The maiden stood transfixed, her gaze locked upon the lifeless form of Qing Shuang. A tremor ran through her frame, and after an age, she closed her eyes, though the subtle flutter of her lashes betrayed the turmoil within.

Wang Lin held his breath, his eyes unwavering as he scrutinized the white-robed woman’s every reaction. This was a gamble, a wager that she knew of the Imprisonment Art, that she recognized Qing Shuang. Though the moment presented a golden opportunity for a strike, Wang Lin hesitated. The aura emanating from this woman, particularly the fleeting glimpse of primal power she had wielded, filled him with a chilling dread.

Even Yan Leizi merely hinted at the presence of such power, yet the woman before him had, if only for a moment, commanded its raw essence. This was a foe against whom ambush was futile.

Silence reigned supreme, broken only by the delicate fragrance of blossoms, and the gentle descent of petals, blanketing the ground in a sea of color.

Time crept onward, the stillness unbroken. A full incense stick burned to ash before the woman’s eyes fluttered open. She gazed upon Qing Shuang’s corpse, and her lips parted, as if to speak.

But then, a thunderous boom echoed from the far reaches of the cavern, shattering the tranquility. Alongside it, carried on the drafts, came the rasping curse of a distant voice.

“Run, will you? Nothing I set my eyes upon has ever escaped!” Si Tu Nan’s booming voice resonated. A streak of white light hurtled towards them, within which was nestled a small vial.

The vial was crafted from the purest jade, its surface gleaming like polished lamb’s fat.

In hot pursuit, Si Tu Nan was wreathed in tendrils of dark energy. Seeing the vial’s acceleration, he snorted in anger, forming a hand seal and gesturing forward. A swirling vortex of black mist manifested before the vial, coalescing into the spectral form of a monstrous beast, poised to devour its quarry.

The vial faltered, but in the instant the beast’s jaws snapped shut, it shattered into a thousand shards. The razor-sharp fragments tore through the spectral creature, reforming behind it into the intact vial, now moving with renewed vigor.

Si Tu Nan’s eyes gleamed with excitement. With a triumphant laugh, he renewed his pursuit.

The chase drew them ever closer to Wang Lin and the enigmatic woman in white.

A flicker of shrewd calculation ignited in Wang Lin’s eyes.

The jade vial hurtled directly towards the white-robed woman. With a delicate frown, she reached out a hand, and the vial settled gently into her palm.

But the moment it touched her skin, the vial exploded, sending a hail of shards towards her.

Si Tu Nan roared, his form blurring with motion, “Wang Lin, get out!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Wang Lin acted. At the very instant the vial reached the woman’s hand, he had retrieved Qing Shuang and the Immortal Abode, and now retreated as swiftly as a lightning bolt.

Si Tu Nan, his features contorted, retreated as well, forming a hand seal and slamming his hand downwards. He roared, “Immortal Art: Void Rift!” The air before him shimmered and distorted, as a cacophony of explosive sounds erupted, creating countless swirling vortexes that surged towards the woman.

Under the cover of this attack, Si Tu Nan fled, joining Wang Lin in a desperate race for the Immortal’s Abode’s exit.

The fragments of the shattered vial spun back towards the woman, only to freeze in mid-air as her eyes flashed. Undeterred, she took a measured step forward.

The vortexes of Si Tu Nan’s Immortal Art crashed into her, but instead of halting her advance, they passed right through her, leaving her untouched.

“You…do you truly wish to abandon the cavern?” she asked softly, her voice still icy, yet now devoid of malice.

Wang Lin, retreating, paused in contemplation, then abruptly halted, his gaze fixed on the distant white-robed figure.

Si Tu Nan frowned, mirroring Wang Lin’s pause. He had ventured off to search for treasures, but had quickly sensed the grave danger Wang Lin faced.

The defeat and disappearance of Fu Fengzi and the others had shaken him. Yet, Wang Lin was here, and he could not leave him to face this threat alone. Hence his perilous return, to create a chance for escape.

Seeing Wang Lin’s hesitation, Si Tu Nan stopped as well, a cold glare fixed on the approaching woman.

“Does this mean the senior will permit us entry?” Wang Lin asked, his voice calm.

The woman pondered for a long moment, then sighed softly. Turning towards the innermost hall of the cavern, she whispered, “Follow me.”

With that, she drifted towards the hall. Wang Lin glanced at Si Tu Nan, who, his eyes flickering with uncertainty, said slowly, “There is something unnatural about her.”

“If you do not wish to follow, then depart. Your companions await you outside,” the woman’s voice echoed, her form already dissolving into the darkness beyond the hall’s entrance.

Remembering the woman’s earlier display of power, Wang Lin steeled himself and said, “Si Tu, I will go alone!”

Si Tu Nan knew that if they entered together, any twist of fate would leave them utterly defenseless. He nodded, offering no further objection.

Between him and Wang Lin, certain things needed no explicit explanation. Trust was their bond. Without a word, Wang Lin transformed into a streak of light, shooting towards the hall. He paused at the entrance, drew a deep breath, and stepped within.

Darkness reigned supreme within the hall, a darkness that not only veiled the eyes, but also hampered spiritual senses, limiting their range to a few feet around the body.

Through the gloom, Wang Lin made out the shapes of colossal figures surrounding him, like silent, watchful statues, though the oppressive darkness obscured their details.
Silence reigned within the vast hall, broken only by the faint echo of receding footsteps. Wang Lin knew the woman in white was drawing further away.

Then, the footsteps ceased altogether. A ghostly whisper, thin as spun moonlight, drifted through the air.

“What is your name?”

“Wang Lin,” he answered, his voice a low rumble.

“Wang… ” The woman seemed to murmur to herself. “Truly a Wang…”

The silence descended once more, heavier than before. Though his face betrayed nothing, Wang Lin’s mind was a storm of apprehension. The yuan force within him coursed through his veins, ready to unleash at the slightest provocation.

The third eye upon his brow pulsed faintly, still closed, yet poised to release the primal power it held within, should the need arise.

He held the woman in white in the deepest regard of caution. Though his cultivation had reached the stage of Peering Nirvana, and his ancient god’s body could unleash the might of a mid-Cleansing Nirvana cultivator, Wang Lin knew he was outmatched.

Yet, some paths, however perilous, must be walked. This was the way of Wang Lin.

The woman’s hand, unseen, seemed to make a sweeping gesture. A sudden burst of crystalline light erupted, unlike any ordinary luminescence. In the encompassing darkness, it flickered like a captured firefly, bathing the chamber in a spectral glow.

In this ethereal light, Wang Lin beheld the hall’s true form, and a gasp escaped his lips.

The hall resembled a forgotten temple, adorned with colossal statues. There were nine in total. Eight stood sentinel around the chamber, while one towered at the hall’s fore. This central statue, carved from an unknown substance, radiated a faint, inner gold.

But the gold was weak, instantly devoured by the encroaching darkness, leaving only a subtle, unsettling aura clinging to the statue.

It depicted a man of middle age, handsome and stern, his eyes burning with an unfathomable depth. He wore a yellow robe, exuding an air of unyielding nobility. Upon the robe, nine purple dragons were embroidered, their features twisted into ferocious snarls. Though motionless, one could almost feel the inferno of their rage.

Behind him, sculpted clouds billowed, not white, but black as the void. These dark clouds lent the sculpted man an aura of immense authority.

As Wang Lin’s gaze met the eyes of the man in stone, a deafening roar echoed within his mind. A pressure beyond imagining slammed into him, pinning him in place.

He had never encountered such a powerful force, dwarfing even the likes of Qing Shui, Yan Leizi, and Tian Yunzi. Even the enigmatic third-step elder from the Luo Tian Star Field seemed diminished in comparison.

The sheer magnitude of this presence formed an invisible barrier, an insurmountable wall. Wang Lin could only glimpse it before his body convulsed and he spat blood, staggering backward. He attempted to unleash his yuan force, but discovered, to his horror, that it had retreated, coiled tightly within him as if terrified to stir in the presence of the statue! An unseen force held it captive, resisting any attempt to break free. Even the power of heaven and earth bowed before the might of this effigy!

Panic seized Wang Lin. He could only hear the thunderous pounding of his heart echoing through the silence. His blood seemed to freeze in his veins, then surge into a frenzy, hammering against his heart.

In his thirteen centuries of cultivation, Wang Lin had never experienced anything like this. He had never imagined such a thing possible. He had no time to contemplate it. His yuan force was bound, his blood raged, and his body trembled.

An overwhelming pressure sought to force him to his knees, to make him prostrate himself before the statue’s dominion. A crimson light blazed in Wang Lin’s eyes, and he roared, unleashing the ancient god power within him.

The ancient gods, defying heaven and earth, fearing no law, walking against the tide of destiny – they were the tribe of the ancient ones!