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After passing through a relatively safe passage, Chen Ye and the others quickly found the staircase leading to the outer corridor of the first floor. The staircase was made of metal and was also covered with rust and damage from the years, but the structure was still relatively intact.

They hurried up the stairs, and the sense of energy disorder and oppression in the air lessened slightly, but they could still hear the occasional low rumble of unknown monsters or energy bursts in the distance.

Finally, they stepped onto the outer corridor of the first floor.

The corridor was wide and high, with walls made of some kind of smooth white stone that should have been inlaid with exquisite murals and runes, but now most of them were peeling, broken, or covered with dark red stains. The floor was paved with heavy metal plates engraved with star patterns, many of which were warped or cracked.

Along both sides of the corridor, at intervals, stood tightly closed, antique-style metal doors, each inscribed with different Holy Spirit scripts, seemingly entrances to various functional rooms or research areas. However, most of these doors had been damaged or sealed off; only a few remained intact, yet they exuded a dangerous aura.

At the end of the corridor is a more magnificent, spiraling main staircase, with handrails carved with patterns of stars and mythical beasts, leading to the upper level.

"According to the map, the entrance to the Starry Sky Puzzle Corridor is in the central area of ​​the second floor. You need to go up the main staircase and then pass through the 'Knowledge Hall'," Chen Ye said, referring to the information in his mind.

“The main staircase looks fairly intact, but… it’s too conspicuous,” Jiu Feng frowned. “If someone… or something is guarding it, we’ll be sitting ducks.”

“The map of the judgment doesn’t mark any high-threat targets near the main staircase, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe,” said Daoist Yuxu, stroking his beard. “Perhaps we can first investigate the situation in the ‘Hall of Knowledge’? If it’s safe there, then we can quickly pass through the staircase.”

Chen Ye nodded in agreement. They moved carefully along the wall on one side of the corridor toward the main staircase.

The corridor was unusually quiet, save for the soft sounds of their footsteps and breathing. This silence, however, only heightened the unease.

Just as they were about to reach the bottom of the main staircase, something unexpected happened!
A metal door that was originally closed and looked perfectly intact suddenly slid open silently inwards!

Behind the door was a deep darkness, and a cold, viscous aura, as if capable of freezing the soul, surged out like a tide!
"Be careful!" Chen Ye shouted, immediately shielding everyone behind him. At the same time, the power of his holy blood erupted, forming a golden-red shield in front of him.

In the darkness, two eerie green lights flickered, like will-o'-the-wisps. Then, a tall figure dressed in a tattered black robe slowly emerged from behind the door.

The figure resembled a human, but its skin was a deathly gray, covered with black veins. Its face lacked features, save for two eerie green flames burning where its eyes should have been. Its hands were withered like bird claws, their nails black and sharp, gripping a twisted staff made of bone and shadow.

"The breath of living things... fresh... souls..." A hoarse, eerie voice, as if countless voices were overlapping, came from its mouthless face, filled with nauseating greed.

"It's a 'Soul Eater'!" Chen Ye's heart sank. According to the fragmented records in the repair station's database, this is a kind of undead creature transformed from dead Holy Spirit Clan mages or scholars under the corruption of the Dark Abyss. It is skilled in mental attacks and soul absorption, and is extremely troublesome.

The aura of this Soul Eater had clearly reached the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm!

"Intruders...become...my food..." The Soul Eater raised his bone staff, and a ghostly green flame blazed brightly, instantly unleashing an invisible, sharp mental shockwave!
Chen Ye felt as if he had been pricked by a needle in the head, and his vision went black for a moment, but the holy blood in his body immediately circulated on its own, dispelling most of the discomfort. However, Jiu Feng, Yu Xu and the others behind him groaned, clearly affected, especially Wan Yi and Shi Jian, whose cultivation was weaker; their faces instantly turned pale and their eyes became somewhat unfocused.

"Light of Enlightenment!" Chen Ye shouted, and a pure golden light burst forth from between his brows, transforming into a soft halo that enveloped everyone and dispelled some of the spiritual erosion.

"Holy light... hateful light..." The Soul Eater roared angrily, and with a wave of its bone staff, several black chains made of shadows and resentment appeared out of thin air and shot towards Chen Ye like venomous snakes!
Chen Ye swung his sword to parry, the golden-red sword light striking the chains with a sizzling sound. The chains were severed, but new shadows immediately emerged from the break and reconnected!

At the same time, the two eerie green flames of the Soul Eater suddenly detached from their eye sockets, transforming into two ferocious green fire pythons that bypassed Chen Ye and pounced on his companions behind him!

"Don't even think about it!" Jiufeng endured her headache, brandishing her spear as crimson energy formed a barrier to try and stop the fire python. Yuxu Daoist also waved his whisk, its clear light like a ribbon.

However, the green fire python was not a physical attack, but a pure spiritual energy body, which easily penetrated the protective energy and clear light, and went straight for everyone's soul!

At the critical moment, Chen Ye's "Ring of Watchfulness" on his left hand suddenly trembled slightly! Although its energy was still depleted, it seemed to have an instinctive reaction to this pure mental attack!

He had a sudden inspiration and immediately poured all the remaining, faint power of his holy blood, along with the "Light of Enlightenment," into the ring!

hum!
On the surface of the ring, the tiny star-shaped gemstone, the size of a grain of rice, flickered extremely faintly!
An almost invisible yet incredibly resilient "mental barrier" radiated out from the ring, enveloping everyone within it!
The green fire python crashed into the mental barrier as if it had struck an invisible wall, annihilating silently and dissipating into specks of green light!

"What?!" The Soul Eater seemed taken aback. "Guardian...power?"

Chen Ye was also surprised. He hadn't expected that the "Ring of Watchfulness," even with its energy depleted, could still produce such a pure "spiritual protection" effect under the stimulation of Holy Blood and the Light of Enlightenment. Although weak, it saved everyone's lives at a crucial moment.

"We can't give it a chance to breathe!" Chen Ye seized the moment when the Soul Eater was stunned, his figure sprang up, and the Vengeful Soul Greatsword, carrying an unprecedentedly resolute killing intent, transformed into a golden-red meteor, piercing straight into the center of the Soul Eater's two points of eerie green flames!
"Holy Blood Slash - Shattering Illusion!"

This sword strike embodies his hatred for the creatures of the Dark Abyss, his determination to protect his companions, and the purifying will of the Holy Blood to purify all evil!
The Soul Eater hastily raised his bone staff to block.

Click!

The bone staff shattered like rotten wood under the sword light imbued with the power of holy blood! The sword light, undiminished in its momentum, pierced fiercely into the center of the Soul Eater's faceless features!
"Do not--!!!"

The Soul Eater let out an extremely shrill scream, as if it came from the deepest hell. Its entire body burst into golden-red flames from within, just like a piece of paper that had been set ablaze. It quickly burned and turned into ashes!
Only those two eerie green flames tried to escape at the last moment, but were caught up by Chen Ye's "Light of Enlightenment" with his left hand and completely purified.

The battle was over. Chen Ye leaned on his sword, slightly out of breath. That last strike had taken a toll, especially activating the ring's mental protection at the end.

"Brother Chen, are you alright?" Jiu Feng and the others gathered around, still shaken.

"It's nothing." Chen Ye shook his head, looking at the metal door that had closed again and returned to calm. "It seems that not only are there corrupt monsters in the lower levels of the tower, but these enclosed areas in the upper levels may also be hiding this kind of undead threat." "We must be more careful." Daoist Yuxu's expression was solemn. "If it weren't for young friend Chen's ring suddenly activating its power just now, we would probably have already been in trouble."

Chen Ye nodded, looking at the "Ring of Watchfulness" in his hand. The ring had returned to its dull state; the previous attack seemed to have exhausted its last bit of potential, and it would probably be unusable for some time.

"Hurry up and get to the main staircase."

Without further delay, the group quickly passed through the bottom of the main staircase and stepped onto the spiral staircase.

The staircase spiraled upwards, the damage to the surrounding walls becoming more severe, revealing glimpses of the hazy light emanating from the sacred mountain and the shadows looming higher above the Tower of Eternity in the distance. The sense of chaotic energy returned, more pronounced than before, as if the entire tower were pulsating with an unstable energy.

Finally, they reached the second floor.

The second floor is completely different in style from the first. It is more open, with a semi-transparent dome that seems to be formed from starlight, though the starlight is dim and cracked at this moment. The floor is smooth, mirror-like black jade, reflecting the broken dome above.

Before them lay an enormous entrance to a “maze” that occupied almost the entire central area of ​​the second level.

It was not a maze made of solid walls, but a three-dimensional space composed of countless flowing, ever-changing starlight, runes, geometric shapes, and energy flows! At the entrance, starlight cascaded down like a waterfall, forming a hazy light curtain. Behind the light curtain, the scenery twisted and changed, sometimes revealing a vast star map, sometimes transforming into a complex array of runes, and sometimes appearing as a deep and dark tunnel.

Above the light screen, four large characters were inscribed in the oldest script of the Holy Spirit Clan:

Starry Sky Puzzle Corridor
On either side of the entrance to the corridor, there is a three-meter-high stone statue.

The statue on the left depicts an elderly man in a long robe, holding a scroll and an astrolabe. His face is wise, and his eyes seem to see through all mysteries. The base of the statue is inscribed with: "The path of wisdom, insight into truth."

The statue on the right depicts a valiant warrior clad in armor, wielding a sword and shield, his face resolute, his gaze piercing, as if capable of shattering all illusions. The base of the statue is inscribed with: "The path of courage, facing fear head-on."

Between the two statues, before the light curtain at the entrance to the corridor, floats a half-person-high, crystal-clear stele. On its surface, clearly visible Holy Spirit Clan script appears:

"The Starry Sky Puzzle Corridor leads to the Trial of the Star Key of Wisdom."

"However, wisdom is not the only path. Those who are tested may choose one."

"Left: The Path of Wisdom. It requires solving layers of puzzles to reach the end and obtain the Star Key. It takes a long time but has relatively low risk."

"Right: Path of Courage. It requires traversing a treacherous illusion, using courage to overcome inner demons and guardians, reaching the core and obtaining the Star Key. It takes a relatively short time but is extremely risky."

"Both have the same destination, and the same Star Key. The choice is the beginning of the trial."

"Time limit: Before the stars converge. Those who fail to emerge within the time limit will be imprisoned in the corridor forever."

Below the text, there are two lines of smaller print notes:
"Note: The difficulty of the puzzles on the Path of Wisdom is related to the trial participant's cognition and state of mind, and is ever-changing."

"Note: The Path of Courage is a dangerous and unpredictable place where the intensity of the illusion is related to the fear and obsession of the trial participants."

Chen Ye looked at the descriptions of the two paths and fell into deep thought.

The Path of Wisdom sounded more in line with his previous preparations. He had received the knowledge gifts of the Grand Scholar Hermes and the Sage of Sophia, and had also undergone a rehearsal, giving him a certain understanding of the rules of the corridor. However, the "long duration" was a problem; they only had less than five hours left, and the starlight convergence was imminent. If the Path of Wisdom was too long…

The Path of Courage, while tempting due to its "short duration," is also "extremely risky." Confronting his inner demons and guardians? He had already undergone a test of his inner demons in the dream of the Lost Garden, and although he passed, the process was perilous. Moreover, the "Path of Courage" here will clearly not be so simple; it is likely to be even more direct and violent.

"Brother Chen, which one should we choose?" Jiufeng asked.

Chen Ye looked at his companions: "I need to ask for your opinions. The Path of Wisdom may be safer, but the timeframe is uncertain; the Path of Courage may be faster, but it's extremely dangerous. Moreover, according to the descriptions, both paths seem to be solo trials? We may need to split up."

Everyone fell silent. Separating meant bearing the risks alone, and being unable to support each other.

“Young friend Chen, you are the core, and your choice is paramount,” said Daoist Yuxu. “We support you whichever path you choose. As for us… perhaps we can wait at the entrance, or try to find other ways to assist us?”

Chen Ye shook his head: "Time is of the essence, we can't just wait. Besides, the rules of the corridor might not allow outside assistance." He looked at the two statues, "Perhaps, each of us... can choose our own path?"

This is a bold guess. If everyone could enter and choose a trial suitable for them, the efficiency of obtaining Star Keys might be higher. But the risks would also be greater; what if someone failed or got trapped…?

"I choose the path of courage," Jiufeng suddenly said, her gaze resolute. "My strength lies in combat, not in solving puzzles. Facing fear and fighting is more suitable for me."

"This old Daoist is willing to try the path of wisdom," said Daoist Yuxu, stroking his beard. "Although I dare not say that I am exceptionally wise, I have some understanding of runes, formations, and divination techniques, so I may give it a try."

Daoist Dongxu looked at his severed arm and gave a bitter smile: "In my current state, venturing into the Path of Courage would be suicide. As for the Path of Wisdom... I might not be able to make it either. I will stay here and protect you all, so that I can be there to help you if anything goes wrong."

Zhiyin said softly, "I... want to try the path of wisdom. There is logic and change within music; perhaps... it could be helpful." She seemed to have gained a new understanding of her abilities. (End of Chapter)