Chapter 32 Ethan Mercer Takes a Master, Old Rowan’s Cultivation Technique!

Chapter 32: Chapter 32: Ethan Mercer Takes a Master, Old Rowan’s Cultivation Technique!

"There’s no need to panic, kid. This old man has no intention of harming you. After all, if it weren’t for the Spiritual Energy you’ve absorbed over the years, I wouldn’t have awakened so quickly..."

As soon as those words fell, it felt as though a thunderclap had exploded inside Ethan’s mind.

In an instant, everything that had happened over the years connected into a single, horrifying truth. His composure shattered, and he couldn’t help shouting in anger.

"What?! The Spiritual Energy I absorbed mysteriously disappeared all these years because of you?!"

By now, how could he fail to understand?

The culprit responsible for turning him from a gifted genius into someone who couldn’t cultivate at all was none other than the mysterious existence inside the ring on his finger!

The thought made Ethan furious.

Without another word, he reached for the ring, intending to pull it off and throw it away.

Seeing this, the aged voice hurriedly spoke again.

"Don’t be so impulsive! Since this old man has absorbed your Spiritual Energy for so many years, I certainly won’t abandon you to fend for yourself. As compensation, I’ll impart cultivation techniques to you from now on and personally guide your cultivation. How does that sound?"

Hearing this, Ethan forcibly suppressed the anger surging within him.

The suffering of all those years had already happened. There was no way to recover the time he had lost. However, if the mysterious being inside the ring could genuinely help him cultivate, perhaps he could make up for at least some of his losses.

After thinking it through, Ethan stopped trying to remove the ring. He raised his hand and examined it suspiciously.

"Are you really capable of teaching me? Could you be a powerhouse of the Origin Sea Realm?"

In Ethan’s understanding, anyone who had reached the Origin Sea Realm was already a legendary figure.

Yet, when the voice heard his question, it suddenly fell silent.

Several breaths passed.

Just as Ethan was beginning to wonder whether the other party had disappeared again, the aged voice finally spoke in a leisurely tone.

"Origin Sea Realm? Back in my day, cultivators at such a weak level wouldn’t even have been qualified to serve as my attendants!"

The immense disdain in the old man’s voice left Ethan stunned.

"Then who exactly are you?"

"Hmph! This old man once stood at the Celestial Human Realm. When I was undergoing the Saint Tribulation, I was betrayed by the disciple I had personally raised and trusted above everyone else. That treacherous wretch caused my tribulation to fail and destroyed my physical body. In the end, only a wisp of my remnant soul managed to escape, taking refuge inside the ring you wear."

As Ethan listened to the old man’s account, his pupils contracted. His face was filled with disbelief.

The mysterious being had once been a powerhouse of the Celestial Human Realm?

Such a terrifying existence was something Ethan had encountered only in legendary biographies and ancient tales.

In reality, no one even knew for certain whether a cultivator of the Primordial Spirit Realm existed anywhere within the entire Aurelian Dynasty, much less someone who had reached the Celestial Human Realm.

And the old man had even undergone the Saint Tribulation!

That meant that at the height of his power, he had reached the Great Circle of the Celestial Human Realm, standing at its pinnacle before attempting to advance beyond it.

Yet such an extraordinary existence was now hiding inside Ethan’s ordinary-looking ring.

It was almost impossible to believe.

While Ethan was still reeling from the revelation, the old man’s voice sounded again.

"Now, this old man is willing to impart several profound cultivation techniques to you as compensation for the Spiritual Energy I’ve absorbed over the years. However, if you agree to one condition, I can go a step further. I’ll accept you as my disciple and pass down everything I’ve learned throughout my life. So, what will you choose?"

Ethan’s eyes flickered.

Such an opportunity was practically a gift falling from the heavens. Naturally, he wasn’t going to reject it without understanding the conditions.

"May I ask what that condition is, Master?"

"In the future, once your cultivation reaches Great Accomplishment, you must avenge me by cleansing my sect of that traitor and executing my rebellious disciple!"

Ethan didn’t hesitate.

"In that case, this disciple pays his respects to Master!"

"Hahahaha! Good! You’re certainly a teachable child!"

Amid the old man’s delighted laughter, Ethan asked another question.

"May I know your name, Master?"

"For now, my true name need not be mentioned. You may call me Old Rowan. As a welcoming gift, this master will impart a profound cultivation technique to you."

As soon as he finished speaking, a cluster of small, transparent characters glowing with a faint blue light appeared before Ethan’s eyes.

"Grand Ember Arcana"

It was astonishingly an Earth Rank Medium Grade cultivation technique!

Hidden within the ring, Old Rowan regarded Ethan with considerable smugness, eagerly anticipating his reaction.

The Grand Ember Arcana was a technique he had spent a long time collecting. It was an exceptionally refined method, particularly suitable for cultivators with lower-grade foundations who wished to establish a powerful cultivation base.

In Old Rowan’s opinion, his foolish new disciple still believed that reaching the Origin Sea Realm made someone an extraordinary powerhouse.

That alone suggested how remote and underdeveloped the place Ethan lived in must be.

After witnessing the intricacies of the Grand Ember Arcana, surely the boy’s narrow understanding of cultivation would be completely overturned!

However, something unexpected happened.

After carefully reading through the technique, Ethan gradually developed a strange expression.

"Master, I already have a cultivation technique..."

After receiving the Pure Yang Technique from the Patriarch, how could he possibly abandon it for another technique that was clearly inferior by an entire grade?

Still, Old Rowan was his newly acknowledged master. Ethan couldn’t simply tell him that the technique he had offered was inferior without risking embarrassment.

Therefore, he could only explain himself tactfully.

Old Rowan frowned.

He assumed that the contents of the Grand Ember Arcana were too profound for Ethan to recognize its true value. Immediately, he began explaining.

"This is an Earth Rank Medium Grade cultivation technique! How could it not be a hundred or even a thousand times better than whatever you’re cultivating now? What is there to hesitate about?"

Ethan raised a hand to his forehead, looking thoroughly helpless.

"B-But I already have an Earth Rank Top Grade cultivation technique."

"So what if it’s Earth Rank Top Grade? It still... Wait! Earth Rank Top Grade?! Aren’t you supposed to come from a small clan?"

For the first time, Old Rowan was the one left speechless.

How precious was an Earth Rank cultivation technique?

It certainly wasn’t some common commodity that could be found everywhere!

Yet his newly accepted disciple was already cultivating an Earth Rank Top Grade technique.

What kind of situation was this?

Ethan, meanwhile, instinctively retorted when he heard his family being dismissed as a small clan.

"I wouldn’t call my family a small clan anymore. Our Patriarch has reached the Purple Mansion Realm, and he personally bestowed this cultivation technique upon me."

Old Rowan paid little attention to Ethan’s defense of his family. His thoughts were entirely occupied by the unbelievable revelation.

If Ethan’s family really was merely a clan led by a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator, how could it possibly possess an Earth Rank Top Grade cultivation technique?

Even if such a clan had somehow stumbled upon one by sheer luck, it would surely guard the technique as its most precious treasure. There was no way it would casually pass it on, especially to someone like Ethan, whose cultivation had seemingly been crippled.

The more Old Rowan thought about it, the more suspicious the situation became.

Then, suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him.

Could it be that the Purple Mansion Realm Patriarch was simply putting on an act to win the admiration of his clansmen?

Perhaps the man had obtained some ordinary technique and falsely claimed it was an Earth Rank Top Grade method, fooling everyone into believing that he possessed an extraordinary treasure.

The possibility made Old Rowan almost laugh aloud.

He decided to test his theory.

"Show this Earth Rank Top Grade cultivation technique to your master. Perhaps there are hidden flaws in the method you’re practicing. I can examine it and help you resolve them."

Hidden flaws?

How could a technique bestowed by the Patriarch possibly contain any hidden dangers?

For the first time, Ethan began questioning his new master’s expertise.

Still, the old man had produced an Earth Rank cultivation technique as soon as he had awakened. That suggested he possessed at least some genuine knowledge.

After a moment’s hesitation, Ethan reached into his robes and took out the copy of the Pure Yang Technique.

Holding it before him, he began turning through its pages.