Throughout the ages, generation after generation had strived tirelessly, enduring countless years, until finally, they truly stood at the ultimate endpoint of the King's Ancient Path.
At the endpoint, a majestic ancient hall appeared. Inside stood an ancient altar, upon which rested an ancient gate. Beside it, a stone stele was clearly inscribed with the four large characters: "King's Ancient Gate."
These were prehistoric ancient scripts, vastly different from the writing of this era, yet everyone could understand them.
The King's Ancient Gate exuded an aura of timeless vicissitude, as if an epoch from prehistory was assailing their faces, leaving everyone awestruck.
Beneath the four large characters on the stele was a passage of ancient text. Its meaning could be perceived through divine sense. Roughly, it stated that this place was the final and most crucial checkpoint of the King's Ancient Path. Passing this checkpoint would grant the greatest opportunity, capable of changing one's life.
Upon seeing this, the eyes of all the young powerhouses blazed with intensity. Even Ye Chen was no exception, his pupils shining like divine lamps as he stared intently at the stele.
Because he knew this might be the King's Trial Ancient Path left behind by the September Great Power. The so-called opportunity likely involved his legacy. That it could change one's life was not strange; it might even allow one to become a supreme existence revered across the Myriad Domains.
The requirement to pass was simply to enter the King's Ancient Gate and proceed to the end to complete the challenge and obtain the opportunity.
"Is the final challenge of the King's Ancient Path just this?"
The young powerhouses were all stunned, finding it somewhat too simple.
But everyone knew reaching the end would definitely not be simple. Could it be another King's Ancient Path?
"Old Yan, what do you think?" Ye Chen asked.
Old Yan drifted out. The rules of this heaven and earth could not restrict his remnant soul, as no one besides Ye Chen could see him. Old Yan looked at the King's Ancient Gate and said, "It should indeed be the ancient gate left by the September Great Power. You may enter and see. A figure of his stature wouldn't deceive young juniors. There's a possibility of obtaining his legacy, but it might also be some other opportunity."
Ye Chen nodded, his thoughts aligned. He then looked at the five Ancient Talents, then at Xia Yang, Huang Tianqin, and the other young elites. "I will enter the King's Ancient Gate. What about you?"
"We'll go too," the five Ancient Talents naturally followed. They had come precisely to reach the end. Moreover, having reached their level of cultivation, they feared no Heavenly God and faintly possessed the demeanor of Self-Proclaimed Kings.
Xia Yang stepped forward. "I will also enter."
The other young powerhouses exchanged glances and finally nodded. "Since Lord Ye Chen is entering, we will naturally follow to the end."
Ye Chen nodded. "Good. If any danger appears, retreat immediately."
"Understood!"
Thus, the group of young powerhouses directly entered the King's Ancient Gate. They were immediately enveloped by a hazy radiance, and an inexplicable power descended upon them, causing their Primordial Spirits to involuntarily leave their bodies. The ancient gate opened a mysterious, profound passageway that drew everyone's Primordial Spirits into it.
"That is..."
Ye Chen and the five Ancient Talents exchanged glances, surprise flickering in their eyes. This was actually a passageway to the Void Heaven Domain! Within the passageway, scenes spanning eternity appeared—fearsome battles and various vistas of the myriad realms—causing the young powerhouses to widen their eyes involuntarily.
"The Void Heaven Domain, the Void Heaven Domain again..." Ye Chen's expression was inscrutable, filled with doubt and suspicion. Could it be that the September Great Power's legacy was left within the Void Heaven Domain?
This time, even Old Yan followed in. The King's Ancient Gate actually couldn't isolate his presence, though Old Yan didn't manifest, remaining hidden within Ye Chen.
Finally, after traversing the spacetime passageway, the group of young powerhouses appeared within the Void Heaven Domain. This was a mysterious other-dimensional space, containing nothing except for a mysterious ancient altar at its center, identical to the one at the King's Ancient Gate.
Everyone descended upon this ancient altar.
The altar hummed, spreading a special fluctuation as another scene slowly materialized.
Upon the altar appeared a bluestone path, or more accurately, a staircase road paved with bluestones. Ahead, mist swirled, concealing everything. An inexplicable divine charm of the Great Dao flowed, so dense that even the Martial God Heavenly Eyes of the powerhouses couldn't pierce the fog to see what lay within.
On either side of the bluestone staircase were bottomless abysses, dark and infinitely deep, like fathomless chasms capable of devouring everything, inspiring terror and dread.
Before the staircase path, a stone stele rose from the ground, again inscribed with prehistoric ancient script. The divine sense imprint conveyed its meaning: Pass the staircase to seize the opportunity and attain rebirth. If unable to pass, do not force it, lest you fall into the myriad-layered abyss and suffer complete annihilation of both body and spirit!
If one person passes, their companions may also pass, but cannot seize the opportunity.
These words were both terrifying and exhilarating. Passing meant seizing a heaven-defying opportunity and attaining rebirth—undoubtedly no simple reward. But falling into the myriad-layered abyss meant complete annihilation, ceasing to exist.
This bluestone staircase was fraught with danger, clearly not something one could pass easily.
"What are your thoughts?" Ye Chen looked at the others. "You may participate or not. But this bluestone staircase is destined to be perilous. Even I dare not guarantee I can definitely pass. It's filled with unknowns. All of you must think carefully and not be careless."
The unknown was the most frightening, as one simply couldn't know what obstacles lay ahead. But they were certainly not simple; that was inevitable.
The young powerhouses all hesitated. Even someone as powerful as Ye Chen admitted he might not fully succeed, let alone them.
Long Gu'ao said, "Fear not. We'll just take the challenge. It might not be dangerous; we might pass without incident."
Yuan Jiu sighed lightly. "Perhaps as Brother Long says. Unfortunately, this place shields the Heavenly Secrets, preventing me from performing divinations to understand."
The Ancient Talents were somewhat worried, as this bluestone staircase was too mysterious, everything unknown.
"I'll take the vanguard. Those who wish to ascend may follow, but I may not be able to protect you all," Ye Chen said, then took the first step onto the bluestone staircase.
The moment his foot landed, the bluestone staircase emanated a mysterious aura. A heavy pressure descended from above, pressing down on Ye Chen as if two massive boulders were weighing on his shoulders.
"Ye Chen, how is it?" the others behind him asked with concern.
Ye Chen shook his head and explained everything, causing the others to pale. Could it be that the bluestone staircase continuously increased gravity? The further one went, the heavier the pressure? Was the bluestone staircase a trial staircase?
Ignoring the others' thoughts, Ye Chen moved, step by step ascending the bluestone staircase. Although pressure continuously bore down, it wasn't too heavy yet—only a thousand jin.
Even at the Xiantian realm, he could have handled it easily, let alone now. It was as light as lifting a feather, practically negligible.
However, after ascending a hundred steps, the gravity on his body suddenly doubled to two thousand jin. Ye Chen remained unfazed, continuing to climb step by step, ascending the bluestone staircase. He already had some conjectures, beginning to understand something.
Sure enough, upon reaching the two-hundredth step, the pressure on his body doubled again to three thousand jin.
Naturally, all this was familiar and effortless for him, unable to truly affect him.
At this moment, the mist ahead suddenly dissipated, revealing a stone gate. It stood one zhang tall, with each of its two doors half a zhang wide, blocking Ye Chen's path on the bluestone staircase.
The instant they saw this stone gate, both Ye Chen and the others' expressions changed slightly. This was clearly the Trial Gate from Tian Du Academy! How could it appear here on the bluestone staircase?
This puzzled many, yet they vaguely understood something, harboring faint suspicions in their hearts.
Ye Chen naturally thought of more, but he remained silent, directly stepping forward and pushing open the stone gate. Indeed—
One thousand jin!
Just like the Trial Gate in Tian Du Academy. However, under the gravity of the bluestone staircase, even the first Trial Gate was much heavier, requiring far more effort than the Trial Gate on the Divine Mountain.
But none of this could stop Ye Chen.
*Tap, tap, tap—*
The bluestone staircase was utterly silent, save for Ye Chen's footsteps echoing through the empty expanse between heaven and earth.
Soon, Ye Chen broke through the first, second, third... up to the fifth Trial Gate.
During this, he had crossed a full thousand steps. Before the first Trial Gate, the pressure increased by a thousand jin every hundred steps. Before the second Trial Gate, there were also only two hundred steps, but the gravity increased by two thousand jin every hundred steps. Before the third staircase, the increase was four thousand jin—exactly double—and so on.
By the time Ye Chen passed the fifth staircase, the pressure on his body had reached sixty-two thousand jin, as if a mountain peak pressed upon his shoulders at all times, exerting immense force.
Yet for Ye Chen, it was still quite manageable.
The people behind began to follow. The five Ancient Talents and Xia Yang took the lead, feeling the pressure Ye Chen experienced, but they didn't hesitate.
The other young powerhouses hesitated briefly before choosing to follow as well.
Just as Ye Chen was leading the young powerhouses up the bluestone staircase, in another part of the heaven and earth, within the Void Heaven Domain, on an ancient heavenly altar, stood an ancient stone gate a hundred zhang tall. It had been sealed for many years, impossible to open.
Even a Saint's power couldn't budge it the slightest. Legend said it was an ancient gate left by an ancient Great Sage, imbued with his great power. Throughout history, it had never opened, existing for unknown eons without ever being seen to open. Sealed away, it had instead become a landmark in this region.
But at this moment, the ancient gate suddenly trembled. Dust scattered, and a hazy divine charm of the Great Dao flowed forth, illuminating the heavens. The cultivators near the altar were stunned, and the news quickly spread throughout the Void Heaven Domain, attracting the attention of countless people.