Chapter 1736: Ancient Mystery — Rain Falls on the Eastern Border, Azure Smoke Rises!

Within the core of the Immortal Cave Realm, inside that gigantic cauldron wreathed in black Qi, the Five Flowers and Eight Gates array was set up.

The Five Flowers bloomed fully, but only the Third Flower was withered. However, the Eight Gates were hidden within the Fifth Flower. Through Fusion with it, these Eight Gates could be a blade of grass or a tree, a person or a Vicious Beast; all living things and objects in heaven and earth could become a Gate.

Because of this, the difficulty of finding the sole True Gate among the Eight Gates within the Fifth Flower was truly immense!

Wang Lin had no clue, but he still had to step into the Fifth Flower, entering the final checkpoint of this Immortal Cave Core.

The opening of the Fifth Flower required the third soul of Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored as a guide. This third soul was the lifetime of memories of Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored. After undergoing strange changes through the Fifth Flower's absorption, the world that opened was Seven-Colored's memory world.

The sky was not a sheet of azure; instead, dark clouds permeated it. Faintly visible behind the clouds, Nine Suns hung high at the edge of the heavens, emitting bursts of scorching light. However, the land was too vast, stretching boundlessly, and even the Nine Suns seemed unable to illuminate every corner.

The wind, carrying a hint of moisture, swept across the land, kicking up dust. It spread far into a continuous mountain range on the ground, where it whined among the mountains, rustling large swathes of leaves.

Surrounded by this mountain range, built against the mountains, were carved railings and jade steps, and great halls and pavilions, rising and falling in succession. From a distance, there were no fewer than several thousand of them, overlapping with the mountain range, making it impossible to distinguish whether the mountains accentuated the railings, or the halls and pavilions framed the mountains!

Every pavilion and great hall, every piece of carved railing and jade step, was unique. Despite these differences, they were interconnected by the mountain range, looking from afar like a Heavenly Palace nestled in the mountains!

A layer of thin clouds, like white mist and Immortal Qi, permeated the mountains, shrouding the Heavenly Palace so it appeared faintly visible, adding to its sense of mystery. Occasionally, hundreds of Immortal Cranes would cry out, soaring through the mountain clouds as if playing.

A few people were vaguely seated on the Immortal Cranes, but their appearance was obscured by the clouds and mist.

Within these mountains, beyond the clouds and mist, at the end of the carved railings and pavilions, and outside a cluster of great halls, on a certain peak, water rushed. It was a winding stream flowing down from the mountain summit, gradually carving out a riverbed more than one zhang wide over countless years of flow. It ran down the mountain, connecting to a pool below, and then dispersed into countless branches, flowing off to unknown places.

Wang Lin sat on an azure stone beside the riverbed, looking at the water, frowning. In the distance, bell sounds echoed from the mountain peaks, but he paid them no mind.

He had been in the world of the Fifth Flower for more than two months, but he had found no trace of the True Gate.

The river water was clear, and a reflection shimmered out—the figure belonged to Wang Lin. He was wearing an azure Daoist Robe, from which faint bursts of azure light emanated, clearly possessing a certain defensive power. Furthermore, tied to the Dao Belt around his waist was a Jade Pendant suspended by a red string.

This Jade Pendant was crystal clear and not an ordinary object; it flashed and sparkled, quite beautiful.

However, the appearance of Wang Lin reflected in the river water was completely different from his true self. That appearance featured red lips and white teeth, sword-like eyebrows, and starry eyes. His eyes, especially, were deep, seemingly containing infinite demonic power, such that if a person of the same gender looked at him, they would be subdued, and if of the opposite gender, they would certainly be enamored.

This appearance looked to be only eighteen or nineteen years old, making him the most handsome man of the same gender Wang Lin had ever seen in his life. But if this face were aged slightly with the vicissitudes of time and the helplessness of life, it would be extremely similar to the Seven-Colored Statue Wang Lin obtained from Greedy Wolf!

Looking at his reflection in the river, Wang Lin still maintained a strange expression despite spending two months there.

“Entering this Fifth Flower, within the memories of Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored, I have become him…” Wang Lin withdrew his gaze, sat there, and looked up at the sky. Next to his ear, the bell sounds from the great hall on the mountain peak behind him rang out once more.

“Immortal Astral Continent… This is the Immortal Astral Continent. I never expected that I would step onto the Immortal Astral Continent for the first time within the Fifth Flower of this Immortal Cave, in Seven-Colored's memory world.” Wang Lin looked up at the Nine Suns in the sky, a bitter smile on his face.

This world belonged to Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored; it was formed by his memories. It could be called an illusion, but everything within it had truly happened and existed in the past.

“The sects of the Immortal Astral Continent truly cannot be compared to the Immortal Cave Realm…” Wang Lin touched the Daoist Robe on his body. Its defensive power could withstand a full-strength strike from a Soul Transformation Cultivator.

“But how exactly can I find the location of the True Gate? Perhaps only the third soul of Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored knows the answer to that… My current appearance is also influenced by the third soul, but I can feel that I haven't fully merged with the third soul to a deep extent… nor can I merge with it.” Wang Lin reached out and scooped up some river water, sprinkling it casually. But right then, he suddenly frowned again.

“Su Dao! How audacious! The bell has already rung twice, yet you still haven't gone to welcome Master out of seclusion!” A sharp voice rang out behind Wang Lin. He saw a young man, about twenty years old and also wearing an azure Daoist Robe, descending the mountain path behind him. This youth stared at Wang Lin, his eyes showing malice.

“I was ordered by Great Senior Brother to capture you and bring you back to face punishment under the Sect Rules!” The youth sneered, approaching Wang Lin. He raised his right hand and grabbed at Wang Lin's hair, clearly intending to drag Wang Lin by his hair up to the great hall on the summit.

The instant the man's palm approached, Wang Lin turned around and gave the youth a cold look. In that glance, the youth's mind suddenly roared, as if Wang Lin's gaze were two sharp swords penetrating his eyes and stabbing directly into his soul.

The youth's face instantly changed drastically. He stood there dumbfounded, his entire body seeming to freeze. This all happened in a flash. As Wang Lin averted his gaze, the youth seemed to recover his breath, retreating several steps rapidly, nearly falling down. He looked at Wang Lin with an expression of fear and astonishment.

“You… you…”

In the world of the Fifth Flower, Wang Lin had transformed into the youthful appearance of Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored and gained his early memories. He knew that the Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored of those years had a rather weak character, unlike the heroic figure he later became.

At this age, Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored should have been protected within the sect due to his exceptional talent, but his Master was constantly in seclusion. As a result, his talent drew envy, and his life within the sect was not easy.

The youth before him was one of those who frequently bullied him. However, his fellow disciples would not openly show their rejection, but instead acted in secret, mostly using the Sect Rules for punishment, just like this youth.

The young Immortal Venerable Seven-Colored only began to make a name for himself in the sect more than ten years later, after being favored and cultivated by his Grandmaster.

But Wang Lin was not Su Dao, and naturally, he would not allow history to proceed as usual. While the youth retreated in terror, Wang Lin stepped forward, instantly standing right beside him. The youth's face immediately turned pale, and the fear in his eyes intensified. Even now, he couldn't comprehend why the scene just now had occurred.

He had been away these past few days and had only returned yesterday, yet he never expected this Su Dao to be like a completely different person, utterly unlike the one who had previously allowed himself to be bullied.

“You…” The youth was about to speak, but his voice abruptly cut off. His neck was seized by Wang Lin's right hand, lifting his entire body up. With his breathing obstructed, the man's face instantly turned crimson, and he struggled, grabbing Wang Lin's arm with both hands.

But no matter how he struggled, Wang Lin's hand was like an iron clamp, not loosening in the slightest.

“Don't provoke me. There won't be a next time, understand?” Wang Lin held the youth's neck, slowly pulling him closer, looking at him, and speaking word by word.

The youth's pupils were already somewhat unfocused. He was so terrified he nearly suffered Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering. He was trembling and unable to nod, but his appearance clearly showed that he absolutely dared not provoke Wang Lin again.

Slowly loosening his grip, Wang Lin smiled, patted the youth's head, and said slowly, “Come up the mountain with me.” As he spoke, he turned and walked toward the great hall on the summit.

The youth clutched his neck, gasping for breath, and only recovered after a long while. His gaze toward Wang Lin was filled with fear and awe. In that brief moment, he had felt death. He even felt that the Su Dao before him could truly kill him in an instant. Trembling, he hurriedly followed behind Wang Lin.

The mountain path was winding, with staircases reaching toward the clouds. Wang Lin walked upon them. The wind blew, sweeping his long hair and rustling his clothes. In the wind, there was also an earthy fragrance that penetrated the heart, making it very comfortable to smell.

“Nourished by this kind of Immortal Qi, all living creatures on the Immortal Astral Continent will have robust bodies suitable for Cultivating Immortality. Even Grass and Wood Spirits will appear, and Vicious Beasts will transform into human form…” Although Wang Lin knew that even the Immortal Qi and fragrance in the wind were fake, this falseness confirmed that the Immortal Astral Continent was indeed like this.

It was completely different from the Immortal Cave Realm.

As he proceeded, the sky, which already had dark clouds, now grew even darker. Several patches collided, immediately emitting bursts of roaring sounds. Lightning flashed past with a rumble. Looking up, the lightning looked like a silver snake twisting and darting away.

“It's going to rain…” Wang Lin muttered. Following the stairs, he reached the summit and saw the magnificent great hall there. This hall, about several hundred zhang large, stood towering, looking like a massive beast resting.

Outside the great hall was a plaza about a thousand zhang wide. In the middle of the plaza was a gigantic incense burner, atop which nine sticks of incense, thick as an arm, burned, letting Azure Smoke rise into the sky.

At this moment, nearly a hundred Cultivators were already standing in the plaza, conversing in low voices in groups of two or three.

The instant Wang Lin stepped into the plaza, thunder rumbled in the sky, and massive raindrops poured down from above, forming a curtain of rain that blurred even the human figures within it.

The rainwater struck the azure stones of the plaza, making pattering sounds that mingled with the noise of the rain, amplifying the volume. Almost instantly, the entire plaza ground accumulated water that flowed and was constantly struck, creating countless ripples.