There were numerous worlds located on the Divine Mountain of Sumeru.
Layer upon layer interconnected, allowing traversal between them from the foot of the mountain all the way to the top without being cut off.
Gu Qing Shan and Xie Dao Ling simply flew up following the wind.
Various desolate worlds unfolded in front of them one after another.
Numerous demonic creatures of various shapes and sizes were attempting to destroy each one.
Gu Qing Shan kept the [True Crimson Demon Spear] by his side, whenever he found a target worthy of being killed, he would use the spear to do so.
As he had the duo dragon power, his strength had far surpassed any living beings on Mount Sumeru, even the wraith Cang Wu Zhang had to set up a trap to suppress his powers before confronting him.
How could any of these monsters even survive one hit from Gu Qing Shan?
Because of this, numerous monsters were easily dispatched by his spear, their powers converted into Mount Sumeruâs own power.
Finally, when they were about to reach the summit of Mount Sumeru, some resonance could be felt from the [True Crimson Demon Spear].
Gu Qing Shan and Xie Dao Ling stopped.
Observing this spear, Xie Dao Ling said: âThe will of the Divine Mountain had descended upon this weapon, it seems to want to communicate with youâ
Gu Qing Shan turned to the [True Crimson Demon Spear]: âMy Mahesvara Thaumaturgy seems to be evolving, let me check whatâs going onâ
He closed his eyes and began to communicate with the consciousness on the [True Crimson Demon Spear].
At the same time, lines of glowing text appeared on the War God UI:
[Youâve eliminated a great number of wicked creatures, forcefully converting them into origin power for the Divine Mountain]
[You will soon complete your Tribulation]
[At this pivotal moment, the Divine Mountain had given you two choices]
[Firstly: If you leave after reaching the summit of the mountain, you will complete this Tribulation, your Mahesvara Thaumaturgy will also obtain two evolutions in a row]
[Secondly: The destruction of the Divine Mountain was a secret, you might have discovered that it was the Wraith realm who were behind it all, but was that really the truth? In reality, not even the will of the Divine Mountain is sure about the complete truth]
[If you are able to help the Divine Mountain discover the true source of destruction and thoroughly save the Divine Mountain from its destruction, the Divine Mountain will aid you in perfectly evolving your Mahesvara Thaumaturgy fitting to your actual state]
[...There is no need to quickly make your decision, you may decide at the very final moment]
Gu Qing Shan opened his eyes and was a bit undecided on what to do.
If he didnât have so little time, he would naturally be inclined to stay behind and help the Divine Mountain of Sumeru find the source of its destruction.
But I need to be at the battlefield by noon.
That will be a decisive battle between Order and Chaos, the great battle that will decide the fate of the 900 million World Layers.
I must go, I canât stay behind.
âHow was it?â Xie Dao Ling asked.
Gu Qing Shan explained everything.
âSo it turns out not even the will of the Divine Mountain understood what truly happenedâ Xie Dao Ling sighed emotionally.
âThere is surely a reason for this, but I donât think we are able to reach it right nowâ Gu Qing Shan replied.
Xie Dao Ling pondered for a bit and told him: âQing Shan, truthfully, before arriving here, Iâve already had a faint premonition. After performing a few Divinations, they all pointed to the answer I need being at the summit of Mount Sumeruâ
âI know, Shifu originally could have broken through without facing your Tribulationâ Gu Qing Shan nodded.
Xie Dao Ling continued: âThat is indeed the truth, and I felt that I must make a trip here in order to recall a few important mattersââ let us go, perhaps Iâll recall something new once we reach the summitâ
Gu Qing Shan sighed: âIf not, we can only choose to finish this Tribulation and leaveââ for some reason, I also feel like that is what I should doâ
Xie Dao Ling nodded and smiled: âLetâs go, if itâs meant to be, we wonât be able to avoid it even if we wanted toâ
There were countless secrets within the infinite worlds.
Each secret was associated with a danger or a corresponding heavy price that must be paid.
Although Gu Qing Shan sounded like he was dejected, Xie Dao Ling knew that he was only venting his emotions and reminded her to be careful.
In truth, if such things were to obstruct a cultivatorâs path, they would surely face it head-on.
Because cultivation itself was the process of overcoming difficulties in order to advance.
The two of them continued flying up towards the summit of Mount Sumeru.
ââthey headed through more worlds.
ââkilled more demonic creatures.
Before Gu Qing Shanâs overwhelming power, all enemies were insignificant.
Until finally, the master and disciple pair reached the final world.
ââthe summit of Mount Sumeru.
This was the smallest world they had seen so far, the only thing present on it was a barren mountain top.
Other than that, it was the endless space vortex.
Is this the summit?
Gu Qing Shan tried looking further away but saw nothing.
He didnât want to admit it and tried to use the [True Crimson Demon Spear] to poke the mountain top, causing a few rocks to break.
ââthey were nothing but ordinary rocks.
âNo need to look, Qing Shan, according to the records, this place was originally like thisâ
Xie Dao Ling had regained her child form, closed her eyes, informing him with her immature voice.
âShifu, have you remembered something?â Gu Qing Shan asked.
âI can sense many memories pouring into me... Qing Shan, if I canât actively respond to anything, use your words to guide my answersâ Xie Dao Ling said.
âYesâ
A few moments later.
Xie Dao Ling opened her eyes, peering at the endless void of space as her eyes lost their clarity and focus.
She seemed to be observing some unseen images and scenes.
Her spirit energy fluctuation gradually became wild and chaotic, her body slowly hovered in the air.
She then started whispering: âDuring an era long ago, the Divine Mountain of Sumeru was actually a treasure tool of the Samsara, an artifact made for the sake of selecting cultivatorsâ
Gu Qing Shan waited for a bit when she didnât say anything else, he tried guiding her: âWhy did the Divine Mountain of Sumeru have to select cultivators?â
Hearing these words, Xie Dao Lingâs expression became a bit more unfocused and hesitated for a while before slowly answering: âSelect cultivators to... climb the Heaven Path...â
Gu Qing Shanâs heart jumped.
He suddenly recalled what he witnessed at the cultivation worldâs semester examination: the broken path to Heaven.
The four cardinal platforms.
A series of tattered palaces.
A stairway that appeared out of nowhere that led up to the sky, but was cut off half-way.
âââperhaps this type of selection had already begun ever since a cultivator started their path, during an era long gone.
But then, what is this for?
Gu Qing Shan took a deep breath and faintly sensed something.
He tried to keep himself composed and asked in a low voice: âWhy do cultivators have to climb the Heaven Path?â
Hearing this, Xie Dao Lingâs spirit energy started to become even more erratic. She began clutching her head with both of her hands, as if trying to recall something important.
âCultivators!â
She suddenly cried out and hurriedly continued: âOnly cultivators may go through the numerous trials of heaven and earth, thus becoming true heavenly beings and wield the authority of the Samsara in their hands!â
Gu Qing Shan was shaken.
There are as many cultivators who choose to face their Tribulation as there are stars in the sky, but under the countless layers of Tribulations, most of them regretfully lose their lives.
It turns out that cultivators can ultimately become heavenly beings and wield the Samsara!
Everything makes sense now!
No wonder other Professions are able to easily advance without issues, yet cultivators have to face a Heavenâs Tribulation whenever they want to break through.
No wonderââ
No wonder the Wraith realm wanted to destroy the Yama Heavenly realm, and even Mount Sumeru itself!
If cultivators will ultimately become heavenly beings of the Heaven realm and wield the Samsara as their own, how could those wraiths accept it?
How could they not care about such a thing?
Xie Dao Ling suddenly regained consciousness, her body turned limp, almost fallen to the ground.
Gu Qing Shan quickly caught her.
Xie Dao Lingâs expression showed exhaustion, but her eyes were full of clarity, muttering: âWho wouldâve thought... the reason we cultivators have to go through so many trials and tribulations, facing numerous deathly hardship, was because the Laws of the Samsara were using that to select heavenly beingsâ
Gu Qing Shan was also indescribably moved.
At this point, from above the barren mountain top, a heavenly aria resounded as numerous flowers danced in the air, countless projections of divine beasts and heavenly fairies manifested in the sky.
The Divine Mountain of Sumeru resonated with that power, manifesting even more supernatural phenomena that appeared in front of their eyes.
Gu Qing Shan could sense his spirit energy rising, immediately bypassing the previous bottleneck and speeding towards {Mahesvara King} realm.
He was breaking through!
Xie Dao Lingâs spirit energy fluctuation was also rising very slowly.
She was about to become the first new Sumeru Lord realm cultivator among countless cultivation worlds in several thousand years!
A moment later.
The divine beast Qilin appeared before them.
ă Congratulations, you have successfully broken through ă
It continued: ă Not only that, but our new Sumeru Lord had also been enlightened with the secret of the past world, if this is to spread, it would surely encourage all cultivators in the future ă
ă You may now leave ă
Gu Qing Shan and Xie Dao Ling exchanged glances.
Xie Dao Ling spoke up first: âThis is too important, I must quickly return and spread this news to all cultivation worldsâ
Gu Qing Shan also replied: âThen Shifu should be on your way, Iâm also in a hurry and must catch up with my friends soonâ
The two of them stood up and were about to leave the summit of Mount Sumeru.
Just before they left, Xie Dao Ling suddenly clasped her hand at the Qilin and casually asked: âThank you for following us closely throughout this Tribulation, are you perhaps the artifact spirit of this Divine Mountain of Sumeru?â
The divine beast Qilin curtly answered: ă Indeed ă
Gu Qing Shan looked back at the divine beast Qilin and smiled: âThe Divine Mountain was heading to its ruin due to the corrosion of the Wraith realm, but before that, there should have been no issues with the Divine Mountain at allâ
The divine beast Qilin watched him closely and replied: ă Of course, it was all the fault of the Wraith realm, how detestable ă
Gu Qing Shan and Xie Dao Ling slowly stopped and stood still.
They understood very clearly.
The destruction of the Divine Mountain was a secret, one that not even the will of the Divine Mountain felt clear about.
âââeven the Divine Mountain itself didnât know about this.
And yet the divine beast Qilin immediately said that it was due to the Wraith realm right after they probed it.
If it truly was the artifact spirit of Mount Sumeru, then it was lying.
If it wasnât the artifact spirit of Mount Sumeru, then everything it had said up to now had been lies.
Gu Qing Shan took another step forward.
All of a sudden, everything around him vanished.
Xie Dao Ling, the Divine Mountain of Sumeru, the divine beast Qilin, the space vortex, everything vanished without a trace.
Iris Technique â [Time Recollection]
âCome, lying divine beast, show me what you are hiding in your memoriesâ
Gu Qing Shan muttered.