Inheritance Temple

The clouds of Manlong Planet surged beneath his feet, and from the vast primeval forest below, the roars of exotic beasts echoed from time to time. Between the towering ancient trees, the bone totems of the tribe were vaguely visible.

Within a few breaths, a towering mountain stood before them.

The entire Manlong Mountain looked as if it had been cleaved by a Giant Axe. The temple standing at the summit was carved from a single massive piece of dark red stone, its rugged lines outlining a square and regular silhouette.

The surface of the temple walls remained unpolished, retaining the natural texture of the stone, yet they were covered in dense, primitive runes. Each rune was inlaid with solidified dark gold blood, gleaming with an oily luster under the sunlight.

The main gate of the temple was a hundred feet high, supported by two giant stone pillars entwined with reliefs of the Zhulong.

The dragon scales of the reliefs were inlaid with the fangs of exotic beasts, while the dragon eyes were two black crystals emitting a ghostly glow.

At the four corners of the temple roof stood four bronze altars, piled with unburnt beast bones. Wisps of blue smoke rose, merging with the clouds and mist of the mountains.

The ground trembled slightly when the Tribal Chief landed. He pointed to the stone corridors extending from both sides of the temple, where hundreds of stone niches were neatly arranged.

"Each niche enshrines the armor fragments of an ancestor. Remember, don't touch anything once we go inside." The Tribal Chief's voice was low and solemn.

Ling Xuan looked up at this temple, which was filled with a wild, primitive aura, his heartbeat involuntarily quickening.

The rough stone walls and the Zhulong reliefs inlaid with beast fangs all spoke of the antiquity and might of the Zhulong Clan.

The Tribal Chief first led him through the corridor to briefly pay respects to the ancestors of the distant past.

As his fingertips brushed over those tattered armors, Ling Xuan felt as if he could sense the heroic spirit of their former owners who had once bathed in blood on the battlefield.

Afterward, the two walked toward the main gate.

Stepping into the temple, a scent mixed with rust and incense rushed to meet them.

In the dim interior, only a few weak candle flames flickered, the light murky and barely outlining the surrounding contours.

A figure in black robes sat cross-legged in the center of the temple. The wide hood of the robe completely covered their face, making it impossible to see any features in the dim light.

Hearing the sound of the gate being pushed open, the figure in black slowly raised their head, their voice low and hoarse: "You have arrived?"

The Tribal Chief nodded and pushed Ling Xuan forward. "Go on, little one. This is the Temple Envoy. You will follow him to cultivate properly for the time to come."

Ling Xuan stepped forward respectfully and bowed to the Temple Envoy.

"Hmm." The Temple Envoy responded, raising a hand and waving it gently. The surrounding candlelight suddenly flared bright.

The light spread like a tide, illuminating the entire temple. In the depths of the hall, eight bronze gates revealed their true forms.

On the gates, the characters for "Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Thunder, Light" were engraved in the ancient, vigorous language of Manlong Planet, the edges of the characters faintly glowing with a mysterious luster.

Ling Xuan looked on with curiosity, secretly guessing that each gate likely corresponded to a lower-level origin law.

"Senior, what is this?" He couldn't help but ask.

"This is the accumulation of my Zhulong Star Sector over trillions of epochs." The Temple Envoy's voice carried a hint of emotion. "As one of the oldest clans in the Primal Universe, generations of ancestors have recorded their insights in this temple for future generations to contemplate, hoping that one day a super powerhouse who truly stands at the pinnacle of the universe will emerge."

Ling Xuan sighed in his heart; this was truly a case of the ancestors planting trees so that their descendants could enjoy the shade.

Relying on this relay-style inheritance, the Zhulong Clan had cultivated numerous immortal gods.

Although the massive population caused the clan's bloodline to remain stuck at the planetary level, it also greatly increased the possibility of geniuses being born. It was difficult to judge whether the pros outweighed the cons.

However, the lack of restrictions on reproduction and this respect for life did highlight the humanity of the Zhulong Clan.

Ling Xuan's respect for the Zhulong Ancestor grew even deeper.

"I heard from Meng Ge that you have comprehended the Flame Domain, so go to the secret chamber engraved with the character for 'Fire' to cultivate." The black-robed Envoy instructed. "Remember, you can only contemplate for three days at a time. After you finish, you must go to the Killing Field and the Duel Space in the Virtual Universe to hone yourself. The clan will cover the costs for both, so you need not worry."

"Yes, Senior." Ling Xuan bowed again before walking toward the secret chamber gate engraved with the character for "Fire."

As he approached, the gate opened silently and slowly.

When Ling Xuan crossed the bronze threshold engraved with flame totems, a wave of heat rushed toward him, as if he had instantly fallen into the core of boiling lava.

The interior of the secret chamber was extremely vast, with crimson crystals condensed on the dome, making the entire space look like a flowing sea of fire.

The flames carved on the stone walls took on various forms; some were like burning runes transforming into agile spirits, while others resembled liquid fire flowing between the fangs of fire-breathing beasts. What caught Ling Xuan's attention most was a divine bird bathed in fire, wings spread as if about to take flight, its patterns faintly revealing profound law fluctuations.

The room was so quiet that only the sound of light breathing could be heard.

Several people from Manlong Planet, dressed in rough animal skins, sat on the ground, the flame marks between their brows flickering with the rhythm of their breathing. In the center of the chamber, a man clad in golden armor was surrounded by a miniature flame vortex, the distorted air refracting the surrounding light into strange ripples.

Everyone was immersed in their own world of cultivation, showing no reaction to Ling Xuan's arrival.

Ling Xuan softened his footsteps and walked slowly, carefully observing the stone walls as he went.

Engraved upon them were insights left by powerhouses of past generations—some were complex and exquisite flame rune arrays, others were notes written in the ancient language of Manlong Planet, and some were totems imprinted directly with divine power.

He soon realized that there were seven distinct traces of laws left here, which meant that in the long history of the Zhulong Clan, seven immortal gods proficient in the law of fire had been born!

In the end, Ling Xuan chose the divine bird pattern he had seen upon first entering.

The feathers of the divine bird flowed with a dark gold luster, and the flame ripples entwined around its body resonated most closely with the frequency of the Flame Domain he had mastered.

This divine bird looked extremely similar to the phoenix of ancient China in his previous life, its feathers vivid and lifelike, like dancing flames.

A sense of inexplicable familiarity welled up in Ling Xuan's heart; his intuition told him that this was the place meant for his contemplation.

He sat cross-legged before the carving of the divine bird, took a deep breath, and sank his consciousness into it.

As his mind emptied, he felt the surroundings gradually grow quiet, until finally, he could only hear the sound of his own heartbeat.

His heart beat rhythmically, and when he reached the 72nd beat, he felt his consciousness suddenly blur, as if he had fallen into an endless void.

I do not know how much time had passed, but Ling Xuan slowly opened his eyes and discovered that he was situated within a vast, boundless world of fire.

Beneath his feet was a churning, roaring ocean of lava, and a scorching heat rushed toward his face; in the sky hung nine burning suns, emitting a blinding radiance; even the air here was imbued with the power of materialized laws.

Filled with curiosity and excitement, Ling Xuan began to wander and explore this strange world.

He extended his fingertip and gently brushed against an ancient tree condensed from flames; in an instant, the patterns on the bark transformed into ancient, mysterious runes. When he touched the rushing river of fire, the water instantly solidified, turning into thousands of fire swords, each containing a unique law of attack.

In the distance, a fire giant swung its fist to cleave the void, and the torrent of laws erupted into the sky as a fire phoenix underwent nirvana.

In this world of fire, Ling Xuan forgot the passage of time, immersing himself completely in the comprehension of the laws of fire.