Items that bound to a master through a drop of blood were not particularly rare.
Over the course of a single day, Yu Xian came across five of them.
The first was a doll shaped like a beckoning fortune cat. Every so often, it waved its paw, increasing Yu Xian's fortune by one percent. Fortune wasn't just about money; treasures fell under fortune as well. Increasing his fortune was practically equivalent to boosting the odds of stumbling upon treasures, leaving Yu Xian thoroughly delighted with it.
The second item was an ink brush. Once bound, it could leave writing anywhere, and the characters would only vanish after a thousand years. Before fading naturally, nothing could erase them unless a Transcender intervened or an item of equal caliber was used to wipe them out. The moment Yu Xian got his hands on the brush, he wrote in midair: *Yu Xian was here.* If anyone else came to this place within the next millennium, they would likely still be able to see those words.
The third item was a bead.
Yu Xian had originally assumed it was just a bead, but after dripping blood to claim ownership, he discovered it was actually a planet. The planet could expand or shrink at will; one half was sealed in ice while the other was blanketed in magma. Functioning similarly to weapons like the Heaven-Overturning Seal, it could be enlarged to crush people under its weight.
The fourth item was a saber.
Named the Prototype Saber, it didn't reveal the original form of an enemy. Instead, whenever it clashed with another saber, it would copy its opponent and transform into a weapon even more authentic than the original. Put simply, it would be truer than the genuine article, packing greater power and exuding an even more authentic presence. Yu Xian knew how to use sabers, and as soon as he obtained it, he thought of how to make the best use of it: collect a wider variety of sabers, tap one against the Prototype Saber whenever a battle called for it, and instantly wield an enhanced version.
The fifth item was a ring.
Unfortunately, it still wasn't a piece of storage gear. Instead, it protected the wearer from having their depths seen through by enemies. As long as Yu Xian wore it, any foe observing him would be completely unable to gauge his strength, discern his abilities, or even determine his race. Simply put, this ring was an indispensable tool for playing the pig to eat the tiger, flexing, and slapping faces.
***
"Auntie, is there any more storage gear around here?"
That afternoon, Yu Xian sat on a chair with his feet propped up on a stone drum, addressing Auntie Number Two after summoning her.
"..."
Auntie Number Two fell silent.
Clearly, this was a question she could not answer.
Yu Xian pondered for a moment before asking, "Do you know a method for me to open up a space here and store more things?"
"The Everlasting Silence Prison-Suppressing Art allows the construction of an Everlasting Silence Prison Tower within the body..."
"The Great Elephant Canon expands one's stomach to infinite proportions, but the drawback is that one's appetite will never be satisfied..."
"The Divine Machine Dreaming Art transforms one's dreams into a semi-virtual, semi-real state; the space is as vast as the dream itself, but those with wavering resolve are easily invaded by inner demons and plagued by nightmares..."
...
Auntie Number Two reeled off a whole slew of arts in a single breath, leaving Yu Xian utterly dumbfounded.
He truly hadn't expected there to be so many techniques capable of carving out personal space. Once she finished, however, he couldn't resist asking, "Auntie, which art is suitable for me?"
"..."
Auntie Number Two looked at Yu Xian and lapsed into silence once more.
"..."
Yu Xian stared back at her in identical silence. He understood now: evidently, not a single one suited him.
He drew a deep breath to keep his composure, then asked, "Auntie, which art can I master in the shortest amount of time to open up a space?"
"The Everlasting Silence Prison-Suppressing Art," Auntie Number Two finally answered.
Yu Xian breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness she hadn't stayed silent this time, or he would have started questioning his own IQ. Although his learning capability had drastically plummeted after inheriting Wang Jieming's talent, his Super Brain was still intact. It wasn't as though he was completely incapable of learning; as long as he was willing to use his head, he felt he could still be salvaged.
"Auntie, teach me the Everlasting Silence Prison-Suppressing Art," Yu Xian said immediately.
Auntie Number Two began reciting the mnemonic chants for cultivating the art, starting from the broad outline: "All living beings possess spirits, muddled and unenlightened; specters and wraiths, underworld river and prison walls; fierce gods and evil fiends, eternal silence in the nether prison..."
In the blink of an eye, half an hour passed.
Yu Xian stared at Auntie Number Two, his mind simultaneously crystal clear and utterly bewildered. He had listened to the entire text of the Everlasting Silence Prison-Suppressing Art and had even memorized every word of it, but memorization alone was useless. He understood each individual character, yet once strung together, he couldn't make heads or tails of them.
"Auntie, is there a shortcut?" Yu Xian asked after a moment of silence, resolutely deciding to cheat.
It wasn't that he didn't want to study properly and walk the broad avenue of relying on his own efforts. The simple truth was that he couldn't learn it. Without cheating, he figured he wouldn't even step through the threshold of the art without several million years of cultivation. By that time, it would all be far too late.
"Auntie, I don't want to struggle anymore!"
Yu Xian looked at Auntie Number Two with anticipation, yet felt a trace of dread that she might simply remain silent forever.
Fortunately, she didn't keep quiet this time. "You may use the Hero's Key to open the Hero's Gate, and cultivate the Everlasting Silence Prison-Suppressing Art within the Land of Glory. It can be mastered in ten days."
"The Hero's Key?"
Yu Xian froze for a second upon hearing the answer, his mind instantly recalling what that thing was.
He could indeed still condense a Hero's Key. However, because he found the few prisoners inside the Land of Glory too bizarre and unsettling, and because he had never needed anything from them, he had never stepped foot inside again after his first visit.
"Are there any drawbacks?" Yu Xian asked, looking at Auntie Number Two.
Auntie Number Two stayed silent. Only then did Yu Xian belatedly realize that his question quota for the day had run out.
"Whatever, I'll give it a shot first. It takes ten days to cultivate anyway, so asking again tomorrow should be... fine, right?" Yu Xian muttered to himself after some thought.
He reached up and drew the Hero's Key from between his eyebrows.
Gripping the key in his hand, he channeled a steady stream of righteous intent into it, filling it to the brim in an instant.
Using the familiar Hero's Key, he unlocked the familiar golden gate, and a wave of familiar sensation immediately welled up in his heart.
Truth be told, he really had no desire to see those prisoners. But for the sake of the Everlasting Silence Prison-Suppressing Art, he gritted his teeth and decided to take the plunge. After all, he was no longer the tiny scrub he had been back then—now, he was a slightly larger scrub.
Stepping into the Land of Glory, Yu Xian had no intention of communicating with the prisoners and headed straight for the very back.
Cell No. 001.
Luomo opened his eyes and glanced at Yu Xian as he walked past. A smile still rested on his face, but a small ripple of surprise stirred in his heart.
To him, a year wasn't even long enough to count as a nap; it was roughly the equivalent of a single blink. Yet in the span of that blink, Yu Xian had grown stronger.
Granted, he still wasn't extraordinarily strong.
Even so, compared to his very first visit, an ant had practically transformed into an elephant.
*How interesting.*
Watching Yu Xian walk past, Luomo slightly narrowed his eyes. He sensed that Yu Xian might just be his chance to break out of prison.
Chapter 351