You're Exposed

Silent, desolate, stretching beyond sight, like an exhausted universe devoid of stars, this was the Inner Scenery Realm.

The highest level of meditation; minutes in the outside world could evolve into years within this place.

Of course, it was most reasonably explained by the Daoist school's Inner Scenery of Yellow Court: a Void and Silence Land, where one could stand in empty, clear time, lingering for ages, maintaining transcendence and calm, unfathomable.

This was Wang Xuan's second time entering, and his heart was filled with excitement. He knew clearly what arriving here meant; this was the very foundation of the Pre-Qin Daoist practitioners' power.

"There are traces of a lightning strike!"

Wang Xuan focused his gaze, observing carefully. Some areas of the Inner Scenery Realm, originally dim and even chilling, were actually scorched black, different from his last visit.

Soon, his mind calmed. Once inside this place, his senses became exceptionally sharp, and he himself would ascend to an extremely cold and tranquil state of mind.

Wang Xuan observed the scorched areas, advancing cautiously. Within the deathly stillness, it was as if destructive matter was seeping out.

Though standing in empty, clear time with a silent mind, he still felt a suffocating pressure.

With a boom, it was like history rewinding, and he saw again the earth-shattering lightning of yesteryear, streaking across the sky of the Pre-Qin era. It was like a comet striking the earth, a spectacle of immense power, destroying everything.

In a daze, it seemed as if an Ascension True Immortal looked up, clad in white, supremely powerful, yet unable to withstand that single lightning strike. With a resounding boom, he was scattered, and Feather Ascension Light Rain traversed across time and space, scattering across the heavens.

Wang Xuan felt a chill crawl up his spine. How could humans possibly contend against such power?

In a state of absolute transcendence, he quickly returned to quietude and stillness, observing in silence.

Large areas of the Inner Scenery Realm were scorched black, still lingering with lightning, beyond his imagination.

In Wang Xuan's understanding, the Void and Silence Land was isolated from the present world. Only the mind could penetrate it; nothing else could reach this place. The physical body had to remain in the outside world.

What met his eyes was desolation, emptiness, even deathly stillness. The lingering lightning flashed and vanished, returning to the scorched earth, overturning his understanding.

He took a step forward, but still some distance from the scorched area, the slight breeze stirred by his movement caused violent changes ahead.

The vast scorched black areas, along with the residual lightning, rapidly dissipated, collapsing and vanishing like sandcastles in a wave.

As Wang Xuan advanced, all the scenes he witnessed that differed from the past turned to dust and ashes, the scorched blackness faded, the lightning extinguished, and nothing remained.

Wang Xuan stopped, watching the surroundings return to desolation and emptiness. He fell into thought.

"The Inner Scenery Realm, after all, cannot be interfered with by the present world? What I just saw vanished into smoke and dust as I moved forward; it was all decay."

He stood in place, sensing silently, and finally sighed, "What meets my eyes is merely a re-enactment of history, not a real scene."

As he finished speaking, the Inner Scenery Realm became even more withered and deathly still.

Wang Xuan roughly understood that what he saw just now was the residual mental power of the Female Daoist practitioner from the past, not that a magnificent lightning strike had truly fallen here.

"The Ascension Stone is a Rare Strange Item, a priceless treasure!" Wang Xuan's eyes deepened. He felt even more confident about walking the Old Arts path, seeing many future possibilities.

At this moment, he finally understood completely why he could appear here.

In the past, the Female Daoist practitioner was supremely powerful, aspiring to join the ranks of immortals, but ultimately failed in her ascension. She was scattered by a vast lightning strike, her essence and spirit dispersed.

A terrifying explosion occurred in that underground cave. Her mental power, along with the Mysterious Factor she brought from the Inner Scenery Realm, burst forth.

"Mysterious Matter, along with her remaining mental power, impacted the rock layer. Most of it dissipated, leaving only a trace, which became the Ascension Stone."

It was precisely because of this that Wang Xuan, without activating his super-perception, vaguely saw the edge of the Inner Scenery Realm and eventually came here again.

This was because the Ascension Stone contained residual mental power from the Female Daoist practitioner. Even though she had long since died, the trace of mental power she left behind was still considerable for later generations.

This residual mental energy resonated with the Inner Scenery Realm she had opened back then. Once activated by someone, it could naturally lead them deep into the Void and Silence Land again.

"The Mysterious Factor in the Inner Scenery Realm is the key."

Wang Xuan believed that the Mysterious Matter, enshrouding the residual mental energy and integrating into the stone, was what preserved it all.

Simultaneously, his ability to sense and discover the Ascension Stone, and ultimately use it to enter the Inner Scenery Realm again, was also related to his past absorption of Mysterious Factors.

Wang Xuan pieced together the causal relationships, but he still didn't understand what kind of place the Inner Scenery Realm truly was.

In fact, no one had yet been able to clarify the secrets of the Void and Silence Land. It was desolate, empty, even deathly still, and unfathomable.

There were still sights in the distance, but Wang Xuan did not immediately go towards them. He had not forgotten his original purpose for entering the Inner Scenery Realm: to rise quickly and become stronger, so he could calmly face everything in the present world.

Today, he had taken a shortcut. He didn't know if, like last time, he could stand in empty, clear time to practice Body Arts and rapidly improve his strength.

Wang Xuan recited the Golden Body Art silently and began practicing it, starting from the first level and progressing backward until he reached the late stage of the third level, the level he had reached last time.

"Effective!"

He felt his body empty and clear. His posture was identical to the records of the Golden Body Art, flawless and incredibly precise.

He immersed himself wholeheartedly in the martial practice, forgetting everything else. His thoughts and considerations were all related to the Golden Body Art, using it to improve his physique.

He only stopped when he felt tired one day, then began circulating the Root Method of the Pre-Qin Daoist practitioners.

Mysterious Factors came from the void and fell into the Inner Scenery Realm, nourishing Wang Xuan's spirit, dispelling his fatigue, and he once again felt vigorous energy.

He let out a long breath. There were no unexpected events or changes. Although he had trespassed, the Inner Scenery Realm remained, allowing him to practice Body Arts and improve his strength.

He was already close to the fourth level of the Golden Body Art. The next time he practiced, it would be a natural progression. His body glowed with golden light, instantly emitting dazzling beams, extremely bright, before returning to normal.

At the same time, his spirit flickered intensely like a ball of leaping golden fire, and after a while, it slowly calmed down.

The fourth level of the Golden Body Art... achieved!

Wang Xuan was certain that the Inner Scenery Realm here had not lost its mystery. Standing here was equivalent to entering the highest realm of meditation, and his heart became even more peaceful and tranquil.

He walked slowly forward, wanting to see the scenery in the distance.

That was… a cluster of buildings, accompanied by a scene of decay. The lake was dry, pavilions and towers had collapsed. Was this still caused by the residual mental energy of the female Daoist practitioner?

Only a few buildings stubbornly remained standing, with broken walls and ruins nearby, all in decay.

In one of the rooms, the window was open, revealing a long table piled high with bamboo slips from the Pre-Qin era. Among them, there was even a golden bamboo slip!

Wang Xuan's eyes widened. Even with his detached and tranquil state of mind, he felt his heart race and his breathing become heavy.

With so many Pre-Qin bamboo slips, how many scriptures did they record? What level of Root Method and Body Arts did they involve? And there was a golden one; how could he not be tempted?

However, he dared not move his body further, fearing that the slightest stir of wind would blow away all the scenery before him into dust, leaving nothing behind.

After watching for a long time, he let out a light sigh. Even if he could walk over, what then? None of the bamboo slips were unfolded. If he tried to flip through them, he would probably only be left with mottled streams of light and decaying dust.

This feeling made him somewhat uncomfortable. He could only watch from afar, unable to approach or touch them. He knew priceless scriptures were laid out on the table, yet he couldn't obtain them.

"Forget it. I already have the Root Method of a Pre-Qin Daoist practitioner, and even the Body Arts left by Zhang Daoling, the founder of Daoism. These are profound enough and unfathomable, requiring me to spend a long time studying them. There's no need to be greedy. Even if all the bamboo slips on the table were given to me, I wouldn't have time to practice them."

Wang Xuan comforted himself and took a step back. Suddenly, he felt the world open up, and his spirit seemed to be sublimated.

He was surprised. Was this enlightenment?

Soon, he realized with horror that it wasn't like that at all. The surrounding scene had changed. It was no longer buildings, but a truly magnificent world, which made him feel its grandeur.

What was going on? He hadn't left the cluster of buildings originally. Why had the scene changed on its own? Was it the residual mental energy of the female Daoist practitioner at work? He immediately thought of this possibility.

He fell silent, standing there, practicing the Root Method of the Pre-Qin Daoist practitioner.

In an instant, everything returned to its original state: broken walls and ruins, a scene of decay, and the priceless bamboo slips displayed on the long table in the dead silent room.

Suddenly, he felt the atmosphere was strange, something was wrong. He abruptly turned around. The moment he turned his head, his pupils contracted sharply, and he involuntarily retreated.

Because, before his eyes, there was a pair of shoes, as red as blood, suspended in mid-air, at eye level with him. Clearly, these were a woman's shoes.

In the dim ruins, such an abnormal sight suddenly appearing made even the steady Wang Xuan's heart pound, feeling that something was strange.

Fresh red blood dripped from the shoes, which was quite chilling. It almost splashed onto Wang Xuan. He retreated a few steps, then saw a dazzling bolt of lightning descend from the sky, like a galaxy falling from the ninth heaven, piercing directly towards the blood-red shoes.

In an instant, a pair of snow-white jade feet appeared from the red shoes, followed by straight, fair legs. In a flash, accompanied by a snow-white long skirt, they descended, covering her body.

Is this a ghost?!

Wang Xuan felt something was very wrong. Although he hadn't seen the woman's face clearly, he felt it must be related to the female Daoist practitioner.

In this desolate, deathly quiet place, with a somewhat eerie and terrifying atmosphere, he inexplicably blurted out, "You're exposed!"

After saying it, he wanted to pinch his own mouth. His mind was in a state of absolute tranquility, and he wouldn't lie. He spoke his true feelings, but it resulted in him regretting it.