Chapter 350: Astonishing Treasure

Lu Shiyi's gaze flickered to his abdomen again, and he chuckled inwardly. "My master's most valuable treasure is the Sky Thunder Stone hidden in his dantian. He found it when he was young. It can store the power of heaven and earth's lightning and release it when needed. This Sky Thunder Stone played a crucial role in him becoming the Grand Elder of the True Thunder Sect. Now, it's mine!"

Suddenly, Lu Shiyi froze. Jiang Fan, who had been about to leave, unexpectedly returned to Jin Yunlie's corpse. Lu Shiyi's heart skipped a beat. "What is he doing?" he wondered. "Could he have discovered the Sky Thunder Stone? No, no, that's impossible. Besides Master, I'm the only one in this world who knows where it is. I didn't say anything, so how could he know?"

To his shock, Jiang Fan's gaze fixed on Jin Yunlie's abdomen. With a swipe of his sword, he cut it open! A spherical bead, imbued with arcs of lightning, flickered into view within the dantian. "What is this?" Jiang Fan asked, pointing to the bead with a half-smile.

Lu Shiyi's heart leaped into his throat, but he forced himself to appear calm. "It's... it's a thunder core from a True Thunder Sect martial artist."

Jiang Fan stroked his chin and asked, "Is it valuable?"

Lu Shiyi's heart pounded wildly, but he pretended to be indifferent. "Every disciple in the True Thunder Sect has one. If you think it's valuable, go ahead and take it."

He thought that by saying this, no one else would be interested. Yet, Jiang Fan replied, "Alright, I'll take your word for it." With a flick of his long sword, he scooped out the Sky Thunder Stone and placed it into a jade box.

Lu Shiyi's eyes widened in alarm. "Don't listen to me!" he thought frantically. "Why aren't you following the usual script?! You scoundrel!"

He quickly spoke up. "Senior Brother, this thunder core is useless to outsiders. But for disciples of my True Thunder Sect, it has some minor use. Why don't you sell it to me?" A flicker of eager anticipation shone in his eyes.

To his surprise, Jiang Fan tucked the jade box into his robe and flatly refused, "No, I'll keep it for myself." With that, he walked away, leaving Lu Shiyi dumbfounded.

It was a long while before he snapped back to reality. He stamped his foot and cursed furiously, "Now you're not listening to me?! That was my master's most precious treasure! You wretched thief!"

Jiang Fan, now in the distance, burst into laughter. He had to admit, the Ancient Heart-Illuminating Mirror was truly effective! If not for it, he would have completely missed the Sky Thunder Stone.

He had been curious about the source of Jin Yunlie's thunderous power. The True Thunder Sect's cultivation methods typically involved borrowing lightning, either by drawing on the power of heaven and earth during thunderstorms or by activating thunder-attributed magical artifacts and talismans. Yet, Jin Yunlie could conjure astonishing, arm-thick bolts of lightning with a mere flick of his sleeve. This had puzzled Jiang Fan for a while. Now, he finally understood that it was due to an item called the Sky Thunder Stone.

"Kid, you've really stumbled upon a great fortune," the Black Mirror Evil Spirit said, showing a mix of envy and apprehension. "A Sky Thunder Stone is a rare wonder of heaven and earth, formed only after enduring countless heavenly lightning strikes. There was once a Nascent Soul martial artist of the thunder element who spent his entire life searching and only found one, and it wasn't as large as the one in your hand."

Jiang Fan's eyes widened in surprise. "Are Sky Thunder Stones that rare?"

The Black Mirror Evil Spirit replied, "Of course. Anything that can attract heavenly lightning strikes is inherently extraordinary. And to attract thousands of lightning strikes? Before it became a Sky Thunder Stone, it must have been a treasure of heaven and earth, something that even the Heavenly Dao found formidable. It's a pity it wasn't discovered earlier, before it was battered into a Sky Thunder Stone." It sighed regretfully.

Jiang Fan was deeply moved. He recalled the mysterious seed within him, which had also continuously attracted heavenly lightning. Was this Sky Thunder Stone once such a miraculous item as well? Unfortunately, it had been bombarded by countless heavenly lightning strikes, leaving it completely transformed into a mere stone. He wondered if any mysteries still lingered within it. Jiang Fan wanted to take it out and study it thoroughly.

Suddenly, the Black Mirror Evil Spirit asked with a hint of deeper meaning, "But how did you know that this person's dantian contained a Sky Thunder Stone?" It couldn't comprehend why Jiang Fan, who had been about to leave, suddenly changed his mind and, with a single sword stroke, cut open the dantian to find the deeply hidden Sky Thunder Stone.

Jiang Fan's eyes flickered, and he replied in a half-truthful tone, "Naturally, I used the Black Mirror's mind-probing ability. How else would I have found it?"

The Black Mirror trembled. It was clear the Evil Spirit's emotions had become tense. While it had ostensibly passed on the control methods to Jiang Fan, in reality, it certainly didn't want anyone other than itself to be able to control the mirror. But soon, it calmed down. It had told Jiang Fan that it would take half a year to comprehend the control method. What it hadn't told him was that half a year was relative to an old monster at the Nascent Soul level like itself. For someone at Jiang Fan's mere Foundation Establishment realm, comprehending the control method within three to five years was utterly impossible.

It let out a dry laugh. "You're quite humorous, kid. I see, you must cultivate a lightning-elemental technique, which gives you a strong sensitivity to Sky Thunder Stones, right?"

Jiang Fan shrugged. If the Evil Spirit believed that, then all the better.

Seeing Jiang Fan remain silent, the Evil Spirit became even more convinced and completely relaxed. It chuckled, "So, where are you heading now? How about we go look for that Demon Emperor's corpse?" It was eager to find a body for itself and then get away from Jiang Fan.

"I was planning to head north to the Giant Sect, but now, I want to return to the Azure Cloud Sect first," Jiang Fan said, furrowing his brow slightly. From Lu Shiyi's thoughts, he had unexpectedly caught a fleeting glimpse of Feng Guzen's request for people to spread a message. Although it was just a fleeting thought, it was undeniable that the Azure Cloud Sect was summoning him back. "That's strange, why would the sect suddenly call me back?" He scratched his head, completely bewildered.

Realizing it was an urgent summons, he dared not delay. He immediately headed south. Ten days later, Jiang Fan arrived at the foot of Azure Cloud Sect mountain, travel-worn, on a carriage.

Without any missions, his journey was smooth and relaxed. He had ample time to consolidate his Foundation Establishment Level 9 Completion realm. Now, he could begin preparations for Core Formation. Additionally, he had successfully cultivated the final stance of the Heaven's Crippled Finger, an Earth-tier finger technique, called "Arrogant Dragon Regrets." With this, the entire Earth-tier finger technique, originating from the Reincarnation Peak's Maha Stone Wall, was fully mastered.

"Although it's a low-grade Earth-tier cultivation method, as the final stance, its power is no less than the first stances of the Tiger Roar Dragon Chant Art and the Three Pure Thunder Shadows," he mused. "Now I have another formidable weapon against enemies. I truly have to thank Reincarnation Peak."

Jiang Fan smiled faintly, looking up at the Azure Cloud Sect, which felt warm and familiar after nearly a month's absence. Entering the sect, he found it more lively than usual. While many disciples were out on missions, even more were returning from external sect assignments, making the place particularly boisterous.

"Junior Brother Jiang!" "Junior Brother Jiang, you're back!" Disciples responsible for mission assignments, seeing Jiang Fan from afar, brightened and rushed to greet him, their expressions filled with respect.

Back during the disciple evaluations, Jiang Fan had defeated Tang Tianlong in three moves, becoming a legendary figure in a single battle. To this day, the Azure Cloud Sect disciples still talked about it enthusiastically. Many lower-level disciples, especially those with less talent, were deeply inspired by seeing someone who once had no spiritual roots forge such a brilliant path. They cultivated with greater diligence than before, significantly improving the overall cultivation atmosphere of the entire sect.

Jiang Fan smiled gently. "Senior Brothers, I hope you've all been well. Has the sect been peaceful lately?"

One disciple chuckled, "With the Grand Supreme Elder and the Sect Leader overseeing things, who would dare cause trouble?"

Jiang Fan nodded. He had been concerned that the sect might have been infiltrated by demonic beasts, similar to the Spirit Beast Sect. Relieved to hear it was peaceful, he then asked, "What about our main sect peak?"

The disciples' expressions immediately stiffened, and they stammered, "The main sect peak... is indeed experiencing a bit of trouble right now."

Jiang Fan raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Is the Grand Elder causing trouble again?" He could only think of Feng Guzen.

One disciple quickly said, "This has nothing to do with the Grand Elder. It's actually somewhat related to you, Junior Brother Jiang."

Jiang Fan looked bewildered; he hadn't been in the sect for a month. How could it be related to him? It wasn't until the disciple spoke a name that he finally understood.