Seeing the True Self

Above the Immortal Steps.

The once ferocious beasts now stood on both sides of the steps, their proud heads lowered, as if welcoming their king to ascend the throne.

"What... what is happening?"

The onlookers exchanged bewildered glances. The master of Soul Locking Hall widened his eyes, utterly stunned.

In all his years, he had never witnessed such a thing.

The Heavenly Tribulation, instead of striking a cultivator, was bowing to a mortal?

How could this be reasonable?

What kind of joke was this!

Watching the puzzled gazes around him, Xiao Bai proudly planted his hands on his hips, standing atop Ye Shu's head. His eyes swept over the beasts bowing their heads below, and he nodded with satisfaction.

Not bad, not bad at all.

As the Heavenly Dao, how could He allow His child to suffer any grievance?

His presence had to be maximal!

As Ye Shu advanced, his aura continued to surge.

Nascent Soul late stage, Transformation Spirit early stage, Transformation Spirit late stage...

"This fool..."

Xiao Bai looked down at the young man's resolute face, and once again, a familiar awe rose within him: "This fool was right—his cultivation method... truly has no bottlenecks."

This was also a crucial condition for ascending the Immortal Steps.

Without such breathtaking talent, how could one speak of achieving immortality in a single step?

However, strangely enough, Mo Yuan merely cast a cold glance at Ye Shu upon the Immortal Steps, then continued to focus his attention on Lin Heming.

"Ye Shu is irrelevant. Kill Lin Heming first!"

Upon hearing this, the other clan leaders snapped back to reality, abandoning their continued observation and redirecting their thoughts to Lin Heming.

The goal of their mission had never been Ye Shu.

A brat at the Nascent Soul stage—no matter how defying of heaven's laws, what waves could he possibly stir?

Lin Heming was the true thorn in their side!

"Attack!"

At Mo Yuan's command, the six Great Vehicle phantom figures struck simultaneously, radiant light blooming across the sky, a terrifying force once again sweeping through the entire Qingxuan Sect.

Lin Heming’s expression remained unchanged. With a flicker of his form, he soared forward to meet them.

Boom—

The seven figures clashed once more, shattering space and upending mountains and rivers.

This time, Mo Yuan and his companions held nothing back.

They intended to use Ye Shu's Ascension as an opportunity to directly eliminate the true threat—Lin Heming!

As for Ye Shu?

Ye Shu was of no importance.

Meanwhile, the ignored Ye Shu continued to walk forward. The spiritual materials within his storage ring had long been exhausted, so he seized the surrounding thunder beasts bowing before him and refined them into energy.

He drew a Thunder Dragon into his alchemical furnace, its roar shaking the heavens, but under the scorching flames of the Myriad Beasts Blue Lotus, it rapidly melted, transforming into a mass of exceedingly pure energy.

Mixed within that energy were the furious lightning of the Heavenly Tribulation, wild and untamed—yet Ye Shu swallowed it all in one gulp.

Boom!

A muffled explosion thundered from within his body as his aura surged.

Integration Spirit late stage.

Integration Spirit peak.

"This man is insane!"

Watching Ye Shu's aura continuously rise, Mo Yu, possessed of the Villain System and holding the script, burned with anxiety.

Only he knew how terrifying the protagonist could be.

This kind of being just activated cheats at will—it wasn't bound by reason!

If not stopped, he might truly achieve immortality.

At his side, the master of Soul Locking Hall, who was healing him, noticed Mo Yu's agitation and offered him a reassuring smile: "Young master, are you worried about that boy?"

"How can I not be worried?"

Mo Yu shouted in panic: "Can't you see? He just keeps moving forward! He's already at Integration Spirit peak, breaking through three realms in a single go—and none of you are anxious?!"

"Young master, these are mere appetizers."

The master of Soul Locking Hall responded with little reaction, his gaze fixed on the advancing Ye Shu as he spoke calmly: "These tribulations are nothing more than a prelude, hardly worth mention. Which one of us here hasn't overcome such Heavenly Tribulations? This is merely a matter of grander scale and the favor of destiny."

He shook his head and continued: "The true challenge lies in the Immortal Ascension Tribulation."

"Ever since the last recorded Immortal left the Upper Realm, an unknown upheaval occurred within the world. No one knows what happened, but the Xuantian Continent has not produced a single true Immortal for over ten thousand years. In the past, it was enough to have sufficient cultivation; step by step, you could naturally attain the Dao and become Immortal. Yet no one knows when, the difficulty of the Celestial Tribulation suddenly soared. It is no longer enough just to meet the cultivation level—you must question the heart, question the Dao, question the heavens and earth, and question your own true self."

"This final calamity does not belong to our world."

"Instead, from beyond the heavens, an invisible test descends, taking countless forms. There have been how many brilliant talents, with cultivation reaching the heavens, who still fell at this last step?"

Lock Soul Hall Master's eyes fell upon Lin Heming, who was combating the six Great Vehicle phantom figures, and he spoke from a distance: "Throughout the ages, there have been only two who came close to becoming Immortals."

"One had their foundations shattered, their cultivation unable to advance further."

"One had their Dao Heart broken, and thus fled to a distant land."

"Even those two unparalleled geniuses—claimed to be unmatched talents of the Xuantian Continent—could not achieve immortality. What qualifications does this nameless Nascent Soul ant have?"

"Based on a hot head of blood and the favor of heaven?"

The master of Soul Locking Hall withdrew his gaze: "This is not a script in a storybook, and that brat is not the protagonist."

"The Celestial Tribulation cannot be crossed!"

This upheaval in heaven and earth was, of course, Xiao Bai’s handiwork—devised to prevent the system's hosts from cheating and directly attaining immortality to overpower everyone.

But in the same way, it had become Ye Shu's trial.

After hearing this, Mo Yu felt a little relieved, yet worry lingered in his eyes as he looked into the distance.

But in less than the time to burn an incense stick, Ye Shu had already traversed more than two thousand steps, now coming within arm’s reach of the gate suspended in the void.

And an intangible ripple began to spread silently.

"The true calamity is coming."

The master of Soul Locking Hall narrowed his eyes. Even the clan leaders, who were still in the midst of battle in the distance, took a moment to observe. The entire Qingxuan Sect held their breath, staring fixedly at the space ahead of Ye Shu, not daring to blink.

Above Ye Shu's head, Xiao Bai also clenched his small hands tightly.

Immortal—Immortal.

It meant transcendence; once one achieved immortality, they would break free from the fetters of heaven and earth—it was a trial imposed by this world itself. Even she, as the Heavenly Dao, had no authority to interfere.

"Can he do it?"

Everyone stared at the wavering Ye Shu.

On the step not far before him, a void tear slowly opened—without thunder, without any unusual phenomena.

A figure stepped out from the rift, garbed in white like snow.

It was... Ye Shu!

An identical face, an identical stature, but that face carried a sinister aura.

"It is the True Self Tribulation!"

The master of Soul Locking Hall's pupils contracted, and he couldn't help exclaiming: "The foremost among all Immortal Tribulations over these ten thousand years—the True Self Tribulation..."

What was the hardest thing for a person to defeat?

Undoubtedly, it was oneself.

A version of oneself that was exactly the same.

In achieving immortality, there is only forward, no retreat, nor even the option to halt.

Looking at the identical figure of Ye Shu, the disciples of Qingxuan Sect fell into utter despair.

How could anyone overcome themselves?

"It's over... it's all over..."

Some disciples collapsed to the ground, their faces ashen.

The members of Soul Locking Hall were already grinning, their hearts relaxing as they prepared to finish off the Qingxuan Sect.

And Ye Shu?

He lifted his eyes slightly, looking at the impostor who wore the exact same face as him, and uttered a single word.

"Scram."

Boom—

That figure instantly exploded, scattering into countless specks of light before vanishing completely in the wind.