As the forty participants stood surrounding that lone door, the atmosphere grew tense and heavy. Even Ma Xiuren had a heavy look in her eyes. The responsibilities she carried were heavy, but more importantly, her future would likely be decided by this.
This was their first and last chance. In the Earthly Beginning and Heavenly End Trials, being younger than 33,000 years was a minimum requirement. However, there was a restriction. You can only participate in the trial once a lifetime.
Ooossh!
Yan Zaizen and the others felt the tokens in their hands tremble. It was like holding a miniaturized earthquake.
The world suddenly underwent a drastic change. No more was the sky bright from the two suns drenching it, but dark clouds shrouded the skies. No lightning was emitted but sounds of crackling resonated.
Yan Zaizen felt the hair on his body rise. It felt like his body was experiencing a static charge. "This is?" He was bewildered and awed by the event. The sky grew darker and darker till the suns were no longer visible and all light was completely and thoroughly repelled.
Total darkness descended.
"Concealing the skies," Yan Zaizen looked at the clouds that were obviously not clouds. They seemed to contain some unfathomable laws that even he, as a Non-Entity, couldn't grasp properly.
Vroom!
A mechanical sound permeated the world. It wasn't particularly loud but everyone, regardless of their cultivation base, regardless if they were nearby like the participants or outside in the Worldships, heard this sound.
The door illuminated in a radiant light of gold and silver. It became like a sun, sending rays of light in all directions. It was so bright that Yan Zaizen could only see the light. The bodies or forms of everyone else disappeared from his vision. Then, his ears were consumed by that mechanical sound.
Before long, his spiritual sense no longer could see anything else but light or pick up anything else but that sound. As he tried to sense the life signatures of everyone, he found out there were no lifeforms around him.
No.
It would be more correct to say that the light being emitted from the door contained endless life that overwhelmed the life signatures of others. "This light...life laws are a part of it?" As he questioned, he realized that he could no longer hear Pinaka's voice or sense her presence. As if she was forced out of his soul.
This continued for what seemed like a thousand years but was actually a few seconds.
When the light faded, Yan Zaizen and the others were gone. The crowd was still there. However, if one looks at a few amongst the crowd, they would notice that they had their eyes closed. Their bodies radiated a faint trace of gold and silver light like the door.
Zhou Xiuhei looked around calmly, unperturbed by the series of events.
"Seems like they've comprehended a bit of the Sirius Laws. He must be quite happy to find a few members that could travel the Sirius Path." Shi Yan scoffed slightly, looking at Syi who stood far away with shining eyes as he looked about.
"The White Sirius Heavenly Monarch was truly unwilling to let his legacy die." Zhou Xiuhei commented. In the Heavenly Creation Realm, cultivators could produce their own law, then produce their own path, and if they could ascend the heavens, they could make it an eternal path. The True Spirit and Herculean was this type of path.
What the White Sirius Heavenly Monarch did was unusual. He established his own heaven, built his own law, and came to an agreement with the Heavenly Gods of the 27th Heaven to allow cultivation of it after his death. Therefore, the Sirius Path was not a true path. It could not be cultivated in other heavens, but those who've comprehended the Sirius Law could build shrines attributed to it.
With this shrine, they could utilize the law in any heaven. He may have failed in making his path eternal, but he made his law available to all. As long as his legacy is not destroyed, this law could exist perpetually. It was akin to a Dao Treasure, except even after death, it can be learned and practiced.
The Sirius Core Method was the White Sirius Heavenly Monarch conceptual law into the Sirius Law. Essentially, a guidebook on the law and the myriad arts of its founder. The fact Ezekiel was capable of stealing it from the clutches of his lineage denotes his extraordinary prowess and tactics.
"If we were in the same situation, wouldn't we do the same?' Shi Yan smilingly questioned. His eyes looking at the door that was no longer shining an iridescent light.
"I would," Zhou Xiuhei didn't hesitate to answer. For cultivators, their lives were to cultivate the heavens, to become its equals, and to exceed it. If they failed, the least they could do is allow their legacy to exist in perpetuity!
Shi Yan nodded, turning towards Bai Lufeng. Bai Lufeng's body emitted a faint trace of gold and silver light. He had a faint smile on his face as he waved his hand. Bai Lufeng vanished.
"It seems that you all truly are special." His words were mysterious in tone. With a glance at Tao who seemed absorbed in his own thoughts, Shi Yan smile grew wider.
-----
Yan Zaizen felt his body feel lighter than a feather. As a cultivator of his level, it was odd. After all, their bodies, if dropped from ten feet without control, his dense and powerful body could crush Mount Tai.
His feet touched the ground suddenly and the light that engulfed his senses faded. When it completely vanished, he looked around to see the forty other competitors who weren't far apart. However, they no longer had their original clothes.
"This?" Yan Zaizen checked his current attire. It was a golden martial art outfit. Completely gold. It felt like silk on his skin and looked like it too. The others had varying uniforms, some outfits were silver and others were golden. The styles differed slightly. For example, there was one golden attire that had light armor above it.
There was a silver attire with a cape, one with no shoes, and even one with long sleeves. He even found a girl who had no sleeves. She had outrageously large breasts in a similar way as Lang Xue and a fit body that trumped Lang Xue. From her pupils, Yan Zaizen knew she was a divine beast in human form.
Ma Xiuren attracted his attention even further. She had various flowers embroidered on her silver outfit, and her slim and graceful body truly accentuated her beauty. It complimented her countenance and black hair perfectly.
He couldn't help but appraise her. As if feeling his eyes, she turned towards Yan Zaizen and slightly smiled with a hint of awkwardness. Witnessing this, Yan Zaizen felt odd in his heart. It was like an admirer and suitor were trying to pursue a woman that didn't wish for his affection.
"When did I become the side-character who's interested in the girl but…" As he quietly lamented his circumstance, he recalled the stories he used to read. How the hero would destroy the handsome, talented young master in trials of fire and win the heart of the woman. Later, the younger master would be killed by the hero.
Thinking of this, he looked around to see several men that could fit the hero situation. However, one person, in particular, fit this even greater. It was a young man with black hair and black eyes, he was slim and rather handsome, but he could be overlooked. However, he had that aura of a rare once-in-a-lifetime genius.
From what he remembered, this man wasn't a part of the original forty. His slumber allowed him to gain a spot...this caused him to wonder.
His delusions aside, he looked at his hands. On the backside of them were two characters. The first one, on his left hand, was the character 'heaven'. His other hand had 'zero' character.
"A number?" He was curious about this. The number was drawn in golden coloring and seems to be etched onto his skin. As if it existed between the skin and muscles.
"Bajie, are you willing to make a bet?" The girl, who was big-breasted and fit, spoke with provocation in her voice. The man named Bajie was a divine beast, his hair was completely white but his skin was dark black in a similar way to Syi.
"..." Bajie had a cool expression. He didn't respond but looked elsewhere. In front of them, three monoliths that seemed to reach about twenty meters high stood.
Yan Zaizen recognized that this area was a sub-dimensional space. The walls were unseen, as if this was a world without limits. It was a flat ground with white floors and black sky. Despite the sky being black, the floors emanated a light that wasn't too strong. It was capable of allowing him to see all within his visual range.
"If I, Tayla, score higher than you on this test, then you'll have to be my husband!" The divine beast female, Tayla, spat out with vigor and greed. When she looked at Bajie, it was in a similar way to a man looks at a beautiful woman.
"..." Yan Zaizen felt like this knowledge of the world was turning upside down. This woman was a beauty that could rival Lang Xue with assets that many desired. Yet...she was trying to bet against a man to get HIS hand in marriage?
Shockingly, no one else had his expression. Some even had mockery on their faces when they looked at Tayla, as if SHE was overestimating herself.
Bajie nodded but didn't say anything in response. Tayla's eyes grew excited and determined. This was a small interlude, but it seemed to have sparked a set of bets.
A young man, handsome and dressed in light armor, spoke to another woman. He offered the bet to become married if he won in the same way as Tayla, and the woman insulted him. Many snickered but she later agreed, unwilling to believe herself inferior to that young man.
Yan Zaizen couldn't help but laugh a little. This event took place amongst four different parties, one of which even had two female divine beasts going after a human male. This truly shocked him. However, when he looked towards this man, he realized he had a slight resemblance to Shi Yan.
Before anything else could be said, a burly man with a body as ferocious as a mountain walked towards Ma Xiuren. This man was actually the Earthly Beginning participant of the Xiuhei force.
"Ma Xiuren, I challenge you. If I win, you'll become my second wife, but if I lose, my family shall give you their regalia! I can swear a heavenly oath!" This burly man shouted. The others looked over with interest. For some reason, Yan Zaizen felt a little angry at trying to make her your SECOND wife. Just as he was about to step forward, Ma Xiuren nodded.
"..." Yan Zaizen was caught off-guard. Was this a pretty standard thing to bet? Should he bet? If he did, to who and for what? In the end, he didn't do it. For one, he didn't even know what they were actually betting on and Ma Xiuren wasn't his.
Whenever they looked at each other, she would give him that awkward smile. It rattled his heart a little. As he thought of this, Pinaka's form appeared in his mind. "She was ejected from my soul?" Just as he was about to investigate more, a voice filled with ancientness as if it would be there and always will be resounded.
"Trial One: Trial of Source Potential - BEGIN!" Wisps of light emerged from the void and with speed that was too fast to react, it entered the participant's souls, Yan Zaizen included. Within this wisp was information about the trial.