Chapter 105: Breaking the Formation

When she came back to reality, Miss Vilyric found herself standing once again in the enclosed, silent space.

Recalling the indescribable sweet sensation from earlier, the girl couldn’t help but show a bittersweet smile filled with complexity.

To be honest, although the test was so lifelike that it was nearly indistinguishable from reality, initially, the Priestess’s divine consciousness had already spread out and located her true form in the real space. Even if she couldn’t overcome her heart demon, she could escape using more forceful methods.

She merely wanted to see for herself what feelings and thoughts were hidden deep within her heart that she wasn’t fully aware of, just like earlier.

“Partners… was that really just a phantom conjured by my inner thoughts? Is it merely my heart demon playing tricks, or…”

Well, once she returns to that continent, she should have a proper talk with Liliya. This unannounced departure must have worried many people; she’ll have to consider others more in the future.

Putting away her swaying thoughts, Miss Vilyric’s exceptional physical quality as a member of the divine race quickly calmed her mind to a serene state.

She looked around.

Here was a vast, boundless hall.

The walls, floor, and ceiling were all a uniform black-gray hue, not made from piled bricks but rather resembling a solid forged metal—like being placed inside a huge triangular box, with not even a window cracked open.

The only two places connected to the outside were a conical entrance she had seen when entering and a small door located at the innermost side of the “box”.

“Aren’t the millions in the mortal world just passing clouds in the end? I see it clearly now; the ‘Gate of Humanity’ lives up to its name. I wonder which great being designed this ‘Formation of Six Elements’.”

Miss Vilyric once again scanned the empty space, deep in thought.

This place should be the outer area of the “Formation of Six Elements,” corresponding to one of the six doors. Every being entering the “Gate of Humanity” would undergo a test here; regardless of how the environment or scenes changed earlier, her true form had always remained unmoved in this spot.

In fact, Miss Vilyric had detected this when she first went through those seven trials. The essence involved was akin to the dream-pulling technique used by Mengrui and the flower demons on the Drea ship, only far more profound and complex.

This was the power to turn dreams into true “reality”.

However, since this was indeed the true space within the “Gate of Humanity”…

Putting aside whether that Princess Ling and the Peach Blossom Guards entered this door, the batch of outsiders that Miss Xiao Kong sensed earlier, including herself and Murong Yun, should also be subjected to tests here since they entered together.

Strange… Where did the others go?

Though puzzled, Miss Vilyric’s actions wouldn’t change; since she had passed the test of the “Gate of Humanity,” there was no reason to stay here wasting time.

The small door directly ahead had quietly opened when the last illusion shattered.

Since the exit door was open, it indicated she could leave now, but she recalled that Miss Xiao Kong had clearly stated that only after all six elements of the formation were cleared could those inside leave this space.

In other words…

Realizing something, she stepped forward.

Crossing through the door, she was met with an even more fantastical and bizarre scene, but this time, it was no longer an illusion.

All around her opened up; it was not the enclosed, blocked indoor space but rather as if one was placed amidst the ruins of an ancient battlefield.

The scattered bones of strange beasts lay everywhere, including massive creatures rivaling giant dragons, and also delicate remains about the size of humans—but they were all long dead. Under the wash of time and the ages, all that remained were these crushed, broken bones.

The ground was full of craters and flaws from various energy explosions, while a certain terrifying energy storm still circled above the space, casting the entire sky in a dusk-like, yellow hue.

And in the very center of this ancient battlefield…

The girl surprisingly spotted a magnificent giant pillar that reached from the ground, shooting straight towards the sky!

That pillar was several hundred meters wide, towering like a gigantic peak, its end piercing into the depths of the storm above. Although it was very far away, it still occupied a large part of Vilyric’s field of vision, like an actual majestic mountain that could not be ignored.

A sense of ancient and primal energy spread from it; just standing there at an angle made it the core of this realm.

The dusky light brought by the energy storm illuminated the world, and following this beam of light, Vilyric shifted her gaze to the adorable girl with short black hair and cute silver cat ears standing not far from her.

“Why are only you here? Where’s that Murong Yun guy?”

Miss Xiao Kong, who was also gazing at the mysterious pillar, turned her head, smiling at the newly arrived Miss Vilyric.

“You’re faster than I expected; timing’s just right. Looks like you view the seven emotions and six desires of the mortal world quite indifferently.”

The black-haired girl rolled her eyes.

“Don’t say it like I’m a monk! You still haven’t answered my question.”

Not minding the retort, Miss Xiao Kong casually returned her gaze to the towering pillar and said calmly, “That kid, Murong Yun, isn’t mature enough yet. He might make it through the trial of the Formation of Six Elements, but facing enemies here? Regardless of how much resolve he thinks he has or whether he’s conquered his heart demon, the absolute gap in power will likely lead him to one conclusion—becoming yet another corpse among these scattered remains.”

“He’s a promising human with good talent; it’d be a shame for him to die like this. That’s why I didn’t bring him here. He can’t pass the ‘Gate of Humanity’ as quickly as you did.”

Hearing this, Vilyric quickly understood.

“So you mean… Murong Yun is still undergoing the test? The Formation of Six Elements also contains multiple spaces that allocate each participant to independent environments?”

Miss Xiao Kong couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Otherwise? If both sides entered at the same time, what if one finished the test early and attacked those who were unsuspecting? You’d have to consider all sorts of situations.”

“I see. You seem very familiar with this place, whether it’s the Chaotic Great Secret Realm or this ‘Formation of Six Elements’.”

Miss Cat Daughter smiled again, as if now that she was alone, she had put down any pretense and spoke frankly.

“Of course I’m familiar, because this ‘Formation of Six Elements’ can be said to be my handiwork.”

She glanced at the equally calm silver-blue eyes of Miss Vilyric.

“Vilyric, you don’t seem surprised?”

The black-haired girl shook her head, noncommittal.

“After all, your performance was too conspicuous, whether in the abilities you displayed or in your understanding of this secret realm. The respect shown to you by the Peach Blossom Saint and others indirectly proves your extraordinary identity.”

“Especially the fact that you easily passed the ‘Gate of Humanity’ trial and arrived here early; it almost suggests your close relationship with the creator of the ‘Formation of Six Elements.’ If I couldn’t see that after hearing about the multiple spaces uncommon to regular people, I’d be pretty foolish.”

“Xiao Kong, who exactly are you?”

   

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