“Jiuli rune? Is it connected to the Jiuli race?” asked Long Chen, his jaws dropping in astonishment. The Jiuli race was the strongest existence within the human race. How could their descendants end up here?

“That is all I can say,” replied the Earth Cauldron.

Long Chen was shocked. He didn’t know what Jiuli rune was, but merely hearing the word “Jiuli” was shocking enough.

“Did my father know their identity and intentionally leave behind this hint for me?” asked Long Chen.

The Earth Cauldron simply answered, “Most likely.”

Long Chen was unable to calm himself down for a long time. His father’s eyes were truly sharp to have even noticed this. After all, Long Chen himself hadn’t sensed anything unusual about Fang Liude and the others.

Could it be that Long Zhantian had slaughtered his way into the Long clan’s main palace and used his new authority to give the mercenaries more freedom and rights because he couldn’t bear to see such a noble lineage forced to live in such conditions?

Long Chen quickly checked the others, and they all had Jiuli runes within them. Once provided with enough energy to activate, these runes would awaken and transform their bodies.

However, there was one drawback to such a thing.

After the rune was awakened, their bodies would require much more energy to sustain. Previously, they only needed enough to sustain a chicken, but after awakening, they would require enough energy to sustain a giant bull. Indeed, all experts were supported by a mountain of resources.

Long Ziwei’s jaw dropped as he witnessed Fang Liude and his companions’ transformation. Before this, Fang Liude and the others had only existed in a completely different world from him, so their transformation filled him with even more reverence for Long Chen.

“With their power, they can definitely become outer disciples,” remarked Gui Jiu. Fate truly worked in mysterious ways. In the future, they would no longer need to be mercenaries; they could ascend to higher realms and look down upon others. “Long Chen, we…” Yu Ying attempted to express her gratitude but found the word “thanks” insufficient to convey their emotions.

“I will now pass a cultivation technique to you. Remember it firmly and brand it onto your souls,” declared Long Chen.

Gui Jiu, Long Ziwei, and the other Long clan disciples were preparing to depart when they heard this. Typically, a cultivation technique was not something shared with outsiders.

However, Long Chen added, “This cultivation technique is no secret. You can hear it and use it as a reference if you like.”

“Really?” asked Gui Jiu excitedly. “Of course.” Long Chen immediately started to explain the framework of the Starry River of the Sky Art. In truth, this cultivation technique could be considered very simple from a certain standpoint.

It involved only three processes: gathering astral energy, sensing the stars, and drawing astral energy to themselves. At first, practitioners would condense their star within their Dantian, followed by attuning to the astral energy of the heavens and earth to nourish their star. Finally, they would seek a corresponding star within the cosmos that resonated with their own, drawing upon its power to enhance their cultivation base.

The Starry River of the Sky Art itself was quite simple. As for its divine abilities and magical arts, Long Chen didn’t teach them just yet. They would need to build up a solid foundation before they learned those things.

Fang Liude and the others formed hand seals, their Dantians illuminating with brilliance. In less than the time it took for an incense stick to burn, they had successfully condensed their stars.

“It… it was that easy?” All of them looked at each other in disbelief, feeling like they were dreaming.

“It might have felt easy, but it wasn’t so simple. It’s all thanks to the original rune in your bodies helping you,” Long Chen sighed. Without the Jiuli rune, they couldn’t have trained in the Starry River of the Sky Art so easily.

They truly lived up to the name of the legendary Jiuli race. Even after falling to this extent, all they lacked was one chance to soar. Now, Long Chen was giving them that chance.

Gui Jiu simply watched and didn’t try cultivating this technique. First of all, he had his cultivation technique and couldn’t switch it out so lightly.

Other than that, he had no idea if this cultivation technique suited him. If he didn’t do well, he’d harm his foundation instead. There was also another important point: he didn’t know if this cultivation technique really was as strong as Long Chen made it sound. Hence, he chose to just watch.

“After condensing the star, you have to nourish it like raising a child; look after it meticulously. It will bring you countless pleasant surprises,” remarked Long Chen.

Hearing that, they were all filled with anticipation as they looked at the tiny star in their Dantian. This tiny little star was already giving them immense power. If it grew, they couldn’t even imagine what level they could reach.

When Long Chen was done, Long Ziwei finally asked a question that had been nagging him. “Boss, did you come to the Heavenly Desolation Domain to fight with Long Tianrui?”

“Who is Long Tianrui?” asked Long Chen.

“She is the Long clan’s top genius, a monster sealed back in the ancient era. Whether it was in her era or ours, she has always been unmatched!” explained Long Ziwei excitedly.

However, his excitement turned into disappointment when he recalled that Long Chen had never heard of her name. Naturally, Long Chen hadn’t come to fight her.

Long Chen said, “I came to the Heavenly Desolation Domain to gather medicinal ingredients. To be honest, I don’t want to have any interactions with the Long clan. Why would I want to deal with a cold clan that will sell out their own family for some profit?”

When the female disciples of the Long clan heard this, their expressions darkened. After all, they were members of the Long clan, and the blood of the Long clan flowed through their veins. That was a symbol of their grand status.

However, this blood, which was the most important thing in their eyes, was viewed as worthless by Long Chen. They were naturally unhappy, but they didn’t dare to say anything.

“Boss, you want medicinal ingredients? That’s easy. I’ll go to the Long clan’s medicinal storehouse and grab them for you. What do you need?” asked Long Ziwei hastily.

“That’s okay. I don’t want their things. I’m planning on setting up some missions in Mercenary City to get the medicinal ingredients,” replied Long Chen.

Fang Liude said, “We can gather all our trusted brothers and sisters and help you find them.”

After all, gathering medicinal ingredients and sourcing them through various information channels was their specialty, their means of survival.

Just as they were pondering how they could repay Long Chen, their opportunity arose. Even if they had to walk through fire, they had to help Long Chen gather those medicinal ingredients.

Long Chen remarked, “Then go gather all the mercenaries you trust. I will pass the Starry River of the Sky Art to all of them.”

“What?” No one could believe their ears.