Desolate Devouring Art

Almost two hours into the first trial, Liu Wuxie was the only participant left inside the ring. Boundless soul energy raged around him like a furious sea, driven by the relentless pressure of ten Immortal Venerables.

He was a solitary raft beneath mountainous waves, a bird trapped in the heart of a thunderstorm. One wrong move could rip him apart.

The waves rose higher with each assault, swaying him from side to side.

A little more! Liu Wuxie roared inwardly. Deep within his soul sea, the crack spread wider. The Heavenly Dao Book cast a curtain of light around him, easing the Immortal Venerables' crushing pressure.

"What is happening?" the ten Immortal Venerables asked, looking at one another and seeing the same profound shock in the others' eyes.

Their soul energy could no longer harm Liu Wuxie through that golden radiance. Yet the Heavenly Dao Book continued to draw it into him, allowing him to forge it into spears and drive them toward the depths of his soul sea.

A lean man bearing a broadsword arrived on the platform. No one noticed him as every gaze remained fastened on Liu Wuxie.

"A Profound Immortal is the last one still taking the trial?" Long Yuanxiong asked, disbelief flashing through his eyes.

Suddenly, a low hum filled the air. The mist began to part, slowly exposing two mountains.

Astonished cries swept over the platform. "Look! The Matriarch Cradle Peak has appeared!"

Liu Wuxie's golden light had awakened the Matriarch Cradle Peak. How could that possibly happen?

Strange expressions crossed the faces of the ten examiners, leaving them at a loss for words.

A heavenly lake lay atop the Matriarch Cradle Peak. At its heart bloomed an immense lotus, roughly ten meters wide.

Upon the lotus sat a woman in a white gown, a sash encircling her slender waist. A hairpin adorned her hair, and her delicate features looked like the flawless work of heaven itself. Her smooth skin shone with a crystalline luster. Such nobility marked the bearing that others scarcely dared to look at directly.

Her eyes held the brilliance of stars. Stray locks softened her temples, giving her beauty a faint touch of the earthly. Her willow-leaf brows moved almost imperceptibly, suggesting some troubling thought.

When she opened her eyes, golden light swept through the surroundings. The cries of phoenixes mingled with the roars of dragons as lotuses rose from the earth.

"Who has awakened me?" Shui Yao murmured.

She had spent six years in seclusion. Only moments earlier, an unfamiliar aura had surged into the Matriarch Cradle Peak, rousing her.

An immortal crane landed before her. It transformed into a beautiful woman, who bowed with graceful composure.

"Mistress, a mysterious force came from the outer peak and struck the Matriarch Cradle Peak," the woman reported. For thousands of years, this immortal crane had served Shui Yao.

Shui Yao beckoned, and ripples traveled across the pool. An image emerged on the water, showing everything happening on the platform.

"A Profound Immortal?" Shui Yao murmured, her brows drawing together as she studied Liu Wuxie.

"The Azure Jade Palace is holding its recruitment drive today. The applicants are taking the soul energy trial," the woman explained.

"Go and investigate this man," Shui Yao instructed, waving her hand. Mist answered her summons and concealed the Matriarch Cradle Peak once more.

"I'll see to it," the woman replied. Returning to her immortal crane form, she flew down from the peak, then took on the guise of an ordinary cultivator and entered the crowd to gather information.

Everyone on the platform remained stunned, including the ten Immortal Venerables. Whether the Matriarch Cradle Peak's appearance promised good fortune or calamity, none could say.

Liu Wuxie knew nothing of what was happening outside. He continued pressing into the depths of his soul sea until something finally cracked, like an eggshell breaking open. The sound was faint, yet within his soul sea, it boomed with enough force to make his eardrums ache.

Ji Pei persisted in increasing the pressure on Liu Wuxie. No matter how far he pushed it, Liu Wuxie suffered no harm. Even the combined soul energy of all ten examiners could no longer endanger his life.

Then the depths of Liu Wuxie's soul sea opened, and his head seemed to split apart. The agony was ten times worse than the torment of countless ants gnawing at his heart.

"Aaargh!" Liu Wuxie screamed, seizing his head with both hands.

Confusion swept through the spectators and the ten Immortal Venerables above them. Moments ago, he had appeared perfectly well. None understood why such torment had suddenly seized him.

"Pull back your soul energy!" Elder Kong roared, ordering the others to recall their power before Liu Wuxie suffered harm.

Xia Ru, Xu Rui, and the other examiners immediately withdrew their soul energy. Ji Pei was the last to do so.

"His soul sea must have ruptured. Nothing else would make him scream like that," the crowd murmured. Everyone took his pain as proof that his soul sea had shattered and damaged his mind.

Many spectators spat. "Serves him right for showing off. A mere Profound Immortal trying to stand against Immortal Venerables? He's lucky he's still breathing." The high-level Divine Immortals were especially contemptuous. They had barely lasted an hour, while Liu Wuxie had endured two. His achievement had humiliated them, and now they could vent at his apparent downfall.

Jeers came from every side. Liu Wuxie had come to the Azure Jade Palace alone, with neither friends nor family here to defend him. No voice rose on his behalf.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

For Liu Wuxie, however, the world had gone silent. He could hear nothing around him, as though he had crossed into a realm no one had ever entered. The agony in his soul sea slowly ebbed. At its core, the Heavenly Dao Book stood guard, capable of restoring it even if it were to rupture.

With the first returning thread of consciousness came the rush of insults and mockery. Liu Wuxie shook his head gently, urging his thoughts to clear swiftly.

He was alone within the Azure Jade Palace, surrounded by danger. One mistake might be his last.

The woman posing as an ordinary cultivator left without drawing notice. She had learned everything she needed from those around her. Resuming her immortal crane form, she rose into the sky.

When the pain receded, Liu Wuxie directed his divine sense into his soul sea. The mist that had once filled it was gone. The primordial force occupied its place.

The deeper world startled him. There were no answers waiting there, no memories or information to explain what he sought. Only primordial force and ancient lightning filled that hidden expanse. The instant his divine sense drew near, the lightning obliterated it.

He had unlocked the deepest reaches of his soul sea, yet he still lacked the ability to enter them. Terrifying tongues of Soul Fire surged from within.

"One day, my divine sense will reach inside, and I'll find the answers I'm looking for," Liu Wuxie murmured.

The ancient energy permeating that hidden world revealed how extraordinary it was. Its secrets, however, would remain beyond his reach until he could enter it himself.

For now, he turned his divine sense upon the rest of his soul sea. The ancient energies it had absorbed had given it greater substance. He estimated that his soul energy could now rival that of Golden Immortals, however impossible that claim might seem to others.

"Are you all right, Wuxie?" Elder Kong asked softly, landing beside him carefully so as not to startle him.

Liu Wuxie slowly withdrew his divine sense and opened his eyes. A powerful wave of soul energy swept out, and Elder Kong's expression shifted. He could sense what the ten Immortal Venerables' pressure had accomplished. Liu Wuxie's divine sense was now dozens of times purer than before.

"I'm all right. Thank you, Elder Kong," Liu Wuxie replied. He had sensed everything that had occurred overhead. Though no familial ties bound them, the elder's concern had earned his gratitude.

"I'm glad you're unharmed. The second trial is next, but I'll delay it for as long as I can," Elder Kong told him through a secret voice transmission. Waiting for Long Yuanxiong had already consumed considerable time, and the next trial would soon begin. Believing Liu Wuxie was still vulnerable after such an ordeal, Elder Kong feared that continuing immediately would be risky.

"There's no need. I can manage, so please go ahead," Liu Wuxie replied, rising to his feet. The recent transformation of his soul sea had left his head heavy and his footing unsteady, and he needed time to adapt.

Disbelieving cries broke from the crowd as Liu Wuxie stood up without any apparent injury. "He's all right? How?"

Even the Immortal Kings could no longer maintain their composure. "He survived the pressure of ten Immortal Venerables? How is that possible? This has to be a joke!" His earlier suffering had convinced everyone that he had lost his mind.

Liu Wuxie ignored the voices. He stretched lightly, trying to adjust to the discomfort as quickly as possible.

Meanwhile, countless eyes turned toward Long Yuanxiong. People flocked to greet the new arrival.

"Welcome, Brother Long!" people greeted from every direction, and Long Yuanxiong answered them with a nod. He had skipped the first trial and proceeded directly to the second. No one objected. With his cultivation, the first trial would have presented no difficulty.

"Everyone who passed the first trial, come back to the center," Elder Kong announced.

The applicants waiting on the platform's left side promptly returned. This year's assessment followed different rules than in previous years, leaving them uncertain about what came next.

Hostile looks settled on Liu Wuxie from across the gathering. "That brat claimed first place in the opening trial. Whatever it takes, I need a strong result in the second." None were more conspicuous than those of the three Golden Immortals.