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In mere moments, the sea of fire collapsed and the beasts shattered, turning into a flaming rain of light that sprinkled across the area. All that was left in the air was the aura of fire imago power.

Lin Xun gathered his focus and tried to feel the aura with his senses but soon frowned. The fire imago power was clearly right before his eyes, but he was somehow unable to sense even the slightest trace of it.

In the end, the fire imago power disappeared as if it was all just an illusion.

“It seems that it is indeed very difficult to comprehend and control imago power without first ascending to the Heaven Ascension stage.”

Lin Xun’s frown deepened.

Soon after, he was surprised to discover a figure dressed in snow-white clothes nearby. It was Gu Yunting.

He’s also here to climb the Sky Stairs?

Lin Xun noticed that Gu Yunting was already on the second step. Although he had obviously arrived later, he had already overtaken Lin Xun.

Is he trying to make this a competition?

Lin Xun shook his head in a carefree manner. He had no intention of competing, not because he was afraid, but because he did not wish to be distracted by such things.

After truly experiencing the wonders of the Sky Stairs Assessment, a certain ambition suddenly arose in his heart: to grasp a sliver of imago power at the Spirit Sea stage!

Long ago, while using the Heavenly Yuan Blade Art, Lin Xun had managed to bring out a certain special aura that contained imago power in the two moves: ‘Star-Gather’ and ‘Moon-Catch’.

However, the imago power had originated from the blade art. Although he had been able to wield it, it was not his own power.

The Sky Stairs were covered in dao traces that could display the dao’s true essence. It was a rare chance that Lin Xun naturally did not wish to miss out on.

If he rushed up the stairs just to compete with Gu Yunting, Lin Xun felt that he would lose out on a tremendous opportunity.

Without any hesitation, Lin Xun advanced to the second step, and an illusion created by imago power immediately appeared.

It was a world of green overflowing with abundant life force where mighty trees rose into the heavens and the sky was covered by leaves.

Wood imago power!

Wood embodied the power of life and was one of the five elements. It was rumored that Heaven Ascension cultivators who wielded wood imago power would possess endless stamina and have undying bodies, making them an extremely formidable force in battle.

In addition, they could communicate with the spirits of nature to absorb life energy from the surroundings. They were the closest cultivators to mother nature and had a much easier time cultivating than others.

Rumble~

Vines as thick as buckets abruptly burst out of the ground like wildly dancing pythons. They seemed to cover the sky and land as they swarmed toward Lin Xun.

Shhlaap!

The seemingly soft vine lives easily ripped through the air, filled with terrifying piercing power.

Lin Xun responded with the Horned Ice Dragon Step. His figure seemed to turn illusory as he dashed into the fray, unleashing punches akin to giant dragons that tore up the land and sky. Fist-force smashed vine after vine to pulp amidst splatters of juice and paste.

Unexpectedly, the pieces of vine regrew the moment they landed on the ground and rose into the air once more.

This was wood imago power. The vines were impossible to kill without absolute power!

After the time it took to brew a cup of tea, Lin Xun brought out the triple-layered destructions and completely obliterated the wood imago power.

He immediately cast aside all other thoughts and focused his senses.

Regretfully, he kept feeling that he was on the verge of grasping the wood imago power, but always ended up catching nothing but air. It felt as if the power was in a different space. and he could only look at it but could not seek it out.

However, Lin Xun was not discouraged. From the beginning of time, it was almost impossible for anyone to grasp imago power at the Spirit Sea stage. Even if any individuals did exist, they were like legends from a fairytale that could not be verified.

This showed how difficult it was to achieve such a feat at the Spirit Sea stage. It was not merely a ‘difficult task,’ but something that was in all likelihood impossible to accomplish.

It felt like a wall that separated the cultivation realms. Without reaching the Heaven Ascension stage, it was very difficult to break through this wall in comprehension.

Simply put, it was a hopeless endeavor. Many unparalleled genius cultivators had tried it in the past, but all of them had ultimately failed.

Lin Xun was unaware of all this and naturally did not understand how ignorant and fearless he appeared.

However, this was the path of cultivation. Only by actively seeking and searching would a cultivator be able to verify their dao.

……

At the entrance to Sky Stairs Mountain.

All of the meat had been completely cleaned out from the wok, leaving the slovenly old man wishing there was more.

He lazily lay on a rock in front of the hut as he glanced into the distance with an expression of contentment.

A wizened voice suddenly sounded, “Junior Brother, what do you think about those two little ones?”

A thin old man had arrived at an unknown time, standing with his hands behind his back as he gazed upon Sky Stairs Mountain.

If Lin Xun were here, he would definitely be able to recognize the principal of Qinglu Academy!

“Heh, is there a need to ask me if even someone like you has come?”

The slovenly old man took out a toothpick to clean his teeth, seemingly not surprised by the principal’s presence.

The principal said, “I wish to know your opinion.”

“That white-robed kid should be the one who ascended the Spirit Sea Overall Rankings yesterday, right? If my guess is correct, he’s here to find a cultivation breakthrough and is very likely to succeed.”

The slovenly old man spoke as if it was just another trivial matter, “A young man like him will sooner or later enter the Ancient Wasteland Domain to cultivate.”

“What about the other one?”

The principal’s expression was indifferent, unsurprised by the evaluation. After all, he understood Gu Yunting’s potential far better than the slovenly old man.

“Um, I didn’t see anything worth mentioning.”

The slovenly old man’s reply was half-hearted as if he could not be bothered at all.

“Take another look,” said the principal. He seemed very concerned about the slovenly old man’s opinion.

The slovenly old man was somewhat surprised. He glanced at the principal and said, “Is there actually something special about that kid?”

The principal casually said, “He originally had a chance to leave his name on the Spirit Sea Overall rankings, but ultimately rejected it. Something like this has never happened since I brought the Dao Spirit Ancient Tablet to the academy thousands of years ago.”

“What?”

The slovenly old man abruptly got up as a sliver of bewilderment appeared on his face. “Are you saying that there’s a power in his body that the Heaven Axis Holy Land urgently desires?”

He was clearly privy to some secrets.

The principal nodded. “That’s right. The Heaven Axis Holy Land’s deepest desire is a power that is capable of rejecting the Dao Spirit Ancient Tablet’s power. I once heard that such a power was brought into the Ziyao Empire from the Ancient Wasteland Domain many years ago but never imagined that it was true.”

The slovenly old man’s expression had become uncertain. After a long time, he suddenly chuckled and said, “In other words, do you plan to give this kid to the Heaven Axis Holy Land or take his power for yourself?”

His smile had turned sinister and chilling.

The principal indifferently said, “I might have done so in the past, but now, I only wish to watch as a bystander and avoid this karma.”

The slovenly old man sneered, “You? Don’t forget who forced you out of the Ancient Wasteland Domain all those years ago.”

The principal’s expression remained composed as he replied, “I was the one who proposed it back then. Or do you really believe I never had the chance to return all these years?”

The slovenly old man clearly did not believe him. “I don’t believe you. You must have some other plan.”

The principal frowned. After a long time, he sighed softly and said, “You won’t be able to understand. I lost back then, and it\'s a convincing loss that I have accepted. I do not blame anyone.”

“But you are not satisfied by the outcome. Why else would you care about this youngster?”

Each word was said with a noticeable pause in-between.

He gazed at Sky Stairs Mountain and watched Lin Xun slowly make his way up each step.

On the other hand, Gu Yunting was practically sprinting up the mountain and had already arrived at the halfway mark, placing him far ahead of Lin Xun.

“If you plan on nurturing that youngster to take back what you lost back then, I think you’re going to have to prepare for disappointment because I genuinely don’t see anything noteworthy about him.”

This time, the principal fell silent. After a long time, he finally said, “I have no such intention. There is far too much karma surrounding him. Do you still remember Lin Wenjing and Luo Qingxun?”

The slovenly old man’s eyes narrowed. “The champion and runner-up of the national exam seventeen years ago?”

The principal nodded, “Lin Wenjing’s grandfather is the Life Death Stage King Lin Daochen. He died on the border battlefield, but how he died has remained a mystery till today.”

“Luo Qingxun was also no ordinary person. It’s said that she came from a poor household, her parents died when she was very young, and she has no relatives. However, she possessed peerless talent and was extremely intelligent. You also said back then that it was very unusual.”

The slovenly old man seemed to become lost in his memories. After a long time, he finally nodded. “I have a deep impression of that little lass, Luo Qingxun. Her aura is definitely not something a poor household can nurture.”

At this point, he could not help but frown. “But they died more than a dozen years ago. Why are you bringing this up again?”

The principal indifferently said, “Lin Xun is their child.”

The slovenly old man was taken aback as a look of surprise arose on his face. “So he’s the little fellow who was born with the ‘Grand Abyss Heaven Devourer’ Origin Aeth Artery that shocked the entire Forbidden City. I never imagined that he would survive till now, especially after it was extracted. If the Omega Sword Sect’s Yun Qingbai finds out, it will certainly become interesting.”

The principal indifferently said, “Someone saved him all those years ago.”

The slovenly old man frowned. “Who would dare to save someone from Yun Qingbai’s hands?”

The principal uttered a name, “Lu Boya.”

“Him!”

The slovenly old man was shocked. He abruptly stood up with a mystified expression. “That old fellow’s origins are very mysterious!”

The principal nodded.

“If that’s the case, there are indeed many troublesome matters following the boy. His great grandfather’s and parents’ deaths are all related to terrifying karma, and he also has ties with Lu Boya. How complicated.”

The slovenly old man fell into deep thought.

“That’s why I will never place the burden of what happened back then on him,” the principal casually said. His gaze remained fixed on Sky Stairs Mountain from start to end, always watching a certain figure with a slightly complicated expression.