The copy has 0 error tolerance, and the last words on the ground are all wrong for me.

Chapter 449 The True Literary Star
Wu Changzhen: After leaving Zhenyue City, I went straight to Tianquan Lake.

Unlike the unremarkable and even disliked Kaiyang Mountain, Tianquan Lake was a famous scenic spot in Daxuan before the revival of spiritual energy. It was hailed as one of the eight great scenic wonders in the world and was deeply loved by literati.

In Daxuan, if a scholar hasn't visited Tianquan Lake and written a poem about it, he'll be looked down upon.

Tianquan Lake is surrounded by mountains, and depending on the four seasons, you can see strange trees and rocks, as well as the four wonders of sunset glow and sea of ​​clouds.

The scenery on the mountain alone provides a constant source of material for the literary world of Da Xuan.

Having seen all of Tianquan Mountain, it's not easy to actually go into the mountains to see the lake.

The mountains are steep and form a natural formation, completely obscuring Tianquan Lake. Even if Wu Chang rode a white crane and looked down from the sky, he would not be able to see the existence of Tianquan Lake.

Visitors need local villagers familiar with the terrain to find their way into the mountains.

Even with local villagers leading the way, the passage hidden in the mountains can only be seen at specific times.

Wu Chang was delayed for a long time by the mountain road, and only saw the mountain road at dusk.

He left the white crane outside the mountain and entered the mountain path alone. After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he saw the legendary Tianquan Lake.

Although the scenery around Tianquan Lake is picturesque, it is not much different from that of Tianquan Mountain. However, when you look into the lake, you can see that the lake reflects four parts of the sky, showing the scenery of spring, summer, autumn and winter.

It's as if there are two worlds inside and outside the lake.

Tianquan Lake enjoys a high reputation in the Great Xuan Dynasty, but with the discovery of the Ziwei Exorcising Array, it has been designated as a forbidden area by the Human Alliance and the Great Xuan Dynasty. Without a warrant, unauthorized cultivators are not allowed to enter.

Wu Chang entered the Tianquan Lake area using the token and could see a cultivator market similar to that outside Kaiyang Mountain on the lake shore.

Leaving aside how much the seven immortal abodes improved cultivators, the seven cultivator markets alone greatly boosted the economic development of the cultivation world.

However, unlike the market at Kaiyang Mountain, most of the cultivators outside Kaiyang Mountain carry knives, spears, and clubs, which makes it clear that they are skilled in combat; while the cultivators outside Tianquan Lake are mostly elegant in demeanor and well-dressed, which makes it clear that they come from prestigious families.

At the market stalls, there were more books of all kinds than magical artifacts and elixirs.

Before coming here, Lü Changgeng said that in addition to testing cultivation, Tianquan Immortal Mansion also tests knowledge and the way of formations, and it is not suitable for all cultivators. Now it seems that this is indeed true.

But it makes sense, since Tianquan corresponds to Kaiyang. Kaiyang is the Wuqu star that governs the martial fortune of the world, while Tianquan is the Wenqu star that governs the literary fortune of the world.

He had just entered the area of ​​Tianquan Lake when a scholar stopped him after taking only a few steps.

The scholar looked up at him and said, "This gentleman looks unfamiliar. Is this your first time visiting the Heavenly Quan Immortal Abode?"

Even without looking at his face, Wu Changzhen's large physique of over two meters makes him seem out of place at Tianquan Lake.

Wu Chang glanced down at the scholar. The scholar was at the Grandmaster level, only one step away from becoming a Great Grandmaster. In the current world instance, he was definitely a master.

Judging from the scholar's appearance, which suggests he is not only a master but also a genius.

He nodded and replied, "This is my first time here."

The scholar said, "I am Duan Rui from Qingsong Academy. I have been in Tianquan Immortal Mansion for three months and am quite familiar with this place. Brother, this is your first time in Tianquan Immortal Mansion. You may not know that the trials in Tianquan Immortal Mansion are complex and involve a vast amount of knowledge. Without sufficient knowledge, it is difficult to pass."

"In my opinion, instead of wasting your time at Tianquan Lake, you would be better off going to Kaiyang Mountain, where you might gain some good fortune."

Wu Chang wrinkled his nose. What did this mean? Was this a disdain for his lack of culture, telling him that the Heavenly Quan Immortal Mansion was a place for cultured people and he shouldn't get involved?
He said, "That is not true. As the cultivation world progresses, we cultivators should develop in all aspects: morality, intelligence, physique, and aesthetics. We should not only cultivate our spirit and civilization, but also strengthen our physique."

Duan Rui paused for a moment, then cupped his hands and said:

"I was ignorant; what you said makes sense."

"However, the trials of the Heavenly Authority Immortal Abode are extremely extensive. I wonder how you understand the books such as 'The Great Mystery Collection of Rites,' 'Classified Conversations of the Masters,' 'Complete Explanation of the Five Books,' and 'Diagrams of Array Formations'?"

Wu Changyun said casually, "Is that all? What else is there?"

Seeing that Wu Changcheng was confident, Duan Rui continued:

"Besides literature and formations, the Immortal Abode also tests students' knowledge of music, chess, calligraphy, painting, astronomy, and geography."

As he spoke, Duan Rui rattled off dozens of different books in one go, as if reciting a menu.

Wu Chang nodded slightly after hearing this, and then asked:
"Is this enough?"

Duan Rui said, "If you understand and memorize these books, you'll have at least a 70% chance of passing the fourth test of the Immortal Abode."

"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Duan." After saying this, Wu Chang strode towards the market, came to a bookstall, and told Duan Rui about the list of books he had been given, asking him to find them for him.

Before leaving Zhenyue City, various factions, in order to establish good relations with him and to make it easier for him to move around in Daxuan, sent him invitations along with a lot of local specialties, enough for him to buy these books.

Duan Rui wasn't making things up; he listed books commonly used in exploring the Tianquan Immortal Mansion, and the stall had plenty of stock.

A dozen minutes later, Wu Chang, carrying a stack of books that looked like a small mountain, arrived at a quiet spot by the lake where there were few people.

Duan Rui, who witnessed the whole thing, followed and asked in confusion, "Brother, do you want to look at it now?"

Even if you don't understand these books, it would take two or three years to read them word by word. Could this guy actually be an idiot?

Thread-bound books are now common in the world's dungeon planes. Wu Chang casually picked up a thick book of two or three hundred pages, flipped through the pages with his thumb, and finished reading the book in less than a second.

Then he picked up another book and continued doing the same thing.

By the time he finished flipping through the last book, less than five minutes had passed, less than half the time it took him to buy the books.

He threw the last book back into the box, thinking that everyone had a hard time, and that the money he had spent was all for nothing, so he didn't take the books back to get a refund.

He looked at Duan Rui and said:

"There are techniques to reading. This is my unique skill, quantum speed reading, which uses feeling and instinct to process the words and knowledge that the eyes see. Brother Duan, you can try it if you have the chance."

"I shall now depart to explore the Immortal Abode and take my leave."

Duan Rui looked completely bewildered, his expression a thousand years ahead of his time, the first to mimic the expression on the old man's phone in the subway.

Dude, are you kidding me?

Normally, if Duan Rui encountered this situation, he would definitely walk away in a huff and mutter, "This piece of wood is beyond redemption."

But Wu Chang seemed extraordinary, and his cultivation level was unfathomable, no lower than his. Such a great cultivator should not have gone to such great lengths just to play a prank on him.

Curious, he said:
"Since this is your first time exploring the Heavenly Authority Immortal Abode, why don't I take you there?"

Wu Chang blinked, thinking to himself that he had met a kind-hearted person, and said, "Then I will trouble you, Brother Duan."

There is no gate in the ordinary sense when entering the Heavenly Authority Immortal Mansion.

The information provided by Lü Changgeng mentioned the method to enter the Immortal Abode: first, one must take a boat to the center of the lake, then empty one's mind and enter a meditative state.

Similar to the process of entering the Kaiyang Immortal Abode, entering the Tianquan Immortal Abode is the first test.

The first barrier in the Heavenly Authority Immortal Palace is called the Heart Barrier.

The so-called "heart barrier" refers to the requirement that those who enter the Immortal Abode must not only recognize their true nature and have a clear mind, but also have a heart that seeks the Dao. Their purpose in entering the Immortal Abode is pure, in order to fulfill their own desires.

This was naturally no challenge for Wu Chang.

Whether he has the heart to seek the Tao is hard to say, but he has nearly three hundred points of willpower. His determination is so strong that even if he wants to eat barbecue skewers tonight, his heart to seek the Tao is stronger than that of others.

In a daze, Wu Chang felt his body sinking as the wooden boat sank into the water.

When he came to his senses, he found that the wooden boat was still floating on the river, but the reflection in the lake was in accordance with the normal season, showing the scenery around Wu Chang and displaying the scenes of spring, summer, autumn and winter.

He has completed the mental test and entered the Heavenly Authority Immortal Palace.

"You have completed the first round of trials at the Heavenly Power Immortal Palace and have obtained one layer of Heavenly Power Blessing."

"You have obtained the Kaiyang Blessing. Different blessings cannot be stacked; the blessing with the highest effect will take effect."

Seeing the pop-up notification, Wu Chang couldn't help but click his tongue. He had originally planned to obtain one blessing each through his main body and his true self, and then exploit a bug to use them simultaneously.

This would not only grant him double the attribute boost, but also increase his resistance to demonic energy to 150%, exceeding 100%. Perhaps if he were in the demonic realm, he would not only be unaffected but would also receive half the bonus.

Unfortunately, this bug was not present in the world instance.

The boats, without rocking, drifted ashore with the waves and came to rest in front of the spring woods.

Following the trail through the forest, Wu Chang and Duan Rui arrived at the second checkpoint.

According to the intelligence about the Heavenly Authority Immortal Mansion given to him by the Human Alliance, the second test is the Test of Courage. A writer must possess literary courage, which is the spirit that sustains the integrity and core ideas of their writing; it can also be understood as the steadfast adherence to one's own principles.

Similar to the Courage Gate of Kaiyang Immortal Mansion, the method for testing the Courage Gate is also to create an illusionary mirror using immortal techniques.

However, the courage barrier in the Heavenly Authority Immortal Mansion was more thorough. Wu Chang didn't even feel what the illusion mirror was before he completed the courage barrier.

However, this can be explained. Even the illusory magic mirror couldn't break through Wu Chang's will barrier, which is enough to show that he is very bold.

He left the spring forest early and stopped at the border between spring and summer, waiting for Duan Rui to complete the test.

After all, they kindly offered to be his guide because he was unfamiliar with the area, but he abandoned him because he thought the other person was slow to pass the test. That was rather inappropriate.

He waited for half an incense stick's time before seeing Duan Rui emerge from the woods in high spirits, seemingly still immersed in the test of courage and unable to break free from his state.

The spring breeze couldn't cool Duan Rui's state of mind, but the moment he saw Wu Chang, he quickly cooled down and sobered up.

The brute in front of him, who couldn't even read a book, actually passed the test of courage before him, and his expression was so calm and unaffected by the test.

This is the true mark of a literary hero, because with unwavering conviction and undisturbed by external influences, one can remain calm and composed regardless of what one experiences.

Duan Rui's initial excitement quickly turned into shame. He had indeed misjudged the man; the burly man before him was the true scholar with integrity.

Duan Rui, looking as if he had learned something, followed behind Wu Chang into the summer mountains.

Besides being the Wenqu Star that governs the literary fortunes of the world, Tianquan also represents the Star of Fortune.

Man proposes, God disposes; luck is a key factor in achieving great things.

Therefore, the third level of the Heavenly Authority Immortal Mansion is the Luck Gate.

The test method is very simple: it depends on your luck. After entering the mountain, you will encounter multiple forks in the road, and you should choose based on your intuition.

Being able to leave the mountain and enter the fourth round of trials indicates that one has good fortune, which is necessary to proceed to the next trial.

If you circle back to Chunlin in the second level, it means your luck is not good this time, please try again in a week.

Wu Chang scoffed at this kind of discrimination against unlucky people. They were already unlucky enough, and you still discriminated against them.

In other words, in the world of the dungeon, if you were to express such prejudice against unlucky players in the real world, you would be warned for racial discrimination.

He was already unlucky and not good at tests of luck. He had used up his luck when choosing a celestial abode. Was he going to suffer a mishap this time?
The intelligence report states that if you hesitate when choosing a path, it indicates that your luck is not good.

But after he entered the mountains, it was unclear whether it was the effects of his highest-level Immortal Abode Blessing or the 30 points of luck he always had that worked.

His intuition guided him almost without hesitation, and he easily moved out of summer and into the region that belonged to autumn.

So you've already walked out?

That's it?

Realizing that the requirements for good fortune were so low, Wu Chang instantly understood the good intentions of the Immortal Abode's master. If someone didn't even have this level of luck, then such a bad luck wouldn't be able to accomplish anything significant anyway, so of course they had to be ruthlessly eliminated.

Duan Ruineng's ability to become a grandmaster at such a young age, with his cultivation and knowledge not lagging behind, is enough to prove that he is a chosen one of heaven and his luck will not be bad.

Sure enough, Wu Chang waited for Duan Rui for much less time this time than he had during the second trial.

When Duan Rui saw Wu Chang emerge before him, he thought to himself that Wu Chang had broken through three trials so easily. If he could pass the fourth trial, he might actually be able to complete the exploration of the Tianquan Immortal Mansion.

As Duan Rui's opinion of Wu Chang changed, he couldn't help but recall Wu Chang's quantum speed reading method by the lake.

That method of reading may seem absurd, but it might actually be effective.

If Wu Chang can complete the fourth level, I will definitely give it a try when I go out!
Having passed through summer, we arrive at the lakeside, which belongs to autumn. Near Tianquan Lake, there stands a pavilion that extends into the lake, named Boshi.

The pavilion before them was the fourth trial that had troubled countless cultivators, and was also known as the most difficult test among all the immortal abodes—the Bo Guan.

The pavilion is ten stories high and contains all the knowledge in the world. Each time a participant enters a floor, they will be randomly given ten questions. If they answer eight or more questions correctly, they can move up to the next floor.

Completing all ten levels signifies passing the test.

Since the discovery of the Tianquan Immortal Abode, no more than ten cultivators have been able to complete this trial.

The questions in the pavilion are mostly short answer questions. No matter how high your cultivation level or how good your luck, you will be dumbfounded when you encounter this challenge.

It was because of this challenge that Lü Changgeng told Wu Chang that if he could not complete the exploration, he could choose another immortal abode.

Duan Rui looked at the Knowledge Pavilion in front of him with a nervous expression. He was stuck at this hurdle in his exploration of the Heavenly Authority Immortal Mansion.

Even though he has a photographic memory, he always encounters tricky questions that are difficult to answer. His highest record so far is only the eighth floor, and he has never seen what the ninth floor looks like.

He took a deep breath to adjust his mindset, and was just about to tell Wu Chang some tips on the test when he found that Wu Chang had already pushed open the door of the Boshi Pavilion and strode into it, looking confident and composed.

Seeing this, he had no choice but to follow.

Upon entering the first floor, the spiritual energy within the pavilion condensed into words, forming ten questions before him.

The questions randomly assigned to each participant in the trial are different, and once inside the Pavilion of Knowledge, cultivators cannot talk to each other or communicate using sign language or other methods.

Unable to offer advice to Wu Chang, he could only focus on solving his own problems.

The questions on the first level were not difficult for him. He had even seen many of them before, so answering them was very easy.

When he finished answering the eighth question and felt that he had answered all eight questions correctly and could move on to the next level, he looked up at Wu Chang to see how Wu Chang was doing.

Thinking to himself that this big guy wouldn't actually see Bo Guan, he realized he hadn't lied to him and decided to give up.

It would be a real shame if the first three levels were passed so easily, and the fourth level was the only obstacle.

But when he looked up, he found that Wu Chang was not standing in the same place. He looked towards the exit of the pavilion, but he did not find that Wu Chang had failed the test because of too many mistakes.

After a brief hesitation, he looked up at the stairs leading to the second floor and saw that Wu Chang had already stepped over the last step and reached the second floor.

Although Duan Rui would feel sorry for Wu Chang leaving now, he was also a little puzzled by how easily Wu Chang had completed the first level.

He quickly finished the last two questions and headed to the second floor.

Upon reaching the second floor, he focused more intently on the questions, but after completing each one, he would glance at Wu Chang.

He discovered that the gap between the two was even greater. He had just finished the sixth question when Wu Chang took another step and moved towards the third level.

So he chased after him frantically, only to see Wu Changshang going upstairs faster and faster.

Because Wu Chang distracted him, he only made it to the seventh floor this time. He then made a mistake and answered one question incorrectly, ending his test.

When he was sent out of the Bo Shi Ge, he saw Wu Changgang finish answering the questions on the ninth floor and walk towards the tenth floor.

Is the quantum speed method really that effective?

On the tenth floor of the Bo Shi Ge Pavilion, Wu Chang sighed as he watched Duan Rui being escorted out of the pavilion. He was a good person, but unfortunately, he lacked knowledge.

If Duan Rui had his knowledge from the Omniscient Crystal, passing the fourth level would be no problem at all.

His earlier browsing and buying of books at the market, and his quantum reading by the lake, were not spur-of-the-moment pranks on Duan Rui, but genuine readings, except that the reader was not him, but the omniscient crystal.

Even if an ordinary cultivator memorized all the books on Duan Rui's list, it wouldn't be enough to complete the fourth level so quickly.

But for the Omniscient Crystal, those books were enough for it to thoroughly understand the knowledge system of the dungeon plane and deduce all the questions raised by the Knowledge Pavilion.

And so, he easily ascended, and even on the tenth floor, the Omniscient Crystal did not pause for a moment.

Finally, after ten floors and one hundred questions, the Omniscient Crystal completed the Bo Guan test with all the answers correct.

The Omniscient Crystal gets 100 points simply because the maximum score is 100. Even if the Pavilion of Knowledge were to build ten more floors, the Omniscient Crystal would still get all the answers right.

However, if the roles are reversed and the Omniscient Crystal poses a question to the Immortal Abode Master, then the Immortal Abode Master will know who the true Wenqu Star is.

After completing the fourth test, he followed the instructions and pushed open the door to the tenth floor, only to find that he was facing Tianquan Lake.

This time, however, it was winter. A small boat was moored by the lake. He boarded the boat and traveled all the way to the small island in the center of the lake.

The island is the final barrier of the Heavenly Authority Immortal Mansion, the Gate of Strategies.

(End of this chapter)