The moment the ancient voice faded—
"Trial… begins."
—the chamber came alive.
Not gradually.
Not slowly.
But violently.
The guardians moved.
All at once.
Their bodies, once still as lifeless statues, surged forward with terrifying precision. Stone cracked beneath their steps, ancient mechanisms awakening within their frames as lines of light ignited across their bodies like veins of power.
They were not ordinary constructs.
They were refined.
Engineered.
Designed to kill.
Lin Shuan moved first.
Not out of panic—
but instinct.
A guardian lunged toward him, its arm transforming mid-motion into a blade-like structure, edges shimmering with condensed spiritual force.
He sidestepped.
The blade cut through the air where his neck had been a fraction of a second ago.
No hesitation.
His hand struck forward—
targeting the core.
But—
CLANG.
The impact echoed sharply.
The guardian didn't break.
It didn't even stagger.
Lin Shuan's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…reinforced."
This wasn't like the Illusory Beasts.
These guardians had physical integrity.
Durability.
And something else—
adaptive defense.
Behind him—
BOOM!
Hei Luo crashed into two guardians simultaneously, his body wrapped in savage energy. His fists tore through one construct's torso, shattering it into fragments.
But the second—
adapted.
Its form shifted, armor thickening where the impact had landed.
Hei Luo grinned.
"Now this is fun."
Elsewhere—
Mo Xiao Lan stepped lightly across the battlefield, frost spreading beneath his feet. With a flick of his sleeve, a wave of ice surged outward, freezing two guardians mid-charge.
CRACK.
They shattered instantly.
But then—
their fragments twitched.
Reforming.
Mo Xiao Lan's eyes sharpened.
"…regeneration."
Zu Lin, on the other hand—
was barely surviving.
"WHY ARE THEY COMING BACK?!"
He barely ducked under a sweeping strike, rolling awkwardly before jumping up again, swinging his weapon wildly.
Qin Yue had already vanished.
Or so it seemed.
In reality—
he was everywhere.
His presence flickered across the battlefield, appearing behind guardians, striking their joints, their cores, their structural weaknesses with surgical precision.
Yet even he—
was frowning.
"…not enough."
The chamber trembled.
The guardians—
were evolving.
Every attack.
Every impact.
They learned.
Adjusted.
Strengthened.
Lin Shuan stepped back.
Just one step.
And observed.
Calm.
Unmoving amidst chaos.
"…not brute force."
His gaze shifted—
toward the center of the chamber.
There—
faint lines.
Formation patterns.
Hidden.
Subtle.
The guardians weren't acting independently.
They were connected.
Controlled.
Powered.
By something deeper.
"…a core formation."
His eyes sharpened.
Then—
he moved.
Not toward the guardians—
but past them.
Silent.
Unnoticed.
One guardian intercepted him.
Its blade descended.
Lin Shuan didn't dodge.
He stepped inside the strike—
and struck its joint.
CRACK.
The arm broke.
Not shattered—
but disabled.
Enough.
He passed through.
Another guardian came.
He didn't fight.
He slipped between its attack—
like wind through cracks.
Minimal movement.
Maximum efficiency.
Step by step—
he advanced.
Toward the center.
Behind him—
the others continued fighting.
Slowly realizing—
this wasn't a battle meant to be won through force alone.
Mo Xiao Lan noticed first.
His gaze followed Lin Shuan.
"…he's targeting the formation."
Qin Yue reappeared beside him briefly.
"…finally."
Hei Luo growled, smashing another guardian aside.
"Then stop playing and break it!"
They shifted.
Their attacks changed.
Not random anymore—
focused.
Creating openings.
Distracting the guardians.
Giving Lin Shuan space.
Temporary coordination.
Unspoken.
But precise.
Lin Shuan reached the center.
The formation was faint—
almost invisible.
But his perception—
saw through it.
A circular array beneath the ground.
Nodes.
Connections.
Energy flow.
And at its core—
a crystal.
Larger.
Darker.
Pulsing.
"…found it."
But the moment he stepped closer—
everything stopped.
The guardians froze.
Then—
they turned.
All of them.
At once.
Toward him.
The real threat—
identified.
BOOM!
They moved simultaneously.
Faster.
Stronger.
Relentless.
The pressure increased instantly.
Even Hei Luo was forced back.
"…damn!"
Mo Xiao Lan's frost cracked under the force.
Qin Yue's movements slowed.
The formation—
was prioritizing.
Lin Shuan exhaled slowly.
"…so this is the final defense."
The Frost Divine Heart pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
Cold spread through him.
Deep.
Controlled.
Not explosive.
But absolute.
He stepped forward.
Into the storm.
A guardian reached him first—
its blade descending.
He raised his hand—
and caught it.
Frost spread instantly.
Up the blade.
Into the arm.
Freezing.
Cracking.
But—
not enough.
Another guardian struck from behind.
He twisted—
barely avoiding a fatal blow.
A third—
from above.
The pressure—
intense.
Unrelenting.
Lin Shuan's eyes darkened.
"…fine."
This time—
he didn't hold back.
Not completely—
but more than before.
The Frost Divine Heart surged.
A wave of absolute cold erupted—
not outward—
but through his body.
His movements changed.
Sharper.
Faster.
Colder.
He stepped once—
and the space around him froze.
Not physically—
but conceptually.
The guardians slowed.
Just enough.
His hand struck forward—
directly toward the core crystal.
The moment his fingers touched it—
the formation reacted violently.
Energy surged.
Resistance.
But—
too late.
CRACK.
The crystal shattered.
And everything—
stopped.
The guardians froze mid-motion.
Then—
collapsed.
Silence.
Heavy.
Complete.
The trial—
ended.
---
For a moment—
no one moved.
Then—
the chamber shifted.
The walls began to glow.
Paths opened.
Hidden compartments revealed.
Rewards.
Inheritance.
Treasures.
The real purpose—
finally revealed.
Zu Lin blinked.
"…we won?"
Hei Luo smirked.
"Now the real fun begins."
Each of them moved.
Toward different sections.
Drawn—
by resonance.
By compatibility.
Mo Xiao Lan stepped into a chamber of ice.
Instantly, frost surged around him, ancient inscriptions lighting up as a technique entered his mind—
Heavenly Frost Domain Art.
A domain technique.
Rare.
Powerful.
Perfect for him.
Hei Luo found a blood-stained altar.
Beast patterns glowed.
He stepped forward—
and absorbed it.
A technique—
Shadow Beast Devouring Art.
Enhancing his already savage nature.
Qin Yue entered a chamber where space itself warped.
Fragments of movement.
Distortion.
He smiled.
"…this suits me."
He obtained—
Phantom Displacement Technique.
A movement art bordering on spatial manipulation.
Zu Lin—
stumbled into a chaotic chamber.
"Uh… hello?"
Then—
BOOM.
Energy exploded around him.
He screamed—
then laughed.
"I LIKE THIS ONE!"
He gained—
Earthbreaker Body Technique.
Simple.
Brutal.
Perfect.
And then—
Lin Shuan.
He stood still.
Not moving.
Because nothing had called him.
Yet.
Silence.
Then—
a pulse.
Deep.
Cold.
Ancient.
From the farthest chamber.
Hidden.
Sealed.
Different.
His eyes opened.
"…there."
He walked.
Alone.
The others noticed—
but didn't follow.
Something about that path—
felt wrong.
Lin Shuan entered.
Darkness.
Absolute.
Then—
light.
Cold blue.
At the center—
a sword.
Floating.
Not physical.
Not entirely.
A construct.
Of pure frost.
The moment he stepped closer—
a voice echoed.
Not loud.
But overwhelming.
"Only one… who bears the heart of frost… may inherit."
Lin Shuan didn't speak.
He stepped forward.
The Frost Divine Heart—
resonated.
The sword trembled.
Then—
it moved.
Entered his body.
And knowledge—
exploded.
A technique.
Ancient.
Beyond current realms.
Extreme Frost Sword Ray Technique.
Emperor-level.
Not meant for this stage.
Not meant for him—
yet.
His body trembled.
Not from weakness—
but from pressure.
The technique—
too vast.
Too deep.
Too absolute.
Blood surfaced at his lips.
But—
he endured.
He didn't reject it.
He contained it.
Sealed it.
For later.
For when he would be ready.
When he opened his eyes—
the chamber was gone.
He stood back with the others.
No one spoke.
But they all felt it.
Something had changed.
Something dangerous.
Something—
unseen.
Lin Shuan said nothing.
But within him—
a new power slept.
Waiting.
For the moment—
it would awaken.