Using entries to cultivate immortality in chaotic times

"It's okay, let's talk outside."

Chen Qiu's expression remained calm as he shifted his gaze from Fat Long and glanced towards the few lines of text carved onto the pillar at the entrance of the Alchemy Hall.

'The second round, beheading the cowardly.'

'Pass this round, and you may become an outer sect disciple of the Chao Tian Sect.'

Inside the Alchemy Hall, it seemed as though it was shrouded in a barrier. The ground was spotless; the moment one stepped through the entrance of the Alchemy Hall, the trial of the second round would officially begin.

Many people had already gone inside, but quite a few had met with failure.

The difficulty seemed to have risen a notch from the first round, unlike the first round's crude illusions, which practically everyone could pass with ease, as the illusions didn't block their memories and everyone knew they were in an illusion, hence they could proceed without hesitation.

Had it been an illusion which blocked your memories, making you unaware of why you found yourself there, the number of people passing the round would have been far fewer.

"Let's go."

Chen Qiu looked at the group inside the Alchemy Hall, straining with twisted expressions as they struggled to walk due to the gravity, which was several times stronger inside this special area. The further one went, the stronger the gravity became, making it increasingly difficult to move.

One only needed to reach the Pill Furnace at the center of the Alchemy Hall to pass the trial, but retreating even a single step meant failure, at which point the gravity would rapidly dissipate, thereby forcibly ejecting the individual from the Alchemy Hall.

"Oh, right."

Fat Long nodded, hurriedly following along but with a slight sense of unease in his heart. Although what happened in the illusion couldn't be projected into reality and was all fake, his legs still seemed to feel a bit wobbly.

They were shaking with nervousness.

...

Meanwhile—

Near the ruins of an abandoned building close to the first round, Zhao Yishi was hiding in a corner, observing the outside through a broken hole in the wall, cautiously remaining hidden, trying not to draw any attention.

It seemed the first round wasn't very dangerous, as practically everyone had passed.

Moreover, the evil entity hadn't gone on a sudden killing spree.

He planned to wait until no one was around and then go to the first round. Following behind others and picking up what they missed wasn't very rewarding, but it was certainly safer.

While feces might not be as tasty as red mushrooms in the wild, at least one could be certain they were absolutely non-toxic.

Precedent had verified it; anything toxic wouldn't have had the chance to be excreted.

Just then, a few young cultivators who hadn't managed to pass the first round were huddling together, feeling their way around near the first round. Soon they found their way into this grand yet decrepit hall.

Only those who had passed the first round could explore the ruins around the second round; otherwise, a barrier would block your path. If one failed the first round, they could only explore the ruins near the first round.

Feeling a slight pain, Zhao Yishi looked down.

Right then, a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator was prodding at his big toe with a long sword: "Hey, look, it seems like there's an unknown barrier here, invisible, but you can definitely feel something."

"But it doesn't feel as solid as a barrier, more like a partially abandoned one."

"Do you guys think there might be a small world or something similar sealed behind this barrier? I've always heard that the treasures of ancient sects are hidden inside small worlds!"

"That makes sense!"

The cultivators' eyes lit up, and they simultaneously took out their flying swords and began attacking this invisible yet tangible barrier, having no opportunity to move on to the second round. They had searched near the first round for a long time and found nothing, and unexpectedly here they had stumbled upon something that looked like a treasure might be concealed!

Several breaths later. Stay connected with empire

A Heaven-reaching Giant huddled in a corner slowly unwrapped his Invisibility Technique, expressionlessly rose to his feet, and looked down at the few "little ants" below, saying dispassionately, "Crazy, like a sickness."

Then he strode out of the great hall and headed toward the first round. By this time, there weren't many people left at the first round—it was his turn to enter the stage.

...

Fufeng City, inside a certain tea house.

The scholar, seated cross-legged in the corner of the hall, looked intoxicated and transfixed as he stared at the cup of tea in his hands, his ears quivering as he listened intently to the storyteller on stage narrating the tale of a once-great hero.

"Hey!"

The storyteller struck the gong, exciting everyone's anticipation, and then chuckled, "The character I was just talking about—you folks must have heard of him before!"

"He is none other than the once leading Sword Cultivator of Da Xia!"

"The White-clothed Sword Cultivator!"

"A young man in his prime is naturally full of arrogance, but he never considered that his last blunder would be meddling with someone he shouldn't have, which ultimately lead to the disappearance of the name 'Bai Yi' from Da Xia. The story, however, starts from the very beginning, so listen closely as I recount it slowly..."

"Brother..."

The burly man with a tufted beard beside the scholar looked excited as he leaned in and shook the scholar's head vigorously, gesturing for him to listen attentively.

These past years, on days when his brother had nothing else to do, he would drag him to the tea house to listen to the storyteller, knowing full well his brother didn't really like these stories. But the only reason his brother came so often was in the hope of hearing his own tale recounted from the storyteller's lips.

Unfortunately, those storytellers would only speak of the recently famous; those were the tales people liked to hear.

No one spoke of the ones who had faded from glory, and no one listened.

Finally hearing his own name mentioned by the storyteller, he knew his brother must be thrilled.

After finishing the tea with one gulp, the scholar shrugged off his brother's hand and said impatiently, "Back when I was famous, there were plenty of storytellers who talked about me. I got tired of hearing it. Don't act like such a disgrace."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

However, at that moment—

A middle-aged man in the audience suddenly waved dismissively and said, "Can we get someone else to tell the story? How can someone who's been dead for so many years still be called the top Sword Cultivator of Da Xia? If he really were the top Sword Cultivator, would he have died so easily?"

"Just a lucky piece of trash, wasn't he; still ended up being chased and running away like a dog."

"..."

The scholar was about to pour himself more tea when his hand suddenly stopped, and he turned his head to look at the man who had waved dismissively, remaining silent and expressionless.

"Bro!"

At that moment, the burly bearded man pressed down on the scholar's right hand and urged sternly, "You've just taken the Heavenly Dao Jade, and the hidden poison in your body has barely been cleared away; you're still in the recovery phase. You absolutely mustn't start a fight now—if your spiritual energy becomes chaotic, you won't live long!"

"Hmm."

The scholar nodded, the green blade in his sleeve quivering slightly. After a long moment, he exhaled gently and patted his brother's shoulder, signaling for him to carry him out of the place. The storyteller on stage, under the audience's scorn, had already switched to another character.

Not just any character.

It was the coming-of-age story of the current top Sword Cultivator of Da Xia.

Outside the tea house.

The sky, just like the past few days, was engulfed by thousands of miles of dark clouds pressing down like a lid, covering the entire sky, leaving almost no trace of sunlight, creating an oppressive atmosphere yet filled with a sense of freedom.

The day had darkened again.