The loud sound attracted the attention of the group at the front. "What was that?"
Turning around, they saw an empty corridor. The hallway was adorned by thick half-columns protruding from the walls, while the floor was constructed with rock slabs. The place showed the scars of time as well, with most of the decor being either eroded or broken.
The female snake demon commented. "It seems that the doors closed. Brother Guo Yantao, what do we do?"
Yantao frowned and waved his hand, throwing a powerful wave of energy against the door.
BANG!
The loud sound reverberated, but other than blowing up the resting dust around, it did nothing.
One of the rogue cultivators commented. "Should we try physically pushing it open?"
"No," the male demon spoke cautiously. "There are some trials that take you touching the door as a signal of surrender. We don't want to be mistakenly disqualified. If we need to leave through the door later, we can try at that time."
Then, they turned around and continued their exploration. Yasenia was somewhat surprised at the Demon's caution. 'That's actually quite a good point… I guess that I've been lucky in the past. I'll need to be a bit more careful in the future.'
After thinking that, she quickly moved and trailed them. She always made sure to keep a safe distance. This sneaking around lasted for 10 minutes before a bifurcation appeared in front of them.
Seeing them discuss and go left, Yasenia was confused.
"Hm… They took the left at this bifurcation? Why is that?"
At first glance, both paths were identical. However, Yasenia was quick to notice the danger of the left path. Her instincts were telling her that the right was a better choice. 'Rarely are my instincts incorrect in this regard. So, I think I should continue trusting my gut instead of following them like a blind chicken.'
So, Yasenia separated from them and took a right here. Since there was no one in front of her, the dragoness stopped being so cautious and accelerated her pace. She could see peak-level Heaven-Ranked treasures strewn along the hallways. Nevertheless, treasures at that level were something Yasenia didn't want to waste her time on.
If she wanted them, she could always collect them on the journey back.
While the dragoness rushed forward, three paths diverged in front of Yasenia. "Hm… Either the middle or the right path. The left continues to be dangerous."
Her journey traversing the hallways of these ruins went on uninterrupted for around two hours before something finally happened. After following the paths, Yasenia stopped in front of a large door. "If this door is like the first one, it might shut behind me."
Knocking on the door, Yasenia noticed the sturdiness of the materials and gave up on shattering the door or the walls. "Either way, let's go."
Pushing the doors open, Yasenia stepped forward. As soon as she did so, her body was teleported to the balcony in a tower several hundred meters tall.
Once she did so, an ancient voice reached her. "Child, you will now start the competition. Your score will be recorded on a secret list. Once you complete all five tests, I'll rank you for a chance to obtain part of our secret legacy, [Immortal Big Dipper Battle Formation]."
Yasenia stopped when she heard that. "Battle Formation?" The dragoness was baffled and excited. "It is actually a Battle Formation! Even Mom only has a handful of those, most of which are common ones. If this formation is strong enough, I'll be able to gain a great trump card."
Yasenia looked around the room and found a rock stand at the side for her to sit. They were perfect to wait for the others. "I've been registered; there is no point in hiding anymore."
Picking a place, Yasenia sat cross-legged and waited with her eyes closed. It wasn't until 8 hours had passed that there was some movement on the other side.
Yasenia stopped meditating and looked at the entrance indifferently.
The seven people who had entered fresh and full of energy were now quite a sorry sight. Clearly, the path they chose was riddled with dangers, heavily injuring them.
The snake woman, her face full of cautiousness, quickly scanned the room they had entered. It was a circular room with three levels of rocky stands stacked against the walls. Seven great pillars rushed upward and connected the floor with the cracked ceiling.
"Over there!" One of the rogue cultivators exclaimed aloud. Nevertheless, there was no need for that. After all, Yasenia was quite eye-catching among the ruins of the temple.
Her pristine purple-gold dress didn't have a single dust mote or wrinkle, spreading around her like a flower in bloom. Her indifferent face was half-hidden by the black, transparent veil, while the energy around her rotated and glittered with celestial lights due to her light meditation. At first glance, her aura felt boundless and mysterious, more so when they noticed Yasenia's golden slit eyes looking at them with a cold and calm look.
Of course, everyone knew that Yasenia was under the same limitations as they were. Yet, she felt extremely dangerous.
The male Charm Snake Demon was not stupid, so even when his entire bloodline was pushing his body into heat, wanting to possess the creature sitting there like a pristine purple lotus, he controlled the urge.
"Who are you? How did you arrive here before us?"
Yasenia didn't answer, angering them. But, before they asked for more, the same voice from before interrupted them.
"Children, you will now start the competition. Your score will be recorded on a secret list. Once you complete all five tests, I'll rank you for a chance to obtain part of our secret legacy, [Immortal Big Dipper Battle Formation]."
"Battle Formation!" Everyone's eyes shone with greed.
Battle Formations were like normal formations, but, as the name implied, for battles. With it, lower-realm cultivators were able to gather enough strength to show power beyond their level.
"Everyone in the [Fourth Immortal Star Ruin] has now gathered in the trial entrance. From now on, you will all compete in four individual trials and one group battle." The ancient voice stated.
Yasenia's face didn't change. 'Seven ruins… seven pieces of the puzzle. I wonder if it is even possible to gather them in the ten-year limit Star Forge gave me to explore the Secret Realm.'
"The fourth ruin challenges the ability to deal with a large number of creatures. Your soul will be pulled into a simulation. Please don't resist."
The pull quickly overtook everyone in the room, and soon, their consciousness shifted. For Yasenia, it felt as if the world had gone black for a second before a flash of light forced her to close her eyes.
When she opened them, Yasenia appeared in the middle of a ruined landscape. It was a battle-scarred landscape of desolation and lifelessness. Looking up, a giant constellation shone in the middle of the black sky. This constellation was the Big Dipper.
Each of the stars illuminated the world like a small moon, while the fourth one acted like a small sun. The total luminosity of the surroundings was similar to that of the full moon during a cloudless night sky.
Yasenia's ears twitched, and her attention shifted away from the beautiful constellation illuminating the dark sky. On the horizon, Yasenia could see a greyish wave approaching.
The ancient voice spread throughout the entire valley. "All your life you've heard the saying: All below Transcendence are ants. However, most Transcendence Cultivators forget, due to arrogance, that even an elephant can be bitten to death when enough ants stack to kill it."
Eight images appeared in the sky with the number zero below them. These eight figures were none other than themselves.
"First test. Show me how many ants you can crush before the time limit of one week runs out. Of course, if you die during the war, you will be disqualified."
Yasenia's eyebrow rose for a second. "You are asking me to participate in a war?"
Her lips arched coldly as she started walking towards the approaching endless army.
"That's my specialty. [Tyrant Warlord Intent Domain]."
Yasenia's aura exploded, her hair and dress fluttering. Then, her perception pulsed outward, covering thousands of kilometers around Yasenia. Every creature, every soldier, every rock, and every fissure all entered her powerful mind.
Above her, the others had already started killing, racking up tens of thousands of deaths with each strike. Only Yasenia's figure remained at 0.
However, Yasenia didn't rush.
Instead, she digested all the information before muttering. "Peak-level mortals. The strength of each person can be considered average. There is coordination, but when fighting a single individual, only Battle Formations are effective…"
Yasenia's spiritual sense, boosted by Tyrant Warlord Intent Domain, swept the endless army until she came across a unique figure among the virtually endless peak-level fifth realm cultivators. "I can feel a distant general at the first level of the Transcendence Realm, but they don't feel like they are going to be participating. Are they the army's head? If that's the case…"
After analyzing everything, Yasenia began trotting.
Her calm steps quickened very slowly, covering more and more land. She went from a walk to a light run to covering several meters with each stride.
Looking from above, it felt as if a single dust particle was rushing to meet a mass swallowing the desolate land.
Yet, there was not a single hint of nervousness in Yasenia's expression. Draheart, feeling her master's powerful beating heart, buzzed in excitement, while Dramel shot to the sky, her cords ready to spread Yasenia's war song.
Energy condensed around Yasenia, while her face transformed back to the one she had during her War Trial almost a century ago.
No emotions.
No desires.
Only cold calculation and ruthlessness.
After another step, Soluna manifested behind Yasenia, her body soaring upward behind Yasenia's galloping figure.
Then, Yasenia took her second-to-last step. Energy soared like a tsunami, stars manifesting behind her in the figure of [Pegasus]. The gorgeous winged horse forged of pure starlight neighed as Yasenia's wings sprouted. Then, it rushed down and merged into the dragon woman's draconic wings.
Finally, Yasenia took her last step before the collision, and her wings prepared to flap. Her muscles tensed, energy roared inside her body, and auras roiled around her figure.
"War is where I thrive. Now, perish."
The dragoness pushed against the solid ground, timing her wing flap in perfect synchronization. Then, her body exploded with blinding acceleration. The very air compressed around her, as if she were forcing her way through stone, but nothing slowed her down.
Then, the black tide swallowed the blue speck of light. A single visceral instant later, the collision registered.
BOOM!!!!
The shockwave ripped outward, rattling the desolate land as though a meteor had crashed into the horde.
From above, a bluish comet of energy split the black sea, leaving behind a crimson trail as she carved through the army like a hot knife through butter. Bodies ruptured in quick succession, powerless to slow her.
And worse, Yasenia hadn't even swung her sword. Speed, pressure, and sheer physical might were enough to pulverize everything in her path. Her wings folded tight before her like twin angled shields that shredded anything within reach into bloody pulp.
Instantly, the number of deaths skyrocketed. Her score surged from zero to tens of thousands in less than a second. Still, her sword remained behind her—for her draconic eyes were fixed only on that distant figure.
'Kill the general, annihilate the disorganized army.'