I Shall Seal The Heavens

by Srtyi

What I want, the Heavens shall not lack! What I don’t want, had better not exist in the Heavens!” This is a story which originates between the Eighth and Ninth Mountains, the world in which the strong prey upon the weak. “My Name is Meng Hao! The Ninth Generation Demon Sealer, I shall seal the Heavens! “

29. 841

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Chapter 841: The Ancient Road of Trial by Fire is Opened!

"The next time we meet," murmured Meng Hao, "it will be out in the starry sky." The departure of Pill Demon, Chu Yuyan, and the others, was too sudden, and left him feeling empty.

He thought back to his hundreds of years of cultivation, and it seemed like there many people who had ended up departing, and were no longer in the lands of South Heaven.

Patriarch Reliance was gone. Xu Qing was gone. Pill Demon was gone. Chu Yuyan was gone….

Thankfully, Fatty, Chen Fan, and the others were still there. There were some people Meng Hao wasn't sure about; the 10th Wang Clan Patriarch for example, Han Bei from the former Black Sieve Sect, and of course Dong Hu, who had joined the Reliance Sect at the same time as him.

Meng Hao sighed. He did not leave the Southern Domain along with his father. Instead, he went to the Golden Frost Sect. He and Fatty drank together. Fatty sent his more than one hundred beloved concubines away, and he and Meng Hao sat on top of a mountain, drinking and talking about the past.

They talked about the State of Zhao, and about Yunjie County. They talked about the Reliance Sect, and everything that had happened there. Eventually, evening fell, and the stars slowly came out. It was impossible to tell how much exactly they had drunk.

"I'm going to join the disciple recruitment event held by the Three Great Daoist Societies of the Ninth Mountain and Sea!" declared Fatty, tossing aside his alcohol flagon and looking determinedly over at Meng Hao. "I don't want to be stuck in the lands of South Heaven for the rest of my life. I want to go out into the starry sky!"

Meng Hao looked back at Fatty. He himself had heard from Zhixiang about the Three Great Daoist Societies' disciple recruitment trial by fire. News about the matter had now spread throughout the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea, even here to Planet South Heaven.

Fatty gazed at Meng Hao with an expression of determination.

"You don't need to say anything," Fatty continued. "I know that you won't stay in the lands of South Heaven for much longer either. Your path exists in the starry sky. Well, we're brothers, so if you go, then I won't stay behind! I'm going to give it a shot!"

Meng Hao didn't respond at first. He simply lifted his wine flagon and took a drink, looked at Fatty, and smiled.

Then he said, "Considering those teeth of yours, you'll definitely get some good fortune!"

Fatty laughed uproariously, then grabbed a flying sword and began to file at his teeth. The two of them laughed together, and then continued to chat until the sky turned bright. Meng Hao stayed with Fatty for a few days before leaving. The next stop on his journey through the Southern Domain was to visit Chen Fan.

Chen Fan sat as he always did, next to the mountain boulder. Meng Hao meditated silently next to him. Chen Fan no longer drank alcohol, but the stubble of a beard was still visible on his chin. An abstruse gleam could be seen deep in his eyes, but most of his time was spent gazing at the boulder, as if he were immersed in memories.

Meng Hao didn't interrupt him, but rather sat next to him for an entire night.

When the sky grew bright and the time had come for Meng Hao to leave, Chen Fan suddenly said, "I've decided to go to the trial by fire held by the Three Great Daoist Societies."

Meng Hao nodded and left.

His next stop was the Blood Demon Sect. He saw Wang Youcai, who, much like Fatty and Chen Fan, was interested in the trial by fire.

He also decided to participate, to take a chance for his future.

Meng Hao didn't see Patriarch Blood Demon. Outside of Patriarch Blood Demon's Immortal's cave, Meng Hao could sense a dense aura of death. He stood there for a long time before finally clasping hands and bowing deeply.

"Senior, I will never forget your kindness in helping me to Sever the Devil and Seek the Dao!" He bowed again.

The aura of death was the same as ever as Meng Hao finally turned to leave. Off in the distance, he could see the valley where he and Xu Qing had spent their final days together, as well as the location where they had been married.

It was a mountain, on one side of which were the beautiful memories of Xu Qing, on the other side of which was carnage and battle. That was where he and Xu Qing had been married.

As he gazed at the location, Meng Hao suddenly felt very lonely. After staring for a long moment, he finally left.

Now, he wasn't sure where to go in these sprawling lands. All he could do was look up into the starry sky.

"Perhaps it's time for me to leave as well."

Two months passed in the blink of an eye. Meng Hao went to the Milky Way Sea, to the Western Desert, to the Northern Reaches, and finally to the Eastern Lands. Eventually, the day came when the sky began to rumble, and the music of a great Dao spread out in all directions. Three enormous, multi-colored vortexes appeared in the sky.

The three vortexes' rotation caused a sound to echo out that could be heard by all cultivators in the lands of South Heaven. Be they in the Western Desert or the Southern Domain, in the Northern Reaches or the Eastern Lands, in that instant they could all see the three bizarre vortexes up above.

They looked like they were up in the sky, but actually, they existed in everyone's eyes.

Regardless of where the cultivators were located, as long as their cultivation bases met the requirements, and they had the desire to seek the Dao and find good fortune, then all they had to do was take a step forward and enter the vortex.

At the same time the vortexes appeared, an archaic voice echoed out from within them. Everything trembled, and no natural law could prevent the voice from echoing out as if from ancient times, striking fear into the hearts of all.

"The trial by fire was founded by the Three Great Daoist Societies, the Five Great Holy Lands, and the Three Churches and Six Sects!

"Anyone in the Ninth Mountain and Sea may participate, regardless of background, regardless of age, as long as the cultivation base requirement is met!

"The three vortexes are for the Nascent Soul stage, the Spirit Severing stage, and the Dao Seeking stage!

"First, walk upon the Ancient Road. The ten thousand people who reach the end the fastest will be able to participate in the honorable trial by fire!

"Of those ten thousand people, seven thousand will be from the Nascent Soul stage, two thousand from Spirit Severing, and one thousand from Dao Seeking! Cultivators of the Ninth Mountain and Sea…. let the trial by fire begin!"

Planet South Heaven trembled. Everyone knew that the enormous disciple recruitment trial by fire held by the Three Great Daoist Societies… was now underway!

Countless cultivators were prepared to participate. Their blood boiled at the possible good fortune in front of them. Without becoming Immortal, it was impossible to tread through the starry sky. Therefore, if they could seize this opportunity, they could have a meteoric rise, and be like a fish leaping from the sea into the heavens.

Simultaneously, similar vortexes appeared on Planet North Reed, Planet East Victory and Planet West Felicity, along with an identical voice with identical words. It was the same in the Ninth Sea and the Ninth Mountain. Throughout all locations in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, the voice echoed out, and three vortexes appeared.

The Ninth Mountain and Sea was completely abuzz, and countless cultivators were filled with determination, and hearts that wished to search for the Dao. They flew up toward the vortexes from innumerable locations.

More than ten thousand people flew up from the lands of South Heaven alone. Most were Nascent Soul cultivators, who flew into the Nascent Soul vortex to tread the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul. There were a smaller group who flew into the Spirit Severing vortex.

The smallest group was that which walked… the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking.

If you looked at the Ninth Mountain and Sea as a whole, it was really impossible to tell how many people tread the Ancient Roads.

This was a grand event for the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea, so the Three Great Daoist Societies, the Five Great Holy Lands and the Three Churches and Six Sects all sent people to stand guard over the three Ancient Roads.

These three roads had a long history. They might be called Ancient Roads, but in truth, they comprised an ancient set of crumbled ruins within the Ninth Mountain and Sea. Within those ruins existed uncountable good fortune, and they had supposedly existed longer than the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

In truth, the three roads were only a small portion of the larger set of ruins that the Three Great Daoist Societies exercised control over. The fact that the roads were opening now aroused ambitions in countless hearts in the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

This was especially true because… these ruins were called the Ruins of Immortality, and in the past, people had discovered Immortality Illumination Vines there. That was what had changed the entire structure of true Immortality in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. Furthermore, the other eight great Mountains and Seas had similar ruins in them.

Most areas inside of the ruins were restricted areas. This was especially true in the depths of the ruins. If you entered those places, you would almost certainly die. Throughout countless years, only the most powerful of experts had ever dared to travel into the depths of the Ruins of Immortality, and virtually no one had ever emerged alive.

Rumor had it that Lord Li had traveled into the depths of the ruins, but as for what had happened there, no one knew. They only knew that the Dharma Clone he had left behind issued the Dharmic decree regarding returning fate to the Heavens.

It was because of that Dharmic decree that, in following days, Lord Ji replaced the Heavens, which in turn drew the support of most of the powers within the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

There was another rumor that in the great Nine Mountains and Seas, regardless of which Mountain or Sea, anyone who could gain enlightenment regarding the secrets of the Ruins of Immortality, would become the Overlord of all the Nine Mountains and Seas.

Although this was a generally acknowledged point, no one could actually accomplish it, not even Ksitigarbha, the Lord of the Fourth Mountain and Sea.

Now that the trial by fire had begun, countless figures vanished into the three vortexes. Fatty, Chen Fan, Wang Youcai, and others all decided to take a chance to try to get some good fortune.

As for Meng Hao, he sat cross-legged underneath a towering tree in the Fang Clan of the Eastern Lands, looking up at the three enormous vortexes. After sitting there quietly for a moment looking at the flashing vortexes, a strange light gleamed in his eyes.

"You have the Immortal Ancient Dao Medallion, so if you want to join the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite, then you don't have to participate in the trial by fire." The voice came from Meng Hao's father, Fang Xiufeng, who strolled up from behind him. He stood behind Meng Hao and continued, "Furthermore, there is always the danger of perishing in the trial by fire. Aren't you scared of that?"

"Other than the chance to join one of the Three Great Daoist Societies, is there any other good fortune to be had?" asked Meng Hao.

"Of course there is!" replied his father. "If you get first place, then you can acquire a precious treasure. Considering the resources at the Three Great Daoist Societies' disposal, even I would be excited at the prospect of getting a magical item from them.

"Furthermore, father can tell you another secret. In addition to the founders of the Three Great Daoist Societies, the founders of the Four Great Clans, the Five Holy Lands, and the three Churches and Six Sects… all previously walked the Ancient Roads of the Ruins of Immortality!

"It was there that they acquired the unimaginable good fortune that allowed them to found their various clans and sects.

"It was the same with the Fang Clan Ancestor. That was where he acquired the bloodline that has ensured that the Fang Clan stands tall in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. That, of course, is…. the Fang Clan's Four Lives Awakening!"

"Dad, did you go there?" asked Meng Hao.

Fang Xiufeng didn't respond at first. After a long moment, he shook his head.

"Originally, your mother and I planned to wait for you to grow up, then we planned to take a trip there."

When he looked at his father, Meng Hao could sense that some amount of regret existed in his heart. He glanced back up at the three vortexes, and then a gleam of determination appeared in his eyes.

"Dad, I want to go."

"If you want to go, then go. We cultivators should never be afraid of dying!" Fang Xiufeng looked at Meng Hao, and the love in his eyes was clear, as was the look of encouragement.

"At the end of the Ancient Road are the arena matches. Actually… I hope that you do participate in this event!

"Do you know why your father's name is known throughout the Ninth Mountain and Sea, and is even known in other Mountains and Seas? That's because even when I was in the Spirit Realm, I never shrank from a fight with anyone in the same stage as me. I fought and killed my way to the place I am now. I passed up all the members of my same generation, suppressed them, and seized destiny. That is how to become powerful!

"Never forget, the word cultivation 修行 is made of two characters, 修 which implies studying and practice, and 行 which implies action. It is not enough to just have 修, the studying and learning. You must also have 行, action…. You must always strive forward; that is the way to reach the pinnacle of power!"

Meng Hao coughed dryly, and a bashful smile appeared on his face.

"Dad, I can't really identify with your path. I think… getting all of the Chosen in the Ninth Mountain and Sea to owe me money is the ideal way."

Fang Xiufeng's jaw dropped as Meng Hao chuckled and then flew into the air. His body flashed as he flew toward the Dao Seeking vortex. He took a deep breath, and without any further hesitation, entered.

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Chapter 842: Just a Misunderstanding….

The vortexes in the sky rotated, sending rumbling sounds echoing out in all directions. In virtually all regions of the Ninth Mountain and Sea, people were flying up into the vortexes. However, many of those people took steps to change their appearance upon entering.

They had various reasons for not wanting others to know who they truly were. After all, a grand event like this would draw the attention of the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea.

As soon as Meng Hao entered, he immediately sent some divine will out to the meat jelly. Moaning and groaning, the meat jelly helped Meng Hao to change his appearance to that of Fang Mu, from back in his days in the Violet Fate Sect.

Meng Hao was attending this event only for the trial by fire, and considering how he had flaunted his abilities in the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite Temple on Planet South Heaven, and was now making his way alone off planet, he figured it would be much more convenient to rely on a second identity.

Furthermore, there would be no better opportunity to become famous under a second identity than this trial by fire hosted by the Three Great Daoist Societies.

"It's too bad my second true self is temporarily incapacitated because the true Immortal's soul was damaged by the Immortal Tribulation," he thought. "But, that's not such a bad thing." Meng Hao's eyes glittered brightly after making the transformation, and he looked out at the pitch blackness surrounding him. He could just barely make out a vortex spinning around him, with faint beams of light occasionally coming into view as they spun around him.

The sensation of being pulled along grew even stronger, and he felt increasing pressure weighing down on him.

After enough time passed for an incense stick to burn, a bright light became visible up ahead in the darkness. It grew brighter and brighter, and soon, completely enveloped Meng Hao.

When his vision grew clear once again, Meng Hao found himself looking out at a void, which was densely packed with countless platforms. Some were thirty meters wide, others, three hundred, and some three thousand.

The sizes varied, and in the center of each of the platforms was a stone stele, upon which could be seen a map. Beneath each stone stele was a candle holder. The candles were unlit, leaving the maps on the stone steles cloaked in darkness.

As for how many platforms there were, it was impossible for Meng Hao to count. His divine sense was under incredible pressure, making it impossible to send it out very far. As Meng Hao looked around, more and more people came into view. Much like Meng Hao, they stared out in shock at all the platforms.

All of them had peak Dao Seeking auras, and there were even a few who didn't quite measure up to the Chosen he had encountered before, but were very close.

They all wore different clothing, and bore different appearances. There were men and women, old and young. Some weren't even humanoid, but looked like beasts. From what Meng Hao could tell, there were several hundred in his immediate vicinity, with more and more people appearing off in the distance.

It was hard to tell who it was that flew out first, but soon, one of the three-thousand-meter platforms was occupied by a cultivator. After that, all of the cultivators who materialized in the void shot out toward the platforms at full speed. Each person who appeared occupied a single platform. Fighting broke out, but it was controlled. After all, there was no reason to unleash vicious fighting the moment they entered the Ancient Road trial by fire. It wasn't worth it.

Furthermore, any ownerless platform apparently created a bond to whoever set foot on it first, and the unlit candle would then begin to burn, illuminating the map on the stele.

As such, there wasn't very much fighting. As the saying goes, first come, first served, so anyone who was beaten to a particular platform would quickly leave in search of another.

Meng Hao's eyes glittered. The three-hundred-meter and three-thousand-meter platforms were relatively far away from him, and the closest one to him was a thirty-meter platforms, so he quickly made his way toward that one.

However, just when he was about to step foot onto it, someone else nearby apparently had the same idea as he did. It was a tall, hulking man with ripples spreading out from beneath his feet which, if you looked closely, resembled illusory seawater that contained three swimming fish. Overall, it made the hulking man seem incredibly impressive.

He and Meng Hao were both about to step onto the platform at exactly the same time, when the hulking man snorted coldly. Killing intent flickered in his eyes.

"Screw off!" he said.

With that, his right hand made a hurling motion toward Meng Hao. The fish began to swim through the water at incredible speed, and an intense power surged out, transforming into an illusory sea dragon which shot toward Meng Hao, mouth gaping open to consume him.

Meng Hao's expression was as calm as ever, but he moved with explosive speed as he dodged past the sea dragon and then set foot onto the platform one breath of time before the hulking man.

In that instant, the candle on the platform burned to life, sending light spreading out in all directions. The hulking man's face was very unsightly as he glared at Meng Hao, and he let out a cold snort as he shot toward another nearby platform.

Meng Hao's expression was the same as ever, and he completely ignored the hulking man as he sat down cross-legged in front of the stone stele to examine the map. The map encompassed a huge area, but roughly ninety percent of it was covered in darkness, leaving only about ten percent clearly visible.

Within that small visible area, he could see numerous narrow roads spreading out, the origin of which was the location he was in now. The end location of all the roads was a place near the dark area on the map.

Out in the void, more and more candles were springing to life; apparently the number of platforms here was equal to the number of people who had arrived. Before long, all of the cultivators had occupied a platform.

Unfortunately, a handful of unlucky cultivators ended up dying in the fighting.

As for the hulking man from earlier, he had managed to secure a platform to the right of Meng Hao. He looked over at Meng Hao occasionally, his eyes glowing with killing intent. The spat between the two of them had obviously left him irritated.

Apparently, Meng Hao didn't notice the man, and focused intently on studying the map.

After enough time passed for an incense stick to burn, everything grew quiet. Finally, an archaic voice boomed out through the void.

"I am Ling Yunzi of the Ninth Sea God World. As of now… the Dao gate has opened, and the Ancient Road stretches out. All of you must traverse the road… use it to corroborate your Dao, and to corroborate your destiny! 1

"The road is well-lit, but is filled with danger. Any who tread it must do so with utmost caution!

"As of this moment, if you turn back, you still have a chance to retreat. But once you step forward…when you look back, there won't even be the safety of a shoreline." His voice rang out over all the platforms, filling the entire area. All of the Dao Seeking competitors in the trial by fire could hear him.

When Meng Hao heard the Ninth Sea God World mentioned, he looked up. It instantly made him think of Fan Dong'er, and he felt a bit apprehensive. He reminded himself that he had changed his appearance, but still didn't feel any less nervous. He quietly took out the black feather the parrot had acquired, and placed it an easily accessible location in the front of his robe.

"You may now enter the road. This is a trial by fire, and anyone with unsuitable latent talent will be eliminated first, leaving behind only the most suitable candidates.

"After that, you shall not simply walk as you wish along the road. At every stage along the way, you will be tested.

"Depending on your performance in the tests, I will arrange for you to proceed a certain number of steps. Everything you do here is visible to observers on the outside, so you need not fear that I will be unfair in my decisions.

"And now, let the first stage begin, the stage of combat!

"You may use any means fair or foul, even deadly means, to snuff out as many candles as you can in the time it takes an incense stick to burn! Anyone whose candle is snuffed out will lose the qualification to continue. Anyone who is killed will automatically be considered to have their candle extinguished!" As soon as they heard Ling Yunzi's words, all the Ninth Mountain and Sea cultivators in the Dao Seeking trial by fire felt their hearts tremble, and their killing intent exploded up.

Everyone had assumed that all participants would be allowed to enter the Ancient Road, and that the fastest one thousand among them who reached the end would be able to proceed. They had never imagined that the trial by fire would actually begin in this way.

The point of the first stage was to prevent one's candle from being extinguished, and at the same time, put out the candles of the others.

In the blink of an eye, people began sending out Dharma Clones to charge toward other platforms. Instantly, fierce fighting broke out; divine abilities and magical techniques caused everything to rumble and shake. The entire area was thrown into chaos, and roaring filled the ears of everyone present. It only took a moment before screams of death rang out.

Even as Meng Hao's eyes began to glitter coldly, the hulking man off to his right who had been glancing at him murderously gave a vicious laugh and waved his right hand. Instantly, a Feng Shui compass flew out, which then transformed into a glittering spell formation that spread out to protect his candle. Then the man flew out toward Meng Hao.

"I've killed lots of peak Dao Seeking experts," he said. "Since you dared to compete with me, then you'll be the first person I kill in this trial by fire!" The illusory seawater swelled beneath his feet as he stepped onto Meng Hao's platform. He quickly performed an incantation gesture, causing a sea dragon to roar toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao was sitting cross-legged next to the candle, and when he looked up his face was calm. There wasn't even a cold gleam visible in his eyes. He looked placidly over at the hulking man, then waved his hand through the air in a snatching motion. Shockingly, the Star Plucking Magic was unleashed.

The first thing that it grabbed was the sea dragon, which was completely incapable of fighting back, and although it struggled for a moment, Meng Hao simply pinched his fingers together, and it collapsed into pieces. The hulking man's eyes widened; he was well aware that the sea dragon had materialized with roughly eighty percent of his total power. Normally speaking, there were few peak Dao Seeking experts in the Ninth Sea who could possibly evade this sea dragon.

However, he had just watched as his opponent casually waved a hand and crushed it to pieces. In that instant, the hulking man's scalp went numb, and he was very nearly scared out of his mind.

"Not good!" he thought. "Don't tell me this is one of those inhuman freaks from one of the sects or clans? Impossible! I've seen all of those people from afar, but I've never laid eyes on this guy before!"

The man's face fell, and he immediately cried out with a loud voice: "Misunderstanding! Fellow Daoist, this was just a misunderstanding…."

As he spoke, he retreated at top speed. However, Meng Hao's Star Plucking Magic bore down on him and snatched up him. The hulking man's face filled with fear, but Meng Hao's was expressionless as he gently squeezed down.

Boom!

Before the hulking man could even let out a bloodcurdling scream, his body was crushed into pieces, and he was destroyed in spirit and body. When he died, his candle immediately snuffed out.

After making his deadly attack, Meng Hao pointed toward the Feng Shui compass that covered the hulking man's candle. It trembled, and was just about to fly back toward Meng Hao when a black beam flew toward it. The beam turned into a black-robed youth, who reached out to grab the Feng Shui compass.

However, almost as soon as his hand latched onto the item, Meng Hao's cold snort echoed out. When it entered the young man's ears, he began to tremble violently, and subconsciously looked over at Meng Hao. When their gazes locked, his mind filled with a roaring sound.

To him, Meng Hao's gaze felt like two sharp swords, stabbing into his eyes and threatening to slash his mind into pieces, stabbing into his brain and down into his soul.

The young man's face fell, and he coughed up a huge mouthful of blood. His face was pale, and he ceased all attempts to grab the Feng Shui compass.

"Fellow Daoist!!" he cried urgently in a raspy voice. "Pardon my offense!"

1. Ling Yunzi's name in Chinese is 凌云子 líng yún zǐ – Ling is a surname which also means "rise high." Yun means "cloud," and Zi means "son" or "child." Also, 凌云 is a word which means "soar to the skies." Therefore, his name contains a bit of clever wordplay

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Chapter 843: Fight For Supremacy, the Entire Way!

Meng Hao didn't immediately slaughter the young man. He calmly beckoned with his hand, causing the Feng Shui compass to fly over and settle onto his hand. Because the hulking man was dead, the item was currently masterless, so after Meng Hao sent some divine sense into it, it was branded to him.

"It's definitely mysterious," he said, "but unfortunately, not very powerful." He waved his hand again, causing two ultra high-grade spirit stones to fly out from his dwindling collection. He pushed them onto the Feng Shui compass before their aura could spread out and be detected.

In the blink of an eye, the Feng Shui compass changed. Although it looked normal, it now exerted a spell formation which was far mightier than it had been before. It was worlds apart. Meng Hao quickly placed it down next to him, whereupon its glow spread out to cover the candle.

"Unless someone like Taiyang Zi or one of the other Chosen show up, this should hold out for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. Ordinary peak Dao Seeking cultivators won't be able to break through it." He rose to his feet and looked around. By now, half of the time was already gone, and he had only extinguished one candle. There were others off in the distance who had snuffed out seven or eight. Perhaps some people even further off had extinguished even more.

In the same moment that Meng Hao left his platform, people in the outside world, in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, were looking up at what had once been merely swirling vortexes, but now contained enormous viewing screens.

Those screens displayed everything that was happening on the Ancient Roads, although the images were very small. Of course, if one's cultivation base was high enough, it was still possible to clearly see each and every individual despite how small they were on the screen.

Countless people in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were watching the screens. There were people from the Three Great Daoist Societies, the Four Great Clans, the Five Holy Lands, and the Three Churches and Six Sects, as well as various powerful rogue cultivators.

The various sects were paying especially close attention. They were not clans, and therefore had to recruit disciples from outside. Therefore, they would be paying close attention to the trial by fire. Many would not wait until the end of the event was reached, but would select disciples to recruit throughout the process.

Of course, numerous conversations could be heard among the crowds throughout the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

"The Three Great Daoist Societies have created ten stages within the three Ancient Roads in the Ruins of Immortality. Each stage involves a different test, which will allow them to slowly filter out the competitors, and leave behind only the future Chosen."

"It's possible that some of the people who get eliminated might have great potential, but were just unluckily knocked out."

"Look, the current leader on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul has already extinguished 39 candles. Although the Nascent Soul cultivators' cultivation bases aren't very high, they have an intense will to fight!"

"The highest number of extinguished candles on the Ancient Road of Spirit Severing is 27!"

"Who is that masked young man on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking…? He's already extinguished 19 candles!"

"The Ancient Road of Dao Seeking is the most interesting after all. See that one guy? He's probably a disciple of the Li Clan. He's changed his appearance, but you can recognize who he is from the divine abilities he's using. He's already put out 15 candles."

Even as the discussions were going on outside, Meng Hao flew out toward a thirty-meter platform on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. As soon as he set foot on it, an enraged roar echoed out, and an old man with disheveled hair appeared. A will of madness radiated out as he charged toward Meng Hao.

"Die!" he cried, performing an incantation gesture that caused a fissure to appear, which then transformed into a broadsword!

"Void Severing!" he cried, causing some others in the area to look over in shock and then backpedal. Meng Hao turned, his expression calm as he gazed at the incoming Void Severing attack. He did not retreat, but instead utilized the Golden Roc Transformation. At the same time, he used the powers of the black feather inside his robe so that the golden roc actually looked like a pitch-black vulture instead.

The vulture sped through the air toward the incoming Void Severing attack. When they slammed into each other, a huge boom echoed out, and the Void Severing blade collapsed, completely incapable of fazing Meng Hao in the slightest. When the old man saw this, his face filled with shock, and he fell back. However, before he could get very far, a blast of wind gusted against him as Meng Hao swooped down in vulture form. Claws slashed out, and a splattering sound could be heard as the man's head was crushed.

This was a trial by fire, a fight for good fortune. If you didn't kill your opponent, your opponent would kill you.

Meng Hao had experienced much gory brutality, so he was used to things like this. He wouldn't allow such a thing to affect him inwardly. When the old man died, his candle went out, and Meng Hao proceeded to the next platform. If nobody blocked his path, he would merely extinguish the candle; if people tried to kill him, he would return the favor and end their lives.

In a brief moment, Meng Hao swept across the entire area. No one could offer any resistance for longer than the space of a single breath, and ended either with a death, or an extinguished candle.

Meng Hao proceeded along as if he were walking across dried up weeds, his intense energy allowing him to rapidly rise up above the others.

Three candles. Four candles. Five candles….

Meng Hao attacked viciously and decisively. Currently, of the dozen or so people in his vicinity, there were four or five who were concealing their cultivation bases. When Meng Hao attacked them, their power exploded out; although none of them seemed to be on the level of Taiyang Zi and the other Chosen, they still possessed unique and exceptional divine abilities.

There was even one person who controlled powers which resembled those of Lu Bai, the Chosen from the Northern Reaches who used a Time divine ability. When this person attacked, he could seemingly lock down space and time in shocking fashion. 1

Any other peak Dao Seeking expert who went up against people like this, especially the one who could control space-time, would most certainly perish. However, Meng Hao possessed eighty percent of the power of a true Immortal, and could even eradicate false Immortals. Each and every attack he made either killed someone, or snuffed out a candle. Booms rattled out constantly.

The only time he didn't instantly attack with lethal force was when he faced the old man who could control Time. After a bit of observation, he realized that this Dao of Time was the same type he had gone up against when he fought Lu Bai. At the time, it had definitely tantalized him, but was something that until now he still couldn't quite understand no matter how much he contemplated it.

When he attacked, he paid close attention to the results. Considering he had eighty percent of the power of a true Immortal, he was able to pick up some clues. As they fought, the old man grew more and more shocked, until finally he was virtually scared witless. From his view, he was fighting what appeared to be an ordinary youth, one that still somehow appeared to be analyzing and even imitating his Dao of Time. At a certain point he even seemed to be utilizing some of the same power, which left the old man completely shocked.

"Inhuman! This guy must definitely be one of those legendary Chosen!!" The old man's heart trembled, and it was without hesitation that he suddenly extinguished his own candle to ensure that he could continue to live.

Meng Hao's eyes glittered in response to the old man's decisiveness, and he made no further attacks. After the candle went out, he gave the old man a glance and simply teleported past him and continued onward.

Roughly a third of the amount of time it takes an incense stick to burn remained, and Meng Hao had already extinguished 19 candles!

Most of the platforms in the area were empty. As for the people whose candles were extinguished but who were not killed, one by one, they faded and were teleported away by the power of the Ancient Road, having lost any qualifications to continue with the trial by fire.

Many people were shocked by this; it didn't matter if you died or simply lost the qualifications, you were eliminated either way. This was a heavy blow to anyone who had placed high hopes in coming here and skating through some of the tests.

"So that Dao of Time is similar to the power of Time that I wield. There are similarities, but they're actually different!" Meng Hao's eyes were calm, but a thoughtful flicker could be seen in his pupils. The battle just now had not been short, and Meng Hao had actually benefited quite a bit. 2

As of now, he stood on one of the platforms, and his eyes swept about the area. Finally, his body flickered and he flew off in a different direction.

It was at this point that the archaic voice of the Ninth Sea God World's Ling Yunzi suddenly echoed out again.

"Of that one incense stick's worth of time, there are now less than one hundred breaths of time left…. After those one hundred breaths of time, the first stage will be complete. Those of you who extinguish the most candles during that time, and also prevent your own candle from being extinguished, will receive a special reward!"

This announcement caused the entire Ancient Road of Dao Seeking to boil with excitement. Similar announcements were made on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul and the Ancient Road of Spirit Severing. The participating cultivators' killing intent immediately soared upward.

Meanwhile, in the outside world, vast crowds were paying close attention to the three screens visible in the giant vortexes. The Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul was a mass of chaos. On the Ancient Road of Spirit Severing, the fighting was more orderly.

The Ancient Road of Dao Seeking was unique. On the screen, what was clearly visible were over ten thousand locations in which a powerful expert had completely cleared out all of the candles nearby, making something like a vacuum for themselves.

Of those ten thousand or so areas, some were large and some were small. However, if you could rise above the field of competitors like an awl poking through a sack, it proved that you were a powerful expert. Soon, the experts began to fight among themselves.

"There's already someone who's extinguished seventy candles on the Dao Seeking road!"

"There's not much time left! This trial by fire is completely brutal! So many people have already been eliminated!"

The outside world was abuzz. Back on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, many people were so agitated that their eyes were completely red. Some were attacking with deadly force, and some had already made significant achievements and were just stalling, waiting for time to run out. Meng Hao looked around, then barreled into a nearby area where eight people were all fighting each other at the same time. All of these people were powerful experts who had already cleared out the other nearby areas.

Shockingly, one of them was a fierce pangolin, a wild beast whose bright eyes revealed that it was no less intelligent than any human.

There was also a woman whose body appeared to be young, but whose face was covered with wrinkles. A pink, illusory image, which was clearly the early form of a Dharma Idol, could be seen behind her.

All of these seven or eight people fought with vicious attacks that sent booms rattling out in all directions. However, none of them seemed capable of overcoming the others, and in fact, some of them appeared to have joined forces.

As soon as Meng Hao neared, they looked over at him. None of them knew him, nor each other; they were all from different locations in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. They were here to fight for good fortune, so the instant they saw Meng Hao, the pangolin flashed through the air as it charged toward him. A few of the others also charged Meng Hao, their eyes flashing.

"No matter how much we fight, we can't overcome each other! Instead of wasting time fighting each other, let's go kill some other people! The good fortune will go to whoever is lucky enough to land the killing blow!"

"Yeah! This guy showed up here after us. His battle prowess is obviously ordinary, otherwise he would have already wiped everyone in his own region out!"

"He's just unlucky! Kill him!"

The seven or eight people charged with killing intent in their eyes. Of course, despite their words, they were still on guard against each other. They might seem to have joined forces to attack someone else, but that didn't mean they were any less likely to attack each other.

As the eight people closed in, Meng Hao's expression was calm, and he stopped in place. There were now less than 61 breaths of time left before the conclusion of this stage; time was running out quickly.

In the blink of an eye, the eight people were upon him. The pangolin's numerous scales lifted up as a divine ability rumbled out, seemingly powerful enough to break apart a mountain. The woman also waved her hand, causing a pink aura to spread out behind her, which transformed into a pink skull.

The others also unleashed various divine abilities as each and every one leveled astonishing attacks.

Meng Hao looked on calmly, then clenched his right hand into a fist and punched out toward them through the void.

When the punch landed, an indescribable blast rose up, sweeping across the eight attackers. Their faces fell as Meng Hao made his move!

1. Lu Bai was introduced in chapter 720 and appeared in several following chapters. He and Meng Hao entered the world underneath the Ancient Dao Lakes, and he was last seen trying to fight his way up the tower as Meng Hao left

2. The abilities of Lu Bai (and this old man) are described with different Chinese characters than the power that Meng Hao uses. However, both have the same meaning, "Time." The characters of Meng Hao's "Time powers" carry more of a sense of "years" as in aging.

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Chapter 844: First Place in the First Stage!

He transformed into a wind. A whirlwind!

The intense whirlwind swept out in all directions through the void, filled with crackling lightning. It was like a windstorm that swept across everything as it shot toward the incoming eight cultivators.

When the windstorm hit them, their divine abilities were shaken, and their expressions became that of shock. Their hearts trembled with astonishment. All of these people had slaughtered their way out of their own respective zones among the platforms, and were essentially the strongest people from those areas. In the outside world, they could be completely domineering in all the Spirit Realm, to the point where it was even difficult for them to outdo each other.

No one had ever been able to stand up to them, or outdo them in terms of power. And yet, Meng Hao's one punch left them feeling as if they had run into a windstorm.

This was a windstorm they couldn't fight back against nor resist. This windstorm… contained the might of Heaven and Earth, limitless destructive power that could rip them to pieces as easily as dried up twigs!

This was… a completely and thoroughly crushing power!

Intense rumbling rose up, and the whirlwind screamed, filled with never-ending bolts of lightning as it hurtled at top speed toward the eight cultivators. The eight cultivators' minds filled with roaring sounds, and intense light. The incredible scene instantly drew the attention of other people on the larger battlefield.

In that moment, everyone outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea who was watching the trial by fire stared fixedly at the three vortex screens.

On the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, massive carnage was visible. The Ancient Road of Spirit Severing was similar. Fatty could be seen there, soaked in blood, roaring as he pounced forward to latch his teeth onto the neck of an enemy. His eyes were bloodshot, and his teeth glittered brightly. He howled as his opponent's candle was extinguished.

Even Fatty didn't realize how ferocious, and even savage, he appeared. He had already drawn the attention of quite a few sects.

Then there were Chen Fan, Wang Youcai, Li Shiqi, and others who Meng Hao knew from the lands of South Heaven. They were all on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul. Some died, some were disqualified, others… fought until the very end!

Chen Fen held a sword in his hand. His expression was gloomy, seemingly without the slightest bit of life in it whatsoever. He seemed empty and dark, which affected his attacks, causing them to be filled with a similar gloominess. However, a black aura swirled around his sword, and anyone who encountered it would feel their emotions suddenly being affected. Therefore, Chen Fan was also distinguishing himself on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, and drawing quite a bit of attention.

Fatty and Chen Fan had both been noticed, as had many others. This was merely the beginning of the event, and if they could continue to perform so stunningly, or even take first place on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, then they would definitely have a chance at good fortune.

Of course, what drew the most attention was the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. The fighting there had given rise to a foul wind and a bloody rain and, having come to its most critical juncture, was definitely the focal point for most of the audience.

It was easy to see the contrast with the chaos of the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing. The Ancient Road of Dao Seeking was filled with a shocking murderous aura. Of the previous ten thousand or more areas, each one was now controlled by a single powerful expert, all of whom were now fighting each other viciously as they attempted to extinguish each others' candles.

Victory or defeat was determined within the space of a few breaths in battles like that, and soon, massive changes to the situation on the battlefield could be seen.

"93 candles extinguished! Who is that? I've never seen anything like it!!"

"Look at that guy in the mask! He's put out more than almost anyone else. He's the first to extinguish more than 100!"

"Look, the Chosen from the Li Clan has extinguished more than 100 too!"

Everyone was in an uproar, and was crying out loudly.

"200! The person in first place has put out 200 candles!!"

"Things are happening too fast! The suspense is killing me! The guy with the mask, he's… he's… he's actually exceeded 300!!"

"He's the only one who's exceeded 300. The next four people behind him have around 200 or more. Those five are definitely the most powerful people in this stage!"

"Time's almost up!"

The sound of the uproar filled the air.

Back on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, there were five people who had attracted the most attention from the other cultivators. The cultivators from the Three Sects and Six Churches, the Five Great Holy Lands, and the Three Great Daoist Societies watched the vortex screens, eyes filled with strange gleams. All five of those people shared something in common….

They stood completely alone in their respective areas, surrounded by emptiness!

Of those five people, the most prominent was the young man wearing the pitch-black mask. His black hair floated around him, and he wore a black robe. He looked almost like a shadow, and he exuded a cold, desolate and deadly aura.

His attacks were incisive, and he didn't even seem to use any divine abilities. The simple wave of a finger would cause the divine will of other peak Dao Seeking cultivators to be destroyed, and their Nascent Divinities would be shattered and perish.

There was another person among the five, a young woman. She wore a gauzy violet gown that made her look like the flower of the same name. Her face was obscured by some unknown technique, making it impossible to tell exactly what she looked like. She seemed charming and gentle, but attacked with complete ruthlessness. She was surrounded by countless violet flower petals, and upon each one could be seen a drop of blood. It was an astonishing sight.

The third among the group of five was a boy. He was skinny and virtually hairless, but possessed of remarkable speed. Furthermore, his body was covered with countless blue-colored decorative patterns that looked like sealing marks, which appeared to have formed naturally, as opposed to having been added later.

He exuded a wild and barbaric aura that he concealed as best he could; however as his blood flowed through his veins, the aura seeped out, and it made him seem like he wasn't a cultivator, but rather some savage beast from the wilderness.

The fourth person was a middle-aged man. His expression was cold and haughty, and he wore a white robe. He was surrounded by a cloud of brown mosquitos, each one of them the size of a fist. Their mouthparts were long and pointed, and buzzing could be heard as they circled around him. The sight was enough to cause anyone's scalp to go numb.

The mosquitos' bright red eyes and savage bloodthirsty appearance left everyone trembling from fear.

The fifth person was extremely peculiar. Sometimes he looked old, sometimes he looked middle-aged, and sometimes he looked like a teenager. It was as if his age were in constant flux. Every time he changed, his battle prowess would surge; he clearly cultivated some strange and bizarre Daoist magic.

These five people were currently the focus of most of the attention on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. Each one of them had extinguished more than 200 candles, and the masked young man had put out more than 300.

Ranked behind them were many other Chosen who weren't the focus of as much attention. However, this was only the first stage, so it was really impossible to say how things would turn out in the end.

"There are less than thirty breaths of time left!!"

"These people are the mightiest amongst the mighty! With only thirty breaths of time left, it would be hard to change the outcome. The first stage is essentially over! The results are set!" Most people were thinking this way. Even the cultivators from the major sects felt the same way.

It seemed like time was about to expire, but just at this moment the whirlwind created by Meng Hao's fist swept over the eight people who were attacking him.

"Impossible!" cried the woman. Her eyes shone with disbelief, and she performed a double-handed incantation in an attempt to fight back. All of the power she could muster transformed into a mist that blocked the windstorm. However, the mist was instantly shattered, and the woman let out a bloodcurdling scream as she first began to vibrate and then was ripped to shreds by the windstorm, destroyed in spirit and body.

The windstorm spread out, accompanied by her shriek. Three more people went all out with their cultivation bases, and yet were incapable of standing up to the crushing power of the windstorm. Popping sounds rang out as they were exterminated.

The remaining four people were scared out of their minds, and wanted to flee, but couldn't. The windstorm surrounded them, and the shadow of death loomed up. Their original intent was to slaughter Meng Hao, but his deadly counterattack left them trembling, minds filled with terror.

They were about to plead for mercy, but the windstorm overwhelmed them. Two of them had no time to even speak, and were shattered into fragments. Their candles winked out.

"I refuse to accept this!" roared the beast cultivator, the pangolin. His fleshly body was the most powerful among them, but even he could only hold out for a single extra breath of time before his scales were ripped off and his flesh shredded by the windstorm. In an instant, he was nothing more than a skeleton.

All eight cultivators were dead!

In that moment, Meng Hao's count of extinguished candles broke past the 100 mark and began to climb toward 200!

The windstorm did not fade away. Meng Hao remained in the center position, his expression calm as he punched downward three more times. Then he took a deep breath and punched another three more times.

Rumbling filled the air as the windstorm experienced a threefold increase in size. Massive amounts of lightning crackled about, and the sound of thunder was deafening. The gigantic windstorm swept out in all directions, and reached a size of 3,000 meters in the following ten breaths of time.

By now, even the people on the outside world had noticed the enormous, lightning-filed windstorm on the vortex-screens.

"What's that!?!?"

"I didn't notice that before! Where did that huge windstorm come from?!"

"Heavens! That windstorm is still growing!!"

It wasn't just the crowds who were now paying attention to the windstorm. Even Ling Yunzi from the Ninth Sea God World was eying it. By now, there were only three breaths of time left before the first stage ended!

Three. Two! One!!

Boom! BOOM!! BOOOMMMM!!

In the same instant in which the stage concluded, Meng Hao's windstorm spread out to a size of 30,000 meters! Simultaneously, it exploded, accompanied by numerous miserable shrieks, cries of alarm, and roars of defiance.

Furthermore, the number of candles listed next to Meng Hao's name rose rapidly!

200!

300!

400!

500!!

All of the cultivators caught up in the enormous 30,000-meter windstorm were completely wiped out. In the blink of an eye, the entire area of the windstorm was swept completely clean. The only person remaining… was Meng Hao. He stood in the middle of the windstorm, his hair whipping about, his expression calm. However, even the outside audience could sense that deep within the calmness was a vicious ruthlessness.

In that instant, the entire Ancient Road of Dao Seeking went completely quiet. The audience outside stared at the vortex screens, eyes wide with disbelief at the sight of Meng Hao standing there, surrounded by complete emptiness.

He had come up from behind at the last minute to clinch first place in the first stage!

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Chapter 845: Rising Star!

As of this moment, all eyes were on Meng Hao!

It wasn't just the people watching in the outside world. The remaining cultivators on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking couldn't help but look over at Meng Hao. Although everyone was separated by large distances, within the void of the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking he was the only one who had been able to clear out everyone within 30,000 meters. The sight was enough to shock everyone.

Even the person who had previously been in first place, the masked young man, had only been able to clear an area around 20,000 meters wide to call his own.

As of now, the high-level members of the Three Sects and Six Churches, the Five Great Holy Lands, and even the Four Great Clans, were all inwardly shaken. Their eyes glittered brightly, and many voices could be heard.

"Use any means necessary to send that man a message. Whatever his requirements are, get him to join the Burning Incense Stick Society!"

"Getting first in the rankings during the first stage doesn't say too much. There are quite a few more stages to go, so there will certainly be others who rise to prominence. I'm afraid the person who came in second place won't be shown much interest at the moment. However… the first place winner, even if he doesn't do well in the following stages, showed such amazing strength in the first stage that we, the Church of the Immortal Emperor, must have him as a disciple! Send word down immediately!"

"His battle prowess is astonishing, and his temperament ruthless. A person like that is perfectly suitable to join us in the Church of the Blood Orchid!!"

Quite a few of the powers who made up the Three Churches and Six Sects were instantly attracted to Meng Hao because of his flashy display of power.

As for the Five Great Holy Lands, the Four Great Clans, and the Three Great Daoist Societies, although they were astonished, none made any such proclamations. However, they definitely looked at him differently than the others.

Also watching the Ancient Roads on the vortex screens were Meng Hao's parents. They were in the Fang Clan in the vast Eastern Lands, looking up at the spectacle. Meng Hao might have changed appearances, but Fang Xiufeng and Meng Li could still recognize him instantly.

When they saw that he had taken first place in the first stage, both of them smiled. They were smiles filled with pride and anticipation. Of course, Meng Hao's mother's smile also contained a bit of concern. However, she knew that Meng Hao's path… was his own to tread.

In the Kunlun Society, Grandmaster Pill Demon was watching the Dao Seeking vortex screen. Although nobody else might recognize Meng Hao, how could Pill Demon not be able to identify that person who had once been called Fang Mu?

Chu Yuyan stood next to Pill Demon, looking on silently. There were emotions in her heart which she would never be able or even willing to forget. After all this time, she had grown used to watching Meng Hao from a distance.

She was Pill Demon's apprentice, but in the Kunlun Society, Pill Demon had been directly accepted as Daoist Kunlun's apprentice, and had instantly become a blazing sun. Because of that, Chu Yuyan also had a unique position. It only took a short time for her to become acquainted with many of the Chosen there. Furthermore, because of her incredible beauty, countless Kunlun Society disciples began to pursue her.

Her worldview was now completely different. There was no sky above her head now, but rather, stars. What she saw when she looked around were not towering mountains, but rather, a sea of heavenly bodies.

Despite all of that, though, the memories of everything that had happened on Planet South Heaven were etched deep into her soul.

The first stage was over. Vast numbers of competitors had been eliminated from the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, and Dao Seeking. Those who had made it through now waited for the second stage, exhausted and anxious.

Next, archaic voices spoke out in the three different Ancient Roads. The words spoken were different, but the meaning was the same, as the voice notified everyone that the first stage was over, and at the same time… announced how many steps each competitor would be able to take!

"Those who extinguished fifty candles or less in the first stage may go forward 3,000 paces! One hundred candles or less, 5,000 paces!

"Two hundred candles or less, 7,000 paces. Three hundred candles or less, 9,000 paces… Five hundred candles, 10,000 paces!" For the first time, Ling Yunzi of the Ninth Sea God World appeared personally in the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. He was thin, and wore a long green robe. He had white eyebrows, and a blue mark could be see on his forehead that seemed to contain an entire ocean!

He stood there, his aura pulsing with monstrous power, as if he himself were made of a sea of stars!

Shockingly, the illusory image of a nine-headed sea dragon could be seen behind him. Although it was illusory, when Meng Hao looked at it, he felt as if he were looking at some celestial force.

Ling Yunzi could be considered one of the top most powerful experts in the whole Ninth Mountain and Sea!

His eyes swept the area, lingering for a moment on Meng Hao.

After he finished speaking, Ling Yunzi waved his sleeve, causing everyone in the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking to disappear as they moved forward beyond their own control, traveling an exact amount of steps in accord with the explanation that had just been provided.

Step by step, they advanced, encountering no candles or platforms along their way. They floated through the void until they reached a stretch of endless ruins. The crumbled remains of buildings could be seen, as well as ancient statues, dried up forests, rivers, and mountain ranges.

They were now in… the Ninth Mountain and Sea's Ruins of Immortality.

The void they had just been in was simply the entrance!

The only words that could be used to describe this area were: lifeless, archaic, ancient, mysterious, silent, and enormous!

Those were the six words that floated in the minds of all the competitors as they laid eyes on the Ruins of Immortality for the first time. The last word was actually the most prominent feeling that they experienced.

It was almost impossible to tell that this was a road of any sort. The one thing that stood out were the countless altars that stretched off in a line off into the distance. They seemed to be filled with an air of time, an ancientness. They were carved with complex magical symbols that were impossible for anyone to understand. The altars further off in the distance were covered even more thickly with magical symbols than the nearer ones, and gave off an air of incredible mystery.

If you had to call this place a road, then perhaps… the way the altars stretched out made the shape of that road visible.

It was impossible to tell how many altars there were; they extended out endlessly off into the distance.

Upon first glance, the altars didn't seem very big. However… they were actually incredibly enormous. In fact, the smallest of them were about thirty percent of the size of the entire void they had just been in.

Each and every one of the altars was simply gargantuan!

From this, it can be imagined how shocking the Ruins of Immortality were. From the feeling Meng Hao got, it was as if this place had not been constructed for use by cultivators, but rather, but some enormous race of giants.

But then, he suddenly changed his mind as he thought back to… what he had seen in the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite Temple in the mountains in the Eastern Lands. In his vision, he had seen many things that seemed to indicate that many such things existed ancient times. Perhaps giants and cultivators were actually one and the same.

The group that stopped at 3,000 paces was relatively small. They all ended up on one of the altars, and there was no crowding whatsoever. The largest group was made up of those who could go 5,000 paces. Despite the large number of people, each person still had a large area to call their own on that particular altar.

Next were those who could move 7,000 paces. There were fewer in that group, and they quickly spread out across the altar, eyeing each other.

When it came to 9,000 paces, there was only the masked young man and the person who could change his age. Currently, he had changed from being an old man to being young. He and the masked youth shared one enormous altar.

As for Meng Hao, he was the last person to come to a stop, in the lead position. He was the only person to occupy an entire altar all by himself!

Similar scenes were playing out on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing.

"The second stage, is the stage of killing!" said Ling Yunzi, his voice cold.

"The first stage was a test of your ability to engage in magical combat. Cultivators practice cultivation to be able to fight. We fight people, we fight the Heavens, we fight Earth. Only by fighting can we hew out a Heaven-defying destiny!

"This second stage of killing tests exactly how powerful you are in the Dao Seeking stage!

"This stage seems similar to the first stage, but is actually very different. In the first stage, you all fought different opponents. Some were weak and some were strong. There was no way to objectively determine exactly how powerful you are.

"In the second stage, you will all be fighting exactly the same enemy!

"To us cultivators, the Dao is of utmost importance. Our magics are prepared to protect our Daos. Without sufficient magic, how can we achieve our Dao? Therefore, all of you must unleash all the power you can in this second stage!

"In this stage, the time limit will again be set at one incense stick. This test is not regarding the number of fatalities you can inflict, but rather… how fast you can kill!

"Kill everything that you see. Anyone who cannot complete the task in the time it takes one incense stick to burn will be eliminated. In this second stage, your lives will be at risk. If you wish, you may turn and leave of your own volition right now!" Ling Yunzi's eyes swept across the crowd, but no one chose to withdraw. His expression cold, he swished his sleeve, and immediately, the magical symbols on the altars began to shine brightly. Rumbling filled the air, and brilliant light swirled everywhere.

The light quickly spread out to cover the entirety of each altar, completely enveloping each and every person.

1,000 paces behind Meng Hao, the masked young man stood there, staring at Meng Hao as the light enveloped him. His eyes shone with a fierce gleam as he watched Meng Hao disappearing.

"You won the first stage, but the second stage will not belong to you!"

The old man with the age-changing ability was now a teenager, and his eyes shone with a similar light.

Behind them were all the other contenders who had earned top marks in the first stage. Each one was looking at Meng Hao's disappearing figure, their eyes filled with stubborn gleams.

"Earlier, he obviously used some trick at the last minute. This time… he'll be forced to show his true colors!"

At the same time, on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing, everyone was also being covered up by the brilliant light. Soon no one was visible at all, and the only thing that could be seen within the glowing light was a list of names.

After each name was a number that indicated how many fatalities they had inflicted.

Back on Meng Hao's altar, a cold voice suddenly rang out in his ear asking his name. Meng Hao's face flickered slightly, and after muttering to himself for a moment, he responded with "Fang Mu."

In the blink of an eye, the characters Fang Mu 方木 appeared in the altar's light. Immediately, everyone in the Ninth Mountain and Sea could see it.

"His name is Fang Mu!!"

"Could it be possible that he's connected to the Fang Clan? Although, there are tons of people surnamed Fang who aren't connected to the Fang Clan."

"Fang Mu. Fang Mu…. He got first place in the first stage, I wonder how he'll perform in the second stage…."

"Don't think too much of it. There's no way somebody could take first place in the first stage and then again in the second stage. I suspect that he used some sort of forbidden Daoist Magic at the very last minute. Otherwise, he would never have come to the fore in the first stage. That's why he suddenly jumped into the spotlight at the last minute."

"Be that as it may, if he takes first place again, it would be totally Heaven-defying. The sects would be thrown into an uproar!"

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Chapter 846: Fastest!

The three Ancient Roads were filled with splendorous light that covered everyone. The only thing visible were the lists of names, some of which were real and some assumed.

Soon, the only thing Meng Hao could see was bright light, and then everything around him changed, even the sky; the altar seemed to become a massive, glowing spell formation. It didn't last for very long, only the space of a few breaths of time, and then the light vanished.

Everything around him had changed. There was no sky up above, only stars. There was no ground beneath his feet, only a gigantic 3,000-meter long ancient beast!

It was an enormous python, completely pitch-black in color, its body covered with scars and wounds. It was even possible to see its bones in some places, and in other locations, you could see all the way through its entire body.

It appeared to be just on the verge of death, its life force fading, with barely enough energy left to even fly. Although it seemed to be just barely clinging to life, there was still a terrifying aura surrounding it it, the power of which shocked even Meng Hao. Were it to explode out, even a true Immortal would likely be killed by the blast.

Meng Hao was standing on the head of the ancient python, and it appeared to connected to him, as if he could control it.

After staring in shock for a moment, Meng Hao looked down to find that he was wearing a suit of armor. The armor seemed brand new, and it radiated a mild energy. Overall, he seemed to physically be in this place, but at the same time, his body also seemed to be illusory. Furthermore, up ahead of him was a planet!

It was much, much smaller than Planet South Heaven, and in fact, might not even have been large enough to actually call a planet. Perhaps it was nothing more than a large asteroid. It also seemed completely unstable, filled with chaos.

Almost as soon as Meng Hao laid eyes on the black planet, innumerable dots of light appeared that looked like eyes. All of the eyes opened and looked straight at Meng Hao.

An intense sense of crisis filled Meng Hao, and his mind trembled. Suddenly, whistling sounds could be heard, and, astonishingly, one thousand beams of light shot toward Meng Hao from the planet.

Figures could be seen within these beams of light, figures that weren't cultivators, but rather, puppets!

Meng Hao was not the only one to be seeing this. Each and every one of the cultivators on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking was in a unique world of their own. What they were seeing and experiencing was exactly the same as Meng Hao.

Meng Hao's eyes glittered coldly, and he didn't instantly spring into action. Instead, he took advantage of the time it would take for his opponents to reach him, to further study the ancient python. It appeared to be severely wounded, and on the verge of death, although it clearly had the power to make one final attack.

Such an attack would surely leave the beast completely dead in spirit and body. However, that final attack would surely be shocking, that much Meng Hao could tell.

He frowned and sent his divine sense out, then sighed. All of the puppets flying out from the planet had peak Dao Seeking auras, though not one of them was comparable to a false Immortal.

Just then, however, five auras suddenly exploded out from the planet, five auras that were all of the false Immortal stage. If that were all there were to it, it wouldn't be a big deal. But in that moment, yet another aura, even stronger than the others, exploded out.

The planet shook, and ripples spread out in all directions. The energy rose up, growing more and more powerful. It was very similar to the asteroid-like planet, completely filled with a will of chaos and madness.

Meng Hao's face sank, and his eyes widened….

It was a true Immortal!!

"One thousand puppets, five false Immortals, and one true Immortal…so this is the trial by fire?

"According to what Ling Yunzi said, I'm supposed to kill all of these enemies within the time it takes an incense stick to burn. That's the only way to pass this stage. Ordinary attack methods would never be able to accomplish such a thing."

Meng Hao muttered to himself as the more than one thousand puppets whistled ever closer to him.

"There's no way that this trial by fire will eliminate almost all the competitors in only the second stage…." Meng Hao's eyes flickered as he looked down at the ancient python beneath his feet.

"This ancient beast is powerful…. The last attack it makes before dying will be powerful enough to kill all those thousand peak Dao Seeking puppets. Or, if I wait a bit, I could kill the five false Immortals with it. If I wait until the very end to use it, then I could kill the true Immortal.

"I only have one shot….

"That's the choice we competitors are being given!" The light of understanding flashed in his eyes.

In the various other worlds in which the cultivators on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking all faced the same scenario, everyone was hesitating regarding how to stick out from the crowd. There were many Chosen hidden among the competitors, and they were all intelligent people. It only took them a moment to come to the exact same conclusion Meng Hao had about the crux of this stage.

The masked young man looked out with flickering eyes. Without hesitation, he shot out to fight the more than one thousand peak Dao Seeking puppets, intending to use the ancient python's final attack to kill the true Immortal.

Such a decision was audacious, and required incredible self-confidence.

As for the old man with the age-changing transformation ability, his eyes flickered as he chose the same tactic.

There were, however, quite a few cultivators who chose to use the ancient beast's powerful attack first, rumbling out and slaughtering the thousand peak Dao Seeking puppets. After the puppets had been completely wiped out, the cultivators would step forward themselves to fight against the five false immortals.

There were multiple cultivators who made each of the various choices. Shortly, the echoing sound of booms and the glow of magical abilities rocked Heaven and Earth within each of the various worlds.

However, the actual scenes playing out within these worlds was hidden to the observers out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea; the only thing they could see was the list of names and the numbers representing the kill count next to each name, which were quickly soaring.

As for the high-level Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies, Four Great Clans, Five Great Holy Lands, and the Three Churches and Six Sects, they were all sitting cross-legged in an enormous palace in the starry sky, staring at an enormous ancient mirror.

The mirror was split into three sections, within which could be seen clear images of everything that was happening on the three Ancient Roads.

"That masked young man chose the hardest path, but from that, you can see that his heart is as resolute as a boulder. He definitely has potential."

"That cultivator with the age-transformations is most likely an apprentice of Patriarch Mirage. He might also be a rogue cultivator, but in any case, it's quite rare to see cultivators of the Dao Seeking stage who practice time transformation magic."

"There are many potential stars in this trial by fire…."

"From the three choices given them, we can learn about their personalities. Although, it doesn't matter which choice they make, as long as they pass this stage, they can be considered Chosen!"

The old Patriarchs discussed the matter calmly, occasionally glancing at the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing to identify people they deemed worthy of notice.

Meng Hao, naturally, also received some attention. And yet, on the outside, there were currently no numbers displayed next to the name Fang Mu.

Meanwhile, the Patriarchs were continuing to discuss the matter….

"Hmm. That young cultivator with the mosquitos is the first one to make an unexpected move."

"There's also that kid in the yellow robe. He didn't make any of the obvious choices either!"

All eyes in the palace were fixed on one of the scenes playing out on the mirror's surface. The young man with the mosquitos waved his hands, causing his mosquitos to fly toward the python, whereupon they stabbed their mouthparts into it and began to absorb its blood.

Another image depicted a young man who had performed unremarkably in the first stage. His body suddenly went blurry, and he fused down into the python. He quickly took control of it and set it to fighting, hoping to use it to kill both the puppets and the false Immortals.

Not too much time passed before other cultivators also began to use various unorthodox methods that did not conform with the three obvious choices. None of the members of the crowd in the palace seemed to find this unexpected, and in fact, had apparently predicted that such a thing would happen.

"This is excellent. There are far more people doing the unexpected than in the last trial by fire."

"From ancient times until now, there are always competitors in the Ancient Road's trial by fire who make breathtaking achievements in their later days. This group of cultivators is not bad at all!"

"How come that Fang Mu hasn't done anything yet?"

Amidst their chatting and laughing, some people had been paying attention to Meng Hao all along. Instantly, all eyes turned to the image portraying Meng Hao. He stood atop the head of the python, seemingly in a daze as the more than one thousand puppets bore down on him. They were now only about three hundred meters away.

"That Fang Mu most likely doesn't have any plan at all. It's not uncommon for cultivators to struggle when it comes to making decisions."

"That's too bad. I'd hoped to see if he could perform exceptionally well in the second stage too."

"For someone to take first place in two stages in a row isn't unheard of, but isn't very common either. Unfortunately, I'm afraid he's not the type that can do it."

As the puppets whistled toward him, Meng Hao's eyes glittered, and his lips turned up slightly into a cold smile.

"The three choices seem different, but in fact, they are the same. Perhaps by using some unexpected tactics, it would be possible to introduce some degree of variation in the results. However, even if you were able to wipe all of these things out, that would be overlooking something even more important!

"And that is… that planet!" His eyes shone with a strange light as he looked at the planet.

"In truth, this python has another function other than its one attack… and that is the power of flight!

"Before I proceed, though, I need to test out whether or not this body is real!" Eyes glittering, he suddenly reached his right hand out and then slapped it down hard onto his chest.

A boom rang out, his body trembled, and his eyes began to glow with a brilliant light. He'd felt like something was off as soon as he'd entered this place. Although everything seemed real, after experiencing the illusory world of the ancient Demon Immortal Sect, he had a much deeper understanding of such things.

In all the other worlds, everyone was already in the midst of furious fighting.

In Meng Hao's world, the puppets were closing in. Meng Hao suddenly sat down cross-legged and then stretched his hands out to rest on the ancient python's head.

The python's eyes turned bright red, and it let out a roar. Then its body burst into flames as it used the last scraps of its life force to shoot forward at blinding speed.

The puppets scattered as the python swept through them. Even the five false immortals were incapable of blocking it. It moved with shocking speed as it carried Meng Hao directly toward the planet.

As soon as it reached the planet itself, the python collapsed into bits of ash that vanished. At the same time, the aura of a true Immortal exploded out from within the planet. A figure flew out, wreathed in golden light, moving with astonishing speed toward Meng Hao, who had just stepped foot onto the planet itself.

Its energy soared, and it looked like a windstorm as it bore down on Meng Hao.

However, even as it neared, a vicious expression appeared on Meng Hao's face, and he unleashed the Star Plucking Magic. A huge hand appeared that grabbed onto the golden figure, after which, Meng Hao closed his eyes. With ruthless decisiveness, he caused his cultivation base…

To detonate!

The power of the self-detonation was channeled directly into the golden figure through the Star Plucking hand. It didn't matter how incredibly powerful this figure was; its body was filled with roaring and, because its aura was chaotic to begin with, the power of the self-detonation compelled its inner aura to become even more turbulent, such that the figure was also forced…

To self-detonate!

A massive boom rattled out as both Meng Hao and the figure self-detonated together. The entire planet was then thrown into instability, causing it to shatter into countless pieces. A massive destructive power was unleashed as the fragments then transformed into a black hole which began to suck everything in!

The puppets and false Immortals had no time to fight back; they were instantly swallowed up by the black hole.

In the palace in the starry sky, the members of the crowd looked on in stupefaction.

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Chapter 847: Talent. Cultivation. Age.

Crowds in locations all over the Ninth Mountain and Sea were watching the events on the vortex screens. However, regardless of location, the eyes of every spectator suddenly went wide with disbelief.

On the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Fang Mu's name had previously had no number next to it. In the blink of an eye, there was suddenly a number: 1,006!

The number appeared so quickly, so suddenly, that people didn't even have a chance to register it mentally before both the number, and Fang Mu's name, disappeared.

The light that covered the altar upon which Meng Hao stood slowly faded away, to reveal Meng Hao, sitting there cross-legged.

He was the first person…

To pass the stage!!

"That's… that's impossible!!"

"What just happened? I remember that just now, Fang Mu didn't have any numbers next to his name at all. That means he hadn't even killed a single enemy. Then I blinked my eyes, and he passed the stage?"

"A bunch of numbers appeared just now, and then they vanished, and Fang Mu passed the stage. Is it possible… is it possible that he used only one move to kill all of the enemies!?!?"

"Heavens! He got first place in the second stage too! Hardly any time has passed, not even a hundred breaths!!"

"He got first place in the first stage, and now first place in the second stage!!" Everyone out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea was completely shocked. Cries of astonishment rang out in all of the locations where people were watching, and the buzz of conversation immediately rose up.

In the vast Eastern Lands, Fang Xiufeng and Meng Li were gaping at the scene. Even they weren't too sure exactly what Meng Hao had done.

Pill Demon and Chu Yuyan were also looking on with wide eyes, staring dumbly at Meng Hao on the screen.

The crowds out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were in an uproar.

"That Fang Mu, he's definitely the star of this whole trial by fire!"

"How powerful is he exactly? He actually… he actually killed all of the enemies with one move!"

"I want to see how exactly he did it. It must have been breathtaking!!"

Meanwhile, not too far away from Planet East Victory, an enormous turtle floated in the starry sky, carrying an entire continent on its back. He was staring in shock at the three vortex screens down below on East Victory.

"Dammit. It must be him! Even if he transformed into dust, the Patriarch would still recognize that little bastard!!

"But… what exactly did he do? He got first place in the blink of an eye!" This gargantuan turtle was of course none other than Patriarch Reliance.

At the same time, in another location in the starry sky, a figure could be seen sitting cross-legged on an asteroid, hair disheveled as he looked up at three vortex screens. His expression was taciturn, but a brilliant light glittered in his eyes.

"How could I have imagined that I wouldn't die…. Meng Hao, Planet South Heaven was only the first half of my life. I have to thank you for helping me understand so much. In the remaining years, I will definitely find a way to pay you back."

Even as everyone in the Ninth Mountain and Sea was shaken, back in the palace among the stars, silence reigned. The Patriarchs of the various sects and clans, even the representatives from the Three Great Daoist Societies, were all watching with wide eyes and slack jaws.

After a long moment, one of the old men chuckled wryly and said, "That's cheating!!"

These people were the only ones who could clearly see what had actually happened.

"The fact that he came up with a way to seize victory like that might be considered cheating, but it's amazing nonetheless!!"

"He didn't hesitate to kill himself along with the enemy! Fervor like that is what clinched the victory!"

"Compared to this Fang Mu, all the others couldn't even be considered to be using unorthodox tactics. His methods are truly astonishing. To self-detonate with such decisiveness, and furthermore, to control it so ingeniously… we can be certain that Fang Mu was the first person to realize that the second stage was an illusory world!"

"Even still, he should be disqualified! Fraudulent methods like that are a complete disgrace!"

"Oh please, you want him disqualified so you can secretly go recruit him! That's not cheating. The other competitors just didn't think of that idea, or perhaps couldn't pull it off. That's just weakness on their part. This Fang Mu has definitely cleared this stage!"

As the discussions continued in the palace, one of the three Elders from the Three Great Daoist Societies who sat at the head of the group suddenly opened his eyes, filling the palace with endless light.

"Fang Mu. Stage cleared!" He spoke only four words, but they echoed out from the palace into the starry sky, and then, by means of a special technique, echoed throughout the Ancient Road, and then out into the rest of the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

Suddenly, a ranking list appeared in the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, and in first place was the name Fang Mu. Every spot beneath it was blank.

The Ninth Mountain and Sea was abuzz, and many of the Patriarchs seated in the palace pulled out jade slips to transmit information to their sects, ordering them to attempt to recruit Fang Mu.

It was at this point that Meng Hao opened his eyes. At first, they seemed blank, but then quickly grew bright. His expression was calm as he sat there cross-legged and unmoving.

The second stage was a complete illusion, and the so-called risk to the lives of the competitors was false. However, because of the brutality of the first stage, the other competitors subconsciously assumed that the second stage would be exactly the same.

By now, roughly half of the prescribed time period had passed. Shockingly, a blue-robed young woman from the group who had proceeded 3,000 paces suddenly became visible from within the light that surrounded her. Her eyes brimmed with confidence as she looked over at the ranking list, and then suddenly went wide with shock.

"He was actually faster than me!" she thought. "I possess the Dao of souls, allowing me to take control of the puppets. And yet Fang Mu possesses some more powerful divine ability? Just what is it?!"

More people began to clear the second stage after the young woman. It didn't take long for enough time to pass for an incense stick to burn. Roughly a third of the competitors didn't manage to clear the stage. As for those who did, they used a variety of methods to succeed. When it came to the true Immortal, most of them chose to use the python to destroy it in a single blow.

No one used the same method as Meng Hao.

As people emerged from clearing the stage, they looked over at the ranking list, and were shocked.

"Fang Mu took first place in the first stage, and now he took first place in the second stage too!"

"Dammit!!" The masked young man was one of the last to emerge from the second stage. Behind his mask, his face was extremely unsightly. His previously high aspirations had been dealt a heavy blow. As for the old man with the age-transformation powers, he also looked ashen-faced, and was frowning.

Most of the cultivators who distinguished themselves in the first stage did not fare very well in the second stage.

Meanwhile, on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing, the second stage had likewise concluded. Fatty, Chen Fan and Wang Youcai had all succeeded. Chen Fan put on the most astonishing performance, and although he didn't take first place, he was in the top 100, which was quite an accomplishment!

As for Fatty and Wang Youcai, they ended up in the top 1,000.

Li Shiqi ranked toward the bottom, and had barely been able to pass.

It was only the second stage, but the previously large number of competitors had already been whittled down by roughly half.

Of course, Meng Hao's performance caused a huge stir in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, and the name Fang Mu was now planted thoroughly in everyone's minds. Many people were now looking forward to the third stage, to see if he could take first place yet again!

On the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Ling Yunzi of the Ninth Sea God World stood there in illusory form, looking out at the crowds. This time, his gaze lingered on Meng Hao for a bit longer than it had last time.

Without another word, he then waved his hand, causing everyone to disappear. When they reappeared, they were further along down the Ancient Road. They still stood on altars, although everyone's positions were now changed. Some who were in the lead, were now sent further back, whereas some who had been far in the back, had now caught up.

Only Meng Hao was alone, far up ahead of everyone on his own altar. Behind him were all the other Dao Seeking cultivators, staring at his back, faces filled with the desire to do battle.

"The previous two stages tested your battle prowess," Ling Yunzi said coolly. "You will now pass through the third, fourth, and fifth stages simultaneously. They will test your latent talent, the depth of your cultivation base, and also… your true age!

"The higher your latent talent, the deeper your cultivation base, and the younger you are, the more outstanding your results will be!

"This is a composite test. Even if you did not perform well in the first two stages, if you do well in this third stage, you can still rise above the other competitors." With that, he waved his hand, causing everything to flash with bright colors, and a wind to pick up. Suddenly, three enormous stone steles rose up out of the altars in front of each competitor.

Each stone stele was inscribed with a single large character.

Talent! Cultivation! Age!

"Place your hand onto the stone stele, and allow its power to enter into you. Let the testing begin!"

The majority of the cultivators on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking stepped forward and placed their hands onto the 'talent' stone steles. In the blink of an eye, columns of light began to rise up from the stone steles, each one reaching a different height. Most reached a height of approximately 30 meters. However, there was one that suddenly shot up to 60 meters, drawing quite a bit of attention.

To any sect, the latent talent a cultivator possessed was actually more important than battle prowess.

Next, a 90-meter column of light appeared, then a 150-meter column, a 180-meter column, and even a 300-meter column!

That one belonged to the young woman who had emerged from the second stage right after Meng Hao. She looked at the column of light, her expression as calm as it usually was.

Behind her, more 300-meter columns appeared. Among the other cultivators who possessed 300-meter columns were the masked young man and the cultivator with the mosquitos. Those two, along with the young woman, were known to the audience by now. The others whose columns reached 300 meters were all people who hadn't attracted much attention in the previous two stages, but were now making a spectacular showing.

"A 300-meter column of light shows an incredible level of latent talent. I never imagined that there would be seven people with such latent talent in the Dao Seeking division of the trial by fire!"

"There are nine in the Spirit Severing division!"

"There are even more in the Nascent Soul division! A total of seventeen 300-meter columns!"

"I wonder how Fang Mu will perform…." While the crowds outside discussed the proceedings, the Patriarchs in the palace who represented the various sects and clans were looking on with glittering eyes. They eyed the various cultivators with exceptional latent talent, and of course, were looking at Meng Hao.

Meng Hao hesitated for a moment. He had never really paid much attention to his latent talent, but he lifted his hand up and then placed it onto the stone stele.

As soon as he touched it, a gentle power spread out into his body from the stone stele. It quickly flowed into his qi and blood passageways, eventually swirling out through his whole body. However, it was at this point that the illusory Immortal meridian created by the bronze lamp suddenly quivered. Then, it began to emit a gravitational force that… instantly sucked up the gentle power from the stone stele.

Meng Hao's eyes went wide.

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Chapter 848: Senior, Bring Another!

On the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, glittering light rose up. Fatty stared blankly at the stone stele in front of him; the beam of light that rose up was only 90 meters tall, although there were still quite a few others that weren't as tall as his.

"Fudge!" he thought, his eyes blazing with fury. "Why the hell isn't my latent talent the best? That doesn't make sense! All those years ago the Golden Frost Sect told me that my latent talent was unequalled in the whole world!" He was especially depressed when he looked over and saw that Wang Youcai's column of light was 150 meters tall.

Then he looked over at Chen Fan, and Fatty's eyes went wide with disbelief. Chen Fan's beam of light… was actually among the 300-meter columns!

Li Shiqi's wasn't quite 300 meters tall, but was still tall enough at 250 meters.

On the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, as the competitors placed their hands on the stone steles, radiant light shot up, filling the area with scintillating brightness. Only Meng Hao's stone stele was completely without any light whatsoever. He smiled wryly.

It was impossible for the stone stele to emit any light whatsoever, because the gentle power that was the source of the light never returned from Meng Hao's body into the stele. Instead, it had been swallowed up by the ethereal Immortal meridian inside of him.

Right now, the audiences in the outside world were all abuzz. Much importance was attached to the latent talent stage of the event. After all, latent talent was an important foundation for cultivators, and all sects paid close attention to it. As for the cultivators who displayed unusual amounts of latent talent, they were immediately taken note of.

There were quite a few people who looked over at Meng Hao. He had taken first place in the previous two stages, which put him directly in the limelight. Many people were waiting in anticipation to see if he would take first place in the third stage as well. Of course, there were also others who looked on with cold smiles, just waiting to ridicule him.

By now, all of the stone steles were lit up, be they on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul or Spirit Severing, or the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. Now, all attention was focused on Meng Hao….

This was especially the case because, after taking first in the first two stages, he was now ahead of everyone on the Ancient Road. There weren't even any other cultivators around him, which made his position even more conspicuous.

"What is Fang Mu up to?"

"Eee? There's no light coming from the stone stele at all! What's wrong? He can't possibly be completely devoid of latent talent. Even if it's poor, there would still be some light, right?"

"Maybe he didn't actually start the analysis yet. But hold on, his hand is clearly resting on the stele!"

Soon, everyone on the outside was looking over at the image of Meng Hao on the vortex screens, and were astonished.

The powerful experts from the various sects were also watching, as was everyone in the palace up the starry sky. Everyone from the Three Churches and Six Sects, the Five Great Holy Lands, the Four Great Clans, and even the Three Great Daoist Socities, was now looking at Meng Hao and his lightless stone stele.

"What crafty scheme is that little bastard pulling off?" thought Patriarch Reliance, his face twisted with fury. Although he had a complex relationship with Meng Hao, Meng Hao was the sole Inner Sect disciple from the Reliance sect. Therefore, the scene that was playing out right now left Patriarch Reliance feeling quite disgraced.

Back in the vast Eastern Lands, Fang Xiufeng and Meng Li were also staring in shock. They knew exactly what kind of latent talent Meng Hao had. Although he'd experienced the Seventh Year Tribulation, he was also the first person in the entire Fang Clan in years to actually experience a second and even a third lifetime.

Because of that, they knew that his bloodline ran especially strong. A cultivator's bloodline was one of the aspects of their latent talent, so they couldn't understand why the stone stele in front of Meng Hao did not shine with light.

Meng Hao cleared his throat and looked around at all the other people and their columns of light. Feeling all the eyes boring down into his back, he slowly lifted his hand up and then pressed it down again onto the stone stele.

The gentle power appeared once again, but just like the last time, the Immortal meridian swallowed it up. It was at this point that Meng Hao noticed that after absorbing the power, the Immortal meridian was a bit different.

He casually lifted his hand up again and then pushed it down, causing more of the gentle energy to spread out inside him. The spectators looked on in shock as Meng Hao continuously attempted to activate the light.

After trying seven or eight times, he realized that the Immortal meridian had absorbed too much of the gentle power, and now there wasn't any emanating out from the stone stele at all. However, the Immortal meridian inside of him had changed from it's previous illusory state. About ten percent of it had solidified.

This development caused Meng Hao's heart to pound with wild joy and excitement. He knew that the moment the Immortal Meridian was complete, he would step into true Immortality.

Suppressing his excitement, he plastered an expression of surprise onto his face and then pushed his hand down onto the stele a few more times experimentally. He glanced around, then looked up, apparently frustrated, and called out into the void: "Senior Ling Yunzi, are you there!? This stone stele is broken! Can I have another?

"Actually, sir, it would be best to bring out several, just in case there are any other broken ones. That will save you some frustration in the long run." He gazed up into the starry sky, an expression of eager anticipation on his face.

Everything was silent. The other cultivators on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking all looked on silently.

In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs from the various sects were all frowning. However, they knew that the Ruins of Immortality were veiled in mystery. Even though the Three Great Daoist Societies held control of the three Ancient Roads, there were many things about them that they didn't understand.

After a long moment, the Patriarch of the Ninth Sea God World said, "Fellow Daoist Ling Yunzi, give him another."

The voice echoed out into the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, and Ling Yunzi materialized out of the void. He looked down indifferently at Meng Hao, then waved his sleeve, causing the stone stele in front of him to vanish as if had been teleported away. Moments later, it was replaced by another stone stele.

Meng Hao's eyes gleamed as he quickly reached his hand out and pushed it down onto the stone stele.

"SHINE!" he bellowed. The gentle power once again entered his body and began to flow about. At the same time, an imperceptible flicker appeared in Meng Hao's eyes as he used both the meat jelly and the black feather to conceal anything that was happening inside of him.

The Immortal meridian quickly sucked in every last bit of the power, although it didn't seem to have a very drastic effect on the meridian itself. Meng Hao blinked. Then, as Ling Yunzi looked on wide-eyed, he dramatically inspected the stone stele and tried to place his hand onto it several times. Soon, all the power from the stele was sucked away by the Immortal Meridian.

Ling Yunzi wasn't the only person who was paying close attention to what was happening. The people in the starry sky palace were also observing closely, and their frowns deepend.

"There's something wrong!"

"The stone stele isn't defective. Even though everything seems normal, there's actually something strange going on inside of his body."

"He must cultivate some unique Daoist magic…."

As the discussions buzzed in the palace, an old man wearing a long crimson gown suddenly rose to his feet.

"There's no need for any testing," he said. "Ladies and Gentleman, Mount Sun would be happy to dispel any doubts for you. I will recruit him to join Mount Sun, and then all disputes will be resolved." Laughing heartily, he began to walk forward, but then his path was suddenly obstructed.

"There's no need for the Holy Land of Mount Sun to go to that trouble! The Burning Incense Stick Society is more than willing to take the risk of recruiting him."

In the blink of an eye, the atmosphere in the palace was completely astir. As they verbally sparred over the matter, Meng Hao stood on his altar on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. Sighing, he looked up at the grim-faced Ling Yunzi.

"Senior, this… this one's broken too! Why don't you give me a few more…?"

Ling Yunzi stared at him silently for a moment, then waved his hand. Rumbling echoed out as four stone steles with the character 'talent' inscribed on them suddenly appeared.

Meng Hao's heart thumped, and he coughed lightly again and began the assessment.

"Hm, this one's broken.

"Eee? This one's broken too! Dammit!

"Heavens! Who would have thought that this one would also be broken!

"I… I can't believe it! This one's broken too!" Meng Hao looked up with a sheepish, pained expression, as if the Heavens were playing a cruel joke on him. Ling Yunzi looked back with an extremely unsightly expression.

Of course, inwardly, Meng Hao was extremely excited. Although the five stone steles from just now had not been incredibly effective, they had pushed his Immortal meridian from being ten percent solid to twenty percent.

Of course, all of the crowds looking on in the Ninth Mountain and Sea weren't sure whether to laugh or cry. Although Meng Hao was no longer in first place, he was actually even more a center of attention than before, when he had placed first.

"Senior, why don't you give me another ten," Meng Hao said expectantly.

Ling Yunzi's eyelids twitched. With a cold harrumph, he waved his hand, then apathetically announced the first place winner of the third stage.

After that he said, "The next stage assesses cultivation base! Let the assessment begin!"

As his words rang out, the 'talent' stone steles vanished.

The first place winner of the third stage glared at Meng Hao in frustration, but could do nothing except wallow in anger.

"Senior!" Meng Hao cried out in distress. "Hey, senior! I'm not done with the assessment! This isn't fair!"

Ling Yunzi completely ignored Meng Hao, and in fact, vanished into thin air.

Nobody paid any attention to Meng Hao's complaints whatsoever. At the same time, everyone else on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking stepped forward toward the 'cultivation' stone steles. The Patriarchs in the starry sky palace up above looked on with glittering eyes. Although they had been bickering moments ago, it was all in accord with the various plans they had.

As for the crowds in the Ninth Sea, they had originally had high expectations for the third stage, but after what had happened with Fang Mu, the mood… was completely different.

"This is so unfair!" grumbled Meng Hao. He walked forward to the 'cultivation' stone stele, reached out his right hand, and was delighted to find that the gentle power, although somewhat different than the power from before, was actually slightly more powerful. As soon as it entered his body and began to circulate around, the Immortal meridian trembled and then thirstily spread out to absorb all of it.

"Dammit! How could this one be broken too?" exclaimed Meng Hao, seemingly furious. As all of the other stone steles around him shone with bright light, Meng Hao continued to attempt to get his to work, looking as though he refused to believe it wouldn't. After the seventh or eighth attempt, he had absorbed enough power from the stone stele to solidify his Immortal meridian to thirty percent.

His cultivation base, with its eighty percent of the power of a true Immortal, actually experienced some advancement.

Licking his lips, Meng Hao once again called out loudly. "This really isn't fair! Senior Ling Yunzi, please, let me switch steles!"

Ling Yunzi materialized and, his expression dark, looked at Meng Hao and waved his arm. The 'cultivation' stone steles vanished, and then Ling Yunzi's annoyed voice echoed out.

"Pipe down! Any more chatter from you and you'll be disqualified! Next stage, the age assessment!"

Meng Hao blinked. Feeling slightly guilty, he proceeded toward the 'age' stone stele and pushed his hand down onto it.

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Chapter 849: Creativity

On the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, everything was normal. The cultivators on the Ancient Road of Spirit Severing had made incredible progress. These three stages of talent, cultivation, and age assessments tested one's foundation, and as such, were of great importance to the various sects and clans. There were already quite a few people from both the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing whose names had been recorded by the sects. As long as they continued to perform well in the following stages, their future good fortune was essentially guaranteed.

Chen Fan was just such a person!

Unfortunately, Fatty and the others had not yet made it onto any of the lists.

In contrast, the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking was in complete chaos. It wasn't that the proceedings themselves were chaotic, but rather, there was a feeling of unpredictability because nobody was paying attention to who would take first place in the assessments of talent, cultivation and age.

All sorts of conversations were playing out throughout the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

"Just what kind of latent talent does Fang Mu have? And what cultivation base? How old is he?!"

"I can't believe the stone steles didn't work! They even changed steles several times. There's obviously something special about Fang Mu!"

"Oh right, who took first in the talent and cultivation assessments?"

"I wasn't really paying attention. I'm just wondering whether the age-assessing stone stele will be effective on Fang Mu!"

Back on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Meng Hao was like an unwelcome guest whose style and actions took the wind out of everyone's sails. He was now, once again, the focus of all attention.

Although he wasn't in first place… the current first place competitor was being completely ignored.

More and more sects were becoming interested in Meng Hao, and in fact, his name had already been recorded by all of the Three Churches and Six Sects. Furthermore, it was in first place on all of those lists!

Meng Hao bashfully placed his hand on the 'age' stone stele, sucked in the energy, solidifying his Immortal meridian to forty percent.

He felt that it was quite a pity that Ling Yunzi was so stingy. Sighing wistfully to himself, he thought of yelling out another complaint about how unfair it all was, but managed to keep his mouth shut. He said nothing, but rather, stood there gauging the other competitors' columns of light. No matter how high any of those columns were, everyone's faces were extremely unsightly.

"The age-assessing stage is concluded!" announced Ling Yunzi with the flick of a sleeve. Everyone except for Meng Hao vanished and reappeared on altars further off in the distance.

Meng Hao had now gone from first place to dead last.

This development caused everyone who was competing in the trial by fire on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking to be very agitated. Virtually, all of them turned to glare back at Meng Hao, inwardly musing about how benevolent Ling Yunzi was. In their minds, someone like Meng Hao should obviously have been disqualified immediately.

"He obviously just doesn't have enough latent talent, so he used some insidious technique to disable the stone steles. How shameless!"

"There must be something weird about his cultivation base that he doesn't want anyone to know about. To use such methods to skirt the issue is really detestable. You know, he should be disqualified! Merely getting sent to last place is really showing him mercy!"

"Punish him to sate our anger!"

Everyone on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking was furious at Meng Hao, especially those who hadn't made a name for themselves in the previous two stages. Those who had excelled in the assessments of talent, cultivation, and age were especially angry.

"This isn't fair!" yelled Meng Hao.

"Not fair?" replied Ling Yunzi, glaring back at him. "You didn't earn any marks in the last three stages, you wasted several stone steles, and even depleted some of the valuable resources of the Ruins of Immortality! You're lucky to not be disqualified! I dare you to keep yapping!"

Anyone else who was in Meng Hao's position that received such words and such a gaze from Ling Yunzi would instantly be filled with awe, fear, and concern over the consequences of their words. However, as far as Meng Hao was concerned, he hadn't come here to join any sect.

"Oh great and powerful senior," he said, "I know that I was in the wrong. Listen, how about this. Just give me three more stone steles to try out. If they don't work, then junior will resign himself to his fate."

Ling Yunzi gaped at Meng Hao, so angry that he almost felt like laughing. Were it not for Meng Hao's previous performance having attracted the attention of all the spectators outside, he would definitely disqualify him immediately. Meng Hao was turning into a real headache. In the end, Ling Yunzi just pretended he didn't hear him.

"The sixth, seventh, and eighth stages will assess your divine sense, willpower, and intuition!"

In response to Ling Yunzi's words, Meng Hao blinked. Inwardly, he vowed that the next time he saw Fan Dong'er, he would definitely show her who was boss, and vent his anger toward Ling Yunzi on her.

"You will pass through these three stages simultaneously. Each of you will find yourself in your own world, filled with unique and strange phenomena, which you will use to create your own divine ability!

"Depending on the results of your creation, you will be presented with a certain number of…." At this point, Ling Yunzi faltered for a moment before speaking the final two words.

"… stone steles!"

When Meng Hao heard the words 'stone steles,' his heart began to thump, and his eyes shone brightly.

Ling Yunzi waved his hand, causing all of the altars began to tremble; massive amounts of fog began to accumulate, covering over everyone present. Then, the power of teleportation spread out, and everyone disappeared.

Outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, everyone settled their qi and calmed their minds, then focused on the scenes playing out on the vortex screens. It could be said that the first two stages tested fighting, and the third through fifth stages tested the foundation. In that case, the sixth, seventh and eighth stages tested creativity!

For cultivators, creativity required divine sense, willpower, and of course intuition.

Every time the Three Great Daoist Societies held a recruitment event, shocking and peerless individuals would create divine abilities in these three stages that would become incredibly famous.

Everyone was watching with keen anticipation.

In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs were no longer squabbling, but instead, were watching with rapt attention. The Five Holy Lands, the Three Great Daoist Societies, all of them were closely examining the screens, and the cultivators on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing and Dao Seeking.

The people who had ended up on the name lists of the various sects were the subject of special scrutiny. As long as they maintained good positions during these three stages, then there was no question about whether or not they would eventually be recruited.

As for the rest of the people who hadn't made it onto the name lists, if they performed spectacularly in these three stages, they would surely be noticed and their names would be added to the lists.

Up in the palace among the stars, everyone was sighing emotionally.

"Creating a divine ability is not a simple thing! It's very difficult…. I can't wait to see what stunning divine abilities we will see!"

"In any other place, it would probably be easier to find a phoenix feather or a qilin horn than to find someone in this group who could create a divine ability. However, the Ruins of Immortality are a special place, with a unique power. There are astonishing things here that would normally be very rare, or even nonexistent in the outside world, things that can inspire the competitors, and influence them inwardly."

"That's right, on the Ancient Roads, it will be much easier for them to create divine abilities. If they can't make one here, it shows that their future path will not stretch very far."

"Divine abilities must be created, a process that stems from the intuition of the creator. Willpower could be considered part of intuition, whereas divine will acts as a Dao Protector. In the final analysis, the same objects and the same source of inspiration will be viewed differently by different people, and can lead to different forms of enlightenment."

"From ancient times until now, the Daoist Societies have held this trial by fire on several occasions. The most powerful person to ever participate was Sir Fan from the Ninth Sea God World. When he created his divine ability that year, he caused nineteen stone steles to appear, which is a record that stands to this day!"

"He created The Mortal Sea Becomes Immortal, which was eventually developed into a Daoist magic, one of the most powerful ever!" 1

Meanwhile, as the people in the starry sky palace were sighing in emotional reminiscence, all of the people being teleported opened their eyes as the scenery around them became clear.

A tremor ran through Meng Hao as he looked around at completely unfamiliar lands. Everything around him was a mass of black soil that stretched out as far as the eye could see.

It was blazingly hot, and nine suns could be seen high up in the sky, almost like nine mighty Immortals looking out across the lands.

This place was a wasteland!

Scattered structures were visible off in the distance, half sunken into the soil; those that remained above the surface were in a state of collapse. However, carvings of auspicious beasts could be seen on their surfaces, harkening back to their former glory.

A moaning wind blew through the land, brushing against the black soil, causing what sounded like a sad melody to spring up. It filled one with the desire to go searching for whoever might have listened to such a song in the past, but as it floated across the land, it seemed to be drifting through countless ages of time, and ancient memories.

Meng Hao stood there, completely alone in this vast stretch of land.

The only thing to accompany him was the murmuring wind, the black soil that stretched out in all directions, and the ruins that could be seen off in the distance.

Being in such a location caused Meng Hao's mood to sink, and his eyes flickered with a strange light.

"So, this place can influence the emotions," he thought, sending his divine sense spreading out. It swept the area, and in addition to everything he had already seen, he could now sense a faint pressure weighing down on him.

If he hadn't sent his divine sense out, he would have never detected it…. Furthermore, he was only aware of it within the range of his divine sense.

Meng Hao's expression slowly changed as he carefully examined his surroundings using divine sense. Now he could sense that there were actually different ranges of pressures, some strong, some weak, coming from all the various ruins lying about!

It was at this point that Ling Yunzi's voice echoed out to everyone on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. It almost sounded like it was coming from a different world that overlapped with this one.

"Sixth stage, divine sense.

"Seventh stage, willpower.

"Eighth stage, intuition.

"The world you are in contains 99 ruins, as well as a virtually intact Immortal pavilion. The pressure is different in each area, and you will find different forms of enlightenment in each location. The more powerful your divine sense is, the more Immortal ruins you will be able to sense, and the greater your enlightenment will be.

"After you find each Immortal ruin, your willpower will determine whether or not you can stand up to the pressure there.

"Your intuition will decide your final type of enlightenment, and how it becomes a divine ability!" Ling Yunzi's archaic voice echoed about in the wasteland; it almost sounded like he was a figure from ancient times, that his voice was being affected by the agedness of the ruins and then transmitted through time into the ears of the competitors.

The wind whimpered, and the land looked as ancient as ever. Meng Hao's eyes glittered as he sent his divine sense out and found that it was impossible to cover the entire world. He could only see seven sets of ruins.

The nearest was about three thousand meters away, and it appeared to be a dried up well, surrounded by a broken-down wall.

Meng Hao strolled over, and when he was about three hundred meters away from the well, he could sense pressure pushing down on him. It was powerful, like a windstorm.

The windstorm bore down on him, accompanied by a voice that, when compared to Ling Yunzi, truly did seem to come from ancient times.

"Whenever I see it, I think of you….

"To anyone who hears my voice in the future: Have you felt the same way as I do? Do you also have an object that makes you think of someone?"

1. Sir Fan's surname in Chinese is 凡 fán, a surname shared by Fan Dong'er, which means "ordinary" or "mortal." In the divine ability he created, the word "mortal" is the same character, a play on words.

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Chapter 850: Can the Leopard Change its Spots?

Meng Hao stopped in place and stared blankly at a vague illusion that suddenly appeared in front of him. He saw a middle-aged man wearing a long white robe, sitting cross-legged in front of the well.

The wall surrounding the well was suddenly intact, and a simple hut could be seen attached to it, the sides of which were covered in bottle-gourd vines.

The middle-aged man seemed to be gazing eternally at the well, as if he were locked in a single moment for all eternity.

It was a simple vision, almost ordinary, but Meng Hao felt himself trembling. The voice in his ear penetrated into his mind and echoed through his soul.

He thought of many things, many people, many objects.

He wasn't sure when, but at some point, he had walked up, sat cross-legged in front of the well and started staring at it. His mind filled with perplexity and struggle, as if the ancient voice from just now was allowing the dilapidated Ancient ruin here to interfere with his willpower and make him lose himself.

Inside, he was fighting against the pressure, and based on the intensity of his willpower, he was able to maintain a scrap of consciousness that prevented him from losing himself.

After two hours passed, the perplexity in Meng Hao's eyes slowly faded away, and was replaced with a bright light.

"What an incredible Dao Projection!" thought Meng Hao. Sweat pouring down his forehead, he took a deep breath and thought back to the daze he had just been in, and it frightened him. If there were any deadly forces in this area instead of just good fortune and chances for enlightenment, then Meng Hao would have been in great danger just now.

"Divine sense will allow me to find more of these Immortal ruins, and my willpower will enable me to fight back against the pressure. As for intuition, that is what I need to gain enlightenment. That… is what leads to creativity."

After a moment of silence, Meng Hao continued to sit there cross-legged, recalling everything he had just seen.

"There must be an object which, when I see it, will make me think of someone," he murmured. He opened his bag of holding and swept it with his divine sense. Suddenly, he paused, and his eyes flickered awkwardly.

"Uh…." He hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a stack of paper from his bag of holding.

"Every time I look at this particular promissory note, I think of the resplendent Taiyang Zi….

"And this paper makes me think of Ji Xiaoxiao.

"This one makes me think of Song Luodan.

"And this one… Li Ling'er. This one is Sun Hai. It's too bad I don't have a promissory note from Fan Dong'er. Ji Yin didn't write one either." After looking over the promissory notes, he smiled wryly and realized that the enlightenment he had experienced didn't seem to be the same as that of the middle-aged man in front of the well.

The man obviously missed an old friend or acquaintance, or perhaps a significant other. Meng Hao's experience was quite different than that.

Sighing, Meng Hao put the promissory notes back in his bag of holding and rose to his feet. After looking at the ruins one last time, he flickered off into the distance.

"I don't think the enlightenment of that place suits me," he thought, shaking his head. "If it did, how come I would think of promissory notes in a place that was clearly designed to make one think of old friends?" He turned into a beam of light that shot off into the distance.

Of course, his divine sense was backed by eighty percent of the power of a true Immortal, so when he sent it out to search for another ruin, he quickly found one, and then flew in that direction.

What he found was a dried-up old river.

The only thing left behind was an empty riverbed, and pressure once again radiated out as Meng Hao neared. This time, there was no voice, only pressure, and this pressure was stronger than that which he had experienced at the well.

He sat down cross-legged in the riverbed and wrestled against the pressure for about an hour. When he returned to his normal state, he was panting, and more sweat poured down his forehead.

"If there are 99 sets of ruins like this, plus an intact Immortal pavilion, then that means that the more enlightenment I gain, the better my results will be when I create my divine ability.

"However… I'm only at the second ruin and it's already so difficult. I wonder how many ruins some of the others have reached enlightenment in." Meng Hao frowned and looked at the riverbed. Fighting back against the pressure with his willpower, he began to experience a vision.

He saw water flowing up into the sky, and boundless waves. This river seemed capable of shaking Heaven and Earth. As it flowed upward, it cut a huge rift through the sky.

"I bet if I can understand this river," he murmured to himself, "I'll be able to create a divine ability that has to do with flowing water. When I unleash it, a celestial river would appear all around me that would sweep over everything." After thinking about it, he decided that such a divine ability would definitely be powerful. Therefore, he continued to sit there cross-legged, silently trying to reach enlightenment.

However, after six hours flowed by, he opened his eyes in frustration. After all that time, he wasn't even able to organize his thoughts.

"When I look at the river, I know that it can lead to enlightenment about a divine ability, but I can't stop thinking about the river beneath Mount Daqing, the bottle gourd I threw into it, and the slip of paper that was inside." Scratching his head in puzzlement, he remembered how he had written down his great aspiration onto that note, and how he still hadn't achieved that goal. He couldn't help but sigh. 1

"It seems this place doesn't suit me either," he thought.

Standing, he sent his divine sense out to look for more ruins.

Meanwhile, everyone out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea was watching the various scenes playing out on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, and Dao Seeking. Of course, everything was quite blurry; not even the Patriarchs from the various sects up in the starry sky palace could clearly see what was happening.

After all, these Immortal ruins were filled with incredible power. It wouldn't be until the various participants created their final divine ability that everyone outside would be able to see what was happening.

However, the audience was able to see the three Ancient Roads, and knew that all of the participants were trying to gain enlightenment from the ruins.

Up in the starry sky palace, the various Patriarchs were discussing the scenes on the screen.

"It seems most of the competitors are still immersed in studying their first Immortal ruin. I wonder what type of enlightenment will be gained by the person who studies the most!?"

"Well whoever that is, they will definitely be able to create an incredibly powerful divine ability, that much is certain."

"That's right, Sir Fan from the Ninth Sea God World gained enlightenment from 91 of the Immortal ruins. That was how he managed to create the stunning and peerless Mortal Sea Becomes Immortal! In the end, he got 19 stone steles!"

"Creating divine abilities has a lot to do with one's disposition. Grand and magnificent people create divine abilities that match their personality, whereas people with narrow thinking tend to make extreme divine abilities. Different personalities, different divine abilities."

It was at this point that the Patriarch from the Burning Incense Stick Society suddenly looked over at Meng Hao's screen. "Huh? Fang Mu has already gained enlightenment from two Immortal ruins!"

Shockingly, two bright dots could be seen on Meng Hao's screen.

Meanwhile, on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, Fatty was sitting next to a woodpile, seemingly in a daze. The woodpile seemed ancient, as if it had existed for countless years, and was over three hundred meters tall, towering above the lands.

At the very top of the woodpile was a magic fungus!

It was an enormous magic fungus shaped like a millstone, completely violet in color, and emanating a fragrant aroma. Fatty swallowed, and then his eyes began to shine brightly.

"That thing is a treasure…. Just smell it and you can tell it's some Heavenly material or Earthly treasure." He immediately produced a flying sword from his bag of holding and sent it flying toward the magic fungus. The sword trembled as it neared, then was hit with a jolt that sent it flying back. The mushroom did not move one iota.

Fatty's eyes shone with determination, and he produced some more magical items, then pushed out hard with his cultivation base. After an hour passed, he had not even succeeded in breaking the magic fungus' skin.

"I don't believe it!" he said, leaping to his feet. Gritting his teeth, he flew up to the magic fungus and then opened his mouth ferociously and bit it.

When he bit down, he couldn't help but scream out in pain as he tumbled backward. Stars swam in his eyes, and his teeth felt as if they might shatter. Tears flowed down his cheeks, and his expression was much the same as that year back in the Violet Fate Sect when Meng Hao had concocted a special medicinal pill for him to eat.

"I won't back down!" he roared, flying forward again and using all the power he could summon from his cultivation base and focusing it on his treasure-like teeth. Once again, he bit down viciously onto the magic fungus.

Pain washed over him, but Fatty endured it and surged with even more energy.

"There's nothing that Grandpa Fatty can't bite through!" he cried, his eyes shot with blood as he bit down even more viciously. It was fortunate that no one was here to witness what was happening, otherwise they would have been dumbstruck.

If someone were to paint this scene, it would depict Fatty, looking much like a wolfhound as he tore at the magic fungus with his teeth….

After biting it over and over again for an hour, Fatty let out a roar of rage and finally, was able to bite a tiny chunk out of the magic fungus.

His eyes were bright red as he chewed the magic fungus viciously and then swallowed it. He was just about to continue with his efforts when suddenly, a tremor ran through him, and he flopped over onto his back, unconscious.

After lying there unmoving for two hours, he finally opened his eyes, and they looked blank.

"What a dream!" he thought. "I saw myself creating a divine ability…." After a moment, his eyes began to shine with a bright light, and he resumed ripping at the magic fungus until he tore off another chunk, after which he passed out again.

The cycle repeated itself over and over again, so many times that even Fatty was unaware of how long it had been going on. Eventually, he had managed to eat about half of the magic fungus.

Also on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul was Chen Fan, who stood silently next to an enormous boulder. A brush could be seen in his hand, and his expression was blank, as if he were submerged in a reverie. Finally, he extended his hand and began to draw the image of a woman.

It was none other than his wife, Shan Ling.

"My spirit has darkened," he murmured, "but I won't forget love, not for the rest of my life."

In another location was Wang Youcai, in front of whom was an enormous bronze mirror that looked completely and utterly ancient. He sat there cross-legged, staring at the image of himself in the mirror.

A vicious expression could be seen on his face, which was sometimes replaced by blankness, and then other times, an expression of enlightenment. He had already been sitting there for a long time.

His voice was hoarse as he said: "When I look at the world, when I look out at Heaven and Earth, I see the future, and I see the past…. However, I know that these eyes of mine can see more than that!" He almost appeared to be on the verge of going mad.

When Meng Hao, Dong Hu, and Wang Youcai had joined the Reliance Sect that year, Meng Hao could be described as quick-witted, Dong Hu as somber, and Wang Youcai as stubborn!

1. In chapter 1, Meng Hao put a piece of paper in a gourd, and then threw it into the river. It was never explained what specifically was written on the piece of paper, but now we have a clue….

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Chapter 851: Loyal Personality

There was one other familiar person on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, Li Shiqi.

She wore a long white robe, and walked slowly across the black soil, sending out divine sense until she found an Immortal ruin off in the distance.

She would not make her selection casually, nor rashly begin to test herself against the ruin. That was her personality.

After walking along for some time, she finally came across a blood-colored lake. At one time, the lake had been vast and deep, but now there wasn't much left to it.

At the very bottom, a bloody flower was visible.

It was an orchid that was as red as blood.

A Blood Orchid.

Li Shiqi looked at the orchid silently for a while, after which a gleam of determination appeared in her eyes, and she walked toward it. This was the first ruin she had selected. Now that she had made her decision, she would see it through to the end. That was her personality.

"There is much good fortune in this world," she murmured softly, "and I can't have all of it. I just want to find something that is suitable for me, that will be good enough." As she walked toward the Blood Orchid, she felt increasing pressure. Eventually, she sat down cross-legged, her expression blank as she submerged herself in contemplation.

Virtually all of the people on the three Ancient Roads were similarly deep in contemplation. Some were like Li Shiqi, who made her selection carefully. Others tried out one Immortal ruin after another.

Different personalities. Different paths.

Time passed. Everyone was fighting for their own future, attempting to gain enlightenment regarding their own personal divine ability. The crowds outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were all watching closely and patiently. This was the creation of a divine ability, not some simple copy of some other magic. The more time one spent developing the divine ability, the more likely it would lead to something breathtaking.

"After these three stages, there will definitely be people who become famous overnight and draw the attention of all of the sects. There might even be some people, whether they are on the name lists or not, who be immediately recruited!"

"There will also be people who suffer disastrous failures and completely lose any advantage they previously had."

"We definitely have to watch closely in case someone creates a ten-stele divine ability. In the future, that person will surely be deemed Chosen."

Conversations like this played out in many of the various areas in the Ninth Mountain and Sea where people had gathered to watch the trial by fire. Some of those people were Chosen like Taiyang Zi, who had been to Planet South Heaven, but most of them were people who had never seen Meng Hao, only heard of his name.

As of this moment, all of these Chosen were watching the trial by fire with their own thoughts and feelings.

They knew that there very well might be people participating who in future days would be their competition within their own sect.

Time passed by. Soon, three days had passed. Meng Hao had already passed through 19 Immortal ruins, and after spending some time at each one had left disappointed and wondering if something was defective about him.

"It's so depressing…." he said with a sigh. "How come the enlightenment I achieve at each of these ruins always has to do with spirit stones…." Currently, he was walking up to an enormous copper mirror, which, as soon as he laid eyes on it, filled him with the impulse to pull out a spirit stone and put it on the surface of the mirror.

After a moment, Meng Hao left the mirror, his face filled with determination.

"Apparently each one of these ruins makes me involuntarily think about spirit stones. That inevitably leads to thinking about those promissory notes… Well then, I'll just make a divine ability that's completely unique!" Taking a deep breath, he made his decision, and his eyes began to shine with a strange light. The more he thought about it, the more sense his choice made.

His body flashed as he shot off toward another Immortal ruin.

More time went by. Fatty had passed out and regained consciousness numerous times during the past few days. Every time he awoke, he would grab hold of the mushroom and viciously chomp a few bites out of it. He was currently chewing the final mouthful of the magical fungus. Feeling a bit anxious about leaving anything behind, he bit a chunk out of the wooden stump that the mushroom had been growing out of, swallowed it down, and then passed out again with a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction, and a look of anticipation.

Chen Fan still stood in front of the boulder, painting his beloved wife. His brush moved with increasing quickness, and Shan Ling's image was becoming clearer and more and more lifelike with each brushstroke.

Wang Youcai continued to sit in front of the bronze mirror, his eyes bloodshot to the point where tears of blood were dripping down his face and onto his clothes. His entire body was trembling, and blue veins bulged out on his face and neck. His expression was savage and hideous.

"I can see more than this!!"

As Li Shiqi quietly stared at the Blood Orchid, her previously white clothes were beginning to turn red, the exact same red as the flower itself.

Three more days passed. Meng Hao had now passed through 39 Immortal ruins. It was at this point that rumbling echoed out from the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, and all the cultivators in the Ninth Mountain and Sea who were watching the Ancient Roads turned their attention to the Nascent Soul vortex screen with eagerness.

"Someone succeeded!"

"The sound's coming from the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul! I wonder how many stone steles will appear!"

The Patriarchs in the palace floating in the sky all began to look over.

On the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, an old man had lifted his head back and was laughing uproariously. He waved his hand, and all of the black-colored mud and soil around him suddenly lifted up into the air, then began to form together into a statue. It had three heads and six arms, and as soon as it fully coalesced, emanated a shocking might.

"I have gained the enlightenment of this barrow!" declared the man. "This soil contains spirits, spirits that I will transmogrify into the divine wills of the people who are buried here! This will become my divine ability, which I shall henceforth name… Descent of the Spirits!"

As the old man's voice rang out, two stone steles rumbled out from the void to land in front of him. A powerful glow could be seen that filled the entire world, revealing everything clearly to the onlookers.

"Two stone steles…. Not bad! This guy's pretty good!"

"He also used the least amount of time. Earlier, nobody really noticed him, but now people are going to start paying attention to him." As the discussions continued among the spectators, the representatives from the various sects quickly began to add the old man's name to their records.

However, even while the old man's laughter was still ringing out, rumbling sounds could be heard from seven or eight other cultivators on the three various Ancient Roads, as they too completed their divine abilities.

Rumbling filled the air as one stone stele after another descended. In all cases, though, there were only two pillars, never three.

In the following days, more and more contestants completed their divine abilities, one after another. All of the three Ancient Roads were the same. At the very least, one stone stele appeared, and at the most, four, which of course attracted much attention.

Suddenly, on the seventh day, on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, a roar could be heard unlike anything before it.

The old man with the age-transformation powers now bore the appearance of a middle-aged man, an age that was truly the prime of life. He floated in midair, performing an incantation gesture, causing an extra layer of skin to appear on him, which then began to peel off as if he was molting. These were not scattered bits of flesh, but a fully connected body of skin!

The skin seemed to be smiling, although that smile was horrifying to look at!

"I have created this divine ability, Life Possession!" he said coolly as he floated there in midair. "This skin that I have shed can possess the body of even a false Immortal!" Everything rumbled as eight stone steles descended.

Those eight steles caused wild colors to flash about, and sent the crowds out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea completely abuzz.

There were even several Patriarchs in the starry sky palace whose eyes shone with gleams of surprise.

"Eight stone steles! What a shocking creation!"

"He performed well in the previous stages, and now that he's created an eight-stele divine ability, it goes to show that he definitely has potential!"

"Hahaha! The Three Great Daoist Societies might not spare him a second glance, but the Seven Seas Sect must have disciples such as him."

The outside world was in an uproar, too. Eight stone steles was currently the most that had appeared for anyone.

Almost in the same moment as the eight stone steles descended, rumbling could be heard coming from the images of more people on the Ancient Roads trial, as if some specific critical point had been reached. More divine abilities appeared, although none of them caused eight steles to descend; at most, six appeared.

But then… an incredible noise rose up on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, and everything began to tremble. Wind screamed and massive energy surged that stifled even the old man with the eight stone steles. Soon, all of the powerful experts in the outside world were looking over.

The source of the noise… was Fatty!

He hadn't made a very big impression in the previous stages, mostly because of his lack of control. Now, he opened his eyes, and while they seemed blank at first, it was possible to see that nearly half of the huge woodpile had been consumed; it appeared to be in a shambles.

Fatty rose numbly to his feet, then suddenly opened his mouth and took a deep breath. That breath caused the Heavens to tremble, and clouds to gather together. In the blink of an eye… an enormous mouth was visible up above.

The mouth was filled with numerous razor-sharp teeth, and as it bit down toward the ground, it grew larger and larger, until it was more than ten thousand meters wide. Everything trembled violently as the enormous mouth slashed through anything and everything to take an enormous bite.

Everyone on the outside looked on with wide eyes and slack jaws.

It was at this point that the Heavens rippled as thirteen stone steles descended, rumbling, from up above. They were floating in the air around Fatty as his eyes grew clear from his previous reverie.

"Thirteen stone steles! What… what divine ability did that fat guy create?!?!"

"Thirteen stone steles! That's second only to Sir Fan from back in the day! This little fatty is extraordinary! I never imagined that he would have such powerful intuition!!"

In the palace in the starry sky, the sect Patriarchs were all watching with wide eyes. Even the Three Daoist Societies were shocked. It was at this point that the Patriarch from the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum, one of the Five Holy Lands, suddenly rose to his feet. It was with incredible speed, and before anyone could react, that he shot forward and disappeared into the screen up ahead.

There were four other Patriarchs who stood up, but they weren't fast enough, and the Patriarch from the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum suddenly appeared in the world in front of Fatty. He had long gray hair that draped down over his shoulders, and wore a long robe.

"What is the name of this divine ability?!" he asked as soon as he materialized. He immediately waved his hand, causing the entire area to be locked down so that no one else could enter.

Fatty started shivering.

"I'm not sure," he replied, unsure of how this old man had appeared in front of him. "I just ate some of that wood, and the magical fungus, then I had a dream about being really hungry, and my gums were itching and I constantly felt like I had to file my teeth and eat stuff."

"Excellent, excellent. A loyal personality and an excellent divine ability. Henceforth, it shall be known as Gulping Down Heaven!

"Are you willing to join the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum as one of our disciples?!" The old man's eyes shone with a mysterious and approving light as he looked at Fatty.

"Uh, alright," replied Fatty, blinking. Then he asked, "But… but what about all my beloved concubines back home? Can they come with me?"

"As I thought, you're a man who values relationships. Don't worry. Your concubines may also join the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum!" With an emotional sigh, the old man waved his hand. Fatty was covered with a brilliant light, and then he vanished, and the world around him collapsed. Back in the palace in the starry sky, the various Patriarchs weren't very happy, but there was nothing they could do.

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Chapter 852: Flowers in Full Bloom

The other Patriarchs were angrily grumbling in the palace up in the starry sky.

"Dammit, I was just a bit too slow and lost out on a potential star! He got snatched away!"

In the outside world, great waves of shock rolled about as a consequence of Fatty being taken as a disciple.

"What was that fat guy's name again? I can't believe he got taken as a disciple by the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum, one of the Five Great Holy Lands!"

"I'm pretty sure his name is Li Fugui. His life is sure going to be different from now on!"

"Considering he made a thirteen-stele divine ability, that Li Fugui is definitely Chosen. Think about it; it won't be long before he has a cultivation base breakthrough. Eventually, he'll definitely get to Dao Seeking, and then he'll then move on to Immortality!"

"But what about that tree stump he was on top of? How come it had all those bite marks, as if a dog had been chewing on the wood? Was it like that from the beginning?"

All of the spectators outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were shaken inwardly. Some couldn't figure out what to think, others were filled with envy.

As the discussions continued, another rumbling sound could be heard from the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul. This time, it came from Li Shiqi. By now, her garments were entirely the color of blood. She sat cross-legged next to the Blood Orchid, almost as if she herself had become a part of it!

She opened her eyes, and in that moment, the Blood Orchid… completely wilted!

When that happened, Li Shiqi's countenance shone with unprecedented spirit and vigor. Instantly, her cultivation base rose up, pushing her immeasurably close to Spirit Severing.

At first, she looked confused, but once she regained clarity, she performed an incantation with her delicate hand and then pointed up into the air. All the Heavens up above turned blood red, and a Blood Orchid materialized over her and slowly began to bloom.

Rumbling echoed out, and one stone stele after another descended from the blood-red Heavens. One, two, three… ten, twelve… thirteen….

In the end, fourteen stone steles fell from up above to stand tall in the earth around Li Shiqi, causing everything to tremble and shake. As Li Shiqi rose to her feet, she was the complete focus of all attention.

The audiences in the Ninth Mountain and Sea exploded into an uproar.

"Heavens! She's even more shocking than that fat guy! Fourteen stone steles!!"

"She was enlightened about the Blood Orchid? The Church of the Blood Orchid is definitely going to go crazy! They won't hesitate to pay any price to recruit her!"

"How could it be that two Chosen appeared on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul? Neither of them were very eye-catching before, and yet now, they're so shocking!"

When Fatty made his debut, five Patriarchs in the starry sky palace had flown out, including the Patriarch from the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum. Now, however, seven people flew into the air. No one from the Three Great Daoist Societies had moved a muscle. However, even the Patriarch from Moonset Lake, one of the Five Great Holy Lands, was in motion.

The seven Patriarchs reached the screen at the same time, and then all of them appeared in front of Li Shiqi in the world of the trial by fire.

"Girl, are you willing to join the Moonset Lake, one of the Five Great Holy Lands?!"

"The Five Great Holy Lands already have plenty of Chosen," said another of the seven. "If you join them, you might never be able to distinguish yourself. Based on your powers of understanding, you could definitely be an Empress of this generation in the Church of the Immortal Emperor!" Everyone was now trying to recruit Li Shiqi.

It was at this point that an old man wearing a blood-colored robe suddenly spoke up.

"You were enlightened regarding the Blood Orchid, and used that to create a divine ability. This shows that you have destiny connecting you to the Church of the Blood Orchid. Join us, and you will be in line to become our Holy Daughter!" The other six Patriarchs present were all shocked. The cultivators recruited from within the trial by fire usually had to pass through a probationary period. However, the Patriarch from the Church of the Blood Orchid offered to make a candidate their Holy Daughter, which was not in keeping with the general rule. However, considering she had been enlightened regarding the Blood Orchid, the others could understand.

Li Shiqi looked quietly for a moment at the old man from the Church of the Blood Orchid. Finally, she made a curtseying bow.

"Senior, I am Li Shiqi, and I am willing to join the Church of the Blood Orchid."

The uproar in the outside world grew even more intense. Li Shiqi left with the Patriarch from the Church of the Blood Orchid, after which all the cultivators from that organization knew that a young woman named Li Shiqi was like the fish who had jumped over the dragon gate, and had successfully passed her examination.

In the future, her glory would likely exceed that of Li Fugui. She had gained enlightenment of the Blood Orchid, and had then created a divine ability from it. To the Church of the Blood Orchid, which had been established because of the Blood Orchid itself, this definitely qualified her to be a candidate to become a Holy Daughter.

By this time, Meng Hao had passed through 72 Immortal ruins. Fewer people were paying attention to him because of all the commotion caused by Fatty and Li Shiqi. However, some people with especially high cultivation bases were the type to consider the future, and look deeply into matters.

They did not participate in the various discussions, but when they saw Meng Hao gaining enlightenment from so many Immortal ruins, they were inwardly shocked. The Patriarchs in the palace were also paying attention to this, although no one took the initiative to say anything about it.

By now it was obvious that if any of the other sects tried to fight over someone like Meng Hao, they would be forced to offend the Three Great Daoist Societies. After all… the Three Great Daoist Societies were in charge of the entire trial by fire.

Everyone well knew that in the assessment of divine ability creation, only those with wild ambitions could gain enlightenment from so many Immortal ruins. Regardless of whether it be on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Spirit Severing, or the Nascent Soul, there were few people who walked the same path as Meng Hao. Most others gained enlightenment from a handful at most, which was a vast difference from Meng Hao.

As people in the outside world discussed the matter of Li Shiqi and Fatty, Wang Youcai sat cross-legged in front of the bronze mirror. His eyes were completely red, and continuously dripped with blood. His body was trembling, almost as if he were possessed.

"I can see even more! I can see everything….

"My latent talent doesn't measure up to Dong Hu, and my cultivation base is not as good as Meng Hao's. But I refuse to back down!" More blood built up in Wang Youcai's eyes, and his pupils seemed on the verge of exploding.

"This is my only chance. In the past several stages, nobody was paying attention to me. But now… I WILL rise to prominence!

"I want to see… everything! I want to see all destinies. My eyes will see what lies beyond the Heavens, and past the underworld that lies beneath the Earth!" Blood flowed out of his eyes continuously, and his pupils were beginning to shatter.

After ten breaths of time… a rumbling sound could be heard from the world in which Wang Youcai sat. At the same time, Wang Youcai's murmuring voice could be heard.

"I can see now…." In the instant he spoke the words, his eyes suddenly collapsed into pieces. Everything in front of him went black, and from this instant, was gone for all eternity. As his eyes shattered, he closed them.

The shattering occurred in a split second, and as it did, the world around Wang Youcai cracked and… exploded into pieces.

As everything fell apart, he rose to his feet. Stone steles were descended through the shattered canopy above, one after another. By now, all attention on the outside world was focused on Wang Youcai.

They saw the world shatter, and saw the stone steles descended, and everyone gasped.

One, five, ten, thirteen, fifteen….

A total of sixteen stone steles descended, swirling around Wang Youcai, who stood there quietly with his eyes closed.

"Henceforth, my eyes shall remain closed in perpetuity. Should they open, Heaven and Earth will experience shocking changes!

"My divine ability, is called…. Blackest Night."

As Wang Youcai's voice rang out, the Ninth Mountain and Sea looked on in astonishment.

"Sixteen stone steles! There are actually sixteen stone steles!"

"That's Heaven-defying! From ancient times until now, the only person who ever exceeded that is Sir Fan of the Ninth Sea God World, whose exploits are recorded in the ancient records!!"

"I bet even the Three Great Daoist Societies are shocked!"

In the starry sky palace, many of the Patriarchs of the various sects gasped as they watched Wang Youcai. Even they were shocked by what they were seeing.

"He destroyed his own eyes to create a divine ability, leaving him blind! However, considering his battle prowess, even though he's in the Nascent Soul stage, he's capable of slaughtering Spirit Severing! When he reaches Dao Seeking, if he opens his eyes, the result will be shocking."

"How ruthless! How stubborn!"

Ten people flew toward the display screens with incredible speed. The fastest was the Patriarch from Moonset Lake. However, he did not enter the screen, but rather turned and clasped hands to everyone else.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Fellow Daoists, the Daoist magic of Moonset Lake is quite suitable for this child. After the moon sets, there is no light in the sky. Instead, the black night is endlessly deep. I request… that you please do not fight with me over this child!

"Daoist Elders of the Three Great Daoist Societies, if you give some face to Moonset Lake, then we promise to repay the favor in future days!" He clasped hands and bowed deeply, his expression very somber. Everyone else stopped in their tracks, their eyes glittering. No one spoke, but instead looked toward the Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies.

The Patriarch from the Ninth Sea God World thought for a moment and then nodded his head. "I take no issue."

Sitting in the center position of the Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies was an old man who had the bearing of a transcendent being. He wore a white robe, and had a calm expression. Immortal qi swirled around him as he said, "There is a person here who has destiny with the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite. However, he will not join us during this trial by fire. Actually, the only reason I agreed to hold this event was to see him. The person you have mentioned is not him, so I will do nothing to stop you."

Next to him was an old man from the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto. He smiled slightly, a smile that seemed somewhat cold and almost looked like a fierce sword.

"I have also taken a liking to this child, but… huh?" The old man from the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto had just begun speaking when suddenly, his face flickered, and he looked over at the screens. Next to him, the Patriarchs from the Ninth Sea God World and the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite did the same.

"91!"

"He's gained enlightenment from 91 Immortal ruins!"

On the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Meng Hao stood in a tall pagoda. When his eyes opened, they seemed confused, but quickly regained clarity. Without pause, he left and headed in another direction.

He sent his divine sense out, looking for more Immortal ruins, eventually finding the 92nd, and then the 93rd….

Time passed by on the Ancient Roads. One person after another created their divine abilities, but none were as shocking as those which had occurred earlier. Chen Fan created his divine ability, but only eight stone steles descended in response.

At any other time, it would have been shocking, but at this point, it was nothing especially noteworthy.

Time passed, and now more attention was being paid to the participants who had not created their divine abilities yet, but were still continuing to gain enlightenment from the Immortal ruins. Everyone understood that these people would either fail, or would have Heaven-defying results.

Once again, Meng Hao became the center of attention. By now, the number of Immortal ruins he had gained enlightenment from had exceeded that of Sir Fan!

"96!!"

"Does he really seem like the kind of person who can gain enlightenment from all 99 ruins? From ancient times until now, less than a hundred people have ever done that! Of course, of all those people, Sir Fan was the only person that ended up creating a nineteen-stele divine ability!"

"No one else could measure up to Sir Fan. I wonder how many stone steles… will descend when Fang Mu creates his divine ability!?"

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Chapter 853: Nine Bridges!

Outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, everyone was watching Meng Hao and discussing his progress.

"Maybe he'll outdo Wang Youcai from earlier. Or who knows, maybe he won't match up!"

"There's no way he'll come in behind Wang Youcai. From ancient times until now, less than a hundred people have ever gained enlightenment from more than 90 Immortal Ruins!"

"You can tell that this Fang Mu has terrifying divine sense and incredible willpower. The final creation of his divine ability will truly be a test of his intuition!"

In the palace in the starry sky, each and every one of the various Patriarchs were also staring fixedly at the screen that represented Meng Hao's area.

While everyone paid such close attention to the screens, Meng Hao was standing atop a towering cliff. His eyes opened, and his expression was blank like before. Then he headed off into another direction.

Nearby the cliff were the ruins of an archaic temple. This was the 97th Immortal ruin he had gained enlightenment from, which then caused another dot of light to appear on his screen in the outside world. That immediately sent everyone into an uproar.

"97 Immortal ruins! This Fang Mu defies the Heavens!"

"I can't wait to see whether or not he can create an even more Heaven-defying divine ability!"

"It's not guaranteed. Of all the people who have done a similar thing, only Sir Fan followed up with a peerless divine ability!"

As for all the other people who were going about the trial by fire in the same way as Meng Hao, the person with the next greatest amount of Immortal ruins under their belt only had 83!

That was the young man in the mask. Had Meng Hao not participated in the trial by fire, he would definitely have been the complete center of attention in the previous stages, and would now be in first place.

Meng Hao's appearance on the scene cast him in the shadows.

Currently, he had no idea what was going on outside his own world. His expression was one of determination as he gritted his teeth and continued onward. He left the 83rd Immortal ruin and then began to search for another.

As more time passed, they made slower and slower progress. It took a few days before Meng Hao finally regained his senses in the 97th Immortal Ruin. After sitting there cross-legged for some time, he slowly rose to his feet and made his way to a different location, a deep crater.

Glittering light could be seen deep within the crater, as if, years in the past, a meteor had smashed down here.

This was not a location that just anyone could find. Anyone who did find it would find it difficult to endure the pressure. Only Meng Hao, with his incredible divine sense and shocking willpower, was able to descend into the crater and then sit down cross-legged.

"98!" The crowds in the outside world were shocked, and the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace looked on with glittering eyes.

"After this, there's only one more, and that will be all 99!"

"From ancient times until now, no one in the Spirit Realm has ever gained enlightenment from so many Immortal ruins on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking!"

"Who exactly is this Fang Mu?! Where is he from? If he can really pull it off, his fame will shake all of the Ninth Mountain!" The outside world was abuzz, but the palace in the starry sky was dead silent.

All of the Patriarchs from the various sects were paying close attention, and none of them were speaking.

As for the other competitors in the trial by fire, no one was paying attention to any of them. Even the masked young man, who had just reached the 88th Immortal ruin, was behind Meng Hao, who was clearly in first place.

Five days passed!

Meng Hao slowly opened his eyes. He looked exhausted, and even more blank than before. This time, he had teetered on the edge of not awakening. The crater was filled with chunks and fragments of stone, each one of which emitted different auras, which had combined together to transform into an ancient vortex that influenced the mind.

It was as if he had been experiencing a Daoist magic that came straight from an ancient era. Someone had waved a hand, and a star up above was crushed down into a meteor, which then slammed into the ground.

The massive blow had cracked the land, and shattered some of the heavenly bodies up above. In that instant, Meng Hao had felt as if his own divine sense were being ripped to shreds. It was only by virtue of his intense willpower that he was able to claw his way back to lucidity.

"More and more difficult…." he thought. "I've already gained enlightenment from 98 Immortal ruins. According to what Ling Yunzi said, there are a total of 99 Immortal ruins, and after that, an intact Immortal pavilion!

"But, after sending my divine sense out, I can sense the final Immortal ruin, but not any Immortal pavilion.

"Unfortunately, even with my divine sense, I'm only able to sense the general direction of that final Immortal ruin, and not anything specific about it. However, I have a premonition that it… is very dangerous!" After a moment, he stood up and walked silently out of the crater. After that, he stood on the edge of the crater, thinking.

He was currently hesitating about whether to continue onward, or just make his divine ability right here. By this point, he already had some ideas about what type of divine ability he wanted to create.

After a moment, his eyes shone with decisiveness. He was not the type of person to back down easily. Even if the danger was great, he was stubborn. Were that not the case, he would not have been able to travel the long path from being a scholar to possessing eighty percent of the power of a true Immortal!

"The more powerful the divine ability, the more stone steles will descend. And I need stone steles!" Meng Hao took a deep breath, ceased any thoughts of hesitation, then headed off in the direction of the 99th Immortal ruin, as indicated by his divine sense.

Although he didn't know the specific location, Meng Hao was confident that he would be able to find it. He just needed to expend a little bit of time.

One day. Two days. Three days….

The palace in the starry sky was completely silent as the Patriarchs of the various sects looked on.

Then, an archaic voice echoed out within the palace. This person had not spoken at all yet, nor had he attempted to solicit recruits. It was an old man from the Kunlun Society.

"Can he find the 99th Immortal ruin? Actually, I'm very curious about something. This 99th ruin which is shared by all three Ancient Roads… what exactly does it look like?

"Fellow Daoists of the Three Great Daoist Societies, could you quell my curiosity?"

Were it any other sect that inquired about the matter, the Three Great Daoist Societies would pay no heed to the question. But the Kunlun Society was different. The three Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies exchanged glances, after which the old man from the Ninth Sea God World spoke up.

"According to the legends, during the great war, the three exalted Paragons united all of the Immortal Ancient Doyens. They extracted all of the Immortal qi from the world and sacrificed it to a boundless spirit, which was the fallen… Pāramitā Heaven-treading Foundation!" 1

These words provoked a collective gasp from all of the Patriarchs. Looks of astonishment appeared on their faces, and some of them even rose to their feet.

"WHAT?!"

"The legendary Pāramitā Foundation?"

The Kunlun Society elder's eyes went wide. He said nothing, but from his expression, he was clearly shaken.

Time passed, and Meng Hao continued to search for the 99th Immortal ruin. More people created divine abilities on the three Ancient Roads. There were also people who failed, and chose to give up.

Seven days later, there were only seven people on the three Ancient Roads who had yet to create a divine ability!

Those seven people were now the subject of intense scrutiny. Everyone was watching to see what would happen. There was one person on the Ancient Road of the Nascent Soul, two people on the Ancient Road of Spirit Severing, and the remaining four were on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking.

One of them was the young man in the mask, another was the cultivator with the mosquitos.

"If anybody in this trial by fire can exceed twenty stone steles, it's one of these seven!"

"See that one, with 90 Immortal ruins? His name is Li Yan, that cultivator with the mask. He's yet another that has gained enlightenment of 90!!" 2

"This is really incredible. Now there's a second person in this trial by fire who has acquired enlightenment from 90 Immortal ruins!"

There were many cries of shock in the crowds in the outside world as quite a few people began to pay attention to the masked young man, Li Yan. As for the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace, they too would occasionally glance away from Meng Hao to look at the masked young man's screen.

Currently, Meng Hao was making his way through the world, following the direction of his divine sense as he searched for the 99th Immortal ruin. He had already searched for seven days, and felt certain that he had thoroughly explored all of the areas indicated by his divine sense. Despite that, he still hadn't found the ruin.

"Just… where is it?" Suddenly, Meng Hao stopped in place. Frowning, he looked around silently, and then simply closed his eyes. He sent his divine sense out again, and could vaguely sense that there were Immortal ruins up ahead of him. When he opened his eyes, he saw nothing.

Muttering to himself, he closed his eyes again. Then, without opening his eyes, he began to walk forward. It was using this method that he proceeded on for about two hours until, suddenly, his body trembled.

He did not open his eyes, and yet, was able to see something incredible with his divine sense, right there in front of him.

He saw… nine bridges! 3

Nine incredibly shocking bridges that seemed to rise above the heavens. The sight of these bridges was unmatchably astonishing as they rose up into the air, each one higher than the one before it. They formed something that almost looked like a staircase, linking up into the boundless starry sky.

As he examined the bridges with his divine sense, Meng Hao gradually got the feeling that if someone could tread these nine bridges all the way to their end, then that person would definitely become matchlessly powerful.

Meng Hao's body was trembling; there was an indescribable pressure radiating out from the bridges, something that seemed capable of crushing him in an instant. Right now, it wasn't being sent out at full force, but rather, simply swirling around the bridges.

Even still, Meng Hao coughed up a mouthful of blood and staggered backward several paces. He had the intense sensation that these nine bridges were actually incomplete. Were they intact, then even looking at them would destroy him in body and spirit.

"What exactly are these bridges?!?!" he gasped, not daring to open his eyes. He carefully observed with his divine sense, and began to experience a vision.

He saw illusory images of things that had happened countless years in the past. He saw a figure that looked like a sun attempting to tread on the bridges. However, before he could get past the first bridge, he shattered into countless pieces.

He saw an old man with white hair, who radiated boundless coldness. He stepped onto the first bridge, then the second….

As he proceeded higher and higher, he became more and more powerful. In the end, all the colors in the sky and the land faded. The ninth bridge began to tremble, as if it couldn't stand up to the old man's steps.

The old man reached the end and stood atop the final bridge. Then he turned, and Meng Hao was able to clearly see his eyes. In that instant, Meng Hao's mind filled with roaring.

Blood sprayed from his mouth, and he once again staggered back. When he lifted his head back up, he unhesitatingly opened his eyes.

As soon as his eyes opened, the nine bridges vanished. The air up ahead of him was absolutely empty, devoid of any object.

"This place is the location of the 99th Immortal ruin!" Meng Hao was panting, and his eyes glowed with a strange light. He wiped the blood from his mouth, sat down cross-legged, and rotated his cultivation base to begin healing his injuries.

It was at this point that, in the outside world, 99 dots of light appeared on the screen which represented him in the outside world!

99!

1. Here is some more information about Pāramitā. Also, I translated Pāramitā as "resurrection" in the Resurrection Lily. When I first researched the Resurrection Lily, I came across references to Pāramitā in connection to the lily. It could have been translated Pāramitā Flower or Pāramitā Lily. However, the "Pāramitā Lily" is a real flower which (in real life) is sometimes called a resurrection lily, because of how the dead flowers once again bloom in summer. In any case, to forestall any confusion, the Pāramitā referenced here does not have a connection to the Resurrection Lily, and I think in this situation, Pāramitā is definitely the more accurate translation

2. Li Yan's name in Chinese is 离炎 lí yán – Li means, among other things, "depart." Yan means "flame" or "scorching"

3. This is not the first time nine bridges have been mentioned in the story. Check out chapter 437

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Chapter 854: Secret Clues!

"He found it!" In the palace, the old men from the Three Great Daoist Societies were all watching with brightly shining eyes. This was especially true of the old man from the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite, whose entire face glowed with unprecedented brightness.

"He is the first person from ancient times until now to tread the Ancient Road with a Spirit Realm cultivation base and find the Pāramitā Heavenly Foundation!"

"He can only observe from a distance, not get near. Based on his divine sense and willpower, he should be able to determine that it isn't safe. He won't brazenly get close."

"That depends on his good fortune. In these worlds of the sixth, seventh, and eighth stages, time passes differently than in the outside world. Actually, contemplating enlightenment for one day in there is like spending ten years at it out here!"

Murmured conversations filled the palace.

In contrast, the crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were buzzing with chatter.

When they saw the 99th dot of light, everyone knew exactly what it meant. Everyone was in an uproar, and now, the name Fang Mu was deeply imprinted in the hearts of everyone present.

Even as everyone on the outside was in a tumult, Meng Hao opened his eyes. He breathed heavily for a moment, then gritted his teeth and closed his eyes again. He sent his divine sense out to once again observe the nine astonishing bridges.

The bridges appeared to be complete, but Meng Hao knew that if they had been, he would have been killed simply by looking at them. Right now, even observing them from a distance caused him to be injured. Actually, it was a good thing the bridges were broken down. Otherwise, considering his cultivation base, as soon as his divine sense touched them, he would have been completely annihilated.

"Nine Heaven-defying bridges like this were actually destroyed…. These are no mere bridges! They were obviously especially created to allow cultivators to experience incredible cultivation base growth, to be able to punch through to an incredible realm of power!

"I never imagined that I would be able to see something like this here! This is extremely good fortune for me!" As he thought about it, Meng Hao's mind suddenly trembled.

"There was never any rule about only being able to create one divine ability…. In that case, why not create two?" Originally, Meng Hao had already devised a plan to create a divine ability, but after seeing the nine bridges, a new form of enlightenment had appeared in his mind, which then transformed into the shape of a divine ability. Furthermore, he didn't wish to give up on either of the two ideas.

The first divine ability aligned perfectly with his personality. As for the second one, Meng Hao sincerely desired to possess it.

He took a deep breath and then decided to stop thinking about it. He focused his divine sense on the nine bridges, and on resisting the pressure. Not only was he imprinting the image of the bridge onto his mind, he decided to try to get a bit closer, to acquire a bit of good fortune from the pressure weighing down.

Time slowly passed by.

Ten days later, only four people remained. The other three had finally realized they couldn't continue to gain enlightenment from the Immortal ruins, and had decided to create their divine abilities. Of those three, the individual who had found the most Immortal ruins had found 76.

The divine abilities they created were powerful. One of them caused eleven stone steles to descend, which provoked a lot of attention.

Ten more days passed, and of the four remaining people on the Ancient Roads, two of them could not continue, and chose to create their divine abilities. One of them was the young man with the mosquitos, who had found 89 Immortal ruins. At that point, he created a thirteen-stele divine ability.

Quite a few people were astonished by this, and the young man quickly rose to prominence.

As of this moment, there were only two people left on the Ancient Road. One of them was Meng Hao, and the other was the young man in the mask, Li Yan!

Li Yan had already found the 93rd Immortal ruin, and was now the second person in the trial by fire to have exceeded Sir Fan.

He and Meng Hao were the focus of the attention of the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea.

Three more days passed. Meng Hao coughed up some blood, and his vision went blurry. During the more than twenty days that had passed, he had sustained injuries on multiple occasions as he forced himself to continue to contemplate the nine bridges, and imprint their image on his mind.

It was difficult, but with his intense willpower, he was slowly but surely able to continue to grind away. He was not so wildly ambitious that he intended to commit all nine bridges to memory, only the first one.

Finally, the twenty-first day arrived. In this special location, contemplating enlightenment for that amount of time was like spending more than two hundred years on the outside. Rumbling filled Meng Hao's mind, and his eyes shone with the glow of enlightenment as the full image of the first bridge materialized in front of him.

In that instant, deep within his mind, he was able to sense exactly how damaged the bridge was. Suddenly, ninety-nine percent of the bridge actually vanished, and he found that the first bridge was actually… nothing more than a fist-sized rock!

It was a mere stone, but even looking at it caused Meng Hao to cough up blood, and he knew that if he approached it, he would be destroyed in body and spirit. These more than twenty days of contemplation were like two hundred or more years in the outside world.

In the moment that he understood the real situation regarding the first bridge, and the outline of the bridge itself appeared in his mind, images began to appear in his eyes, a vision.

Within the vision were nine enormous suns hauling an astonishing statue. They seemed so large that they were impossible to see the ends of. An army of countless cultivators lashed out with attacks that ripped a huge hole in the air, which they then entered.

Behind the shocking statue were nine astonishing bridges that shook the heavens. Boundless light that covered everything radiated off of them.

The scene caused Meng Hao's mind to tremble, and reminded him of the things he had seen back in the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite Temple. Some of the images were almost exactly the same. 1

Then, the vision changed. He saw a world-shaking war. Countless living things were being slaughtered, and heavenly bodies collapsed. The starry sky shattered, and in every breath of time, endless numbers of lives perished.

The nine bridges exerted incredible pressure, causing the starry sky to begin to collapse. Next, Meng Hao saw three enormous figures appear up above. When they joined forces, the starry sky disappeared, and the world went black, as if all the auras in existence were absorbed, condensed to form nine mountains, which then crushed down toward the nine bridges.

The bridges… shattered!

The vision abruptly ended. Meng Hao had no time to thoroughly analyze the images before they vanished. He was left standing there, his jaw slack, his eyes wide. His mind was blank and trembling.

"Those nine mountains…." Meng Hao was panting. From what he could sense, he had only been able to glimpse a tiny bit of some huge secret.

"Why does the world I live in consist of only nine mountains and nine seas, with four planets circling around each of those mountains?!

"I never thought about it too much before, but how come Planet South Heaven is so special? Why did that Outsider want my parents to guard it?!

"Also, what about that place I went to underneath the Ancient Dao Lakes on Planet South Heaven? That being which was crushed and then sealed there said something like… Immortals are the source of all chaos! 2

"What exactly does that mean?!" Meng Hao's breathing was unprecedentedly ragged, and he was shivering all over. He now had an idea of what it all meant, but didn't dare to consider that it was true.

As his mind trembled, the nine bridges in front of him vanished. This time, they really were gone; even when Meng Hao searched with his divine sense, he was unable to find them.

After a long moment of silence, Meng Hao sighed lightly. The matter of the vision was something far removed from the current situation, and considering the level of his cultivation base, he wasn't really qualified to begin to probe such secrets.

"One day, I'll understand it all!" he thought, his eyes shining with determination. He took a deep breath and sent his divine sense out one last time. Seeing that it was impossible to locate the bridges, he decided to search for the Immortal pavilion that Ling Yunzi had mentioned.

Several days later, he still remained empty handed. No matter what methods he used, even closing his eyes, he was unable to detect any Immortal pavilion. In fact, he was now fairly certain that he would be unable to find it at all, so he decided to sit down cross-legged in the location where the nine bridges had stood, and begin to create his divine ability!

He quickly slipped into a trance.

Many ideas and thoughts flitted through his mind, as well as numerous flickering images. The enlightenment he had received in the 99 Immortal ruins began to merge together, until finally, a will exploded out from within his mind that was a divine ability belonging solely to him.

As Meng Hao was piecing together the enlightenment to create a divine ability, Li Yan had passed the 95th Immortal ruin, but could not find the 96th.

After a while, he had no choice but to stop regretfully and begin to create his divine ability.

By this point, everyone out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, as well as the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace, were now waiting to see what types of divine abilities Meng Hao and Li Yan would create.

There was something else going on that nobody in the palace noticed. Although the elders from the Three Great Daoist Societies seemed to be looking at the vortex screens with glittering eyes, deep within their gazes could be seen faint sighs of disappointment.

Such sighs were deeply hidden, yet seemed to be a disappointment that was not entirely unexpected.

Days passed, and the anticipation among the audience out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea only continued to grow.

"Just what types of divine abilities are Fang Mu and Li Yan creating? Which one will have the most stone steles?!"

"My guess is Fang Mu. After all, he gained enlightenment from 99 Immortal ruins. That's unheard of!"

"It won't necessarily be Fang Mu. It could be that he just took advantage of some lucky situations. In the end, I bet the best divine ability will be created by Li Yan!"

"If neither of them can create a sixteen-stele divine ability, then that means Wang Youcai will take first place in the sixth, seventh, and eighth stages!"

Two more days passed, when suddenly the area around the masked Li Yan burst into flames.

The flames were black, and instantly set the Heavens ablaze. Li Yan's eyes opened, and his pupils were composed entirely of fire!

Flames roared all around him, covering the land, burning everything. The entire world became a sea of flames, and then began to melt, as if it couldn't sustain the heat. The people outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were now able to clearly see Li Yan and everything that was happening in his world.

Gasps rang out from many areas in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, and in the palace in the starry sky, the Patriarchs looked on with strange gleams in their eyes. The old man from the Bones of the Flamedevil, one of the Five Great Holy Lands, couldn't help but observe with wide, glowing eyes.

"Li Yan is incredible! What type of flame divine ability did he create? It can actually melt the entire world!"

"He'll definitely get at least sixteen steles. His divine ability appears to be on a similar level as Wang Youcai's, but from the feel of it, it's more powerful!"

Li Yan slowly stood, a proud expression on his face beneath the mask. Then, he breathed in three times.

Each breath caused everything to tremble, and the flame sea to spread out even farther. After three breaths, the entire world was engulfed in flames. Finally, Li Yan inhaled deeply.

When he inhaled, all of the flames in the world began to churn and roil, tumbling toward Li Yan as he sucked them into his body.

Next, a rumbling sound emanated out from his body, and although no one could see any flames, when they looked at Li Yan himself, it caused them to feel twinges of pain like that caused by fire.

"A body magic!"

"Heavens! That's the most difficult thing to create! A body magic!!"

"It's not just any body magic, that's almost a Daoist magic!"

"Although it's not a complete Daoist magic, it's definitely unique. If in the future he continues to cultivate it to the peak, there's a high likelihood he could refine it into a true legacy Daoist magic!!"

1. Meng Hao saw similar things in the vision in chapter 819

2. I think this might be a slipup on Er Gen's part. In the scene underneath the Ancient Dao Lakes in chapter 731, nothing is mentioned about Immortals being the source of chaos. I double checked with the original Chinese and didn't see anything to that effect. The only similar words were actually uttered by that monkey in chapter 789, and were heard by Meng Hao in his other vision in chapter 819. I'll continue to check into this to see if there's a reference I missed, and if any of you readers happen to know, please feel free to leave a comment.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

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Chapter 855: A Bit of Karma!

Everyone in the Ninth Mountain and Sea was completely shaken. In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs of the various sects looked on with strange gleams in their eyes. The elder from the Holy Land of the Bones of the Flamedevil chuckled and rose to his feet.

"Presumably, this young man is not the type to be selected by the Three Great Daoist Societies. This magic is connected by destiny to the Bones of the Flamedevil. Ladies and Gentlemen, I humbly request that you do not compete with me in this matter." Even as he spoke, the old man moved with incredible speed. However, at the same time, eight or nine other people sped forward.

Of the Five Great Holy Lands, Wang Youcai and Fatty had been taken by the Moonset Lake and the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum respectively. Up to now, only the Blue Lotus Sky, Mount Sun, and the Bones of the Flamedevil hadn't truly made a move. Now, though, they sprang into action.

Even as they neared Li Yan's world, rumbling echoed out as multiple stone steles descended. One, three, five, seven….

In total, seventeen stone steles appeared!!

One more than Wang Youcai!

Each one of the seventeen stone steles was fully three hundred meters tall, and as they spun around Li Yan, they turned into a vortex that sent light towering up into the sky. Li Yan stood in the middle of it all, surrounded by the boundless glow, looking like an unparalleled Chosen.

When the crowds out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea saw the seventeen stone steles, they were completely shocked.

"From ancient times until now, he's second only to Sir Fan!"

"Seventeen stone steles! He's definitely worthy to have been enlightened regarding 95 Immortal ruins! He created a body magic that summoned seventeen stone steles!"

"It's impossible to predict what kind of future he will have, especially since his cultivation base is at the peak of Dao Seeking. Once he joins a sect, he'll get some training and will definitely become an incredible Chosen!"

All sorts of envious and jealous comments could be heard echoing out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. In Li Yan's world, the Patriarchs from the various sects had arrived. After some bickering, the Bones of the Flamedevil managed to recruit Li Yan as a disciple.

As of now, the only person left in the world of the sixth, seventh, and eighth stages was Meng Hao. His divine ability had not fully been created yet.

Everyone was now watching closely, including the Three Great Daoist Societies in the palace up in the starry sky.

The anticipation in the air continued to grow more intense.

"If he can outdo everyone else, then he'll take first place! Let's see how many stone steles his divine ability will cause to descend!"

"He gained enlightenment from 99 Immortal ruins. If he gets anything less than fifteen stone steles, it would be completely disappointing!"

"It's hard to say. I heard that one year, somebody gained enlightenment from 98 Immortal ruins, but in the end only created a nine-stele divine ability!"

Three days later, as Meng Hao sat there cross-legged, his eyes suddenly opened.

"Each time I gained enlightenment from the first 98 Immortal ruins," he thought, "I saw images of spirit stones and promissory notes. In the future, I hope to make all the Chosen in the great Nine Mountains and Seas write me promissory notes!

"That is my grand aspiration….

"Writing me a promissory note is also sowing Karma, and those Karma threads can be used to interfere with fate. However, most people aren't willing to write promissory notes. Therefore… I will create a divine ability that forms ties of destiny with them by force!" Meng Hao's eyes glittered and he raised his right index finger.

Immediately, the world began to tremble as countless threads appeared. Some of the threads were bright, and some were dark, but all were Karma Threads, and they did not originate from this world, but from Meng Hao!

Shockingly, just a movement of his finger had caused all of his Karma Threads to become visible. The entire world began to shake even more violently, and roaring filled the air, as if the entire place were about to collapse.

Meng Hao looked up and gazed at the Karma Threads, and his eyes glittered brightly. He suddenly formed his right hand into a claw, which reached out and grabbed one of the Karma Threads. The instant he touched it, he suddenly saw an image of Fan Dong'er.

He yanked on the Thread, and it twisted. At the same time, Meng Hao pulled out a piece of paper. Then, he unhesitatingly caused the Karma Thread to twist into the shape of a magical symbol, which he then imprinted onto the piece of paper.

As soon as the mark appeared, Fan Dong'er, who sat cross-legged in meditation in the Ninth Sea God World trying to suppress the female corpse on her back, felt a tremor run through her. Her eyes opened wide and then shone with astonishment.

Next, her face flickered, and she coughed up a mouthful of blood. A look of astonishment covered her face.

"What just happened? Did somebody just use the Dao of Karma to plot against me?"

In the instant that Fan Dong'er's face flickered, Meng Hao's expression became one of excitement. He took a deep breath, and then a strange light appeared in his eyes. This magic which forced ties of destiny was only in the first level of development. In the second level, he would be able to fuse promissory notes into the Karma Threads, and then unleash the full divine ability.

As far as the third level went, he would be able to use the promissory notes as Karma seeds, which, if successfully planted and the magic was allowed to grow to its full extent, would give Meng Hao the power to determine life or death with a mere thought.

"This is my divine ability. A Bit of Karma. It might not be complete, but in the future, as my cultivation base grows more abstruse, I WILL perfect it!" As Meng Hao's words rang out, the world around him shook, then filled with fissures. Everything trembled as Meng Hao came into clear view of everyone on the outside world.

The Patriarchs up in the palace were shocked.

"It's a Daoist magic!!"

"It's the Ji Clan's Dao of Karma! Wait, no! It's something different than the Ji Clan's Dao of Karma! The Ji Clan severs Karma, but this forcefully ties destiny together. It's equally domineering, equally shocking!"

"That's not just a Daoist magic, that counts as a secret magic!! Fang Mu's intuition is incredibly high!"

"I'm curious to know what enlightenment led him to create such a Daoist secret magic like this!!"

Daoist magics were rare, but secret magics were even rarer!

The spectators out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were looking on with wide eyes. Gasps could be heard, and unprecedented looks of astonishment could be seen.

"This defies belief!!"

"This Fang Mu created a magic that seems to be both a Daoist magic and a secret magic! I'm afraid only the powerful experts from the great sects would be able to understand it!"

"In any case, it caused the world to begin to collapse. Now, I wonder how many stone steles will descend!? Will he exceed Li Yan?!"

As the world trembled around Meng Hao, intense rumbling sounds could be heard as the stone steles began to fall.

One, three, five, seven….

People looked on, astonished, as a total of twenty-one stone steles descended. They Circulated around Meng Hao endlessly, creating a completely astonishing spectacle.

Instantly, the crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea began to seethe with excitement.

"Twenty-one stone steles! Heavens! That… that exceeds Sir Fan!!"

"Inhuman! This guy's battle prowess is monstrous, and his creativity is inhuman! Even though we couldn't see his latent talent, it's surely extraordinary! He'll definitely take first place in this trial by fire!!"

"I bet all of the Three Great Daoist Societies are in shock!! Twenty-one stone steles! This Fang Mu is definitely going to be famous in the Ninth Mountain and Sea!"

In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies were all sitting there as before. However, everyone else had already leapt to their feet. Their eyes shone with incredible brightness. If by any chance the Three Great Daoist Societies did not want to recruit Meng Hao, then they were ready to fight over him.

All of the disciples that had been recruited before Meng Hao could still be considered Chosen. However, sometimes people or events can come along that are simply beyond compare. Attempting to compare them with others would be unfair.

In the vast Eastern Lands, Fang Xiufeng and Meng Li looked at each other and smiled. Meng Li's face was covered with a proud smile as she looked back at Meng Hao on the vortex screen, and her heart filled with love.

"Little bastard!" muttered Patriarch Reliance. "It's good that in the end, you didn't lose me any face!"

Pill Demon and Chu Yuyan both let out light sighs. Chu Yuyan didn't understand much about Meng Hao and his proclivity toward promissory notes, but Pill Demon knew something of it, and a strange expression could be seen on his face. As for the rest of the crowds, most of them didn't understand Karma very well, but they could speculate as to the general idea.

"With a magic like this, who will ever dare to refuse to write me a promissory note!" Meng Hao was inwardly delighted, and completely satisfied with the divine ability he had created.

At this point, everyone assumed that the Three Great Daoist Societies would swoop in to recruit Meng Hao. The Ninth Sea God World and the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto were definitely moved, and they were just getting ready to enter discussions with the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite, when all of a sudden, Meng Hao suddenly closed his eyes again. Apparently… he was sinking back into contemplation!

This scene instantly caused everyone to stare in shock.

"What is he doing?"

"Could it be… could it be that he intends to create another divine ability?" Even as shock rolled through everyone, a bright light suddenly began to shine around Meng Hao, and the music of a great Dao began to echo out.

Meng Hao truly was in the midst of contemplating enlightenment. The reason he didn't immediately absorb the power of the twenty-one stone steles was that, considering his current state, he was now ready to use his understanding of the nine bridges to create another divine ability.

"He's actually going to create another divine ability!!"

"How… how is that possible? He already created one divine ability, how can he create another one? Does he think that creating divine abilities is as simple as eating or drinking?"

All the spectators in the outside world were completely shocked, even Meng Hao's father and mother. The Patriarchs in the starry sky palace were also staring with wide eyes.

Li Yan, as well as all the other competitors who were now waiting outside, stared at Meng Hao in a daze.

This was especially the case when, only a few hours later, a massive rumbling sound surrounded Meng Hao, and an intense energy surged up from him. Because the previous world had already collapsed, the energy affected the altar Meng Hao sat on, which everyone could see. There was no need for them to experience the divine ability; everyone was able to sense that this incoming divine ability was incredibly shocking.

"He's actually creating another divine ability! What kind of jinx is this guy?!?!" The crowds were in an uproar, and before they even had a chance to calm down, Meng Hao suddenly frowned.

"No," he murmured, "my line of thinking was a bit off." He waved his hand, causing the surging energy that had shocked everyone to suddenly be extinguished. Once again, he began to contemplate.

When everyone saw that happen, they were left completely speechless…. The other competitors in the trial by fire began to smile bitterly. The divine ability that Meng Hao felt to be off, was actually far more powerful than any of the divine abilities they had created. Each and every one was left completely without words.

After a few more hours, energy once again began to surge up from Meng Hao. But then….

"Off again!" he said angrily. He once again quashed the energy and started over.

The crowds were now looking at each other, dumbfounded. They began to smile wryly as they looked over at Meng Hao on the vortex screen.

As for the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace, their eyes were shining brightly, and it looked like they were getting ready for a struggle. An inhuman cultivator like this was someone each and every one did not wish to allow the Three Great Daoist Societies to recruit as a disciple.

The Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies were gaping in astonishment. Then, they exchanged glances, and within each others' glittering eyes, they could all see anticipation and something hidden deep within…. Hope!

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Chapter 856: Paragon Bridge

This was a hope that they had held throughout all the numerous times they had hosted this trial by fire in the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

It was actually a far more important reason than disciple recruitment!

The three elders were panting slightly, but considering their high cultivation bases and levels of concentration, it didn't matter how many years they had watched the recruitment event with such hope; they wouldn't allow others to pick up any clues by looking at their facial expressions.

However… a virtually imperceptible flicker of astonishment could be seen in the eyes of the old man from the Kunlun Society, who seemed to have picked up on a few of the oddities about the situation.

Time passed by slowly. Several hours later, rumbling once again surrounded Meng Hao, quickly vanished… and then returned with even more intensity than before.

This indicated that the divine ability Meng Hao was creating was growing in power!

The audience in the Ninth Mountain and Sea stared fixedly at the vortex screens, and the cross-legged Meng Hao. They waited in keen anticipation to find out what miraculous divine ability he would create.

"That Daoist magic from before caused twenty-one stone steles to descend. Then he started making another divine ability. If he succeeds… I wonder how many stone steles will appear?!"

"This is unheard-of! The ancient records don't contain information about the first time the Three Great Daoist Societies held this trial by fire, but from the time records were kept until now, nobody has shaken the stars like this shocking Fang Mu!"

"A Chosen like that would be the focus of all attention no matter which sect he joined. It's just strange that before today, I've never heard of him before!"

The buzz of conversation echoed out everywhere, both in the outside world, and among the trial by fire competitors on the Ancient Road. Everyone was shaken by Meng Hao.

They were all waiting… for Meng Hao's miraculous creation!

The next day, more shocking rumbling could be heard. The following day, the sound of it filled the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking. Three days later… it once again began anew. Even the people on the Ancient Roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing could hear it.

It had filled the entire Ancient Road!

More people were astonished than ever!

Four days later, the intense roaring that echoed out from Meng Hao left the Ancient Road via the vortexes, passing out into the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

When that happened, Meng Hao finally opened his eyes.

In that instant, boundless, radiant light poured out from his pupils, such that anyone who faced him would feel blinded by the piercing light. Meng Hao's expression was calm as he raised his hands into the air. There in his mind was the image of the first bridge, indelibly imprinted there, never to disperse for all eternity.

As he raised his hands into the air, the world around him began to tremble, and countless rifts appeared. The air swirled, and began to scatter in layers. In just a few breaths of time, all of the land around him was shattered and began to break down. Wind screamed, and the air collapsed.

As for Meng Hao, he remained cross-legged, but as everything around him dissipated, it seemed as if he was floating in the middle of nothing, surrounded by twenty-one stone steles, each one three hundred meters tall.

It was at this point that, all of a sudden, a rumbling sound could be heard coming from the boundless void up above. It was like an echoing roar, which was accompanied by… descending stone steles!

One, two, three… a total of nine made their way down to join the other twenty-one stone steles. Furthermore, these new steles were actually silver-colored!

Their appearance was far more magnificent than the other twenty-one steles, and far more shocking.

The Patriarchs in the starry sky palace looked on with widened eyes, and the crowds out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were immediately sent into an uproar of disbelief.

"He… he isn't even finished creating the divine ability! He's just mobilizing his energy, but the stone steles already descended!"

"Those stone steles are silver-colored! I've never even heard of such a thing!"

"This divine ability is surely Heaven-defying! If it wasn't, how come a mere surge of its energy would cause the stone steles to descend, even before it's complete!"

"Just what divine ability is this?!?!"

While the crowds engaged in heated discussion, Meng Hao sat there, his face calm, his eyes devoid of either joy or sadness. His mind seemed to be completely immersed in silent contemplation of the first bridge.

His energy continued to grow more intense. After enough time passed for an incense stick to burn, the image of the bridge in his mind suddenly began to expand, growing out in the blink of an eye, until it covered his entire body.

It was as if he had become the bridge!

And at the same time, the bridge… had become him!

Even more noticeable to Meng Hao was the indescribable pain that completely filled him. It was an anguish that made it seem as if a hundred streams of qi were ripping his insides open.

Great beads of sweat rolled down his face as within his body appeared… one hundred meridians!

These one hundred meridians were Immortal meridians, which previously had not yet existed inside of him. However, now that the bridge had spread out, it forced them open. Although it would only last for a moment, and was not permanent, it actually created a mold for Meng Hao's Immortal foundation!

When you added in the ethereal Immortal meridian he already had, it was a scene that would thoroughly flabbergast anyone who could see it. However, even the three Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies would be incapable of seeing what was happening inside of him. Even if they tried to force their vision inside of him, all they would be able to see was a blinding light.

The instant the one hundred meridians were forced open inside of Meng Hao, massive rumbling could be heard as more stone steles descended from up above. Shockingly, there were nine gold-colored steles!

The sight of these nine gold-colored stone steles threw the crowds in the outside world, as well as the other competitors in the trial by fire, into complete tumult.

"Eighteen stone steles!!"

"Heavens! Nine silver steles and nine golden steles! The divine ability isn't fully created yet, but… but there are already eighteen stone steles!"

"This guy is peerless among Chosen!!"

Meng Hao couldn't hear the buzz of conversation from the outside world. His body was trembling, and he was filled with the sensation that this divine ability that he had created was indescribably powerful. It seemed like a magic that he was actually incapable of wielding with his current cultivation base.

It was a magic that required all one hundred meridians to be genuinely open before it could be used!

Even a weaker version would still need at least fifty meridians.

At the moment, all of his one hundred meridians had been forcibly opened, but Meng Hao knew that it was only temporary. He was borrowing power from his own good fortune, a result of his creation of a divine ability, and it was something that wouldn't last for very long. However, to Meng Hao, it was still incredible good fortune. It opened up a path for him, so that all he had to do was take a step forward, and he would be able to proceeded unhindered into true Immortality.

"Even if I can't actually use this magic for the time being, I will still see it completely created!" His eyes shone with determination as the full power of his cultivation base surged into action, causing an intense roaring to fill the air.

Gradually, the image of a bridge started to be visible behind him!

The bridge was just a vague illlusion. If a perfectly clear image of the bridge could be considered a hundred percent, then this illusory image would only be ten percent!

However, even with only ten percent clarity, it was still filled with an archaic, ancient aura. It seemed to be filled with a natural law that did not conform with the Nine Mountains and Seas. That natural law was Heaven-defying, as if it could split open the vault of heaven, and place the Heavens… beneath its feet!

The energy was boundlessly domineering, as if, when it looked out, all living things would have no choice but to worship on bended knee! This was a supreme power!

Meng Hao began to tremble with increased intensity. The one hundred meridians that had been opened had been shining with boundless light moments ago, but were now beginning to grow dim, as if their light were being sucked in by the bridge.

In the blink of an eye, only thirty of the meridians remained open. At this point, a frenzied determination shone in Meng Hao's eyes. He tilted his head back and roared, and the remaining Immortal meridians inside of him went dim. In that instant, the bridge behind him suddenly became twenty percent clear!

That twenty percent caused all three Ancient Roads in the Ruins of Immortality to quake. Up above in the palace, the Patriarchs' minds were reeling. They appeared to be completely shaken. Outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, there were even some cultivators who coughed up blood.

Furthermore, up above in the void appeared nine… seven-colored stone steles!

Nine silver. Nine gold. Nine seven-colored!

The entire world was dumbfounded!

"What divine ability is that!?!?"

"That's beyond a Daoist magic, and even above a secret magic! Just what magic is it?!"

"Could it be… could it be a legendary Paragon magic!?!?"

With the exception of the three Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies, everyone in the starry sky palace was on their feet, faces filled with astonishment.

"Paragon magic!! For Fang Mu to be able to create a Paragon magic while in the Spirit Realm means that his intuition is stupefying!!"

"He can't actually use the magic right now, but in the future, when his cultivation base rises into the peak of the Immortal Realm, he'll be able to use this magic to slay experts of the Ancient Realm!"

The Patriarchs were now in an uproar. The spectators out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were completely astonished, and were staring with wide eyes and open mouths. They didn't know what Paragon magic was, but when the bridge appeared behind Meng Hao, they could sense their cultivation bases trembling!

Blood sprayed out of Meng Hao's mouth, and he was incapable of continuing on any further. The bridge winked out, and his body returned to its normal state. However, he felt completely exhausted, almost as if he were ill, and his face was ashen. But his eyes shone with unprecedented brightness.

"When that bridge appears, it is supreme and unparalleled. In that case, its name shall be…

"The Paragon Bridge!!

"This is my second divine ability!"

Meng Hao slowly rose to his feet, under the eyes of the countless people watching in various locations.

Meng Hao took a deep breath, then closed his eyes and sent his divine sense out to the forty-eight stone steles.

He suddenly inhaled, and the stone steles trembled and began to emit Immortal qi. It transformed into a gentle power that rushed toward Meng Hao, surrounding him like a vortex. As he absorbed it into his body, his Immortal meridian almost seemed to come alive as it voraciously consumed the qi.

Thirty percent, forty percent, fifty percent, sixty percent, seventy percent!!

Before coming to the Ruins of Immortality, Meng Hao's Immortal meridian had only been illusory. But now, it was consuming Immortal qi with shocking speed. The stone steles began to vanish, and by the time the last one was gone, the Immortal meridian inside of him was fully eighty percent solidified!

This was an Immortal Ancient Dao meridian, formed by the ancient bronze lamp. It was an Immortal meridian that exceeded that which any modern cultivator could have, and came from ancient times. According to Shui Dongliu, it had even changed Meng Hao's destiny!

Now, it was eighty percent complete, and radiated Immortal might. Now, Meng Hao's cultivation base exploded with intense energy, that of a true Immortal!

With an Immortal meridian that was eighty percent complete, he now seemed to be undergoing huge transformations. Although he clearly was not a true Immortal yet, he was actually… even more powerful than Pill Demon when he had become a true immortal!!

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Chapter 857: Warrior Pavilion!

The crowds outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were staring with wide eyes and slack jaws. Their minds were completely and utterly blank.

"He gained enlightenment from 99 Immortal ruins, created two grand divine abilities, and caused a total of forty-eight stone steles to descend…."

"Never before has something like this happened, and perhaps it never will again…."

"Which Daoist Society… will he choose to join?!"

As the discussions raged, Meng Hao stood there, filling everyone with unprecedented shock.

That was especially true of the Chosen of the various sects. By now, the name Fang Mu was deeply rooted in their hearts, and to them, he was clearly the most powerful opponent they would ever face.

"His energy… is that of a true Immortal!" The Patriarchs up in the starry sky palace were all panting, and their eyes shone with light.

"Earlier he was clearly not a true Immortal. Could it be that after creating that shocking Paragon magic, he actually became a true Immortal?!"

"There was a legend in ancient times that creating Paragon magic would transform the cultivation base. It seems that legend is accurate!"

"No, he's still not a true Immortal. He has the energy of a true Immortal, but lacks the Immortal root!"

As the other Patriarchs discussed the matter, the hope in the eyes of the three old men from the Three Great Daoist Societies grew even more intense. They did not speak, but they were all looking at Meng Hao. More specifically, they were looking at the area surrounding Meng Hao.

It was at this point that the old man from the Kunlun Society suddenly said, "This Fang Mu has already created a Paragon magic. Logically speaking, he should now appear on the altar on the Ancient Road."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the old men from the Three Great Daoist Societies narrowed their eyes.

By now, the forty-eight stone steles around Meng Hao had vanished completely. It was then that, all of a sudden, an ancient pavilion suddenly materialized directly in front of Meng Hao.

It was richly ornamented, and brimming with Immortal will. This was no ruin; it floated up above in the air, surrounded by green stone slabs and exotic plants. Its marvelous appearance made it seem like the only thing in existence.

Immortal qi swirled around it, letting off an ancient will, and a feeling of holiness. It was as if this place had at one time been a Holy Land.

The pavilion was decorated with carved black jade, and emanated intense pressure. It was the same feeling Meng Hao had gotten when looking at the nine bridges. In front of the pavilion was an enormous boulder, upon which two characters were written in calligraphy as flamboyant as flying dragons and dancing phoenixes.

Warrior Pavilion!

The two characters were blood red, and shone with intense light. When Meng Hao read them, he could hear roars that truly sounded like they came from real dragons and phoenixes.

As for the crowds outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, they couldn't see what was happening clearly, because the vortex screen depicting Meng Hao had suddenly gone blurry.

People began to cry out in shock.

"What just happened?"

"All of a sudden, we can't see the screen!!"

Back in the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies slowly rose to their feet. The other Patriarchs were staring in shock; they couldn't see the images on the screen either. Apparently, the Immortal pavilion blocked the view of anyone on the outside.

The Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies had very serious looks on their faces as they looked at each other and then transmitted three sentences amongst themselves.

"He actually found it! Activate the spell formation and unleash the Heavenly communication magic!"

"I never imagined that, after all these tens of thousands of years of trials by fire, this day would finally arrive!"

"Throughout the years, our Three Great Daoist Societies have tried every means possible, but have been unable to even lay eyes on it, let alone acquire the legendary item within. According to our previous calculations, only people in the Spirit Realm can actually find the Immortal pavilion!"

Although no one could hear the three Patriarchs' words, the old man from the Kunlun Society narrowed his eyes. After a moment of contemplation, his face suddenly lit up.

"So, it turns out that the Three Great Daoist Societies have repeatedly held this trial by fire throughout the ages, not just to recruit disciples, but for another purpose!"

Other Patriarchs apparently recalled something in particular and, from their expressions, seemed shaken. Despite their cultivation bases and abilities of concentration, they were still panting and trembling.

"Fellow Daoists from the Three Great Daoist Societies, this matter…."

The person who responded was the old man from the Ninth Sea God World.

"This is a private affair of our Three Great Daoist Societies," he said, his eyes shining with a strange light. "It has nothing to do with you, Ladies and Gentlemen. In a moment, the trial by fire will continue!"

Meanwhile, Meng Hao was looking at the Immortal pavilion. It had appeared in front of him quite suddenly, apparently in response to his creation of the Paragon magic.

"Ling Yunzi said that there were 99 Immortal ruins as well as an intact Immortal pavilion. Could it be that this pavilion is… the very one I was looking for before, but couldn't find?" His eyes went wide.

After a moment of thought, he was about to step forward when, quite abruptly, an ancient voice was transmitted into his mind.

"Fang Mu, I am Ling Yunzi of the Ninth Sea God World. I represent all of the Three Great Daoist Societies to pass a message to you. Use whatever means necessary to enter the Immortal pavilion and bring out a Feng Shui compass that rests inside. If you do, the Three Great Daoist Societies are willing to give you any reward you wish. As long as it is within our power to accomplish, we will do it!"

Meng Hao's eyes flickered, and he didn't respond. However, he did stop in place, and a look of hesitation appeared on his face.

"There is no need to worry about any danger," Ling Yunzi continued. "The Immortal pagoda appeared because of your good fortune, and I am personally unable to appear there at all; if I were to appear there, it would cause the pavilion to immediately vanish. As for you, there will be no danger to you when you go inside."

Meng Hao hesitated for another moment before a gleam of determination appeared, and he hurried forward toward the Immortal pavilion.

No one in the outside world could see what was happening on the screens. However, the Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies were panting, and their eyes shone with a strange gleam.

They could not enter the world Meng Hao was in either, and could only remain on the outside. They had waited for many years for this particular opportunity.

As Meng Hao neared the Immortal pavilion, the pressure grew more and more intense. However, for some strange reason, while the pressure would have prevented any other person from getting close, it actually dissipated for Meng Hao, making a sort of personal path for him to walk.

Meng Hao's eyes glittered. He sensed no danger, so he slowly walked up to the Immortal pavilion and stood in front of it. Then he took a deep breath as he lifted his hand and pushed on the front door.

Absolutely no sound could be heard as the door opened. However, the instant it did, boundless light shone out from inside, blinding light that completely enveloped Meng Hao and then spread out in all directions outside of the pavilion. After a moment, Ling Yunzi let out a miserable shriek. As it turned out, he had actually been following Meng Hao in an attempt to personally enter the Immortal pavilion.

However, the light instantly forced him back. Blood oozed out of his eyes, ears, nose and mouth, almost as if he had been cursed. Filled with fear and shock, he immediately shot backward and then left the world, lest he be killed.

Now, Meng Hao was the only person in the vicinity of the Immortal pavilion. He stood there in the light, completely unharmed, until the glow slowly faded away. He looked blankly at the pavilion in front of him, then took a deep breath.

"What is this place…?" he murmured. Inside of the Immortal pavilion, he could now see numerous shelves, which, shockingly, were completely filled with all sorts of magical items.

There was a whip that was surrounded by a dragon-like mist of swirling smoke. It appeared to have been constructed from sinew and tendons, and it emanated a shocking pressure, as if it had been refined from a true dragon. There was an ancient mirror, covered with cloudy mist. From the look of it, there was some living being sealed inside of it.

There was a crimson eye that, although shut, gave Meng Hao a shocking feeling when he looked at it.

There was a cauldron that rested atop a toad, which it seemed the cauldron was suppressing.

Further away was a long, green spear, with a spearhead carved from bone. When Meng Hao looked more closely at the wood that made up the shaft, his mind reeled. He recognized that wood! It was from… the World Tree! 1

There was a broadsword, stained with black, wet blood. That blood seemed to still contain a consciousness and was emitting shocking howls.

In addition to those items, there was also a Feng Shui compass. For the most part, it was ordinary in appearance. However, a white crystal was inset into the very middle of the compass. The crystal emanated a gentle glow that caused the entire Feng Shui compass to appear extraordinary.

From the look of it, the white crystal could be removed from the center of the compass, as if the compass had merely been created to allow the crystal to emanate its power.

There were many magical items of all sorts, the use of many of which Meng Hao was unable to determine. The whip was one of the more bizarre items, but actually any of them would cause a huge stir if they showed up in the outside world.

In addition to all the magical items, there was also a desk in the Immortal pavilion, upon which were some bamboo slips, as well as various other writing utensils.

Meng Hao took a deep breath, and his eyes shone with brilliant light as he took a step forward, entering the Immortal pavilion. As soon as he stepped foot inside, the door shut behind him.

Simultaneously, an ice-cold voice suddenly echoed out.

"In compliance with the last will and testament of the Three Great Paragons, anyone with a Spirit Realm cultivation base who creates Paragon magic may enter the Warrior Pavilion and select a treasure."

Meng Hao looked around, but couldn't see anyone except for himself in the Immortal pavilion. The voice that had just spoken was cold and detached, seemingly emotionless. After it spoke that single sentence, it said nothing further.

Meng Hao hesitated for a moment, then began to look around at the various precious treasures, his heart thumping eagerly.

He actually wished he could take all of the magical items in sight, but after gazing about for a bit, his eyes came to rest on the Feng Shui compass.

"That must be the Feng Shui compass the Three Great Daoist Societies want me to get for them," he thought, his eyes flickering. After looking at the Feng Shui compass for a moment, he began to mutter to himself.

"The Three Great Daoist Societies' trial by fire has an additional purpose, which is to get someone to come in here and retrieve this item for them. If I don't comply with their wishes, I fear my future will be fraught with grim possibilities after I leave this place." He wasn't quite willing to go along with their request, but after a moment of consideration, he looked at the Feng Shui compass with glittering eyes. Then he stepped forward and picked it up.

In the moment he lifted up the Feng Shui compass, he also retrieved a flying sword from his bag of holding and vigorously went to work trying to pry the white crystal out.

"You people think you can profit at my expense!? Never!" Gritting his teeth, he shoved down on the sword until a popping sound rang out and the crystal flew out from its spot in the center of the Feng Shui compass. Meng Hao grabbed it, then smiled as he carefully put it away in his bag of holding.

Then he looked over the Feng Shui compass again. It actually looked perfect. After ensuring that there were no scratches on it, he cleared his throat and looked around at all the magical items.

"Although that voice said I could only take one treasure, it didn't say anything about repercussions for taking another. I might as well try." His heart began to beat even faster as he walked over to the spear. He reached his hand out, but almost as soon as his hand was about to grab it, a powerful force of expulsion pushed back at him.

The cold voice once again rang out inside the Immortal pavilion.

"This item is not connected to you by destiny. You have already taken a treasure. You may leave now."

"Not connected by destiny?" thought Meng Hao. "Destiny is like the cause and effect of Karma. So does that mean that I have no Karma connecting me to these magical items?" A strange light gleamed in his eyes, and he suddenly cleared his throat. It was at this moment that the Seventh Demon Sealing Hex, the magic of Karmic Hexing, was suddenly unleashed.

1. Here's a brief recap of the World Tree. It was first described (apocryphally) in chapter 109, when Meng Hao bought the Spring and Autumn Tree at auction. It was also mentioned in chapter 158 when Meng Hao had a vision about the origin of the Lightning Cauldron. In the Song Clan search for a son-in-law, the competitors entered a painting that depicted the World Tree, which was also when Meng Hao met Shui Dongliu. That arc started in chapter 194, and the World Tree is mentioned there as well as in subsequent chapters, all the way until chapter 199. In chapter 208, Shui Dongliu mentioned the World Tree when he speaks to Meng Hao. In chapter 392, Meng Hao made up a story about the World Tree to impress the people of the Crow Divinity tribes. In chapter 821, Li Ling'er used a magical technique that summoned an illusory World Tree

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Chapter 858: The Last Time!

The Seventh Demon Sealing Hex was a magic unique to the League of Demon Sealers. It seemed similar to the Ji Clan's Dao of Karma, but was fundamentally different. As he unleashed the magic, Meng Hao's eyes gleamed with a strange light, and he looked around at all the magical items.

Instantly, he was able to see numerous threads attached to the various magical items. These were none other than Karma Threads.

All of the magical items had Karma Threads attaching them to the Warrior Pavilion, and now Meng Hao could see each and every one of them clearly.

"So, even magical items can have Karma on them," he thought. "Well, now I'm not so worried." Clearing his throat, he glanced around craftily.

"First, I'll hex the Karma on these magical items, and then I'll form a destiny connection with them!" Waving his hand, he caused the Seventh Demon Sealing Hex to cover all of the magical items in the Warrior Pavilion.

In the blink of an eye, bright light shot out in all directions, and the entire Warrior Pavilion began to shake.

Meng Hao's heart pounded as he waited for a few moments. Seeing that there was no further reaction, he relaxed a bit, then looked around craftily one more time.

"The floor tiles here are excellent," he thought, licking his lips. "Later on, I think I'll pry up a few to take with me. And the wood those shelves are made from is anything but ordinary….

"Those decorative tiles are nice too!" His eyes shone brightly as he took a deep breath.

He quickly performed an incantation gesture, causing Karma Threads to appear on top of his head. These were his own personal Karma Threads, which glittered with resplendent colors. Meng Hao settled his qi and calmed his mind, then searched through his Karma Threads until he found one that seemed to be on the verge of fading away.

That Karma Thread was the one that had been created when he first laid eyes on the spear moments ago. Of course, the thread was incredibly thin, as if even a slight breeze would cause it to scatter.

Meng Hao took a deep breath, then lifted his hand and pointed out toward that particular thread. Instantly, the Karma Thread twisted into the shape of a magical symbol, which then descended into Meng Hao's hand.

"Bind destiny!" he said. Instantly, the thread began to glitter with radiant light. At the same time, the spear began to tremble, as if it were struggling against something.

As it fought, the Karma thread attached to Meng Hao's head that represented the spear suddenly grew very clear. Now it seemed to be even more closely attached to Meng Hao, as if the Karma between the two of them was growing deeper.

"A Bit of Karma! Bind destiny!" Meng Hao's eyes shone with bright light, and he let out a bellow. The magical symbol on his right hand began to glitter radiantly as he crushed it. A boom rattled out as the magical symbol shattered. In the moment that it dispersed, the spear ceased struggling, and Meng Hao could suddenly feel something like a summons, echoing out from the spear.

Unable to withhold his excitement, he stretched his hand out into the air. The spear immediately flew through the air with a screaming whistling sound and landed directly in his hand

Meng Hao laughed out loud.

"Mine! All of the magical items here are mine now!" Even as excitement filled his heart, suddenly, a murderous aura surged toward him from behind.

The aura was so intense that it seemed capable of destroying him in body and spirit by merely brushing against him.

Meng Hao's face fell, and he jerked his head around. However, there was nobody behind him. The murderous aura was still there, though; apparently it came from the Warrior Pavilion itself.

Cold sweat dripped down Meng Hao's face, and he didn't dare to move. The murderous aura filled him with intense nervousness, and he began to edge his way toward the door. The murderous aura followed him as he went, as if it were attempting to intimidate him.

"I was just creating some ties of destiny!" Meng Hao said quickly. "What are you flipping out for?" After a moment, he continued, "Uhh… a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. Warrior Pavilion, my brother, this was all just a misunderstanding, alright?" The murderous aura seemed as intense as ever.

After a long moment, though, Meng Hao sensed that the aura was dissipating. Seeing that it hadn't attacked him, his eyes darted around. He had half a mind to leave, but when he saw all the magical items around him in the Warrior Pavilion, he just couldn't make himself do it.

"Warrior Pavilion, my brother, don't pay any attention to me!" he called out loudly. "I'm fine here by myself. You get back to whatever it was you were doing, alright?" With that, he carefully sidled over to the sword covered with black blood.

Ever-vigilant of the murderous aura, he quickly used A Bit of Karma to find the Karma Thread that connected him to the sword, then bound the destiny as quickly as possible.

The sword trembled, and the murderous aura from the Warrior Pavilion exploded out. Cold beads of sweat broke out on Meng Hao's forehead, but he gritted his teeth and used Ties of Destiny a few more times. After the third time, the sword stopped struggling, and an invisible connection formed between the two of them.

The sword flew out and began to swirl around Meng Hao like a dragon.

Meng Hao had no time to rejoice as the Warrior Pavilion's murderous aura exploded in intensity throughout the entire pavilion. It seemed to be incensed, and matchlessly fierce.

"That was the last time!" said Meng Hao. "The last time!"

He then licked his lips and stood in place, not daring to move for a long moment, after which he cautiously inched over toward a magical jade flower. Gritting his teeth, he immediately slammed A Bit of Karma into the magical flower. A magical symbol appeared; this flower was apparently different from the other magical items, and he succeeded on his first try.

Almost immediately, the shocking murderous aura caused everything to tremble violently. Meng Hao's entire body was now soaked with sweat.

"That was the last time!" he cried out urgently. "I promise, that was really the last time!

"Warrior Pavilion, my brother, it was really the last time. I'm taking off now, see you!" The intensity of the murderous aura caused Meng Hao's face to grow pale, and his heart to tremble. Even as he spoke, he quickly began to walk toward the exit.

However, after only a few steps, he couldn't help but use Ties of Destiny on a little bottle he saw on a nearby shelf. It was blackish-green, and although it seemed unremarkable, Meng Hao could sense a boundless aura emanating off of it.

"Dammit!" he thought, gnashing his teeth. At the same time, he found the Karma Thread connecting him to the bottle and used it to make a magical symbol. As soon as the symbol landed in his hand, he crushed it and, without taking the time to check whether or not he had succeeded, quickly grabbed the little bottle.

As soon as his hand wrapped around it, his body flashed toward the Warrior Pavilion's exit. At the same time, the murderous aura exploded toward Meng Hao at an incredible speed, and a faint roar of rage could be heard echoing about.

"The last one!" he cried. "That was really, really the last one. I'm going now, I'm going now!" Meng Hao's scalp was numb as he shot forward. Behind him, the murderous aura swept toward him as if to drive him out.

Next to the door was the table he had seen earlier. As he passed, he couldn't stop himself from reaching out to grab a jade slip he saw sitting there.

That seemed to push the murderous aura of the Warrior Pavilion past the limits of its patience. It transformed into an explosive attack that shot toward Meng Hao.

A faint howl could be heard from within the murderous aura: "Get the hell out of here!"

When it smashed into Meng Hao, blood sprayed from his mouth, and he was flung toward the door like a kite with its string cut.

The door slammed open, and Meng Hao was thrown out, whereupon the door slammed shut again.

Almost immediately, the Warrior Pavilion began to fade away. At the same time, the scene was now clearly visible to the Patriarchs of the Three Great Daoist Societies up in the starry sky palace, as well as the Patriarchs from the other sects.

On the screen, they saw Meng Hao flying out, blood spraying from his mouth, his expression one of incredible determination. From the look of it, he had been willing to look death calmly in the face in order to complete the task assigned to him, and had been willing to pay any cost.

Meng Hao coughed up another mouthful of blood and then cried out, "Fang Mu of the junior generation, despite facing great personal injury and near death, went through hell and high water to accomplish the mission given to him by the mighty Three Great Daoist Societies!" With that, he produced the Feng Shui compass and held it aloft.

It was a very moving image. Blood oozed out of the corners of his mouth, and his face was pale white. His body trembled, and he was clearly very seriously injured. His words, and the image he presented, instantly moved the three Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies.

The three Patriarchs were panting, and were completely incapable of controlling the wild exuberance they felt in their hearts.

It was at this exact moment that the pale-faced Ling Yunzi suddenly materialized in front of Meng Hao. He immediately made a grasping gesture with his right hand, and the Feng Shui compass in Meng Hao's hand flew over to him. He nodded to Meng Hao, and then sighed inwardly with emotion. He himself had just been injured by the light from the Warrior Pavilion, and knew how dangerous it could be. When he saw the injuries Meng Hao had received, he was filled with sympathy. Then he noticed Meng Hao's solemn and stirring facial expression, and he suddenly had the feeling the things that had previously occurred between the two of them must have been misunderstandings.

"What a good kid!" he said. "Here, take this medicinal pill. It'll take care of those injuries!" Moved, he waved his right hand, causing a white medicinal pill to fly out and hover in front of Meng Hao. Because of his skill in the Dao of alchemy, Meng Hao could tell from the medicinal aroma of the pill that it was definitely a treasured pill.

"It's too bad I can't duplicate it right here and now," Meng Hao thought. He quickly accepted the pill and then put it into his bag of holding.

"I think you should eat it now," said Ling Yunzi, looking concerned. "Those injuries are quite serious."

Inwardly, Meng Hao chuckled bitterly. He had no desire whatsoever to consume the medicinal pill. All he needed to do was activate his Eternal stratum, and he would recover almost immediately. However, Ling Yunzi's was staring right at him, so Meng Hao endured the pain of his loss, clenched his teeth, and finally consumed the pill.

As soon as the medicinal pill dissolved into him, a warm current filled his body, and all of his injuries were healed.

"What a loss," he thought. "What a terrible loss. If I could have duplicated that medicinal pill, I could have sold it later for an exorbitant price." Inwardly, he was laughing bitterly, but on the outside he put on an expression of appreciation as he clasped hands and bowed toward Ling Yunzi.

Ling Yunzi nodded again. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Meng Hao was among the best of the best, both in terms of cultivation base and intuition, not to mention fate.

"I really misunderstood him in the matter of the latent talent and those other stages," Ling Yunzi thought.

Smiling broadly, he then said, "Fang Mu, are you willing to become a Conclave disciple of the Ninth Sea God World?!"

In response to the words, the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace all looked on with glittering eyes.

The Patriarch from the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite smiled faintly, a smiled that contained abstruse meaning. The Patriarch from the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto hesitated for a moment. As for the Patriarch from the Ninth Sea God World, he laughed out loud.

Meng Hao gaped for a moment, and was thinking about refusing. Then he thought about how funny it would be if he joined the Ninth Sea God World under his assumed name Fang Mu, considering that Fan Dong'er was also a member.

He cleared his throat and clasped hands.

"Junior is willing," he replied. "Unfortunately, I have a few random matters that I have to take care of. If senior is willing to give me a bit of time to handle those affairs, then when I'm finished, I will immediately go to the Ninth Sea God World."

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Chapter 859: The Final Two Stages

"Of course, if that is your wish," Ling Yunzi said with a smile. "Why don't you think about it a bit. Once you get to the Ninth Sea God World, you can give me your final answer." He waved his sleeve, causing a command medallion to fly out to Meng Hao.

"When you've taken care of your affairs, crush that medallion. It will bring you to the Ninth Sea God World." With that, Ling Yunzi turned and vanished. At the same time, the air around Meng Hao shattered. When things grew clear again, he was back on the altar on the Ancient Road.

All of the other competitors in the trial by fire were looking at Meng Hao with expressions of disbelief.

As for everyone in the outside world, although they weren't sure about the details of what had gone on between Meng Hao and the Three Great Daoist Societies, that didn't mean they were any less amazed regarding Meng Hao's rise to prominence in the trial by fire.

This was especially the case due to Ling Yunzi's recruitment of Meng Hao as a Conclave disciple.

When the spectators in the Ninth Mountain and Sea heard that, their gazes became torn between envy and admiration. All of them were staring at Meng Hao on the screen.

"He's pretty much the number one figure in the entire trial by fire. It's no surprise that he ended up joining the Ninth Sea God World."

"I wonder if he'll participate in the final two stages. Of course, after that is the most important part… the arena matches!"

"If I were him, I would participate in the final two stages, but not the arena matches. After all, the Chosen from the great Sects will be able to join in the fighting there. They're qualified to do so without participating in the testing, which is why they don't walk the Ancient Road. They can directly go straight to the arena matches!

"This Fang Mu might be strong, but it's doubtful that he can measure up to all those Chosen."

"That's really too bad. Throughout the successive trials by fire put on by the Three Great Daoist Societies, the arena matches are the highlight. There are incredible prizes up for grabs!"

Even as the discussions continued outside, the ninth stage was beginning on the three Ancient Roads.

The number of people still participating in the trial by fire had already been significantly reduced. People had been eliminated consistently throughout the previous eight stages. Plus there were people like Fatty and the others who had been directly recruited and escorted away by various sects, and would not be participating in the final two stages or the arena matches.

Ling Yunzi suddenly materialized on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking.

"The final two stages will assess the heart, and the Dao!" he said. He looked over at Meng Hao with an approving smile, and then swept his hands through the air. This caused everyone's positions to change once again, and Meng Hao was yet again in the lead position.

"The ninth stage refines the heart! The tenth stage inquires of your Dao!

"After these two stages, seven thousand Nascent Soul competitors, two thousand Spirit Severing competitors, and one thousand Dao Seeking competitors, will be chosen to partake in the arena matches!

"I must remind you that there are many prizes available during the arena matches. However, your opponents will not just be fellow competitors in the trial by fire. You will also be up against Chosen from various sects, as well as disciples from the Three Great Daoist Societies.

"This might be a bit unfair, but there are many things under Heaven that are like that. The truly mighty will definitely rise above the others!" Ling Yunzi waved his hand again, and the altar once more began to grow hazy.

The crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were gazing steadily at the screens as they waited for the final two stages. In the palace in the starry sky, the various Patriarchs were also looking on with pensive expressions. None of them asked any questions of the Three Great Daoist Societies, but instead, focused on the competitors in the trial by fire who they had taken note of earlier.

The Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies sat up front, their expressions calm. They themselves were the only ones who knew how truly excited they were.

Meanwhile, many discussions were being carried on in the outside world.

"The ninth stage tests the heart, and whether or not the contestants can be victorious over the Devil in their hearts!"

"That stage has something to do with willpower, but not a lot. The key to being victorious over the Devil in one's heart is not just willpower, but most importantly the certitude of one's Dao Heart. That's why the ninth and tenth stages are conducted together.

"I wonder if Fang Mu will continue to be the center of attention in this stage. If he stays in first place like he has so far, then his glory will be completely and utterly established. After all, he's completely surpassed tens of thousands of others in each of the various stages."

"I'd say… not necessarily. He might have come in first in the previous stages, but now that the final two stages are here, he's definitely exhausted. It will be difficult for him to succeed!"

As the discussions continued, the competitors in the trial by fire on the Ancient Roads were gradually being covered over by the blurriness as they were taken to a special world. This world was completely different than the others they had been to.

Meng Hao opened his eyes to see… a purgatory!

It was a world of flames. Even the sky was on fire, and what land was visible that didn't have flames was dry and cracked, without the slightest sign of life.

Furthermore, Meng Hao quickly realized that he had been strung up, bound by an iron chain. As he looked around, he saw that there were iron chains everywhere, all of which bound people.

Among those were Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing cultivators, as well as some Dao Seeking cultivators like Meng Hao. Meng Hao saw the young man in the mask, as well as Chen Fan with his Nascent Soul cultivation base.

"What's… what's going on?!" Before coming into this world that tested the heart and the Dao, he had been full of confidence. After all, he had passed through all the previous levels as the center of attention.

Now, though, as he looked around at this unique world, for some unknown reason he was suddenly filled with a stifling sense of crisis.

He was not the only one to be regaining clarity. Around him, there were roughly a hundred thousand cultivators all recovering their senses. When they realized the situation they were in, they began to cry out in alarm.

"What is this place? How could the final two stages be like this!?"

"I never thought… I never thought that we would all be tested together!"

Meng Hao's breath came in ragged pants as he tested out the chain that bound him and found that he couldn't make it budge an inch. Also, his ability to use his cultivation base had apparently been suppressed, leaving him with nothing but the ordinary power of Dao Seeking.

Even more shocking to Meng Hao was that he could feel the iron chain that bound him swaying back and forth. Also, when he looked off into the distance, what he saw caused him to gape. In fact, there were even some people whose eyes went wide when they saw what was off in the distance, and they let out cries of shock and alarm.

Meng Hao was able to clearly see that at the very end of the iron chains that bound all the cultivators was an enormous cudgel, which was in turn slung over the shoulder of a giant!

The giant was gargantuan, and bare chested. He wore animal hide clothing, and his skin was pitch-black, with a violet tint. He moved forward at a run, which caused the iron chains to sway back and forth, making everyone attached to them feel as if the entire world was spinning.

The crowds in the outside world of the Ninth Mountain and Sea were equally shaken. They watched the vortex screens, and the gargantuan giant which had appeared.

"So the final two stages are like this!"

"What kind of test is this?"

It was at this point that a huge rift appeared in the sky of the world that Meng Hao and the others were in, out of which flew hundreds of thousands of figures.

These figures were not cultivators, but rather, winged beasts. Their appearances were savage, and they kicked up a shocking wind as they immediately began to fly toward the cultivators.

It was at this point that the giant suddenly stopped running, and then swung the huge cudgel into the air, which also swung the iron chains attached to its end. All of the cultivators were buffeted by gale force winds that made it feel as if they had been slammed into a huge cliff face. The cultivators were sent flying directly into the charging flying beasts.

The beasts' eyes were bright red, and voracious grins could be seen on their faces. They immediately pounced onto the cultivators, and in the blink of an eye, miserable screams could be heard. Many people were instantly killed in the initial salvo, completely wiped out by the beasts, who swallowed them alive.

A rain of blood fell down toward the ground, causing the sea of flames down below to dim and darken.

A vicious gleam appeared in Meng Hao's eyes as his body swung with the chain, completely out of his own control. However, he was still able to attack, and he didn't hesitate to perform an incantation with his right hand. He made a claw-like gesture, and lines of claw marks appeared, which slammed into an incoming beast's head.

A boom could be heard, and the beast shrieked, after which its head exploded. However, even as its body tumbled past Meng Hao, three more beasts appeared behind it.

More booms could be heard as Meng Hao attacked like the wind. He had a vicious personality that he now made no attempt to hide. His attacks sent blood flying through the air, and the killing intent which shone in his eyes grew more and more intense. After enough time passed for an incense stick to burn, more than thirty beasts had died under his attacks.

There were many other cultivators like Meng Hao, all engaged in fierce fighting. Gradually, more and more of them died. The few people that were left behind were now facing ever greater numbers of beasts.

Furthermore, some beasts had appeared that were similar to the Dao Seeking stage in power. Within an hour, false Immortal beasts were on the scene, and one cultivator after another died around Meng Hao. After two more hours passed, there were less than a hundred people, who were surrounded and quickly being overwhelmed.

Meng Hao held on for fifteen breaths of time before his body collapsed and his head was devoured by a beast. In the last moments before his death, he was able to see that he had held out long enough to be the last person to die.

Everything went black.

When things became clear again, Meng Hao found himself in a world of flames, with a dismal sky, and swaying chains. Everything he saw was exactly the same as before. Other people began to awaken, then stare around themselves in shock.

Meng Hao was also gaping, and then his scalp went numb. Apparently, nothing had changed. The giant was still running forward, and everyone who had died was back where they had been before.

After enough time passed for half an incense stick to burn, the rift opened up in the sky and the beasts poured down. It was all exactly the same as before, almost as if they had been reincarnated. Yet again the giant roared and flung the cudgel out. Meng Hao and all the other cultivators who were attached to the chains were once again thrust into battle.

Meng Hao quickly found that exactly the same beasts as before came to attack him.

After two hours passed, Meng Hao died. When he opened his eyes, the chains were still there, swinging….

Once, twice, three times…. Meng Hao quickly lost track of time and how many times he had died. Soon, people around him began to grow numb to what was happening. As soon as they were tossed out, they chose to die, then begin the cycle again.

An expression of frustration gradually appeared on Meng Hao's face. There was no way to leave this place. This was supposed to be a trial by fire, but there seemed to be no chance to live.

Die, die, and die again.

Revive, revive, and revive again.

Some people began to collapse into frenzied howls. However, that made no difference. Some people silently contemplated different methods of success, but all craftiness and plots were in vain.

Meng Hao watched as a Dao Seeking cultivator used some unknown method to try to possess one of the attacking beasts, then use it to flee. Soon, he vanished, apparently having escaped.

However, the next time Meng Hao regained consciousness, the man was still strung up on the chain, just like before.

As to what exactly had happened, the man gave no explanation.

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Chapter 860: The Heart is Strong, the Dao is Unyielding!

Dying fills people with fear. Dying 100 times will make people numb. Dying 1,000 times can cause one to feel lost. Dying 10,000 times…

That can make someone feel as if they aren't even human any more.

Such an experience gave birth to pain, a pain that the competitors could only hope would just come to an end. A pain that spread into the hearts of everyone. Their hearts filled with torment to the point that their Daos were in peril of being lost.

This trial by fire was like an enormous grindstone, slowly crushing away their wills as it turned and turned.

More and more people gave up on fighting back. If fighting back 10,000 times in a row did no good, how many people were there that could persevere…?

Meng Hao persevered. Every time he woke up, he would continue to fight and kill the beasts that attacked him. 10,000 times.

As time went by, Meng Hao saw countless cultivators making various decisions. Some chose to try to flee. Some chose to attack the giant. Some chose to commit suicide.

There were even some people who attacked other cultivators.

Regardless of what they did, every time Meng Hao regained his senses, he saw the same people in the same places on the iron chains, without exception.

The audiences in the Ninth Mountain and Sea watched the screens, and their hearts and minds trembled. If you said that the spectators had been shocked by the previous eight stages, then this stage left them completely astonished.

Before, they had been envious of the competitors, and had even sighed, wishing that they could switch places. Now that they saw what was happening in the final two stages, however, they could only watch silently.

As for how many times the cultivators had actually died, nobody knew.

"Just what kind of test is this? How does dying over and over again help their hearts and their Daos?"

"These last two stages are basically Hell!" By this point, the audience members were all breathing in ragged pants.

"You can see people trying all kinds of different methods. If you add everything together, it seems they're trying every possibility! But in the end, there's no other result than defeat."

"How can this test be passed? I'm afraid Fang Mu will have no way to clinch first place."

Complete silence reigned in the starry sky palace as the Patriarchs stared wordlessly at the display screens.

The dying continued, over and over again, an endless cycle.

Meng Hao remained silent and taciturn throughout the process. However, unlike many of the people around him, he never attempted to flee, nor did he lose his desire to fight. From beginning to end, every time he regained lucidity, he would begin killing.

However, his deaths came more and more quickly. That was because more and more of the others ceased resisting. When the iron chains were flung out, they would simply close their eyes and wait to die.

Gradually, fewer and fewer people were like Meng Hao, constantly fighting back. Of the tens of thousands of people who had started out fighting, there were now only a few thousand remaining. Suddenly, Ling Yunzi's voice echoed out within the world.

"If you say 'I give up,' you can leave."

The instant these nine words spread out, among the countless cultivators who had grown numb to the constant dying and were once again on the verge of being killed, someone quaveringly spoke up.

"I give up…." As soon as he spoke the words, he vanished, leaving the world entirely.

After him, one voice after another began to ring out, and one cultivator after another began to vanish.

Without the presence of despair, if someone is given hope, they might not attach too much importance to it, especially if they have a steadfast heart and an unchangeable Dao.

However… if you torment someone to their limits and place them in the midst of despair, then give them a sudden scrap of hope, an opportunity to be extricated, then most people would not hesitate to grab that chance.

More and more people chose to give up. However, there were also others who had previously ceased resisting, who suddenly seemed to be filled with energy, and began to fight the beasts.

Time passed by. They died over and over again, and as they did, the words 'I give up' seemed to become like an inner Devil, lurking in the hearts of all the cultivators.

Simply speaking, all they had to do was say some words, and the constant torment would be over. They would be released.

"What a brutal test," said one of the Patriarchs in the palace.

"From ancient times until now, the mark to pass this stage has been 30,000 deaths."

"More than 50,000 marks a participant as Chosen!"

"To date, no one has exceeded 79,113. That was the mark set by Sir Fan."

"So, he participated in this part too. Without the element of despair, perhaps many could grit their teeth and continue on. But with hope right there, so close that all they have to do is reach out and grab it, how many people will be able to persevere?"

"The ninth stage tests the heart, the tenth stage inquires of the Dao. These two stages test how strong one's heart is and how unyielding one's Dao is!"

"The longer they endure, the more terrifying everything becomes!" In addition to the Patriarchs in the palace who were discussing the matter, there were many outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea who were able to piece together some clues about the nature of the two stages.

"I heard that when Sir Fan reached these last two stages, he died more than 79,000 times. He held on until he was the very last person before giving up."

The outside world was abuzz, but their discussions could not pass into the world in which Meng Hao was continuing to persevere. Inside of him, two voice were speaking, one of them telling him to give up, the other telling him to endure.

Every time, he would die wracked with pain, and would wake up confused. It is a simple thing to describe, but it was nothing short of torture. The number of cultivators left behind continued to shrink.

The sound of the words 'I give up' that echoed around was like the voice of that inner Devil. It actually caused even more of the remaining cultivators to eventually decide to quit.

Time passed by. Fewer and fewer cultivators remained behind. Soon there were only a few hundred. After three days, there were only a hundred. After another three days, there were only nine.

Of those nine, there were three who were enduring, but had ceased to fight back. It was a somewhat fraudulent method, and although it initially seemed as if it would lessen their torment, in the end, it actually made things even more painful.

The other six included Meng Hao. Every time he awoke, he would begin to fight.

He had no idea how many times he had died. His eyes were bloodshot, and everywhere he looked, he saw blood. Another three days passed, and the three people who had been passively allowing themselves to be killed, finally couldn't take it any more and gave up.

Of the five people other than Meng Hao who had continued to fight, four quit.

There were now only two people left. One was Meng Hao, the other was… Chen Fan!

Chen Fan fought. Every time he regained his senses, he fought viciously, almost as if he hoped to achieve some special state amidst all the carnage.

Out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, everyone was shocked. In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs were watching with baited breath, closely observing Chen Fan.

Chen Fan had had his outstanding moments in the previous stages, but had not attracted much attention when creating his divine ability. Now, in these last two stages, he was suddenly rising to prominence.

"With such a heart and such a Dao, this young man has incredible good fortune!"

"He could give up at any time, but has endured all the way to this point! He's already died 70,000 times!!"

"He'll most likely be able to hold on for a while longer. In this stage, the most difficult point is when there is only one person left. At that point, first place is secured, which leads to a softening of the heart, making it difficult to continue on. Even Sir Fan, when he reached that point, didn't last for more than a thousand deaths before giving up.

A day later, Chen Fan began to tremble, and finally chose to quit. He had endured for more than 70,000 deaths, which was second only to Sir Fan's performance all those years ago. He was now quite the center of attention, and there were several sects who were preparing to try to recruit him.

At this point in the shocking trial by fire, everyone was looking at the final remaining participant… Meng Hao.

"He took first place in the first two stages, outshone the first place winner in the middle three stages, and then in the following three stages, took first place yet again. Now in the final two stages… he actually… took first place again!"

"He's definitely going to rise to complete prominence! Nobody can get in his way. As long as he doesn't get killed, then he's going to be thoroughly famous in all the Ninth Mountain and Sea!"

"It's like we're looking at a future Paragon…." All of the cultivators who were watching the trial by fire out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea could now feel their minds spinning.

By now, especially after seeing the final two stages, they all had to admit that if they were in Meng Hao's place, they would not be able to do what he was doing.

Meng Hao was still hanging on. He knew that he was the only person left, and yet he didn't give up. A vicious, ruthless smile appeared on his face, and each time he regained consciousness, he would wade into battle with the countless beasts. It was in the middle of this carnage that he tempered his heart and his Dao.

"My Dao is the endless path of life, freedom and independence! Now, I am restrained by these chains, which is the furthest thing from freedom!

"My heart is unconstrained. If Heaven and Earth collapse, it will not be destroyed. If all living things become ancient, it will not wither. But now, it hesitates!

"My Dao is not free, but I desire freedom! My heart hesitates, but I wish to persist past the point of hesitation!

"This trial by fire is testing me, and I'm using it to polish my Dao. In this way, although I might seem to be restrained, in actuality they are nothing but chains. They can't tie me up, they can only polish my Dao!

"As for my heart, if I wish it to be unhesitating, then I need to endure. Endure to the point… where I do not feel pain in this trial by fire, but instead, happiness!

"When I pass this stage, then I will be truly free, and my heart will be incredibly strong!" Eyes shining brightly, he launched an attack.

73,000. 76,000. 79,000….

80,000!

When Meng Hao died for the 80,000th time, the audiences in the outside world roared, and the patriarchs in the starry sky palace, despite being somewhat accustomed to how Meng Hao worked wonders, were still completely shaken.

"He exceeded Sir Fan!!"

"I just added it up, and that was the 80,000th death! That puts him in first place among everyone from ancient times until now!!"

"Fang Mu. Fang Mu! This name is definitely going to shock the Heavens!"

While the audience was in an uproar, Meng Hao continued to persevere. A smile could be seen on his face, and he actually seemed to be incredibly happy. It wasn't happiness because of dying, or killing, but rather, a happiness because of his own Dao. His heart was now growing even more resolute.

To his heart and his Dao, death… was unworthy of being anything more than a grindstone.

A few days later, he died for the 90,000th time!

A few more days, and it was… 100,000!

That 100,000th death caused universal uproar. When Meng Hao opened his eyes afterward, wild colors flashed in the sky, and a wind screamed. The giant slowly dropped to one knee and raised the cudgel aloft. The countless beasts that had poured out of the rift all dropped to the ground.

It was as if they were prostrating themselves in worship!

The stage had been cleared!

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Chapter 861: First Place!

"What a Chosen!" By this time, all of the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace had risen to their feet with expressions of deep emotion on their faces. They were looking at the vortex screens, where the giant and the beasts were all bowing in worship to Meng Hao.

All of the sects wanted to recruit Meng Hao as a disciple, but the Ninth Sea God World of the Three Great Daoist Societies had already made a move, leaving them with no opportunity.

It wasn't just the other Three Great Daoist Societies who were in such a position, but also the Five Great Holy Lands.

"This Fang Mu is one of the most incredible Chosen to appear in countless years!"

"Congratulations to the Ninth Sea God World. Fang Mu will definitely demonstrate extraordinary talent and skill in the God World!" In response to such words from the various Patriarchs, the old man from the Ninth Sea God World laughed heartily. His expression was one of extreme contentment.

By now, it was clear that Fang Mu was definitely in first place in this trial by fire!

Of course, the crowds outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were in commotion. When it came to the final two stages of the heart and the Dao, Meng Hao was the first person to ever clear the entire stage. Not even Sir Fan had been able to do so.

Meng Hao had earned everyone's complete and utter attention!

"He definitely deserves to be in first place!"

"His name will soon shake the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea. He's going to be number one among all Chosen! Once he joins the Nine Sea God World, if he continues on this path of growth, he'll definitely become a Divine Son! If he and Fan Dong'er get together, then they'll definitely become a legend!"

"You guys didn't notice, but in the final twenty thousand deaths, Fang Mu was actually happy! Compared to the pain everyone else was in, that's probably even more frightening!"

As the echo of discussion spread throughout the Ninth Mountain and Sea, Patriarch Reliance was out in the starry sky, looked quite pleased. Then, he suddenly shuddered.

"Dammit! I've been thinking about this wrong! What the hell does that little bastard's life or death have to do with me? His being the center of attention has nothing to do with the Patriarch! We're enemies! Dammit! Dammit! I've been looking at it all wrong!!"

Also somewhere in the starry sky was the 10th Wang Clan Patriarch, his hair disheveled, his eyes narrowed as he looked off into the distance.

"Strong… much stronger than I remember," he murmured. Deep within his eyes flickered the glow of Wang Tengfei's spirit. "Meng Hao, I truly can't wait until the moment when we meet again!" With that, he turned and disappeared into the distance.

In the Kunlun Society, Pill Demon and Chu Yuyan looked on with trembling hearts. Having personally witnessed everything that had gone on in the trial by fire, were they not already aware that Fang Mu was Meng Hao, they would never have possibly drawn a connection between the two.

Fang Mu… really was the complete focus of attention.

"Planet South Heaven is too small," Chu Yuyan murmured, a twinge of obsession visible in her eyes. "You were being held back there. Your world… is out among the stars."

Back on Planet South Heaven, in the Fang Clan in the vast Eastern Lands, Meng Hao's parents looked at the vortex screens with smiles on their faces. Of course, buried within those smiles were emotional sighs.

"Hao'er really is going to leave us," murmured his mother, her voice soft.

After a moment of silence, his father gently said, "Planet South Heaven is too small for him, and was limiting his growth. He was bound to leave South Heaven sooner or later. After this trial by fire is over, I won't try to get him to stay too long."

"But he's just a child," she replied bitterly.

"He's grown up. If you don't let him fly, how can he ever come to know the boundless universe?"

Meanwhile, on Planet West Felicity, Zhao Yifan was polishing his sword, and the desire to fight flashed within his eyes. Then he looked away from the vortex screen up in the sky.

"I must not underestimate all of the other members of my generation out there. I never imagined someone else like Meng Hao of Planet South Heaven existed. But now, this Fang Mu appears in the trial by fire!" The desire to fight burned hot in his eyes.

"I truly hope that you participate in the arena matches!" said Zhao Yifan, taking a deep breath and then closing his eyes. He would of course take part in the arena matches, and would actually lead the disciples of the Sublime Sword Flow Grotto into the fighting.

Only one cultivator from the Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, and Dao Seeking stages would come out victorious in the arena matches. Then, they would be recruited as a disciple by one of the Three Great Daoist Societies, and become a Conclave disciple at that.

Of course, that didn't mean that participation was restricted. On the contrary, if disciples from the Three Great Daoist Societies participated and took first place, then they would also be able to join the Conclave.

As far as other sects went, they did not participate for the chance to join a Daoist Society, but rather, for the incredible prizes offered up in the arena matches.

In the Ninth Sea God World, Fan Dong'er sat cross-legged with her eyes closed. Her complexion was ashen, and there seemed to be a trace of Karma in it. For some reason, she kept thinking about Meng Hao, whom she hated with a passion that had permeated even her bones.

Behind her, as always, was the female corpse. When her master saw the corpse, he did not attempt to help her get rid of it. Instead, he told her that it was good fortune for her.

However, Fan Dong'er did not wish to have good fortune like this.

"How come just looking at this Fang Mu pisses me off!?" thought Fan Dong'er as she looked up at the vortex screen, her graceful brow furrowed. She was another of the Chosen who would participate in the arena matches.

In the Li Clan on Planet North Reed, Li Ling'er's expression was indifferent as she sat cross-legged in the clan's Daoist rite centers. Seated in front of her was a large group of Li Clan members, all of whom were listening to her give a speech about cultivation. To these clan members, Li Ling'er was like a celestial goddess, selfless, incorruptible, and aloof.

Occasionally, the vortex screens up above would draw the attention of the Li Clan members, and even Li Ling'er would occasionally look over.

When the clan members asked her if she would participate in the arena matches…

"Yes, I will!" she responded coolly.

Taiyang Zi, as well as Sun Hai of the Church of the Immortal Emperor, were both required by their sects to participate in the fighting. Virtually all of the sects and clans sent their Chosen to join the arena matches.

Some of them were people Meng Hao knew, but many were Chosen who hadn't ever been to Planet South Heaven.

In the outside world, everyone was preparing for the arena matches. As for Meng Hao, the world around him shattered into pieces. When he reappeared, he was back in the lead position on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking.

Behind him were all the other competitors in the trial by fire. They looked at Meng Hao with awe in their eyes, even the masked young man and the cultivator with the mosquitos.

Meng Hao had used his own strength to crush the other participants in virtually every way.

Ling Yunzi materialized up in midair. He hovered there, looking at the crowd for a moment before speaking.

"The ten stages of testing have concluded," he said coolly. "Being responsible for the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, I will now select one thousand people to continue." With that, he waved his hand, causing several thousand Dao Seeking cultivators to instantly vanish, teleported back to their places of origin.

One thousand people remained.

"All of you have passed the testing phase. Next, you may decide whether or not to participate in the arena matches.

"In the arena matches, anyone who makes it to the top 100 will receive a prize of 1,000 Immortal jades. Perhaps some of you are unfamiliar with Immortal jades. They are objects that can be used in cultivation after you reach the Immortal Realm. They are a rare thing in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. 1,000 Immortal jades is similar in value to 10,000,000 spirit stones."

Originally, Meng Hao hadn't been very interested in participating in the arena matches. However, when he heard this, his eyes went wide and began to shine with a bright light.

"10,000,000 spirit stones…." he thought, panting. "The Three Great Daoist Societies are way too rich! You get 10,000,000 spirit stones just for getting in the top 100?!?!" Meng Hao was now feeling a bit excited.

"If you get into the top 16, the prize is 5,000 Immortal jades," Ling Yunzi continued. As his voice echoed out, Meng Hao got even more excited. All of the remaining participants were now panting eagerly.

"If you reach the top 8, the prize is 10,000 Immortal jades!"

Meng Hao's mind filled with roaring, and he was mentally adding up how much 10,000 plus 5,000 plus 1,000 Immortal jades was in spirit stones. After finishing the calculation, his eyes began to shine with fierce light.

"The prize for reaching the top 4 is an Immortality Illumination Vine!" continued Ling Yunzi, which instantly caused many among the thousand remaining participants to cry out loud in disbelief. Meng Hao didn't seem to care too much, but the eyes of the others around him instantly went completely bloodshot.

To most people, Immortal jades were just material wealth, and although they could be used in cultivation, that wouldn't help until the Immortal Realm. However, an Immortality Illumination Vine could completely change one's fate in life, and could make true Immortal Ascension possible!

This was especially important because of the fact that a true Immortal had recently appeared on Planet South Heaven. In the following thousand years, Immortality Illumination Vines could be considered precious treasures to everyone, except perhaps Meng Hao.

They could change fate and determine the future!

There were different prizes offered on the other two Ancient Roads. However, regardless of the stage they were in, when the cultivators found out what rewards that were being offered, it sent their blood boiling. They weren't the only ones. When the crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea heard of the prizes available on the three Ancient Roads, their eyes went bloodshot, and they began to breathe heavily. Were it not for the fact that they didn't possess the requisite qualifications, they too would be there to participate in the fighting.

This was especially true when they heard that one of the prizes on the Ancient Path of Dao Seeking was an Immortality Illumination Vine.

"I can't believe the prize is… an Immortality Illumination Vine!!"

"Dammit! If I had known that, I would have participated! In the next thousand years, anyone who has an Immortality Illumination Vine has a high likelihood of becoming a true Immortal!!"

"True Immortality! Although using an Immortality Illumination Vine doesn't measure up to seizing destiny, it doesn't matter how you become a true Immortal among the stars, you're still a true Immortal!!"

Ling Yunzi looked out with satisfaction at all the looks of shock. However, when he looked at Meng Hao, he could tell that although he was cheering like everyone else, it seemed a bit perfunctory. After a moment of thought, Ling Yunzi spoke out again.

"Fang Mu, although you are a Conclave disciple of the Ninth Sea God World, if you don't perform enough meritorious service in the future, you won't be awarded with an Immortality Illumination Vine. You must seize this opportunity to acquire one."

Meng Hao quickly nodded his head, and then suddenly asked, "How many spirit stones is an Immortality Illumination Vine worth?"

Ling Yunzi's jaw dropped.

"They're priceless," he responded. "If you put one up for auction, it's very likely that it would sell for millions of Immortal jades."

When Meng Hao heard that, his mind spun, and he began to tremble. Immediately, his eyes went completely bloodshot, and his expression turned completely vicious.

Seeing Meng Hao like this caused Ling Yunzi to clear his throat. He was gradually starting to understand Meng Hao's personality a bit more.

"Whoever takes first place will receive a prize of…." Ling Yunzi paused dramatically.

"A drop of blood passed down by the Three Great Paragons!"

The response to his words was complete silence. However, there were some people who began to tremble, and expressions of intense disbelief covered their faces, looks that exceeded the ones that had appeared when they were told about the Immortality Illumination Vines. The outside world was quiet too, but only for a moment, after which a great tumult broke out.

"A drop of blood from the Three Great Paragons! Heavens! That would contain the Dao of the Three Great Paragons!!"

"The Three Great Paragons!? According to legend, they were powerful experts from ancient times. They… they actually left behind a drop of blood!?!?"

"Is this for real?!?!"

Even the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace could hardly believe it. They shot to their feet, panting, expressions of shock written on their faces.

Only Meng Hao didn't seem to have much of a reaction. However, Ling Yunzi's next words, which were clearly directed at him, caused Meng Hao's heart to skip a beat.

"Fang Mu, if you put this drop of Paragon's blood up for auction, it would be easier to find a phoenix feather or a qilin horn than to find someone in the Ninth Mountain who could afford it."

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Chapter 862: Provocation!

Meng Hao took several more deep breaths, but he was unable to calm himself. Even he had to admit that deep down, his main weakness was… his love of money.

But that wasn't his fault! He had been poor since he was little, and even though lots of people owed him money, those debts hadn't been repaid. Things really weren't easy for him!

When he was young, he had been so poor that he developed a fear of lacking money. After he grew up, he entered the world of cultivation, and still had never really been rich. There was that short period of time in the Milky Way Sea, and his unexpected windfall. However, when he thought about it, the only reason he had been able to save up the money he had now was because he hadn't used the copper mirror in a long time. When he thought about how voraciously the copper mirror consumed wealth, it made Meng Hao feel completely impoverished.

1,000 Immortal jades made him excited. 10,000 sent his blood boiling. The value of the Immortality Illumination Vine made his eyes go bloodshot. Now, there was the drop of Paragon blood, which caused Meng Hao's eyes to go green.

When Ling Yunzi saw that green glow, he stared in shock for a moment. He had never before seen a light like that shining in someone's eyes. This was the first time.

However, it only took a moment for more heavy breathing to be heard. Many of the other participants were much like Meng Hao, and didn't originally understand the value of a drop of Paragon's blood. When they heard Ling Yunzi's second sentence, their minds filled with roaring.

They weren't the only ones. The Patriarchs in the starry sky temple were also panting; to them, a drop of Paragon's blood was like a precious treasure.

They were well aware that an item like that was something that only the Three Great Daoist Societies could possess. They would most certainly not have very many either. It was a precious treasure, the likes of which was not common in this age. And yet, unthinkably, the Three Great Daoist Societies were offering it up as a prize in this trial by fire.

The Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies smiled slightly, but did not speak. Obviously, there was some profound meaning behind offering the Paragon's blood as a prize. Actually, it didn't really matter who it was specifically that acquired it. The point was to let everyone know that they had Paragon's blood!

The crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were seething with excitement. Even the Chosen out in the various sects who were preparing to participate in the fighting began to pant. The disciples from the Three Great Daoist Societies were much the same. Although they were members of the Daoist Societies, it would normally be impossible to acquire the things that were being offered as prizes unless they performed some incredible service to the sect.

But now… all they had to do was win first place, and it would be theirs!

Zhao Yifan rose to his feet, bursting with the desire to fight. "Paragon's blood…. It's impossible to say which Paragon, but if I fuse it into my Dao of swords, it will definitely make my Dao even more incisive!"

Fan Dong'er's eyes went wide, and she began to pant.

"With that blood, perhaps I can finally free myself from this corpse!"

Li Ling'er, Taiyang Zi and Sun Hai, as well as the other Chosen, all had similar reactions. There were even some Chosen who had elected not to participate in the fighting, such as Song Luodan and some others, who immediately regretted their decision.

"The arena matches will take place inside the Ruins of Immortality," continued Ling Yunzi. "However, the location will not be here on the three Ancient Roads, but rather, on an ancient Dao Tree located further within!

"All of you will be given three days of rest, after which, I will personally take you to the ancient Dao Tree!

"During those three days, if any of you wish to leave, you may do so freely." With that, Ling Yunzi turned to leave.

"Patriarch, please wait a moment!" Meng Hao hurriedly cried out.

Ling Yunzi stopped in place, then turned back to look at Meng Hao. His eyes were filled with approval, and a smile could be seen on his face.

"What's the matter?"

A bashful smile could be seen on Meng Hao's face as he somewhat embarrassedly said, "Patriarch, er… earlier you mentioned that I could ask for anything I want, and you would give it to me. Well… I think that a drop of Paragon's blood would do nicely."

When Ling Yunzi heard this, his eyes went as wide as saucers. He was just about to rebuke Meng Hao, when he noticed Meng Hao's expression. Then he thought about how stirring all of Meng Hao's actions had been, and his anger cooled.

"That is not something I can personally decide," he said, shaking his head. "How about this: once you get to the sect, we will continue this discussion." With that, he left.

"I knew all along they wouldn't keep their promise," Meng Hao thought. "I should have plucked off the pointer needle on the Feng Shui compass too."

Time passed. None of the thousand participants on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking chose to leave. They all sat down in meditation, taking every moment of opportunity to practice cultivation, hoping to put themselves in top fighting condition.

Most of them felt quite drained from the previous ten stages of the trial by fire. They had expended much, were mentally exhausted, and their cultivation bases were running low. This was especially the case after the final two stages, and their near collapse into complete despair.

The torment they had experienced was severely draining mentally. However, the remaining 1,000 people were naturally outstanding individuals, so they took advantage of every moment to restore their energy.

Meng Hao had his Eternal stratum, so he was the only person who didn't need to spend any time recovering.

"So, there are three more days until the arena matches," he thought. "Why do I have the feeling that I've really lost out on a lot during my time here? I wasn't able to take the floor slabs and decorative tiles from the Warrior Pavilion, not to mention the shelving. There wasn't any time….

"The Three Great Daoist Societies took the Feng Shui compass as well." He turned to look over at the trial by fire contestants on the other altars, then suddenly felt a flash of inspiration. He stood up and flew to the edge of the altar, and as he neared, sensed an intense pressure. A faint rumbling sound could also be heard.

The rumbling immediately attracted the attention of the other thousand participants. They looked over with wide eyes to see what Meng Hao was doing, and instantly, their faces began to flicker. Even the people in the outside world noticed and were shocked.

"What's he doing?"

"He needs to calm down! Why is he trying to move off of the altar?"

In the palace in the starry sky, the Patriarchs of the various clans looked on with shock. Ling Yunzi suddenly appeared as well, and he looked on in astonishment.

Meng Hao had once again succeeded in drawing all attention onto himself. As he moved out into the gap between his altar and the one behind it, the pressure grew even more intense. Finally, massive rumbling filled the air, and great beads of sweat broke out on Meng Hao's forehead. He began to tremble, and yet, his eyes shone with a brilliant light.

When the spectators in the Ninth Mountain and Sea saw this, they immediately picked up on what they thought were the hidden details, and began to heave sighs of praise.

"He's practicing cultivation!"

"He definitely deserves to have taken first place in the trial by fire! Even during the three days of rest before the arena matches, he actually refuses to waste time, and is working hard at cultivation!"

Soon, everyone came to the conclusion that the only possible explanation for Meng Hao's actions was that he was practicing cultivation.

The Patriarchs in the starry sky palace began to nod in approval.

"Excellent. Using the pressure weighing down on the Ancient Roads to practice cultivation. Considering the level of pressure, cultivating there for three days is like spending thirty days in the outside world. If you spent longer, you would get even more used to the pressure, and once you were released, would be able to unleash explosive might. Such a thing would give you much greater momentum going into the arena battles."

"No wonder he was able to take first place in the trial by fire. His awareness of cultivation is deeper than most people could comprehend."

As the Patriarchs nodded and discussed the matter, the three elders from the Three Great Daoist Societies were all smiling.

Meanwhile, the Chosen from the various sects on the outside were practicing cultivation in preparation for the arena matches. They cared little about most of the people they would be facing up against. However, there were some that had left them with deep impressions. Meng Hao, of course, was the one from whom they felt the most pressure.

When the Chosen saw Meng Hao practicing cultivation out in the pressure of the Ancient Roads, their expressions became serious.

"In a situation like that, to be able to think up such a method to practice cultivation…This Fang Mu really is extraordinary," said Zhao Yifan.

"This Fang Mu will be a formidable adversary." Fan Dong'er frowned.

Li Ling'er, Taiyang Zi, and Sun Hai all had solemn expressions on their faces.

Back on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Ling Yunzi hovered in the void, slowly nodding his head, the look of praise on his face growing even deeper.

Slowly, the participants on the other altars began to react. Quite a few began to imitate Meng Hao, and stepped off the altars and into the pressure. However, none of them could last for very long before being forced to return to their altars.

That only served to increase their awe of Meng Hao.

Four hours passed by, after which Meng Hao finally managed to close in on the nearest altar. On that altar, Li Yan's pupil's constricted. Although he had long put himself on guard inwardly, his expression didn't change, and he looked over at Meng Hao coldly.

He had also attempted to move out into the pressure outside the altar, but had only been able to last for an hour before being forced to return. As for Meng Hao, he had persisted for four hours; that was something that left Li Yan completely shocked.

At first, he assumed Meng Hao would only rest for a bit and then go back, but in complete contrast to his expectations, Meng hao actually approached him.

"Fellow Daoist Fang, come no closer!" he said, his eyes glittering coldly. His hair was already standing on end, and he couldn't be any more vigilant. He waved his hand, causing a shield to immediately appear, bursting with energy.

The scene instantly attracted quite a bit of attention. The people in the crowds in the outside world all began to look over.

"Fellow Daoist," Meng Hao responded with a smile, "don't get the wrong idea. I have no ill intentions. I'm just here to sell some medicinal pills. Look, right here, I happen to have a wonderful Spirit Reviving Pill." With that, he adroitly produced a medicinal pill from his bag of holding.

"One pill will completely enliven you, and will increase your energy by a hundredfold. How about this: for 100,000 spirit stones, I'm willing to part with this medical pill and give it to you!" He looked over at Li Yan.

Li Yan was staring with wide eyes, as were all of the other competitors in the trial by fire. Up in midair, Ling Yunzi was in complete shock.

The crowds in the outside world looked on agape, and all of the Chosen were staring fixedly. Even the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace were gaping.

"He… he expended all that effort, fought back against that enormous pressure, just to… just to sell some medicinal pills?!?!"

"And he wants 100,000 spirit stones for a Spirit Reviving Pill? That's… that's way too expensive!"

Ling Yunzi wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. At first he wanted to get angry, but then he thought about how sensitive Meng Hao was regarding spirit stones, as well as the stirring matter of the Feng Shui compass, and he sighed.

"This kid is definitely a rogue cultivator. He's no doubt experienced many hardships in his practice of cultivation. Therefore, he has a strong attachment to spirit stones."

Li Yan looked hesitantly at Meng Hao. He actually did want to buy the medicinal pill. The problem wasn't about the amount of spirit stones, but that he didn't dare to actually buy it. At this moment, he wasn't sure if he could trust that what Fang Mu was saying was true or not.

After a long moment, Li Yan carefully replied, "Fellow… Fellow Daoist Fang, I actually have my own medicinal pills."

"Oh, I see," said Meng Hao, looking disappointed. He then turned to look at the participants on the other altars.

Most of them looked back silently. However, there happened to be a middle-aged man who stood six altars away from where Meng Hao currently was. He looked on with an arrogant expression.

"I can't believe someone who cares so much about money could take first place," he called out. "I've really been blind. If you can personally deliver those medicinal pills to me, then however many you want to sell, I, Zhao, will buy.

"However, I'll only wait for half a day. If you can't make it here in that amount of time, then you'll just have to scram."

Meng Hao looked up at the middle-aged man. Then, a bashful smile appeared.

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Chapter 863: Pill Delivery Service!

Meng Hao stood there on the second altar, looking at the man standing on the eighth altar. There were a total of five altars standing between them!

This man was one of the thousand participants on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, and back home, he was a Chosen. That was why he was able to stick out so well on the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking.

Originally, he had believed himself capable of struggling his way into the top ten, but the brutality of the trial by fire had resulted in him sustaining some severe blows to his self-confidence. However, during the three trials of talent, cultivation, and age, he had taken second place in the trial of talent. He had been very excited about that, but then Meng Hao had thrown everything into chaos, the result being that few people had taken note of him.

Jealousy of Meng Hao had taken deep root within him then and there. Then, Meng Hao's spectacular performance in the other stages had caused that jealousy to transform into bone-deep hatred.

Of course, he was not a witless person. If he was going to attempt to humiliate Meng Hao in full view of everyone, he would definitely have to ensure his own safety. That was why he had put a half-day time limit on his offer.

He did not believe that Meng Hao could possibly make it to him in half a day. After all, Meng Hao had spent roughly four hours to get to the second altar. Half a day contained twelve hours, so therefore, the man was confident that Meng Hao would not be able to reach him.

"If the time passes and he still comes, he won't be able to do anything at all to me. There are rules, after all! If he tries to attack me, the Three Great Daoist Societies will intervene. That he's a disciple of the Ninth Sea God World… makes no difference!

"Rewards come only with risk. If I humiliate Fang Mu, people will definitely notice me. This is my opportunity to get my name out there to the sects. This is my chance to get noticed!" The man's eyes flickered, and his mouth turned up into a cold smile.

A bit of a bashful smile tugged at Meng Hao's lips. He nodded at Li Yan, then turned and headed toward the edge of the altar. When he stepped out into the void, the pressure of the outside once again weighed down on him. Meng Hao was like a rowboat in an angry sea, his robes whipping about. However, he proceeded forward with firm steadfastness, moving ahead one bit at a time.

When he started out toward the next altar, it instantly caused all of the competitors in the trial by fire to look over. Their eyes glittered as various thoughts ran through their heads.

"Even if Fang Mu does something more spectacular than he already has, I don't think he can get to that man in half a day."

"That's not very smart. He should just have put up with the man's words and waited to handle the matter after the arena matches."

"That guy really is malicious. He's smart though. He actually went out of his way to provoke Fang Mu. If he ends up humiliating him, he'll really earn a name for himself."

The remaining competitors in the trial by fire were intelligent people, and they quickly understood what was going on.

Up in midair, Ling Yunzi looked on with a cool expression. Considering the level of his cultivation base, he wouldn't pay too much attention to the competitors jockeying for positions. However, he couldn't help but feel quite a bit of admiration for Meng Hao, and began to watch, wondering if Meng Hao would be able to reach his destination in less than half a day.

The cultivators out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea looked on with interest, and quite a few of them realized what the middle-aged man was thinking. There were, of course, varying opinions about the matter.

"This Fang Mu is a bit impulsive."

"He shouldn't have tried to sell those medicinal pills. He's just giving his opponents an opportunity and invitation to humiliate him."

The Patriarchs up in the starry sky palace settled their qi and calmed their minds. The conflicts between the trial by fire competitors weren't something they would pay close attention to. However, considering everything that Meng Hao had accomplished, many of them were waiting to see how he would resolve this issue.

"This is actually a test in and of itself," said the Patriarch from the Church of the Immortal Emperor. "The previous stages all tested internal weaknesses. A person's response to provocation can reveal a lot about their instincts." Many others nodded in response,.

Time passed by. Two hours later, Meng Hao was moving along at a quick pace. He was now between the second and third altars, and the pressure weighing down on him from the surrounding void sent his hair whipping about. However, his expression was calm, and he continued without pause.

The other competitors were all silently shaking their heads. They knew that the half-day timetable was something Meng Hao couldn't meet.

The middle-aged man's facial expression was one of complete complacency. When he'd opened his mouth earlier, it had actually been with some nervousness, but now he was completely calm and even laughing.

"Fang Mu, you only have half a day! If you can't make it here by then, you can just get the hell back to your own altar. After half a day passes, even if you offer your medicinal pills to me for free, I won't take them."

The arrogance in his tone was extremely apparent.

Meng Hao looked up at the man far off in the distance, and smiled. He proceeded forward, taking about an hour to get to the third altar.

This time he finished the trip an hour faster than the last time, which was of course shocking to many onlookers. However, of the twelve hour time limit, there were now only nine hours left. The middle-aged man looked even more relaxed, and laughingly called out.

"Fang Mu, you have five altars to go, but only nine hours left! You'd best take advantage of your time. I'm curious to see how many altars you can get under your belt before the nine hours is up!"

Meng Hao smiled bashfully, then stepped out into the void once again. The pressure surrounded him, and his energy surged. Boundless light radiated off of him, and he continued onward without pause. Although he was moving slower, and the pressure was increasing, he managed to reach the fourth altar in only two hours.

That gave rise to quite a bit of astonishment among the onlookers. The middle-aged man's face flickered a bit, but he called out just as arrogantly as before.

"So what? There are still four altars between us, and you only have seven hours! Do you really think you can make it here?"

"I don't need that much time," said Meng Hao, his first time speaking to the middle-aged man. Even as he spoke, lightning crackled out around him and he stepped out into the void. Rumbling echoed out because of his incredible speed, almost as if from friction. This time, he used only one hour to set foot onto the fifth altar.

"What!?" Many of the trial by fire competitors jumped to their feet, their expressions that of astonishment. The spectators out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were also looking on wide-eyed.

To cross the gap between two of the altars in only one hour required astonishing speed. That was especially true considering that his first attempt had taken a full four hours.

"Was he intentionally holding back the first time around? Or is he just getting used to the pressure!"

"Is this Fang Mu really going to pull off some kind of miracle?!"

The outside world was in an uproar, and the middle-aged man's face had fallen. He was panting as he stared at Meng Hao, fully cognizant of the fact that there were only three altars between them.

In terms of the time limit, there were six hours left!

"Impossible!" thought the man. His face was ashen, and his eyes wide as he looked over at Meng Hao charging toward him. There was a shy smile on Meng Hao's face, and it seemed almost apologetic.

Next, Meng Hao strode out to cross the void. This time, his speed was such that he only needed the time it takes an incense stick to burn before landing with a bang on the sixth altar. He was now very close to the middle-aged man on the eighth altar.

Without even a pause, he proceeded from the sixth altar out into the void toward the seventh altar. This time, he didn't even need the time it takes an incense stick to burn before he was standing at the edge of the seventh altar, looking at the middle-aged man not too far off in the distance.

The man's scalp was numb as he rose to his feet, an expression of astonishment on his face.

"Impossible!!" he said, trembling, and edging backward slowly. He now felt incredible regret, and if he had a chance to do things over, he would definitely never have chosen to provoke Fang Mu.

All of the surrounding competitors were also astonished, especially the cultivators on the seventh altar where Meng Hao currently stood. They quickly rose to their feet and made a path for Meng Hao to walk through, clasping hands and bowing deeply at the same time.

Meng Hao's might left them all stunned. The cultivators watching from outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were equally shocked, especially the Chosen. They stared at Meng Hao on the vortex screens, and by now, had placed him in a very high position mentally.

In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs had strange looks in their eyes.

Ling Yunzi hovered in midair, smiling slightly and looking at Meng Hao with admiration. His cultivation base was profound, and he had long since seen through the various clues. This was not a case of Meng Hao concealing his cultivation base, but rather, him becoming accustomed to the pressure in the place.

"For him to be able to create Paragon magic, to have the image of the Pāramitā Bridge in his heart, and considering the profundity of his cultivation base, very few types of pressure under Heaven would be able to stop him."

Now many among the crowds of trial by fire competitors were looking over mockingly at the middle-aged man. His face was ashen, and he was trembling. Earlier, he had been surrounded by no small amount of fellow competitors, but now, they had all edged away from him.

"It's never a good idea to provoke people, and yet this guy chose to provoke Fang Mu."

The middle-aged man trembled, and his heart was pounding. Roaring filled his mind, and he had no time to think of any more ideas as Meng Hao flew out and crossed the last void in the space of twenty breaths of time.

Meng Hao looked like an Immortal Divinity as he flew through the void to appear directly in front of the middle-aged man. All of the other competitors immediately clasped hands and bowed, then backed away.

The man trembled and stared fixedly at Meng Hao. After taking a deep breath, he then let out a cold snort.

"Fellow Daoist Fang, clearly you have a profound cultivation base to be able to come here personally. Fine, I, Zhao, will buy your medicinal pill." With that, he produced a bag of holding which he tossed over.

"There are 100,000 spirit stones in there. Take them and leave."

Meng Hao smiled as he caught the bag of holding. Then his expression turned a bit bashful.

"Oh, this won't do," he said. "I have a lot of Spirit Refreshing Pills, you know." With that he patted his old bag of holding to produce… a pill bottle.

He waved the pill bottle in front of the middle-aged man's face. Inside were dozens of medicinal pills.

The middle-aged man's eyes went wide, and he began to inch backward.

"You never said how many you had! You…."

"Huh?!" In one moment, Meng Hao had a sincere smile on his face, but the next, it darkened.

"I came here from all the way over there to deliver medicinal pills to you! And now you're not going to buy them!?" He stepped forward until he was directly in front of the man, and then his hand lashed out.

The man tried to fight back, but how could he possibly be a match for Meng Hao? A boom could be heard, and blood sprayed out of the man's mouth. Meng Hao grabbed his hair and shoved him down onto the ground.

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Chapter 864: The Real Ruins of Immortality!

"Trying to make a fool of me?" growled Meng Hao, killing intent flickering in his eyes. He lifted his right foot up and kicked down viciously onto the man. Cracking sounds could be heard, and blood sprayed from the man's mouth. Bones were smashed, and the man opened his mouth to say something, but in that moment, a vicious expression appeared on Meng Hao's face and he punched downward.

A boom echoed out. Meng Hao had attacked viciously, immediately prompting a miserable shriek from the middle-aged man. He was now broken and bleeding, miserable to the extreme.

"Misunderstanding! Fellow Daoist Fang, this was just a misunderstanding!"

"Misunderstanding my ass!" Meng Hao leapt up into the air and then trampled down onto the man's face. A bloodcurdling scream rang out. The man was now soaked in blood, cradling his head in his arms as Meng Hao thrashed him.

"Wanna buy my stuff? Buy it! Don't wanna buy it? You're gonna buy it anyway!" Meng Hao grabbed the man by the hair, lifted his head up, and then slammed it back down into the ground.

Before the man could even scream, Meng Hao lifted his right leg up and kicked down hard. A crack could be heard as the man's leg was shattered!

This scene of explosive violence, and the rapid change in Meng Hao's facial expression, caused all of the surrounding onlookers to stare in complete, jaw-dropping shock.

The audiences outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea gasped, and stared blankly at what was happening on the vortex screens. Meng Hao's savagery left them totally astonished.

"This guy is definitely someone you can't provoke!"

"What a brutal personality! He's definitely someone to avoid pissing off!"

"I can't believe that a cultivator with a scholarly aura like that could have such a violent temper!!"

The Chosen from the various sects were also taken aback, some more than others. For example, Sun Hai looked on with wide eyes, panting. He watched blankly as Fang Mu grabbed the middle-aged man's hair, and then Sun Hai began to tremble. He suddenly called to mind something that had happened to him that he would never be able to forget for the rest of his life, a completely humiliating and embarrassing memory.

"This seems… somewhat similar…. But that's not him, is it…?" Sun Hai hesitated for a moment. After recalling that certain person, a tremor ran through him. The whole incident was a nightmare. After returning to the Church of the Immortal Emperor, he had often been jolted out of meditation by the shocking memories. Furthermore, he had shaved his hair, and was now completely bald.

Sun Hai

"From now on, call me Li'l Hai!"

In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs looked on with wide eyes, staring in shock as Meng Hao violently beat the middle-aged man. At first, they were completely shocked, but then they began to chuckle.

"This Fang Mu's personality is kind of amusing."

"He exacts revenge for the slightest offense, and isn't willing to suffer any losses whatsoever. Well, truth be told, the other man was the one who started the whole thing."

On the Ancient Road of Dao Seeking, Ling Yunzi chuckled and shook his head, pretending as if he hadn't seen what was happening.

The middle-aged man was dripping with blood, and was both screaming miserably and also trying to fight back. However, the more he struggled, the more ruthlessly Meng Hao beat him. More cracking sounds echoed out as another bone was broken.

Of the surrounding trial by fire competitors, one after another gasped, and all of them were looking at Meng Hao with intense terror in their eyes. They were so afraid of Meng Hao that their scalps were numb.

"This guy seemed perfectly normal! How could he be so brutal!?"

"Must not provoke him! Absolutely must not provoke him!"

Meng Hao's eyes flashed with killing intent, and he jabbed two fingers of his right hand toward the middle-aged man's eyes.

The man let out a miserable shriek and then urgently cried out, "Buy! I'll buy!"

The words floated into Meng Hao's ears like a melody of nature. His right hand stopped in place, and the brutal, vicious expression on his face vanished, to be replaced by a bashful smile and a somewhat embarrassed expression.

He cleared his throat and then said, "Well, look at you! Why didn't you speak up earlier?"

He quickly squatted down and, as the trembling middle-aged man looked at him with terror in his eyes, slowly helped him to his feet.

"You don't need to help me up, really…." The simple action of being helped to his feet caused the man to be even more frightened than before, and he began trembling violently. Before he could even finish speaking, though, Meng Hao glared at him, and he didn't dare to say another word.

"This pill bottle is full of Spirit Reviving Pills," said Meng Hao. "Delivery fee included, one pill costs 200,000 spirit stones. There are a total of 15 pills, so that's a total of 3,000,000 spirit stones." He placed the pill bottle into the man's hand and then looked at him expectantly, eyes gleaming.

The man was on the verge of bursting into tears. The single thought that occupied him now was just to get Meng Hao to leave as quickly as possible, lest he find himself in an even more deadly situation.

"Okay, I'll buy them…." The middle-aged man immediately produced a vast quantity of spirit stones.

Meng Hao's eyes gleamed as he caught sight of the huge amount of the spirit stones that were still left in the man's bag of holding. He obviously had quite a few left over even after buying the pills. Meng Hao cursed the fact that he only had one bottle of Spirit Reviving Pills in his bag of holding.

"Look, you're a customer, so I'm responsible for your safety," Meng Hao said solemnly. "Tell me who it was that beat you up, okay? Or, well, never mind. That's not important. The important thing is that you're hurt, and you're going to be participating in the arena matches that begin in two days. But you don't need to worry, Fellow Daoist. I have more medicinal pills!

"These are top-notch injury-treating pills, for only 200,000 per pill. Don't worry, I'm honest and fair with all customers." Meng Hao immediately pulled out seven or eight pill bottles, which he then handed to the middle-aged man.

The man stared in shock. He really and truly wanted to weep now. For a moment, he considered not buying them, but when he looked at Meng Hao and his bashful smile, he began to shiver uncontrollably. Gritting his teeth, he purchased each and every one of the pills.

Meng Hao took a deep breath, then began to stare at the man's bag of holding, his eyes shining brightly. Clearing his throat, he said, "Fellow Daoist, considering the level of your injuries, I don't think those medicinal pills are enough. It seems even your Nascent Divinity was injured."

"What?" The middle-aged man's scalp was going numb. His Nascent Divinity had not, in fact, been injured, but when he saw the look in Meng Hao's eyes, he knew that it very easily could be.

The man scowled miserably, and his heart was filled with intense regret. He was already starting to run out of spirit stones; these were his life savings, including special rewards given to him by his sect.

"Fellow Daoist Fang, let me go, alright?" he pleaded. "It really was my mistake…." Of course, deep inside, his hatred burned, and he wanted to tear Meng Hao into pieces.

Meng Hao smiled, but his eyes were completely cold as he said, "You know, the first person I ever killed was also surnamed Zhao." 1

The man trembled, and he felt like a cold breeze was filling his entire body. Gritting his teeth, he pulled out some more spirit stones and bought Meng Hao's new medicinal pills. By now, his bag of holding was completely empty.

Meng Hao nodded in satisfaction, then patted the man on the shoulder.

"If you have any other needs, don't hesitate to call me over."

The middle-aged man trembled and nodded.

Meng Hao turned and stepped back out into the void. This time, his trip all the way back to his original position on the first altar only took about an hour. The entire way, the other trial by fire competitors clasped hands and bowed, making way for him, their eyes filled with fear.

Back on the first altar, Meng Hao sat down cross-legged and began to take inventory of everything he had acquired. Looking at the accumulation of spirit stones inside, he finally felt as if his trip here hadn't been a waste.

"It's too bad that Warrior Pavilion was so stingy, though," he thought. "All I did was take a few magical items, right? I didn't take the floor tiles or the shelving. I didn't even touch the decorative tiles!

"Back in the Bridge of Immortal Treading, I dug up all the floor tiles!" When he thought about how stingy the Warrior Pavilion was, his hatred grew. There was nothing he hated more than stingy people.

"Well, in any case, a lot of small gains can add up to a windfall. As long as I keep going in life, then one of these days, I'm going to be the richest person in the all the Nine Mountains and Seas!" Thinking about his grand aspirations, he took a deep breath. For some reason he felt as if he was now one step closer to fulfilling his dreams.

"When I find Xu Qing, the two of us will always have more than enough money to spend." He sighed emotionally.

Time passed by, and soon the three day rest period had ended. The trial by fire competitors opened their eyes, and bright gleams could be seen. With Meng Hao there, most had no thoughts of trying to take first place; they just hoped to make it into the top 8!

Ling Yunzi materialized out of the void and glanced over the crowds.

"The arena matches will be held in the ancient Dao Tree of the Ruins of Immortality. All of you must keep one point firmly in mind. The location of the Dao Tree cannot be considered the depths of the Ruins of Immortality, but it is still a place of extreme danger. Virtually anything could happen outside of the tree while you participate in the fighting. Remember… you must not, under any circumstances, leave the ancient Dao Tree.

"Only by staying on the tree itself can you guarantee your safety. If you leave the tree… it is impossible to say whether you will survive or not!" Ling Yunzi gazed sternly at the competitors, then waved his hand. Immediately, a red glow sprung up everywhere, and the void trembled. Ripples spread out as everything present, including Meng Hao, flew up into the air. Ling Yunzi suddenly seemed to grow incredibly large, whereupon he swished his sleeve, causing everyone to fly inside of it.

This scene caused Meng Hao's heart to tremble!

"What an extraordinary divine ability!" he thought, panting. After all the trial by fire competitors were pulled into Ling Yunzi's sleeve, they could clearly see the outside world whizzing by, and knew that Ling Yunzi was now moving forward at incredible speed.

The audiences in the outside world watched as similar scenes played out on the Ancient roads of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing. The two old men in those locations also flew up, and soon joined Ling Yunzi as they flew off into the distance.

The path they traveled was covered with mist, and occasionally, wails and howls could be heard echoing about, as well as terrifying roars. Gradually, an enormous head became visible, floating there in the mists. Blood oozed out of its eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, and an enormous centipede could be seen burrowing in and out of its eyes.

When the crowds on the outside saw these things, they gasped and stared at the vortex screens in shock.

"Ruins of Immortality! These are the real Ruins of Immortality!!"

"That giant's head is at least ten thousand meters tall!!"

Inside of Ling Yunzi's sleeve, Meng Hao could see everything that was happening outside. He also saw the giant's head, and he couldn't help but feel shocked as they passed it by.

More time passed. The mists grew thicker, and the wailing undulated endlessly. Eventually, a huge vine appeared up ahead, swinging back and forth. Shockingly, there were countless corpses bound up on the vine, corpses that were ancient and shriveled, and yet who possessed magical items and treasures that were related to bags of holding.

Considering that the items still existed after all these years, it showed that… this vine was incredibly mighty, and would tolerate no incursions.

Several days passed, during which time Meng Hao saw countless bizarre things. He saw an enormous ball of fur the size of a planet. He saw a gigantic bleeding eye. He saw an army of cultivators in tattered clothes, walking slowly through the void with blank looks on their faces.

Each of those cultivators was so powerful that Meng Hao found it difficult to breathe.

Most shocking of all, though, was when Meng Hao saw… a ship, floating slowly through the mists. Meng Hao was not unfamiliar with this ship, and when he saw it, his mind trembled. This was the same ship he had seen in the Milky Way Sea, and just like before, an old man sat at the prow!!

1. Meng Hao killed a guy named Zhao Wugang in chapter 9

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Chapter 865: Sixth Demon Sealing Hex!

Seven days went by. Ling Yunzi and the other two old men gradually began to decrease their speed, and looks of concentration appeared on their faces. Although they had made this trip on numerous occasions, every time they did, it was with the utmost caution. These were the Ruins of Immortality, not some other random location. Although not every single step was filled with danger, there were still many shocking things that could fill even them with senses of deadly crisis.

One misstep, and they might end up being buried in this place. Furthermore, this was a trial by fire, so if there were any accidents, they wouldn't be the only ones who died; all of the people stored inside their massive sleeves would go along with them.

If that happened, it would be a huge blow to the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea.

Ling Yunzi and the others stopped in place for a moment to perform some incantations of augury. Then they exchanged glances, and one of them commented, "Are the lives of the Chosen from the great sects really that much more valuable than all the other lives?"

Ling Yunzi shook his head and declined to answer. Whereas the three of them were personally escorting all of the trial by fire competitors, the Chosen from the great sects would simply wait for them to arrive at the ancient Dao Tree. There, a teleportation portal would be set up, and they could go to the place directly.

The teleportation portal would only be able to remain active for the space of about ten breaths of time, and could only handle a volume of about one hundred people. Even that would require a huge expenditure of resources.

That price would be split between the various sects, all to ensure that their Chosen would reach their destination without any complications.

"There are still ten hours left before the entrance appears," said the old man who carried the Spirit Severing competitors. "Why don't we rest for a bit?" With that, he sat down cross-legged.

The one who had complained before was the old man carrying the Nascent Soul cultivators. He gave a cold harrumph and looked off into the distance.

"Let's bring the competitors out and let them take a look around," said Ling Yunzi. "This ten hour period should be relatively safe." He swished his sleeve, and the one thousand Dao Seeking cultivators, including Meng Hao, immediately appeared. Many of them gasped as they were finally able to personally see the surroundings. Their minds were clearly shaken, but none of them spoke a single word.

Moments later, the Spirit Severing and Nascent Soul experts appeared in vast groups. They looked around at their surroundings and sharp inhalations of breath could be heard everywhere.

"Do nothing rash, and do not stray too far," Ling Yunzi said, his voice echoing about. "We are now in the real Ruins of Immortality, and there are many dangers lurking about. Considering the level of your cultivation bases, you would never normally be able to come to a place like this. Since you're here with us now, take a moment to experience what it feels like. You can consider this one of your rewards."

Meng Hao took a deep breath as he looked around. They were surrounded by mists, some thin, some thick. Many areas radiated intense pressure. Clearly, there were different areas, some of which were possible for people of greater power to enter, other areas not so much.

The area they occupied contained the weakest pressure of all. Furthermore, the three old men were pushing back, reducing the power by at least half. Even with much of the power being deflected by the three old men, it was still difficult for many of the competitors to hold up.

The majority of the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing cultivators were meditating cross-legged. The remainder that were not forced to focus fully on fighting back against the pressure, were examining their surroundings. Among the Dao Seeking cultivators, about half were meditating, with the remaining several hundred moving about in the area.

Meng Hao walked ahead until he was about three hundred meters out. There, he stopped. He suddenly had the feeling that the pressure would increase explosively if he proceeded any further. He stood there silently for a moment before smacking his bag of holding to produce a flying sword. He gradually extended it out, and when it went past the three hundred meter mark, cracking sounds could be heard. Fissures spread out across the sword, and after a few breaths of time, it disintegrated into ash.

"Five breaths of time," he thought, his eyes glittering. The flying sword he had used just now was a Spirit Severing treasure, and yet here, it could only last for five breaths of time.

Shaking his head, Meng Hao began to back away from the three hundred meter mark, when suddenly, a voice echoed into his mind.

"Come… come…."

He stopped in his tracks, and his eyes began to shine with a brilliant light. As he looked out into the Ruins of Immortality, the voice continued to echo in his mind. He turned to look at the people behind him, but apparently, not even Ling Yunzi and the other two could hear what he was hearing. It seemed that only he could detect the voice.

At the same time that the voice echoed out, the ancient Demon Sealing Jade in his bag of holding suddenly began to emanate flickering light.

The Demon Sealing Jade had remained dormant for a very long time, but now it was glowing once again. However, unlike the previous occasions, it did not speak.

The voice from moments before continued to speak.

"League of Demon Sealers… come here… come to me…." As the voice spoke, the mist in front of Meng Hao seemed to weaken and change, as… a path appeared.

Meng Hao's mind trembled as he looked at the path. He did not walk forward, but rather, began to edge backward. He knew that the level of his cultivation base placed him at the peak of his peers. However, when you considered the Mountain and Sea Realm as a whole, he was merely in the Spirit Realm, which made him very weak.

This path might lead to good fortune, but considering the level of his cultivation base, that good fortune could very well lead to his death.

In the moment that he stepped backward, the voice continued on with even more urgency.

"The League of Demon Sealers…. I am a member too. Come to me, I shall give you good fortune…. I shall give you destiny to step upon the Heavens, to achieve a meteoric rise! You can directly become Immortal!"

The more the voice tried to persuade him, the more Meng Hao backed up. When he had backed up about thirty meters, the mist in front of him suddenly began to churn, as if some incredible power were approaching, heading directly toward Meng Hao.

His face fell, and he began to speed backward. By this time, Ling Yunzi and the others had sensed that something was happening. Faces flickering, the three of them immediately sprung into action, pulling all of the trial by fire competitors back into their sleeves, and at the same time, striding forward to stand next to Meng Hao. By this point, the swirling mists had spread to reveal a figure.

It was a cultivator whose body was in a state of decomposition. His head was half destroyed, and his clothes were tattered. An archaic, rotting aura emanated out from him, and he was surrounded by swirling mists. In his hand, he held a tattered banner, and he stood there, staring listlessly at Ling Yunzi and the others with his one remaining eye.

Ling Yunzi and the other old men stared at the man as if he were a deadly enemy. Their energy surged, and the light of magical techniques began to swirl around them.

"Senior, you have already perished," said Ling Yunzi. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. We of the junior generation are still alive, and are just passing through here. We disturbed your rest, please forgive us. Senior, kindly return from whence you came!"

The half-headed figure slowly raised his right hand and pointed a decomposing finger directly at Meng Hao.

"I… want… him…."

Ling Yunzi's face fell, as did those of the other two old men.

Breathing heavily, Meng Hao backed up until he was behind the three old men. As he stared at the figure, his heart trembled. It was at this point that he noticed that the half-headed man… had a sword stabbed into his waist.

The sword was pitch black and emanated a freezing aura. However, Meng Hao could also tell that the sword possessed Demon Sealing power. It only took a moment for him to realize that it was the power of a Demon Sealing Hex!

It was at this moment that the ancient Demon Sealing Jade in his bag of holding finally spoke into his mind with its archaic voice.

"Sixth Demon Sealing Hex!"

Ling Yunzi placed his right hand onto his bag of holding. "Senior," he said, "Please don't push us too far!"

The half-headed man suddenly looked over at him, and flames leapt up within his single remaining eye. He suddenly lurched forward, the mists surrounding him seething, as if they contained countless vengeful souls, screaming miserably. He waved the banner, and rumbling sounds could be heard as mist poured toward the three old men.

Ling Yunzi's face flickered and he let out a roar, unhesitatingly slapping his bag of holding to produce a talisman.

It was an ancient talisman that emanated a boundlessly archaic aura. It seemed to have existed through countless years of time. All it depicted was a simple, smiling face. However, as soon as it appeared, the half-headed man stopped in place, and even the incoming mists stopped, seemingly stuck permanently in place, not daring to get any closer.

Ling Yunzi took a deep breath, performed an incantation gesture, and then pointed out. The talisman immediately floated up into midair. At the same time, Ling Yunzi grabbed Meng Hao and then shot backward at top speed. The other two old men also retreated, leaving the talisman floating there in the air.

"I can't believe we ran into a revenant here. That talisman should hold it in place for twenty hours." Ling Yunzi frowned and looked over at Meng Hao. "How did you draw its attention?"

Meng Hao smiled wryly, unsure of exactly what to say.

"It probably has nothing to do with him," said the man carrying the Spirit Severing cultivators, who happened to be from the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite. "The revenants here usually just look for people they think will be suitable to help them to return to life. We've run into them before, haven't we?"

Meng Hao hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Seniors, what is… a revenant?"

"Some ancient cultivators left strands of resentful will behind when they died. Those strands of will exist outside of the natural law of the Mountain and Sea Realm, and continuously attempt to return to life. Those are revenants."

Meng Hao nodded and looked back at the half-headed man. He had a mind to go and try to retrieve the sword, but he knew that it was impossible to do so. Inwardly, he sighed with regret.

Soon, ten hours had passed, and the surrounding mists were churning. Meng Hao was back in Ling Yunzi's sleeve, and yet, was still able to see the world outside. Shockingly, off in the distance… was an indescribably large corpse.

It was so huge that Meng Hao could do nothing less than gasp. It seemed larger than a planet, seemingly without end. A cultivator who stood in front of it would be smaller than an ant.

The corpse appeared to be almost like an enormous continent, hanging there in the void.

As Ling Yunzi and the other two old men flew forward, they each produced a magical symbol that caused their bodies to emanate a gray light. They shot toward the huge body, and in the blink of an eye, touched down onto it and then sped forward.

Meng Hao looked on gaping as Ling Yunzi and the other two continued onward for an entire month at an indescribable speed. Despite that, they still had not crossed the entirety of the corpse. Eventually, a tree appeared up ahead.

It was a gargantuan, shocking, ancient tree.

Apparently, the tree was growing directly up from within the corpse, as if it was using the corpse's blood and flesh as nutrients.

The trunk of the tree stretched high up into the air, until, at a certain point, two huge branches split off in opposite directions, making it look like an enormous fork.

The tree was covered with innumerable leaves, each one of which was fully three hundred meters wide. The leaves did not bend downward, but spread out evenly like platforms.

"We're here!" said Ling Yunzi. He and the other two came to a stop, then waved their hands, causing all of the competitors to fly out from within their sleeves and land on the tree leaves.

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Chapter 866: I Am a God!

The crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were watching on the vortex screens, and could see everything that Ling Yunzi and the others encountered.

That included the decomposing, half-headed man, as well as all the other things lurking in the mists.

Many gasps could be heard from the cultivators in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. For most of them, this was their first time ever seeing the Ruins of Immortality. In previous trials by fire, outsiders were not permitted to see these things, but this time was different. Not only were the prizes astonishing, but for the first time, everyone was able to catch a glimpse of the Ruins of Immortality.

Although it was only a tiny portion, it was still enough to capture the attention of innumerable cultivators.

When they saw the gigantic corpse, cries of shock echoed out in all directions. Then the ancient Dao Tree appeared, and even greater shouts of astonishment could be heard.

"It's actually… growing on the top of the giant's corpse!"

"That's the ancient Dao Tree? What exactly is it? Why is it called a Dao Tree?!"

"That corpse… Heavens! I never imagined that things that huge existed! How is this possible?! If that thing wasn't dead… who could possibly fight it? It's… actually a real corpse!"

The faces of the Patriarchs up in the starry sky palace were calm; all of them were familiar with the Ruins of Immortality.

However, they were all wondering what motive the Three Great Daoist Societies had to allow all the crowds on the outside to see.

A huge corpse. An ancient tree.

"The tree leaves are the arenas," said Ling Yunzi. "The leaves on the left side will be the Nascent Soul battleground. The leaves on the right are for Spirit Severing. As for the central main trunk… that is where the Dao Seeking fights will take place!" As his words echoed out, Meng Hao stood there on one of the leaves on the main trunk, at the bottom level.

All of the other Dao Seeking cultivators were also located on bottom-level leaves. When they looked up, they could see that the branches sticking out from it were arranged in layers, the highest of which was ten levels away.

The higher the level, the fewer the leaves. In fact, at the apex, there was only one golden leaf, which was completely eye catching.

As for the battlegrounds on the left and right, they were also arranged in levels, although instead of climbing straight up, they moved out to the side. Similarly, though, as they reached their ends, the leaves grew sparser, until at the very end of each, was a golden leaf!

Three golden leaves. Those were the limits of the ancient Dao Tree, and the locations where the final matches would be fought.

Even as Ling Yunzi provided his explanation, he and the other two old men performed incantation gestures and produced magical materials which they used to begin to set up teleportation portals on the giant's corpse beneath the tree.

After the teleportation portals took shape, the three old men performed incantation gestures and pointed out, causing boundless light to shine up. Out in the sects of the Ninth Mountain and Sea, as soon as the light from the teleportation portals rose up, Zhao Yifan, Taiyang Zi, Fan Dong'er, and other Chosen all stepped forward onto the teleportation portals at their locations. Light flashed, and they vanished.

When they reappeared, they were standing atop the giant's corpse in the Ruins of Immortality.

It only took the space of about ten breaths of time for roughly a hundred people from all the sects to arrive. Then, cracking sounds could be heard as the teleportation portals shattered and faded away.

As Fan Dong'er and the others spread out, they looked around with trembling minds. This was apparently their first time coming to this place as well.

From the leaf he stood upon, Meng Hao could see Fan Dong'er, Taiyang Zi, even Sun Hai and others. His eyes flickered and a smile appeared on his face.

Ling Yunzi waved his sleeve, causing the nearly one hundred Chosen to fly out toward tree leaves according to the level of their cultivation base.

Soon, Fan Dong'er and the others were standing on leaves on the lowest level of the tree. As for Fan Dong'er, she wore a white robe, and behind her swirled a globe of white mist. It was very thick, making it impossible to see exactly what was inside.

The leaf she stood upon wasn't very far away from Meng Hao, and he couldn't help but glance over at her. His eye was especially caught by the white mist behind her.

Fan Dong'er noticed him looking at her, and frowned. However, she knew the two of them would soon be fellow disciples of the same sect, so she suppressed her anger and merely glared at him.

Meng Hao quickly looked away, focusing his attention on Zhao Yifan, then Li Ling'er. When he looked at Li Ling'er, he subconsciously… checked out her rear end.

He could still remember how he had spanked her two times, leaving her buttocks uneven.

Li Ling'er glanced at him coolly, then ignored him completely. Feeling somewhat pleased, Meng Hao then looked around until he noticed one particular young man who happened to be looking at him.

When their gazes met, the young man trembled. He was… naturally, Sun Hai.

Sun Hai didn't recognize Meng Hao, but for some reason, when Meng Hao looked at him, it caused him to gasp and be filled with a cold, unsettling feeling.

At first, Meng Hao didn't recognize who the bald-headed youth was. But after a moment, his jaw almost dropped.

"What happened to all his hair?" he thought. "I seem to remember leaving quite a bit behind." It wasn't just Meng Hao who was sizing up these Chosen. Many of the other competitors in the trial by fire were examining them closely.

Not much more time passed before Ling Yunzi's voice was heard once again.

"The arena matches of the Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, and Dao Seeking, will be completely separate from each other, and shall progress separately. The ancient Dao Tree leaves upon which you stand contain a teleportation function. Not only will it teleport two people onto one leaf to fight, but it will also teleport the winner to the next level!

"The matches will proceed in this fashion all the way until the final battle.

"In the arena matches, life and death are determined by fate. Defeat will result in elimination from the competition. If you utter the words 'I concede,' then you will also be removed from the competition.

"Bear in mind that we are in the Ruins of Immortality, and danger lurks everywhere! Even if some strange things appear on the outside, things which attempt to distract you, or lure you out, you must under no circumstances leave the tree leaves.

"On the tree leaves, you are safe. If you leave them, though… it is impossible to say whether you will make it back alive.

"And now, let the arena matches begin!"

Almost in the same instant that the words left Ling Yunzi's mouth, Meng Hao suddenly cried out loudly.

"Patriarch, wait a moment!"

His voice echoed out, attracting quite a bit of attention from those around him. Ling Yunzi frowned and looked over at Meng Hao. At first he was tempted to ignore him, but after thinking about the expression on Meng Hao's face when he held the Feng Shui compass aloft, his heart softened.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Patriarch, I wanted to know, the enormous corpse down there, is it a cultivator?" Actually, Meng Hao wasn't the only person who wanted to know the answer to that question. All of the competitors were wondering the same thing. As for the newly arrived Chosen, they remained silent; they had already asked about the subject when they were in the outside world.

Ling Yunzi remained silent for a moment. He didn't actually have the sole authority to answer such a question. He looked over at the other two men, and all of them exchanged glances. Then, they produced jade slips which they used to communicate with their sect headquarters, inquiring as to whether they were permitted to respond.

After a moment, Ling Yunzi put his jade slip away and looked back up at Meng Hao.

"This is a God of the Pāramitā!"

After uttering those words, Ling Yunzi didn't wait for anyone's reaction. He immediately called out again, "Let the arena matches begin!"

Meng Hao's mind trembled, and he couldn't keep himself from taking in a deep breath in response to the answer he had just received. A God….

Actually, all of the trial by fire participants were mentally shaken. However, even as this happened, the world in front of them distorted, and they began to grow blurry. In the blink of an eye, everyone grew clear again, and they were on the next level of leaves.

However instead of being alone on the leaves, each person was now facing an opponent.

Meng Hao found himself looking at a young man who had originally been bursting with power. However, as soon as things grew clear and he saw that he was facing Meng Hao, his face fell.

He was not one of the Chosen from the outside sects, but rather one of the competitors from the trial by fire. Furthermore… he had been on the same altar as the middle-aged man upon whom Meng Hao had vented his anger earlier. He had personally witnessed the entire incident.

Although he felt torn inwardly, his eyes quickly filled with a fierce light. He let out a powerful roar and employed the full power of his cultivation base as he turned into a prismatic beam of light that shot toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao's face was calm as the young man closed in. He raised his right hand and punched out into the air, then spun and began to walk toward the edge of the arena.

Almost in the same moment that he turned, a huge boom could be heard, and blood sprayed from the young man's mouth. Although he had been approaching like a shooting star, in that instant, his light went dim, and he was forced back more than thirty meters, where he coughed up another mouthful of blood. His expression was now dismal, and his face ashen.

He was well aware that Meng Hao had been holding back. The blow just now had been directed at the air in front of him, and had it actually landed on his body, he would not have gotten off as easily as being forced back a bit and only slightly injured.

He took a deep breath, then looked sadly at Meng Hao, clasped hands, and bowed deeply.

"I concede," he said, sounding a bit bitter.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he faded away, returning to the first level of leaves, which indicated that he had been eliminated. As for Meng Hao, he sat down cross-legged at the edge of the arena and looked around at the other matches that were taking place.

He was feeling quite pleased with himself, but as for the cultivators from the Ninth Mountain and Sea watching the arena matches, they were completely shaken by Meng Hao's power.

"One punch… into the air! And he actually injured a peak Dao Seeking cultivator!"

"This Fang Mu hasn't even used any magical techniques! He's just relying on the strength of his fleshly body!"

"No wonder he could stand up to the pressure outside those altars! Such fleshly body strength is extremely rare!"

The first round of the arena matches was a simple thing for Zhao Yifan, as well as the other Chosen. None of them needed more than ten breaths of time to secure victory.

Meng Hao looked around at the other arena locations and identified about ten other people besides the Chosen who were worth paying attention to. Among those, one was the masked young man Li Yan. Another was the cultivator with the mosquitos, and a third was a young boy who was also one of the trial by fire competitors. Although he never spoke, he had made it into the group of one thousand Dao Seeking competitors, and had his own unique capabilities.

In the first round, he attacked viciously, the result being that his opponent was instantly reduced to a bloody pulp.

The fourth person was a garrulous old man who constantly shivered and muttered to himself. His first opponent was a Chosen from the Seven Seas Sect. Strangely, as soon as he appeared in front of the mumbling old man, the Chosen suddenly seemed to go crazy and tried to charge outside of the leaf arena. Were it not for Ling Yunzi immediately intervening to save him, he would have been in great danger.

Of those four people, the one who caused Meng Hao the greatest consternation was not the garrulous old man or Li Yan, but rather, that unprepossessing young boy!

"He has at least thirty percent of the power of a true Immortal!" thought Meng Hao, looking at him closely. Almost in the exact instant that Meng Hao looked at him, the boy turned his head to return the gaze. Their eyes locked over all the various arenas between them, and the boy's mouth twisted into a vicious smile.

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Chapter 867: One Punch! 1

Other than those four, there were six Chosen who Meng Hao hadn't seen on Planet South Heaven when all the outside Chosen came. Four were men and two were women. One of the women wore a white mask and a long red robe. When she attacked, a Blood Orchid bloomed around her, indicating that she came from the Church of the Blood Orchid.

The other woman wore garments of five colors, and was not very pretty. She attacked with shocking five elements magic, and even though Meng Hao had previously cultivated a five elements Nascent Soul, he had the feeling that this woman's skill with the five elements exceeded his own. She was from the Five Colors Sect.

The other four cultivators were all young men. One of them did not personally attack his opponent, but rather, caused a coffin to appear, from within which emerged a corpse. The corpse easily slaughtered the young man's opponent. He was from one of the Five Great Holy Lands, the Paleo-Immortal Mausoleum.

The second young man was bony, with eyes that burned like fire. Like the other young man, he did not personally attack, but instead, simply stared at his opponent, who then burst into flames and then transformed into nothing but ash.

The third young man was handsome and, shockingly, had a third eye on his forehead. It was clearly a Dharma Eye, and it remained closed the entire time. The young man wore a slight smile, and he seemed almost completely harmless, as if he lacked any ability to attack whatsoever. Furthermore, his opponent didn't attack either! The two of them transmitted a few words to each other, and then the opponent knelt down on one knee, looking at the young man with a pious expression, and conceded.

This young man was from the Burning Incense Stick Society.

The last person was a hulking man from the Kunlun Society. He was stalwart, with a powerful fleshly body. He started his match standing there like a mountain. When his opponent attacked, he waved a finger, causing a huge mountain to descend, smashing into his opponent and instantly defeating him. However, he did not kill his opponent.

When Meng Hao saw that, his eyes suddenly shone with the desire to do battle.

As the intense fighting of the first round of arena matches played out, the audiences outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea closely watched the screens in the three vortexes. Each of those screens was divided into multiple smaller screens which depicted each of the battlegrounds.

In the palace in the starry sky, the various Patriarchs were closely observing to the goings on, and were paying especially close attention to the Chosen from their own sects. They were also watching the cultivators from the other sects. Although most of the Chosen were not particularly powerful, they were the future blazing suns of the various sects.

As long as they did not unexpectedly perish and could mature and grow stronger, they would eventually allow their sects to gain more power and influence.

"This generation has come across the fate of becoming a true immortal; in the Nine Mountains and Seas, every 10,000 years, the true immortality destiny descends, and an entire generation of Chosen always comes out of the woodwork."

"I wonder which three will last until the end to take first place in their stage!?"

Everyone was watching the fighting, hearts filled with anticipation.

Back in the battleground, Meng Hao's expression was calm as he sat there cross-legged on the leaf. He looked around at the other arenas, and could see many people looking back at him.

After looking around for a while, Meng Hao had the mind to take a look at the Nascent Soul battles, but unfortunately, it was currently impossible to see the fighting taking place in the other two areas. Finally, he closed his eyes and waited for time to pass.

On the Nascent Soul battleground, Chen Fan's expression was as gloomy as ever. His attacks appeared to be normal, but his opponent seemed to have been infected by his mood, and as such, was only able to fight with half of the power of his cultivation base.

On the Spirit Severing battleground, the fighting was equally intense.

The first round of arena matches for the Dao Seeking stage was the first to end, after a total of four hours. Half of the competitors were eliminated, and the other half stood on their leaves on the second level, eyes flickering. The leaves beneath their feet began to shine with light that spread out to cover everyone and teleport them to the third layer of leaves.

When he reappeared amidst the flickering light, Meng Hao was facing an old man whose face was covered with dark blotches. Immediately, a murderous aura sprang up, along with shocking energy. The man held a cane in his hand, and as he walked forward, he suddenly realized he was facing Meng Hao, and his pupils constricted.

"Fang Mu!" he thought, and his heart began to pound with unease. He had never imagined that he would end up facing the mighty Fang Mu in the second round. "His fleshly body is incredibly powerful, and his divine sense is incredible. He has a profound cultivation base and attacks without mercy…. Dammit, why did I have to end up facing him? Although, I might not necessarily be unable to earn a victory. I excel in terms of speed!"

Eyes flickering, the old man turned into a blur as, all of a sudden, nine clones appeared.

The nine clones closed in on Meng Hao, each one coming from a different direction.

Meng Hao stood there, looking around coldly at the incoming figures. His expression was calm as he raised his right hand and once again released one punch. As soon as the punch landed on the ground, he turned and, just as he had in the last battle, began to walk to the edge of the arena.

Behind him, massive booms rang out. His one punch caused a huge vortex to appear, which emanated a shocking gravitational force and intense rumbling. Ten figures immediately began to be sucked in toward the vortex. Nine of them collapsed into pieces, and the old man's true self coughed up blood. His expression was one of astonishment as he quickly called out that he conceded.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he faded away to reappear back on the first level of leaves. He had been completely defeated.

By that point, Meng Hao had reached the edge of the arena, where he sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

Many people in the outside world were paying attention to Meng Hao, and what they saw shocked them.

"One punch again!! It was exactly the same as the first round, except that the old man's cultivation base was clearly much higher than the guy from the previous fight!"

"This Fang Mu's fleshly body is so powerful that he can create a vacuum! Maybe his speed truly isn't that great, but he's so strong that he doesn't even need speed! Who could possibly fight back against that one punch!"

"He's definitely going to get into the top 16. I can't wait to see him fight against some of those Chosen!!"

The outside world was in an uproar. It didn't take long for the second round of arena matches to end, and the third to begin. Meng Hao appeared on the next level of leaves, where he looked at the glittering lights in front of him and watched his opponent emerge.

This person was no Chosen. Instead, it was the young man with the mosquitos. When he laid eyes on Meng Hao, instead of looking nervous like the previous two opponents, his eyes gleamed with the desire to do battle.

"Fang Mu," he said. "It's my pleasure to be able to fight with you. Finally, I'll be able to see exactly how powerful you are!"

Meng Hao's expression was the same as ever; completely emotionless. What he had been paying attention to this whole time was not the young man himself, but rather his mosquitos.

Before the young man even finished speaking, he waved his hand, causing a shocking cloud of fierce mosquitos to appear. The largest were a meter long, and many were the size of a fist. They spread out in a great cloud as they shot toward Meng Hao.

A buzzing sound could be heard as they closed in. Meng Hao's eyes flickered as he clenched his fist and then punched out.

Just like the previous matches, it was only one punch. Rumbling filled the air and ripples spread out in all directions. At the same time, Meng Hao turned and walked toward the edge of the arena.

Behind him, the shocking ripples slammed into the mosquitoes, causing them to collapse into pieces. The young man's body began to vibrate uncontrollably as he shot backward. Blood sprayed from his mouth, and his expression was one of shock. He hadn't even been able to attack, and yet his cultivation base was suppressed, and he almost felt as if his vital organs were being tossed about.

At the critical moment, even the young man's voice quavered as he cried out, "Concede… I concede!!"

He looked over at Meng Hao with an unprecedented expression of fear. He had been aware that Meng Hao was powerful, but had never imagined that he was THIS powerful!

As the scene played out in front of the eyes of the audience in the outside world, it sent them into tumult. In the first round, one punch. In the second round, also one punch. In the third round, facing up against a powerful opponent, and… also one punch!

"Just… just how powerful is he!?!?"

"He definitely deserves to take first place! With power and confidence like that, he's basically invincible!"

"I'm guessing that only the Chosen from the great sects can actually fight him!!"

"I wonder who will force him into using two punches!?"

Up in the starry sky palace, the various Patriarchs were nodding in approval. None of them had any reason to deny that among his generation, Meng Hao truly was incredibly powerful!

"He must be using a vibration magic. This Fang Mu isn't very old, but he's actually mastered the magic of vibration!" 2

"That's a fleshly body technique that can only be learned when the fleshly body has reached a certain level of power. It can be considered very strong within the Spirit Realm. In fact, even in the Immortal Realm, there are only a handful of people who have mastered it!"

Meng Hao's performance was flashy and eye-catching, making him the center of attention of everyone watching the arena matches. When it came to the Chosen who were participating in the arena matches, they were also paying close attention to Meng Hao. Although their matches ended quickly, none of them were able to finish them with the ease that Meng Hao did.

"Hmph, he's just gotten lucky. How could he have run into so many weak opponents?! If he had faced off against formidable adversaries like we did, there's no way he would've gotten off so easy!"

"The further along we get, the more powerful the opponents will be. Let's see exactly how many rounds he can last!"

Discussions like these could be heard as the third round of matches concluded, and the fourth round began. By now, most of the cultivators had been eliminated, and only about a hundred remained.

Each and every one… was incredibly powerful!

Meng Hao stood on the fifth level of leaves as another opponent appeared amidst glittering lights. It was a hulking man who wore a long robe. Ripples spread out as he materialized. This was not the powerful expert from the Kunlun Society, but was a Chosen nonetheless.

He came from the Seven Seas Sect.

In each of the previous rounds, he had torn his opponent to shreds. All of them had died. When walked out into the arena, a cruel smile could be seen on his face, and his eyes shone with a vicious gleam.

"Fang Mu…" he said. "We meet at last. You made quite a show in the past few rounds, but that was only because the people you were up against were weaklings!

"This time, I'll help you to understand how wide the gap is between a rogue cultivator like you and us Chosen. That gap… will leave you in despair!" The man laughed uproariously, and put on the appearance of being crude and rash. In truth, he was actually being very cautious, and was careful not to let any of his scheming thoughts show on the surface. As he spoke, he began to charge forward, and illusory seawater appeared around him. Seven seas appeared, causing rumbling sounds to fill the air. Simultaneously, a huge sea dragon materialized and roared toward Meng Hao.

As of this moment, many people among the audiences outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were watching Meng Hao in the arena. When they saw the Chosen from the Seven Seas Sect attacking Meng Hao, many of them sighed.

"Fang Mu will definitely be incapable of pulling off something amazing with a single punch like before."

"Hmph. Going up against weaklings makes it easy to seem powerful. But now that he's fighting a Chosen, he'll have a tough time remaining calm. Even if he wins, this battle is definitely going to be like a fierce struggle between a tiger and a dragon."

"I've heard that the Seven Seas Sect's Yun Tianhe has a bizarre energy. After combining that energy with the cultivation base, it create a power that enables him to fight a false Immortal without being at a disadvantage."

The discussions in the outside world could not be heard in the arenas. At the same time, the hulking man from the Seven Seas Sect let out a powerful roar as he closed in on Meng Hao. Meng Hao's expression was as calm as ever as, just the same as before, he punched one time!

1. Since I'm sure there will be some comments, I'll explain about the "one punch" thing. The two characters which make up this chapter name (一拳) literally mean "one fist." However, often this character of "fist" is used to describe the action of punching. A cursory search reveals that there seem to be two common Chinese translations of "One-Punch Man." One translation ( 一击男) comes across as "one strike man," the other (一拳超人) "one punch super man" or "one fist super man," uses the same two characters as the title of this chapter. One-Punch Man apparently rose to popularity in Japan starting around 2012, but the officially licensed Chinese translations didn't come out until late 2015, whereas this chapter was originally published in early 2015. I'll leave it up to you to decide if this is an intentional reference to Saitama. Although isn't it interesting that a bald character suddenly showed up in the last chapter…

2. Meng Hao picked up the "vibration magic" from Guyiding Tri-rain in chapter 644. He used it afterwards on a couple occasions.

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Chapter 868: Junior Blood Immortal!

"Looking to die!?" said the hulking man with a malicious grin. He was clearly not pleased with Meng Hao's plan to end the fight with one punch. Sneering inwardly, he redoubled the power he was putting into his attack, and also unleashed a forbidden technique of his sect, which further increased its power by thirty percent.

He didn't just want to win, he wanted to kill his opponent, and he seemed very excited at the prospect of ending the life of the first place competitor who was also a future Conclave disciple of the Ninth Sea God World.

Killing someone in an arena match was nothing anyone could complain about, so there was little danger of repercussions. His sect would reward him, and even more importantly, protect him.

What he saw was a chance to make great advancement with little effort, right there in front of him.

"DIE!" he roared, his eyes bursting with a murderous look as he caused the Seven Seas Dragon to suddenly grow another vicious head, which also snapped toward Meng Hao.

It was at this point that Meng Hao's fist connected with the dragon.

It was only one punch, but that punch slammed into the dragon with an enormous boom. A violent tremor ran through it, and then its first head cracked and exploded. The second head also exploded, and then, bit by bit, its body.

The seven seas rumbled briefly and then collapsed, vanishing in the blink of an eye, as if they had never been there to begin with. At this point, Meng Hao's fist slammed into the hulking man's chest.

The big man's eyes went wide as he looked at Meng Hao, and his face twisted. Meng Hao's expression was calm as he pulled his hand back and walked off to the edge of the arena.

In the instant he turned, blood sprayed from the hulking man's mouth. Fissures spread out from the point of impact on his chest, and in the blink of an eye, they had covered his entire body. A look of disbelief could be seen on his face, and he opened his mouth to say something. Before any words could come out, though, he exploded.

As the haze of blood and gore blasted out, Meng Hao reached the edge of the arena and sat down cross-legged. The entire time, only one, placid expression could be seen on his face. He reached up to wipe a drop of blood off of his cheek, then closed his eyes.

Gasps could be heard from the audiences outside in the Ninth Mountain and Sea as they watched Meng Hao in terrified shock.

"That was still… just one punch!!"

"Heavens! Just exactly how powerful is this Fang Mu!? That Chosen from the Seven Seas Sect could match up to a false Immortal, and yet he collapsed from a single punch! Fang Mu hasn't even punched two times yet."

"Four matches, and he only punched one time each! Fang Mu is way too powerful!!"

"He's already in the top 100, with only four punches!!"

Even the eyes of the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace went wide.

Meng Hao was the focus of the attention of all the Chosen from the various sects, and was now viewed by most of them as a major adversary. Even Zhao Yifan was wondering whether or not he could beat the Seven Seas Sect's Chosen with only one punch. Of course, if he used a sword, he was confident he could.

Rumbling booms continued to echo out as the fourth round of arena matches proceeded. There was another battle that was particularly eye-catching. In fact, after Meng Hao's match ended, most eyes among the audiences in the Ninth Mountain and Sea turned to watch it.

That battle was the match being fought by a disciple from the Holy Land of Mount Sun, the illustrious Taiyang Zi!

His body was surrounded by boundless light, making him look almost like a sun. His opponent was a boy, the same competitor Meng Hao had noticed earlier, and had been paying special attention to.

From what Meng Hao could tell, he possessed at least thirty percent of the power of a true Immortal.

When the battle started, most of the spectators were confident that Taiyang Zi would come out victorious. And yet, contrary to all speculations, he actually lost!

Furthermore, it was an incredible defeat. If he hadn't uttered the words 'I concede,' then he would almost certainly have died. The boy's magic caused a bloody glow to emanate out, and it seemed incredibly bloodthirsty. The sight of it caused quite a stir among the crowds, and many of the cultivators participating in the arena matches were shocked.

"Junior Blood Immortal! That was one of the names that came up in the trial by fire!"

"He actually defeated Taiyang Zi!"

"He's making his rise to the top!!"

While the outside audiences were discussing the matter, Meng Hao looked over at the boy to find him looking back with killing intent flickering in his eyes.

Two hours later, the fourth round of matches ended. There were now only a bit over sixty people left in the competition. The next round… would determine the top 32!

From more than a thousand people, 32 would move on! One could imagine that even if there were a weak person among that number who had happened to overcome more powerful people by chance, then that luck could be considered an aspect of their power.

"The top 32 are about to be determined!"

"Even some of the top Chosen from the great sects were defeated in the previous fights. I wonder who will make it to the top 32!"

While the outside audiences buzzed, Ling Yunzi stood below the ancient Dao Tree and glanced over the more than sixty competitors who remained.

"In the Dao Seeking arena matches," he announced, "the most powerful people will form the top 32. Unfortunately, you have three too many people to make all the matches even. Therefore, some of you will be fighting more than one battle to make it into the top 32. As for who those people are, only the Heavens know. It will all be up to the Dao Tree's teleportation.

"You will have four hours to rest, after which the battles to determine the top 32 will begin!"

During those four hours, Meng Hao sat there cross-legged, meditating. He could sense that there were many people watching him, but he didn't open his eyes. Considering the level of his cultivation base, he was clearly at the pinnacle of the competitors in the arena matches. Were it not for the Immortal jades and the precious treasures, he would never have participated.

However, now that he was here, there were a few people who had attracted his interest. Unfortunately, he had yet to face them as opponents.

Four hours later, glittering light covered the leaves of the Dao Tree, teleporting Meng Hao and all the remaining contestants up to the next level of leaves. From within the glittering light in front of Meng Hao, a young woman stepped out.

She wore a blood-colored robe, and a white mask. This was the Chosen from the Church of the Blood Orchid, and as soon as she caught sight of Meng Hao, she stopped in her tracks. However, it took only a moment for her to emanate a powerful will to fight.

The intensity of that will caused Meng Hao's eyes to shine with a fierce glow.

"Fellow Daoist Fang," she said, her words echoing out coldly from behind her mask, "please give me some fighting tips!" Even as she spoke, she performed an incantation gesture with her right hand, causing a Blood Orchid to appear in front of her. As the flower swayed back and forth, it began to grow rapidly. Rumbling sounds could be heard as, in the blink of an eye, it grew to a size of thirty meters.

It had a thick trunk, blood-colored petals, and looked both extremely imposing and visually stunning. At the same time, the flower twitched, causing branches to shoot toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao stepped forward, clenched his fist, and sent out a single punch.

As of this moment, everyone in the outside world was watching as the punch caused a huge vortex to appear. Rumbling sounds spread out, causing the air to vibrate, and everything else to shake violently.

The incoming Blood Orchid branches twisted and then completely collapsed. However, in that moment, the Blood Orchid's petals of the spread wide as it bloomed. A drop of blood emerged that flew back to land on the forehead of the young woman's mask. Radiating an intense aura, the young woman then flickered as she shot toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao stood in place, neither retreating nor advancing. However, at the same time, he punched a second time.

This second punch caused the air to ripple, and a massive force to explode out and sweep across the young woman. Her body trembled, and she was about to unleash a divine ability when an intense pressure crushed down onto her cultivation base. In the blink of an eye, she completely lost any ability to rotate her cultivation base, which left her not only completely surprised, but also incapable of avoiding the punch that slammed into her.

A boom could be heard. Beneath the mask, blood spurted from the young woman's mouth, and she staggered backward a full thirty meters, after which she looked up at Meng Hao, panting.

"You're no match for me," Meng Hao said coolly.

The young woman was silent for a moment, after which she chuckled bitterly and nodded.

"I concede," she said, and then vanished. When she reappeared, she was back on the first layer of leaves.

Meng Hao had won once again, but before the audiences outside could comment, light began to glitter on the tree leaf again, and… another person emerged!

It was a boy, none other than the same boy who had just defeated Taiyang Zi. Junior Blood Immortal!

His appearance on the scene instantly sent the audience into tumult.

"Fang Mu is one of the people who has to fight twice!!"

"There were three extra people in the competition, so some people have to fight more than once to get into the top 32. I never thought that Fang Mu would be one of them!"

"This is going to be one intense battle! Fang Mu versus Junior Blood Immortal! I wonder who will be strongest!?!?"

Junior Blood Immortal emerged slowly, and when he saw Meng Hao, his mouth twisted into a vicious grin. Killing intent flickered in his eyes.

"So, we meet at last!" he said in a raspy voice, licking his lips. A shocking red glow could be seen in his eyes as he stared at Meng Hao.

Meng Hao looked the boy over. He knew that he attacked with bizarre ferocity, and had reduced all of his opponents to pools of putrid blood, with the exception of Taiyang Zi.

Contrary to what one might expect, the boy had not made much of an impression during the ten stages of the trial by fire. He had achieved just enough to make it into the top 1,000. Clearly, he had been holding back in virtually all aspects.

Meng Hao's expression was calm, and he said nothing. He merely looked indifferently at the boy.

When their gazes met, roaring sounds filled both of their minds as their divine senses made contact with each other. The boy's eyes filled with surprise. He knew his opponent was powerful, and yet, still remained fully confident in himself. Taking advantage of the rumbling caused by the divine sense, he charged toward Meng Hao, raising his right hand to perform an incantation gesture. Bloody light flickered up, and the in the blink of an eye, a blood-colored bottle gourd appeared, rotating as it sped through the air toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao's expression was the same as ever as he took a step forward. In that instant, the entire arena match leaf began to quake, and a wind began to swirl around Meng Hao.

"This divine ability of mine will cause all of the blood in your body to boil and turn into a putrid sludge!" The Junior Blood Immortal's voice was now shrill as he called out. In the blink of an eye, the blood-colored bottle gourd began to exert an incredible gravitational force, as if it wanted to suck Meng Hao inside of it.

Meng Hao snorted coldly. He did not level any punches; this Junior Blood Immortal had a bizarre cultivation base, and Meng Hao would not take him lightly. The wind swirling around him quickly transformed into a violent tempest that shot forward. At the same time, his body transformed into a black vulture, which flapped its wings, charging through the gravitational force to appear directly in front of the boy, where it slashed out with claws vicious enough to shatter stone and metal.

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Chapter 869: Top 32!

The boy's expression flickered, and blue veins popped out on his forehead as he howled at the incoming vulture. Sound waves rippled out that seemed to wish to shatter the air. The boy's expression was vicious as he raised both hands up, causing a sea of blood to appear and surge out toward Meng Hao.

Booms rang out as the two of them fought back and forth in midair. At one point, the boy let out a shrill cry, causing the sea of blood to turn into a blood-colored vortex that tried to suck Meng Hao in.

Meng Hao waved his hand, causing numerous mountains to appear, which then linked together to form a mountain range. However, thanks to the black feather, that mountain range actually looked like a huge river, which then surged in counterattack against the blood-colored vortex. The vortex was crushed as easily as dried twigs, shattering into pieces as vulture-form Meng Hao once again slashed through the air, his claws extended toward the boy's torso.

Boom!

Blood sprayed from the boy's mouth as a huge hole was ripped into his chest. He immediately shot backward in retreat, biting the tip of his tongue and spitting out some blood, which twisted in the air to become ten blood drops. Each drop immediately began to expand, turning into ten seas of blood that spread out to cover everything.

"Ten Seas, Blood Slaughter!" roared the boy. Meng Hao's face was calm, and he didn't retreat. Instead, he advanced, an aura of invincibility exploding out of him. As he faced the ten seas of blood, he clenched his hand into a fist and punched out into the air. Then, he punched again.

Two mere punches did not seem capable of fighting back against the ten roaring seas of blood. However, the boy's face flickered as he realized that something didn't seem quite right about the two blows, although he wasn't sure what.

In the blink of an eye, and before he had any time to react, Meng Hao attacked a total of nine times. He didn't even seem to be paying attention to the seas of blood that surrounded him, but instead, was punching directly forward.

Nine punches, each one more shocking than the one before.

This was… a Daoist magic! Nine Heavens Destruction! 1

As soon as the ninth punch exploded out, the boy's face fell. His pupils constricted as he retreated at top speed. At the same time, a massive boom echoed out, so powerful that cultivators in the surrounding arena matches heard it and were shocked.

A gigantic vortex surged out as a result of the nine punches. The blood seas were completely incapable of doing anything except be sucked up by the vortex. As for Meng Hao, he stood next to the vortex, his expression cold as he watched the boy fleeing. Then he raised his hand and stretched it out in a grasping motion.

Star Plucking Magic!

BOOM!

Blood sprayed from the boy's mouth. An expression of astonishment covered his face as he was dragged back toward Meng Hao, his body completely beyond his own control. In the blink of an eye, he was directly in front of Meng Hao, and was close enough that he could even see the cold look in Meng Hao's eyes.

"You're looking to die!" howled the boy, his eyes bright red. Suddenly, his skin turned crimson, and black mist began to float up from the top of his head. Shockingly, an enormous image began to form above him.

It was a gigantic leech, covered with scales, that emanated an intense pressure. As soon as the cultivators of the Ninth Mountain and Sea saw it, their faces flickered with shock.

"Blood Leech Grand Magic!!"

"That's a forbidden magic! That boy's actually using a forbidden magic!"

In the starry sky palace, the various Patriarchs were looking on with strange gleams in their eyes.

"That boy has remained undercover this entire time. Considering he cultivates a vicious magic like that, it's little wonder he could defeat Taiyang Zi!"

"However, Saint Blood Leech was exterminated years ago by the Three Great Daoist Societies. Even if some of his Divine Clones survived, they wouldn't be able to do this alone! It seems this boy must have gotten his hands on one of them. Although it's only the first form of the Blood Leech Grand Magic, Fang Mu is still in grave danger."

"According to legend, the only thing that can restrain this magic is the Dao of the Blood Demon. Either that, or an incredibly powerful cultivation base."

Back in the arena, a vicious expression could be seen on the boy's face. This was his trump card, which he had intended to save for someone in the top 4. However, he was now forced into a corner, and had no other choice. His desire to kill Meng Hao now grew even stronger.

"Killing you won't be a waste of my grand magic," said the boy with a hideous grin. "Considering your reputation, slaying you will make me famous!" The enormous illusory Blood Leech opened its mouth, revealing countless sharp teeth as it pounced toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao frowned slightly. This leech left him feeling as if his blood were unstable, and that it would burst out from inside of him at any moment. He snorted coldly, and rumbling filled the air as his Dharma Idol appeared behind him.

Because of the transformative powers of the black feather, the Dharma Idol now looked exactly like Fang Mu. It was three hundred meters tall, and emanated boundless magical light. As soon as it appeared, it stepped forward and punched toward the enormous leech.

A boom could be heard, and the boy's face fell. Blood spurted out all over his body as he tumbled backward. The enormous illusory leech trembled, seemingly on the verge of collapsing to pieces.

"I refuse to back down! Fang Mu, DIE!!" The boy howled as countless rips and tears appeared all over his body. At the same time, the image of the leech shattered, transforming into innumerable fragments that shot toward the boy and fused into him. In the next moment, the boy suddenly exploded.

In that moment of explosion, the boy's flesh and blood transformed into numerous blood-colored leeches, a vast cloud of nearly a thousand. Buzzing could be heard as they shot toward Meng Hao. In addition to the leeches, a bloody mist spread out in all directions, making it impossible for onlookers to see what was happening clearly.

This new development caused great shock among the onlookers in the outside world. Even the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace were surprised.

"The second form!"

"I can't believe this boy has cultivated the Blood Leech Grand Magic all the way to the second form!"

Not even the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace could see what was happening inside the red mist. Were this some other location, nothing could block their divine sense. However, these were the Ruins of Immortality, so they could only watch with their eyes, not with their divine sense.

Even Ling Yunzi and the other two old men couldn't do anything but watch. Their faces flickered as they considered the danger Meng Hao was in.

The outside world was in tumult.

"Don't tell me Fang Mu is going to perish!"

What the people on the outside couldn't see was that Meng Hao was standing in the middle of the bloody mist, his body glowing with red light as he stared coldly at the more than one thousand incoming Blood Leeches. The leeches were now trembling in terror.

The boy's quivering divine sense emanated out from the leeches.

"Blood… Blood Demon Grand Magic? Spare me, Fellow Daoist Fang, spare me…."

Meng Hao ignored him. After sweeping his own divine sense across the leeches, he exercised a bit of will, and booms could be heard as one leech after another began to explode. All of them transformed into nothing more than drifting ash.

As the bloody mist faded away, Meng Hao walked calmly over to the edge of the arena and sat down cross-legged.

The outside world was in an uproar.

"That boy's grand magic was actually defeated!"

"There were clearly more than a thousand leeches just a moment ago. Then that red mist covered everything over, and we couldn't see anything. How exactly did Fang Mu secure victory!?"

"Junior Blood Immortal defeated Taiyang Zi, and then Fang Mu defeated Junior Blood Immortal! Fang Mu… is invincible!!"

The outside crowds were astonished, and the Patriarchs inside the palace were frowning. They were all looking at Meng Hao with thoughtful expressions.

They had been unable to see what had happened inside the red mist, but they knew that the second form of the Blood Leech Grand Magic was incredibly difficult to deal with. The fact that it had been defeated so quickly was quite puzzling to them.

As everyone pondered these matters, the old man from the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite spoke up.

"Perhaps the boy's version of the second form wasn't stable, and he accidentally self-destructed," he said slowly, his voice echoing about.

This was the only answer that made sense. After all, the second form of the Blood Leech Grand Magic was very difficult to cultivate successfully.

Back in the arena, Meng Hao sat there calmly. His battle with the boy just now had caused quite a bit of shock amongst the other competitors, especially the Chosen. The boy had just defeated Taiyang Zi, so the fact that Meng Hao had ended up killing him caused even more attention to be sent his way.

The Chosen had been quite shocked just to see the Blood Leech Grand Magic; what had played out after that left them filled with a sense of mystery.

Zhao Yifan's eyes flickered, and his desire to fight grew stronger as he looked over at Meng Hao. He said nothing, but the look flickering in his eyes grew even more intense.

Fan Dong'er frowned. On the one hand, she felt some mysterious and unexplainable loathing toward Meng Hao, but on the other hand, she had to admit that he was definitely on her level.

Li Ling'er and Sun Hai also looked over at him. Compared to Li Ling'er, Sun Hai's feelings were far more intense; to him, looking at Meng Hao kept causing him to think about his nightmarish experience on Planet South Heaven.

The other matches proceeded along. Now that Meng Hao's battle was over, there was another intense match that drew quite a bit of attention. That was the masked young man, Li Yan, who was fighting the emaciated youth from the Bones of the Flamedevil.

The youth attacked with a monstrous sea of flames, and fire burned within his eyes. As for Li Yan, the fighting had reached the point where he had finally removed his mask, revealing a scar-covered face, and eyes that brimmed with the desire to do battle. They fought with shocking attacks until Li Yan finally ran out of power. However, the Chosen from the Bones of the Flamedevil was also seriously injured.

Because of Li Yan's defeat, Meng Hao now had a much better idea of exactly how powerful he was.

The crowds in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were sighing.

"What a pity. It seems Li Yan isn't strong enough to make it into the top 32. However, this was a battle against Chen Hao from the Bones of the Flamedevil, and he's incredible. Even though Li Yan lost, he still managed to seriously injure Chen Hao."

"You can only chalk it up to bad luck. At least he can feel proud in defeat!"

"I wonder how many competitors from the trial by fire will be left in the end. Will the first place spot for the stages of the Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, and Dao Seeking belong to them, or to the Chosen?!"

In the palace among the stars, the Patriarchs were watching the various battles thoughtfully, but their expressions revealed nothing about what they were thinking.

In contrast, bets were already being placed in the outside world regarding who would make it into the top 8.

Soon, this round of matches was over. The extra three people were eliminated, along with half of the other participants, leaving 32 competitors behind!

These 32 were incredibly powerful cultivators!

1. Meng Hao got the Nine Heavens Destruction in the Demon Immortal Pagoda in chapter 585. He used it a few times after that, mostly when he was in the Milky Way Sea, and once when he went to the Black Sieve Sect after they took Xu Qing

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Chapter 870: The Fiends Descend!

"Spend the next day in rest and recovery," said Ling Yunzi. "After that, the top 16 will be selected!" Meng Hao and the others among the top 32 were now getting ever closer to the top of the main trunk of the ancient Dao Tree. Currently, they began to rest and prepare for the battles to get into the top 16.

By now, the battles to select the top 32 had already begun for the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing stages. From Meng Hao's position up above, he could finally see Chen Fan down in the Nascent Soul arena matches.

Although Chen Fan was currently fighting against a Nascent Soul cultivator like himself, the level of difficulty to get into the top 32 was extreme.

Nevertheless, he was still enduring. His sword strikes had gained an additional sharpness which, combined with his gloomy demeanor, caused shock to fill the heart of his opponent.

Chen Fan had long since drawn the notice of quite a few sects. His sword contained a Domain, even though he himself was only in the Nascent Soul stage. Someone like that was certain to make stunning accomplishments in the future.

One of the Three Churches and Six Sects, the Solitary Sword Pavilion, which was somewhat related to the Solitary Sword Sect, was especially interested in Chen Fan. They were actually the first to take note of him.

The day passed by quickly, and in the end, Chen Fan made it into the top 32.

As for Meng Hao, he began to fight for his spot in the top 16!

As the battle began, glittering light spread out, and they moved closer to the top of the tree. Meng Hao's opponent was another Chosen!

It was the young woman from the Five Colors Sect, who wore robes that were a mixture of five colors. Meng Hao had been paying attention to her in previous battles, and knew that she had astonishing skill in five elements magic.

This young woman was much more cautious than Meng Hao; once she saw who her opponent was, her heart began to thump. Of the handful of people she truly feared in the arena matches, Meng Hao was one of them.

After she and Meng Hao clasped hands to each other, the young woman took the initiative, performing a double-handed incantation, immediately unleashing metal, wood, water, fire and earth, all five elements. They materialized into a massive sea, a huge battleship, a blazing sun, and an enormous clay golem that wielded a golden greatsword, all of which shot toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao's eyes gleamed with the light of anticipation. Body flickering, he waved his hand, causing a Violet Sea to descend, which was his water totem. Then the Golden Crow appeared, his metal totem. After that were his wood, fire, and earth totems. Shockingly, five elements fought against five elements.

The clash caused wild colors to flash about, and rumbling to fill the air. The audiences in the outside world were looking on with rapt attention.

In the arena, Meng Hao and the young woman fought back and forth in midair. Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, the five elements, were unleashed amidst rumbling booms. In a short time, they had exchanged several dozen attacks, but throughout it all Meng Hao never went all out. Rather, he merely relied on the five elements as the avenue of attack while facing off against the woman.

He was using this fight to strengthen his five elements magic. Considering that the young woman was even more skilled than Meng Hao in the use of the five elements, this match gave those watching it the feeling that it was two disciples from the Five Colors Sect who were fighting.

In fact, the disciples from that very sect were somewhat confused, and watched in shock as the battle unfolded.

"Fang Mu actually excels in five elements magic as well!!"

"This is unbelievable! Although many people can use five elements magic to some degree, no one can compare to the Five Colors Sect. And yet, Fang Mu is actually evenly matched with Han Mei!"

There were sixteen arenas with thirty-two people fighting in them; no one had secured victory as of yet. It was at this point that a black wind rose up within the Ruins of Immortality. Not even the enormous corpse beneath the ancient Dao Tree could do anything to prevent its arrival. It swept out, appearing directly above the huge tree. Inside of the black wind, a pair of white eyes could be seen, which stared down at the crowds of people fighting down below.

The instant the black wind appeared, the faces of Ling Yunzi and the other two old men flickered. It wasn't just them; the crowds out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea were also shocked.

Most nervous of all were the Patriarchs in the starry sky palace. They all rose to their feet, even the old men from the Three Great Daoist Societies, their eyes widening in response to the sudden appearance of the black wind.

"The ancient Dao Tree was personally planted by the Paragons, and contains a bit of the Paragons' will," said the Patriarch from the Ninth Sea God World. "They will be safe as long as they stay on the tree."

By now, all of the fighters on the Dao Tree had seen the Black Wind, and their faces flickered. Ling Yunzi and the other two old men took deep breaths, and then Ling Yunzi's voice rang out.

"You must not leave the leaves of the tree! As long as you remain on the leaves you will be in no danger!"

Almost in the same instant that Ling Yunzi's words could be heard, a scream rang out from off in the distance, a sound so piercing it seemed capable of shredding iron or rock. It echoed about, and to the people on the tree it merely gave them a twinge of pain in their ears, inflicting not even a minor hindrance to them. However, Ling Yunzi and the other two old men coughed up blood and, faces falling, quickly retreated as close as possible to the tree.

In that same moment, an enormous eyeball began to descend from up above. It was thoroughly bloodshot, and as it neared, the veins of blood within the eye began to extend themselves and whip around. Suddenly, a shrill voice echoed out.

"Who! Who plucked out my right eye!?!?

"My right eye! Get back here, come back…."

As the sound echoed about, the crowds on the Dao Tree coughed up blood. Thankfully, a bright glow spread out from the Dao Tree, ensuring that there were no deaths, only injuries.

The black wind and the eye merely milled about outside the Dao Tree, apparently in dread of it. However, after a moment, the black wind seemed to lose patience. A shrill shriek could be heard as an enormous, decomposing roc flew out from inside. It was shockingly large, and as it flew out, its sharp talons slashed out toward the Dao Tree.

Before it could get very close, brilliant light spread out from the Dao Tree, causing the roc to let out a miserable shriek and fall back. However, it did not leave. Instead, it continued to loiter outside of the Dao Tree, its eyes radiating an intense aura of death and savagery.

Considering that was all that happened, Meng Hao, although shocked, didn't pay very close attention to the matter. However, just when he was about to resume fighting with the young woman, another figure approached from off in the distance.

It was a man with half a head, his body surrounded by swirling black mist. He held a banner in his hand, and a sword had been plunged into his side. The grievous wound that had taken off half of his head did not appear to have been inflicted while alive, but rather as if some creature had bitten it off after he was already dead. Instead, the fatal blow that killed him was apparently delivered by the sword that was still stuck into his side.

He approached slowly, his one remaining eye sweeping over the crowds until it finally came to rest on Meng Hao. Then, he began to head directly toward him.

When Ling Yunzi and the others saw the man, their faces fell. Meng Hao's eyes flickered.

It was at this moment that the young woman from the Five Colors Sect suddenly performed an incantation gesture and attacked. Her five elements magic caused five-colored light to blaze up, transforming into a five-colored sealing mark that rotated rapidly as it shot through the air toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao frowned. He was no longer interested in fighting, so he punched out with his right hand, simultaneously causing his Dharma Idol to appear. Intense energy surged out, and a boom could be heard as the five-colored sealing mark shattered. The young woman's face fell, and blood spurted from her mouth.

It was in this moment that the half-headed man waved his right hand, causing the banner in his hand to unfurl. A black mist appeared, which transformed into a huge vortex. At the same time, he pointed toward Meng Hao.

"Come… come… come…." His voice was archaic, as if it had originated in ancient times. As the voice echoed out, an enormous gravitational force exploded out and enveloped the tree leaf Meng Hao was on. Meng Hao's face flickered, and he immediately dropped to the surface of the leaf. However, the face of the young woman from the Five Colors Sect fell as she was involuntarily swept up into the air. In the blink of an eye, she appeared to be on the verge of… flying completely away from the leaf.

Everyone looked on as it happened, but none of them were able to do anything to come to her aid. Ling Yunzi and the others stared with wide eyes, but could do nothing to help.

The crowds watching in the Ninth Mountain and Sea observed the scene with wide eyes, and many gasps could be heard.

In the starry sky palace, the Matriarch from the Five Colors Sect watched with an expression of unprecedented anxiety. The young woman participating in the arena matches was not a Chosen of the sect, but one of her direct bloodline descendants.

"Save me!" the girl cried in shrill alarm. She was now flying through the air toward the edge of the leaf, and was just about to be sucked outside. She could see the terrifying roc inside the black wind nearby, opening its decomposing mouth. She could also see the eyeball, with the countless veins stretching out from it.

Meng Hao's eyes glittered, and he suddenly extended his hand toward the girl and made a grabbing motion. The Star Plucking Magic was unleashed as he grabbed onto her and began to pull her back. However, the suction force was too strong, and all Meng Hao could do was slow her down a bit.

"Hurry up and concede!" he growled.

The young woman suddenly seemed to come to her senses, and urgently cried out, "I concede!!"

As soon as the two words left her mouth, and just as she was about to be sucked outside, glittering light surrounded her and she vanished. When she reappeared, she was back down on the first layer of leaves, badly shaken and her face ashen. She looked up toward Meng Hao with an expression of deep gratitude.

Meng Hao heaved a sigh of relief, then sat down cross-legged, looking out coldly at the half-headed man outside of the Dao Tree.

Everyone else who had been watching also sighed in relief. Ling Yunzi looked over at Meng Hao with even more admiration than before. Even he hadn't thought of using the words 'I concede' to get out of danger.

Everyone out in the Ninth Mountain and Sea was completely surprised by everything that had happened. They were especially shocked by how quickly Meng Hao had reacted. To them, it was evidence of incredible quick thinking and resourcefulness.

"That's right! All she had to do was concede, and then she was teleported out. It took a moment, but that was definitely the simplest method. How come I didn't think of that!?"

"This Fang Mu is extremely quick-witted to come up with a plan like that in such a situation!"

Up in the palace in the sky, the Matriarch from the Five Colors Sect took a deep breath and then glanced at Meng Hao on the vortex screen. Her expression was one of gratitude; she was not the type of person who liked to owe favors to others, so this was a kindness she would be sure to repay in the future.

"The arena matches will now continue," said Ling Yunzi from his position beneath the Dao Tree. "All of you must remember to never step foot outside of the arena. If any situation arises similar to what has just occurred, it would be much better to concede than to die." Ling Yunzi sighed. Although he was aware of why the Three Great Daoist Societies had chosen this place to hold the arena matches, the dangers of the area made it such that those in the Spirit Realm really should not be here.

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