After Qi Heng returned the jade pendant to Xiao Mo, he ignored the latter’s attempt to detain him and flew directly back to the Jade Sword Peak.
As soon as he stepped into the Jade Sword Peak, Qi Heng sensitively detected that something was amiss in the aura of the peak.
Someone had been here.
Qi Heng summoned a puppet that was nearby, in whose eyes he had once cast a small spell for leaving an image.
Who would think of guarding against inanimate wooden and stone puppets? So, Qi Heng easily found a segment of imagery in the puppet’s eyes.
It was indeed people from the Punishment Hall.
Qi Heng silently imprinted a new image spell into the puppet’s eyes once again.
Half a month later, Qi Heng received another transmission from Qing Xu.
He rushed to the main peak and found that most of the peak masters had gathered. Qi Heng took a seat at the position belonging to the Jade Sword Peak.
“This gathering of peak masters is still about the Apprentice Acceptance Assembly,” Qing Xu glanced at everyone, “The Heavenly Ascent Ladder is now beyond repair, and we can’t afford to delay the Apprentice Acceptance Assembly any longer.”
With nearly ten thousand outer disciples, they couldn’t continue to support them without contributing anything, or else all the resources would be depleted.
“Please guide us, Grandmaster,” Xuan Kun, the Peak Master of the Dan Peak, stood up and saluted.
“Since the Heavenly Ascent Ladder’s Heart Inquiry Trial is no longer viable, this time, I ask each of you to help construct a new Heart Inquiry Trial,” Qing Xu explained his plan.
“I will create an illusion formation, and then I will ask each of you to enter and preside over it.”
In other words, they were to go inside and personally test these outer disciples as if they were the final boss of the challenge.
“Chengyuan,” Qing Xu continued, then looked at Qi Heng, “This time, the other eight peak masters will participate. Sword Lord Chengyuan, your swordsmanship isn’t suitable for an illusion formation. You can assist from the outside.”
He was concerned that if Qi Heng entered, his sword intent could easily dismantle the illusion formation. Swordsmen’s swords were truly dominant and could vanquish all illusions.
Qi Heng nonchalantly nodded.
“Jade Sword Peak is still too remote. If there are suitable talents this time, Chengyuan, you should consider taking a few disciples back with you. Even if they’re not inheriting the true teachings, it’s good to have a few ordinary disciples.”
Qi Heng remained noncommittal. After the tasks were assigned to everyone, a message was sent out, announcing the reopening of the Apprentice Acceptance Assembly the next morning.
Upon hearing this news, Xiao Mo was initially reluctant, but when he learned that the new Apprentice Acceptance Assembly didn’t require climbing any stairs, he immediately signed up and set aside his concerns.
The illusion formation still stood at the base of the mountain, consisting of nine layers. Qi Heng concealed his presence and stood silently in the clouds above, watching as Qing Xu led the eight peak masters into the illusion formation.
Following that, the head of the outer disciples arrived with several disciples. He gave some instructions and then had the disciples form a line, one by one, entering the illusion formation.
Once all the disciples had entered, Qi Heng raised his hand, and a surge of magic enveloped the area. The officials around him lost consciousness without any warning.
Qi Heng landed on the ground, cast a spell to throw the officials into the illusion formation, and then made some adjustments to the arrangement. Afterward, he glanced in a particular direction, then took a step into the formation’s core to meditate.
Behind a nearby tree, Xiao Mo, who had arrived late and nearly been discovered, swallowed nervously and asked, “Master, what do you think Senior Brother is planning?”
Xuan Wei’s voice was solemn, “You go inside.”
“No,” Xiao Mo jumped, “If I go inside, Senior Brother will definitely find me.”
Senior Brother is clearly meditating, and if he startles him and causes him to lose control, what should we do?
Xuan Wei couldn’t tolerate it any longer. “Chengyuan’s spiritual essence is already inside the formation; he won’t detect you.”
“Spiritual essence inside?” Xiao Mo hesitated for a moment, took a cautious half-step out from behind the tree, and saw his Senior Brother still meditating with closed eyes. He felt relieved and stepped out from behind the tree.
“Hurry inside,” Xuan Wei urged him, “If you don’t go in now, it might be too late.”
Xiao Mo squatted not far from Qi Heng, occasionally glancing at him. “I never said I was going in. Senior Brother is meditating here alone, and his spiritual essence isn’t present. If I don’t watch over him, what if something goes wrong?”
“You—” Xuan Wei was once again exasperated, “You are a stubborn child. Do you know what he’s doing? If you don’t go in, it could affect the lives of nearly ten thousand people.”
“What?” Xiao Mo was puzzled. “What has Senior Brother done? Didn’t you say this is just a normal Heart-Testing illusion formation?”
“It was before, but not anymore,” Xuan Wei realized that he had never truly understood his eldest disciple. “He altered the formation and changed the core, causing everyone inside, except for him, to be trapped in illusions. There might be danger for those inside.”
“I believe Senior Brother is not like that,” Xiao Mo said without blinking an eye. “Even when I offended him so much before, he never harmed me, just gave me gentle guidance.”
“He showed mercy to a stranger like me, which shows that he’s a very compassionate person. So, Master, please don’t worry unnecessarily.”
Xuan Wei was on the verge of frustration. Seeing that Xiao Mo had no intention of going inside while sitting on the ground, he floated out of the jade pendant himself.
“What?” Xiao Mo was surprised. “So, Master, you can come out? I thought you were sealed inside the jade pendant, and I would come to rescue you when I become a successful cultivator!”
In the mortal realm, that’s how it was always written, so when a talking figure suddenly emerged from the jade pendant that hit him, he quickly accepted the premise.
“Hmph!” Xuan Wei ignored him, shook his sleeve, and resolutely stepped into the formation.
In any case, the Tianyan Sect was his sect, and now the Sect Leader and all eight peak masters were trapped inside. If anything went wrong inside, the Tianyan Sect might face an unprecedented catastrophe.
Not only the threat of monsters but also the greater danger from the scrutiny of other sects. If the core of the Tianyan Sect was lost, those sects would likely divide the spoils immediately.
Xiao Mo watched as Xuan Wei stepped into the formation, hesitated for a moment, and then decided to stay outside.
His Senior Brother exuded a pure aura, clearly not a sinister figure. He didn’t believe his Senior Brother would go on a killing spree against the disciples inside.
Xiao Mo never put much stock in others’ descriptions; he had discovered the unique nature of his eyes from a young age. With just one glance, he could see the true essence of a person’s soul.
Turbid meant evil, clear meant good.
And Senior Brother’s soul was the purest he had ever seen.
As soon as Xuan Wei stepped into the formation, he sensed that something was amiss; malevolent energy filled the interior of the formation.
He took a few steps and first saw the officials who had been thrown inside. As he ventured deeper, he found countless disciples lying on the ground.
Xuan Wei was greatly alarmed and quickly examined the disciples, finding that they were breathing steadily, but their souls and spirits were absent from their bodies.
Xuan Wei bypassed these disciples and walked further into the formation until he reached the center. This time, he saw the Sect Leader of the Tianyan Sect and the peak masters, all in the same condition as the disciples outside, with their souls missing.
Above their heads, a transparent crystal sphere was slowly rotating, and the mastermind behind all of this stood nearby, observing coldly.
“Chengyuan, what are you doing?” Xuan Wei shouted in anger. “Give their souls back.”
“Why are you in such a hurry, Master?” Qi Heng responded calmly. “I won’t harm them; I’m just giving them a choice.”
With a wave of his hand, the images within the crystal sphere were projected outward.
A miniaturized version of the Tianyan Sect and its members appeared in the crystal sphere illusion.
Xuan Wei was horrified. “You’ve trapped their souls and spirits in this crystal sphere illusion? What are you trying to do?”
Qi Heng shook his head slowly. “Master, take another look.”
In the illusion, the upper echelons of the Tianyan Sect were already aware that the path to ascension had been severed and had gathered to discuss countermeasures.
“The path to ascension is cut off?” Xuan Wei looked bewildered. “How can that be?”
Qi Heng gave him a glance. “Master, think about it. Has anyone ascended in the past few thousand years?”
The flow of time within the crystal sphere illusion was extremely fast, and within a short span, it had progressed to twenty years later. During this time, two peak masters who had reached the Tribulation Crossing stage had fallen, and their souls turned into spiritual energy, returning to the heavens and the earth.
“This won’t do,” a voice suddenly emerged from the crystal sphere, and it was the voice of Qing Xu.
Xuan Wei immediately looked, and in the crystal sphere, Qing Xu had entered the tower where the sect’s disciples’ nameplates were kept.
When every Tianyan Sect disciple joined the inner sect, a tiny portion of their soul was collected to make a nameplate lantern. If a disciple died while traveling outside, the corresponding nameplate lantern would go dim, and the sect would receive timely notification.
However, Xuan Wei had never considered that nameplate lanterns had another purpose.
To reopen the path to ascension, countless disciples, under the control of their nameplate lanterns, entered a sacrificial formation and willingly sacrificed themselves to fill the formation.
“Once the spiritual energy inside the crystal sphere is depleted, they will wake up, including those disciples who were sacrificed,” Qi Heng said as he withdrew his hand. He had seen the outcome he wanted and didn’t linger any longer. He left the formation, leaving these words behind.
Xiao Mo had been waiting for a long time, and no one had come out. He had grown so bored that he had crouched in front of Qi Heng, counting his eyelashes, but suddenly, he saw his Senior Brother open his eyes.
At first, he was stunned, as if he had been caught red-handed doing something wrong, and he was genuinely startled, falling to the ground with a thud.
“I-Immortal, Senior Brother?”
“Why haven’t you left yet?”
“I’m here to protect Senior Brother!” Xiao Mo quickly got up from the ground and dusted himself off.
“Senior Brother, you’re too careless. You let your spiritual essence leave your body in the middle of nowhere like this. What if you encounter someone with ill intentions?”
Qi Heng cast a complex look at Xiao Mo and turned to leave.
“Hey, Senior Brother, where are you going?” Xiao Mo blinked, quickly grabbing Qi Heng’s sleeve.
Qi Heng glanced at him, then raised his hand and transformed Xiao Mo into a tiny, thumb-sized figurine before tossing him into his spatial pocket. He then swiftly returned to the Jade Sword Peak, retrieved his spiritual sword, and flew straight to the tower where the disciples’ nameplates were kept.
Xiao Mo was left bewildered.
It wasn’t until he reached the tower that he regained his senses and requested Qi Heng to take him out of the spatial pocket.
“It’s too stuffy in there; Senior Brother, please hang me on your waist, alongside the spiritual pendant.”
Xiao Mo didn’t bother asking Qi Heng why he had shrunk him. He was certain that Qi Heng had no intention of harming him.
Qi Heng didn’t respond to his comments, so Xiao Mo repeated his request, and eventually, Qi Heng hung him outside.
Once they were outside, Xiao Mo was taken aback.
“Hey, where is this? Why are there so many glowing nameplates? Did so many cultivators from the Tianyan Sect die?”
Qi Heng remained silent for a moment and then explained, “These are the nameplates of cultivators. The ones that are glowing indicate that the corresponding cultivator has not passed away yet.”
“Then why are you here, Senior Brother?” Xiao Mo rolled his eyes, attempting to locate Qi Heng’s nameplate within the sea of nameplates.
Countless nameplates flew into the air, and Qi Heng’s spiritual sword crackled with electricity.
“Of course, it’s to release them.”
