123: Ten Thousand Beasts Ladder

Nearly ten thousand Prodigies from different worlds and planes, like ice cubes dropped into boiling oil, instantly exploded into chaos!

Their faces were filled with all sorts of emotions—fear, confusion, but more than that, a madness with a fuse lit, and… ambition!

"Hahaha! Interesting! Truly interesting! This is the real path of the strong! Those worlds content with their corner can no longer hold us!"

"Hmph! A place of selection? I'd like to see who is qualified to select me!"

Various roars filled with arrogance and Battle Intent rose and fell!

They were the strongest in their respective worlds, the chosen Prodigies who stood out among billions of living beings!

Their bones were already imprinted with the instincts of "conquest" and "plunder"!

This cruel rule, far from making them afraid, instead ignited the most primitive… Vicious Beast nature within their hearts!

Lin Ye stood quietly among the crowd, tightening his grip on Su Qingyue's cool, soft, boneless hand.

He could clearly feel that beneath the seemingly calm body of the beauty beside him, she too was trembling slightly.

Lin Ye slowly raised his head, his dark eyes calmly sweeping over the faces around him, filled with Battle Intent and greed, finally landing on the path to the heavens, paved with endless white bones and filled with an aura of endless death and despair.

And it was at this moment!

"Rumble!!!"

The path of white bones, which had been merely illusory, suddenly solidified in an instant!

An indescribable, ancient aura, as if from primordial times, erupted with a roar!

At the starting point of the path of white bones, a massive, seemingly endless staircase slowly rose!

The staircase, made of an unknown material, was a simple greyish-green, a hundred zhang wide, spiraling upwards step by step, like the spine of a giant Dragon, winding directly into the deep, dark, seemingly light-devouring Void Realm space!

Each step of the staircase was carved with lifelike ancient Yao Beast totems!

From the lowest-grade ordinary beasts to the legendary Divine Beasts and Vicious Beasts… everything was there!

The totems seemed to contain some mysterious power; merely looking at them was enough to make one's Divine Soul tremble!

And on both sides of the staircase, a faint, rippling energy curtain surrounded it, emitting a heart-palpitating spatial fluctuation!

"The first trial—ten thousand beast ladder!"

The ancient and indifferent voice, like the final judgment, rang out again!

"Rules: Climb this ladder, time limit, twelve hours!"

"The staircase is filled with Yao Beast phantoms condensed from void origin qi, their strength will continuously increase as the staircase rises!"

"You all must rely on your own strength, slay the phantoms, and continuously move upwards!"

"After twelve hours, you will be evaluated based on your final height!"

"Those who reach the top will be rewarded with a wisp of 'Divine Origin'!"

"As for those… who fail to reach the top… trash…"

The voice suddenly turned cold, filled with unquestionable iciness and killing intent!

"Annihilate!"

These simple yet cruel rules hammered into the hearts of every Prodigy!

After a brief silence, there was even more frantic… Battle Intent!

"Hahaha! Divine Origin! I'm taking it!"

"Top hundred? A joke! My goal is only… to reach the top!"

"Those who block me… die!"

Before the ancient voice could even announce the start, hundreds of figures, like arrows released from a bowstring, impatiently rushed towards the massive staircase, filled with endless temptation and the aura of death!

They wanted to seize the initiative!

"Let's go."

Only after most people had rushed onto the staircase did he slowly speak, holding Su Qingyue's hand, unhurriedly walking towards the white bone staircase.

However, just as they were about to step onto the first step—

"Sizzle—"

A dazzling bolt of lightning, filled with endless domineering and destructive aura, appeared without warning, like a whip of thunder from thin air, striking heavily on the ground in front of them!

The incomparably hard greyish-green platform was actually whipped into a charred ravines half a foot deep!

A violent force of lightning, filled with destructive intent, spread wildly along the ground like maggots on a bone, forcing Lin Ye and Su Qingyue to stop!

Immediately after, a young voice, full of endless arrogance and haughtiness, boomed in their ears like muffled thunder!

"Stop!"

Lin Ye slowly raised his head, only to see that not far ahead, at some unknown point, more than a dozen figures had appeared!

The leader was exceptionally tall and robust, almost a full head taller than Lin Ye!

He wore magnificent battle armor embroidered with purple thundercloud patterns, and his wild purple short hair stood on end like steel needles!

Two purple electric snakes, like living creatures, continuously coiled around his arms, emitting piercing crackling sounds!

His angular face was filled with undisguised arrogance and… domineeringness!

His sharp eyes, like an eagle's, were like two pulsating purple thunders, full of aggression, brazenly scanning Lin Ye and Su Qingyue back and forth!

Dharma Body Realm Middle Stage!

Moreover, his aura's condensation was far beyond what the Black Fiend Demon Venerable's Clone projection was capable of back then!

This was definitely a top Prodigy from another world!

"A mere ant who ascended from the Lower Realm… is he worthy… to walk on the same path as this Venerable One?"

The purple-haired youth spoke slowly, his voice not loud, but like thunder from the Nine Heavens, filled with unquestionable majesty and… disdain!

His gaze lingered on Lin Ye's ordinary Qingyun Sect attire for less than half a breath, then moved away in disgust, as if he had seen something dirty, finally landing on Su Qingyue's peerlessly beautiful face, enough to make heaven and earth lose their color!

His eyes instantly erupted with a burning flame, filled with endless greed and possessiveness!

"Tsk tsk… I didn't expect such a barren Lower Realm to give birth to such… a beauty."

He stuck out his tongue, licking his slightly chapped lips, his thunder-like eyes filled with undisguised desire, "Little beauty, what future is there in following such a waste?"

"Why not follow this Venerable One! This Venerable One is Thunder Roaring Heaven, the son of the Thunder Emperor of the 'Thunder Roar Great World'!"

"As long as you are willing to be this Venerable One's maid, this Venerable One guarantees you a smooth path in this Void God Realm! It's even possible to take you into the true 'Upper Realm' in the future!"

His words, full of endless arrogance and humiliation, instantly covered Su Qingyue's originally calm, beautiful face with a layer of frost capable of freezing all things!

"Scram!"

A cold word, devoid of any emotion, slowly escaped her lips.

"Hmm?" Thunder Roaring Heaven's face suddenly darkened!

He clearly hadn't expected that his condescending offer would be so decisively… rejected by a "Lower Realm" woman!

An intense humiliation of being provoked by an ant surged into his heart!

"You ungrateful wretch!" He sneered, his eyes, which had been full of desire, were instantly replaced by a cold killing intent, "Since that's the case, this Venerable One will first capture you, and then slowly… tame you!"

Before he finished speaking!

His right hand, coiled with purple electric snakes, suddenly shot forward!

"Sizzle!"

Five thick purple thunders, like a child's arm, instantly condensed into a ferocious thunder claw filled with endless destructive aura, carrying a terrifying Divine Might capable of tearing the Void Realm, and grabbed down towards Su Qingyue's slender figure!

He actually wanted to forcibly… abduct her in front of Lin Ye!

However, just as that ferocious thunder claw was about to touch Su Qingyue's body!

A thin figure, calm without a ripple, appeared silently in front of her like a ghost.

It was Lin Ye.

He slowly raised his head, his dark eyes calmly meeting Thunder Roaring Heaven's gaze, which was filled with violence and killing intent.

"Your opponent…"

He spoke slowly, his voice not loud, but every word was clear.

"Is me."

"You're courting death!" Seeing this, Thunder Roaring Heaven was so enraged he laughed instead!

He didn't even bother to change his move; the ferocious thunder claw, its power undiminished, turned and grabbed fiercely towards Lin Ye's crown!

He wanted to crush this ant who didn't know his place, along with his Divine Soul, into oblivion!

However, facing this fatal blow, which was enough to make any Dharma Body Realm Early Stage expert despair, Lin Ye's face remained… as calm as an ancient well.

He raised his right hand, clenched his fist.

Then, he punched out at the ferocious thunder claw grabbing down at him!

"Boom—!!!"

A dull, terrifying sonic boom exploded with a roar!

The arrogant, ferocious thunder claw, fully unleashed by a Dharma Body Realm Middle Stage expert, stiffened abruptly the moment it touched that seemingly ordinary fist!

Immediately after—

Under Thunder Roaring Heaven's horrified gaze, filled with disbelief, its claw body, condensed from pure lightning Law, began to crack from the fingertips, like Glass smashed by a giant hammer, making a "crack" sound, shattering inch by inch!

Finally, with a "bang," it exploded with a roar!

Turning into… scattered… purple electric arcs!

Vanishing into thin air!

"Pfft!"

Thunder Roaring Heaven's body shook violently!

He only felt an irresistible, terrifying Fist Intent, filled with endless destructive aura, surging back along the shattered thunder claw, slamming heavily into his Divine Soul Origin!

He violently spat out a large mouthful of blood!

His face, which had been full of arrogance and domineeringness, instantly lost all color, becoming as pale as paper!

He staggered back seven or eight steps before barely steadying himself, his thunder-like eyes now filled only with endless horror and… disbelief!

He was actually… defeated by a single punch, his Divine Ability broken, and his Divine Soul injured?!

How… how was this possible?!

This "Lower Realm" waste, who seemed weak and ant-like, why was his Physical Body… so terrifying?!

His few followers, who had been watching with playful expressions, were already completely stunned by this scene that overturned their understanding!

Each of them stood dumbfounded, as if they had seen a ghost!

"I'll give you one chance."

Lin Ye slowly withdrew his fist, his dark eyes calmly looking at him, his voice cold and devoid of any emotion.

"Now, scram."

"Otherwise…"

A cold, sharp light suddenly flashed in his eyes!

"Die!"