Bottleneck

Training Stone Chamber

Leian sat cross-legged in midair, his entire body shrouded in a powerful Black Light. Purple arcs of lightning flowed endlessly across its surface, making him look like a celestial body glimmering with violet light in the night sky.

Whenever the purple light flashed, a terrifying aura of destruction spread from the Black Light. At the same time, clearly visible ripples slowly radiated outward through the surrounding space with Leian at their center.

Among the countless ripples, one or two hair-thin black lines occasionally appeared. They were cracks formed where space could not withstand the power of destruction.

Comprehension, deduction, evolution, verification, realization, experimentation...

The Destruction Profundity continuously evolved in Leian's mind, countless possibilities flashing past like meteors. Yet as time passed, his expression grew increasingly grave.

No!

No!

Still no!

Countless possibilities were deduced one after another, only to be rejected by Leian one by one. At this moment, he felt as though an invisible membrane stood before him, blocking his path forward.

After a long while, the Black Light dispersed. Leian opened his eyes and let out a soft sigh. He knew that he had encountered a bottleneck.

He was now like those peak Saint Realm experts. Though only one step away from becoming a god, he was forcibly barred from the door.

"It seems impossible to become a god in one step through bitter cultivation alone."

Leian pondered silently. More than four years had passed since he entered the Saint Realm, yet his comprehension of the Destruction Rule had stagnated for nearly half a year.

If he could not break through this bottleneck, further bitter cultivation would be futile.

"By my reckoning, less than half a year remains until the Goddess's Named Disciple Tournament. I might as well take this chance to go out and travel. If I'm lucky, perhaps a single moment of enlightenment will let me break through."

Leian quickly made his decision. Although he had no intention of becoming the Goddess of Dark Night's disciple, since he had accepted the token, he still had to go. Otherwise, it would be disrespectful to the goddess.

"Dajin, are you done recovering? If you are, get over here and get to work!"

At the training ground of the manor, a slender black-haired girl urged the Golden-Haired Stone Ape that was lying at the edge of the field, dozing off.

At the sound of the girl's voice, the Golden-Haired Stone Ape shuddered. It raised its furry face and looked helplessly toward its master, Barry, its eyes openly pleading for rescue.

Seeing this, Barry turned to the girl and said with a chuckle, "Little Bella, you've been training all morning. At least give Carter half a day off."

The girl kept a straight face and decisively shook her head. "No. Big Brother said Dajin's duty is to assist my training. If I don't rest, he isn't allowed to slack off."

Barry spread his hands and gave the Golden-Haired Stone Ape a helpless gesture.

Seeing that, the Golden-Haired Stone Ape immediately covered its head, reluctantly rose to its feet, and walked toward the girl.

However, after taking only two steps, it stopped. Its two large golden eyes stared fixedly at the training stone chamber not far away.

A flash of delight immediately crossed the girl's icy face. At the same time, she spun around and followed the Golden-Haired Stone Ape's gaze.

"Big Brother!"

The moment she saw the figure at the stone chamber entrance, the girl immediately sheathed her sword. She rushed over in a few strides, wrapped herself around his arm, and called out affectionately.

Leian had already witnessed the scene from before. His sister's diligence pleased him greatly, and he naturally rested a hand on her little head as he said with a smile:

"Bella, once you break through to a level-seven warrior, Big Brother will take you to the Youquan Mountain Range to gain some experience. How does that sound?"

Bella instantly grew excited and cheered, "Yes, yes! I've wanted to go to the Youquan Mountain Range for ages. When the time comes, I'll personally capture a magical beast to use as a mount."

Leian could not help laughing. However, before he could reply, a dissatisfied voice suddenly came from the edge of the training ground.

"Come on, Big Brother, you're way too biased toward Bella. You didn't even say you'd take me!"

Leian turned his head and looked at the tall youth walking toward him. Smiling, he said, "Taking you along isn't impossible, as long as you can break through to level seven by then."

This youth was his younger brother, Allen. Although Allen and Bella were twins, he stood a full head taller than Bella. At only fifteen years old, he was already nearly as tall as Leian.

After hearing Leian's condition, Allen immediately pulled a long face and asked in a negotiating tone, "Could you give me another year? My talent for warrior training can't compare to Bella's. The same requirement isn't fair to me."

Leian burst out laughing. "That will depend on how you perform from now on."

In truth, Allen was also extremely diligent in his warrior training. His strength had not fallen far behind Bella's, and both of them were now level-six warriors. Bella had merely broken through half a year earlier than Allen.

With such strength, they could rank among the top ten of their peers at the Imperial Capital's Warrior Academy. By now, the brother and sister had become notable figures at the academy.

However, more than a year ago, they had already felt that there was little left for them to learn at the Warrior Academy. Since then, they had spent most of their time training at home, using Carter's Gravity Spell to assist their cultivation and occasionally receiving guidance from their eldest brother, Leian.

As a result, the Golden-Haired Stone Ape, Carter, had suffered terribly. He spent most of every day casting Gravity Spell, to the point that even his sleeping time was nearly squeezed away. If not for the Saint Realm Magic Crystal Core Leian had promised him, he might have gone on strike long ago.

But now, because Leian had emerged from seclusion, Carter was finally able to take a rare break.

Over the next several days, Leian remained with his family. During this time, he also told them of his plans to go out and gain experience.

Barry and his wife had long grown accustomed to this, but Allen and Bella were extremely reluctant to see him go.

On the other hand, Carter and Selina were delighted, because Leian had already promised to prepare Saint Realm Magic Crystal Cores for them when he returned.

Compared with four years ago, Selina had far greater confidence in using a Saint Realm Magic Crystal Core to break through in the future. After receiving Leian's guidance, she had spent the past few years diligently training her Stealth Technique.

Because of this, she had also become friends with Aili, who likewise cultivated Dark Battle Qi. Now, the girl and the beast often trained together.

In the blink of an eye, nearly half a month passed.

On the morning of July 21st, 9899 of the Byron Calendar, Leian left the manor and flew directly toward the Youquan Mountain Range.

According to what Leian had learned, the Goddess's Named Disciple Tournament would be held at the Dark Night Goddess Temple, which was located in a hidden valley in the middle section of the Youquan Mountain Range.

With nearly half a year remaining before the tournament, Leian planned to first find several powerful Saint Realm magical beasts to spar with. If he happened to break through, he would neither need to participate nor worry about offending the Goddess of Dark Night.