Chapter 36 A Minute Difference

"Urgh!" Yun Bai groaned, his vision blackening as his body was sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string, blood spraying wildly.

Yet, enduring the excruciating pain that nearly made him faint, he locked his Divine Thought onto the Flying Sword, controlling it to circle back and protect his body.

Yun Bai infused his own insights into swordsmanship into the Flying Sword.

The huaying sword shimmered with blue light, transforming into a dense screen of swords that guarded his vital points.

"You have some guts, at least..." Having landed the blow, Guardian Deity Wang Shan did not pursue; instead, he withdrew his golden whip, his three eyes scrutinizing the stubbornly struggling Yun Bai.

But he immediately snorted coldly: "Unfortunately, this is where it ends! Hah!"

Divine light erupted from Guardian Deity Wang Shan's entire body!

A terrifying Spiritual Pressure, vast as a sea of stars and heavy as a sacred mountain, descended with a boom, instantly enveloping the entire space!

A pale golden Domain shrouded the heavens and the earth.

Yun Bai immediately felt as if he had been thrown into a ten-thousand-foot-deep sea, his entire body enduring unimaginable pressure!

Even the operation of his Divine Thought became sluggish, and the speed and agility with which he controlled the Flying Sword plummeted, its power reduced to less than eighty percent!

Not only that, but countless invisible and intangible yet incomparably sharp Divine Thought spikes, like billions of cold steel needles, stabbed fiercely into Yun Bai's Sea of Consciousness! They intended to tear his spirit apart!

"Hmph!" Yun Bai groaned.

Having experienced repeated impacts to his Sea of Consciousness, he was gradually becoming familiar with this type of attack.

He instantly mobilized the vast Mental Energy within his Sea of Consciousness, causing the Source Core Black Hole at its center to spin frantically.

An invisible Divine Sense force field formed instantly; the moment those invading Divine Thought spikes touched this field, they were like ice falling into a furnace, instantly shredded and devoured.

Yun Bai endured the agony of his Physical Body and the constraints of the Spiritual Pressure, struggling to hold his own against Guardian Deity Wang Shan.

The Flying Sword transformed into streaks of blue lightning, darting and weaving between Guardian Deity Wang Shan's golden whip and golden seal, constantly in perilous situations.

Yun Bai was gradually unable to parry.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that if this battle rhythm continued, Yun Bai would undoubtedly die.

Both combatants understood this logic even better.

It was in Yun Bai's nature to never give up, even until death. His goal was to stall for time, giving Xiao Liu time to analyze.

[Analyzing...]

After a dozen or so rounds, the indicator lines appearing before Yun Bai's eyes became increasingly concise, which meant that Xiao Liu understood the opponent better and could more accurately predict their movements.

"Found it!" Yun Bai's eyes lit up.

When Guardian Deity Wang Shan swung his golden whip in wide, sweeping attacks, his left hand holding the golden seal would always subconsciously lift slightly, as if to better maintain the seal's defensive posture.

And in that very instant when the golden seal was raised, a tiny gap—lasting less than a tenth of a breath—would be exposed at the joint connection under his armpit covered by golden armor.

Inside that gap, it didn't seem to be indestructible divine metal, but rather a spiritual power hub pulsing with crimson light.

This was the chance!

A sharp light exploded in Yun Bai's eyes!

He feigned exhaustion of his spiritual power, causing the Flying Sword's speed to falter slightly, revealing an opening. Guardian Deity Wang Shan took the bait, and the golden whip swept over with the force of ten thousand jun!

Just as the golden whip was about to strike his body!

"Now!"

He poured his last ounce of Divine Thought and spiritual power into the sword, and the huaying sword erupted with an unprecedented, brilliant blue radiance.

Abandoning all defense, it transformed into a blue comet that tore through space, striking at a speed beyond limits directly toward that tiny, crimson-flashing gap just exposed under Guardian Deity Wang Shan's armpit!

Fast! Accurate! Ruthless!

However, Guardian Deity Wang Shan was, after all, a Protector! His reaction was unimaginably fast.

"Command!" Guardian Deity Wang Shan's voice was, for the first time, so hurried.

Command—Command—Command—

A massive golden seal instantly appeared in Yun Bai's Sea of Consciousness, occupying his entire consciousness!

The golden seal in his Sea of Consciousness smashed down fiercely, colliding with the Divine Sense field formed by the source core, causing it to collapse and shatter.

A clash between experts happens in an instant.

And it was in this instant. Yun Bai's Divided Soul faltered for a moment, and the Flying Sword also lagged for a moment.

The moment before the Flying Sword was about to pierce that crimson spot, the golden seal held in Guardian Deity Wang Shan's left hand suddenly erupted with blinding golden light, instantly shifting downward by half an inch!

Ding—!

A crisp and piercing sound of collision!

The tip of the huaying sword stabbed fiercely into that golden, radiant treasure seal!

A hair's breadth away! All efforts falling short at the last moment!

And because of this desperate strike, Yun Bai had left himself completely exposed!

A fierce look flashed in Guardian Deity Wang Shan's eyes; the golden whip did not slow down, striking like golden lightning onto Yun Bai's defenseless head as he put everything into his attack!

Bang—!!!

A dull, thunderous sound!

Yun Bai felt the entire world instantly plunge into pitch-black darkness, his consciousness, like a candle in the wind, suddenly extinguished!

His body, like a broken doll, collapsed limply, then transformed into specks of light that dissipated into this trial space.

The Black Tower trial ends here.

Guardian Deity Wang Shan withdrew his golden whip, his three eyes like lightning, gazing at the place where Yun Bai had disappeared, and remained silent for a moment. He slowly raised his left hand, his gaze falling upon the golden, radiant treasure seal in his palm.

He saw that in the center of the indestructible treasure seal, which contained Divine Power, a bottomless hole with smooth edges had been pierced through.

The metal around the hole appeared in an eerie molten state, and crimson-gold, scorching metal droplets were silently sliding down the body of the seal.

...

...

...

The voice of the Black Tower elder sounded.

[Current trial progress: First Floor, Third Level]

Before the voice had even faded, Yun Bai was teleported out of the Black Tower.

A dazzling white light filled Yun Bai's vision, and his head was groggy; he did not know where he was.

He did not know how much time had passed, but he suddenly opened his eyes to find his fists clenched tightly, nails digging deep into his flesh, his palms already soaked with sweat.

"Hoo—hoo—hoo—" He hurriedly took deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.

The pressure just now was a dual oppression of both spirit and body. It was like an animal in nature encountering a natural predator, a physiological and psychological fear.

When he finally calmed down, he found himself standing at the foot of the Black Tower.

Yun Bai stood before the Black Tower, frowning in silence.

Every time he came to the State Religion, it would give him a different kind of "surprise." This seemingly ordinary Black Tower actually hid so many extraordinary things.

However, according to the Profound-grade special contract he had signed with the State Religion, he had to pass the third level of the second floor of the Black Tower trial within one month of signing; there was still plenty of time before the deadline.

"Try to break through again?"

Yun Bai checked his entire body with his Divine Sense.

"No injuries, and the spiritual power in my Dantian hasn't changed. It seems this trial has no real danger." Yun Bai thought, "It seems that to pass this Black Tower trial, the most important thing is Divine Sense. Before my Divine Sense breaks through, it will be difficult to make any new progress."

Powerful Divine Sense ability is undoubtedly of great use in Cultivate and combat; when Cultivate reaches the middle to Late Stage, whether one's Divine Sense is strong or not becomes the biggest Bottleneck limiting Breakthroughs in cultivation!

Breakthroughs in terms of Divine Sense, besides the qualitative change from "Divine Sense sensing" to "Telekinesis," also require strengthening the ability to use Divine Sense.

In major aspects such as Cultivate, fighting, Alchemy, and Artifact Refining, and in minor aspects such as the speed of reading books or controlling Flying Sword and Formation, all are limited by Divine Sense.

As for the biggest gain from this trip, it was discovering that the State Religion must have intricate connections with the Celestial Palace.

Otherwise, how would the State Religion dare to use the plot of "Charging the Southern Heavenly Gate, Wreaking Havoc in the Celestial Palace" as a trial known to everyone in the sect?