Wang Lin retracted his gaze and with his right hand, performed the Imperishable Finger technique, striking his chest several times. With each strike, a portion of the surging force dissipated. Finally, his index finger shot forward, cleaving through the relentless pressure, as if tearing a monstrous wave asunder, carving a path through the turmoil. Through this gap, Wang Lin stepped forth.

The sweeping force, emanating from this point, ravaged the land for millions of leagues around, leaving behind a desolate wasteland. The thunderous roar echoed for what seemed an eternity, slowly fading into the distance, leaving only a muffled rumble resonating like distant thunder.

Wang Lin stood aloft, gazing down at the ravaged earth, choked by swirling dust. The horizon was obscured by the airborne debris, burying the land beneath a shroud of ash. His white hair flowed in the wind, his robes billowed, yet his expression remained serene, a testament to his power as a third-step Empyrean Soul cultivator, a grandmaster of his era.

He raised his right hand and, with a flick of his wrist, a pale golden crystal materialized. It was riddled with countless hairline fractures, and contained the entirety of the wizened old man’s memories. Yet, these memories defied simple comprehension through divine sense. Even with greater cultivation, Wang Lin would be unable to access the old man’s life.

The memories of immortals were guarded by bloodline, accessible only to those who possessed immortal power within their veins. A preordained limitation, an insurmountable barrier, even for one of the ancient races like Wang Lin. It was a difference in level, akin to an ant striving to comprehend the memories of an elephant. But Wang Lin was not to be denied. Upon his brow lay the imprint of the Imperishable Immortal Body, manifested as a drop of golden blood. Within it pulsed the power of an immortal bloodline, its purity exceeding even that found in the Immortal Astral Continent!

With this blood as his key, the memories lay open to him, like the pages of a book. A golden light erupted from his brow, and the drop of golden blood materialized. He held the crystal and gently pressed it to his forehead, closing his eyes.

In that instant, Wang Lin was drawn into a fantastical realm. He *saw*.

He beheld a continent unlike any he knew, of vast and boundless scale. Even the memory’s owner, in his lifetime, had not reached its end. In fact, his furthest travels, even when equated to the combined territories of countless realms, amounted to less than one ten-thousandth of its entirety.

Upon this continent, the most striking feature was the sky, where nine suns hung suspended, their endless light bathing the boundless lands below. Immersed in the old man’s memories, Wang Lin instantly recognized the meaning of the nine suns, finding an ancient legend echoing across the continent.

It was said that the nine suns of the Immortal Astral Continent were in truth nine celestial palaces, representing the nine Grand Empyreans, the supreme beings of that land. Even the old man’s master, the Seven-Colored Statue, had not reached such heights. Legend held that nine was the limit. If a tenth sun ever appeared in the Immortal Astral Continent, it would herald a calamity of immeasurable proportions!

The old man was born on this continent. As he grew, he sought refuge in a sect known as the Seven Dao Sect. The sect’s masters were a Daoist couple, one of whom was the Seven-Colored Statue. On this continent, he was revered as the Seven-Colored Immortal Exalt!

His power was unfathomable. He founded the sect, taking countless disciples. Over countless millennia, the Seven Dao Sect had weathered innumerable crises, each time overcome by the Daoist couple, slowly establishing a position of unparalleled authority within the region.

As the years passed, the old man rose to become one of the Exalt’s hundred immortals, a powerful figure within the Seven Dao Sect. Second only to the Vermillion Bird, Black Tortoise, Azure Dragon, and White Tiger – the four great generals – he enjoyed immense status and power. Cultivation techniques and alchemical elixirs were his for the taking.

Until one day…

In the old man’s memory, on that fateful night, blinding rays of light soared from beyond the Seven Dao Sect. Along with this light came a pressure so immense that even he trembled, spreading across the land and enveloping all directions.

Under this pressure, in the darkness of night, two suns, which should never have appeared, materialized, filling the old man’s heart with dread. He vividly recalled the legends, the terrifying identities associated with those heavenly bodies.

Consumed by terror, he heard deafening roars and guttural cries that made blood trickle from his orifices. His mind shattered, and he descended into unconsciousness.

In that final moment before darkness claimed him, he sensed the sect master, the Seven-Colored Immortal Exalt, and his Daoist consort, racing from the Seven Dao Sect toward the distant light and the ominous double suns.

Days later, the old man awoke to the bitter realization that his cultivation had fallen several notches. Months later, the Seven-Colored Immortal Exalt returned alone, his face grim but his eyes gleaming with a peculiar light.

The Seven-Colored Immortal Exalt remained silent about the fate of his Daoist consort. Instead, he led his disciples, along with several immortal concubines, a hundred guards, and the four great generals, into his cave dwelling, sealing it shut. He reinforced the entrance with countless seals and even employed treasures the memory’s owner had never seen before.

At this point, due to the countless cracks within the crystal, the memories became fragmented. Only shards of information remained.

Within one fragment, Wang Lin saw a woman clad in silver robes, one of the Immortal Exalt’s handmaidens. Wang Lin recognized her. In that instant, memories and connections snapped into place. It was the same silver-clad female corpse, now trapped within Wang Lin’s storage space, who had cowered in fear before the Seven-Colored Statue!

In another memory fragment, Wang Lin saw the Seven-Colored Immortal Exalt, known in both the Inner and Outer Realms as the Ancient Immortal Emperor, the Ancient Immortal Exalt. He was indeed the being represented by the Seven-Colored Statue!

He led his followers into the cave dwelling. Once they had sealed the exits and entrances, he immediately busied himself with unknown tasks. The immortal concubines, the hundred guards, and the four great generals were puzzled, but out of respect for the Immortal Exalt’s authority, no one dared question him. Each sought a place to meditate, silently awaiting their lord’s summons.

Until one day, a sinister voice echoed outside the cave dwelling, shattering the memory’s owner’s meditative state.

“Seven-Colored Dao Exalt! You would even abandon your Daoist consort. You must have obtained some wondrous treasure! You left clues for me to find you here alone! This Ancient One will see what tricks you have up your sleeve!” The voice was unfamiliar, but it pulsed with immense power, causing the old man to jump in fright. But then, the next sentence chilled him to the core!

“Dao Ancient Yemo! I invited you here, yet you call it a trick. You need only look to know if it is indeed a trap!”

To the memory’s owner, the name Dao Ancient Yemo was like thunder to his ears. A Grand Sovereign of the Ancient Clans, the name Dao Ancient Yemo was legendary!

The subsequent events were lost, another break in the fragmented memory. What Wang Lin saw was the final memory shard.

Within that fragment, he witnessed a chaotic battle, obscured by a haze. He could not discern the participants. He could only see the hundred guards, the four great generals, and several immortal concubines, engaged in a furious assault upon three figures!

Those three figures were indistinct, engulfed in dazzling golden light. The battle seemed to rage on for an eternity, resulting in heavy casualties. Then, one of the three figures, bathed in intense golden light, burst forth, laughing wildly. With a single step, he swept aside the warriors of the Seven Dao Sect and lunged towards a stone gate.

“This King has come in person! Why does the lowly Seven-Colored Exalt not come out and kneel before me?!” The golden figure’s laughter reverberated, and the words struck Wang Lin like a bolt of lightning.

As the figure approached the stone gate, a thunderous roar emanated from within. The memory shattered completely!

Wang Lin’s eyes snapped open. The crystal, pressed against his brow, had disintegrated into dust, scattered by the wind.

“The Madman’s voice!” Wang Lin drew a deep breath, his divine sense searching his storage space. He found the Madman still asleep, a foolish grin upon his lips.

Silent and grim, Wang Lin pondered the memories. They had answered many questions but had also raised a host of new and troubling enigmas.

“I know something of Dao Ancient Yemo… I had suspicions about the Madman’s arrival… And if the silver-clad woman was telling the truth, and she didn’t open the gate, then could it be that ‘gate’ refers to the portal through which the Madman came…?

The result of that battle was that the Madman lost his mind and ran amok. The Ancient Immortal Realm was destroyed. The survivors of the Seven Dao Sect retreated into seclusion. This cave dwelling’s master, the Seven Dao Sect’s Immortal Exalt, was gravely injured. But is all this the truth? And if it is, then what was the object they were fighting for? Could it be the so-called Heavenly Dao? And what is the connection between the Heavenly Dao and the Heaven Defying Bead? The Heaven Defying Bead is just a component within a magical compass. It is unlikely to be the Heavenly Dao… So what is it, and where did it come from?”

Wang Lin frowned, his gaze flickering.

“And what I learned within the Lightning Clan, about the mysterious foreign cultivators who appeared outside the Realm after the battle… The Kunji Whip was one of their treasures… Who were those people?” Wang Lin sensed that he had pulled back a layer of the mysterious veil, and that he was approaching the answer to the events of countless years ago.