Cultivators often wondered about time, and how it would pass. As well as the immensity of the tasks they had with them.
The tasks that they had brought them goals, most of which were not short.
"Don't think of this as something you have to do right away Lin Mu. Think of it as a long term goal that is far away from the horizon." Xukong advised. "Besides, the ring hasn't 'asked' you to search for the next part yet. If you consider your past experience, while the ring had signaled for its part in the Rust Sky world, it didn't force you then." He explained.
Lin Mu listened to Xukong's words and realized that he was simply over thinking about it.
"That's right, the ring did inform me about the location of the second ring in advance. It was only when the prince had found it that it urged me to actively go and secure it." Lin Mu said with realization.
"Exactly." Xukong acknowledged.
"So let's say it does tell me about another part of it, it's not necessary that I'll have to rush to it as long as someone else does not find it." Lin Mu repeated it to himself.
It was a kind of self assurance that he needed.
Deep down, Lin Mu also knew that if someone were to find the next ring, he might have to rush for it. But it was not something he needed to worry about now. After all, if he continued to worry about the future, he would forget about the present.
~HUU~
Lin Mu let out a long breath, feeling a lot better than before.
Even if his mind was still tired, it didn't feel as heavy as the start.
"Thank you senior." Lin Mu said with gratitude.
The advice that Xukong provided might seem obvious, but when one is in a flurry of thoughts that keep one on the edge, assurance from a second person helps bring them out of it.
"Mm, you don't need to worry about it at all. Besides, with the kind of progress you've had, I'm sure you will fulfill all your goals." Xukong said with a hint of pride.
"Mmhmm, I just have to see how things go then." Lin Mu said and closed his eyes, letting them rest for a bit.
Ten minutes passed like this in silence after which Lin Mu had a thought.
"Senior, you're inside the ring right? Is there any change there?" Lin Mu wondered if the merging of the two rings had brought forth changes inside it too.
"Well… The barrier has turned opaque." Xukong said while looking at the Altar.
"It has?" Lin Mu furrowed his brows.
"Indeed. It did so the moment the rings merged." Xukong replied.
"Then are there any other changes there? Any disturbance?" Lin Mu questioned next.
He found it a bit strange, that it was only the barrier around the altar that had become opaque and not something more radical.
"It is rather calm here." Xukong answered finding it strange too.
"Hmm… perhaps when the two rings have finished their synchronization it might happen." Lin Mu replied after thinking for it.
"Can you sense the other ring?" Xukong asked with curiosity.
Unlike the first ring, Xukong was actually unable to sense the second one.
"Yes… while I can't fully tell what its doing there seems to be some kind of exchange or interaction between the two rings." Lin Mu answered.
"Peculiar…" Xukong muttered.
He moved towards the barrier and observed it closely.
'The Runes used for it are still unrecognizable. But it's certain that the barriers defenses have been raised after the merger of the two rings.' Xukong discovered after observing it.
He didn't dare to touch the barrier in this state either, not knowing if it would cause him or Lin Mu some backlash.
Half an hour passed like this, after which Lin Mu felt a lot better. He took out a few pills to restore his energy stores and quickly assimilated them. And while he did this, he could also sense the rings syncing up.
'I can sense the second ring better with each passing minute… they are certainly linking.' Lin Mu thought to himself.
~HUMM~
And by the time he was finally done assimilating all the Immortal Qi, he sensed the transformed ring tremble on his finger.
A thought rose from the ring and entered Lin Mu's mind, telling him something.
"It's calling me…" Lin Mu closed his eyes and felt his body turn weightless.
In the next second, he was standing inside the ring's space.
~SHUA~
Opening his eyes, Lin Mu sensed the energy waves that were spreading everywhere.
"Senior." Lin Mu called out.
Xukong flew over to him from a distant part of the barrier.
"So it called you in here?" Xukong asked seeing the energy waves that were spreading in the ring.
"Indeed… Looks like its time." Lin Mu said with a serious expression.
"Well then, looks like we'll get a lot to see." Xukong said, sensing the rising intensity of the energy.
~HUALA~
And sure enough, the change happened quick.
Millions upon millions of runes formed all around the barrier, covering the area. Lin Mu looked around and found the runes to be below him, above him and around him. There seemed to be no pattern to the runes and they were spread randomly.
"What runes are these?" Lin Mu could tell that they weren't exactly Dao Script.
Some of the runes seemed close to Dao Script, but a majority were unknown to him.
"Even I don't know. It is probably some long lost script from the ancient times." Xukong replied.
"You don't know either?" Lin Mu raised his brows in surprise.
There was very little that Xukong did not know, or could not make a guess about.
~HONG~
But Lin Mu didn't have long to wonder about it all, as the runes soon brought forth another change.
They started to assemble themselves into an array and not just any array but a True Grand Formation Array!
