With his soul foundation completely stabilized, Han Chen exhaled and let the last threads of tension fade. He closed his eyes once more, letting his mind plunge inward.
Within, his Sea of Consciousness stretched as far as memory allowed—an endless expanse of midnight black waters, the air thick with crimson mist. Overhead, a red moon hung eternal, patient and silent. On the water, two things always greeted him: the seven-story wooden building, and the black eye with a purple pupil floating, unmoving, in the air.
His avatar approached the looming building and—without a sound or a nudge—its doors swung open, letting him pass into the first floor.
Until now, Han Chen had explored only a tiny corner of this immense place—just Hall 1 out of the eighteen halls on the ground floor. Each hall branched into thirty-one rooms, and every room contained mountains of slips, books, and orbs—tens of thousands in total. Decades wouldn't be enough to read it all by hand.
But today, as his soul foundation had grown beyond its former limits, he could sense that his divine sense and his ability to read and comprehend—was now far sharper, nearly on par with a one-star Foundation Establishment cultivator. He needed this edge.
Han Chen wasn't yet Foundation Establishment physically, but if he wanted to walk a true dao path—to condense a dao heart—he had to understand the foundation's essence.
He stepped beyond Hall 1 for the first time, entering Hall 2.
The corridor inside was cool and empty, save for something that made him halt: at its center swayed a bamboo rocking chair. In the chair, asleep, was a girl with snowy white hair and thin white brows. Two furry ears rested atop her head, drooping gently, and a long white tail curled from her waist, draped over the side of the chair. Her dress was a vivid red, and though her face was as youthful as a child's, an ancient depth lingered in her presence.
Han Chen stilled, surprised. He had never seen another soul in the library before—never ventured so far in.
As he approached, the girl's ears flicked, and she slowly woke, eyes blinking open with faint confusion. She stretched and murmured, "Oh… you're here. That means you've reached Foundation Establishment realm."
Han Chen's brow furrowed. Her presence felt calm, somehow reassuring, but also deeply strange.
...
After long silence.
She continued, "Don't be surprised. Any artifact above grade five will have an artifact spirit—weak or strong. This library is a grade… #" her voice glitched, warping for a breath before she smoothed it back, "# …artifact refined by the Venerable Heaven-Desecrating Devil Immortal, and I'm Yue Ruo, its artifact spirit. Now that the library is yours, I'm your artifact spirit. I didn't show myself before because I couldn't figure out how to introduce myself… then you came to the second hall, and, well, here I was." She looked away, ears folding, clearly flustered beneath her shyness.
...
Han Chen carefully weighed her words and the situation. The library—and the Heavenly Eye's origin—had always been shrouded in mystery. But if she truly was its spirit, it fit. And if not? Well, anyone who could deceive him here was likely so powerful that her intentions didn't matter in the face of his current cultivation.
He finally spoke, "You said I'd reached Foundation Establishment, but I'm still only Qi Condensation five stars. My soul foundation did reach Foundation Establishment, though. That's why I'm here—to try to understand my dao path and condense my dao heart, thinking it might make my next breakthrough easier."
The artifact spirit studied him for a moment, then nodded thoughtfully. "So, you want to condense a soul foundation first, to prepare for the real thing? That'd make the later breakthrough ten times easier…" Her tone softened and grew serious. "But… don't force it. Your dao heart isn't something you decide. It forms on its own, through your actions."
Han Chen paused, reflecting. "If what she says is true—what will my dao heart be?" He addressed the girl, "You seem wise, and you must've been here a long time. What do you think my dao heart could become?"
She stood, drifting closer, and pressed a fingertip to Han Chen's chest. A faint ripple of soul energy traveled through his avatar, and he felt it echo in his real body reclining in the grassland of flowers.
"Master," she said quietly, "your dao is not yet formed, and you talk already of condensing it. Recognize your true nature first—that will become your dao seed, and only then will your dao heart grow." Han Chen closed his eyes. "Recognize my true nature…" he thought, as the echo of her words settled into his bones.
And in that stillness, he opened his eyes and found himself again in the silent grassland, beneath the unmoving sun, the petals shifting gently around him.
...
Han Chen sat cross-legged amidst the sea of grass and countless flowers, the gentle breeze bending the petals around him. The quiet of the place held him like a cocoon, allowing his thoughts to settle and churn at once.
"Venerable Heaven-Desecrating Devil Immortal. Who exactly is he?" Han Chen mused, brow furrowed slightly. "What is the true origin of the Heavenly Eye and the library?"
The silence stretched long, broken only by the soft rustle of leaves and the distant hum of the sun hanging unmoving above."If the library is at least a grade five Artifact to have its own spirit, then perhaps the Heavenly Eye has one too," he considered. "No, it can't be just grade five. With the Dome's suppressive power, it must be at least a grade seven Artifact to resist that."
He shook off the thought. "Let's leave the origin aside for now. As Yue Ruo said, I need to condense my dao heart to reach Foundation Establishment Realm. I should first figure out my true nature before reaching six-star Qi Condensation, and let my dao seed grow naturally until then."
His gaze darkened, contemplative."But what is my true nature? A ruthless path? Or a demonic path?" He closed his eyes briefly, recalling the turmoil within. "I don't fit the righteous path, yet I want freedom like the demonic path. My goal aligns with the ruthless path—if something must be done to reach the top, no matter how ruthless, I'll do it. But I want a dao heart unshakable like the righteous path's, and a dao origin so strong it transcends the world's limits."
The silence deepened as Han Chen pondered, long and hard, but no clear answer came.
...
Han Chen's meditation was cut short by a sudden, resonant voice that echoed across the flower-strewn grassland."The Third Trial begins now."
In an instant, the world twisted and shifted. A crack like thunder filled his ears—crack!—and then everything turned black.
When his vision returned, Han Chen found himself standing at the foot of a sprawling mountain, surrounded by open plains.
The path leading up before him spiraled tightly, snaking its way toward the jagged peak—a daunting ascent cloaked in mist.
The voice echoed again, softer this time but no less commanding:"The Third Trial is based on Restrictions. This mountain holds a total of 111,333 restrictions. The first step contains one restriction; the second step three restrictions. The third step returns to one restriction, but it is far stronger than before. This cycle continues, growing more complex and powerful as you ascend—until all 111,333 restrictions are faced across 55,667 steps. To move from one step to another, each restriction must be solved. The time limit for this trial is eight months."
Murmurs spread rapidly among the crowd gathered around the mountain's base. Over two hundred cultivators had assembled, their eyes wide with a mixture of awe and concern.
"What are the 111,333 restrictions?" one person whispered nervously."How is it even possible to solve them all?" another responded, voice barely above a breath.
A sudden hush fell when the voice cut through the murmurs again:"Fighting is strictly forbidden within this mountain. Any cultivator who attacks another will immediately face annihilation by all 111,333 restrictions acting simultaneously."
The crowd's whispers turned frantic, echoing questions and doubts.
"What? Annihilation by all restrictions?"
"How can anyone survive that?"
"Who would dare try?"
Han Chen's gaze remained steady, sizing up the towering challenge ahead. No fighting... but a mountain filled with unyielding restrictions, he thought."This trial is as much a test of will and wisdom as of power." The game had changed.
Han Chen's thoughts were interrupted as the voice thundered again, carrying a grim decree clearly across the sprawling plains."Out of the two hundred participants gathered, any who do not reach the mountain's summit by the time limit… will die."
Whispers rippled like a cold wind through the crowd. "Die…" the word repeated softly, heavy with dread.
One voice broke from the murmurs, shaky as it echoed to many, "At least this time, anyone can pass if they reach the top in time. In the previous trial, only five out of fifty survived."
The crowd's tension thickened. Fear was tempered by a flicker of hope—the brutal rules were clear, but this meant survival was not impossible for more than a handful.
Han Chen's gaze remained steady, mind already beginning to weigh the enormity of the restrictions he'd need to unravel. Time was limited, the mountain vast, but opportunity was there.
...
Han Chen stood still as others began to move forward into the imposing mountain path.
One by one, challengers stepped onto the first step, triggering the complex framework of restrictions. Immediately, the environment shifted violently—spiritual beasts forged of pure soul energy burst forth, snarling and lunging with ghostly speed.
The challengers summoned their soul power, weaving it deftly to alter the cores of each restriction. With careful manipulation, some forced the beasts to stop their assaults, allowing passage to the second step.
At other moments, fierce natural elements betrayed no warning: thunder cracked like cracking bones, fire roared in violent bursts, and ice cascaded in frozen torrents—all designed to test resolve and insight.
Sometimes the restrictions manifested peculiar challenges far stranger than mere beasts or elemental strikes, puzzles and tests that required perception beyond strength.
Yet, through the chaos, Han Chen remained rooted in place. His gaze was steady, unreadable. He made no move forward.
Patience, he thought, rushing without understanding will only lead to failure.
...
Han Chen's consciousness shifted, reappearing within the quiet corridor of Hall 2 on the first floor.
Yue Ruo sat on the rocking chair, engrossed in a book bound in pitch-black leather. Looking up, she smiled softly and said, "Master, you're here."
Han Chen replied, his voice calm but resolute. "Help me find the basics and intermediate knowledge of restrictions. I want to understand them clearly before I step onto that path."
With a subtle wave of her hand, Yue Ruo summoned knowledge from the depths of the hall.
Forty-two slips, thirteen orbs, and three thick books floated out from rooms 4, 8, 18, and 28, their contents shimmering faintly in the dim light.
Hours passed as Han Chen immersed himself in study.
He learned that the restrictions are divided into two types, Natural restrictions and Artificial restrictions. A restriction was composed of three fundamental elements: the power source, the core, and the coding within the core. The power source was the raw energy fueling the restriction—sometimes spiritual energy, elemental force, or spiritual stones.
The core contained the coding of spiritual energy that shaped this power into a willed form. This form dictated whether the restriction would attack, defend, or remain neutral—and who or what the target would be.
By modifying this core's code, a cultivator could halt hostile restrictions or even turn neutral restrictions into hostile ones.
But restrictions were infinitely complex; their variations as countless as stars in the night sky. Each one a unique configuration of power and will, designed to test everything from strength to perception, strategy, and spirit.
Han Chen closed the last book, his mind buzzing but clearer. The mountain's trial was no mere physical conquest—it was an intricate dance with coded energy itself, awaiting his mastery.
-----TO BE CONTINUED-----