Chapter 776: Twelve Black Devil Tokens (2)

Ming Jian had swiftly progressed to the third trial.

"That was quick."

"We expected him to be stuck in the second trial for a while, yet he's caught up at an astonishing speed."

"He truly deserves to be called a monstrous prodigy, the likes of which the Dao Realm has never seen," remarked the Sovereigns from the nine major factions of the Dao Realm. They received the news with mixed feelings of awe and helplessness.

Wu Yuan already stood out, being the sole High Immortal. His remarkable talent made it seem almost inevitable that he would inherit Sovereign Black Devil’s inheritance.

"We must give it our all.”

"There’s still hope.” Despite Wu Yuan’s performance, the Sovereigns of the various powers in the Dao Realm were not ready to concede defeat. Orders were swiftly dispatched to the various candidates to continue their efforts.

For now, Wu Yuan wasn’t definitively leading the race.

...

Within the grounds of the Black Devil Blood Hollow's third trial.

This place?

Wu Yuan surveyed his surroundings. He found himself in a vast, seemingly infinite void.

This void contained numerous expansive passages, each one stretching a hundred li wide, with nearly a hundred such passages spiraling into the distance.

The passages were laid with stone, extending for hundreds of thousands of li, flanked on each side by towering stone walls.

Astral Lord Gu Shou? Astral Lord Xue Yao? Archimmortal Xiang Fei?

Wu Yuan's gaze swept across the void, discovering several familiar figures. Yet, many others remained unfamiliar.

Each person stood silently in one of these passages, contemplating the imposing stone walls before them.

Ninety-five people. I’m the ninety-sixth?

Wu Yuan instantly understood.

The first trial was held in fifty-five trial grounds. The second trial was held in eleven trial grounds. But the third trial is only held in this one trial ground.

Wu Yuan had already figured it out.

These ninety-five people are all the candidates who have advanced to the third trial.

However, what would this third trial entail?

"Ming Jian."

"He's arrived."

"Can it be him?" murmured the candidates scattered across the various passages, noticing the new arrival. Those who knew him, like Astral Lords Xue Yao and Xiang Fei, were taken aback, not expecting Wu Yuan to break into the top ten.

"Is that Ming Jian?"

"He managed to acquire six Black Devil Tokens?" Many candidates, seeing Wu Yuan for the first time, watched him with wary eyes.

Though unfamiliar with his appearance, Wu Yuan’s reputation preceded him.

As a High Immortal, Wu Yuan had demonstrated power that matched a late-stage Astral Lord, enough to surprise any Archimmortal or Archdeity and put them on alert. Moreover, he had acquired six Black Devil Tokens during the first two trials, a truly remarkable accomplishment.

Hum~

Countless points of light converged to form the silhouette of Big Devil, his piercing gaze fixed intently on Wu Yuan.

"Senior Big Devil," Wu Yuan greeted respectfully.

"The third trial has a time limit of one thousand years," Big Devil stated directly, his voice cold and detached. "Do you see the passage you’re standing on?"

Wu Yuan nodded.

"Each participant is assigned a unique passage," Big Devil elaborated. "These passages are segmented into six primary zones, each stretching for one hundred thousand li. Within every zone, you'll find two hundred Dao pattern diagrams etched into the stone walls: one hundred are complete, while the rest remain unfinished.

Your task is to study the complete Dao patterns and then finish the incomplete ones in each zone.

To proceed to the next zone, you will need to complete ten diagrams in your current zone.

For each zone you pass through, you will receive one Black Devil Token; if you can pass through all six zones within a thousand years, you will obtain six Black Devil Tokens." Big Devil looked at Wu Yuan. "Do you understand what this means?"

Wu Yuan already understood.

In the third trial, the maximum number of Black Devil Tokens he could obtain was not three, but six!

I have already obtained six Black Devil Tokens. If I can obtain another six Black Devil Tokens in the third trial, I’ll have a total of twelve Black Devil Tokens.

Wu Yuan felt a rush of adrenaline, realizing he had this advantage.

If he could advance as the top candidate all the way, then after completing the third trial, he could begin the eighth trial right away. He could then access the ultimate inheritance.

"Ninety-five candidates have entered before you, and so far only seven have reached the second zone. All the others are still stuck in the first zone," Big Devil said indifferently.

"As you progress through the six zones, the difficulty level will rise. How far you can go within a thousand years depends on your ability.

If you can't even get past the first zone within a thousand years, this is where your journey ends."

"Understood," Wu Yuan nodded.

Whoosh~

Big Devil's illusory image dispersed into countless points of light, leaving Wu Yuan alone at the entrance of the passage.

Twelve Black Devil Tokens. Stay calm!

Wu Yuan tried to steady himself.

The existence of seven trials suggests that in Sovereign Black Devil’s expectations, most will fail to obtain twelve tokens.

Moreover, Archimmortal Xiang Fei and Astral Lord Gu Shou have been here for over a hundred years and are still stuck in the second zone.

And it gets harder as one progresses.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

This third trial must not be simple.

Whoosh!

Wu Yuan took a step forward and flew into the first zone, immediately feeling an unseen pressure weighing him down.

At the same time, he received a reminder that if he couldn't complete ten incomplete Dao pattern diagrams, he wouldn't be able to leave this zone.

This?

As Wu Yuan's gaze fell upon one of the diagrams, he was completely stunned.

The stone wall before him was etched with countless Dao patterns, evoking a familiar sensation deep within him. Invisible waves of Dao resonance surrounded him.

Creation Essence Diagram?

Wu Yuan could hardly believe it.

The consciousnesses of his true selves were shared, so even if Wu Yuan’s qi refiner self couldn't utilize Creation True Intent, he naturally recognized it.

Moreover, his qi refiner self could employ Life True Intent and Death True Intent without an issue.

In the Immutable Land, Wu Yuan's body refiner self had even spent several hundred years comprehending the Creation Essence Diagrams. How could he make a mistake?

No, there's a slight difference.

Wu Yuan quickly noticed.

This isn't a complete Creation Dao pattern diagram... it's interlaced with profundities of the fundamental nature of all things.

The two were related. Wu Yuan’s two true selves had spent more than five hundred years analyzing the fundamental nature of all things and beings in the second trial. He had delved extremely deeply into this path.

I made the right bet! Indeed, choosing to take the path of analyzing all things during the second trial has proven useful.

Wu Yuan thought excitedly.

If I had only aimed to pass the second trial back then, I wouldn’t have been as prepared now.

Let's take a look at the other Dao pattern diagrams on the stone wall.

Quickly, Wu Yuan began to look at the other complete Dao pattern diagrams, noticing the differences and categorizing them.

Then, he began to examine the hundred incomplete Dao pattern diagrams.

A hundred Dao pattern diagrams. Ten of them pertain to the Great Dao of Creation, but the profundities they contain are very shallow.

Ten are related to the Great Dao of Spacetime.

With Wu Yuan's Dao comprehension, he could naturally easily distinguish these two Great Daos.

The other eighty Dao pattern diagrams seem to involve profundities of other Great Daos, very profound, but not paths I have undertaken...

Wu Yuan categorized them, already understanding the purpose of the third trial.

This trial is to screen for those with the talent to comprehend the Great Dao directly.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

If one performs well in pill cultivation, equipment cultivation, and talisman cultivation during the second trial, their talent for analyzing all things usually wouldn't be lacking, and they would have hope of comprehending Great Daos based on the foundation established from self-study.

Analyzing all things is the foundation.

This method of testing the candidates was indeed unique, surpassing Wu Yuan's imagination and understanding.

As for the so-called completion of the Dao pattern diagrams, it simply involves choosing one of the Great Daos, studying its Dao pattern diagrams, and thoroughly understanding them. Then finally, inscribing one's insights into the incomplete Dao pattern diagrams.

Wu Yuan's gaze fell on the incomplete Dao pattern diagrams in the distance.

Inscribing Dao patterns appeared straightforward at first glance. However, much like mastering secret arts and teachings, one must deeply comprehend them to perform the inscriptions effectively. The outward appearance of these patterns was secondary; the true challenge lay in grasping the Dao resonance and the profound mysteries they held within.

During the second trial, my skills paled in comparison to those Archimmortals and Archdeities who have honed their abilities over countless eras.

Wu Yuan smiled.

But this third trial seems tailor-made for me.

Ordinary Archimmortals and Archdeities mostly only comprehended one Lesser Law, how far were they from the Great Daos?

As for Wu Yuan? He had already crystallized the True Intent of two different Great Daos early in his journey.

Spacetime. My qi refiner self excels in the Great Dao of Spacetime.

Wu Yuan made his choice.

Then let's complete these ten incomplete Dao pattern diagrams of the Great Dao of Spacetime.

He began to comprehend.

...

In the highest-grade pill-refining ground of the Cang Feng Eldritch World.

"You've already advanced to the third trial?" Eldritch Sovereign Kua Chi was slightly surprised. "And you feel confident?"

"Yes!" Wu Yuan's body refiner self's eyes shone brightly. "Master, from now on I won't study pill cultivation, equipment cultivation, and such anymore, but will continue to focus on deducing and analyzing the basic units of life, continuing to research the fundamental nature of all things.

Apart from these spirit herbs, I need more substances," Wu Yuan said. "Ores, metals, spiritual liquids... all special substances, I need them all."

Analyzing the fundamental nature of heaven and earth was an incredibly difficult endeavor, and this path was vast and unfathomable.

The countless life forms were composed of 5.5 million basic units of life. And for the vast array of substances, their fundamental natures were even more complex and mysterious.

"Alright," Sovereign Kua Chi nodded. Although he wasn't clear about Wu Yuan's situation, he trusted his disciple's judgment.

My qi refiner self is comprehending the Great Dao of Spacetime, but those Dao pattern diagrams also contain numerous profundities about the natural order of all things.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

The myriad paths of heaven and earth are essentially related.

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

My body refiner self will continue to analyze all things and beings, which will naturally help my qi refiner self complete the incomplete Dao pattern diagrams.

Wu Yuan had figured out his plan.

All that was left was to execute it with his full effort.

...

Time passed, and more Archimmortals and Archdeities successively advanced to the third trial, bringing the total number of people at the trial ground to over a hundred.

Rumble~

On this day, invisible waves radiated out, immediately attracting the attention of over a hundred Archimmortals and Archdeities.

"Someone has made it to the second zone?"

"Who?"

"Probably one of those ranked near the top," most of the Archimmortals and Archdeities were still calm, as they had experienced this many times before. The newcomers were generally more curious.

Soon, a collective shock rippled through the crowd.

Upon investigation, they realized that the one who had cleared the first zone was none other than Ming Jian!

"One year!"

"Ming Jian only started the third trial a year ago, right?”

"A single year, and he's already advanced to the second zone? Impossible!" The assembled Archimmortals and Archdeities were completely incredulous.