No reaction was the best outcome, it told Yuan more than any answer could.
Most importantly, it confirmed that the scamming lizard did not react to his probing, no movement, no tricks, nothing.
This opened up a few possibilities. The lizard might be in a deep sleep, unable to respond. Or, more ideally, it might truly be dead.
Either way, it meant the lizard couldn't interfere with Yuan right now, and that was the best case scenario, for now. Of course, the truly best outcome would be that the lizard was completely and permanently gone.
But Yuan had no way to know for sure. He simply didn't have the power to understand the full nature of that creature. Whether it slept or had died, the lizard existed on a level far beyond his comprehension. All Yuan could do was hope for the best and prepare for the worst.
Yet even beyond this reassurance, Yuan had gained something equally important, confirmation about the Split Space Attraction spiritual creation.
The lizard had once told him that in order to refine this spiritual creation, one needed Tianlong bloodline essence. And now, after dropping just one bit of Wenli's blood and seeing it absorbed by the manor, Yuan had a new insight, even a diluted bloodline, one so distant it's barely noticeable, was still enough to trigger a reaction.
That could mean the spiritual creation didn't require only pure blood essence, it might work even with weak or indirect Tianlong lineage.
Deep in thought, Yuan closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, letting his scattered thoughts settle until his mind became clear again.
Rather than cultivate further, he decided to conduct a few more quiet experiments. He tested the blood, dropping it in different spots to see where it would be absorbed and where it wouldn't. Since he didn't want to draw attention from the others in the Founder's Manor, he limited his experiments to this single library room.
After finishing his experiments, Yuan had come to a few conclusions about the absorption process.
First, he tested whether the ground would absorb any kind of blood. As expected, when he used his own blood, it simply remained on the floor, unmoving and untouched. Only Wenli's blood had been absorbed.
He even tried blood from animals and demonic beasts he had collected over time in preparation for this, but none of it triggered any response.
With those results, Yuan had no choice but to stop. He had exhausted his limited supply of usable blood, and aside from Wenli's, he possessed no samples with even the slightest trace of Tianlong lineage.
"Haa…" Yuan sighed in frustration. If he could, he would stay here for years to uncover the secrets of this place. But beyond the absorption of Wenli's blood, he had found nothing else. No formations, no runes, not even faint remnants of runic inscriptions.
There were no responses, nothing to latch onto.
He had also combed through every book in the room. While none of them were about formations, cultivation methods, or anything obviously related to the spiritual creation, he still read each one carefully. There were only about thirty books, after all.
In the end, he learned some knowledge about various mortal plants, a few biographies of the founder, a couple of tales about famous cultivators, and some sparse historical records. The contents were ordinary, nothing profound or revealing.
Only the history books had any hint of intrigue. One of them briefly mentioned a very ancient era known as the Age of the Twelve Heavens and the Mortal World.
But even that book was the thinnest of the lot and contained only shallow references, traditions, ruling powers, and a few passing names.
Yuan had spent nearly two weeks on this research, and now only one week remained of his time in the Dragon Turning Cultivation Room. With nothing else to pursue for now, he decided to stop probing and simply focus on cultivation.
His goal was clear: awaken the fourth sense as soon as possible.
The week passed quickly, and now Yuan found himself once again riding in the carriage with Haoran. Haoran wore a big, satisfied grin, his nose raised proudly in the air.
"Brother Luanyuan, do you think Tianyu will be jealous of me now?" Haoran asked cheerfully, his voice practically ringing in Yuan's ears.
Yuan chuckled softly and shook his head. "Brother Haoran, you don't cultivate for Brother Tianyu, you cultivate for yourself. And besides, you two are brothers in arms, aren't you? Aren't you known as the Two Rivals Destined by Heaven? Hehe. It's good to be competitive, but too much of it isn't always wise."
Haoran snorted. "Luanyuan, you sound like that old teacher now! We're young, we should be bold and reckless! This is the only time in our lives we can be! I've awakened my third sense, so now I can afford to be a little more daring! Hahaha!"
Laughing at his own words, Haoran shot Yuan a teasing look and added in a mock scolding tone, "But Brother Luanyuan, you're only nine, yet you already talk like an old man! You'll never find a cute girl with that attitude! Haha!"
He burst into laughter, holding his belly in amusement at his own joke. Yuan, on the other hand, simply shook his head with a worried smile, unsure of how to respond.
"Man proposes, Heaven disposes," Yuan murmured under his breath. Haoran didn't hear him.
It had already been a month since they'd left the camp, and much could have happened in that time. Leaning back comfortably into the leather seat of the carriage, Yuan turned his thoughts toward the upcoming half-year test, or rather, the tournament.
The Loose Long Camp wasn't the only one of its kind. While it was the most well known among mortals and the most prestigious under the Loose Long Family's banner, it wasn't unique.
Scattered throughout the Lands of the Allies were many similar camps, small training grounds where the most talented children from various clans, families, or sects were gathered and groomed.
Each group would eventually represent their home faction in the great Young Talents Tournament, a competition held across all allied territories.
Although it was called an "Allies," the Allies were more like a mutual benefit pact. In a true alliance, members were bound by duty, required to give or do something in exchange for cooperation. But among the Allies, things were looser. Their cooperation was built more on trust than obligation.
Because of this, the bonds between them were weak, but that looseness allowed each member kingdom more freedom.
They only stepped in to help one another when something truly disastrous happened, like war, plagues, or when rogue cultivators began slaughtering civilians.
As for the Young Talent Tournament, it was a stage for youths under the age of thirteen. While general youth competitions existed, they were open to everyone and often messy.
The Young Talent Tournament, on the other hand, was for the best of the best, those who had trained for the same amount of time, at roughly the same age, in camps like Loose Long.
Winning the tournament brought many benefits: cultivation pills, low level spiritual creations, and other valuable rewards. Yuan didn't know the full list, he only remembered what their teacher had mentioned in passing.
Still, the tournament had become incredibly important to him.
He needed to win it.
Doing so would give him the leverage he needed to deepen his schemes and climb higher.
Leaning back in his seat, Yuan gazed out of the carriage window, enjoying the scenery along the road. A few villages passed by in the distance. The sight reminded him of something he'd always heard, the Loose Long Family was known as a kingdom where mortals rarely suffered.
Although the family wasn't particularly powerful, it had built the most stable villages in all the Allied Lands. The soil was fertile, and even the poorest villagers were rarely hungry. They may have had little, but they always had enough.
Eventually, they arrived back at the Loose Long Camp.
Yuan, Haoran, and the ten other young cultivators headed straight toward the familiar small garden pavilion, where they knew their teacher would be waiting.
As expected, he was already seated, quietly drinking and waiting for their return.
When they saw him, they all gave a small respectful bow and greeted him. One by one, they briefly reported their progress in cultivation.
The updates were short, and with a final nod, the teacher dismissed them without saying a word.
Without lingering, they turned and left, leaving the teacher and wine alone once more.