Chapter 0170: Soul Refinement Technique

Chapter 0170: Soul Refinement Technique

Qin Yun walked through the dim corridor, thinking quickly, and asked, "Grandma Qiao, over the years, have you been able to smoothly absorb spiritual energy?"

Qiao Ruiwen said, "Of course. I broke through the Martial Dao realm right here. Strangely enough, the spiritual energy here seems to be quite special."

Qin Yun had also sensed it just now. The spiritual energy here was close to the level of internal energy and was extremely pure!

When he was in the Tianxing Tower, he couldn't absorb external spiritual energy. However, within this Tianqi forbidden ground, he could absorb the spiritual energy, but his soul force couldn't penetrate outside.

"To maintain a strong barrier, the forbidden ground itself requires a vast amount of energy. Therefore, there must be a large gathering array to collect the spiritual energy from the surroundings. I guess this gathering array connects to every large tree outside, using the trees to gather energy."

Qin Yun wasn't speculating wildly. He could sense the essence of plant energy from the spiritual energy here.

Qiao Ruiwen wasn't proficient in formations and runes. She asked, "Xiao Yun, you seem to know quite a bit about formations?"

Qin Yun smiled slightly. "Grandma Qiao, I'm a junior Runes Master."

Qiao Ruiwen was astonished and slightly excited. "Really? That's wonderful! Perhaps I can see the light of day again!"

"This Tianqi forbidden ground has a significant flaw. While the gathering array supplies energy to the barrier, it also funnels a large amount of spiritual energy into the underground palace."

As Qin Yun spoke, he walked quickly, not needing Qiao Ruiwen to lead the way. He arrived at the largest octagonal stone chamber by himself and smiled. "As I expected, the spiritual energy here is the thinnest! This is also the weak point of the barrier!"

Qiao Ruiwen was confused and asked, "Then what are the thirty-two square chambers and the seventy-two circular chambers used for?"

Qin Yun said, "Those chambers are built with giant spirit stone bricks, with runes carved on the outside! The thirty-two square chambers are larger and engraved with formations that gather spiritual energy. The seventy-two circular chambers are responsible for releasing the barrier's power, covering the entire underground palace."

"This largest octagonal chamber serves a balancing function, balancing the energy and the barrier's operation. Destroying this place will break the barrier."

Qiao Ruiwen shook her head. "I've attacked each chamber, but it had no effect. The stone bricks are not only extremely solid but also absorb energy."

Qin Yun took out the Giant Spirit King Hammer and struck the wall forcefully, using the Forging Dragon Six Forms technique.

Strangely, after his hammer hit the wall, there was neither energy wave nor sound, as everything was completely absorbed.

"That's it!" Seeing this, Qiao Ruiwen sighed. "No matter how much force is used, it's always absorbed!"

Qin Yun sat on the ground and said, "The passage I came down through should also be sealed by a barrier. This seems quite tricky!"

Qiao Ruiwen said, "Xiao Yun, don't worry for now. There will be plenty of time later! Since you're a Runes Master, learning my Soul Refinement Technique would be the best!"

"Grandma Qiao, do you really want to pass the Soul Refinement Technique to me?" Qin Yun stood up abruptly, full of surprise and joy.

Qiao Ruiwen smiled and gently touched his head. "Of course... I have no descendants, and you are a very good child, a Runes Master, making you the perfect candidate. Grandma will teach you right now!"

Qin Yun asked curiously, "Grandma, who passed the Soul Refinement Technique to you? Is it really an evil technique?"

"My Soul Refinement Technique was left behind by Lan Xiao Wu Wang and I obtained it by chance. How could it possibly be an evil technique?" Qiao Ruiwen laughed.

"Grandma, you probably haven't had any delicious food for a long time. I have some here!" Qin Yun immediately took out many fresh fruits, various foods, and beast meats when he remembered this.

Though Qiao Ruiwen had lived for several hundred years, she was still very spirited, appearing only fifty or sixty years old. However, her white hair and eyebrows made her seem old. Because there was nothing here, she felt very lonely, which added to her aged appearance.

"Thank you, Xiao Yun!" Qiao Ruiwen was very happy, eating the food and laughing cheerfully.

Qin Yun had also suffered from the struggle for imperial power, sharing a similar fate with Qiao Ruiwen, which was why they had quickly recognized each other.

As Qiao Ruiwen ate, she began to orally transmit the Soul Refinement Technique...

Qin Yun felt his heart tremble secretly, because the true power of the Soul Refinement Technique was to inscribe mystical patterns into the battle soul, making it stronger!

Qiao Ruiwen didn't understand these mystical patterns, so she could only simply merge the battle souls together. Even so, the battle souls she refined were extremely powerful.

Here, there were no battle souls or beast souls, so Qin Yun couldn't practice. He could only memorize the key points Qiao Ruiwen explained, many of which even she didn't fully understand.

After a few days, Qin Yun had memorized the entire Soul Refinement Technique. Qiao Ruiwen had spent days and nights repeatedly explaining it, so it was hard not to remember.

"Xiao Yun, if we can get out of here, I'll take you to the Soul-Guiding Star Peak," said Qiao Ruiwen, sitting in a rocking chair that Qin Yun had crafted from wood in his storage space.

Qin Yun rocked the chair but suddenly stopped, showing great interest. "Soul-Guiding Star Peak? What kind of place is that?"

Qiao Ruiwen explained, "It's a mysterious place built by Lan Xiao Wu Wang. At the top of the peak, there's a grand array. Once activated, it can draw in the Star Battle Soul! Although the Star Battle Soul is the weakest among those granted by the heavens, it's one of the more hopeful ones to obtain. Your Fire Battle Soul is dormant, and the safest way to awaken it is by merging it with a heaven-granted battle soul."

"Where is the Soul-Guiding Star Peak?" Qin Yun felt a stir in his heart, wishing he could leave this dreadful place immediately.

"It's in the Cloud Dragon Mountains, to the true north. There's a Bei Ming Star in that direction... Of course, there are many peaks in that area, and from the outside, the Soul-Guiding Star Peak looks no different from the others!"

"Near the Soul-Guiding Star Peak, there's a marsh. Once you see that marsh, when the Bei Ming Star appears, you'll be able to identify which peak is the Soul-Guiding Star Peak."

Qin Yun memorized this information, as it might come in handy someday.

"Xiao Yun, you seem in a hurry to leave. You said you have many enemies outside, so shouldn't you be hiding?" Qiao Ruiwen asked.

Qin Yun replied, "Because of something... When I was very young, my mother arranged a marriage for me with the princess of the Tian Xiao Empire. After I was betrayed, the Tian Xiao Empire decided to marry the princess to the new Crown Prince, with the engagement ceremony planned in about two or three months."

Qiao Ruiwen nodded slowly. "I see, you really should go. After all, this marriage was arranged by your mother. You should take the princess back."

Qin Yun scratched his head and smiled. "I don't really want to take her back..."

Qiao Ruiwen frowned. "Does the princess despise you? Then you should definitely take her and teach her a lesson."

"No..." Qin Yun could sense that Xiao Yuelan didn't harbor any ill will toward him.

However, outside, it was rumored that Xiao Yuelan hated him deeply, and that the marriage arrangement from a young age had made her cold and heartless.

Many believed that Qin Yun was a stain on Xiao Yuelan's life, and that she wished to kill him.

Qiao Ruiwen sighed. "The problem is, we can't get out! If we could, we'd go to the Soul-Guiding Star Peak immediately, merge with a Star Battle Soul, and you'd surely gain immense strength, maybe even break through to the seventh level of the Martial Body stage."

"Alas, is there really no way to get out?" Qin Yun was very frustrated, pacing back and forth in the stone chamber, thinking of a solution.

Qiao Ruiwen was also helpless and said, "Unless the energy required to maintain the barrier is completely drained, there might be a chance."

Qin Yun was startled and, after careful consideration, said excitedly, "That's it! We need to drain the energy required by the barrier! By stealing the energy the barrier needs, as long as we cause an imbalance in the underground palace, we'll have a chance to get out."

He hurriedly headed towards the largest octagonal stone chamber.

This chamber was dozens of meters wide and very spacious.

As soon as Qin Yun arrived, he took out many stone slabs and spread them across the floor. These slabs formed the Nine Yang Gathering Array; he intended to use the Nine Yang Gathering Array to steal the barrier's energy.

Qiao Ruiwen asked doubtfully, "Xiao Yun, the spiritual energy here is the thinnest. Will it be effective?"

Qin Yun smiled and said, "This place is the hub, where the energy is controlled and circulated in an orderly manner. If we can cause chaos here, we'll have a chance to get out."

Seeing his confidence, Qiao Ruiwen felt a secret excitement. She had been trapped here for so many years and had nearly lost hope, but now a new sense of hope had arisen.

Once Qin Yun set up the Nine Yang Gathering Array, he activated it and stood on it, releasing his mental energy to more clearly sense the Nine Yang spiritual energy.

The vast amount of spiritual energy absorbed by the Nine Yang Gathering Array was all poured into the formation, replenishing the depleted energy inside, while he also absorbed a large portion to temper his body.

After a few hours, there was gradually an effect. The barrier inside began to weaken.

When Qiao Ruiwen struck the wall, it trembled violently, indicating that the barrier was significantly affected and could no longer absorb energy as it did before.

"Wonderful, at this rate, I'll definitely be able to break through the stone wall," Qiao Ruiwen was extremely excited and continuously struck the wall with her martial power.

Qin Yun just needed to carefully control the Nine Yang Gathering Array to seize large amounts of spiritual energy, disrupt the seal structure, and weaken the barrier.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The noise from Qiao Ruiwen's strikes on the wall grew louder, and the huge octagonal stone chamber shook violently, as if it might collapse at any moment.

"Grandma Qiao, be careful. Once the barrier is broken, violent energy will surely surge out. You must protect yourself," Qin Yun hurriedly advised.

"I will be careful!" Qiao Ruiwen said, and then struck the stone wall hard with her palm.

Boom!

The chamber trembled wildly, and the solid stone wall finally cracked.

Qiao Ruiwen's body trembled slightly with excitement. She had been imprisoned here for so long and was finally about to see the light of day again. She couldn't help but laugh out loud.