"So, counting from the moment your Medicine King Sect returned to the Xuanhuang World, it’s been twenty-four years. The timeline matches up." Xiao Heng immediately grasped the implication.
"But Fellow Daoist Linghu clearly stated the Medicine King Cauldron only left the world for a short while before returning. How could such a brief period translate to thousands of years passing here?" Zhang Haobo's brow furrowed deeply. "A time flow differential of over a thousandfold? Is that truly possible?"
None present could answer that question, and they all fell into a heavy silence.
"Perhaps there is a way to determine what truly transpired back then." After a moment, Linghu Chang seemed to recall something and spoke abruptly.
"When the Medicine King Cauldron fell towards the Xuanhuang World, its fuel was depleted and it ultimately fell into dormancy.
"But you just said you were only able to enter this place by guidance from the Mini Medicine King Cauldrons."
He looked at Xiao Heng. "Under normal circumstances, the resonance between Medicine King Cauldrons is one-directional. Only the holder of the true Medicine King Cauldron can sense the locations of the other Mini Cauldrons.
"For someone holding a Mini Cauldron to sense the location of the true cauldron... that typically only happens when the Sect Leader is summoning nearby sect disciples.
"This indicates one of two things: either the Sect Leader has already awakened. Or, after all these years, the Medicine King Cauldron recovered some power and has begun autonomously executing its protocols, calling for aid from the external world.
"In any case, we must proceed into the Gate of Life and Death to check on the Sect Leader's condition."
Linghu Chang stated gravely.
"Gate of Life and Death? That gray stone door at the end of the corridor? We tried it. It's completely immovable." Su Xiaomei responded.
"Naturally. ‘The Gate of Life and Death descends, severing life from death.’ Not even a Dao Unity cultivator could hope to make it budge. If you could damage it, it means something has gone terribly wrong." Linghu Chang dismissed her concern.
"You have a way?" Su Xiaomei asked, a touch of defiance in her voice.
"Hmph." Linghu Chang snorted coldly and said nothing more, flying towards the depths of the passageway.
Su Xiaomei and the other two exchanged glances and followed closely behind.
They arrived before the gray stone door moments later.
Linghu Chang was already seated cross-legged on the floor. The Mini Medicine King Cauldron materialized above his head once more, projecting a protective barrier.
A circle shimmered with golden light on the ground around him, inscribed with numerous symbols.
He then took out a talisman and affixed it to his own forehead.
Twenty-four golden needles orbited around him.
Four jade tablets were positioned around him.
Only after completing these defensive measures did Linghu Chang address Xiao Heng's group courteously. "Fellow Daoists, I must trouble you to act as my guards."
"Wonder what he's showing off for," Su Xiaomei muttered under her breath.
Linghu Chang paid her no mind, closing his eyes.
Then, an infantile form bearing an eighty percent resemblance to Linghu Chang himself suddenly emerged from his body.
"Greetings, Fellow Daoists!" The infant gave a cultured bow to Xiao Heng and the others, its appearance utterly adorable.
"This is..."
"A Nascent Soul?"
Xiao Heng and the others were profoundly shocked.
Modern cultivators had long abandoned the method of "shattering the golden core to form the Nascent Soul."
Instead, they directly plundered a grotto-heaven, forming a grotto-heaven domain to serve as a substitute for the Nascent Soul.
Witnessing this legendary existence now, their shock was mingled with intense curiosity.
After his Nascent Soul exited his body, it did not immediately fly out beyond the protections Linghu Chang had laid.
Instead, it retrieved a set of miniature Azurewood armor and donned it.
It then swallowed several pills before finally transforming into a streak of flowing light, shooting towards the gray stone door.
Bathed in that greenish radiance, the stone door seemed to absorb the light, acquiring a faint sort of vitality, as though it had briefly come alive.
Seizing the opening, Linghu Chang plunged headfirst into the emerald-hued region of the gate.
The moment he vanished, the Gate of Life and Death fell silent, returning to its original, lifeless state.
“A Nascent Soul departing the body... truly extraordinary,” Su Xiaomei muttered, reaching out to knock on the stone door. Dull thuds echoed in response.
Unable to enter, she clicked her tongue in regret.
Her gaze then drifted toward Linghu Chang’s physical body, which remained seated at the center of numerous protective artifacts. A contemplative glint flashed through her eyes.
“This guy is seriously loaded,” she transmitted quietly. “If he’s carrying this much on him alone, just imagine the rest. There are still so many cultivators asleep inside the Medicine King Cauldron; who knows how much they’ve accumulated over the years?
“And that’s not even counting the Medicine King Sect’s own secret stores.”
“Senior Skull was right,” Zhang Haobo chimed in. “This truly is a rare opportunity.”
“Too bad we’re not strong enough,” Su Xiaomei sighed. “Otherwise...”
Xiao Heng said nothing.
He stared intently at the gray Gate of Life and Death, his brow furrowed in thought.
Time passed slowly.
Linghu Chang seemed to have vanished completely after entering the gate, giving them no sign or message.
“Could something have gone wrong?” Zhang Haobo murmured uneasily.
It was not until the fifth day that the Gate of Life and Death finally rumbled open.
A streak of light shot out—the Nascent Soul returning to its body.
Moments later, Linghu Chang’s physical form swayed slightly before he slowly rose to his feet. His face was etched with unmistakable sorrow.
“Fellow Daoist Linghu, what happened?” Zhang Haobo asked.
“Follow me,” Linghu Chang said quietly.
With a wave of his hand, he withdrew the protective arrays around his body and stepped through the stone door.
After a brief hesitation, Xiao Heng and the others exchanged glances, heightened their vigilance, and followed.
The moment they crossed the threshold, the world changed.
It was as if they had stepped into an endless void. In the far distance, countless stars shimmered faintly.
“A thousand years ago, in order to protect us...” Linghu Chang’s voice echoed through the darkness, heavy with grief, “Our Sect Master had already departed to immortality.”[1]
“This,” he continued, “is the scene recorded by the Medicine King Cauldron back then.”
The surrounding space abruptly shifted from stillness into motion.
Countless streaks of light stretched and twisted into distorted arcs as if space itself were being pulled apart.
Below them, a vast, indistinct sphere of light steadily receded into the distance.
A sigh echoed through the void.
“The Xuanhuang World...”
Another voice followed—aged, weary.
“Sect Master, you must not blame yourself. The great calamity was approaching. We fled in search of a slim chance of survival. There is no fault in that.”
“Even so,” Liu Ruchen replied softly, “the Xuanhuang World is, after all, our homeland—”
“With greater power comes greater responsibility,” the old voice cut him off, a trace of bitterness seeping through. “Our Medicine King Sect is but a small, insignificant sect, barely capable of protecting ourselves. How could we possibly manage the affairs of others?
“When it comes to confronting the calamity and saving the Xuanhuang World... let that task fall to the Ten Immortal Dao Sects.”
The voice’s dissatisfaction toward the Ten Immortal Dao Sects was unmistakable.
“Elder Huang...” Liu Ruchen paused, then sighed. “Enough. Let us not speak of this.”
After a moment, he changed the subject.
“Still, the attitude of the Ten Immortal Dao Sects this time is rather strange. Under normal circumstances, upon learning of our plan to evacuate the entire sect, they would certainly have intervened. Yet this time... they did nothing.”
“When disaster looms, everyone seeks survival,” Elder Huang replied dismissively. “We are hardly the only ones fleeing. Perhaps they simply couldn’t catch us all.”
Liu Ruchen fell silent.
After a brief pause, Elder Huang continued, a hint of excitement creeping into his voice.
“But outsiders would never guess that our Medicine King Sect possesses a Waymark, one that leads to another cultivation world.
“With the Waymark as our guide,” he said fervently, “we can traverse the endless void and reach a new world.”
1. 仙去 (Xiān qù): the standard, respectful euphemism for the death of a cultivator, especially a high-ranking or revered one. It implies they have ascended or joined the immortals, not merely died. ☜