Gateway of Immortality

Southwest of Shaohua Mountain.

In the middle of a tranquil water expanse, the horizon stretched seamlessly in every direction, east, south, west, and north, where the sky met the water. The view was vast and unbroken, with no sign of even a small island, making it seem particularly desolate.

A gentle breeze stirred, rippling the water’s surface, lending a peaceful, unthreatening appearance to the place.

Suddenly, subtle ripples appeared in the air above the water, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. A moment later, three figures materialized out of thin air—Qin Sang and the Le Sisters, who had stealthily arrived.

"Senior Qin, Sage Cangli’s cave dwelling lies right below here."

Le Xing and Le Rou remarked softly, pointing toward a specific spot in the water.

They had struck a deal in Granny Jing’s presence, leaving the tree root at the secret shop. Qin Sang’s task was to dismantle the barrier around Sage Cangli’s cave dwelling, and then the items would be theirs.

Qin Sang scanned the surroundings. Not only was there no sign of an island within sight, but the area within hundreds of li was utterly remote. Testing the water’s depth with his spiritual consciousness, he found it so deep he couldn't reach the bottom.

The trio activated their water evading method and dove in, descending toward the lake’s depths. The Le Sisters led the way, clearly well-acquainted with the location, likely having visited multiple times before.

At last, they reached the lakebed, where the water was clear, silt settled cleanly, and vibrant aquatic plants flourished, with fish and shrimp gliding through the underwater greenery. The scene exuded an almost idyllic serenity, reminiscent of a hidden paradise.

Qin Sang expanded his spiritual consciousness and detected a few demonic beasts lurking in the silt. They were weak, not worth any significant effort, though he did spot a few spirit herbs growing in the cracks between stones, flourishing well. For cultivators of lower levels, harvesting these periodically could yield decent gains.

Stronger cultivators rarely lingered in such barren places, nor would they expect a Foundation Building cultivator’s cave dwelling to exist here. Sage Cangli had indeed chosen an excellent hideaway.

"Is Sage Cangli’s cave dwelling really here?"

Qin Sang asked, standing on a dark stone at the lakebed, glancing questioningly at the Le Sisters.

Before them, the underwater terrain stretched out like a vast hilly region, scattered with mounds of varying sizes, some covered with aquatic plants, others bare. There were no deep chasms or perilous peaks, just an expanse that appeared unremarkably ordinary.

Qin Sang circled the area, scanning the mounds with his spiritual consciousness, but after searching for a long while, he found nothing out of the ordinary, let alone any traces of a cave dwelling.

The Le Sisters exchanged a quick, knowing glance and explained with a smile, "Senior Qin, the reason we can’t see Sage Cangli’s cave dwelling is due to the terrain here. There’s a natural illusion array that conceals not only his cave dwelling but also the spirit vein beneath it. We stumbled upon this place by accident while gathering herbs nearby and happened to break into the illusion array, discovering its secret. Otherwise, Sage Cangli’s cave dwelling would have long fallen into someone else’s hands. The illusion array is hard to detect, but breaking through it isn’t too challenging. Follow the right path, and you can walk straight in. Please follow us."

Qin Sang marveled silently. Strange phenomena abound in the world; naturally occurring illusion arrays weren’t unheard of, but one that happened to form over such an ideal cave dwelling location was truly a marvel.

Le Xing hesitated briefly before adding, somewhat bashfully, "Senior Qin, we have a small request. When breaking the barrier, could you—if possible—not destroy this illusion array?"

Qin Sang immediately understood Le Xing’s intent.

The Le Sisters likely didn’t have the resources or connections to acquire a Xuanming Tortoise Shell Array. This illusion array might be the only future protection their cave dwelling would have. It was a reasonable request, and Qin Sang had no intention of being difficult over something within his means.

Seeing Qin Sang agree, the sisters beamed and led the way, with Qin Sang following close behind. They moved quickly through the water until they reached the central area of the mounds and stopped atop a hill covered in aquatic plants.

The Le Sisters stepped onto the solid ground and turned to him, saying, "Please walk alongside us, Senior Qin, and refrain from using any evading methods. Be careful not to stray. This natural illusion array has no fixed form and changes constantly. If the array is accidentally triggered, it could trap us inside, and it would take ages to find our way out."

Qin Sang accepted their advice, knowing that although the Jade Buddha could help him avoid disorientating arrays, it would be useless against illusion arrays.

The Le Sisters stepped forward, and their figures immediately vanished without a trace.

Qin Sang activated the Heavenly Star Tear for protection, preparing himself as he took a step forward. The scenery around him abruptly shifted—the landscape remained hilly, but the lake water had vanished, and his vision was obscured by a thick fog. He could only see about a zhang ahead.

The Le Sisters waited just in front of him, visibly relieved when he appeared. They nodded at him and continued forward.

Passing through the fog-laden miasma, they twisted and turned along the path. Before long, the dense mist abruptly parted to reveal a barren hill at the center of the fog.

As they stepped closer, they were immediately immersed in a concentrated field of spiritual power—comparable to that on Qilong Island, where the Liu Brothers resided. Below lay a spirit vein, completely hidden by the illusion array, without the faintest leak of energy.

The hill was strewn with white stones, entirely barren, devoid of any aquatic plants. At its base, a simple stone door stood, framed by a few crude stone pillars. At the top, the character "Cangli" were boldly inscribed in a flourish, with no other adornments, unmistakably the cave dwelling of a dedicated ascetic.

Encircling the hill was a pale blue water barrier—the primary challenge of their venture.

"Senior Qin, this water barrier is the cave dwelling’s barrier. The moment it’s triggered, a torrent of ice blades and water arrows will rain down. The stronger the force used to break it, the fiercer the counterattack, so please be cautious," Le Xing warned, her face paling slightly, recalling her own previous close call.

Qin Sang nodded slightly, eyes fixed on the water barrier, but after a long look, he hadn’t discerned any clues.

Among Qingting’s belongings, there had been a set of insights on arrays and barriers. When he returned her possessions to her family, he made a copy of her notes, though he had never found the time to study them.

Not only had he left those insights untouched, but he had also postponed many tasks. The Golden Thread Cedar Wood was yet to be melted into the ebony sword, and the Thousand-Mechanism Sword Array he obtained from Wu Yuesheng still lay unused in his Mustard Seed Pouch.

Before coming here, Qin Sang had decided that if the barrier proved too strong, he would seek help from Senior Brother Wen and others. If the barrier was manageable, he could take the opportunity to study Qingting’s notes, achieving two goals at once.

The Le Sisters, being of low cultivation level, hadn’t been able to gauge the full strength of the barrier. Qin Sang raised his hand, summoning the Five-Elemental Breaking Sword, which whistled forth, then withdrew a transparent fire shield from his Mustard Seed Pouch, encasing the Le Sisters beneath it.

This shield, named the Divine Fire Shield, was an item Qin Sang found among the relics of Hermit Baiyun. It was a common protective tool with decent strength and affordable materials, making it popular among rogue cultivators.

After securing the Le Sisters and himself, Qin Sang extended his finger, and five sword lights shot toward the barrier in unison.