Chapter 1769: The Ruthless Person Has Woken Up

"No attacks... Could it be that the sequence of this cultivation technique has also reached the level of the Heavenly Dao? Who could possibly cultivate something like this?"

Soon, Zhang Xuan circled around several stones and arrived at the central stone platform, feeling astonished. He was using the Heavenly Dao sequence, perfectly, and this stone forest was arranged in the exact same manner! Doesn't this suggest that the cultivation technique recorded here has already reached the Heavenly Dao level?

"It seems Master Kong, like me, also possesses this!" Zhang Xuan mused to himself.

This cultivation method was most likely left by Master Kong. Zhang Xuan knew the characteristics of Heavenly Dao cultivation methods very well: without possessing Heavenly Dao true qi, outsiders simply couldn't cultivate them. Otherwise, he would have long ago taught it to his students to help them progress quickly. Ordinary people couldn't cultivate it, yet Master Kong possessed this technique. This indicated that he must have possessed Heavenly Dao true qi himself, allowing him to cultivate Heavenly Dao cultivation methods. With that in mind, the rest was self-evident.

After pondering for a while, realizing he needed to meet Master Kong again to confirm his suspicions, Zhang Xuan stopped deliberating. He focused his mind, calmed his breath, and slowly reached out towards the Saint Relic Stone on the stone platform.

As his palm approached, the Saint Relic Stone shone with dazzling light. Instantly, his soul felt as if it had fallen into lava, a scorching sensation flowing through his entire body.

"Hmph!"

His Witch Soul had survived the Supreme Heavenly Flame's burning unscathed, so this slight oppressive feeling was nothing. He forcibly suppressed it, grabbed it in his palm, and simultaneously bit his fingertip, letting a drop of blood touch it. Before long, the Saint Relic Stone stopped resisting and successfully acknowledged him as its master.

Once the stone acknowledged him as master, the pressure immediately vanished, replaced by a warm sensation. Figures swam on the Saint Relic Stone, and streams of pure soul power flowed into him, slowly strengthening his soul.

Knowing this was an opportunity for transformation, Zhang Xuan immediately sat cross-legged. His Witch Soul left his body and touched the stone before him.

Rumble!

Soul power poured into his Witch Soul, and the strength of his soul body rapidly increased. In an instant, it broke through the shackles of the Golden Body Realm's peak, surging towards a higher level.

An hour later.

He had already reached the third level of Great Sage, the Flash of Insight, achieving Grand Perfection. Upon reaching this realm, his progress slowed. Looking down, he saw the figures swimming on the Saint Relic Stone had stopped, seemingly tired as well.

"It seems this item also requires energy..."

He smiled faintly. This Saint Relic Stone could enhance one's soul realm, but similar to spirit stones, it only contained a limited amount of soul power and couldn't facilitate continuous advancement. However, after refining this item, he also learned that it could be reused after a period of rest, unlike single-use spirit stones. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been worth Master Kong dedicating an entire hall to it and expending so much effort on this assessment.

"What will happen when my soul breaks through to the Flash of Insight realm?"

The Flash of Insight realm allows one to sense heavenly secrets, enabling cultivators to instinctively react to avoid harm and seek fortune. When his true qi cultivation reached this realm, he was prone to backlash. Would the same problem arise now that his Witch Soul had reached it?

With this thought, his Witch Soul entered his physical body, sensing the will of the heavens.

Crack! Crack!

A bolt of lightning struck, causing him to twitch involuntarily.

"As expected..."

His mouth twitched, and Zhang Xuan's face darkened. He had thought that reaching Grand Perfection would prevent this from happening, but unexpectedly, nothing had changed at all. It seemed that for him, even his Witch Soul couldn't peek into heavenly secrets; otherwise, it would be no different from stealing from himself. The Flash of Insight's most powerful ability was to predict danger in advance. If he couldn't use this ability, his strength would definitely be greatly reduced. However, there was nothing he could do, so he simply regarded it as another increase in power. Previously, when fighting against a peak Immortal Realm expert, he could barely win using the Dragonbone Divine Spear, and to kill them, he would need to ambush or use other means. But now, with his Witch Soul advanced, his strength was enough to simply crush such opponents.

Knowing he couldn't advance further in a short time, Zhang Xuan flipped his palm, just about to put the Saint Relic Stone into his storage ring, when he heard an urgent voice: "Master, could you lend me this Saint Relic Stone first?"

"Fierce Guy? You're awake..."

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up. It was none other than Fierce Guy, who had fallen into a deep sleep after devouring the sternum. He hadn't expected him to wake up at this moment.

"The Saint Relic Stone's soul power dissipated, which is why I woke up," Fierce Guy said. "Master, could you lend me this item first? My soul is currently weak, and this can help me recover quickly!"

"The power within this Saint Relic Stone has already been absorbed by me," Zhang Xuan said, frowning. He had just advanced and completely absorbed the power contained within it. What good would it do to give it to the other party now? It would be like a spirit stone without spiritual energy, useless even if held in hand.

"The Saint Relic Stone, relying solely on natural absorption to store enough spiritual energy, wouldn't just take an unknown amount of time, it wouldn't be enough to be called a treasure," Fierce Guy said. "Master, please take me out first, then give me this item!"

"Alright!" Zhang Xuan nodded, flipped his wrist, and the Heavenly Dao Record appeared, with the Saint Relic Stone landing on it.

Whoosh!

The book opened, and Fierce Guy revealed half of his body. With a gentle flick of his finger, the Saint Relic Stone immediately flew out, landing in front of the several recently killed Otherworldly Demonic Tribe members, spinning rapidly. A moment later, the figures on its surface began to swim again, once more emitting a dazzling light.

"This is... absorbing other people's souls?"

Zhang Xuan's pupils contracted. With his Eye of Insight, he could clearly see that the Saint Relic Stone had just absorbed the souls of the recently deceased Otherworldly Demonic Tribe members, purifying them and transforming them into pure energy.

"Yes, the Saint Relic Stone can purify souls and devour soul essence. For soul cultivators, it's even more important than ancient saint treasures. Back then, the Soul Imprint of the Witch Soul Master Guild was refined from this very item!"

"The Soul Imprint was refined from this?"

Zhang Xuan was momentarily stunned, then enlightened. No wonder he felt a sense of familiarity the first time he saw the Saint Relic Stone. So that was why! He knew that the Soul Imprint was also in his possession, kept in his storage ring, though he had simply never used it.

"To be able to absorb souls and transform them into pure soul power... this kind of power is indeed terrifying!" Zhang Xuan finally understood. No wonder it could be compared to Bodhi Fruits and Ancient Saint Qi, and was placed in a separate hall; its power was indeed extraordinary.

"You can have it for now!"

While this ability sounded sinister, its true nature depended on the user. In the hands of a good person, even the most malevolent item could be used for good. Conversely, in the hands of an evil person, even the best item would become a deadly weapon. Therefore, the assessment for this Saint Relic Stone was rather demanding; one could say that if you couldn't cultivate the Heavenly Dao cultivation method, you couldn't even enter. So that was it!

In the depths of his being, Zhang Xuan had a feeling that Master Kong seemed to know of his existence, and this item was clearly left for him. Anyone else, even if they desired it, wouldn't be able to obtain it.

"Thank you, Master!"

Fierce Guy hurriedly absorbed the soul power from the Saint Relic Stone, consolidating his own soul power.