Chapter 223

Chapter 223: The Ancient Dynasty Bestows the Seal

With a "ding," the green light formed a series of numbers.

Li Hui was utterly confused, unable to understand what this set of Ancient Seal Characters meant.

“Congratulations, Your Excellency, you have passed the outer island test at Wan Nest Island and been granted the title of scholar, qualifying for the provincial examination. If you further pass the inner island provincial examination, you will receive the title of recommended candidate, qualifying for the final examination. Having traversed the great formation and encountered the Earth Emperor’s hall, you will be granted the title of presented scholar, qualifying for the palace examination…”

As the voice echoed, Li Hui stood dumbfounded for a long time before reacting with a wail, “What the heck? Scholar, recommended candidate, presented scholar? I’m a cultivator, not some scholar buried in books, nor a recommended candidate rushing to the capital for exams! Why are these titles even popping up?”

Wan Nest Island was full of oddities. The green light formed the Ancient Seal Characters “96335,” retaining the “9” at the front, while the “6335” suddenly extended, forming a massive green light that stretched toward the red staircase.

Li Hui cautiously took a step, but his form wobbled as he landed on the first step, stirring his heart: “Could it be that the numbers correspond to how many steps I can take? Does ‘6335’ mean I can take six thousand three hundred thirty-five steps?”

He took another step, and green light sprang up behind him, restoring the staircase’s red color as if heat was rising.

“Got it; it does relate to the number of steps.” Li Hui found it amusing, “They made it all mysterious as if it were some grand secret. They could have just told me I could walk over six thousand steps!”

He descended the stairs, passing nine hundred ninety-nine steps, and entered a spacious underground hall.

A corridor expanded before him, with three zhang-high palace lamps standing on either side. The green light shot out, making the palace lamps flicker with golden flames, driving away the darkness and illuminating the surroundings.

Li Hui scanned around, noticing nothing unusual. He then stepped forward along the corridor, discovering the range of the palace lamps could be moved freely without consuming green light. Not long after, he saw another entrance and a staircase spiraling downward, but this time, the stairs had changed from red to purple, intricately carved with complex patterns that shimmered softly.

Continuing downward, he walked down nine hundred ninety-nine steps again. He encountered another corridor, now with a golden staircase—neither the color of gold nor that of the jade stone, but a beautiful bright yellow, with various geographical patterns carved on its surface.

Li Hui memorized the patterns, and this time instead of nine hundred ninety-nine steps, he took three hundred thirty-three steps before entering the third underground level.

Lights flickered on, revealing eight altars arranged according to the positions of the Eight Trigrams. Light swirled above them, an astonishing spiritual energy wafted through, and the Heavenly and Earthly Arrays became unusually joyful, allowing him to feel a gain with every breath.

“These altars are of such an ancient design. It is said that in ancient times, the governance of a nation hinged on rituals and military might, and offerings held a significant place. The items on these altars must not be moved lightly, or one would invite heavenly punishment.” Li Hui gazed at the center of the altar, noticing the table and instruments, and he hesitated, suppressing his greed.

For cultivators, mastering self-restraint is essential; if one cannot learn to control oneself, it affirms the saying, “Fortune and Calamity have no door; only people invite them.”

As he passed by the altars, the light and shadow before him swayed, revealing a bright yellow grand hall with the words “Tai Chi” inscribed on the plaque. Golden armored warriors guarded the hall’s entrance, ancient, solemn, and imposing.

With a loud “bang,” the light and shadow shattered, and Li Hui blinked in surprise—where was the grand yellow hall? All that lay ahead was a broken stone wall.

On the stone wall, a disjointed phrase was written: “Life is but a dream, one should sing loudly while drinking. Yin-Yang and Eight Trigrams, wandering through the ancient homeland! The carved columns and jade balustrades have turned to dust, thousands of halls have become but a wall. Alas! Tears shed in lament! Those who see are destined to be connected, having received the court’s recognition, passing the examination is cause for celebration. However, my powers are limited; I can only grant a seal of the ninth-rank official as a fellow scholar. I hope that you will continue to strive!”

“Ancient homeland? Fellow scholar, a seal?” Li Hui was still dizzy! Suddenly, he felt an object appear in his hand. Looking down, he saw it was a copper ring, inscribed with the small words “Deputy Inspector General.”

“This is the official seal?” he grumbled to himself, “Inspector General would have been fine! But why add a ‘Deputy’ in front? How stingy can one be? To give a ninth-rank sesame official just because we’re fellow scholars, isn’t that a bit shabby?”

The stone wall rippled, and the inscription vanished without a trace.

To all appearances, it was just an ordinary stone wall, but the copper ring was certainly real.

Guang Jin suddenly spoke, “Young Master, this is a good item! I once saw a ring like that unearthed from ancient ruins. Although it’s not a ritual artifact, it can suppress luck and evil spirits. Wearing it for a long time might even help control the Bodhi fruit.”

“Oh? It has such benefits?” Li Hui slipped it onto his right index finger; it was initially loose, but it quickly tightened, wrapping tightly around his finger. His mind filled with bureaucratic notions, and he instantly understood the ring’s purpose. The title of the Deputy Inspector General had functions like overseeing local officials, which required some form of disguise for ease of movement.

Changing one’s appearance was merely a low-level disguise. This ring could alter qualifications, modify Spirit Motion marks, hide one’s luck, also collect the necessary materials, accumulate righteous energy, and create an impressive official robe.

“With the Inspector Official Robe of the Deputy Inspector General, I can operate at night or during the day, enhancing my authority and dignity, not to mention how handsome it looks! Hahaha! Plus, I needn’t worry about it breaking down; summoning ghosts to pull my horse or tie me up is child’s play, and I won’t be harmed by hidden methods. It’s wonderfully mystical!”

Li Hui couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear, finally having something similar to a ritual artifact. Since the silver snake bracelet had not reacted, it was evident it was merely of extraordinary material, crafted uniquely, much like the Clear Void Cup.

The Clear Void Cup holds too little alchemy; under normal usage, greatly improving the quality of alchemy takes a lot of time. Using Liu Su water and Tianyi water consumes excessively, which is manageable for handling spoils but not practical for purchasing elixirs. And with the cup severely worn, it was far less useful than the freshly acquired copper ring.

At that moment, a voice came from behind the altar: “Help me, save me! This demon lord can offer you ritual artifacts, treasures—whatever you want. Take me out of here! You carry demonic energy, we can coexist peacefully.”

Li Hui was astonished. He had only glanced at the eight altars while walking through the corridor without encountering any complications, but to think there was something tricky about the altar.

Guang Jin was surprised, “It’s an artifact demon! How did it end up here?”

“Let’s go take a look.” As Li Hui turned to head back, he had just stepped out of the corridor toward the altar when he saw green light flash at his feet. He realized he needed to walk at least five or six hundred steps to reach the altar. That was far too much.

“Come quickly! You won’t lose out! I have the Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King,” the artifact demon urged urgently, panic evident in its voice.

“Now I get it! I wondered where the demonic energy and rare ginseng were coming from. It turns out it really ran to the axis of the earth!” Li Hui shouted back, “You’re always cunning. Throw the Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King over here first, and I’ll think of a way to rescue you.”