"Very well."
The beast-like phantom stomped heavily on the ground, its thundering strike echoing around them.
In an instant, both Lyon and the phantom disappeared from the fortress's top level.
Their surroundings shifted.
They reappeared beneath a massive set of stairs.
The stairs stood alone in the middle of space, leading upward to the only visible platform at the very top, resembling a pyramid.
Each step of the staircase was crafted from some sort of high-grade material.
It gleamed like flawless white jade, yet Lyon guessed that even if he unleashed his full strength, he wouldn't be able to damage it in the slightest.
"This is the Beast God Inheritance Staircase, comprising ten thousand steps. For a cosmic-level being, reaching the 800th step is enough to qualify for the inheritance," the phantom explained.
"This staircase was originally used for bestowing the Beast God General Inheritance, but it was modified by 'Zhou' before his death to serve as his own inheritance."
"After you pass the 100th step, the staircase will assist in amplifying both your godly body and soul."
"Furthermore, for every 1,000 steps you ascend, you'll receive one of the treasures left behind by 'Zhou' as a reward."
"Because in the earlier trials, your race, talent, and mental state were already tested," the phantom explained.
"On these steps, only your willpower will be tested!"
"Once you're ready, you can begin the challenge on your own. I'll be here waiting for you."
With that, the phantom sprawled out on the ground, watching Lyon like someone waiting for a movie to start.
"A thousand steps? Doesn't sound too difficult," Lyon remarked.
Without hesitation, he walked toward the staircase and stepped onto the first step.
On the first step, he didn't feel any pressure.
As he prepared to take another step, a brilliant white light suddenly projected from the top of the staircase.
The light flashed briefly before vanishing into Lyon's forehead.
Instantly, his mind was filled with new information.
The content was identical to the force-amplification manual the phantom had given him earlier.
The phantom's voice echoed, "The first hundred steps are meant to assist in mastering force-amplification techniques."
"I originally intended to bring you here if you encountered difficulties with those techniques, but clearly, you no longer need this."
Lyon muttered, "Didn't you say I'd be eliminated if I couldn't master it in a month? Would you really have brought me here?"
"Hm, did I say that? I don't remember saying anything like that..." the phantom replied, then suddenly started snoring like distant thunder, as if it had fallen asleep.
Lyon shook his head helplessly and stepped onto the second step.
As expected, just like the phantom had said, there was still no pressure.
He climbed a few more steps without issue.
Deciding to speed things up, he began taking large strides up the staircase.
It wasn't until he reached the 101st step that he felt a sudden weight, as if something heavy had been placed on his soul.
At the same time, two beams of white light descended from the top of the staircase.
One beam entered Lyon's mind.
The other materialized into a mysterious jade box in front of him.
The white light in his mind contained a secret technique called "Zhou's Divine Body", which consisted of 10 levels.
The description explained that the technique could be cultivated with the assistance of the staircase.
Each level corresponded to 1,000 steps.
Once fully cultivated, the technique could achieve a force amplitude level of 10,000 times.
However, now was clearly not the time for training.
Lyon shifted his focus to the jade box in front of him and opened it. Inside was a set of jet-black battle armor.
The armor appeared seamless, as if forged by nature itself.
Even as it lay quietly in the box, it exuded a mountain-like aura of immense power, as if it were alive.
The moment Lyon laid eyes on the armor, he felt a sharp pain, as though his eyes were being pierced—proof of its extraordinary power.
"This is a basic Supreme Treasure-level armor, meant as a bit of encouragement before your formal challenge begins… Hmm, you probably don't know what a Supreme Treasure is," the phantom, who had only been pretending to sleep, walked over and lowered its massive head to explain.
"A Supreme Treasure is the kind of artifact that even Law Venerables would envy and covet."
"This particular armor can make you immune to any attack below a standard Venerable level. It can also reduce damage from beings up to a Dominator-level Venerable to one ten-thousandth of its original force. It's incredibly powerful."
"However," the phantom added, scratching its large head, "there is a slight drawback for you."
Lyon looked up. "What kind of drawback?"
The phantom thought for a moment before answering. "To recognize it as its master, you'll need willpower at least at the Peak King Level."
"And once it recognizes you, activating it will require the strength equivalent to 10,000 times that of a standard World Lord to provide sufficient energy."
The so-called "World Lord's power" refers to the base strength possessed by a peak-level World Lord with a 1x gene base.
Lyon closed the box. "So, what you're saying is I won't be able to use this for a long time?"
The beast-like phantom seemed a bit embarrassed as it explained.
"Well, this fortress was originally designed to be buried in the Primitive Star, a place where even the weakest beings are Venerables."
"Even though 'Zhou' was a Master of Laws, he couldn't have foreseen that his fortress would end up with a cosmic-level inheritor before his death."
"Even those first hundred steps meant for training force-amplification were originally just decorative features, added to make the inheritance process appear more complete."
"That said, there are still several other heavy treasures in the fortress that serve as decorations."
"Once you pass the inheritance trials, you might want to give them a try!"
Heavy treasures, ranked below Supreme Treasures, are typically wielded by the most powerful immortals and low-level Venerables.
Lyon clicked his tongue in amazement. "Heavy treasures just as decorations... no wonder he was a Master of Laws."
"But you're saying this Supreme Treasure in my hands is a 'consolation prize,' so even if I fail the trial, I can still take it with me, right?"
The phantom gave him a peculiar look. "You haven't even officially started the challenge, and you're already assuming you'll fail?"
Lyon placed the jade box into his world ring. "Of course not. What I mean is, I'm going to succeed, so this 'consolation prize' is just extra."
With that, he confidently stepped onto the 102nd step.
The beast-like phantom stepped back and sat down once more, watching Lyon's challenge unfold.
Step 103, 104…
As Lyon climbed higher, the mental impact he endured gradually grew stronger.
However, from steps 100 to 600, Lyon's expression remained calm, and he ascended swiftly without any hesitation.
It wasn't until step 601 that his previously relaxed demeanor turned serious.
The phantom, observing from the side, even held its breath—despite not actually needing to breathe.
It muttered quietly to itself, "After 600 steps, the required willpower is at the domain-lord level. By 800, it's the peak domain-lord level. But he's only a 9th-rank cosmic-level being… This is too difficult, far too difficult…"
As Lyon continued climbing, fine beads of sweat began to appear on his face.
His body wasn't tired.
But the waves of mental impact crashing over him like a relentless tide left his mind utterly drained.
Step 701, step 702…
It felt as though a massive hammer was pounding into his brain, yet Lyon gritted his teeth and pushed forward.
As he took another step, the phantom behind him exclaimed, "751 steps! Well done!"
Lyon's vision had already begun to blur.
Large beads of cold sweat dripped from his eyelashes, falling into his eyes.
But that wasn't the cause of his blurred vision.
The real reason was that his mind had been stretched to its limit, forcing him to abandon all focus on the external world.
The unending mental impacts were like countless blades slicing through his soul.
The feeling of his soul being torn apart was so excruciating that it made him wish for anything but this agony.
With every step he climbed, the blades cutting into his mental world grew sharper.
Step 789, step 790…
Lyon was now crawling on the staircase, his body wracked with pain.
Yet, he continued to inch forward.
This trial was about willpower.
The so-called pain was not physical but rather a torment of his consciousness.
At this moment, the further someone could suppress the agony, the further they could go.
But Lyon's willpower was like a blade—unyielding and unforgiving.
He didn't accept or tolerate the pain.
In his mind, there was only one goal: reaching the 800th step.
All the pain rushing at him head-on was sliced apart in his mind!
His vision had gone completely dark, but his gaze remained sharp, fixed unwaveringly on the steps above!
Step 798!
Blood gushed from the corners of Lyon's mouth.
He bit into his own flesh, using the physical pain to counter the agony in his mind.
In the darkness of his consciousness, he imagined himself throwing punches.
The enemy was the pain coming straight at him.
Punch! Another punch!
Step 799!
Lyon's entire body was trembling. The sunlight flowing from the stars within his world ring constantly healed his body but could not repair the torment of his mind.
His consciousness had reached its absolute limit.
In the starry sky world, the gap between major realms was as vast as a thousandfold difference in power.
But Lyon, with sheer willpower, had traversed that thousandfold gap.
Now, only the final step remained.
Yet he could barely control his movements—lifting his hand felt nearly impossible. His raised right hand trembled violently in the air, as if it might fall apart at any moment.
"Sigh... so it's not possible after all, is it? Oh well, I guess I'll just go back to that dark place and sleep for another few billion eras," the beast-like phantom's voice echoed beside Lyon, tinged with deep regret.
"Little one, don't push yourself any further. The world ring and the Supreme Treasure are already yours. If you keep going, your soul will be damaged."
The phantom could see that Lyon's consciousness and spirit had already reached their absolute limit.
This little one's life thus far must have been full of unimaginable hardships.
To reach this point through sheer talent and willpower was already commendable.
However, Lyon gave no response to the phantom's recognition.
He had no strength left to speak. All his remaining will was spent roaring internally.
"No! I cannot stop here!"
"Just one more step! One more step! I must succeed!"
His will was sharp as a blade.
"Peak domain-lord-level will?!"
"How could that possibly stop me?!"
Inside his mind, Lyon raged and roared.
All of Lyon's beliefs twisted into an unbreakable rope, blocking the relentless mental impacts from the staircase.
At the height of his internal roar, it felt as though something deep within the sound shattered.
Deep within his genes, a spark of golden light suddenly ignited and rapidly spread throughout his entire body.
His genetic multiplier soared at an astonishing speed.
101x, 102x… 200x!
At the same time, his willpower underwent a transformative surge, growing exponentially stronger.
The agonizing pain that had felt like his lungs being torn apart and his bones being drilled suddenly became insignificant, barely noticeable.
He wobbled but managed to stand, and with a resounding step, he took the final stride.
800th step!
"What? How… how is this possible? Gene multiplier doubled, willpower advanced to World Lord level?!"
The beast-like phantom's incredulous voice echoed as it struggled to process what had just happened.
Lyon stood atop the step, staring at his hands in utter astonishment.
"That just now… was that a superhuman… innate ability?! How is that possible?"
__________
Read 15 Chapters ahead:
Patreon.com/LiveLifeLove