She?
Li Shuang was stunned for a moment before realizing: "The 'she' you're talking about... is the City Lord?"
You Lan's gaze was cold: "You don't need to flaunt her in front of me! You were taught by her purely out of luck. As for me, I will rely on myself to reach her side."
With that said.
You Lan turned around directly, leaving Li Shuang with only a proud back.
Li Shuang blinked, a little amused and a little exasperated.
Was this human race's top genius jealous right now?
And the object of her jealousy... was actually the City Lord?
Li Shuang suddenly realized.
She was in the Southern Orchid Continent and had only recently learned about a peak expert like the City Lord.
But You Lan and others like her, they probably grew up listening to the City Lord's legendary stories from the very beginning of their cultivation.
The City Lord of Myriad Laws City was truly an object of universal worship.
Li Shuang suddenly felt a great deal of pressure.
The City Lord, to protect her, had publicly stated that Li Shuang was personally trained by her.
While she gained protection from this...
On the other hand...
Li Shuang suddenly felt.
Not just You Lan, but envious, jealous, and hateful gazes were coming from all directions.
Li Shuang suddenly fell silent.
Every human genius wanted to gain the City Lord's attention. Before, they had no way in.
Now, they seemed to have found a shortcut.
That is...
To surpass her!
To surpass "her," the "secret ace" personally trained by the City Lord, would naturally gain the City Lord's attention.
Li Shuang didn't know whether to laugh or cry at that moment.
But one thing was certain.
In the upcoming Soul Golden Altar trial, she was probably going to become a public enemy.
At this moment.
A distant voice echoed in the sky.
Li Shuang immediately recognized that voice; it was none other than the mysterious City Lord, Yu Jin.
However.
The City Lord did not appear this time; only her voice drifted from afar.
"The Soul Golden Altar is about to open. Number of participants this time: one thousand one hundred and twenty-three. During the opening of the Soul Golden Altar, the Soul Prison will be closed. No one except those participating in the Soul Golden Altar may enter."
"Teleportation will begin in ten breaths."
The City Lord's voice faded.
The giant golden榜 (list/tablet) in the sky suddenly disappeared, transforming instead into a large number: Ten!
Then.
The numbers changed.
Nine!
Eight!
Li Shuang felt a slight tension.
Among these more than a thousand people, most of them had probably participated in the Soul Golden Altar before.
Even those who hadn't would have been informed by their sect elders.
Only she was truly clueless.
She couldn't find any information about the Soul Golden Altar in any ancient texts; it was only passed down through word of mouth.
And with no background, she naturally had no way of knowing.
Li Shuang took a deep breath and looked up at the sky again.
Five!
Four!
As the "Supreme Forgetfulness Art" circulated, Li Shuang's heart slowly settled.
No matter what kind of trial it was.
Whether it was a mountain of blades or a sea of fire.
She was determined to go through it.
Three!
Two!
One!
As the final "one" disappeared, specks of light scattered from the sky, landing precisely on each person whose name was on the list.
The moment the light specks landed, Li Shuang felt a slight dizziness. Then, she had already left Myriad Laws City.
When Li Shuang opened her eyes again.
She was already on the Soul Golden Altar.
Li Shuang looked at her surroundings, her pupils slightly constricted.
She had originally thought that "Soul Golden Altar" was just a figure of speech, but she never expected... it was actually based on reality!
She was currently standing on a golden altar.
The golden altar had no support and was suspended in mid-air. Around the altar, countless runes shimmering with golden light floated, slowly flowing, mysterious and unfathomable.
Looking around, besides her, the other thousand-plus people also each had a golden altar beneath their feet.
The golden altars gathered together, forming a huge circle.
And in the center of the circle was a towering pillar.
Various patterns were carved on the pillar. Li Shuang only glanced at it and felt a little dizzy.
Clearly.
These patterns were not something she could comprehend in her current state.
She looked up, trying to see higher.
This sky-reaching pillar seemed to have no end; no matter how she looked, she couldn't see its top.
"Phew, it's finally starting again!"
"Last time, I was eliminated on the first level. This time, I'm setting a small goal: I must make it to the second level!"
"The second level is pretty good! Hahaha."
"Being eliminated on the first level isn't the unluckiest. Last time, there was a poor soul at the Soul Golden Altar who had clearly passed the first level, but during the ascent of the altar, he didn't stand firm and fell straight down! It was hilarious!"
"Hahaha, that truly was unlucky."
"Don't speak too soon. Every time, there are always a few unlucky ones who fall."
"For every level passed, the golden altar will rise a certain distance. The higher you go, the greater the pressure. Some people, even if they pass, will be forced off the altar by the high-altitude pressure."
"True."
While the trial hadn't officially begun.
Everyone was whispering.
Li Shuang quietly absorbed the information.
No one thought that Li Shuang wouldn't know about the golden altar, so they naturally didn't deliberately hide anything when speaking.
Li Shuang integrated some information and roughly understood some of the most basic rules.
First.
In this Soul Golden Altar, there was no competition between individuals.
Everyone had their own golden altar.
Once the trial began, various challenges would appear.
Falling off the golden altar was considered elimination.
Those who successfully endured would proceed to the next stage.
For each stage passed, the golden altar would rise a certain distance.
The legendary seventh level was probably at the very top of this central sky-reaching pillar.
Among their group, the highest record was You Lan, who had reached the fifth level.
If considering all geniuses throughout history, someone had once reached the sixth level.
But...
The legendary seventh level, no one had ever been heard to reach it.
Perhaps.
Someone had reached it, but the matter was simply not spread.
This mode made Li Shuang feel a little more at ease.
With no competition and no way to interfere with each other, all she had to do was calmly withstand the trials of the golden altar.
Everyone discussed for a while.
Suddenly.
On the central sky-reaching pillar, a number appeared: "One!"
The moment the number appeared, everyone immediately stopped talking, their expressions becoming more solemn than the last.
The trial...
Was about to begin.
Li Shuang's body tensed, and in her Sword Dao space, Lili had already entered a state of readiness!
"Here it comes, the first stage, the Thousand Machine Hammer Array!" someone exclaimed.
Amidst everyone's anxious anticipation, giant heavy iron hammers suddenly extended from the central pillar.
These hammers spun rapidly at an extremely fast speed.
The hammers appeared so suddenly. Although everyone had prepared in advance.
But.
Screams still echoed from the golden altars.
In an instant, dozens of people were eliminated!
Some dangers, even if known in advance, cannot always be avoided!