"Ninety-nine steps..."

After stepping onto the final stair, Chu Mu stood atop a towering platform. The most striking sight to greet him was a light blue wall that filled his entire vision.

As far as the eye could see, there was nothing else on the entire platform besides this light blue wall.

Cautious in this new, unknown place, Chu Mu carefully surveyed his surroundings before turning his gaze back to the light blue wall.

It was only then that he realized what he had mistaken for a light blue wall was, in fact, a colossal stone placed upon the platform!

Its sheer size meant that all he saw was a crystalline, light-blue luminescence, leading to his initial impression of a wall.

The great stone was nearly twenty feet tall, stretched for more than sixty or seventy feet in length, and was about ten feet thick.

The entire stone glowed with a faint blue light, yet it was so crystalline and translucent that even with a thickness of nearly ten feet, he could seemingly see the gray wall behind it through the Jade Stone.

After a moment of observation, Chu Mu seemed to recall something. His Divine Sense surged as he hastily rummaged through his Storage Talisman. A moment later, he was holding a Jade Scroll.

He sent his Divine Sense into the scroll. When he looked back at the Light Blue Jade before him, his eyes were filled with shock.

"It’s... a Celestial Trace Crystal!"

Chu Mu’s voice trembled. He subconsciously drew closer, reaching out to touch the massive Celestial Trace Crystal Stone.

Feeling the smooth, cool surface, Chu Mu could barely contain his excitement. But where his fingers made contact, the faint flickering of an Array Prohibition Pattern doused his fiery enthusiasm like a bucket of cold water.

Even so, his gaze upon the Celestial Trace Crystal remained fervent.

’Celestial Trace Crystal... just from the name "Celestial," you can imagine how precious it must be.’

’If not for a fortuitous encounter, I probably wouldn’t even know its name.’

The purpose of the so-called Celestial Trace Crystal was simple: to record information.

In the Cultivation Immortal Realm, such information-recording mediums were undoubtedly special.

The secular world used paper to record knowledge and pass down civilization.

In the Cultivation Immortal Realm, the most basic recording method was also paper books. However, the paper wasn’t mundane; it was made from Spirit Wood, and the ink used was Spiritual Ink.

For some books that recorded Magic, the Spiritual Ink even had to be mixed with special Traceable Spiritual Materials to ensure the information’s authenticity and utility.

A level above that, the most common medium was the Jade Scroll.

However, Jade Scrolls could generally only record text and images.

The material principles behind making Jade Scrolls were identical to those of the Memory Stones and "trace screens" available on the market.

The Spiritual Materials used were typically Tier One Upper Grade Marking Crystals.

As for the Celestial Trace Crystal, in these aspects, it could also only record text, images, and sound.

In truth, this type of recording medium was extremely limited in the Cultivation Immortal Realm. After all, the realm was filled with endless wonders, and the capabilities of Marking Crystals were insufficient to record many things completely.

In the Cultivation Immortal Realm, the slightest deviation could lead to a world of difference. Not a single detail could be omitted.

Above ordinary Jade Scrolls, there was an even higher-level recording medium: various devices Refined from the Tier Two Upper Grade Spiritual Material known as Earth Trace Crystal.

It was rumored that these could record the vast majority of information in the Cultivation Immortal Realm, including Divine Soul Auras and Magical Power fluctuations.

Although his bamboo dragonfly could also record Divine Soul Auras and Magical Power fluctuations, it wasn’t Refined from Earth Trace Crystal.

Instead, it used a Tier One Marking Stone as its base and was mixed with some Earth Trace Stone powder, which only gave it a weak, faint effect.

This effect was undoubtedly somewhat distorted, and it would even struggle to record and preserve the information of someone with slightly higher Cultivation.

This was the most important reason why he hadn’t dared to be certain after sensing the strange hairtail’s Divine Soul Aura and Magical Power fluctuations before.

And this Tier Four Upper Grade Celestial Trace Stone before his eyes...

...was said to be legendary, capable of inscribing even the scars of the heavens. It was said there was nothing in the world it couldn’t record.

While this was certainly an exaggeration, its Grade as a Tier Four Upper Grade item was more than enough to prove how rare it was.

According to his knowledge, this Tier Four Upper Grade Celestial Trace Crystal was a derivative deposit of a Tier Two Upper Grade Earth Trace Crystal Ore Vein!

One had to understand that derivative and companion deposits from ordinary Ore Veins were typically of the same grade, or at most one grade higher.

For a Tier Two Upper Grade Ore Vein to produce a Tier Four Upper Grade derivative, a leap of two full major tiers... the difficulty and rarity were plain to see.

And this was a massive, complete piece of Celestial Trace Crystal...

"The Immortal Dao Sect..."

Chu Mu couldn’t help but sigh at the sheer extravagance of this Ancient Sect.

’To use such a massive piece of Celestial Trace Crystal as a recording medium...’

’How much information, how many legacies, must be recorded inside?’

’It’s unimaginable...’

He circled the colossal Celestial Trace Crystal Stone again and again, but the effects of the glaringly obvious Restriction Array ultimately forced him to suppress his greed.

After a moment of contemplation, he forced himself to calm down and sat cross-legged before the great stone.

’My knowledge of a Tier Four Upper Grade existence comes only from a few scattered lines in a Jade Scroll.’

’I only have a rough concept, without much specific knowledge.’

’Perhaps the only way to truly understand is to experience it for myself.’

’After all, with the power of a Celestial Trace Crystal, a palm-sized piece can record a nigh-infinite amount of information...’

’And this one is so enormous...’

His mind raced, but as he slowly calmed himself, the distracting thoughts gradually faded away.

Then, he activated his Divine Sense and, drawing on his experience with Jade Scrolls, slowly extended it toward the Celestial Trace Crystal Stone.

But the very instant his Divine Sense touched the Celestial Trace Spirit Stone...

...it was nothing like he had expected.

That familiar, world-spinning sensation abruptly descended upon him once more!

When the dizzying sensation faded and his feet were once again on solid ground, he looked around at the scene before him...

"What is this?"

Chu Mu’s pupils constricted, a look of horror mixed with... confusion?

He scanned his surroundings. He was still in the same majestic hall. The high-hanging plaque still bore the three flamboyant words: Immortal Dao Pavilion.

The steps were still towering, the Jade Stone still translucent, and the carvings of dragons and phoenixes remained as exquisite as ever.

Everything was completely identical to the hall he had just been in.

But...

...where was the Celestial Trace Stone?

Chu Mu stared at the empty space before him, filled with nothing but horror.

’Did such a massive Celestial Trace Stone just vanish during that brief, disorienting moment?’

Chu Mu racked his brain. He remembered that just now, he was...

...sitting cross-legged before the Celestial Trace Stone, and then... his Divine Sense made contact...

...a wave of dizziness... and the Celestial Trace Stone... was gone?

"An illusion?"

Chu Mu was stunned, but he quickly dismissed the idea.

’I remember it perfectly! I touched the Celestial Trace Stone with my own hands, I circled it multiple times. The Array Prohibition Patterns on it were uneven to the touch, cool...’

’Every detail is still vivid in my mind, perfectly clear!’

He looked around. The Celestial Trace Stone was gone, but now, flanking the gray-white wall where it had stood, were two new doorways.

On the lintels above them were inscribed two large, ancient words... "Magic"... and "Skill."

"Magic... Skill..."

Chu Mu murmured, his expression thoughtful.

’This is easy enough to understand.’

’The term Magic, in common parlance within the Cultivation Immortal Realm, specifically refers to the Magic and Secret Skills of various Attributes.’

’But if these two words are separated, their meanings are entirely different.’

’The so-called "Magic" here refers to Cultivation Techniques.’

’And the so-called "Skill"... refers to the Hundred Skills of Cultivation Immortal. What we typically call Magic is just one discipline among those Hundred Skills.’

’In other words, "Magic" refers to the core of Immortal Dao Cultivation itself... while "Skill" refers to all the Protective Means one uses on that path.’

’This setup is quite logical.’

’But... considering the Celestial Trace Crystal was just here, this is completely illogical!’

’It’s even... frighteningly bizarre!’

’Where did the Celestial Trace Crystal go?’

’Why did these two doors appear after it vanished?’

’What is the reason for all this? Why is it happening?’

He glanced around, filled with deep confusion and an unspeakable dread.

’Spiritual Radiance!’

A moment later, he called out in his mind, intending to use Spiritual Radiance to quell his inner turmoil and discern the nature of the strangeness before him.

Instantly, the Spiritual Radiance Blessing descended, and the chaos in his heart subsided with it.

He looked around again. Under the Spiritual Radiance Blessing, his mind and intellect ascended, bringing with them a calm focus so profound he wouldn’t flinch even if the sky fell.

He released his Divine Sense, blanketing an area of several dozen meters around him, every minute detail laid bare. He began to examine his surroundings inch by inch.

’Something’s not right...’

In just a moment, he seemed to notice something. Chu Mu’s brow furrowed, the suspicion in his eyes deepening.

Every feature proved he was still inside the hall known as the Immortal Dao Pavilion.

And yet... there were also many signs that proved he was *not* in the original Immortal Dao Pavilion.

Within his Divine Sense Perception, this Immortal Dao Pavilion...

...was too clean!

There wasn’t a single speck of impurity to be found.

The air, the floor, the walls—the entire grand hall was the same!

The footprints he should have left on his path from the far end of the hall to this high platform were now completely gone, as if some power had simply wiped them away.

Yet, when he was in the hall just moments ago, he had felt no other abnormal fluctuations besides that sudden, disorienting spinning.

It was as if that dizzying sensation had teleported him to another hall, one that was a perfect replica of the Immortal Dao Pavilion.

The only differences were the absence of the Celestial Trace Stone, which had been replaced by the two wooden doors, "Magic" and "Skill..."

’But... if that’s true, what’s the point of such an abrupt teleportation?’

Chu Mu didn’t understand. Even with the Spiritual Radiance Blessing and his heightened intellect, he was still full of questions.

After a long period of contemplation, he once again looked at the two doors: "Magic" and "Skill."

Then, he took a step, intending to head toward the "Magic" door.

But as he took that step, his foot froze in mid-air.

Chu Mu froze. Shock and disbelief flooded his eyes, instantly overwhelming him.

"How is this possible..."

He muttered to himself in disbelief...

...