Visitors (1)

Each time the Ninefold Trials of the Heavenly Mystery Assembly opened, half the sect's elders had to pour all their spiritual energy into them to ensure they ran smoothly.

The nine trials might appear to have fixed stages, but in truth, every trial and every step adjusted the strength and form of its challenges in real time according to each participant's cultivation, body, spiritual energy, and even temperament. Each challenge suited its participant precisely, without the slightest deviation.

For instance, few people knew that the first trial of the Sky-Climbing Stairway did not officially begin until the hundred-and-first step.

The instant cultivators stepped onto the hundredth step, their bodies remained where they were, but their minds experienced a powerful illusion—as though an invisible force had transported them to a separate stairway.

Within the illusory space, they found themselves in a low cave. At first, it was so narrow they could only crawl. As they moved forward, the ceiling gradually rose until they could just stand, only to sink again in the latter half, forcing them to walk bent over.

Several simple illusions would also flash before them along the way, requiring them to make choices.

There were no right or wrong answers. This was merely the Profound Heaven Sect's way of testing its disciples' dispositions. Those who were extreme or overly greedy would lose themselves in the illusions and never reach the hundred-and-ninety-ninth step. Eventually, the endless loop would exhaust them and force them to withdraw from the trial.

The choices were presented subtly, but anyone sharp enough to see through them could disregard their true feelings and pick the answer they thought the sect would prefer.

Capable people were always given a little leeway.

Inside the hall, more than twenty Water Mirrors, each half as tall as a person,