After the three of them entered the Library Pavilion, they immediately split up to begin their search, agreeing to gather all relevant materials before consolidating them.
They moved quickly. After all, there weren't many books about the forbidden area in the Library Pavilion. In the end, after picking through the collection, they only found about a dozen ancient texts that mentioned it, and the descriptions were extremely brief, merely stating, "Sect forbidden area; unauthorized entry shall be punished," with no further details.
"Are these the only records in the entire Library Pavilion?" Duan Xianxing also fell into a rare contemplative state. After all, he had some understanding of the forbidden area's situation, not to mention that uncomfortable feeling he had experienced after entering.
Li Nanzhu was still flipping through the ancient texts before her, trying to find more records. "Logically speaking, no matter how mysterious the sect's forbidden area is, it's impossible for there to be so few records left. It would be one thing if it were just the lower floors, but even the highest fifth floor is like this. That's what makes it even more suspicious."
Zhu Yinxi shook his head gently. "Since the master intended to hide it, he naturally wouldn't leave many records in the Library Pavilion." He paused, then added, "However, we might be able to try a different approach."
"What approach?" Li Nanzhu leaned in curiously.
Zhu Yinxi casually opened a bamboo slip and pointed to a blank space within. "Look here. The sect's records break off at this point. By time calculations, it was approximately a thousand years ago. According to the records of the cultivation world, the disciples of the Five Elements Dao Sect also completely vanished during that period. If there really is something in the forbidden area, in a situation where the sect was left unattended, it should have broken through the seal long ago."
Li Nanzhu's brow furrowed. "I've also researched the history of the cultivation world. Since the master is the current Sovereign of the Five Elements Dao Sect and possesses a Soul Transformation stage cultivation, is it possible he's a survivor from a thousand years ago? But if he was there a thousand years ago and the thing in the forbidden area has never escaped from start to finish, then shouldn't he have rebuilt the Five Elements Dao Sect? The master's behavior is very strange on this point."
Zhu Yinxi closed the bamboo slip and said in a low voice, "Perhaps. Outsiders have no way of knowing what happened a thousand years ago, and no one within the sect recorded it. It is indeed difficult for us to trace the origin of that thing."
"But the master's behavior that day was also very abnormal. You felt it too, didn't you, Second Senior Brother?"
"Junior Sister, no matter how abnormal it is, we have no way to investigate with our current strength."
Although Li Nanzhu was unwilling, she knew the second senior brother had a point and could only nod in agreement.
"What riddles are you two speaking in?" Duan Xianxing scratched his head. "If it's about the master, there might not be no way at all."
Upon hearing this, Li Nanzhu suddenly snapped her gaze toward Duan Xianxing. "What way?"
It was no wonder Li Nanzhu was suspicious. In the original book, Feng Yi, the greatest antagonist, was already mysterious and unpredictable. Combined with the strangeness he displayed in person now, she had to heighten her vigilance. Even though Feng Yi was currently treating her well, Li Nanzhu knew that if a real change occurred, given their shallow master-disciple bond, he might not show mercy. It was naturally better to figure things out as soon as possible.
"I don't know what our sect was like in the past, but as one of the Eight Sects, basic systems should be common under normal circumstances, right?" Duan Xianxing analyzed. "According to Junior Sister's theory, if the master is a survivor from a thousand years ago, it means he was once a disciple of the Five Elements Dao Sect. Normal sects record a register of disciples when they recruit. Might we find some clues there?"
"Seventh Senior Brother, you're so smart!"
Before her voice had even faded, Li Nanzhu had already rushed off like a gust of wind to find the disciple register.
However, after the three of them turned the Library Pavilion upside down once more, they failed to find even the slightest trace.
"This doesn't make sense," Duan Xianxing said, confused. "Data that isn't confidential shouldn't be deliberately hidden like this."
"Unless someone deliberately erased it," Zhu Yinxi said gravely.
As one of the earliest disciples to enter the sect, he understood the master's oddities better than the other two. It was just that he had been focused on his music in the past and hadn't looked into it deeply. Investigating with his junior sister today made him realize that the things the master was hiding might be even more than he had imagined.
"What do we do now?" Duan Xianxing was the first to break the silence.
"Then we can only put our thoughts back on the forbidden area." Li Nanzhu sighed. After all, their original purpose for coming here wasn't to investigate Feng Yi.
"Seventh Junior Brother actually gave me a reminder just now," Zhu Yinxi complimented Duan Xianxing for once. "The commonalities among the Eight Sects don't just include disciple registers; there's also the sect-guarding treasure."
"And the sect-guarding treasure is very likely sealed within the forbidden area!" the two said in unison.
Meanwhile, Duan Xianxing pulled out a copy of the Annals of the Eight Sects from his storage bag.
"Hehe, aren't the things I bought coming in handy now?" He flipped through it as he spoke. "Look, the Sword Heart Sect's Nine Heavens Sword Mound, the Shenmu Sect's Ten Thousand Medicine Spirit Cave... each of them has a spirit tool sealed inside."
But when they flipped directly to the page for the Five Elements Dao Sect, the three of them furrowed their brows.
"There's almost no record of the Five Elements Dao Sect... but according to others' speculations, our sect-guarding treasure is named the Five Elements Qiankun Flag. It's said to be able to mobilize the power of the five elements of heaven and earth," Zhu Yinxi said in a low voice.
"Why does this feel more like it's made up? Other sects' forbidden areas have nice names, but ours is just a speculation?" Duan Xianxing slapped the book onto his face. He felt that the more they researched this, the more of a headache it became. He'd rather go into closed-door cultivation.
Li Nanzhu was also a bit disappointed, but it was within expectations. The Five Elements Dao Sect had nearly vanished for a thousand years; it was already good enough to have this many records.
"Still, it's better than searching blindly like headless flies. Since the Annals of the Eight Sects mentions the Five Elements Qiankun Flag, it's certainly not without cause. We should also be able to start from this angle." Zhu Yinxi looked toward Li Nanzhu. "Junior Sister, go see if there are any relevant ancient texts."
Li Nanzhu immediately turned and ran toward the bookshelves. "I think I saw something. I'll go get it right now."
Soon, Li Nanzhu returned holding a book titled Chronicle of Rare Items in the Cultivation World. Zhu Yinxi took it and began flipping through it, actually finding a clue on a middle page.
"Found it." Zhu Yinxi's voice made the other two immediately gather around.
On the yellowed page was a drawing of a five-colored flag. The entry read: "Five Elements Qiankun Flag, a yellow grade spirit tool. Capable of controlling the power of the five elements of heaven and earth. Later acquired by the Five Elements Dao Sect and revered as their sect-guarding treasure."
"Could the thing sealed in the forbidden area be this?" Li Nanzhu murmured.
"That's not right. If it were truly a spirit tool, it wouldn't make me feel that uncomfortable. My Natural Sword Physique wouldn't react this way to a spirit tool," Duan Xianxing immediately denied the hypothesis.
"What if an artifact spirit was born?" Zhu Yinxi suddenly spoke. As soon as he said this, the other two fell into silence.
An artifact spirit... such a thing was too distant for them. In fact, in the entire cultivation world, artifact spirits were considered legends. Many people even questioned whether artifact spirits existed at all. What right would their Five Elements Dao Sect have?
"Perhaps... it was corrupted?" Li Nanzhu gave the only answer she could think of for now.
"If it were corrupted, the master would have surely dealt with it long ago. He wouldn't have kept it until now."
The three looked at each other, seeing deep helplessness in each other's eyes.
By now, it was getting late. Li Nanzhu still needed normal sleep, so the three had no choice but to return to their rooms to rest.
After they left, a corner of sapphire-blue robes swept past the library door.
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