Outside the realm of the Dead Land, the mountains were entwined with beams of light, rich in energy, and eight extraordinary nests were built around the absolute land.

Wang Xuan stood on a peak, gazing into the distance, wondering how the ferryman would react upon seeing him—would he be happy, or would he think he was seeing a ghost?

From his vantage point, he spotted a family of silkworm snakes—two adults and two young ones—lazily basking in the sun outside their den. He didn't want to disturb their cozy atmosphere, so he decided to let them be.

He also noticed the mountain turtle, still as active as ever. After the extraordinary fruits had been harvested, it practiced its spiritual turtle steps daily in that area, searching for signs of enemies. The once extraordinary herbs had become scarce for the turtle, making it a bit pitiful; he resolved not to bother it.

Next, he observed a silver bear that had become quite rotund, almost spherical, hardly leaving its lair. He felt reluctant to interrupt such a home-loving bear.

Then he moved to another extraordinary nest for observation. From a distance, he spotted a golden monster bird standing on a cliff, tearing into a large elephant, its claws stained with blood as it feasted. Such a fierce bird was difficult to deal with; Wang Xuan glanced at it again and chose to ignore it.

After making a wide detour, he found that the eight nests were heavily guarded and it was difficult to approach them. It seemed that after his frequent visits—three times in total—the eight extraordinary monsters had become less hospitable.

"Alien from the Oula Star, he must have at least four metal tokens in his possession!" A few individuals spotted Wang Xuan and, furious, stealthily retreated, planning to hunt him down.

Wang Xuan had noticed them long ago, casting a disinterested glance in their direction. His current goal was the extraordinary realm. He prepared to enter the Dead Land directly; the magical fruits were currently inaccessible as all the monsters were on guard.

He felt that the energy he had accumulated should be sufficient. He had digested the mist, consumed a fair amount of the Earth Immortal Spring, and eaten a lot of the blood and flesh of extraordinary monsters.

The mist hung low, and the Dead Land remained unchanged. When Wang Xuan stepped inside, all sounds ceased, and the sunlight-filled realm transformed into a cool night scene with a silver moon hanging high.

Upon entering, he experienced sharp pains in his body, his pores bleeding, but he didn't care; he was used to it.

What was different this time was that a large yellowish metal lump had appeared on the only path leading to the blue lake, towering over five meters high.

It was clearly aged and worn, and from a distance, it emanated an extraordinary aura. But why hadn't he seen it during his previous visits?

Wang Xuan walked over and brushed his hand against it; where his hand cleared the dust, the metal shone brilliantly, resembling a great sun illuminating its true form. It was dazzling.

"Is this Solar Gold?!" he exclaimed in astonishment. Legend had it that celestial immortals used this material to forge weapons. To find such a large piece here was unbelievable.

It seemed to have lain here for some time. The Dead Land was peculiar; why hadn't he encountered it during his last two visits?

Wang Xuan drew out his short sword, measuring the distance before carefully making a cut. To his surprise, the short sword was able to slice through the Solar Gold!

Was this treasure meant for the fated? Wang Xuan recalled that one hundred grams of Solar Gold was worth five hundred million New Star Coins—priceless!

He looked again, ready to carve off a large piece. The material used by celestial immortals for weapon crafting was mythic; exchanging it with Goddess Zhao and Old Zhong for scriptures should yield good results.

Clang!

He swung his sword down, creating a deep crack in the Solar Gold. If he cut it two more times, he would likely be able to slice off a hefty piece weighing dozens of pounds.

However, a sudden change occurred; the entire mass of Solar Gold illuminated, and a layer of light shield materialized, isolating him.

Wang Xuan stepped back a few paces. Although he felt regret, he wasn't overly disheartened; he understood that the treasures of the Dead Land were not easily acquired.

"There's writing," he noticed in surprise. The massive lump of Solar Gold was inscribed with dense symbols that stretched from its five-meter high apex downwards.

Yet, he didn't recognize any of these strange characters!

He lightly touched the golden light barrier starting from the bottom, and was shocked to sense a mental imprint that seemed to reference him.

To his astonishment, the characters in front of him became recognizable; it read: Wang Xuan, has entered the Dead Land three times, an ordinary person.

What kind of entity was this five-meter tall Solar Gold lump, displaying so many strange characters? Could they be names and records?

His entry into the Dead Land as an ordinary person had earned him a place among them?

He reached out to touch the line of text above him, but it displayed a message saying, "Insufficient rank, access denied."

"What a ridiculous ranking for a hunk of gold; the reading experience is awful!"

He touched line after line of text, each time receiving the same message: "Access denied."

Suddenly, celestial music echoed. The five-meter tall gold lump shone, ethereal white mist swirling around, and a line of text emerged high above.

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That line of text was readable, and indeed, a mental imprint transmitted its meaning: Chen Tuan, from the Western Lands, under the Five-twisting Tree, achieved the perfect Golden Elixir path, further creating the Nine Turns Feather Immortal Technique, slaying...

Then Wang Xuan watched as the representation of Chen Tuan's line of text ascended several ranks.

He was dumbfounded, realizing he was witnessing a legendary figure, and this gold lump was broadcasting his current status. Was this a reflection of his power and standing?

Chen Tuan was a paramount figure in the field of inner alchemy after Zhongli Quan and Lü Dongbin. His Five-colored Golden Elixir method was renowned throughout the world, a significant figure in the history of the Old Techniques.

Now, this gold lump confirmed he was still alive. What form of life he had taken was unclear, but he had produced new methods and was undoubtedly powerful.

Unfortunately, the details of whom Chen Tuan had slain were not broadcast.

Wang Xuan's eyes gleamed with intrigue. Those who walked the path of the Dead Land were indeed unique powerful beings; was there such a ranking for them?

He stood there for a moment, unwilling to linger longer, and continued towards the blue lake. On the way, he felt the moon in the night sky was particularly large, and he sensed something strange within himself.

Whoosh!

A pair of pure white wings appeared behind him, constructed from energy runes. He felt an impulse to soar towards the moon!

Then another pair of golden wings sprouted from his back, intensifying his desire to fly, yearning to reach the moon.

Things felt utterly off; was it because he hadn't consumed any magical fruits? Was this a form of divinization? But that couldn't be it!

Divinization shouldn't provoke a desire to fly to the moon. Why did he feel this way? Wang Xuan was puzzled.

The moon seemed exceptionally sacred tonight, the light cascading down was much more concentrated.

In a daze, he seemed to see palatial structures on the moon, shadows moving about; but that shouldn't be possible, considering the vast distance—how could he see it?

The waves surged, and a golden bamboo boat sped towards him across the azure sea.

The ferryman was astonished to see that young man again. Within just a few days, he had rushed in three times, still perfectly alive. Did he really think this place was his backyard?

"No worries, take your time. You'll get used to it after a few more visits."

Wang Xuan hopped onto the bamboo boat, feeling increasingly at ease. This time, once seated, he poured himself a cup of Earth Immortal Spring and offered the ferryman a cup as well.

"No thanks!" the ferryman flatly refused.

"Senior, I saw a golden lump. What's going on with that?" Wang Xuan asked straightforwardly.

"You can see it? A mortal can leave a name on it?!" The ferryman was somewhat astonished. Clearly, he knew about this thing but had never mentioned it before.

"That involves extraordinary individuals above a certain level; they all have their unique qualities to be recorded on the Golden List. You haven't transcended yet…" The ferryman sighed.

"Is it precisely because I haven't transcended but have entered three times that I was recorded?" Wang Xuan speculated.

"What's your rank?" the ferryman asked him.

"The last line of text mentions me."

"Last place, that makes sense," the ferryman nodded.

"I'd like to know who is inscribed on the golden lump and what significance it holds," Wang Xuan inquired.

The ferryman shook his head and said, "I don't know. Many have entered the eight great realms over time, but very few beings have been recorded on the Golden List."

"The moon tonight is also special, exceptionally large, as if it's about to fall into the sea," Wang Xuan remarked, sensing something unusual this evening.

The ferryman's heart skipped a beat. He suddenly looked up and then back at Wang Xuan, muttering to himself, "Are you really that special? Has something happened to you recently?"

"Nothing!" Wang Xuan directly denied, then added, "I ate some extraordinary meat and drank some immortal spring."

He would never mention the treasure fought over by the Immortals or the inscription in his Inner Landscape. If news got out, all the major figures would converge on him.

Next time he accessed his Inner Landscape, he would need to study the inscriptions on that treasure carefully. He was eager to uncover whether it was a secret technique coveted by the Immortals or some other mystery.

"Something is falling from the moon!" Wang Xuan exclaimed in surprise; tonight was indeed full of surprises!

White light fell, like a rain of light from an immortal's transformation, cascading onto the sea surface, looking unmistakably like a treasure was descending.

"A scroll of scripture?!" Wang Xuan was dumbfounded. Did this really fall from the moon?

"Indeed, it has truly come. You, a mortal, have entered the realm three times and been inscribed on the Golden List, which makes you remarkable," the ferryman sighed.

"Senior, didn't you say you haven't been on this moon?" Wang Xuan asked suspiciously.

"I haven't been up there, but I've seen some strange occurrences happen," the ferryman said.

The scripture descended before them, emanating a hazy light rain, suspended above the bamboo boat.

Wang Xuan felt something was off. The scripture was connected by a thin, translucent line that looked suspiciously like a fishing line!

He looked at the line on the ferryman's fishing rod and was shocked to find that the line falling from the moon was even more resilient and peculiar, densely covered in fine runes, seemingly carrying the aura of great principles!

He examined the cover of the scripture, which had several incomprehensible symbols. However, a spiritual imprint quickly appeared, clarifying its meaning: the "Zhang Liu Golden Body Technique."

Wang Xuan was moved. He practiced the Golden Body Technique, and now a seemingly Buddhist body-refining manual had descended, which was quite astonishing.

It was impossible not to feel intrigued, but he remembered that in Buddhism, one had to be burned in a fire at the end of the practice, which diminished his interest.

Wang Xuan asked, "Senior, has this kind of thing happened before? What happened to those who took the scripture?"

"Following that line, it seems they ascended to the moon," the ferryman said uncertainly.

"Ascended to the moon? I feel like they're being hooked up there!" Wang Xuan seriously doubted this—it was indeed a fishing line! If there was a bait and a gold hook added, it would be literally true.

"I really don't know what's going on with the moon," the ferryman shook his head.

"The realm of oblivion is one of the oldest secret paths, which implies that there were extraordinary beings before. The Immortals might not have even appeared yet," Wang Xuan analyzed seriously.

"Does that mean this moon of oblivion might predate the Immortals?" As he said this, Wang Xuan's expression changed.

Now, if there were monsters or people on the moon, were they fishing?

Not understanding the situation on the moon, Wang Xuan would never dare to go up.

Looking at the Zhang Liu Golden Body Technique, Wang Xuan said, "What a useless manual! It's not even as good as the scriptures in Old Zhong's study. Do you think I haven't seen the world? Take it back!"

As he and the ferryman were left speechless, the fishing line pulled away, taking the Zhang Liu Golden Body Technique with it, disappearing into the night sky.

Before long, like an immortal flying down, the light rain fell again, and another scripture descended, hanging above the bamboo boat, attached to the fishing line.

"You're targeting me, treating me like fish and trying to hook me up?!" Wang Xuan drew his short sword, curious about the scripture. If it was good, he might ponder over it; if not, he'd send it back.

He closely examined the cover of this scripture, ultimately understanding its meaning through the spiritual imprint: the "Taichu Pure Spirit Technique."

He found the name quite impressive; it seemed extraordinary, and he turned to the ferryman to ask if he had heard of this scripture.

"A renowned early Taoist technique for cultivating the spirit, quite remarkable, considered a high-level skill!" the ferryman replied solemnly.

Wang Xuan looked again, but he restrained himself and said, "Old Zhong's study has even more powerful top-tier secret techniques; this one is still lacking."

Without a sound, the scripture drifted away, vanishing into the night sky.

The ferryman quietly asked, "May I ask who Old Zhong is, and what kind of secret techniques are in his study?"

Just then, the fishing line from the moon descended again, and light rain fell. A shimmering scripture burst forth with the rhythm of the Dao, flowing with various runes, slowly descending.