While everyone was still processing the results of the competition, Zhuan Ming had already disappeared.
For the first time in a long while, rain began to fall from the sky.
He quickly returned home to change his clothes and retrieve the death path talismans before immediately heading toward the ruins.
Standing at the center of the platform, he began performing the dance he had deduced to be the ritual. With every step, he channeled spiritual energy into the ground beneath him.
After the final movement was completed, the earth beneath him began to sink, slowly lowering him underground.
To his surprise, the inheritance had been beneath his feet the entire time, hidden below the platform on which he had always stood.
The tunnel around him lit up as spirit stone lamps embedded within the walls came to life one after another. Following the illuminated path, he eventually arrived at a massive underground chamber.
At the center stood a large square structure with enormous stone doors that blocked his way.
An inscription carved into the wall read:
"To open the door, you must solve the puzzle. Failure will result in immediate death."
Before the doors floated numerous stone pieces, each engraved with various images. Unlike ordinary puzzles, however, every piece had perfectly straight edges and no connecting points.
There was no room for trial and error.
The answer had to be correct on the first attempt.
Zhuan Ming carefully observed the pieces.
There was a mountain.
A sun.
Clouds.
Rain.
An oval shape that resembled a lake or sea.
Then realization struck him.
It was a visual representation of the water cycle.
Most cultivators would never recognize it. Water simply existed in their world. Rain fell from the heavens just as it always had for countless generations.
Few ever stopped to wonder why.
But Zhuan Ming had lived for centuries.
He understood the laws governing the world and the natural processes hidden beneath everyday phenomena.
Without hesitation, he arranged the pieces in their proper order and inserted them into the doors.
A deep rumbling echoed through the chamber.
The massive doors slowly opened.
Inside rested a single ring.
But it was no ordinary ring.
It was a storage ring.
A treasure born from the fusion of space and illusion path techniques.
The ring itself was dark blue with elegant golden lines running across its surface, while a pale blue gemstone rested at its center.
After refining it, Zhuan Ming immediately inspected its contents.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
The inheritance was far richer than he had expected.
The ring itself was already a valuable treasure. Storage rings of this quality were incredibly expensive, and most mortals would never earn enough wealth to purchase one in their entire lifetime.
Inside were numerous treasures.
There was an artifact capable of accelerating the growth of spiritual plants, along with a collection of rare seeds.
There was also a water path shield and sword. Both artifacts could store rainwater and water-attributed spiritual energy, increasing their power over time.
The sword, in particular, could extend its blade according to the amount of water energy it contained.
The final artifact was a flute capable of commanding beasts and animals whose souls were weaker than the user's own.
In addition to the artifacts, the ring contained one thousand high-grade spirit stones, one hundred water path cultivation pills, healing pills, medicinal herbs, water beast bones, soul cleansing pills, soul nourishing pills, and soul healing pills.
These were enormous gains.
In a single day, Zhuan Ming felt as though he had taken several large steps forward on his cultivation path.
After refining the artifacts, he returned to the surface using the same platform and headed home.
When he finally arrived, he found Li Qingyue standing outside his door with an expression of obvious frustration.
"Where have you been?" she asked the moment he came within earshot.
Before he could answer, she continued.
"Actually, never mind. You've caused quite an uproar in the sect. Everyone wants to know who this Zhuan Ming is and where he lives."
She crossed her arms.
"And guess who got sent to find him? His girlfriend, apparently."
Zhuan Ming raised an eyebrow but remained silent.
"You've been invited to the sect's gathering. It's an order from the sect, so don't even think about skipping it."
She turned around and began walking away.
"You need to be there in an hour."
After a brief pause, she added,
"See you there."
She left before giving him a chance to say a single word.
Zhuan Ming watched her disappear into the distance.
It seemed she had been waiting for quite some time.
"Being invited to a gathering..."
He quickly understood the sect's intentions.
Most likely, they intended to tie him more closely to the sect, perhaps by offering resources, benefits, or connections to one of the influential clans.
After all, he had very few attachments.
Most disciples had families, relatives, or friends they wished to protect.
Zhuan Ming had none.
Aside from an aunt who barely cared for him, he stood alone.
It was only natural that the sect would want to strengthen its relationship with him before someone else tried to recruit him away.
With that thought, Zhuan Ming changed into more appropriate clothing and headed toward the gathering.