From a loser to an immortal sage

Chapter 514 The Final Test

The sound of the door closing was like a stone sinking into a deep pool. I squinted to adjust to the golden light in the room and then saw that the stone platform in the center was not a jade tablet, but an open ancient book.

The paper gleamed with a beeswax-like luster, and every line of the paper seemed to be filled with tiny starlight, as if the Milky Way had been crushed and embedded inside.

A pale blue film of light floated around the book, like the surface of water ruffled by the wind. Occasionally, when ripples appeared, a sound like the hum of an ancient bell could be heard.

"This is the final test," Master Huixin's voice came from the left.

I turned my head and saw her standing in a hollow in the stone wall, her moon-white robe speckled with stone dust, the prayer beads in her hand turning gently as she spoke. "The barrier is forged from ancient purifying stones, capable of illuminating the deepest obsessions in people's hearts."

"So what if I see it?" Su Yao's voice was barbed. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her leaning against the doorframe, the tail feathers of her silver butterfly dart peeking out from her sleeve. "Does it think it can rip people's hearts out and clean them?"

"It's not about washing, it's about acknowledging." Elder Xuanfeng had also entered at some point, a bronze bell hanging from his waist, its vibrations causing tiny golden fragments to float in the air. "If you can openly acknowledge the distracting thoughts in your heart, then you are cleansed."

"If they remain obstinate..." His gaze swept over the tip of the dart hidden in Su Yao's sleeve, "they will be reflected back by the barrier."

I saw Su Yao's fingers suddenly curl up, the silver butterfly dart's wings pressing red marks into her palm.

Ling Feng stood beside her, his eyes, which had been fixed on the ancient book, suddenly trembled—his Adam's apple bobbed, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he turned his face away, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the jade pendant at his waist.

That was a family heirloom passed down through generations. I once heard him say that he wanted to use this jade pendant to prove that "even ordinary people can reach the top."

But at this moment, the jade pendant gleamed coldly in the golden light, like a piece of frozen ice.

“Miss Xiao.” Abbess Huixin beckoned to me, and the sandalwood scent emanating from her prayer beads suddenly intensified. “Please come forward.”

When I took my first step, the heart-protecting jade became hot again. This time it wasn't a stinging pain, but a warm feeling, like the sensation when Wen Chen used his internal energy to warm my meridians.

The stone bricks were a bit cool, and the coolness seeped through my shoes, which actually made my mind clearer.

As I approached the barrier, I reached out to touch the layer of light membrane—the moment my fingertips touched it, it felt like a bucket of ice water had been poured over my head, and memories suddenly surged back.

It was when I was eight years old at the village entrance, Aunt Wang grabbed my wrist and sneered, "You can't even pass the spiritual root test, you might as well go home and farm." It was when I was fifteen in the servants' quarters, my senior sister threw dirty clothes at my head, "A piece of trash like you dares to learn magic?" It was on the far north ice plains, I held the frozen Wen Chen, my fingernails full of ice shards, yet I still gritted my teeth and fed him spiritual energy... The clearest memory is of Wen Chen waking up, his eyelashes covered in ice flowers, and his first words: "You are more resilient than you think."

The light membrane suddenly vibrated, and my wrist went numb from the shock.

Su Yao scoffed from behind: "What are you pretending to be so affectionate for?"

Who hasn't had their share of hardship? But before she could finish speaking, there was a loud "crack"—it was Elder Xuanfeng's bronze bell that shattered on the ground.

I turned around and saw that half of Su Yao's face was red and swollen, and Elder Xuanfeng's finger was still in the gesture of waving: "The trial grounds are not for idle talk."

Su Yao covered her face and backed away, bumping into Ling Feng.

When Ling Feng helped her up, I saw a flash of disgust in his eyes—which he quickly suppressed, replaced by his usual gentle tone: "Junior Sister Su, don't let your mind be disturbed." But his fingertips were still trembling. I suddenly remembered three months ago in the secret realm, when he pushed his junior brother into the poisonous miasma forest in order to snatch a thousand-year-old Vermilion Fruit.

“Miss Xiao.” Master Huixin’s voice was like a thread, pulling my wandering thoughts back.

I turned around and found that the golden light from the ancient book had enveloped me at some point, even turning my shadow golden.

The chill of the barrier lingered, but the warmth of the Heart-Protecting Jade was rising through my veins. I suddenly remembered Wen Chen saying that this jade was forged with his heart's blood, "It can protect you from disaster, and it can also remember you; every step you've taken has been worthwhile."

I closed my eyes.

The memories are no longer those hurtful words, but of Wen Chen silently placing the wound medicine by my bedside when I was injured while practicing swordsmanship; of Ming Yue dragging me to see the peach blossoms on the back mountain when I was ostracized; of Master Huixin touching my head and saying, "So what if you don't have spiritual roots?" when she first met me.

If your heart is filled with light, every path is a smooth road.

A breeze blew by, and I heard the sound of pages turning.

This time it wasn't an illusion; it was real, like a spring breeze rustling through wheat fields.

There was a little dampness on my eyelashes; I guessed it was tears, but I didn't wipe it away.

The warmth of the heart-protecting jade had spread to my heart, and I could even hear my own heartbeat, one beat, two beats, blending with the rustling of the pages of the ancient book, like a harmonious chorus.

"Xiao Yao..."

The whisper was so soft that I almost thought it was my imagination.

But as my eyelashes trembled, I suddenly touched something warm—it was the light membrane of the barrier, which had softened at some point, like a piece of melted candy.

My fingertips sank half an inch into the ancient book, but instead of being bounced away, a gentle force lifted my hand and guided it toward the book.

I heard a gasp behind me, and I knew who it was without even looking.

Su Yao's silver butterfly dart fell to the ground with a crisp sound; Ling Feng's jade pendant cracked, and shards of jade fell at his feet; Mingyue's ribbon wrapped around my wrist and tugged gently, as if to say, "I'm here."

I took a deep breath, and when I opened my eyes again, the light film in front of me was fading.

The golden light from the ancient book enveloped me, as if it were weaving an invisible garment for me.

A voice whispered in my heart, "It's here."

This time, I heard my own answer.

When I opened my eyes again, the moisture on my eyelashes was still wet, but I found that the film of light in front of me had completely disappeared.

The golden light on the ancient book receded into a thin veil, gently covering the pages, as if waiting for its owner.

My throat tightened, my fingertips hovered above the spine of the book, then I put them down—this was the core of the inheritance, the light I had reached after traveling thousands of miles and enduring countless hardships, and now I was finally going to hold it in my hands.

"Take it," Master Huixin said with a smile. "It's waiting for you."

I took a deep breath and pressed my palm against the thin veil.

The expected resistance did not appear; the golden light, like morning mist meeting the warm sun, "whooshed" into my blood.

The ancient book was lighter than I had imagined, and the pages had a warm, jade-like temperature. As my fingertips traced the first page, a line of gilded characters appeared: "When the mind is clear, all things will naturally manifest."

My breath caught in my throat.

The second page was a diagram of the entire "Primordial Scripture" operating route, each meridian shimmering with a silvery-blue light, a hundred times clearer than the one Wen Chen had drawn for me on my palm with his inner energy years ago; the third page contained the key to talisman making, and I had once strained my eyes to the point of blood for a first-order Qi-gathering talisman, but now I saw it written on it: "Use thought as the guide, blood as the medium," even the strokes of my pen that I had misread back then were marked with annotations; the fourth page... the picture on the fourth page made my eyes well up with tears—it was a snow scene of the far north ice plains, in which I was holding Wen Chen, and ice flowers were falling from my eyelashes, with the inscription next to it: "Those who use their hearts to help others will surely be helped by Heaven."

"Yao Yao!"

A low call mixed with vibration came from behind.

My hand trembled, and the ancient book almost slipped from my grasp. I looked up and met Wen Chen's eyes.

He was standing at the doorway, his dark Taoist robe stained with specks of blood, his hair ornament askew at his temple, yet he still steadily extended his hand towards me: "Be careful!"

The ground suddenly shook violently, and stone chips fell from above.

Only then did I hear the commotion outside—the sound of swords clashing, the crisp sound of magical artifacts colliding, and the disciples' exclamations and groans of pain.

Wen Chen's fingertips were already gripping my wrist, and the warmth of his palm transmitted through the protective jade, burning me awake: "Someone has broken through the outer barrier and is rushing towards the Scripture Pavilion."

"The book!" I pulled the ancient book into my arms, and Wen Chen's other hand immediately covered it, his dark sleeves enveloping our intertwined hands: "I'll protect it."

"Go!" Elder Xuanfeng's bronze bell rang loudly above his head, making the stone walls vibrate.

He stood in front of us, and with each tremor of the bell's tongue, a golden light cleaved through the incoming black beam.

Su Yao had huddled in the corner, not daring to pick up the silver butterfly dart that had fallen to her feet, her lips pale as she stared at the doorway; Ling Feng clutched the cracked jade pendant, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes, but he immediately lowered his head when he met my gaze, his fingertips unconsciously digging into the crack in the wall; Mingyue's ribbon wrapped around my waist, and she gently tugged at it: "Senior sister, stay close to me."

We had just rushed to the door when we bumped into three men in black robes.

The leader, whose face was tattooed with blue scales, carried a black sword with barbs. The tip of the sword dripped not blood, but inky poison: "Hand over the inheritance book, and I'll spare your lives."

"Wishful thinking." Wen Chen drew his sword, its clear, resonant sound drowning out all other noises.

He pulled me behind him, the hem of his dark robe brushing against the back of my hand. "Yaoyao, hide in my shadow."

I gripped the ancient book tightly, and the jade pendant suddenly burned—it was Wen Chen's blood oath warning me.

I looked up and saw the Azure Scale Man flip his wrist, and the poisonous mist on the black sword condensed into a snake shape, hissing and flicking its tongue as it lunged at us.

Elder Xuanfeng's bell rang more urgently, and golden light wove a net to cover us; Abbess Huixin's prayer beads strung into a chain, snapping against the snake's head; Mingyue's ribbon transformed into a silver shuttle, cleaving a path through the poisonous fog; Lingfeng suddenly threw out three fire talismans, which, though crooked, forced the Qinglin people to take a half step back; Su Yao huddled against the wall, but took advantage of the chaos to pick up a silver butterfly dart, wiping the end of the dart with her fingertip—there was her favorite antidote, the "Bloodthirsty Throat" saliva.

"Wen Chen!" I called his name. The moment he turned his head, I shoved the ancient book into his arms. "You protect the book, I'll take care of it!"

I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood exploded in my mouth.

The heat from the heart-protecting jade surged through my veins to my fingertips, and the talisman-making techniques I had read in ancient books suddenly came to life—I drew a line on my palm, and a crimson-gold talisman jumped out, which was the "evil-breaking talisman" from the "Taichu Jing"!

The talisman struck the venomous snake's vital spot, the golden light exploding and causing the green-scaled man to stagger backward. The green scales on his face fell off, revealing a hideous scar beneath: "You brat! You actually received the inheritance—"

"Shut up!" Wen Chen's sword was already pressed against his throat. "Who sent you?"

The Azure Scale Man suddenly laughed, his laughter laced with blood and foam: "Tomorrow... at the Immortal Sect Arena... you'll see..."

Before he could finish speaking, a cloud of black mist exploded in his chest.

Wen Chen quickly pulled me back, and a tattered page floated out from the black mist, on which was drawn half a black lotus—the mark of the Demonic Sect.

"Chase!" Elder Xuanfeng's bell rang through the night sky as he led several disciples into the black mist.

Master Huixin took out a Soul-Stabilizing Pill and stuffed it into my mouth: "Don't panic, let's go back to the Star Gazing Hall first." Mingyue's ribbon was wrapped even tighter, as if afraid that I would be blown away by the wind; Lingfeng bent down to pick up the broken jade on the ground, his knuckles turning white from gripping it; Su Yao still held the silver butterfly dart in her hand, but quietly hid it back in her sleeve, her gaze sweeping back and forth between me and Wen Chen.

Wen Chen placed the ancient book back into my arms. His palms were still stained with the blood of the Qinglin people, but he gently wiped the sweat from my face: "Are you hurt?"

I shook my head and heard the crowing of a rooster in the distance.

As the sky began to lighten with the first hint of dawn, the sound of the bells from the Star Gazing Hall drifted through the morning mist—it was time for morning prayers.

But today the bell tolled more urgently than usual. I saw outer disciples carrying magical artifacts and running towards the training ground, inner elders flying overhead on their swords, and even the laziest servants carrying buckets of water and rushing towards the gap in the barrier.

"Tomorrow?" I gripped the gold-patterned seal on the ancient book. "The tomorrow he spoke of..."

Wen Chen gently tapped my hand with his fingers: "Whatever it is, we'll be together."

In the distance, the banners of the Immortal Sect's martial arts arena fluttered in the morning breeze, the two gilded characters "Taichu" rustling loudly as if echoing some impending storm.