by Translator: BornToBe; Author: Ordinary Magician (平凡魔术师); Licensed From: 17k
He used the golden page to pick up the devil core and brought it flying back.
“Here.” Long Chen handed the devil core to a shocked Yue Xiaoqian.
“You have a soul item?” Yue Xiaoqian looked at Long Chen with shock.
“Soul item? What’s that?” Long Chen was slightly startled. It seemed he had heard that term before.
Yue Xiaoqian received the devil core from Long Chen. Feeling the incomparably powerful energy within it, she was filled with excitement.
“Thank you, Long Chen.”
“Cough, when you talk, can it not be a one-way conversation? What is a soul item?” coughed Long Chen awkwardly.
“Ah, sorry, I was too excited.” Yue Xiaoqian finished playing with the devil core. She once more activated her curtain of light so that the two of them no longer needed to resist the pressure, and the two of them withdrew their auras.
“Let’s first find a place to rest.” After that great battle, they had exhausted quite a bit of energy while also resisting the pressure. Resting first was a smart decision.
The two of them found a secluded corner. Yue Xiaoqian turned to Long Chen. “Can you let me see your treasure?”
Although the treasure Yue Xiaoqian was referring to was obviously the golden page, for some reason, he couldn’t stop thinking of what else it could mean, and his face turned a bit hot.[1]
“Rogue,” scolded Yue Xiaoqian.
Long Chen looked at her in shock. How was this woman able to easily see through other people’s thoughts? That was too terrifying.
“Hand it over.” Yue Xiaoqian extended her hand.
“Cough, here.” Long Chen hastily handed over the golden page. But inside, he was a bit apprehensive, as this was a priceless treasure. If she got greedy, it really would be troublesome.
“Don’t worry, I, Yue Xiaoqian, am not that kind of shameless person,” she said with some displeasure.
That was definitely something bizarre about this woman. Long Chen’s heart shook. He could sense a kind of baffling energy prying into his inner heart.
That wasn’t soul energy, nor was it any other kind of energy Long Chen knew. But it was as if all of his thoughts were laid bare in front of Yue Xiaoqian.
He secretly circulated the Nine Star Hegemon Body Art. What gave him a pleasant surprise was that as the Nine Star Hegemon Body Art circulated, that feeling faded.
“No one is prying into your secrets. It’s just your expression and eyes that sell you out.” Yue Xiaoqian glanced at Long Chen and shook her head.
“Cough, let’s get back to the main point. What did you mean by soul item?” Long Chen really didn’t want to stay on this topic.
A woman that was too smart really was troublesome. He preferred the previous Yue Xiaoqian that was at a loss for what to do rather than this version of her that was like a wily fox.
“Soul items are generally the special weapons of soul cultivators. Their power is frightening, but the material to make them is incredibly rare. Thus, soul items are quite rare. As for this soul item of yours… eh? This isn’t a soul item.”
Yue Xiaoqian’s Spiritual Strength swept over the golden page, and astonishment filled her eyes. Turning over the golden page, she was filled with amazement.
“Immortal characters?”
“You recognize these characters?” Long Chen was both shocked and delighted. He had never thought Yue Xiaoqian would be able to recognize these characters.
Immortal characters; that was the script from the immortal era. It was said that the immortal era was the time of gods and immortals. People had immortal techniques and divine energy. With a wave of a hand, mountains formed and seas shifted, the heavens fell and the earth rose.
But that era was from far too long ago. In fact, it was already so distant from the current era that people couldn’t believe it as fact. The immortal era was already just myth and legend.
Even the comparatively closer ancient era had almost become a myth at this point. There were many things that were said to have existed in the ancient era that had just become stories.
From the immortal era, to the ancient era, to the current era, far too many things had been lost.
It was as if the world had experienced something, and the cultivation culture had been mercilessly severed. The cultivators from the current era could only do their best to study the remnants of what had been left behind from that time.
The current era could be accurately traced up to around several million years ago. But the ancient era was something that had occurred tens of millions of years ago, and only a few ancient vestiges remained.
As for the immortal era, that was something from hundreds of millions, billions, or perhaps simply innumerable years ago. It was something that only existed in legends. People were unable to even agree whether or not that era had ever truly existed.
Long Chen had never imagined that this golden page had immortal characters written on it. And most amazing of all, it seemed Yue Xiaoqian was able to recognize them.
Yue Xiaoqian didn’t continue looking at the page. Instead, she turned to Long Chen and solemnly said, “Long Chen, this page very likely contains some kind of secret that could shake all of heaven and earth. If I help you translate it, that means I will also know the secret. Are you sure you want me to translate it?”
“Where did that come from? No matter what, we can count as companions that have suffered through trials and tribulations together. I trust you. Furthermore, if you don’t translate it for me, where am I going to find someone else to do it for me? Sharing the knowledge with you can be proof of our companionship,” smiled Long Chen.
“Don’t regret it in the future. The secrets of the immortal era can cause the collapse of heaven and earth. Countless sects would go crazy for it.” Yue Xiaoqian warned Long Chen once again.
“Hey, don’t be so overly cautious. Just get to translating,” said Long Chen a bit impatiently.
Just who could possibly recognize characters from the immortal era? If people actually recognized immortal characters, then why would people still call into question the existence of the immortal era? Would people still think that immortals and gods were just legends?
Yue Xiaoqian was incredibly mysterious. Long Chen felt that her background had to be terrifying. Although her experience was practically zero, her actual skills were amazing.
“Alright, I’ll translate it for you.” Seeing Long Chen was so straightforward, Yue Xiaoqian was both grateful and excited. She turned to focus on the characters.
Even after a long time of studying the page, Yue Xiaoqian still hadn’t moved. Long Chen couldn’t help but urge her onwards, thinking she was being shy. “Are you translating or not?”
“What are you so impatient for? Immortal characters are incomparably profound. Different handwriting and different line placement will all create vastly different meanings. If you don’t understand, then just obediently shut your mouth.” Yue Xiaoqian actually became angry when Long Chen broke her concentration.
Long Chen was stunned, as this was his first time seeing Yue Xiaoqian get angry. He shut his mouth, not making another sound.
What Long Chen did not know was that immortal characters could not be read in the same way as characters from the current era. A single character had countless meanings, and to create an accurate translation was extremely difficult.
It was very likely that you would translate one line’s meaning, only to find that when you tried to translate the next line, you would have to throw out that translation and try again.
Yue Xiaoqian had translated a portion, only to be interrupted by Long Chen. Immortal characters were incredibly taxing and consumed soul energy to read. You had to continuously keep the meanings of each word in your head as you attempted to pierce them together. Now that she was interrupted by Long Chen, all that work had been wasted and she had to start from the beginning.
Furthermore, Long Chen was just standing to the side without doing anything, but he had t
o criticize her. Even someone with a better temperament would get angry. The fact she hadn’t given him a harsh beating was already very courteous of her.
An hour later, Long Chen saw that Yue Xiaoqian was starting to sweat. Only now did he realize that translating immortal characters was not as easy as he had thought.
That both startled and excited him. Now he really wanted to know just what was written on this golden page.
After two hours, Yue Xiaoqian was sweating even more profusely. She seemed to be filled with pain, but she still clenched her teeth and continued.
Long Chen couldn’t help being startled. With his profound understanding of pill arts, he could instantly tell that this was happening because Yue Xiaoqian was exhausting too much of her Spiritual Strength.
He hesitated for a moment and then placed a hand on her back. Pure soul energy slowly flowed into her.
The two of them weren’t extremely familiar with each other, so Long Chen didn’t dare directly insert his soul energy into Yue Xiaoqian’s mind-sea. That could cause a misunderstanding. Unless two people completely trusted each other, no one would permit another person’s soul energy into their mind-sea like that. That was equivalent to placing your life in another person’s hands.
But by passing his soul energy through her body, Yue Xiaoqian could take the initiative as to whether or not she wanted to absorb it. The initiative was all in her hands, and so this wouldn’t cause any misunderstandings.
With the nourishment of Long Chen’s soul energy, Yue Xiaoqian’s expression improved slightly. She continued focusing completely on translating those characters.
After six hours, when even Long Chen was starting to feel a bit exhausted, she finally sighed and turned around, looking straight at Long Chen.
“Congratulations, this is definitely a peerless treasure!”
[1] The word used for treasure here is . My guess is that Long Chen is being dirty-minded and can’t stop thinking about how it might refer to another one of his treasures.
Chapter 397 Ethereal Crafting Secret Record
Long Chen couldn’t help but celebrate. “What kind of treasure? Is it a cultivation technique or a Battle Skill?”
Even his voice quivered slightly. If this was a cultivation technique or Battle Skill that had come from the immortal era, then wouldn’t it be heaven-defying?
“This page’s name is the Ethereal Crafting Secret Record. It’s a marvelous remnant of the immortal era.” Yue Xiaoqian’s eyes were filled with amazement as she looked at the golden page.
“Hey, don’t keep me in suspense. Is this Ethereal Crafting Secret Record a cultivation technique or Battle Skill?” Long Chen’s eyes were practically glowing.
Yue Xiaoqian glanced at Long Chen. He could see that her gaze was filled with contempt for him. He was startled; what had he said wrong?
“This Ethereal Crafting Secret Record isn’t a cultivation technique or Battle Skill. It is a sacred canon on forging items.” Yue Xiaoqian was filled with admiration for this page.
“Forging? Are you messing with me?” Long Chen’s expression became unsightly. Even this thing was considered a treasure? He really did feel messed with.
“You…! You really are unreasonable!” raged Yue Xiaoqian. “This Ethereal Crafting Secret Record contains all the countless techniques and arts of a Forging Master from the immortal era! Those kinds of skills have long since disappeared. Its value is inestimable! If the Ethereal Crafting Secret Record spread, then the entire world would go crazy. There would not be a single power that would remain indifferent to it.”
“It’s that valuable?” Suddenly, Long Chen slapped his own leg. Isn’t this precisely what that little brat Guo Ran needs right now? I actually forgot about him.
Previously, Long Chen had used the golden page to fight. Due to its incomparable sharpness, he had subconsciously assumed that whatever was recorded on it had to be related to battle. It seemed he had misunderstood.
“I really can’t bother to talk to you.” Yue Xiaoqian felt like Long Chen’s intelligence really was no longer on the same level as her. Could such a priceless treasure be described as just valuable? That was practically blasphemy.
“Come over here,” Yue Xiaoqian beckoned coldly.
“For what?” Long Chen’s guard rose. “Are you planning on hitting me?”
That was because Yue Xiaoqian was now clearly a bit different than before. Long Chen felt more and more that this woman was dangerous.
Yue Xiaoqian, who had been angrily glaring, couldn’t help but laugh when she saw Long Chen’s doubtful and careful gaze.
“Why would I hit you? Come over so I can transmit the immortal characters to you.”
Although only a part of her face was revealed, seeing that mirth in Yue Xiaoqian’s eyes, Long Chen hastily steadied his mental state and approached.
“Immortal characters are different from the characters of the current era. Each word contains its own artistic concept. When immortal characters are combined together, they form a continuous image. Such immortal characters cannot be transmitted through simple paper. It can only be carved onto spiritual material like soul gold essence. So, the only way I can transmit the translated images to you is mentally. Don’t move.” Yue Xiaoqian extended her hand and placed it on Long Chen’s forehead.
At this time, Long Chen was extremely close to her. He could smell her fragrance. He could feel her breath.
The most relaxing thing to him was when her hand touched his forehead. That kind of satiny feeling made him feel as if all his pores had opened.
“You trust me this much?” Yue Xiaoqian saw that Long Chen didn’t have any defense towards her, even when her finger touched the space between his eyebrows.
At this distance, if Yue Xiaoqian wanted to, Long Chen definitely wouldn’t be able to stop her from killing him.
Long Chen smiled slightly and didn’t reply. Ever since he had started cultivating in the Nine Star Hegemon Body Art, he no longer trusted his eyes. Instead, he trusted his intuition.
Up to this point, his intuition had never failed him once. He trusted that his intuition was able to differentiate good and evil far better than his eyesight.
“Thank you.” After softly saying that, Yue Xiaoqian closed her eyes. Spiritual Strength slowly poured from her finger into the space between Long Chen’s eyebrows.
As Yue Xiaoqian’s Spiritual Strength poured into his mind-sea, Long Chen began to see an image.
That image contained an elder who was constantly hammering something. That hammering posture and strength, as well as the arc and course, all contained various variations. Long Chen truly was unable to see through the profundities behind this scene.
This scene began to move. A portion of the scene was forging, a portion of the scene was some marvelous blueprints, and there was also a portion containing the runes carved onto the items forged by this elder.
Buzzz…
Suddenly, that elder thrust a sword he had just finished carving runes onto into the sky. It cut apart heaven and earth, revealing a sky full of stars.
“Immortal characters?”
Long Chen was shocked by this scene. He finally understood why Yue Xiaoqian had looked at him with such a gaze.
Previously, he had always been looking down on the Forging Dao. The understanding and learning required for forging items were far, far more profound than he had imagined.
After that sword from the image had been inscribed with runes, it seemed to come to life, possessing its own life aura. That attack had even contained its own specific will.
The images in his head faded. He heard Yue Xiaoqian’s voice, “Use Spiritual Strength to seal these images in your head so that you won’t forget them. If you don’t, then when you try to examine them later, they will become chaotic and muddied.”
Long Chen hastily used his Spiritual Strength to seal these images in his head. This was extremely simple for him as some pill formulas also had to be remembered in this manner.
“Thank you! This thing really is… very… cough, it’s great!” Long Chen almost once more said it was just valuable.
Yue Xiaoqian shook her head, obviously having seen through what Long Chen had been thinking. After hesitating for a moment, she asked with great embarrassment, “Long Chen, can I discuss something with you?”
“What?” Long Chen was extremely straightforward.
“This… this Ethereal Crafting Secret Record, can I bring it back to give to my clan?” Yue Xiaoqian asked with great apprehensiveness
“Of course.” Long Chen didn’t understand.
“Really?” She was surprised and delighted.
“Of course. Furthermore, you’ve already memorized the Ethereal Crafting Secret Record, so it’s not like I would know if you transmitted it to anyone,” laughed Long Chen.
Yue Xiaoqian’s delight faded, replaced with solemness. “Long Chen, although I might know what’s contained in the Ethereal Crafting Secret Record, I definitely wouldn’t tell anyone without your permission.”
“You don’t have to be so serious.”
“That’s just my clan’s beliefs.”
“Ah, just stop. I’m not suited to such solemn conversation. If it hadn’t been for your help translating it, it’s not like I would have learned this secret either. So, we’ll split this secret up evenly. Based on our mutual contribution, we’ll get mutual benefits, so let’s stop that discussion here.” Long Chen really didn’t like this kind of solemn dialog, especially not with a beautiful woman.
“Thank you, Long Chen. To tell the truth, this Ethereal Crafting Secret Record might be able to rejuvenate my clan, so it’s extremely important. Really, thank you,” said Yue Xiaoqian sincerely.
“Don’t be so courteous. Speaking of which, didn’t you say that this golden page was made of soul gold essence?”
“Yes. There are few metals that can be controlled by the soul like this. As for this particular page, it is made of soul gold whose quality is extremely high.
“Unfortunately, it hasn’t been forged into anything, and there are no runes carved into it, so it can’t count as a soul item. Otherwise, a soul cultivator wielding such a high-grade soul item could easily kill cultivators of the same realm.
