When Duan Weiran reached this point, he glanced at Li Yan, then continued. "The 'Darkness' passage mainly tempers one's state of mind and willpower.
After entering the passage, one is said to be confined within a narrow space where daylight never reaches. One can only move forward, yet no attacks will appear. The whole process is supposedly simple—so long as you can crawl your way out, you will have passed the trial.
To outsiders, the 'Light' passage would certainly seem more difficult and dangerous. After all, life and death often hang upon a single instant.
Yet all the records concerning this say that the 'Darkness' passage is the truly terrifying one.
The prolonged oppression and torment there are things even Golden Core Realm cultivators would rather not endure. Illusions constantly spring up in one's heart, making it impossible to tell truth from falsehood. Before long, one loses one's true self. Once you die within the illusion, your physical body truly dies in reality.
Life and death rest upon a single thought. Unlike the 'Light' passage, even those who have experienced it once can grit their teeth and dare to challenge it again.
But cultivators who survive the 'Darkness' passage are said to be utterly unwilling to mention what they experienced. They are unwilling even to think about it.
I heard that the most recent person to pass through the 'Darkness' passage was Zen Master Zhichu of the Pure Land Sect, thirty years ago, when he was still in the Foundation Establishment Realm. But after he came out, he never spoke of what happened inside to anyone.
As for how many others entered after him to try their luck, no one knows. There certainly were some, but none ever came back out."
At that point, Duan Weiran fell silent. Since no