The Supreme Beauty Fell in Love with Me

On the east side of the stone chamber, there was a small stone table, with a book placed on it. Apart from that, there was nothing else in the stone chamber.

Lin Chuan walked over, noticing that the table was covered in dust, and the book was likewise covered with a thick layer of dust, making the title impossible to read.

The Little Snake nodded continuously at Lin Chuan, clearly indicating that he should look at the book.

Lin Chuan picked up the book, shook off the dust, and as he touched the book, he could feel that it was definitely not made from ordinary paper, but from parchment.

The cover of the book held no words. Lin Chuan opened the first page, and there was only one sentence: The Dao of Heaven operates, one decreases while the other flourishes.

Turning to the second page, there was a neat page of regular script: Those who possess the Yin Yang Jade and have entered this cave are people with affinity. They must perform the ritual of three bows and nine kowtows at the stone table in this stone chamber to continue reading the rest of this book.

Lin Chuan was momentarily stunned, closed the book, knelt before the stone table, and respectfully performed the ritual of three bows and nine kowtows.

After Lin Chuan completed the ritual, he heard a creak from the stone table, which suddenly moved aside, revealing a hole underneath.

The Little Snake hissed a few times and swiftly darted into the hole. Lin Chuan was slightly startled, then followed into the cave.

This cave was much larger than the one they entered earlier. A person could walk in it upright, and upon entering, he saw light emanating from within.

Lin Chuan walked forward about thirty meters when another stone chamber appeared. This stone chamber was larger than the previous one, with a dazzlingly bright pearl embedded in its ceiling.

In this stone chamber, there was not only a stone table and stone stools but also a stone bed.

On the stone table, there was similarly a book. Lin Chuan walked over, picked it up, and saw that, like the previous one, it was made of parchment. However, this book's cover bore four words: Heavenly Heart Skill Seal.

Below the book was unexpectedly a piece of parchment, which Lin Chuan picked up instead of rushing to read the book. It was written on top: Those who enter this cave are people of great virtue, without greed or joy. If one does not perform the kowtow ritual at the stone table, their life will be forfeit. The one with affinity must pass on the position of Quan Dao Sect leader and practice the Heavenly Heart Skill Seal.

Lin Chuan felt a chill in his heart, fortunate that he hadn't flipped through that book earlier. If he had been even slightly greedy, the consequences would not have been good.

There were further words on the back of the parchment, which Lin Chuan continued to read: The one with affinity must obtain the Yin Yang Double Jade, guided by the Spirit Snake. When the Yin Yang Double Jade appears in the world, the heavenly tribulation is imminent. The one with affinity must first cultivate the Heavenly Heart Skill Seal and then search for the Heavenly Heart Stone to unlock the mysterious power within the Double Jade, seek the Purple-rank Immortal Abode, retrieve the Heavenly Secret Sword, and strive to stop the heavenly tribulation and save mankind.

Our Quan Dao Sect has been established for over a hundred years, its token is the Illusion Pearl on the roof. All under our Quan Dao Sect follow orders.

The Heavenly Heart Skill Seal is a treasured cultivation practice of our Quan Dao Sect. A regular cultivator takes thirty years to achieve minor success, but one with a Heavenly Meridian anomaly can achieve the third level within three hours.

Upon seeing the words "Heavenly Meridian anomaly," Lin Chuan's mind involuntarily recalled Li Huaishan's remarks. Li Huaishan had said he might be a Heavenly Meridian anomaly, though he wasn't sure if that was true.

After reading the parchment, Lin Chuan picked up the book and opened it. On the first page, strong and vigorous characters read: Heaven and earth are ruthless, treating all things as straw dogs.

Turning the pages, it was filled with cultivation mantras and mental methods. Lin Chuan was eager to try, so he began to cultivate according to the mantra written in the book.

Sitting cross-legged, eyes on his nose, nose on his heart, Lin Chuan entered a state of selflessness.

He didn't know how much time had passed; he only felt a mass of qi forming inside his Dantian, growing larger and larger until it broke through the Dantian, like a flood rushing swiftly along his extraordinary meridians, finally reaching the Bai Hui Acupoint on his head.

The qi reached the Bai Hui Acupoint but couldn't pass through. Lin Chuan felt as if his head would split open, his body trembling violently.

He wanted to withdraw this mass of qi, but at that moment, it seemed his body was no longer under his control. The qi mass grew denser, and the blood vessels in his head were about to burst.

Enduring immense pain, Lin Chuan could only operate this mass of qi according to the cultivation mantra. The pain not only didn't lessen but grew even more intense over time.

When Lin Chuan could no longer bear the immense pain, he couldn't help but let out a loud scream.

As Lin Chuan screamed, the mass of qi surged through the Bai Hui Acupoint and rapidly returned along the meridians to his Dantian, where the immense pain vanished without a trace.

The qi returned to the Dantian, then began to circulate along the extraordinary meridians again, with a small portion dispersing into the meridians. The qi mass stopped increasing, continuing to circulate cyclically along the meridians.

After several cycles, Lin Chuan suddenly opened his eyes, feeling as if his body had been reborn, and couldn't resist flipping over and standing up, letting out a long howl at the sky.

As Lin Chuan's howl sounded, the entire stone chamber began to tremble, with dust continuously falling down.

"Damn, an earthquake!" Lin Chuan hadn't realized this was the result of his howl and turned to look at the Little Snake, shouting, "Run!"

After speaking, he prepared to run out.

The howling stopped, and the shaking of the stone chamber naturally ceased as well. Lin Chuan looked up at the Illusion Pearl on the chamber's ceiling and reached out to grab it, but it was just beyond his reach.

With a leap, Lin Chuan attempted to jump up and seize the Illusion Pearl, only to unexpectedly hit the ceiling of the chamber and then fall back to the ground.

The ceiling of this stone chamber was three meters above the ground, so how did he manage to hit it? Could it be that his cultivation in the Heavenly Heart Skill was showing some success?

Lin Chuan felt a surge of joy; this time he lightly jumped up to retrieve the Illusion Pearl and tucked the book of the Heavenly Heart Skill into his clothing. The Illusion Pearl, once secured in his clothes, lost its glow, and Lin Chuan was astonished to find he could see everything clearly in the dark.

Once the Illusion Pearl and Heavenly Heart Skill book were safely put away, the whole chamber suddenly began to shake. Lin Chuan and the Little Snake quickly evacuated, and just as Lin Chuan exited the cave and dashed down to the mountain's base, the entrance collapsed behind him.

At this time, the sun was still in the east, and Lin Chuan clearly remembered that it was nearly noon when he and the Little Snake arrived here yesterday. Now the sun was in the east—had they truly spent the entire night inside the cave?

Gazing at the collapsed entrance, Lin Chuan said to the Little Snake coiled around his right arm, "Can you take me to find my teammates?"

It's been a whole night; I wonder how Miss Lan and the others are doing. They're surely worried about me.

The Little Snake hissed a few times, nodded its head towards Lin Chuan, then, with a flash of golden light, darted away swiftly.

Lin Chuan hurried along, discovering that his speed was almost on par with the Little Snake. One man and one snake swiftly wove through the dense forest, moving so fast that their figures were indistinct.

After Lin Chuan left, Miss Lan and the group dared not move, each staring at the other, fully alert and afraid that the myriad snakes might suddenly launch an attack.

For over two hours, they were encircled by the snake swarm until suddenly the snakes dispersed automatically, and within minutes, no snake was in sight.

The group exchanged bewildered looks, feeling extremely astonished.

Before leaving, Lin Chuan had instructed them not to wander around, to wait for him here. But as night fell, Lin Chuan's figure was nowhere to be seen, and Miss Lan grew anxious.

Her feelings for Lin Chuan were the deepest, and she called upon the group to start searching the dense forest for Lin Chuan, continuously searching until it reached seven in the evening, yet never finding Lin Chuan.

This untouched forest was a place seldom frequented by people. As the sky darkened, they dared not run about recklessly, fearing not just getting lost but also the potential encounter with some unknown monster would be problematic.

Song Hui and the others were also very concerned about Lin Chuan's safety, but thinking of everyone's wellbeing, Song Hui decided against wandering aimlessly, suggesting instead to resume searching in the daylight.

Although Miss Lan was very worried about Lin Chuan, she understood the danger involved, thus chose a clear area in the forest to rest.

Iron Bull gathered some dry branches nearby, got a fire going, and the group sat around without speaking, each worried about Lin Chuan.

Past midnight, Iron Bull suggested they rest in shifts, to which everyone agreed, beginning to take turns resting.

The mountain and forest were eerily quiet. Miss Lan found it hard to sleep, her mind occupied with thoughts of where Lin Chuan could be and whether he was in danger.

At three in the morning, it was Xiao Han's turn to keep watch. He saw Miss Lan was restless and comforted her, saying, "Miss Lan, don't worry about the captain, he will be fine."

Miss Lan looked at Xiao Han, her face full of concern, and said, "The captain has been away from us for over twelve hours, where on earth did he go? I, I really..."

Though Miss Lan didn't finish her sentence, Xiao Han understood the bond between her and Lin Chuan, sighed, and said, "Miss Lan, rest assured, we will definitely find the captain."

At this moment, Song Hui and Iron Bull too woke up, and the four looked at the fast-asleep Hema with wry smiles.

Xiao Han took out some cigarettes, tossed one each to Song Hui and Iron Bull, and after lighting up, none of them spoke, all hoping fervently for dawn to break.

Waiting was the hardest part; those few hours felt excruciatingly long. As soon as daylight broke, Miss Lan promptly urged everyone to get up and search for Lin Chuan.

A loud roar resounded from afar.

Startled by the tremendous roar, the group immediately stood up. Miss Lan, urgency written all over her face, looked at them and said, "The captain may have encountered a monster, we must rush over right away."

They shared the same thought, quickly tidying up and heading straight toward the direction of the roar.

The roaring sound ceased after just one echo, and after sprinting violently in its direction, they came to a halt. Xiao Han looked at them and suggested, "Let's split up and act separately. Whoever finds the monster should fire and we'll gather immediately."

Song Hui pondered and said, "That's not wise. We currently know nothing about the monster, and if we split up, we might not manage to assist timely. I think it's better for us to stay together."