The violent tremors in the stone chamber floor instantly put everyone on alert. Black mist surged wildly from the cracks, quickly filling the entire chamber. The eerie roars within the mist grew clearer, as if countless terrifying beings were lurking within, waiting for their chance to strike.

Holding the Ice Halberd, Lin Feng circulated his spiritual energy and shouted, "Everyone, stand back to back and be careful!" The group quickly moved closer together, forming a tight defensive circle. Feng Wu commanded the five-colored phoenix to circle above their heads. The phoenix's flames illuminated part of the surrounding mist, but only some blurry black shadows could be vaguely seen moving through the mist.

"What are these shadowy figures?" Su Ran asked nervously, an ice sword already forming in her hand. Xuan Feng's eyes were sharp as he tried to pierce the mist to see the shadowy figures clearly. He said, "I don't know, but they seem hostile. Everyone, keep your spiritual energy high and be ready to attack at any time."

Suddenly, a dark figure darted out of the mist like lightning, lunging at a soldier of the Zhengyang Army. The soldier reacted swiftly, thrusting his spear forward, but the dark figure nimbly dodged, biting down on the soldier's arm. The soldier cried out in pain as his arm instantly turned black, clearly indicating that the dark figure's mouth contained deadly poison.

Seeing this, the female general roared and swung her longsword, unleashing a sword aura that slashed at the dark figure. The figure was forced to release the soldier and retreat into the mist. Lin Feng, anticipating the figure's retreat, hurled his ice halberd. The halberd transformed into a streak of blue light, piercing through the mist. A scream rang out, indicating it had struck its target. But before anyone could breathe a sigh of relief, even more dark figures surged in from all directions.

The woman in white and the woman from the Blood Shadow Sect joined forces to cast spells. The woman in white summoned barriers of fire to block the approaching shadows, while the woman from the Blood Shadow Sect continuously fired poisoned darts, which gleamed eerily in the flames. However, the shadows were numerous and relentlessly attacked the fire barriers, causing them to begin to crumble.

Xuanfeng condensed a powerful wind-based spell, creating a massive tornado within the stone chamber that engulfed and shredded any approaching shadows. However, as the tornado continued, black mist was also drawn in, making it increasingly bizarre and distorting the surrounding space.

Lin Feng knew this couldn't go on; he had to find the source of these shadowy figures and resolve the crisis completely. He concentrated, sensing the fluctuations of spiritual energy around him, trying to find something unusual in the chaotic energy. Finally, he discovered that the spiritual energy fluctuations were strongest in one corner of the stone chamber; that should be the source of the shadowy figures.

"I'll go check over there, you guys guard this place!" Lin Feng said, then rushed towards the corner where the spiritual energy fluctuations were strong. As he advanced, he wielded his ice halberd, repelling the approaching shadows.

Reaching the corner, Lin Feng discovered a massive rune array on the ground, emanating a dense black spiritual energy. The dark shadows were continuously emerging from the array. Lin Feng realized that only by destroying this rune array could he stop the shadows from appearing.

He channeled all his spiritual energy, raising the ice halberd high. A dazzling blue light erupted from the halberd's tip, and a massive ice dragon shot forth, lunging towards the rune array. The instant the ice dragon made contact with the rune array, a deafening roar erupted. The rune array flashed, seemingly resisting the ice dragon's attack.

Meanwhile, beside the crystal coffin in the center of the stone chamber, the group was still locked in a fierce battle with the shadowy figure. The flames of the five-colored phoenix were gradually weakening, and many soldiers of the Zhengyang Army had been wounded. The female general was splattered with blood, whether her own or the enemy's, it was unclear, but she remained steadfast at the front line, directing her soldiers in their resistance.

Su Ran's spiritual energy was greatly depleted, but she gritted her teeth and continued to condense ice spikes, shooting them at the dark figure. The spells of the woman in white and the woman from the Blood Shadow Sect were also gradually losing momentum, the flame barrier was getting thinner and thinner, and the woman from the Blood Shadow Sect had very few hidden weapons left.

Just when everyone was about to give up, a loud roar came from Lin Feng's direction. The ice dragon had finally succeeded in destroying the rune array, the black shadows stopped pouring out instantly, and the black mist that filled the stone chamber began to slowly dissipate.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed wearily to the ground. But soon, their gazes returned to the ancient book inside the crystal coffin. This inherited cultivation technique held immense appeal for each of them; it might allow their strength to leap forward dramatically.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the stone chamber became somewhat awkward. Lin Feng walked back from the corner and, seeing everyone's expressions, understood what they were thinking. He broke the silence first, saying, "Although this inherited cultivation technique is precious, we've gotten this far thanks to everyone's concerted efforts. I think we should discuss together how to deal with it."

The female general nodded and said, "Lin Feng is right. We have been through so many dangers together. We can't let this martial arts manual ruin our relationship."

Xuanfeng also said, "Hmm, perhaps we can study this technique together and then each comprehend the part that suits us."

However, the woman from the Blood Shadow Sect sneered and said, "Study it together? There's only one copy of this technique. Who can guarantee that everyone won't hide it?"

The Blood Shadow Sect woman's cold laughter echoed in the stone chamber. Her words were like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples. All eyes turned to her, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

"Woman of the Blood Shadow Sect, what do you mean by that?" Su Ran asked, frowning, her eyes filled with wariness. The woman from the Blood Shadow Sect glanced at everyone and slowly said, "Everyone knows that if we study this inherited technique together, disagreements are inevitable. In the end, there might be many troubles arising from the competition for the order in which we comprehend it."

Lin Feng frowned slightly and said, "We are all cultivators, and we should value harmony. Since this inherited cultivation method was discovered by everyone, it should be handled fairly. If we create discord between us because of the cultivation method, wouldn't that make us a laughing stock?"

The woman in white chimed in, "Lin Feng is absolutely right. We have come a long way through countless hardships and dangers. It would be a shame to fall apart over a single cultivation technique."

The female general nodded in agreement: "That's right. The Zhengyang Army has always valued unity. If this technique can be used by everyone to improve everyone's strength and jointly cope with future crises, that would be the best outcome."

Xuanfeng stepped in to smooth things over: "Everyone, please calm down. Since none of us want to ruin our harmony over cultivation techniques, let's discuss a solution that will benefit everyone and avoid conflict."

The woman from the Blood Shadow Sect snorted and said, "Then tell me, how do you want to negotiate? There's only one manual; you can't just tear it into several pieces."

Everyone fell into deep thought. After a moment, Lin Feng spoke up, "How about this: let's first look through this ancient book together and understand the contents of the cultivation techniques. Then, based on our individual cultivation attributes and talents, we can choose the parts that suit us to study. In this way, we won't waste this inherited cultivation technique, and everyone can benefit from it."

Su Ran's eyes lit up, and she said, "This is a good idea. We cultivators each have our own areas of expertise. Perhaps this cultivation technique covers multiple attributes and is suitable for different people like us to comprehend."

Xuanfeng nodded and said, "Yes, this arrangement is fair and reasonable. What do you all think?"

The female general was the first to speak up: "I think it's feasible, so let's do as Lin Feng says." The woman in white also nodded in agreement.

The woman from the Blood Shadow Sect hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Fine, since you all say so, I agree. But let me make this clear: if anyone tries to cheat during the comprehension process, the Blood Shadow Sect will not let it go."

Seeing that the Blood Shadow Sect woman had agreed, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They then gathered around the crystal coffin, and Lin Feng carefully took the ancient book, emanating a mysterious aura, from the skeleton's hand. As soon as he held the book, Lin Feng felt a powerful yet gentle spiritual energy surge into his body, invigorating him.

He gently opened the ancient book, and on the first page appeared a line of ancient text: "In the beginning of chaos, spiritual power was the foundation. Only by following the way of heaven and earth can one comprehend the supreme law." Everyone gathered around to look at it, each lost in thought.

As they continued reading, the ancient texts recorded various wondrous pathways of spiritual energy circulation, methods of cultivating magic, and insights into the perception of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. The group marveled at the profound depth and breadth of this inherited cultivation technique.

Lin Feng discovered a section on the application of ice-type spiritual power, detailing how to compress and purify it to unleash more powerful ice spells. This struck him as a treasure, and he immediately fell into deep thought, attempting to combine his previous understanding of ice-type spiritual power with the content of the ancient text.

Su Ran was interested in a record about the transformation of water-based spiritual power. She thought that her attack methods with water-based spiritual power in battle were somewhat limited. If she could transform water-based spiritual power into a special kind of corrosive spiritual power according to the method in the ancient book, her combat power would be greatly enhanced.

Xuanfeng saw the part about the fusion of wind-based spiritual power and spatial power. His eyes widened, and an irrepressible excitement surged within him. If he could master this method, his wind-based spells would not only be limited to speed and cutting, but would also possess the terrifying power of spatial distortion.

The woman in white was focused on a record of cultivating fire spiritual power and mental power in tandem. This made her realize that she might be able to enhance the power of fire spells by improving her mental power, and also be able to control the shape and direction of the flames more precisely.

The female general and the soldiers of the Zhengyang Army focused on studying the content about the combination of battle formations and spiritual power, hoping to make the battle formations of the Zhengyang Army more powerful through this inheritance.

The woman from the Blood Shadow Sect also found a part of her Blood Shadow Technique that resonated with it—a method that used her own blood as a medium to enhance her magical attacks and tracking abilities. She was secretly delighted, feeling that her trip had been worthwhile.

However, as everyone focused on studying the ancient texts, an undercurrent was quietly brewing.