A cataclysm seized the Outer Reaches, the ancient starry expanse echoing with thunderous booms that swelled into a deafening roar. A miasma, thick as blood, choked the void, swirling with phantom shapes that hinted at monstrous beasts held within.

Across every star and every empty gulf of the Outer Reaches, this spectacle unfolded, a wave of oppressive power emanating from the Inner Sanctum, casting a long shadow over the entire Cave-Dwelling Realm.

Beneath this weight, the celestial cultivators of the Outer Reaches trembled, lost and bewildered, ignorant of the forces unleashed. The roaring of the heavens sounded like the death knell of the cosmos, crushing those who heard it with unbearable dread, a sensation akin to drowning in air.

Even the savage beasts, regardless of their fearsome power, cowered in terror. Half-forgotten memories, inherited from ancient ancestors and buried deep within their souls, stirred to life. Memories of primordial fear, a chilling reverence for the very fabric of existence, rose unbidden.

As the ancient starry expanse convulsed, the miasma thickened, blotting out the stars and consuming the Outer Reaches entirely. It descended without warning, leaving no time for resistance.

Then, at a point in the Outer Reaches, the firmament shattered. From the depths of nothingness, colossal fragments of stone materialized, converging with impossible speed. They coalesced into a vast, uneven slab, a broken piece of some forgotten edifice.

From this stony leviathan radiated an aura of immeasurable age and sorrow. Born of dust and shaped by echoes, the slab hurtled towards the Inner Sanctum with a mournful wail.

Within the sanctuary of his palace, the Venerable One jolted awake, his eyes wide with horrified realization. He surged to his feet and in a single stride, he pierced the veil of reality, emerging into the miasma-choked sky.

He gazed into the distance, his horror giving way to stunned disbelief. “The Third Soul awakens!” he cried, his voice hoarse. “The heart of the Cave-Dwelling Realm reopens!” His face deathly pale, he hesitated not, but flung himself towards the Inner Sanctum.

Elsewhere in the Outer Reaches, the surviving Immortal Consorts, including the one known to Wang Lin from the Burial Ground of the Ancients, awoke with a start. Their gazes shot to the heavens, their expressions a mixture of elation, fear, and unsettling complexity.

“The heart of the Cave-Dwelling Realm… it stirs!” One by one, the Immortal Consorts transformed into streaks of celestial light, racing towards the Inner Sanctum.

Simultaneously, within the four stellar domains of the Inner Sanctum, chaos erupted. In the Kunxu domain, above the Vermilion Bird Star, the maelstrom of miasma echoed the upheaval beyond. Dim light flickered as space itself tore open, revealing a fissure into the desolate Battlefield Beyond the Stars. From this tear, more fragments erupted, coalescing into another colossal stone slab above the Vermilion Bird Star.

Like a small continent, this slab roared into existence, then plunged towards the celestial domain of Luo Tian.

The same occurred in the other three stellar domains, each birthing stone slabs of unknown number, all hurtling from across the Cave-Dwelling Realm towards Luo Tian.

In that very domain, the Seven-Colored Daoist, still seeking the Third Soul, faltered. His body convulsed as he looked ahead, his face twisting into a mask of unholy rage.

“The Third Soul… taken!” he screamed, his voice laced with madness. “The heart of the Cave-Dwelling Realm opens! Who dares steal the Third Soul from me?!” He lunged forward, a storm of fury unleashed.

The Four War Generals, also within Luo Tian, watched in horror as the colossal mist beast at their command whimpered, refusing to advance. Then the celestial thunder and the all-consuming miasma arrived, proclaiming the reopening of the Cave-Dwelling heart to every corner of existence.

The Generals could scarcely believe it. They had believed themselves the vanguard, yet someone had already claimed the Third Soul.

“The Cave-Dwelling Realm is open!”

“Who has it? Did that Seven-Colored Daoist beat us to it?” Without hesitation, they surged forward, consumed by desperate urgency, towards the source of the awakened power.

But another figure moved faster still, a spectral streak that sliced past them in the blink of an eye.

It was the Old Wraith of War, his face a mask of grim determination and suppressed terror. If he failed to secure the Third Soul, the Seven-Colored Daoist would find him, devour him, and doom him to oblivion.

Alas, the chaos within the Cave-Dwelling Realm prevented any attempt at scrying. He could not discern who now held the Third Soul. Was it Wang Lin? Or the Daoist? The agonizing uncertainty fed his deepest fears.

He could only press forward, even if the Daoist possessed the Soul, to strike during the vulnerable moment of absorption, to fight a desperate battle for survival.

As the Old Wraith of War tore through the cosmos, a colossal phantom coalesced around his being. A specter wreathed in mist, its eyes shadowed, its long, gray hair billowing in the cosmic winds. It was immense, threatening to engulf the stars.

It was one fragment of the Seven-Colored Immortal Sovereign’s own shattered soul, bound to the Old Wraith of War.
In that very instant, as the Realm of the Caves underwent a cataclysm of a scope unseen in its countless ages, the world trembled, and dread seized the hearts of all its inhabitants!

Simultaneously, this power ripped asunder the ancient Immortal Domain beyond the borders of the Caves, once sealed by Wang Lin and the Bow of Li Guang, within the primordial stars. Though the ancient Immortal Domain was shattered and ruined, remnants of the Seven Dao Sect disciples lingered.

At the moment of the tear, these disciples surged forth with shocked determination, and without hesitation, they set a course for the starfield of Luo Tian!

Within the Caves, upon the cultivation star of Zhao He, a woman remained who had not ascended to the Immortal Realm. This was Zi Xia of Zhao He, once a consort of the immortals. After a moment of silent consideration, she gritted her pearly teeth and strode into the void.

Amidst this upheaval, which engulfed the entirety of the Realm of the Caves, as countless shards of stone coalesced and hurtled toward Luo Tian, within the concealed Five Planets of the Kunxu Starfield, the elder of the Ma family, followed by a small group, emerged from hiding. After a brief hesitation, they sighed and ascended into the heavens, driven toward Luo Tian!

Yun Yifeng followed closely behind Elder Ma, a strange glint flickering in his eyes as he gazed toward the direction of Luo Tian.

“Wang Lin, our battle remains unresolved. Perhaps within the heart of the Realm of the Caves, we shall finally decide the victor!”

As the Realm of the Caves roared and its mists churned like a vast sea, one observing from a higher plane would witness that the land had transformed into a swirling ocean of fog. Yet, the region surrounding Wang Lin in Luo Tian remained untouched, a beacon of clarity in the swirling chaos, a guiding light amidst the storm!

Within the Immortal Realm, Qing Shui stood before his dwelling, gazing at the sky, now heavy with turbidity. A haunting call echoed within his soul, a summons that filled him with an unsettling agitation.

Likewise, Situ Nan awoke from his meditation, his face grim as he stared silently into the distance, lost in contemplation.

Suddenly, a commanding voice resonated within the minds of both Qing Shui and Situ Nan – the voice of Dao Venerate Lan Meng!

“I pledged to aid Wang Lin… Now, this strange place has opened, and I, lacking the blood of the Immortal Gang, cannot enter. I would borrow the essence of your souls… Do you consent?”

Mist and debris, stone and vapor, surged from the depths of the Caves, converging upon Luo Tian!

At that moment, Wang Lin stood within the secluded valley of Autumn Orchids on a cultivation star in the Luo Tian Starfield. His eyes burned with sorrow and fury as he replayed the last moments of his disciple, Xie Qing, his final cry of “Master!” and his seven-layered destruction.

His rage was directed at the cruelty of fate!

If the heavens held no regard for his will, then he would obliterate them and all that they contained! Wang Lin raised his head, gazing at the darkening, roiling sky. In his hand, he clutched the third soul.

From the moment it emerged from the remains of Xie Qing, Wang Lin had felt a connection. He knew that the core of the Realm of the Caves had opened!

He was also aware that from across the cosmos, forces were converging, all drawn by the third soul in his possession! Yet, in Wang Lin’s eyes, this soul was different. It was not the soul of the Seven-Colored Immortal Venerate, but the soul of his disciple, Xie Qing!

“That will not be your final cry of ‘Master,’ I will not allow it!” Cold light flashed in Wang Lin’s eyes. He gazed at the heavens, then roared with laughter, a sound laced with savage determination!

“With your master here, you shall surely be reborn, your memories restored! And when you awaken, you shall once again be the disciple of Wang Lin!” Wang Lin closed his eyes, and when he opened them once more, he absorbed the third soul into himself.

In that instant, the darkening sky convulsed, the stars churned, and the mists thickened with unnatural speed. The swirling fog crashed and boomed like raging waves, and as it drew closer, Wang Lin saw a massive slab of stone, like a floating continent, burst from the swirling vapors, drifting through the void!

At the same time, a second stone slab roared out of the mist-sea from another direction!

A third!

A fourth!

A fifth…