The Yellow-Haired Great Bear looked at Lei Zhan. "To become a Purple Mansion-level cultivator who practices God-Devil Body Refining out in the world, you must know how powerful and precious divine abilities are. The divine abilities left behind by my master are all secret arts that are never taught to outsiders. They're even more precious than the divine abilities passed down in the outside world!"
"Divine ability manuals even more precious than those in the outside world?" Lei Zhan nodded. "I'll work hard at cultivating over the next few years. Naturally, the stronger the divine abilities, the better!"
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear smiled. It had clearly seen the determination in Lei Zhan's eyes, then spoke.
"Since you're so determined, make good use of your time and seize every opportunity to improve your strength!"
If not for the little fellow before it knowing how to respect his teachers and honor his elders, behaving with courtesy and propriety, and, most importantly, having a chance of inheriting its master's legacy, how could its proud nature have patiently offered guidance to a Purple Mansion-level cultivator?
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear looked at Lei Zhan. "After all, the stronger you are, the greater your chances of passing. Given the talent you've shown, if you tried at the age of ten, you should still have a sliver of a chance."
"Only a sliver?"
"That's right, only a sliver! Come on. With your strength as it is now, there's no use thinking too much about it. Let's go see the other three side halls first." The Yellow-Haired Great Bear glanced at Lei Zhan, then led him along the ancient corridor to another towering bronze gate, which was also shut.
Axes and spears were carved into the bronze gate. A faint, blood-red glow shimmered across its surface, and waves of intense killing intent surged toward them.
"Such thick bloodlust and killing intent..." Lei Zhan had seen plenty of bloodshed in the mortal world, yet the aura emanating from this ancient, towering bronze gate still shook him.
"This is the War God Hall!" A faint smile appeared on the Yellow-Haired Great Bear's face.
"In the War God Hall, anyone who practices God-Devil Body Refining gets two chances to enter for each level they reach. You're already at the Purple Mansion level, so you've simply lost the two chances you would've had to enter at the Xiantian level. That also means you've lost two chances to exchange for treasures in the Hall of Treasures!"
"Lost two chances to exchange for treasures in the Hall of Treasures?" Lei Zhan was taken aback.
It had been less than an hour since he'd awakened the memories of his past life, so Lei Zhan hadn't thought that far ahead. Hearing the Yellow-Haired Great Bear's words, he felt a brief flicker of regret.
But after enduring the trials of life and death, his Dao heart had grown much stronger. That regret vanished in an instant.
Lei Zhan glanced at the smiling Yellow-Haired Great Bear and smiled. "The Hall of Treasures in the Immortal Mansion is renowned for its treasures. The items inside are surely extraordinary. But what's lost is lost. If I hadn't reached the Purple Mansion level in God-Devil Body Refining, I never would've made it through all those obstacles to reach the North Dark Sea."
"And I wouldn't have passed the three trials set by my master. Gaining something is fortune; losing it is nothing to lament. I'll just work twice as hard and make up for it elsewhere!"
"Oh!"
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear was surprised. "Juhua certainly took on a fine disciple! Your Dao heart is wonderfully free and easy!"
"Then let's go to the Hall of Treasures next. I'd like to see how crestfallen you look after laying eyes on all the priceless treasures inside." The Yellow-Haired Great Bear immediately teased him.
Through endless ages, it had been a Magic Treasure Spirit. But a powerful Magic Treasure Spirit could cultivate as long as it possessed intelligence. Once it could cultivate, it was no different from a true living being—and would feel loneliness.
Immortal Juhua had always been a profoundly taciturn man. Now that an amusing little fellow had appeared in Star-Plucking Mansion, the Yellow-Haired Great Bear felt, at last, the emotions a living being should have.
"Crestfallen?"
Lei Zhan smiled. Though he hadn't seen the treasures in the Hall of Treasures firsthand, he knew more or less what to expect: countless precious magic treasures left by Daoist Sanshou, meant to help his disciples grow.
But across both his lives, he had only once felt even a moment's timidity. Crestfallen was an even more useless emotion.
He would only do everything in his power to fight for what he wanted and obtain it.
"Look, the Hall of Treasures is over there." The Yellow-Haired Great Bear pointed into the distance. There stood an ancient bronze gate, but unlike the earlier ones, it was wide open.
Lei Zhan looked in the direction the Yellow-Haired Great Bear indicated, peering through the open bronze gate.
Inside was an enormous hall. Magic treasures floated high above, each ancient and emanating a powerful aura. The fluctuations radiating from some of the powerful treasures were enough to make space itself seem to still; they almost left Lei Zhan slightly breathless.
"Just the fluctuations alone are enough to make me feel breathless. These must be Immortal-Grade Magic Treasures, or perhaps Pure Yang Magic Treasures!" Lei Zhan looked at the many magic treasures floating above the hall and silently speculated.
After all, the Hall of Treasures couldn't possibly house Xiantian Spirit Treasures of an even higher level. He knew Daoist Sanshou had set aside the Xiantian Spirit Treasure he'd left for him in a separate hall.
But he would need to cultivate the Star-Plucking Hand to the fifth turn before he could break Daoist Sanshou's remaining restriction and obtain the treasure inside.
"This Hall of Treasures houses countless treasures collected by my master. At the lower end are Human-Grade Magic Treasures used by Purple Mansion cultivators; at the upper end are Pure Yang Magic Treasures used by Celestial Gods and True Immortals. It even contains Chaos Items from the time Pangu created heaven and earth. If you want these treasures, you need only follow my master's rules and meet the corresponding requirements to claim them."
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear continued, "Do you understand now just how precious those two chances were?"
"Senior Big Bear, I still feel the same way. Rather than lament what's already lost and beyond recovery, it's better to look ahead."
Lei Zhan looked at the Yellow-Haired Great Bear, his gaze calm.
"What are the rules of the Hall of Treasures? What do I need to do to claim a treasure?"
"Mm, good!" The Yellow-Haired Great Bear nodded in satisfaction, then pointed to a wall.
"Look over there. All the rules are recorded on it."
Lei Zhan looked where the Yellow-Haired Great Bear pointed. The wall was covered in dense rows of tiny characters, all written in God-Devil Script.
"As you can see, there are only two ways to obtain my master's treasures from the Hall of Treasures."
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear continued, "The first is to advance your level of God-Devil Body Refining by breaking through a major realm. Once you reach the Purple Mansion level in God-Devil Body Refining, you can choose a Human-Grade Magic Treasure or an item of equivalent value from the Hall of Treasures. If you reach the Myriad Phenomena level in God-Devil Body Refining, you can choose an Earth-Grade Magic Treasure or a rare item..."
"The other way is to challenge the War God Hall. My master stipulated that those who practice God-Devil Body Refining get two chances to enter the War God Hall at each level, and the War God Hall has ten floors in all. If you pass the first or second floor, you can choose one Human-Grade Magic Treasure or a rare item of equivalent value. If you pass the third or fourth floor, you can choose one Earth-Grade Magic Treasure..."
"But you, Lei Zhan, are already at the Purple Mansion level and have only just become a prospective master of my Immortal Mansion, so you've lost the two chances you would've had at the Xiantian level."
Lei Zhan looked at the Yellow-Haired Great Bear. "Senior Big Bear, does that mean I can exchange for a Human-Grade treasure now, while I'm at the Purple Mansion level? And I still have two chances to challenge the War God Hall?"
"Exactly! Given your current strength, you should have a seventy-percent chance of passing the first floor of the War God Hall. But you have less than a ten-percent chance of passing the second."
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear had only given him a seventy-percent chance of passing the first floor after seeing Lei Zhan take part in the trial.
As one of the most important parts of Daoist Sanshou's arrangements for cultivating his successor, the War God Hall was naturally not easy to pass.
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear looked at Lei Zhan. "Would you like to challenge the War God Hall now?"
"Wait a bit, Senior Big Bear. You said I can enter all four side halls now, but there's still one you haven't taken me to see!" Lei Zhan shook his head.
Since the Yellow-Haired Great Bear had openly said that, with his current strength, he had less than a ten-percent chance of passing the second floor of the War God Hall, he naturally wouldn't rush into the challenge.
Besides, there was still the last place he was eagerly looking forward to seeing—the Star Hall. Naturally, he would visit the Star Hall before returning to challenge the War God Hall.
Gaining insight into the Dao among the stars, and observing the complete Dao unfolding inside the Star Hall from close up, could greatly improve his strength. Lei Zhan had already lost his two chances to challenge the War God Hall at the Xiantian level, so he wouldn't waste any more chances lightly.
"Mm." The Yellow-Haired Great Bear nodded. "In that case, let's go to the last side hall, the Star Hall."
"Of the four side halls, the Star Hall helped your master, Juhua, the most. Every part of the Star Hall contains the mysteries of the Dao. Cultivating and comprehending within it makes it easiest to gain insight into the Dao."
"But no matter how much I tell you, you'll have to experience it for yourself to understand!"
After leaving the Hall of Treasures, one man and one bear followed the corridor all the way to its deepest point, where they reached the main entrance to the Star Hall.
The doors of the Star Hall weren't like those of the other side halls, each made of poured bronze. Here, a towering wooden gate stood in their place, radiating an ancient, natural aura.
The wood shimmered with a cold, blue-green light. At the Yellow-Haired Great Bear's gesture, Lei Zhan pushed open the heavy gate. It looked icy cold, yet felt warm to the touch.
Walking through the passage beyond the wooden gate, Lei Zhan quietly took in the scene before him, and felt his heart and mind open wide.
"So this is the Star Hall! A sacred place that helps one gain insight into the Dao!"
Lei Zhan took in the scene before him.
Before his eyes stretched a lush, vibrant mountain, covered in trees and wild grass. Yet almost nothing grew beneath the mountain. Only here and there did a small clump of grass emerge from the scattered rocks.
At the foot of the barren mountain stood a thatched cottage.
A stream flowed before the seemingly ordinary cottage. It came down from the mountain and wound its way through the rocks.
In the sky hung enormous, dazzling stars, each seemingly far away yet somehow close enough to touch.
"This is the Star Hall, a place that can help cultivators gain insight into the Dao." The Yellow-Haired Great Bear led Lei Zhan to the thatched cottage, then said, "Lei Zhan, go inside and take out Star Scroll One. Then sit on that stone stool and read it."
"Mm." Lei Zhan nodded gently.
He went inside, took out a copy of Star Scroll One, then came back out,
Lei Zhan sat on the stone stool, opened the black pages, and looked at the lines of golden God-Devil Script.
Seeing this, the Yellow-Haired Great Bear spoke at just the right moment.
"Lei Zhan, you have to read it aloud!"
Lei Zhan opened the book and began to read at once.
"Today, Chang came to pay me a visit..."
At once, the only sound before the thatched cottage was Lei Zhan's clear, measured reading voice. The words he read were plain and simple, yet carried a strange, ineffable meaning.
"The Star Hall my master left behind... The insights one has accumulated in daily life are what matter most. The more one accumulates, the better the results when comprehending the Dao. I wonder how this little fellow..."
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear gazed into the distance at the young man, its eyes distant. As the Magic Treasure Spirit of the entire Star-Plucking Mansion, it had seen countless geniuses, yet for some inexplicable reason, it felt a trace of anticipation for Lei Zhan.
Suddenly.
Boom!
The instant Lei Zhan finished reading Star Scroll One, countless stars shone across the sky above the Star Hall.
"This... this is!"
The Yellow-Haired Great Bear watched as one Dao after another, each containing a different aura, was stirred into resonance. Its eyes were full of astonishment.
"He actually resonated with several Daos at once?"