Chapter 10

Chen Xi finally climbed up the last step, gripping the broken pole that had at least saved half of his body. The image of him struggling upwards was destined to shock everyone watching, and in the days to come, they would all marvel at the determination and resolve of that young man in the Fate-Changing Tower.

That image

would become a recurring dream for them for the rest of their lives.

The young man used his intact right arm to drag the lower half of his body, which had been completely cut off by the sword aura, up to the third level of the tower. The blood flowing from his abdomen formed a small waterfall on the stone steps, and the scene was so bloody and brutal that everyone who saw it could not help but tremble inside.

When Chen Xi finally climbed to the third level and lay down, gasping for breath, one of the thousands of onlookers shouted, "This is a real man!" Then there was a loud cheer, and this time there was no mockery or jealousy, only admiration. Before entering the Fate-Changing Tower, Chen Xi had not used his Ninth Rank Foundation Establishment cultivation to retaliate against those who mocked him. After reaching the third level, he no longer needed to.

Because, he had left those people far behind, in a different world.

Those who were jealous and resentful did not join in the shouting, but they chose to remain silent.

The first to start clapping and cheering were the bloodthirsty men, and later, the female disciples of Phoenix and Phoenix Hall joined in. Everyone was infected by his indomitable spirit. Many of the female disciples looked at Chen Xi with complex expressions, but many of them also had a hint of admiration in their eyes.

"This boy has potential."

The sect leader smiled and said four words, then drifted away.

Zhou Jiuzhi laughed heartily, unrestrained.

As the head of a hall, he had not laughed so freely for many years.

Chen Xi, this lowly servant of unknown origin, had matched the highest record ever set by the outer six halls of Xiaoman Tian Sect for disciples entering the Fate-Changing Tower. Since the construction of the Fate-Changing Tower, the best recorded achievement was reaching the third level. Although the trials Chen Xi endured were indeed too severe, even if the trials were reduced for others, they would not be easily endured.

Even the fiery stone steps from the first to the second level had blocked over 95% of the disciples.

No one could face their own mangled appearance. And this mangled appearance was just the result, not the process, which was the most painful and unbearable.

Chen Xi was breathing heavily, like a broken zombie who had just emerged from underground and had not smelled the air for a thousand years, greedily inhaling the air in large gulps. His lower body was gone, but the shredded flesh was still on the stone steps. The fragments of bone and bloody flesh were scattered along the way. How many could endure this?

Just looking at it was enough to make one fear.

After this, many disciples of the outer six halls would likely lose their resolve and not want to climb the tower.

"He's a real man!"

Zhan Qing waved his fist forcefully, his eyes filled with rare admiration. He was not only the best in Class A but also a very promising student in the entire Green Martial Hall. For someone as proud as him to admire someone else was a very rare thing.

Liu Xichen of Phoenix and Phoenix Hall's eyes sparkled, as if she had discovered a new continent.

"I want to meet him."

She said.

The head of Phoenix and Phoenix Hall, Su Xiaoxu, said, "Don't rush. The annual exams are coming up soon, and I know you have always lacked a true opponent, so you have been a bit lax in your practice."

"I can't wait."

Liu Xichen's beautiful lips curled slightly, and with a light step, her graceful figure landed at the entrance of the Fate-Changing Tower like a light yellow cloud, as light as the silent spring rain.

"Xichen, what are you going to do!"

Su Xiaoxu only realized what was happening and tried to stop her, but it was too late.

Liu Xichen stepped into the Fate-Changing Tower, "I suddenly want to see how many levels I can climb."

Her actions undoubtedly pushed the already excited crowd to another peak. The crowd, already沸腾 because of Chen Xi, became even more enthusiastic. They fell into a frenzy, a kind of indescribable emotion. They shouted wildly, waving their arms.

Once someone enters the Fate-Changing Tower, they cannot turn back.

So even a cultivator like Su Xiaoxu could not pull Liu Xichen out.

And just as Liu Xichen entered the Fate-Changing Tower, at least a dozen more disciples from the outer six halls rushed out of the crowd and rushed into the tower, including Zhan Qing from Class A of Green Martial Hall. Shi Xueling hesitated for a moment after seeing Zhan Qing rush past, but ultimately followed.

"This is going to be big."

Zhou Jiuzhi, standing on the third floor, rubbed his forehead, "That boy has caused such a mess, unexpected... unexpected. But it's good, the law does not punish the many... now even if the sect leader wants to make a show of punishment, he won't go too far."

...

...

Chen Xi, on the third level, chose to enter through a door near the stairs. On the third level, there were only four doors to enter. If this pattern continued, there would be only two doors on the fourth level. On the fifth level, would there be one door or none? But if this rule held, there would definitely be no doors on the sixth level.

Before entering, Chen Xi couldn't help but wonder if the fifth level was the last place for cultivation, what would be above the fifth level?

According to the information he had gathered, the mysterious Shen Teng was on the ninth level, the highest point of the Fate-Changing Tower. What were the sixth, seventh, and eighth levels?

Chen Xi entered the door with these questions in mind.

Inside the door, it was warm. Chen Xi looked up and saw a fist-sized pearl hanging from the ceiling, emitting a milky white light. The light brought a warmth like sunlight, and the moment he entered, the pain in his shattered body disappeared.

It was undeniable that the Fate-Changing Tower had many miraculous aspects.

This could not help but make one imagine what kind of extraordinary person the first sect leader, Li Lanfeng, must have been. To bring back the Nine-Colored Stone from Kunlun, a place of great fortune and great danger, was already rare. According to legend, the Nine-Colored Stone was Kunlun's greatest treasure, guarded by a powerful existence. Li Lanfeng fought for seven days and seven nights to bring the Nine-Colored Stone back from Kunlun.

Chen Xi even suspected that the milky white pearl above his head might be one of the Nine-Colored Stones?

Such a powerful healing effect could be called a divine object. Considering this was only the third level, it was expected that the fourth level and higher would have even more miraculous things.

Chen Xi lay on the ground, still tightly gripping his pole. It was undeniable that this pole had filled Chen Xi with amazement. He never imagined that the old pole he had used for over three hundred days to carry water was actually a treasure. When he first saw it leaning against the wall in the dilapidated courtyard on the mountain, he even worried it would break under the weight of two buckets of water.

However, despite its fragile appearance, the pole had always shown great resilience.

While receiving the healing from the milky white light, Chen Xi turned his head to look at the pole in his hand. He didn't know what kind of wood it was, but it was covered with fine cracks. Perhaps due to prolonged exposure to the sun, the pole's surface was very rough. At first, Chen Xi's shoulders suffered a lot.

After enduring the flames on the second level and the sword aura on the third level, the pole showed no changes. This made Chen Xi wonder if the pole existed in a separate space, immune to any harm from this world.

The milky white light changed slightly after Chen Xi entered, as if it could automatically recognize the injured. The light formed thin threads that slowly merged into Chen Xi's wounds. Then Chen Xi felt an indescribable comfort, like the gentle touch of a beautiful woman's fingers on his skin. It was so soothing that it could make one moan.

He looked down and saw that his lower body, which had been completely shredded by the sword aura, was regenerating at a visible speed. The milky white light was clearly much more effective than the healing on the second level. Chen Xi had reformed his body twice on the second level, the first time taking four hours, the second time less than three hours. But this time, Chen Xi realized it might take less than half an hour for his body to heal.

Moreover, a warm current was swirling in his lower abdomen.

Chen Xi knew exactly what was happening, and he couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.

Each time his realm advanced, a warm current would swirl in his lower abdomen. After filling his dantian, the warm current would spread to his limbs and bones. When the current completed one cycle and returned to the dantian, his realm would reach a new height. Chen Xi had inflicted injuries on himself, and he thought it would take at least half a year to fully recover, and then at least one to two years to break through to the next realm.

After all, this breakthrough was not just an upgrade within a major realm, but from the most basic Foundation Establishment realm to the Void-Breaking realm.

Anyone who could cultivate knew that only after entering the Void-Breaking realm could one truly be considered a cultivator. The difference between cultivators and ordinary martial artists was also clearly defined after the Void-Breaking realm. The strongest ordinary martial artists, through relentless training, could reach the power equivalent to the Ninth Rank of Foundation Establishment.

Compared to the sword aura Chen Xi encountered on the third level, the strongest ordinary martial artists could also cultivate sword aura and achieve a speed of dozens or even hundreds of strikes per second. But that was the limit of the ordinary martial world, and they could not advance further. There were precedents of Fifth or Sixth Rank Foundation Establishment cultivators being killed by the strongest ordinary martial artists.

Chen Xi realized that the injuries he had inflicted on himself with the Seven Yang Valley's true qi had already been completely healed after his body was destroyed and reformed on the second level. After two ascents to the second level and one to the third level, his body had become more than twice as strong as before.

The three trials had pushed him to the brink, but they had also unleashed his potential, and now he was about to advance from the most basic Foundation Establishment realm to the Void-Breaking realm, where he could control his life essence to fly. The cultivation power he could exert in the Void-Breaking realm was far greater than that of the Foundation Establishment realm.

For example, Ding Mei, in the Void-Breaking realm, though it was unknown what rank, could serve as an instructor in Class A. The combined strength of the thirty-six disciples in Class A might not be enough to withstand one strike from Ding Mei.

With the prospect of advancing to the Void-Breaking realm, the next important step was to choose his life essence.

Chen Xi looked at the broken pole in his hand and couldn't help but laugh.

The world was truly full of opportunities and coincidences. Without this pole, he would have had nothing to choose as his life essence. Those from powerful families could choose a treasure from their family's collection from a young age, carry it with them, and cultivate its spirit and nature, waiting for the Void-Breaking realm to make it their life essence.

Cultivators from humble backgrounds, if fortunate enough to enter a sect and reach the Void-Breaking realm, would generally choose from items provided by the sect. These items were mostly low-grade treasures, and only truly promising disciples would receive the sect's full support.

Chen Xi laughed because he no longer had to worry about what to choose as his life essence.

And, it seemed he only had one option.

The pole.

Chen Xi laughed again, thinking about the future. Walking around with a pole to fight, any opponent would likely laugh at his life essence...

Life, it seemed, was truly interesting.