After emerging from the dark world of the 401st step, Lin Heng paused at the Ten Thousand Swords Bridge for a full three minutes before continuing forward.
The flying sword landed beneath his feet, and darkness returned.
In the pitch-black world, only Lin Heng's eyes shone with a determined light. At this moment, he was just like when he first took his first step into the Ten Thousand Swords Bridge.
The whistling sound of flying swords cutting through the air lingered in his ears, yet the chilling killing intent could no longer disturb Lin Heng's mind.
Lin Heng stood upright in place, letting the countless flying swords pierce through his body.
When his resolve to follow the Dao became even stronger, such illusions could no longer sway Lin Heng.
Clearly, during that brief pause, Lin Heng's state of mind was once again elevated.
Even he himself did not realize that as his state of mind was elevated, his spiritual realm was also enhanced.
Lin Heng's soul realm at its peak of the ninth level has already put him one foot in the Heavenly Venerable Realm, and there is a possibility that he could completely break through to the Heavenly Venerable Realm at any time.
In the next three hundred steps, Lin Heng's time to pass the test not only did not increase, but on the contrary, the time became shorter and shorter.
Only occasionally, after taking a hundred or so steps, would Lin Heng pause to quietly contemplate, until he had fully absorbed the spiritual growth brought about by the tempering of his heart, before continuing onward.
Just as Lin Heng took his thousandth step, he discovered something different again in the dark world.
Ten thousand swords flew together, each carrying a different Source Power.
The flying swords no longer attacked all at once.
Sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes Immovable.
The strangest thing was that right after Lin Heng suffered the first wave of attacks, he discovered that the flying sword had actually retreated and passed right through his body.
It wasn't that the flying sword turned its tip around to attack again; rather, it was like a movie replay where the tip of the flying sword passed through Lin Heng's body, and then the hilt retreated from Lin Heng's body.
Lin Heng stayed in this thousand-step dark world for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
No matter how many times the flying sword attacked or flew backward, it could not shake his resolve in the slightest.
On the contrary, amidst this relentless onslaught, Lin Heng vaguely grasped something.
It was as if the thin layer of paper separating them, with one foot already in the Heavenly Venerable Realm, was about to be pierced.
But at that moment, the darkness vanished.
Lin Heng's eyes lit up, and he returned to Ten Thousand Swords Bridge once more.
Lin Heng closed his eyes and fell into deep thought, his mind replaying everything that had happened in the dark world.
As one gains a deeper understanding of the ever-changing perceptions within the dark world.
Lin Heng has reached the peak of the Ninth-Turn Samsara in his soul realm, and is once again showing signs of sublimation.
Immersed in self-awareness, Lin Heng felt as if a flying sword had appeared deep within his soul.
This unruly flying sword moved through the air at varying speeds, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes advancing, sometimes retreating, just like a mischievous child.
Lin Heng's mastery of Time Acceleration, Time Deceleration, and Time Stasis was perfectly demonstrated on his flying sword.
When the three laws were revealed simultaneously, the scene before our eyes began to reverse, gradually returning from the final form of the flying sword to its initial form.
Time Reversal!
The power of laws that only Heavenly Venerable Realm expert can possess!
At the very moment he comprehended the Time Reversal, Lin Heng's soul aura surged dramatically, instantly soaring from the ninth level of the Samsara Soul Realm.
Gonggong, who was not far away, sensed the change in Lin Heng's soul and a hint of relief flashed in his eyes.
A soul at the Heavenly Venerable Realm!
Gonggong sensed Lin Heng's breakthrough in his soul realm immediately.
"Although this lad discovered Ten Thousand Swords Bridge's secret a bit late, fortunately he has good talent and a strong will, and he persevered. The rest of the journey will be his time to reap the rewards."
At this moment, Gonggong looked at Lin Heng with a hint of hope and expectation in his eyes.
The dark world of Ten Thousand Swords Bridge contains even more profound laws and energies, but Lin Heng did not initially perceive them.
Darkness blinded their eyes, fear intimidated their hearts, and murderous intent obscured the exploration of their souls.
That's why Lin Heng approached the first three or four hundred steps with the mindset of simply trying to pass a level.
But when he stopped for the first time to carefully observe and reflect, Lin Heng noticed something was amiss.
In every dark world, what changes is never the apparent number of flying swords.
Each flying sword possesses its own unique Source Power.
Each flying sword attack carries a different law of power.
This is a gradual process.
However, with only the mindset of simply trying to pass the test, coupled with the fact that their soul and cultivation were sealed by restrictions, it was naturally difficult for them to discover this.
Fortunately, Lin Heng eventually discovered it.
However, at the same moment he broke through to the Heavenly Venerable Realm, his soul power rapidly diminished.
The power of the restriction did not stop Lin Heng's breakthrough, but at the moment he successfully broke through, it sealed Lin Heng's soul power once again.
After that, Lin Heng strolled leisurely around Ten Thousand Swords Bridge.
When you stop seeing difficulties as mountains and start seeing them as mountains of gold, you will naturally have the idea of challenging yourself to cross those mountains and possess them.
Lin Heng treated the Ten Thousand Swords Bridge as a form of training to improve himself, turning this path of self-forging into an enjoyment rather than a torment.
After an unknown amount of time, Lin Heng walked the entire Path of Heart Forging step by step.
The moment he stepped out of the Ten Thousand Swords Bridge, the suppression of the restriction disappeared. Lin Heng's newly recovered soul power and cultivation were not properly controlled and erupted instantly.
Feeling the soul power of his Fourth-Grade Heavenly Venerable Realm, Liuyun Lan, who was standing in front of Lin Heng, was completely stunned.
" Lin Heng, your soul realm has reached the Fourth-Grade Heavenly Venerable Realm?"
Even though she had experienced it firsthand, Liuyun Lan still couldn't believe it.
Although Liuyun Lan felt that her soul power had improved after leaving Ten Thousand Swords Bridge, it was only a slight improvement, and she couldn't even advance to a higher realm.
In contrast, Lin Heng's advancement was not merely a minor realm improvement, but a qualitative leap from the Samsara Realm to the Heavenly Venerable Realm.
Hearing Liuyun Lan's question, Lin Heng nodded. "Yes! I was just walking along the Ten Thousand Swords Bridge, and I don't know how I ended up with the Fourth-Grade Heavenly Venerable Realm soul."
Upon hearing this, Liuyun Lan felt a twitch in her throat and almost spat out a mouthful of blood.
Liuyun Lan couldn't help but want to ask Lin Heng, "Do you have any manners whatsoever?"
Looking at Chen Yulin on the other side, he naturally noticed Lin Heng's change as well.
With Lin Heng as an example, both Chen Yulin and Miao Jingkong, who had just arrived at the edge of Ten Thousand Swords Bridge, were full of anticipation for their upcoming trip to Ten Thousand Swords Bridge.
However, seeing their energetic eyes, Gonggong, who was in a good mood at the moment, showed a rare moment of kindness and kindly reminded them, "Everyone's opportunities are different. Some things should not be forced. Ten Thousand Swords Bridge is indeed a good place for training, but if you are not careful, it is not impossible that you could die there."
Gonggong's words were not unfounded. In the dark world, if one cannot withstand the onslaught of flying swords and loses heart, then one will truly perish.