Chapter 2054 - Third Trial, Second Calamity
There were only three ancestral temples in the entire Ancient clan. They were in the imperial city of each royal family and were located at the foot of each country’s statue.
Every single adult Ancient clan member would willingly come to the ancestral temple during their third trial. However, they wouldn’t go too deep, and people of the royal family were allowed to enter the inner area.
Since ancient times, very few people had met the qualifications to enter closed door cultivation inside the ancestral temples. This was rare even for Grand Empyreans because the control was in the hands of each generation’s emperor. Only members of the royal families could go into the depth of the temples to pass this trial.
Wang Lin was standing at the center of the imperial city of the Ancient Shi. He was beneath the ancient statue, just silently staring ahead.
This statue was the same as the Ancient Dao statue. The Ancient Ancestor looked at the heavens and earth with disdain and contempt. Before Wang Lin had crossed the three Heaven Trampling Bridges, he didn’t feel too much when he saw the Ancient Ancestor’s statue in the Ancient Dao.
However, at this moment, this statue became different in his eyes.
The contempt and disdain was only on the surface. Deep within, Wang Lin saw a hint of sadness. This sadness was directed toward himself and also all living beings.
Wang Lin slowly said, “Who carved the Ancient Ancestor’s statue?”
Beside Wang Lin, Song Tian stood there as he looked at the statue and slowly said, “Grand Empyrean Gu Dao…”
“After the Ancient Ancestor disappeared, Grand Empyrean Gu Dao brought three mountains from some unknown place. He personally carved three statues and erected them in the three imperial cities.
“It is also because of this that us descendents can remember the appearance of the Ancient Ancestor and not forget due to the passage of time”
Wang Lin gently nodded. He knew that a race had to have a symbol of hope. If there were none, then this race would not last long and would slowly die out.
It was obvious the Ancient Ancestor’s statues and legends were the symbols that the Ancient clan believed in! Grand Empyrean Gu Dao, guardian of the Ancient clan. Just from this title, one could see his wisdom.
Wang Lin and Song Tian were standing beneath the statue as if they were silently waiting for something.
Shortly after, murmuring came from the direction of the imperial palace. A ray of dark light rushed toward this location and circled around the Ancient Ancestor statue to form dark halos.
Below the statue, on the boot of the Ancient Ancestor statue, there was a huge door. This door was closed, but when the dark halo appeared, the door slowly opened.
“Brother Wang, the ancestral temple has opened. I won’t be going in, take care!” Song Tian clasped his hands at Wang Lin.
Wang Lin looked at the door that was opening and revealed a solemn expression. Whether he could allow Li Muwan to safely enter the Immemorial God Realm all depended on whether he could obtain two more drops of soul blood on the third trial.
Wang Lin clasped his hands at Song Tian before he took a deep breath and walked toward the ancestral temple.
His pace was not fast, but every step was very stable. Step by step, he arrived before the opened door and walked inside without hesitation.
The moment he entered the ancestral temple, the door slowly closed. After only half an incense stick of time did the door close completely.
The dark light on the Ancient Ancestor’s statue gradually dimmed. It turned back into a ray of light and disappeared back into the imperial palace.
Song Tian stood there for a long time before he let out a sigh and left.
The members of the Ancient Shi all saw the aura around the statue, but few knew Wang Lin had entered. This news was suppressed by the Ancient Shi Emperor, so people slowly forgot about this matter.
The entire Ancient Shi was no different from before, but the people that paid attention would notice that Prince Ji Du, who was often away from the imperial city, was now living inside the palace.
The crown prince had been titled king 10 years ago and had been sent away to guard the border.
Another five years passed. Prince Chi Man, who was most likely to become the next emperor, was tilted king and was sent out of the imperial city. After 15 years passed, the princes were titled kings and sent away one by one. After 30 years of time, only Prince Ji Du remained!
During these 30 years, Prince Ji Du had been very quiet and hadn’t interacted with the outside too much. His status as the next emperor was set and he no longer had to act in secret. He just had to wait.
After all the other princes were titled kings and sent away, the people of the Ancient Shi knew who the future emperor would be.
Ji Du gradually began to come in contact with all the hidden powers that belonged to the Emperor. In the remaining 70 years, his father was going to slowly pass the power to him.
This was something all new emperors in all three Ancient clans had to do, and it was also the most peaceful time.
Everything proceeded as planned and Ji Du still maintained good habits. Almost every morning when he got up, he would silently look toward the direction of the ancestral temple.
He didn’t know when he would next see his godfather, but this habit remained the same. Many clansmen who later followed Ji Du noticed his and were very puzzled. Even though they secretly inquired about it, they could not find any clues.
Time slowly passed and this matter became a secret.
In addition to this habit, during these 30 years, he didn’t forget Wang Lin’s command. He had sent a lot of powerful people to Blackstone City to silently guard a woman. That woman was called Song Zhi.
After more than 100 years, Song Zhi was no longer the same as before and revealed the passage of time. She never knew that the lord of Blackstone City and countless powerful experts had a secret mission because of her.
In a flash, another 20 years passed. On the 50th year since Wang Lin had stepped into the ancestral temple, a grand ceremony was held in the Ancient Shi.
This grand ceremony was not Song Tian’s crowning ceremony, but his wedding. He had chosen one of Song Tian’s descendents, a woman named Song Yu, as his wife.
This woman was doted on by Song Tian and was one of the few descendents who could personally listen to his teachings.
This grand festival lasted for several months, and during this time, members of the other two clans came. From the Ancient Dao came a middle-aged man, and if Wang Lin saw him, he would see that this person looked very similar to Ye Mo.
He was Ye Mo’s descendant.
After this festival ended and everyone had left, Ji Du brought his wife before the ancestral temple as the moon hung high in the sky.
The moonlight was soft and bathed the Ancient Ancestor statue. Ji Du silently pulled his puzzled wife’s hand toward the ancestral temple and stopped 100 feet away from it.
He looked at the ancestral temple and entered a trance. After a long, long time, he silently knelt down. The woman beside him was puzzled but didn’t ask and instead knelt down with him 100 feet away from the ancestral temple.
Ji Du softly said, “Song Yu, we are not bowing to the Ancient Ancestor.”
The woman was startled.
“We are bowing to my godfather.”
“Godfather?” The woman was surprised.
“Godfather, I have taken Lord Song’s descendent as my wife. She will be the future empress of the Ancient Shi. Today, I brought her here to pay respects Godfather!” Ji Du was very respectful. This came from his heart and he was being very sincere.
He would forever remember that everything he had obtained had been given to him by Wang Lin. He would always remember that if there was no Wang Lin, he would’ve had no chance of becoming emperor.
Even the woman beside him would not be his wife; she would belong to Chi Man instead.
“Godfather, there are 50 more years before the day this child becomes the new emperor. This child hopes that I can see Godfather that day…”
The woman beside him seemed to remember something and looked at the ancestral temple in shock. She vaguely remembered that her Song family’s old ancestor, Lord Song, had inadvertently mentioned a name.
When this name was mentioned, Song Tian’s expression became complicated and showed a hint of respect.
The woman whispered, “Wang… Lord Wang …”
Ji Du didn’t speak but knelt there for a long time before he got up and silently left with his wife. However, when he was a few hundred feet away, a voice came from the ancestral temple.
“When you become the new emperor, I’ll be there.”
Ji Du’s body trembled and he suddenly turned around. He looked at the ancestral temple and smiled.
Wang Lin was sitting deep inside the ancestral temple. His body was giving off the smell of decay and had withered greatly. He looked like a corpse.
But his eyes were bright as the stars.
“The Ancient clan’s Three Trials and Seven Calamities. In the cave world, I completed two trials and four calamities and I even passed the first calamity of the third trial.
“The first calamity of the third trial was the Ancient Race Heavenly Blood!
“The second calamity of the third trial is the Ancient Dao Three Soul Splits!
“The third calamity, which is the last one, is the Blessing of the Ancient Ancestor!” Wang Lin murmured as he looked ahead. There was a stone tablet before him, and engraved on it was all the information about the Ancient clan’s Three Trials and Seven Calamities.
After a long time, Wang Lin closed his eyes and the voice that had appeared when he passed the first calamity of the third trial and obtained the drop of soul blood echoed in his mind.
“If I want this sky to collapse, it will collapse. If I want this earth to break, it will break! If I want a being to die, no one would dare to stop me. If I want no celestials to remain alive, who would dare to save them…”