Chapter 82 The Family Token
Chapter 82 The Family Token
Chapter 82: Chapter 82 The Family Token
Lin Chen continued walking through the ruined valley.
Behind him, several cultivators followed at a distance.
At first, he paid them little attention.
The valley was unfamiliar, and everyone who had entered the Primordial Sealing Ruin had been scattered across different locations. It was understandable that some cultivators would prefer to travel with others rather than risk exploring alone.
However, these people had been following him for quite some time.
Whenever he slowed down, they slowed down.
Whenever he changed direction, they changed direction.
And whenever he stopped to examine something, they would stop as well.
Lin Chen’s brows gradually furrowed.
Are they planning to follow me all the way?
He stopped walking.
The cultivators behind him nearly collided with one another before quickly coming to a halt.
Lin Chen turned around.
"Why are you following me?"
The group exchanged glances.
A middle-aged cultivator hesitated before stepping forward.
"Young friend, we don’t have any particular intentions. We simply believe that traveling together would be safer."
Lin Chen looked at him calmly.
"Then find someone else to travel with."
The man’s expression stiffened.
Lin Chen continued, his tone neither hostile nor friendly.
"I prefer traveling alone. Please don’t follow me anymore."
He turned around and continued walking.
The cultivators remained where they were.
A few exchanged dissatisfied looks, but none dared to say anything.
They had personally witnessed Lin Chen kill a Void Refining Realm Level 7 beast with a single sword strike.
They weren’t foolish enough to provoke someone whose true strength they couldn’t determine.
After a brief discussion, they reluctantly chose another path.
Only after confirming that the group was moving away did Lin Chen relax slightly.
He had no intention of dragging strangers around with him.
The Primordial Sealing Ruin was full of unknown dangers. He didn’t know these people, and he had no reason to trust them.
He continued forward.
A few minutes later, he reached a stretch of broken stone walls covered in ancient markings.
He stopped beside one of them and examined the faded inscriptions.
Unfortunately, the characters were too damaged to reveal anything useful.
Lin Chen shook his head and prepared to leave.
Then he noticed a faint glow coming from inside his pocket.
He paused.
"What is that?"
He reached into his pocket and took out a small jade token.
It was approximately the size of his palm, with smooth edges and an ancient aura.
Engraved on its surface was a single character.
Lin.
Beneath it was the distinctive emblem of the Lin Clan.
Lin Chen immediately recognized it.
Before the 10 of them had left the clan, their Ancestor, Lin Hao, had personally given each of them one of these tokens.
At the time, Lin Hao had told them to keep the tokens safe.
He hadn’t explained every function in detail, but he had made it clear that the tokens might prove useful during their journey.
Lin Chen had placed his in his pocket and almost forgotten about it.
Now, however, faint light was flowing across its surface.
He turned the token over.
A thin golden line emerged from the engraved emblem.
It stretched into the air before splitting into several separate beams.
One pointed west.
Another extended toward the north.
A third angled toward the southeast.
Others pointed in different directions, each disappearing beyond the distant ruins.
Lin Chen’s expression changed.
"Wait a moment..."
He raised the token and carefully examined the beams.
There were 9 of them.
9 directions.
His eyes gradually brightened.
Could these be pointing toward the other members of the Lin Clan?
It was the most reasonable explanation.
All 10 of them had received identical tokens from their Ancestor.
If the tokens were connected, then the light might be revealing the locations of the other 9 holders.
Lin Chen infused a small amount of spiritual energy into the token.
The golden lines brightened.
Immediately afterward, a faint sensation entered his mind.
It wasn’t a voice.
It was more like a connection waiting to be used.
Lin Chen concentrated on the token.
A moment later, a simple message appeared in his consciousness.
Sound Transmission: Available.
He raised an eyebrow.
"So we can communicate through these?"
He tried directing his thoughts toward the token.
"Can anyone hear me?"
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then the token warmed slightly in his palm.
Lin Chen understood that he needed to send his message through the token rather than simply think about it.
He focused his spiritual energy on the emblem and spoke through the connection.
"Lin Chen here. I’ve arrived in a ruined valley surrounded by broken stone walls. I’m safe for now."
He paused briefly.
"The tokens appear to point toward one another. Follow the beams and come toward my location if you can."
His expression became more serious.
"Be careful on the way. Don’t take unnecessary risks just to get here. If you encounter danger, deal with it first."
He ended the transmission.
The token’s glow dimmed slightly, but the 9 beams remained visible.
Lin Chen looked at them for a moment.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Good. At least we won’t have to search for one another blindly."
He slipped the token back into his pocket and examined the surrounding valley.
He still needed to find a safe place to wait.
After all, knowing where his family members were didn’t mean the journey toward him would be easy.
And he had no intention of leaving anyone behind if he could help it.
At the same time, in another part of the Primordial Sealing Ruin, Lin Qing was making her way across a field of broken stone pillars.
The pillars were arranged in irregular rows.
Some had collapsed completely, while others leaned at dangerous angles.
Lin Qing walked cautiously, occasionally glancing at the markings carved into their surfaces.
She had just passed between 2 particularly tall pillars when the scenery suddenly changed.
The broken pillars disappeared.
In their place appeared a vast garden filled with flowering spiritual plants.
A gentle breeze brushed against her face.
The air smelled sweet.
Lin Qing stopped immediately.
She hadn’t heard anything.
She hadn’t felt any spatial fluctuations.
Yet the entire environment had changed in the blink of an eye.
She narrowed her eyes.
"An illusion formation?"
She didn’t rush forward.
Instead, she examined the flowers, the ground, and the direction of the breeze.
Everything looked convincing.
Even the spiritual energy in the air seemed real.
But something was wrong.
The flowers were swaying in the breeze, yet the loose petals scattered across the ground remained perfectly still.
Lin Qing’s gaze sharpened.
She raised one hand and released a small pulse of spiritual energy.
The beautiful garden trembled.
Crack!
A thin fracture appeared in the air.
Lin Qing directed another pulse toward it.
The illusion shattered like glass.
The garden disappeared, revealing the original field of broken pillars.
She had barely taken another step when a restriction activated beneath her feet.
Ancient symbols lit up across the ground.
A translucent barrier rose around her, cutting off the path ahead.
Lin Qing looked down.
"So there was another layer."
She examined the symbols.
The restriction wasn’t especially powerful, but its arrangement was complicated enough to trap someone who rushed forward without thinking.
Lin Qing crouched beside the nearest symbol.
She studied the pattern, traced the flow of spiritual energy, and identified the central point controlling the restriction.
Then she pressed 2 fingers against it and released a measured pulse of energy.
The symbols flickered.
The barrier trembled before dissolving into scattered points of light.
Lin Qing stood up and dusted her hands.
"An illusion followed by a restriction. Whoever designed this place certainly didn’t want visitors wandering around carelessly."
She continued onward, more attentive to her surroundings than before.
The ruin was not merely old.
It had been designed to test anyone who entered.
Far away, beside a strange river, Lin Yuexin was preparing to leave the water’s edge.
The river was unusually clear.
Its surface reflected the surrounding cliffs, but beneath the water, faint strands of spiritual energy moved like silver threads.
Lin Yuexin had stopped there earlier to examine the unusual energy.
She hadn’t discovered anything particularly valuable, so she decided to continue exploring.
The moment she turned away—
SPLASH!
Something burst out of the water behind her.
A dark, scaled beast lunged toward her back, its jaws opening wide.
Lin Yuexin reacted immediately.
She shifted sideways, allowing the beast to pass her, then struck toward its exposed flank.
BANG!
The impact sent the creature crashing onto the riverbank.
It rolled across the stones before quickly twisting around.
Its eyes glowed a murky green.
The beast roared and lunged again.
Lin Yuexin’s expression became serious.
She hadn’t expected something to be hiding beneath such a peaceful-looking river.
She avoided its claws and countered with a sharp strike that forced it backward.
The beast attempted to retreat toward the water.
Lin Yuexin didn’t give it the opportunity.
She moved forward and delivered another precise blow.
The creature fell heavily beside the river.
After confirming that it could no longer attack, she stepped back and examined the surroundings.
Only then did she notice something unusual.
The beast had been guarding a cluster of thick roots growing between 2 riverside rocks.
At the center of the roots hung a single pale-blue fruit.
Thin silver patterns covered its translucent skin.
Lin Yuexin approached carefully.
She checked the roots and the nearby stones for additional threats before reaching toward it.
The fruit detached easily.
A cool sensation spread across her palm.
She recognized it from the medicinal knowledge she had studied inside the Lin Clan.
A Frostwater Spirit Fruit.
It wasn’t a priceless treasure, but it was a useful spiritual resource.
Its energy could help purify a cultivator’s spiritual energy and improve control over it. Properly prepared, it could also soothe minor internal injuries and reduce fatigue.
Lin Yuexin examined the fruit.
"Not bad. At least this trip wasn’t a complete waste."
She carefully stored it away rather than consuming it immediately.
She had no idea what else the ruin contained, and keeping a useful resource might prove more valuable later.
Before leaving, she glanced once more at the river.
The spiritual energy flowing beneath its surface was unusually pure.
She took a moment to absorb a small amount of the escaping energy.
It wasn’t enough to produce a breakthrough, but it left her feeling slightly refreshed.
Then the jade token in her pocket began to glow.
The Lin Clan emblem shone faintly, and Lin Chen’s voice entered her mind.
Lin Yuexin listened to the message, and a smile appeared on her face.
"Lin Chen has found a way to locate us."
A beam of light appeared above the token, pointing toward a distant region of the ruin.
She adjusted her direction and began moving toward it.
Elsewhere, Lin Jue was crossing a narrow valley when he heard a desperate cry.
"Help! Someone, please!"
He stopped.
The voice came from behind a cluster of rocks farther down the slope.
Lin Jue approached carefully, keeping his spiritual energy circulating in case the cry was a trap.
He soon found a young cultivator lying near a patch of broken stone.
One of the man’s legs was pinned beneath a fallen slab.
Blood stained his robe, and his face had gone pale.
When he saw Lin Jue, relief flashed across his expression.
"Friend, please help me!"
Lin Jue didn’t immediately approach.
He first examined the ground around the injured man.
Several thin lines were carved into the stone.
They were almost invisible beneath the dust.
His eyes narrowed.
A trap.
The injured cultivator had apparently stepped into a restricted area. The fallen slab was only part of the mechanism. Several concealed energy lines converged beneath the rocks, and disturbing them carelessly could trigger another attack.
Lin Jue crouched at the edge of the formation.
"How did you end up here?"
The man swallowed.
"I was trying to find a way through the valley. I didn’t see the markings until it was too late."
Lin Jue studied his face.
The explanation was plausible, but he couldn’t verify it.
He decided to help without placing himself unnecessarily at risk.
He traced the energy lines until he found the point controlling the trap.
Then he released a small, carefully directed burst of spiritual energy.
One line dimmed.
A second flickered.
The pressure around the fallen slab weakened.
Lin Jue moved the stone aside and helped the injured cultivator free his leg.
The man gasped in pain but managed to sit upright.
"Thank you! I thought I was going to die here."
Lin Jue handed him a basic healing pill.
"Use this to stabilize your injuries. Don’t move too quickly."
The man accepted it with trembling hands.
"I owe you my life."
"Just be more careful next time."
Lin Jue stood and examined the valley ahead.
He had no intention of escorting a stranger through the ruin. The man needed time to recover, and Lin Jue needed to continue toward his own people.
Before leaving, he pointed toward a safer stretch of ground.
"Stay away from those markings. Follow the rocks on your left if you want to leave the valley."
The injured cultivator nodded repeatedly.
"I will. Thank you."
Lin Jue continued onward, remaining alert for more traps.
He had saved the man because he could do so without taking an unreasonable risk.
That didn’t mean he would blindly trust everyone he encountered.
A moment later, his jade token began glowing.
He took it out and listened to Lin Chen’s message.
After hearing it, Lin Jue nodded.
"Good. At least we have a meeting point now."
He followed the beam leading toward the ruined valley.
Meanwhile, Lin Mo was walking along a rocky path when he noticed several independent cultivators gathered around a small patch of red grass.
A single spiritual herb grew in the center.
Its leaves shimmered faintly, and a thin layer of spiritual energy surrounded its roots.
One cultivator was crouching beside it.
Another stood in front of him with a drawn sword.
"That herb belongs to me! I discovered it first!"
The second man scoffed.
"You discovered it? You mean you arrived first and decided that made it yours?"
"I found it!"
"And I have the strength to take it!"
Their argument quickly grew louder.
2 more cultivators began taking sides.
Lin Mo watched from a distance.
The herb wasn’t especially rare.
Its spiritual energy was decent, but nothing about it suggested that it was worth risking an injury over.
He had no reason to become involved in a dispute between strangers.
He quietly changed direction and continued along the path.
Behind him, the argument escalated.
Someone shouted.
A sword rang against another weapon.
Lin Mo didn’t turn around.
The ruin was vast, and there would undoubtedly be other opportunities to find useful resources.
He wasn’t going to waste time fighting over every herb he saw.
His jade token soon began glowing.
He took it out and listened to Lin Chen’s message.
Afterward, he glanced toward the beam pointing away from the rocky path.
"Looks like there’s no need to wander around aimlessly anymore."
He adjusted his direction and continued toward the meeting point.
In another section of the ruin, Lin Yu had just crossed a narrow stone bridge when the jade token in his pocket began glowing.
He stopped and retrieved it.
The Lin Clan emblem shone faintly, and Lin Chen’s voice entered his mind.
Lin Yu listened to the message, then smiled.
"So the tokens really can communicate."
He looked toward the beam pointing into the distance.
"All right. I’ll head over."
He put the token away and continued walking.
A few minutes later, the stone bridge behind him suddenly vanished.
Lin Yu stopped.
The path ahead remained unchanged, but the rocks behind him had disappeared, replaced by an endless stretch of darkness.
He glanced at the ground.
A restriction had activated.
The bridge had been part of a formation designed to separate anyone who crossed it from the path they had used to arrive.
Lin Yu examined the nearest stone pillar.
Several symbols had appeared on its surface.
He studied them briefly, then noticed that their light pulsed in a repeating pattern.
The restriction wasn’t completely sealed. It was cycling through a sequence.
He waited for the energy to weaken before sending a controlled pulse into the pillar.
The symbols flickered.
The darkness behind him rippled.
Then the original bridge reappeared.
Lin Yu nodded.
"That would have been troublesome if I’d rushed through."
He didn’t bother going back across it. Instead, he turned toward the path ahead and continued toward Lin Chen’s location.
Back in the ruined valley, Lin Chen found a relatively open area between several broken walls.
The ground was stable, and the surrounding structures provided a clear view of anyone approaching.
He decided it was a suitable place to wait.
He took out his jade token again.
The 9 beams were still visible.
Some had grown brighter.
Others remained faint and distant.
At least the connection was working.
Lin Chen sat on a broken stone block and waited, occasionally scanning the surrounding ruins.
Not far away, the cultivators who had previously followed him had stopped on a ridge.
They had intended to find another route through the valley, but curiosity had gotten the better of them.
They watched from a distance.
One of them whispered, "Why is he waiting here?"
"Maybe he’s expecting someone."
"Who?"
The other cultivator shook his head.
"How would I know?"
They continued watching, careful not to approach too closely.
After some time, a figure appeared between the distant ruins.
Lin Chen immediately stood.
The newcomer approached at a steady pace.
It was Lin Qing.
She reached the open area and looked at him.
"You found a good place to wait."
Lin Chen smiled.
"Your journey was smooth?"
"Mostly. I encountered an illusion formation and a restriction, but neither was particularly difficult to handle."
She glanced at his token.
"So these really can locate the others?"
Lin Chen nodded.
"They point toward the other holders, and I can send sound transmissions through them."
Lin Qing examined her own token.
"That will save us quite a bit of trouble."
Before they could say more, another figure emerged from between the broken walls.
Lin Mo had arrived.
He looked around before walking over.
"Am I the third one here?"
Lin Chen nodded.
"Yes."
Lin Mo shrugged.
"I passed a group fighting over a spiritual herb. I decided it wasn’t worth getting involved."
Lin Qing smiled faintly.
"A sensible decision."
A short while later, Lin Yu arrived.
He looked toward Lin Chen and the others.
"Good. You’re all here."
Lin Chen nodded.
"Any trouble?"
"An annoying restriction, but nothing serious."
One after another, more familiar figures appeared.
Lin Xuan arrived after crossing a stretch of broken stone terrain.
Lin Yuexin appeared from the direction of the river, having dealt with the hidden beast and secured the Frostwater Spirit Fruit.
Lin Jue was the last of the 6 to arrive. He explained briefly that he had stopped to free an injured cultivator caught in a trap.
With their arrival, 7 members of the Lin Clan were now gathered in the ruined valley.
Lin Chen.
Lin Qing.
Lin Mo.
Lin Yu.
Lin Xuan.
Lin Yuexin.
Lin Jue.
They exchanged brief accounts of what they had encountered.
Nobody had suffered a serious injury.
Nobody had gained anything extraordinary.
But each had learned something about the ruin and the dangers it contained.
Lin Chen looked around at the group.
"Good. At least most of us have gathered safely."
Lin Qing glanced at the jade token.
"There should still be 3 beams remaining."
Lin Chen nodded.
"Lin Lian, Lin Haochen, and Lin Zhen."
He looked toward the distant directions indicated by the tokens.
Their beams were still faintly visible.
That meant their tokens were active.
And as long as the connection remained, there was reason to believe the 3 were still alive.
"We’ll wait a little longer," Lin Chen said. "If they run into trouble, we may need to move toward them."
The cultivators watching from the ridge had grown increasingly uneasy.
They had seen 7 young people gather together.
Each wore the same emblem.
Each carried a similar jade token.
And none seemed particularly surprised to find the others.
One of the cultivators swallowed.
"Are they all from the same family?"
"It looks that way."
The first man stared at the group.
"7 of them, and every one seems remarkably calm."
Another cultivator lowered his voice.
"That young man killed the beast with one strike. I wouldn’t want to find out what the others can do."
Their earlier curiosity had turned into caution.
They no longer considered approaching the group.
The 7 Lin Clan members continued waiting.
Lin Chen checked the tokens once more.
The 3 remaining beams still glowed faintly in the distance.
He was about to put the token away when a low rumble rolled across the ruin.
The sound came from far beyond the broken mountains.
It was deep enough to make the stones beneath their feet tremble.
Everyone turned toward the distant horizon.
Lin Jue’s expression became serious.
"That didn’t sound like an ordinary beast."
Lin Yuexin looked toward her token.
One of the 3 distant beams flickered.
Then it steadied.
Lin Chen’s expression grew solemn.
"Stay alert."
He closed his hand around the jade token.
"Something may have happened to the others."
The rumble came again.
This time, it was louder.
And somewhere beyond the distant mountains, Lin Lian, Lin Haochen, and Lin Zhen had yet to reach the meeting point.