Chapter 98: Simple

“It should be right below here.”

Li Nian’er stood at the edge of a bottomless cliff, peering into the abyss. No matter how she strained her eyes, all she could see was pitch-black nothingness—a sight that sent shivers down her spine.

“More precisely, it’s directly beneath this spot.”

Jiang Li took a few steps away, standing over ten meters from Li Nian’er. Under his divine sense, the scene at the bottom of the cliff was crystal clear.

“I’ll carry you down—”

Jiang Li turned to speak to the Mortal World Celestial, only to see her suddenly crouch into a standing long jump stance—before launching herself straight into the abyss.

“Sister Hong just—”

“She’s just missing a few screws in the head. Her strength is more than enough, don’t worry.”

As an Immortal, the Mortal World Celestial naturally wouldn’t die from falling off a cliff. Even without using any celestial power, she still possessed an Immortal’s body—there was simply no possibility of her getting hurt.

Sure enough, just as Jiang Li had said, she didn’t fall straight to the bottom. Instead, a platform below caught her mid-fall.

The platform led into a cave, with both natural formations and traces of artificial excavation visible.

Li Nian’er, meanwhile, walked down the air itself—each step compressing the air beneath her feet to an extreme, forming solid footholds as she descended step by step.

“Is this the tomb of that Soul Formation cultivator?”

Taking just two steps forward, Li Nian’er suddenly bumped into an invisible barrier.

A voice echoed in her ears:

“I am Master of Ten Thousand Beasts. Betrayed and poisoned by villains, I could not bear to let my life’s knowledge fade into obscurity. Thus, I created this place. Whoever finds their way here is fated. If you are under thirty years old and have reached the Core Formation Stage, you may enter my secret realm. Pass the trials, and you will obtain my inheritance. Those who force their way in shall be consumed by flames.”

Near the entrance to the secret realm, several charred corpses lay scattered—a grim testament to those who had ignored the warning and paid the price.

Under thirty and Core Formation Stage?

Li Nian’er met the criteria perfectly and entered the realm.

Jiang Li and the Mortal World Celestial, however, did not meet the criteria.

…But neither of them cared.

Would a mere Soul Formation cultivator really have flames strong enough to burn a True Immortal or a Mahayana cultivator?

That would be hilarious.

Sure enough, when Jiang Li forced his way in, blazing flames engulfed him—only for him to yawn and walk through unscathed.

The fire couldn’t even singe the corner of his robes.

The Mortal World Celestial followed suit, passing through without a scratch.

Inside the secret realm, Jiang Li immediately noticed something.

“Looks like we aren’t the first ones here.”

A group of people was already undergoing the Master of Ten Thousand Beasts’ trials.

Poison Young Master and his followers had clearly suffered greatly.

His once pristine robes, woven from the rarest Heavenly Silkworm Thread, were now in tatters. His ghastly pale skin—which was already unnaturally white—was even more disturbing now that dark veins were visible underneath.

These veins were a hallmark of Poison Cultivation. To have reached such a level at his age… If nothing went wrong, he could potentially refine his body into the legendary Ten Thousand Venoms Physique.

The secret realm was vast, dominated by a lush jungle. Various demonic beasts prowled the forests—powerful, but lacking sentience.

For demonic beasts, achieving sapience was no easy feat.

The Soul Formation Stage was the dividing line. Before reaching it, a demonic beast lived in a hazy, instinct-driven state, oblivious to logic. But once it crossed into the Soul Formation Stage, everything would suddenly become clear—as if a blind man had regained sight.

Their understanding of the world would transform, they would speak human language, and they would grasp the art of shapeshifting. No longer acting on raw instinct, they would think before they acted.

Only a rare few demonic beasts ever reached the Soul Formation Stage.

Recognizing the benefits of early intelligence, the First Baize Emperor of the Baize Dynasty had invented a method to awaken a demonic beast’s sentience ahead of time. This technique had been instrumental in the dynasty’s rise to power.

But the beasts born in this secret realm had been here since birth—cut off from outside influences, they had never undergone intelligence awakening techniques.

They were the purest, most primitive form of demonic beasts, ruled entirely by instinct.

Jiang Li swept his divine sense through the realm and noted several Nascent Soul Stage demonic beasts.

For Golden Core cultivators, these creatures were incredibly dangerous.

Even without intelligence, Nascent Soul beasts still had instincts—they would avoid threats and target prey that couldn’t fight back.

Jiang Li’s group, with Nascent Soul Stage as the lowest cultivation level, was seen as deadly predators in the eyes of these beasts.

Poison Young Master’s group, however, only had Golden Core Stage at best—making them prime prey.

At that moment, the voice of the Master of Ten Thousand Beasts echoed again:

“I have prepared three trials. Passing each trial will grant a key. Those who obtain all three keys may unlock the gate to my tomb and my inheritance.”

“The first trial tests your affinity with beasts.”
“Requirement: Within half an hour, have at least 30 demonic beasts of at least Foundation Establishment Stage within 100 meters of you—without them attacking.”

“Sounds easy enough!”

Li Nian’er was eager to begin.

She approached a small rabbit, confident in her natural affinity for demonic beasts…

…Only for the rabbit to bolt away in terror the moment it sensed her.

She had forgotten one crucial thing—she wasn’t wearing the jade pendant her mother had given her.

Her Dragon Aura, undiluted and terrifying to all demonic beasts, sent them fleeing the moment they detected her draconic bloodline.

Even Nascent Soul Stage beasts ran in fear.

Dragons were the pinnacle of the demonic beast hierarchy.

And in their world, bloodline purity determined everything.

Li Nian’er, despite being only Nascent Soul Stage, carried true dragon blood. To weaker demonic beasts, she was an apex predator.

Annoyed, she summoned her Dharma Body—a fifty-zhang-tall, faceless entity with dozens of arms.

If the beasts wouldn’t stay willingly, then she’d just grab them herself.

Any beast that resisted got beaten into submission.

“Did you really think I was patient?!”

The Mortal World Celestial was similarly eager.

To her, Nascent Soul Stage demonic beasts, capable of shattering boulders with a swipe, were just cute little animals.

She loved animals.

And, naturally, they loved her back.

The moment she removed her black silk gloves, revealing a sliver of her bare skin, the beasts went wild.

They flocked to her from all directions, instinctively drawn to her presence.

She knelt down, stroking a fluffy little tiger cub with a gentle smile. “That was easy.”

“Yeah, real easy.”

Jiang Li nodded—before casually flying straight to the gate of the tomb, where three keyholes were embedded.

Then, without hesitation, he punched the door.

The entire thing shattered instantly.

The tomb and inheritance of the Master of Ten Thousand Beasts lay before them.