The interior of the Kun Peng Nest defied conventional spatial logic in ways that made even Su Chen's experienced mind pause to recalibrate. The entrance had appeared as a simple vertical passage carved into ancient stone, but the moment his team crossed the threshold, they found themselves standing in a vast chamber that could not possibly exist within the physical boundaries they had observed from outside. The ceiling stretched upward into darkness so complete that even his enhanced vision could not penetrate it, while the floor beneath their feet was composed of some form of crystallized water that held the frozen images of enormous fish swimming through impossible depths.
Su Chen's dual pupils immediately began analyzing the spatial composition of their surroundings. The golden pupil revealed layers upon layers of formation arrays woven into the very fabric of the space, each one contributing to the dimensional expansion that allowed this impossible architecture to exist. The silver pupil showed him something more disturbing—the space itself was not stable. It shifted and folded according to patterns that suggested intelligence rather than mere mechanical function, as if the nest itself were a living entity that rearranged its internal structure to suit some unknowable purpose.
The other treasure hunters who had rushed in ahead of them were scattered throughout the chamber in small groups, their previous urgency replaced by cautious wariness. Several were examining the walls, which were covered in ancient pictographs depicting the life cycle of the Kun Peng—transformation from fish to bird, the mastery of water and sky, the techniques for traversing vast distances in single breaths. Others were attempting to probe the three passages that led deeper into the nest, each one emanating a different quality of spiritual pressure.
Saeko moved to position herself at Su Chen's left flank, her hand resting on her blade in a deceptively casual grip. Her Supreme Sword Bone resonated with the ambient spiritual energy, causing faint ripples of sword intent to emanate from her body. Several of the other cultivators glanced in her direction, their expressions tightening as they sensed the deadly sharpness that surrounded her like an invisible cloak.
Esdeath took the right flank, her presence causing the temperature in their immediate vicinity to drop by several degrees. Frost began to form on the crystallized floor beneath her feet, spreading outward in intricate fractal patterns. She surveyed the other treasure hunters with undisguised contempt, her ice-blue eyes cataloging potential threats and dismissing most of them as beneath her notice.
Xiao Yi Xian and Bibi Dong formed the rear guard, their contrasting energies creating an almost tangible barrier. The Poison Body's toxic aura intermingled with the Soul-Devouring Spider Emperor's spiritual power, producing a combination that made several nearby cultivators unconsciously edge away, their survival instincts warning them of danger they could not fully comprehend.
One of the treasure hunters, a young man wearing the crimson robes of the Fire Country's royal court, approached their group with what he clearly believed was appropriate caution. He stopped at what he judged to be a respectful distance and cupped his fists in the formal greeting of the cultivation world. His cultivation base radiated the aura of someone who had recently broken through to the Cave Heaven Realm, and the fire-attribute spiritual energy surrounding him suggested he possessed a relatively pure bloodline.
"This one is Huo Yan of the Fire Country Royal Family," he announced, his voice carrying the careful pronunciation of someone who had been trained in diplomatic protocol since childhood. "I greet fellow Daoists who have also come to seek fortune in the Kun Peng's legacy. Perhaps we might share information about the paths ahead and increase our mutual chances of success?"
Su Chen regarded him with the mild interest one might show to an insect that had landed on one's sleeve—not threatening enough to warrant immediate extermination, but not particularly welcomed either. He could read the young man's intentions clearly enough. Huo Yan had noticed that Su Chen's group consisted of only five individuals, yet none of them wore the colors or insignias of any major clan. In the social hierarchy of the cultivation world, this suggested they were either rogue cultivators of limited backing or representatives of some minor power. Either way, Huo Yan likely believed he could leverage his royal family's reputation to form an alliance that would benefit his own objectives while using Su Chen's group as disposable scouts for dangerous situations.
Before Su Chen could respond, another voice cut through the chamber with the sharp clarity of breaking ice.
"The Fire Country sends such inexperienced children to compete for supreme legacies now? How the mighty have fallen."
The speaker was a woman who appeared to be in her early twenties, though Su Chen's experience taught him that appearance meant little in the cultivation world. She wore robes of deep blue embroidered with silver patterns that resembled flowing water, and her cultivation base emanated the solid pressure of someone at the peak of the Engravement Realm. More significantly, her spiritual energy carried the unmistakable signature of an ancient bloodline—she was not fully human, but rather possessed a significant percentage of spirit beast heritage.
Huo Yan's expression darkened at the mockery, his hands clenching at his sides. "Ji Lingxi of the Western Spiritual Lake dares to speak of inexperience? Your clan has not produced a true genius in three generations. At least the Fire Country maintains standards for those we allow to represent us."
The woman called Ji Lingxi smiled, but the expression held no warmth. "Standards that allowed your cousin to die in the wilderness last year, hunted by demon beasts he should have easily defeated? Yes, such impressive standards indeed."
The temperature in the chamber rose noticeably as Huo Yan's anger manifested in flickering flames that danced across his shoulders. Several other treasure hunters began to pay closer attention to the confrontation, their body language suggesting they were calculating whether conflict might create opportunities for advancement or merely additional danger.
Su Chen observed the exchange with detached amusement. This was the nature of young masters and mistresses from major powers—they carried grudges like precious treasures, constantly seeking opportunities to demonstrate superiority over rivals from other clans. Their conflicts were as predictable as they were tedious, following patterns that had repeated throughout cultivation worlds across multiple dimensions. He had seen this same drama play out countless times in Soul Land, Battle Through the Heavens, and dozens of other realms. The names changed, but the fundamental dynamics remained constant.
However, before the situation could escalate into actual violence, a new presence made itself known. The three passages leading deeper into the nest simultaneously blazed with light—gold, silver, and black. The illumination pulsed in a rhythm that suggested breathing, and with each pulse, a pressure descended upon the chamber that forced every cultivator present to their knees.
Every cultivator except Su Chen and his team. The formation of Cave Heavens within his body, combined with the Indestructible Diamond Body and the countless bloodline enhancements he had accumulated, rendered him essentially immune to this level of spiritual pressure. His companions similarly resisted—Saeko's Supreme Sword Bone allowed her to cut through the oppressive force, Esdeath's Demon's Extract granted her dominance over environmental effects, Xiao Yi Xian's Poison Body operated on principles that transcended normal cultivation, and Bibi Dong's divine-grade martial spirits provided their own form of resistance.
Their ability to remain standing while others knelt drew immediate attention. Huo Yan stared up at them with an expression that mingled shock with nascent fear. Ji Lingxi's eyes narrowed in calculation, reassessing her initial judgment of their capabilities. Throughout the chamber, cultivators who had moments ago been posturing and threatening now looked upon Su Chen's group with the kind of wariness typically reserved for apex predators.
The pressure intensified, and a voice emerged from the depths of the nest—not spoken through air, but transmitted directly into the consciousness of every being present. It was ancient beyond measure, carrying the weight of eons and the authority of something that had once stood at the pinnacle of existence.
"**Inheritors who seek the Kun Peng's legacy, hear the trials that must be overcome. Three paths lie before you, each leading to a different aspect of my power. The Path of Transformation, where you must prove your ability to adapt and change. The Path of Velocity, where you must demonstrate speed that transcends mortal limitations. The Path of Duality, where you must balance opposing forces in perfect harmony. Choose wisely, for only those who succeed may proceed to the inner sanctum where the true inheritance awaits. Those who fail will be expelled from this sacred place, stripped of the memories of what transpired within, and barred from ever returning.**"
The voice faded, and with it, the oppressive pressure lifted. The three passages pulsed with their respective colors, each one emanating a different quality of spiritual energy that called to different aspects of cultivation aptitude.
The chamber erupted into immediate discussion as the various treasure hunters began debating which path to choose. Several groups formed around individuals with recognized expertise—those with transformation-type martial spirits gravitated toward the golden passage, speed-focused cultivators examined the silver path, and those who practiced dual-cultivation methods or possessed complementary yin-yang techniques considered the black passage.
Su Chen paid the debates no attention. His dual pupils were already analyzing each passage with systematic precision. The Path of Transformation's formations were designed to test not merely the ability to physically change shape, but rather the capacity to fundamentally alter one's existence while maintaining core identity. It would be a trial of soul stability and essence retention during metamorphosis.
The Path of Velocity's arrays measured more than simple speed—they evaluated the comprehension of spatial principles and the ability to exist in multiple locations simultaneously through supreme acceleration. One would need to move so fast that causality itself became uncertain, creating temporal echoes of one's presence.
The Path of Duality examined the balance between opposing forces, but not in the simplistic sense of yin and yang that most cultivators understood. This trial would test whether a challenger could simultaneously embody contradictory states—to be both fish and bird, solid and fluid, present and absent, without allowing the paradox to tear their existence apart.
"We will take all three paths simultaneously," Su Chen announced to his team.
Saeko turned to look at him, one eyebrow raised in silent question. The other treasure hunters who overheard his statement reacted with expressions ranging from confusion to outright disbelief. Taking multiple paths simultaneously was not simply difficult—it should have been impossible. Each path was designed as a complete trial that would occupy a challenger's full attention and resources.
"Lord Su Chen," Bibi Dong interjected carefully, "the remnant will indicated that challengers must choose a single path. Attempting multiple trials simultaneously might trigger defensive formations or disqualify us entirely."
Su Chen's smile was cold and calculating. "The Kun Peng's remnant will said we must choose wisely. It never specified that we could only choose one path. In fact, the entire premise of the Kun Peng's existence contradicts singular nature—it is both fish and bird, embodying transformation, speed, and duality simultaneously. The true inheritor would understand that these three aspects are not separate trials, but rather different facets of the same supreme truth."
He paused, allowing his words to sink in while his dual pupils continued their analysis of the formation structures. The more he examined the three passages, the more certain he became of his interpretation. The spatial arrays connecting them were not isolated systems but rather parts of a greater whole, with energy channels flowing between them in patterns that suggested intentional integration.
"However," Su Chen continued, his tone becoming more measured, "attempting all three paths does not mean we proceed recklessly. Saeko, you will take the Path of Transformation. Your Supreme Sword Bone has already fundamentally altered your essence—you understand change at the conceptual level. Esdeath, the Path of Duality is yours. Your Mahapadma exists in the contradiction between frozen time and continued consciousness. You embody paradox."
Esdeath's lips curved into a pleased smile at the assessment. She had long since recognized that her time-freezing ability operated on principles that defied conventional logic, creating a state where she moved freely while the universe remained suspended—an impossibility that she had nevertheless made reality through sheer force of will and the power of her Demon's Extract.
"Xiao Yi Xian and Bibi Dong, you will accompany me through the Path of Velocity," Su Chen concluded. "The trial will test spatial comprehension and the ability to exist across multiple states simultaneously. Your respective abilities to manipulate poison—which exists as solid, liquid, and gas—and soul energy—which transcends physical form—will provide valuable perspectives."
Bibi Dong nodded slowly, processing the strategy. Her experience as Supreme Pontiff had taught her to recognize when a leader possessed genuine insight versus mere arrogance, and Su Chen's explanation demonstrated clear understanding of both the trials and his team's capabilities. Still, uncertainty flickered in her expression.
"What if the trials are designed to be mutually exclusive?" she asked. "If the formations detect multiple groups from the same faction attempting different paths, they might interpret it as an attempt to game the system and respond with countermeasures."
"Then we ensure the formations do not recognize us as a single faction," Su Chen replied smoothly. He reached into his storage space and withdrew three jade tokens, each inscribed with complex runic patterns that shimmered with his spiritual energy. "These are isolation talismans I prepared using principles from the Swallowed Star universe's identity masking technology, combined with formation theory from Soul Land. Each token will disguise your spiritual signature, making it appear as though you belong to different lineages. The formations will read you as unaffiliated individuals rather than coordinated team members."
He handed one token to Saeko and another to Esdeath, keeping the third for himself. The jade felt warm to the touch, pulsing gently as it attuned to each wielder's unique energy signature before beginning its masking function. Within seconds, Saeko's spiritual presence shifted subtly, taking on characteristics that suggested an ancient sword clan heritage. Esdeath's aura transformed to resemble the bloodline of some primordial ice phoenix. Su Chen's own signature became an incomprehensible blend that defied easy categorization, suggesting origins so mysterious that most observers would simply classify him as a rogue cultivator with fortunate encounters.
The other treasure hunters in the chamber were beginning to move toward their chosen paths now, forming small groups based on shared objectives or temporary alliances of convenience. Huo Yan had gathered several fire-attribute cultivators around him, clearly intending to attempt the Path of Transformation together. Ji Lingxi stood alone near the silver passage, her water-bloodline heritage making the Path of Velocity a natural choice. Others debated and argued, some attempting to recruit partners while others jealously guarded their intentions.
Shi Yi had still not entered the main chamber. Su Chen's enhanced perception could detect the young man's presence just beyond the entrance threshold, observing but not yet committed to action. That restraint spoke volumes about his true capabilities—someone confident enough to allow others to test the waters first possessed either supreme confidence or supreme caution, and from what Su Chen had observed of the Dual-Pupil Inheritor, it was likely both.
"One final instruction," Su Chen said quietly, his voice pitched to carry only to his team members. "These trials were designed by an entity that stood at the peak of this realm's power hierarchy. Do not assume that success means simply completing the obvious challenge. The Kun Peng was a creature of profound wisdom, not merely overwhelming strength. Watch for deeper meanings, hidden tests within the apparent tests. Your objective is not just to pass the trials, but to comprehend the principles underlying them. That understanding will be more valuable than any technique or treasure we might claim."
Saeko inclined her head in acknowledgment, her expression serene. Years of training in the way of the sword had instilled in her an appreciation for lessons that transcended mere technical skill. She understood that true mastery came not from memorizing forms but from grasping the fundamental truths those forms were designed to teach.
Esdeath's response was characteristically direct. "I understand. Adapt, overcome, and take everything worth taking." Her interpretation lacked philosophical nuance, but Su Chen had long since accepted that Esdeath's worldview operated on simpler principles than most. She saw challenges as obstacles to be crushed and enemies as resources to be exploited. That single-minded focus made her extraordinarily effective in her role, even if it sometimes led to complications that required cleanup.
Bibi Dong's nod was more thoughtful, her eyes distant as she considered the implications. "You believe the Kun Peng left these trials not merely to select an inheritor, but to teach something fundamental about the nature of its power. We should approach them as students rather than competitors."
"Precisely," Su Chen confirmed. "Now go. We have wasted enough time on preparation. Every moment we delay allows others to progress ahead of us, and while I do not fear competition, I prefer not to deal with whatever chaos these fools will inevitably create as they blunder through trials they do not understand."
The team separated, moving toward their respective passages with the coordinated efficiency of a well-practiced military unit. Saeko walked toward the golden Path of Transformation with measured steps, her hand never leaving her blade. Esdeath strode toward the black Path of Duality with the confidence of someone who had frozen armies in place, her presence causing frost to spread across the crystallized floor in her wake. Su Chen, Xiao Yi Xian, and Bibi Dong approached the silver Path of Velocity together, their disguised spiritual signatures making them appear as three unaffiliated individuals who happened to be entering simultaneously rather than a coordinated group.
As they reached the threshold of the silver passage, Su Chen felt the formation arrays activating in response to their presence. Invisible tendrils of spiritual energy reached out to examine them, probing their cultivation bases, analyzing their bloodlines, and measuring their comprehension of spatial principles. The jade token hummed against his chest as it deflected the more intrusive aspects of the scan, presenting a false profile that satisfied the formation's requirements without revealing his true capabilities.
The passage accepted them, and they stepped through into a space that immediately disoriented even Su Chen's enhanced spatial perception. The tunnel ahead stretched into the distance for what appeared to be several kilometers, yet simultaneously seemed to curve back on itself in ways that suggested the far end was actually located behind them. The walls were covered in images of the Kun Peng in flight, each image showing the creature at a different stage of movement, creating a flipbook effect that illustrated supreme speed through sequential static pictures.
More disturbing were the temporal distortions. Su Chen could see multiple versions of the same passage overlaid atop each other, each one slightly out of phase with the others. Some showed the tunnel as pristine and newly carved, while others depicted it in various states of decay, and still others revealed it as nothing more than a skeletal framework of formation lines without physical substance. All these states existed simultaneously, occupying the same space through some incomprehensible manipulation of dimensional layers.
"The passage itself moves," Xiao Yi Xian observed softly, her silver eyes tracking patterns invisible to normal perception. Her Poison Body's sensitivity to environmental factors allowed her to detect subtle changes in the ambient energy that indicated constant motion. "We are not walking through a static space, but rather attempting to traverse something that is itself in perpetual flight."
Bibi Dong extended her spiritual sense cautiously, using her Soul-Devouring Spider Emperor to probe the nature of their surroundings. Her expression tightened as the feedback reached her consciousness. "The exit is not at the end of the tunnel. I can sense spatial markers scattered throughout the passage at irregular intervals, but they shift position constantly. We must catch the exit while it briefly aligns with our current dimensional layer."
Su Chen had already reached similar conclusions through his own analysis, though his dual pupils provided additional context. The golden eye revealed that the passage was not a single tunnel but rather thousands of tunnels occupying the same spatial coordinates, each one vibrating at different frequencies. The silver eye showed him the underlying formation structure—an impossibly complex web of arrays that manipulated space, time, and probability simultaneously to create a challenge that tested not merely speed but comprehensive understanding of movement itself.
"The trial measures three things," Su Chen explained as they began walking deeper into the passage. "First, raw velocity—can you move fast enough to catch the exit before it shifts away? Second, perceptive speed—can your consciousness process information rapidly enough to recognize the exit when it appears? Third, conceptual understanding—do you grasp that speed is not merely about physical movement, but about existing in the correct state to reach your destination?"
He raised his hand, and a small sphere of compressed spatial energy materialized above his palm. To the casual observer, it would appear as nothing more than a ball of silver light, but its true nature was far more complex. Su Chen had created a miniature pocket dimension that existed in accelerated time relative to the outside world. Within that sphere, time flowed at a rate approximately one thousand times faster than normal reality.
"Watch," he instructed, releasing the sphere. Instead of falling or flying off in a straight line, it began to orbit his hand in a perfect circle, its path bending space around itself to create a stable trajectory. More significantly, its movement synchronized with the shifting of the passage around them. When the tunnel walls flickered between their various temporal states, the sphere flickered in perfect harmony, existing in multiple temporal layers simultaneously.
Xiao Yi Xian's eyes widened with understanding. "You are not attempting to catch the exit through speed alone. You are synchronizing your existence with the passage's rhythm, matching its frequency so that you naturally align with the exit when it appears in your current layer."
"Correct," Su Chen confirmed. "Brute force speed might work—if you were fast enough to simply outpace the shifting entirely, you could theoretically reach the end before the passage completed its cycle. But the Kun Peng did not become supreme through brute force alone. It mastered the art of existing in harmony with motion itself, of moving through space not by fighting against its nature but by becoming one with its flow."
Bibi Dong absorbed this explanation with the intensity of someone recognizing a principle that could be applied far beyond the current situation. Her political career had taught her that true power came not from overwhelming force but from positioning oneself in alignment with larger currents of change. The same philosophy apparently applied to spatial movement as well.
They proceeded deeper into the passage, and the distortions intensified. Time began to flow inconsistently—one step might carry them forward normally, while the next would seem to stretch across an eternity or compress into an instant. The walls showed increasingly abstract representations of the Kun Peng, eventually dissolving into pure patterns of light and darkness that suggested movement without depicting any concrete form.
Other cultivators had entered the Path of Velocity ahead of them, and Su Chen's group began to encounter the results of failed attempts. Bodies lay scattered along the tunnel, though "body" was perhaps too generous a term. These unfortunates had failed to properly synchronize with the passage's rhythm and had been desynchronized from normal spacetime as punishment. They existed now as frozen statues, conscious but unable to move or interact with conventional reality. Their eyes still showed awareness, tracking movement around them but unable to communicate or free themselves from temporal stasis.
Ji Lingxi knelt beside one such victim, a young man whose robes marked him as belonging to one of the Central Region's minor clans. She examined him with clinical detachment before standing and shaking her head. "The formations have locked him into a single moment, stretched across what might be days or years of subjective experience. By the time the trial period ends and the nest expels failures, his mind will likely be broken from the isolation."
She noticed Su Chen's group approaching and her expression became guarded. The jade token had successfully disguised their spiritual signatures, but their ability to move through the passage with such apparent ease while others struggled or failed outright clearly marked them as significantly more capable than their disguised auras suggested.
"You move with remarkable confidence," Ji Lingxi observed carefully, positioning herself to maintain escape routes in case the situation turned hostile. "Most who enter the Path of Velocity spend considerable time studying the spatial distortions before daring to proceed. Yet you three walk as though strolling through a garden."
Su Chen regarded her with mild interest, noting the way she had subtly shifted her stance to prepare for potential combat while maintaining the outward appearance of casual conversation. She was more experienced than her apparent age suggested, possessing the kind of situational awareness that came only from surviving genuinely dangerous encounters.
"We understand the principle the trial tests," Su Chen replied simply. "Speed without direction is merely chaos. Movement without purpose is wasted energy. The Kun Peng did not traverse ninety thousand li through raw velocity alone, but through perfect comprehension of where it needed to be and when."
Ji Lingxi's eyes narrowed slightly as she processed his words. Her hand drifted toward a spatial ring on her finger, suggesting she possessed treasures or techniques stored there that she was considering deploying. However, after a moment of calculation, she apparently decided against confrontation.
"Perhaps we might travel together for a portion of the path," she suggested, her tone carefully neutral. "The trials grow more dangerous deeper in, and even rivals might benefit from temporary cooperation against common obstacles."
It was a transparent attempt to observe their techniques while using them as shields against whatever challenges lay ahead, but Su Chen saw no particular disadvantage in allowing her to accompany them temporarily. She might even prove useful if the passage contained threats that required additional combat power to overcome efficiently.
"Walk with us if you wish," Su Chen said with a negligent wave of his hand. "But do not slow us down. We have no intention of waiting for those who cannot maintain pace."
They continued forward, now with Ji Lingxi trailing slightly behind. The passage began to transform more drastically, the solid walls dissolving into something that resembled flowing water frozen mid-splash. The images of the Kun Peng vanished entirely, replaced by abstract geometries that hurt to look at directly—shapes that possessed more than three dimensions, folding through angles that should not exist in conventional space.
Su Chen's dual pupils worked overtime to process the increasingly bizarre spatial configurations. The passage had stopped being a physical location in any meaningful sense and had become instead a conceptual space where the idea of velocity itself was being tested. They were no longer walking through a tunnel but rather traversing the abstract principle of movement, experiencing it directly rather than merely observing its physical manifestations.
Xiao Yi Xian began to glow with an eerie silver light as her Poison Body adapted to the strange environment. The toxic energies that permeated her existence naturally existed in multiple states—solid particulates, liquid droplets, gaseous vapors—and this multiplicity allowed her to maintain stability even as the space around them became increasingly fluid and uncertain. Poison, after all, was fundamentally about transformation and adaptation, about existing in whatever form best allowed it to achieve its purpose.
Bibi Dong's twin martial spirits manifested partially, the Death Spider Emperor and Soul-Devouring Spider Emperor appearing as translucent projections that wrapped around her body like armor. Her expression was intense with concentration as she used her spirits' natural affinity for web-weaving to create connections between her current position and the constantly shifting exit points. It was an innovative application of her abilities, treating spatial coordinates as anchor points to be connected by spiritual threads rather than destinations to be physically reached.
Ji Lingxi watched these displays with poorly concealed amazement and growing concern. She had initially assessed this group as potentially talented individuals whose disguised auras hid moderately impressive cultivation bases. Now she was being forced to revise that assessment dramatically upward. The silver-haired woman's control over her bizarre poison energy suggested bloodline purity approaching ancient standards, while the woman with twin spirits wielded them with a proficiency that indicated decades of refinement despite her apparent youth.
Most disturbing was the man leading them. He moved through the increasingly abstract space as though it were no different from walking down a normal road, his posture relaxed and his attention seemingly divided between navigating the passage and conducting some kind of ongoing analysis of its fundamental structure. She could see his eyes—hidden beneath the jade token's disguise but still visible—flickering with colors that suggested either extremely rare pupils or some form of advanced ocular technique.
A horrifying realization began to crystallize in Ji Lingxi's mind. She had assumed these were fellow challengers, talented individuals seeking the Kun Peng's legacy just as she was. But what if they were something else entirely? What if they were not here to compete for the inheritance, but rather to simply take it as one might collect an interesting specimen during a casual outing?
The distinction might seem subtle, but it represented a fundamental difference in power scale. Competitors implied rough parity—individuals at similar levels contending for a prize that would elevate the winner above their peers. But collectors operated on an entirely different paradigm. They were beings who had already transcended the normal hierarchy and now simply accumulated items of interest without genuine need or desperation.
Before Ji Lingxi could decide whether to continue following or to attempt an escape, the passage around them suddenly stabilized. The abstract geometries collapsed back into concrete forms, the flowing walls solidified into conventional stone, and the temporal distortions ceased their chaotic fluctuations. They found themselves standing in a circular chamber approximately fifty meters in diameter, its walls covered in intricate carvings that depicted the Kun Peng's mastery of supreme speed.
At the center of the chamber floated a single silver feather, so perfectly crafted that it seemed to contain the entire concept of velocity compressed into physical form. Just looking at it made Ji Lingxi's eyes water as her perception struggled to track something that existed in constant motion even while remaining perfectly still.
"The first checkpoint," Su Chen observed with satisfaction. "The trial grants us a moment of respite before the next stage. Those who reach this point are permitted to comprehend the feather and absorb whatever insights they can manage before continuing."
He approached the feather without hesitation, reaching out to touch it with his bare hand. The moment his fingers made contact, his entire body blurred, creating dozens of afterimages that spread throughout the chamber before collapsing back into his original position. The Origin Mirror activated instinctively, copying not just the feather itself but the conceptual understanding of velocity it contained.
Information flooded Su Chen's consciousness—equations describing motion through curved spacetime, techniques for accelerating biological processes beyond normal limits, methods for existing in multiple locations through quantum superposition of states. The Kun Peng had not merely moved quickly; it had understood movement so thoroughly that it could manipulate the very laws governing position and momentum.
Su Chen's lips curved into a genuine smile of appreciation. This was exactly the kind of reward that made dimensional travel worthwhile. Not merely raw power, though that was certainly valuable, but fundamental understanding that could be applied across countless contexts. With this knowledge properly integrated and combined with his existing capabilities, he would be able to modify his movement techniques to achieve speeds that bordered on teleportation while consuming far less energy than conventional spatial manipulation.
Xiao Yi Xian and Bibi Dong approached the feather next, each touching it in turn and experiencing their own moments of revelation. The Poison Body's transformation processes accelerated dramatically as Xiao Yi Xian absorbed insights about rapid state changes, while Bibi Dong's spiritual sense expanded its range as she grasped principles about consciousness moving faster than physical form.
Ji Lingxi hesitated, torn between her desire to comprehend the feather and her wariness about turning her back on these mysterious individuals. Eventually, opportunity overcame caution, and she reached out to touch the artifact. Her body immediately became translucent as her water-bloodline heritage resonated with the velocity concepts, allowing her to briefly perceive the world the way the Kun Peng might have—as a vast ocean of space through which movement was as natural as breathing.
When the revelations faded and all four had absorbed what they could from the checkpoint, three new passages opened in the chamber walls, each one leading deeper into the trial. However, these passages differed from the entrance tunnel. They were narrower, darker, and emanated spiritual pressure that suggested far more dangerous challenges ahead.
"The true test begins now," Su Chen said quietly. "The entrance passage filtered out those who lacked basic spatial comprehension. These paths will separate the merely talented from those worthy of the Kun Peng's complete legacy."
He turned to address Ji Lingxi directly for the first time since they had entered the checkpoint chamber. "This is where our temporary cooperation ends. The deeper paths are designed for solo challenges, and attempting to traverse them as a group will only increase the difficulty proportionally. Choose your route and face whatever trials await."
Ji Lingxi opened her mouth as though to protest, then closed it again as she reconsidered. She could sense that arguing would be pointless—this man had already made his decision, and his companions showed no signs of disagreement. Instead, she cupped her fists in the formal gesture of respect between cultivators of different powers.
"This one thanks you for permitting me to travel alongside you thus far," she said with as much dignity as she could muster. "Perhaps we shall meet again in the inner sanctum, should fortune smile upon our efforts."
Su Chen inclined his head fractionally in acknowledgment, then turned his attention to the three passages. His dual pupils analyzed each one, reading the formation structures and evaluating the specific challenges they represented. The left passage tested absolute speed—a simple race against a timer that grew progressively shorter with each checkpoint. The center passage examined perceptive velocity—the ability to process information and make decisions in infinitesimal fractions of a second. The right passage measured existential speed—the capacity to change one's fundamental state rapidly enough to avoid erasure from reality itself.
"I will take the right path," Su Chen announced. "The existential challenge aligns with my current research into state manipulation and dimensional anchoring. Xiao Yi Xian, the center path suits your poison's adaptive nature. Bibi Dong, the left path will force you to refine your movement techniques to their absolute limits."
Both women acknowledged their assignments and moved toward their respective passages. Before entering, Xiao Yi Xian turned back briefly, her silver eyes meeting Su Chen's dual pupils with an expression that mixed concern and strange fondness.
"Be careful," she said softly. "Even for you, these trials carry genuine risk."
Su Chen's smile was confident. "Risk and opportunity are two sides of the same coin. I did not come here to play it safe."
Then, without further ceremony, all three entered their chosen paths, and the passages sealed behind them with the finality of prison doors closing. The true test of the Kun Peng's legacy had begun.