CHAPTER 171 — What One Chooses to Carry
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1. The Trial Takes Form
The moment the Sect Master lowered his hand, the world shifted.
The Grand Trial Platform dissolved into light.
Lin felt the familiar vertigo of spatial displacement—not violent, but absolute. Gravity twisted, space folded inward, and then—
They were elsewhere.
The sky above them was wrong.
Not dark.
Not light.
It was a bruised violet, streaked with slow-moving fractures that glowed faintly like dying stars. The ground beneath their feet was solid stone, but it pulsed with abyssal veins that throbbed like a living heart.
A controlled abyssal domain.
Lin exhaled slowly.
This place wasn't meant to kill them outright.
It was meant to pressure them.
Around him, other disciples materialized—some close, some far, some already bracing themselves instinctively. Tian appeared several dozen meters away, lightning crawling faintly along his shoulders as his body adjusted.
Yueyin emerged near the edge of a broken ridge. Her phoenix flames flickered once—then settled as she forced herself to remain calm.
Above them, the Sect Master's voice echoed, calm and omnipresent.
> "This domain will respond to your decisions.
You will not be judged on survival alone.
You will be judged on what you protect."
The air thickened.
From the fractured terrain ahead, shapes began to move.
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2. The Abyss Tests Intent
The first creatures emerged slowly.
Not beasts.
Not soldiers.
They looked… wrong.
Humanoid silhouettes formed from condensed abyssal mist, their faces blank, their bodies unfinished—as if reality itself had hesitated while shaping them.
Lesser Abyssal Wraiths.
They did not roar.
They did not charge.
They approached.
Lin felt gravity shift around him instinctively.
Not from fear.
From preparation.
He stepped forward, adjusting his weight so the ground beneath his feet grew denser, more authoritative. The wraith nearest him slowed—its form compressing under invisible pressure.
Lin raised a hand.
Not to attack.
To anchor.
The ground behind him stabilized, creating a zone where weaker disciples nearby could stand without being dragged down by the domain's shifting gravity.
Tian noticed instantly.
He moved without hesitation, positioning himself at Lin's flank. Lightning surged—not outward, but inward—compressing along his bones, ready to release with precision.
Yueyin hesitated.
Then she saw a young inner disciple stumble as abyssal pressure surged beneath his feet.
Without thinking, she moved.
Phoenix fire flared—not violently, but supportively—wrapping around the disciple like a warming cloak, reinforcing his body against the crushing law pressure.
Xuanran's earlier words echoed in her mind.
> Even sorrow can become strength.
The Sect Master observed silently.
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3. Lin's Choice
The wraiths advanced.
More formed from the mist.
Lin felt the domain probing him—not testing strength, but priority.
If he focused only on himself, gravity would obey him perfectly.
If he extended it outward—
The strain multiplied.
Lin clenched his jaw.
He remembered Earth.
The helplessness of watching things fall apart.
The feeling of knowing what was happening—but being unable to stop it.
Not again.
He expanded his gravity field.
The space around him warped subtly, creating a stabilizing basin. Disciples within it felt the pressure ease, their footing solidifying.
Lin's breathing grew heavier.
Aurora's voice whispered in his mind.
"You're choosing burden over efficiency."
"I know," Lin replied silently.
"And you accept the cost?"
"Yes."
Gravity deepened.
The wraiths entering the basin slowed dramatically, their forms stretching, compressing, destabilizing.
Tian grinned fiercely.
"That's my cue."
Lightning erupted.
Not wildly—but with surgical force.
Each strike shattered a wraith cleanly, dispersing it into harmless mist.
Yueyin watched, heart pounding.
She felt something stir within her chest—not fear, not panic—
Responsibility.
She stepped closer to Lin's zone, phoenix fire flowing outward in controlled arcs, reinforcing bodies, healing minor wounds, burning away residual corruption.
For the first time since her realm's destruction…
She wasn't running.
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4. A Dragon Watches the Abyss
High above the domain, unseen by the disciples, Dragon Bai hovered within a concealed layer of space.
His massive form was restrained, coiled tightly to avoid disrupting the trial.
But his senses were wide open.
The Abyssal domain pulsed.
And somewhere deeper—
Something noticed.
Bai's pupils narrowed.
> "So… you feel me now," he rumbled softly.
Far away, in the deeper folds of the abyssal plane, an ancient awareness shifted its attention.
A dragon's bloodline—
Refined.
Strengthened by higher laws.
The Abyss did not fear dragons.
But it respected them.
A whisper rippled outward.
"Mark the dragon."
Bai snorted quietly.
> "You may try."
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5. Yueyin's Flicker of Darkness
As the trial continued, the domain intensified.
The sky fractured further.
Pressure mounted.
Yueyin's phoenix fire burned brighter as she pushed herself harder—supporting others, burning corruption, reinforcing fragile meridians.
Then—
For a heartbeat—
Her vision blurred.
The domain twisted.
The wraith before her changed.
Its blank face became familiar.
A shadow she'd seen in dreams.
A voice pressed against her mind—
Find him.
Her flames faltered.
Yueyin gasped, clutching her chest.
The inner disciple she'd been shielding stumbled.
Lin felt it instantly.
He turned, eyes snapping to Yueyin.
Their gazes met.
Lin didn't speak.
He simply shifted gravity again—slightly, subtly—relieving pressure around her, giving her space to breathe.
Yueyin sucked in a shaky breath.
The shadow vanished.
Her flames reignited.
Stronger.
She bowed her head briefly toward Lin.
Not in submission.
In gratitude.
The Sect Master's eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
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6. The Trial's First End
The final wave of wraiths dissipated.
The domain stilled.
The fractured sky smoothed.
The Sect Master's voice echoed once more.
> "The first phase ends."
Light engulfed the disciples.
They found themselves back on the Grand Trial Platform, bodies aching, spirits strained—but alive.
Some had failed.
Some had retreated.
Some stood trembling but unbroken.
Lin remained standing, breathing heavily, sweat soaking his robes.
Tian laughed breathlessly.
"That," he said, "was better than training."
Yueyin stood quietly nearby, hands clasped tightly, heart still racing.
The Sect Master descended from his throne.
He looked at Lin.
"You chose to carry others."
Lin met his gaze steadily.
"Yes."
Xuanyang nodded once.
"Good. Remember this choice. You will be forced to make it again—under worse conditions."
Then his gaze shifted—to the rift far beyond the platform.
His fingers twitched.
Something was listening.
Something had heard the dragon awaken.
And something was now aware of Lin's direction.
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7. A Goal That Burns
That night, Lin stood alone on a balcony overlooking the Titan Realm's endless peaks.
Saint.
Ascension.
Godhood.
The words echoed in his mind.
Bai's voice rumbled quietly behind him.
> "If your home still exists, we will find it."
Lin clenched his fists.
"I won't stop," he said quietly. "No matter what it costs."
The stars above seemed to pulse faintly.
And far beyond them—
The Abyss adjusted its course.
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