"Hahaha! Xue Yu!" King Ziyuan laughed heartily, his voice full of teasing.
"What a rare occurrence! Hard to come by in a thousand years! Truly rare, truly rare! To make you, Snow Prison King, personally admit to 'underestimating' a Universe Rank junior? Haha, this Qing Yu has truly created quite a miracle!"
Snow Prison King's expression was icy, and his heart was extremely irritable. Qing Yu's performance had indeed exceeded his initial expectations, and he admitted that he regretted his earlier assertiveness a little.
What made him even more irritable was King Ziyuan!
He knew King Ziyuan's temperament well; the more he acknowledged him, the more the other would seize on his words, enthusiastically teasing him endlessly, as if seeing Snow Prison King, known for his cold arrogance, in a difficult position was a great joy.
It was foreseeable that for the next tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of years, Zi Yuan would definitely seize today's "handle" and use this matter to tease him anytime, anywhere!
"Hmph! Annoying!"
Snow Prison King snorted coldly in his heart, simply closed his eyes and pretended to cultivate, no longer looking at King Ziyuan's face, which was full of mockery.
King Ziyuan was laughing heartily when he saw Snow Prison King's appearance—eyes closed in meditation, in a 'do not disturb' state.
"Tsk!"
King Ziyuan pouted and muttered unenthusiastically.
"Boring! Still the same bad temper. There will be plenty of time to chat later. I'm leaving first, you can continue your 'quiet cultivation'! Haha!"
Just then, on the Cosmic Sky Bridge, Qing Yu's figure appeared at the end of the eighth floor's bridge surface.
Qing Yu still chose an Illusionist as his opponent.
However, reality was cruel. Illusion attacks were not something that could be resisted solely by a strong will, because illusions also contained laws. If the gap in law comprehension was too great, even will would be difficult to compensate for.
The eighth-floor guardian launched a fierce attack.
Buzz—!!!
An indescribable, irresistible soul impact descended! The third layer of the "Seven Soul Bell"'s defense was like paper, unable to hold for even a second. The bell body instantly became covered in cracks, and then silently disintegrated!
Cosmic Sky Bridge, eighth floor, failed!
Misty light surged, and Qing Yu's figure re-coalesced on the island.
The Warden, Ba Fen, looked at the reappearing Qing Yu and slowly said, "Qing Yu, congratulations, you have passed the seventh floor of the Cosmic Sky Bridge."
"Thank you, Warden. I'll head back now."
"Seventh floor…" The Domain Master youth next to him looked at Qing Yu's retreating figure, displaying an expression as if he was looking at a monster.
After the shock, a strange emotion surged in his heart, and the Domain Master youth suddenly grinned, with a hint of schadenfreude.
"Heh… hehe…" he muttered to himself, his eyes glinting.
"A monster… truly a complete monster! But… hehe, why am I getting excited? This monster isn't competing with a regular Domain Master like me from the Absolute Beginning Secret Realm."
The smile on his face became even more pronounced, carrying a sense of ease, as if saying, "It's none of my business, I'm just watching the show.":
"The ones who should be having a headache are those 'big shots' from the Primal Secret Realm! When this monster, Qing Yu, breaks through to the Domain Master… tsk tsk tsk, there are only so many spots in the Primal Secret Realm, I'm afraid someone is going to be forcefully squeezed out!"
Thinking of the "demotion" crisis that those high and mighty Primal Secret Realm geniuses might face, the slight sense of frustration in the Domain Master youth's heart, caused by being overshadowed by Qing Yu's talent, was instantly replaced by the pleasure of watching a good show.
In Manor 114 of the Original Zone, Marquis Tianyi was pacing back and forth. He cared more about the results of this Tongtian Bridge challenge than Qing Yu himself, his eyes constantly drifting towards the entrance of the manor.
Qing Yu slowly walked into the manor, his voice calmly sounding.
"Teacher."
Marquis Tianyi suddenly stopped, rushing to Qing Yu's front in a single stride, his voice a little distorted by nervousness and anticipation:
"How was it?! Speak quickly! Which floor?! Did you pass?!"
Qing Yu looked at the almost overflowing anticipation in his teacher's eyes, a warm and confident smile appearing on his composed face, and he clearly stated:
"Your disciple did not fail your expectations; I passed the seventh floor!"
"Seventh floor… seventh floor! Hahahaha! Good! Good! Good!" He laughed uproariously, his laughter unrestrained.
"I knew it! I knew you could do it! My good disciple! Good! Well done!" Marquis Tianyi patted Qing Yu's shoulder vigorously. He seemed to see Qing Yu's future path to greatness already laid out!
A warm current surged in Qing Yu's heart. He bowed deeply and solemnly said:
"Without Teacher's full assistance in exchanging the world heart for this disciple, I would not have been able to pass this seventh floor! Teacher's kindness, this disciple will always remember!"
Marquis Tianyi waved his hand, his face still brimming with uncontrollable joy:
"Alright, alright, no need for such talk between teacher and disciple! Now is not the time for sentimentality! Qing Yu, quickly! Immediately check your Virtual Universe mailbox! Since you have passed the seventh floor, the summons from Palace Master Tian Shi must have arrived!"
As soon as his words fell, Qing Yu received an email:
Qing Yu:
Good performance. Come see me at the Lord of Eclipse Palace on Thunder Island in three days.
—Palace Master Tian Shi
Qing Yu's heart involuntarily sped up. Becoming a disciple of a top Universe Overlord like Palace Master Tian Shi was the aspiration of many geniuses, and Qing Yu was no exception, as the benefits of discipleship were too numerous.
"Teacher, Palace Master Tian Shi wants me to go to the Lord of Eclipse Palace on Thunder Island in three days!" Qing Yu told Marquis Tianyi the good news.
"Good! Qing Yu, this is an unparalleled opportunity for you! Be sure to be cautious in your words and actions, and show your best side! Go, prepare well! The guidance and help Palace Master Tian Shi can give you are things that I, your teacher, could never achieve in a lifetime!"
Three days later, Qing Yu's consciousness was drawn to a massive island suspended in clouds and mist, surrounded by electrical snakes. This was Thunder Island, where only immortal and above could have palaces.
Qing Yu was directly drawn to the front of the Lord of Eclipse Palace.
"Come in!" The voice seemed to sound in Qing Yu's ear.
Qing Yu stepped into the palace and saw an ancient stone platform suspended in the center, with a silver-robed figure sitting on it.
"Palace Master Tian Shi!"
He wore a seemingly ordinary silver-white robe, and his figure was not particularly tall, but when he sat there, he seemed to be the center of the universe!
His face was indistinct, as if covered by a layer of flowing chaotic mist, with only a pair of eyes clearly visible.
What kind of eyes were those!
Calm, profound, embracing all things, yet seemingly able to see through to the future, that gaze was not sharp, but carried a vast and boundless will like the cosmic starry sky, pressing down like a great mountain!
Qing Yu felt his will as if thrown into a boiling star sea, knowing that Palace Master Tian Shi was testing his will. He kept his mind steady, and the Bronze Bell on his sea of consciousness let out a long chime, his will as firm as a Earth.
"I cannot fall!" Qing Yu did not retreat, did not evade, but firmly withstood the terrifying will impact, standing unmoving!
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