Great Sage
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Chapter 22
🕑 Added 2025-03-22 08:54:32 +0000 UTCThe sky at dawn was tinged with pale hues of white, the sun rising lazily from the east. The morning air was crisp, and the sky looked as if it had been washed clean by a gentle spring rain.
"Ahhh…" Han Luo yawned, stretching as he stepped out of his makeshift shelter. After ten years of preparation, he had finally achieved his goal, and last night's sleep had been especially sweet.
After checking the defensive formations he had set up around his dwelling to ensure everything was secure, he went through his morning routine—using the latrine, brushing his teeth, washing his face, and eating breakfast. Once he was full and satisfied, he settled at the stone table, ready to start his day.
Around him, ten first-tier formations had been carefully arranged. The reason they were all first-tier was simple—he didn’t have access to higher-level formation disks yet.
Taking out all his belongings from his spatial backpack, he began to assess his inventory.
- Bronze Mirror: A damaged postnatal spiritual treasure. Its main function was to perceive all things and reflect non-physical divine attacks. It also contained a Mirror Realm, a personal space where one could raise livestock and grow vegetables or spiritual herbs.
- Seven-Colored Stone: Unknown grade and function, its only known property was its extreme hardness. When thrown, it would automatically return to its owner’s hand.
- Bronze Ring: A custom-made artifact primarily for storage but also functioning as an emergency distress beacon. When infused with spiritual energy, it generated a protective shield, the strength of which matched the user's cultivation level. Clearly, his master had been quite thoughtful in providing it.
- Second-Tier Demon Cores: Twenty pieces.
- First-Tier Demon Cores: Ninety pieces.
- Broken Ancient Jade: Unknown grade and function. Infusing it with spiritual energy yielded no reaction, suggesting it was likely a defective item.
Apart from these, his spatial backpack contained all the tools and supplies he had gathered over the past ten years—spiritual talismans, formation plates, poisons, cooking utensils, and over thirty thousand miscellaneous items. Now that he was officially part of Luo Xian Sect, it was time to upgrade what was necessary and discard what was outdated.
Spending half a day organizing everything, he then focused on the Bronze Ring. Despite being a gift from his master, Han Luo was cautious by nature. He retrieved specialized spiritual talismans designed to test artifacts for hidden tampering.
Even though his master was unfathomably powerful and might be able to bypass detection, it was better to be safe than sorry. He meticulously tested the Bronze Ring, Bronze Mirror, Seven-Colored Stone, and Broken Ancient Jade ten times each, exhausting all his testing talismans in the process. Only when he confirmed there were no hidden dangers did he feel reassured.
He proceeded with the blood recognition ritual, binding both the Bronze Mirror and the Bronze Ring as his personal artifacts.
Just as he finished, an unexpected event occurred. The Seven-Colored Stone suddenly lifted into the air on its own and, with a sharp whoosh, embedded itself at the top of the Bronze Mirror.
Immediately, the entire mirror emitted a dazzling seven-colored glow. The cracks that once marred its surface rapidly repaired themselves until it was completely restored.
"They merged?"
Han Luo was taken aback. Holding the now palm-sized Bronze Mirror in his hand, he examined it closely. Aside from the Seven-Colored Stone now embedded in it, there seemed to be no other noticeable changes.
"This is too weird… I need to check the sect's library for any records on these artifacts. If I can't find anything, I’ll ask Master."
He didn’t like using mysterious objects of unknown origin—it made him uneasy.
By the time he finished organizing everything, the sun had already begun to set. After dinner, he lounged under the phoenix tree, basking in the warmth of the evening glow.
Then, without warning—he broke through.
"Damn it!"
Han Luo cursed at his own incompetence. He had been trying to suppress his cultivation, yet somehow, he had advanced to the second level of the Qi Refining Stage.
"Why does this keep happening?"
There was a deep frustration in his heart. Other cultivators had to struggle and train diligently for years, while he had to fight to stop himself from progressing too quickly.
"This isn't fair," he muttered, feeling utterly discontent.
Other people cultivated with sweat and blood, yet all it took for him was a moment of distraction, and he'd advance. What kind of absurd joke was this?
Shaking his head, he decided to put his frustration aside and go to sleep.
The next morning, Han Luo woke up early, finished his morning routine, and made his way to the sect’s library.
The Luo Xian Library was essentially a vast archive of knowledge. One of the reasons he had chosen Luo Xian Sect for his cultivation was precisely because of this library.
Sect Master Yun Wanli had a peculiar obsession—he loved collecting books.
During his travels across various kingdoms, he would acquire any interesting book he encountered and send it back to the sect through specially crafted teleportation formations.
After centuries of collecting, the Luo Xian Library had become the most extensive archive in the Eastern Region, boasting a collection of over ten million volumes.
The categories were vast and varied—cultivation techniques, divine abilities, spiritual talismans, alchemy, formation arrays, even historical records and imperial scandals.
And because of this immense resource, Han Luo had crafted his next ten-year plan.
The Next Ten-Year Plan:
1. Mastering Formations, Alchemy, and Talismans
These three disciplines were mandatory.
They were essential for his survival. He never felt safe relying on someone else’s tools. What if they cut corners in the crafting process? What if they hid malicious enchantments?
If he crafted everything himself, he could be certain of their reliability.
Formation arrays would provide secure cultivation chambers.
Alchemy would allow him to refine pills to aid his breakthroughs.
Talismans would serve as both defensive measures and escape tools.
He also needed to stockpile a variety of talismans, including his favorites—"Peaceful Passing Gift Package," "Instant Disintegration Package," and "Three-Thousand Instant Death Package."
Because in the world of cultivation, you never knew when someone might try to kill you.
2. Reaching the Peak of Qi Refining
Within the next decade, he needed to push his cultivation to the seventh level of the Qi Refining Stage.
At the same time, he planned to refine his spiritual energy to its purest possible form.
While spiritual energy itself had no fixed strength, there was a difference between crude and refined energy.
The purer the energy, the greater the combat strength.
Additionally, using highly refined energy in alchemy, talisman crafting, and formation engraving would make the final products hundreds of times more effective.
3. Other Goals
There were smaller side objectives that would be developed along the way.
While reviewing his ten-year plan in his mind, he arrived at the Luo Xian Library.
The massive structure occupied an entire mountain. The 99-story tower stretched into the heavens, standing like a sacred monument to knowledge.
The entrance was bustling with disciples from various peaks, their distinctive robes making it easy to tell them apart.
Piao Miao Peak disciples wore flowing red robes with sheer silk accents, their graceful figures reminiscent of celestial phoenixes.
Yun Ding Peak disciples wore blue and white robes, radiating an elegant and scholarly aura.
Qian Ren Peak disciples donned black and gold, exuding a sense of battle-hardened ferocity.
As for Luo Xian Peak and Wu Dao Peak, their disciples were rarely seen. Luo Xian Peak was an enigmatic faction, while Wu Dao Peak simply had too few people.
Fortunately, Han Luo blended in effortlessly.
Because he was wearing Yun Ding Peak’s robes.
With thousands of Yun Ding disciples, no one would ever notice an extra face.
Dressed inconspicuously, he stepped inside, heart pounding with excitement.
The Luo Xian Library operated on automated access control. As long as a disciple carried their sect badge, they could enter freely.
Han Luo passed through smoothly.
It seemed that his Bronze Ring functioned as his Wu Dao Peak identity token.
Looking at the towering shelves filled with books, he took a deep breath.
Time to get to work.
Determined, he found the formation studies section and immediately dove in.
