Chapter Thirty-Four: In A Great Rush

The magnificent ancient hall was suffused with an air of nobility. As Lin Hao stepped inside, his eyes nearly blinded by the sight; such a library of scriptures was something he had never dared to imagine. Within the hall stood over a dozen bookshelves, all packed with scrolls.

"The martial arts and combat techniques here aren't as numerous as I expected, but they must all be precious. After all, this is the inner clan's scripture library; there wouldn't be any low-level techniques here, or they wouldn't be worthy of display. Simple combat arts should be in the outer clan's library," Lin Hao mused to himself, walking straight toward the first bookshelf.

"An hour's time—I'll see as much as I can. The Ling clan’s closely guarded secrets are now laid out before me, free for me to peruse." A smile of triumph played on Lin Hao's lips. Whether it was the high-level pill recipes of the Lingyun Pavilion or the combat techniques of the inner clan's library, these were the foundations upon which the Ling clan had built its status as the premier martial arts family. They were the clan’s greatest reserves; once these foundations were compromised by an enemy, the fortress of the first clan would no longer be secure.

Lin Hao reached out and grabbed a scroll titled "Tiger-Subduing Fist." Upon opening it, he saw an illustration of a ferocious tiger leaping through the air, followed by various incantations and cultivation methods. As his gaze fell upon the techniques, the formulas began to circulate through his body as if by their own accord, like a flowing stream. His inner true energy surged, and by the time he had finished reading the entire scroll, his right fist was crackling with crackling energy. In the next instant, he threw a punch.

*Roar!*

The strike was accompanied by the sound of a tiger’s cry, and as the true energy erupted, a ghostly image of a fierce tiger materialized.

Lin Hao frowned. "The combat techniques the Ling clan keeps in their inner library don't seem like much. I can perform them after just one look. The power is decent, and it doesn't consume much of my true energy, but compared to the Heaven-Turning Seal, it’s not even in the same league."

He shook his head, returned the Tiger-Subduing Fist, and picked up a second scroll. A moment later, he pressed his fingers together like a sword and unleashed a beam of light. "The Nine-Sun Finger technique—nothing special."

He proceeded to review over twenty scrolls in succession. He could master every single one after a single glance, yet none of them could compare to the power of the Heaven-Turning Seal.

"Damn it, the Clan Leader tricked me." At this point, a realization dawned on him. "How could the techniques kept in the Ling clan's inner library be trash? Based on my perception, whether it's the Tiger-Subduing Fist or the Nine-Sun Finger, they are powerful techniques belonging to the Ling clan's secret arts. It’s just that they are far inferior to the Heaven-Turning Seal. So, it’s not that the Ling clan’s techniques are weak—it’s that the Heaven-Turning Seal is simply too strong."

"My true energy is like an ocean, my sea of energy vast, yet every time I use the Heaven-Turning Seal, it nearly drains me dry in an instant. It absolutely cannot be an ordinary item." Lin Hao’s eyes sparkled. He was not a fool; on the contrary, he was sharp and possessed his own judgment. He had previously believed the Clan Leader’s nonsense that the Heaven-Turning Seal was a crude technique, but now, with a point of comparison, everything became clear.

"Why did the Clan Leader lie to me? The Heaven-Turning Seal cannot be an ancestral heirloom of the Lin family; the Lin family could never possess such a powerful technique. And then there is the Divine Movement Art—profound and broad, it’s clearly no ordinary movement skill. Back at the Taixuan Sect, I was able to easily evade Li Qingchuan’s pursuit using only the Divine Movement Art."

Lin Hao muttered to himself, "It seems I shouldn't use the Heaven-Turning Seal lightly in the future; I must treat it as a trump card. The Clan Leader must be hiding something from me. Next time we meet, I will get to the bottom of this."

Initially, he had trusted the Clan Leader’s words, genuinely viewing the Heaven-Turning Seal and the Divine Movement Art as rudimentary techniques—but that was only because he had been ignorant and inexperienced.

Lin Hao suddenly remembered the broken sword he had tossed into a corner of his Universe Ring, which he had never paid any mind to. He flicked his arm, and the broken sword appeared in his hand. It was covered in rust and dilapidated. He swung it a few times and even channeled true energy into it, but the sword showed no reaction.

"The Clan Leader said this sword was a divine weapon; it’s likely not as simple as it looks on the surface. I must study it properly in the future." Although Lin Hao couldn't see anything extraordinary about the broken sword, he subconsciously no longer felt it was entirely worthless.

"Huh? I suddenly realize that whether it's the Heaven-Turning Seal, the Divine Movement Art, or even these techniques before me, I can master them as soon as I look at them. Reading these formulas feels as if a master who created the technique is demonstrating it for me right in front of my eyes. Could this be the talent of the Supreme Body?"

Lin Hao finally grasped his own heaven-defying potential. "The same thing happened with alchemy earlier; everything just felt natural. And I suspect the excellence of the Supreme Body goes far beyond this—it needs to be developed slowly."

Suddenly, he felt full of confidence in his path of cultivation. He didn't know what level his talent reached, but he imagined there couldn't be many people who could master combat techniques at a single glance like he could. He put away the broken sword and began to browse the remaining scrolls. He wanted to read every one of them, imprint their formulas into his mind, and eventually transcribe them to bolster the Taixuan Sect. Or perhaps, on a day when he felt like it, he would put these techniques up for auction and reveal the Ling clan’s "undisclosed" secrets to the world.

Outside the library, the brothers Ling Wen and Ling Wu were still chatting happily, dreaming of their future, unaware that the wolf they had personally invited in was already tearing through their secrets. In the blink of an eye, over half an hour had passed. Lin Hao had browsed through most of the scrolls in the library, focusing on those with impressive-sounding names and imprinting their secrets into his mind.

"Time is running out."

Lin Hao’s gaze, sharp as a torch, turned toward the highest point of the bookshelf. There sat a dark red box, placed alone, which clearly looked like something extraordinary. He carefully took the box down and examined it, discovering a striking line of text engraved on the lid: *Only those with a six-zhang Dragon Gate talent may open this.*

At this, Lin Hao’s eyes lit up. He keenly sensed that a barrier had been placed on the outside of the box; it would be impossible for an average person to open it.

"So this is the Ling clan's signature technique—the true, closely guarded secret. The cultivation requirements are so harsh that only those with a six-zhang Dragon Gate talent are qualified to practice it. I am a holder of the ten-zhang Dragon Gate; this barrier only blocks disciples below the six-zhang threshold. It’s useless against me."

Lin Hao was pleasantly surprised. He knew clearly that the value of all the combat techniques he had seen so far did not amount to even one-tenth of what was in this box. However, the moment his palm touched the box to open it, he hesitated and frowned.

"Damn it, this barrier must have been set by a high-level expert of the Ling clan—possibly even a Divine Origin expert. If I open it easily, and the setter feels a disturbance, wouldn't I be exposed immediately?"

Lin Hao thought, "If this barrier is linked to the Ling clan's Dragon Gate, then once someone opens it, the Ling clan experts will know exactly what kind of talent opened it. I would be dead on the spot."

He hesitated, staring fixedly at the box, weighing the risks. If he opened it, he might be exposed. If he didn't, how could he be content leaving the Ling clan's ultimate secret right before his eyes?

What to do? Time was running out, and Lin Hao was anxious.