23: Remains of inscriptions on an isolated island, ancient cave dwellings

Deep within the deserted island, danger lurked everywhere. Lin Xuan did not dare to delay; he took the injured Gongsun Yu, as well as Su Wanqing and Qu Feiyan, who were in poor condition, and quickly left the clearing that was permeated with the stench of demon plants.

Relying on the keen perception of his Golden Core Divine Sense, he navigated through the dense jungle, avoiding several areas with obscure auras where powerful existences were clearly entrenched. Finally, on the leeward side of the island, he found a relatively hidden cliff. At the base of the cliff lay a natural cave, mostly obscured by vines.

Lin Xuan probed inside with his Divine Sense, confirming that there were no signs of life within the cave, only the dry bones left by beasts and some dried moss.

"We will rest here for now." Lin Xuan swept aside the vines at the entrance with a wave of his palm and walked in first.

The cave was not deep, but it was dry and spacious enough to accommodate the four of them. Su Wanqing helped Gongsun Yu sit on a relatively flat stone and carefully examined her injuries; she was primarily suffering from excessive consumption of Spiritual Qi, internal injuries from being constricted by the demon plant vines, and mental trauma, all of which required time to heal.

Qu Feiyan took the initiative to set up a few simple warning and concealment Restrictions at the cave entrance. Although they were not comparable to the great formations of the Misty Immortal Palace, they could still serve as a warning.

Lin Xuan stood at the entrance, gazing at the gray sky and the turbulent, ink-blue sea, his brows furrowed. His Divine Sense constantly extended outward, attempting to probe the boundaries of this sea or find any familiar landmarks, but the results were disappointing. This sea seemed boundless, and although the Spiritual Qi was dense, it was filled with a wild and violent intent that did not correspond to any records of sea areas he was familiar with.

"Where... have we ended up?" Gongsun Yu took a Medicinal Pill, and as her complexion slightly improved, she looked at the scene outside the cave, her voice tinged with a hint of confusion and fear.

Su Wanqing gently patted her shoulder to comfort her, but her gaze also turned toward Lin Xuan, carrying the same question.

After finishing the Restrictions, Qu Feiyan walked to Lin Xuan's side and stood with him, looking out at the vast sea. Her red lips parted slightly: "Although the Spiritual Qi here is dense, it is chaotic and violent; this is definitely not a safe place. Moreover, I always have the feeling... that something unsettling is hidden beneath this seawater." In her charming eyes, the usual laziness had faded, replaced by a sense of gravity.

Lin Xuan nodded; he shared the same feeling. This sea area felt even more primitive and dangerous to him than the environment in the Misty Immortal Palace that had been eroded by Devilish Qi.

"The top priority is to recover our strength as soon as possible, then find a way to determine our location and figure out how to leave," Lin Xuan said in a deep voice. "This island is not small; perhaps we can find some clues here."

He turned to look inside the cave, his gaze sweeping over the walls, when he suddenly let out a soft "Eh." He had been too focused on ensuring their safety earlier to look closely, but now, illuminated by the light from the entrance, he noticed that there appeared to be some man-made carvings on the inner stone walls of the cave.

He stepped closer and brushed away the dust and moss from the stone wall, revealing several lines of ancient writing that were extremely faded yet still vaguely legible. The handwriting was sloppy, as if it had been carved in a state of extreme haste or weakness.

"...Mistakenly entered this 'Eternal Desolate Sea,' and it has been three hundred years... My resources are exhausted, my Dao Foundation is damaged... there is no hope of recovery... Later comers, if you see this, leave immediately! Do not venture deep... There is a great terror in the sea... sleeping... Do not disturb it..."

The writing ended abruptly here, as if the person who carved it no longer had the strength to continue.

"The Eternal Desolate Sea?" Su Wanqing walked over as well. Looking at the writing, a flash of shock appeared in her cool, clear eyes. "I once saw this name in an extremely ancient Sect Incomplete Manual. It is said to be a forgotten, cursed land of exile located at the edge of the world where time and space are chaotic. Those who enter face a near-certain death, and there are very few records of anyone ever returning..."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of Qu Feiyan and Gongsun Yu turned incredibly grim. A land of exile? The edge of the world? This was even worse than getting trapped in some unknown Secret Realm!

Lin Xuan's heart sank as well. No wonder the Void Realm passage had been so unstable; it had actually thrown them into such a godforsaken place!

"The Senior who carved these words seems to have been trapped here for three hundred years before finally passing away..." Gongsun Yu's voice trembled. "Will we also..."

"We won't," Lin Xuan interrupted, his tone categorical and filled with a convincing sense of composure. "Just because those before us couldn't do it doesn't mean we can't. Since someone was able to get in, there must be a way out!"

His gaze swept over the writing once more, lingering for a moment on the words, "There is a great terror in the sea... sleeping... Do not disturb." This was undoubtedly a grave warning.

"There might be other items left behind by this Senior on this island." Lin Xuan used his Divine Sense to carefully search the entire cave, not missing a single corner. Sure enough, in the deepest part of the cave, beneath a pile of inconspicuous rubble, he discovered a small, hidden Storage Pouch sealed by a Restriction.

The Restriction was already extremely weak due to the passage of time, and Lin Xuan easily broke it. The space inside the Storage Pouch was small; it contained only a few scraps of Spirit Stone that had long since lost their Spiritual Qi, a broken Jade Slip recording some kind of water-escape Divine Ability, and a crude sea map drawn on an unknown animal hide.

Most of the sea map was blank, with only the island they were currently on (labeled as "Reef Island" on the map) marked in one corner, along with a dotted line pointing in a certain direction. At the end of the dotted line was a blurry, vortex-like mark, with two small characters labeled beside it—【Return Ruins?】

Return Ruins?

Lin Xuan's pupils constricted slightly. In many ancient legends, the Return Ruins was the place where all waters converged—the end of the world, possessing the power to devour everything. Was this sea map a guide to a path of survival, or was it pointing toward an even deeper despair?

He handed the sea map and the Jade Slip to the three women to examine.

"Return Ruins... that is certainly not an auspicious name." Qu Feiyan's brows furrowed tightly.

"This Senior might have left this map as his hypothesized path to escape, but it could also... be the dead end he ultimately failed to reach," Su Wanqing analyzed.

Gongsun Yu looked at the vortex mark, her small face turning pale.

Lin Xuan stroked the rough animal-hide sea map, his expression shifting. The road ahead was uncertain and fraught with danger, but this map was their only clue for now.

He put away the sea map and the Jade Slip, then looked out at the still turbulent sea outside the cave, his gaze gradually becoming resolute.

"First, let us recover our strength. Then, we will go and see what this so-called 'Return Ruins' is truly like."

Whether it leads to a dead end or a path to survival, we must go and brave it ourselves.