Xu Yiyun eventually regained her wits after a long while. As the visual phenomenon dispersed, she found herself to be next to Li Qiye and Lu Qi again on the busy street.
“Ho-how long have I been standing here?” She asked.
“Just a second.” Li Qiye smilingly answered.
Yiyun found this surprising because she thought that millions of years have passed in that universe. She then realized that Li Qiye had shown her the way to a supreme sword dao – a shortcut towards supremacy.
“How can I ever repay your kindness, Young Noble? Though I am incapable, I will do everything I can as your follower.” Yiyun took a deep breath, tidied her dress, then prostrated before Li Qiye.
He completely changed the direction of her life despite only being a stranger, giving her both the precious grass sword and starting her on the dao path.
Those from the same sect might not be so kind. A disciple needed to prove themselves for years and years before being treated as a serious prospect. This only amplified her gratitude for his kind deed.
“Rise.” Li Qiye accepted her grand gesture and nodded.
She got up while still being overwhelmed with emotions. Her life would go on a completely different trajectory as a result.
Meanwhile, Purification Street remained lively. At the end of this street was a building named Practice Field.
It was packed with people and carriage now, making it difficult to enter and leave.
When Li Qiye’s group arrived, there was virtually no place to stand.
“Young Noble, this building belongs to Archaic Style as well. It becomes hot each time the Preeminent Legacy is about to open. Cultivators come here in order to learn and practice, hoping to understand the rules and mysteries beforehand.” Yiyun explained.
“Archaic Style really knows how to make money. Having a pact with the dao lord while still trying to profit as well.” Li Qiye smiled while looking at the building.
The Preeminent Legacy was established by Omniscient Dao Lord. However, since this dao lord didn’t have descendants and disciples, the legacy’s administration was left to Archaic Style.
This trustee didn’t let the dao lord down either. The wealth left behind didn’t diminish but rather grew to a monstrous level.
Of course, Archaic Style also took advantage of this and profited in other manners.
“Young Noble, would you like to give it a shot?” A shop assistant came over and asked him: “Our manager said that it would be our honor to have you participate.”
“So we don’t need to pay?” Yiyun smiled.
“Fairy Xu, it would be in poor taste to talk about money with the young noble. Just his presence alone is all we need.” The assistant happily said.
“Not bad, knowing propriety is one reason why your shop has lasted so long.” Li Qiye praised.
The enthusiastic assistant guided the three into the building. They found that this was another independent realm in the form of a large field. There appeared to be numerous plates that were almost as deep as a pot. However, the main difference was these plates had little squares in them with various runes carved inside. The runes were complex and strange, easily causing people to become dizzy.
The plates imitated the Preeminent Legacy. The larger they were, the more similar.
Of course, it meant paying a higher price for access as well. As long as one had enough money, they could attempt repeatedly.
The field was also packed once Li Qiye’s group entered. Each plate had one expert attempting to solve the puzzle. They hoped that with the knowledge gained here, they would be able to solve the Preeminent Legacy.
In this place, one could make some money back after an attempt. This wasn’t the case for the Preeminent Legacy. The plate there was akin to a gluttonous devil that would devour everyone’s resources. The only way to get anything back was to solve it.
Nonetheless, the minuscule chance of winning didn’t diminish everyone’s enthusiasm. The prize was just too tempting – winning meant becoming the richest in the world.
As time went on, the resources of the legacy grew and cultivators’ greed grew as well. Their chance was virtually none given the historical precedent. Nonetheless, some could argue that this was more tempting than becoming a dao lord. Some lost everything in this game, becoming addicted gamblers.
Li Qiye took a look around and smiled: “Your group has done a good job copying the plate.”
“Thank you, Young Noble, but they’re mere imitations, nothing more.” The assistant said: “Either way, they have to understand the plates here before solving the mysteries at the legacy.”
Archaic Style merely copied the main plate, unable to duplicate it fully. Nonetheless, cultivators still came to increase their overall comprehension of this eternal puzzle.
“The plates are all unique, the same with the transformations and derivations. Everyone will find different possibilities and chances.” The assistant added.
“You’re trying to figure out the mystery of the legacy as well, that’s why you’re borrowing the mind of all cultivators while profiting on top of it. What a favorable transaction.” Li Qiye smiled and revealed.
“It would be foolish to not take advantage of this opportunity.” The assistant coughed awkwardly but didn’t deny the accusation.
Omniscient Dao Lord’s wealth was known by all. Moreover, he was even better at accumulation than his peers but most importantly, he had no descendants.
This meant that everything he got was stored in this treasury. With the help of Archaic Style, this legacy only grew more and more.
The problem for Archaic Style was that as the trustee, it couldn’t just take the legacy. Of course, this didn’t mean that they haven’t tried. In fact, the opposite happened across the years.
This field was the perfect example. They gained both precious data and money from these imitation plates. It would be foolish to stop.
Li Qiye casually glanced at the plates and saw cultivators tossing their money into the center. This was the way to start the process.
“The higher-level plates are more similar to the real thing, do you want to try, Young Noble?” The assistant asked.
“Mere imitations, there’s nothing worthwhile here.” Li Qiye responded.
“I see. It makes sense that our simple plates aren’t sufficient for someone of your stature, Young Noble.” The assistant was not offended.