheritance.

Meanwhile, Xu Qing had wasted some time with trial and error and was already falling behind.

Although he eventually found the correct method and his perception speed was astonishing, he was still relatively too slow.

This kind of perception required both preliminary understanding and clear comprehension. It wasn't just a simple imprint; one needed to understand and grasp its essence to truly inherit it.

Li Mengtu had completed this beforehand, while Xu Qing was just beginning to explore.

Thus, in the early stages of this perception, there was a significant gap between him and Li Mengtu.

Li Mengtu quickly perceived this from the rate at which petals were vanishing from the flower in the sky.

He felt a sense of relief.

"Though I don't know why, a variable has appeared, granting this person the same qualification to perceive the inheritance as me."

"But... a weak person remains weak."

"This inheritance was specifically tailored for me by my master. Without prior preparation, it's inherently difficult for an outsider to perceive it, and compared to me, the difference is vast."

Li Mengtu's gaze was cold; the third petal on his forehead was rapidly forming.

At the same time, on the main path cliff, Xu Qing's expression remained calm.

The petals on his forehead had only gathered about twenty percent, still a long way from fully forming a single petal.

Even though he perceived the blurring of the inheritance flower in the sky, sensed the increasingly dense threads spreading eastward from within it, and noticed the decreasing number of petals, he wasn't anxious.

He knew well that he wasn't the only one in this world with astonishing comprehension, so it was normal for someone to surpass him in that regard.

Furthermore, this inheritance perception was inherently a competition.

If he could win, that was good; if not, there was no need to get angry.

"As long as my method is correct, that's enough."

"This inheritance from the sky is different from the peculiar places I've encountered before. What I need to do is transfer it into my sea of consciousness."

"Just as I did when facing Ghost Emperor Mountain."

With a clear mind, Xu Qing gazed intently at the sky, using it as a visualization diagram. He replicated it over and over in his mind, and through this process, sought to understand the essence of the inheritance.

Based on his past experience, the more he understood, the smoother the perception process would be.

But soon, as he explored its essence, Xu Qing's eyes narrowed, and his mind was stirred.

"This inheritance is..."

Xu Qing pondered, somewhat uncertain. He decided to pause the transfer and focused instead on the portion he had already perceived. After careful analysis, his expression gradually became strange.

"Poison?"

Xu Qing became thoughtful.

He was skilled in the ways of poison.

After all, the Poison Ban on him had long since transformed into divine authority.

Although the Poison Ban was now in his divine body rather than his immortal body, poison was fundamentally the way of flora.

This path was scholarship, knowledge, and it had been firmly imprinted in Xu Qing's mind, independent of his physical body.

"This is a part of the way of flora..."

Xu Qing's thoughts instantly broadened. His past memories of flora surfaced, and as he observed the inheritance flower again, he gradually discerned more details.

"This flower has narrow, serrated leaves rooted in nothingness, consistent with perennial herbaceous plants, similar to the mountain mandrake, which possesses illusions."

"It has twelve petals, each bearing a woman's face with varying expressions, containing the power of desire, similar to the Seven Emotions Grass."

"Its breath contains poison, its tentacles exude venom, its leaves bear poisonous patterns, and its roots and stems are no different..."

"This is a poisonous plant..."

"From top to bottom, it contains a hundred poisons. While this might not seem like many, when these hundred poisons are combined throughout the plant, they can generate countless variations, exhibiting astonishing transformations. Moreover, the combined poison of the entire plant appears even more peculiar."

"An outsider might not recognize this as a poisonous plant, but based on my mastery of the way of flora, it's clear this plant was artificially cultivated."

"It was cultivated from at least tens of millions of types of flora, by extracting their various medicinal properties... and special substances were added to elevate its status to an incredibly high level!"

"Such an undertaking is truly astonishing!"

Xu Qing's heart raced, and his expression was moved.

The more he understood, the more astonished he became.

"To be able to cultivate such a poisonous plant, the opponent's mastery of the way of flora has reached an inconceivable level."

Xu Qing pondered, his interest surging to its peak at this moment.

"Simply perceiving it isn't very effective, and attempting to understand it still has shortcomings. The best method... is to analyze its poison!"

"And poison..."

A profound light flickered in Xu Qing's eyes.

Countless pieces of botanical knowledge instantly surfaced in his mind.

They corresponded one by one, arranged themselves, and gradually merged.

Becoming his tools.

He simulated similar poisons, then summed up their toxicity, and while understanding them in his heart, he compared them to the flower in the sky.

In this way, he transferred and imprinted the flower within his sea of consciousness.

And so, time passed.

In the Li family's forbidden area, on the high tower, Li Mengtu, fully immersed in perceiving the inheritance, finally had a third petal form on his forehead.

This process was a little slower than before.

Because the further he progressed, the higher the difficulty became. Although he had thorough preparations and remarkable comprehension, he couldn't achieve it all at once.

"My master once said that perceiving this inheritance would take about ten days."

"Looking at it now, it seems true."

Li Mengtu took a deep breath, ready to continue.

But just then, the inheritance flower in the sky, visible to him, suddenly trembled and blurred a little more.

Of the nine petals that remained, one suddenly vanished!

"Hmm?"

Li Mengtu's pupils contracted, and a sharp glint instantly surged in his eyes. He gazed towards the main path cliff, his expression rapidly darkening.

On the main path cliff, Xu Qing's first petal had now appeared on his forehead.

"The method is correct!"

Sensing the petal on his forehead, Xu Qing felt extremely pleased, a feeling of happiness he hadn't experienced in a long time.

On one hand, it was the acquisition of the inheritance; on the other, he realized that his botanical knowledge was also surging during this process.

Through the celestial flower, he gained a deeper understanding of flora.

He also finally discerned the partial source of that trace of aura within the inheritance, which he felt surpassed the authority of Dao marks.

"Because this poisonous plant was artificially created, there was no flora like it before, making it unprecedented. Thus, the moment it was born, it was like an act of creation!"

"Then, it was imbued with power, ensuring no second plant like it could ever appear in this world. Even its creator could not replicate it... making it truly unique and ultimate."

"This unprecedented and ultimate nature makes this plant unique in the world. Coupled with its astonishing inherent status..."

"Does it, through its unique nature, draw down mystery, thus forming that trace of power that transcends the authority of Dao marks?"

Xu Qing's mind buzzed.

His eyes shone brightly as he stared at the flower in the sky, muttering a single word.

"The Principle?"

The moment this word left his mouth, Xu Qing's mind suddenly cleared up.

After that, his progress soared!

An incense stick's time later, the second petal appeared on his forehead.

Half an hour later, the third petal suddenly formed!

Such a rapid process was astounding.

He had clearly been behind at first, but now... he was quickly catching up to Li Mengtu.

This scene went unnoticed by all other token holders in the Western Regions, apart from the two participants themselves. Otherwise, a storm of disbelief would surely have erupted.

Xu Qing's imprinting was simply too fast.

Li Mengtu's mind reeled.

At this moment, only three petals had formed on his forehead, and the fourth was only about forty percent complete.

"Who is this person?!"

"He was slow before, but then suddenly, he became this fast!"

Li Mengtu's mind thrummed, and his breathing quickened. The feeling of watching his own opportunity being taken by someone else intensified his killing intent and sparked an uncontrollable surge of anxiety.

"This cannot continue!"

Resolve shone in Li Mengtu's eyes.

He still had a trump card he hadn't used. This trump card was originally intended for a final push after he had acquired eight petals.

But now...

Li Mengtu immediately raised both hands, formed a hand seal, and pressed outwards.

Instantly, the high tower he was on violently trembled, and a red light flashed, shooting straight into the sky.

Forming a ring of light that spread outwards with a rumbling sound, causing one high tower after another within the Li family's forbidden area to erupt, sending red lights surging towards the sky.

There were nine thousand high towers here, each acting as an amplification, enhancing Li Mengtu's comprehension.

With all of them activated, the fourth petal on his forehead was about to form instantly.

Even with such enhanced perception speed, Li Mengtu still felt insecure. As there were only twelve petals, he couldn't accept the possibility of outsiders perceiving more if he delayed.

So, gritting his teeth, Li Mengtu raised his right hand and took out an item.

It was a scroll!

Exuding an ancient aura, the moment it appeared, the world changed color, and winds and clouds surged.

This item was his Li family's most treasured inheritance, and it was unique!

It was brought from their homeland by their ancestor, who left it to his descendants after his passing, along with a message.

"This painting can be used three times. Below the Quasi-Immortal realm, opening a single line of the painting will seal them. If half the painting is unrolled, Quasi-Immortals will sink into oblivion. If the entire painting is unrolled, it can seal an Immortal!"

Countless years passed, and for unknown reasons, this painting was strangely never stolen or demanded by others, remaining with the Li family all this time.

Generations of Li family descendants tried to activate this scroll, hoping to open it, but all attempts failed.

Only Li Mengtu... his bloodline seemed to have reverted to that of an ancestor.

He could use this scroll, and with full effort, he could open it slightly.

This was his true foundation for becoming a Star.