Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Jing Yan reached Precelestial rank at the age of fourteen, and by the age of sixteen, he had been recruited to one of the top three Institutes in the Lan Qu Province, the Wind God Institute. It was a glamorous achievement that would make anyone envious.
Because of this misfortune-bringing ring, his rank had fallen drastically. Under its influence, he had become practically useless! Any man with a little less determination might have gone mad in such circumstances.
Now, Tian Shui, the old man in front of him, was claiming that Jing Yan had hit the jackpot. Where was the d*mned jackpot?
Only the fact that Jing Yan didn’t know who this man was kept him from slapping the old man upside the head.
“Of course!” Tian Shui saw that Jing Yan didn’t look even remotely amused. He grinned and said, “Don’t worry, little guy! Do you know the origin of this Ring of the Universe?”
“The origin of the Ring of the Universe? All I know is that it was left to me by my grandfather, and he told me to take care of it.” Jing Yan looked at the ring on his finger, not knowing whether he should keep it on or take it off.
However, from what Tian Shui had said, the seal on the Ring of the Universe had broken open, meaning that the ring had absorbed enough Vital Qi from him. It might not need to absorb more Vital Qi from here on, and if so, he could continue his cultivation as usual to regain his former rank.
“Your grandfather indeed left you the ring, but the history of this ring isn’t that simple,” Tian Shui said, squinting his eyes.
“What is the origin of the Ring of the Universe?” Jing Yan asked, although he wasn’t actually very interested. In fact, since he had discovered the reason that his rank had fallen, all he really wanted to do at that moment was begin cultivating again.
However, if Tian Shui had truly managed to place a wisp of his divine soul in the ring, that made him quite extraordinary. He must have been a very powerful warrior when he was alive.
“Four thousand years ago, I was the owner of this ring!”
“At that time, I was the strongest warrior on this mainland,” said Tian Shui with a smile.
“What?” When Jing Yan heard this, his eyes widened. He was a little stunned.
For a moment, he didn’t know how to react.
Tian Shui was claiming that he had been the strongest warrior on the mainland four thousand years ago. The idea didn’t even make sense to Jing Yan.
The Tian Yuan Mainland was vast and wide. Jing Yan had never heard of anyone who could wander the whole continent. Not many people even crossed the entire Lan Qu Province in their lives, not to mention the whole mainland.
Legend said that there were ninety-nine provinces on the Tian Yuan Mainland, and the Lan Qu Province was merely one of the least important. Being the strongest warrior in the Lan Qu Province would require a mind-boggling level of power. No one could imagine the strength of the strongest warrior in the mainland.
“I owned this ring four thousand years ago, but I wasn’t the one who made it. When I obtained the ring, I also gained possession of its hidden skill. The skill you just noticed.” Tian Shui looked at Jing Yan, and a little grief flashed through his eyes as if he was recalling the past.
“The ultimate divine power of the Arch of Heaven?” Jing Yan blinked his eyes.
Jing Yan had been given only the name of the skill; he knew nothing else about it. He could see the words “The ultimate divine power of the Arch of Heaven,” but that was it.
“Yes.” Tian Shui nodded. “This is an extremely awesome divine power. I’m not sure what rank you would reach if you understood and learned all the cultivation methods in it. But I can assure you that if you can comprehend just the first three stages of the ultimate divine power of the Arch of Heaven, you will set foot on the summit of the whole mainland. I became the strongest warrior in the mainland just by learning the first three stages.”
“However, I can sense that there are at least three stages beyond the ones that I completed. Perhaps even more.” A serious and somewhat distant expression passed over Tian Shui’s face.
“You don’t need to know about all that now. You just need to know that you now possess the cultivation method. In other words, you have the potential to be the strongest warrior on the mainland.”
“In the four thousand years since the ring was mine, you are the first to break the seal of the Ring of the Universe. This ring was passed down from generation to generation, through many hands. But no one was able to open the seal, including your grandfather, Jing Tian,” lamented Tian Shui.
“Huh?”
“Wait, didn’t say you were asleep? How do you know who my grandfather was?” After Jing Yan broke the seal, Tian Shui had emerged and said that he had been “awakened.”
“Nonsense. Although I was in a dormant state, that doesn’t mean I was unaware of the things going on outside. While I was asleep, I could still subconsciously sense what was happening in the outside world.” Tian Shui rolled his eyes at Jing Yan.
“Boy, I’m a little tired now. You have the cultivation method in your hands now. Try it as soon as possible. You’ll love it, I promise.” With that, Tian Shui vanished into thin air in front of Jing Yan.
Although he had once been a powerful warrior, Tian Shui was now just a wisp of divine soul. That wisp was dissolving into thin air with every moment that passed, but he didn’t mention that fact to Jing Yan. The Ring of the Universe had nurtured his wisp for the last four thousand years, which was the only reason that he had survived this long. The power of the Ring of the Universe could only delay the inevitable, however. Although his divine soul was dissipating much more slowly than it would have otherwise, it was only a matter of time before he disappeared completely.
Jing Yan looked around the room when Tian Shui vanished in front of him. As expected, he couldn’t find any trace of Tian Shui. Then he looked at the Ring of the Universe, understanding that Tian Shui’s divine soul must have gone back into the ring.
Jing Yan didn’t know if Tian Shui was telling him the truth, but for some reason, he felt confident that Tian Shui wasn’t deceiving him. Of course, even if Tian Shui was deceiving him, there wasn’t much he could do about that. In any case, the Ring of the Universe had secret cultivation methods, which Jing Yan now held.
After a little meditation, Jing Yan managed to calm himself down. He gathered his mind and tried to work on the ultimate divine power of the Arch of Heaven that he had just gained. He understood very little of it. But with some effort, he managed to make it flow.
Boom!
As it started to flow, Jing Yan was startled. He had only activated a small part of the cultivation method, and the Vital Qi in his body was already bubbling like boiling water. Not just any cultivation method could produce an effect like this.
The cultivation methods that Jing Yan had been practicing were considered strong enough, but they were trash compared with the ultimate divine power of the Arch of Heaven he had just received.
In just a breath, Jing Yan could feel that he had almost reached the barrier of the Third Heaven of martial arts. That meant he had nearly reached the Fourth Heaven.
After half an hour, Jing Yan stopped the cultivation.
He opened his eyes and excitement danced through them, followed quickly by shades of regret.
He was excited because the cultivation method was definitely powerful, and the speed of his progress was simply stunning. And he felt a little sad because he didn’t have any Spiritual Stones with him. With only a few Spiritual Stones, Jing Yan thought he might be able to get back to the Fourth Heaven in just one day.
Although the ultimate divine power of the Arch of Heaven was strong, it couldn’t produce Vital Qi from thin air. He needed resources to provide him with Vital Qi.
“Where can I get the Spiritual Stones?”
Jing Yan shook his head slightly.
If his grandfather was still alive, Jing Yan could have gone to him and asked for some Spiritual Stones. But now…
Although he was the grandson of the previous patriarch of their clan, he was now in an awkward position in the clan. A few days ago, Jing Yan had even heard rumors that he might be kicked out of the clan’s mansion. If that happened, it would be difficult for him to obtain the cultivation resources from the clan’s treasure store.