The Domineering Ice Block: The Arrangement of the Mystic Sage

"What could be inside the second palace?"

"Honestly, why is this secret realm testing whether people are greedy or not..."

Li Mo continued climbing upward.

This time, as he stepped onto the stairs, a murmuring voice echoed in his mind once more.

The voice was reciting something—

It sounded like Daoist scriptures, then Buddhist teachings, and at times, like the lectures of a great Confucian scholar.

Just as he reached the palace entrance—

Boom!

The voice in his ears suddenly intensified, resonating like a colossal bell, leaving his mind blank.

"What is this...?"

Li Mo looked ahead.

Inside the palace stood three bronze statues.

The first was a solemn Buddha, seated in meditation, exuding compassion, his fingers poised in the "flower-picking" gesture.

The second wore the robes of a Confucian scholar, his posture commanding, his presence embodying the very essence of "wisdom and principle"—a statue of a Confucian Sage.

The third... was not what Li Mo had expected. Instead of a Daoist priest, it was a statue of a Witch God.

Confucianism, Buddhism, and Witchcraft.

The three statues emanated an overwhelming pressure, as if their mere presence could weigh down the heavens.

If one truly contemplated them, they might be able to condense an immensely powerful divine form within the Observation Divine Realm.

[Kneel and kowtow to enter.]

Thud! Thud!

Another dozen or so people dropped to their knees.

Some didn’t want to kneel.

Their faces pale, veins bulging as they struggled to stand, yet they were forcibly pressed to the ground.

"This..."

Though Li Mo felt the pressure, it only made his breathing slightly labored.

Nothing more.

"These three statues all carry the pressure of divine laws," Ying Bing remarked softly beside him. "If you feel reverence for any of them, you’ll kneel whether you want to or not."

Whether it was the Buddha, the Sage, or the Witch God—

She believed only in herself.

"So, the first palace tested reverence for wealth," Li Mo mused. "No wonder the creator of this secret realm is so obsessed with making people kneel."

Having lived two lives, and being an atheist in his previous one, he couldn’t kneel even if he wanted to.

But why was the test designed to select those who neither revered deities nor coveted wealth?

Munching on a slice of watermelon, he stepped onto the next staircase.

By now, more than half of the original fifty had dropped out.

On the way to the third palace, several more succumbed to the pressure and leaped into the abyss.

Only twenty remained when they finally ascended.

The statue enshrined here was one no one would mistake—

Clad in imperial yellow robes, a sword hanging at his waist, a jade seal in hand, his eyes domineering as they gazed upon the heavens.

The Great Ancestor Martial Emperor of Great Yu.

This was likely his coronation depiction—his presence swallowing the world whole.

Thud! Thud!

The sound of knees hitting bronze echoed endlessly.

Most had knelt.

Including the iron-willed Tie Qi, the chief disciple of Ruyi Peak, Ouyang, and even Bai Jinghong.

"I... sigh..."

Tie Qi struggled briefly but felt as though a mountain weighed upon his shoulders.

He could only shoot an apologetic glance at Li Mo.

Li Mo gave him a nod.

An emperor?

This probably symbolized imperial authority.

What a joke.

For someone like Li Mo, the only thing that could test his loyalty was the people!

So the pressure here barely affected him.

Still, he understood Tie Qi’s predicament.

As a subject of Great Yu, raised on tales of the Martial Emperor, how could one not feel reverence?

No wonder this level had nearly wiped them all out.

"Why haven’t they knelt?"

Countless gazes—some bitter, some unwilling—turned toward them.

Only three remained eligible to proceed to the fourth palace.

"Let’s go, Senior Brother Xiaobao."

Ying Bing had already moved ahead. Li Mo tossed away his watermelon rind and called out to Tang Xiaobao, who was busy trying to lift the statue.

"Why?!"

Bai Jinghong’s teeth ground together in frustration.

He refused to accept this!

Born with a Sword Body, taken in as a direct disciple by a Law Body expert of Hengyun Sword City at six.

At twenty-two, he comprehended the Hengyun Sword Intent and earned a spot on the Hidden Dragon Ranking.

At twenty-three, he challenged geniuses across the land—74 wins, 2 draws—forging an indomitable sword aura within himself.

How could he, of all people, fall faster than those three in this insignificant Eastern Wasteland Domain?!

He refused!

Buzz—

Watching the retreating figures of Li Mo and the others, Bai Jinghong unleashed his sword aura and sword intent in full.

Behind him, the silhouette of a divine sword piercing through clouds faintly materialized.

Blood trickled from his lips as he forced himself upright.

Every step made him tremble, his body cracking under the immense pressure.

He was getting closer to the staircase.

"As long as I can reach that place..."

Finally, his foot landed on the first step.

Hm?

The sensation underfoot felt... off.

He looked down.

A watermelon rind.

Before he could react—

Bai Jinghong: "?!"

The crowd: "......"

His foot slipped.

What followed was a spectacular display of "Invincible Whirlwind Kick."

"Li Mo! I swear I’ll kill you someday!!!"

Hearing the commotion behind him, Li Mo turned and watched the scene solemnly.

"Senior Brother Xiaobao, this is why manners matter."

"Even in a secret realm, we mustn’t litter."

"?"

Tang Xiaobao scratched his head.

You ate the watermelon. You threw the rind. So why am I the one being lectured?

But being simple-minded, he just nodded along despite the oddness.

The trio pressed onward.

This time, the pressure was far more intense.

If the previous levels tested reverence, this was pure, unfiltered suppression—an overwhelming aura from the strong toward the weak, making one’s very soul tremble.

Tang Xiaobao’s body faintly glowed gold.

"That’s the Blood Phoenix Essence... No, it’s more than that..."

Ying Bing’s brow bore a flickering mystical rune.

She glanced at Li Mo after scanning the path ahead.

"You’re unaffected?"

"I’m fine."

Li Mo was just as puzzled.

Like the Celestial Stairs before, he felt nothing.

But judging by Ying Bing’s expression, this level was supposed to be even harder?

"If the goal was to select a successor, it shouldn’t be like this."

Her eyes narrowed as they reflected the final bronze palace.

From the first trial, she had sensed something amiss.

Only now was she certain.

She had a rough idea of what lay ahead.

"These trials aren’t designed to find a successor," Li Mo agreed.

"If we proceed, there may be unforeseen dangers. You can wait here."

Ying Bing suddenly spoke again.

"That aura... it belongs to a Profound Dominion expert."

The seventh realm of martial arts—Profound Dominion!

Such figures stood at the pinnacle of the world, revered as Saints, Martial Saints.

And they? They were only at the second realm—Inner Breath.

No matter what a Profound Dominion expert was scheming, Inner Breath cultivators were far too weak to intervene.

Li Mo shot her a glance. "We’ve come this far."

The palace at the summit likely led to the third layer of the Blood Phoenix Secret Realm.

This was also the place where the ice block had met with trouble.

Ying Bing's delicate brows furrowed slightly before smoothing out again.

Since he insisted on following, then so be it.

If any anomalies arose, she would be there to handle them...

Before long.

Only eight steps of the staircase remained.

The oppressive pressure had now multiplied, each step feeling like a life-and-death ordeal.

Ying Bing's body was enveloped in the flow of Supreme Yin energy, her posture unwavering, her expression calm.

But judging by her aura, the strain she endured was immense.

"Should we take a break?"

Li Mo, who had been strolling leisurely until now, asked softly.

Yet.

Ying Bing didn't turn around.

Her cold gaze remained fixed ahead.

"A mere Observation Divine Realm dares to demand my submission?"

"No matter who you are, you’re only courting death."

Her eyes were icy and profound, her presence growing increasingly domineering and frigid.

Li Mo: "..."

He had the faint impression that the girl’s silhouette resembled something divine yet demonic.

As if she were the one standing above the clouds, overlooking all living beings, reigning supreme over the world.

But the way she phrased it sounded almost like...

"You have chosen the path of death"?

Yet the same words, coming from the ice block’s mouth, carried the weight of an unequivocal warning.

If he had said them, it would’ve just been awkward and cringeworthy.

When it came to sheer presence, the ice block had it locked down...

At that moment.

Ying Bing took the final step onto the platform at the top of the staircase.

BOOM—

In an instant, violent winds erupted.

As if the entire secret realm had been provoked into fury.