Guidance

After Lin Ming explained the Scripture Repository to North King and Xia Jia, he gazed into the void.

Those dark, abyss-like eyes narrowed slightly, and the World Power spread out like an invisible net into the hazy depths ahead.

His gaze pierced through the gray-white gauze curtain, sweeping over the five varying degrees of oppressive aura emanating from the Five Halls, attempting to discern any trace belonging to the Scripture Repository.

But that hazy expanse was like a bottomless pool of muddy water; his senses probed into it only to be silently swallowed up, leaving him with nothing.

Just as he was about to look away, his pupils suddenly contracted.

Because at that moment, he saw that the void in front of him was rippling with waves.

The ripples came abruptly, like an invisible pebble thrown into an invisible lake. The waves spread outwards from a single point in the void, slightly distorting the hazy veil.

It was as if ancient chanting was coming from the void, the sound faint and ethereal, like a group of monks chanting scriptures in the distance, each syllable carrying an extremely distant rhythm that brought peace to the listener's mind.

Space Distortion, and within that void, there seemed to be an extremely ancient, dark blue, mysterious pavilion appearing in the untouchable void.

The pavilion was about a hundred feet tall, and was made entirely of some kind of dark blue ancient wood. The wood grain meandered and intertwined like flowing water. There were no superfluous decorations on the surface, only fine cracks etched by time and rounded edges worn by wind and rain.

The pavilion has seven floors, and the eaves of each floor are slightly upturned. Several rusty bronze bells hang from the corners of the eaves. The bronze bells sway gently in the air, but make no sound, as if they have been muted.

Each floor of the pavilion has several small windows, with extremely fine bamboo leaf patterns carved on the window frames. The veins of the bamboo leaves are faintly visible in the dim light, like miniature real leaves.

The entire pavilion stood silently in the void, like a giant beast that had been sleeping for thousands of years in the depths of time. Although it was motionless, the antiquity and profundity emanating from its very bones made the surrounding air feel heavy.

As Lin Ming gazed at the mysterious pavilion in the void, his heart began to pound violently.

He could sense that the mysterious pavilion was watching him as if it possessed sentience.

That gaze emanated from every small window of the pavilion, seeped from every upturned eave, and overflowed from the rusty bronze bells, like a net woven from countless fine threads, enveloping him entirely from the inside out.

That gaze carried a scrutinizing quality, like an elder sizing up a younger generation—calm, patient, and condescending.

The two stared at each other for what seemed like several dozen breaths.

The mysterious pavilion trembled slightly, and then Lin Ming heard an old voice faintly approaching.

The sound drifted from the direction of the pavilion, like a wisp of smoke dispersed by the wind. Each word carried an extremely distant echo, like the lingering resonance of an ancient bell tolling in the deep mountains.

"Chaos Qi, Five Elements Body, Resolute Mind, please Scripture Repository."

Lin Ming's eyes narrowed sharply. That aged voice actually came from the Scripture Repository? Had the Scripture Repository's sentience already reached such a level?

This was far beyond what ordinary Sacred Artifact could compare to. The Azure Wood Seal in his hand was Sacred Artifact, but its intelligence was like that of a newly opened-eyed cub, only able to instinctively sense danger and its master, unable to utter a complete sentence. And...

That Thunder Spear was now only driven by fighting instincts, like a tamed beast that could understand commands but could not speak.

But this Scripture Repository in front of him could not only speak, but also discern his aura one by one. This intelligence far exceeded that of ordinary Sacred Artifact.

Buzzing. Just as Lin Ming was in shock, the Scripture Repository, which was in the void, rippled slightly, and a blue light gathered towards it.

The blue light surged out from the pavilion's doors, like a blue silk ribbon being poured out, spreading out in the void and finally transforming into Blue Stone steps.

Each step of the stairs is about ten feet wide, with a dark blue stone surface and fine bamboo leaf patterns that flow slowly across it. When you step on it, it makes a very slight buzzing sound, like a piece of jade being gently tapped.

The staircase extended downwards from the pavilion's main entrance, spreading across the void, unfolding step by step until it reached Lin Ming.

Each step emitted a warm, bluish light, illuminating the surrounding void clearly, like a string of blue lanterns hanging between heaven and earth.

Clearly, climbing these Blue Stone steps will lead you to the mysterious Scripture Repository.

Looking at the stone steps in front of him, even with Lin Ming's composure, he couldn't help but feel slightly dizzy, like a traveler who had spent most of his life in the desert suddenly seeing an endless oasis.

However, he then walked up the stone steps. With each step, the Blue Stone beneath his feet emitted a warm hum, as if responding to his footsteps.

The steps gradually dimmed after he passed by, like a string of Zhu Huo being blown out one by one.

Lin Ming's figure climbed higher and higher on the stone steps, and the surrounding void gradually changed from grayish-white to a deep dark blue, with a faint sandalwood scent in the air.

As he climbed the last stone step, the surrounding space suddenly transformed.

The transformation was extremely gentle, like a thin curtain of water pouring down from above, enveloping his entire body, and then his vision suddenly opened up.

When it reappeared, it was shrouded in mist, like a fairyland.

And amidst the clouds and mist, a mysterious and ancient Scripture Repository stands quietly.

The pavilion's doors were tightly shut, and a huge bamboo leaf pattern was carved on the door. The bamboo leaves were spread out in layers, like a bamboo forest compressed onto the door panel.

At this moment, the main gate of the Scripture Repository slowly opened, and the hinges made a long creaking sound as they turned, like the sigh of a sleeping beast turning over.

Countless mysterious lights seemed to converge through the crack in the door, the lights were colorful yet intertwined, like an entire galaxy compressed into the small space behind the door.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Ming lifted his foot and walked towards the gate, stepping through it and entering this most coveted treasure land in the Ancient Heavenly Palace.

As Lin Ming stepped through the gate, the world before him suddenly changed.

Inside the Scripture Repository, clusters of spheres of light suspended in mid-air all exuded an ancient and profound aura.

Lin Ming's gaze swept over the dense array of light spheres, secretly estimating the number of books stored here.

There are probably tens of thousands of scrolls on this one layer alone. If you were to look through them one by one, it would take forever.

He looked up and saw a spiral staircase made of Blue Stone in the very center of the dome, spiraling up from the first floor to the second.

Each step of the staircase is engraved with intricate Spiritual Runes emit a warm glow, like a string of illuminated road signs.

He lifted his foot and walked towards the stairs. As he stepped onto the first step, he felt a slight resistance under his feet, as if a hand was gently pressing on the back of his foot.

Lin Ming did not linger on the first floor, nor did he waste time on the second or third floor.

He climbed upwards, and in each hall on each floor floated tens of thousands of divine light orbs. The higher he went, the higher the grade of those orbs became. From the ordinary Cultivation Method on the first floor to the superior divine abilities on the third floor, and by the Fifth Floor, he could vaguely sense the fluctuations of a grandmaster.

But he never stopped. Although those supernatural abilities were impressive, they were far from enough for him.

He wanted the best, and since this Scripture Repository had granted him entry, he was determined to reach the very top.

The stairs become extremely steep after the sixth floor, with each step feeling like a small mountain pressing down on your feet.

A thin layer of sweat appeared on Lin Ming's forehead. His Spiritual Energy circulated rapidly in his meridians, and the Spiritual Runes under his feet were crushed layer by layer and lit up again.

Upon reaching the entrance to the seventh floor, the resistance was so strong that it felt like a wall blocking his way. Lin Ming took a deep breath, activated the Four Elements Origin Power within his body simultaneously, and let the four colors of light flow across his body as he forcefully took a step forward.

The wall trembled slightly in front of him, then split open to both sides like a door being pushed open, allowing him to squeeze through and step onto the ground of the seventh floor.

The main hall on the seventh floor was more spacious than the six floors below combined, with an extremely high dome, like a hollowed-out sky.

Only a few dozen orbs of light floated in the main hall, each the size of a millstone, radiating a warm yet powerful aura, like miniature stars slowly rotating within the hall.

The spheres of light were extremely far apart, separated by tens of feet, like a meticulously arranged starry sky.

Lin Ming walked to the nearest sphere of light and probed it with his divine sense. A surge of information flooded his mind. It was a body-refining technique called "Nine Revolutions Golden Body Art," which was of extremely high grade and was said to be the signature technique of a certain Hall Master in the Ancient Heavenly Palace.

Lin Ming nodded slightly. The divine abilities of the seventh level were indeed a level higher than those of the lower six levels. Any one of them would be enough to make a powerhouse at the Earth Sovereign level envious.

But he always felt something was missing. These supernatural powers were good, but they didn't seem to be the best things in this Scripture Repository.

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping across the entire seventh-floor hall.

In the very center of the main hall, there was a unique beam of light. The light descended from the center of the dome like an elongated waterfall, its entire body a deep dark blue. Within the light, runes were faintly flowing, and the complexity of those runes far exceeded any supernatural power he had seen on the lower levels.

At the bottom of this ray of light, a sphere of light roughly the size of a human head floated.