The party ventured deeper into the gloom, the silence broken only by the sound of their own footsteps. After what felt like an eternity, another colossal structure loomed out of the mist.
As they drew closer, the silhouette resolved into a massive monolith, distinct from the previous markers. It was a towering slab of bluish-gray rock, cold and imposing. Carved into its surface were four enormous characters: Ascend Early to the Other Shore.
The characters were a shocking, visceral crimson. They glistened wetly, as if freshly painted with arterial blood that threatened to drip down the stone face at any moment. The sight alone was enough to send a shiver crawling down one’s spine.
"Is this the legendary Three Lives Stone?" Luo Yun asked, his voice hushed.
"But the inscription reads 'Ascend Early to the Other Shore,'" Su Miaoqing noted, frowning. "Why would it be the Three Lives Stone?"
"This immortal maiden may not be aware," Luo Yun explained, assuming a scholarly tone. "The Three Lives Stone does not bear its own name. Instead, it bears this warning. Legend dictates that this stone holds the power to reflect a cultivator’s past, present, and future karma."
Su Miaoqing narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing the monolith. Indeed, in the lower right corner, a line of minuscule text was etched:
The fruit of this life, the cycle of fate; where destiny rises, it must also extinguish.
"If the Three Lives Stone stands here, then the Bridge of Helplessness cannot be far," Lin Xiao remarked, snapping his folding fan shut with a sharp clack. A faint smile played on his lips.
Xiao Yifeng prepared to step forward to investigate, but before he could move, the Old Taoist Lingyun—who had been eyeing the stone with feverish intensity—suddenly bolted.
Lingyun moved with desperate speed, his robes flapping as he sprinted ahead of the group. "Fellow Daoist Wuchen!" he cackled, his voice tinged with mania. "I cannot let you claim this treasure first!"
"Stop. Do not be rash," Xiao Yifeng called out, his expression darkening. He reached out as if to restrain him.
But Lingyun, consumed by paranoia, interpreted the gesture as an attempt to snatch the opportunity. He surged forward, covering the remaining distance in three erratic steps, and slammed his palm against the stone face.
"It is mine, Fellow Daoist Wuchen! Do not even think of robbing me!" Lingyun laughed uproariously.
But his laughter was cut short, strangled by a sudden mask of absolute terror.
"What... what is this?" Lingyun shrieked. "My Essence Blood! Why is it flowing out? My Divine Sense, my vitality... it’s all being devoured! What is happening? Save me!"
To the onlookers, the scene was horrifying. Lingyun began to wither visibly, his skin shriveling against his bones like a drying fruit. The so-called Three Lives Stone pulsed, greedily siphoning his life force until he stood frozen, a statue of skin and bone.
"Fellow Daoist Wuchen, what is the meaning of this?" Liu Yue asked, his hand drifting toward his weapon.
"The Three Lives Stone demands a toll to reveal the three lifetimes," Xiao Yifeng replied, his voice calm and detached, betraying none of his internal cynicism. "He is currently living through the reflection of his past, present, and future. If he can withstand the trial and maintain his sense of self, his vitality will be returned threefold, and his Divine Sense will be tempered by the experiences of three lifetimes."
"Such a heaven-defying benefit?" Lin Xiao asked skeptically. "Surely the risk is equally great."
"Indeed," Xiao Yifeng said, shaking his head slowly. "If he cannot detach himself from the illusion, he will forget who he is. He will lose the ability to distinguish between the past and the present. The most likely outcome is the total collapse of his Dao Heart. For those without a will of iron, touching this stone is merely a faster way to die."
As he spoke, images began to flicker across the surface of the Three Lives Stone, projecting Lingyun’s cycle of reincarnation. The scenes flashed by with dizzying speed, allowing the group to catch only fragmented glimpses.
They saw his past life: a miserable scholar, talented but destined for failure, living a life of perpetual gloom and unfulfilled ambition.
Then, the stone shifted to his present. The first half of Lingyun’s life played out in rapid succession—a tragedy of poverty and loss. The group watched in uncomfortable silence as it was revealed that Lingyun had sacrificed his wife and children just for the chance to join the Star Sect. His darkest secrets were laid bare for all to see.
The future flashed by in a blur, ending with a final, chilling image: Lingyun sinking like a stone to the bottom of the River of Forgetfulness.
His next incarnation was even crueler. He was reborn as a woman, cursed with a hideous appearance, abused and tormented by her husband’s family. She bore a child only to watch it die in infancy, her entire existence a tapestry of suffering.
Xiao Yifeng watched impassively, though internally he scoffed. This Three Lives Stone is sadistic. Showing him a future like that... there is no enlightenment here, only despair.
The visions faded. A stream of vitality began to flow back into Lingyun’s withered body, but it was meager—less than a third of what had been taken.
Pfft!
Lingyun vomited a mouthful of blood, collapsing to his knees.
On the stone, the four bloody characters dissolved and reformed into eight judgment characters:
Ants Strive for Life, Toiling in Vain.
"Hahaha..." Seeing the verdict, Lingyun scrambled backward, falling onto his backside. He looked as though he had aged decades in moments. He let out a desolate, broken laugh.
"Fellow Daoist Lingyun, hold on!" Liu Yue hurried forward to support him.
"Blame no one but myself," Lingyun whispered, shaking his head. His smile was bitter, filled with the ashes of his ambition. "It was my own greed that led me here."
Xiao Yifeng observed the old man’s shattered demeanor. His Dao Heart is dust. Even if he survives this place, his cultivation path is severed. He offered a performative sigh of regret.
"Is what the stone shows... true?" Su Miaoqing asked softly.
"If you believe it, it is truth. If you deny it, it is merely a fabrication," Xiao Yifeng said solemnly, adopting the tone of a high master. "It creates a reality for you. As long as you can accept the karma and endure the weight of three lives, you receive the reward. It is, simply put, a gamble."
The world of cultivation is nothing if not a marketplace, he thought cynically. Everything has a price. You want to win big with a small wager? Such things do not exist.
The group fell into a heavy silence. The allure of a threefold increase in Divine Sense was intoxicating, but the penalty—public humiliation and the destruction of one's future—was terrifying. And ultimately, the validity of the reward relied solely on Wuchen’s word.
No one dared to move.
"This Three Lives Stone is quite fascinating," a soft, alluring voice broke the silence. "This humble girl would like to give it a try."
It was Mo Shuiyao.
She moved with the grace of a lotus swaying in the wind, approaching the stone. With a delicate motion, she extended a hand—pale and flawless as jade—and pressed it gently against the cold surface.
Everyone held their breath, Xiao Yifeng included. He was genuinely curious. Does the Golden Body of Complete Victory have the same past and future I saw in my previous life?
A frown of pain marred Mo Shuiyao’s exquisite features as the stone drank her vitality. She slumped slightly, leaning her weight against the monolith.
Her past life materialized.
She had been a noble daughter of the highest pedigree, married into royalty as a pawn. Yet, through sheer intellect and ruthlessness, she had maneuvered through the viper’s nest of the court, climbing step by bloody step until she sat upon the throne as a reigning Empress.
She possessed the world, yet she had sacrificed her humanity to obtain it.
The scene shifted to her current life. Her early years in the Enchanting Pavilion were a blur of scheming and survival. She had been bullied and weak until the death of her beloved Senior Sister—the only person who had shown her kindness. That loss had shattered her, forging her into a weapon that would stop at nothing to survive.
Then came the future.
The images accelerated. The group saw her ascend to become a Body Integration stage expert—a Titan of the cultivation world. But amidst the chaotic flashes, one image seared itself into the minds of the onlookers:
Mo Shuiyao, standing atop a high pavilion under the moonlight, sharing a jar of wine with... Xiao Yifeng.
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
Liu Yue and Lin Xiao shot strange looks at Xiao Yifeng. Su Miaoqing’s gaze snapped between the two, her eyes narrowing with suspicion and unvoiced questions.
Xiao Yifeng’s face remained an unreadable mask of indifference. Interesting. The stone only projects a fragment of a possible future. In my last life, I never touched the stone, yet that drinking scene... that actually happened.
The vision twisted again. Her next life appeared, and it was a stark contrast to the Empress. She was weak, pitiful, and cursed with devastating beauty without the power to protect it. She became a plaything for powerful men, passed around like a trophy. It was a life of absolute tragedy, suffering from birth to death.
Mo Shuiyao’s face contorted in struggle, sweat beading on her forehead. But moments later, her expression smoothed into tranquility.
She had conquered the illusion.
Boom!
A massive surge of essence—far greater than what was taken—erupted from the stone and poured into her body. The bloody text melted away, replaced by a glowing commendation:
Steadfast Mind, Heaven-Bestowed Talent.
Mo Shuiyao opened her eyes. A divine light swirled within her pupils, impossible to conceal. Her aura surged violently, breaking through barriers in an instant. She vaulted from the second level of the Golden Core straight to the fifth—the mid-Golden Core stage.
She smiled. It was a genuine, unguarded smile, radiant enough to shame a field of blooming flowers. For a moment, even the gloom of the Underworld seemed to brighten.
She cast a profound, lingering glance at Xiao Yifeng before turning back to the group.
Su Miaoqing caught the look. She stared at Mo Shuiyao, then back at Xiao Yifeng, her small face twisting into a peculiar expression. Her mind was clearly racing, though what she was thinking, only she knew.