Chapter 613

Chapter 613

I Can See Through Everything

“This spirit beast can even endure the baleful aura of the fifth vertebra? It must be a royal-blooded spirit beast with an ancient bloodline!”

“In the Demon Domain, both spirit beasts and demon beasts place great importance on bloodline inheritance. It's said that if one awakens an ancient bloodline, they're immediately recognized as royalty.”

“Exactly. Among the demon race, royal bloodlines are akin to our human Dao Heirs—peerless geniuses destined for the Nascent Soul Realm.”

“Could it be this spirit beast is a lost descendant of the demon race’s royal line?”

“If that’s true, once word gets out, it’ll surely cause a huge stir. Not just the demon race—even many human Nascent Soul cultivators might be tempted.”

“Indeed. A spirit beast with an ancient bloodline has tremendous potential. As long as it grows smoothly, it’s practically guaranteed to reach the Nascent Soul Realm. Who wouldn't want such a spirit pet?”

The gathered experts stared at Xiao Li with astonishment, and in some eyes, a dangerous greed flickered.

A spirit beast with such enormous potential—if subdued and enslaved in advance—would be tantamount to owning a future Nascent Soul-level companion.

Even Nascent Soul cultivators would find such a prospect hard to resist.

Lu Qing was unaware that Xiao Li’s remarkable performance had stirred so many thoughts below.

He and Xiao Li were steadily climbing the stairway, step by step.

Lu Qing, as the others had guessed, was barely affected by the suppressive force and baleful aura below the tenth vertebra.

His attention was focused on Xiao Li’s condition.

If Xiao Li showed any sign of faltering, he would immediately place it inside the Li Huo Cauldron.

Opportunities were important, but Xiao Li was far more valuable to him.

Upon reaching the fifth vertebra, Xiao Li was visibly struggling more than before, but it was still manageable.

Following behind Lu Qing, it kept climbing with effort.

As they reached the boundary between the fifth and sixth vertebrae, the baleful aura and suppression intensified to the very edge of what Xiao Li could bear.

Though it had refined a flawless Precelestial superior-grade demon core, its cultivation was still shallow—just at the peak of Golden Core Second Transformation.

This fifth vertebra alone had eliminated most mid-tier Golden Core cultivators.

That Xiao Li could make it this far with only Golden Core Second Transformation was already mind-blowing.

If its true cultivation were exposed, many Golden Core cultivators below would likely question their entire lives.

As Xiao Li leapt forward and landed on the sixth vertebra, its body trembled violently, nearly collapsing.

A mysterious aura burst from its body.

Its form suddenly shrank a size, instantly stabilizing.

It had activated its innate Divine Ability: Size Manipulation—temporarily boosting its physical strength, defense, and power to resist the pressure and baleful aura on the staircase.

Its spatial Divine Ability, however, was of little use on this Bone Mountain.

First, the space here was incredibly solid. Even Xiao Li's innate powers struggled to penetrate it.

Second, the challenge of Bone Mountain was about facing its trials. Hiding in a subspace wouldn't be recognized.

“Xiao Li, are you alright?” Lu Qing asked.

“After using my Divine Ability, I’ve gotten stronger and can handle the pressure and aura on this vertebra, but my spiritual power is draining fast. Ah Qing, we need to move faster.”

“Then let’s pick up the pace.”

Lu Qing nodded and began climbing more quickly, with Xiao Li bounding closely behind.

“They’re speeding up?”

“They’re on the sixth vertebra and accelerating? That’s completely backwards!”

“And that spirit beast can still keep up? It must be an ancient-bloodline variant!”

Lu Qing and Xiao Li’s acceleration stunned the onlookers below once again.

Back when they climbed Bone Mountain, everyone slowed the higher they went—toward the end, each step was agonizing.

But Lu Qing and his spirit pet were doing the opposite. How?

“They’re fast! They’re nearly at the seventh vertebra!”

Under everyone’s gaze, Lu Qing and Xiao Li swiftly climbed to the boundary between the sixth and seventh vertebrae.

Without pause, they crossed the line.

As they stepped onto the seventh vertebra, their speed slowed again—pressure and baleful aura had doubled.

Even with Divine Ability active, Xiao Li was struggling now.

“Ah Qing… I might not make it to the eighth,” Xiao Li said weakly.

Its fur and tail trembled uncontrollably.

“No worries. Just go as far as you can. This is a rare test for you.”

“I understand,” Xiao Li nodded earnestly.

It could feel that if it pushed through, it would likely gain a great reward.

So long as it hadn’t reached its true limit, it didn’t want to quit.

With that mindset, Xiao Li pressed on.

Its speed slowed drastically. As it neared the eighth vertebra, each step required a full ten breaths of adjustment.

“That spirit beast is at its limit.”

“Judging by our own climbs, the pressure and aura on the seventh vertebra were unbearable even for Seventh Transformation Golden Core cultivators. That spirit beast has already surpassed most of us.”

“If this were outside, even Nascent Soul cultivators would scramble to claim it!”

“They’re nearly at the eighth!”

“But look at the spirit beast… it might not make it.”

As they murmured, Lu Qing and Xiao Li finally reached the boundary of the eighth vertebra.

“Xiao Li, are you sure about this?”

Lu Qing looked at the trembling, straining creature.

“I want to try, Ah Qing,” Xiao Li said with unwavering resolve.

“Alright. But if you can’t hold on, I’ll put you in the Li Huo Cauldron immediately.”

Lu Qing could feel Xiao Li’s determination and didn’t stop it, but warned it first.

“Okay.”

With that, Xiao Li jumped onto the eighth vertebra.

Its legs gave out, and it collapsed.

Thick, almost tangible baleful aura instantly engulfed it.

Lu Qing followed closely.

He stood as steady as a mountain, his body shrouded in a faint white glow that repelled all the baleful aura.

But he wasn’t concerned with that—his eyes stayed on Xiao Li.

He didn’t immediately put it away, because he could sense it was still fighting, not giving up.

The baleful aura had yet to fully invade its body.

So long as Xiao Li endured, Lu Qing would respect its will.

Under Lu Qing’s gaze, Xiao Li lay there for a while, then began trying to rise.

At first, it failed repeatedly.

But perhaps the intense environment forced out its potential.

On the fifth try, it finally stood on all fours—trembling, but upright.

“Ah Qing, I did it!”

Overjoyed, Xiao Li cried out.

“Amazing!” Lu Qing praised without hesitation.

“It’s all thanks to you. I couldn’t have done it otherwise. But the bloodline I refined a few days ago—it still had remnants in me, and under this pressure, they fully merged into my body. That gave me the strength I needed.”

“So that’s it.”

Lu Qing finally understood why Xiao Li had suddenly gotten stronger again.

“But this is really my limit. I can’t take another step,” Xiao Li said, a bit regretfully.

“No need to feel bad. You pushed past your limits today. Once we’re out, you’ll probably break through—already a huge gain.”

“Yeah, I think I’ll reach Golden Core Third Transformation after this!”

Xiao Li brightened at the thought.

“Ah Qing, take me into the Li Huo Cauldron. I can’t go further.”

“No problem. Let Senior Yan activate the Li Huo Cauldron’s restriction—you’ll still be able to watch me climb from inside.”

Lu Qing was just about to summon the cauldron—

When Xiao Li’s ears twitched. “Ah Qing, wait!”

“What is it?” Lu Qing froze.

“That voice that warned me before—it’s back. This time it said I passed the trial and can enter some kind of cleansing pool.”

Xiao Li tilted its head, trying to recall the message clearly.

“What?” Lu Qing’s heart jolted.

“Ah Qing, what’s a cleansing pool? Should I say yes?”

“Xiao Li passed the trial? So the Bone Mountain’s trial isn’t just about reaching the top? There must be other criteria…”

Lu Qing took a deep breath. He recalled something from the note he had found earlier.

But he didn’t rush. “Ask it—what’s the benefit of this cleansing pool?”

Xiao Li focused and asked silently.

“It says the pool will let my body undergo transformation and become a true Wu. Ah Qing, what’s a Wu?”

Lu Qing’s heart trembled again.

Now he was certain—Xiao Li really had passed the trial.

More importantly, they had confirmed the voice could communicate.

Could something still be alive within Bone Mountain?

“I’m not sure what a Wu is. Ask the voice.”

Xiao Li asked again, then said, “It says a Wu is the strongest existence in the world. If I become one, I’ll be far more powerful.”

Lu Qing steadied himself. “Then ask if becoming a Wu means you lose your demon core or spiritual power.”

Xiao Li got the answer. “It said the Wu path is the most powerful path, compatible with all other methods. I can keep my demon core if I want.”

“Is that so? The Wu path… sounds incredibly powerful.”

This surprised Lu Qing.

“Ah Qing, the voice is urging me. It wants to know if I accept.”

Lu Qing hesitated.

By rights, this was a rare fortune for Xiao Li—passing the trial and gaining an opportunity.

But the sudden, communicative voice made him wary.

After a few breaths of thought, Lu Qing said, “Ask it if I can speak with it.”

“It said you haven’t passed the trial yet. By the rules of the one who created this space, only those who’ve passed can speak to it.”

“The one who created this space…” Lu Qing’s eyes narrowed.

He thought deeply, then said, “Accept it. This might be a rare opportunity. But remember—no matter what, you must keep your demon core. If it won’t allow that, don’t take the offer.”

The Wu path might be strong, but Xiao Li’s demon core was a flawless Precelestial superior-grade core.

Lu Qing didn’t want it to abandon that for an unknown path.

“Got it,” Xiao Li nodded firmly.

Though it didn’t fully understand, it trusted Lu Qing completely on cultivation matters.

“Then go on. Don’t worry. Once I pass the trial and can talk to that voice, I’ll come find you.”

Lu Qing patted its head.

“Okay! Hurry up!” Xiao Li chirped.

With that, it communicated with the voice once more.

Suddenly, a sphere of light enveloped it—and in a flash, it vanished from the stairway.

Lu Qing’s tension eased.

The light had appeared and disappeared too quickly—he hadn’t been able to stop it at all.

That proved the being behind it likely meant no harm.

If they had that kind of power and wanted to hurt them, there would’ve been no need for words.

“…Still, that means I must pass the trial now.”

Before, Lu Qing had climbed with a “try and see” mindset.

Now that Xiao Li had been taken away, he had no choice. He had to pass—only then could he speak with that voice.

He looked up at the long, winding stairs above.

His expression turned solemn.

Meanwhile, the experts below were in uproar, having seen the light and Xiao Li vanish.