If it were possible to investigate, he would have done so long ago following this direction.
But no matter how hard his intelligence personnel tried, they couldn’t investigate these targets.
"Prepare the Heavenly Inquiry Array, I want to perform the Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique once!" Ancestor Luo Wei thought for a moment and made a decision.
"Uncle Master, do we really have to do this?" Ancestor Han Xiao asked hesitantly upon hearing Ancestor Luo Wei’s words.
In the Cultivation World, few cultivators know the origin of the Heavenly Inquiry Sect’s name, but the fact is that the Heavenly Inquiry of the Heavenly Inquiry Sect originates from a secret technique, an extremely mysterious secret technique.
To name a sect after a secret technique shows how much importance the Heavenly Inquiry Sect places on this secret technique.
The Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique is one that even when performed by a Nascent Soul Middle Stage Practitioner, demands a significant cost.
The Heavenly Inquiry Sect only performs the Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique at crucial moments.
"It’s just two hundred years of life span, isn’t it? Even if I lose two hundred years of life span, I can still support the sect for over a hundred years. It’s completely worth it to obtain the Cave Heaven Inheritance!" Ancestor Luo Wei said with a smile.
He spoke lightly, but Ancestor Han Xiao knew how important those two hundred years of life span were to Ancestor Luo Wei.
Although a Nascent Soul Middle Stage Practitioner gains an additional five hundred years when advancing from the Nascent Soul Early Stage, Ancestor Luo Wei has only about three hundred years left before his life span runs out. Losing two hundred years means that unless the Cave Heaven Inheritance greatly aids Ancestor Luo Wei, he will surely be unable to advance further.
Ancestor Luo Wei felt helpless from within; if he could advance to the Late-stage Nascent Soul through his own cultivation, how would he consider such a desperate move?
What he’s doing is indeed a desperate move. Since his cultivation cannot break through, this Cave Heaven Inheritance is his only hope.
An opportunity like this has only come once in his life, and looking at the current situation, it’s indeed perfect.
A Mahayana Realm mighty being’s cave inheritance appearing in such a barren continent as the Beishu Continent—of the whole continent, as far as the external Skywalk Trading Company and the Heavenly Inquiry Sect are concerned, there are merely two Nascent Soul Middle Stage Ancestors.
On his side, Ancestor Han Xiao can definitely overpower Ancestor Ren Xun, and he believes he can succeed against Elder Jin Kai. As for the Nascent Soul Ancestors of the Beishu Continent, if pushed, he would threaten the foundations of the six great sects, which those Nascent Soul Early Stage Practitioners wouldn’t dare challenge.
According to intelligence analysis, it’s almost certain that the Cave Heaven Inheritance fell into the hands of a Golden Core cultivator who cannot open it.
The competitive environment of the Beishu Continent almost assures him that he has a seventy percent chance of obtaining the Cave Heaven Inheritance.
With such high odds, how could he not dare to gamble?
Seeing Ancestor Luo Wei’s resolute attitude, Ancestor Han Xiao bowed and went to make preparations.
Three days later, on a flat area of Mountain Sea Island, a complex formation diagram appeared.
Precious formation materials of fourth grade were interconnected by lines of array spiritual power, with a Fourth-Grade Locking Vein Plate placed at the center, supported by a Nascent Soul Level Spirit Vein powering the complex formation.
All cultivators were driven out of the area, with only Ancestor Luo Wei and Ancestor Han Xiao standing outside the formation.
"Uncle Master, the time is almost here!" Ancestor Han Xiao reminded after checking the time.
Performing the Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique requires the momentum of the heavens and earth, and it can only be performed at a fixed time each day.
Without hesitation, Ancestor Luo Wei stepped into the Heavenly Inquiry Array.
He began chanting a strange incantation, and as his chants echoed, the Heavenly Inquiry Array emitted brilliant light.
The light of the Heavenly Inquiry Array reflected in the sky, forming a mysterious pattern.
Ancestor Luo Wei’s face grew solemn; this was the most critical moment.
"With my life span, I inquire of heaven; into whose hands has the Cave Heaven Inheritance of the Beishu Continent fallen?" Ancestor Luo Wei uttered, and as he spoke the first word, mysterious energy from his body began to be extracted by the pattern in the sky.
That was his life span; each extraction aged him more.
He did not use a questioning tone. The Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique’s consumption is so immense that asking for an accurate answer about the continent would drain his life span entirely and still not suffice.
"Is it You Xia?" he asked in a deep voice.
As he asked, he aged even more.
Moments later, he received a reply from the Heavenly Inquiry Pattern, a ’no’.
He sighed inwardly, for You Xia Elder was the most plausible target based on the investigation data, but regrettably, Elder You Xia did not obtain the Cave Heaven Inheritance, otherwise, he might have saved on his life span.
"Is it Sun Ao?" he continued asking.
The Heavenly Inquiry Pattern again replied ’no’, making his face turn pale. Neither of the two Great Elders of the Skywalk Trading Company were the ones, causing him to question if the Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique had been hasty this time.
Having come this far, stopping was not an option; having paid so much, he had to persist through the two remaining questions.
"Is it Li Yuanba?" he asked again.
This time, he encountered the strangest occurrence—the Heavenly Inquiry Pattern neither replied ’yes’ nor ’no’, giving no response at all.
It’s not the Heavenly Inquiry Pattern’s fault; Li Yuanba indeed exists, but he’s not an individual entity; he’s a clone.
The one who truly obtained the Cave Heaven Inheritance is the original body, Li Shiming, and even the Heavenly Inquiry Pattern cannot determine whether Li Yuanba obtained the Cave Heaven Inheritance.
To say ’yes’ isn’t accurate, as Li Yuanba hasn’t even come into contact with the Cave Heaven Inheritance; to say ’no’ isn’t right either, as Li Yuanba and Li Shiming are the same person.
The bizarre phenomenon led Ancestor Luo Wei to wonder if something was wrong with the Heavenly Inquiry Secret Technique; how could such a phenomenon occur?
His question was neither ambiguous; it should have been a simple ’yes’ or ’no’, so why was the answer absent?
Frustratingly, although the Heavenly Inquiry Pattern hadn’t answered, it didn’t save his life span at all—his life span was still taken.
This almost made him spit blood. He reminded himself that there was still one more name and not to rush.
"Is it Li Shiming?" he asked in the end.
The Heavenly Inquiry Pattern’s light shone brightly, triggering the Heaven and Earth Rules, forming a faint connection with the sequestered Li Shiming.
Though Li Shiming was immersed in cultivation, he still had idle brain space.
He felt a sense of being watched, and this feeling made his hairs stand on end.
Residing within his own cave mansion, this Sword Holding Peak had undergone multiple formation enhancements, assuring him that even the mountain of a Nascent Soul Ancestor’s formation was not as secure as his own.
Still, for something to penetrate the formation and watch him, and for him to perceive the will of the Heaven and Earth Rules.
"What’s happening?" he kept practicing the ’Five Rhymes Qi Cultivation Technique’ within his body while activating his idle brain space and analyzing the situation using his innate magical tool, IBMz15.
The drone satellite system’s monitoring footage was summoned. Based on his judgment, only the Skywalk Trading Company or the Heavenly Inquiry Sect had such abilities beyond his imagination.
Unfortunately, due to the high realm of Nascent Soul Ancestors, the drone satellite system could only detect their positions but couldn’t monitor the specific conditions around their bodies.
For instance, the impact from Ancestor Luo Wei as a Nascent Soul Middle Stage Practitioner made it impossible for the drone satellite system to detect the Heavenly Inquiry Array on the ground.
"Yes!" The Heavenly Inquiry Pattern gave Ancestor Luo Wei a definite answer.
Ancestor Luo Wei froze, not expecting this result; the least likely had been Li Shiming.
Li Shiming was just an alchemy master whose skills were reportedly high. Had Li Shiming and Li Yuanba not both advanced to late-stage Golden Core at a young age, Ancestor Luo Wei wouldn’t have even added Li Shiming’s name.
Yet it was unthinkable, the least likely Li Shiming was the cultivator who had obtained the Cave Heaven Inheritance.
A late-stage Golden Core alchemy master, subjected to a Mahayana Realm mighty being’s tests and passing them while still a Golden Core Middle Stage practitioner—what kind of talent is this!