Absolute Destiny Game
Chapter 448 - 53 Ancient Spirit_2

Chapter 448: Chapter 53 Ancient Spirit_2

He wondered whether he should awaken one to ask.

Just as he was about to cast the spell, a ghostly voice suddenly came from behind him.

"Little brother, there is no need to disturb the dead, ask me whatever you wish."

Xiao Jie was startled and turned around, only to see a white figure standing indifferently before him.

Ancient Spirit (Qi Refiner’s Spiritual Body): Level 52. Life Value 871/3600.

Xiao Jie immediately took several steps back, positioning himself behind Ying Baiyu.

However, he soon realized that the Ancient Spirit had no hostility towards him, and moreover, the system showed it as a neutral entity.

"Who exactly are you?"

"I am the Spiritual Body formed after the death of an Ancient Qi Refiner."

"Ancient Qi Refiners don’t possess souls, do they?"

"Only after achieving the Golden Core does the soul merge into it and no longer manifest. I died before my Golden Core was complete, thus leaving behind a Spiritual Body."

The Ancient Spirit explained to Xiao Jie that, because Ancient Qi Refiners absorbed and refined Spiritual Energy for extended periods, both their bodies and souls were transformed by the Spiritual Energy, and when they died, they did not become yin souls. Instead, they turned into something akin to mountain spirits or monsters.

Neither divine nor ghostly, neither living nor dead, if a close comparison must be made, it would be somewhat similar to a Sword Spirit. However, the Ancient Spirit was ultimately the product of failed Qi Refinement. Since its original Vital Energy had ceased, the Ancient Spirit had no possibility of transcending, and could only gradually fade over time.

"I have been wandering in this cave for more than two thousand years, and it’s indeed rare to encounter a junior like you. If there is anything you want to ask, just ask me, and I will certainly tell you all that I know."

Xiao Jie thought this was convenient - it seemed that his professional task was indeed just to find relics.

"Is it just you here?"

"Yes, the rest of the Ancient Spirits could not stand the predestined end of dissolution and have left," said the Ancient Spirit, its tone quite melancholic.

Leaving naturally meant death. Remaining here, even with the scant Spiritual Energy, allowed the Ancient Spirits to preserve their form and prolong the process of dissipation. Once they left Xuanming Mountain, they would fade away at an accelerated pace, and indeed, those who departed were probably no more.

"What was your honorific name in life, may I know it?"

The Ancient Spirit shook its head, "Ever since becoming a Spiritual Body, my memories have gradually been lost. Over more than two thousand years, many things have already faded from my memory, including my name."

"What about that stone stele?"

The Ancient Spirit looked at the stele and said, "It’s nothing extraordinary, just a stone that fell from beyond the heavens. When the sky above cracked and the Spiritual Energy collapsed, we, a group of Qi Refiners, gradually lost hope of ascending to immortality, and turned to unorthodox methods, collecting many strange and unusual items in hopes of finding the chance to ascend.

That Outer Heaven Stele was one of them. However, we contemplated it for hundreds of years and achieved nothing. Even before death, we could not perceive anything significant about it."

Outer Heaven Stele? Now this was curious. Xiao Jie stepped forward to take a closer look, and Ying Baiyu followed suit. Of course, they could make nothing of it; even Big Orange joined in and even licked the stone.

While Xiao Jie was examining the stele, he had no illusion about discovering its secrets; after all, if a group of Qi Refiners couldn’t decipher it after centuries, how could he possibly do so with ease?

If this were any other game, it might be different, but in this game, everything operated on a semblance of real-world logic. In other words, if the stele held any secrets, they truly would be as inscrutable as hundreds of years of study suggested.

Suddenly, sensing something, the Ancient Spirit asked, "Are you also a Qi Refiner?"

"Yes."

"To think that Qi Refiners still exist today... haha. Have you come here in search of the mysteries of Qi Refining, or to find a Heavenly Cave with abundant Spiritual Energy? If so, you might be disappointed. As you can see, the Qi Refiners of Xuanming Mountain have limited achievements; not a single one of us ascended to immortality, and the Spiritual Energy has long since dissipated, barely better than that outside.

If you intend to refine Qi here, it would be an effort in vain."

Xiao Jie explained, "That’s not it. I have come here in hopes of learning a few Qi Refining secret techniques."

The Ancient Spirit understood immediately, "Ah, so you have accepted your fate? Well, learning a few worthless secret techniques and enjoying a leisurely hundred years or so is undoubtedly better than wasting your life away. If you want to learn these useless Cultivation Techniques, I see no harm in it."

Xiao Jie was aware of why the other would say such a thing; Qi Refining secret techniques, when cast, would consume Spiritual Energy, which was vitally important to a Qi Refiner. Essentially, these skills were the epitome of self-sabotage.

They were akin to life-draining skills, the more you use them, the lower your cultivation becomes. Before long, one wouldn’t just forfeit the chance of immortality but might also lose the cultivation level they already possessed.

As such, few Qi Refiners dedicated themselves to the study of these techniques, for the more they used their energy, the lower their realm became, and the precious little Spiritual Energy they possessed would be too dear to waste carelessly.

"Then I thank you, senior."

"I could teach you, but heed my advice," the Ancient Spirit cautioned, "If you truly aspire to the greater Dao, you must not misuse these Qi Refining secret techniques; otherwise, there will be no chance for ascension. My lineage of Xuanming Mountain wasted too much effort on these techniques, which is why we could not achieve the true Dao. Alas, it is a helpless situation. There were many demon beasts around Xuanming Mountain, and without several secret techniques to protect us, it was hard to live in peace.

In hindsight, from the moment we chose this site for cultivation, the downfall of my Xuanming Mountain lineage was inevitable."