The commander of the Shadow Guard knelt respectfully, bowed deeply, then took the items and left.
Over the years, aside from absorbing the Essence of Dao from the world’s martial arts to perfect his own path, Li Chang’an had spent most of his time modifying, improving, and even creating new Cultivation Techniques from existing ones.
Any Cultivation Technique he modified would, at the very least, be elevated several levels. With a few casual tweaks, he could transform a Third-class Technique into a First-class Technique. The improvements to already First-class Techniques were even more profound.
What Li Chang’an had the Shadow Guard deliver to the Three Major Sects were their very own Sect’s Divine Skills—and the Buddhist Sect’s Vajra Skill—all of which he had personally modified.
These were already some of the world’s most supreme, pinnacle techniques. Now, after Li Chang’an’s modifications, their power had surged by more than a single tier.
After settling the matter of the Three Major Sects, Li Chang’an glanced at the ocean of Secret Manuals piled like mountains in the Library Pavilion and sighed, ’The loftier the tune, the fewer who can appreciate it. It’s so hard to find a kindred spirit. How dull!’
The more Cultivation Techniques Secret Manuals he read, the more transparent the world’s Martial Dao became to him.
By now, even though a third of the secret manuals in the Library Pavilion remained unread, Li Chang’an didn’t need to look at them to know what they contained.
...
After receiving the techniques Li Chang’an had sent back, the Three Major Sects were initially befuddled, with no idea what he was planning.
But after studying the manuals carefully, they were all left utterly dumbfounded.
The Three Major Sects discovered that their respective Sect’s Ultimate Techniques, which had been passed down for thousands of years, had been transformed. They were now far simpler and easier to understand.
Before, perhaps only a handful of geniuses with top-tier aptitude could learn them.
Now, even ordinary disciples with average talent could master a good portion.
Yet that wasn’t what shocked them most. To their utter astonishment, not only had the techniques become simpler, their effectiveness had increased exponentially!
This... how was this possible?
After reading the techniques Li Chang’an had adapted, everyone in the Three Major Sects, from the Sect Leaders down to the Elders, was completely floored.
The looks on their faces said they were questioning their very existence.
To use a somewhat crude analogy, it was as if they had tearfully handed over their Sect’s Saintess—a tradition passed down for a thousand years—to Li Chang’an. After just a few months, he had taken this Saintess, whom they revered as a goddess, and given her a complete "refurbishment."
Not only did the refurbished Saintess look brand new, but she was also much more... supple.
It was absolutely outrageous!
Upon this realization, the Three Major Sects went into a frenzy.
When they heard Li Chang’an’s message that they could continue sending any techniques they had to the Imperial Palace, they immediately procured dozens of carriages and began hauling cartloads of them into the palace!
The scene left everyone utterly stunned.
Nearly all the other Major Sects in the world were left gawking in disbelief.
What had gotten into the Three Major Sects? Had they lost their minds?
Were they digging their own graves by sending cartloads of techniques to the Dayan Imperial Palace, or were they just trying to stir up more trouble in the world?
But no matter how much others speculated, the Three Great Sects remained completely tight-lipped.
The Jianghu Martial Artists, along with the various First-class and Second-class Sects, couldn’t make sense of it all and could only treat it as a bizarre piece of gossip.
...
With the Three Major Sects now holding nothing back, Li Chang’an had managed to collect almost every top-tier Cultivation Technique in the world.
The few scattered techniques that remained were, given Li Chang’an’s current standards, no longer worthy of his attention.
He then spent another ten full years.
Finally, he had assimilated every technique in the world.
At the age of twenty-eight, he sat cross-legged atop the Library roof, his entire being exuding an aura that was both one with heaven and earth, yet utterly separate from it.
He had broken through to the Land Immortal Realm.
It was as simple as waking from a sleep.
There was no fanfare, not the slightest ripple.
For the first time in a long while, Li Chang’an left the Library Pavilion and walked alone through the Imperial Palace. He first went to check on his mother, Ye Xuan, but kept his presence hidden.
A few years prior, Ye Xuan had given birth to another child, named Li Ping’an.
The boy was now seven or eight and quite endearing. Watching his younger brother from afar, Li Chang’an flicked a finger, imparting a portion of his Nine Heavens Chaos Technique to him.
After doing this, he departed as silently as he had come.
As if sensing something, Ye Xuan, who had been playing with her young son, suddenly got up and rushed to the door, but she saw nothing.
...
Because of his frantic modification of techniques over the years, the six patriarchs of the Imperial Family had all gained new insights one after another and were now almost all in seclusion.
In the vast Imperial Palace, there was no one for him to talk to.
Li Chang’an was feeling a bit bored, so he sought out his father, Emperor Yan, who was still hard at work "plowing" in the Harem. He got straight to the point: "Father, don’t you find being the Emperor terribly boring?"
Hearing Li Chang’an’s question, Emperor Yan sighed. "It’s alright. Why do you ask?"
Li Chang’an replied earnestly, "Well, I’m finding it very boring right now. Why don’t you let me be the Emperor for a while?"
...
And just like that, the following year, Li Chang’an inherited the throne and became the new Emperor of the Great Derivation.
From the moment he ascended the throne, the ancient Great Derivation Empire officially entered a new era.
In the second year after taking office, Li Chang’an established a government organization called "White Jade City" throughout the land.
Within a single year, branches of White Jade City had blossomed all across the lands of the Great Derivation.
Even the most remote regions saw the establishment of a White Jade City.
Just as the people of the Jianghu were puzzling over this development, Li Chang’an made a grand gesture: he ordered copies made of every single technique in the Imperial Family’s Library Pavilion and had them sent to the White Jade City branches!
He then made a proclamation to the entire world:
With the exception of notorious criminals on the Imperial Court’s wanted list, any ordinary Martial Artist could earn rewards. By obeying and carrying out government decrees, creating new Martial Arts Techniques, or submitting old, long-lost techniques not yet in the collection, they could go to White Jade City and exchange their contributions for corresponding Cultivation Techniques Secret Manuals or other rare treasures!
The moment this decree was issued, the entire Jianghu instantly fell into a state of utter pandemonium.
After all, in the previous era when the Sects ruled, it was harder than ascending to the heavens for a common Martial Artist to obtain a suitable cultivation technique. They would have to risk life and limb, spilling their blood and sweat for the Sects that held a monopoly on these secret manuals.
But now, the Dayan Imperial Court was offering them a path to acquire Martial Arts Techniques—a path they would not have dared to even dream of before.
Furthermore, these were techniques from the Imperial Family’s own collection! And rumor had it that many of them had been personally modified and compiled by the former Crown Prince of the Great Derivation, the Emperor himself...
Any one of these facts alone was enough to drive them wild.
After this, Martial Artists from every region began flocking to White Jade City, bringing with them every technique fragment they possessed and every shallow insight they had into the Martial Dao.
All in the hope of exchanging them for a technique to make themselves stronger, or for other rare treasures and Martial Arts Secret Manuals.
They might have been as insignificant as ants, utterly beneath the notice of the world’s great figures, but when this swarm of ants gathered together, the fiery passion they unleashed was enough to make the very heavens tremble!
...