"Human, you have passed Lady Kesha's trial and earned the right to inherit the Holy Light Divine Kingdom. Come with me!"
Just as Li Xin was about to send the information about this place to Hong and Thunder God through the Virtual Universe, an unexpected turn of events gave him a chance.
The Domain Lord-level Holy Qilin Tricorn Beast before him did not kill him on the spot. Instead, it wanted to take him somewhere.
"All right, I'll come with you!"
Li Xin put Lemon and the others into the World Ring. Before he could say anything else, Abedo seized him with a claw and forcibly carried him away.
So many Universe-level and Domain Lord-level Holy Qilin Tricorn Beasts! Thank goodness I have an escort. If I came here on my own, I'd definitely die!
Li Xin sucked in a breath as he looked at the many Holy Qilin Tricorn Beasts ahead.
Could this be where their master lives?
Based on what the Holy Qilin Tricorn Beast had said earlier, Li Xin guessed that this world had a master who was now choosing a successor.
After bringing Li Xin into the Palace, Abedo left immediately, leaving him alone.
"Hello, human. I am the intelligent life responsible for managing this place. My name is Kesha."
After Li Xin arrived, Kesha's virtual figure appeared before him.
Li Xin looked over and saw a graceful young woman with delicate features and large, bright eyes that sparkled. Clad in armor, she radiated a heroic air, her beauty matched by a bearing that rivaled any man's. Her long legs were fair and soft as snow, tempting anyone to caress them. With her luminous eyes and pearly teeth, she was no less stunning than any extraordinary beauty.
She was the most beautiful woman Li Xin had ever seen, as though every word describing beauty in the world had come together in her. Such a woman belonged only in heaven-how had she come to the mortal world?
"Hello, Kesha. My name is Li Xin. May I ask why you brought me here?"
Although Kesha's beauty perfectly suited Chinese tastes, Li Xin knew that the person before him was merely an intelligent life. He did not lose his reason over her.
"Once you pass the trial my master set, I will naturally tell you everything you wish to know."
"If you fail, you will die, so knowing would be of no use to you anyway."
"Li Xin, I hope you will do everything you can to pass my master's trial."
Kesha offered no further explanation. After saying her piece, she vanished.
The spacious hall was immediately sealed off on all sides, turning into an airtight cage.
Li Xin looked around. The walls were all made of E9-class alloy. Even a ninth-stage World Lord would need to expend tremendous effort to break through them. With his current strength, he could not possibly smash through the walls and escape.
And even if he escaped, what then? Countless Universe-level and Domain Lord-level Holy Qilin Tricorn Beasts stood guard outside. There was no way he could get away.
Then a flight of ten steps and a secret technique manual appeared before Li Xin.
"Master the basics of the secret technique within three months and reach the tenth step, and you will pass the trial."
Kesha's voice sounded in Li Xin's ears.
"The soul secret technique, Seven-Colored Soul-Annihilating Bell, combines offense and defense and consists of seven layers. Those at the Star Level can begin learning the first layer. Cultivated to its highest layer, it allows the user to contend even with peak King-level Immortals."
After reading the introduction to the secret technique, Li Xin could not help sucking in a breath. This was a soul secret technique-exactly what he lacked.
The inheritance he had previously obtained from the Machine Race Immortal had contained no soul secret techniques.
"What a shame. It only contains the first layer."
After leafing through the entire manual, Li Xin felt a little disappointed.
"Hm? Illusions and consciousness pressure!"
Rather than immediately begin studying the secret technique, Li Xin stepped onto the first of the ten steps.
The instant he set foot on it, he felt soul consciousness pressure at the first stage of the Universe Level envelop him. At the same time, demonic sounds tried to drag him into an illusion.
"This little bit of soul consciousness pressure and illusion can't affect me!"
Li Xin shook his head slightly and continued onto the second, third, fourth, and fifth steps.
"Just as I thought. The first step is at the first stage of the Universe Level, and the fifth is at the fifth stage. The tenth should have soul consciousness pressure at the first stage of the Domain Lord Level, along with illusions of corresponding strength."
Even on the fifth step, Li Xin could still withstand it thanks to the foundation he had built.
The trial was probably intended for him to learn the Seven-Colored Soul-Annihilating Bell before attempting the steps.
Once he mastered the basics of the Seven-Colored Soul-Annihilating Bell, he could form a Soul-Swinging Bell around his soul to protect his soul will. It would greatly weaken outside influences on his soul and help him reach the tenth step.
"I'd like to see whether I can reach the tenth step without learning the Seven-Colored Soul-Annihilating Bell!"
An ordinary person might have followed the path intended by whoever had designed the trial.
But Li Xin was no ordinary person. He had confidence in his will and mental state, and he wanted to reach the tenth step through his own willpower.
"This is perfect. My Hundred Refinements Spirit-Tempering Method still needs improvement. Before, I relied solely on pain to temper my will, which was too monotonous. Now I can try adding illusions."
So Li Xin sat cross-legged on the fifth step, using its soul consciousness pressure and illusions to temper his will and mind while refining his self-created Hundred Refinements Spirit-Tempering Method.
What is this human doing? He attempted the steps without cultivating the Seven-Colored Soul-Annihilating Bell, and even now that he's run into difficulty, he still refuses to cultivate it. Is his talent in soul cultivation that poor?
But that doesn't make sense. If his talent in soul cultivation were that poor, he couldn't have reached the fifth step so easily!
Li Xin was in no hurry to climb the steps or cultivate the Seven-Colored Soul-Annihilating Bell, but Kesha, who was watching from the sidelines, was growing anxious.
After finally finding such an exceptional genius and bringing him here, she had hoped he would inherit her master's legacy.
The second path of mental cultivation, the childlike heart, emphasizes combining yin and yang, balancing firmness with flexibility. After tempering your will until it is as hard as iron and utterly unbreakable, you find that you can no longer make it harder, so you change direction and seek a balance between firmness and flexibility.
In the original story, Luo Feng took the first path, pursuing absolute strength and carrying that first path of mental cultivation to its limit.
The Hundred Refinements Spirit-Tempering Method I created has something of that approach as well. It turns all the world's pain, sorrow, despair, and other emotions and desires into flames that temper my will, forging it into something indestructible.
Li Xin immersed himself in the illusions, while the Eternal Divine Brain remained perfectly clear, using his insights to deduce improvements to the Hundred Refinements Spirit-Tempering Method.
He sat on the fifth step for an entire day, then climbed onto the sixth. This time, he sat for another five days.
Once those five days were over, he climbed onto the seventh step.
After spending six days on the seventh step, he climbed onto the eighth.
Unsurprisingly, he spent seven days on the ninth step!
Before you continue