"Message Talisman?"
Lei Zhan composed himself, respectfully accepted the deep-gray Talisman Token, then asked, "Why are you giving me this Message Talisman, Master? Your disciple is still young, and you are still here. I'm not worthy of being called the master of this Immortal Mansion!"
When an elder gave you something, you could not refuse it.
Lei Zhan naturally had to accept it respectfully and ask the reason. Only then could he make a reasoned case for asking his master to reconsider, or thank him for the gift. There was no way he could directly refuse an elder's gift to his face.
Lei Zhan looked at Immortal Juhua and asked, "Master. And this Immortal Mansion's fourth master? Why am I the fourth-generation master? Shouldn't you be the first master of this Immortal Mansion?"
Lei Zhan had read Desolate Era cover to cover in his previous life, and could remember the entire book by heart. Naturally, he knew all the things recorded in it.
But now that he had come to the world of Desolate Era, this was to be his greatest secret from then on. He couldn't let on that he knew anything, much less reveal a single hint.
"Hahaha!"
Immortal Juhua laughed heartily. He could feel the genuine respect Lei Zhan had for him, and then he explained, "This Immortal Mansion doesn't belong to me. I only know that it was an immense opportunity left behind by an incredibly ancient mighty figure! That ancient mighty figure was the Immortal Mansion's first master."
"Later... through the immeasurably long years, it passed through another master's hands. At last, by a twist of fate, the Immortal Mansion fell into my hands. By that reckoning, I'm its third Mansion Master!"
"What a pity, to come across such an astonishing, peerless opportunity. If only my fortune and natural talent hadn't both been lacking, and if only I hadn't already spent so long cultivating God-Devil Body Refining before I got the Immortal Mansion and broke through to the Purple Mansion realm..."
Immortal Juhua shook his head and sighed. "In the end, I was fated not to receive the first master's legacy. I wasted too much time along the way, and could only stop beneath the heavenly tribulation, a failure."
"Now, I've spread word throughout the Great Xia World that I'm seeking a disciple both to choose one for myself and somewhat make up for the regret of being all alone. And at the same time, I'm choosing an heir for this Immortal Mansion!"
Immortal Juhua looked at Lei Zhan and slowly recounted the hidden truths behind those few words in Desolate Record that Lei Zhan could never have found in the original text.
Lei Zhan listened silently. He could feel that the lean, robed elder before him, despite his extraordinary strength, could grow old and grow weary too.
His heart was utterly lonely. The road of cultivation had run out before him, and when he turned around, his relatives and friends had long since departed, one by one, through the endless years.
Even if Immortal Juhua could seek them out one by one and find the reincarnated forms of his former loved ones, after endless years and countless cycles of reincarnation, were they still the same people he had once loved?
Such was the twilight of an immortal.
"All right! You've patiently listened to this old fellow ramble on about so many trivial things. Are you willing to refine the Message Talisman now?"
Immortal Juhua smiled freely. After spending so long traveling alone, he'd had nowhere to pour out the misery in his heart, and even his clear sword-heart had gathered a little dust.
Now that he'd confided in his only disciple, his Dao-heart had cleared. His understanding of the sword Dao had even seemed to improve a little.
"This disciple is willing," Lei Zhan said softly.
Immortal Juhua looked at Lei Zhan and patted him on the shoulder. "Refine this Message Talisman first. You'll be the new master of the Immortal Mansion, its fourth master!"
"The fourth master of Star-Plucking Mansion?" Lei Zhan softly mouthed the short phrase, his feelings a jumble.
He held the deep-gray Talisman Token before his eyes and examined it carefully in the bright light.
At first glance, the token looked crude, yet it was also exceedingly simple. Engraved on it was a single ancient, complex character—'Right.'
"Right!" Lei Zhan softly read aloud the ancient God-Devil Script, thinking to himself, This must refer to Daoist Sanshou!
After all, Daoist Sanshou had many titles: Daoist Star-Plucker, One-Armed God Lord, Right-Hand True God... This character 'Right' must refer to his title of Right-Hand True God.
He had never seen this complex God-Devil Script before, yet somehow he understood its meaning instinctively.
God-Devil Script was an ancient form of writing nurtured by heaven and earth to carry information. Once he saw it, he naturally understood what it meant.
Whoosh!
Lei Zhan's elemental energy surged out of his body, and he refined the Message Talisman with ease. Then he looked toward Immortal Juhua, who was waiting nearby.
"Master, I've refined the Talisman Token. It seems... the places this token can access are extremely limited. Besides this hall, there are only four other subsidiary halls I can enter."
"You can enter four subsidiary halls?" Immortal Juhua was taken aback, then quickly realized what it meant and asked, "Lei Zhan, you're cultivating the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Map, right? How long has it been since you broke through to the fourth stage and continued cultivating?"
"Since I broke through to the fourth stage of the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Map?" Lei Zhan's heart stirred, and he replied, "It's been four years since I went from the fourth stage to the seventh."
"Just four years! You truly are a monster of talent! No wonder you can enter four subsidiary halls," Immortal Juhua said, looking at Lei Zhan.
"That's only natural. Your master is a Loose Immortal, and in several million years, I've only entered three of them. You're still at the Purple Mansion realm, and you've cultivated for such a short time. Being able to enter four subsidiary halls makes you far stronger than I am."
"If you become a Primordial Spirit Daoist in the future, you'll be able to roughly refine the Water Mansion directly. By then, perhaps you'll be able to enter some of the other subsidiary halls as well."
"Master, you can only enter three subsidiary halls?" Lei Zhan asked curiously.
"Mm." Immortal Juhua nodded, then said, "I can only enter the War God Hall, the Hall of Treasures, and the Star Hall."
"As for the Divine Ability Hall, every cultivator who becomes master of the Immortal Mansion gets only one chance in their entire life to enter it. They must also become a Purple Mansion-stage God-Devil before they turn ten. That one condition alone eliminates countless cultivators."
Whoosh!
Just then, the figure of a Yellow-Haired Great Bear appeared in the hall. The bear stood upright, towering over them. At first, it was only a phantom, but in an instant, it rapidly solidified, as if it were a true living creature.
Its fur was all yellow, and it radiated a faint, ancient aura of eternity.
The bear spoke in a human voice. "Juhua, those who can't enter the Divine Ability Hall... can only blame their lack of fortune."
"My master was an extraordinary mighty figure! He ranked among the greatest even in the Three Realms. What an immense opportunity it would be to receive his legacy!"
"If he weren't strict about choosing his heirs, and some ordinary cultivators received it, they'd only bring shame to my master's name!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Immortal Juhua replied helplessly. He was the ordinary cultivator the Yellow-Haired Great Bear was talking about.
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear looked at Lei Zhan and asked, "You're cultivating the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Map?"
Lei Zhan turned to look at Immortal Juhua.
"Disciple, this senior bear is the Magic Treasure Spirit of the Immortal Mansion. You can address him as Senior Big Bear, just as I do."
"Greetings, Senior Big Bear!" Lei Zhan respectfully saluted when he heard this. Then he looked at the bear, thinking to himself, So this is the Magic Treasure Spirit of Star-Plucking Mansion, the Yellow-Haired Great Bear!
He said seriously, "Senior Big Bear, I'm indeed cultivating the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Map!"
A new book sets sail! I'm shamelessly begging for monthly votes, recommendations, and continued reads!