Illusion, breakthrough, rewards! (5K)

After rising to a certain height, the Octagonal Underground Palace was suddenly engulfed in flames.

As for the ground, the mountainside was ablaze.

"Hiss hiss hiss hiss hiss~"

The flames seemed to possess a spirit, frantically drilling into the Earth Palace, trying to find a crack.

"Fire!"

Zhao Xing continued casting spells, attempting to fight fire with fire. At this point, it was impossible to extinguish the fire with water. Just by looking at the dripping of the Water Drop Art, it was clear that this thing was not meant for extinguishing large-scale fires.

"Hissing sounds" The Earth Palace was on the verge of collapse and could no longer rise.

Because he was using "Heavenly Fire," which was only a mid-level spell at its peak, he couldn't withstand the Earthly Fiend Fire.

However, due to the powerful Divine Swift Guard of the Earth Palace by the divine speed, coupled with the resistance of the Netherwind of the Fiend, the underground fire could not burn in.

The two high-level techniques were enough for Zhao Xing to establish himself in the Fire Fiend Pass, but not enough for him to rise further.

"I don't know any high-level fire magic, so I can't pass this test." After persisting for a moment, Zhao Xing quickly came to a conclusion.

The wind's negative energy fuels the fire's negative energy; if this continues, it will eventually become unsustainable.

"Give up."

Zhao Xing silently gave up, and the next moment, he returned to the outside of the gate.

"You have passed the Earthly Fiend Gate of the Yin Yang Six Harmonies Formation and will receive a top-grade fourth-tier treasure as a reward. You can choose between elixirs and weapons," the Xiezhi's voice rang out.

"The elixir." Zhao Xing asked with a hint of disinterest.

For him, the reward of a fourth-tier top-grade item was barely anything.

The academies of Great Li are all set up for elites, and it is not easy to get rewards.

Of course, he was not discouraged.

"According to my calculations, all I need to do to pass through the Yin Yang Six Harmonies Formation is a high-level fire-based spell."

The Volcano Art is actually an earth-elemental spell because it is essentially an "Earth Splitting Art." Even though it is called the Fire Attribute Earth Splitting Art, it is not a pure fire-elemental spell.

The Fire Fiend Pass requires high-level pure fire-elemental spells.

"Once I get past the Fire Fiend Pass and the Thunder Fiend Pass, they won't be a problem for me," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

Zhao Xing was confident he could pass the final Thunder Fiend Pass Earth, Wind, Fire, and Thunder, because he possessed pure high-level Thunder magic.

After passing the Earthly Fiend Trial, Zhao Xing obtained three top-grade fourth-tier Earthly Fiend Pill, which help those in the Earth Fiend Realm refine their bodies.

Without wasting any time, he left the Heavenly Craft Hall and headed to the Heart Questioning Platform to attempt the challenge.

"I cleared the tenth level of the Lust Trial at the Heart Questioning Platform a long time ago. Its reappearance proves that I can continue to attempt it. I wonder what the test will be."

Zhao Xing took a deep breath and climbed the steps of the Heart Questioning Platform.

"Boom!"

The moment Zhao Xing stepped onto the steps, his thoughts were shattered by a thunderclap.

He was sent flying backwards, and even his Fate Soul was injured from the challenge, forcing him to withdraw from the Great Dream Academy.

"How can it be so difficult? This version of the Heart Questioning Platform is incredibly challenging?"

As Zhao Xing pondered, he vaguely sensed something was amiss and felt uneasy.

However, the Great Dream Academy version of the Heart Questioning Platform was different from the one he was familiar with, and he simply assumed that the Great Li version of the Heart Questioning Platform was too powerful.

Using Divine Swift Guard, they floated to the ground.

As soon as they reached the ground, they received a message from Chen Shijie.

"Zhao Xing, Fire Dragon Pass is under attack! Wen Shaoyang and Jiang Ming have sent word that the Golden Feather Royal Court has dispatched a large army to retake Fire Dragon Pass! We must return immediately!"

"What?"

Zhao Xing was taken aback, but at this moment Liao Rulong, Xia Jing and others hurriedly set sail, so he had no choice but to follow and board the ship to head towards Fire Dragon Pass.

Sitting on the warship, Zhao Xing stared blankly at the map and intelligence reports.

He never expected that the Golden Feather Royal Court would be so determined to reclaim Fire Dragon Pass; this was completely different from what he had anticipated.

Moon Sea Haisheng had only recently escaped, and his side, which occupied Fire Dragon Pass, numbered only a few hundred thousand, yet the Golden Feather Royal Court had mobilized an army of eight hundred thousand to attack!

"Zhao Xing, you will now lead a battalion on your own. I have assigned you three thousand men, all of whom were drawn from the original Fire Crossbow Camp, Valiant Camp, Nine Section Battalion, Divine Mechanism Battalion, and Five Elements Battalion."

"You are now heading to Guanbao to support Wen Shaoyang's troops."

After disembarking from the warship, Liao Rulong immediately assigned combat tasks and then sailed away in his top-of-the-line warship.

Only Zhao Xing and his 3,000-strong mixed battalion remained.

Watching Liao Rulong's warship fly away, Zhao Xing couldn't help but frown; he felt something was off.

But things kept happening non-stop, constantly urging him to act, leaving him no time to think.

"Let's go!"

Zhao Xing led three thousand men aboard the Netherflame Warship and flew towards Guanbao.

Liao Rulong assigned him acquaintances such as Han Bing, Wang Ji, and Che Shihai to assist him. Three thousand men quickly left Fire Dragon Pass to support Wen Shaoyang's troops who were under attack.

Five hundred miles after the warship flew, Zhao Xing saw a demon army.

As they marched in a large force towards Fire Dragon Pass, Han Bing immediately asked, "Commander, should we intercept and annihilate this Ape Demon Army?"

Zhao Xing shook his head and said, "We won't fight. Our mission is to support Wen Shaoyang. We'll leave this Ape Demon Army that has come around to the rear to deal with."

The Netherflame Warship flew through the Astral Wind winds for a day and a night before finally reaching the border of Guanbao.

Below them were the White Bone Golden Toe Army, and above them were the Flying Bear Barbarian Army, who were besieging the fortress where Wen Shaoyang was, like ants.

"How can there be so many people?" Zhao Xing looked at the battlefield, his heart pounding with fear.

"Commander, should we attack or not?" Wang Ji asked.

Just as Zhao Xing was pondering what was wrong, a martial artist suddenly came to report from outside the cabin, "Commander, we are now surrounded by the Flying Bear Army's warships!"

"Wang Ji, immediately order the Mechanism Master to prepare for battle!"

Zhao Xing had no time to think and hastily accepted the challenge.

He quickly walked to the deck outside the warship, where he saw five Flying Bear Warship appear in the sky.

In addition, there were many flying beasts that resembled bears but had wings beside the warship.

On the strange beasts sat barbarian soldiers and generals clad in Silver Feather Battle Armor.

"The Flying Bear Army of the Golden Feather Royal Court is strong enough to rank among the top thirty in the Royal Court. Why don't they fight against Lu Yuanwei in the west, or against the powerful armies like Beginning Origin Army and Red Cloud Army in the north, but instead come to fight our Divine Might Army?"

Zhao Xing inwardly cried out that something was wrong.

He found that everything seemed to be out of his control, just as the three kings had suddenly intervened in the trial.

But there was no time to think about all that at that point.

The battle has begun!

"Boom boom boom boom boom boom!"

Five warships launched an attack on the Netherflame Warship, using crossbows, spells, blood magic, and various other methods in turn.

"Swallowing Clouds!"

Zhao Xing Cloud Method to create a favorable environment for the army.

But before it could be used, the warship's barrier was broken.

"Commander, the barrier has been broken!" Wang Ji roared. "There are too many people! We've been ambushed!"

"Zheng~"

A barrage of crossbow bolts, each as thick as an arm, rained down on the deck. Helpless, Zhao Xing had no choice but to halt his Cloudcalling and order the warships to flee.

"Retreat!"

The barrier around the Netherflame Warship was broken, and it turned to flee.

"Five Elements Mist Concealment!"

Zhao Xing changed the Cloud Method to Mist-Hiding Art, creating favorable escape conditions for the warships.

With the barrier broken, they were left with no choice but to be attacked and flee.

The Netherflame Warship flew for half an hour.

They finally shook off their pursuers.

Exhausted, Zhao Xing entered the cabin. He had managed to confuse his pursuers using advanced techniques.

But Wen Shaoyang's troops were completely unable to provide support. He only had three thousand men, while the besieging force numbered at least one hundred thousand. How could he possibly save them?

But this is too sudden. Why would the Golden Feather Royal Court attack Fire Dragon Pass?

Zhao Xing wanted to rest for a while and think things through.

But the warship let out a mournful cry, and the entire ship began to shake.

"Wang Ji, what's going on?!"

"Commander, the warships are too badly damaged; we have to make an emergency landing!"

When Zhao Xing went outside, he found that the warship had been riddled with holes, and there was even a large hole in the right side of the cabin.

It's already quite an achievement to have persevered this far.

"Clang~ Boom~"

Flames erupted from the stern of the warship as it plummeted from the sky into the forest below.

Zhao Xing out of the cabin and ordered all the Agricultural Official and sorcerers to fly below the warship and cast Wind Art.

They used Wind Art to slow the warship's descent, since there was still a lot of machinery on board. If it crashed, they would have no machinery to use, and martial artists couldn't fly. If they crashed like that, people would die.

"Boom!"

The Netherflame Warship still crashed into the forest.

Fortunately, no explosion occurred, nor did it detonate the Firecracker Bamboo stored on the ship.

Zhao Xing breathed a sigh of relief and immediately ordered his soldiers to leave the ship and unload all the dangerous and valuable items, including Firecracker Bamboo.

"Zhang Quan, send men to keep watch around the area."

"Han Bing, take stock of the casualties."

"Yuan Yang, you go with Han Bing."

"..."

Zhao Xing gave the order, his brows furrowed and a sense of unease creeping into his heart. Without warships, their mobility was greatly reduced.

We still don't know where we crashed, or how many enemy troops are around us.

"Reconnaissance Straw Puppet, rise!"

Zhao Xing waved his hand, instantly transforming the surrounding grass and trees into straw figures, which spread out and searched the area.

However, not long afterward, he discovered traces of the barbarian army.

The place where he fell was actually not far from that group of the Ape Barbarian Army camps.

"Wow! So many tents, how many people must there be!"

Zhao Xing knew he couldn't stay in this place for long, or he would easily be discovered.

"Wang Ji, how long will it take to repair the warships?"

"It will take fourteen hours."

"Fourteen hours? That's too long!" Zhao Xing said. "Let's walk and abandon the warships."

"Han Bing, pass down the order: we will depart after a half-hour rest."

"Yes."

The Ape Barbarian Army discovered Zhao Xing and his group's whereabouts after they left and began to send troops to pursue them.

But in the mountains and forests, it was entirely Zhao Xing's domain.

Whether it was the straw figures disrupting the view or the Five Elements Mist Concealment their presence, these methods always allowed Zhao Xing's three thousand men to break out of the encirclement one step ahead.

Time flies, and seven days have passed in the blink of an eye.

At this time, Zhao Xing had already led his men out of the encirclement of the Ape Barbarian Army, but this had taken a huge toll on Zhao Xing. Seven consecutive days of large-scale area-of-effect spells in actual combat had left him exhausted.

Having escaped the encirclement, Zhao Xing handed over command to Han Bing, "Go find Liao Rulong to join forces. From now on, you and Wang Ji will have to lead the way. I need to get some sleep..."

With Zhao Xing leading the way, the most dangerous time had passed. Han Bing and Wang Ji took over control of the team and successfully returned to Fire Dragon Pass to reunite with Liao Rulong.

After Zhao Xing woke up, he was on the way back.

At this time, Liao Rulong's troops had already abandoned Fire Dragon Pass and retreated to Zhiyou City.

Fire Dragon Pass has returned to the hands of the barbarians.

They suffered a crushing defeat.

"What happened? Why were we defeated so quickly? The Golden Feather Royal Court actually sent Yan Da to retake Fire Dragon Pass?"

As Zhao Xing looked at the intelligence report, he couldn't help but feel a sudden pang of anxiety.

But he still fought bravely alongside the Divine Might Army.

In the remaining two months of the Jingxin Seventeenth Year, the Divine Might Army was defeated.

But Zhao Xing's military achievements continued to grow.

Even without control over the future, Zhao Xing remains a high-level player, constantly striving towards his goals.

Spring of the Jingxin Eighteenth Year.

Emperor Jing's failure to bestow rewards in stages once again surprised Zhao Xing.

However, Zhao Xing returned to his residence in Ten Yang Grotto-Heaven to rest and recuperate, awaiting the upcoming "Grotto Heaven Spiritual Wonder Revival".

However, even by June of the Jingxin Eighteenth Year, the "Grotto Heaven Spiritual Wonder Revival."

After leaving in June, he returned to the battlefield to fight again.

However, in October of the Jingxin Eighteenth Year, the "Ten Suns in the Sky" occurred, and Chen Shijie, Long Xiao, Tian Yan all died in this disaster.

When Zhao Xing rushed back, the Grotto-Heaven had already closed. After receiving news of Old Chen and Long Xiao's deaths, his head began to ache.

In the nineteenth year of New Splendor Era, at the Ten Thousand Laws Palace.

It hurt, it hurt so much! Zhao Xing's head was throbbing with pain. He didn't know when he had started suffering from this headache.

He consulted many military doctors, but they could not find a specific cause of his illness. They only said that he was overly worried and needed more rest.

Multiple images seemed to flash through his mind, causing him a splitting headache. To relieve this headache, Zhao Xing went to the Ten Thousand Laws Palace and asked Liu Tianning to teach him how to cultivate the Ten Thousand Laws Straw Puppet.

During the process of cultivating the Ten Thousand Laws Straw Puppet, Zhao Xing's headache was somewhat relieved.

He continued cultivating until the nineteenth year of New Splendor Era.

It was at this moment that he finally withstood the unseen interference and focused his thoughts.

At the same time, the first True Self Straw Puppet appeared in front of Zhao Xing.

Seeing this, Liu Tianning came to Zhao Xing and looked at him. "You seem to have gained some insight."

Zhao Xing nodded. "Yes, I finally understand."

Liu Tianning asked, "What have you figured out?"

Zhao Xing pointed to his head. "Actually, the military doctor is right. I really don't have any illness. The reason I can't concentrate is because my own energy is attacking me."

What is it?

"Fear."

Zhao Xing looked at the "Ten Thousand Laws Straw Puppet" in front of him, his expression tense and his eyes filled with fear.

At this point, it can be described as a "fear-inducing straw man".

"The fear of the unknown, the fear of the future, the fear of losing our foresight."

Liu Tianning looked at Zhao Xing in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

Zhao Xing did not answer, but muttered to himself, "If I didn't have these advantages, I would be afraid of an uncertain future, and then I wouldn't really be qualified to live forever."

"You're insane," Liu Tianning said. "Immortality and the future—what are you talking about?"

Zhao Xing drew a sword with his fingers and slashed at the True Self Straw Puppet in front of him.

"Thump~" The terrified straw man Zhao Xing collapsed.

"No matter how the future changes, I will forge ahead bravely, my desire for immortality remains unchanged!"

The sound was like thunder, resounding throughout the heavens and earth. The sound grew louder and louder until everything before our eyes shattered.

Zhao Xing looked at the steps in front of him and realized that he was still on the Heart Questioning Platform in the Great Dream Academy.

"Just as I thought," Zhao Xing exclaimed. He had unknowingly reached the twentieth step.

He was randomly assigned to the "Fear Trial" of the Heart Questioning Platform.

"I amplified the subtle fears within me and deduced them layer by layer to create a complete illusion."

"If you keep people struggling in a terrifying illusion and they can't break free from their inner fears, they will be forever trapped in that illusion."

In the illusion, he lost his control panel and his ability to foresee the future.

But in the end, Zhao Xing broke free from the shackles of fear in his heart, strengthened his belief, and successfully escaped the illusion.

[Student Zhao Xing, with unwavering will, has passed the "Fear Trial" and is rewarded with one "Fate Soul Pill".]

Two thousand meters underground, inside a cave shrouded by the Octagonal Cage Underground Palace.

Zhao Xing opened his eyes.

Four pills lay in his arms.

He casually put away the three Earthly Fiend Pills, which were only of the fourth-order top grade.

The other one emitted a faint Golden Light.

When Zhao Xing looked over, a longing arose from the depths of his soul, one that he could not suppress.

"Fate Soul Pill? The rewards from the Heart Questioning Platform are really generous." Zhao Xing couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

Dao Embryo Pill and Fate Soul Pill are both "rare items" without a grade label, because very few of them are actually made, and their effects are not immediate and vary from person to person.

If Zhao Xing were to estimate for himself, Dao Embryo Pill and the Fate Soul Pill would be considered top-grade sixth-order pills.

In their previous lives, they were sold at prices comparable to top-grade sixth-tier or low- Seventh Order pills.

"Fate Soul resides in the womb, it is limited by the physical body, and the realm of the Fate Soul often lags behind that of the physical body."

"But the Fate Soul Pill can nourish a person's Fate Soul, even surpassing the realm of the physical body," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

He is currently at the Seventh Grade perfection level, but his Fate Soul is only at the Seventh Grade initial level.

According to the Great Dream Spring and Autumn Annals, the ancient method of the Earth Fiend Realm, in addition to the step of refining the fiend into the body, should actually also include the step of refining the fiend into the soul.

"The same applies to the Heavenly Star Realm: refining Qi into the body, refining Qi into the soul."

"The realm of Fate Soul is the same as the realm of physical body; only then can it be considered truly perfect."

"His every move exudes the aura of a true powerhouse; a single shout can frighten away demons and monsters."

"The benefits of enhancing Fate Soul are numerous." Zhao Xing was overjoyed and immediately swallowed the pill.

After swallowing, there is no sensation, as if you have swallowed air.

But a ray of Golden Light spread throughout his body, enveloping every inch of his skin.

Zhao Xing felt himself become more energetic and warm all over.

Many insights about the Tao welled up in my mind.

The moment he took it, his advanced technique, [Netherwind of the Fiend], broke through and reached the fifth level of advanced rank.

Immediately afterwards, he broke through to a higher level in one of his spells.

It is the "Sleepy Bug" spell from the Great Dream Spring and Autumn.

The Sleep Bug Art is used to capture parasites within the Fate Soul.

A stronger Fate Soul leads to faster enlightenment and a deeper understanding of soul-based spells.

After reaching the advanced level, the range of the [Sleepy Bug] spell is greatly enhanced. What used to require close-range casting can now be applied from thousands of meters away!

Zhao Xing's Fate Soul realm quickly changed.

From the early stage of the Seventh Grade, to the middle stage of the Seventh Grade, the late stage of the Seventh Grade, and finally to the perfect Seventh Grade.

Two hours later, at the moment when the Golden Light subsided.

A captivating light flashed in Zhao Xing's eyes.

He looked at the panel.

The panel at this moment displays the Fate Soul Realm as: Early Stage of Sixth Rank!

"His Fate Soul's realm has surpassed his physical body's realm, actually reaching the Sixth Rank!"

"Moreover, after reaching the Sixth Rank, I made a breakthrough in another spell."

Sixth Rank Fate Soul signifies entering the second stage of cultivation, no longer falling into the lower stages of seventh, eighth, or ninth grade.

The Fate Soul is the divine thought of a person, stepping into the Sixth Rank, Zhao Xing's Bright Eyes Art breaks through.

The [Discern Minute Details] spell that was originally displayed on the panel has disappeared.

The advanced [Heaven's Eye Art] has taken its place.

I updated over 11,000 words today, that's all, time for bed. By the way, I'd like to recommend a friend's book.