In the mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, Yan Shouyi gained the inheritance of the First Emperor, enabling him to wield the Ancestral Dragon Sword to sever karma with true dragon purple qi.
This was his greatest gain, but unfortunately, the karma-severing technique, which was almost a cheat code, was not something he could use freely. It required him to continuously do good deeds to accumulate true dragon purple qi, and then consume that qi to use it.
Furthermore, if the target carried significant karma, an equivalent amount of true dragon purple qi would be needed to sever their karma.
In essence, using the Ancestral Dragon Sword was not simple; Yan Shouyi would need to keep doing good deeds from now on.
Besides this, he also learned the "One Sword Questions Heaven" technique from General Qing Jiang. "One Sword Questions Heaven" was a very powerful killing move. Since leaving the imperial mausoleum, Yan Shouyi had yet to encounter an opponent worthy of using this move, not even Xi Po or the Skin Painter.
In other words, Yan Shouyi's current strength was now on par with the Twelve Zodiacs, a far cry from when he could only handle the Twenty-Eight Mansions back at Longhu Mountain.
As for other gains...
Yan Shouyi took out three items from his satchel one by one.
These were two bronze tomb-guarding beasts that looked like miniature stone lions; an eerie purple jade crown inlaid with various gemstones; and the dark green Su Hou Pearl, which Huo Ban had embedded in his eye.
Because he was unsure of the uses of these three treasures, and also heeded Yan Chou's instructions, Yan Shouyi had not taken them out to use.
"It's these three," Yan Shouyi said.
Yan Chou nodded slightly, picked up the tomb-guarding beasts, and examined them. After a moment, he said, "There are four tomb-guarding beasts in total: Taotie, Qiongqi, Hundun, and Taowu. You obtained Taotie and Qiongqi, which respectively control devouring and sealing."
Yan Shouyi shrugged, "We probably won't need them, since these two things are for guarding tombs."
"When they were first refined, they were indeed used for guarding tombs, but that doesn't mean they can only guard tombs," Yan Chou explained. "Although I have set up various formations and restrictions in the Research Association, tomb-guarding beasts can still be added to protect certain special areas, and their effect far surpasses ordinary formations."
The nominal purpose of the tomb-guarding beasts was to "guard tombs," but in reality, their function was to prevent intrusion by outsiders.
In the Research Association, places like the dungeon could be guarded by tomb-guarding beasts.
The dungeon was a critical area of the Research Association, filled with numerous traps, making it almost impossible for living people to enter.
However, disembodied spirits could enter.
If tomb-guarding beasts were placed there, spirits would also be unable to enter the dungeon, effectively adding another layer of security.
Inspired by Yan Chou, Yan Shouyi suddenly understood and decided to place the tomb-guarding beasts at the entrance of the dungeon later, on one hand to suppress external intruders, and on the other hand to suppress the smelly, foxy creature locked up in the dungeon.
It was said that the Island Master of the Fox Demon Island was causing a ruckus in the dungeon, making the Skin Painter almost bite her tongue to suicide out of annoyance.
After appraising the two tomb-guarding beasts, Yan Chou picked up the second treasure, the purple jade crown.
Yan Shouyi introduced, "This is the Purple Jade Crown. In the mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, there was an actor named Lu Huai who wore this Purple Jade Crown on his head. When Chu Wu, the leader of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, entered the imperial mausoleum, he was after this Purple Jade Crown."
The Purple Jade Crown also held special significance because it was a treasure coveted by Li Genmiao.
Although Yan Shouyi was temporarily unaware of the Purple Jade Crown's function, he knew one thing: whatever Li Genmiao wanted, he had to do his best to prevent him from obtaining it.
Therefore, for a long time since leaving the imperial mausoleum, Yan Shouyi had never taken out the Purple Jade Crown. He had even considered finding an opportunity to destroy it directly.
"The Purple Jade Crown is somewhat similar to your Soul Slayer Blade," Yan Chou gave it a very high evaluation.
Yan Shouyi was puzzled. The Purple Jade Crown was just an accessory; how could it be compared to a weapon like the Soul Slayer Blade?
At this moment, Monk Miaoji, who had been sitting behind Yan Chou and had not spoken, answered Yan Shouyi's confusion:
"When Qin Shi Huang conquered the six states, he wore this Purple Jade Crown. The Purple Jade Crown has the effect of absorbing malevolent energy. The vengeful spirits and malevolent energy from the battlefields of the six states were all absorbed by the Purple Jade Crown. Now, the malevolent energy it contains even surpasses that of the Soul Slayer Blade."
If the power of the malevolent energy in the Soul Slayer Blade was like a hand grenade, then the malevolent energy in the Purple Jade Crown was like a cannonball!
Yan Shouyi suddenly understood, "The actor Lu Huai wore the Purple Jade Crown and sang those opera tunes that could drive people mad, making it even more effective and easier to push people into madness?"
Yan Chou nodded, "But there must be side effects; the user themselves would also be prone to madness."
Malevolent energy is extremely negative. Even a small amount could make an ordinary person irritable, and a larger amount could lead to cruel killing.
However, everything has two sides. If the explosive power of this violent energy, malevolent energy, is used properly, its power should not be underestimated. Yan Shouyi had escaped danger several times before with the help of malevolent energy.
He had learned the technique of controlling malevolent energy from General Qing Jiang, which allowed him to barely tame this power.
Yan Chou analyzed, "The actor himself was already a madman who attacked indiscriminately. If he obtained the Purple Jade Crown, it would undoubtedly be like adding wings to a tiger. It's likely he sent Chu Wu to find the Purple Jade Crown in preparation for some future massacre."
In other words, Yan Shouyi had concisely prevented a bloody catastrophe.
"Then how should we deal with the Purple Jade Crown?" Yan Shouyi asked with a frown.
Yan Chou didn't think much about it and turned to give Monk Miaoji a look.
Monk Miaoji, without a word, directly crushed the Buddhist beads he had just finished counting and carved Buddhist incantations onto the Purple Jade Crown.
Just as he had sealed the power of the Soul Slayer Blade before.
After being sealed, the Purple Jade Crown became like an ordinary object, losing some of its eerie aura. The gemstones on it no longer shone, making it look like a fake.
"You have already learned how to control malevolent energy, so the Purple Jade Crown is a life-saving sharp tool for you. If you encounter a desperate situation in the future, you can try wearing the Purple Jade Crown and using its malevolent energy to break the stalemate."
"Of course, unless absolutely necessary, you should not use the Purple Jade Crown. The malevolent energy of the Purple Jade Crown is difficult to bear and will drive you to madness, even causing you to harm your friends... and lovers."
Yan Chou's expression was solemn, and Yan Shouyi also took his instructions to heart, then put the Purple Jade Crown back into his satchel.
A dead end meant no way out; the situation couldn't get any worse.
Therefore, in such circumstances, even if the Purple Jade Crown was a dangerous item, it could be brought out to try and break the deadlock, as being injured or losing one's mind was better than dying.
Finally, everyone's gaze fell on the last treasure remaining on the table – the Su Hou Pearl.
The Su Hou Pearl was the most mysterious treasure in the imperial mausoleum, involving not only Qin Shi Huang but also Huo Ban and the Grand Tutor.
Most importantly, the Grand Tutor believed that the Su Hou Pearl was the key to breaking the death curse for disciples of folk sects.