"Steady, steady, it's not certain yet! Li hasn't even cleared the level!" Some people comforted themselves this way.
Night was Li Shuang's domain.
When the Lunar Star shone, that was when she was at her strongest.
With the moon and stars shining brightly, the green lotus bloomed with an elegant glow. This night, Li Shuang passed through with surprising ease.
By dawn, the Lunar Star had vanished, and the Solar Star shone brightly again, inevitably weakening Li Shuang's aura somewhat.
Then, after a day and a night of soul tempering, her soul was much more condensed than it had been yesterday. Even without the boost from the Lunar Star, Li Shuang persevered.
Just as her soul was about to collapse, night fell once more.
This cycle repeated. Li Shuang stubbornly held on to the very end of the first level.
During these three days and three nights, after some people discovered Li Shuang's method, they also wanted to temper their souls like her.
However, even with all sorts of preparations, not everyone could withstand the impact of the heavy hammer. Several people were directly hammered off into the void during their first strike. A few others managed to hold on for a few more strikes, but they felt their souls become hazy. When they wanted to give up, they found that after their souls were damaged, they couldn't even dodge the hammers they could have avoided before.
After a few such examples, the others decisively gave up on imitating Li Shuang.
Some things, even if they knew the method, they simply couldn't replicate.
However, everyone looked at Li Shuang, whose soul was becoming increasingly condensed, with a hint of envy.
The three-day and three-night Thousand Machine Hammer Array finally ended.
Aside from those who had already gone to the second level, the golden altars beneath the feet of those who had persisted without falling slowly rose until they were level with You Lan and the others.
At this moment, a voice rang out.
"The Thousand Machine Hammer trial has ended. Final clearers: 533 people."
Li Shuang's expression changed slightly.
Over a thousand people participated in the trial, yet less than half made it to the second level.
While the opportunity of the Soul Golden Altar was good, it wasn't something everyone could obtain.
In Myriad Law City, this small gamble also had a result. All those who placed bets were completely wiped out; not a single person guessed correctly.
The answer given by the City Lord was that the person who gained the most in the first level was, without a doubt, Li.
Everyone lamented while regrouping.
No rush! This was only the first round! They still had plenty of opportunities!
"Second level gamble: Who will clear the level the fastest. Betting time: ten breaths. After ten breaths, no more bets will be accepted."
This gamble was interesting, betting on who would be the fastest. Those who originally wanted to bet on Li Shuang hesitated.
This Li was indeed a dark horse. But she did things neither too fast nor too slow; she didn't seem like someone who pursued speed.
This round was about clearing speed, so Li might not have an advantage!
And their decision time was only ten breaths.
Soon, time passed, and everyone placed their bets.
The person who received the most betting points was still You Lan. Surprisingly, Li Shuang also received a considerable amount of betting points, ranking fifth among all the trial participants.
In front of the water screen.
A man looked at his bet, his expression somewhat conflicted.
He had just inexplicably bet on Li.
It wasn't that he thought Li could win, but he felt that Li gave him an indescribable sense of familiarity.
Her name was Li, and she had once blurted out that she was a disciple of the Sword Sect.
If this weren't Myriad Law City, he would have thought it was Li Shuang of the Sword Sect.
"I must be overthinking... No, definitely overthinking," the man muttered to himself.
He had just contracted a Myriad Law Eye a month ago. This had excited his master, who said that the Cangyuan Sect's future was promising.
He didn't know what this Myriad Law Eye represented at the time, so he asked his master.
"With the Myriad Law Eye in hand, is it still possible for Li Shuang to catch up to me?"
His master immediately laughed, "Yan Fan, don't keep thinking about Li Shuang. You two are already on different paths. Let alone surpassing you, she will only get further and further away from you! Your future goal is those geniuses in the Central Continent! If one day you can make it onto the genius list, even if it's just the very end of it, then no one will be able to contend with you for the position of future sect master!"
Recalling these words, Yan Fan felt a little regretful at the time.
After all, the feeling of being invincible among his peers was actually quite difficult.
But since he had obtained such an opportunity, he naturally couldn't give it up.
When Yan Fan first arrived in Myriad Law City, he was also filled with ambition. His master said that just entering the end of the genius list was a victory! But was he, Yan Fan, necessarily worse than those geniuses in the Central Continent?
His goal! Was to be first!
However, his initial ambition quickly disappeared after he cleared the three great secret realms. Later, when he found out he didn't even qualify for the Soul Prison, Yan Fan instantly recognized the truth.
The strength of cultivators from the Southern Azure Continent and those from the Central Continent was simply too great.
As the number one genius of the Southern Azure Continent, he was nothing here.
And You Lan, and these other people, shone brightly even in the Central Continent, which was full of geniuses.
Before, he was present when Li challenged the sixth Great Dao Mountain. When Li blurted out the words "Sword Sect," his heart truly trembled. After all, this Li not only had a similar temperament to Li Shuang, but even their spiritual roots were the same ice spiritual root.
But he quickly dismissed this absurd notion.
Li was a peerless genius taught by the City Lord! Her mention of the Sword Sect was probably just a casual remark; after all, that name wasn't uncommon.
As the number one genius of the Southern Azure Continent, he was already struggling here. How could Li Shuang possibly reach this level?
His previous thought was truly an exaggeration.
Yan Fan looked enviously at Li Shuang in the water screen.
Forget about participating in the Soul Golden Altar, when would he even be able to challenge the Soul Prison?
Yan Fan couldn't help but comfort himself.
Forget it! Although he couldn't compare to these peerless geniuses, he had already won a step ahead of the others in the Southern Azure Continent.
Soul Golden Altar, second level.
The others who had persisted for three full days all looked utterly exhausted. Clearly, the prolonged, full-force rotation of soul power was a considerable pressure for them.
Li Shuang, on the other hand, looked radiant at this moment.
After three days of tempering, her soul had completely adapted to this hammering technique. When she was forced to leave, she even felt a little disappointed.
"Monster!" Seeing Li Shuang like this, everyone couldn't help but whisper.
Li! Not human!
Without giving them any time to recover, the voice rang out again.
"Soul Golden Altar second level trial: Tribulation!"
Li Shuang's expression became solemn.
The trial for this level was just one word: Tribulation?
What kind of tribulation?
Lightning tribulation? Heavenly tribulation? Inner demon tribulation? Tribulation of all things?