Chương 26: Seeking the Source

Outside the towering Library of Scriptures, two True Inheritance Disciples of the Xuanxiao Sect stood guard like twin statues. As Reyn approached, their Divine Senses swept over him in a cold, invisible wave. Sensing the potent aura of a cultivator at the seventh level of Qi Condensation, their indifferent expressions instantly shifted into masks of professional courtesy. They bowed in unison, their voices echoing slightly against the ancient stone.

"Greetings, Senior Brother." Reyn offered a curt, expressionless nod. His voice was as cold as the mountain wind.

"I wish to enter the Library of Scriptures for research."

"The first floor costs one low-grade spirit stone per hour," the disciple on the left explained respectfully.

"The second floor is two stones per hour. As for the third floor, it is restricted; one must possess the Sect Master's Command Token to pass. However, I must remind Senior Brother that nothing within these walls—neither scroll nor jade slip—may be removed from the premises." Reyn gave a sharp nod of understanding. After a brief, calculated hesitation, he reached into his storage bag and produced two low-grade spirit stones, pressing them into the guards' hands.

"I shall remain on the first floor for two hours." He spoke with a sense of urgency; the effects of his Transformation Pill would only persist for three hours, leaving him a dangerously narrow margin for error. The two guards exchanged a flicker of confusion. To them, the first floor was a graveyard of useless trivia, yet they maintained their decorum and handed Reyn a glowing jade slip.

"Hold this slip, Senior Brother. It will grant you passage and track your time within the halls." Accepting the jade with a stony face, Reyn walked past them into the dim, parchment-scented interior.

"Which branch does that Senior Brother belong to?" one guard whispered once Reyn was out of earshot.

"He looks unfamiliar. And why waste precious spirit stones on the first floor? It's practically a waste of resources."

"Quiet your tongue," the other cautioned, his eyes narrowing.

"The Library's restrictive arrays did not trigger an alarm, which means he is undoubtedly a disciple of our Xuanxiao Sect. He isn't some foreign spy. He's likely one of those eccentric recluses who spends years in closed-door cultivation—how else could he reach the seventh level at his age? If he wants to throw his stones away on the bottom floor, that is his prerogative. Curiosity is a quick way to earn a stint in the Punishment Hall." The first guard shivered slightly, conceding the point.

They lapsed into a watchful silence, though a hint of envy lingered in their eyes at the ease with which Reyn had parted with his stones. This was Reyn's first time stepping into the sect's central repository of knowledge. The Library of Scriptures was divided into three distinct tiers. The first floor was a vast labyrinth of jade slips containing legends, geographical records, and the mundane history of the cultivation world—content most disciples treated with utter disdain.

The second floor housed the true treasures: cultivation methods and battle techniques that formed the backbone of the True Inheritance. The third floor was the sect's sanctum, containing peak-tier arts and the profound insights of the ancestral masters, accessible only to a select few. However, Reyn wasn't looking for a new technique. He was hunting for the root cause of his inability to reach Foundation Establishment.

He moved through the aisles with singular focus, his fingers brushing over hundreds of jade slips as he began his frantic search. Over the next two hours, several other disciples entered the Library. Seeing Reyn buried in the 'useless' records of the first floor, many paused, their faces contorting into looks of bewilderment followed by blatant mockery. They viewed him as a provincial bumpkin who didn't know that the sect's real power lay on the floors above.

Yet, no one dared to interrupt him; time in the Library was bought with blood and stones, and no one was foolish enough to waste their own minutes on a stranger. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. As the two-hour mark hit, the space around Reyn shimmered. A spatial displacement array activated, teleporting him directly outside the entrance.

Reyn didn't look back; he handed the jade slip back to the guards and hurried away into the mountain mist. Though he had gained a vast amount of general knowledge regarding the cultivation world, the specific answer he sought remained elusive. He would have to wait for the cooldown of his current disguise before attempting another entry. Finding a secluded spot behind a massive crag, Reyn suppressed his aura and sat in a meditative trance.

Once the Transformation Pill's energy dissipated, he waited another hour to ensure his meridians were stable before swallowing a second pill. His features shifted, molding into those of a dark-complexioned youth. He marched back to the Library. He handed three low-grade stones to the guards this time. Under their increasingly bewildered stares, he dove back into the sea of information. Time blurred.

Just as his second session neared its end, Reyn stood up abruptly and exited, returning the slip and vanishing before the transformation could fail. He repeated this cycle once more, returning as a plain-looking young man for a third bout of research. By the end of the day, the two guards were looking at each other with profound suspicion. Three different disciples had spent hours on the first floor in a single day—an unprecedented event.

They began to wonder if there was some hidden legacy or secret treasure buried among the trivia that they had overlooked. Within days, a rumor began to spread through the Xuanxiao Sect. It was whispered that a Golden Core ancestor had hidden a supreme cultivation insight within the mundane scrolls of the first floor, waiting for a 'Fated One' to discover it. Some even claimed to have seen a disciple's strength quadruple overnight after finding a secret manual there.

Suddenly, the once-ignored first floor became the most popular destination in the sect, with True Inheritance Disciples scouring the shelves with bloodshot eyes. Ironically, a few actually did find minor, forgotten techniques hidden in the margins, which only fueled the frenzy further. Reyn, oblivious to the chaos his actions had sparked, finally found what he was looking for after scanning his five-hundredth jade slip. He sank his consciousness into the cool green light of the jade, his brow furrowing as he read.

"Spiritual Roots?" Reyn muttered to himself, his expression darkening.

"According to this record, the reason I cannot bridge the gap to Foundation Establishment is likely due to a total absence of Spiritual Roots within my body. But how does one fix a void?" He searched the remaining slips in his time slot, but the text offered no solutions for those born with 'Mortal Fate.' As the pill's power began to wane, he was forced to retreat from the Library for the final time.

"Finding the cause is a stroke of luck in itself," Reyn whispered with a self-deprecating smile, though bitterness pulled at the corners of his mouth.

"To expect an immediate cure would be greedy." He shook off the gloom. He possessed the heaven-defying Golden Seal; he refused to believe that a mere lack of Spiritual Roots could halt his path to the heavens. Looking toward the horizon, he took flight, disappearing into the clouds. Meanwhile, in a serene courtyard, Liu Yuyao looked at her companion with a complicated expression.

"Junior Sister Yueli, you are usually the most diligent among us. Why are you not in seclusion today?" Liu Yuyao felt a twinge of envy. The two senior brothers beside her were looking at Ji Yueli with undisguised heat in their eyes, but Ji Yueli's talent and beauty were so overwhelming that even envy felt futile.

"Indeed," Li Zidu added, his voice dripping with practiced concern.

"You seem restless, Junior Sister. If there is a problem weighing on your mind, perhaps we can assist?" Duan Zhonghua nodded fervently, eager to prove his worth. Ji Yueli snapped out of her reverie, her expression returning to its usual icy calm.

"It is nothing. The path of cultivation is arduous; I merely felt the need to clear my head. I have no troubles." Despite her words, a single image flickered in her mind: Reyn. The three-month deadline was fast approaching. He was supposed to bring the Foundation Establishment Pill soon, wasn't he?