Swallowing the Stars: Heart of the Martial God

Chapter 125 Qian Yue: You all underestimate your martial uncle!
The Qinggu Secret Realm ruins have been exposed to the world for five years.

Over the past five years, 1000 interstellar nations within human territory have fallen into a frenzy.

Numerous forces engaged in fierce competition for the relic components of the ruins.

Many small and medium-sized forces have been eliminated.

No one is qualified to participate in this competition without a supreme being of the universe behind them.

Most of the token components have been acquired by various factions. However, although the factions have acquired many components, most of them are duplicates and invalid. No faction has been able to assemble a complete set of tokens.

At this point, all the major powers had no choice but to compromise, otherwise an even more intense life-or-death battle would begin, which was something the human leadership would not allow.

The struggle at the bottom, however fierce, is kept to a certain extent, while the upper levels remain harmonious.

Under Ling Xuan's mediation, the four great cosmic nations of Tianfeng, Jinyu, Linghuan, and Qianwu decided to join forces to compete for this relic.

In the joint secret chamber of the four royal families, numerous storage rings were opened, and countless token components floated in the air, as if summoned by some force, and began to automatically converge.

Dark golden light intertwined and weaved through the secret chamber, and the scattered fragments gradually pieced together, eventually forming five palm-sized tokens.

The token is engraved with spiral patterns, and 10081 tiny points of light move slowly along the patterns, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.

"There are actually five tokens." A middle-aged man from the Qianwu royal family looked at the tokens, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

At first, they couldn't gather a single token no matter what they tried, but now that they've teamed up, they've obtained five tokens. They're really lucky.

The red-robed woman from the Heavenly Phoenix Royal Family focused her gaze on the token and slowly said, "Each of the four royal families will select one person, plus His Highness Ling Xuan, making a total of five people who can enter the ruins."

The golden-armored man from the Jinyu royal family said in a deep voice, "Agreed. Sending too many people in won't be of much use. We must select the most elite and powerful individuals to go in."

Ling Xuan took the token that belonged to him. He felt a cool touch on his fingertips. The patterns on the token seemed to have some kind of magic, attracting his attention.

Thank you all for your trust.

Three days later, at the edge of the heritage site.

The sky here is dark purple, the earth is cracked, and it is a desolate wasteland.

The ruins surrounding the site stretch for millions of miles, with massive stone pillars leaning on the ground, their surfaces covered with the marks of time, making their original appearance unrecognizable.

The weathered stone wall is full of holes, and the wind makes a low sound as it passes through, as if telling an ancient story.

The core of the ruins was shrouded in a pale golden light shield, the surface of which rippled like water, isolating the interior from the exterior.

Countless world lord-level powerhouses gathered outside the light barrier. They came from different forces, each holding a similar token in their hand, their eyes filled with anticipation and vigilance.

"This is it."

Ling Xuan looked at the light barrier in front of him, followed by four world lords with calm auras: a middle-aged man from the Qianwu royal family; a burly man in golden armor from the Jinyu royal family; a silver-haired woman in red robes from the Tianfeng royal family; and a young man in green armor from the Linghuan royal family.

The five people activated the tokens in their hands at the same time, and 10081 points of light lit up on the surface of the tokens, which then turned into golden streams of light and merged into their bodies.

Instantly, five pale golden halos appeared around the five people, and a spiral mark also appeared between their brows.

When the photomask comes into contact with the aperture, it automatically creates a channel.

"Let's go!" Ling Xuan stepped into the passage first. Ripples from the collision of the light ring and the light shield spread around him, carrying an ancient and majestic aura.

The four realm lords followed closely behind, and as the last person passed through the light barrier, the passage quickly closed.

Seeing this, the realm lords of other forces also activated their tokens to enter the light barrier.

In an instant, hundreds of golden halos streaked across the dark purple sky, heading towards the core of the ruins.

The interior of the ruins is extremely spacious.

There were no plants or any living things, only a square covered with a thick layer of dust.

The square was paved with huge bluestone slabs, the edges of which were weathered, and dark green moss grew in the cracks, emitting a faint fluorescence.

In the distance, the outlines of several dilapidated buildings were faintly visible in the dim light, clearly traces left by the passage of time.

"The atmosphere here is so thick with the marks of time." The realm lord of the Qianwu royal family squatted down and brushed the dust off the stone slab with his hand. "I don't know how many eras have passed, and many of our methods have become ineffective."

The silver-haired woman of the Heavenly Phoenix royal family released the power of the world to investigate, only to find that the power of the world could only extend a thousand feet away before being blocked by an invisible force.

“The space here is peculiar; the power of the world is suppressed.” The group dispersed and searched the plaza carefully.

Contrary to what everyone expected, the ruins offered no guidance or hints whatsoever, leaving the powerful individuals to explore on their own.

Some struck the ground with their weapons, some explored with the power of the world, and some observed the blurry engravings on the stone slab.

After three hours of searching, they found nothing except a few small insects emitting faint energy in the cracks of the rocks.

"Could it be that all the backup plans here have failed?" The green-armored youth of the Spirit Illusion Royal Family frowned as he tried to unleash some techniques, but there was no response.

Just as everyone was feeling somewhat disappointed, a burly man from the Jin Yu royal family suddenly shouted, "There's something going on here!"

The bluestone slabs in the center of the square were slowly sinking, revealing a staircase leading underground.

The stone walls on both sides of the steps are inlaid with glowing crystals that emit a pale blue light, illuminating the darkness below.

The stone steps were covered with scratches, clearly indicating that many people had walked on them.

"Let's go down and take a look." Ling Xuan led the way down the steps, remaining vigilant at all times.

The stone walls on both sides of the steps are engraved with some messy patterns. They seem to be irregular, but they faintly reveal the traces of some kind of formation. However, most of them are damaged and have lost their function.

The realm lords from other forces also followed, and the massive staircase was packed with people, with the line stretching as far as the eye could see.

After descending for hundreds of thousands of kilometers, a massive temple came into view.

The temple is built of dark rock, and its dome, which stretches for hundreds of thousands of kilometers, plunges into the darkness, as if connecting to another world.

The gate to the palace is a single, solid black crystal, tens of thousands of kilometers wide and tens of thousands of kilometers high. Its surface is covered with strange characters that twist and swirl, moving across the crystal surface as if they were alive, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.

At this moment, countless realm lords had gathered in front of the temple, and powerful figures from various forces were gathered around the temple gate, curiously observing these strange characters.

“These characters…” The realm lord of the Qianwu royal family leaned closer to examine them, his eyes full of doubt. “I’ve never seen them before. It seems they really are the legacy from before the Great Cataclysm.”

"Activate virtual universe assisted translation." Many realm lords activated their auxiliary intelligence, and pale blue light screens unfolded in front of the crystal gate.

Soon, the information was displayed on the light screen after the deciphering, revealing that the text on the door described a spatial secret technique.

Only by mastering this spatial secret technique can one pass through the gate in front of the temple and obtain the true qualification to inherit the lineage and enter the temple.

Upon learning that it was a spatial secret technique, the realm lords became excited, as spatial secret techniques were obviously extremely precious to them.

It can assist them in cultivating the laws of space.

Although all major factions have spatial techniques available for learning, these are all paid services.

Now this secret technique is free, and if you want to enter and compete for the inheritance, the cosmic venerables behind it will definitely give you their best guidance.

Countless data points flashed rapidly across the light screen, and at the same time, these data were also transmitted to the cosmic lords of various forces.

The cosmic venerables did not disappoint these realm lords. With their profound understanding of the laws, they gained a certain comprehension of this spatial secret technique in just a short time. They spared a sliver of their attention to guide their own realm lords through the virtual universe.

Following the guidance of the Universe Venerable, the Realm Lords tried again and again.

Some realm lords grasped the concepts quickly and soon got the hang of it. For example, the genius realm lords of the five major powers soon began to try it out with great success.

The higher the level of the realm lord, the faster the speed.

The realm lords of ordinary universes are much slower, and some don't even know where to begin.

Ling Xuan did not activate the virtual universe to find his teacher; instead, he stared at the constantly moving text.

His understanding of the laws of space is also extremely profound, and he wants to compete with these cosmic venerables based on his talent.

The traces of these words gradually became clear in his eyes, creating a wonderful resonance with his understanding of space.

He could feel the spatial rhythm contained in the words, as if his own thoughts were also traveling through space along with the flow of the words.

As time went by, Ling Xuan's understanding of this spatial technique deepened.

When he felt he had completely mastered it, the divine power within his body began to circulate on its own according to the trajectory of the text, and the spiral mark between his eyebrows lit up.

"Crack—" A beam of divine light shot out from the crystal door, enveloping Ling Xuan, but a spatial rift was revealed in the middle of the light barrier, exposing the darkness inside.

Ling Xuan glanced back at the other realm lords who were still trying to comprehend the teachings, then slipped into the crevice and disappeared into the darkness, becoming the first person to enter the temple.

Almost at the same time as Ling Xuan entered, the other cosmic venerables also guided their respective realm lords to master spatial secret techniques. Some outstanding realm lords from the Giant Axe Secret Realm and the Primordial Secret Realm also stood up and followed, entering the temple one after another.

Upon entering, Ling Xuan found himself in a vast space, the true testing ground.

In the center of the space, there is an extremely large staircase with 10081 levels, each thousands of kilometers wide, radiating a powerful pressure of will, clearly designed to test one's will.

Ling Xuan took a deep breath and stepped onto the first step.

Instantly, a powerful pressure of will swept over him, attempting to destroy his will.

But this oppressive aura felt like a gentle breeze to him; his steps were light, and his eyes were calm and undisturbed.

He steadily climbed upwards, layer after layer, without being affected in the slightest.

It's not fast, but it's exceptionally stable.

The first five world lords to enter the assessment space saw Ling Xuan's figure on the distant steps as soon as they stepped in; he had already climbed hundreds of floors.

He paused for a moment, then stepped onto the stairs.

In the first few dozen floors, he did not feel much pressure, but as he continued to rise, around the 300th floor, he clearly felt the pressure of his will increase significantly, and some illusions began to flash frequently in his mind, with a trace of struggle flashing in his eyes.

"This pressure of will only begins to show its edge at the 300th level." He pursed his lips, his consciousness highly concentrated, and looked up in Ling Xuan's direction. The other party was about to break through the 1000th level, and his eyes were full of shock.

As more and more realm lords from the five major powers entered the assessment space, the steps gradually became lively.

Most of them begin to feel the impact of the willpower pressure around the 300th floor, and their consciousness fluctuates violently, but with their strong and tenacious will, they are still able to continue climbing upwards.

"Is that Ling Xuan? He's climbing way too fast, almost at the 2000th floor." One of the five realm lords noticed Ling Xuan and said in surprise. As he spoke, another illusion overwhelmed his consciousness, and his will was almost shattered by the pressure from the stairs.

"He's a disciple of the founder of the Giant Axe, and he was the first to enter here, so it's normal for him to be this fast," his companion replied, his tone filled with admiration. At the same time, he mustered his spirits and continued to advance towards higher levels.

The realm lords from other forces also entered the assessment space one after another, and their performance was much worse.

Ling Xuan continued upwards, widening the gap between himself and the later-entering realm masters.

By the time they reached the 600th or 700th floor, the realm lords of the five major forces could still keep up quite a bit, but their mental exertion was extremely high. They had to forcefully stabilize their minds and resist the overwhelming onslaught of wills as they ascended each floor.

"I can't take it anymore, we've reached the 1000th floor. This pressure of will is like a leech, I can't hold on much longer." A realm lord who was not one of the five major powers stopped around the 1000th floor, closed his eyes, and tried his best to stabilize his consciousness. Looking at Ling Xuan's still steady back, he revealed a trace of despair.

Such scenes played out repeatedly around the 1000th floor, a level that became an insurmountable chasm for many non-five major forces' realm lords, who were now showing signs of fatigue.

The virtual universe transmitted all of this synchronously to the outside world, and the cosmic venerables who were attending the Supreme Meeting were now paying attention to this.

This supreme meeting was convened because it involved the legacy left by a cosmic lord from an unknown era.

Most of the Cosmic Venerables roam the original planets, but with their level of consciousness, sending a sliver of their consciousness to attend the meeting does not affect their battles and explorations in reality.

"Many of the realm lords of the five major forces can reach around 2000 levels, but this test is not easy for them either. Some people begin to be unable to withstand the impact on their will at 1000 levels."

A cosmic venerable said, his tone tinged with disappointment, that the world lord-level genius he had chosen had only managed to climb more than 900 floors, while there were a total of 10081 floors in the ladder, so he was still far from being there.
“It seems that this inheritance tests the will of the inheritor. It’s too difficult for world lords to pass through. Why don’t we universe venerables go in and try ourselves? Maybe we can obtain the inheritance,” one universe venerable suggested.

Previously, the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance had been suppressing them from going, using the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance's rules to restrict the Cosmic Venerables from entering.

These realm lords are completely unqualified to receive the inheritance, so we can't just prevent them from entering, can we?
“That’s a good idea. After all, this legacy shouldn’t be wasted,” a Venerable One chimed in.

"No rush." ​​A rough and bold voice rang out.

The cosmic venerables looked up in response to the sound. At the highest point of the Pantheon, the founder of the giant axe, who rarely interfered in the affairs of other forces, spoke up and directly intervened in the affairs of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance.

"Wait a little longer," the founder of the giant axe said with a smile.

Seeing this, the Lord of the Wilderness Mirror didn't say much, but simply nodded in agreement, without directly contradicting the founder of the Giant Axe.

While they were discussing, Ling Xuan had already easily passed 3000 floors.

"What?" a cosmic venerable who was watching exclaimed in surprise, "He's already reached level 3000?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it caught the attention of several venerable ones around him. They all turned their gazes to the synchronized screen in the virtual universe, their faces showing surprise.

"How is this possible? The realm lords of the five major powers were barely able to hold on between the 1000 and 2000th levels, yet he's still so relaxed at the 3000th level?"

"As expected of the disciple of the founder of the Giant Axe, he is indeed extraordinary."

The founder of the giant axe looked at Ling Xuan in the picture and a gratified smile appeared on his face: "This kid didn't let me down."

"Great Axe, congratulations," the Chaos City Lord said with a smile.

"Giant Axe, you don't think Ling Xuan can obtain this inheritance, which is why you're preventing the other universe venerables from entering, do you?" Lord of the Desolate Mirror asked suspiciously.

No matter how strong Ling Xuan's will is, he is still just a realm lord. How could he possibly compare to these universe venerables who have cultivated for countless epochs?

"Hmph, you all underestimate your martial uncle too much." Among the high-ranking Venerables, Venerable Qianyue looked at Ling Xuan with bright, sparkling eyes.

In the Chaos Abyss, she spent every day with Ling Xuan and had personally experienced his strength.

She had a premonition that her senior uncle was about to make a name for himself again.

Ling Xuan continued upwards, 4000 floors, 5000 floors, 6000 floors... His speed remained stable, his consciousness fluctuated very little, and there was no struggle on his face.

The cosmic venerables before the virtual universe have gone from initial surprise to awe.

After the realm lords of the five major forces could only stop at around 2000 floors, they were able to deduce the intensity of the willpower pressure on the steps.

When it exceeds 6000 floors, the intensity of the will-shaking impact on these steps is probably no weaker than that of some weak-willed cosmic venerables.

Just how strong is Ling Xuan's willpower to advance so easily under such pressure?
The other party is just a mere Realm Lord?
(End of this chapter)