472: Chaos Monument!

When Ye Xuan and his group stepped onto the platform, they instantly attracted almost all gazes.

Especially Ye Xuan, his unfathomable aura and the astonishing methods he displayed on the stairs earlier immediately made him the focal point of attention.

In the Ancient Heavenly Court camp, the silver-armored Immortal Emperor elder's eyes were cold, his killing intent undisguised.

The shadowy area where the Underworld forces were located fluctuated.

Races like the Bi Fang Clan, who harbored grievances against Ye Xuan, also cast hostile glances.

In addition, some powerful races they hadn't encountered before, such as the True Dragon Clan, Qilin Clan, and Black Tortoise Clan, also scrutinized Ye Xuan with curiosity.

Ye Xuan ignored all of this, his gaze sweeping across the platform, finally landing on the massive stone gate.

The stone gate was tightly shut, but the runes flowing on it resonated strongly with the Chaos Fire Seed in his Sea of Consciousness and Tai Hao's memory fragments!

"It seems the key is behind the gate."

Ye Xuan understood in his heart.

Just then, the massive stone gate slowly began to vibrate, emitting a heavy rumbling sound.

The first trial of the Gathering, the Stairway to Heaven, had ended.

The heavy stone gate slowly opened inward amidst the rumbling, revealing an even vaster and boundless scene beyond.

It was a gigantic square, seemingly independent of all heavens, with a floor paved with an unknown dark gold metal, inscribed with countless intricate and ancient array patterns, exuding a majestic aura that suppressed all heavens.

Around the square, nine towering pillars stood, their bodies entwined with vivid bas-reliefs of nine ancient Divine Beasts, such as True Dragons and Divine Phoenixes, as if they could come alive at any moment.

Above the square, instead of a sky, was a rotating Primordial Chaos nebula, with endless stars being born and dying within it, and Dao runes falling like waterfalls, exuding a heart-palpitating pressure.

This was the core of the Ten Thousand Clans Gathering—the Ten Thousand Clans Square!

The hundreds of elites from various races who successfully reached the top looked into the gate with burning eyes.

No one acted rashly; those who made it this far were not fools and knew that this square was certainly not a safe place.

Indeed, as the last person stepped onto the platform, the Stairway to Heaven behind them slowly disappeared in a flash of light, cutting off their retreat.

At the same time, the magnificent voice reappeared, ringing in everyone's ears like a grand bell.

"The Stairway to Heaven trial has ended. A total of three hundred and seventy-nine Cultivators have entered the Ten Thousand Clans Square."

"Within the square, private combat is forbidden. Violators will be expelled!"

"The first round of the Gathering, the Dao Inquiring Stele, begins!"

As the voice fell, the ground in the center of the square rumbled, and nine massive stone steles, each a hundred zhang tall and entirely black as ink, slowly rose!

Each stele exuded a completely different Dao aura: some were fiery hot, some were sharp as metal, some were heavy as earth, some were vibrant as wood, some were vast as stars... corresponding to the nine basic Dao Laws.

"The Dao Inquiring Stele! Legend has it that it can reflect the depth of a Cultivator's comprehension of the Dao, an supreme treasure for testing one's Foundation and potential!"

"It is said that those who can leave their names on the Dao Inquiring Stele will have limitless achievements in the future!"

"I didn't expect the Dao Inquiring Stele to appear this time. I wonder how many will leave their names on the stele!"

"Look, there are words on the stele!"

Everyone gazed intently, only to see that on the smooth surfaces of the nine steles, from top to bottom, some names emitting a faint glow were already inscribed.

Those names were ancient and obscure, exuding a captivating Dao rhyme, clearly left by peerless powerhouses from ancient and even the ancient era!

"That's, Emperor Yan! The top of the Fire Dao Stele!"

"Slaughtering Heaven Sword Venerable! First on the Metal Dao Stele!"

"Azure Emperor! Name on the Wood Dao Stele!"

One by one, earth-shattering titles were recognized, causing bursts of exclamations. These names represented the pinnacle of their respective Dao Domains!

"The first round of the Gathering is for you to leave your names on these nine Dao Inquiring Steles!"

The magnificent voice announced the rules.

"The higher the position of the name, the deeper the compatibility with that Dao, the stronger the comprehension. Ultimately, only those who leave their names on all nine steles can enter the next round!"

The rules were simple and direct, but they instantly made the atmosphere in the square tense! There were only three hundred and seventy-nine spots, and at most eighty-one could enter the next round. The intensity of the competition was imaginable!

Immediately, figures transformed into streaks of light, rushing towards the Dao Stele they were most skilled in.

A Prodigy from the Flame Race, whose entire body was engulfed in raging flames, directly charged towards the Fire Dao Stele and pressed his palm onto the stele!

The stele body trembled slightly, and his name, Yan Jin, appeared on the middle-lower part of the stele, emitting a crimson glow.

A Human Race Sword Cultivator, carrying a long sword on his back, rushed towards the Metal Dao Stele, his Sword Intent soaring. His name, Ling Wufeng, appeared on the upper-middle part of the stele.

The competition instantly became fierce.

Names constantly appeared on the stele, and names were constantly surpassed and covered by latecomers.

To leave one's name on the stele, one not only needed a deep comprehension of the Dao but also powerful Divine Soul energy and Dao Heart support to resist the Dao pressure contained within the stele itself.

Moreover, one also needed to guard against attacks from others, as there were only eighty-one spots, and their current number was over three hundred.

This meant that most of the powerhouses here would be eliminated.

Ye Xuan did not rush to act. His gaze swept over the nine Dao Steles, finally landing on the Primordial Chaos Dao Stele, which had the most Primordial Chaos aura, seemingly encompassing all things.

There were the fewest names on this stele, only a dozen or so, but each one exuded a heart-palpitating ancient aura, and their positions were the highest.

Clearly, the Primordial Chaos Dao was the most difficult to comprehend and the strongest.

"I'll try this stele."

Ye Xuan said to those around him, then slowly walked towards the Primordial Chaos Dao Stele.

His movement immediately attracted more than half of the gazes in the entire square!

"He's going to challenge the Primordial Chaos Dao Stele?"

"The Primordial Chaos Dao is ethereal, the most difficult to begin with, and the most difficult to advance. He actually dares to choose this stele directly?"

"Hmph, overestimating himself! Which of the names on the Primordial Chaos Dao Stele isn't a titan who dominated an era?"

Questioning, mockery, and curious glances intertwined and came his way.

The Ancient Heavenly Court, Underworld, and others sneered repeatedly, waiting to see Ye Xuan make a fool of himself.

Ye Xuan was deaf to the surrounding discussions and arrived before the Primordial Chaos Dao Stele.

The stele body was pitch black, as if it could swallow all light. Approaching it, one could feel a Dao rhyme of all things returning to nothingness, yet containing infinite vitality.

He slowly raised his right hand, not containing much majestic power, but gently pressed his palm onto the cold surface of the stele.

In an instant, Ye Xuan's mind seemed to be pulled into an endless Primordial Chaos vortex!

Countless chaotic, fragmented, yet containing supreme truth, Dao fragments surged towards him, questioning his Dao Heart.

At the same time, the Dao rhyme emitted by the dozen or so ancient names on the stele, like sleeping Dragons awakened, pressed down on him with supreme majesty!