Yan Xiu's breath had barely evened out before he turned back toward the black book. The transformation had passed—but his curiosity, now sharpened by power, was burning hotter than ever.
He flipped open the Tempered Body Record again, fingers running over pitch-black pages. His eyes darted across the empty pages, but something in him told him there was more. Much more.
He flipped. And flipped.
Until his hand froze.
There, halfway through the book, a single phrase gleamed in elegant golden calligraphy:
Antique Incense Burner
His eyes narrowed. "What's this?"
Without hesitation, he pressed his fingers against the radiant words.
But unlike before, no new diagrams or explanations emerged.
Instead, a golden ripple pulsed across the page—and then, silently, the space above the book shimmered.
With a muted hum, something began to materialize.
From the open pages rose a small incense burner—ancient, bronze-golden in color, shaped like a lotus bulb cradled by curling dragon claws. Faint motifs of clouds and flowing rivers wrapped around its body, and though it wasn't extravagant, it carried a quiet, undeniable beauty. Its age could be felt in its aura, like something that had once sat at the heart of an immortal's chamber.
Yan Xiu blinked in awe, reaching out instinctively.
His fingers brushed the burner. It was warm.
'How should I use thi—'
The thought wasn't even finished before a whisper stirred in the back of his mind. Like a soft voice brushing against his consciousness.
Three-Leaved Spirit Flowers...
The name echoed through his thoughts, followed by another.
Forbidden Grass...
Yan Xiu stiffened, hand tightening around the burner.
"Do I need to burn those herbs… with this?" he murmured.
He stared at the incense burner again, the glow around it fading as it settled into his palm like it had always belonged there.
"I guess I'll stop by the treasury tomorrow. If I manage to buy them from old man Meng, I'll try this out."
He carefully set the burner aside, then turned his eyes back to the book.
"Let's see if there's something else…" he muttered, flipping to the next page.
Yan Xiu flipped to the next page.
It was blank.
He flipped again.
Still blank.
Then—
Golden calligraphy shimmered into being, delicate and refined:
True Yang Secret Art
"A secret art?" Yan Xiu muttered, brows drawing together. "Is it… Yang-attributed?"
His tongue clicked in frustration.
Until now, he had cultivated with the Flowing Tide Secret Art, a Water-attributed technique. The Qi in his dantian was already saturated with Water Qi. Switching now to a Yang-based secret art…
He'd have to purge it all.
Water and Yang would repel each other. Mixing two different Qi attributes was courting disaster. The only exception was the Yin Qi resting deep within his body, locked into place by the Unyielding Golden Skeleton. It didn't clash. It didn't move. It was different.
But everything else?
He clenched his fist.
If he expelled the Water Qi now, all the cultivation he'd accumulated would vanish. He'd regress back to the Seventh Stage of the Tempered Body Realm, the very stage where one begins cultivating secret arts.
Not to mention, he'd have to completely restructure his Flowing Sword Art to match the new attribute. It wasn't an impossible task—he could manage it, eventually—but still.
That wasn't even the core of his hesitation.
It was the feeling. That faint, subtle harmony he felt with Water. The way his Qi had always flowed a little smoother when drawn from it. He didn't understand why, but the affinity was there. It fit.
Still…
"Let's just check it…" Yan Xiu muttered.
Without another thought, he pressed his fingers to the glowing words.
Immediately, the book pulsed.
Golden script unfolded across the next black pages. Diagrams, meridian flow charts, breathing methods, condensation techniques—everything. It illuminated his face in warm hues as his eyes scanned through it, faster and faster.
His breath caught.
The True Yang Secret Art required ambient Yang Qi to cultivate, but unlike other methods, it had a unique trait—one that made Yan Xiu's heart thrum with interest.
It could liquefy Yang Qi within the dantian. Not just store it—condense it into drops of golden energy, like molten sunlight.
It meant, effectively, that someone using this art would appear to possess an endless well of Qi.
"This…" Yan Xiu's eyes widened, awe flickering across his face. "This True Yang Secret Art is incredible…"
He flipped through more of it, reading each line, each diagram with growing intensity.
"It's levels above any secret art I've ever seen," he whispered. "Even my Flowing Tide Secret Art can't compare…"
He let the book fall gently shut, golden light still faintly pulsing from its edge.
His mind was now a storm of thoughts.
Water Qi affinity… versus the power of this secret art.
He had a decision to make.
Yan Xiu's fingers rested on the closed book, but his mind hadn't stilled.
A thought sparked—swift and bright.
"Drops of Qi?"
His eyes narrowed.
"If the True Yang Secret Art can liquefy Yang Qi into droplets… then why can't I do the same with Water Qi?" he muttered, gears turning fast. "I mean… in theory, it should even work better."
Water was the most fluid of the elements. Flowing. Shifting. Adapting.
Liquefying it should be natural.
"Yeah…" His voice dropped to a murmur as his eyes lit up. "If I study the True Yang Secret Art well—understand the underlying principles behind the liquefaction of Qi inside the Dantian, something everyone believes to be impossible… then maybe I can create a version of it using Water Qi."
His hand clenched, knuckles whitening.
A version that fit him. One that didn't betray his natural affinity.
His mind raced with excitement. The diagrams in the black book were still fresh in his head. Circulation patterns. Condensation points. The technique didn't force Qi into a liquid—it invited it. Guided it. Perhaps with a few modifications…
A glint of determination burned in his gaze.
But then—
"...Sigh."
The excitement ebbed as a familiar wall loomed in his path.
"If only I had more Temporal Energy," he muttered. "I could simulate this new secret art straight away…"
Simulations were the core of his path. His unique strength. But they didn't run on hope alone.
"Guess I'll have to kill some beasts tomorrow and absorb their Temporal Energy."
To be continued...
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I'm trying to make my MC take another path other than the main-stream Yang one, I mean, there already lots of fics using the True Yang Secret Art, so I thought I could pull something different off.
Be sure to check out my original novel Hyperborea!