Chapter 67

In this mansion, this time, there were about eighty to ninety new disciples from the Suwu Wei Mansion residing here.

Most of these tribal disciples came from the powerful tribes in the southern slopes of the Python Tooth Ridge and the northern wilderness of Cangbei.

These powerful tribes had been subjugated to the Su family as early as eight or nine hundred years ago, and had long been an integral part of Canglan, maintaining close ties with the Su family and various forces in Canglan City.

The noble children of these powerful tribes had long come to Canglan City to practice mystic arts, and they wore cotton and silk like the people of Yunzhou, gradually being assimilated into the local culture, no longer resembling the wild tribes.

Only Chen Xun and four others represented the northern tribes of Python Tooth Ridge, appearing in Canglan City for the first time, wearing leather boots and leather clothing, with bare chests and exposed breasts, looking entirely like wild tribesmen, and everything about them seemed out of place.

In Canglan City, the treatment of the wild tribes was indeed differentiated between the "familiar savages" and the "raw savages."

The "familiar savages" referred to those tribes that had been assimilated and subjugated to the Su family for a long time, and the Su family's descendants had a higher acceptance of them; while tribes like the Black Python from the northern mountains naturally belonged to the "raw savages," and in the eyes of the Su family's descendants, they were uncivilized barbarians.

When Chen Xun and his group first moved into the mansion, they would inevitably encounter some ridicule and sarcasm.

Chen Xun knew that their entry into Canglan City with such a grand presence, but to integrate into the Suwu Wei Mansion and the Canglan Academy, was not an easy task. He specially called Gu Jianfeng, Zong Ling, Nan Xi, Qian Lan, and others to discuss:

"In the next ten days, everyone should stay in their own courtyards as much as possible, focus on cultivation, and familiarize themselves with the situation in the Canglan Academy as much as possible..."

"Should we just let them bully us?" Nan Xi asked. In just a few days, he had been mocked and teased multiple times, and his youthful temper made it hard for him to hold back his anger.

"If we don't keep a low profile now, we will easily become the target of everyone's attacks," Chen Xun said. "Endure for a few days, and once the seventy or eighty of them start to quarrel and split into groups, we will have our chance to settle scores and take revenge..."

Chen Xun knew that they had thoroughly offended the Gui Xi tribe this time.

As long as he and Zong Ling, Nan Xi, and others were in the Canglan Academy, they didn't have to worry about the Gui Xi daring to defy the Su family and launch a clan-exterminating attack on the Black Python. However, if they wanted to cultivate peacefully in the Canglan Academy, it would not be easy.

At this time, making the most of every moment for cultivation was extremely important.

As long as they could advance to the Rebirth Realm, they would no longer have to look at the Gui Xi tribe's face when moving around in Python Tooth Ridge. There was no need to get entangled in the intrigues among the new disciples. He also believed that among the nearly ninety new disciples of the Suwu Wei Mansion, apart from their five, the other seventy or eighty would not always stick together.

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Even after officially joining the Canglan Academy, the new disciples of the Suwu Wei Mansion still lived in this mansion.

Each disciple had their own residence and courtyard, and each courtyard had a dedicated study and a secret chamber for cultivation.

Although there were no mystic arts or secret manuals in the study, some basic knowledge about cultivation, alchemy, and the academy's rules and regulations were already prepared on silk scrolls.

These silk scrolls were provided for the new disciples to read, to broaden their horizons and familiarize themselves with the necessary basic knowledge before formal cultivation.

For those from powerful tribes or the Su family, these silk scrolls were quite common, but for Chen Xun, who had just arrived from the wild tribes and was eager to learn more about this realm, each one was a treasure.

Chen Xun, like a small white flower in the desert on the verge of withering, was desperately absorbing every drop of morning dew, almost reading the silk scrolls day and night.

"Secrets of Mystic Symbols..." Chen Xun took a silk scroll from the long desk in the study and stood by the bright window to read it.

This forty to fifty-page silk scroll did not involve specific cultivation techniques, but as a novice, Chen Xun urgently needed this book to supplement his knowledge of mystic symbols. He felt that this trip was not in vain, otherwise, where could he learn these basic knowledge, no matter how rudimentary?

Whether it was the Tian Gang Symbol Coins, Mystic Armor, Frost Cold Knife, or the trial iron plates, they all possessed various supernatural abilities due to the mystic symbols inscribed on them. The initial mystic symbols of Yunzhou, which were also the most common human-level and earth-level mystic symbols, were derived from the ancient great beings' comprehension and analysis of the Dao Essence Sky Map.

The Dao Essence Sky Map again?

Chen Xun couldn't help but think of the terrain map fragment that his grandfather Zong Tu had shown him. The true Nine Abyss War Spear was also comprehended by the Black Python's ancestors from the Python Map. He thought that if he could break into the Great Solitary Peak, break open the isolated cliff, and retrieve the Python Map, its value might not be inferior to the Su family's most secret and profound mystic arts...

But thinking of the fierce beast trapped by the isolated cliff, Chen Xun knew that even if he advanced to the Rebirth Realm, the chance of obtaining the Python Map was extremely slim.

He couldn't even recognize the more than a hundred ancient characters written on the terrain map fragment. Who knew what other dangers and mechanisms were hidden beneath the isolated cliff, besides the fierce beast that could release electric snakes and lightning?

Thinking of the Great Solitary Peak, Chen Xun, sitting in the quiet room, couldn't help but look past the window, past the towering walls of Canglan, toward the mountains and ridges where the spiritual aura gathered in the north, wondering if Su Tang's injuries had healed and when they would meet again in Canglan City.

Chen Xun gathered his mind, sat cross-legged on a cushion, drew out the Frost Cold Knife, and placed it horizontally on his knees, gently touching the mysterious symbols inscribed on the blade.

Even without the blood ritual, he could feel the extremely cold mystic energy flowing from his fingertips into the blade, sensing that even the lowest-level mystic symbols had profound and mysterious power for ordinary people.

The silk scroll "Secrets of Mystic Symbols" described the mystic symbols in the world as numerous as the stars in the sky, with an extremely wide variety. Due to the limited length of the scroll, it only briefly introduced the lowest-level dozens of symbols. The two Tian Gang Symbol Coins Chen Xun carried, inscribed with the Dust Avoidance Symbol and the Water Purification Symbol, were among them. As long as a bit of spiritual awareness was injected, they had the mystical effects of dust avoidance and water purification.

For true cultivators, comprehending mystic symbols was also the foundation of practicing magic.

Chen Xun's mind delved into the sea of souls, and at this time, he could already draw two or three mystic symbols using the blood and qi. Using the Dragon Binding Technique to generate the mystic bell sound to vibrate the spiritual awareness, he could inject it into the mystic symbols, making them remain unextinguished in the sea of souls.

However, condensing mystic symbols in the sea of souls was just the first step. Chen Xun still needed to learn the corresponding spells to truly perform the Dust Avoidance Spell and the Water Purification Spell.

When performing spells, a large amount of spiritual awareness and blood and qi would be consumed.

Chen Xun had only been practicing the Dragon Binding Technique for a short time, and his spiritual awareness was as fine as a thread, and his blood and qi were far from pure. Even if he knew the spells, he could only perform simple spells like the Dust Avoidance Spell and the Water Purification Spell seven or eight times in a row. For more advanced spells like the Vajra Body Spell, Chen Xun could only perform them once or twice even if he learned the spells.

Before advancing to the Rebirth Realm and breaking through the physical barrier, cultivators could not directly absorb the mystic energy and spiritual energy from the heavens and earth, so performing spells was a luxury. Drawing the mystic symbols on talismans in advance and injecting spiritual awareness during combat to perform the spells was a convenient method.

Compared to spells and talisman techniques, the use of mystic weapons was much simpler.

After the blood ritual, the soul's aura could be integrated into the mystic symbols inscribed on the mystic weapon. As long as the soul was cultivated to the point of generating spiritual awareness, it could resonate with the mystic symbols, and a thread of spiritual awareness could continuously draw the heavenly and earthly spiritual energy, generating various mystical powers.

This was why mystic weapons were particularly precious. For small tribes like the Black Python and Black Mountain, obtaining one was a clan treasure.

This time, they extorted ten mystic weapons from the Gui Xi tribe, which would significantly weaken the Gui Xi tribe's strength.

However, the Gui Xi tribe's willingness to hand over ten mystic weapons to save Lou Shiyi's life indicated that Lou Shiyi was of higher value to the Gui Xi tribe.

The Vajra Mystic Armor Chen Xun wore was made from the skin of a saber-toothed tiger, inscribed with two layers of Vajra Mystic Symbols. He immediately performed the blood ritual upon obtaining it.

Sitting cross-legged in deep meditation, his spiritual awareness spread out and resonated with the soul's aura he left in the mystic symbols after the blood ritual.

The spread spiritual awareness rippled like water, injecting into the Vajra Mystic Armor. The two layers of Vajra Mystic Symbols inscribed on the armor seemed to come alive, filled with an indescribable spiritual aura.

The faint mystic energy and spiritual energy from the heavens and earth gathered and injected into the mystic symbols, slowly generating a more condensed and unscattered protective Vajra power.

Chen Xun and Gu Jianfeng had tested the Vajra Mystic Armor on the way. After absorbing enough spiritual energy and generating the protective Vajra power, it could withstand about eight or nine heavy slashes from his knife.

During combat, when the protective Vajra power was exhausted, as long as the mystic symbols on the armor were not destroyed, even if the armor was slightly damaged, it would not affect its reuse.

However, Chen Xun's current spiritual awareness was as fine as a thread, and it took about half a day for the Vajra Mystic Armor to absorb enough heavenly and earthly spiritual energy to generate the protective Vajra power.

Gu Jianfeng and others, who had not cultivated their spiritual awareness, needed ten times as long to fully activate the Vajra Mystic Symbols on the armor.

Chen Xun could not teach Gu Jianfeng and others the Dragon Binding Technique to cultivate their spiritual awareness, but for Gu Jianfeng and others, the ritual to draw spiritual energy from the mystic weapons was also a simple method to cultivate their spiritual awareness.

Compared to the Vajra Mystic Armor inscribed with two layers of Vajra Mystic Symbols, the Frost Cold Knife Chen Xun extorted from the Gui Xi tribe was inscribed with only one layer of Frost Cold Mystic Symbol.

Previously, while rushing on the journey, Chen Xun had performed the blood ritual on the Vajra Mystic Armor and worn it for protection, but he had not yet performed the blood ritual on the Frost Cold Knife.

Trapped in the mansion, time was abundant.

Chen Xun followed the method taught by Ge Yi on the journey, sat cross-legged, and placed the Frost Cold Knife in front of his knees.

The Frost Cold Knife was made of divine patterned cold iron, inscribed with the Frost Cold Mystic Symbol, and placed in an extremely cold place for several years to be tempered by the mystic cold energy. It was one foot long in the handle and four feet long in the blade, totaling five feet, similar in length and shape to the Black Python long knife, but it was twice as heavy.

Chen Xun, without using his savage soul combat technique, had the strength of five to six thousand in his arms, and could wield a three to five hundred-pound weapon with ease.

This Frost Cold Knife, being so heavy, only made his knife strikes more powerful.

The divine patterned cold iron was valuable in Canglan, and a piece of it was worth a hundred Tian Gang Symbol Coins. To invite a high-level expert to inscribe the Frost Cold Symbol on the blade, the Gui Xi tribe must have paid a significant price for this knife.

Chen Xun cut his finger and dripped blood onto the mystic symbol on the blade.

The blade was bright, like the moon reflected in a pond. Chen Xun focused his eyes on the blade, and his mind and spirit were concentrated on it. When the soul's aura in the blood gradually merged with the mystic symbol and resonated with his soul, he reined in his thoughts and thought: This is considered a successful ritual, it's really simple.

This was mainly because the Gui Xi tribe only wanted to save Lou Shiyi's life and did not want to cause any trouble. The ten mystic weapons they sent had already had the original soul's aura removed, otherwise, Chen Xun and his group could not have performed the ritual to use them.

After the blood ritual on the Frost Cold Knife, Chen Xun spread his spiritual awareness and injected it into the Frost Cold Mystic Symbol. When the blade absorbed enough mystic cold energy, Chen Xun felt a significant drain on his mind and spirit.

The savage soul was the foundation of everything. Chen Xun closed his eyes and visualized the savage soul, generating spiritual awareness.

When the fatigue from the significant drain on his mind and spirit was completely eliminated, Chen Xun stood up, slightly shook his wrist, and released several layers of Frost Cold Knife shadows. The extremely cold mystic energy leaked out, and the quiet room immediately condensed with frost.

Chen Xun felt that the Frost Cold Knife was very powerful. Wielding this knife, the extremely cold mystic energy leaking from the blade was no less than the mystic energy he released when using the savage soul knife technique.

The quiet room was too small for Chen Xun to fully perform the savage soul knife technique, so he took the knife and walked to the courtyard.

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