Chapter 360: Tempering

Black Paper Boat

Seeing it again, Shi Hao's body tensed and his heart shook violently. How could something left behind from so many years ago appear here? It was simply inconceivable.

But there was no time to ponder; the palm-sized black paper boat began to shine, pouring down starlight. It was like streams of silk, like hanging rivers of stars.

“What is this thing?” Da Shen Shi exclaimed.

Shi Hao felt a chill, his hair standing on end, sensing immense danger. He had to go all out and strike here.

The rivers of stars and streams of silk were blazing runes, falling in torrents, continuously pressing down like a brand-new world, with endless gods and demons roaring, attacking from above.

The small paper boat contained countless treasures and techniques, pouring down endlessly, turning this place into a land of catastrophe.

It was a bizarre battle. A black paper boat floated in the void, swaying precariously, scattering a sky full of terrifying brilliance with each ray.

Shi Hao had never fought like this before. In the midst of the bloodshed, he had to go all out. The vast, boundless divine powers seemed to be wielded not by one person but by hundreds of strong beings.

Large swathes of runes appeared, transforming into endless star rivers. The paper boat drifted within the star river, constantly showering down treasures and techniques, forcing the young man below to fight with all his might.

Eventually, the star river disappeared, and the paper boat faded away, as if it had slipped into the netherworld. It did not ignite but became blurred and vanished in the flowing, dim starlight.

What was happening? It was different from the previous battle in the Zhu Yan arena.

Shi Hao was baffled, his heart full of doubts. Looking at the departing black paper boat, he remembered the experience in the North Sea, as if seeing the graceful blood characters: Only I remain.

He proceeded deeper into the arena and saw a stone wall. It was similar to the carving on the stone door, but with added elements: a flawless, white hand holding a black paper boat, placing it into a star river. Two characters were written on the paper boat: Hope.

What did this mean? Shi Hao stared at it, unmoving for a long time.

Da Shen Shi was also puzzled, staring for a long time, feeling mystified.

“Swish.”

A flash of rosy light made the wall change. The carving blurred and revealed a path, seemingly leading to the river of time, tracing back to the ancient era. Beside the path were the words: Return.

“What do you make of this?” Shi Hao asked the stone on his hair.

“I can’t decipher it, but I speculate the owner of the paper boat might be one of the leaders of the Wall of Gods and Demons. She is different from others.”

Shi Hao nodded in agreement.

Regardless, it was something from endless ages ago. He thought the so-called path should be a kind of belief. After so much time, what remains when those beings are gone?

As he voiced this thought, Da Shen Shi disagreed, becoming unusually serious. It sighed lightly and said, “This thing is very ominous. It is said to have appeared in even more ancient times and reappears every few ages.”

What was the Wall of Gods and Demons? It didn’t know, but it felt it was selecting the strongest beings from a domain, requiring those beings to do something.

“I just want to say, if you can avoid it, then avoid it. It is said that those who come into contact with it eventually disappear and never reappear,” Da Shen Shi said.

Shi Hao's thoughts surged. He remembered the light gate beside the Kunpeng Nest, where the spanning Kunmu had been severed. What was in it? Where did it lead?

“I just want to get involved. There aren’t enough stone doors here to challenge one hundred and eight arenas,” he mocked himself.

Then he left here, not to go away but to open another stone door, eventually engaging in a fierce battle with a Taowu.

The battle was arduous, and after winning, Shi Hao took a brief rest before pushing open the next stone door.

Thus, he fought six consecutive battles, exhausted because the beings he encountered were terrifyingly extraordinary, all pure-blooded, their combat strength leaving his peers in despair.

He no longer encountered special arenas like the black paper boat; the others were similar to Zhu Yan's. Whatever being was carved on the door, that being would ultimately fight, and they were all at the Inscription Realm, seemingly prepared specifically for him.

“This is the terrifying aspect of the Wall of Gods and Demons, automatically adjusting strength as if it has a spirit,” Da Shen Shi said.

Shi Hao returned to the Nirvana Pool and saw that Huo Ling’er was still not awake, still sealed in her cocoon. He carved a line of words and went to the Wall of Gods and Demons again.

“You really aren’t afraid of death; you’re addicted to fighting,” Da Shen Shi was suspicious. There was immense danger here; behind every stone door was a supreme ancient being, and even a slight mistake could be fatal.

“This is the best tempering,” Shi Hao said simply.

Indeed, in his view, this place was a treasure. With so many powerful opponents waiting to spar with him, finding a peer-level opponent was difficult, unless they were pure-blooded beings. No matter how many came, it wouldn’t be enough for him to kill.

He needed such battles, craving powerful tempering stones. Only through this could he become stronger and reach a new height.

Recently, he had fallen into a predicament. Finding a particularly strong opponent to spar with was difficult; unless he sought out ancient monsters, there were few rivals of his age.

So Shi Hao began his conquest, one battle after another. Here, he could hold nothing back, using all his skills, such as the Ten Great Caves and Kunpeng Techniques, without fearing that his opponents would know.

He used every treasure technique he had, becoming increasingly proficient through the trials of blood and fire. During this period, he was also severely injured and bled.

However, Shi Hao was not frustrated but joyful. Only in this way could the value of such battles be realized.

For an entire month, Shi Hao fought here, falling into a terrifying state, battling beings from various races, fighting with chaotic skies and darkened lands.

“Freak, madman,” Da Shen Shi couldn’t stand it anymore. Seeing him bathe in blood daily, injured in many places, yet still relishing it, it quickly ran away and returned to the Nirvana Pool.

A month passed. Shi Hao continued to be injured, but his eyes grew brighter. He had to fight fiercely every day. After defeating an opponent, he would sit cross-legged in the black arena, contemplating silently for a long time, reflecting on his laws and paths, constantly tempering and sublimating himself.

Faintly, he felt his understanding of treasures and runes deepened greatly, even feeling an urge to carve out his own laws.

Although his body was exhausted, Shi Hao’s spirit was full. Such tempering was hard to find elsewhere, and it was difficult to find such a group of opponents. This kind of battle was his most valuable asset.

Above the palace, the mist was hazy, and pale golden light flickered. Although a month had passed here, it seemed that less than a day had passed outside.

Shi Hao ended this tempering, sitting silently in a black arena for several days to heal his injuries, and slowly stood up.

His demeanor had changed. He was like a dusty celestial sword, having shed its youth after a period of tempering, now sharp and resounding.

Just standing here gave off an extraordinary aura, the result of fighting dozens of pure-blooded beings. For this month, all he experienced was bloodshed.

Some beings were a notch above him in realm, and the battles were exceptionally terrifying, with blood and sweat mingling.

Shi Hao returned to the Nirvana Pool and waited for several days. The cocoon emitted a sound, with red patterns appearing and quickly cracking open with a series of popping noises.

“Boom!”

The cocoon exploded, flames rising and covering the entire void. Da Shen Shi screamed in shock and quickly dodged.

Shi Hao stood there unmoved, allowing the intense fire to envelop him. His body was exceptionally crystalline, unafraid of the scorching heat, growing even stronger and more extraordinary.

A sound of Dao emanated from the scene as a flawless, white jade-like figure appeared. Her hair flowed freely, and her eyes were like autumn water, with her whole body presenting perfect curves, as pure and flawless as ivory.

Huo Ling’er had undergone an unimaginable transformation during her Nirvana. Her skin was newly reborn, a true metamorphosis, dazzlingly beautiful. Her jade-white body glowed, and amidst the flames, there was an additional allure.

Moreover, a pair of crimson wings appeared on her back, gently fluttering and stirring waves of red haze, like an elf dancing in the fire.

Phoenix Wings

This was a sign of complete bloodline revival. Huo Ling’er's Nirvana was successful, awakening the strongest potential within her body, setting her on a path to soar into the heavens.

With a swish, the wings disappeared. She swiftly donned a dress, her entire figure graceful and extraordinarily agile.

“If you feel aggrieved, I can show you something too,” Shi Hao took the initiative.

“Hmph,” Huo Ling’er pouted, rarely not retorting, because she knew that discussing such matters would only lead to more trouble.

“Oh? Don’t you think that running around naked in front of me is a form of disdain and punishment? Then let the disdain and punishment be more intense,” Shi Hao laughed.

“Too lazy to deal with you,” Huo Ling’er licked her crimson lips, dismissing it lightly, though her teeth were grinding, her heart wanting to give him a good beating.

“Let’s go and see further. If there are no more paths, we should leave,” Shi Hao suggested. Time was limited, and delays were not acceptable.

A few days later, they reached the end of the Grand Palace, where they saw a fiery cave, blazing fiercely. A crimson feather, sharp and dazzling like a divine sword, stood at the cave’s entrance.

Shi Hao had come specifically for this feather. His eyes gleamed as he charged forward, but unfortunately, he was immediately blasted away by the dense runes in the area.

This was a formation set up by the ancient Holy Emperor.

“This is the Vermillion Bird Cave. It’s not so easy to enter. Only those who resonate with it can step in. Watch me,” Huo Ling’er said.

She sat in front of the cave, exuding immense sanctity, her whole body glowing with rays like a goddess, her beauty unparalleled.

The ancient cave rumbled, emitting chanting sounds. Finally, Huo Ling’er stood up, enveloped in blazing flames, and entered the cave to begin a new round of cultivation.

Swish.

She then raised her fair wrist and plucked the feather, throwing it out.

The original true feather appeared to be only about a meter long, light to the touch, but when slightly activated, its sword-like light reached the heavens, with flames spreading like an ocean.

“A marvelous treasure!” Shi Hao exclaimed.

Three days later, Huo Ling’er emerged from the Vermillion Bird Cave. The mark on her forehead had shrunk, looking like a tiny cinnabar dot, crystal clear and shiny, making her appear even more holy and otherworldly.

Subsequently, they stepped onto an altar covered with star carvings. With a flash of light, the two of them left the Holy Emperor’s Palace and appeared on the surface.