[Winter Treasure Manual Experience Value +299]

[Visualization Experience Value +9]

[...]

With the passage of time, every once in a while, the experience value in front of him would leap.

The frequency of leaping was even faster than before.

The aura around him became increasingly obscure, as if blending with the snow in the courtyard, merging with the ice and snow in the sky.

Even his breathing was nearly inaudible, and his body temperature dropped to freezing point.

If it weren’t for the occasional heartbeat transmitting from his chest, he would almost be indistinguishable from a block of ice.

...

The nights in winter always seem to arrive faster.

The sky darkened, and night fell.

As the night deepened, the cold wind gradually gained momentum.

A gust of wind swept into the courtyard, lifting up the unmelted snow.

Snowflakes swirled up, but around Jiang Ning, it seemed to be guided by an invisible force, forming a vortex.

At this moment, his heart spirit had spread beyond Guangning City, covering the mountains and valleys.

He sensed the deeper cold energy of the earth’s veins, and also touched the more piercing starlight cold air above the sky.

Time ticked away, second by second.

Suddenly, the image of the great cold he visualized in his mind changed abruptly.

It was not merely a dead silence but a kind of indescribable resilience beneath the absolute frost and stillness.

That resilience was in waiting, waiting for the bloom of will and vitality.

No matter how thick the ice, there will come a day when it melts.

No matter how long the winter, spring will eventually return.

Concealment is not for demise, but to accumulate strength, waiting for the moment to break the ice and renew life.

"Extinction is not the end; vitality is born in death!"

Instinctively, a realization flashed across his mind like lightning.

The next moment.

The winter he envisioned in his mind suddenly welcomed the revival of all things.

Spring warmed the lands, flowers bloomed, and plants thrived.

[Winter Treasure Manual Experience Value +299]

At this time, exuberant life force erupted from within him.

The snow around seemed to be seen by the great sun, melting rapidly.

Green shoots emerged from the cracks between bricks, competing to grow.

His heart was at peace, quietly feeling the change of this life force.

After a long time, he opened his eyes.

The first thing he did was look at the panel.

[Skill]: Winter Treasure Manual (First Break Limit 203/20000) (Trait: Concealment (Deep Blue))

[Concealment (Deep Blue)]: The pinnacle of technique, all things are hidden within oneself.

"All things are hidden within oneself!"

Looking at the description on the panel, Jiang Ning murmured to himself.

Then, with a thought.

In an instant.

His own aura plummeted.

In just a single breath, he was like an ordinary mortal, standing amidst the winter snow.

A gust of cold wind blew, causing him to shiver instinctively.

This was the first time he felt true cold after mastering martial arts.

"So this is what winter is!"

Standing in the icy world, he murmured to himself.

At this moment, all his power fell silent.

He was like an ordinary person, experiencing the chill of winter once again.

In the eyes of others, he no longer possessed the life instinct oppression of a grandmaster, no different from someone unarmed.

At this moment, he instantly understood the effect of this trait.

It allowed him to conceal his vitality, qi-blood, true yuan, and divine soul.

Even his physical strength could be concealed.

This was a method more powerful than any aura convergence magic gate.

"This trait indeed matches the Winter Treasure Manual, and it is just right for me now!"

With just a single thought, he realized this trait suited him perfectly now.

With this trait, it would be harder for others to see through his disguise.

He could hide even deeper.

With thoughts flowing in his mind, he slowly opened his eyes.

The icy color in his eyes gradually faded, restored to clarity.

He gently exhaled, and the breath turned into a long white mist that lingered for a long time.

Then, he looked at the panel again.

[Skill]: Spring Treasure Manual (First Break Limit 102/20000) (Trait: Life Continuum (Deep Blue))

Summer Treasure Manual (First Break Limit 10113/20000) (Trait: Yangyan True Fire (Light Purple))

Autumn Treasure Manual (Perfection 883/10000)

Winter Treasure Manual (First Break Limit 203/20000) (Trait: Concealment (Deep Blue))

"Spring, Summer, and Winter have all broken limits, only Autumn’s foundation remains for the Four Seasons Cycle. Next is the Autumn Treasure Manual. I wonder if completing the Autumn Treasure Manual, balancing the four elements, can help me comprehend the true rotation of the four seasons, life and death, and even the power of time’s transformation!"

He mused silently in his heart.

Compared to the four seasons of Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, he valued more whether they could merge and converge afterward, aiding him to advance further.

"The time is still early. According to yesterday’s agreement, I must set off tomorrow afternoon to meet up with Shen Wenyan!"

A thought flashed through his mind, and his heart spirit returned to tranquility, all distractions vanished, and he once again closed his eyes.

In his inner world, it was no longer the frozen and concealed silence, nor the burgeoning vitality of Spring and Summer.

Instead, it turned towards the richness and decay of Autumn, the intertwining conception of maturity and desolation.

The six Visualization Diagrams of Autumn Treasure Manual slowly unfolded in his heart.

The remnant heat of the Summer Ends gradually dissipates, the dew of White Dew first descends, Autumnal Equinox balances day and night, Cold Dew deepens the chill, the Frost Descends cloaks everything in white, until the last leaf falls on the eve of Winter’s Start.

His heart spirit seemed to merge into an endless wilderness.

The sky was high and clear, the sunlight no longer blazing but carrying a mellow golden hue.

On the plains, the grains bowed their heads, fruits were plentiful, weighing down the branches; this was the season of harvest, the extreme expression of life’s force.

However, beneath this abundance, he could clearly see the sap of plants beginning to withdraw, the edges of green leaves quietly tinged with yellow, the cicada’s song growing faint, the chirping of insects weakening.

A breath of desolation, decay, and return to dust spread quietly like an unseen mist.

[Autumn Treasure Manual Experience Value +199]

[Autumn Treasure Manual Experience Value +199]

[Visualization Experience Value +9]

[...]

With the appearance of experience value prompts, he instantly noticed that compared to the growth of Winter Treasure Manual experience value, the Autumn Treasure Manual’s growth was much slower.

He also instantly understood that this was due to the environmental difference.

Now in the dead of winter, the cold was severe, and all things were withered, naturally more suitable for practicing the Winter Treasure Manual.

Practicing the Autumn Treasure Manual now relied more on his own visualization.

Just in that moment, all his distractions vanished completely.

He no longer divided his attention but quietly sensed the flow of the Autumn seasonal wind.

Each jump in experience value was an increase in his understanding of Autumn’s seasonal cycles.

Jiang Ning was deeply absorbed in it. He sensed the fruit ripening from green to full and finally falling to the ground.

He listened to the autumn wind sweeping over the treetops, carrying away the last tinge of green between the leaves.

He realized that after reaching its peak, life inevitably headed towards decline.

...

Night deepened, stars shifted.

The daylight gradually appeared with the heaviest chill.

The morning light pierced through the clouds and spilled into the courtyard.

Jiang Ning remained cross-legged like a stone, his breath perfectly blending with the surrounding environment.

If someone intruded into the courtyard at this moment, they would almost overlook his presence without careful observation.

This was not because he merged into this world, nor was it an expression of winter’s secrecy, but an internalization and sedimentation brought by the conception of Autumn.

[Autumn Treasure Manual Experience Value +199]

[Autumn Treasure Manual Experience Value +199]

...

Time flew rapidly in visualization.

Ji Mingyue did not disturb him either.

Even that Immortal Crane made no sound.

As for Shen Wenyan, he had set out long ago.

Because Jiang Ning sent word to him last night, he also did not disturb.

There was nothing in the mansion to disturb Jiang Ning’s cultivation.

The sun gradually rose, changing from an oblique angle in the east to shining directly overhead.

Noon approached.

In Jiang Ning’s mind, Autumn’s imagery reached an intense peak.

He saw the endless falling leaves drifting down.

He heard the final honk of a goose migrating south.

He felt the frost covering the earth.

[Autumn Treasure Manual Experience Value +199]

[Autumn Treasure Manual Experience Value +199]

[Visualization Experience Value +9]

[...]

In continuous cultivation, he slowly opened his eyes.

Because the time had come.

He lifted his gaze to the sky.

The sun hung high, the sky clear and vast.

Compared to yesterday, today’s weather was extremely fine.

[Skill]: Autumn Treasure Manual (Perfection 4631/10000)

He looked at the panel and nodded in satisfaction.

The progress was nearly halfway.

Given another day’s effort, the Autumn Treasure Manual would certainly advance further and complete the Break Limit.

"What a pity the time is not enough!"

"But this journey to Cross Immortal Gate is not a life-and-death battle! Rather, it is a chance to display myself and see if the Immortal family behind Cross Immortal Gate truly exists and understand their depth!"

He mused silently in his heart.