Volume Five: Ancient Legends - Chapter Forty-Nine: Rigorous Trials

As time passed, an increasing number of candidates stepped onto the hundred stone steps leading to the Great Dao.

Those under the age of fifteen who managed to traverse the hundred steps of the Inquiry Stone entirely by their own strength were exceedingly few.

Chen Chen was one of the participants in this batch. New candidates from a few other villages within the tribe would arrive over the following three days.

Regardless of how exceptional future participants might be, or how many would arrive, nothing could change the fact that Chen Chen had already passed the first trial.

He had successfully traversed the hundred steps of the Inquiry Stone and set foot upon the final, one-hundredth step.

Chen Chen accomplished this feat through his own abilities, while the remaining candidates still had opportunities to pass the initial trial.

Standing alongside Chen Chen were Chen Xianyu and several other youths with exceptional physical endurance.

Some mountain children, having climbed halfway, found their strength failing by the middle steps. Accompanied by their guardians, these children descended the immortal mountain and returned to ordinary mortal lives.

Looking down from the final step after making the ascent from the base of the mountain, Chen Chen and the others could still see numerous climbers scattered along the pathway.

A single stone path spanned one hundred steps, stretching all the way from the foot of the mountain upward.

Reaching the mountain gate of the immortal mountain, the trial questioned who could ascend to the pinnacle of the Great Dao. The youngest of the participating mountain children was around ten years old, and the oldest no more than fifteen.

Through this hundred-step inquiry, the immortal gate tested strength to determine who would leave and who would stay upon the mountain. It questioned who would become the guest wandering deep within the ranges, and who would ultimately surpass others to claim the summit.

In the subsequent discourses on the Dao, even more trials awaited everyone.

The steps of the immortal mountain were layered and numerous. Who would emerge as a true immortal of the lofty peaks, and who would descend as an immortal walking among mortals?

Who would remain a mere guest of the dusty world, laboring day in and day out merely to sustain life?

Chen Chen was among those who successfully cleared this stage of the immortal mountain. Among the participants, a portion had reached the summit by treading upon the stones of the inquiry path.

Both candidates and guardians were part of the procession, though the candidates naturally faced trials unique to their status.

Many friendly immortals participating in the selection of the Misty Sect also sought to ascend the immortal mountain and become instructors.

As one of the mere dozen or so participants who succeeded in the entire selection process, Chen Chen stood out remarkably within the group.

More candidates would arrive successively in the days to come to take part in this trial.

However, the Misty Sect, an immortal sect upon the mountain, mostly recruited those with strong foundations and profound karmic affinity with the immortals, thereby shedding many earthly entanglements.

The grievances, the three thousand threads of worldly vexations, and the rights and wrongs of the mortal realm were as difficult to articulate as three thousand strands of anxious hair.

Those who lacked understanding could not perceive how these wisps of dusty illusion resembled dark hair, nor how each strand of dark hair ultimately turned white.

As the day's trials reached their midpoint, guardians like Chen Xianyu escorted Chen Chen and the others up to the Misty Sect on the immortal mountain, where Chen Chen faced the evaluation for a teaching position.

The Misty Sect deeply cherished talented individuals. With guardians accompanying them up the mountain, guests and friends found lodging there, seeking their sustenance directly from the mountains.

As a powerhouse within the Breezy Tribe, Chen Xianyu found this to be the opportune moment to put his abilities and talents to their fullest use.

Chen Xianyu had long ago aspired to cultivate within the mountains, specifically within the domain of the immortal Misty Sect.

With a heavy mandate resting upon his shoulders for the years to come, he chose to remain upon the immortal mountain to serve in an official capacity.

Numerous further trials awaited Chen Chen and the others, such as the second trial assessing their cultivation.

Trials of distinguishing falsehood from truth and piercing through delusions to seek reality—these tested the strength of the many disciples, determining whether they possessed the capacity to comprehend their true selves within the immortal mountain and gradually draw closer to immortality.

Having passed the first trial, Chen Chen and the others learned that successfully climbing the one hundred steps of the Inquiry Stone and reaching the Misty Sect through sheer effort meant they could barely be considered outer disciples of this immortal mountain.

Many had participated in the selection; quite a few had ascended the mountain, but even more had failed to reach the top.

The second trial of the assessment was to see through illusions and cultivate the true heaven.

The participating disciples were all assigned prayer mats and seated within the second trial of the immortal gate.

Closing their eyes tightly and following the instructions of the immortal elders, they sat cross-legged in meditation with their five centers facing the heavens upon the plaza beyond the hundred stone steps.

As Chen Chen meditated upon his mat, complete darkness enveloped his vision.

Before long, certain hallucinations invaded his mind, disturbing his thoughts.

Auditory illusions brushed against his ears—some as faint as the buzzing of mosquitoes, others as eerie and malicious as ghosts.

The images flickering before his eyes seemed laden with endless profound mysteries, yet simultaneously appeared like an unreachable realm enacting some distant story.

If he stared too fixedly, Chen Chen might sink hopelessly into them, unable to extricate himself.

Fortunately, many youths relied on their individual perseverance to surmount barrier after barrier.

Immersed in the illusion, Chen Chen overcame every obstacle and beheld the true heaven before him.

When he opened his eyes, more than a dozen youths in the Dao arena had yet to wake, but among those who had achieved sudden enlightenment, four or five had already opened their eyes before him.

With so many youths piercing through the illusions a step ahead of Chen Chen, the strength of the Misty Sect on the immortal mountain—and indeed the strength of the Breezy Tribe—could be readily imagined.

As time elapsed, more and more youths snapped out of the illusions.

The immortal elder responsible for roll call and enrollment glanced at the youths waking one after another, a trace of satisfaction flashing in his eyes as he muttered to himself, "Waking up is good, waking up is good!"

With that, the elder summoned the meditating youths to his presence, inquired their names for official registration, and bestowed Dao titles upon them.

Chen Chen was granted the Dao title "Xuan Yi," as his background had always been somewhat profound and mysterious.

Throughout his many years of reincarnation, this particular Dao title suited his growth best.

Having neared the profound mystery of the Dao, he had caught the attention of the Heavenly Officials while observing the world, prompting them to send him into the mortal realm through the Gate of Reincarnation.

Prior to this, rumors had it that Chen Chen was slated for reincarnation near the principal star of Peacemaker, yet for reasons unknown, he had ended up in his current circumstances.

As it turned out, when the Heavenly Official waved his hand that day and assigned Chen Chen to reincarnate on Peacemaker B, the reincarnation official of Peacemaker B took one look at the living conditions there and deemed the celestial body entirely unsuitable for Chen Chen's birth.

Following a consultation, the Heavenly Official in charge of reincarnation ultimately reassigned Chen Chen to another parallel universe resembling a third cultivation planet.

It was in that plane that Chen Chen's reincarnation and story unfolded.

Along with Chen Chen receiving the name Xuan Yi, numerous other little immortal children were bestowed with Dao titles.

Those who reached the rank of the immortal mountain were spiritual beings who had cultivated the Dao to a relatively refined and elevated status.

While the trivial vexations of the mortal world birthed countless ugly expressions, the abundant opportunities, secret techniques, and much of the growth found within the enlightened immortal mountain originated precisely from there.

Within the procession, Chen Chen also noticed several practitioners who excelled significantly in their cultivation.

What these mountain children comprehended upon their prayer mats mattered little; what truly mattered was that upon awakening from the illusions through enlightenment, they became registered disciples of the immortal mountain.

Gradually, more disciples awoke from the illusions one after another as the sky grew increasingly dark.

When only five disciples remained, the registering immortal elder could no longer be bothered to wait.

He declared that these final five would be directly classified as outer disciples without formal registration.

Those who showed exceptional performance later on would still have the chance to catch the eye of important figures, be taken under their wing, and become personal or key disciples.

The performance of Chen Chen and the others was fairly commendable. Having awakened slightly earlier from the visual, auditory, and hallucinatory illusions, they were provisionally categorized as inner disciples to be nurtured.

The outer disciples also held vital responsibilities; henceforth, tasks such as fetching water, chopping firewood, and cooking meals would largely fall to them.

As for the dozen or so inner disciples, they could harbor no thoughts of a leisurely existence.

Having entered this mountain gate, even if immortal herbs required for future cultivation became scarce, they would still need to venture into nearby immortal and demonic mountains to find them.

The tasks ahead for Chen Chen and the others were arduous; without intensifying their cultivation, they might well fail to rival the demonic beasts inhabiting the mountain.

Fortunately, the immortal elders proved quite reliable. Having anticipated culinary needs long before receiving their appointments to serve at the Misty Sect on the immortal mountain, they had made proper arrangements.

Following a series of operations, everyone on the immortal mountain finally had food to eat.

At that moment, bright stars accompanied a sparse moon while a group of ravenous little immortal children awaited their feast.

Fires were subsequently lit to cook meals, and everyone gathered in a circle around the tables within the immortal sect.

The experiences of Chen Chen and the others felt somewhat fantastical as they began to calm their minds and engage in bitter cultivation within the mountains.

That very night, the roars of demonic beasts echoed near the immortal mountain. Having stood for many years, the Misty Sect possessed a guardian divine beast that coexisted with the sect, sharing its fate.

After being assigned to the Misty Sect, Chen Chen ate his evening meal, washed himself, and retired to his bed to rest.

Atop the immortal mountain, ethereal music played in waves as the various immortal elders displayed their individual skills, joining together in a melody that drifted across the peaks.

Only ten years remained until the once-every-century demonic beast siege.

Only at this juncture did the four nations of the Breezy Continent truly reveal their respective territories and destinies.

The Fang Kingdom, one of the four nations of the Breezy Continent, had achieved a pyrrhic victory in the previous fateful war!

The surviving populace, recognizing the cruelty of war all the more clearly, began strategizing, regrouping, nurturing more exceptional offspring, and guarding against the true-illusion war that could erupt at any moment.

The Great Cultivation Nation, another of the four nations of the Breezy Continent, was still making preparations in this cycle of fateful warfare, training newcomers, and awaiting the arrival of the destined battle.

The battle between the two sides was ten years away. Ten years could be long or short; the period might expire in the very next second, leaving no room for negligence or carelessness.

The Great Sorcery Nation, a third nation of the Breezy Continent, still had thirty-five years remaining before its once-every-century fateful war, leaving time for recuperation.

Though they could rest easy for a few decades, once the war of destiny commenced, it might once again plunge the realm into a tempest of blood and wind.

The Magic Alliance, the final of the four nations of the Breezy Continent, had always been shrouded in mystery.

The cultivators who rode atop Western dragons soaring high through the skies were the true masters of this Western realm.

Thus, the four nations of the Breezy Continent were laid bare before the eyes—a continent guarded by immortals treading upon divine dragons.

The lineages of all four nations were ancient, and the moment for the four nations to unite would be the exact moment of mortal peril for the Breezy Continent.

Beyond the Breezy Continent lay several other mysterious and unknown realms.

Growing day by day, Chen Chen and his peers might one day earn the qualification to reach such a level, comprehend those untold secrets, make choices for their own lives, and continue surviving in the mortal world with dignity and renown.