The Dao-Treasure Palace

1,515 words

An hour later.

Ji Ning and the other newly appointed Yinglong Guards, each having received their 'Yinglong Guard token,' were led by Daoist Yulan to a magnificent palace adorned with carved railings and painted beams. The palace was roughly a hundred zhang tall and covered nearly a thousand zhang of ground.

"This is the Dao-Treasure Palace," Daoist Yulan said with a smile. "It contains countless techniques, secret arts, and miscellaneous records. You may peruse them carefully, but your spirit-beasts are not permitted inside."

"Uncle White, Qingqing, wait for me outside."

Ning and Mu Northson followed the others into the palace.

The Dao-Treasure Palace of the Yinglong Guard's local headquarters was utterly immense.

"Even the Dao-Treasure Hall of our Black-White College is far smaller than this," Mu Northson sighed.

"Mm." Ning quickly scanned the surroundings as he walked.

"There are actually three hundred and sixty Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques? And this… the ninth scroll… wait, there's even a divine ability called 'Candle Dragon's Eye'!" Someone in the distance suddenly cried out in shock.

Ning and Northson exchanged a glance and hurried over.

"Three hundred and sixty Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques?" "Our Black-White College only has twenty-eight!"

"There's also a 'Pure Yang-ranked' Ki Refining technique? A Pure Yang technique ranks above an Immortal-ranked technique?" Another cry of surprise came from further away.

Ning and Northson quickly rushed over.

There, on a finely carved, crystalline jade table, lay two ancient books. Starlight shimmered and flowed across their covers. A silver-haired youth stood beside the table, holding one of the starlit books as he exclaimed, "It takes at least two thousand jin of Primordial Liquid to break through from the Zifu stage to the Wanxiang stage? And sometimes as much as three thousand jin?"

"Incredible."

"Immortal-ranked techniques generally only take eight hundred to fifteen hundred jin." Quite a few people gathered around. It was a matter of first come, first served. Although Ning and Northson spotted the two books on the table from afar, other new Yinglong Guards snatched them up before they could.

Everyone read, shaking their heads in amazement. "Having a Pure Yang technique as one's foundation makes it several times easier to break through to the Earth Immortal stage of the Void stage. A solid foundation really is everything!"

Many present had never even heard of 'Pure Yang Ki Refining techniques.'

Everyone only knew of the four tiers: Mortal, Earth, Heaven, and Immortal-ranked techniques. None had imagined there was something even higher—a 'Pure Yang Ki Refining technique.' Even the Black-White College, which had produced Celestial Immortals, did not possess such a technique.

"So you don't know," a green-robed woman with a pretty face said smugly. "Ki Refining techniques are divided into Mortal, Earth, Heaven, Immortal, and Pure Yang ranks! However, even the most顶尖 sects, and even feudal lords like the Beishan clan of Anchan, generally only possess Immortal-ranked techniques. It's only the Yinglong Guard—the number one power across the endless lands of the Grand Xia Dynasty—that possesses a Pure Yang technique!"

"Even the Beishan clan of Anchan doesn't have one?" Ning muttered to himself. "Maybe they do, but they just don't dare to make it public."

The feudal lords of the endless lands held their trump cards in secret, terrified that the Grand Xia Dynasty might suspect them of plotting rebellion.

"What?!"

"You have to be an Inner Guard of the Yinglong Guard to learn it? And even as an Inner Guard, you need a thousand contribution points?"

"So we ordinary Yinglong Guards can never learn it? I was planning to switch to a Pure Yang technique!"

When they reached the final pages and saw the conditions for learning the Pure Yang technique, everyone started cursing angrily.

Ning's heart stirred.

With a whoosh, he shot over to the massive jade table holding the three hundred and sixty Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques and quickly began flipping through them. Other new Yinglong Guards seemed to have the same idea and also came over to browse.

"Inner Guard of the Yinglong Guard: one hundred contribution points to learn. A One-Claw Yinglong Guard: ten thousand contribution points to learn. A Two-Claw Yinglong Guard: one hundred thousand contribution points to learn…" Ning read the requirements and shook his head.

Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques were, after all, quite valuable.

For an ordinary Yinglong Guard to accumulate ten thousand contribution points would require repeatedly risking their lives in battle, likely decades of hard-fought accumulation.

"Ruthless."

"Truly ruthless."

Many cultivators shook their heads.

Ning shook his head as well. He had originally considered switching to a Pure Yang water-element technique himself. Unfortunately, Pure Yang techniques were only available to Inner Guards!

Switching techniques was common enough. When Ning was in the Yan Mountains, he had practiced the ordinary Water Element Art. At the Black-White College, he had used the Water Source Manual to build his foundation. If he were to switch to a superior Pure Yang Ki Refining technique now… though it wouldn't be as good as building his foundation with it from the start, it would still be a significant improvement.

Pity…

Such supreme techniques were not to be lightly taught.

…

Soon, they arrived at the second floor of the palace.

"Divine abilities are also incredibly hard to learn."

"Eighty-nine divine abilities, and most of them require being an Inner Guard to learn!"

"The Heavenly Transformation has the lowest requirement… a One-Claw Yinglong Guard can learn it for ten contribution points!"

Ning and the others stared at the scrolls and tomes listing divine abilities.

Heavenly Transformation, Fire-Rainbow Evasion, Moving Mountains and Overturning Seas… one divine ability after another made Ning's eyes burn with desire.

The conditions varied.

Heavenly Transformation was naturally the easiest to obtain.

The most difficult was a divine ability called Candle Dragon's Eye, which required being an Inner Guard of the Yinglong Guard, and then one hundred million contribution points to exchange!

"One hundred million contribution points?" Ning was secretly speechless.

He had long heard of the name Candle Dragon's Eye. It was a divine ability that existed only in legends, comparable to legendary divine abilities like Houyi Shooting the Suns. He had never expected to see it here today. It was clear that the Grand Xia Dynasty's foundations were unfathomably deep, so deep that they could produce this legendary technique.

"The Candle Dragon's Eye… it's only here as a temptation," Ning shook his head. "To learn it, you have to be an Inner Guard, meaning absolute loyalty to the Grand Xia Dynasty. And you need a hundred million contribution points. Even Earth Immortals find this incredibly difficult. Only a true Fiendgod Body Refining Grandmaster could ever meet such conditions. And even then, they'd have to sell their loyalty to the Grand Xia Dynasty for a single divine ability?"

Of course, Ning could guess that this divine ability was incredibly powerful.

"But compared to my Starseizing Hand, it's probably still lacking," Ning thought to himself.

The Starseizing Hand…

It was one of the top ten divine abilities to have appeared since Pangu split Heaven and Earth from chaos. The Grand Xia Dynasty ruled a single major world; it wasn't realistic for them to obtain a top-ten great divine ability.

…

Three hundred and sixty Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques, three Pure Yang-ranked Ki Refining techniques.

Eighty-nine divine abilities.

Sixty-one divine sense secret arts.

One hundred and two taboo secret arts.

…

There were also countless rare treasures and precious materials. Though these were merely catalogues and lists, the fact that they were placed here, with their exchange conditions clearly marked, meant that the Yinglong Guard's foundations were deep enough to actually produce them.

"You can even exchange for Immortal-ranked magic treasures here."

"Immortal-ranked treasures! I've heard that even many Immortals don't have Immortal-ranked treasures. But of course, you have to become an Inner Guard and accumulate a massive amount of contribution points to get one."

…

After going through everything, even Ning and Northson, who hailed from the Black-White College—the third most powerful force in the Anchan Commandery—found their hearts shaken and their mouths watering. One could only imagine the thoughts of the other new Yinglong Guards.

Everyone's heart itched.

In terms of the richness of its Dao-Treasure collections, the Yinglong Guard could truly be called the number one force in the Grand Xia Dynasty.

"What do you think?" Daoist Yulan looked at the reluctant crowd as Ning and the others emerged. "As long as you join the Inner Guard of the Yinglong Guard, you can truly soar to the heavens."

Ning and the others remained silent.

"No rush."

"You can request to become an Inner Guard at any time," Daoist Yulan said with a shake of her head. "But the later you join, the more time you waste. Who knows? That very period of delay might prevent you from reaching the next level of your cultivation journey."

Suddenly, a short, stout man stepped out from the crowd. His gaze was cold and fierce. "I will join the Inner Guard of the Yinglong Guard."

Daoist Yulan immediately broke into a brilliant smile. "Excellent. You are the first of this batch!"

Share to

Reading Guide Decoding

A Painful Peek at the Yinglong Guard's All-You-Can-Eat Buffet

Cultural / Xianxia Notes

Pure Yang (纯阳) is a Daoist term that goes far beyond a simple 'pure positive energy.' In Xianxia cosmology, it represents an ultimate state of refinement—energy that has been distilled to a level of absolute purity and harmony, free from any contaminating yin or turbid qi. A 'Pure Yang' Ki Refining technique is therefore not just a 'really good' technique; it's one that operates on a fundamentally higher metaphysical tier, providing a foundation that makes subsequent breakthroughs smoother and more stable. This explains why even top-tier sect techniques are only 'Immortal-ranked'—Pure Yang is a dynastic-level secret. The 'Candle Dragon' (烛龙, Zhulong) is a figure from ancient Chinese myth—a god with a human face and a serpent's body whose breath creates the seasons and whose open eyes illuminate the world as day. In Xianxia, 'Candle Dragon's Eye' as a divine ability implies a terrifying level of sensory and possibly time-space manipulation, justifying its astronomical price tag of one hundred million contribution points. The chapter also illustrates a core Xianxia dynamic: the 'visible ladder.' The Yinglong Guard deliberately displays its highest treasures to create an inescapable hunger in its members. By making the path to these treasures painfully clear (Inner Guard → massive contribution points), they turn ambition into a leash. The first volunteer to join the Inner Guard is a classic example of a character whose Dao-heart is swayed by concrete, visible rewards rather than abstract loyalty.

Chapter Overview

Welcome to the shopping spree of a lifetime—Xianxia edition! Our newly minted Yinglong Guards get their first peek inside the Guard's legendary Dao-Treasure Palace, and it's enough to make a Celestial Immortal weep with envy. Three hundred and sixty Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques? Check. Eighty-nine divine abilities, including the mythic 'Candle Dragon's Eye'? Double check. And sitting at the very top of the heap, a Pure Yang-ranked Ki Refining technique that even the most powerful feudal lords can't publicly claim. But here's the kicker: virtually all of this delicious loot is locked behind the Inner Guard membership paywall, and the price tags are in contribution points that would take decades of mortal combat to earn. The chapter builds an intoxicating sense of 'so close, yet so far,' setting up the perpetual hunger that drives a cultivator forward. And just when the crowd is simmering with frustration, someone cracks—the first volunteer to sell their loyalty signs up.

Key Plot Points

Ji Ning and the new Yinglong Guards are led into the Dao-Treasure Palace, a colossal repository of techniques, arts, and rare treasures.
They discover an astounding 360 Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques alongside three Pure Yang-ranked techniques—the latter being a tier higher than anything the Black-White College possesses.
Everyone learns that Pure Yang techniques require being an Inner Guard of the Yinglong Guard, with a minimum exchange cost of a thousand contribution points for the lowest tier.
Ning browses a catalogue of 89 divine abilities, including the legendary 'Candle Dragon's Eye,' which demands one hundred million points and Inner Guard status—an almost impossible price meant to tempt and bind the strongest Fiendgod Body Refiners.
Ning inwardly compares these offerings to his own Starseizing Hand, concluding that the Guard's supreme divine ability still falls short of his own top-ten inheritance.
The catalogue also includes divine sense secret arts, taboo techniques, and Immortal-ranked magic treasures, all requiring ruthlessly high contribution point and rank thresholds.
Daoist Yulan pitches the Inner Guard as the only path to obtaining these resources, warning that delay is a luxury that could stunt one's cultivation.
A short, stout man steps forward to join the Inner Guard, becoming the first of this batch to commit.

Reading Guide

Here's where the Yinglong Guard shows its true nature—it's not just a military corps, it's the ultimate gacha machine. The Dao-Treasure Palace is designed to feel like an all-you-can-eat buffet where you can only lick the glass. Pay close attention to Ji Ning's reaction here: while everyone else is drooling over the Pure Yang technique and the 'Candle Dragon's Eye,' he's internally comparing them to his own Starseizing Hand and calmly saying, 'Still not as good as what I've got.' This is the mark of a protagonist with a truly high-tier foundation—he's not tempted because he already possesses something more rare. Also, watch for that first recruiter. The short, stout man who volunteers is making a classic Xianxia choice: trading future freedom for immediate resources. It's a decision that will define his entire career arc. And of course, Daoist Yulan's pitch is a masterpiece of psychological manipulation—she makes signing up feel like a limited-time deal, warning that 'delay could cost you a realm.' Classic cultivation-sales tactics.