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nThe Cave of Trials, the eighth floor.

nXue Hongfeng sat on the ground, meditating. He was dressed in black, with cold, steely features. He was from an Immortal Lord clan, and his aptitude was extraordinary, especially for the Dao of the Saber. Yet… he’d failed to overcome the eighth trial twice in a row.

nXue Hongfeng gnashed his teeth. “Next time, I’ll win for sure!”

nSuddenly, the golden Dao stele to the side of the hall drew his attention. A rain of light scattered as a new ranker appeared: three hundred and ninety-third place.

nThis rank wasn’t high, but it absolutely wasn’t low, either. After all, despite the passage of countless years, only a select handful of Universe Realm Immortals had ever overcome the trials of the eighth floor.

n“He’s just one rank below me!” exclaimed Xue Hongfeng. After overcoming the seventh floor, his results put him in three hundred and ninety-second place!

nA moment later, he saw the new arrival.

nHe was a young man in blue, tall and upright, with the air of one who’d risen out of the dust of mortality. Most importantly, he showed absolutely no sign of a cultivation base.

nThis made it impossible to see through him.

nThis was, of course, Su Yi.

nHe glanced at the meditating Xue Hongfeng, then proceeded toward the next trial.

nBut then, Xue Hongfeng suddenly said, “Please wait!”

n“Do you have business with me?” asked Su Yi.

nXue Hongfeng rose and grinned. “My name is Xue Hongfeng, and I’m from the White Reed Province, a scion of Divine Cloud Mountain’s Xue Family. Might I ask your name?”

nDivine Cloud Mountain’s Xue Family! A famous Immortal Lord clan of the White Reed Province!

nAnd Xue Hongfeng was the son of their leader, a prominent elite of their younger generation! He’d stepped into immortality at just three hundred and ten years of age!

nAlas, Su Yi had never heard of him, so he naturally didn’t have much of a reaction.

n“I’m Su Yi.”

n“Oh,” said Xue Hongfeng. He then got straight to the point, “I’d like to duel you!”

nSu Yi found this quite surprising. “And how would you like to duel?”

nXue Hongfeng swept his gaze across the area. “We can do it here, to victory and defeat. The loser offers the victor their supply of immortal medicines.”

nSu Yi’s gaze was strange. “You’re just short on immortal medicine, aren’t you?”

nXue Hongfeng’s expression froze, and he looked a bit uncomfortable, but he didn’t hide it. “That’s right.”

n“At least you’re honest.” Su Yi casually took out a stalk of immortal medicine. “Our meeting was a stroke of fate. This is yours.”

nXue Hongfeng was astonished, but he threw it back and said in displeasure, “I’m no wastrel mooching off my family’s name! And I won’t accept handouts from anyone!”

nSu Yi laughed. “You’ve got spirit.”

nXue Hongfeng’s eyes flashed with imposing light. “Drop the nonsense! All I want to know is, dare you fight me? Rest assured. Although I lack immortal medicines, I have plenty of treasure. So long as you win, I’ll give you this!”

nWith that, he flipped his palm, and a purple seven-inch flying knife floated into the air. Misty light flowed around it, and it glinted with sharp, resplendent light.

nIt was obvious at a glance that it was an extraordinary, high-quality treasure.

nSu Yi just glanced at it briefly, then looked away. “Very well.”

nXue Hongfeng burst into laughter. “That’s the kind of spirit a cultivator ought to have! Based on that alone, win or lose, I’ve got to befriend you!”

n“…..” Su Yi didn’t know what to say to that, so he just said directly, “Then let’s get started. I’m in a hurry.”

n“A hurry….?” Xue Hongfeng frowned and was just about to say something when Su Yi turned, stepped toward him, and pressed down.

nXue Hongfeng’s pupils constricted. He’d fought his way to the eighth trial, so he was naturally no ordinary genius. By the standards of the Immortal Realm as a whole, he might not compare to the monsters at the top of the Universe Realm Immortal Rankings, but he was still a top-class figure.

nBut Su Yi’s casual palm strike made him feel an unprecedented, powerful sense of impending crisis.

nWithout the slightest hesitation, Xue Hongfeng bellowed. His sleeves billowed, and he raised his hands into the air, like an overlord holding a tripod cauldron aloft!

nBoom!

nSurging immortal light interwove with terrifying power.

nBeneath Su Yi’s palm strike, Xue Hongfeng was like a mantis trying to block a chariot. His strike shattered instantaneously.

nThe pressure sent Xue Hongfeng flying backward, and he slammed into a distant wall.

nBang!

nThe entire hall shook.

nXue Hongfeng practically deflated. His long hair hung loose, and he looked utterly dazed. I… couldn’t even block a single hit!?

nSu Yi tossed that stalk of immortal medicine back over and laughed. “Consider it a loan.”

nWith that, he turned and left the hall.

nXue Hongfeng’s gaze shifted erratically.

nSuddenly, he looked ashamed, and he muttered curses under his breath. “Fuck! I really embarrassed myself this time. What good are those rankings? They aren’t reliable at all, dammit!”

n……

nThe battleground of the eighth trial.

nThere were six trial guardians, each powerful to the extreme.

nThem aside, all manner of powers of the Laws targeted the trial-takers. The booming of thunder intimidated the soul, baleful mists influenced the heart, and fierce gales restricted the movements…

nMost terrifying of all, all six trial guardians were twice as strong as the trial-taker!

nThis trial was simply perversely difficult.

nIn this trial, Su Yi faced an extraordinary threat. A full hour passed before he finally managed to take the trial guardians down, one by one!

nBut he paid a heavy price to do so. His entire body was covered in bleeding wounds, and his cultivation base was on the brink of running dry.

nYet Su Yi felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction!

nIn this battle, he’d given it his all, unleashing everything he’d learned and further excavating his latent potential. He’d benefited considerably.

n“Ultimately, the Cave of Trials tests determination, wisdom, and potential!

n“The trial guardians might seem unreasonably powerful, but ultimately, they’re manifestations of the Laws. They lack essence, qi, and spirit, and they naturally lack the will to fight without regard for their own lives, the determination to fight on, and potential to excavate!”

nAs he refined the rain of light the defeated trial guardians had left behind, Su Yi silently sensed his changes. He could clearly discern that he’d unleashed yet more of his latent potential, and that his cultivation base had advanced!

nStarting from the sixth floor, the trials had gotten difficult and perilous.

nBut at the same time, the rewards for passing were simply enormous.

nSu Yi had gone from the first floor to the eighth in just four hours, but on every floor, his development and revelations were extraordinary.

nHe had an incomparably firm cultivation base, but he’d nonetheless gone from the early-stage Cloud Soaring Realm to the middle stage. He was already starting to show signs of a breakthrough into the late stage!

nThis rate of advancement was practically miraculous!

nThis chapter is updatd by freēwebnovel.com.

nHad Su Yi simply cultivated assiduously in the outside world, he couldn’t possibly have done this.

nMeanwhile, within the hall of the eighth floor, Xue Hongfeng’s heart shook.

nAn hour had passed, but Su Yi hadn’t returned. That unquestionably meant he’d passed the eighth trial!

nThat guy is every bit as perversely strong as the Divine Jade Pure Lands’ Wen Jue! But why haven’t I heard of a monster like him before?

nXue Hongfeng was completely stunned.

nSuddenly, he thought back to when Su Yi suppressed him beneath a single palm strike.

nHe showed no sign of immortal power. He only used Laws on the level of the Path of Transcendence. Don’t tell me… he’s yet to become an immortal!?

nXue Hongfeng’s eyes widened, and his mind went blank. Does that mean someone yet to become an immortal defeated me with a single palm strike?

nA long time passed before Xue Hongfeng finally calmed down, looked at the stalk of medicine Su Yi had given him, and muttered, “What an impressive guy!”

n……

nThe hall on the ninth layer of the Cave of Trials.

nWeng!

nWhen Su Yi arrived, a rain of light appeared on the golden Dao stele, followed by a ranking:

nEighty-first!

nThis ranking was far beyond his prior score.

nBut from another angle, this proved that despite the passage of countless years, very, very few challengers had ever made it this far!

n“Huh?” A surprised voice rang out.

nHe was a handsome young man in dark robes and a Daoist Crown. He had an extraordinary bearing.

nIt seemed he hadn’t expected that someone would arrive at the ninth-floor hall, and his eyes were wide with surprise.

nSu Yi disregarded him, but after an inadvertent look around the room, he noticed a corpse seated in the corner!

nIt belonged to a man in jade-colored robes. His long hair hung loose, and his body was covered in blood. His life force had long since dried up, and his body was as stiff as wood.

n“Please don’t misunderstand,” the young man in dark robes explained. “That’s the unrivaled top genius of the Divine Jade Pure Lands’ younger generation. His Dao Heart broke, leading to obsession and death.”

n“Is that Wen Jue?” asked Su Yi.

nThe young man in dark robes nodded. “That’s right. Not long ago, he repeatedly attempted and failed the ninth trial. His heart burned with obsession, and in the end, he couldn’t escape this insidious catastrophe. He perished, and his Dao was destroyed.”

nSu Yi laughed. “It seems you’re terrified I’ll misunderstand.”

nThere was no need to even question it. The young man in dark robes had to be Pu Heng of the Six Directions Daoist Temple.

n“Anyone in my shoes would feel the same, especially since Wen Jue’s background isn’t simple. He was the most extraordinary rising star among the Divine Jade Pure Lands’ Universe Realm Immortals, and he was even higher in the Universe Realm Immortal Rankings than me. Now, he’s died in the Cave of Trials, and I just happened to be nearby. How could someone not suspect me?”

nPu Heng sighed deeply. A moment later, he laughed. “Fortunately, you’re here, Fellow Daoist. You can serve as my witness.”

nMeanwhile, Su Yi walked up to Wen Jue and examined him intently.

nShortly after, he sighed. “It’s a pity.”

nPu Heng sighed too. “It really is a pity. When your heart shatters, no one can save you. That’s what makes the ninth trial so terrifying. It’s full of heavenly demon karmic flame, a strange and terrifying power. When it corrodes your heart, it’s like a heart devil, and it can easily lead you to obsession and destruction.”

nSu Yi shook his head and looked at Pu Heng. “No, it’s a pity that he didn’t die of obsession.”

nPu Heng looked stunned. “What do you mean?”

nSu Yi laughed. “Unless my eyes deceive me, while he might well have run into mental instability, what really destroyed his heart was a poison known as the Five-Colored Tribulation Demon Flower.”

nHe paused, then continued, “And if I’m not mistaken, you’re the one who poisoned him.”

nPu Heng’s expression shifted dramatically.

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