901 Spiritual Root and Secret Manuals
The fat priest's smile was very cold—so cold that it was like the ice in the Arctic Ocean. Additionally, his guess also caused a shudder to rise in Duan Ziyan's heart.
"Let's cut the crap." The fat priest beckoned with his hand. "I'll only ask you this. Do you wish to seek revenge?"
Duan Tianhao nodded and said, "Our entire faction has been wiped out, and I bear the burden of an irreconcilable feud on my shoulders. Of course, I want to seek revenge. How can I possibly not want to?"
Duan Ziyan did not believe the fat priest's gibberish at all and wanted to continue persuading Duan Tianhao, but the latter did not listen to her at all.
Last year, Duan Tianhao had unintentionally barged into an ancient tomb and found a secret record.
It was recorded that 1,000 years ago, seven experts from the eastern land had been defeated and sealed up.
By following the records, he arrived in this valley and discovered this fat priest. Under the latter's guidance, his martial arts improved at a tremendous rate, and he became a Demigod existence.
However, when the other party requested for him to swear to help three of the experts remove their seals in exchange for them imparting him with unrivaled martial arts, Duan Tianhao kept on hesitating and eventually chose to reject them.
Based on the records in that ancient tomb, the seven people had great powers and were great demons with deep and unfathomable cultivation. In order to seal them, the Tulip Dynasty had expended all of their efforts back then. Even when the three strongest people in this land—Saint Adam, the Formidable Divine King Dante, and the Church of Universal Truth's Pope—took part in this operation, it had still taken them a lot of effort before they could defeat these seven people.
There was not much to say about Saint Adam. He was the founder of the Ancient Path of Hell, the greatest person to exist throughout the past over 1,000 years, the ancestor of the Empire's Krieg royal family, and one of the strongest people in this land. He was also the leading force in fending off the sixth onslaught.
The Formidable Divine King was also a legendary character. He was the leader of Northern Sacred Land—one of the few factions accepted by the Church—and, he was also an expert who had injured Adam in the past. This had causing the latter to leave behind nine drops of his—Adam's—blood.
There were even lesser things to talk about the Church of Universal Truth's Pope. All of the Church's Popes had been undeniable top-notch experts on this land.
It was only through the efforts of the three experts with three great powers—in addition to the Tulip Dynasty which was the most prosperous country in the lands of that time—that the seven people were then finally suppressed with great difficulty.
Despite this, the cultivation levels of these seven people were too high. All of them had reached tier six of the Divine level or higher. They possessed remarkable arts and had even grasped the profoundness of space, allowing them to move space as they wished.
In such a situation, although Adam, Dante, and the others had defeated the seven people, it was still very hard for the three experts to kill them. Therefore, they decided to seal up the seven people and suppress them at seven concealed spots, waiting for them to slowly turn old and die eventually.
In order to ensure that the future descendants would not lay a hand on these seven seals, almost all of the information had been cleaned out. All that was left was just to wait for these seven people to slowly age and die in these seals.
However, there were two things that the person who enforced the seals back then might not have thought of.
It was that someone still leaked the information anyway, leaving behind records of the events in their tomb.
Another thing was that 1,000 years later, the fat priest still ended up being able to accumulate a portion of his powers despite being sealed. He was then able to dart out with his will, appearing within the valley.
However, Duan Tianhao was aware of just how dangerous these seven people were. Back then, the fat priest tried to engage in clever talk, alluring Duan Tianhao through words. He wanted Duan Tianhao to help him out with something, wanted Duan Tianhao to cultivate the martial arts that he provided, wanted Duan Tianhao to help him send a letter, wanted Duan Tianhao to accept his divine will...
Regardless of which matter it was, Duan Tianhao had not agreed to them. He merely accepted the fat priest's guidance in the martial arts he cultivated.
Thankfully, he discovered that the fat priest really was sealed up. Other than being able to communicate through ordinary means, the latter was unable to do anything to him. Even what he was seeing now might just be an illusion.
However, with his faction wiped out and his parents dying horrible deaths, Duan Tianhao now had the burden of a deep feud on his shoulders. Therefore, he could not be bothered with all these.
In order to seek revenge, he would do anything, even if it mean destroying this land and bringing forth a sea of blood.
Seeing that Duan Tianhao had agreed so readily, the fat priest laughed out loud, "Alright, alright, alright. Since that's the case, I'll impart you with unrivaled arts and provide you with a path that will lead you to the Heavenly Dao."
At the next moment, the fat priest pressed one hand onto Duan Tianhao's head, and countless information surged into his mind like a waterfall.
"Most of my power has been sealed up, so I can't enter your consciousness easily. Calm your mind and focus. Don't resist."
Duan Tianhao opened up his heart and mind, allowing the other party's consciousness to enter his.
At the side, Duan Ziyan said anxiously, "Brother, stop it quickly! Don't be fooled by him!" She swung her hands, wanting to push away the fat priest, only to discover that when they came into contact, she passed through the latter like he was an illusion and not an actual person.
Streams of evil auras descended from the skies and scattered out throughout Duan Tianhao's consciousness.
"Remember. Our immortal sect's cultivation method is different from that of the Knight's martial arts in the secular world's dynasties. It bears a resemblance to the Mages' cultivation, but they are definitely not the same. From today onward, you must completely forget about the cultivation methods you have used in the past.
"People are born with spirits. The spirit condenses to take the form of a seed, and the seed will grow into a root.
"Everyone has their own Spiritual Root in their own bodies, and they have a total of 13 types of colors.
"Ordinary people tend to possess five to six types of Spiritual Roots which have a chaotic mix of colors. These people don't have cultivation talent.
"Special geniuses tended to have Spiritual Roots with two or three colors. These people are the ones who are considered to really possess cultivation talent.
"It's hard to find even one person out of 10,000 people who possesses a Spiritual Root with a single color. These people are geniuses amongst geniuses.
"And you, Duan Tianhao, are one of these people who possess a single-colored Spiritual Root."
While focusing on the endless stream of information, Duan Tianhao only felt that his mind was continuously sinking into the depths of his consciousness. Right there, a green seed slowly germinated and turned into a Sea God with a strong emerald green color.
"This is your cultivation foundation, your green Spiritual Root."
Looking at how Duan Tianhao kept on getting immersed into his cultivation, the fat priest could not hold back his smile.
"Finally...
"1,000 years...
"A whole 1,000 years...
"I'm finally able to come out."
...
Elsewhere, in the Palace of the Imperial Capital.
Ferdinand closed his eyes and basked in the sun.
This aristocrat, whom Fang Xingjian had gotten to know in Kirst City, had helped him to earn money, set up a fraud, steal, and publish books. He had been a Knight who followed Fang Xingjian around, helping him to manage his assets and gather wealth.
After Fang Xingjian became the Empire's Imperial Preceptor, Ferdinand—along with many other people from the Great Western Region—had assumed important positions in the Imperial Capital. Right now, he had become the Commander of the Imperial Guards.
As a subordinate who had been with Fang Xingjian for very long, it was not just Ferdinand who had reached a height in his power and authority. His clan had also gone from being a small aristocratic clan in Kirst to becoming a great aristocratic clan whose influence was spread out across the Great Western Region. They now managed over half of the Empire's businesses in weapons and metal, as well as ore and material. The clan had become one of the four new great aristocratic clans in the Empire—the nouveau riche in the Imperial Capital.
Ferdinand's choice to follow Fang Xingjian was also seen as the best choice he had ever made in his entire life. Presently, the entire clan could be said to be Fang Xingjian's strong supporters.
Right at this moment, Ferdinand was looking at carts of books in front of him, occasionally flipping and checking through them.
These were the secret martial arts manuals that Tyrant had gathered from various sects as he subdued them.
After these secret manuals were registered with Ferdinand, they would be sent to Fang Xingjian.