Just as Li Heng was about to voice his thoughts—perhaps this was something related to the Immortals—the air in the room stilled.

  The world around them seemed to lose its weight.

  Then, before their very eyes, golden runes began to emerge, as if ink had come alive and was bleeding out into the air from an invisible brush. The symbols pulsed, shifting like waves of flowing energy, each character brimming with an ancient power beyond mortal comprehension.

  The space trembled, and in an instant, all three—Li Heng, Li Yuntai, and Li Xun—felt their souls being dragged out of their bodies.

  When they opened their eyes, they were no longer in their courtyard.

  Instead, an endless, dark expanse stretched before them. Stars shimmered in the distance, yet their light was swallowed by the vast nothingness. Celestial bodies—planets, moons, and unknown worlds—drifted through the void. Some were wrapped in golden clouds, others burned with immortal flames, and some lay in ruin, as if they had been destroyed in an ancient battle.

  Time felt meaningless here.

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  The father and sons stood frozen, their mortal senses struggling to comprehend what they were witnessing. But before they could move or speak, the scene shifted once more.

  They now stood in a place unlike any they had ever seen—a tranquil, timeless realm. Ancient trees stretched high into the sky, their leaves glowing with ethereal light. A stone platform floated in the air, and atop it sat a lone figure.

  A man, dressed in flowing Taoist robes, sat in a meditative posture. His presence was overwhelming yet serene, as though he existed beyond the limitations of time itself. His features were obscured, neither old nor young, neither mortal nor divine. His presence demanded reverence—not through force, but through its sheer natural order.

  In his hands rested a wooden scripture, the pages glowing faintly.

  He was reading.

  The words from his scripture matched the very same runes that had appeared on the mysterious box. But now…

  They could understand.

  “The Dao is nameless, yet it gives birth to all names.”

  “The Dao is formless, yet it shapes all things.”

  “It is the source of creation, yet it does not create.”

  “It flows through all beings, yet it does not move.”

  “The one who seeks the Dao must empty the self, for only in emptiness can the Dao be filled.”

  As the words flowed through the air, a strange enlightenment filled their souls.

  This was not merely knowledge—it was a truth, woven into the fabric of the universe itself.

  And then—

  Everything shattered.

  With a gasp, Li Heng, Li Yuntai, and Li Xun snapped back to reality.

  The golden runes vanished, leaving behind the simple wooden box, sitting as if nothing had happened.

  Their breaths were ragged, their bodies drenched in cold sweat.

  Li Heng, a man who had lived through countless trials, looked down at his trembling hands. His heart pounded, not in fear, but in the weight of the revelation.

  Yuntai and Xun, still dazed, exchanged glances. What had they just witnessed? Was it a dream? A vision? Or had they truly stepped into the realm of the Immortals?

  One thing was certain—

  Their lives would never be the same again.