One year ago, a treasure-hunting team composed of Golden Core stage rogue cultivators ventured into the Starry Sea. By chance, they discovered a cave dwelling belonging to a cultivator of the past on an unknown island somewhere within the vast waters. Inside, they found the skeleton of a seated cultivator who had passed away through peaceful cultivation. On the skeleton's hand rested a spatial ring.
Such discoveries, while not unheard of in the cultivation world, are incredibly rare strokes of fortune, representing a tremendous opportunity. Naturally, the team was ecstatic. However, treasures stir greed within men's hearts. Someone harbored ill intentions, wanting to reduce the number of people sharing the spoils, and launched a surprise attack. This quickly devolved into a chaotic free-for-all.
Unexpectedly, the fierce fighting of these individuals accidentally triggered the self-destruction mechanism hidden within the cave dwelling. In the ensuing panic, only one person acted swiftly enough to escape the cave beforehand, managing to take the spatial ring with him. The others were all trapped within the formation. As the cave dwelling collapsed, the entire small island sank beneath the waves.
Most of the team perished beneath the sea. Only two individuals, through tacit cooperation and sheer luck, managed to survive. These two were the brothers Chen Hu and Chen Bao. The one who escaped unscathed with the ring was named Wen Qi—the previous tenant of Cave Dwelling 168.
Wen Qi believed all the others had perished at the bottom of the sea. For safety's sake, however, he moved from his original residence in Black Loong City to Zhenhai City, renting a cave dwelling to reside in. After escaping danger, the Chen brothers spent two months recuperating from their injuries on a desolate island in the sea. It then took them another two months back onshore to track down Wen Qi's whereabouts to Zhenhai City. They then lurked in hiding for a month, waiting for Wen Qi to venture out to sea again. They ambushed and killed him within the Starry Sea.
However, they failed to find the anticipated treasures on Wen Qi's person. The only clue was the cave dwelling's access token jade talisman. They surmised that the items were likely hidden within the cave dwelling itself. Returning to Zhenhai City to search it, they found the talisman wouldn't open the dwelling's restrictions. Upon inquiring at the management office, they learned Wen Qi's rental period had expired, the cave dwelling had been reclaimed, and it had subsequently been rented out to... Lin Feng.
The Chen brothers decided to employ the same tactic they used on Wen Qi. They endured a bitter wait of four months until Lin Feng finally set out to sea. They pursued him, intending to kill him as well... only to unexpectedly kick an iron plate and end up defeated by Lin Feng instead…
…
After listening to Chen Bao recount the entire sequence of events, Lin Feng felt a surge of astonishment within his heart. He never imagined that by casually renting a cave dwelling, he would encounter such a convoluted affair. He truly didn't know whether to consider it bad luck or good fortune.
It turned out the cave dwelling did harbor a secret, just as he had once suspected. Perhaps he hadn't inspected it meticulously enough initially and thus missed it. Of course, it was also possible Wen Qi hadn't actually hidden the treasures inside at all. Only by returning later and conducting a thorough, careful re-inspection would he know for sure.
"Th-that's the whole story…" Chen Bao stammered, seeing Lin Feng lower his head in silent contemplation. He mustered his courage, his voice thick with desperate pleading. "I've told you everything... I beg you, spare my..." His words choked off as his face underwent a dramatic transformation, twisting into an expression of sheer terror and utter despair. "Y-you! What are you doing?! NO!!"
Lin Feng raised his eyes to look at Chen Bao. His gaze was icy cold. His right hand lifted once more, fingers curling as if grasping empty air. Instantly, the flames surrounding Chen Bao flared violently, surging inward. The protective spirit light barrier around Chen Bao shattered like glass under immense pressure. The scream died abruptly. Within the blink of an eye, the figure engulfed by the flames was incinerated into drifting ash.
Casually collecting Chen Bao's belongings, Lin Feng swept his gaze across the surrounding area. Without further delay, he urged his flying sword forward and shot into the sky, disappearing into the distance.
The Starry Sea was boundlessly vast. The brief conflict involving Lin Feng unfolded unnoticed by anyone. Not only had Lin Feng meticulously destroyed the evidence, but even if he hadn't, any corpses falling into the sea would have been swiftly devoured by demonic beasts, leaving no trace whatsoever. Beyond Lin Feng himself, no one would ever know that Chen Hu and Chen Bao had met their end here.
…
As Lin Feng continued flying towards his original destination, he briefly inspected the spatial rings looted from Chen Hu and Chen Bao. He found nothing particularly remarkable. The most valuable items the brothers possessed were the two Mid-grade Spirit Artifacts they had used earlier and the flying swords they had been standing on. They had almost no elixirs or valuable spirit materials, and the amount of spirit stones was meager. It seemed the brothers belonged to the category of rogue cultivators who were far from affluent.
After checking his spoils, Lin Feng unconsciously glanced down at the deep purple, ancient-looking ring adorning his right index finger. A faint smile touched the corner of his mouth. He murmured to himself, "As expected of a Peak-grade Spirit Artifact. Its power certainly doesn't disappoint. Now, for physical attacks, I have the Crimson Soul Flying Sword. For spirit light attacks, there's this ring. And for soul attacks, the White Tiger Fierce Soul Talisman. That basically covers all major attack types... I wonder now, do I have the qualifications to face a Nascent Soul cultivator?"
This purple ring was precisely the only repairable artifact among the relics left behind by Lanling Zhenren. After obtaining the Thunder Extreme Crystal Essence earlier, Lin Feng had successfully restored it. Upon refining it, he learned its formidable capability—it was actually an exceedingly rare artifact specialized purely in spirit light attacks!
Attack-type artifacts possess many subcategories of power. The most common are physical-type, like flying swords, or the spear and giant stone wheel used by the Chen brothers. Other categories include sonic wave attacks, soul attacks, and spirit light attacks, among others.
Using a flying sword to slash out sword beams technically counts as a spirit light-based attack method. However, it naturally pales in comparison to an artifact designed purely for spirit light attacks. Artifacts of the same grade, dedicated to spirit light attacks, generally possess greater power than their physical attack counterparts. Crucially, their attacks are significantly faster and more sudden, making them incredibly difficult to defend against.
Chen Hu, for instance, hadn't even had time to raise a defense before being instantly slain by this ring's attack.
Due to the distinctive hand gesture required when activating the ring's attack—extending the arm and pointing with the index finger—Lin Feng had briefly entertained the whimsical thought of shouting 'Demon Light Penetration Beam!' during use. But upon reconsideration, he found it far too cheesy and discarded the idea. Nevertheless, he did derive a name for the artifact from that impulse: the Demon Light Ring.
…
In the following days, Lin Feng raced day and night across the Starry Sea, pausing only occasionally to rest briefly on some small island.
As he journeyed deeper, Lin Feng finally witnessed firsthand the terrifying perils of the Starry Sea. And this was still only the peripheral region! Here, he frequently encountered Level 3 demonic beasts. Even flying high above the water offered no guarantee of safety; demonic beasts would suddenly erupt from the sea below to ambush him. He even witnessed a monstrous, octopus-like tentacle—massive beyond belief—suddenly lash out and snatch a small flying cloud vessel right out of the sky, dragging it instantly beneath the waves. He didn't even glimpse the main body of the beast, but it was undoubtedly a Level 4 demonic beast. The sight sent a cold sweat down his spine, as he had originally planned to fly through that very area. He immediately altered his course, taking a wide detour far around that dangerous stretch.
While flying posed risks, the islands were arguably far more dangerous. Little Hill occasionally indicated the presence of treasures on small islands they passed, sometimes more than once. Yet, Lin Feng never stopped for them. This naturally helped him avoid numerous potential threats. On the rare occasions when he absolutely couldn't bypass an island and had to land, even late-stage Level 3 demonic beasts posed little threat to him now. These encounters were generally resolved with some tension but ultimately without harm.
In truth, even with his cultivation at the first layer of Golden Core, traversing this path wasn't impossible. However, the dangers would have been significantly greater, and the journey would undoubtedly have been far less smooth than it was now.
After a grueling full month, having surmounted countless dangers, Lin Feng finally reached the location marked on the jade slip left by his father—the coordinates of the small island.
However, a situation unfolded that was utterly beyond Lin Feng's expectations, plunging him into panic and confusion…
He had arrived at the exact spot marked on the map. Yet, what lay before his eyes was nothing but vast, empty ocean. Forget the spirit herb he sought—the target island itself had vanished without a trace!!