Desolate Devouring Art

Liu Wuxie paced the room in measured steps, matching his suspicion to the layout until the discrepancy became undeniable. The crystal stone sat three meters left of where it should've been.

In theory, a few meters of offset shouldn't have meant anything, and a minor design error could've explained it.

Outside, the Black Crow Clan kept assaulting, while the Spirit Clan still refused to counterattack and allowed them to keep hammering the defensive spiritual array. Sunlight happened to strike the crystal stone at the perfect angle, and the beam spilled into the room like a guided line.

Liu Wuxie followed that light until it landed on the stone tiles, and he narrowed his eyes. The beam covered exactly one tile, too much of a coincidence.

He crouched and rapped his knuckles against the tile, and the sound came back hollow and wrong.

"It's hollow beneath."

He drew a dagger at once, wedged it into the seam, and began prying along the edge until the tile slowly lifted free. When he shifted the tile aside, a metal box lay hidden underneath.

Countless years had corroded it, and rust coated the metal in thick, scarring layers. He lifted the box out and placed it on the desk, then cracked it open to reveal an ancient scroll tucked within.

Liu Wuxie raised the scroll with painstaking care, afraid it would crumble if he handled it too roughly. After all, many ancient texts turned to dust the moment someone touched them, having slept underground for far too long.

This scroll, however, was made from a special hide and had endured the ages with shocking integrity. He unrolled it slowly, and dense characters emerged alongside meticulous diagrams.

"The complete version of the Soul Forge Art!"

Liu Wuxie froze where he stood. Only then did he realize the Soul Forge Art he cultivated had always been incomplete. Even the Feathered Emperor clearly hadn't known this scroll existed, and yet an incomplete version had already allowed him to surpass ordinary people by a vast margin.