Gazing upon the crimson miasma, the scholarly man of middle years allowed a faint smile to touch his lips. Cautious by nature, wily as a fox, he bore even amongst the ancient starlanes the sobriquet “the Cunning Broker.”

Though his cultivation stood only at the Third Heavenly Tribulation, he’d long held that his schemes could compensate for any shortfall. Indeed, more often than not, it was through his cunning that he’d danced upon the precipice of life and death, emerging each time as the victor.

Now, in this plot against the Venerable Lingdong to seize a coveted treasure, his vigilance was heightened.

Feigning death once wasn’t enough to satisfy him. Thus, he’d first employed jade tablets to halt the operation of the mist’s restrictions, effectively opening the door of this perilous fog. Then, he’d staged his own demise, reasoning that any others lurking within would seize the opportunity to escape.

And should anyone indeed appear, the moment they plunged into the mist, he would unleash his counter-attack, trapping them within its swirling depths.

Moreover, he was supremely confident in the authenticity of his false death. Long ago, through a fortunate encounter, he’d learned an art that could mimic true death, shattering even the spirit essence so thoroughly that none could discern the deception.

Coupled with the deliberately induced signs of decay, the middle-aged man was utterly assured. Before the crimson mist, he waved his right hand, and the fog reluctantly parted, revealing nine jade tablets. He touched a few, and six of them shattered, crumbling into black ash and vanishing. The mist stilled once more, as if frozen in time.

Six of those nine tablets were instruments of death, bearing no connection to halting the restrictions. A look of triumph spread across his face. The middle-aged man inhaled deeply and stepped forward, entering the gateway formed by the remaining three jade tablets.

All his cunning was focused on the matter. He cast incantations and calculations, then pointed repeatedly at the mist before him, causing it to slowly tear apart.

Before long, the fog was peeled back layer by layer, leading into the depths. Excitement gleamed in the middle-aged man’s eyes. He raised his right hand to point again, but as his fingertip descended, his lips twitched involuntarily, revealing a smile of unsettling strangeness.

In the instant that smile appeared, the middle-aged man’s expression transformed. He recoiled, wiping frantically at his face, horror blazing in his eyes.

Yet the bizarre smile persisted, a stark contrast to the terror in his gaze. “Impossible… impossible…” he stammered, his body trembling. His eyes were wide with dread, growing more intense even as the smile on his face broadened. He clawed at his cheeks, desperately trying to erase the smile, but it remained, growing ever more pronounced.

Blood trickled from his mouth, but he seemed oblivious. He scrubbed at his face with maniacal force, but to no avail. “How can this be?!” The middle-aged man wailed, but the sound issued forth from the grotesque smile. He began to laugh, a hollow sound that betrayed the fear engulfing him.

“Don’t smile! Don’t smile!” He staggered backward, but after only a few paces, he convulsed, spewing a mouthful of blood. His eyes glazed over, devoid of all spark, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The eerie smile remained, as if he were staring at the heavens… and in his fading spirit essence, that same smile mirrored, signifying utter annihilation… the Forbidden Art of Life and Death.

Silence descended. A shimmer of starlight, and Wang Lin stepped forth from within the restrictions. The man’s tampering with the crimson miasma was subtle, undetectable to outsiders, perhaps even to masters of the art. Only because Wang Lin was learned in three of the Four Great Restrictions, did he see the deception.

The middle-aged man’s individual manipulations appeared to be disruptions, but the overall effect was a perverse inversion, enhancing rather than diminishing the red mist. He’d even borrowed the Venerable Lingdong’s incense strike to fully ignite the restrictions, multiplying their power to eradicate all present.

To allay suspicion, he had tempted fate, concealing himself within the fog to emit a bloodcurdling scream, convincing all that he was dead.

He had managed to kill most of the others and drive the rest away. As the crimson mist spread, it shattered the dimensional rifts above, sealing the passage, leaving only himself behind. This scheme, this audacity, was worthy of a titan.

Wang Lin gazed at the corpse with its bizarre smile, then raised his right hand and struck the body. It exploded into dust and blew away on the wind.

“This way, even if you were still feigning, there’s no chance of resurrection!” Wang Lin had seen through the middle-aged man’s deceit, so he had baited him with a teleportation seal.

Given his power, it was unlikely the foe would detect it. Shortly afterwards he returned swiftly through the rift. The man had not died by his hand, but fallen victim to the crimson mist, which contained not only the prohibitions of Ancient Souls and the passage of Time, but the prohibition of Life and Death as well. As for the man’s feigned demise, Wang Lin had been aware of it all along, but such tricks were useless against him. Wang Lin stepped to the edge of the crimson fog, which had claimed the lives of many.

He looked at the three jade tablets, slowly passing through the fog.

“So, it is the Prohibition of Life and Death…” After a time, Wang Lin raised his right hand and pointed sharply forward. A faint thrumming arose, and the mist began to churn, forming a crimson vortex.

Within this crimson maelstrom, a black line appeared, intertwined with the red, its meaning clear. To break the Prohibition of Life and Death, one must seek the spark of life amidst the decay, extract it, and sever the prohibition. However, for those unfamiliar with its secrets, extracting that spark was impossible.

Wang Lin watched intently. Then, he formed an incantation with his right hand, creating a seal. He inhaled deeply and carefully pressed the seal into the vortex. The vortex seemed to lurch, absorbing Wang Lin’s seal, causing the black line to grow clearer. Without hesitation, Wang Lin thrust his hand into the vortex, seized the black line, and yanked it free.

The black line writhed like a serpent and dissolved in Wang Lin’s grasp. The crimson vortex collapsed, revealing a long passage to a distant platform. “And this…” In that moment, Wang Lin’s eyes narrowed, then returned to normal. He masked his surprise and feigned elation, then rushed toward the passage.

“Halt!” As Wang Lin prepared to plunge in, a chilling voice echoed through the skies.

“A fine mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind!” With the voice, a hazy figure appeared beyond the mist, solidifying into the Venerable Lingdong, his foot in the Third Step! Behind him floated the two-thousand-foot platform.

His face was now devoid of emotion, gone was the simpleton act. His eyes gleamed with mockery.

Wang Lin faltered, turned slowly, and looked with apprehension at Lingdong.

“Junior… I greet the Venerable…” Wang Lin clasped his hands and tried to take a tiny step back.

“Move and you die!” Lingdong snapped coldly.

“The Venerable’s foresight is unmatched; your plans concealed are impressive!” Wang Lin halted, wincing, and forcibly suppressed his fear.

“I knew that萧靖 was ambitious, but I thought that child was no match for me. Although I am no expert in prohibitions, you two are, and it has cost me nothing to make you my tools!” Lingdong sneered, emboldened. “Come forth and wait there!”

In the eyes of Lingdong, Wang Lin was to be sacrificed to the spirit and create a Divine Dao spirit. Wang Lin would never escape his grasp.

Wang Lin paled, as if weighing his chances. After a moment he sighed, came out of the mist, and was contained by Lingdong.

Lingdong waved his hand, sending forth a wave of power that encased Wang Lin in an inescapable cage.

Without glancing at Wang Lin, he strode forward into the mist, as if to step into the passage, but he paused, turning his gaze back to Wang Lin.

Wang Lin’s expression was unchanged, bearing the same bitterness. Though Lingdong’s inspection was sudden, he discerned nothing amiss.

“I have changed my mind. You go first!”

Wang Lin’s eyes widened, but his joy was quickly suppressed. Lingdong laughed, and entered the passage without turning back. As he stepped into the middle, a pained scream filled the passage. “There is a trap!!”

Wang Lin’s eyes flashed with a killer intent.