The ancient temple's red walls were faded, its golden tiles dulled, steeped in the vicissitudes of history. Amid the morning glow, in a fleeting daze, one could almost hear the evening drums and morning bells from thousands of years ago, drifting leisurely across time and space.
The courtyard was overgrown with wormwood and profoundly desolate. Most of the main gate had collapsed, yet a small portion still stood stubbornly, its red bricks broken and jagged.
Qin Ming gazed at it. The gate looked as though someone had punched straight through it, leaving behind only these remnants.
Only a small stub remained of the bronze plaque, covered in web-like cracks. Most of it was gone, leaving only the single final character: *Temple*.
What manner of temple it had once been was lost to time.
Qin Ming stepped forward and attempted to resonate with it, only to find nothing here but an empty silence, devoid of any echoes of the past.
He touched the broken bricks and crumbling walls with his hands, tapping them lightly. Even though thousands of years had passed, they remained extremely hard, showing no signs of decay.
Qin Ming flicked his finger. The bronze plaque rang out crisp and clear with a trembling hum, yet it neither fell nor shattered.
This surprised him, and he instinctively applied more force.
A moment later, Qin Ming's expression grew solemn. His Chaos force could not shatter the bronze plaque—and this was despite it already being densely covered in fine fissures, ruined beyond recognition.
Not only that, even the broken bricks and red walls could hardly be punctured by his finger strength.
Refusing to believe it, he took a step back, then suddenly swung his right fist. Like a rising sun, it slammed forward with a thunderous roar. Yet the tottering main gate did not budge in the slightest.
Though traveling under the identity of "One Sword," Qin Ming was not spirit wandering; his physical body was here in person. Now, with form and spirit united, striking with full abandon, he actually could do nothing against the ruined plaque and broken wall.
His pupils constricted, finding it somewhat hard to accept.
How overbearing was his Chaos force now? A full-power blow like that was something even some grandmasters could not block, and ordinary Nascent Soul experts would have been punched straight through.
Qin Ming stepped back and reexamined the place. Looking at the ruined main gate, seventy percent of which was missing, and the cracked bronze plaque that bore only a single character, he noticed the plaque was not hanging there, but embedded deep in the masonry.
He observed quietly, reconstructing the scene of that bygone day in his mind.
Someone in the past had punched through this place in a single blow. The jagged, interlocking broken bricks and the shattered bronze plaque were merely the debris left behind after the site exploded.
By comparison, grandmasters amounted to nothing here.
"Am I like an ordinary mortal here?" Qin Ming stared at the site. After several attempts, he still could not pry the bronze plaque out.
He sensed it quietly. It was not that the materials here were extraordinary, but that an indescribable spirituality had accumulated within them. This temple had once been exceedingly illustrious, presided over by a peerless supreme being. The temple had been nourished by their aura, so much so that even the bricks and tiles seemed to have been steeped in that person's presence.
"Strong enough, one can turn the rotten into the miraculous."
The so-called morning glow here was generated entirely by the ancient temple itself, which bathed in it year-round.
Qin Ming's expression turned grave. Was this the imperishable aura left behind by a peerless powerhouse?
He no longer dared underestimate the place. After circling the ruined temple in a wide perimeter and inspecting it carefully without finding any dangerous restrictions, he cautiously made his way inside.
Wading through the wormwood, he crossed several courtyards in succession. Many buildings here had already collapsed, and the surviving ones were battered and tattered, appearing roughly pieced together—evidently the result of being battered by an immense power.
In this core area, Qin Ming saw a pile of ashes. Vaguely, he seemed to see a faint golden haze flowing over it, carrying the same residual spirituality as the entire ancient temple.
"The peerless expert of the temple was reduced to ashes. Just what happened here?" Qin Ming was filled with doubt.
Standing there, he tried once more to resonate, tracing back toward the truth of thousands of years ago.
This time, he felt a stirring. He saw faint, distant images, and vaguely even heard a soft sigh that struck his head like a thunderbolt.
Qin Ming's heart shook violently. There truly had been an incomparably terrifying being here.
He did everything he could to capture the fragments of the "past" that had almost entirely dissipated.
It was a sky full of red light, like karmic fire, like fresh blood, pouring down to blanket heaven and earth. Then, an old man from the temple surged straight up into the air amidst a torrential golden mist, rushing out to meet it.
Qin Ming was horrified. In today's era, that old man would undoubtedly be a peerless powerhouse.
The entire sky was crammed full with the old man's golden light. He held up both hands as if trying to upend the blood-red heavens.
Behind him, a crowd of experts followed, charging into the high heavens together, unleashing their strikes at the same time.
Yet the blood clouds churned, tumbling down as though an entire expanse of heaven were falling. The old man of the ancient temple could not hold it. His body sank continuously, and in the end, he caught fire, crumbling inch by inch.
As for those who followed him, they blew apart on the spot, leaving nothing behind.
The old man drifted down, leaving behind only a pile of ashes.
The endless blood clouds settled into the mountain forests outside the temple, instantly soaking the mountains and rivers, dyeing this entire territory the color of blood.
"That elder was at least a peak expert of the seventh realm, perhaps even touching upon the domain of a Heavenly God. Yet he could not withstand the blood light falling from the sky at all."
Qin Ming was shaken to his core. What kind of natural disaster was that?
If the old man in the temple was a Heavenly God, and if this place had once been an earthly grotto-heaven, that made it even more terrifying.
Behind the ashes of the old man was a lotus pond, which still gave off a faint medicinal fragrance.
Qin Ming walked forward and found that there was still some water in the pond, slightly reddish. In the silt below were rotting lotus roots, from which sprouted a few lotus leaves tinged with a purple mist and blood-red haze.
He brought out the Yellow Silk Canopy and asked, "Old Huang, what do you make of this?"
"It was once an immortal herb, but something has gone severely wrong with it now. I sense that something very foul happened to it."
Although the Yellow Silk Canopy harbored a newly awakened consciousness rather than the original old weapon spirit, it had inherited some ancient memory fragments. As its power grew, the "legacy" it inherited would only increase.
Qin Ming asked, "What happened to it?"
The Yellow Silk Canopy said, "This is a purple lotus of extraordinarily high grade, turning from red to purple. After it matured, I sense that someone parasitized it, using it to undergo nirvana, siphoning its fortune and spirituality, leaving behind only decay and ruin."
Qin Ming frowned. He had never expected to pluck an Earth Immortal herb right off the bat, let alone dreamed of encountering some Heavenly Immortal-grade supreme medicine.
How could someone capable of planting a purple lotus leave an opportunity behind for latecomers?
Could it be that the peerless powerhouse of the temple had not died, but had used this place to be reborn?
The Yellow Silk Canopy made a judgment, saying, "This immortal herb was utilized multiple times. The last time it was harvested and used as a vessel for rebirth should have been within the past twenty years."
Qin Ming was startled. Even if that peerless powerhouse in the temple had reached the Heavenly God realm, they could not have lived for thousands of years. In all likelihood, someone else had parasitized it.
Calming his thoughts, he stared at the lotus pond. Could this ruined purple lotus still be used?
The Yellow Silk Canopy said, "Don't count on it. It is entangled with rot, and its remaining medicinal potency is insufficient to cleanse that aura of decline. The lotus can hardly even save itself."
Qin Ming inwardly sighed at the pity of it. Faced with such an immortal herb, someone had used it without a shred of remorse, subjecting it to near-annihilative parasitism.
He walked around the lotus pond, observing it closely.
The Yellow Silk Canopy said, "This might be an ancient temple left on the surface by the Great Thunder Sound Temple's lineage."
Floating there, it also scrutinized the lotus pond and said, "In distant antiquity, lotus ponds like this could also be used for communication. However, no one outside the direct lineage of the Great Thunder Sound Temple could use it."
Qin Ming's heart stirred. He had mastered a secret scripture from that camp—the Divine Cicada Scripture.
The Yellow Silk Canopy recalled those fragmented memories and said, "Even if you mastered it, it's useless. Only a direct descendant who has entered the Great Thunder Sound Temple can use it."
Qin Ming said, "I have entered the illusory realm of that ancient temple."
Thinking back to those years, that was where he had first met Bai Meng and Tang Yushang.
Qin Ming sat quietly by the pond and circulated the *Divine Cicada Scripture*. His entire body emitted a faint golden glow. The remaining reddish water in the pond rippled, and then reflected a scene from far away.
Then, he stood dumbfounded. In the pool, he saw another ruined ancient temple, saw a black lotus, and saw two acquaintances trapped inside the lotus pond.
"Ah? Brother Ming!"
"Qin Ming? Is this... have we fallen into deep reincarnation again?"
Far away, the two people in the lotus pond were filled with shock. They were none other than Xiao Wu and Xiang Yiwu, both pale-faced and mentally exhausted, as if they could no longer tell reality from illusion.
Qin Ming had not seen them for years. Seeing their terrible condition, he asked urgently, "It's me, Qin Ming! What happened to you, and where have you ended up?"
Xiang Yiwu shook his head vigorously and said, "Fake. We are in the Reincarnation Lotus Pond fighting the black lotus. How could we possibly see Brother Qin?"
Qin Ming had strength but nowhere to apply it. In this situation, across the void, he could not offer any direct help; he could not shake their resolve, but needed to strengthen their conviction.
"Even if it's fake, I still want to talk to Brother Ming," Xiao Wu murmured.
His gaze was unfocused as he said, "Brother Ming, we don't know if we can survive. This Reincarnation Black Lotus is too sinister. It makes us feel like we are experiencing life and death over and over again. Our hearts have aged hundreds of years. If our wills weren't steadfast, striving to sever the vicissitudes and purify our spirits, we might already be dead, turned to dust."
Qin Ming's heart sank. "Xiao Wu, Big Xiang, hang in there! Tell me the location, and I will come find you."
Wu Yaozu shook his head violently to maintain clarity, saying, "Brother Ming, it's useless even if you come. The ancient temple is sealed. If we can't break free from reincarnation, our spirits will dissipate and become part of the black lotus, and our physical bodies will rot."
Xiang Yiwu also spoke up: "This time, why does it feel so much more real? Brother Qin, could you have fallen into an ancient temple as well? The red lotus of karmic fire brings calamity; the purple lotus is an immortal herb; the black lotus represents reincarnation. You must be extremely careful."
Uneasy, whether it was real or fake, he gave warning first.
Xiao Wu suddenly screamed, "Reincarnation is starting again! The black lotus wants to eat us, and we have to try hard to eat it too, to see who gets to remain in the end..."
Then, Qin Ming saw the black lotus swell, swallowing them into its petals, where Xiao Wu and Xiang Yiwu struggled violently inside.
A piercing golden mist radiated from Xiao Wu's body, swirling with mysterious Dao charms, while behind Xiang Yiwu appeared a tall figure of peerless, heroic bearing, its hazy outline projected through the petals of the black lotus.
If not for this, the two of them would likely have been digested and absorbed by the black lotus long ago.
They were tearing at the black lotus and stuffing it into their mouths—truly consuming each other. Golden mist enveloped Xiao Wu, while that peerless figure fused with Xiang Yiwu, thrusting parts of their arms through the black lotus.
Tears streaming down his face, Xiao Wu said, "Why is it so hard to become strong? To actually have to pay with one's life. We blundered into this place and seem unable to ever leave, trapped in endless reincarnation. I still want to see my grandmother one last time! I still want to avenge my clan against that ruthless monster who gouged through the Kunling peril ground, someone so strong it's suffocating! Right now I see no hope, unable to break free..."
His emotions were somewhat out of control. Normally cheerful and laughing, he actually carried far too many burdens in his heart. He was the sole surviving seed of his entire clan, yet he could not break free from reincarnation or walk out of this place.
"I have to live!" he roared.
Xiang Yiwu was also growling low. At this moment, only a portion of his body broke free from the Reincarnation Black Lotus, mangled with flesh and blood, his spiritual will seeming to be crushed by an invisible force.
"Is there a way?" Qin Ming asked the Yellow Silk Canopy.
The alluring figure on the canopy's surface shook her head and said, "They have to rely on themselves. This is a path taken only by those of the Great Thunder Sound Temple whose lifespans are at an end—to brave reincarnation, endure it, prolong their life, extend their years; undergoing nirvana like withered wood makes one even stronger."
However, very few succeeded.
Otherwise, if it were so easy, all experts would simply use it to be reborn.
Qin Ming shouted loudly, "Xiao Wu, Big Xiang! Break through reincarnation, and the sky is the limit! You must hold on! When you break free, you will surely soar into the clouds!"
To a dying person whose lifespan was exhausted, the Reincarnation Black Lotus was a holy object they dreamed of; but to two vigorous, blossoming young people, experiencing this was far too cruel. In all likelihood, they would die prematurely.
Qin Ming felt a heavy, suffocating weight in his chest. Those were two close friends whom he could trust with his back in life-and-death battles, yet both had encountered a fatal crisis.
He chanted several life-preserving mental arts and transmitted them over; there was nothing else he could do.
Qin Ming stood up as the scene in the lotus pond faded. For a long time, he found it difficult to calm down, finally letting out a long sigh.
He walked through the entire ancient temple and found the place completely empty. Aside from a few remnant herbs carrying an aura of decay, he could find nothing of value.
He tried to resonate, but that lost history was exceedingly difficult to trace back.
Qin Ming guessed that the "past" here had either been smoothed away by time or obliterated by some supreme rule.
He tried to use those remnant herbs to see ancient matters and truths, but failed.
After a long time, Qin Ming put aside his heavy mood, temporarily setting aside his thoughts of Xiao Wu and Xiang Yiwu, and explored within the ancient temple and the grounds outside.
"I dare not use the herbs here," he thought, his brow deeply furrowed.
Even though he had heard others discuss how herbs grown in the "cultivated plots" of certain buildings could be consumed, unlike the problematic ones in the wild soil outside, Qin Ming remained guarded.
Moreover, he had noticed that those who claimed the cultivated herbs were fine did not actually consume any medicine themselves. All parties were merely talking, acting with utmost caution.
Qin Ming muttered to himself, "This terrain holds the momentum of a soaring dragon, with signs of nurturing the Dao. No matter how I look at it, it feels extraordinary... almost unfathomably deep."
Earlier, he had blurted out that this was the place where he would attain the Dao, purely out of instinct—a wondrous first impression.
Now, after investigating and pondering, Qin Ming felt even more that these mountains and rivers seemed to harbor boundless fortune, containing something truly extraordinary.
"The herbs cannot be consumed. What else is there here, and how should I utilize it?" he pondered.
Suddenly, an epiphany struck him. He finally understood why his first impression had been so favorable, why he had believed this was the place for his breakthrough.
He advanced along multiple paths simultaneously and was considered a divine seed of the esoteric sect. It was just that on this path, he had always been passively advancing without paying it much mind. Now, he realized with astonishment that everything here seemed remarkably aligned with the methods of the esoteric sect!
Qin Ming discovered the crux of the matter.
He had opened the third-realm inner landscape of the esoteric sect system and stepped onto the fourth-realm Tongyou path, but that had mainly been driven forward by the transformations of the Newborn path, which propelled his progress on the other paths alongside it.
Now, broadening his perspective, viewing himself as a divine seed and regarding this place through the lens of the esoteric sect, his heart surged with excitement, finding it utterly incredible.
"For someone walking the esoteric sect path, this place seems to be the highest-tier sacred ground for becoming a god—so perfect it borders on a dream, feeling almost unreal!"
Qin Ming was completely stunned. As he explored using the Tongyou art, every inch of earth seemed interwoven with sacred patterns. Purple qi and red clouds churned beneath the ground, vast and magnificent like rivers and seas.
"This..." The more he probed, the more outrageous he found it, to the point of questioning reality. How could such a domain exist in this world? It was far too perfect.
For those on the esoteric sect path, this was simply a supreme realm for becoming a god.
Developing up to the present day, the esoteric sect system possessed many ancient arts and numerous new methods. There were god-attaining paths that remained confined to a single place, as well as holy paths that severed the shackles of earthly mountain veins to roam across multiple lands, such as Chu Canglan's path.
Others had even mentioned that whether in peril grounds, the mortal realm of red dust, or otherworldly wonders, one could take root anywhere, completely free of restriction.
If Qin Ming had to choose, he naturally would not draw a prison for himself; setting foot across myriad lands and roaming the world was the orthodox esoteric sect path he acknowledged.
Yet today, that conviction wavered. This domain was simply the land the esoteric sect system dreamed of; it felt as though there could hardly be any place that surpassed it.
From the perspective of the esoteric sect, he was sorely tempted to take root here.
Qin Ming reflected, *Perhaps it is merely my lack of experience. Seeing a dreamlike land, I assume it to be flawless Dao soil.*
After sharing some of his thoughts with the Yellow Silk Canopy, Little Huang pondered for a long while before saying, "Although I have lost most of my ancient memories, this place truly strikes me as abnormal as well. It is indeed extraordinary."
Qin Ming investigated for a long time. Rather than taking any medicine, he prepared to borrow the land for cultivation, deploying the methods of the esoteric sect system.
He had no shortage of sect-guarding true scriptures on him; otherwise, his esoteric sect path would never have reached its current height. In the past, he had obtained a golden scale from the giant centipede that wished to become a god, which was inscribed with scriptures, and he had even resonated with the corresponding subsequent true explanations.
This true scripture had already been confirmed by Meng Xinghai and Li Qingyun. Its origins were likely unfathomably grand, no weaker than the existing foundational scriptures of the esoteric sect.
In the end, Qin Ming returned to that ancient temple and sat down cross-legged.
"It is impossible for me to truly take root here. In that case, I can only adopt extreme measures—be a bit 'short-sighted' and frantically seize whatever fortune I can reach."
He believed that such a flawless domain was bound to harbor terrifying Dao charms and all manner of extraordinary substances.
Qin Ming circulated the true scripture, probing into the earth with his spirit. His physical body also sank slowly, submerging into a realm where purple qi surged like rivers and seas and red clouds descended like a starry sky.
Elsewhere, seeing azure qi pervade or wisps of purple vapor steaming would already qualify a place as a treasure land. Yet here, everything was turned on its head.
At this moment, red clouds crowned Qin Ming's head and purple qi cloaked his body, completely submerging him in extraordinary qi. This was a boundless, magnificent "ocean"!
Relying on instinct, his physical body sank continuously, searching for that ultimate realm, the place that nurtured the Dao.
Qin Ming even wondered if this was the origin of myriad dharmas, the tangible nest of the Dao.
As he penetrated deeper underground, he sensed that his inner landscape ground was being nourished and expanding. His Tongyou path lay wide and unhindered, drawing near to a supreme Dao soil—the ultimate sanctuary he sought.
With a soft thud, the space beneath him emptied out, and he plunged down into a place churning with ten-colored luminous mist.
Accompanying him at his side to protect his dharma, the Yellow Silk Canopy lost its composure entirely, nearly crying out in alarm.
Qin Ming's body shuddered as he abruptly snapped awake. Then, his eyes widened in shock, his heartstrings trembling, staring forward in sheer disbelief.
Chapter 548