Starting as a Grandmaster, all of my cultivation techniques are at max level.

After Fan Wujiu left, Xia Jin's expression was more unpleasant than usual.

He sat alone in the hall, unaware that his teacup had accidentally fallen to the ground.

"Three days... Even Jian Wuxin, who was ranked first, only lasted three days. It seems that this Demon Cave Trial is truly not something ordinary people can endure!"

Xia Jin frowned, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

With his current strength, he is confident that he will only win, not lose, even against Jian Wuxin at his peak. However, the difference in their strength will not be too great.

Jian Wuxin's cultivation was completely destroyed after only three days. If it were him, how many days could he have lasted?

Just then, Mu Ping'er walked in.

She immediately noticed Xia Jin's expression and asked with some concern, "My lord, are you... alright?"

Xia Jin raised her head, looked at Mu Ping'er's small face, and simply shook her head: "It's nothing."

"Oh, right, go get some wine."

"Wine?" Mu Ping'er was taken aback, then nodded. "Yes, sir, please wait a moment."

Before long, Mu Ping'er brought several jugs of wine and placed them in front of Xia Jin. She was about to stand aside when Xia Jin stopped her.

"Sit down," Xia Jin said, gesturing to the seat beside him. "Have a few drinks with me."

Mu Ping'er hesitated for a moment, but still obediently sat down. With her ability to read people's expressions, she naturally noticed that Xia Jin was in a bad mood today, but she didn't dare to ask any questions. She just silently drank with Xia Jin.

One for you, one for me.

The two drank like that for a full hour.

After a few rounds of drinks, Mu Ping'er's cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were becoming somewhat glazed. Although she had a decent alcohol tolerance, she couldn't keep up with the drinking. She was already quite tipsy, and was simply drinking glass after glass with Xia Jin instinctively.

Xia Jin, however, became more and more sober and calm the more she drank.

After a few more drinks, Xia Jin suddenly put down her glass, looked at Mu Ping'er, and asked, "Do you know the location of the Demon Cave?"

Mu Ping'er nodded dazedly, "I know... People in the Second Heaven should all know... The Demon Cave is on that isolated island at the far east of the Second Heaven... It's shrouded in black mist all year round..."

After Mu Ping'er finished speaking, she tilted her head to the side and slumped onto the table, falling into a deep sleep.

Xia Jin glanced at Mu Ping'er quietly, then stood up and waved his hand, causing his black dragon robe to gently fall and cover Mu Ping'er.

"Get a good night's sleep."

After saying this, Xia Jin turned around and walked out of the main hall.

Not long after stepping out of the main hall, they saw Yin Shixuan cultivating not far away.

Yin Shixuan noticed the commotion, opened his eyes, saw Xia Jin, and quickly got up to greet her: "My lord, where are you going so late at night?"

Xia Jin glanced at him and uttered two words indifferently: "Devil's Den".

As soon as he finished speaking, his figure disappeared into the night.

Yin Shixuan stood there, stunned, not reacting at first.

"The Demon Cave? What Demon Cave..." he muttered to himself, then suddenly seemed to realize something. Yin Shixuan's pupils constricted sharply, his expression changing drastically. "What?! My lord is going to the Demon Cave?!"

However, he quickly shook his head. "Impossible, impossible. The master must have just gone for a stroll nearby, not to that demon's lair. After all, only the top-ranked disciple among the Heavenly Rank disciples is qualified to enter that demon's lair, and the master hasn't even challenged Zhan Wuji, who is currently second..."

Yin Shixuan was unaware that the qualification to enter the Demon Cave was not limited to being at the top of the list, but rather to being in the top three.

He took a few deep breaths and suddenly wondered if he had been overdoing his cultivation lately, which was why he kept having wild thoughts.

......

After leaving the island where he lived,

In less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, Xia Jin arrived at the island that Mu Ping'er had mentioned.

"Is this the place where the demon's lair is located? It does make one feel somewhat uneasy!" Xia Jin lowered her head, looking down at the entire island.

Thick black mist rose continuously from below. Even before getting close, Xia Jin could feel a chilling aura rushing towards her, carrying an evil feeling that instinctively made her resist.

Without the slightest hesitation, he stepped directly down from the void.

However, he had only been standing still for a short while.

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, a whooshing sound rang out, and a jet-black spear shot out from the dense demonic energy, embedding itself in the ground in front of Xia Jin and blocking her path.

"Hmm!?" Xia Jin narrowed his eyes slightly, and his powerful divine sense spread rapidly in all directions. Soon, he frowned and looked at a place on the east side.

A figure dressed in black armor slowly emerged from the darkness.

The man's face was almost entirely hidden under his helmet, with only a pair of eagle-like eyes visible as he coldly looked at Xia Jin.

"Do not trespass into the demon's lair! Retreat immediately!" The man's voice sounded somewhat hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken in a long time.

Xia Jin didn't say anything, but instead took off her token from her waist and threw it at the man.

The man reached out and caught it, then looked down and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He looked up and examined Xia Jin again.

"Third in the Heavenly Ranking, Xia Jin?" The man tossed the token back, his tone now tinged with complexity. "Are you sure you want to enter the Demon's Lair?"

"nature."

"Do you know that if you fail, you could easily die inside?" The man's voice remained cold, but his words carried a hint of warning. "I remember the last person to enter this demonic cave was that guy named Jian Wuxin. It's a pity he didn't walk out; he was carried out of here."

"I hope you won't repeat his mistakes!"

Xia Jin's expression remained unchanged, but her eyes were full of self-confidence: "Don't worry, I am not him, and the outcome will naturally not be the same as his."

"I hope so!" The man stared at Xia Jin for a long time before finally nodding.

With a flick of his wrist, the spear that had been driven into the ground flew back into his hand with a whoosh.

"Go in." The man turned and stepped aside, making way for him. "I hope to see you come out again."

Xia Jin gave the other person a deep look, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly: "Of course."

Xia Jin's figure gradually disappeared from the sight of the figure in black armor. As if she had thought of something, a faint sigh came from beneath the black armor.

"I hope that this time, one of my disciples from the Second Heaven will successfully pass this trial of the Demon Cave and step into the Third Heaven..."

On the other side, Xia Jin continued walking forward at a leisurely pace. However, the deeper she went, the more her brows furrowed.

The surrounding air was filled with thick black fog, and just breathing it made one feel irritable.

Even more bizarrely, the black mist seemed to be alive, constantly surging towards him, trying to penetrate his body.

Xia Jin snorted coldly, circulating her spiritual energy to isolate the black mist from the outside.

But the black fog grew more and more abundant, thicker and thicker, gradually obscuring our vision.

However, soon, a huge grotto appeared in his field of vision.

Countless dense demonic energies surged out from the entrance of the cave, and faint roars could be heard from time to time.

The roar didn't sound like a wild beast; it sounded more like... the sound of a human in extreme pain.

Xia Jin stopped and stared intently at the dark cave entrance in front of her.

"Is this... the entrance to the demon's lair?"

After a moment of silence, Xia Jin took a deep breath, lifted her foot, and stepped into the cave entrance.

The next moment, endless demonic energy instantly engulfed his entire body.