The ruined Primordial Medicine Garden had long since lost its former beauty.
Ancient forests had become wastelands.
Mountains had collapsed.
Countless priceless medicinal herbs had vanished during the battle that shook the entire secret realm.
Yet amidst all the destruction—
life had returned.
Lin Shuan had awakened.
Not far away, Longshe's enormous golden eyes quietly observed the young cultivator.
For months, the Dragon Snake had remained within the Medicine Garden.
Guarding him.
Protecting him.
Waiting.
And now—
the person he had protected was finally awake.
Meanwhile, inside the pendant, Tian Wuchen remained silent.
His expression was unusually complicated.
Lin Shuan's words continued echoing within his mind.
A sword...
An unimaginably ancient sword...
The old monster slowly narrowed his eyes.
"A sword..."
His voice carried disbelief.
"A primordial sword hidden inside the Lost Divine Region..."
His thoughts rapidly moved.
Throughout countless years of cultivation, he had seen countless treasures.
Divine weapons.
Emperor weapons.
Ancient inheritances.
Forgotten ruins.
Yet something capable of frightening Lin Shuan to such an extent was unimaginable.
Tian Wuchen quietly looked toward the distant regions of the Treasury Realm.
Although his spiritual perception could reach the Ancient Inheritance Region—
he had never discovered anything resembling such a sword.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
His expression became increasingly serious.
"Could it be..."
The old monster suddenly froze.
A terrifying possibility appeared inside his mind.
His breathing slowed.
His eyes widened.
"No..."
"Impossible..."
For a brief moment—
even Tian Wuchen felt shaken.
"Could it be..."
"...the Emperor...?"
The moment the thought appeared—
he immediately rejected it.
"No."
He shook his head.
"I am overthinking."
"Such an existence cannot possibly remain inside this secret realm."
Yet despite those words—
the uneasiness remained.
Because deep down—
he knew.
Some secrets were beyond even his understanding.
Some things could not be explained through common sense.
And what Lin Shuan had experienced undoubtedly belonged to that category.
Meanwhile—
Longshe slowly approached.
The gigantic Dragon Snake had already reduced his size.
His massive body gradually shrank.
Ten meters.
Five meters.
Three meters.
Eventually, he became a miniature golden serpent once again.
He leaped onto a nearby rock and stared at Lin Shuan.
His golden eyes were filled with curiosity.
Lin Shuan smiled.
"Thank you."
Longshe snorted.
Although he said nothing—
his gaze softened slightly.
The young human had survived.
That was enough.
At that moment—
something suddenly changed inside Lin Shuan's body.
Rumble.
A deep vibration echoed from within his dantian.
Lin Shuan's expression changed.
His eyes immediately closed.
Inside his body—
the Energy Core was spinning.
Faster.
And faster.
And faster.
Its rotation reached an unbelievable speed.
The surrounding Luo Essence immediately became chaotic.
Winds began forming around him.
Medicinal energy flooded toward him from every direction.
Tian Wuchen immediately noticed the phenomenon.
His eyes widened.
"The Energy Core..."
"What is it doing?"
Inside the dantian—
the Energy Core had transformed.
Its center became darker.
Darker.
Darker.
Until it resembled a tiny black hole.
An enormous suction force erupted.
WHOOSH!
The surrounding Luo Essence was dragged toward it like rivers flowing into an endless abyss.
The air itself trembled.
Ancient medicinal energy poured into Lin Shuan's body.
Longshe immediately retreated.
Even he felt surprised.
"What kind of absorption speed is this?"
Inside the dantian—
another existence floated nearby.
A tiny white light.
The mysterious white light that had controlled the sword.
The same existence that had slaughtered the Yue Sha Empire cultivators.
The same existence that had entered Lin Shuan's body together with the golden eye.
The white light trembled.
Then—
it was pulled toward the black hole.
Straight toward the Energy Core.
Lin Shuan suddenly frowned.
A slight pain emerged from his abdomen.
"Hm?"
Yet he remained calm.
Rather than resisting—
he began refining it.
One breath.
Two breaths.
Ten breaths.
The white light slowly melted.
Like snow beneath sunlight.
Like a river merging with the sea.
Its power continuously fused into Lin Shuan's cultivation.
Then—
a shocking transformation occurred.
Crack.
Crack.
Two entirely new meridians emerged from the Energy Core.
Tian Wuchen's eyes widened.
"What?!"
The two meridians rapidly extended upward.
Passing through the body.
Passing through existing pathways.
Until—
they reached the Frost Divine Heart.
Then connected directly to it.
BOOM!
The connection completed.
An icy aura exploded throughout Lin Shuan's body.
The Frost Divine Heart immediately became brighter.
Stronger.
More stable.
The divine heart and energy core now shared a direct connection.
The heart's power flowed freely into the Energy Core.
The Energy Core fed energy back into the heart.
A perfect cycle was formed.
The Frost Divine Heart began beating powerfully.
THUMP!
THUMP!
THUMP!
Each heartbeat released terrifying frost energy.
The surrounding temperature plummeted.
White frost spread across the ground.
Flowers froze.
Stones froze.
Ancient trees froze.
Within moments—
hundreds of meters of land transformed into a world of ice.
BOOOOOOM!
A powerful shockwave erupted from Lin Shuan's body.
Longshe's eyes widened.
Even Tian Wuchen became stunned.
Because Lin Shuan's cultivation was rising.
Rapidly.
Uncontrollably.
Four-Star Energy Core Rank.
Five-Star.
Six-Star.
Seven-Star.
Eight-Star.
Nine-Star.
Peak Energy Core Rank.
The bottleneck shattered instantly.
BOOM!
Meridian Tracer Rank!
The breakthrough continued.
One-Star Meridian Tracer.
Two-Star Meridian Tracer.
Three-Star Meridian Tracer.
Only then did it finally stop.
Silence.
The Medicine Garden became still.
Even Tian Wuchen remained speechless.
One breakthrough.
Directly crossing an entire major realm.
Such cultivation speed was absurd.
Even among supreme geniuses.
Even among monsters.
It was still ridiculous.
Inside the pendant—
Tian Wuchen finally sighed.
"This brat..."
"He always advances like this."
The old monster shook his head helplessly.
"I remember feeling jealous when I was younger."
Lin Shuan opened one eye.
A grin appeared on his face.
"Master..."
"Are you unhappy with your disciple?"
Tian Wuchen froze.
For several moments—
he simply stared.
Then suddenly laughed.
"Hahaha!"
"You little brat."
His eyes carried rare warmth.
"I am proud."
"Very proud."
"Accepting you as my disciple may be one of the best decisions of my life."
Lin Shuan laughed softly.
Hearing such words from Tian Wuchen was rarer than obtaining an ancient inheritance.
However—
the surprises were not over.
Inside his soul—
his spiritual power continued changing.
The refined white light merged completely into his consciousness.
The Soul Realm trembled.
The fourth stage shattered.
Until finally—
it broke through entirely.
Consciousness Realm.
First Stage.
Second Stage.
Third Stage.
Only then did it stabilize.
Lin Shuan suddenly felt the world change.
Everything became clearer.
Sharper.
More vivid.
Without opening his eyes—
he could see.
Not with sight.
But with perception.
He sensed every stone nearby.
Every tree.
Every blade of grass.
Every movement.
Everything within fifty meters appeared clearly inside his mind.
Lin Shuan's breathing stopped.
"This..."
His heart shook.
Then—
he extended his perception farther.
One hundred meters.
One kilometer.
Ten kilometers.
One hundred kilometers.
Five hundred kilometers.
One thousand kilometers.
Everything within that range became faintly detectable.
Life.
Energy.
Mountains.
Beasts.
Rivers.
It was as though he had awakened a completely new sense.
Tian Wuchen immediately explained.
"Spiritual Vision."
Lin Shuan opened his eyes.
"Spiritual Vision?"
Tian Wuchen nodded.
"Many cultivators spend centuries attempting to awaken it."
"You obtained it immediately after entering the Consciousness Realm."
The old monster smiled.
"Your luck truly defies heaven."
Lin Shuan touched his forehead thoughtfully.
Perhaps—
it wasn't luck.
Perhaps—
it was related to the golden eye.
But he said nothing.
Some mysteries were still beyond him.
After stabilizing his cultivation—
Lin Shuan slowly stood up.
His robes fluttered gently.
The pressure surrounding him had changed completely.
He was no longer the weak youth who entered the Treasury Realm.
He had become a true Meridian Tracer cultivator.
A genuine expert.
At least within the Empire.
Lin Shuan looked toward the distant horizon.
"Master."
"What lies ahead?"
His gaze focused on the deeper regions.
Particularly—
the direction of the Lost Divine Region.
The memory of the ancient sword still lingered within his mind.
Tian Wuchen immediately understood.
His expression became serious.
"Not yet."
Lin Shuan frowned.
"Why?"
"Because you are not qualified."
The answer came instantly.
Lin Shuan blinked.
"Not qualified?"
Tian Wuchen snorted.
"You think becoming a Meridian Tracer makes you powerful?"
Lin Shuan straightened proudly.
"I am pretty strong now."
"A Meridian Tracer expert isn't someone the Empire can casually ignore."
"I could destroy a small section of a city."
Tian Wuchen stared at him.
Silence.
Then—
"Self-praise."
Lin Shuan's expression stiffened.
Longshe immediately let out a strange sound that resembled laughter.
Lin Shuan's face darkened.
Even the snake was mocking him.
After a while—
he could only reveal a bitter smile.
"Fine."
"Maybe I'm not that strong."
"Maybe?"
Tian Wuchen rolled his eyes.
The old monster pointed toward the deeper regions.
"The dangers there can kill you with a glance."
Lin Shuan instantly became quiet.
A glance?
That exaggerated?
Yet remembering the sword and those ancient eyes—
he suddenly felt Tian Wuchen might actually be serious.
The old monster continued.
"Focus on becoming stronger first."
"When the time comes..."
"I will personally take you there."
Lin Shuan nodded.
For now—
there was no other choice.
Afterward, Tian Wuchen began guiding him through the Medicine Garden.
Many ancient herbs still remained hidden throughout the ruins.
Ordinary cultivators would never recognize them.
But Tian Wuchen was different.
His knowledge surpassed entire sects.
"That purple flower."
"Take it."
"The root too."
"Not the leaves."
"Only the root."
Lin Shuan followed every instruction.
One herb.
Two herbs.
Ten herbs.
Dozens of extremely valuable medicinal treasures entered his sleeve storage.
Many of them appeared ordinary.
Yet according to Tian Wuchen—
their value was astonishing.
Hours passed.
Eventually—
Lin Shuan completed his harvest.
His mood improved considerably.
Longshe had also become smaller.
The golden serpent comfortably curled around Lin Shuan's shoulder.
Looking almost harmless.
Though both knew that appearance was a lie.
A terrifying lie.
Lin Shuan looked toward the endless sky above the ruined Medicine Garden.
The ancient sword.
The golden eye.
The mysterious white light.
The Lost Divine Region.
Countless questions remained unanswered.
Yet one thing was certain.
The Treasury Realm had changed him forever.
And somewhere beyond the known regions—
something ancient was still waiting.
Watching.
Silent.
Patient.
Waiting for the day when Lin Shuan would finally become strong enough to uncover the truth.