A dark-colored box sat on the stone table.

Brian Carter was astonished for quite a while before stepping forward to pick up the box, finding it extremely heavy, and wondered what material it was made of. Then he noticed there was also a piece of writing on the stone table.

……

Whoever obtains my treasure should kneel three times and kowtow nine times to fully express their gratitude. This test of temperament is also acceptable.

This is one of the Ninefold Treasure Caskets, an artifact passed down for a thousand years. After enduring many tribulations, only the final layer remains, made of crimson-tempered goldstone.

Inside the casket is a map, recording the location of the treasure.

To open the casket, a separate key is required.

Due to the difference in materials, it cannot withstand the corrosion of divine flesh and blood, so it is stored somewhere in the mountains.

Brian Carter felt a bit surprised, and then saw at the end, there was another note: The key is not a test, only hidden in secrecy, difficult to find, but once the place is found, it is not hard to retrieve.

After memorizing the location of the key at the end, he took the dark stone box and withdrew.

Looking at the spot where the great mountain demon’s dantian had been, he felt a sense of disorientation.

Previously, a five-clawed golden dragon had been sealed here, which was actually an earth dragon capable of reversing mountains and rivers and splitting the earth.

The mountain god died, and the earth dragon was obtained.

Now, the earth dragon had come into his possession.

He originally had no immortal roots or Dao bones, no destiny at all.

But now...

He used dragon bones in place of Dao bones, dragon tendons in place of immortal roots, and the dragon vein as his own meridians.

From this moment on, he would set foot on the path of cultivation!

This earth dragon had gathered the power of the great mountains, the earth energy accumulated over billions of years. Now that he had absorbed the earth dragon, his innate talent and foundation were immeasurable.

It was even because this talent was so high that mortals could not bear it, that a hidden danger of impending death was left behind.

Despite his concerns, it was undeniable that he had already embarked on the path of cultivation.

The way to immortality and longevity had opened.

“The road that was once a dead end has now been cleared.”

“No matter what... even if there are hidden dangers, at least I now have the foundation for cultivation, and the qualifications to walk this immortal path.”

He clenched his fist, a clear and unrestrained smile appearing on his face.

……

He picked up the long saber, suddenly feeling it was a bit light, but didn’t pay it much mind.

He sheathed the saber and picked up the iron staff, looking back the way he came.

Earlier, when the earth dragon struggled, the rock wall collapsed, blocking the way back with fallen stones.

Fortunately, the rocks weren’t large. He walked to the front, pressed his hand against a rock, and prepared to exert his strength.

Boom!

That rock was suddenly flung upward, rolling several zhang away.

Brian Carter stood stunned for a long while.

After quite some time, he finally came back to his senses.

“This...”

Brian Carter couldn’t help but be a little shocked, thinking to himself: “Having cultivated true qi, at this stage, although I can circulate true qi throughout my meridians and organs, relaxing and invigorating them to prolong life, true qi cannot leave the body, nor can I perform Daoist arts, and it shouldn’t increase my strength by much. But this...”

“Could it be... that after absorbing the earth dragon, there’s also the effect of increasing physical strength?”

He stood where he was and tried a few more times. Rocks that used to require great effort to move could now be easily pushed aside with a single hand.

He thought for a moment but couldn’t figure it out, so he simply continued forward.

As he walked, a sudden flash of inspiration crossed his mind, as if he had grasped something.

But just then, his eyes caught something, and he was stunned again.

“My strength has increased several times over, no wonder the long saber feels much lighter in my hand. But this iron staff... still feels just right, neither too heavy nor too light.”

Brian Carter fell silent for a moment.

He had always regarded this iron staff as a mere tool—used to stoke the fire in the Immortal Palace, and later, after descending to the mortal world, as a means of self-defense. He never considered it a treasure; most of the time, it was simply a memento of the Zixiao Immortal Palace.

But first, it shattered the mountain fiend’s semi-corporeal transverse bone, and now, even with his greatly increased strength, the iron staff still felt perfectly balanced.

Looking at it now, the iron staff seemed to be extraordinary as well.

Thinking back, there had been many oddities in the past, though they were subtle and he hadn’t paid them much attention.

“In the Immortal Palace, how could there be any mundane objects?”

Brian Carter thought, “It was under the Eight-Dragon Trigram Immortal Furnace, and survived the immortal fire. Even if it was originally an ordinary item, after being tempered by immortal fire, it has become a treasure imbued with immortal aura.”

But he still felt there was something unusual about it, perhaps another reason for the iron staff’s uniqueness.

However, after pondering for a long time, he still had no clue.

Wasting energy was pointless. At this moment, his true thoughts were focused on the fact that he could now cultivate, and he was filled with nothing but joy.

The first heaven of cultivation, the first floor, the Qi Refining Floor.

Entering this gate, one could nurture life and prolong longevity.

From now on, he had set foot on the path of cultivation, and the way of immortality was open.

Chapter Twelve: Three Command Tokens

Inside the cave, it was rather dark.

Little Grace shrank in the corner, showing a hint of fear.

At the cave entrance squatted a figure.

That figure was covered in black fur, with a tuft of white hair on its head. It squatted at the entrance, both arms pressed to the ground, unmoving for a long time.

The light from outside shone in, but was blocked by it.

The figure instantly became hazy and dim.

“Mon... monster...”

Little Grace clenched her fists. She recognized that figure as the monster who had injured her grandfather and captured her. She picked up a stone nearby, hugging it to her chest, trembling with fear.

Earlier, that monster had spoken human words, saying it would not harm her.