Chapter 487: Pilgrimage
This place was similar to the snowy plain, where one could not fly. Test-takers could only use their feet and walk.
Sweat poured down Xiao Chen’s body; he felt very tired. The place was simply unbearably hot, and he grew dizzy as a result.
The blisters on his feet burst; all that was left was a layer of blood and flesh. The soles of his feet rubbed against the shoes with every step he took.
That kind of pain was worse than being cut by knives. It was like thousands of ants biting the feet simultaneously.
The world was like a huge furnace. Xiao Chen continued walking solitarily. No matter how much pain he felt or how tired he was, he did not stop walking.
Xiao Chen had calmly analyzed the ordeals in his heart. This place was definitely testing the willpower of a cultivator. It would not present a situation so dangerous that one would die, but it would not let you continue walking on calmly as well.
It would constantly flog him, torturing him, bringing him an extraordinary amount of pain. It would do its best to make him stop and give up.
As Xiao Chen walked, blood dripped from his shoes. A bloody trail marked his path.
Xiao Chen was like pilgrim, continuing to walk forward through strong faith.
Everyone had only one chance at the Ancient Desolate Tower. Xiao Chen’s fatal weakness was his lower cultivation. Now that there was a chance for him here, he would not leave behind any regrets in this place.
“Trod…trod…trod…!”
It was unknown how long Xiao Chen had walked; he had already lost track of time. Suddenly, a door appeared before him.
Xiao Chen felt numb as he pushed the door open and looked through. He saw a mountain covered with knives and a door standing quietly at the top of the mountain.
Xiao Chen walked in with heavy steps. He smiled coldly and said, “A mountain of knives, a sea of fire, and a plain of absolute cold…I want to see what other incredible things will appear after this and whether I can clear them or not.”
Like before, Xiao Chen could not fly in this mountain of knives. He could only rely on the strength of his physical body and bitterly climb the mountain.
Xiao Chen’s already miserable body immediately suffered stabs and became a very bloody mutilated sight that was too cruel to see. The pain was hard to endure.
This test was very interesting. No matter how its form changed, there was one thing that would never change: it would never present a fatal situation. It was just endless torture, attacking your spirit, shaving away at your determination.
As long as you did not stop, this suffering would never end, forcing you to give up.
Xiao Chen traversed the mountain of knives and pushed open the door. Like before, what welcomed him was not the finish line. Instead, it was a land filled with poisonous gas.
Xiao Chen drove his battered body onwards with ironclad determination.
The poisonous gas pervaded the region, corroding his body. All his wounds felt like there were snakes and bugs biting them.
Walk…walk…walk…I cannot stop!
Xiao Chen took one step at a time. He was only semiconscious by now. He could not even clearly make out the path anymore. He nearly fell into the mud several times.
Xiao Chen had to expend a lot of effort to climb back out before continuing his trek.
After Xiao Chen crossed the land of poisonous gas, he pushed open the door at the end. However, it was still not the end; there was danger land after danger land.
Xiao Chen had long grown inured to all this. He smiled bitterly and pressed on.
All sorts of dangerous scenes appeared, one after another. Unimaginable places lay behind each door but Xiao Chen cleared them all.
This continued until Xiao Chen reached the ninth door. Feeling very weak, he opened the door—and no land of danger awaited him. A gentle light enveloped him.
The pure white light was like Immortal Grade Medicine. It quickly healed all the wounds on his body.
All of Xiao Chen’s fatigue vanished. He felt a certain comfort throughout his body. The sudden ease that came after that unbearable torture was inebriating; it made one reluctant to awaken from that euphoria.
After the light faded away, Xiao Chen opened his eyes and clenched his fist tightly. After all the torture, his physical body had become even stronger.
Seeing his newly regrown skin, Xiao Chen revealed an expression of joy. He said softly, “Not only my strength increased, my defense increased as well. Unfortunately, there are no opportunities to test it out.”
One’s efforts would eventually pay off. Xiao Chen was rewarded for his perseverance; his efforts had not been in vain.
Xiao Chen looked around his surroundings. This should be the sixth floor of the Ancient Desolate Tower. Very realistic statues stood in front of him. A rough count came to about a hundred statues.
Xiao Chen’s gaze fell on the first statue at the very front and suddenly felt stunned.
That statue wore white robes and had a blue headband on its head. His gaze was cold and he radiated calmness. His hands held a saber against his chest.
Who else could this be aside from himself?!
Xiao Chen suppressed the doubts in his heart. He continued looking around. Although there were many statues he could not identify, he recognized quite a few of them; they were experts that were spoken about in the various countries’ legends.
Xiao Chen continued on and he even saw the Thunder Emperor, Sang Mu, standing there.
Xiao Chen muttered to himself, “It seems that everyone who passed the test of willpower on the sixth floor leaves a statue behind here. However, I did not expect that after several thousands of years, only about a hundred people passed the sixth floor.”
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Outside the Ancient Desolate Tower, Shi Hailong and the other people on the platform were all very excited. This was because Xiao Chen had given them another surprise—he had cleared the sixth floor and was heading to the seventh.
Shi Hailong laughed very heartily. “After clearing the sixth floor, he would be able to leave behind a will statue of himself. This can be considered as him obtaining some of the Ancient Desolate Tower’s Luck. This is the best reward for a cultivator on this floor.”
“Xiao Chen is going to advance to the seventh floor. If he climbs one more floor, he would be able to reach the same height that the Thunder Emperor did a thousand years ago. This fellow might really be able to create a miracle,” an Heavenly Extermination Union elder said, unable to contain his excitement.
When Shi Hailong heard this, he became calmer instead. He said with a drawn-out smile, “Don’t overthink this. It is rare to even get one person like the Thunder Emperor within ten thousand years. In the end, there is still a gap between Xiao Chen and him. It is already a big help to the Heavenly Extermination Union.
“The seventh floor…that place is filled with will statues left by some Martial Emperors. The tests of the Martial Emperors are not easy to pass.”
Shi Hailong sighed, feeling that it was a pity Xiao Chen’s cultivation was still a little low. In another two years, he might have been a half-step Martial Monarch, and then he would have had a seventy percent chance of passing the test of a Martial Emperor, given his talent at combat. However, there was not much hope at this moment.
“Di da! Di da!”
When Xiao Chen went through the mysterious light barrier, drops of Essence liquid dripped down into his purple Qi whirlpool, which had expanded by half.
The process took three minutes this time. These three minutes were equivalent to half a year of cultivation, which stabilized Xiao Chen’s cultivation as a Medial Grade Martial King.
Xiao Chen landed on the ground and appeared in the seventh floor of the Ancient Desolate Tower.
When Xiao Chen felt the vast energy in his body, he revealed a satisfied smile. This was worth his earlier effort to climb to the seventh floor.
The light barrier increased Xiao Chen’s cultivation greatly, allowing him to close the gap between him and the genius cultivators of the same generation.
“On the next floor, I might be able to reach the peak of Medial Grade Martial King. I only have one attempt at the Ancient Desolate Tower; I cannot waste it,” Xiao Chen resolutely reminded himself. Now, he was even more eager to see what the eighth floor was like. Back then, the Thunder Emperor managed to reach the eighth floor. He would attempt to reach the eighth floor at least.
Xiao Chen looked around the seventh floor and saw ten statues.
These statues were vastly different from the statues on the sixth floor. With a cursory glance, one could tell that the statues contained a boundless aura.
They were also different from the statues of the Martial Sages. Their auras and bearing were vastly greater than those of the will statues of the Martial Sages.
When Xiao Chen stood before a statue, he got the impression that it was alive. The statues’ gazes were very deep, deterring one from staring directly into their eyes.
Xiao Chen thought to himself and said softly, “These should be will statues as well. However, these will statues should be different in grade. The statues on the sixth floor are the most ordinary will statues. The ones on the second floor are the ones left behind by Martial Sages. The ones on this seventh floor are probably from Martial Emperors.”
When Xiao Chen thought of this possibility, he looked the statues again and could not help but feel respect for them.
Martial Emperor, the upper limit of martial cultivation, the peak of the Great Dao. That was what all cultivators sought. It represented honor and glory. It represented the peak. And more, it represented strength.
Every Martial Emperor was a legend in the Tianwu Continent. For several millennia, there had not been any word of a new Martial Emperor.
The legends of Martial Emperors were left by the older generations. However, these Martial Emperors had already vanished from the world long ago.
Since the Thunder Emperor disappeared a thousand years before, there had not been any news of new Martial Emperors. All the Martial Emperors seemed to have disappeared.
Now that Xiao Chen witnessed the will statues left by Martial Emperors for himself, the emotions that he felt could be easily imagined.
When Xiao Chen scrutinized the will statues, he suddenly exclaimed as his gaze stopped on the fourth statue.
“Bai Shuihe!”
This statue was wearing blue Battle Armor and he carried a serrated saber on his back as well. It looked exactly the same as the statue of Bai Shuihe on the second floor.
The only difference was that the pressure that Xiao Chen felt was vastly greater.
Xiao Chen’s respect for Bai Shuihe could not help but increase again.
The will of Bai Shuihe on the second floor was like a master to Xiao Chen. Although it was a test, it had been more like a senior bladesman giving pointers to a junior; Xiao Chen had benefited greatly from this.
Xiao Chen had not expected to see Bai Shuihe again on this floor. He was very happy to learn that such a heroic person had reached Martial Emperor.
Xiao Chen quickly walked up to the fourth statue and pointed at its forehead with his finger.
“Brat, choose me instead. How is this little white face an attractive option? I will show you what a true bladesman is.”
[TL note: Little white face: This is a Chinese slang for a pretty face (man). This is usually used when a good-looking man relies on his looks to get a woman to support him. Basically, it’s an insult.]
Just as Xiao Chen’s finger was about to touch Bai Shuihe’s forehead, the thunderous voice of the first statue on the right, a large man carrying a thick saber, resounded in the seventh floor.
“Ha ha! Old Lei, stop envying me. Just based on your looks, no one would dare choose you. Ha ha ha!”