What is an immortal?

Chapter 363: Five Murals


Under the distant gaze of a group of cultivators within the Soul Burying Abyss, the soaring black qi began to transform at a visible rate.

From bottom to top, it gradually turned ethereal and white, as though something was purifying the malevolent energy within it.

This sight initially stunned the onlooking cultivators, then varying expressions emerged on their faces. Some had eyes shimmering with fascination, others showed disbelief, and some stared intently at the soaring black qi, as if trying to see through it and understand the reason behind the change.

After a while, the Yin Wind Evil Thunder swirling around the black column rapidly dissipated, replaced by a profoundly dense tide of spiritual energy that, with the black qi as its center, spread outwards in waves, sweeping across the entirety of the Soul Burying Abyss and invigorating all the cultivators.

About a dozen breaths later, the soaring black qi had completely transformed into a pale white spirit light, even tearing through the perennial clouds above the Soul Burying Abyss, bringing long-lost sunlight to this land filled with malevolent energy.

And within that spirit light, a majestic palace about a hundred zhang tall slowly rose from the abyss.

Constructed entirely of flawless purple jade, under the sunlight, the faint purple spirit light appeared dreamlike and misty within the palace, spontaneously arousing a longing in those who beheld it.

"An Immortal Mansion, an Immortal Mansion has appeared!"

The Core Formation cultivators within the Soul Burying Abyss, upon witnessing such a scene, were overjoyed and immediately, some of the impatient ones began to fly towards the palace on their tunneling light, fearing they would be too slow and miss the opportunity.

However, as they approached the palace, the spirit light surrounding it blocked them; neither their magic nor their Magic Treasures could breach this barrier of light to enter the palace.

Some persistent cultivators continued trying, but many others began to realize that perhaps the Immortal Mansion was not yet open for entry.

After hesitating for a moment, some used Divine Power Techniques or activated their Magic Tools Talismans to contact their sects, families, and friends. They then each found a safe spot nearby to wait for the right moment to arrive.

...

Meanwhile,

Yuan Ming was enveloped in a blood-red halo, perceiving nothing but a vast expanse of red. Apart from this, he couldn't hear any sound nor could his Divine Sense pierce through the halo, as if he was completely isolated from the outside world.

Fortunately, he found that apart from limited mobility and perception, he wasn't affected in other ways and his situation was relatively safe.

After forcing himself to calm down, guided by his powerful Divine Soul, he faintly sensed that within the halo, he was being dragged in a certain direction.

Helpless to resist, he could only acquiesce, all the while remaining highly vigilant.

It was hard to tell how much time had passed when suddenly the blood-red halo before him ripped apart like clouds dispersing after a storm, but then his vision darkened.

Immediately following that, his body started to plummet due to a loss of support.

Now that Yuan Ming had regained his ability to move and his Mana had recovered, he quickly spat out the Soul Destroying Sword to protect his body, and also summoned the White Jade Flying Shuttle to stabilize his form, his eyes and Divine Sense swiftly scanning around.

It was clear he was no longer at the bottom of the Soul Burying Abyss; it seemed he was currently inside an unfamiliar and vast hall, very dim around him and utterly silent.

Yuan Ming, controlling the White Jade Flying Shuttle, slowly descended. As he approached the ground, he lifted his hand and released the Vajra.

The Vajra's body hit the ground heavily, creating a 'rumbling' sound that echoed throughout the hall, carrying a series of rolling echoes.

The moment he stabilized himself, his fists pounded his chest, assuming a ready stance, his gaze searching around, prepared for a potential battle.

However, there was nothing around him; he stood there utterly alone.

Vajra, looking somewhat puzzled, looked up at Yuan Ming as if waiting for instructions.

"Where is this? Could this be a deep crack beneath the ground?" Yuan Ming didn't respond to Vajra; instead, he extended his Divine Sense outward, trying to discern the situation outside this hall, but when his Divine Sense touched the walls, it was repelled back.

He was somewhat surprised and repeated the attempt several times, discovering that neither his First Split Soul nor the soul crow could cross the obstruction of the walls. He then ceased trying to probe outside and began carefully observing his surroundings.

The hall he was in was vast enough to accommodate thousands of people sitting simultaneously. However, it lacked any decorations or furnishings, even the windows high on the walls, made of large blocks of Moonlight Stone, were fake windows that opened to nowhere, serving only as the hall's source of light.

In the direction facing the main door, a dark, deep corridor led into the interior of the building, but its entrance was enveloped by a pale red forbidden barrier, blocking Divine Sense, and Yuan Ming was unable to discern what lay beyond it.

Beyond that, the only things of note in the hall were the five murals on the walls.

The murals were all centered around a single figure, seemingly depicting several scenes from his growing up process.

In the mural on the far left, a baby was born with a loud cry. His parents stood by his side, surrounded by a circle of close friends and family. It looked like a scene from a wealthy household. Everyone in the painting looked towards the baby in the middle, smiles on their faces.

The content of the second mural began to change. From left to right, there were six figures, apparently representing different stages of the baby's growth, from crawling unsteadily to walking briskly. The baby grew into a young boy who ultimately knelt before an old man who exuded the aura of an immortal.

The next mural continued the theme of the second, depicting the young boy learning arts. However, all the actions of the boy were combined into one person, making it appear as if the person had grown three heads and six arms.

The scene in the fourth mural was particularly grandiose. The young man stood alone on the right side, with a dark crack behind him. On the left side of the painting, countless figures tearfully bid farewell, all displaying expressions of reluctant parting, adding a touch of tragic grandeur.

In the final mural, the young man stood tall against the sky, with countless figures below bowing in worship. The scene appeared peaceful. However, there was a dark hole where the young man's left eye should have been, as if it had been gouged out, creating an eerie effect.

Yuan Ming swept his Divine Sense over the murals and found no fluctuations of Spiritual Power. However, after examining the content of the paintings closely, he couldn't help but furrow his brows.

With his many years of experience in the art of painting, he noticed that although the five paintings seemed cohesive, there were clear signs of alteration. It seemed someone had overlaid new paint on the already completed artworks to change their content.

Yuan Ming tried to restore the five murals, but found they had fused with the wall, unharmed even by the use of a Magic Treasure.

The only exception was the last painting. When Yuan Ming struck it with the Soul Destroying Sword, the right eye of the young man in the painting suddenly lit up.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming carefully prodded the young man's right eye with the Soul Destroying Sword, and saw the right eye suddenly crack open, with a white ring falling out.

Yuan Ming picked up the ring, finding it strikingly cold to the touch, giving a burning sensation in his palm. He tried to refine the ring, then was surprised to find that he could not detect the arrangement of runes on it.

This reminded Yuan Ming of the Night Parade of Hundred Demons. The construction of runes on these two Magic Treasures was so similar, could they originate from the same source?

Thinking of the Night Parade of Hundred Demons, Yuan Ming recalled those Ghost Slaves swallowed by the bloody glow. More than twenty Core Formation Ghost Slaves that could have been his significant support had dissolved so easily, making him feel a deep sense of loss.

He sighed deeply for a while, then turned his attention back to the white ring in his hand.

Compared to the Night Parade of Hundred Demons, the ring's ability was more singular; upon infusing Mana, it only emitted a white mist.

The mist seemed ordinary, but it contained bone-chilling cold. Anything it touched would freeze instantly, Magic Treasures included.

Even the Vajra, who had achieved the Innate Body, showed a trace of fear at this white cold mist and subconsciously stepped back.

This white cold mist could not only freeze the flesh but could also imperceptibly affect the Divine Soul. Initially, Yuan Ming did not notice this until he withdrew the mist and tried to continue exploring with his Divine Sense, only then realizing his Divine Sense's movement had become slow and stiff.

Fortunately, as the mist dissipated, Yuan Ming's Divine Soul quickly recovered. However, his recent experience gave him a deeper understanding of the power of the white cold mist.

After putting away the ring, Yuan Ming looked up at the mural again. He suddenly realized that with the right eye shattered, the young man in the last painting now appeared as though both eyes had been gouged out.

The entire mural seemed even more eerie!

He immediately realized that perhaps there originally was a ring in the young man's left eye, but someone had already taken it.

With this thought, he recalled the Night Parade of Hundred Demons. The Heavenly Ghost Wanderer had never been here, yet he obtained this Magic Treasure, perhaps because someone had taken it out beforehand.

Yuan Ming's heart chilled as his slightly relaxed mood became tense again.

Although this place seemed empty, it exuded eeriness everywhere. It was not somewhere to stay for long.

He began to look for the exit of the grand hall. The walls and doors around isolated his Divine Sense and were indestructible even with Magic Treasures. As for the runes of the Forbidden formation at the entrance, he had never seen any of their like before, and his knowledge failed to help him decipher them.

After pondering for a while, Yuan Ming realized that he had no means to leave this place.

However, he soon remembered the Second Split Soul he had left inside Zuo Qinghui. Since it was only at the Foundation Establishment Stage, Yuan Ming hadn't brought it along to the Soul Burying Abyss, and now it might be his only hope.

Yuan Ming immediately sat down cross-legged and began circulating his Soul Power to contact the Second Split Soul. Luckily, although the walls blocked his Divine Sense, they did not sever his connection with the Second Split Soul.

"Struggle in the New Ming Dynasty" written by old school historical author Sui Qingfeng, and adapted into the web drama "I am Li You" which premiered on Youku yesterday! Traveling back to ancient times as a live-in son-in-law, using poetry to confront corrupt officials. Featuring the live-in son-in-law representative, Wai Zui Dragon King Guan Yunpeng. With the original work, director, and screenwriter all being veterans from the starting point, they expertly play with internet novel tropes. I watched the first few episodes, and they're great, repeatedly giving unexpected laughs. The poetry analysis segment at the end is somewhat moving, such pure male-oriented adaptations have been rare in recent years. Everyone should check it out and give it more support ^^

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.


Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter