Chapter 20: All Things Have Spirits

"Reading the Years... can increase Mental Power..." Duan Rong blinked his eyes.

"Requires Host Mental Power level 9."

"If I had level 9, would I still care about you?"

Duan Rong's expression suddenly shifted. "Could it be that Spirit Tools of the tree variety can all increase Mental Power?"

Duan Rong immediately walked quickly to an Old Locust Tree on the other side of the Martial Arts Arena.

This Old Locust Tree was already as thick as a person could embrace, its canopy like a roof; judging by its age, it was at least several decades old.

Duan Rong placed his hand on the trunk of the Old Locust Tree and said, "Spirit Reader."

Artifact: Locust Tree (Age: 32 years)

Spirit Artifact Tier: Unranked

Absorption Requirement: None

Absorption Effect: None

Duan Rong looked at this set of blank data before him and was suddenly filled with disappointment.

He then shifted his gaze, struck by a hypothesis.

Could it be that ancient trees, after reaching a certain age, suddenly enter a Spirit Awakening Stage for their Spirit Tool?

Just like a person who has had an awakening.

From a blank, ignorant Spirit Tool, it gradually gives birth to intelligence!

"Three hundred and sixty-one years." Duan Rong silently recited the age of that Ginkgo Ancient Tree; to him, this number was like some kind of indicator that needed verification.

If such a thick Old Locust Tree had no absorption effect, one could imagine the state of other, smaller trees.

However, this also verified his previous hypothesis once again: the tier of a Spirit Tool is related to the passage of time!

Duan Rong lowered his head to look at a Stone Table under the Old Locust Tree. He stared at it for a while, then suddenly walked over, placed his palm on the Stone Table, and silently recited: "Spirit Reader."

Artifact: Stone Table

Spirit Artifact Tier: Unranked

Absorption Requirement: None

Absorption Effect: None.

Duan Rong was like a child who had discovered a new game, a touch of joy appearing on his face. Just then, he heard a crisp sound by his feet.

It turned out to be a piece of broken tile that had fallen from the roof, landing right by his feet.

Duan Rong's expression shifted. He picked up the broken tile, held it in his hand, and silently recited: "Spirit Reader."

Artifact: Broken Tile.

Spirit Artifact Tier: Damaged Spirit Tool, Unranked.

Absorption Requirement: None.

Absorption Effect: None.

Duan Rong looked at the broken tile in his hand and the data floating before his eyes. After a long while, he raised his head.

Clutching the broken tile, he looked around at the arena and weapons in the Martial Arts Arena, the surrounding buildings, tiles, and stones, and further away, the rows of houses, trees, and streets...

A wave of joy suddenly surged in Duan Rong's heart.

"All things have spirits!"

"As long as my Mental Power level is high enough, all things under heaven can be used by me!"

"Although some are just blank, ignorant Spirit Tools, as long as they are steeped in enough time, these ignorant Spirit Tools will also slowly give birth to intelligence."

At this moment, several people wearing Escort uniforms walked past Duan Rong. Seeing Duan Rong holding a tile, giggling one moment and deep in thought the next, they assumed they had encountered a madman.

Duan Rong saw those few people whispering as they looked at him and suddenly realized. He threw away the tile and straightened his expression.

At this time, Duan Rong suddenly thought of the Secret Manual that Xiao Zongting had given him today.

Duan Rong took the Secret Manual in his hand and silently recited: "Spirit Reader!"

Artifact: A tattered book.

Spirit Artifact Tier: Unranked.

Absorption Requirement: None.

Absorption Effect: None.

Duan Rong looked at the data floating before his eyes, his heart filled with astonishment!

Could it be that a Secret Manual has no book spirit?

Duan Rong thought for a moment, then his eyes suddenly brightened, and he realized: "If a Secret Manual had a book spirit, then wouldn't everyone who copied the manual have an identical book spirit?"

"Laozi certainly has the realm of Laozi, but if you copy the Tao Te Ching once, can you obtain the same realm as Laozi?"

"A Spirit Tool cannot understand text; it is not human, it is a product of the erosion of time!"

"No matter how well-written or profound a Secret Manual is, the Spirit Tool of the manual will not grow; it remains a blank slate!"

As Duan Rong thought this, he suddenly realized it was getting late, so he walked out of the Martial Arts Arena and headed toward the Middle Courtyard's Escort Agency Inner Treasury to collect his items.

At the entrance of the Middle Courtyard's Escort Agency Inner Treasury, an old man with a face full of wrinkles sat leaning against the wall, eyes narrowed in a doze, while in front of a table at the entrance, a slightly plump middle-aged man was yawning.

The Escort Agency Inner Treasury was about to reach its closing time. The slightly plump middle-aged man was preparing to finish his shift when he suddenly saw a figure flash out from the alley entrance, clearly heading toward the Inner Treasury.

The slightly plump middle-aged man clicked his tongue and glared at Duan Rong with dissatisfaction: Why come at this hour? Isn't this delaying me from finishing my shift?

Duan Rong fished out the slip from his inner pocket and placed it on the table in front of the middle-aged man.

The slightly plump middle-aged man picked up the slip, glanced at it, and said coldly: "Turn in from here; inside is the weapon vault. Pick yourself a new, sheathed Ox-Tail Saber!"

Duan Rong turned his head to look, followed the path the middle-aged man pointed out, and walked into the weapon vault.

Seeing Duan Rong's back disappear around the corner, the slightly plump middle-aged man glanced at the old man half-dozing behind him, then got up and walked toward the herb vault.

As soon as Duan Rong entered the weapon vault, he was slightly surprised; this weapon vault was actually quite large, and it contained every one of the eighteen types of weapons.

Axes, yue-axes, hooks, forks, blades, spears, swords, halberds, whips, maces, hammers, and ge-halberds—every variety was present, along with some weapons Duan Rong could not name, most of which had bizarre shapes.

And among these, the most numerous were blades!

Among the blades, the Ox-Tail Saber was the most common, because the Ox-Tail Saber was the standard-issue weapon of the Yuanshun Escort Agency!

Although there is a saying that the spear is the king of weapons, the spear is easy to learn but difficult to master, and not easy to pick up!

Yet in the pugilistic world, the most common and popular weapon is the blade!

This is the weapon chosen by the travelers of the pugilistic world with their feet, and naturally, there is a reason for it!

A blade has an edge and a back, balancing offense and defense; it can chop, hack, thrust, and flick. Although it is not as elegant as a sword, nor as lethal as a spear, it wins by being easy to pick up.

Therefore, the blade is the true king of practical weapons!

Duan Rong came to a row of sheathed Ox-Tail Sabers; just as he was about to pick one, he suddenly saw a weapon being worshipped in the innermost part of the armory.

That weapon leaned inside a Shrine, and the Shrine stood against the back wall.

Beside the Shrine was an incense table with an incense burner on top; the burner was overflowing with ash, and scattered gray specks had fallen onto the table.

What kind of weapon was it?

That someone would actually worship it and offer incense every day?

Duan Rong's curiosity was greatly aroused, and he walked over slowly.

He walked up to take a closer look, and the weapon worshipped in the Shrine was actually a Phoenix Wing Gilded Halberd!

A halberd is a long, heavy implement that cannot be used by an ordinary person!

Its shape resembles a fork, and because the outward extensions on both sides look like phoenix wings, it is named the Phoenix Wing Halberd!

The strange thing about this halberd before him was that the halberd blade shimmered with golden light, as if it had been plated with a layer of gold; it was clearly no ordinary object!

But even more bizarre was that all three blades of this halberd had been severed.

Such a divine object had actually been reduced to a damaged piece.

Duan Rong's curiosity was greatly aroused; his gaze shifted, he stepped forward, reached his hand into the Shrine, gripped the halberd handle, and silently recited: "Spirit Reader!"

Artifact: Phoenix Wing Gilded Halberd (Damaged)

Spirit Artifact Tier: Tier 13.

Devour Requirement: Host Mental Power Level 13 (Not met).

Devour Effect: Forty-Six Forms Great Accomplishment (Incomplete).

Duan Rong was shocked; a damaged Spirit Tool actually had a tier of 13.

Moreover, the devour effect was not a miscellaneous item, but a martial art.

A martial art, and an incomplete one at that, could have a Spirit Artifact Tier of 13?

From this alone, one could imagine what kind of martial art this Forty-Six Forms was, and what kind of existence the owner of this halberd was.

However, these things had nothing to do with the current Duan Rong.

A Tier 13 Spirit Tool was something he could only look at.

"It is too far out of reach!"

Just as Duan Rong was preparing to turn and leave to pick a sheathed Ox-Tail Saber, he suddenly saw a blade leaning against the corner of the wall not far from the Phoenix Wing Gilded Halberd.

The blade was unremarkable; the blade body and handle were integrated, the handle was wrapped in silk thread to prevent slipping, and this blade was actually unsharpened.

Duan Rong's gaze flickered.

"Since this blade is also placed in the innermost part of the armory, I fear it has some history!"

Duan Rong suddenly bent over, gripped the blade in his hand, and silently recited: "Spirit Reader!"

Artifact: Unsharpened Great Cleaver

Spirit Artifact Tier: Level 1.

Devour Requirement: Host Mental Power Level 1 (Met).

Devour Effect: Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber Proficiency.

Duan Rong looked at the set of data before him, his heart filled with joy.

This was the Proficiency-level Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber he had been longing for; as long as he devoured this Spirit Tool, not only would his Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber combat technique reach the Proficiency level, but he would also have the Second Layer of the Internal Cultivation Method.

"Well met!" Duan Rong shouted in his heart and silently recited: "Devour!"

(End of chapter)