Rules Vanish

"Is the trial over just like that? How are we supposed to enter the treasure vault and obtain the inheritance and treasures of the Empress Secret Realm?"

After escaping, many trial participants didn't celebrate that they hadn't been trapped to death. Instead, they lamented that they wouldn't get any treasures. They selectively ignored the fact that even if the trials in the Empress Secret Realm hadn't ended, they would never have been able to gain the Empress Secret Realm's recognition, and the treasures and inheritances would have been out of their reach.

"What a pity..."

Some people shook their heads, looking regretful, as if if the trial continued, they could become the Empress's successor.

These geniuses of the Tianyuan Realm are known for their pride and unwillingness to admit defeat. The termination of the trial, however, gave them an excuse.

"No chance of finding the treasure..." Shentu Nantian pondered. He had been waiting for half an hour, but Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong still hadn't come out.

Where did they go?

Shentu Nantian frowned slightly. Not only were Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong missing, but two mysterious figures shrouded in gray robes and exuding an eerie aura had also vanished.

And that dark-skinned boy!

Many people are gone.

Shentu Nantian's underlings also noticed this. One of them laughed and said, "Hahaha! Making them climb so high, maybe the trials at the higher levels of the God Descending Tower are too difficult, and that idiot Yi Yun was eliminated in the trials, or maybe he just died!"

Before the underling could finish speaking, Shentu Nantian glared at him fiercely, and the underling immediately stopped speaking.

"Shut up!"

Shentu Nantian said with disgust, shoving the troublesome underling aside. He walked straight to the center of Black Stone Plaza, where the black stone tablet they had previously used for talent assessment stood.

Shentu Nantian glanced at it and saw that his name was still engraved on the stone tablet, followed by the character "Shi" (士).

As for Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong, their names end with "Zong" and "Hun" respectively.

These trial participants have been in the God Descending Tower for so long, yet their titles have not changed at all. Moreover, the luster of the black stone tablet has clearly dimmed, as if it has lost its energy.

According to Shentu Nantian's original guess, after they came out of the God Descending Tower, they should have been assessed again by the black stone tablet and given a new title evaluation. The new evaluation would then determine each person's trial performance. But now, nothing happened, so the original cultivation speed assessment naturally lost its meaning.

The Empress Trial has clearly come to an end...

"What a waste. My strength improved a lot when I was on the second floor of the God Descending Tower. If the trial hadn't been interrupted, and I had entered the God Descending Tower, I would have had more opportunities, and my score would have been much better."

Shentu Nantian muttered to himself. Although he was confident in himself, he felt uncertain compared to Lin Xin Tong Yi Yun.

At this moment, an ominous premonition arose in Shentu Nantian's heart. The disappearance of Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong made Shentu Nantian suspect that the two of them had entered the Empress's Treasure Vault and obtained benefits before the trial ended, which was why they had not come out yet?

It's even possible that the Empress Trial ended because Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong gained the Empress Secret Realm's approval? Since a successor has already been chosen, there's no need for the trial to continue?

Although Shentu Nantian had to admit that Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong's talents surpassed his own, he didn't believe they could reach the point of being recognized by the Ancient Empress.

But the facts are inexplicable. There must be another reason why Lin Xin Tong Yi Yun haven't come out. He's not naive enough to think that these two are dead. The most likely reason is that they've entered a treasure land!

Thinking of this, Shentu Nantian was green with envy.

They were trapped in a stone chamber for half a year, while these two adulterers reaped enormous benefits?

"I'm going to find those two guys and figure out a way to take their stuff!"

Enraged, Shentu Nantian slammed his fist heavily onto the black stone tablet.

"Boom!"

With a loud bang, the energy exploded, the stone tablet dimmed and showed no reaction, just like an ordinary stone.

At this moment, in the secret chamber on the fifth floor of the God Descending Tower, Yi Yun "saw" this scene.

Since refining the Qingyang Token, Yi Yun has gained partial access to the God Descending Tower. He can freely enter and exit the fifth floor of the God Descending Tower and control a few restrictions. However, these restrictions have now become ineffective due to energy depletion.

"Shentu Nantian and the others are out."

Several months had passed since Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong completed the first level of the Empress Heart Sutra.

Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong used this time to continue cultivating the second level of the Empress Heart Sutra. Yi Yun continuously strengthened the seed of law in his foundation, and he can now be considered to have steadily entered the early stage of the Dao Seed.

Regardless of Yi Yun or Lin Xin Tong, both of their strengths underwent a qualitative leap during this period.

"Oh?" Lin Xin Tong, who was meditating, opened her eyes. "Is the trial about to end?"

"It might take another month or two... Right now, only the trial at the God Descending Tower has ended. If I'm not mistaken, after the God Descending Tower trial, the Artifact Spirit had originally arranged other trials to continue testing us. But now that the Artifact Spirit is asleep, these trials can't continue. These people can only wait until the time for the Empress Secret Realm trial arrives, at which point they will be automatically teleported out."

"So what do we do now?" Lin Xin Tong smoothed the sweat-dampened ends of her hair and asked softly.

"With the Qingyang Token, we can leave here at any time. There's no need to rush. Our Empress Heart Sutra still has room for improvement. For now, we can continue our seclusion in the secret chamber. Once our strength increases, we'll be more confident in handling any situation. Besides... I actually want to know what's on the sixth floor of the God Descending Tower..."

The titles awarded by the Empress Secret Realm are "Scholar", "Sect Master", "Soul", "Saint", "Asura", and "God".

The six titles correspond to the six levels of the God Descending Tower, and Yi Yun and Lin Xin Tong have only entered the fifth level so far.

Here, they have obtained the <Empress Heart Sutra>, which is clearly the most core inheritance left by the Empress Heart Sutra and Lord Qingyang. The Sun-Shooting Nine Sorrows Bow should also be something from the Empress's treasury. Even the cultivation room for the <Empress Heart Sutra> and the Ancient Empress's residence are on the fifth floor of the God Descending Tower.

This puzzled Yi Yun. All the most crucial elements were on the fifth floor, so what was on the sixth floor of the God Descending Tower?

It can't be empty, can it?

"The sixth floor... can we go in?"

"I don't know..." Yi Yun shook his head and looked at the Qingyang Token in his hand. He had just immersed his senses into the Qingyang Token, and through this small token, he could sense most of the area inside the God Descending Tower.

In some of these areas, Yi Yun felt he could control the restrictions within, but whether he could actually enter, and what awaited him inside, remained unclear.

Before leaving the Empress Secret Realm, he decided to explore all these places.

Yi Yun was just making a decision when his expression suddenly changed.

"Hmm?" Seeing Yi Yun's reaction, Lin Xin Tong subconsciously touched the Space Ring on her finger. "What's wrong?"

Yi Yun's expression darkened slightly. "It seems... we can't continue practicing. But... that's fine too!"

Outside the God Descending Tower, Shentu Nantian raised his head, gazing up at the black stone tablet, lost in thought. No one knew what he was thinking.

Shentu Nantian 'Shentu Nantian underlings, having been humiliated by Shentu Nantian before, no longer dared to provoke him.

They could all tell that their boss was in a bad mood.

As for the other forces, they were all idle on the sidelines. With the Empress Trial over, they could only wait. They dared not ask what Shentu Nantian was doing or thinking, because none of them were a match for him.

Time passed, Shentu Nantian stood motionless in front of the stone tablet.

He was sensing, sensing the changes in the Empress Secret Realm...

The Empress Secret Realm Trial has ended, and most of the energy-powered formations have stopped operating. Does this mean that the rules within the Empress Secret Realm are no longer maintained by any formations?

Does that mean that many rules are no longer applicable?

Upon closer inspection, Shentu Nantian realized that a sense of oppression seemed to have diminished around him...

Within the Empress Secret Realm, the most suppressive element for Shentu Nantian was the rule prohibiting mutual attacks, but now, it seems that with the depletion of the Empress Secret Realm's energy, it has ceased to exist...

Thinking of this, Shentu Nantian's heart skipped a beat.

If this annoying rule were abolished, wouldn't I be able to do whatever I wanted just because of my power?

With his back to all the trial participants, a sinister smile suddenly crept onto his lips.

This... you could give it a try!

His senses reached behind him, sweeping over each trial participant. These participants were still chatting idly or meditating, completely unaware of what Shentu Nantian was planning at this moment.

Without warning, Shentu Nantian suddenly turned around and struck out with a palm!

"Pop!"

With a loud bang, a burst of energy erupted, and Shentu Nantian a powerful palm strike—his target was none other than Lin Lang, a disciple of the Lin family!

"What!?"

Lin Lang, who had been meditating, suddenly opened his eyes. At that moment, a palm strike whistled past, already upon him, leaving him no time to dodge!

The sudden turn of events left Lin Lang no time to process what had happened, but as a prodigy of the Lin family, he reacted quickly, thrusting his palms forward while simultaneously flying backward.

"Boom!"

The energy exploded three feet in front of Lin Lang. Lin Lang felt his arm tremble, almost breaking. He groaned and flew backward. At the same time, he felt a sweet taste in his throat and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Lin Lang!"

Not far from Lin Lang, the other Lin family disciples rushed over and caught Lin Lang!

The sudden change stunned not only the Lin family members but also all the other trial participants. What was going on!? (To be continued~^~)