72: Chapter 72, the first person to pass.

It was like seeing a beam of light in the dark of night.

Crimson Rainbow hurriedly replied, "Fellow Daoist Xu, I'm fine. Where are you?"

Immediately afterward.

More holes tore through the mist as golden pillars of light seemed to descend from the heavens.

All the haze blocking her vision dissipated like melting snow the moment it touched the pillars of light.

A massive gap split open, the mist receded, and the original appearance of the Illusionary Beast Cage was revealed.

Seeing this scene.

Crimson Rainbow was overjoyed. "Well done! As long as there's no illusion blocking me, this beast is absolutely no match for me."

...

Not only could the Cultivators inside the Secret Realm see the Heavenly Stele.

Those outside the Secret Realm could as well.

At this moment, beneath the bronze gates, a golden giant ship dozens of zhang long was floating in the air.

Pillars of fire spewed from the bottom of the giant ship, with spiritual rudders on both sides maintaining balance.

The golden battle flag on the mast was inscribed with the words "Jinyang."

It was precisely the Blazing Sun Giant Ship of the Jinyang Sect.

On the ship's gunwale.

An old man with white hair and a white beard stood leaning on a staff, his Spiritual Pressure clearly at the Golden Core level.

Xiao Tongguang of the Chixiao Sect and Fourth Disciple of Yellow Ox Immortal City stood prominently on either side of him.

"You two young friends, why have the numbers on the Heavenly Stele stopped changing?"

Fourth Disciple bowed and said, "The Ancient Wood Secret Realm has encountered a once-in-a-century Earth Vein Dao Sound, and the level of the Illusionary Beasts will also increase. They must have run into trouble."

The old man stroked his white beard. "Trouble? A mere small Secret Realm has actually stopped two Core Disciples of my sect? Have the Juniors of our sect declined to such a state?"

Xiao Tongguang and Fourth Disciple looked at each other and explained:

"This Junior has also entered a Secret Realm during an Earth Vein Dao Sound. I believe they have encountered stages like the Illusionary Ash Moths or the Yin Mountain Mandrills, which we call the Survival Stages."

"Back then, I entered with a cultivation of Qi Refining Great Perfection and led the way throughout. But when I encountered these two Illusionary Beasts, I was caught in a bitter struggle. The former excels at using illusions to stall for time, while the latter possesses brute strength nearly equivalent to a Rank 2 Body Cultivator."

"Oh? How did Fellow Daoist Xiao pass?"

"I didn't pass. To be precise, I endured it. When the Secret Realm detects that many people have fallen to a certain Illusionary Beast at the same time, it triggers a safety mechanism and skips the stage. Therefore, it is also called the Survival Stage."

"That is quite interesting. As long as one holds out long enough, they can pass the stage."

"Yes. When this Junior came out back then, I found that not a single person had actually passed; everyone relied on skipping it."

Just then.

A change occurred on the Heavenly Stele.

The inscriptions suddenly began to glow.

The rankings began to shift.

A certain line of names in the middle of the pack suddenly brightened.

Immediately following that, it broke free from its original position and began to flow upward.

The characters trailed a brief streak of light, climbing like a comet, and finally reached the top.

"Crimson Rainbow, Xie Wantang, Xu Changsheng, eight points!"

Xiao Tongguang patted his beer belly and nodded. "It seems the Secret Realm detected too many Cultivators falling and skipped the stage for them."

The Golden Core Elder, however, stroked his long beard. "Is that so?"

A mere dozen or so breaths later.

The score of the three-person team continued to surge upward.

"Nine points."

"Ten points."

...

"Fifteen points!"

They firmly occupied the top of the leaderboard.

Meanwhile, everyone else's scores remained at seven or below.

"How is that possible!"

Xiao Tongguang's expression changed drastically. "Could these people have actually passed the Survival Stage?"

The Golden Core Elder of the Jinyang Sect laughed heartily. "Is Fellow Daoist Xiao's vision failing him? Why not take a closer look at the members of this small team?"

Hearing this.

Xiao Tongguang slapped his thigh. "Oh, I remember now! Crimson Rainbow is a Core Disciple of your noble sect. No wonder they could pass the Survival Stage."

The old man was in a great mood. "As expected, we still have to rely on the elite of my sect. I have always thought highly of that girl Crimson Rainbow, though her temper is a bit impatient."

Xiao Tongguang and Fourth Disciple both offered their congratulations.

As for Xu Changsheng, who was in the same team, they had long since put him out of their minds.

In their understanding.

A Qi Refining Loose Cultivator like Xu Changsheng was at the very bottom of the cultivation world and could not possibly provide even a shred of assistance to Crimson Rainbow.

...

Inside the Secret Realm.

Chi Yu's entire body erupted with red spiritual light.

Countless blazing white blood lines, condensed to the extreme, danced through the air, shredding countless moths to pieces.

Her bare back was already drenched in fragrant sweat.

"Damn it. Although the aura of these moths barely reaches the first-tier Perfection, the feeling they give me is far too terrifying."

"If my intuition is correct, this illusion should have already reached the level of Rank 2."

"In that case, I can only use this move."

Chi Yu gritted her teeth and slapped her Storage Pouch.

In the next instant.

A bone fragment of an ominous, deathly white appeared in her hand.

She bit the tip of her tongue hard and spat a mouthful of essence blood onto it.

"Jie jie jie."

A reddish, fleshless skeletal ghost head flew up.

"Yin-Pupil Ghost, break this illusion for me!"

The ghost head, accompanied by ghostly shrieks, whirled into the air.

Its sunken ghostly pupils snapped open.

In the next moment.

A sinister ripple spread out in all directions.

The moths and gray mist collapsed, and the surrounding white bricks and gray tiles revealed the original face of the Illusionary Beast Cage.

Taking this opportunity.

Chi Yu transformed into a red light and closed in on the moth.

Trailing countless threads, she tore the moth to pieces in just a few breaths.

Before she could even feel joy.

She clutched her head, her face contorted in extreme pain.

"Ah!"

Eventually, she was rolling on the ground in agony.

It took a long time for her to recover her strength.

She muttered to herself, "Summoning the Yin-Pupil Ghost causes irreparable permanent damage to the Sea of Consciousness. I really wouldn't use it unless it were a critical moment."

"But if I can surpass Crimson Rainbow, it will be worth it."

With this thought in mind.

She looked up at the sky.

The moment she saw the rankings on the Heavenly Stele.

Her gaze first went blank with shock, and then her pupils shrank violently.

"Is this for real?"

She couldn't believe her eyes.

She rubbed them several times.

After confirming again, her rank was still high in the top two, with a current score of eight.

But above her, Crimson Rainbow sat firmly at the top of the list.

"Seventeen points?"

"How did Crimson Rainbow do it!"

She unconsciously took a few steps back, leaning against the wall.

"Crimson Rainbow, have you actually been hiding your strength so deeply?"

Then, she clenched both fists, her gaze becoming determined.

It was as if she could see the scene of Crimson Rainbow happily showing off to her.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. It's not over yet. This is where it truly begins!"

With that.

She gave a sharp cry.

Red light flared around her body once more.

This time, it wasn't a protective spiritual light.

It was an abnormal, eerie crimson, like white jade being calcined by a fire rising from within.

The originally clear whites of her eyes were now filled with fine blood vessels.

"I'll give it my all! The position of Personal Disciple must be held by me, the Elder sister!"

...

On Chen Xuan's side, it was a scene of leisurely calm.

His Revered Master had long ago told him about secrets like the Survival Stage, so the moment he saw the Illusionary Ash Moths, he informed Su Xiaojing.

"Defend and wait for an opening."

The first wave of illusionary moths posed very little threat to them; as long as they didn't destroy them, they could handle it with ease.

After waiting for a full half-hour, the mist around them dissipated.

The bright moon above was replaced by the Heavenly Stele.

Chen Xuan comforted her, "Don't worry, no one can pass the Illusionary Ash Moths. By my estimation, most people's scores are currently stuck at seven or below."

The two of them looked up at the sky.

The expressions on their faces suddenly froze.