The local spatial bridge flared with a soft, silver-green light that cut through the darkness of the mountain ridge. The surrounding space rippled and folded inward, creating a brief vacuum of air before pulling Fang Lin inside. The harsh, biting mountain wind abruptly vanished, replaced by a profound, heavy silence.
When his boots touched solid ground again, Fang Lin stood on the smooth, polished stone of the Myriad Halls Plaza inside the World-in-a-jar Mansion. Massive stone pillars, carved with depictions of ancient beasts and flowing rivers, stretched high toward the glowing silver-lit ceiling. The air was perfectly still, carrying the ancient, enduring scent of aged jade and cold dust.
Fang Lin let out a slow, steady breath. He had dropped off Uncle Zhang, Auntie Mei, and their young nephew at the edge of Mylan Village. Feng Jiu'er and Xiao Chuan's group was safely traversing the skies toward the Green Bamboo Sect. His ties to Lotus Lake County, the bloody pursuit, and the mortal lives he had inadvertently dragged into danger were cleanly severed. They were safe, and he was alone.
Now, it was time to consolidate his own strength.
The elderly Mansion Spirit stood quietly near the central altar, his hands clasped within the wide sleeves of his long, examinee robes. The faint, warm light radiating from the ancient array marks on his clothing provided the only illumination in the immediate vicinity.
"Welcome back, Little Lin," the Mansion Spirit spoke, his voice carrying the deep resonance of the ancient palace itself.
"Senior," Fang Lin nodded respectfully. He looked toward the deep, cavernous corridors branching off the main plaza. Before he entered the Obsidian Chamber to stabilize his three newly formed cores, there was a crucial task he needed to complete. "My current Trial Point balance from clearing the first fifteen levels is six thousand five hundred points. I want to access the Floor 2 Treasury to acquire the necessary resources for my consolidation."
He had already learned about the Floor 2 Treasury from the Sovereign incarnation long ago and had been waiting to advance to the Core Formation Realm, because these treasures could only be used after reaching that realm.
The Mansion Spirit smiled faintly, a look of quiet approval in his eyes. "As an Early Core Formation cultivator, the second floor is indeed now open to you. Your points are a testament to your flawless execution of the foundation trials. Follow me."
The spirit turned and led him down a wide stone hallway that inclined steadily upward. They passed several heavy, sealed doors made of dark iron and reinforced stone before arriving at a massive pair of bronze double doors. These doors were intricately carved with depictions of ancient merchants holding weighing scales, surrounded by mountains of spirit stones and heavenly herbs. The Mansion Spirit simply waved his hand. The massive bronze doors groaned with the weight of centuries, slowly grinding open to reveal a vast, dimly lit circular hall.
Inside the Floor 2 Treasury, the sheer scale of the legacy's wealth became apparent. Hundreds of tall stone pedestals stood in neat, concentric rows that stretched outward into the gloom. Each pedestal held a single item, protected by a glowing, translucent sphere of defensive light. Floating above each sphere were rectangular jade slips, glowing with silver text that listed the item's name, origin, and exact point cost.
"This is the utility vault," the Mansion Spirit explained, standing by the entrance and gesturing toward the endless rows. "There are no combat trials required to obtain these items. You may spend your accumulated points to acquire intermediate-to-high-grade resources, tools, and auxiliary items. The point deduction is automatic upon selection. Choose carefully, for Trial Points are not easily replenished."
Fang Lin stepped into the hall. The ambient spiritual energy in the air was thick, a chaotic mixture of fire, frost, wood, and metallic Qi radiating from the thousands of sealed treasures. He walked slowly past the pedestals, his dark eyes scanning the floating jade slips, immediately struck by the terrifying wealth of the ancient legacy.
To his left, a pair of weightless, silver-threaded boots hovered inside a glowing sphere. The jade slip read: Voidstep Boots. Cost: 6,000 Trial Points. A spatial movement treasure capable of short-range teleportation.
Further down, an emerald fruit beat rhythmically like a living heart. The jade slip read: Seven-Life Rebirth Fruit. Cost: 3,500 Trial Points. It contained immense life force capable of complete foundation recovery and meridian restoration.
Nearby, a perfectly balanced triangular crystal rotated slowly, radiating absolute harmony. The jade slip read: Three-Element Fusion Crystal. Cost: 5,000 Trial Points. It contained balanced elemental energies, a priceless artifact for dual and tri-element cultivators during Core Formation.
His breath hitched slightly. His six thousand five hundred points gave him significant purchasing power, but the items here were enough to cause a bloodbath in the outside world. He continued walking, eventually arriving at a pedestal located near the back of the hall.
Inside this sphere rested a smooth, unassuming grey stone that seemed to bend the light around it, radiating an ancient, primordial aura that resonated perfectly with his three cores. The jade slip read: Three-River Origin Stone. Cost: 20,000 Trial Points. An origin treasure capable of harmonizing multiple elemental paths.
Fang Lin stared at the massive number. Twenty thousand points. He suddenly realized how small his current wealth truly was in the face of the Mansion's true legacy.
As he turned away from the impossible origin stone, a familiar, ancient voice echoed directly into his mind.
"Kid, do not waste your points on basic or useless items," the Dark Flame Spirit spoke from the Ancient Spirit Furnace within his dantian. The ancient spirit had remained uncharacteristically quiet during the intense Tri-Core breakthrough, perhaps respecting the absolute focus required for such a heaven-defying act, but seeing the ancient treasures woke its deep reservoir of knowledge. "Look to your left, three rows down. That dark fabric."
Fang Lin turned. On a pedestal nearby rested a dark, seemingly weightless piece of cloth that absorbed the ambient light around it, appearing as a hole in the physical space of the room. The floating jade slip read: Yin-Wind Concealment Cloak. Cost: 1,500 Trial Points.
"A Yin-Wind Concealment Cloak," the Dark Flame Spirit explained, her voice carrying a tone of rare, genuine approval. "It is woven from the core silk of an ancient Yin-Wind Spider, a beast born purely of cold winds and dark intent. It grants perfect environmental blending and aura-masking. If you wear that cloak and circulate your Qi through its threads, cultivators under the Law Comprehension Realm will not be able to detect you with their divine sense. It suppresses your heat, your heartbeat, and the fluctuations of your Core Force. Only extremely powerful Domain Forging cultivators might notice a slight ripple in the natural air currents. It is the absolute perfect tool for moving unseen across the continent."
Fang Lin's eyes flashed with sharp realization. Escaping detection was exactly his highest priority. If he was to operate in secret and bypass the heavily guarded checkpoints of the grand sects, he needed absolute concealment. He reached his hand straight into the glowing sphere of light and grasped the dark fabric. The barrier vanished instantly, offering no resistance to the successor's touch, and the cloak draped over his arm, feeling as light as a handful of mist.
A silver number appeared briefly in the air above him, burning brightly before fading: -1,500 Points.
"A wise choice," the Dark Flame Spirit murmured. "Now, look four rows further down, toward the back. That pale blue seed."
Fang Lin walked over to the indicated pedestal. Inside the glowing sphere sat a single, freezing seed no larger than a mortal's thumbnail. Yet, it radiated a pure, biting cold that frosted the stone of the pedestal beneath it. The jade slip read: Yin-Frost Lotus Seed. Cost: 800 Trial Points.
"Your Frost Core has just formed," the Dark Flame Spirit lectured, his tone turning serious. "It is incredibly pure, but it needs deep, stabilizing nourishment to prevent the Life and Death cores from overpowering it. The Tri-Core balance is highly volatile. That Yin-Frost Lotus Seed is a cold-path natural treasure, condensed over thousands of years in the depths of a frozen abyss. Consuming it during your consolidation period will perfectly temper your Frost Core, giving it the physical weight and density needed to hold its ground against the other two. It will solidify your Early Core Formation foundation without introducing any instability."
Fang Lin did not hesitate. His parallel meridians were currently humming with a dangerous, chaotic energy that threatened to destabilize if he pushed his cultivation too hard. He reached into the sphere and took the freezing seed. The intense cold immediately bit into his palm, but his own Frost Qi surged to welcome it.
Another silver number flashed in the dim air: -800 Points.
He mentally calculated his remaining balance. He now had exactly four thousand two hundred points remaining. While there were dozens of other highly attractive treasures in the hall, Fang Lin knew the value of holding reserves. He decided to save the rest for future emergencies when he might desperately need a specific array, artifact or medicinal pill.
Fang Lin turned and exited the treasury, nodding respectfully to the Mansion Spirit who had waited patiently by the door. "I have what I need for now, Senior. I will enter seclusion to consolidate my realm."
"The Obsidian Chamber is fully prepared and waiting," the spirit replied, gesturing toward the plaza.
Fang Lin walked back through the corridors until he reached the heavy black doors of the Obsidian Chamber. He pushed them open and stepped inside, immediately feeling the dense, high-pressure Qi of the room settle over his shoulders like a physical weight. The walls were constructed of pure, unblemished obsidian, designed to withstand the explosive force of failed breakthroughs. He sat cross-legged on the dark stone floor, placing the Yin-Frost Lotus Seed on his knee, and manually activated the time-dilation arrays. The low, thrumming hum of the five-times time dilation settled into the walls, cutting him off completely from the normal flow of the outside world.
For the next ten calendar days in the outside world, Fang Lin remained in absolute, unbroken seclusion. Inside the chamber, however, fifty subjective days stretched out before him.
The consolidation of three perfect-grade parallel cores was a grueling, agonizing process. The moment he began to circulate his cultivation technique, the chaotic rotational forces inside his dantian flared up. The Frost Core's absolute zero temperature constantly clashed with the Life Core's boundless emerald vitality, while the violet-black Death Core rotated menacingly, constantly attempting to corrode the other two with its decaying influence. If one core gained dominance, his foundation would shatter, destroying his cultivation entirely.
During the second week of his subjective time, Fang Lin swallowed the Yin-Frost Lotus Seed.
The freezing energy exploded in his stomach like a detonated glacier, rushing violently through his parallel meridians straight into his silver-white Frost Core. The intense, agonizing cold threatened to freeze his blood, but Fang Lin gritted his teeth, refusing to break his meditation. He spent weeks meticulously guiding the cold energy, using the profound weight of the Lotus Seed to ground the Frost Core. Slowly, he used the enhanced Frost Core to act as a solid anchor, carefully balancing the opposing forces of Life and Death against its freezing mass.
Day by day, the chaotic, violent clashes between the three cores began to smooth out. The chaotic rotational forces aligned, falling into a perfect, stable rhythm that hummed with terrifying harmony. The immense power of the Early Core Formation realm fully saturated his flesh, bones, and parallel meridians, creating a foundation that was impossibly deep.
When the fifty subjective days finally ended, the time-dilation arrays hummed to a halt. Fang Lin slowly opened his eyes. A profound, deep light flashed in his dark pupils, carrying the chill of frost, the vibrancy of life, and the emptiness of death, before settling into a calm, unreadable darkness. His Early Core Formation cultivation was completely, flawlessly consolidated.
He stood up from the cold stone floor, his movements entirely silent. He picked up the Yin-Wind Concealment Cloak and draped it over his shoulders. The dark, weightless fabric immediately merged seamlessly with his black robes, hiding the sharp, dangerous edges of his aura and suppressing his bodily heat until he felt like a mere illusion in the room. He pushed open the heavy doors of the Obsidian Chamber and stepped back out into the Myriad Halls Plaza.
The Mansion Spirit was waiting for him by the central altar. The elderly figure looked closely at Fang Lin, his ancient eyes sweeping over the youth's hidden aura, and nodded in deep satisfaction. "Your foundation is incredibly solid. The three cores are perfectly harmonized. However, there is news you must hear before you leave this sanctuary."
Fang Lin stopped, his expression turning serious. "What happened in the outside world?"
"When your three cores aligned to achieve perfect formation, they created a massive astronomical phenomenon," the Mansion Spirit said seriously, his voice carrying a tone of stern warning. "I successfully sealed the visual light from escaping the mansion's boundary, but the sheer density of the alignment still sent a silent, profound spiritual tremor rippling across the entire Demon Immortal Continent. It caused the natural Qi of the world to shift momentarily."
Fang Lin's expression tightened, his mind racing. "It alerted the grand sects."
"Yes. It alerted all the major powers and ancient monsters resting across the continent," the Mansion Spirit confirmed. "They felt the anomaly in the natural laws and are currently deploying their forces to search for the source."
"They are searching for me?" Fang Lin asked, his hand instinctively resting near his storage bag.
"They are searching for an unknown, world-shaking anomaly," the Mansion Spirit corrected gently. "They do not know it is a human cultivator. However, this means you must keep your three parallel cores strictly concealed. If any powerful expert, especially those in the Spirit Manifestation or Domain Forging realms, senses that you possess a Frost, Life, and Death core simultaneously, they will immediately connect you to the continental tremor. You will become the target of every major faction on this planet. You must only show one core's aura at a time, keeping the other two deeply buried."
Fang Lin nodded slowly, fully grasping the immense danger he was now in. The power of the Tri-Core foundation was unparalleled, but it was also a massive target on his back. "I understand. I will maintain the disguise of a standard Frost cultivator. And what of the Rivercloud region? Are the Heavenly Sword Lake and the local sects still conducting their massive lockdown searching for 'Shen Mo'?"
The Mansion Spirit smiled faintly, shaking his head. "That is the good news. The hunt for 'Shen Mo' has already cooled down significantly. The grand sects have entirely shifted their attention and resources to investigating the spiritual tremor and other major continental events. The death of Heishui, while significant to the local Black Water Alliance, is no longer the priority of the larger world. The immediate heat has dissipated. You are free to move through the region, provided you do not draw unnecessary attention to your cultivation."
Fang Lin felt a quiet, profound relief wash over his chest. He looked upward toward the distant ceiling of the plaza, his thoughts drifting briefly to Mylan Village. Uncle Zhang, Auntie Mei, and their nephew were safe, settling into their new, quiet lives. Feng Jiu'er, Xiao Chuan, Hu Zi and Er Ya were at the Green Bamboo Sect, shielded by the sect's authority. He had fulfilled his responsibilities for now. He had no immediate burdens left to carry, and no immediate pursuers directly on his heels.
"It is time," Fang Lin said quietly, looking back at the ancient spirit.
The Mansion Spirit raised his hand in a slow, respectful gesture. The massive exit portal at the edge of the plaza hummed to life, forming a swirling, dense silver vortex of spatial energy that led directly to the outside world.
Fang Lin pulled the deep hood of the Yin-Wind Concealment Cloak over his head. The dark fabric immediately wrapped around him, perfectly masking his presence and silencing his footsteps. Without another word, he stepped forward, crossing the smooth stone of the plaza, and walked through the glowing portal, disappearing into the vast, dangerous unknown of the Demon Immortal Continent.
However, he didn't know that his return to this place would be after a very long time.
End of Volume 4.