I Can Recognize Everything, But the Information is Wrong

Over the next half a month, Tian Lin stayed within the illusion.

He spent a lot of time consuming Water Spirit Rice on the twenty-first level, so much so that he himself lost count, but he never felt the presence of Sword Intent.

Feeling helpless, Tian Lin had no choice but to temporarily give up on the illusion at the twenty-first level and began to climb to higher levels.

As Tian Lin was ascending, the other Outer Disciples, including the servant disciples, were not idle either.

Especially at Sword Peak, the talisman papers that used to be ignored, no matter how expensive, were now all snatched up.

Everyone was preparing for the upcoming Life and Death Platform, except for Tian Lin, who was still climbing.

"Hall Master Huang, we've already arrived at Kun Lake. The Foundation Establishment Pool is almost in our grasp—why aren't you moving forward?"

Inside the illusion, Tian Lin was now by the side of a lake.

The vast lake looked quite ordinary, with only a cool breeze and suitable for fishing, nothing particularly special.

Tian Lin looked doubtfully at the daoist-robed elder speaking beside him, then at another middle-aged man.

The elder in daoist robes was one thing; although he was respectful towards Tian Lin, he was not terribly afraid.

But the middle-aged man appeared quite humble, slightly bowing as Tian Lin glanced at him.

Tian Lin glanced at the embroidered badge on the inner garment of the middle-aged man, knowing that he was a Blood Sect Devotee, likely one of his subordinates, and thus, asked bluntly:

"Immortal Master Zhou said there is a Foundation Establishment Pool here, do you think Immortal Master Zhou might deceive me?"

The middle-aged man hurriedly replied: "Upon careful consideration, nothing of what Immortal Master Zhou mentioned seems false—and besides, Immortal Master Zhou has been a friend of yours for many years, so he should be quite reliable."

Tian Lin smiled, squinting his eyes at the elder in daoist robes:

"Indeed, if it weren't for your help back then, Immortal Master Zhou, I wouldn't have been able to cross the seas from the Yulong Continent to this Cangzhou territory. Now time flies by. How old were you back then, Immortal Master Zhou?"

After Tian Lin asked, the elder in daoist robes replied, "I was not yet thirty at the time. Time flies, and before you know it, it's already been more than forty years."

Tian Lin nodded slightly. It was only now that he could confirm that from the first stage at the ninety-ninth stone step to now, the second stage at the thirtieth stone step, represented the experiences of Patriarch Yueyue in Cangzhou over the following forty years.

"Yes, forty years have passed, and you've been covered in half a measure of yellow earth. As for me, at over a hundred years old, I'm someone about to be buried with the trees."

"It's precisely because we don't have much time left that we should enter Kun Lake to search for the Foundation Establishment Pool."

Tian Lin had seen portraits in Zhong Wujie's Travelogue and knew that he would be attacked by Immortal Master Zhou and another man on this journey.

According to Zhong Wujie's records, Immortal Master Zhou, though a twelfth-tier Qi Refining cultivator, only had a Mid-grade Spell at Minor Success Realm.

And that man, similarly a capable cultivator, could cast spells to no greater effect than Mid-grade Minor Success Realm.

However, Tian Lin's experience told him that other people's illusions were different from his own.

The people and things in other people's illusions were all fake and their strength significantly reduced.

But in his own illusion, the people and things were often indistinguishable from reality, and their strength was not discounted at all.

"In order to find the Foundation Establishment Pool, of course, I will enter Kun Lake—but even if I am to enter, I must be fully prepared before going down."

Tian Lin remembered from the Travelogue that it was in the water where Patriarch Yueyue was attacked by Immortal Master Zhou and the man.

He was certain that Kun Lake was 'bait' and a 'trap,' naturally unwilling to enter the lake.

Seeing this, Immortal Master Zhou furrowed his brows and said:

"It seems, Hall Master Huang, that you still don't trust me—well, if you don't trust me, why not lend me the Zhou Family wooden token first? Once I succeed in Foundation Establishment, I will return the token to Hall Master Huang."

Tian Lin frowned, although he had his suspicions, he still pretended ignorance: "What Zhou Family wooden token?"

"Heh, it is, of course, the heirloom wooden token held only by the Zhou Family Clan Leader."

Immortal Master Zhou, frowning and with a smile tinged with anger, said: "How so, Hall Master Huang? Even if you don't wish to enter Kun Lake yourself, surely you won't prevent us from entering?"

Upon hearing this, Tian Lin touched his waist.

He was sure the token was in his Storage Bag, but he was indeed wearing a wooden token at his waist.

"To hold the brush and paint the worldly society, to observe the whole world in one's palm—so it's all about controlling Kun Lake, I understand now."

Tian Lin laughed, and just as Immortal Master Zhou reached out to take the token from his hand, Tian Lin suddenly withdrew the token, and asked Immortal Master Zhou: "How do you know all the secrets of the Zhou Family wooden token so clearly?"

Immortal Master Zhou observed skepticism in Tian Lin's gaze, but still answered: "You already knew I was a disciple of the Zhou Family, so why ask something you already know?"

Though Immortal Master Zhou bore the surname Zhou, Tian Lin had never considered that the other party might be a clansman of the Zhou Family.

In fact, he met Immortal Master Zhou even before he encountered Zhou Qing.

If not for Immortal Master Zhou capturing people and selling them to the Blood Sect, Patriarch Yueyue would never have reached Cangzhou.

As for Tian Lin's understanding of the Zhou Family, it was limited to Patriarch Yueyue's ambush against Zhou Qing—

Since the time span of the illusion was broad, although Tian Lin knew that the Zhou Family was a well-known family in Pingyang County, the only Zhou Family members he had actually met, other than Zhou Shoufan and his mother, were Zhou Qing.

"If you are indeed from the Zhou Family, why would you tell me, an outsider, the family's secrets? Are you not afraid that the ancestral spirits of the Zhou Family will haunt you in your dreams, you unworthy descendant?"

While an ordinary person would be angered by Tian Lin's words, Immortal Master Zhou was instead reassured of Tian Lin's doubts upon hearing them.

He smiled and said, "Truly, Hall Master Huang, you still distrust me, thinking that I seek revenge for the Zhou Family. There's really no need—I may have extinguished the Zhou Family, but I don't actually hate you."

Immortal Master Zhou said, "Even if Hall Master Huang doesn't slaughter all the members of the Zhou Family, I will take matters into my own hands. Think about it, for generations the Zhou Family has cultivated countless Water Spirit Rice, but has any of it ever benefited me?

Although I am just a side branch with mediocre talent, my resolve in seeking the Dao is no less firm than that of the direct descendants. Why are they born into a life with Spirit Rice, while I must resort to selling people at sea to survive? How unjust is heaven towards me!"

Tian Lin nodded and said, "Indeed, heaven has never been fair to anyone."

After speaking, Tian Lin tossed the Token in his hand towards Immortal Master Zhou and said, "Fine, I'll lend you the Token, and you go down alone. Once you find the Foundation Establishment Pool, come back up to find us."

By saying 'us,' it was clear he meant for the man standing beside him to stay on the shore.

Immortal Master Zhou's expression turned unsightly as he said, "That is the tomb of a Golden Core powerhouse. How can I dare to trespass alone? Moreover, Hall Master Huang, aren't you afraid that if I find the Foundation Establishment Pool, I'll be tempted to hoard all its benefits for myself?"

Tian Lin said with a smile, "Since this is originally a property of the Zhou Family, if you could monopolize the Foundation Establishment Pool by yourself, I would have nothing to say about it."

Upon hearing this, Immortal Master Zhou first glanced at the man beside Tian Lin, then said to Tian Lin, "Hall Master Huang, look into my eyes."

Tian Lin indeed locked gazes with him.

But soon after, Immortal Master Zhou's expression changed, and he stepped back two steps before shouting, "Brother Jiao, act now!"

The man beside Tian Lin was startled and his knife swung towards Tian Lin.

In an instant, Tian Lin disappeared from his spot with his Wind Walking Skill and reappeared behind Immortal Master Zhou.

Immortal Master Zhou knew something was wrong, but by the time he turned with his Sword Control, it was already too late.

Tian Lin's flying sword decapitated Immortal Master Zhou, then hovered at the brow of the man beside him.

The man was still holding his knife, his eyes fixed on the flying sword at his brow, swallowing hard in fear.

"Talk, what benefit did Old Zhou offer you to betray me?"

The man collapsed to his knees, the knife discarded to one side, pleading, "Please forgive me, Hall Master. I was blinded by greed and lured by the Zhou surname's seductions, coveting the position of the Hall Master—I beg for mercy, Hall Master, please spare my life."

Tian Lin chuckled, approached the man, retrieved the sword from his brow, and then placed it against his neck.

"Tell me, is there really a Foundation Establishment Pool beneath Kun Lake?"

The man felt the cold edge of the flying sword on his neck, sweat streaming down his forehead.

He dared not rise, still kneeling in the direction of Immortal Master Zhou's corpse, saying, "To my knowledge, Kun Lake truly is an ancestral property of the Zhou Family. It has never drawn attention due to its unremarkable appearance at the surface.

I once went to the bottom of the lake with the one from the Zhou surname, and I indeed noticed a keyhole in a stone wall there. I just don't know if there really is a tomb and treasures behind that keyhole."

Tian Lin then asked, "The tomb is built under the water, even for a Qi Refining cultivator, how long can one hold their breath underwater?"

The man was stunned, instinctively turning his head to look at Tian Lin, but Tian Lin drew a blood mark on his neck, causing the man to stop turning his head and speak in a hoarse voice, "Hall Master, aren't you carrying Breath Holding Pills? With the Breath Holding Pill, what does it matter if we don't breathe for a day?"

When Tian Lin entered the illusion, besides his own Storage Bag, he also had the storage bag from the ancestor of the Inviting Moon.

However, at that moment, he was unable to open the Inviting Moon ancestor's storage bag—the way Zhong Wujie put it, everything in an illusion is fictitious, so using the storage bag is impossible.

But Tian Lin felt differently; he didn't believe that things in the illusion couldn't be used within it. He simply couldn't open the Inviting Moon ancestor's storage bag.

"Show me your Breath Holding Pills."

After Tian Lin spoke, the man tremblingly took out the Breath Holding Pill from his own Storage Bag.

Tian Lin frowned and took a look, seeing the prompt:

[Disguise Pill, can change one's appearance for 24 hours, safe to consume]

The man knelt on the ground, not aware of the frustration on Tian Lin's face. He only noticed that Tian Lin did not speak for a long time, making him tremble even more.

"Alright, you're coming with me to the bottom of the lake."

Tian Lin didn't wait for the man to speak. He grabbed the man and dove towards the bottom of the lake.

Ordinarily, lake water doesn't have any prompt, and not only did Tian Lin feel suffocated, the man also felt the chilling and uncomfortable sensation of suffocation.

With wide eyes, he watched as Tian Lin discarded the Breath Holding Pill, and with no choice, he forcefully dove down towards the bottom of the lake with Tian Lin.

After descending about ten zhang, avoiding a school of fish and shrimp, the man led Tian Lin to a rocky wall.

The man then brushed away some green algae on the stone wall, revealing a round hole the size of a bowl.

Tian Lin handed the wooden Token to the man, who then inserted the Token into the round hole.

Shortly afterwards, Tian Lin faintly heard a 'click' sound. Following that, the stone wall trembled violently, not only dislodging a bunch of algae stuck to it but also stirring up clouds of sediment.

The murky sediment obstructed visibility, but Tian Lin still made out the spacious interior that appeared as the stone opened.

Seeing this, Tian Lin tossed the man into the stone gate amidst his struggles.

The man, having escaped Tian Lin's grip, tried to dash out of the stone gate to escape.

But as soon as he turned around and before leaving the stone gate, a large amount of blood surged from his back.

The vivid red blood instantly stained the water red, and Tian Lin's vision blurred for a moment. When he opened his eyes again, he was back on Dao Seeking Mountain.

"Is it truly the tomb of a Golden Core ancestor? But if so, why does the key lie in the hands of the Zhou Family?"