Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 627 - Tenth Level

No one could rival Liu Wuxie in proving people wrong and embarrassing them. When everyone was speculating how long it would take Liu Wuxie to make it through the seventh level, he was already at the entrance to the eighth level before everyone could finish their speculation.

"This is too much! This is no different from bullying!" exclaimed one of the disciples who dropped out. Liu Wuxie's performance was a massive blow to them.

Even the Azure Crimson Gate and Grand Banner Gate stopped mocking Liu Wuxie and fell silent. Every time they were proven wrong, and they all felt a burning humiliation creeping up their faces that made them uncomfortable.

The Grand Vajra Array was a challenge to the other disciples, but Liu Wuxie was a monster. His physique was comparable to the Nascent Transformation Realm, and such an array couldn't stop him.

He breezed through the spiritual arrays without stopping. If anyone were to witness his progress, they would be shocked by the fragments left on the pathway.

The eighth level belonged to the Demonic Heart Palace. Their spiritual arrays were famed for being bizarre and sinister, making them tougher to deal with.

A cold wind brushed against Liu Wuxie's face. He remained vigilant, every hair on his body standing on end as his instincts warned him of danger.

It wasn't because the Demonic Heart Palace wanted to kill him but because the spiritual arrays here were capable of hurting him. He didn't enter carelessly and used his divine sense to examine the spiritual arrays.

Unlike the other levels, the spiritual arrays set up by the Demonic Heart Palace felt like a ferocious beast that could devour others, and stepping inside would feel like entering the abyss.

When Liu Wuxie's divine sense entered, it was devoured by a mysterious force, leaving his attempts ineffective. With no choice, Liu Wuxie could only resort to using Ghost Eye. His sight pierced through the darkness, straight to the spiritual array's core.

"An Evil Spirit Array!" Liu Wuxie was shocked. He didn't expect that the Demonic Heart Palace would set up such a vicious spiritual array. This spiritual array wouldn't harm the body but targeted the primordial spirit.

This meant the evil spirits would devour Liu Wuxie's primordial spirit and force him to withdraw from the trial. If a cultivator's primordial spirit weren't stable, recovery from the injury would be impossible, making it tough to take another step in the cultivation.

Then again, it wasn't surprising that the Demonic Heart Palace would set up a vicious spiritual array to obtain first place on the Spiritual Array Tower.

"He has been standing outside the pathway for five minutes now!" Someone finally spoke after waiting for five minutes. After all, Liu Wuxie had never stood outside the pathway for more than five minutes on previous levels.

"I heard rumors that the Demonic Heart Palace is aiming to get first place this year. Even the Heavenly Origin Sect will have difficulty navigating the traps they have laid down. This young man could be in real trouble now," someone in the crowd muttered.

The Demonic Heart Palace had publicly declared they planned to overtake the Transcending Plume Gate and Heavenly Origin Sect this year to obtain first place. If they really managed to get first place in this Ten Grand Ceremony, it would spell disaster for the Southern Province as countless people might turn to become demonic cultivators. It would definitely change the entire layout of the Demonic Heart Palace.

Seven minutes passed, and Liu Wuxie still waited outside the pathway.

"What is he waiting for? Move!" Elder He said anxiously. Bai Yuan was catching up as he faced no obstacles on the Azure Crimson Gate's level. The Indigo Cloud Gate had a good relationship with the Heavenly Origin Sect, and the seventh level would be easy for him. This meant he would soon reach the eighth level.

Liu Wuxie withdrew the Ghost Eye, and a powerful shield appeared before him, protecting his entire primordial spirit. He then strode forward and stepped into the pathway.

When he took the first step, he could hear ghostly wails in the air coming from the surroundings. Those with weak resolve would surely be frozen in fear.

Moreover, various zombies and skeletal heads began to appear on both sides. If they weren't careful, the sudden attack could strike them down. In addition to the restriction in the spiritual array, this made each step a struggle.

A strange scene unfolded, and Liu Wuxie began to circulate the Soul Forge Art. The dark energy burrowing into his soul sea began to ignite, transforming into soul energy that merged into his soul sea.

"What's going on? Can the Soul Forge Art absorb other soul energy to strengthen my own?" Liu Wuxie was stunned in place. He realized that he had only touched the surface of the Soul Forge Art. The appearance of the flames brought to mind the Soul Forge Art's third move—Soul Fire.

The flame earlier was Soul Fire, capable of igniting the souls of others.

"So...the reason I can't comprehend Soul Fire isn't because I lack talent, but my soul energy isn't strong enough." Liu Wuxie finally understood the strict requirements of the Soul Forge Art. Only those whose soul energy was strong enough could practice Soul Fire.

Countless ghosts were imprisoned here, their primordial spirits captured after being killed by the Demonic Heart Palace and placed here. The evil spirits would devour any living being to strengthen their primordial spirits, so they attempted to charge over at the sight of Liu Wuxie.

In the end, the evil spirits became Liu Wuxie's feast. With each one he absorbed, his soul energy grew stronger. The increase in his soul energy, in turn, further reinforced the strength of his Soul Shield.

The barrier around his primordial spirit grew larger and more realistic. As this continued, Liu Wuxie's pace quickened after he devoured all the evil spirits in the pathway.

When Liu Wuxie left the eighth level, he still wasn't satisfied and even considered going back to go through the spiritual array once more. But he gave up on that thought after thinking twice.

"H-He came out like that?" Everyone was stunned, looking at how nothing could stop Liu Wuxie.

"Sect Master, we lost over seven thousand evil spirits," an elder reported. The Demonic Heart Palace's elders maintained the evil spirits and had a strong connection with them. Thus, they could sense their disappearance.

"I'm growing more curious about him now," said the Demonic Heart Palace's sect master. He was shrouded in a black robe, and only his green-glowing eyes were revealed. After all, it was rare for anyone to absorb evil spirits.

Elder He finally felt a wave of relief after seeing how Liu Wuxie made it through the eighth level. The ninth level belonged to the Transcending Plume Gate and was only second to the Heavenly Origin Sect. This meant that the spiritual arrays they set up were even more formidable.

Bai Yuan also faced difficulties on the eighth level, and his speed slowed significantly. After an hour, he was still struggling on the eighth level, and it wouldn't be easy for him to catch up to Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie's eyes snapped open when he stood on the ninth level's pathway. After refining over seven thousand evil spirits, his soul energy was comparable to the Nascent Transformation Realm.

"This is great! Absorbing so many evil spirits will be greatly helpful for what lies ahead."

With a more powerful soul energy, he would have an advantage in spiritual arrays, alchemy, and blacksmithing. If he hadn't absorbed so many evil spirits, dealing with the spiritual arrays on the ninth level wouldn't be easy.

Now that his primordial spirit had grown stronger, everything became clearer. The spiritual array up ahead was like a stunning beauty, fully stripped before his eyes. The effects of Ghost Eye grew stronger, and his soul energy strengthened.

Liu Wuxie slipped through the spiritual array like a raccoon. He couldn't be bothered to break the spiritual array and waited for the spiritual array to activate before vanishing.

This was like an arrow shot out from the wall, and Liu Wuxie had vanished before the arrow could reach him, causing that arrow to plunge into the wall on the other side.

By merging his soul energy with speed, Liu Wuxie achieved complete unity between the body and soul.

The human body often struggles to keep up with the mind, but this could be achieved after attaining complete unity between the two.

Liu Wuxie spent only three minutes on the ninth level and reached the last level. He had only taken slightly over an hour on all the previous levels. Liu Wuxie made it to the tenth level while others still struggled on the fifth level.

As the Heavenly Origin Sect had set up the last level, Liu Wuxie didn't dare to be careless. He knew the Heavenly Origin Sect would surely set up a deadly trap here to end his journey. After all, the Azure Crimson Gate was the perfect example of someone who had tampered with the spiritual array.

The Heavenly Origin Sect’s disciples, who had exited the tower, stared at Liu Wuxie, paying attention to his every move. This was the climax because if Liu Wuxie could make it through the tenth level, Bai Yuan would lose all the limelight regardless of his performance. His title as the strongest prodigy in Southern Province would also become a joke as someone in the first level of the Astral River Realm would have defeated him.

"Don't worry; he's doomed." A cruel smile rose on Wang Ba's lips as he activated the change on the tenth level with his divine sense.

Liu Wuxie frowned as his divine sense wandered in the spiritual arrays on the tenth level, and he naturally sensed the sudden changes.

"Heavenly Origin Sect, you're forcing me. Don't blame me for fighting back since you've taken it this far," Liu Wuxie muttered with a cruel smile. He naturally wouldn't stand idly by since the Heavenly Origin Sect wanted him dead, and his retaliation would start.

Liu Wuxie began to retrieve a handful of array flags from his interspatial ring. Each was no larger than an adult's finger and almost imperceptible.

Anyone would be shocked if they knew what Liu Wuxie was trying to do. He carefully walked forward, spreading his divine sense and Ghost Eye.

After walking about ten steps, a flag vanished from his hand. He began to form hand signs and concealed the array flag in a hidden corner of the spiritual array. The concealment was so meticulous that even the True Profound Realm powerhouses couldn't detect them.

After advancing to the Astral River Realm, Liu Wuxie unlocked access to a wider range of techniques and abilities.

"Bai Yuan is almost there! He can overtake Liu Wuxie if he enters the ninth level!" The Heavenly Origin Sect disciples began to cheer. They didn't want to see Liu Wuxie the first to complete all ten levels in the Spiritual Array Tower.

As Bai Yuan was a disciple of the Heavenly Origin Sect, the spiritual arrays on the tenth level were easy for him. This meant he could easily complete the trials in the Spiritual Array Tower if he made it through the eighth level.

Liu Wuxie pressed forward along the pathway, the number of array flags in his hand steadily diminishing with each step.

"What's going on? Why isn't the spiritual array working?" Wang Ba's face was terrifyingly grim that the spiritual array he had set up was ineffective against Liu Wuxie.

Bai Jin turned to look at Wang Ba coldly, disappointed in the latter for making such a mistake.

"Sect master, I assure you that I have activated the lethal array, and this makes no sense!" Wang Ba explained.

Bai Jin trusted Wang Ba's words, as he had personally verified the spiritual array. This left only one conclusion: the issue was Liu Wuxie. Somehow, the spiritual array had failed to pose any threat to him.

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