Cultivating in Reverse: My Sign-In System Wants Me Dead

Five days passed inside the Ancestral Sanctum.

During those five days, Su Bai barely moved away from the white jade cliffs.

If not for the Dao-Shattering Jade consuming large amounts of Qi every time it activated, Su Bai felt he might have finished even faster.

But even with that limitation, the result was terrifying.

The carved walls stretching along the paths... All of them had been examined by him.

Every martial art, cultivation insight, Dao carving, force circulation, combat principle, formation fragment, and warning left behind by the founders had been memorized and sorted inside his mind.

The Dao-Shattering Jade did not simply help him remember things. It improved the way he remembered.

Before, Su Bai’s memory was already excellent. He could recall words and images clearly, but he still had to organize the meaning himself.

Now, after repeatedly activating the Dao-Shattering Jade, his mind seemed sharper.

His memory no longer felt like shelves filled with books. It felt like an entire archive with labels, divisions, cross-references, and warnings.

...

Su Bai stood before the last part of the white jade cliff and let out a slow breath.

The Glacier-Lung Bone Mask released a faint white mist.

He was satisfied.

The founders’ knowledge was life-changing.

For ordinary disciples, entering the Ancestral Sanctum and cultivating in the ancient Qi was already a great fortune.

But Su Bai felt that the inheritance cliffs alone might be more valuable than many secret realms outside.

For a moment, he even had a disrespectful thought. Perhaps the Mystic Realm would not be as good as this place.

Still, he decided not dare judge too early. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

After finishing the final carving in the area, Su Bai sat down and finally checked the rewards from the previous days.

During these five days, he had focused entirely on studying. The system had completed the sign-ins automatically.

He opened the system inventory. The new rewards rested inside.

Two were seeds.

Two were small pinches of ash sealed inside tiny black glass vials.

Su Bai looked at the first item.

[Withered Jade-Lotus Seed]

[Description: A jade-lotus seed that absorbed the concentrated stagnation and lethargy of cultivators who sat motionless for hundreds of years. If consumed by an ordinary person, their muscles will become completely numb, and they will fall into a state of extreme laziness and sleepiness for several days.]

Su Bai stared at the description, then he nodded.

To him, this was likely a direct stimulant. This was probably an excellent temporary body-and-movement enhancement.

A proper emergency resource.

Then Su Bai looked at the second item.

[Ash of the Blind Monk]

[Description: Ash left behind by a monk who sealed all external spiritual perception to face his Dao Heart in silence. When used, it induces complete spiritual sensory deprivation. The user becomes spiritually blind, unable to sense ambient Qi, killing intent, or the presence of other living beings.]

Su Bai’s eyes moved.

This was also good.

The reversed effect might strengthen his spiritual senses instead. Or perhaps it would allow him to sense things that ordinary Spirit Sense could not detect.

Even if used on an enemy, it might be useful. If thrown properly, the ash could blind someone’s spiritual perception at a critical moment.

If used on himself, it might become a perception upgrade.

Both uses were good.

Unfortunately, the amount was small. Only two pinches for the 2 days of reward.

Su Bai sighed softly.

Afterward, Su Bai looked back at the cliffs.

He had already gained the knowledge he could reasonably take from the inheritance walls for now.

There was no need to stay here forever.

He turned his head.

The other four disciples were still cultivating. They were all gaining something.

But Su Bai looked at them and felt slightly regretful.

The ancient Qi was good. But spending all their time only cultivating here was a waste.

The cliffs contained founder inheritances. Even if they could not study everything, each of them should at least take one or two suitable techniques before leaving.

After thinking for a moment, Su Bai took out several blank jade slips he had bought with Liu Meng before entering the Sanctum.

At the time, they had only been ordinary preparation items.

Now, they were perfect.

Su Bai held the first blank jade slip and pressed it gently against the space between his brows.

A jade slip was not merely a piece of jade. To cultivators, it was a container for thoughts, text, images, movement patterns, Qi routes, and sometimes even faint intent.

If one had enough control, one could imprint knowledge into it using Spirit Sense.

Su Bai closed his eyes.

His Spirit Sense entered the jade slip.

Then, with careful control, he began transferring what he had understood.

For Qin Baoshan, he chose the Unshakable Mountain Stance.

He removed the confusing ancient phrasing and recorded the dummified version.

After finishing Qin Baoshan’s jade slip, Su Bai made one for Han Yuelin.

This one was more difficult. He could not directly teach Sloth Sword Intent.

He had only comprehended the seed of it himself. But he could record the direction.

Next was Liu Meng.

Su Bai chose a movement technique called Wildfire Step.

The original carving had been extremely troublesome.

Its description said:

[To move, you must be the forest that burns, yet the seed that remains. Only when you weep for the ash can your feet touch the wind.]

Su Bai had stared at that line for several breaths when he first read it.

After the Dao-Shattering Jade simplified it, the meaning became much clearer.

Use Wood Qi as the root. Use Fire Qi as the burst. Let each step consume the previous trace to fuel the next movement. Do not merely run. Spread.

Advance like fire through dry grass, but leave enough vitality behind to ignite again.

This suited Liu Meng very well. If she practiced Wildfire Step, her movement and combat powder placement would become far more dangerous.

Su Bai carefully recorded the simplified method into the jade slip.

Finally, Su Bai prepared a jade slip for Ji Ruyue.

He chose a movement technique called Dance of the Winter Fairy.

The original carving described it in graceful and maddening language.

[Step as lightly as falling snow. Let each footfall leave behind a frost lotus, and let those who follow learn reverence through frozen feet.]

It was a cold-path movement technique.

The practitioner moved lightly, leaving behind faint frost marks that could slow or chill pursuers.

Su Bai recorded the technique carefully.

After finishing the four jade slips, Su Bai let out a slow breath.

Imprinting knowledge into jade slips was not as simple as copying words.

Fortunately, compared to activating the Dao-Shattering Jade repeatedly, this was much easier.

Su Bai stood and walked toward the four disciples.

As he approached, Ji Ruyue opened her eyes first.

Her gaze fell on him calmly.

Su Bai clasped his hands lightly.

"Senior Sister Ji."

Ji Ruyue nodded.

"Junior Brother Su."

Su Bai took out one jade slip and offered it to her.

"During these few days, I studied some of the carvings on the white jade cliffs. I found a movement technique that should suit your path. I recorded the parts I understood. If Senior Sister finds it useful, you may study it when you have time."

Ji Ruyue looked at him quietly, then, she accepted the jade slip.

Her Spirit Sense entered it.

For a moment, her expression became unreadable.

The jade slip did not contain a random technique. It contained a technique suitable for her.

More importantly, the difficult ancient wording had been arranged into clear routes and principles.

Ji Ruyue looked back at Su Bai.

"Thank you, Junior Brother. This will help."

Su Bai smiled.

"That is good."

Then he took out the other three jade slips.

"These are for Senior Brother Han, Junior Brother Qin, and Junior Sister Meng. May I trouble Senior Sister to pass them over when they wake?"

Ji Ruyue took them.

"Alright."

Su Bai glanced at the others, who were still cultivating deeply.

Then he said, "The ancient Qi here is valuable, but the Sanctum has more than Qi. There are better environments deeper inside. If we only sit here, we may miss what the ancestors opened this place for."

Ji Ruyue’s eyes moved slightly.

She looked toward the distant paths of the Sanctum.

Then she nodded.

"I understand."

Su Bai clasped his hands again.

"Then I will go ahead and look around first."

After saying that, he turned and walked away.

And ahead of him waited the elemental biomes.

Su Bai’s steps became lighter.

He had spent five days reading.

Now, it was time to find a place to practice.