The white-robed immortal couldn’t have cared less. Together or apart, it didn’t make much difference to him.
Lin Jingqiu held Lin Xiaohe tightly as the Void Chain coiled around them, bringing a cooling sensation to their bodies.
Then, as if carried by a gentle force, they floated out into the nebula dust.
To onlookers, the chain moved at incredible speed.
But for those bound by it, time flowed at a normal pace.
Layer upon layer of colorful dust clung to the chain as they moved forward.
Behind them, a man’s voice trembled with fear. “Xiao Chu, the chain’s barrier should hold, right? If I die before the test even starts, I’ll never rest in peace.”
Chu Huaizhi comforted Bai Zuo with his words, but his gaze never left Lin Xiaohe’s face. “It’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
But why did Lin Xiaohe look like that?
It seemed whatever trouble she’d caused in the First Era had been so severe that it had left her body in the Second Era damaged.
Sensing Chu Huaizhi’s probing stare, Lin Jingqiu pulled Xiaohe’s hat down further and shot him a warning glare.
What are you looking at?! Look any longer, and I’ll gouge your eyes out.
Chu Huaizhi couldn’t have cared less—like an elephant unconcerned with an ant. In Lin Xiaohe’s current state, there was no way she’d be the Chosen One. The Lin family wasn’t worth worrying about.
The Void Chain shot through One-Line Sky, flashing twice in quick succession.
The white-robed immortal zipped over to check the results.
He sent the other passengers back to their ferry, leaving only Chu Huaizhi, Lin Jingqiu, and Lin Xiaohe, whom she held tightly in her arms.
“Try again.”
This was strange.
Ever since the Divine Sovereign announced his disciple recruitment, these immortals—having the advantage of proximity—had all come to One-Line Sky early to test themselves. Not a single one had been selected.
And yet, Ferry No. 103 had produced two candidates in a row! Highly unusual.
One more test, just to make sure there was no mistake.
One-Line Sky flashed twice again.
The white-robed immortal’s expression grew serious. He pulled a small glazed bell from his mustard-seed space and tossed it toward the two of them.
The bell expanded in an instant, enveloping Chu Huaizhi and the Lin sisters within it.
“Wait here patiently for now. Once the test is complete, we’ll all leave together.” The white-robed immortal’s tone softened slightly.
Lin Jingqiu held Xiaohe and deliberately moved further away from Chu Huaizhi, turning her back to him. Her wariness was written all over her face.
Once they were out of the chain, time seemed to return to its normal flow.
The chain whizzed back and forth, accompanied by the white-robed immortal’s cold and merciless elimination announcements, shattering many people’s dreams of immortality.
After the entire preliminary selection, only ten people had been chosen in total.
The white-robed immortal led them to a Buddhist platform. At its center stood a pagoda so tall its peak disappeared into the heavens.
“Wait here. Don’t move around. After I report to the Divine Sovereign, I’ll return and instruct you on what to do next.”
At the Divine Sovereign’s dojo, people sat or lay about in disarray, scattered everywhere.
The Divine Sovereign sat cross-legged upon his divine throne, spiritual energy swirling around him.
“Divine Sovereign, you know why we’re here. Don’t you have anything to say to us?” A burly man with bare arms and bulging muscles spoke in a gruff voice.
Beside him, a woman said with a wry smile, “Divine Sovereign, we’re not here to cause trouble. We’re simply at our wit’s end and have come to ask for your guidance on how to ascend. We’ve all been stuck at the Ascension Realm for countless eons. We’ve tried reincarnation, severing the Three Corpses—every method we could think of, and not a single one has worked.”
“Amitabha. Divine Sovereign, after failing your own ascension, you suddenly announced you would take on a direct disciple. Did you catch a glimpse of something?”
Everyone present was a supreme being of this world. A single stamp of their foot could shake heaven and earth.
But they were all plagued by the same predicament—after reaching the pinnacle of cultivation, there was nowhere left to rise!
This was unnatural.
The Divine Sovereign opened his eyes. His white beard swayed without wind. He swept his gaze across the crowd and spoke calmly.
“If you’re not afraid of having your Dao Heart shattered, then I am, of course, willing to tell you everything I saw.”
The burly man could hardly contain himself. “I’ve reached the very end of the Dao—there’s no road left to walk. If this path is a dead end, why should I fear a shattered Dao Heart?”
The others chimed in, “Exactly. Divine Sovereign, speak freely.”
The Divine Sovereign let out a faint sigh. He fully understood their persistence—after all, he was the same way.
In his quest for a breakthrough, he had been willing to attempt ascension even if it meant certain death!
And fortunately, he had. Only then did he catch a glimpse of the truth.
“At the moment of ascension, I felt an immense pressure bearing down on me, as if the world itself was trying to erase me from existence.”
Everyone nodded. Yes—they had all encountered the exact same thing when they tried to ascend.
The Divine Sovereign’s gaze grew distant. “Just as I was about to give up, I suddenly sensed a force on the other side, seemingly trying to break through as well.”
The other side?!
Everyone quickly sat up straight, listening intently to what the Divine Sovereign would say next.
“I reasoned that if I would never advance another inch in this lifetime, I might as well fight to the death. So I joined forces with that power to break through the Dao.”
“And then? What did you see?” The crowd grew excited.
Sure enough—beyond this world, there was another world!
The Divine Sovereign’s throat went dry. Just recalling what he had seen that day still unsettled his soul. “I saw… the corpses of countless ascended predecessors… and half a shattered heart. Their bodies had been stretched thin, like taffy pulled endlessly—stretched and stretched until they were as fine as strands of hair.”
Hisses of cold breath filled the air.
“Who were they?”
Had anyone in this world ever successfully ascended? If anyone could be called that, it would have to be the 108 creator gods!
The Divine Sovereign closed his eyes. His lips trembled. The spiritual energy beneath his throne bubbled and churned like boiling water.
“Yes. It was them.”
“How could this be?!” The woman’s face was filled with despair. “If even the gods can’t ascend, what are we supposed to do?!”
This news was too devastating, too shocking.
One by one, everyone sat cross-legged, steadying their cultivation to prevent their Dao Hearts from shattering and sending them into demonic possession.
The Divine Sovereign had known this would happen. He offered words of comfort. “The Great Dao is vast and ever-replenishing—it always leaves a thread of hope. That half-heart, left behind by some unknown god, told me that only by finding the Chosen One could we break through this shackle.”
“Amitabha. Did that great being say anything else?”
The Divine Sovereign shook his head regretfully. “After saying that, he completely lost consciousness. And in that brief moment, countless Outer Realm Demons took the opportunity to surge into this world.”
“Outer Realm Demons? Why didn’t you stop them?”
As the Divine Sovereign, blessed by the world’s offerings, it was his duty to protect all living beings.
The Divine Sovereign explained, “The moment the Outer Realm Demons entered the void, their bodies exploded and dissipated into nothingness. But the souls that drifted out of their bodies were absorbed by One-Line Sky.”
Huh?
King Ksitigarbha, who oversees reincarnation, was dumbfounded.
One-Line Sky was a crucial site for reincarnation, housing the Naihe Bridge, the Six Paths of Reincarnation, and more.
Under the skeptical gazes of the others, King Ksitigarbha shook his head like a rattle-drum. “I had no idea! I’m just a manager—I don’t call the shots at One-Line Sky!”
Oh, wonderful. This was a huge problem.
There were people in this world who were reincarnations of Outer Realm Demons!
