Not long after activating his Mingqing Spiritual Eye ability, Han Li, who had been staring intently at the small cauldron, finally shifted his expression as if he had noticed something.
He raised a hand.
With a solemn pointing gesture toward the small cauldron, cyan light flickered at his fingertip as several thin threads of spiritual energy shot out, vanishing in a flash.
The Void Heaven Cauldron shimmered with blue light, then surged wildly within its shroud of ice flames, swelling from a mere few inches tall to a massive size of over a zhang in the blink of an eye. The images of birds, insects, fish, mountains, waters, and trees etched across its surface suddenly became vividly clear.
Gazing at the enormous object that had materialized in the air, Han Li rose unhurriedly to his feet. With a wave of his hand, the massive cauldron descended several zhang and came to rest about a foot in front of his chest.
Examining the cauldron once more, Han Li didn't hesitate for even a moment before pressing a palm directly through the blue ice flames and onto the cauldron's wall.
A bizarre scene unfolded. The raging blue flames suddenly coalesced into a spiraling vortex that shot skyward, and with a dragon's roar, a blue flood dragon roughly a zhang long materialized within the wind. After flicking its head and tail, the dragon plunged downward and vanished straight through the cauldron's lid.
At the same instant, the cauldron's pale cyan surface transformed into a deep, shimmering blue. The insects, birds, and beasts adorning the four walls blazed with brilliant light before suddenly coming to life, writhing and moving across the surface in an utterly wondrous display.
Yet Han Li's expression remained unchanged as spiritual light flickered ceaselessly from the palm pressed against the cauldron. Several threads of cyan radiance flowed through his hand and rapidly poured into the cauldron in an unending stream.
As the spiritual energy inundated it, a humming resonance gradually rose from within.
Right before Han Li's eyes, one blue archaic character after another emerged from the cauldron and drifted upward into the air. After flickering in blue light, the characters arranged themselves at a height of three zhang, forming a peculiar scripture of incantations.
Han Li gazed upward, and the spiritual energy flowing from his palm into the cauldron slowed unconsciously. Immediately the characters in the air dimmed, on the verge of dissolving.
Startled, Han Li hastily resumed the flow of energy.
The scripture in the air stabilized once more, radiating a faint spiritual glow.
The text was not long — barely over a thousand characters. But after examining it closely, Han Li's face first lit up with joy, only to settle into a bitter smile.
It seemed there was no need to rack his brains deciphering anything further. This scripture laid out the method of commanding the Void Heaven Cauldron in plain, unmistakable terms.
The beginning stated clearly that commanding the cauldron required two conditions: first, one had to refine the Qianlan Blue Ice Flames that accompanied the cauldron; second, one had to cultivate an ancient technique known as the Treasure Commanding Technique.
This technique had been created specifically for wielding treasures of the Heavenly Spirit Treasure class. Each Heavenly Spirit Treasure passed down from antiquity possessed its own unique Treasure Commanding Technique, the contents of which varied from treasure to treasure.
Moreover, these techniques could not be interchanged between different Heavenly Spirit Treasures. After all, each treasure possessed its own characteristics and powers, and only the matching technique could drive it.
In this way, the Treasure Commanding Technique drew a clear line between Heavenly Spirit Treasures and ordinary ancient treasures. Only an ancient treasure with a corresponding Treasure Commanding Technique could truly be called a Heavenly Spirit Treasure — for once one mastered the technique, it became possible to seal the treasure within one's own body and nurture it gradually.
This nurturing process differed from ordinary magical treasures, where one fused one's mind and spirit with the object. Instead, it was closer to the method used for demonic artifacts — one merely stored the Heavenly Spirit Treasure temporarily within the body, using the Treasure Commanding Technique to influence the treasure's spiritual nature day and night. Over time, the treasure's spiritual nature would gradually shift until it harmonized with the cultivator's own consciousness, ultimately achieving the state of unity between man and treasure. Only then could one unleash the full might of the Heavenly Spirit Treasure to vanquish enemies.
However, because the power of a Heavenly Spirit Treasure was simply too vast, the cultivator's spiritual consciousness served merely an auxiliary role when wielding it. This meant that unlike a life-bound treasure, a Heavenly Spirit Treasure could not be permanently bound to its owner. Instead, at the right opportunity, it could be seized by another with relative ease. But a newcomer who acquired the treasure could not use it immediately — they too would need to cultivate with the Treasure Commanding Technique to reshape the treasure's original spiritual imprint.
All of this was briefly touched upon in the scripture.
When Han Li had read this far, his heart had been brimming with excitement. But when he reached the actual technique that followed, his expression soured immediately.
For while the technique appeared simple, divided into merely three ordinary layers, cultivating even the first layer required the mid Nascent Soul stage. The second and third layers demanded entry into the late Nascent Soul stage and the Deity Transformation stage, respectively.
Even if he managed to cultivate the first layer of the Treasure Commanding Technique, he would only be able to draw upon a fraction of the cauldron's power — far from what he had originally hoped for.
With a frustrated exhalation, Han Li withdrew his hand, cutting off the flow of spiritual energy into the cauldron. The scripture in the air immediately dissolved and vanished.
Han Li stared at the massive cauldron before him, his expression darkening, lips pressed tight.
Though he didn't know exactly how much power that "fraction" entailed, he wasn't holding out much hope.
Could it possibly surpass his Great Golden Sword Formation or his Purple Skyfire?
Standing silently in place for a while, Han Li let out a sigh. He would start by studying the first layer of the Treasure Commanding Technique for this cauldron after all. Even if it was only the first layer, he could still seal the Void Heaven Cauldron within his body and begin nurturing it.
With this thought, Han Li swept his sleeve. A burst of cyan light erupted forth and enveloped the massive cauldron.
Within the radiance, the cauldron rapidly shrank, instantly returning to its original size.
He reached out, grabbed the small cauldron in his hand, and with a flash of spiritual light, stored it in his storage pouch.