Five Cave Heavens

The next realm was known as the Cave Heaven Realm. It was crucial for cultivators: the deeper their accumulated foundation in the Blood-Moving Realm, the more terrifying their eruption of power in this realm would be.

Little One had been steadily building his foundation, hoping to soar into the heavens in this realm and achieve astonishing results.

At dusk, the sunset glowed like blood, dyeing half the sky red. Fiery clouds surged overhead, edged with streaks of gold, and even Stone Village seemed shrouded in a mysterious radiance.

Er Meng cried out at the top of his lungs, drawing sidelong glances from the villagers, who looked toward the lake. There he was, astride a unicorn and galloping wildly. It was running so fast that his face had gone pale, and he didn't dare climb down.

"That isn't Little One's Little White. It's another unicorn. Er Meng's really grown capable—he actually wants to tame a prized steed!" A group of adults exclaimed in amazement. Even they hadn't managed it.

Hearing them, Er Meng nearly burst into tears. Sitting on the unicorn's back, its silver light flashing, he said in a quavering voice, "Who said I wanted to tame it? I was feeding Little White some fruit. It came over to eat too, and wasn't afraid of me. Then... I got an itch to try, so I climbed on its back, and it went berserk!"

The villagers burst into laughter.

Recently, Little White had taken White Cloud back to the herd. Little White could come and go in the village freely, and the villagers sometimes fed it berries and other treats. This had greatly eased the unicorns' wariness, and one or two would occasionally come over to mooch food.

Just as Little One had said, the unicorns would gradually accept the villagers. Sooner or later, they would become steeds people could ride.

"Er Meng, give it your best! It hasn't attacked you, so it must be rather fond of you. Don't fall off and embarrass yourself—hang in there!" Shi Linhu shouted.

The unicorn ran around the lake dozens of times. It didn't tire, but Er Meng nearly threw up, feeling as if he were riding on clouds.

At last, the unicorn stopped and reared up, tossing him onto the ground. Then it trotted leisurely back toward the herd.

"That's a good sign. This unicorn was clearly just playing with the children. Sooner or later, it'll become part of Stone Village," said the clan chief, Shi Yunfeng, laughing as he watched.

As for the grown men, they were already breathing hard with excitement, wishing they could get their hands on a prized steed immediately. Sure enough, over the next few days the unicorns grew more relaxed and friendlier with the children, allowing them to climb onto their backs and carrying them around the lake.

The grown men were both envious and jealous, but there was nothing they could do. Their large frames made it harder to earn the unicorns' trust, and the beasts remained wary of them.

The clan elders all laughed. Stone Village was growing stronger and stronger. Before long, they would surely tame dozens of unicorns. Just thinking about it made them grin.

Spirit beasts like these were hard to capture. Forget a village—even a powerful tribe would be lucky to have a few. Yet they would soon have dozens!

Half a month later, a group of children shouted excitedly. More than a dozen of them had climbed onto unicorns and learned to ride them. The only condition was that they offer the beasts plenty of berries and feed them well.

"Haha, this is great! Little One, how about a race? Let's see whose unicorn is faster." Pi Hou and the others winked and grinned, looking very pleased with themselves.

"I still want to go cultivate," Little One said.

"Come on! Cultivating every day is so dull. Let's go relax and hunt some vicious beasts in the mountains while we're at it. Isn't that cultivation too? Then we'll come back and roast something delicious for dinner. How great is that?" one of the older boys urged.

"All right, then." Little One thought it over and nodded.

The adults were green with envy again. Not one of them had managed to ride a unicorn, yet these little rascals were all up on their backs. Quite a few children already had steeds of their own.

"Da Zhuang, hurry up and tame one for me when we get back. Let your old man ride it for a couple of days too, or I'll skin you alive!" Shi Dazhuang's father grumbled.

Nearby, Shi Linhu shouted as well, "Huzi, did you hear that? You'd better hurry up and tame one too. Don't just enjoy yourself while I can't get a ride. If you don't let me ride one soon, I'll deal with you!"

"Haha..." Everyone burst into laughter. Fathers envying their sons left them all speechless.

The old men laughed even harder, their faces splitting with joy. The best-case scenario they had imagined was finally coming to pass: Stone Village was reviving and growing stronger. Perhaps one day, it really would reclaim its ancient glory.

The villagers weren't worried. Little One had made it across the three hundred thousand li of the Great Wilderness. With him along, the children should be safe wandering around nearby.

"Let's go!" Er Meng shouted, charging out in the lead.

"Slow down! Wait for me!" Snotty Kid lagged behind, wiping his nose as he chased after them. Even he had earned the trust of a unicorn, leaving the older boys who still had no steeds speechless.

More than a dozen unicorns galloped away on flashing silver hooves, like sacred arrows loosed from a bow. Streaks of silver light cut through the air as they disappeared into the mountain range.

"Little One, let's race!" Pi Hou started showing off again.

"Your unicorns can't outrun Little White," Little One said. Little White had been the strongest unicorn he'd picked out in the first place. Afterward, it had eaten a Five-Colored Peacock egg and drunk Zhu Yan blood, growing even stronger. Silver light flowed over its body, and its bearing was extraordinary.

Unicorns ran incredibly fast. The children shouted excitedly as they surged hundreds of li ahead. Sure enough, Little White left them far behind and waited at the front.

"Let's go hunting. It's about time we showed off our skills," Huzi suggested.

"Whoosh!" "Whoosh!"

Iron arrows streaked through the woods, rousing a chorus of beastly roars. A short while later, the children came fleeing in disarray on their unicorns. They had encountered a huge beast they couldn't handle.

Even Little One, powerful as he was, had to flee at full speed on Little White. Behind them, a Spine Beast burst out. Its body was black, covered in bone spikes that rose toward the sky and glinted with an inky light, each one razor-sharp.

The Spine Beast had a flood dragon's head, a body somewhat like a porcupine, and a crocodile's tail. It was enormous, seventy or eighty meters long. It opened its mouth and breathed fire, instantly melting an entire mountain peak as lava poured down.

The children's faces turned green. They galloped for their lives, no longer daring to show off.

Little One brought up the rear, looking after Snotty Kid and the others. Fortunately, the Spine Beast wasn't fast, and before long they had left it behind.

"Good heavens, that was terrifying! When I rode a unicorn out of the village, I thought I'd become a great hero. Now I see I'm still just a little cub. I need to temper myself."

They fled more than a hundred li before finally stopping, panting heavily, still shaken by what had happened.

"Little One, you're incredible! You crossed this terrifying mountain range all by yourself, over three hundred thousand li. That's just unbelievable!"

They had only gone a few hundred li from the village and had already run into such a monster. If they'd been even a step slower, it would have swallowed them whole, leaving not a trace behind.

"That's nothing. When Big Brother came back with me, we saw a beast as huge as a mountain. One stomp from its paw and a mountain peak crumbled," Qingfeng said.

The children clicked their tongues in astonishment, full of admiration.

"No, I have to cultivate hard. I swear I'll master Bone Text until I can wield it perfectly and become a great expert soon!" Pi Hou vowed.

Da Zhuang, Er Meng, Huzi, Snotty Kid, and the others all nodded. Their brief brush with danger had made them realize

how important strength was. They needed to work hard and strive forward every day.

In a corner of the Great Wilderness mountains.

Shi Lin had been fighting in this mountain range for the past few days to improve his strength.

A fine rain fell, pattering against the leaves. He sat cross-legged on a boulder, perfectly still, listening to the natural sounds of heaven and earth. An extraordinary calm had come over him.

"Crack!"

A flash of light streaked across the dark gray sky. Thunder rumbled, and bolt after bolt of lightning raced across the heavens like dancing silver snakes, dazzling and deafening.

In the mountains, beasts roared and birds of prey cried out. The whole region was in an uproar.

He remained calm, sitting there as thunder shook the air without moving a muscle. He felt no joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness; not a ripple of emotion stirred within him. His gaze was utterly peaceful. He was studying the Dao, comprehending the many fruits and mysteries of the Cave Heaven Realm. At any moment, he might break through in one burst and ascend to an entirely new level of life.

He forgot the passage of time. For several days in a row, he sat motionless in the forest, watching the sun, moon, and stars and listening to ancient beasts roar. His spirit seemed to merge with the mountains and rivers.

Shi Lin seemed lost in a trance, casting everything aside and devoting himself entirely to his transformation. He continued to comprehend the Dao and study the mysteries of the runes.

More than ten days passed in the blink of an eye. No matter how the wind blew or rain fell, Shi Lin remained as serene as ever, untouched by the outside world and immersed in cultivation. Even when his eyes opened and closed, runes flickered in them.

Fortunately, he had told Shi Linhu beforehand. Otherwise, by now the villagers of Stone Village would have been searching everywhere for him.

On the fifteenth day, he awoke. He opened his eyes and stood up. Runes flowed over his hands, golden light surged behind him, and the sound of the Great Dao rang out. The mysterious little figure appeared once more inside Shi Lin's abdomen.

As the golden light surged into the sky, a scene of battle emerged.

A Chi Dragon fought a Suanni; a Five-Colored Peacock Divine King faced Taotie; True Hou slaughtered a deity in a scene awash with blood; the Heavenly Horned Ant lifted an Immortal King by sheer strength; Kunpeng soared across the nine heavens, beating its wings; and the sword-light of Nine-Star Leaf Grass cleaved the stars.

Golden light shimmered. This time, Shi Lin was so peaceful and calm, wholly absorbed in the scene.

At the instant before breaking through, he grasped some of the battle scene's deeper meaning. His entire being was elevated. His body was crystalline, his mind pure and spotless, and the runes enveloped him.

At that moment, his body shone brilliantly, as if cast from seven-colored divine gold. Precious light flowed over him, while one immortal furnace after another, formed from evolving runes, glimmered in his flesh and blood. They refined the creations of heaven and earth, making final preparations for his advancement.

The Cave Heaven Realm was a realm of cultivation, but also a method of cultivation. One drew in the essence of the great world and comprehended the true meaning of Dao runes, understanding the order of this world and the changes in its laws, as if recreating a small world.

That was the Cave Heaven Realm: opening an undying passage within or outside the body, or creating a Pure Land, or even a world of its own.

"Rumble!"

Suddenly, a vast sound rang out, shaking this stretch of the Great Wilderness. The mountains trembled and the peaks resonated together, as if the heavens had collapsed and the halls of the gods had fallen from the sky.

A sea of runes appeared, dense and dazzling, seemingly cast from immortal gold. They were engraved upon the world, completely drowning Wang Quan.

A torrent of blood-qi shot into the sky like crashing waves, scattering the clouds overhead. At last, a rocky cavern appeared above Shi Lin's head, like a volcano.

It looked so real, as if it had been hewn from stone. Gray-brown, imposing, and ancient, it hung three inches above Shi Lin's crown.

Within this crater-like cavern, a vigorous life force surged, scarlet and dazzling. It shone brilliantly, truly like molten lava.

Shi Lin had broken into the Cave Heaven Realm. His life had been elevated, and he had completed a transformation. His strength surged by leaps and bounds, far greater than before, and even heaven and earth resonated with him.

Above his head, the gray-brown volcanic crater churned with rolling scarlet essence. This power connected him to the natural order of heaven and earth, drew strength from the outside world, and merged with his own.

Opening a Cave Heaven and entering this realm was tantamount to seizing the creations of heaven and earth. One could continuously absorb the boundless divine essence of the outside world to replenish oneself.

At this point, having connected to the boundless void, he could refine the divine marrow of heaven and earth from within it. This caused the divine power of the runes inside him to surge, far surpassing what it had been before and making him extraordinarily powerful.

From then on, the power would flow without end, ceaselessly refined to keep his vitality vigorous. Unless he fought an exceptionally brutal battle, he would hardly exhaust his strength and could remain in peak condition.

"Rumble!"

Above Shi Lin's head, the solid, weighty volcanic crater, steeped in ancient majesty, churned with scarlet essence. Then it flowed downward, cascading toward him.

As soon as this phenomenon appeared, the energy deep in the Great Wilderness thinned. The volcanic crater had seized it all. The scarlet essence was like lava as it poured into Shi Lin's crown and vanished completely into his body.

It was a direct and rapid plunder of the outside world's energy, almost violent in its intensity, to replenish his needs and keep him at the very peak of this realm.

"So this is the Cave Heaven Realm. This is what it feels like." Shi Lin murmured with his eyes closed, immersed in the realm and feeling wonderful.

It was a sense of immense power, as if he were about to ascend to immortality. His whole body felt at ease, brimming with explosive strength, as if he might fly away at any moment.

The Cave Heaven Realm was far more than this. One could open a world within or outside the body and explore all kinds of mysteries, such as nurturing treasures within a Cave Heaven or cultivating the mightiest runes.

Before Shi Lin could explore further, his body suddenly trembled violently and rumbled again. Ten thousand rays of rosy light and countless streaks of auspicious color blazed out, accompanied by deafening rumbles.

To his left, another gray-brown volcanic crater appeared, startlingly real as it manifested in the void. Essence boiled inside it, silver and rolling like some strange kind of lava.

Shi Lin transformed again, and another "Cave Heaven" appeared beside him. His body shone brilliantly as motes of light drifted through the air. It was a beautiful sight, as if countless crystalline, sacred petals were dancing.

"Eh? Another one!" Shi Lin was astonished. Was this what Willow Deity had meant by a foundation built up in silence finally erupting? He had thought it meant the "Cave Heaven" would be deep, with a surging sea of essence. He hadn't expected it to reach an even higher level.

Under normal circumstances, simply breaking into this realm was a stroke of fortune. Many cultivators couldn't enter it even after a lifetime of effort, yet Shi Lin had opened two Cave Heavens as soon as he broke through.

"Rumble!"

But it wasn't over yet. Runes filled the sky and surged like an ocean, forming a boundless domain of order and spewing auspicious light.

Another Cave Heaven took shape!

It manifested to Shi Lin's right. The volcanic crater rumbled and trembled, and purple "lava" surged inside, spraying outward.

Then two more volcanoes appeared.

At last, five gray-brown volcanic craters had formed: one three inches above Shi Lin's head and four around his body. They drew strength from the void without end. Red, silver, purple, blue, and golden "lava" churned and flowed into his body.

"I didn't break through right away. I kept building up my foundation, and now I've reached the Five Cave Heavens in one go!"

Shi Lin was delighted. He had advanced directly to the middle stage of the Cave Heaven Realm.

If word got out, it would cause an enormous stir and leave everyone utterly dumbfounded. Breaking into this realm was already difficult, and it was rare to hear of anyone advancing through realms in one go. Opening two Cave Heavens at the instant of breakthrough was extraordinarily rare, something only a heaven-gifted prodigy could accomplish. If the outside world learned of it, people would be left staring in stunned disbelief.

But Shi Lin had opened five Cave Heavens in a single instant. It was an absolute marvel, and he doubted anyone would believe it if he told them!

It was a wondrous feeling. Shi Lin's body felt light, yet the slightest movement unleashed explosive power, making him feel as if he might fly away. Essence surged inside the three volcano-like "Cave Heavens," and "lava" flowed down into Shi Lin's body, filling him with vitality and keeping him in peak condition.

A beast roared. A colossal creature appeared in the mountain range, more than thirty meters long, its silver fur shining like satin. A pair of qilin horns sprouted from its head, and its eyes were as large as washbasins, blood-red and cold as they stared at him.

Its body resembled a White Tiger, but it had a pair of qilin horns and dozens of bone spikes jutting from its back. They were crystalline white, each a zhang long and sharp as a battle spear.

It was a true vicious beast, versed in the mysteries of runes. It had ruled this mountain range for who knew how long, killing countless birds of prey and beasts to secure its place at the top. Awakened by the enormous noise, it felt its dignity had been affronted and came to kill.

At first, this vicious beast seethed with killing intent. But after facing off against Shi Lin for a short while, it suddenly roared and fled, its paw smashing a boulder weighing tens of thousands of jin into dust. Then it leaped into the air, its body shimmering with rosy light like a silver Chi Dragon as it swept across the mountainside. Furious, it opened its mouth and spat out a stream of white light. The entire mountain forest was razed to the ground, and its silver body vanished into the depths of the mountains.

A few tiny black specks appeared in the distant sky, rushing toward him. Several birds of prey arrived, runes flashing across their bodies and dazzling light radiating from them. A powerful aura pressed down, terrifying the myriad beasts into trembling.

Their killing intent roiled as they prepared to dive down at any moment.

Shi Lin looked up, and two dazzling beams shot from his eyes. Two runes formed in their depths, their force oppressive.

The birds of prey cried out. In an instant, they beat their wings and shot up into the clouds. They were startled, angry, and, more than anything, afraid. They lingered only a moment before flying swiftly toward the horizon and disappearing from sight.

The most powerful creatures in the surrounding mountains, the few at the very top of the food chain, didn't dare challenge Shi Lin. They all retreated.

Shi Lin hadn't even struck, yet he had already frightened away several terrifying overlords of the mountains.

He sat down and quietly experienced the feeling of the Cave Heaven Realm, immersed in it. "Lava" surged out and engulfed him, filling the area with a luminous haze. It all looked incredibly mysterious.

Only after a full day and night did Shi Lin stop. He stood up, facing the rosy dawn, and breathed in its light. At last, he felt he had fully consolidated his breakthrough. The five volcanic craters drew inward and gradually disappeared. Then he strode toward Stone Village.

"Whoa, Shi Lin's back—and he's hunted a Dragon Leopard!"

The children cried out in amazement. Shi Lin had carried back a giant beast, more than ten meters long. It had a leopard's body but a fearsome flood dragon's head. Even dead, it still exuded a menacing aura.

"Child, have you gotten stronger again?" The clan chief was delighted.

Otherwise, Shi Lin couldn't possibly have hunted this Dragon Leopard so easily. It was extraordinarily powerful, and how effortlessly Shi Lin had returned was proof enough.

"Mm-hmm!" Shi Lin smiled.

Many people struggled their whole lives without ever entering this realm, yet he had reached such heights in just a few short years. Even the most exacting observer would have to marvel.

Over the next few days, Shi Lin had a good time with Little One and the others, letting off some steam.

A few days later, Shi Lin sat on a boulder in Stone Village. Powerful blood-qi radiated from his body, and a layer of golden light covered him. It was the Undying Golden Light.

Above his head, a Suanni appeared out of thin air, roaming amid the thunder and lightning of the nine heavens, its roar shaking the mountains and rivers.

A Purple-Feathered Immortal Bird swept past on the wind, speeding between the mountains. Wherever it went, gales sprang up.

Inside Shi Lin's abdomen, the mysterious little figure appeared once more, still wrapped in golden light.

The sound of the Great Dao pounded through the air. The mysterious little figure raised a bell and drum from nowhere and began striking them.

The bell rang out, and several runes rode its sound into Shi Lin's sea of consciousness.

Shi Lin's brow furrowed. The little figure and the bell vanished, and the golden light faded.

Shi Lin's eyes snapped open.

"Sure enough, my guess was right. Every time I enter a new stage, I awaken some new abilities! Let's see what it is this time."

With that, Shi Lin closed his eyes and entered his sea of consciousness...