Chapter Thirty-Four: The Storage Ring

Time slipped by quietly, and before long, dusk had fallen. A heavy gloom blanketed the entire sky, even the clouds tinged a somber gray, casting an oppressive pall over the world. As if in concert with that stifling atmosphere, the cool evening breeze that so often swept through was nowhere to be found.

Within this stifling air, Su Yi’s small cabin stood silent and unmoving, like the calm before a violent storm.

Inside, Su Yi, now rested, finally awakened. Blinking, he glanced around, realizing that night was already upon him. He stood, dusted himself off, and could not help but feel a trace of relief—his soul had not been devoured by that Blood Sovereign after all. Remembering everything that had happened felt as unreal as a fleeting dream.

His thoughts soon returned to the storage ring. Heart pounding with anticipation, Su Yi shot a glance at where it lay, walked over, and picked it up. He sent a wisp of soul sense inside to scan it—and the result nearly made him drop the ring in shock!

From what Su Yi knew, the cheapest storage rings on the market contained only a few cubic meters of space. But this ring’s interior was vast—hundreds of cubic meters! Calculated by space alone, its value would soar to several million gold coins!

Of course, the value wasn’t determined solely by size, but the larger the storage ring, the rarer it became. Rings boasting several dozen cubic meters were already hard to come by, while one with hundreds of cubic meters was virtually priceless—if it could be bought at all, the price would be at least one or two million in gold.

Moreover, such high-tier rings were far sturdier and more secure than ordinary ones. They could safely hold the most precious treasures without fear of being easily destroyed or losing their contents. The soul mark function was also enhanced: the soul imprint would be magnified proportionally by the ring, so even if someone else got hold of it, erasing the mark would require soul strength surpassing the original owner’s. Any attempt would also alert the owner.

Because of this, only the truly powerful or those belonging to great factions could possess such advanced storage rings. Recalling the cryptic exchange with the mysterious elder, Su Yi felt his scalp prickle. Now that the old man was dead, what if the power behind him came seeking vengeance?

If such a mighty force sent even one person after him, they could crush him with a mere flick of a finger!

His only hope was that no one would ever learn of this matter. But Su Yi, though new to this land, understood that the greater the power, the deeper its mysteries. Who could say there weren’t means beyond his imagination? At that thought, his gaze lingered on the storage ring.

By rights, only the strong could own such a ring, their soul force formidable. The soul imprint, magnified by the ring’s properties, could not be erased unless one’s soul strength exceeded the owner’s.

For Su Yi, whose soul force was far inferior to that old man’s, it would have been impossible to remove the imprint and claim the ring’s contents. Thankfully, the Blood Sovereign had intervened and erased the mark. But with such a miraculous item, who knew what might happen once the soul imprint was gone?

“Oh well, better not to think about it,” Su Yi muttered, scratching his head in resignation. He ran his hand over the storage ring and began to empty it of its contents.

There was quite a trove inside. Besides the white mask, the first thing that caught his eye was a large object that seemed like a weapon. Next came a small pile of martial technique scrolls, several glittering golden currency cards, a collection of herbs laid out in neat bundles, a transparent crystal box, and a black strip of material as thick as an iron wire.

Su Yi’s eyes immediately darted to the martial technique scrolls. On this continent, martial techniques were of utmost importance—without them, one could never unleash truly powerful, qi-infused attacks. And since the mysterious elder was so formidable, the techniques he left behind must be extraordinary.

Unrolling the first few scrolls, Su Yi’s heart trembled with excitement—they were all high-tier Profound-grade techniques!

Even the Lie Clan, renowned in Changling City as the foremost family with over a dozen Douluo experts, had never managed to acquire a high Profound-grade martial technique in all these years. The only time one had surfaced—the Heaven and Earth Reversal—it had vanished just as quickly. Yet here, to Su Yi’s astonishment, that very technique now lay in his hands!

So, the mysterious old man had stolen Heaven and Earth Reversal after all! But hadn’t he put it up for auction himself? Was he so bored after selling it that he went and stole it back? Or did he simply need the money? Su Yi couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity.

Martial technique scrolls on the continent were crafted from special materials, with a brief introduction and general outline inscribed upon them. The detailed cultivation method would only appear in one’s mind after infusing a wisp of soul sense. After imprinting the techniques in his mind, Su Yi discovered that, aside from Heaven and Earth Reversal, the remaining techniques were all rather sinister and dark.

Shaking his head, Su Yi’s gaze finally fell upon the last scroll. This one was pitch black and ancient, seeming to exude the weight of many years. It lay quietly among the other items, a faintly intimidating aura radiating from it.

Grasping it, Su Yi felt its rough texture. He sent forth his soul sense to probe its level—most people did this without even unrolling the scroll. But what appeared in his mind next left him utterly stunned—

Earth-grade, low-tier martial technique!

Such a technique would be the prized treasure of any first-rate power on the continent, guarded with utmost secrecy. If word got out, countless factions would battle for it without hesitation. Yet now, here in Changling City, in an auction house, in a humble cabin, this priceless scroll rested in Su Yi’s hands!

A sense of unreality washed over him—he gripped the scroll tighter, the tangible weight somehow reassuring him that this was no illusion. Then, as the realization sank in, his heart pounded furiously, blood surging with exhilaration!

This was the dream of countless people—an Earth-grade martial technique! It was said that using such a technique could stir the very heavens and earth, and mastering one was a path to true power! Su Yi’s spirits soared; if he could learn this, who would ever dare to look down on him again?

At this thought, Su Yi’s mind drifted back to those days when, as a tenth-level Dou Practitioner, he had wielded his strength with pride. Who knew how long he stood there, lost in thought, before his excitement finally subsided. More clearheaded now, he suddenly recalled the peculiarities of Earth-grade martial techniques.

Below Earth-grade, scrolls might be exquisitely crafted or exceedingly powerful, but they were still fundamentally ordinary—nothing especially remarkable. Earth-grade techniques, however, were another matter entirely.

Without sufficient strength and the correct methods, one might not even be able to open an Earth-grade scroll. Their unique properties and extraordinary features made them not only difficult to cultivate, but sometimes impossible to access at all—leaving one with an invaluable technique and no way to make use of it.

Su Yi’s heart sank slightly. He reached out to unroll the scroll, but it didn’t budge. As expected, he couldn’t open it!

Unwilling to give up, he tried infusing it with qi—but it was instantly absorbed by the scroll. Fortunately, he withdrew in time, or it might have drained him completely! Shaken, he quickly set the scroll aside and cautiously released a trace of soul sense, but it was like a stone dropped into the sea—no response at all.

In other words, at his current strength, Su Yi could not access this most coveted of martial techniques.

Frustrated, Su Yi scratched his head, feeling momentarily helpless. “Never mind. Even if I could open it, there’s no guarantee I could learn it. After all, even cultivating Profound-grade techniques is no easy feat without guidance, let alone Earth-grade ones. Forcing it… sigh… Still, I am something of a genius… I should…”

Muttering, he reluctantly returned the scrolls to the storage ring and turned his attention to the remaining items.

Martial Peak, Chapter Thirty-Four: Storage Ring—update complete!