"You have entered the [Biyou Palace Ruins]."
Lin Feng felt a pang of nostalgia upon re-entering this map.
The first time he was here, his strength was quite ordinary. He could barely pass the first layer of the Heavenly Ascension Tower's deification, barely contend with epic-tier quasi-sages, and challenge the remnant souls of Tongtian Sect Master's four great disciples.
Now, he was about to face Tongtian Sect Master himself.
Indeed, times had changed.
The island he was on now was even more dilapidated than when he last visited. It was impossible to tell that this was once the renowned Daoist sanctuary of the Jie Sect.
After a few moments of reflection, Lin Feng quickened his pace. He wanted to finish the quest quickly so he could still attempt a round in the Heavenly Ascension Tower. There was no time to delay.
His current strength was more than a hundred times greater than it was back then, and his movement speed was incredibly fast.
He found the area wasn't very large. In less than a few minutes, he had explored it all but found no deeper part of the Biyou Palace Ruins, nor had the quest activated. He was puzzled.
"Are there any specific conditions?" he wondered.
He focused his mind and activated his domain. The consumption of one million Chaos Immortal Power per minute had almost no impact on him now.
The moment he activated his domain, a faint light flickered in the distance. Lin Feng blinked and flew over.
Then, his vision went black.
"You have entered the [Biyou Palace Ruins Depths]."
"You have activated [Lost Guardian]."
Lin Feng's spirits lifted. "Here it comes!"
After the brief moment of darkness, his vision cleared. He was in a dimly lit cellar.
*Clang!*
Lin Feng took a step forward, making a crisp sound. He looked down; it was a wine jar. Strangely, the wine jar was unharmed when he kicked it, seemingly made of good material.
Lin Feng continued forward, seeing more and more wine jars. As far as the eye could see, there were countless them, densely packed.
"Is this a wine cellar?" Lin Feng guessed.
But upon closer inspection, all the wine jars were open, and they were placed haphazardly, not neatly. They seemed to have been drunk from. Lin Feng was somewhat amazed.
"Could there be a person here who was an extreme drinker?" he mused. "Could it be Tongtian Sect Master?"
He hadn't heard that Tongtian Sect Master had such a vice. He found it strange.
But after circling around, he found no one except for the innumerable wine jars.
"Where is Tongtian Sect Master? How do I do the quest?" He couldn't help but want to shout out. "What is this quest all about!"
But as he looked up in frustration, his gaze sharpened. Above him, countless iron chains were intertwined, densely packed, numbering in the thousands. The chains crisscrossed and twisted, all leading to a central point.
At this point, there was a person. A man, clad in a long robe. His hair was extremely long, almost reaching his waist. It blended with his flowing robe, giving him an ethereal appearance. Several iron chains pierced his body, yet no blood was visible. He was suspended in mid-air, but his eyes showed no despair or sadness. Instead, they were bright. His face was weathered, looking middle-aged, but the defiance in his eyes was like that of a youth, possessing an invisible charm.
When he saw Lin Feng, his expression faltered. Then, he burst into laughter.
"Someone actually came in?"
"Young man, do you have any wine? This Daoist hasn't had a drink in years, and my mouth is desperately bland!"
For some reason, Lin Feng felt a sudden tightness in his chest. Although it was just a plot element, many questions arose in his mind. Both his Heavenly Eye and the quest prompt confirmed that the man before him was Tongtian Sect Master.
However, why was the legendary Tongtian Sect Master, known for his decisive actions and overbearing demeanor, in such a state? Who imprisoned him here? And why had he become a heavy drinker? Lin Feng couldn't understand.
Seeing Lin Feng remain silent after speaking, Tongtian Sect Master continued to laugh loudly.
"It seems not everyone is a prisoner like me, passing the time by drinking."
"Since you have the ability to reach here, then make your move!"
"As long as you kill me, my soul will be yours!"
His frankness startled Lin Feng, making him suspect some hidden scheme. He glanced at the quest, reassured himself, and tentatively asked, "Why must Sect Master seek death? I wish to rescue you!"
"Rescue me?" Tongtian Sect Master was taken aback, then threw his head back and laughed. "What's the use of rescuing me? I am merely a cripple now."
He examined Lin Feng, then praised, "I didn't expect an anomaly like you to cultivate to such a realm. The sword energy of your domain is incredibly pure, possessing some resemblance to my past self."
"But..." He shook his head. "If you choose to save me, you must think carefully." He glanced at the iron chains beside him. "There are three thousand iron chains here. You must break every single one to free me."
"And," he paused, "I am now without possessions. I could have guided your swordsmanship, but seeing your current cultivation, you don't seem to need my tutelage. However, killing me will earn you some benefits."
Three thousand iron chains? Lin Feng took a few steps forward and saw the prompts for these chains. Each chain was an attackable target. Although they had no defense, each had a formidable 10 trillion HP. For other players, even if a thousand or ten thousand worked together, it would take a very long time to break even one, let alone three thousand.
For Lin Feng, it was quite simple, one sword strike per chain, three thousand strikes in total. He could even achieve it instantly if he used a technique like "Roar." However, if it were that simple, the rewards likely wouldn't be high. Just as Tongtian Sect Master said, rescuing him would only grant guidance on swordsmanship, likely increasing the sword energy damage of his domain or the power of his sword-related divine abilities. These could be achieved through strengthening and amplification, holding little significance for Lin Feng.
Did he really have to kill him directly? If it were any other boss, Lin Feng would have acted immediately. But this was Tongtian Sect Master, the Tongtian Sect Master who lived life with passion and faced a turbulent fate. Seeing him in this state made Lin Feng feel a pang of pity.
A thought struck him, and he revealed the Zhuxian Sword Array.
"Sect Master, what is this?"
*Boom!*
As the four swords of Zhuxian slowly floated up, Tongtian Sect Master's casual demeanor vanished. His aura intensified immensely. A powerful sword energy surged skyward, seemingly about to pierce the heavens. The three thousand iron chains flickered, and his imposing presence slowly subsided. Even so, his eyes were filled with excitement.
"You actually possess my sword array!"
The sudden surge of his power, though suppressed by the chains, left residual traces that scattered outward, pulverizing all the wine jars on the ground. Lin Feng gasped in awe, marveling, "As expected of the ancestor of swordsmanship!"
His reaction pleased Lin Feng greatly. "This quest is getting interesting!"
...
Thank you to Ai Chi Chao Pu Gua de Hong Tian Li and Zhui He. for the likes, and thank you to Tu Mu Bao de Qian Po Po for the flower donation.
Thank you for your support!