The souls of the Xiongnu were steeped in evil. Yi Tianxing had no intention of letting them reincarnate. With a flick of thought, he imprisoned them within his Innate Yin-Yang Eyes, where they were instantly swept into the Innate Yin-Yang Divine Diagram, transforming into Innate Yin-Yang Qi. This energy continuously poured into the Yin-Yang Shears, causing a pair of monstrous serpents—one black, one white—to faintly appear upon the blades. Their scales shimmered with a mysterious glow.
Faintly, it looked as though two fleshy bulges were forming beneath them, with tiny horns sprouting on their heads.
They were beginning to evolve into flood dragons.
However, it was clear that these souls alone weren't enough to trigger the full transformation of the Yin-Yang Shears.
Still, they had undeniably made the divine ability even stronger.
"I'll need a large number of souls and vengeful ghosts to nourish the Yin-Yang Shears. If I can acquire pure Yin-Yang energy, that would be even better. What a pity that the Xiongnu soldiers who died earlier had their souls sacrificed through the Life-and-Death Pact. Otherwise, tens of thousands of souls might've triggered a full transformation,"Yi Tianxing murmured.
Human souls contained mysterious power, but the Innate Yin-Yang Eyes demanded an enormous quantity. The eyes had already evolved a second divine ability, and divine abilities came in different ranks.
Like the Yin-Yang Lock and the Yin-Yang Shears—both were currently Yellow-tier divine abilities.
Divine abilities were ranked: Yellow, Profound, Earth, and Heaven. Beyond Heaven-tier, things grew shrouded in mystery. Such abilities were far beyond the reach of ordinary cultivators—even Yi Tianxing didn't know much about them.
He only knew that any divine ability born from a Life Aperture began at Yellow-tier. But their potential varied greatly. Some might only reach the peak of Yellow-tier or perhaps just touch the Profound-tier. Others, given enough resources and opportunities, could rise to Earth-tier or even Heaven-tier.
This difference in potential determined the growth ceiling and overall power of each ability.
Both the Yin-Yang Lock and Shears had exceptional potential—especially the Shears, a divine ability specialized in slaughter. Brutal and domineering. Currently, they manifested serpent forms, but once evolved into flood dragons, they would become a Profound-tier ability with unmatched killing power.
Even now, they were among the strongest of Yellow-tier divine abilities.
After walking a round on the battlefield, Yi Tianxing made no delay and returned straight to the village.
The corpses would naturally be taken care of—there was no need for him to give orders. Disposing of bodies was trivial—throwing them into a river to feed piranhas would do the job.
Piranhas bred terrifyingly fast. As long as they had food, their population would explode in no time.
Back in his residence, he stepped directly into his meditation chamber.
With a wave of his hand, several items appeared before him.
These were the spoils taken from Liu Bao on the battlefield.
There weren't many: three books, an ancient bronze mirror, two tokens, and a war spear.
Not a large haul, but each item emitted a strange, luminous glow.
"Liu Bao had good fortune. Or rather, these were looted—from falling treasures to plunder from conquered civilians. Given the vastness of his army, this is barely a decent portion,"Yi Tianxing mused.
Calming his mind, he began to examine the items.
The first he picked up was one of the books.
In any age, books were the most precious treasure. Knowledge and legacy—priceless.
The cover of the first volume was veined with eerie black patterns.
"Yin-Yang Demon Record"
"Contemplate the Yin-Yang Demon Diagram. Use women as cauldrons, absorb their essence, seize their foundation, and refine true qi. A dual-cultivation demonic art. The more cauldrons, the faster the cultivation. In union of Yin and Yang, power grows. Behold my demon image—enter my demonic path."
As he opened the book, a strange demonic chant emerged without warning, drilling into his mind and compelling him to practice the technique and visualize the demonic diagram.
ROAR!!
But just as the demonic chant entered his body, a dragon's roar echoed forth, instantly shattering the chant to pieces.
The dragon roar brooked no defiance, dispersing the dark influence completely.
"A formidable demonic art. No wonder Liu Bao had to lie with countless women every day. They went in alive, but came out as dry husks. The technique is ruthless—it seizes even vital essence. But its cultivation speed is outrageous. In such a short time, Liu Bao rose from an ordinary man to this level. Quite extraordinary,"Yi Tianxing noted, exhaling deeply.
Though a demonic art, it was a crystallization of wisdom. He didn't plan to seal it away. It would go into the Scripture Pavilion, but the cost to redeem it would be considerable.
"Full Moon Demon Blade"
An Earth-tier martial technique, said to be one of the most fearsome blade arts in the world. It has only one move—Divine Blade Slash. The blade has realms. At its peak, a single strike becomes a full moon. Within heaven and earth, nothing it cannot kill.
As he opened the second book, a sinister crescent blade appeared in his vision. Its aura seemed to pull at the soul itself, luring one into obsession.
"So this is the blade technique Liu Bao practiced. Full of dark allure. But he must've only just started cultivating it. If he had formed true blade intent, even I might've been slain by a single cut,"Yi Tianxing judged.
This was a blade technique of unmatched ferocity—without doubt, a martial masterpiece.
"The Scripture of Observing Humanity"
The third book caught his curiosity. On its cover were three archaic characters. As he opened it, the first page revealed an Observational Diagram of All Living Beings—a detailed tableau of human life. Farmers toiling in fields, merchants hawking goods, nobles and emperors, all vividly depicted.
All manners of humanity appeared in the image.
Strangely, anyone could find themselves within it: a laborer, a noble's heir, a rich merchant or a poor beggar, a villain or a saint, a soldier, scholar, man or woman. The diagram seemed to represent the entire human race.
Even Yi Tianxing found it unsettling.
And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't turn past the first page.
"Interesting. Looks like this Scripture holds some hidden secrets. Let's see what the Book of No Words can reveal,"he muttered.
With a flick of his hand, he summoned the Book of No Words and used it to analyze the scripture.
Words slowly appeared on its pages:
"The Scripture of Observing Humanity: A unique cultivation method, exclusive to humans. By meditating on the 'Diagram of All Living Beings,' one may—if fated—find a unique diagram suited to themselves. Each person sees something different. From this, a personal cultivation method is derived. A thousand readers, a thousand scriptures. A singular treasure. Can only be observed nine times every ten thousand years. Only nine individuals may gain insight from it in that time. Blood must be offered upon the diagram to trigger meditation. Once used nine times, its power fades, and it must rest for ten millennia."
Yi Tianxing's pupils narrowed sharply as he read. His heart skipped a beat.
He instantly realized this scripture was no ordinary text, but a unique artifact tailored for human cultivation. It had no fixed path—each user derived their own method. The rank and power of the resulting technique varied wildly. One might gain a basic method—or a supreme one.
It all came down to fate and comprehension.
"Only nine chances. Each one priceless. This could elevate someone to unimaginable heights. Its value is beyond measure,"he muttered, before carefully storing the scripture inside his Spirit Pearl Space.
The Spirit-Linking Treasure Mirror
Next, his gaze landed on the ancient bronze mirror.
It was clearly no ordinary mirror.
"Spirit-Communing Mirror: Can freely observe surrounding scenes, which appear in the mirror. Cannot pinpoint exact locations. Can detect spiritual veins and search for spirit mines. Can observe celestial patterns and glimpse destiny. Yellow-tier treasure."
The Book of No Words revealed a brief description.
The Spirit-Communing Mirror was an extraordinary tool. It could observe the surroundings, detect spiritual veins and mines, and even glimpse hints of the heavens.
But currently, being only a Yellow-tier treasure, all its functions were extremely basic. It could reflect surrounding scenes, but not pinpoint directions. It could sense spirit mines, but only within a small radius. As for observing celestial patterns—this was still too advanced.
For example, Liu Bao had used it to seek a place for the Xiongnu to prosper. The mirror had shown a valley—but gave no path or coordinates. Only that it was nearby.