Chapter Sixteen: The Relic of the First Emperor

After lingering in deep contemplation for a while, Li Xingyu stood up and walked to the stone wall of the cave, tapping along its surface in hopes of finding the secret chamber that Qin Shi Huang had mentioned. However, after some time, none of the echoes from that direction seemed out of place. Could it be that the secret room mentioned in the message was a fabrication? He laughed at the thought, dismissing such a possibility. He trusted that Qin Shi Huang would not be so bored as to play such a trick on him. More likely, Qin Shi Huang believed that those who would one day reach this place—on Earth, or rather, on the planet Azure—would also be practitioners of cultivation, and perhaps only those gifted in the arts could discover and open this secret chamber.

“What Qin Shi Huang could never have anticipated is that the one who would return here is not a cultivator, nor someone possessing the same strength as himself. If he had known, perhaps he would not have sealed the chamber at all.” With that thought, Li Xingyu began to devise ways to locate and open the hidden room.

He first considered that a cultivator, with keen senses, might be able to detect the chamber concealed behind the stone wall, but his own senses were insufficient for the task. Remembering the detection radar in his backpack, he decided to rely on technology instead. Adjusting the radar to its maximum power, he began scanning the surrounding stone walls. Soon, the radar’s echo revealed a hollow space behind the wall at the bend of the cave—an area of roughly five square meters, about three meters high, separated by a massive stone wall or door nearly two meters thick.

Having pinpointed the chamber, he retrieved his laser gun, intending to use its formidable power to breach the stone door. Qin Shi Huang, of course, could not have imagined the technology of later generations; had Li Xingyu not brought the radar and the laser gun, he would have been left helpless before the wall. Concerned that the weapon’s strength might damage whatever was inside, he set it to its lowest output and adjusted the beam to cover just the surface of the stone door. Squeezing the trigger, he watched as the high temperature of the laser gradually melted the rock. Carefully modulating the power, he monitored the door’s condition with the radar. When the barrier was nearly penetrated, he switched off the laser, approached the deeply recessed wall, and drove his multifunctional knife forcefully into the stone.

With a muffled sound, the remaining thin section of wall was pierced by the sharp blade. He began to carve away at the stone, gradually opening a hole about the size of a fist. Halting his excavation, he connected an external camera to his MVP5 device, inserted it into the cavity, and observed the secret room within. Once he was certain there was no danger, he resumed widening the entrance.

When the opening was finally large enough for a person to squeeze through, Li Xingyu entered the secret chamber. Inside, he found a stone table, upon which lay a piece of animal hide covered in script identical to that left by Qin Shi Huang—clearly the very cultivation method the emperor had promised. Alongside the hide were a jade vial, a ring of unknown material, and a rectangular jade tablet.

He naturally picked up the animal hide first. It was quite large, densely inscribed with text in the characters of the Qin Dynasty. After scanning the contents into his MVP5, he allowed the device to translate while he surveyed the chamber. The room was simple—save for the stone table and its contents, there was nothing else within. The four stone walls, smoothly carved, bore a depiction of a starry sky; beneath the image were annotations in an unfamiliar script. Careful inspection revealed this was indeed a star map, with the annotated regions corresponding to several star systems—five in total, by his count.

Examining the annotated systems closely, he realized that one bore a striking resemblance to the structure of the solar system, while the others were unfamiliar, and the star map did not indicate which system corresponded to his current location. He soon discovered that the map was incomplete; while each labeled system appeared continuous with those nearby, the surrounding regions seemed disjointed. It became clear that this was a composite of several unrelated sectors of the galaxy—a conclusion easily reached by someone rigorously trained as an astronaut.

A “ding” signaled the completion of the translation, drawing his attention back to the MVP5. The contents confirmed that this was indeed the very animal hide left by Qin Shi Huang, containing both cultivation methods and fundamental knowledge of the world of cultivation. As he finished reading the introduction and the following techniques, a sense of shock, surprise, and a burgeoning excitement washed over him.

The hide began with a concise overview of cultivation—explaining the hierarchy of strength, the requirements for talent, and the ways in which one’s abilities were evaluated in the cultivation world. From this, Li Xingyu deduced that, by their standards, his own cultivation was at the peak of the Qi Refining stage. Yet, according to this classification, he had only just become a true cultivator. What surprised him most was that the technique recorded here was identical to the one he was already practicing—or rather, the method he was cultivating was but a part of this more complete system, which extended all the way to the early Foundation Establishment stage. If he could reach the Golden Core stage, he would be able to traverse the cosmos unassisted by anything other than his own body, reigniting his confidence in the possibility of returning to Earth.

Reflecting on the section about the quality of spiritual energy in a cultivation environment and its impact on progress, he realized that while reaching the Foundation Establishment stage on this planet might be possible, advancing to the Golden Core stage would be nearly impossible regardless of time, unless he, like Qin Shi Huang, fortuitously acquired some ancient elixirs.

Finally, the descriptions of the powers of cultivators and the extension of one’s lifespan at each stage stirred his heart with anticipation, even a touch of fervor. Now he understood why Qin Shi Huang, after awakening and reaching the Golden Core stage, had abandoned the empire he had founded—indeed, had forsaken a unified Earth—to embark on this perilous and unknown journey in search of a world more suited to cultivation. If the descriptions were true, the abilities and longevity attainable through cultivation were too alluring to resist; for the hope of even a sliver of immortality, one might well forsake everything and step onto this path of no return.

After reading all this, even Li Xingyu’s normally calm and placid heart began to stir with restlessness. Since fate had granted him this opportunity, since he had been set on this path after losing almost all hope of seeing his family and friends again, he resolved to follow it—no matter the dangers or smooth roads ahead, fortune or misfortune, whatever the outcome, he would not and could not turn back.

With this resolve, he gathered Qin Shi Huang’s relics and the other items from the stone table, documenting the star map with his MVP5 before leaving the secret chamber and returning to his own cave outside. The secret chamber’s oppressive atmosphere had left him uncomfortable. He decided to examine the other three items he had obtained: according to the information on the animal hide, these were likely a storage ring, a jade slip for recording information, and a jade vial possibly containing elixirs.

On the last day of the New Year’s holiday, Crystal will strive to update with one or two more chapters tonight. Please recommend and bookmark the novel—your support is the greatest motivation for Crystal’s continued rapid updates.

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