It was an Empire built for the sole purpose of prying into the essence of anything and everything and they have been doing that for over half a million years which is how they ended up with the largest library in the Southern Continent and became the center of knowledge.
A bulk of the foundational cultivation techniques in use around the continent either originated from the Jade Leaf Empire or had some indirect relation to it.
Their foundations were terrifying, to say the least, and it was built in part due to their insatiable curiosity and interest in all manner of subjects, and the other was because of the ten thousand leaf white jade tree located in their empire.
Much of the information regarding the tree or its rank and even its location is a well-guarded secret by the imperial family however there was some information that was known. One of that information was the numerous cultivation arts that were created by the Empire was because of that tree.