"Trial-taker appears. True King Throne possessor, Qian Yue, qualifies for the Human Sovereign's Trial."
"Human Sovereign's Trial. Do you choose to begin?"
A voice devoid of joy or sorrow, utterly devoid of emotion, jolted Ye Chen awake. Before him hovered a mysterious small pagoda. Upon closer inspection, it stood thirty-three stories tall, spinning nimbly as it exuded a hazy, mystical radiance.
Qian Yue was Ye Chen's name in his previous life. And the True King Throne was something he had once possessed.
Yet, the moment he saw this small pagoda, Ye Chen was greatly astonished. "The Human King Pagoda!?"
That's right, it was the Human King Pagoda. The master of this pagoda was one of the most dazzling, peerless geniuses throughout the endless ages, hailed as the Human King.
The Human King had once shaken myriad realms with his might, standing supreme as one of the strongest beings in this world, capable of shattering mountains and rivers with a single thought and annihilating ancient kingdoms with a flick of his finger.
His power was such that Ye Chen would absolutely believe it if someone said he could destroy the entire vast Tian Du Continent.
For the Human King was such an immensely powerful great being, with methods reaching to the heavens and earth, possessing boundless might—a true mythical figure.
Unfortunately, in his pursuit of the supreme Great Dao and some mysterious, significant matters, he ultimately met an unfortunate demise.
However, the Human King's talent was so brilliant it dazzled through the ages. He left behind a legacy, which Ye Chen in his previous life had obtained after countless trials and tribulations. The Human King's ancient pagoda had also undergone its own twists and turns before falling into Ye Chen's hands.
The Human King Pagoda was no ordinary ancient weapon. It was eternal, indestructible through the ages, having slain many great existences beyond mortal imagination, stained with their blood.
Ye Chen had thought that after his rebirth, the Human King Pagoda was lost. He never expected it had been following him all along. But even more shocking than the pagoda's appearance was the meaning conveyed by its voice—the Human Sovereign's Trial!
Human Sovereign, not Human King. Though only a single character differed, the gap between them was as vast as heaven and earth.
If the Human King had once shaken myriad realms, standing supreme as one of the pinnacle existences of his era, then for the Human Sovereign, one would remove the "one of"—truly the supreme, the highest.
The character 'Sovereign' represented ultimate supremacy, the most powerful existence among the myriad realms, before whom all others must bow.
It was even rumored that if the Human Sovereign willed it, this vast world would shatter because of him, and the myriad realms would be annihilated.
Although the Human Sovereign had not reached the mythical state of eternal life and immortality, and a grand Human Sovereign competition would erupt across the myriad realms every vast span of time, one thing was beyond doubt: the Human Sovereign was the true supreme ruler of this world, the master of the myriad realms' rise and fall. No one could challenge his dignity.
Whether it was Ye Chen in his previous life, the Human King, or those peerless enemies who once besieged him, all could be said to be walking the path to become the Human Sovereign.
And now, such divine words had emerged from the Human King Pagoda. How could he not be shocked?
Could one become the Human Sovereign through the Human King Pagoda?
Involuntarily, a sense of anticipation arose within Ye Chen. His eyes gleamed brightly as he stared intently at the Human King Pagoda.
"Trial-taker Ye Chen. Human Sovereign's Trial. Do you choose to begin?"
The emotionless voice came again. Without a doubt, it was inquiring of Ye Chen.
His intuition told him that if he wished to rise in this life, the Human King Pagoda's role was indispensable.
Ye Chen took a deep breath, then nodded heavily. "Yes!"
Whoosh—
A divine light shot out from the Human King Pagoda, instantly enveloping Ye Chen.
The next moment, Ye Chen felt the heavens and earth spin. He didn't know how much time passed. He only felt himself appear in a vast, boundless mysterious space. The surroundings were a gray, hazy mist—spiritual fog condensed from the world's spiritual energy. Only the area within ten zhang in front of him was clear.
This made Ye Chen suck in a slight breath of cold air. How incredibly dense must the world's spiritual energy be here to condense into a fog-like state? In the outside world, although spiritual energy existed, it was so thin it couldn't be seen, only sensed and absorbed during cultivation.
But the spiritual energy within the Human King Pagoda was so dense it had turned into a misty state. Cultivating here for a single day would likely be equivalent to half a month outside.
He absorbed for a short while and felt the pagoda's spiritual energy rapidly transforming into pure Houtian internal strength within his body, circulating through his meridians, far surpassing his cultivation speed in the outside world.
All of this was indeed real. Probably, just ten days to half a month here would be enough for him to advance from the third level of Houtian to the fourth.
This delighted Ye Chen. He had been troubled about how to quickly improve his cultivation, but the appearance of the Human King Pagoda gave him a heaven-sent surprise.
But... where exactly was the Human Sovereign's Trial?
Ye Chen's gaze swept quickly, but within the pagoda, aside from spiritual fog, there was only more spiritual fog. Nothing else.
The Human King Pagoda was very mysterious. It seemed not just a simple magical artifact but also contained the Human Sovereign's Trial. Was it really just the Human King's ancient weapon from back then? Ye Chen couldn't help but feel deep suspicion.
Suddenly, the spiritual fog before him dissipated. A mysterious path appeared before his eyes, leading to an unknown place, filled with mystery.
But Ye Chen had no other choice. He could only lift his foot and walk forward step by step. The sound of his footsteps was clear and audible. After half an hour, the view before him suddenly opened up. He arrived at a clearing, but compared to where he first appeared, there was an additional ancient stone door.
"Welcome to the Human Sovereign Pagoda. True King Throne possessor Ye Chen, identity confirmed!"
"Push open the stone door. The Human Sovereign's Trial, first level, will begin! Complete the first level trial to receive a reward!"
The long-absent, emotionless voice sounded once more, but it made Ye Chen startle again. This wasn't the Human King Pagoda, but the Human Sovereign Pagoda. Could it truly be the supreme magical artifact in the hands of the world's master, the Human Sovereign?
The ancient stone door was very ordinary and plain, but for some reason, Ye Chen always felt it was extraordinary.
However, he was very curious about what the reward for the first level was. After all, it was the Human Sovereign's Trial; the reward couldn't be too poor.
Beside it, a stone stele was inserted into the ground. A line of ancient characters clearly appeared: First Gate, eighteen thousand jin!
Eighteen thousand jin. That's fine.
He just nodded and almost without hesitation went forward to push. But the stone door... didn't budge an inch.
Ye Chen smiled bitterly. Only then did he remember he was no longer the supreme being who once roamed the myriad realms, but a weak cultivator only at the third level of Houtian. How could he possibly push it open?
The limit for the nine levels of Houtian was only four thousand jin. He was merely at the third level. Eighteen thousand jin... when would he ever reach that?
Unless his Sacred Body bloodline revived, it would be difficult!
He sighed with emotion. Truly worthy of the Human Sovereign's Trial. Even just entering the first level's stone door required the terrifying strength of eighteen thousand jin to push. This trial was prepared for the strongest geniuses of the myriad realms.
In his previous life, he absolutely had the qualifications to undertake the trial. But the him who had just awakened... was far from ready.
"Door-pushing failed. Physical strength does not meet trial-taker requirements. It is recommended to cultivate the Tyrant Heaven Refining Saint Art to strengthen the body and meet trial-taker requirements!"
Tyrant Heaven Refining Saint Art?
The cold voice appeared again. Just as Ye Chen was stunned, a series of images appeared on the ancient stone door. Each image depicted a person assuming various strange and highly difficult postures, with clear meridian diagrams on the human body. There were a full thirty-six images.
At the same time, a stream of information appeared in Ye Chen's mind: "Tyrant Heaven Refining Saint Art, a body-refining method created by the Tyrant Heaven Venerable One in ancient times. Cultivated to its limit, one can split heaven and earth with a casual strike, shatter stars with a fist..."