Chapter 161 - Second Trial

Right in front of Xin, just a few hundred meters ahead, stood the gate to the next stage of the inheritance.

Cale smiled.

He had already expected this. Even an Emperor Stage inheritance has entrance tests. Why would a Divine Stage one not have something similar?

The beast roared at Xin, unleashing a sonic vibration skill that shattered the air itself.

Xin quickly formed a hemispherical barrier around himself, but the damage was deadly.

The lower-level monsters following the huge bull continued their assault, compounding the pressure.

Sesrir burst out laughing.

"Hahah! This is what you deserve!"

’Thank the heavens Null didn’t encounter a monster like this,’ Cale thought.

Xin’s barrier shattered easily. He quickly deployed multiple artifacts, creating various defensive layers above himself.

But the bull suddenly charged, its massive horns shattering every protection as if they were made of glass.

Xin coughed blood, retreating desperately.

’Don’t tell me that bull is like a last boss for this level?’

If it was, it would definitely be problematic.

The beast roared once more.

Using water magic, Xin created a rain-like atmosphere, then employed wind and heat to generate massive mist.

"He’s indeed talented. To create this in only a few seconds," Cale sighed.

It didn’t look like the mage would die quickly.

"Hmph, showoff," Sesrir spat.

As the battle intensified, Sesrir sighed heavily.

"He’s going to use it, isn’t he?"

Cale nodded.

"Yep, he’s using his life force to survive this. We need to get ready. If he loses, that monster will target us."

Xin’s body turned purple, with many strange marks appearing across his skin.

He flew as fast as his enhanced state would allow, making air slashes and delivering lethal cuts to the bull’s body.

Touching the monster directly, he quickly began to freeze it, but the bull suddenly leaped — raising its hind legs and front ones simultaneously in a devastating attack.

Xin was shot backward, his body slamming violently into one of the rock pillars with bone-crushing force.

A ball of concentrated energy began materializing between the two horns of the bull as it roared with a sound powerful enough to shatter stones all around it.

Xin quickly raised his arm, creating a spear of ice and shooting it forward. It pierced perfectly at the bull’s knee joint, but the beast didn’t stop. It released the energy ball directly at him.

Xin’s body faced the explosion without any protection, sustaining devastating damage that left him barely conscious.

"Does he not have any healing techniques at all?"

"Maybe they just take too much time," Sesrir replied, watching the grueling battle continue.

As the fight intensified over another hour, Cale noticed something.

"That monster... it’s been poisoned!"

Sesrir leaned forward in shock.

"Y-you’re right! Does that mist have poisonous properties?"

"That’s possible."

Another ten minutes passed.

Xin had finally killed the monster, standing atop its dead carcass. His body was ravaged, barely holding together through sheer willpower. He didn’t pay any attention to his surroundings, immediately beginning to channel a healing skill.

Sesrir was about to approach and finish him off, but Cale stopped him.

"Wait... let me kill him. I can get his soul easily then. Otherwise, an Emperor’s soul with resistance, who knows if he’s dying anyway — will be harder to process."

Sesrir sighed, sheathing his daggers.

"Go then, and be careful. He’s still an Emperor."

Cale grinned.

"You think I’m going to approach him?"

With a snap of his finger, the Thorned Lotus flew upward, its eighteen blades dispersing and forming a spinning drill that rotated with violent intensity.

He snapped his fingers again.

Swoosh! Pierce!

The drill struck perfectly at Xin’s head, stopping any possibility of him attempting anything to save himself.

"Let’s go," Cale said.

They moved forward, checking Xin’s body for any rare items worth salvaging.

"Haah, he’s like a beggar," Cale sighed, pushing his hair back in frustration.

"He had a few items, but they broke. The ones connected to his soul vanished, and the ones he used to save himself shattered during the relentless attack."

As Cale focused on the remaining items, his consciousness detected something unusual.

"Oh?"

He quickly made a pouch float out from Xin’s body, focusing intently on its seal.

Using Separator and Analyze, he worked to break through the seal protecting its contents.

With the divine consciousness of an Emperor Stage cultivator, it yielded quickly, as the barrier dissolved under his concentrated pressure.

"Hoho, to think your alchemy level was so high you could open such seals in no time," Sesrir’s eyes lit up.

Inside, they found three swords. Cale took the one radiating fire attributes, a blade in excellent condition, capable of channeling any flames through its metal.

Sesrir took the other two without complaint. Several herbs and slightly rare items like Bodhi roots, Redmare grass, and Igneous Rainbow flowers were also stored inside.

Of course, Cale took them all.

Then they entered the portal to the next stage.

"Hey, do you also think we entered the wrong portal? Maybe this isn’t the next level," Sesrir asked looking around uncertainly.

They were in a black room with no visible end to its length. They would likely have to walk ahead for this stage, but...

’Is it really so simple? Of course not.’

"From what I know, the second stage was supposed to be a mental attack. Be prepared," he said, squinting his eyes.

"A mental attack? Sigh, I don’t even have something to negate that," Sesrir took a step ahead nervously.

Cale first sent the dragon phantom ahead, but nothing happened to it.

’I guess it will only affect real challengers. Since my divine consciousness wasn’t hurt at all.’

As he walked ahead, after just ten steps...

Sesrir vanished.

Cale’s head snapped to both sides, searching frantically for his partner. But he was simply gone — erased from perception.

’I... didn’t even notice and I was pulled into some illusion!’

He prepared himself for whatever came next.

"Roar!"

A red-black monster came charging toward him at terrifying speed.

Cale was about to draw Noxis, but then realization struck him.

"Isn’t this a soul form and not physical?"

A smirk appeared on his face as he made a downward slashing motion with his bare hands.

A soul attack, with spiritual force manifested through will alone.

The monster was simply cut through its middle, leaving no blood, no scream, or any trace of physical damage.

"Heh, that was easy."

He walked ahead, extending his senses.

Then he felt another presence...

"Young master?" a voice resounded, making him stop in his steps, startled for several seconds.