158: Chapter 158 Pass

On the floor of the Stone Chamber, over a dozen people lay scattered about.

The Foundation Establishment Cultivator, Li Yan, was still climbing.

He had already reached the 80th step, but every step felt like walking in a quagmire—when he lifted his foot, he could hear a faint, sticky sound between his sole and the light barrier, like stepping on glue that hadn't dried.

Lin Xuan stood up.

He stepped onto the first step.

The moment his sole touched the light barrier, a tingling sensation traveled up from the sole of his foot.

It wasn't the stinging pain of a thunder strike—he had been struck by his own thunder techniques and knew what that felt like—but a deeper, penetrating numbness.

It was as if countless tiny needles were piercing into the Yongquan acupoint on the sole of his foot, traveling up along the path of his Meridians, drilling into his calves, thighs, waist, and abdomen, and finally gathering in his Dantian, gently stirring the Qi vortex.

The purple thunder seed in his Dantian gave a jolt.

It wasn't the panicked jump of being suppressed, but a reaction of being stirred—like someone gently pricking a finger with a needle tip; the finger would instinctively flinch, but it wouldn't hurt.

The thunder patterns on the surface of the thunder seed lit up in an instant, and the penetrating numbness was shaken by the thunder patterns, shattering into countless tiny electric threads, like an ice surface being smashed; cracks spread from the center to the surroundings, and then dissipated in the Meridians.

It was very easy.

Lin Xuan took his strides.

One step, two steps, five steps, ten steps.

The light barrier under his feet gradually deepened from light purple, and by the tenth step, it had turned a deep purple, about the color of a ripe purple grape skin.

The tingling sensation was also intensifying, changing from fine needles to coarse needles, spreading from the sole of his foot to his calves.

The Meridians on the inside of his calves were pulsing gently, and through his trousers, one could see a layer of extremely fine purple electric light circulating under the skin.

The 20th step.

The numbness spread to his knees.

There was a sore, swollen feeling in his kneecaps, like the soreness and numbness one gets from standing up abruptly after squatting for a long time, seeping out from the crevices of the bones.

Lin Xuan adjusted his breathing, letting the flow of his Qi slow down—not to resist, but to adjust the frequency of his Qi flow to match the pulsation of the light barrier.

The sore, swollen feeling immediately eased significantly.

The 30th step.

There weren't many people left around.

Most of the Loose Cultivator who had been climbing ahead of him just now had been knocked off at the 20th or 30th step.

He caught a glimpse of a middle-aged female Cultivator at Qi Refining Stage 5 on his right who had stopped at the 25th step, her legs trembling violently, her knees knocking together incessantly, the hem of her dharma robe soaked through with sweat and clinging to her legs.

She gritted her teeth, biting her lips until they bled, the blood trickling down her chin, but she was still climbing.

When she reached the 28th step, the light barrier suddenly brightened, and she fell backward, tumbling off the steps.

She didn't scream as she fell; she just closed her eyes, the expression on her face not one of pain, but something more complex.

Lin Xuan withdrew his gaze and continued to climb.

The 40th step.

The tingling sensation began to turn into a stinging pain.

It wasn't the stinging pain of needle pricks, but like stepping on broken glass—with every step, he could feel a sharp, fine, grinding sensation between the sole of his foot and the light barrier.

The Thunder Spiritual Energy in his Meridians began to boil, not the boiling caused by the disturbance of the light barrier, but a reaction of its own—the Qi was flowing faster and faster in his Meridians, as if its temper had been aroused.

The thunder seed in his Dantian emitted a buzzing sound; it wasn't loud, but the frequency was very high, making the muscles of his abdomen tighten slightly.

The 50th step.

He overtook the lone Cultivator wearing a dark red robe.

That Cultivator had stopped at the 55th step, bent over, hands supporting his knees, panting heavily.

His forehead was covered in sweat, which trickled down the tip of his nose and dripped onto the light barrier, making a sizzling sound.

A large patch on the back of his dark red robe was soaked, the color changing from dark red to nearly black.

When Lin Xuan passed by him, he turned his head to glance at Lin Xuan—the glance was brief, but Lin Xuan captured what was in his eyes.

It was not hostility, not surprise, but a weary resignation mixed with a bitter smile.

He shook his head, straightened up, and then turned to walk back down.

The 70th step.

The stinging pain turned into a burning sensation.

The soles of his feet felt like they were stepping on a red-hot iron plate.

It wasn't the sharp pain of an instant burn, but a continuous, dense burning—with every step he took, the heat traveled up from his soles, spreading along his bones; his ankles, knees, and hip bones, every joint was making a faint creaking sound, like the sound of a rusted iron gate being forced open.

Sweat began to form on his forehead.

Sweat trickled down from his temples, dripped along his jaw onto the light barrier, and each drop hissed as it evaporated into a small puff of white mist.

The dharma robe on his back was also soaked, clinging to his skin, feeling icy cold.

His knees began to shake, not from muscle weakness, but because his bones were trembling slightly in the burning heat.

But the thunder seed remained steady.

It wasn't scattered by the light barrier like the Qi of others; instead, it maintained a stable pulsation, like a heart beating methodically.

With every pulse, the purple light in his Dantian brightened a fraction, and the thunder patterns became a fraction clearer.

Lin Xuan could feel that the pressure of the light barrier was changing from "suppression" to "tempering"—after those penetrating, scorching forces flowed into his Dantian along the Meridians, they were stirred and ground by the thunder seed, not only failing to damage his Meridians but instead making the inner walls of his Meridians tougher.

The 83rd step.

The Foundation Establishment Cultivator from Bibo City, Li Yan, had stopped here.

He turned his head to glance at Lin Xuan.

The glance was brief, but Lin Xuan captured what was in his eyes—not hostility, not surprise, but a sense of scrutiny.

His eyeballs moved up and down, scanning from Lin Xuan's face to his feet, and then back from his feet to his face, as if he were re-evaluating something.

Lin Xuan met his gaze, and then overtook him.

The 85th step.

Lin Xuan's breathing began to grow heavy.

His chest heaved violently like a bellows, each inhalation accompanied by a low wheeze, and the exhaled air condensed into a small puff of white mist.

The purple light of the light barrier had thickened to the point of being almost tangible; when he stepped on it, he could feel a viscous resistance, as if stepping into resin that hadn't dried.

The 90th step.

The burning sensation suddenly changed.

It was no longer a simple burning, but a deeper tremor—not pain, not numbness, not heat, but his entire Dantian vibrating in resonance with the light barrier.

The pulsation frequency of the purple thunder seed was completely consistent with the flickering frequency of the light barrier; the two were no longer in a relationship of opposition, but were like two parallel thunder currents surging in the same river channel.

Every time the purple light of the light barrier flickered, the thunder patterns on the thunder seed flashed once, the flashing light penetrating his abdominal skin and casting a faint halo onto the fabric of his dharma robe.

The 93rd step.

The burning sensation on the soles of his feet suddenly eased.

It wasn't that the light barrier had weakened, but that his Qi had completely synchronized with the light barrier.

That feeling was very strange—even though his feet were still stepping on the light barrier, the tactile sensation was like stepping into warm water, warm, enveloping, with no more resistance.

The 97th, 98th, 99th.

Lin Xuan stepped onto the 99th step.

The purple light dissipated under his feet.

The soles of his feet touched the hard stone slab again—the same solid rock as the floor of the Stone Chamber, smooth and cold.

The coolness traveled up from the soles of his feet, calves, thighs, waist, all the way up, suppressing the previously accumulated scorching heat little by little.

He looked back behind him.

Below the steps, on the floor of the Stone Chamber, dozens of people lay scattered about.

Some were curled up, clutching their legs and groaning; others were lying on the ground, vomiting heavily, the vomit mixed with blood splattered on the stone surface.

There were also two people lying motionless, not knowing if they were unconscious or dead.

The burly man who had been knocked off first was still lying where he was; his right leg had stopped twitching, but the blisters on the soles of his feet had burst, oozing a light purple liquid.

The Foundation Establishment Cultivator from Bibo City had stopped at the 93rd step.

He stood there, not moving any further up.

Two young Cultivator at Qi Refining Stage 9 were stopped at the 80th step; the man was bent over panting, while the woman had simply sat down, her feet dangling in the air and swinging gently.

There were also a few unknown Loose Cultivator scattered between the 40th and 50th steps, all of whom had stopped.

Some were gritting their teeth and holding on, some were already half-kneeling on the steps, and others were walking down step by step, their steps unsteady.

On the 99th step, he was the only one.

The thunder light on the dome of the Stone Chamber suddenly brightened.

The thunder light that had been flowing in the purple mist suddenly expanded several times over, illuminating the entire Stone Chamber as bright as day.

The light shone on the stone walls, and the patterns on the walls were illuminated clearly—those were not naturally formed flowing patterns, but dense, ancient, and clumsy runes, each rune slowly rotating under the purple light.

Then, that mechanical, cold prompt sound rang out again.

This time, the voice was lighter than before, as if it were speaking right next to his ear.

"First stage passed. Qi purity: Top-tier."

Lin Xuan wiped the sweat from his forehead.

The back of his hand was covered in a layer of damp sweat mixed with salt grains, which felt a bit prickly when wiped across his face.

The light barrier steps in front of him had disappeared, replaced by a teleportation light gate.

Inside the light gate was a chaotic purple light, and it was impossible to tell where it led.

He stepped inside.