Chapter 87: Legacy!
Inside the stone chamber, Zi Yan and the others watched Jiang Yun, who had been sitting on the altar for nearly three days. Their brows couldn't help but furrow slightly.
Although they had confidence in Jiang Yun's strength, this was, after all, the legacy of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint—an expert of such caliber who had been the very peak of the continent. So now, their hearts were still inevitably tinged with some worry.
"Sister Zi Yan, Brother Jiang Yun hasn't moved for three days. Does receiving a legacy really take this long?" After waiting a while longer, Qing Lin couldn't help but ask Zi Yan.
Hearing this, a trace of worry appropriately flickered across Zi Yan's face. But with Jiang Yun gone, she was the backbone of the three. She said confidently, "Qing Lin, don't worry. With Xiao Yun's strength, this little problem can't stump him."
Qing Lin still trusted Zi Yan's words. She could only suppress the worry in her heart and quietly wait for Jiang Yun to awaken.
Xiao Yi Xian, who had been listening with perked ears nearby, also secretly breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Without changing her expression, she fixed her eyes on the figure upon the altar.
And this waiting, in the blink of an eye, went on for another half hour. Just when even Zi Yan was growing faintly impatient, the altar suddenly burst forth with an intense radiance. Amidst this light, under the joyful gazes of Zi Yan and the other two, Jiang Yun slowly opened his tightly shut eyes.
"Xiao Yun, you're awake!"
Seeing Jiang Yun awake, Zi Yan and the other two immediately crowded around him in pleasant surprise. Even Xiao Yi Xian, who hadn't known him long, followed closely behind Zi Yan and Qing Lin, keeping pace without falling behind.
Looking at the three, Jiang Yun revealed a smile, then retrieved a jade slip.
"This is the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint's legacy?" Zi Yan looked at this jade slip of unknown material, looking at Jiang Yun with some surprise.
"You really succeeded!" Xiao Yi Xian also looked at Jiang Yun with a face full of shock. She had only just met Jiang Yun, so her feelings weren't as deep; she didn't trust him as completely as Zi Yan and Qing Lin did.
Over the past three days, under Zi Yan's popular science lessons, she had already learned just what kind of existence the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint was.
In her previous worldview, a Dou Wang was already a major figure in the Jia Ma Empire, let alone the legendary Dou Sheng.
But 'the number one expert on the continent' was enough for Xiao Yi Xian to imagine the other's power. That such an existence's legacy had actually been obtained by Jiang Yun—tell me, how could she not be shocked?
"Succeeded!" Facing Xiao Yi Xian's question, Jiang Yun nodded with a smile.
Jiang Yun wasn't in a hurry to accept the legacy within the jade slip. Instead, he looked at the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame map fragment in his hand. Now, compared to before, the lotus imprint on the fragment had become dim and lusterless, no longer possessing its former liveliness.
Sweeping it with his soul power, Jiang Yun was absolutely certain that the soul will left within it by the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint had scattered with the wind.
In other words, even if all four map fragments were gathered, relying on one-fourth of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint's remnant soul, it maybe, possibly, perhaps... would not be enough to deal with the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.
In other words, this map fragment was now useless. In the current world, only Jiang Yun, who had obtained the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint's legacy, had a chance to control the Heaven-Refining Ancient Array and thus obtain the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.
His thoughts churned, a light flickered in Jiang Yun's eyes, and he put away the map fragment. This thing was useless now, but others didn't know that. Once he reached the Central Plains, casually tossing it out could yield a whole heap of gains.
He believed even the emperor clans would be interested!
As for when they later discovered this thing was completely useless—well, that wouldn't be Jiang Yun's concern. He could keep a fragment on him then. If it wasn't complete, how could it possibly work?
Thinking of this, the corner of Jiang Yun's mouth unconsciously curled upwards. This happened to be seen by Zi Yan, who immediately let out a surprised cry.
"Wow— Xiao Yun, your smile is so wicked! What bad idea are you plotting now?"
Jiang Yun's expression stiffened slightly, and he gave Zi Yan, who was brimming with eagerness, a dirty look.
"Thwack—"
"Ouch—"
A flick landed on Zi Yan's smooth forehead, drawing a startled yelp. Zi Yan immediately clutched her forehead and looked at Jiang Yun with resentment.
"Pfft—" Having watched the two's banter with full clarity, Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin immediately burst out laughing, a hint of envy simultaneously rising in their eyes.
"It was exactly like that! Last time when Han Feng was in trouble, Xiao Yun, you smiled just like that!"
Zi Yan, who hadn't been hurt at all, put on a show of grievance. Seeing that Jiang Yun didn't come to comfort her as usual, and that she was instead being laughed at by her two little sisters on the side, she immediately stared at Jiang Yun resentfully and muttered.
Rolling his eyes at the clowning Zi Yan, Jiang Yun looked at the three and said, "I still need a little time to look over the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint's legacy. I'll have to ask you to stay here a bit longer."
"It's fine, Brother Jiang Yun's matters are more important. Qing Lin doesn't mind!" The moment Jiang Yun's words were out, Qing Lin, as his little fangirl, immediately chimed in.
"It's no trouble. When I used to go into the mountains to gather herbs, I often had to spend the night outside. Don't think of me as so fragile!" Xiao Yi Xian was also considerate and smiled gently.
He looked back at Zi Yan, who immediately nodded with a solemn expression. With their level of understanding, often just a glance was enough to know each other's thoughts. When it came to serious matters, Zi Yan was never ambiguous.
Having arranged everything, Jiang Yun once again sat cross-legged in the center of the altar and took out that jade slip. His soul power slowly seeped inside.
Instantly, a faint halo of light gradually materialized around Jiang Yun's body. The halo slowly condensed on his surface. In his mind, there seemed to be some fragmented images, and lines of text were deeply imprinted into the depths of his soul.
In a trance, Jiang Yun felt as if he had crossed through endless void and saw a figure. That figure was all too familiar to Jiang Yun—it was precisely the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint.
Just then, that figure abruptly opened its eyes and gazed at Jiang Yun. Its two pupils were milky white. The instant the eyes opened, heaven and earth seemed to brighten, as if lightning was born in an empty room. He looked at Jiang Yun, said nothing, and his entire being transformed into endless streams of light, surging toward him.
"Fated one, I hope you will make good use of my legacy!"
Accompanied by a low murmur, Jiang Yun's vision gradually began to blur. Countless pieces of information exploded in his mind. Fortunately, his soul power was tenacious enough. He only felt a slight, sharp pain before immediately recovering.
When he returned to a normal waking state, everything before him had returned to calm. Searching through the newly added memories in his mind, Jiang Yun said softly:
"Nightmare Heavenly Mist, Nightmare-Breaking Talisman, Great Compassion Hand, Fire Demon Halberd, and also the Heaven-Refining Ancient Array... Worthy of a Half-Emperor of a generation. The legacy is quite abundant. Compared to the legacy I brought down with me, putting aside those few top-tier divine abilities, the rest isn't far behind. If only he were an alchemist, I believe the pill dao legacy would surely be quite formidable as well."
"Heh— getting a bit greedy!"
At his own unrealistic fantasy, Jiang Yun gave a self-deprecating laugh. This time, it had indeed deepened his reserves once again by a large margin. Now, his accumulated legacy was ranked quite highly even across the continent.
At the same time, he also learned the reason why the legacy had appeared here. Back then, after the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint was backlashed by the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, he exhausted all his strength to open the Demonic Flame Space and used the Heaven-Refining Ancient Array to seal it.
He himself had reached a state where the oil in the lamp was spent. To prevent his legacy from being severed, and also as a backup to deal with the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, he split the demonic flame map into four. At the same time, each fragment carried a legacy stone tablet containing a jade slip with his mark, scattering them across four locations on the continent.
However, the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint had never expected that with the passing of time, who knew how many hands the demonic flame map fragments had passed through, yet not a single person could pass the legacy trial.
Every time the legacy was initiated, it consumed the energy within the stone tablet. Later, as the energy approached exhaustion, the legacy stone tablet could no longer be freely activated.
The owner of that stone chamber was also a lucky one, having obtained a demonic flame map fragment, yet for unknown reasons, died here, never having opened the legacy.
Until Jiang Yun's arrival. When three map fragments converged, the remnant soul's power within the fragments became large enough. Adding to that, after sensing Jiang Yun's extraordinary aura, the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint's remnant soul emitted fluctuations, reactivating the legacy. It intended to eradicate Jiang Yun in one fell swoop.
But who could have predicted that Jiang Yun would actually become the first person to pass the trial? Truly, fate played tricks on men!
After absorbing all the information in the jade slip, Jiang Yun rose to his feet!
The movement of Jiang Yun standing up woke Zi Yan and the other two. Zi Yan asked impatiently, "Xiao Yun, you're done? Can we leave now?"
Compared to the tranquility-loving Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin, Zi Yan was getting a bit restless. The moment she saw Jiang Yun was finished, she urged him eagerly.
"Let's go!"
Seeing Zi Yan's impatient look, she must really have been stifled. Jiang Yun smiled and ruffled her hair, saying warmly.
"Then where are we going?" Suddenly, the excited Zi Yan hit a bit of a snag. She looked at Jiang Yun somewhat quizzically. They had traveled this entire way with a very clear purpose, but it was Jiang Yun who held that purpose.
Now that Jiang Yun hadn't stated a clear next objective, she truly didn't know where to go for a moment.
Taking Zi Yan's hand, Jiang Yun turned back and looked at Xiao Yi Xian with a smile. "I need a quiet environment right now. Xiao Yi Xian can't cultivate until her Calamity Poison Body is resolved. I need to examine her constitution, after which I'll come up with a solution!"
Hearing Jiang Yun's words, Xiao Yi Xian was stunned, then her heart trembled. The rims of her eyes grew moist. She hadn't expected Jiang Yun to consider her matter so important—that right after handling his own affairs, he immediately started tackling her problem.
At this moment, she felt a warmth spread through her heart. This was the first time she'd felt this way since leaving her village.
"Sister Xiao Yi Xian!" Qing Lin sensed Xiao Yi Xian's emotions and sympathetically held her hand, offering her warmth.
"I'm fine!" Feeling Qing Lin's goodwill, Xiao Yi Xian turned and smiled. She then tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said softly to Jiang Yun with a smile, "Brother Jiang Yun... Jiang Yun, I know a quiet place that fits your requirements!"
Xiao Yi Xian had initially wanted to address Jiang Yun as 'Brother' like Qing Lin did. But thinking of something, she hesitated slightly. Ultimately, seeing Jiang Yun didn't object, she boldly called him directly by name.
"Then let's set out!" Jiang Yun didn't object and replied with a smile.
Just like when they came, Jiang Yun carried Qing Lin, Zi Yan carried Xiao Yi Xian. With Xiao Yi Xian guiding the way, the four shot directly into the sky, flying toward the destination.
The valley wasn't far from the cliff. With Jiang Yun and Zi Yan's speed, the four arrived successfully at the valley within moments.
Entering the depths of the valley, they slowly descended into the core of the basin. The rich energy permeating the small valley made the few of them take a deep breath of air, feeling their spirits instantly lift.
"What dense natural energy here!" Coming back to her senses, Zi Yan said with some surprise. As someone who had seen great things, her standards were extremely discerning. Since even she thought it was quite good, this valley was truly a treasure trove.
"How is it?"
"Nice place, right? This little valley is completely isolated from the outside, and there's thick fog masking the sky above. It's extremely hidden. If little Lan hadn't accidentally stumbled in here, I probably never would have discovered this wondrous place." Looking at everyone's expressions, Xiao Yi Xian said with a slightly proud smile.
"Oh, right. Little Lan is a rank one Blue Eagle. I treated her once. Haven't seen her these past few days though!"
"The energy is exceptionally abundant, truly a treasure land. And there are quite a few rare medicinal herbs here—very unusual indeed!"
Jiang Yun finally spoke as well. The density of energy here was comparable to the Inner Academy of Jia Nan Academy. And because one place was crowded while this place was isolated from the world, this spot was even slightly superior.
Within the valley, though the light was dim, one could still vaguely see various rare medicinal herbs growing. Waves of medicinal fragrance, mixed within the mist, were soothing and refreshing to the heart and mind.
Sensing the location of several medicinal ingredients, Zi Yan immediately flew off happily in that direction.
Seeing this, Jiang Yun didn't stop her. Instead, he said to Xiao Yi Xian beside him, "This place is good. If you're ready, we'll begin right away. I'll need your cooperation. I have to study the Calamity Poison Body before I can give a definite treatment plan."
"Right now?" Xiao Yi Xian was taken aback, not expecting Jiang Yun to be so swift and decisive. After hesitating for a moment, Xiao Yi Xian nodded. Treating it sooner was best for her; Xiao Yi Xian naturally had no objections.
"No problem, then." As he spoke, Jiang Yun glanced at Qing Lin, who had been quiet the whole time. "Qing Lin, there are quite a few rank five Magical Beasts on the outskirts of the valley. Don't go wandering alone. Just focus on your cultivation here."
"Understood, Brother Jiang Yun!" Qing Lin nodded obediently, the complete polar opposite of a certain little dragon person currently running wild with joy.
Jiang Yun nodded in satisfaction. He raised his head and surveyed the surroundings. With a lift of his hand, spirit seals glowing with mystical light flew out one after another. Under Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin's curious gazes, a tier-three Spirit-Gathering Array rapidly took shape.
The natural energy around them immediately behaved as if drawn by something, converging toward their location.
Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin watched Jiang Yun's methods with mouths agape, staring in amazement at Jiang Yun as he withdrew his hand, a trace of admiration in their eyes.
After instructing Qing Lin well, Jiang Yun brought Xiao Yi Xian to the thatched hut she had built previously.
Only now did Xiao Yi Xian, who hadn't thought much of it earlier, react. A single man and woman, alone together in a room—Xiao Yi Xian's cheeks suddenly flushed intensely hot.
With a bright red, embarrassed face, Xiao Yi Xian watched Jiang Yun's back ahead of her. Her hands nervously twisted at the hem of her clothes, and her charming eyes, seeming as if they might drip water in their redness, were fixed on the ground.