"She's a good person. Her aura is pure, and she even carries merit. Maybe she'll be able to suppress that treasure. That's why I let her go to the fifth floor."
"Since you like her so much, why not acknowledge her as your master yourself, Little Sister Muxi?"
A sharp voice immediately followed with a pointed question.
But this time, no answer came—only a quiet sigh in response.
Yun Xi was unaware of the exchange between the artifact spirits on the first floor of the tower. She was slowly making her way upstairs, cautious with every step. After each level, she paused to ensure she wouldn't be forcibly thrown back down before continuing.
Two incense sticks' time later, Yun Xi finally reached the fifth floor. It was only then that she realized—her dantian was empty, and every last trace of spiritual energy in her meridians had been squeezed dry.
She sat down cross-legged without delay, gripping a top-grade spirit stone in each hand. Absorbing the spiritual energy with urgency, she began replenishing her meridians and dantian.
Two hours passed before Yun Xi finally opened her eyes. She looked at the now-dim spirit stones in her hands and felt a wave of relief. Her caution had paid off. With a flick of her wrist, she stored the depleted stones into her storage bracelet and slowly stood up.
She glanced around. The fifth floor was surprisingly empty. Only five shelves stood spaced widely apart, each bearing a single treasure. The atmosphere felt aged, solemn, and deeply ancient.
On the shelves sat: a copper seal, a black umbrella, a rusted sword, a white handkerchief, and a pair of golden rings.
Yun Xi examined them for a while but couldn't discern anything meaningful. She muttered under her breath,
"Not even a user manual?"
Given their appearance, these treasures were clearly older than she was. It made sense she wouldn't recognize any of them.
Initially, she considered picking one based on instinct. But then she recalled Elder Han's advice—if a treasure had an artifact spirit and found her unworthy, she could be thrown out immediately. That wouldn't just be embarrassing—it'd be a complete waste of a rare opportunity.
After some thought, Yun Xi decided to let the treasures choose her.
She respectfully cupped her hands toward the five items and said, "You seniors arrived in this world long before I did. I don't know if I'm worthy to wield any of you, so I'll leave the choice to you."
With that, she sat down cross-legged again and began circulating the Thousand Shadows Riding the Wind technique. Wind-aligned spiritual energy gathered around her as she released her divine sense, sweeping over each of the five treasures—a gesture to display her strength.
Yun Xi had a clear goal: she needed a defensive artifact compatible with her wind spiritual root.
Over time, she'd built up a modest arsenal. The Seven Stars Soul-Shattering Staff was powered by lightning and enhanced her physical strength, making it her main offensive weapon. The Mystic Frost Needle aligned with her ice spiritual root and paired with the Mingyue Frost Condensation Art—perfect for ambushes and area attacks, serving as a secondary weapon. The Mystic Thunder Violet Flame was primarily for alchemy but also had offensive capabilities.
But she lacked a solid defense artifact—ideally one powered by wind. With that, she would finally have a balanced setup, capable of both attack and defense. It would be enough to carry her all the way to the Spirit Realm.
As her cultivation art continued, the wind spiritual energy around her thickened. One by one, three identical avatars of herself appeared, forming a ring. A fourth avatar was just starting to take shape.
Seeing the treasures remain motionless, Yun Xi had simply decided to continue her training and forge her fourth shadow clone on the spot. Her current cultivation had reached the peak of the Golden Core mid-stage, and with her powerful divine sense, she could just barely manage a fourth clone.
The moment the fourth avatar stabilized, the black umbrella flew over to her on its own and completed a contract, bonding with her instantly. As soon as it acknowledged her as its master, the black umbrella opened by itself and hovered gently above her head.
Yun Xi's sea of consciousness now held a contract mark. Her eyes opened wide with delight as she reached out and grasped the umbrella handle. A name surfaced in her mind:
Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella
A black dragon emerged on the umbrella's surface, circling once before settling back, lifelike and vivid as if truly alive. Yun Xi couldn't resist reaching up to touch it, only to find the surface smooth and flat.
"Master, I am the artifact spirit of the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella. You may call me Hei Yao."
Yun Xi smiled and replied, "Hei Yao, I'm very glad to form a contract with you."
"Hmm."
Hei Yao answered coolly, then instantly shrank the umbrella to a compact size. It asked politely, "Does Master wish for Hei Yao to reside in the dantian, or remain outside?"
Yun Xi gave it some thought and said, "I'd like to get to know you better first. Would it be alright if you stayed outside for now?"
She showed genuine respect for the artifact spirit's wishes.
"Certainly. Please remove the plain bamboo hairpin without spiritual energy. Hei Yao will take its place."
Smiling, Yun Xi complied, storing away the green bamboo hairpin that Qing Zhu Zhēnjūn had once gifted her. The Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella transformed into a beam of black light and embedded itself in her hair. Then its color shifted from black to white, taking on the appearance of a warm jade-white miniature umbrella—it became her new hair ornament.
Yun Xi reached up to touch it, asking in curiosity, "Hei Yao, you can change color?"
"Yes, Master. My core was forged from the spine of a Jiuyou Minglong. Dragon bone is naturally white. I can shift between black and white. My previous master preferred black, so that was the form I used most often."
Yun Xi drew in a sharp breath. A treasure forged from dragon bone—this was nothing less than a Xuánbǎo!
Hei Yao seemed to sense her thoughts and added, "Master is correct. As long as you live, Hei Yao can ascend alongside you to the Immortal Realm. How much of the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella's power you can wield will depend entirely on your strength."
Suddenly, Yun Xi felt her current cultivation was far from enough. She quickly promised,
"I understand. I'll train hard so you never regret choosing me."
"Good. Hei Yao looks forward to your growth."
Grinning, Yun Xi gently patted the miniature white umbrella now tucked in her hair, then happily made her way downstairs.
Back on the first floor of the artifact hall, that familiar sharp voice shrieked again,
"Whoa! Whoa! She actually made that gloomy guy acknowledge her!"
"Of course. That's my ability."
This time, the reply came from Yun Xi herself. The next moment, silence fell once more across the floor. Not a single artifact spirit spoke up.
Yun Xi narrowed her almond-shaped eyes in delight and gave a polite bow to the unseen artifact spirits around her. She walked out of the tower with a slight spring in her step.
As she exited, the doors of the artifact hall slowly closed behind her.
In the very next instant, an old man with a beard trailing along the floor appeared beside her, holding Dian Dian in his hands. He looked Yun Xi up and down, eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
With a warm smile, he said, "Now that Hei Yao has recognized you as its master, the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella is yours. Treat it well."
"Yes, Senior. Please rest assured—I'll take good care of my artifact."
"Here. Your little mouse, returned. Come play again sometime!"
As he spoke, Dian Dian leapt in a graceful arc into Yun Xi's arms, scrambling into her embrace with its tiny limbs and squeaking twice, clearly shaken.
"Where are you headed? This old one will give you a lift."
The elder smiled as he asked.
"I'm returning to Lingxue Peak, Senior."
The white-bearded man stroked his beard and waved his sleeve. In a blink, Yun Xi found herself at the foot of Lingxue Peak—just in time to run into Zong Hao, who had come looking for her.
===
九幽冥龙伞
九幽 (Jiǔ Yōu)
Nine Nether Realms, Nine Hells, or simply the Deepest Abyss
In xianxia and Daoist lore, this refers to the darkest layers of the underworld, a place of death, spirits, and terrifying power
Evokes extreme yin energy, death, cold, and darkness
冥 (Míng)
Netherworld, underworld, spirit realm
Often used to emphasize a ghostly, death-related, or spiritual aura
龙 (Lóng)
Dragon
Symbol of ultimate power, divine beast status, especially when paired with death or darkness (e.g., 冥龙 = Nether Dragon)
伞 (Sǎn)
Umbrella or parasol