The sky grew darker, a bright moon already hanging aslant across the night sky.
His face sallow, his back bent, Inner Sect Deacon Yue Yang leaned on a bamboo staff as he stood on the deck of the towering ship facing the night wind, listening to the report of an Inner Sect Disciple.
"Reporting to you, Deacon. Outer Sect Disciple Zhao Qian had no choice but to return, as he ran out of Water Repelling Talismans."
Yue Yang coughed several times, covering his mouth as though gravely ill.
After a moment, he spoke slowly, his voice hoarse. "So then, of those who went to sea to search for the treasure this afternoon, only Lin Yun and Zhang Qianren have yet to return."
The disciple behind him couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart upon hearing this, and asked, "Deacon, why did you and the Vice Sect Master not enter the East Sea yourselves? With your Cultivation Levels, surely that Exotic Treasure would fall into your hands the moment you entered the East Sea?"
Yue Yang sighed softly, and after a fit of violent coughing, said slowly, "It's not as easy as you think."
"The Vice Sect Master had barely arrived in Guanhai City, hadn't even had time for a sip of water, before he was invited away by the City Lord of Guanhai City."
"This shows the matter of the Exotic Treasure has already been reported to the Imperial Court by the Demon Suppression Division's scouts. Whether it's this old man, the Vice Sect Master, or that City Lord of Guanhai City, all of us must now wait for the Imperial Court's decree."
"When Deacon Zhang Qianren and Lin Yun return, inform them that until the Imperial decree arrives, no one is to set foot in the East Sea again!"
Having received the order, the disciple couldn't help but ask further, "And if Deacon Zhang Qianren has already found the Exotic Treasure?"
Yue Yang coughed violently for a long while, then let out a low chuckle.
"Although this Exotic Treasure's manifestation carried tremendous might, the fact that it doesn't appear in the Divine Weapon Compendium shows its power is only ordinary. The Imperial Court certainly won't seize what fortune belongs to him. At most, they'll send someone to determine its function and power, record it, and then return it to him."
The disciple nodded in understanding, bowed, and took his leave.
After he left, Yue Yang, mulling over the disciple's question, suddenly let out a mocking laugh.
"If Zhang Qianren had that kind of fortune, would he really have remained stuck at the Foundation Establishment Stage for several decades?"
At the same time, at the Qin Family;
Qin Mu was staring at the Panel floating before his eyes.
Just moments ago, the Ruyi Jingu Bang had been raised to Level 10, and a Trait that had remained sealed all this while had actually unlocked.
【Name: Ruyi Jingu Bang】
【Rank: Innate Supreme Treasure】
【Level: LV10】
【Experience: 8/1000】
【Trait: Ruyi（Size as Desired, Changing According to One's Will）】
（The Ruyi Jingu Bang can, at its master's will, freely alter its own form, transforming into another object, though currently it can only change into one form. Each time it rises ten levels, it will gain one additional form.）
【Remarks: Devouring any metal will grant the Ruyi Jingu Bang Experience and weight; when it levels up, it will bring you some feedback.】
【Introduction: The Ruyi Jingu Bang is also known as the "Lingyang Rod," or the "Heavenly River Bottom-Fixing Divine Iron," as well as the "Heavenly River Bottom-Fixing Divine Treasure," weighing thirteen thousand five hundred jin.
Originally a Measuring Rod used to gauge the depth of the sea, it later fused with Primordial Violet Qi through a fortuitous encounter, and was promoted to Innate Supreme Treasure, its power becoming unpredictable and mysterious!
Legend has it that when its power is unleashed, it can measure the Cosmic Sea of Stars and stabilize the Torrent of Spacetime!】
"Thirteen thousand five hundred jin?"
Having finished reading the changes that had occurred on the Panel above, Qin Mu noticed the weight of the Ruyi Jingu Bang.
Faced with this number he knew all too well, Qin Mu suddenly felt a wave of emotion.
When he was young, he'd felt that the Great Sage's Ruyi Jingu Bang was simply the rod of his dreams.
He'd even begged his father to paint a stick about a meter and a half long the color of the Ruyi Jingu Bang from the cartoon — the kind with yellow on both ends and red in the middle.
When he grew a bit older, many doubts began to surface in his mind.
Thirteen thousand five hundred jin — exactly what state was the Ruyi Jingu Bang in when it weighed that much?
Was it the state it was in when Sun Wukong first saw it in the East Sea Dragon Palace?
Or was it the state it was in when it stretched up to the Thirty-three Heavens and down through the Eighteen Levels of Hell?
If it was the former, then wouldn't it have to be hollow once it grew larger?
But now, he finally no longer had to rack his brain over such questions.
Because the Ruyi Jingu Bang's weight would change according to the metal it Devoured.
One day, once it could return to the state of "stretching up to the Thirty-three Heavens and down through the Eighteen Levels of Hell," its weight would surely exceed everyone's imagination.
Musing on this, Qin Mu let the Panel dissipate with a thought, and began fabricating content for the faction that had obtained the Ruyi Jingu Bang.
The East Sea, a seabed canyon;
Having endured several Shichen at the seabed, his face pale with anxiety, his mouth already inflamed with heat, Zhang Qianren, who was working hard at smelting iron, saw the Ruyi Jingu Bang suddenly bloom with a faint Rosy Clouds glow, and his expression couldn't help but change.
He was terrified that the Ruyi Jingu Bang might suddenly revert to the form he'd first seen it in.
If that happened, this Supreme Treasure would no longer belong to him.
At the thought of that possibility, Zhang Qianren's face turned paler still.
But just then, a piece of information suddenly appeared in his mind.
"As the amount of metal Devoured has reached a certain threshold, the Ruyi Jingu Bang has gained a slight recovery of Spirituality.
Its weight has become thirteen thousand five hundred jin, and its current weight will continue to change as it Devours more metal.
At the same time, it has gained the Trait of 'Size as Desired, Changing According to One's Will,' though for now it only has one form available in the short term."
Upon receiving this news, the anxiety on Zhang Qianren's face instantly vanished into thin air.
But soon after, his expression shifted slightly.
Thirteen thousand five hundred jin?
How could this old man possibly lift something so heavy?
Could it be that this old man's fate with this Supreme Treasure ends here?
As he thought this, the color that had just begun returning to his face drained away again, turning pale once more.
Though despair welled up in his heart, Zhang Qianren still tentatively reached out his hand.
To his astonishment, he found he could easily pick up the needle-thin Ruyi Jingu Bang with no effort at all.
Letting out a breath of relief, Zhang Qianren examined the Embroidery Needle in his hand, muttering to himself, "How is this thirteen thousand five hundred jin?"
The moment this thought crossed his mind, he seemed to suddenly recall something, and by the faint Rosy Clouds glow emanating from the Ruyi Jingu Bang, he abruptly widened his eyes and looked at the line of small characters engraved on the shaft of the rod.
"Ruyi?"
Staring at these two characters, Zhang Qianren suddenly felt a flash of realization.
"Size as Desired? Changing According to One's Will?"
He murmured these words softly, his eyes faintly gleaming, then quietly said the word "big."
The next instant, the Ruyi Jingu Bang, originally only the size of an Embroidery Needle, suddenly grew to the size of a chopstick.
Seeing this, Zhang Qianren Subconsciously said "big" again.
At once, the chopstick-sized Ruyi Jingu Bang grew larger still, becoming about the length of an adult's forearm.
In the Cultivation World, many Magic Tools and Magic Treasures possessed the function of Size as Desired.
But they only had two forms — one for their usual state, and one for when they were stored away in a storage Magic Tool.
A Magic Tool or Magic Treasure like the Ruyi Jingu Bang, one that could change its size at will according to one's intent, was something he had never heard of.
And so, seeing this, the smile on Zhang Qianren's face grew even wider.
Growing bigger and smaller was merely his own playful curiosity at work.
His true purpose was to find out whether the weight of the Ruyi Jingu Bang could also change as he wished, just as he suspected in his heart.
Thinking this, he Subconsciously took a deep breath and said softly, "Good treasure, keep your size the same, change your weight to a hundred jin!"
The moment he finished speaking, the object in his hand instantly grew heavy.
Feeling the Ruyi Jingu Bang grow heavier in his hand, Zhang Qianren's face filled with joy.
Then, he reached up with his left hand and removed his own Jade Hairpin, saying in a trembling voice, "Good treasure, turn into an exact copy of this!"
As his voice fell, the forearm-length Ruyi Jingu Bang visibly shrank down to the size of a hairpin, and then, with a flash of Golden Light along the shaft, its form instantly changed, becoming a Jade Hairpin.
In size, weight, and appearance, it was identical in every way to the Jade Hairpin he held in his left hand.
Even the Pattern on the Jade Hairpin was exactly the same!
Zhang Qianren examined it carefully for a long while, and could not find a single difference.
After taking a deep breath, he suddenly crushed the Jade Hairpin that had accompanied him for decades with his left hand, and inserted the Jade Hairpin that the Ruyi Jingu Bang had transformed into, into his hair.
Then, unable to contain the joy in his heart any longer, he threw back his head and laughed loudly.
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