The First Hall

Deep within the ancient and dilapidated hall stands a Lotus Pedestal formed of dark red jade.

The Lotus Pedestal was about several feet in diameter, and was carved from a single piece of dark red jade. The surface of the stone was covered with fine natural patterns, which were like countless blood vessels frozen in the stone, spreading outwards from the center of the Lotus Pedestal.

The Lotus Pedestal emitted a soft light, a warm, dark red hue, like a lamp dimmed to its lowest setting, casting a hazy glow over the surrounding area.

Within the light, tiny specks of light floated and drifted like dust, flickering on and off like a group of fireflies about to burn out, appearing exceptionally mystical.

However, Lin Ming's gaze did not linger on the obviously extraordinary Lotus Pedestal, but was fixed on the enchanting flower that was as black as ink on it.

The flower, about ten feet long, grew from the center of the Lotus Pedestal, resembling a giant black tree shrunk countless times.

The black flowers seem to be engraved with the most ancient patterns in the world. These patterns extend from the base of the petals to the tip, like rivers carved on black jade. Each one has a different direction and curve; some meander like snakes, some are straight as a ruler, and some swirl like eddies.

Each pattern seems to be born of heaven and earth, exuding a sense of perfection.

That sense of completeness extends from the petals as a whole to every vein, and then from every vein to every petal.

Upon closer inspection, one will discover that this seemingly perfect flower is actually a broken section of a branch, leaf, or bud.

On the lower middle section of the flower stem, there is a clear break. The edges of the break are dry and curled, revealing a section of grayish-white woody core, like the stub left by a broken branch.

That broken section directly diminished its sense of perfection, creating a regrettable flaw, like a corner being torn from a perfectly framed masterpiece. Although the remaining part is still exquisite, the missing piece makes one wonder what it should have looked like originally.

Lin Ming stared at the broken branch, a slight thought stirring within him.

The wood core at the edge of the break had been dry for countless years, yet the bark around the break still gleamed with a faint, eerie light, like a wound whose bleeding had been forcibly stopped; though no longer bleeding, the flesh remained vibrant.

At this moment, it simply sat quietly on the Lotus Pedestal, as if it had fallen into the deepest slumber. The entire flower was motionless, and even the patterns on the petals did not change, like a painting on black silk.

But Lin Ming could still sense the terrifying aura emanating from that flower.

The feeling is like standing beside a bottomless, dry well and looking down. It's pitch black inside, and you can't see anything. But it's precisely that invisibility that sends chills down your spine, because you don't know what's hidden in the depths of that darkness.

The unfathomable feeling made him secretly marvel, and he wondered in his heart just how powerful this Ancient Mandala must have been at its peak.

Even though it was asleep and incomplete at this moment, the oppressive aura emanating from its very bones still made even someone as capable of killing Earth Sovereign feel a chill run down his spine.

After sighing for a while, a relieved smile appeared on Lin Ming Mingjun's handsome face.

Although this Mandala plant is terrifying, it is clearly in a state where it cannot be attacked proactively. Like a giant bear sleeping in hibernation, it will not wake up as long as it is not provoked.

He had already clearly memorized the location of this grand hall in the light and shadow, and was just waiting to extricate himself from this spatial chaos so that he could calmly make his arrangements.

However, Lin Ming's joy was short-lived, and he quickly composed himself. Then, his gaze swept across the dilapidated hall, carefully examining it.

Now that he has the opportunity to survey the terrain in advance, he must quickly ascertain all the dangers of this great hall to avoid stepping into a pit later.

The main hall was in ruins. Most of the roof tiles were broken, revealing the grayish-white stone beams underneath. The stone beams had several deep cracks, and some were broken in the middle, barely held together by the tenons on both sides, like a row of dominoes about to collapse.

The walls of the palace were covered with dense pits and scorch marks. Some pits were several feet deep, like the marks left by a giant fist hitting the wall; some scorch marks radiated outwards, like a scorched chrysanthemum.

Scattered on the ground were pebbles and pieces of wood, as well as numerous white bones.

Some of the skeletons were intact, while others were incomplete. Some remained in the postures they had before death. Some sat by the pillars of the hall with their hands wrapped around their knees, like a stone statue dozing in a corner. Some lay on the steps, stretching their hands toward the hall door, their fingers spread like a rake trying to grab something. Some curled up in a corner with their heads buried between their knees, like a frightened hedgehog.

Everywhere there were traces of a fierce battle. There were deep knife marks on the pillars, charred circles on the ground, and even a corner of the dark red Lotus Pedestal had been sheared off. Clearly, an exceptionally brutal battle had taken place here.

The entire hall was completely silent. The silence was like a stagnant pool, its surface still, but beneath the surface, countless things lay dormant.

However, Lin Ming instinctively sensed a sense of crisis beneath the silence.

The sensation was like a taut string vibrating gently on the back of his neck; although nothing actually happened, the hairs on his body stood on end.

Lin Ming narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze sweeping across the hall. His eyes narrowed, his gaze focusing on the dozen or so stone pillars in the main hall.

The stone pillars were about the thickness of two people's arms, carved entirely from grayish-white boulders. The pillars were covered with densely packed runes, which were completely different in style from those he had seen in the Nine Residences, being more ancient and complex. And beside the base of each stone pillar, there was a skeleton.

The skeletons sat cross-legged, their backs straight, their hands forming mudras in front of their knees, like a group of old monks passing away in meditation.

There are many skeletons in this hall, so others would not pay attention to them, but Lin Ming, because he has the array formation inheritance of the Master of the Lin Residence, can recognize them at a glance.

The positions of those skeletons sitting cross-legged corresponded precisely to certain rune nodes on the base of the stone pillars, and they were connected by some invisible line, forming a Grandmaster Spirit Formation.

Moreover, it was a mid-level Grandmaster Spirit Formation.

The postures of the skeletons, the arrangement of runes on the stone pillars, and the faint Spiritual Runes on the ground—all these elements combined form a complete trapping and killing formation.

Those sitting skeletons are the carriers of the Array Eyes's core. Although they have been dead for tens of thousands of years, the Spiritual Energy remaining in their bones still maintains the operation of the array.

So at this moment, Lin Ming stopped lingering and just watched these images. These images were ultimately just a replay shown to him by the Scripture Repository; no matter how carefully he watched them, it was not as good as being there in person.

As his thoughts raced, the chaotic space began to fluctuate violently.

The surrounding light and shadow shattered like a broken mirror, the fragments scattering in all directions, revealing a gray-white void behind them.

His figure then vanished from the spot, flying off in a certain direction like a pebble launched from a slingshot.

Then it reappeared, and there was a vast blue sea at the edge of the horizon.

The sea stretched from our feet all the way to the horizon, its surface as wide as a single, unfurled sapphire, gleaming with a serene luster under the greyish-white light of the sky.

The sea was turbulent, and the wind blew from an unknown source, stirring up the surface of the sea and occasionally whipping up towering waves.

Some waves rose up from the sea, like water mountains sculpted out of thin air, with white foam rolling on their crests, looking like white hats placed on the tops of the water mountains under the sunlight.

"This direction leads to the First Hall. Could it be that the First Hall is at sea?" Lin Ming was also somewhat astonished by this sight.

He looked down at the seawater at his feet, then looked up at the boundless blue expanse ahead. After a moment's hesitation, he resolutely continued forward.

His figure was like a petrel flying close to the water's surface, sweeping past at high speed, leaving a deep white wave that lingered for a long time. The white wave surged from his feet to both sides, like a sharp blade cleaved by the bow of a ship, carving a straight trench in the sea.

Lin Ming sailed out of the ocean for more than ten minutes, and then he saw islands appearing one after another.

The islands varied in size, some as large as a giant inkstone placed on the sea, others only a few hundred feet in diameter, like a chess piece casually tossed into the water.

The island is dotted with palaces, some of which are magnificent and resplendent, while others have collapsed into ruins. Some are covered in vines, and some have tall Stone Stele standing in front of them.

The islands and palaces are connected, like a chessboard scattered on the sea, with each piece engraved with the prosperity and power of yesteryear.

Occasionally, streaks of light could be seen flashing across those islands, some in groups of three or five, some one after another, and some alone. Clearly, these were the other powerful figures from various factions who had broken into the First Hall and were searching for treasure.

Someone pulled out a Jade Slip scroll from the palace and was examining it closely; someone else worked with their companion to pry open a huge rock to reveal a hidden compartment underneath; someone else walked out of an empty palace empty-handed, shaking their head and sighing.

However, Lin Ming paid no attention to this. He continued at full speed, heading straight for the depths of the sea like an arrow released from a bow.

Among the powerful figures on those islands, some looked up and saw his dark figure. Some opened their mouths to call out to him and ask him something, but the figure was too fast and disappeared from their sight in the blink of an eye.

As he ventured deeper, Lin Ming began to detect traces of Spirit Formation in this world. Some of these traces were etched on the sea surface, some were sunk on the seabed, and some were hidden in the void between islands.

Each mark contained a terrifying power. Although the remaining Spiritual Runes had faded considerably, the fluctuations of the Law contained within still caused the circulation of Spiritual Energy around him to stagnate slightly.

Fortunately, these originally terrifying Spirit Formation were all destroyed in that great battle. Most of the Spiritual Runes were broken into fragments, like a spider web that had been torn apart and could never be pieced back together.

Otherwise, even with the inheritance of the Master of the Lin Residence, it would still take him a considerable amount of time to decipher all of these Spirit Formation.