"My hallucination... something's not quite right here," Sen Lei muttered, a bit stunned."Huff! Huff!" The minotaur, its body a deep red and nostrils flaring with steam, stood before him. A massive golden nose ring was tightly affixed in its nostrils."This can't be... isn't this Grakka?!" Sen Lei took a moment to process. Can you imagine something you've only ever seen in a game materializing right in front of you? Sen Lei knew the feeling all too well.The minotaur lowered its body, powerful hind legs tensing."Moo! Moo!" It stamped the ground with immense force, a surge of energy propelling it towards Sen Lei.Sen Lei gripped his black bamboo tightly. "If I conjured you into this world, then I'll experience the thrill of clearing the stage once more!"The minotaur's power was around the second level of the Spirit Sea, with blood energy comparable to Sen Lei's.But Sen Lei didn't care.Holding his black, massive sword, he yelled, "Kazan Strike!"A yellow glow enveloped the sword."Cross Slash!" Sen Lei drew a blood-red cross towards the minotaur."Swish!" He finished the attack with a final slash.
The enormous crimson cross appeared before the minotaur.
"Shatter!" Sen Lei roared, and the second-level Spirit Sea minotaur shattered under the cross slash's impact. The fragments turned into streams of energy, swirling with a color identical to Sen Lei's blood energy.
Sen Lei knew the first level's baptism had begun.
Energy poured into him from above, cleansing his body of impurities, making him feel lighter.
Out of nowhere, Blood Spirit appeared in the void, clad in armor and standing behind Sen Lei.
"This world feels familiar," Blood Spirit murmured, puzzled.
It seemed he had been here before.
Meanwhile, Sen Lei felt his blood energy surge, with a small vortex forming on the blood-red seedling in his dantian, absorbing the incoming energy.
Sen Lei realized he was on the verge of a breakthrough, as the blood energy vortex had consumed all the spirit energy from the previous closed-door cultivation, including all the orbs and elixirs of the lone wolf.
This time, the influx of energy from the baptism triggered it all.
Sen Lei felt like he was soaking in a sea of energy.
Finally,
"Third level of the Spirit Sea!" Sen Lei opened his eyes, overjoyed.
"Breaking through a whole level on the first stage, with six more to go... amazing!" Sen Lei fantasized.
"Foolish master! Do you think the magic seed will return all the absorbed energy to you next time?" Blood Spirit's voice rang out.
"What the—! How can you come out now?" Sen Lei quickly turned to Blood Spirit.
"I can always come out, just not in the real world," Blood Spirit replied nonchalantly.
"...But could you at least give me a heads-up next time? You scare me every time!" Sen Lei protested.
"I can't!"
"Damn it!"
Outside, more people were being eliminated, leaving only the stronger ones.
If you were at the fifth level of the Spirit Body, the illusion's difficulty would multiply. However, if you were at the Spirit Sea, the difficulty wouldn't increase as much. This might be why the stronger ones found it easier to pass.
"Look! Sen Lei is moving! He's reached the second level."
"Finally, the guy moved. I thought he was going to sleep through the whole competition!"
People were surprised to see Sen Lei break through to the second level.
They paid only a bit of attention, as he was the last one remaining on the first level.
The crowd turned their focus back to the third level, where no one had yet broken through.
But then,
"Holy crap! Ye Hao's incredible! He's reached the fourth level!"
"Tied the record!"
"Amazing!"
On the viewing platform, Qingfeng and Su Xin sipped tea without a word.
However, Feng Wuyai's eyes glinted with cold light.
On the second level, the void brightened once more, and the endless starry sky reappeared. This time, the energy pressure made Sen Lei's body tense up.
"Indeed, the pressure on the second level is much higher!" Sen Lei felt the mounting pressure, but it exhilarated him, making his blood energy boil.
"Feels great!" Sen Lei exclaimed, sitting down cross-legged. He welcomed this pressure training, which could help consolidate his newfound level.
As Sen Lei activated the Blood Burn technique, blood energy began to surround him, and his hair started turning faintly white.
Blood Spirit observed, "It seems the second stage of Blood Burn won't last until master reaches the peak of the Spirit Sea."
On the fourth level, a blood-soaked man struggled against the immense pressure. The energy pressure here was four times that of the first level. He had reached the fifth level of the Spirit Sea, but the pressure increased as he progressed, and he was reaching his limit.
In front of him, a massive, bloodied long-tusked elephant also stood, battered.
This was his fourth-level challenge, a long-tusked elephant at the seventh level of the Spirit Sea.
Both were on the brink of collapse.
"Ah!" The man spat out blood, his body trembling uncontrollably.
With a fierce gaze, he stared at the elephant, "I, Ye Hao, am destined to become the brightest star on this continent! I will restore the glory of the East China Empire!" His trembling voice echoed.
"Demon Ape Transformation!"
Ye Hao's body swelled, and a demon ape silhouette appeared behind him.
"Shatter!"
The fourth level's illusion shattered with a roar.
Ye Hao stepped into the fifth level!
Outside, Qingfeng and Su Xin simultaneously looked up.
"The fifth level!"
Feng Tianya was equally shocked, never expecting the long-unbroken record to be shattered.
"But it's alright. This only shows his talent, but his cultivation speed still lags behind mine," Feng Wuyai reassured himself.
Regardless, he would try to befriend him. If not, well, he'd deal with it accordingly.
"Unbelievable, breaking the record like that!"
"Yeah," another cultivator nodded numbly.
"I think he's reached his limit. He's taking too long on this level, probably out of energy."
"Agreed."
Sure enough, a moment later, a bloody Ye Hao was transported out from the purple vortex.
Healers rushed to tend to his injuries.
Su Xin watched Ye Hao's bloodied figure and remarked,
"This boy is remarkable. Given time, he'll surely astound the continent."
Qingfeng nodded in agreement.
Later, Hou Chuxiao, Feng Wu, and Yu Chuyaner were also stopped by the fourth level's illusion and transported out, looking equally battered.
However, each had gained a level, reaping significant benefits.
All the peak Spirit Body cultivators were stuck at the third level, unable to advance.
Feng Jingsheng, Su Qianyi, Yu Chucheng, Li Si, Hou Qian, and others were all transported out.
These individuals were now eligible to compete for the final spots and rewards.
Feng Wuyai stepped forward,
"The first phase of the competition has concluded, with over twenty outstanding participants advancing. I—"
He was interrupted by the Great Fire Hall's Hall Master, Su Xin,
"There's still one more. Didn't you notice?"