Silent Name Severs the Order · Sea of Books Buries the Void

Deep within the forest of steles, the woman floating in the void slowly raised her eyes, her gaze falling upon Qin Yu. Her eyes held no joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness, only an ancient and ineffable calm, as if at this moment, she was not merely observing Qin Yu, but rather, through him, directly perceiving the cause and effect and destiny of the Source of Epochless.

Her voice rang out, not ordinary words, but an echo from the forest of steles itself. Each word seemed to be composed of countless inscriptions, carrying an ancient and sacred resonance:

"My name is Zixin, and I am the soul and will of the Stele Forest."

As the name was spoken, the Stele Forest trembled violently, and countless stele surfaces cracked and reformed, radiating starlight-like brilliance, as if to confirm her existence.

Zixin's gaze fell on Qin Yu, paused slightly, and her voice carried a hint of probing:

"You... do not belong here. Your destiny carries a foreign and unfamiliar power, a mark that should not Source of Epochless."

Qin Yu's heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained unchanged as he calmly replied:

"Senior, you are overthinking it. I am merely someone struggling to survive in this chaos. I came here by chance, only to find the remaining map and continue my journey."

Zixin gazed at him silently, her eyes shimmering with starlight. The stone tablets surrounding the forest of steles seemed to be moved by her gaze, their inscriptions flowing and forming an ancient scroll, depicting the rise and fall and annihilation of countless cultivators in the past.

She sighed softly, her voice seemingly resonating directly within Qin Yu's consciousness:

Countless people come here seeking fragments of the map and liberation within this forest of steles. But you are different. You possess an aura of 'Silent Origin' that shouldn't exist, yet is undeniably real.

Qin Yu's heart tightened, Azure Ring's voice immediately rang in his mind, coldly reminding him:

"Be careful, she's testing you. Don't admit anything, or the will of the Stele Forest will immediately see you as an anomaly."

Qin Yu's gaze darkened slightly, and he said calmly:

"If that's the case, then let the Stele Forest test me. If I can't even get past this hurdle, what future do I have to talk about?"

Zixin looked at him, remained silent for a long time, and finally a faint smile appeared on her lips. The smile lacked warmth; instead, it conveyed the "interest of an ancient will in an unknown proposition."

"Very good. You are qualified to face the judgment of the Stele Forest. The fragmented map was not found, but rather endured through the threads of fate."

After saying that, she raised her hand and pointed lightly.

A thunderous roar echoed from the depths of the Stele Forest as thousands of stone tablets rose into the air. The cultural significance of the tablets flowed like light, weaving together a magnificent galaxy scroll that slowly hung above Qin Yu and Hong Xiuxiang's heads. Countless ancient symbols emerged on the scroll, as if softly reciting their destinies.

The moment Qin Yu looked up, his heart skipped a beat. He saw his own reflection faintly in the scroll... and behind that reflection, a halo of serene light, transformed from Azure Ring, was slowly shimmering.

And Zixin's voice rang out again amidst the roar of the stele forest:

"Young man, if you survive the trial at the Forest of Steles, the fragments of the map will appear. If not... you will be assimilated into the thousands of inscriptions and buried here forever."

The forest of steles roared, and the sky suddenly cracked. Countless stone tablets lit up with ancient runes at the same time, like stars converging and weaving together a domain of judgment from which there was no escape. The ground beneath Qin Yu and Hong Xiuxiang's feet transformed into an endless sea of light flowing with inscriptions, while in the depths of the void, a figure slowly appeared.

That was the first illusory enemy in the Beilin Trial—it was not a living thing, but a calamity conjured by the will of Beilin itself.

Its figure towered over a thousand feet tall, draped in a gilded holy robe that seemed to be outlined by countless runes, each line echoing ancient laws. Its head had no facial features, only a sphere burning with crimson-gold light, like the eye of judgment, silently watching Qin Yu. Behind it circled an incredibly vast ring of runes, layer upon layer, like a projection of the fundamental laws of heaven and earth, covering the entire void of the stele forest.

With a wave of its hand, the void roared, and all the symbols on the steles in the forest of steles vibrated simultaneously, as if countless Annihilation torrents were about to overwhelm it.

Hong Xiuxiang's expression changed, and she murmured softly:

"This is... the illusory judgment of the Forest of Steles! It is not a real enemy, but it can reflect the weaknesses of a cultivator's destiny. If one is defeated here, their soul will be devoured by the Forest of Steles..."

Qin Yu's gaze darkened, and his heart trembled violently. Azure Ring spoke coldly in his sea of consciousness:

"Be careful, this is the first trial of the Stele Forest. It will become a problem you cannot avoid. If you cannot break through this predicament, both you and Hong Xiuxiang will be erased."

The illusory enemy slowly raised its hand. In an instant, ten thousand steles resounded, their inscriptions cascading down like a waterfall, converging into a massive "Annihilation Stele Blade." Each symbol shimmered with the logic of destruction, seemingly capable of erasing the entire history of the stele forest with a single strike.

His crimson-gold eyes suddenly lit up, and a deep sound wave reverberated out, like a judgment from the depths of eternity:

"The Trial Begins."

With that sound, the blade pierced the air, carrying the weight of countless destinies, and struck Qin Yu and Hong Xiuxiang directly!

The moment the blade fell, the entire forest of steles seemed to be plunged into the apocalypse.

Above the sky, a sea of light formed by billions of inscriptions suddenly poured down, like countless stars falling at the same time, dragging with it a rain of annihilating fire, dyeing the entire void into a torrent of crimson gold and darkness. Each inscription carried the weight of history, and when it fell into the void, it would cause a roar like the collapse of all worlds.

Qin Yu's long hair danced wildly, and his eyes suddenly flashed with a blinding cold light. He formed a hand seal, Fate Cause Master Seal " appeared in his chest. It was not a mark, but a light seal condensed from countless logics of fate, like an Annihilation star, rotating around him!

As the main seal unfolded, sixteen layers of Fate-Cause Wheels suddenly appeared beneath Qin Yu's feet. Each wheel was inscribed with ancient runes, as if recording the Ultimate chapter of countless destinies. As the wheels slowly rotated, the void was forcibly cut open, like an insurmountable Fate Canon, blocking the arrival of the monumental blade.

At the same time, the Source-Extinguishing Divine Sword was drawn.

The sword's cry reverberated through heaven and earth, echoing through the void of the stele forest, like the simultaneous tolling of countless calamity bells. Endless divine radiance flowed from the sword's blade; with a single strike, the galaxy reversed, and countless inscriptions on the steles were instantly rewritten, severing the logical connection between the blade and the will of the stele forest!

Boom--!

The stone tablet finally collided with the Wheel of Fate-Cause.

At that moment, the void completely lost its color, with only an Ultimate dazzling light bursting forth, like an annihilating supernova exploding. The violent shockwave swept across the forest of steles, shaking all the steles to a deafening rumble. The void outside the forest of steles even cracked open into shocking abysses, as if to drag this entire world into endless Annihilation.

At this moment, Hong Xiuxiang also released her Innate Martial Soul, "Spirit Brocade Book Realm".

Ten thousand pages unfurled behind her, cascading down like a sea of stars. With a wave of her hand, countless pages transformed into a barrier, layer by layer resisting the aftershocks of the eruption from the stele forest. On each page, runes of "emotion, destiny, and cause and effect" flickered, like gentle yet unbreakable ripples, protecting her and Qin Yu.

The stele blade was blocked, and cracks spread across the phantom's crimson-gold holy body. Its crimson-gold round eye suddenly emitted a blinding flame, seemingly enraged by Qin Yu and Hong Xiuxiang's resistance. The void of the stele forest trembled again, as if the next attack would be even more terrifying!

Azure Ring's voice was cold and sharp within her sea of consciousness:

"Qin Yu, this is the core enemy shadow of the first level of judgment in the Stele Forest—its power is inexhaustible. If you cannot shatter it before it condenses its stele blade a second time, you will surely die!"

The forest of steles roared, and deep within the void, the phantom of the crimson-gold holy body raised its hand once more.

It had no real face, only a pitch-black void and a round, blood-gold eye, like a cold, celestial judge looking down upon eternity. The second stele blade slowly condensed—or rather, it was as if all the billions of inscriptions in the entire stele forest, all the causes and destinies from the beginning of heaven and earth, were extracted and compressed into a giant blade that could cleave through eternity!

Boom--!

Every stone tablet in the Stele Forest trembled, its inscriptions cracking and turning into a rain of light that was absorbed into the blades of the tablets. The sky seemed to have a second layer of curtain torn open, and a terrifying pressure pressed down on Qin Yu and Hong Xiuxiang.

Qin Yu's eyes suddenly turned cold, and he slammed his palm onto the spine of the Source-Extinguishing Divine Sword, causing Azure Ring light to erupt instantly.

"Azure Ring, Second Form - Realm-Severing Silent Light!"

The sword's edge unleashed an extremely Leaving Stillness black-gold flame, shattering the void directly. Black cracks spread like a spider web, forcefully shaving off three-tenths of the power of the monument blade!

At the same time, Hong Xiuxiang suddenly unleashed her Soul Ultimate Form:

"The Sole Book Ultimate Style: Soul-Forgetting Brocade Words Record!"

Ten thousand scrolls of exquisite pages transformed into a surging ocean, and the spirits of the book realm emerged from the void. A million "Soul-Forgetting Incantations" simultaneously resounded throughout the stele forest. These sounds were not human language, but rather the life-order logic directly affecting the stele blades. The stele blades should have been based on the inscriptions, but at this moment, the logic of the inscriptions was "forgotten," as if the foundation had collapsed!

Seizing the moment, Qin Yu took a sudden step forward, and the Fate Cause Master Seal and the Sixteen Wheels of Fate appeared behind him, spinning together.

His voice boomed like thunder through the Forest of Steles:

"Fate-Cause, Inherited Construct · Logic-Turning Domain -- Town!"

Countless chains of Fate-Cause light suddenly wrapped around the monument blade, as if using cause and effect as a lock to drag it into the void. At the same time, the sword tip was raised high, and the Azure Ring light and the annihilation divine flames penetrated into the sword body.

"Source-Extinguishing Divine Sword - Sever the Soul in Nine Silences!"

As the sword fell, nine soul-annihilating black marks slashed down simultaneously, like nine rivers of annihilation stretching across the sky, directly cleaving into the stone tablet's blade!

Boom--!

The stele blades collided head-on with the sword light and the sea of books, and in an instant, the stele forest exploded completely, the starry sky was overturned, and countless steles shattered, turning into endless fragments of inscriptions that scattered everywhere. The shockwave swept across tens of thousands of miles of void, and even in the wasteland far beyond the stele forest, the strange phenomenon of the sky being torn apart could be seen.

The round eyes of the phantom of the Crimson Gold Holy Body suddenly narrowed, and the stele blade finally shattered inch by inch, exploding into billions of light dust that scattered throughout the stele forest. Its massive body staggered half a step, and a hideous gash appeared on its chest.

Hong Xiuxiang was breathing heavily, her face pale, and her sea of knowledge had fractured. But she still gritted her teeth and stared at Qin Yu with unwavering determination.

Azure Ring's voice urgently rang out in Qin Yu's mind:

"Don't hesitate! We must completely annihilate it before it can re-form the monument blade, otherwise we won't be able to withstand the next attack!"

This is the final, decisive opportunity.

Deep within the forest of steles, the air seemed to freeze. Countless fragments of the steles had not yet completely dissipated, but they were drawn back by the illusory image of the crimson-gold holy body, transforming into a vortex-like river of light that flowed back into its palm.

Qin Yu's eyes were like torches, and cold sweat slid down his cheeks. He clearly felt that if he didn't completely annihilate her before this moment, he and Hong Xiuxiang would surely be crushed in the next battle!

"We cannot hold back; they must be killed."

His thoughts settled heavily, like the tolling of a bell signaling divine judgment.

The Source-Extinguishing Divine Sword hummed in his hand, and the annihilation cracks on the sword suddenly lit up one after another like stars. One after another, beams of annihilating light flowed along the spine of the sword, as if the Milky Way in the sky were hanging upside down.

At this moment, Qin Yu mobilized the power of the Azure Ring without hesitation.

The sword was raised high, and the sixteen halos of the Fate Cause Master Seal behind it rotated in unison, each ring releasing a blazing light that incinerated the order of destiny. The moment the radiance merged into the sword's edge, the blade seemed to bear the destructive will of the entire world, and its edge shone with an aurora capable of Sever Karma, tearing apart logic, and extinguishing all existence!

On the other side, Hong Xiuxiang danced in the wind as her Soul Book Realm fully unfolded. The Spiritual Sea of Books surged in the void, and countless scrolls of spiritual books tore apart simultaneously, transforming into billions of exquisite rune chains that dyed the void a deep purple.

Her voice was low and resolute:

"The Sole Book Ultimate Style - Soul-Forgetting Brocade Words Record!"

Countless book spirits wailed in the void, transforming into a torrent of incantations that rushed straight towards the crimson-gold phantom.

Boom!

Qin Yu stepped forward, and the Source-Extinguishing Divine Sword suddenly slashed down:

"The Beginning of the Realm: The Sole Silent Name!"

With that single strike, it seemed as if the eternal order of the entire forest of steles collapsed in an instant.

The sword light overlapped with the sea of books, like a double chasm of destruction and oblivion, slashing towards the chest of the phantom of the crimson-gold holy body.

Moment!

The forest of steles shattered, turning billions of cultural relics into dust. The world seemed to have its last colors erased, leaving only an absolute alternation of black and white. The chest of the crimson-gold phantom was completely ripped open, cracks running through its entire body. It roared to the sky, but remained silent. Then, amidst the falling light debris, it disintegrated and finally Annihilation completely!

The Forest of Steles is silent.

Only Qin Yu and Hong Xiuxiang remained, standing side by side, their breaths heavy. The sword and the book still emitted a lingering glow, illuminating the void around them.

But Qin Yu knew in his heart that this was only the first enemy born in the void of the Stele Forest, and even more terrifying phantoms would appear later.