To hold a rose, one must endure its thorns; to wear a crown, one must bear its weight.
If Lin Yun wished to obtain the treasures left by the ancient master Xu Yun, he would have to shoulder the legacy Xu Yun had left behind. This was the equivalent price.
Immediately after, Lin Yun made a soul oath, swearing that if Xu Yun’s enemies were still alive, he would avenge the master within eight hundred years. If he failed to do so within that time, he would face divine retribution, resulting in his destruction and the end of his cultivation path.
As for all the information about Xu Yun, including his appearance, it had already been transmitted into Lin Yun’s mind, and he remembered it clearly.
After making the oath, a beam of light from the void entered Lin Yun’s mind.
At that moment, the Purple-Eyed Tiger, the Three-Eyed Monkey, and the three metal creatures from the first, second, and third trials entered through the stone gate.
In addition to the metal creature from the fifth level that had entered with Lin Yun earlier, there were now four metal creatures and two demon beasts in total.
“Greetings, new master!”
The four metal creatures, along with the Purple-Eyed Tiger and the Three-Eyed Monkey, bowed to Lin Yun in unison, their voices resounding.
Lin Yun was stunned.
Had he just become their new master?
“Little master, from now on, this old monkey—no, this little monkey—and everyone else will follow you,” the Three-Eyed Monkey said with a grin.
“Alright!” Lin Yun smiled.
Looking at them, Lin Yun felt an overwhelming joy.
Just these four metal creatures and two demon beasts were an immense gift.
With these six subordinates, dealing with the demon race would be more than just impressive—it would be extraordinary!
“Seniors, from now on, we shall stand together through thick and thin,” Lin Yun said, cupping his hands in respect.
“Little master, you must no longer call us seniors. We are your subordinates, essentially your slaves, and we are absolutely loyal. Even if you ordered us to die, we would do so without hesitation,” one of the metal creatures said.
“Especially us metal creatures. We do not possess human emotions; we only have absolute loyalty,” the metal creature added.
“By the way, how should I address the four of you?” Lin Yun asked, looking at the metal creatures.
He could call the Three-Eyed Monkey “Little Monkey” and the Purple-Eyed Tiger “Little Cat,” but he wasn’t sure how to address the metal creatures.
“Master, I am named Tian,” said the metal creature from the fifth trial.
“I am Di,” said the one from the third trial.
“I am Xuan,” said the one from the second trial.
“I am Huang,” said the one from the first trial.
Lin Yun nodded.
“Little master, we are not living beings, so you can store us in your spatial storage and carry us with you. When you need us for battle, simply release us,” Tian explained.
“Little master, Little Cat and I can’t be stored like that. We are living beings and would be rejected by the spatial storage,” the Three-Eyed Monkey added.
“I understand,” Lin Yun nodded again.
“Master, when you made the soul oath earlier, did a rule of heaven enter your soul?” Tian asked.
“Yes, isn’t that a normal part of making a soul oath?” Lin Yun asked, puzzled.
“This is bad! This means that the old master’s enemy is still alive! If the enemy had already died, the soul oath would not have taken effect!” Tian said.
“What?!”
Lin Yun’s expression changed dramatically.
Lin Yun had feared that Xu Yun’s enemy might still be alive, as it would mean the enemy had reached a level of immortality.
According to the cultivation realms—Postnatal, Innate, Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, Void Refining, Body Unity, Soul Transformation, Mahayana, and Tribulation Transcendence—each major realm had three sub-realms, except for the Tribulation Transcendence realm.
Once one reached the Tribulation Transcendence realm, they were at the peak. To achieve immortality, one had to successfully transcend the tribulation. Only then would they truly transcend humanity.
Not only was reaching the Tribulation Transcendence realm incredibly difficult, but even among those who did, only one in ten thousand successfully transcended the tribulation.
In other words, Xu Yun’s enemy had already surpassed the Tribulation Transcendence realm and entered an entirely new realm of power.
How terrifyingly powerful must such an enemy be!
Thinking of this, Lin Yun felt a heavy weight on his heart.
It seemed he had jumped into a deep pit.
“New master, this means you will definitely have to go to the cultivation continent in the future,” the Purple-Eyed Tiger said.
“What if I don’t have a way to get to the cultivation continent?” Lin Yun asked.
The Holy Temple had a simple formation for traveling to the cultivation continent, but after the temple master’s self-destruction, the temple had been severely damaged. It was uncertain whether the formation was still intact.
Of course, the formation was located in a hidden area at the back of the mountain, which had not been as badly damaged.
“The old master’s oath didn’t specify such details. When the old master set up the ruins, this world was still in the ancient era, and there were at least three or five teleportation formations to the cultivation continent,” Tian explained.
“The old master’s only requirement was that if you fail to avenge him within eight hundred years, you will suffer divine retribution and perish. Beyond that, the old master didn’t impose any other conditions,” Di added.
“Alright,” Lin Yun said helplessly.
He would have to find a way to check if the Holy Temple’s teleportation formation was still functional.
“Eight hundred years is still a long time. At least for now, there’s no need to rush,” Lin Yun murmured.
Given Lin Yun’s rapid progress, living for eight hundred years—or even a thousand—would not be difficult.
However, that was a concern for the distant future.
For now, the most pressing matter was dealing with the demon race.
“New master, behind the old master’s statue, there are five chests containing five treasures. You may take them now,” the metal creature said.
Lin Yun nodded and walked over to the back of the statue.
The metal creatures and the two demon beasts followed.
There were indeed five chests, and their locks were already open.
Lin Yun opened the first chest.
Inside was a bow and fifty arrows.
“New master, this is the Fallen Moon Divine Bow. Its power is immense,” Tian explained.
The bow seemed to have star patterns engraved on it, as if an entire constellation had been forged into the weapon.
The arrowheads of the fifty arrows gleamed with a cold light, clearly made of a special material.
“The Fallen Moon Divine Bow?”
Lin Yun picked up the bow, intrigued.
This was the first time he had encountered such a weapon, and it fascinated him.
Bows and arrows had long been obsolete in modern times.
Lin Yun decided to test the bow and pulled on its string.
“Huh?”
He found that he couldn’t draw the bow.
He couldn’t even pull the string? Lin Yun refused to believe it.
Using all his strength, Lin Yun tried again.
The bow began to glow brightly.
Lin Yun’s skin turned red, and his veins bulged.
“Ahhh!”
Lin Yun roared, his entire body straining.
“Little master, stop! You must stop!” the metal creatures and the two demon beasts shouted in alarm.
