Chapter 4624: Passing the Trial
Long Chen tumbled backward, crashing into one of the pillars of the martial stage, no longer whole as he lay split in two.
Meanwhile, the nine star disciple remained standing in his original location, holding the seven star blade in his hand.
Deathly silence enveloped the world as the Earth Cauldron hovered on the edge of the martial stage, observing without intervening.
Suddenly, cracks spiderwebbed across the surface of the seven star blade, and the nine star disciple started to tremble.
He exploded, transforming into specks of starry light that slowly floated toward Long Chen.
The starry light was like dust landing on his body, slowly absorbed by him.
The Earth Cauldron sighed. “That final attack was a display of will, not just power. Long Chen was born in a declining era, raised in the harshest and poorest conditions. Yet, even the heavenly geniuses of ancient times pale in comparison to his brilliance. It seems my gamble was indeed correct. He is a true expert, lacking only time and opportunity.”
Meanwhile, Long Chen found himself enveloped in darkness. Amidst this darkness, specks of starlight emerged and surrounded him, akin to a baby cradled in its mother’s arms. The comforting embrace of the starlight brought him an unparalleled sense of ease and contentment.
Simultaneously, the starlight nourished both his body and soul, imbuing him with a profound sense of fulfillment.
He didn’t know how much time had passed. When the darkness gradually faded away, the stars did as well. A burning light then forced Long Chen to open his eyes, and he raised his hand to block the light.
Long Chen saw that he was once more in the blood-colored ruins, the ruins of the nine star line.
When he sat up, he found that he was fully recovered. If it weren’t for his ruined clothes, he would suspect that he had just been in a nightmare.
“Did I pass the trial?” asked Long Chen in delight.
“You did. You passed beautifully. Do you sense anything different in you?” asked the Earth Cauldron with rare praise in its voice.
Sensing his body, he found that there were star clusters in his skin, blood, tendons, bones, and even his bone marrow.
“What is this?”
Long Chen was pleasantly surprised as the star clusters were roving within him. He could sense their power but was unable to directly control them.
“This is a mark of a nine star heir’s astral constitution. Congratulations. You have been promoted from a titular disciple to a formal one,” said the Earth Cauldron.
“Astral constitution?”
Although Long Chen didn’t know what this meant, he had a feeling that this kind of constitution was definitely something special. His power had gone through another qualitative transformation.
“You absorbed the final astral essence in the trial. Your luck wasn’t bad. Due to the rest of the trial being broken, by defeating the nine star disciple, you managed to get all of their power as well. To tell the truth, I wasn’t expecting you to defeat him, but you did it. You did really well!” praised the Earth Cauldron.
“Hahaha, believe in me. I promise that you didn’t pick the wrong person.” Even Long Chen was overjoyed by the Earth Cauldron’s praise.
Just who was the Earth Cauldron? It was a revered entity, representing the pinnacle of this world\'s power and authority. Just how picky was it with its praise? To be praised by it was a huge honor.
“However, the astral essence in you is still in an embryonic state. It has not been activated yet, so it won’t bring you too much of an improvement. Once it has fully adapted to you, you will find that when you activate the Nine Star Hegemon Body Art, everything will flow smoothly,” explained the Earth Cauldron.
“Then can I be like that nine star heir and control the astral energy of heaven and earth?” asked Long Chen excitedly.
“In theory, yes. But in reality, it will depend on your own comprehension and talent. You have just experienced an immense battle, so it would be best for you to go into seclusion to digest the benefits of this battle. Although you have this astral essence, you don’t have the true inheritance of the nine star line, so you’ll need to comprehend things on your own. Other than that, you also saw how despite having the Seven Star Battle Armor, their star diagram is different from yours. His technique might not fully suit you. You’ve already stepped onto a different path, so you should find what suits you best, not just copy others. Perhaps you will need to create your own techniques,” replied the Earth Cauldron.
Long Chen nodded. The Earth Cauldron was correct. He could get inspiration from this nine star disciple’s terrifying moves and make his own. However, if he were to simply copy them, he would not be able to produce the same effect.
“Senior, it’s been days since we’ve separated from Qingxuan. I’m worried about her. I have to find her and go into seclusion with her,” said Long Chen.
Back when they fled from the temple, in order to be safe, Long Chen had separated from Yu Qingxuan and left behind marks for them to track him so that Yu Qingxuan could go into seclusion somewhere safe.
Yu Qingxuan had memorized the Nirvana Scripture in the temple, and she needed to quickly fully consolidate her understanding of it. While its voice was still echoing in her mind, she could absorb it faster.
What Long Chen found weird was that even after all this time, no pursuers had come after him. Long Chen didn’t know what Lord Brahma’s disciples were thinking.
The Earth Cauldron had let him here afterward. Despite knowing that Yu Qingxuan’s power would likely render Lord Brahma’s disciples unable to locate her once hidden, Long Chen couldn’t shake off his worry.
Sensing his concern, the Earth Cauldron understood that Long Chen wouldn’t be able to fully process the insights gained from this battle.
Thanks to the Earth Cauldron’s mark placed on Yu Qingxuan beforehand, they managed to locate her within a secluded mountain stream in just three days.
Yu Qingxuan was very cautious. She had already set up layers of illusion and transportation formations. Hence, the moment Long Chen arrived, she detected his presence.
Seeing that he was fine, she sighed with relief. She had been in seclusion for a few days and had almost mastered the Nirvana Scripture that they had heard. If Long Chen hadn’t told her that he would be the one to find her, she would have already left to search for him.
“It’s a good thing that you’re out of seclusion. I’ll trouble you to guard me then!” said Long Chen as she smiled warmly at Yu Qingxuan.
Long Chen could see the divine light in Yu Qingxuan’s eyes and sense her transformed aura. She had definitely profited immensely from the Nirvana Scripture.
With the formations set up and Yu Qingxuan guarding him. Long Chen immediately went into seclusion.
The moment Long Chen closed his eyes, he found that he had returned to the martial stage.
“Senior?” asked Long Chen.
“I recorded your entire battle. This way, it will be more beneficial to your comprehension. Start!” urged the Earth Cauldron.
Long Chen was delighted to know that the Earth Cauldron had such an ability. He immediately started to carefully digest everything that he had learned from this battle.
Ten days later, a powerful explosion blew apart this mountain range, accompanied by wild qi waves surging out of the center of it.
Long Chen raised his head and let out a heroic roar, starlight billowing around him.
“Hahaha, with the nine stars in my hand, the heavens are mine! Anyone who tries to mess with me in the future, I’m going to beat the crap out of them!”