Chapter 22
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Chapter 22: Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique
Li Hui sat down and carefully reviewed the ancient travelogue.
Though it was called a travelogue, it mostly contained scattered thoughts.
This elder did not give up; he believed that the silver snake’s ability to devour so many treasures meant it was an even more remarkable artifact. So, on his way back to the Wutu Continent, he continually tried to use it, even in battles.
However, he ended up with another dozen pages of “Goodness.”
This silver snake simply ate without a care, ignoring the rest; what did fighting matter to it? If an artifact approached too quickly, it wouldn’t eat it. If an artifact was too far away, it wouldn’t eat it either. Even if the artifact’s owner was too strong, it would choose not to eat.
Chen Mengde cried without tears, realizing he was being bullied.
Until he crossed the vast seas and returned to the Wutu Continent, the silver snake remained just that—a silver snake that just kept consuming. During this time, it only managed to show a bit of value by ignoring the sealing traps of storage bags and rings, devouring everything within, including the ritual artifacts.
The only commendable trait was that the silver snake was never picky; it would eat both artifacts and much lower-grade treasures. As for any benefits in return? He might as well rest on that thought! Not a chance at all.
Poor high-level demon cultivator Chen Mengde intended several times to discard the silver snake, but when it came time to act, he burst into tears. This snake had become his inner demon; without conquering it, he would never have a chance to break through.
To eliminate this silver snake, Chen Mengde set off on another journey after returning to the sect.
He explored deep places, searching high and low, enduring great hardships to craft law seals, and finally achieved his wish when his life was nearing its end.
“Seriously?” Li Hui exclaimed, his face growing dark.
This elder had not managed to slay the silver snake, not even leaving a single scar. Instead, he left countless talismans on the silver snake, accumulating them to the level of Dao Rhythm, which transformed it into a Dao Rhythmic Artifact. Now, every time it devoured a ritual artifact or magic item, it had to empower the talismans with greater strength.
“That wish was quite unique, but in the end, old elder battled the silver snake in vain. Although he achieved a minor victory, pulling feathers from the iron rooster, he must be smiling in the afterlife. The problem is, what does it mean to have the silver snake locked into a bracelet and forcefully recognize its owner? Once put on, it can’t be removed. Is it meant for passing the title of artifact to future generations?”
Li Hui forced a smile. As a cultivator, especially a young male cultivator, who wouldn’t want to wield a sword solo? Who wouldn’t want to hold a treasured artifact and fight? But against the silver snake, that dream was shattered.
“Wait a minute, that’s not right! The elder died outside the sect and before his death sealed the silver snake, sending the travelogue back to the scripture hall, awaiting a fortunate disciple to inherit it. Here’s the catch: only true disciples can enter the scripture hall freely. Even inner sect disciples must expend sect contributions to read the texts. So how did this bracelet end up with me?”
Thinking of this, Li Hui glanced at the mountain of books around him, suddenly conjuring a ridiculous thought: “Could it be that all the texts from the scripture hall ended up in my head?”
However, once this thought emerged, it lingered as he vaguely recalled faint light and shadow and the presence of people, both male and female, around him. Then, ink rushed in, swirling everywhere—characters in various forms: small seal script, regular script, clerical script, oracle bone script, tadpole script, cuneiform—everything was present.
“What if, just what if, I unknowingly entered the scripture hall, and that’s how I obtained the silver snake bracelet?” Li Hui suddenly stood up, anxiously digging around him for concrete evidence.
“Military strategy, travelogues, mathematics, astrology, Spirit Motion marks, mechanisms, artifact catalogs, detailed explanations of alchemy… why is it all just this?”
“Where’s the cultivation method? Where’s the unique method of the Jade Symbol Sect?”
At some point, Li Hui turned into a breeze, rushing down from the mountain of books. He began searching extensively for cultivation methods, causing papers to fly everywhere and scattering characters all around.
“Where are the methods? Where are the talisman methods?”
“Where are the cultivation methods?”
“Where are the talisman methods?”
With each echo, the whole world shook. Li Hui felt as if every character was imprinted in his mind, and he just needed to break some kind of restraint to see them.
“Open, open, open…”
“Come to me, come to me, come to me…”
Li Hui shouted. At this moment, he began to vaguely guess that he had three years of life left in connection with the sect and that the order from the inner sect had him travel to the White Sea. Something must be hidden behind all this.
“Crack!”
A sound came from above, where the sky cracked open, revealing two golden claws that shone bright scales, ready to shred mountains and rivers with their might. Many ancient books took off in panic like butterflies or bats, scattering like birds and beasts.
“Roar…” The cry was exceptionally unique, as the two golden claws dashed with incredible speed, pinning down two shadows of the books under Li Hui’s determined will.
“Claws? Spirit Motion marks? Are these claws a manifestation of my Spirit Motion marks?”
The claws transformed into mist and vanished, and in Li Hui’s hands appeared a scroll and a piece of silk book. He hurriedly opened the scroll.
It recorded fifty-six types of symbols that could be written on talisman paper to create talismans. The most precious part was that these runes were taught from simple to deep, refining the four major talisman systems. At advanced levels, they could merge to form complex talismans, even Divine Talismans and demonic talismans, accessible only to true disciples of the Jade Symbol Sect.
“Record of the Four Gods and Demons? It’s said that on top of spirit talismans are treasure talismans, and above treasure talismans are Jade Symbols, which divide into divine talismans and demonic talismans.”
Li Hui didn’t jump for joy; instead, he felt a heavy gloom.
The Record of the Four Gods and Demons must be the most authentic classic of the Jade Symbol Sect, confirming his speculation that the sect had actually transported the scripture hall’s texts into the mind of an outer disciple.
“Heh, an outer disciple, a scripture hall—what a clever plan!” Li Hui forced a smile. “No one would ever link these two concepts together. For a lowly cultivator like me to bear so many texts, the sect must have put in great effort. Brilliant! Truly brilliant! Perhaps as a porter, I should be deeply grateful. After all, in the minds of those people, it is only right to sacrifice for the sect.”
Suddenly, the silk book in his hand radiated light, and the words “Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique” floated up, followed by the engraved characters leaping out of the book and dancing around Li Hui.
“Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique?”
“Interesting, I didn’t choose this book; this book chose me, allowing me to break free from the restraints.” Li Hui had a flash of inspiration as he grabbed nearby miscellaneous books, finding that these books imposed no restrictions on him; he could browse freely. However, to access the sect’s cultivation methods and secrets, he had to break through certain constraints.
Countless engraved characters swirled around him, dancing more and more wildly.
At the same time, Li Hui felt a sudden clarity; the Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique was not a cultivation method but a secret technique for auxiliary attacks. If it matched with Spirit Motion marks, it could unleash tremendous power.
“Dragon Claw? Dragon Claw?” Li Hui could hardly believe it. “Could it be that the Spirit Motion mark I opened is not the Eagle Claw pattern, but the Dragon Claw pattern?”
