Inside the stone chamber, Jiang Runyue sat cross-legged on a straw mat, continuously running the Taiyin Spirit Refining Technique as she quietly refined the spiritual liquid she had previously devoured.
Within her three dantians, a Primordial Spirit resided in each.
The one in the upper dantian resembled a frosty winter moon, brilliant and radiantly clear, endowed with the essence of heaven and earth.
The one in the middle dantian was like a thunder god descended to earth, mighty, imposing, and peerless.
The most mysterious and profound of the three Primordial Spirits was undoubtedly the Taiji Primordial Spirit in the lower dantian.
"Just who on earth is that mysterious man? Not only was he able to accurately find me from within the boundless void after I was forcibly expelled, but he also generously bestowed so many Dharma Treasures and spirit pills?"
Back then, after being forcibly expelled by the Heavenly Dao consciousness of that lesser thousand world, Jiang Runyue had plunged into the boundless void, nearly collapsing in heart and spirit and perishing as her Primordial Spirit disintegrated.
Not only that, but most of her Dharma Treasures—such as the Immortal-Binding Rope, the Yin-Yang Mirror, the Six Harmonies Mirror, the Longevity Sword, and the Hundred Ghosts Banner—had been completely eroded into nothingness by the power of the void.
Even the ancient divine artifact, the Fulong Ding, had been eroded beyond recognition, and its core as a divine artifact—the Asura Primordial Spirit—had been completely assimilated by the void's power.
Had the mysterious man not rescued her in the nick of time, Jiang Runyue had no doubt that facing the power of the void directly would have ended in her soul scattering and utter annihilation.
"Who on earth is he?"
Jiang Runyue's heart was filled with doubts.
"Why does he keep calling me child?"
This form of address left her deeply puzzled. After all, she was a transmigrator to begin with, and that past life of hers was entirely unknown to outsiders.
"We clearly met for the very first time, yet he called me an old friend. Could it be that I was closely acquainted with him a long, long time ago?"
Jiang Runyue could not remember what kind of interactions she had ever had with that person in the past.
"The strange thing is, those Dharma Treasures he claimed to have given me are actually heirlooms I left behind back then?"
Though she had never laid eyes on those Dharma Treasures before, she could clearly sense a most wondrous connection between the treasure spirits and herself.
This made her all the more curious about her own past.
"And then there is that utterly speech-defying, mentally challenged system. According to him, he forged it himself specifically to host the beginner's gift package."
Jiang Runyue understood in her heart that the mysterious man's divine powers were beyond all imagination.
"The beginner's gift package—containing the Wangshu and Xihe twin swords, the Yin-Yang Twin-Fish Spiritual Rhinoceros Pendant, the Life-Creation Pill, and many other treasures—was reportedly also forged by his own hands!"
These precious Dharma Treasures and pills made Jiang Runyue realize that the mysterious man was not only a grandmaster of artifact crafting, but also a grandmaster of alchemy.
"Who on earth is he?" Jiang Runyue rubbed her brow in deep thought, trying to glean some clues from her memories.
"And who was I before my reincarnation? What kind of relationship exists between him and me?"
Countless questions swirled in her mind, plunging her into deep contemplation.
All sorts of chaotic thoughts rushed into her mind like a tide, making Jiang Runyue feel a trace of vexation.
That person was simply too mysterious. Not only was his cultivation realm unfathomably deep, but even the power of the void—which had eroded the Fulong Ding down to mere scum—had not affected him in the slightest.
Feeling somewhat driven to distraction, Jiang Runyue simply cast aside all distracting thoughts and turned her gaze toward her three dantians.
In the Purple Mansion of the upper dantian, a three-foot-tall sapling was rooted deep within the sea of consciousness, and the pure and translucent Taiyin Primordial Spirit sat cross-legged directly beneath it.
In the Jianggong of the middle dantian, a purple Primordial Spirit composed entirely of the Divine Empyrean Heavenly Thunder constantly churned out bolts of thunder, its aura growing increasingly violent and unruly.
In the lower dantian, a Taiji Primordial Spirit composed of the energies of Yin and Yang dominated a vast and boundless sea of qi. The Yin and Yang energies circulated endlessly, presenting a magnificent and naturally harmonious sight.
Moreover, several Dharma Treasures of various colors floated and sank amidst the Yin and Yang energies. Judging by their shapes, they were a pair of immortal swords—one red and one blue—a pair of immortal shears in black and white, a golden rope, and a long-necked white jade bottle.
Aside from these, the beginner's gift package had also been restored to its origin by the mysterious man. Shedding its previously blinding, nouveau-riche gold exterior, it had transformed into a chaotic-colored precious pearl concealed within the Taiji Primordial Spirit.
"Good thing the Spiritual Rhinoceros Pendant wasn't eroded by the power of the void. Once my cultivation reaches full fruition in the future, perhaps one day I'll still be able to find Senior Sister!" Jiang Runyue twirled a black fish pendant in her fingers, a hint of helplessness appearing on her dashing and heroic face.
She never expected that after devouring the Beast God with the Taiyin God-Devouring Technique, she would break through the Golden Core stage and forge her Primordial Spirit, only to find that Primordial Spirit realm cultivators were not tolerated by the Heavenly Dao, resulting in her forcible expulsion from that world.
Because the distance between the two worlds was simply too vast, the Spiritual Rhinoceros Pendant had also completely lost its function, making it impossible to locate Lu Xueqi, let alone open a "video" mode.
For now, she had no good solutions. Returning was utterly out of the question; the only course of action left was to survive well.
To forge ahead with resolve and practice diligently.
Perhaps one day in the future, she would be completely fearless against the erosion of the void's power, and at that time she could traverse the boundless void, stepping across the heavens and myriad realms to search for Senior Sister.
"Senior Sister, you must wait for me!"
Uttering a soft murmur, Jiang Runyue flipped her hand to put away the Yin fish pendant, took out all the Dharma Treasures given by her new master, and first refined the exquisite and gorgeous storage pouch.
"Wow, there are actually this many spirit stones inside?"
The internal space of the storage pouch was not large—only slightly bigger than her previous beginner's gift package—but a large quantity of spirit stones was neatly stacked inside, roughly estimated to be tens of thousands of them.
Spirit stones were also the hard currency of the Tianyun Great World.
Cultivators across the four major domains were as numerous as crossing carp, spending their whole lives striving for spirit stones; without spirit stones, they could not purchase cultivation resources, and without resources, it was difficult to get by in the cultivation world.
Afterward, she successively refined the immortal sword, the banner, the bronze mirror, the phoenix hairpin, and the bracelet one by one.
The immortal sword was named Yulong, about a foot long, snowy white throughout, with a crossguard shaped like a dragon and a hilt covered in dense dragon scales.
Though it was only a simple refinement, Jiang Runyue could vaguely sense that this Yulong Immortal Sword was of extraordinary quality, and its power surpassed even the Wangshu and Xihe twin swords that had undergone four transformations of form and substance.
The banner was named Taiansu Transformation, a replica of a top-tier immortal treasure. Although far inferior in power to the genuine article, viewed across the entire Tianyun Great World, it still counted as a top-tier offensive and defensive Dharma Treasure.
The bronze mirror was named Zhaoying, a Dharma Treasure specifically used for breaking restrictive spells. Its exact functions would only be fully understood after complete refinement.
The phoenix hairpin was named Qingluan, resembling a spreading-winged qingluan in appearance, and was a rare and precious flying escape treasure.
As for that final bracelet, it was one of the lifelong proudest Dharma Treasures of True Monarch Ruiying.
The once glorious Canyue Immortal Bracelet had vanished alongside its master for nearly a thousand years, and by now it was almost entirely forgotten by the world.
"My new master's foundation is quite deep!"
Jiang Runyue stroked the Yulong Immortal Sword over and over, muttering to herself, "I wonder what kind of status the newly joined Taiyin Sect holds in the Tianyun Great World..."
Though small sects offered freedom, they were detrimental to cultivation. She had great confidence in her innate talent and comprehension; only by joining the top-tier cultivation forces could she elevate her Dao attainment and cultivation realm at the fastest possible speed.
"I always feel that mysterious man has ulterior motives. Handing over Dharma Treasures and spirit pills is one thing, but he even had the extreme kindness to gift me cultivation techniques. Is there really anyone in this world who asks for nothing in return?"
"Gifting techniques aside, he was able to merge the Great Qingming Scripture and the Sitting and Forgetting Technique into one in a short span of time. Setting aside his Dao attainment and cultivation realm, just this level of comprehension surpasses me by an incalculable margin."
"Such a figure—what on earth could he possibly want from me?"