When Xiao Xue was bored, she would browse through various Cultivation Techniques, Dou Techniques, and Secret Techniques in the System's exchange interface.
Although she couldn't afford them, it didn't stop her from feasting her eyes.
Among them, she had a deep impression of this particular Secret Technique.
The "River of Immortality" was an exceptionally Heaven-Defying Secret Technique.
As the name suggested, its effect was for the sake of immortality!
It was created by the Third Generation Ancestral Master of the Wu lineage in an ancient civilization, and the strength of the Third Generation Ancestral Master had reached the limit.
It was rumored that the Third Generation Ancestral Master's strength had even surpassed the Dominator Realm and was revered by countless experts in the Three Thousand Universe Seas.
The "River of Immortality" was rated as "Imperial Rank" in the System, and there were no detailed divisions above the Heaven Rank.
However, it definitely ranked among the very top of all Secret Techniques!
The value of this Secret Technique was even higher than the "Flame Mantra" cultivated by the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor!
Of course, one was a Secret Technique and the other was a Cultivation Technique, so they couldn't really be compared like that.
The power of the "River of Immortality" lay in the fact that once this Secret Technique reached Major Achievement, it was extremely difficult to fall.
No matter how they cultivated, any expert was still made of flesh and blood, and if a person was killed, they would die.
Especially Soul attacks, which could make the opponent die a death from which they could never return, with their Soul completely annihilated.
Even with Heaven-Defying Dou Techniques like Clones, once the Soul was annihilated, death was certain.
But with the "River of Immortality," once cultivated to a certain level, one could allow parts of their body to detach completely.
For example, if a drop of blood was hidden, even if the original body and Clones were all annihilated, this specially refined drop of Essence Blood would remain safe and sound.
Then, this drop of Essence Blood could rapidly absorb energy and, after some time, transform back into the original body!
This was immortality!
As long as the river of blood did not run dry, one would be immortal and indestructible!
In other words, once the "River of Immortality" was mastered, it would be hard even to die!
Xiao Xue turned her gaze to the little fox playing on the stone coffin; she could see that its Soul had suffered significant trauma, and there didn't seem to be anything here for a Soul to attach to.
Logically, even a complete Dou Zun Soul couldn't survive in such a space, and her severely damaged remnant soul should have dissipated long ago.
The fact that this remnant soul could survive until now was definitely related to the "River of Immortality"!
Clearly, this Demon Zun had not yet reached Major Achievement with the "River of Immortality" when her time came.
Otherwise, she wouldn't exist in the world as a mere remnant soul.
However, the rich aura of life within this stone coffin was undeniable.
It seemed that what was inside this stone coffin might be the means left behind by this Demon Zun through the "River of Immortality."
It was precisely because of this that her remnant soul could remain until now.
The "River of Immortality" was extremely difficult to Cultivate; according to the System's description, its requirements for strength weren't high, and it could be cultivated at any stage.
However, its requirements for the cultivator's will and Heart-Nature were extremely strict.
In other words, this Secret Technique didn't limit strength; it all depended on whether you could endure it!
After all, the "River of Immortality" involved "copying" one's own Soul and Essence Blood, then separating them to serve as "seeds" for self-Rebirth.
During this process, one needed to "copy" the entire Soul, which meant splitting the Soul apart bit by bit, copying it, and then reattaching it.
The pain from countless instances of Soul tearing and healing could well be imagined.
Furthermore, if a mistake occurred during this process, it could cause irreversible damage to the Soul.
Once it failed, the best-case scenario was Qi Deviation, while the worst was falling on the spot.
Therefore, although the "River of Immortality" was Heaven-Defying, the only one who could practice it to the Great Perfection Realm was the Third Generation Ancestral Master who created it.
The "River of Immortality" was divided into four stages: Entry, Minor Achievement, Major Achievement, and Great Perfection; in the ancient civilization, countless Geniuses of the Wu lineage had attempted to Cultivate it.
Some of these Geniuses had received extremely precious Legacies, and some had been nurtured endlessly since birth, yet those who could reach Major Achievement numbered no more than fifty!
As for this Demon Zun, she probably made a desperate gamble before her end was near and actually managed to Cultivate it to the Entry level, allowing her remnant soul to be preserved.
Not to mention, this Demon Zun's [Opportunity 8] was indeed not simple.
Xiao Xue turned to look at the little fox beside her, her eyes shining.
If for nothing else, just for this "River of Immortality," she had to abduct this little fox.
After all, a Secret Technique of the "River of Immortality's" level naturally had its "anti-theft" measures.
Such a measure was known as—the Na Yin Secret Art.
For instance, a Peak existence of the ancient civilization might finally find a satisfactory successor and pass on their ultimate skill to them.
These Geniuses who hadn't fully matured could naturally fall midway.
Being killed during growth was one thing, but if they were killed and their memories were searched, causing the leak of the super Secret Technique they were proud of, that would be a big problem.
Therefore, they would implement many preventive measures.
This "Na Yin Secret Art" was one of them.
Only after mastering the Na Yin Secret Art would one be qualified to view the contents of the Secret Technique itself, and even if their memories were searched, under the influence of the Na Yin Secret Art, the true Secret Technique could not be found at all.
Besides its function of "protecting the Secret Technique," the Na Yin Secret Art usually also served the purpose of "selecting a qualified successor."
For example, with the "River of Immortality," only those who met the requirements could begin learning it after mastering the Na Yin Secret Art.
And this Na Yin Secret Art was naturally with this little fox... ah, no, with the Demon Zun Senior.
Although the "River of Immortality" was also sold in the System mall, it was truly at an astronomical price.
Now that there was a ready-made one right in front of her, how could Xiao Xue let this Opportunity pass?
However, how to abduct this little fox gave Xiao Xue a bit of a headache.
After all, the Senior used to be wealthy; a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.
The things piled up randomly outside far exceeded her current net worth.
Xiao Xue thought for a bit to no avail, so she immediately decided—to first take a look around this ruin.
Although it was a bit impolite, this Senior didn't seem to be very bright.
If she could find some sort of keepsake, maybe she would obediently follow her?
As a result, just as Xiao Xue turned around, the little fox "whooshed" and blocked her path.
Xiao Xue:???
The little fox waved its paws toward the stone coffin, as if beckoning Xiao Xue to come closer.
Xiao Xue instinctively threw a [Detect] at the stone coffin and received feedback from the System:
[A coffin used by a Ninth Revolution Dou Zun]
[Danger level of opening the coffin: Fatal!!!]
That made sense; how could the stone coffin of a Ninth Revolution Dou Zun expert not have any protective measures?
Just because the protective Formations in the passage had failed didn't mean it was the same in the stone chamber.
The exterior of this stone coffin was unremarkable, just like an ordinary one, but if someone tried to force it open to take something... those below Dou Zun probably wouldn't even know how they died.
Before Xiao Xue could do anything, she saw the little fox dive straight into the stone coffin.
Then, the stone coffin slowly opened.
Xiao Xue stood at a safe distance and looked from afar.
Inside the stone coffin was an exquisitely beautiful woman.
It was the first time Xiao Xue had seen a woman who could embody "allure" so perfectly.
Xiao Xue's [Charm] was at the max level, but while she looked pure, she had an inner charm; to use a term from Blue Star, it was the "Pure Desire" style.
Both pure and seductive, a total little vixen.
But the woman in the stone coffin was truly born with allure in her bones.
Just lying there, she was enough to enchant all living beings.
A head of silvery-white long hair spread behind her like seaweed, she wore a plain white silk dress, and eight fluffy fox tails were spread out on either side like peacock tail feathers.
Her skin was fair and smooth, her fingers slender and pale; she truly deserved the line, "The person by the riverside is like the moon, her fair wrists like congealed frost and snow."
The little fox jumped into the stone coffin, picked up a jade tablet in its mouth, and showed it to Xiao Xue.
When her Soul Power swept over the jade tablet, Xiao Xue's pupils constricted slightly—
Na Yin Secret Art!
When Xiao Xue instinctively reached out to take the jade tablet, the little fox dove back into the stone coffin and hid it.
Then, it flew in front of Xiao Xue again, waving its paws and pointing toward the exit of the ruins.
This meant... she wanted her to take her away from here?
After all, she was currently only a Soul body and couldn't possibly take her own "corpse" away from this place.
Likely, once removed from this stone coffin, the woman inside would immediately turn into a pile of dry bones.
This was a deal with no downside, and it aligned perfectly with Xiao Xue's intentions, so she naturally wouldn't refuse.
"Senior, I agree," Xiao Xue said.
Little Fox: "..."
"Senior, I agree!" Xiao Xue shouted at the little fox.
The little fox tilted its head, and after a few seconds, it suddenly nodded.
Xiao Xue:...She had reason to suspect that this fox didn't have amnesia, nor was it stupid; it might just simply be a bit hard of hearing.
The little fox, formed of blue smoke, crouched by the woman's hand, picked up a storage ring from her finger with its mouth, and then handed it to Xiao Xue.
Xiao Xue raised an eyebrow and let her Soul Power permeate inside.
This was an Advanced storage ring, but perhaps because the Demon Zun had fallen too long ago, or perhaps because the little fox had actively removed the Soul imprint.
Regardless, Xiao Xue entered very easily without encountering any obstacles.
There weren't many things in the storage ring, just a few scrolls and such, likely the Cultivation Techniques and Dou Techniques she had practiced, all at the Earth Rank.
However, these things didn't have much use for her.
Thus, Xiao Xue looked at the little fox beside her with a troubled expression, "Senior, you know, I'm just a small Dou Master."
"Under these circumstances, it's very difficult for me to take you out of here."
"So..."
"I'll need more money."
This chapter was edited and revised until I was finally satisfied. After all, it involves the transcendent powers of the Major Thousand Worlds and serves as foreshadowing for the future, so it took some extra time. Of course, if there are any issues, I will revise it at any time.
Greedily asking for the votes in everyone's hands.
*(^^*)*