Following the lingering trace of energy, Xie Zhaolin easily found the exit of the Silent Heart Chamber. It wasn't a door, but a slowly rotating vortex of chaos.
Without hesitation, she stepped right in.
Light and shadow twisted around her, space itself warping and shifting.
In the next instant, she was back in the same vast hall where she'd first entered the inheritance realm.
The hall was utterly silent, only her breathing and heartbeat echoing in the emptiness. But the moment she swept her gaze around, her brows drew together.
Jiu Jiu was gone.
The traces left behind from the previous battle were still there, but Jiu Jiu's aura had faded so much it was barely noticeable, as if she'd left a long time ago.
"Ran off?" Xie Zhaolin frowned slightly.
Did Jiu Jiu think she was dead for sure and leave first? Or did she sense that she might've survived the trial and flee out of fear?
Whichever it was, chasing her now would be pointless.
There'd be time to settle this debt later.
She pushed the thought aside and was about to leave the cave dwelling when, out of nowhere, the image of Jiu Jiu's eyes flashed across her mind—those eyes that had pushed her into the chamber without hesitation, even with a hint of excitement.
Her steps slowed. She casually asked the voice in her jade slip, "You You, when this inheritance realm was set up, were there any standards or limits for who could enter?"
"Standards? Limits?" You You sounded a little confused, then answered nonchalantly, "Nope! Anyone can come in! My realm's hidden really well, so whoever finds it must be fated to do so!"
Xie Zhaolin frowned deeper. "What if the person who enters is a complete idiot with trash-level talent?"
"Huh? That kind of waste?" You You's voice was filled with disgust. "Then why keep them around? Just kill them right away! No point wasting my time or energy!"
She said it so casually, like crushing an ant.
Hearing that, Xie Zhaolin felt a chill run down her spine.
So it was true.
This You Ji Shàngrén really had no taboos when it came to her methods. If her strength and willpower hadn't been solid enough, she probably would've been obliterated the moment she entered.
One wrong step, and she'd have been doomed forever. There was never any luck in this place, only survival by merit.
"But…" sensing a change in Xie Zhaolin's tone, You You suddenly added, "there's actually a hidden filter."
"Oh?" Xie Zhaolin raised a brow.
"If the person entering cultivated a certain foundational art… what was it called again…" You You paused, rummaging through her memory, "Ah right! The Xuanyin Foundation Technique! That's the one! If someone's cultivated that, they won't be killed outright. They'll be guided into the five trials instead."
"The Xuanyin Foundation Technique?"
The moment she heard that name, Xie Zhaolin's heart thudded violently.
You Ji Shàngrén's inheritance actually favored cultivators who practiced that technique?
A shocking thought flashed through her mind.
She stopped abruptly, her voice carrying a rare hint of urgency. "You You, back then… you practiced the Xuanyin Foundation Technique too, didn't you?!"
The spirit inside the jade slip was stunned for a second by her sudden outburst.
Then, with a puzzled tilt to her tone, she replied, "Of course I did! What else?"
She sounded like it was obvious. "Why do you think I spent so much effort developing puppet arts and other side paths? It's because the Xuanyin Foundation Technique's way too dangerous! The yin energy backlashes all the time, and the baleful qi corrodes your body. You need external tools to balance it out and share the risk!
Otherwise, why do you think I died while trying to break through to Divine Transformation? Normal cultivators don't just die like that! It's all that damn technique's fault! The further you go, the worse the bottlenecks and hidden dangers get!
And really, who in their right mind would willingly practice something that's obscure, insanely hard, and full of side effects?!"
You You ranted on, face puffed with frustration, as if venting years of bitterness.
Xie Zhaolin stood frozen. She'd never imagined she'd meet a senior cultivator here who had also practiced the Xuanyin Foundation Technique.
And not just anyone—a cultivator who had once stood at the very peak of the Cultivation Realm, a grandmaster of puppetry itself.
Her heart swelled with a mess of emotions.
There was an odd warmth, like meeting a kindred soul in a foreign land. A quiet sympathy for the hardships of her senior's path. And beneath it all, a strange feeling of destiny, as if fate had woven their lives together long ago.
It wasn't coincidence that she'd gained You Ji's inheritance.
The Xuanyin Foundation Technique was a thread linking them across time.
"I see…" Xie Zhaolin murmured under her breath.
She finally understood why You You's inheritance treated those who cultivated the same art differently, even giving them a chance to undergo the trials. Because someone who had walked the same dangerous road would understand how brutal it truly was.
Maybe deep down, You Ji had hoped to find another who could inherit her legacy and carry on where she'd failed. Even if her true purpose was rebirth through possession, the sense of kinship behind her trials was still real.
"Master… you practice the Xuanyin Foundation Technique too?" You You finally realized it, her voice laced with surprise and curiosity.
"Yeah." Xie Zhaolin answered quietly.
"Wow, that's awesome!" You You's voice turned bright and giddy, her tiny face pressing against the jade slip's surface. "Then we're the same kind of cultivator! Don't worry, Master! I've got tons of experience with this technique—how to avoid backlashes, how to use puppets to balance yin energy, how to stabilize the foundation—I've got it all covered!"
Her tone was suddenly full of warmth and energy, like she'd just found a long-lost friend.
Xie Zhaolin looked at the now-overexcited spirit and felt a swirl of emotions.
This trip to You Ji's cave mansion had given her far more than she'd expected. Not only had she gained a living teacher of the inheritance, but she'd also found a guide who had once reached incredible heights on the same perilous path she now walked.
For her future cultivation, that meant everything. And in that moment, her impression of You You subtly changed.
What had begun as pure caution and calculation softened just a little. Maybe it was sympathy, or maybe just shared fate. Still, her rationality didn't waver. Her expression remained calm, her tone cool as she pulled the conversation back.
"You You," she said evenly, "since you set this whole thing up for rebirth, you wouldn't have prepared only a jade slip, right?"
Her gaze swept across the empty hall, her meaning obvious. "If you'd succeeded in taking over someone's body, you couldn't possibly plan to walk out of here empty-handed. There must be some spirit stones, pills, treasures, or materials stored here to get you started?"