The stone hall was serene, but Shi Hao remained vigilant, advancing cautiously. The previous two trials had already left him wounded.
“Whoosh!”
Sure enough, not far ahead, the stone wall lit up once more. A three-eyed creature, its carving dim, suddenly opened its vertical eye, unleashing a beam of light.
This light ignored space, arriving instantly, aiming to pierce Shi Hao’s skull.
A soul attack!
Shi Hao’s body radiated light, forming a protective barrier, yet the beam was too sinister—it penetrated effortlessly, guided by immortal dao laws!
In an instant, it reached between his brows, as if seeking to possess him!
The third trial was a test of the soul, a battle of primordial spirits.
This place had its own rules, suppressing all else—flesh, worldly essence—everything was frozen. Only the primordial spirit could resist this light.
Forced into action, Shi Hao summoned his primordial spirit. A radiant little figure stepped out from his forehead, its gaze sharp as a sword’s edge!
“Screech—!”
The incoming beam transformed into a bat, its screech sending ripples like water, crashing violently toward him.
The void visibly twisted, and even Shi Hao’s immobilized body trembled under the impact!
His expression darkened as his primordial spirit surged with power. The little figure expanded its sole heavenly aperture, wielding divine techniques as if it were flesh, lunging forward to suppress the golden bat.
“Boom!”
Their collision rang with metallic resonance, accompanied by overwhelming yang energy!
Shi Hao’s heart chilled. His primordial spirit, tempered by heavenly tribulations, was unparalleled—yet this opponent matched him blow for blow.
Clearly, the bat-shaped primordial spirit had also endured tribulations in the Immortal Ancient Era!
In that age, the laws of heaven permitted tribulations for all who sought strength, honing themselves to their limits.
This battle left no room for holding back.
“Boom!”
Shi Hao invoked thunder dao laws, crushing the golden bat. Yet, as it faltered, it swiftly morphed into a white tiger, roaring with even fiercer spiritual waves, threatening to shatter his soul.
“Primordial Spirit Grand Technique!” Shi Hao’s face paled.
The Immortal Ancient cultivation system was profound—this was a method specifically for refining the primordial spirit, now unleashed against him with terrifying force.
“Boom!”
His fist blazed with divine runes, striking out. The tiger, after its roar, soared skyward, transforming into a phoenix that spewed crimson flames—primordial spirit radiance!
“Worth learning from!” Shi Hao mused, his gaze deep. If only he could obtain the cultivation methods of the Immortal Ancient Era…
Despite multiple near-fatal encounters, he ultimately suppressed his foe. With a final “boom,” the creature’s primordial spirit dispersed into motes of light, returning to the stone wall.
Panting, Shi Hao steadied himself. Three trials in, he was already battered—unimaginable!
This was a true battle of equals. The Immortal Ancient Era was terrifying indeed.
Outside the Human Immortal Hall, a stone and a turtle conversed.
“This ghostly place is just a broken stone hut. How dare they call it a retreat for longevity seekers? What’s so special about it, and what’s with these ridiculous trials?” the Divine Striking Stone scoffed.
“Broken stone hut? Even descendants of true immortals might not survive here. This place is meant only for the most exceptional few,” the White Turtle retorted.
According to it, only those who had cultivated at least one strand of immortal qi were qualified to enter. Unless one bore the title of “Little Immortal King,” most who entered never left.
“You—you’re scamming us! Is this how you repay your savior?” the Divine Striking Stone fumed.
“Relax. If he clears the first three trials, even if he fails later, he’ll get one chance to revive and be teleported out,” the White Turtle assured.
“You—!” The Divine Striking Stone was livid.
“I think he’s too arrogant. He needs more trials, more setbacks—only then can he truly advance,” the White Turtle mused.
“Turtle, you asking for a beating?” the Divine Striking Stone glowered.
“I’m an immortal herb—watch your tone!” the White Turtle snapped, then suddenly paled. “Oh no! I forgot—this isn’t the Immortal Ancient Era anymore. The heavenly laws have changed, and there are no tribulations. Those of the same realm now are weaker. He might… die in there!”
“Do something!” The Divine Striking Stone wished it could crush the turtle.
“Nothing can be done! Once inside, no outside interference is possible!” The White Turtle sweated profusely, its immortal fluids exuding a fragrant aura.
Frantically, it fumbled before the hall, summoning a dimly lit green lantern.
“He’s alive!” the White Turtle exclaimed. This was the Human Immortal Hall’s Soul Lamp—as long as it burned, the challenger lived.
“I bet he’s struggling in the second trial. Hopefully, he’ll retreat and not push further,” the White Turtle said.
“Underestimating my brother? Come, turtle, let’s settle this!” the Divine Striking Stone growled.
“Scram! I’m an immortal herb—I don’t fight!”
Had anyone witnessed an immortal herb arguing with a sentient rock, they’d have been stunned.
“Don’t let him die…” the Divine Striking Stone muttered.
“Pray he survives the second trial and retreats in time,” the White Turtle sighed.
—
In the fourth trial, Shi Hao’s hair stood on end—something was watching him.
A humanoid carving on the wall glowed, a radiant orb emerging from its body like a miniature sun.
With a “whoosh,” it shot toward him!
“What the hell is this?” Shi Hao gaped as the orb aimed for his flesh.
“A Dao Seed?!” He recalled tales from Cao Yusheng and Qing Yi—their sects had excavated ancient records mentioning that Immortal Ancient cultivators relied on such seeds for inheritance and cultivation.
“Fighting me with a Dao Seed?” Shi Hao smirked, summoning the mysterious egg wreathed in primordial mist from his brow.
“Boom!”
The immortal seed he’d seized from the Heavenly Clan’s ancient mine crushed the orb effortlessly.
“Even in the Immortal Ancient Era, this treasure must’ve been peerless!” Shi Hao marveled.
The fourth trial was his easiest yet.
But the fifth, sixth… each step drew blood, each trial a brush with death.
By the tenth, his body was in tatters—surviving was a miracle.
Gulping down sacred herbs, he healed his wounds, bones peeking through torn flesh.
“Who’d have thought the Human Immortal Hall would be this brutal?”
Finally recovered, he strode toward a glowing ancient gate shrouded in chaotic mist.
Outside, the stone and turtle waited anxiously.
“He’s enduring well—probably stuck in the third trial. If he clears it, he’ll survive,” the White Turtle said.
“Or maybe he’s already past six or seven?” the Divine Striking Stone countered.
“Too hard. Even in our era, few succeeded,” the White Turtle sighed.
“You’re belittling this era!”
“No, but the heavenly laws have changed. True powerhouses are rarer now.”
Their argument was cut short as the Soul Lamp blazed brilliantly.
“He… cleared it?! Comparable to a Little Immortal King?!”
The White Turtle was dumbstruck. This path was said to be near-impossible—even in the Immortal Ancient Era, few had succeeded.
Yet in this degraded era, someone had done it?
At the tenth trial’s end, a light gate barred the way.
Shi Hao stepped through, entering a small, unremarkable chamber.
“Is this the Human Immortal Hall’s retreat?”
Only when he sat did a thunderous light illuminate him, revealing the truth—this place was extraordinary!
“Ten chances. Even if I die, I’ll revive!”
Shi Hao was awed. This was a haven for madmen—a place to gamble everything on enlightenment without fear of death.
“The White Turtle wasn’t lying. My path of burning my true self with ten thousand daos is lethal—but here, I can risk it all!”
He’d heard of similar treasures in ancient sects, but none offered ten revivals.
“Today, I’ll indulge like a supreme disciple!”
Calming himself, he prepared to cultivate.
Time itself seemed to freeze—a terrifying, wondrous phenomenon.
“Unbelievable!”
Taking out the immortal seed, he let primordial mist swirl as heavenly laws descended, connecting with the egg like a cosmic womb.
“With heaven as the furnace and ten thousand daos as the flame, I shall burn my true self!”
Resolute, Shi Hao sat cross-legged, beginning his breakthrough!
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