Cultivating Immortality: I Have a High-Martial World

Chapter 134 Battle against a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator, Lin Chen in his prime!

Lin Chen's muscles were tense.

From the hips to the shoulders, the power finally gathers in the arms.

Then, he slashed out with his sword!

Lin Chen didn't hold back at all in this strike.

With a base strength exceeding 200,000 jin, plus the sevenfold boost from the Starry Sky Blade Technique.

It was as if even space itself was distorted...

Lin Chen leaped high into the air, his blade slashing at the giant puppet's neck.

The protective array was triggered instantly...

However, this illusory formation only existed for a fleeting moment, and then... it shattered!

boom!

With a loud bang, the blade sliced ​​through the giant golem's neck, sending sparks flying.

The enormous head, half the height of a person, was completely severed and fell to the ground with a heavy thud.

The giant golem's head separated from its body, the light in its eyes gradually faded, and it finally lay motionless on the ground.

At the same time, that cold voice came again from the enclosed space.

"Successfully passed the eleventh round of assessment, with a total time of 25 minutes and 17 seconds, rated A..."

"A top-grade Golden Essence Pill will be awarded as a reward..."

Another stone rose from the ground, upon which rested an ancient jade box.

Lin Chen took the jade box and saw the pills inside, his eyes immediately lit up with excitement.

"Top-grade Golden Essence Pill! They even have pills of this quality...!"

Lin Chen put away the pills along with the Golden Essence Pill.

It is rumored that this top-grade Golden Essence Pill can increase the success rate of Golden Core formation by 60%, and may even slightly improve the quality of the Golden Core.

Even among major sects, it is considered extremely valuable, with one piece worth hundreds of thousands of spirit stones...

"In this third stage of the test, the rewards increase exponentially with each subsequent stage... but the danger also increases exponentially..."

Lin Chen looked at the small door that had appeared on the stone wall. He now had the opportunity to leave the third trial.

If they stay, they will face the twelfth round...

"Based on previous patterns, there should be at least two Core Formation stage puppets..."

Lin Chen murmured, "This level of difficulty has already exceeded the limit of Foundation Establishment Perfection."

Even for the most gifted individuals, passing this test would be virtually impossible...

But Lin Chen had no intention of leaving.

"Now that we're here, we'll definitely take as many treasures as we can..."

Lin Chen stood still and did not leave.

Soon, the small door leading to the exit from the assessment closed.

On the ground, the previously shattered puppets began to be pieced together, eventually forming two giant puppets each over ten feet tall.

"As expected, the twelfth round of assessment yielded two Core Formation stage puppets..."

Lin Chen took a deep breath.

Having learned from his previous experience, he decided to strike first.

After fighting for dozens of rounds, the two giants finally fell to the ground.

"Phew... So, this is the final round of assessments?"

Lin Chen took a few deep breaths and swallowed a bottle of stamina potion.

Although the consumption of true essence was not large, Lin Chen's continuous use of the Vibrating Blade Technique had an astonishing drain on his stamina.

That cold voice rang in my ears again.

"Successfully passed the twelfth round of assessment, with a total time of 37 minutes and 27 seconds. Evaluation: A..."

"Two top-grade Golden Essence Pills will be awarded as a reward..."

Just when Lin Chen thought the test would go on forever, the cold voice finally changed slightly.

Should a final round of evaluation be conducted?

"In the final round of assessment, you will challenge a puppet at the mid-stage of Core Formation. If you win, you will receive a perfect Golden Essence Pill..."

"And without needing to participate in the fourth stage, you gain the opportunity to directly enter one of the four gates of birth, aging, sickness, and death..."

"You will now have half an hour to rest, during which you may choose to cancel at any time..."

Hearing the voice beside him, Lin Chen fell silent, but a strange look flashed in his eyes.

"So, this triggers a hidden level? Skipping the fourth level... and entering the four gates of birth, aging, sickness, and death?"

Lin Chen stroked his chin.

Based on the intelligence he had previously obtained from Li Tianhan.

Anyone who passes the third test will be able to proceed to the fourth test.

The fourth stage is a melee in the arena, where the four strongest cultivators from the remaining cultivators will be selected to enter the four gates of birth, aging, sickness, and death.

Behind each door lies a different challenge, but all can lead to the attainment of the Three-Stage Golden Yuan Technique.

"Birth, aging, sickness, and death... judging from the names, the 'Gate of Life' is naturally the best..."

"But I don't know the specific content of the assessment..."

Lin Chen pondered carefully before making up his mind.

Challenge that puppet in the mid-stage of Core Formation!

"The allure of this Perfect Golden Essence Pill is quite considerable!"

"It is comparable to a mid-stage Core Formation puppet, but it is ultimately not a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator... It is weaker in both intelligence and methods."

"With my current strength, I should be able to defeat..."

Lin Chen thought to himself.

His strongest offensive method now is undoubtedly the combination of the power of the Candle Dragon and the Vibrating Blade.

It can unleash a terrifying force exceeding three million jin...

This is also Lin Chen's biggest trump card.

With this move, he was confident that even a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator wouldn't be able to withstand it!

With this in mind, Lin Chen no longer hesitated.

He sat cross-legged, took out stamina potions and pills, and quickly recovered his strength.

"Since we're going to fight, let's give it a try..."

……

Half an hour later.

As the door to this enclosed space closed, Lin Chen slowly stood up, his physical strength and true essence finally returning to their peak.

As the ground trembled, the two puppet giants that Lin Chen had destroyed earlier came back to life...

The puppet's body parts were continuously pieced together and combined, eventually transforming into a giant puppet three zhang tall!

The puppet was completely covered in black material, and its lower legs alone were almost as tall as Lin Chen.

On the enormous head, as tall as a person, crimson eyes flashed incessantly.

A cold voice came from the puppet's mouth.

"Challenger, can you... defeat me?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the puppet threw a heavy punch at Lin Chen.

Lin Chen didn't take the hit head-on, but narrowly dodged it with several rolls.

The immense force hammered a large crater into the stone floor of the enclosed room.

The space shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck.

Lin Chen's pupils contracted sharply, and his eyes became even more serious.

"This power... is probably almost as strong as the power of a vibrating blade. I absolutely mustn't get hit!"

Lin Chen took a deep breath, a thought flashing through his mind.

A wisp of black bloomed from Lin Chen's chest.

Like ripples on water, it quickly covered Lin Chen's chest, abdomen, limbs, and head, completely enveloping him!

Martial Spirit Remnant, Xuanmo Armor!

This is the first time Lin Chen has used this armor since he obtained it!

The moment the implant was activated, Lin Chen could feel that his physical strength had been slightly depleted.

But he gritted his teeth and once again unleashed the power of the Candle Dragon!

Lin Chen felt his strength and speed were greater than ever before, his muscles swelled slightly.

This is Lin Chen at his peak!

With the Xuanmo Armor and the power of the Candle Dragon, Lin Chen had the courage to fight against a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator!

boom!

Before him, the giant threw another punch at Lin Chen.

This time, Lin Chen was completely enveloped in protective true essence, with his arms leaning forward.

He wanted to test just how much difference there was between his strength and that of the giant…

However, a huge shockwave flashed after the collision.

Lin Chen only lasted for a single breath before being thrown back more than ten steps.

Fortunately, Lin Chen was not injured because his entire body was enveloped in protective true essence.

But in his eyes, he was already filled with amazement.

"The power of this puppet... this single strike must have been no less than three million jin!"

Lin Chen pursed his lips.

In his normal state, his strength is far inferior to that of the puppet.

Only by using the wielding of a sword can one even make a contact...

With this in mind, Lin Chen no longer held back and obtained the Demon-Slaying Blade.

An unprecedented sense of confidence welled up in my heart.

"Since we're going to fight, then let's fight!"

Lin Chen also wanted to test where his limits really were.

Of course, Lin Chen had left himself a backup plan.

According to his observation, he could also use earth-遁术 (earth-遁术 is a type of magic that can be used to escape from the earth). Once he used earth-遁术, he would be virtually invincible!

But now is not the time to run away...

"Zhen Dao!"

Lin Chen let out a soft shout and unleashed his strongest move ever!

With the combined buffs of the Mysterious Ink Armor, the Power of the Candle Dragon, and the Vibrating Blade, the power of this strike exceeded four million jin!

The protective array was activated when the blade was still a foot away from the puppet giant.

An invisible shield kept the blade a foot away.

However, the shield lasted for less than three seconds before Lin Chen shattered it with a single strike.

Then the blade struck the puppet in the chest and abdomen.

The blade cut almost entirely into the blade...

"It worked?"

"No……"

Lin Chen's expression changed slightly. Although his slash had broken through the protective formation, it had not directly cut the puppet in half.

"The material used to forge this puppet is too hard... and the puppet is so enormous that it's practically impossible to damage..."

Thoughts flashed through Lin Chen's mind quickly.

He then pulled out the entire knife, retreated several feet, and barely dodged the puppet's continuous barrage of punches.

"We need to find this puppet's weakness..."

While dodging the puppet's punches, Lin Chen repeatedly jumped and dodged, constantly pondering in his mind.

After several rounds of fighting, he had a general understanding of the puppet.

It possesses immense strength surpassing that of a mid-stage Core Formation body cultivator, but its speed is somewhat lacking, only equivalent to an early-stage Core Formation cultivator...

However, within this enclosed space of several tens of feet in diameter, this speed is sufficient.

At the same time, the protective array around him could not be broken by any attack without the power of a Core Formation level cultivator...

Its massive size is both its strength and its weakness.

After all, its body is too big and not flexible enough, but its attack range and defense have been improved.

"However, overall, this puppet's attack methods are still too simplistic..."

Lin Chen smiled slightly.

Compared to magic cultivators, body cultivators have a simpler attack method, but they still possess powerful physical skills and supernatural abilities.

However, the giant puppet in front of them only possessed the physical qualities of a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator, but lacked supernatural abilities.

This flaw is all too obvious...

Lin Chen quickly observed several corners of the enclosed room, as well as the broken bluestone floor.

While dodging the puppet's attacks, Lin Chen also continuously released spells.

A moment later, after dodging the puppet's attack once again, Lin Chen murmured softly:

"A green snake coils around..."

As the true essence of wood surged within Lin Chen's body.

Dozens of huge vines, as thick as a waist, instantly sprouted from the ground, wrapping around the puppet's entire body.

"What incredible strength..."

Lin Chen raised an eyebrow.

Although the vines were tightly bound to the giant puppet, within the blink of an eye, under the puppet's immense strength, the vines began to break apart and fall apart...

"However, this amount of time is sufficient..."

Holding the Demon-Slaying Blade, Lin Chen charged towards the puppet giant once more.

However, unlike before, Lin Chen's placement of the blade was very deliberate.

The puppet giant, standing three zhang tall, with its head alone nearly as tall as a person, was made of special minerals, making it extremely sturdy.

However, the connection between its limbs and torso is its weak point...

"This strike will sever your left arm!"

Lin Chen unleashed a single slash, shattering the protective array of the puppet giant with overwhelming force.

Although the force of the blade weakened slightly, the remaining power still severed the puppet giant's left arm.

boom!

The puppet giant's left arm, like a fallen tree, crashed heavily to the ground.

A cloud of dust was kicked up...

At the same time, the puppet giant broke free from the vines and charged towards Lin Chen.

Lin Chen used the same trick again, dodging while simultaneously unleashing the Green Serpent Entanglement...

It was constantly weakening the puppet giant as if it were being toyed with.

Half an hour later...

The puppet giant had its arms and one leg severed by Lin Chen, and could only crawl on the ground, but it still charged towards Lin Chen.

"It really is a puppet... It seems impervious to pain, and even with three limbs severed, it can still attack..."

"However, that's all for now!"

Lin Chen unleashed a slash.

This time, his target is the puppet's head!

As the enormous head crashed to the ground, the light in the puppet's eyes gradually went out.

"You won..." The final words came from the puppet's body.

After confirming that the puppet was immobilized, Lin Chen sat down heavily on the ground, panting heavily.

"Damn, this is really tiring!"

The power of the Candle Dragon and the Xuanmo Armor, which lasted for more than half an hour, almost drained Lin Chen of his last bit of strength.

After taking out a bottle of stamina potion and drinking it, Lin Chen slowly stood up.

They walked to a high platform and took a jade box.

This jade box contains... the Perfect Golden Essence Pill!

A pill that is rumored to be 100% effective in helping people form their Golden Core, and can even improve the quality of the Golden Core by one grade...

For countless geniuses, it is a treasure they dream of.

Inside the sealed room, a black door slowly opened.

……

Meanwhile, in the original square.

A total of twelve cultivators who had reached the Foundation Establishment stage passed the third test.

After they waited for a long time in the square, a voice came.

"The third stage of the assessment has now concluded..."

"Next, we will begin the fourth stage of the assessment..."

As the sound faded, three spacious arenas appeared on the field.

The cold voice echoed across the square once again:

"This stage will be a tournament to select three champions from all cultivators... who will then enter the three gates of 'Old Age, Sickness, and Death' and receive the Third-Stage Golden Yuan Technique and a portion of the Golden Yuan Sect's inheritance..."

"Those who possess the Golden Yuan Sect Inheritance Token and achieve an overall score of Grade A will be granted partial rewards based on their score level..."

"All those who step onto the arena are subject to the whims of fate; those who do not participate in the fourth trial may leave the ruins..."

As the sounds subsided, passages reappeared in the surrounding stone walls.

Seeing this, the cultivators in the square had different expressions and were all thinking about something.

Wan Xun sat in a corner, exuding a fierce aura, with many wounds on his body.

In particular, there was a penetrating wound in the abdomen, almost exposing the internal organs.

He slowly stood up, and without the slightest hesitation, turned and left the square.

Passing the third test was already his limit...

In the third stage, he defeated six cultivators of the same realm and obtained a mid-grade Golden Essence Pill.

Although he had his eye on the reward for the final fourth level, he knew he was no match for the other cultivators present...

Especially those who look the most relaxed.

Subsequently, many other cultivators shared the same thoughts as Wan Xun.

The six cultivators took their rewards and left the ruins one by one.

Soon, only six monks remained in the square.

Of the six cultivators, half looked puzzled.

Young Master Qingzhu waved his feather fan, his heart filled with astonishment.

"That's not right. According to the intelligence... there were supposed to be four gates: birth, aging, sickness, and death. Why are there only three now? Where did the gate of life go...?"

"Could the intelligence be wrong?"

"But why is it... the most impossible path to survival?"

Young Master Qingzhu glanced at the other cultivators present.

He knew the details of all six cultivators except for Jiang Liqian, who was hiding her face.

"The old monster with the Ghost Eyes possesses unfathomable strength. Originally a Core Formation cultivator, he has now shattered his Golden Core and fallen to the peak of Foundation Establishment..."

"But its foundation is still incomparable; I cannot surpass it..."

"Young Master Qingzhu murmured, then looked at the other cultivators."

"As for that martial monk Li Tianhan, he cultivates both body and spirit, and has fought his way up through countless battles. I'm afraid it will be a fierce battle for me as well."

"As for the other cultivators... I still have a chance to become the arena champion..."

With this in mind, Young Master Qingzhu did not rush to the arena, but stood still and waited quietly.

Of the six cultivators present, three others looked astonished.

They are Li Tianhan, Ghost Eye Child, and... Jiang Liqian!

They had one thing in common: they had all made it to the twelfth round of the third stage of the assessment...

But they all gave up before the thirteenth round.

Because they had exhausted most of their trump cards by fighting against two early-stage Core Formation puppets simultaneously in the twelfth round of assessment.

They simply didn't have the courage to challenge the puppet at the mid-stage of Core Formation, nor did they believe anyone else could pass the thirteenth round...

At this moment, Li Tianhan was the most shocked.

"Hiss... Xu Shi is actually so brave? He actually passed the thirteenth round of testing... and defeated that mid-stage Core Formation puppet?"

"But...why did Brother Xu choose the least likely path to success? Could it be...that he's very confident?"

Li Tianhan looked around and made sure that Xu Shi hadn't come out.

But he knew Xu Shi was also a top-tier player... there was no way he couldn't pass the level...

Therefore, there is only one possibility!

That means Xu Shi has passed the thirteenth round of assessment that none of them had the confidence to take!

"Just what kind of force is this Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Sect?" Li Tianhan wondered to himself.

Although Ghost Eye Child was also surprised, he still jumped onto the "Gate of Death" arena.

"This old ancestor wants the Death Gate! Anyone who's blind enough to know better, come on up!"

Ghost Eye Child stood casually on the arena, scanning the crowd below.

But the other five cultivators all avoided looking at them.

Even Li Tianhan didn't intend to fight Ghost Eye Child...

After all, there are three arenas, and he doesn't need to choose the toughest opponent.

So Li Tianhan leaped up and stepped onto the "Old Gate" arena.

"Fellow Daoists, this arena is for Li Tianhan of the Demon-Subduing Temple... If any of you wish to come up and test your skills, I am ready to accompany you to the end!"

(End of this chapter)