Projection of the Heavens: I prove my immortality through slaughter.

The mist deep in the valley was as thick as milk that couldn't be dissolved, making it difficult for sunlight to penetrate, resulting in a dim and oppressive atmosphere. The air was filled with a damp, decaying, yet strangely spiritual aura.

Lin Xuan's rib wound was still throbbing, and his spiritual energy was nearly depleted. But the clear and continuous pulsation emanating from the black token was like a guiding light in the darkness, something he couldn't ignore.

"What...is in here?" He stared at the churning white mist, a mixture of wariness and curiosity in his heart. Whatever could cause this mysterious token to react was no ordinary object. But the unknown often meant extreme danger.

After a brief moment of restoring his spiritual energy, he unhesitatingly used the Concealing Breath Technique again to minimize his presence, moving cautiously like a ghost towards the direction from which the tremor originated.

The deeper he went, the thicker the fog became, reducing visibility to less than three meters. The ground beneath his feet became slippery and covered in moss. The surroundings were eerily silent; even the chirping of insects and birds had vanished, leaving only the faint sound of his own breathing and heartbeat.

After traveling for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the tremor emanating from the token grew stronger, even carrying a faint, almost imperceptible, pulling force.

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.

Ahead, where the fog thinned, a rock wall covered in vines and moss was vaguely visible. At the base of the rock wall, a dark cave entrance, almost completely hidden by dense bushes, appeared silently before him like the lurking mouth of a giant beast.

That intense throbbing and pulling force came from this cave entrance!

Lin Xuan held his breath, his divine sense extending forward like tentacles to carefully investigate. There were no traces of demonic beasts near the cave entrance, nor any remnants of array fluctuations, only an extremely faint, ancient, and desolate aura that seemed ready to dissipate at any moment.

He drew his dagger and cut through the vines and bushes at the cave entrance, revealing a narrow opening just wide enough for one person to pass through. It was pitch black inside, bottomless, with only an even stronger, more pungent smell of decay wafting out.

Without hesitating for long, a cluster of pale white flames leaped from Lin Xuan's fingertips—it was the "Flame Technique" he activated with stellar spiritual power. The firelight illuminated the area near the cave entrance, and he crouched down, cautiously slipping inside.

The cave was initially very narrow and damp, but after walking for more than ten zhang, it suddenly opened up!

A natural stone chamber, roughly several meters in diameter, came into view. Stalactites, emitting a faint white light, hung from the ceiling, providing some illumination. Although the air still carried a musty smell, it didn't feel stuffy, indicating that there was ventilation elsewhere.

The moment Lin Xuan entered the stone chamber, his gaze was immediately drawn to the scene in the center of the chamber, and he could not look away.

A skeleton, with its back to the cave entrance, sat cross-legged on a slightly tattered futon.

The clothes on the skeleton had long since weathered away over the ages, leaving only a few fragments clinging to the bones. The bones possessed a warm, jade-like luster, with faint starlight flowing within them. Even after countless years of death, they still exuded a chilling, lingering aura of power, far surpassing any cultivator Lin Xuan had ever seen, including that servant at the fourth level of Qi Refining!

This is at least a Foundation Establishment stage expert, or even a higher level expert!

The skeleton's left hand hung naturally on his knee, while his right index finger touched the ground, as if he were still drawing something before his death. On the ground in front of him were two objects.

On the left was a black token, neither gold nor wood, with an ancient design. It was similar in size to the one he held in his arms, but the patterns on it were completely different, much more complex and profound. There seemed to be a blurry ancient character engraved in the center. The token was covered with a thick layer of dust, but it could not conceal its inherent darkness.

On the right is a dark silver jade slip of unknown material, with a smooth, mirror-like surface and no decorations.

The source of that intense tremor in the black token was none other than the black token before the skeleton! The token in his arms was now slightly warm, conveying an emotion of longing and resonance.

Lin Xuan suppressed his excitement and did not immediately step forward. He first respectfully bowed to the skeleton. Regardless of whether the skeleton was good or evil in life, it was, after all, the master of this place who left behind a legacy, so it was only right to receive his respect.

"This junior, Lin Xuan, has mistakenly entered your cave dwelling. I hope you will forgive me if I have caused any disturbance."

After the ceremony, he carefully stepped forward, his gaze first falling on the dark silver jade slip. He tried to send a wisp of his divine sense into the jade slip.

boom!

A flood of information rushed into his mind in an instant!

The Star River Qi Refining Technique!

This is a complete Qi Refining stage cultivation method, sufficient to cultivate from the first level of Qi Refining to the Great Perfection of Qi Refining! The text of the cultivation method is profound and mysterious, accompanied by a complex diagram of the human body's meridians. Its core essence is to draw the power of the stars in the universe into the body, temper spiritual power, open up the dantian star vortex, and forge an unparalleled foundation for the Dao!

Compared to this "Star River Qi Refining Technique," his previous method of instinctively absorbing stellar spiritual energy using the black token was as crude as eating raw meat and drinking blood! And the rudimentary methods circulating in the original owner's memories were utter garbage!

This "Star River Qi Refining Technique" not only has a method for efficiently absorbing and refining the spiritual power of stars, but also comes with several corresponding spells, including the complete version of "Star Finger" which he had previously explored and strengthened on his own, as well as practical spells such as "Star Step" and "Protective Star Shield".

"This...this is the cultivation method that truly suits me!" Lin Xuan was overjoyed, as if he had found a priceless treasure. With this method, his path of cultivation would suddenly become clear, and his foundation would be honed to an incomparably solid level!

He carefully put away the jade slip containing the "Star River Qi Refining Technique," and then stared intently at the black token that had caused it to resonate.

He reached out and carefully picked up the token.

The instant his finger touched the token—

"Buzz!"

The token in his arms and the new token in his hand both trembled violently at the same time! A resonance wave, far stronger than ever before, spread out from him!

The dust on the two tokens was instantly shaken off, revealing their ancient and profound nature. The patterns on the token in his pocket glowed faintly, while the blurry ancient character in the center of the newly acquired token became clearer, seemingly the character "辅" (fu).

Immediately following, amidst the resonance of the two tokens, a small section of the jade-like finger bone of the seated skeleton snapped off with a "crack," fell to the ground, and shattered into pieces.

At the same time, a fragmented and blurry spiritual thought, carrying endless vicissitudes and regrets, seemed to traverse countless ages and intermittently entered Lin Xuan's mind:

"...Starry sky...Ancient road...Broken..." "...'Master's command'...Return to its place...'Star Palace'...Inheritance..." "...Those who come after...Hold my 'Assistant' command...Gather...Nine commands...Open..." "...Beware...of them..."

The thought abruptly ended there, like a candle flickering in the wind, completely extinguished.

Lin Xuan stood there, holding two tokens, his heart filled with turbulent emotions.

Ancient Starry Road? Star Palace Inheritance? Collect All Nine Tokens?

And... be careful of "them"? Who are "them"?

These scattered fragments of information pieced together a grand yet fragmented mystery. The owner of this skeleton was clearly of extraordinary status, and their demise seemed to conceal secrets. The black token he had obtained, named "Auxiliary Token," appeared to be only one of nine tokens; perhaps there was an even more important "Master Token" attached to it?

He looked down at the two tokens in his hand, which were different in shape but resonated with each other, and felt as if an invisible hand was pushing him and pulling him into a vortex that had been silent for thousands of years.

Good fortune may be a harbinger of misfortune.

Behind this opportunity, there seems to be unimaginable cause and effect and risks.

But in just a moment, Lin Xuan's eyes regained their firmness and clarity.

Risk and opportunity coexist! Without this token, he would have already died in the dilapidated temple. Now that he has embarked on this path, what is there to fear about being entangled in karma?

He carefully put away the newly acquired "Assistant Token" and placed it together with the jade slip of the "Star River Qi Refining Technique". Then, he bowed deeply to the skeleton once again.

"Though I am weak in fulfilling my predecessors' wishes, I will do my utmost to explore them if the opportunity arises. I will forever remember the kindness of this inheritance!"

Having said that, he didn't linger. This place was nice, but not a place to stay for long. The resonance of the token just now had quite a bit of fluctuation, and there was no guarantee that it wouldn't attract something.

He quickly left the stone chamber and retraced his steps. After exiting the cave, he carefully covered the entrance again with vines and bushes, erasing any trace of his presence.

Looking back at the hidden cave entrance, Lin Xuan knew that his life trajectory had undergone earth-shattering changes since he obtained the "Star River Qi Refining Technique" and the second auxiliary token.

The road ahead was still fraught with danger, but the dawn had already pierced through the fog, illuminating the path beneath his feet.

His figure flashed and disappeared into the thick fog and forest, preparing to find a secluded place to cultivate and switch to this supreme method!