Chapter 100: Inventory and Unsealing the Celestial Treasure (Request Subscription)

The Ghost Ming Sect was destroyed, and everyone rejoiced.

A poisonous tumor had been removed from Qinghe.

After reviewing the events, they learned the informant had been Zeng Xiangzhu of the Blood Tiger Gang—but when they tried to find him, all traces had been wiped clean, as if he had vanished into thin air.

In the end, it was the Prefect who heard of the matter.

He issued a verdict:

“To know one’s mistake and correct it is the greatest good; give him a chance to start anew.”

Zeng Jiang had acted with precision, erasing nearly all traces—clearly this had been premeditated.

Since a high-ranking official had spoken, no one wished to expend effort pursuing it further.

Thus, the matter was quietly dropped.

A few days later, Jiang Lin led the Huaqing Sect members away from Qinghe.

Liu Tong went with them.

According to Huaqing Sect rules, he still had a month to settle his family affairs before reporting in.

But after Li Rui’s advice,

he felt he couldn’t miss this chance to connect with Jiang Lin—even if he couldn’t climb onto Jiang Lin’s level, chatting with the senior sisters would still be beneficial.

So he eagerly followed after them.

Qinghe Branch Hall.

Li’s residence.

Li Rui changed out of his bloodstained clothes and donned a fresh set, removing everything from his pockets.

Aside from several vials and jars filled with spirit elixirs,

the most striking item was unquestionably the silver key taken from Gongyang Han.

It looked utterly ordinary on the surface.

Carrying a key was perfectly normal.

But under Li Rui’s spiritual vision, it was entirely different.

The key was forged from spirit iron.

What kind of object required a key made of spirit iron to open?

Judging by its size, it wasn’t meant for a door—it must be for a small object, like a box.

Li Rui’s heart pounded wildly.

He already had a hunch.

The key matched the small wooden box he’d taken from Su Xuan almost perfectly.

He suppressed his excitement.

Li Rui didn’t foolishly rush out of the city right away to dig up the wooden box.

The main force of the Ghost Ming Sect had been destroyed.

But some remnants still lingered—who could say?

Ten days later,

on an utterly ordinary day, Li Rui strolled calmly out of the Qinghe Branch Hall.

He wandered out of the city as if on a casual stroll.

On the way, he sat at a tea stall and drank tea for a long while.

He disguised himself perfectly as an old man taking an accidental walk outside the city.

Counter-surveillance had become his habit.

Finally, he arrived at the location Yang Yong had described.

A crooked-necked tree.

He glanced at the soil beneath it—all old earth, no signs of recent digging.

Li Rui exhaled in relief.

Fortunately, no local mountain folk had accidentally discovered the treasure—if someone had taken it and happened to be surnamed Ye or Ji, he wouldn’t bother retrieving it.

He drew his knife and used it like a spade.

In a few swift strokes, the soil west of the crooked-necked tree was fully excavated.

A delicate small wooden box appeared before Li Rui.

He brushed away the dirt and lifted the box.

He examined the keyhole at its center for several moments.

“Close enough.”

Li Rui then withdrew the silver key from his robe and carefully inserted it into the keyhole.

It slid in slowly, fitting perfectly.

When the key reached its full depth, he turned his wrist gently—there was a click, followed by a series of soft clacking sounds as gears turned.

“Success!”

A flicker of joy passed through his eyes.

The wooden box’s mechanism was exquisitely crafted—it opened on its own without him touching it.

Inside lay a translucent, fleshy-looking object, motionless.

“This is...”

Li Rui studied it closely.

Something that made Gongyang Han risk everything to assassinate Tang Sheng—and was deliberately split from its key—could not be ordinary.

He pondered carefully.

“If this belonged to Chi Lian Nü, why was the key placed on Gongyang Han?”

According to rumors,

the three disciples of the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother were not on good terms.

“If not Chi Lian Nü’s, then it’s more likely she was merely holding it for someone else!”

A lightning bolt flashed through Li Rui’s mind; his pupils widened slightly.

Who could make Chi Lian Nü willingly hold something, while the key was entrusted to Gongyang Han?

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The answer was obvious.

Only the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother.

If it were an ordinary item, the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother could have kept it herself—she’d feel safer. Why go through such trouble to place it with her disciple?

“This object is a hot potato—and someone is already watching for it.”

Li Rui reasoned.

“The only person who could make the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother fear... is Jiang Lin.”

“Jiang Lin could only want one thing from the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother: a celestial treasure!”

Li Rui sucked in a sharp breath.

He was stunned by his own deduction.

A celestial treasure!

That was the very artifact Jiang Lin had chased the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother for hundreds of miles—just the name alone suggested its rarity.

And now, by sheer accident, it had ended up in his hands.

Though Li Rui had lived many years and seen countless storms,

his heart still pounded violently.

“According to rumors, Jiang Lin had already obtained the celestial treasure.”

“That means the Ten Thousand Ghosts Mother must have split the celestial treasure into two—or even more parts!”

The others were surely already taken by Jiang Lin.

What he held was the one that slipped through!

Li Rui studied the “celestial treasure” again, carefully.

Have you ever seen a tai sui?

It looked nearly identical—a fleshy mass, yet resembling some kind of fungus.

In the next instant,

Li Rui suddenly widened his eyes.

Something he’d read in ancient texts merged with the object before him.

“It’s a spirit guide!”

He hadn’t expected the celestial treasure everyone spoke of to be the spirit guide that unlocks a second form.

Legends said the spirit guide was a celestial artifact fallen to the mortal realm—akin in nature to a celestial treasure.

The spirit guide’s value was unquestionable.

Otherwise, Jiang Lin wouldn’t have gone to such lengths to pursue it.

Outsiders, unaware of the truth, likely spread rumors until the term “celestial treasure” replaced the real name.

He already possessed a complete secondary form.

He was the perfect physique to ingest the spirit guide and awaken his second form.

A person bearing two destiny forms does not automatically gain both; most can choose only one. If the two forms complement each other and enhance each other, that is fine, but if they clash, they become useless forms.

Li Rui had already made his plan.

He would cultivate the Dragon Form first.

After all, Immortal Form Qi Diagrams are exceedingly rare—he might never find one in this lifetime.

It was better to settle for second best.

Moreover, the Dragon Form was already extraordinary enough.

One must not be too greedy in life.

Yet he never expected the Spirit Guide would simply appear before him, so vivid and lively, leaping straight into his hands.

“I really should thank those two siblings.”

If Su Xuan and Gongyang Han had not coordinated so well, he would never have had the chance to obtain the Spirit Guide.

“Children make choices; adults take it all!”

(End of Chapter)