Chapter 1192: Step Into the Light; Soar Past Mountains

Xu Qing had never heard of Chen Batian before. After all, this Chen Batian had only jumped in the rankings when the one-month countdown began. Though he was the focus of a lot of attention, few cultivators in the Fifth Star Ring knew anything about him.

As time passed, more and more rumors spread about him. As it turned out, not one of the dramatic and fanciful rumors proved to be true. In the end... how could anyone guess that the top contender in the Trial of the Hunt had been prepared as a gift?

It was a gift that had been created out of nothing. At the moment, the person who had created this gift out of nothing was bowing deeply and smiling humbly.

That was the most terrifying thing about Zhou Zhengli. He had been very careful when dealing with the menacing Sir Star Ring. He didn’t reveal how dangerous he could be. And Xu Qing got the feeling that the conflict and grudge between him and Sir Vilespirit was a facade.

In all likelihood, Zhou Zhengli and Sir Vilespirit were doing it all on purpose. And was all done... to please people far more important and powerful than them. Those important people were interested in watching the show, and the willingness of Zhou Zhengli and Sir Vilespirit to go along with it was a way of showing subservience.

Xu Qing knew that he wasn’t one of those ‘important people,’ and he didn’t think Sir Star Ring was one of them either. He didn’t make demands of subservient people. To him, both the Fifth Star Ring and the Immortal Capital were just stops along a very long journey.

Since it was just a stop on the journey, he would be cautious... but do as he pleased. In other words, he didn’t care about Zhou Zhengli’s ulterior motives. Vipers were fine as long as they didn’t bare their fangs. But if the fangs came out, well, Xu Qing had already explained to Zhou Zhengli what would happen then. He liked to eat snakes. And venomous snakes tasted the best.

Besides, after everything he had experienced in his youth, plus his journeys in the Revered Ancient mainland, as well as the teachings of his Master and the tutelage of Erniu, Xu Qing... was far more venomous. Therefore, he only glanced at Zhou Zhengli before turning to look at Chen Batian.

“I selected Chen Batian very carefully,” Zhou Zhengli said in a soft voice. “I wanted to make sure he had no deep karmic ties. Incidentally, you could say that he’s evil through and through. Also given to lust.”

Zhou Zhengli knew that he had to make sure Xu Qing was comfortable accepting his gift. Therefore, he had picked someone without any karmic connections, and could thus be killed without worry about the consequences. That was the way to make sure his gift could be accepted without worry.

To further achieve that end, he bowed and backed away from Xu Qing and Chen Batian.

That was because Chen Batian was gasping for breath. The flame of his life force was just about to go out. Zhou Zhengli had taken measures along the way to ensure that Chen Batian would actually die of natural causes. And it would happen... very soon.

That way, there would be no misunderstandings. No one would believe that he had booby-trapped his gift. He had indirectly killed him in a way that had nothing to do with the person he was giving his gift to.

When a cultivator died in that way, their Immortal Capital permission medallion would automatically go to the person closest to them. That was why he had backed away.

Xu Qing said nothing. A few dozen breaths of time passed, and Chen Batian breathed his last.

The instant it happened, an Immortal Capital permission medallion flew out of him, dazzlingly bright. It shot toward Xu Qing, fused with him, and then the star chart appeared in the sky again. This time, the ranking list had changed.

1st place was now occupied by Xu Qing!

Zhou Zhengli again bowed to Xu Qing. Then he backed away before leaving Mount Taia and flying off into the distance.

Xu Qing didn’t stop him. After Zhou Zhengli disappeared over the horizon, Xu Qing blurred and stepped into space-time. Using space-time that way left no traces of his passage, and made it impossible to track his karma.

Shortly after, ripples spread out in the dome of heaven, and Zhou Zhengli appeared again. He looked down thoughtfully at Mount Taia.

Definitely very different from Sir Star Ring. If it had been Sir Star Ring, and he had such an advantage and such strength, he would definitely be a lot less cautious. In fact, he would probably stay around here until the trial was over.

But this Xu Qing... has the advantage, and even crushed all the Shining Stars. Yet even after getting gifts from both me and Sir Vilespirit, he still acts very cautiously. And it’s not something done with purpose. It’s actually... an instinct for him!

Zhou Zhengli sighed softly.

Definitely not to be trifled with!

With that, he turned and vanished again.

***

There were only seven days left in the countdown. Thanks to the change to the ranking list, everyone in all the sects and organizations in the Fifth Star Ring knew about Xu Qing. And of course, it caused quite a shakeup.

Chen Batian disappeared and Xu Qing was in 1st place! More and more rumors were spreading about Xu Qing now. Him taking 1st place had a big effect on the various cultivators he had interacted with.

In the western planetary system, Li Mengtu was working harder than ever. Of course, since he was in fifth place, it was inevitable that he would reach the Immortal Capital. But when he saw the rankings list, he decided that he would still try to get more permission medallions.

I might not be able to surpass him, but at least I won’t fall behind.

There were similar sentiments in the southern planetary system. They existed in the Yuanshan Clan. They existed at Grand Immortal Mountain.

Yuanshan Su was in seclusion. She needed to achieve a cultivation base breakthrough before the end of the Trial of the Hunt. If she could become a Quasi-Immortal, then she would be able to get to the Immortal Capital. “I know I can do it!”

Jiang Fan chose a similar route to Yuanshan Su, and was working hard to that end.

In the northern planetary system, Hordeslayer and Rampart, thanks to how connected their Master was, had things a lot easier than Jiang Fan and Yuanshan Su. Both of them got new permission medallions and started over from the beginning. Given the level of their cultivation base and battle prowess, it wasn’t a very difficult task. All they had to do was fight enough people. However, given the limited time frame, the two of them were very busy. Whenever they rose through the rankings, they would see Xu Qing’s name and curse him. But at the same time, they would work harder.

Things were different in the eastern planetary system.

Sir Vilespirit and Zhou Zhengli both had stable spots on the ranking list, being in 2nd and 3rd place respectively. They had given up on trying to improve their ranking, and were simply waiting until the Trial of the Hunt ended.

What Sir Vilespirit and Zhou Zhengli were actually most focused on was... the Star Ring Pagoda! As far as they were concerned, that was the biggest variable in the entire trial!

***

Amidst the countless towering pagodas that made up the headquarters of the Star Ring Pagoda, there was one pagoda that was taller than all the others, and it shone with dazzling starlight. At the moment, that starlight was all pouring into a complicated spell formation.

A young man was seated cross-legged in the formation. The starlight flowed through the rotating formation into the young man and through his meridians. Thanks to the process, his body had become completely fused with the pagoda.

A strong immortal aura pulsed from him, and if you looked closely, it came from... his immortal embryo! After experiencing the illusory reality and the undying, it was possible to form the immortal embryo. It was the hallmark of Quasi-Immortals. That was why the starlight acted as meridians, the pagoda as his bones, and the immortal embryo as his fleshly body. It was turning into...

Sir Star Ring!

Within the pagoda, someone spoke in a raspy voice.

“If there are no twists and turns during the tribulation, then how could good fortune spring from extreme adversity? My apprentice, you have already accepted the tribulation, and perished in the process. That was simply your destiny. As your Master, I have remolded your body, and thus, you can achieve ultimate balance and continue on the path of the immortal!”

As the words echoed out, Sir Star Ring’s eyes suddenly opened, and boundless starlight spilled out of them, making the pagoda even more dazzling.

“He’s out there, waiting for you,” the raspy voice said.

After a moment of silence, Sir Star Ring shook his head. “No.”

“Why not?”

“I can’t defeat him. If I fight him now, I’ll lose the name Star Ring. There’s no rush. I can fight him... at the Immortal Capital!”

“Well said!”

***

Outside of the Star Ring Pagoda there was a mountain called Ninth Heaven. At the peak of Mount Ninth Heaven, Xu Qing sat cross-legged, staring at the boundless Star Ring Pagoda headquarters. The crimson aurora made the starlight of the towers especially prominent. And the spot where the starlight was gathering was the same spot Xu Qing was staring at.

He was waiting for Sir Star Ring. The moment he arrived in the eastern planetary system, he had sensed Sir Star Ring’s aura. It was obvious that Sir Star Ring... had returned. Thus, he had come here to wait for Sir Star Ring to come out and fight.

Sadly, even after waiting for quite a while, Sir Star Ring never came out. Xu Qing’s facial expression remained the same as usual. He wasn’t inclined to force the issue.

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

He closed his eyes. Days passed. Eventually, there was only one day left in the countdown. Then one hour. Then one second.... It passed!

Rumbling sounds could be heard in the sky over the Fifth Star Ring. They grew louder and louder, filling the east, and ultimately, the entire Fifth Star Ring. Countless cultivators, regardless of what they were doing, all went silent and looked up into the sky.

A voice rang out.

“The Immortal Capital’s Trial of the Hunt is over. Now, the top 100 will enter the Immortal Capital!”

Innumerable cultivators in the Fifth Star Ring were filled with excitement, and looked on in envy as numerous seven-colored beams of light descended from the aurora. There were a total of ninety-nine, and they were distributed among the qualified trial-takers in all four planetary systems. They were like shining roads of light leading upward.

All Fifth Star Ring cultivators dreamed of stepping on the road that led to the Immortal Capital. These prismatic beams of light were why the participants had gone through so much hardship. It was why they had shed so much blood and killed so many enemies. Now, their hearts were racing. This was the moment they had been fighting for!

One by one, they prepared to step into the light. But just before they did, more thunderous rumbling sounds issued forth above to fill the Fifth Star Ring.

Countless individuals looked on as a beam of light far brighter and more colorful than all of the others descended, almost like a river. Compared to this beam of light, the others were like little streams. It was a majestic and boundless river that shone with blinding light. It descended from above and landed in the east, at Mount Ninth Heaven.

Everyone was shaken.

Xu Qing opened his eyes and looked at the bright path of light. He rose and stepped into the light. The moment he did, he was whisked upward.

Meanwhile, other cultivators in other areas were also flying upward. All were heading toward what lay beyond the dome of heaven... the supreme Immortal Capital.