The next morning.
At dawn, Xiao Minghuang hurriedly knocked on Ye Ruoshui’s door.
The Small Servant Girl, still half-asleep, opened the door for her while yawning, dressed only in a thin, almost see-through gauze robe.
Xiao Minghuang stepped inside, closed the door behind her, and in the faint morning light, glanced at the full curves beneath the nearly transparent gauze, before finally looking at the girl’s sleepy little face.
“Ruoshui, I’ve got a treasure for you.”
Ye Ruoshui rubbed her groggy eyes, her long lashes fluttering like butterflies about to take flight.
“What is it?” Xiao Minghuang pulled a white stick from her sleeve and stuffed it directly into the Small Servant Girl’s arms.
“I’ll be busy with Cultivation for a while and won’t have time to teach you.
Practice with this on your own for now.”
With that, Xiao Minghuang pushed open the door and left in a hurry.
Ye Ruoshui was left standing there, completely bewildered.
The smooth, glossy jade was still warm to the touch.
She sniffed it and could still catch a faint scent of orchids.
That Dao fragrance made her dizzy and enchanted, reluctant to let go.
But as for what this jade stick was actually for, Ye Ruoshui couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard she thought.
“???” She puzzled over it until daylight, still completely at a loss.
It wasn’t until the warmth and fragrance faded from the jade that Ye Ruoshui took the white jade stick out into the sunlight for a closer look.
The jade was round and rod-shaped, a bit shorter than her forearm, with smooth, rounded ends and an uneven, bumpy surface along the rest.
Staring at the strange jade, the Small Servant Girl thought for a long time but still couldn’t figure it out, so she went to ask one of the older Palace Maids in the residence.
The old Palace Maid glanced at Ye Ruoshui, her eyes sizing her up, then leaned in and whispered a few words in her ear.
“This thing, well, it can make you happy.
I’ve never married at my age, and I rely on this thing…”
As she spoke, Ye Ruoshui’s face visibly flushed, turning pink and tempting, as if white steam was rising from her head.
She couldn’t help but stomp her foot, then hurried back to her Room with her head down, dove onto the bed and rolled around, then wrapped herself up in the blanket and rolled into the corner, leaving only her little head poking out, her eyes sparkling with stars.
“Your Highness gave me this, does that mean…”
… Meanwhile, elsewhere.
After giving away the Cultivation Method, Xiao Minghuang immediately returned to the Cultivation Room, eager to ask the System.
“System, where’s my reward?”
【Ding!】
【Detected that the host has successfully given away an Opportunity/Chance/Serendipity!】
【Congratulations, host! Ten Thousandfold Critical Strike reward triggered.
You have received the Heaven-Rank Supreme-Grade Cultivation Method ‘Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture’!】
Hearing the System’s voice, Xiao Minghuang’s eyes lit up with surprise.
She hadn’t expected much from this round, but to her shock, she actually got a Ten Thousandfold Critical Strike!
With a thought, a Jade Slip appeared in Xiao Minghuang’s hand.
The Golden Book was entirely golden, but shimmered with a faint purple light, giving off an indescribable sense of nobility.
“Heaven-Rank Supreme-Grade Cultivation Method, it really is extraordinary!” Xiao Minghuang took a deep breath.
Cultivation Methods, like Martial Art, Pill, and Spiritual Root, are divided into four ranks: Yellow, Mysterious, Earth, and Heaven, each with four grades: lower, middle, upper, and supreme.
In the Southern Border of the Eastern Extremity, even a Mysterious Grade Cultivation Method is rare.
An Earth Rank Cultivation Method is something you might not see in a hundred years, and if one appears, even the major Sects would covet it.
As for Heaven-Rank Cultivation Methods, they’re unheard of.
The power of these three ranks of Cultivation Methods is worlds apart.
At the same Realm/Cultivation Stage, a Martial Artist cultivating a Mysterious Grade Cultivation Method could hardly ever defeat one cultivating an Earth Rank Cultivation Method.
As for the power of a Heaven-Rank Cultivation Method, no one knows, since no one has ever seen a Martial Artist using one in battle.
“Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture… That name sounds familiar, like I’ve heard it somewhere before.”
Xiao Minghuang frowned slightly, thinking for a moment, then remembered a legend she’d heard as a child.
In some distant ancient era, when Great Xia was still a powerful Immortal Dynasty, a brilliant Great Xia Ancestor created a Cultivation Method.
With it, he dominated the Eastern Extremity, nearly unmatched.
The Cultivation Method created by that Ancestor was the ‘Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture’!
Legend has it that the current national classic of Great Xia, the ‘Dragon Origin Scripture’, was modeled after the ‘Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture’.
But that’s just a legend, and may not be true.
Based on her previous experience with System rewards, Xiao Minghuang could guess that the items the System gives as compensation are somehow related to what she gives away.
Just like when she gave away the Essence Replenishing Pill, she was compensated with the Creation Mending Heaven Pill, which had a similar effect but was of a higher grade.
Having confirmed this, Xiao Minghuang stopped worrying about it.
“Right now, I need to focus on getting stronger.
The only reason the Xia Emperor tolerated me crippling the Seventh Prince is because I’ve shown exceptional Talent.
If my progress stalls, the Xia Emperor might abandon me and support the Second Prince or the Sixth Prince instead.”
Steeling herself, Xiao Minghuang opened the ‘Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture’ and began to study it carefully.
The Great Dao is simple, the greatest sound is barely heard.
This Heaven-Rank Cultivation Method wasn’t thick, only a dozen or so pages, but it recorded the entire path of cultivation from Body Tempering Realm all the way to Transformation God Realm.
As for the higher Life and Death Realm, even the Ancestor who created this classic hadn’t reached it.
In the Southern Border of the Eastern Extremity, the highest known cultivation is the Spirit Sword Sect Sect Leader, who is only at Nascent Soul Realm.
If Xiao Minghuang could fully cultivate the ‘Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture’, at least within the Southern Territory, no one could rival her.
Thinking of this, she didn’t hesitate any longer, pressed the Golden Book to her forehead, and let the contents of the scripture flood into her mind.
Maybe it was because the creator of this Cultivation Method was her own blood-related Ancestor, or maybe it was because after taking the Creation Mending Heaven Pill, her comprehension had improved dramatically.
Cultivating was completely smooth for her, with no bottlenecks at all.
No matter how ancient or profound the text was, she understood it at a glance.
In just a quarter of an hour, Xiao Minghuang had already fully grasped all the content of the Body Tempering chapter of the Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture.
Not only did she learn the specific method for Guiding Qi into the Body, but she also discovered a secret from ancient times that no one knew! The Body Tempering Realm is the first Realm/Cultivation Stage on the path of cultivation, and it’s the foundation of the whole journey.
This Realm/Cultivation Stage requires mobilizing all the blood and energy in the body, drawing on the world’s Spiritual Energy, refining bones and tendons, and nourishing the flesh.
Simply put, it’s about using the vitality of flesh and blood, seizing the world’s fortune, and adding it to oneself, in order to achieve the goal of cultivation.
If you cultivate to the peak of the Body Tempering Ninth Level, your strength can theoretically reach a hundred thousand jin.
Of course, that’s just a theoretical value.
In reality, even if you don’t reach that level, you can still continue to cultivate and Breakthrough to the Qi Refining Realm, though your foundation won’t be as solid as others.
But in fact, almost no one can train their strength to that level.
Usually, once you reach forty or fifty thousand jin, you can start preparing to Breakthrough to the Qi Refining Realm.
And even if you cultivate to the limit, you can only reach ninety-seven thousand two hundred jin of strength.
That’s because since ancient times, the cultivation methods for the last three minor Realms/Cultivation Stages of the Body Tempering Realm have been lost.
The complete Body Tempering Realm actually has twelve levels! Each minor Realm/Cultivation Stage can increase your strength by up to ten thousand eight hundred jin, and if you reach the twelfth and final Perfection of the Body Tempering Realm, your strength can reach a hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred jin!
None of the current cultivation methods record this.
Xiao Minghuang’s Purple Star Imperial Path Scripture was taken from ancient texts from the distant past, so it contains the complete cultivation method.
“I took the Creation Mending Heaven Pill, so my foundation is incredibly solid.
I already have ninety-seven thousand two hundred jin of strength.
If I cultivate the Body Tempering Realm to the twelfth level and reach the Body Tempering Extreme Boundary, wouldn’t I always be three minor Realms/Cultivation Stages ahead of my opponents?” Xiao Minghuang muttered to herself.
These extra three minor Realms/Cultivation Stages would be enough to give her an even stronger foundation, allowing her to challenge people above her level.
Even if she ran into a Heaven’s Chosen from a powerful clan, she wouldn’t have to be afraid!
