Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

At the edge of the Chongxiao River outside, there’s a staircase reaching straight into the clouds, which is the embodiment of the so-called Chongxiao Ladder, while within the Chongxiao Ladder space, there is also a staircase reaching straight towards the sky.

Perhaps the staircase within this space, where Yun Xiao steps at this moment, is the real Chongxiao Ladder, and from this moment on, he truly begins the test of the Chongxiao Ladder.

However, Yun Xiao naturally doesn’t know what the original test of the Chongxiao Ladder was; he only knows that everything changed after the Artifact Heart cultivated Spiritual Wisdom.

This might be transforming from one test to another, though truly, should anyone pass this test, they may not reach the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud; all these are merely the games of that Half-step Holy Spirit.

The previous human cultivators scrambled within the Chongxiao Ladder, for even hundreds of years, yet still lost within the Chongxiao Ladder, unsure if they had passed the test.

This is indeed the greatest reliance of the Half-step Holy Spirit compared to the previous so-called Myriad Phenomena Stone Stair Formation; only on the Chongxiao Ladder can he fully exert the control power of the Artifact Heart Strange Spirit.

Swish!

As Yun Xiao stepped onto the first stone step, the scene instantly changed drastically, becoming utterly unfamiliar to him; the stone steps that were barely a yard wide now seemed to have no end on either side.

On the vast stone steps, there was only Yun Xiao alone, and even when he turned his head back, he found that the path he came from was also an endless stone stairway.

It was as if Yun Xiao had already been walking on these stone steps for dozens or even hundreds of years, reaching the middle position of the steps.

This made him suddenly understand why people like Xue Changze were always climbing upwards but never reached the end.

When he broke the Myriad Phenomena Stone Stair Formation earlier, Yun Xiao had already had some understanding of the Chongxiao Ladder space, and now that this situation happened again, he was not the least bit panicked.

Similarly, at this moment, Yun Xiao closed his eyes, his Soul Power overflowed, but for some reason, this time, his Soul Power did not sense the slightest anomaly.

Whether it was in front, behind, left, or right, or above and below Yun Xiao, it was as if the space was solidly real, and even the endless stone steps did not seem like the illusion in the Illusion Realm.

"Yun Xiao, if you can truly walk out of the range of these endless stone steps, why not let you go to the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud?"

A voice filled with mockery came downward from the sky, emitted by the Half-step Holy Spirit, and hearing him speak this way, Yun Xiao merely responded with a smirk.

Yun Xiao knew clearly that with the resentment from destroying his physical body that day, there was no way the other party could let him go; the hatred between them had already reached the point of being irreconcilable.

Yet, the other party still talked this way, leaving only one possibility: in the heart of the Half-step Holy Spirit, Yun Xiao had no chance of walking out of these endless stone steps; it was a confidence-filled taunt.

This Hand of the Half-step Holy Spirit was undoubtedly the most confident; even for someone like Yun Xiao, at the Middle Stage of the Heavenly Realm, or even other human experts who were likewise at the Half-step Holy Rank, walking out was impossible.

Unless one reached the Holy Rank Third Realm level, then they could use the unrivaled Holy Grade Meridian Qi, combined with Space Power, to forcibly break through these endless stone steps.

Strictly speaking, these endless stone steps don’t count as a large array but are a special application by the Half-step Holy Spirit of its own space body, so relatively speaking, regular array formation arts have no effect on these endless stone steps.

"Haha, thanks for that!"

Though Yun Xiao didn’t believe that the Half-step Holy Spirit would truly keep his promise, this undoubtedly gave him some time for research, so he raised his head towards the sky, giving a gentle laugh to the unknown fellow somewhere above.

What Yun Xiao fears the most now is the Half-step Holy Spirit coming down to battle with him; if so, he would have to rely entirely on the golden snake worm, Little Five.

Even if he could gain victory in the end, Yun Xiao couldn’t guarantee he’d be free from any mortal danger; since that fellow overestimates himself so much, let’s see who the final winner will be?

After the light laugh, Yun Xiao no longer paid any attention to the Half-step Holy Spirit and instead sat cross-legged on the stone steps as if falling into a special state akin to an old monk entering meditation.

Yun Xiao was not genuinely meditating but was circulating his power, making a slender black line appear on a certain spot on the sides of his neck.

"The Heaven and Earth Energy within the Chongxiao Ladder space is so rich, might as well give it a try!"

Yun Xiao sensed the Heaven and Earth Energy outside and compared it to the Tenglong Continent, muttering quietly to himself, perhaps this was the real reason for sitting cross-legged.

The Heaven and Earth Energy within the Chongxiao Ladder space, though not as rich as the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud, was vastly more abundant than the Tenglong Continent.

Otherwise, cultivators of the Lingyun Realm like Xue Chang or strong practitioners of the Heavenly Realm would not have been trapped for years, though their strength has significantly improved.

Unfortunately, their strength, while enhanced, still could not escape the confines of the Chongxiao Stairs Space, until this time with Yun Xiao’s arrival.

If it were the heaven and earth energy on the Tenglong Continent, Yun Xiao might not have had such thoughts. The two black lines appearing on his neckline undoubtedly marked the breakthrough to both Lingyun and Heavenly Realms, signifying the emergence of two obscure Ancestor Veins.

Through this period of sensing, Yun Xiao also made some guesses. He knew those two black Ancestor Veins seemed related to his soul power.

If someone were to take a closer look, they would find that Yun Xiao’s Ancestor Veins were not just on the sides of his neck but had extended into his hair, directly piercing the Baihui Acupoint at the top of his head.

Since he discovered these two black lines, Yun Xiao himself couldn’t see them clearly, yet he could sense some obscure things—they were likely to significantly enhance his soul power.

Within this space belonging to the Half-step Holy Spirit, Yun Xiao believed relying on his naked eye alone was absolutely impossible to discern anything. Even formations from his past life practice seemed to hold little utility.

However, Yun Xiao tried earlier; using his current soul power, he couldn’t sense much. Only by further boosting his soul power might he find hope of escape.

Yun Xiao had reason to believe that if he could completely activate these two Ancestor Veins, his soul power would advance significantly. Even if he couldn’t breakthrough to the Holy Rank soul level, it would surely aid his current endeavor greatly.

All of this is premised on the assumption that the Half-step Holy Spirit does not appear to interfere—at least, for now, it seems like a chance for Yun Xiao.

Furthermore, in this Chongxiao Stairs Space, Yun Xiao could have such confidence, relying on the richness of nature’s spiritual energy, which perhaps aids in activating the two soul Ancestor Veins.

While Yun Xiao was borrowing heaven and earth energy, seeking to fully activate his Ancestor Vein power, he also remained vigilant against the Half-step Holy Spirit.

Over three days, it was as though the Half-step Holy Spirit had vanished into thin air—not a single sound was made, and even its aura completely disappeared.

This undoubtedly delighted Yun Xiao’s heart, allowing him to deduce some intentions of the Half-step Holy Spirit. It seemed that the entity had much confidence in this Endless Stone Stairs, not fearing Yun Xiao might have means to dismantle it.

This feeling of letting an opponent exhaust their capabilities and still remain powerless, even after enhancing soul power, was what made the Half-step Holy Spirit most excited.

This was even more anticipated than tormenting ordinary human cultivators like Xue Changze, so it watched Yun Xiao endlessly absorb heaven and earth energy without any reaction.

After three days, Yun Xiao’s Ancient Dragon Taming Technique activated, countless amounts of heaven and earth energy were swallowed into his body, eventually not converting into Meridian Qi but saturating those two faint black Ancestor Veins.

Boom! Boom!

On the morning of the fourth day, a sudden surge of immense power erupted from Yun Xiao’s being—accurately from the two black lines on the side of his neck, rushing towards the top of his head—with an astonishing force.

Yet, the wave of power seemed less tangible and more of an illusory, unique force. When the hidden Half-step Holy Spirit sensed it, recognizing it seemed to be soul power, it couldn’t help but intensify its cold laughter within.

Because the Half-step Holy Spirit sensed clearly that although Yun Xiao’s soul power had greatly advanced, it hadn’t truly broken through to the Holy Rank level, merely reaching the peak of Advanced Heavenly Rank.

The soul of peak Advanced Heavenly Rank, for ordinary human cultivators or even some Advanced Heavenly Rank Meridian Refining Masters, was an incredibly rare creation.

The breakthrough in soul power was ten times more challenging than Meridian Qi cultivation. In the Half-step Holy Spirit’s mind, since the opponent’s soul power hadn’t reached the true Holy Rank, it didn’t pose much threat to the Endless Stone Stairs.

"Tsk tsk, as expected, those are two Ancestor Veins targeting the soul!"

While the Half-step Holy Spirit inwardly laughed coldly, Yun Xiao finally opened his eyes for the first time in three days, sensing the soul power elevated to the peak of Advanced Heavenly Rank, and he was undoubtedly satisfied.

Moreover, Yun Xiao’s sensing revealed that the two soul Ancestor Veins weren’t fully activated.

Even so, it had already massively elevated his soul power—what would happen upon unleashing their full might then?

When the time comes to activate the two soul Ancestor Veins, it might even boost this peak Advanced Heavenly Rank soul directly to Half-step Holy Rank or even the true Holy Rank level—that’s a tier only Holy Rank Meridian Refining Masters can achieve.

Yun Xiao indeed had quite a few thoughts, but his tenacious nature soon calmed him down. When he stood up, looking at the Endless Stone Stairs around him, there was already a trace of confidence in his eyes.