by Tinalynge
Previously the roads would have been cleared for the large sects making it possible to move quickly through the city, but now they had to hustle through the sea of people using their elbows and Ancestral Worldpower to force their way through everyone.
The walk through the city took at least five times longer than it had last time, and when they finally arrived, they were shocked to see that people were standing in lines.
Puzzled the head elders went forward to see what was going on while all the younger generation politely stood in a line.
It did not take long before the head elders returned with confidence on their faces instead of shock.
"The first trial is within one of the houses. I assume it is a type of endurance trial where you need to hold out for as long as possible. There are cultivators constantly leaving with dejected expressions on their faces because of this trial."
"Those leaving look pale and exhausted because they used up all their energy."
"Though it should be more than strength that one is tested on here. It does not seem as if it is strength determining how long someone can endure this trial. Some of those who are leaving have already comprehended four daos, while others have comprehended one or two."
"Since it is not a question about comprehension or power you will have a much better chance of passing as long as your mind is clear and you are determined."
The speech made everyone excited. If it was not strength that mattered then they truly did have a chance. Although they were strong, they were still the younger generation, and thus they were not as strong as some of the experts that had appeared who wished to become a Judge of Hell.
The line in which they were standing was slowly moving forward, but still, a full day went by before it was their turn to enter the building. During this day most of the experts were busy discussing what they thought the trials would be about or chatting about the experts around them. Although a day might seem like a long time, it was truly not that long when one was a God ranked cultivator especially considering that the majority of the younger generation were above hundred years old. Quite a few were above two hundred years old, and only a handful were below fifty years old!
Hui Yue was one of the few people below fifty years old, but no one, apart from Pei Ze and the head elders, knew exactly how old Hui Yue was. Based on his strength all of them assumed that he was around two hundred years old, but then again, no one knew the full extent of power he wielded.
Had they known that Hui Yue controlled three complete daos and that he could control Lan Feng's two daos, then they would be utterly terrified. Even without knowing his age, knowing that he was a member of the younger generation and that he had comprehended three daos was already outstanding. That was without mentioning all his other powers and skills, though, it seemed like these powers would be useless in the first trial.
It was finally their time to enter the house where the trial was taking place. The first people in were Hui Yue followed by Pei Ze and then Pei Feng.
The fact that Hui Yue was ranked first shocked everyone except Pei Ze and Pei Feng, both had assumed this would be the case as he was after all a third generation descendant.
But that Pei Ze was ranked above Pei Feng made Pei Feng grit his teeth. Usually, the two would have tossed a coin, and the winner would have gone first. But now, Pei Ze was automatically chosen in front of Pei Feng which made him feel incredibly angry and dissatisfied. This was because of Hui Yue’s influence. He did not need to do anything other than being by Pei Ze's side, and Pei Ze was already increasing his strength and solidifying his position within the sect because of this.
Entering the building, Hui Yue found that there were around twenty pillars of light and people were seated within these pillars. Everyone was seemingly in severe pain, some were even screaming out loud, but no sound could be heard in the room.
"Welcome to the first trial to become a Judge of Hell!" Yanluo's voice sounded out in the room as Hui Yue, Pei Ze, Pei Feng, and another few experts appeared in the room.
"There will be as many trials as needed to find the true Judge of Hell, but to become a judge it is very important to understand the pain of the punished souls. Enter a pillar of light, and you will experience the pain of every single punishment that is administered by the Courts of Hell. That is, obviously, with exception of the Tenth Court's Potion of Forgetfulness."
"Those who endure through the nine courts of torture will be allowed to enter the second part of the trial."
"You will feel as if you are dying time and time again; the pain will be severe, and the strain on your mind will be immense. You are free to give up at any time, unlike the souls who go through this punishment. Simply say stop, and it will all end, but if you do this you will fail the trial."
Hearing this, the faces of everyone turned slightly pale. Especially Hui Yue's face was not too pretty as he remembered every single punishment that Pei Ze had informed him about earlier, but even so, he was not going to give up.
"It is impossible to die, and so since I cannot die, I can live through the pain!" He mumbled to himself determined.
He had previously experienced the memories of his previous lives and knew what it was like to die. He had fought many battles and while fighting his body would become lacerated, wounded, and riddled with pain, but all of these were things he had overcome before.
Now that Wang Ju Long’s resurrection was before him, Hui Yue was not going to give up. He could handle some pain!
More and more people were being removed from the white beams of light. Seeing this, Hui Yue grit his teeth. He could not be scared of a bit of pain. Imagining Wang Ju Long who had sacrificed her life for him, he was certain that he could handle the pain and entered the closest beam of light.
Seeing Hui Yue move, the other members of the Celestial Sword Sect also started moving, entering one light beam after another. The last thing that Hui Yue heard before entering was Yanluo welcoming another set of experts.
Hui Yue did not instantly feel the pain of the different punishments from the Ten Courts of Hell; instead, he sat down and breathed a few times heavily before entering meditation.
The moment his mind relaxed, his entire body was enveloped by a scorching hot aura of energy which slowly penetrated through every single layer of defense and protection that Hui Yue had around his body. No matter how much he protected himself, it was impossible to minimize the pain from the hot energy that entered his body. This energy made every single cell feel as if it was currently being dipped in a hot volcano.
Although the pain was penetrating Hui Yue's body, his mind was completely calm. This physical pain was nothing compared to the pain he felt when he lost Wang Ju Long.
Thinking about her, the pain which was eroding his body seemed to become insignificant, and as soon as he overcame the pain, it changed in nature. The extreme heat turned to extreme cold, and the scorchingly hot energy which felt like it was melting every single cell of his body suddenly turned incredibly cold. He started feeling like frostbite was slowly setting in even to his very core, but the frost was just another extreme pain. This pain was not so different from the scorching hot pain earlier, and Hui Yue did not even flinch as the change appeared.
It was as if this energy could feel that Hui Yue would not succumb to the pain and thus the feeling changed once more. This time it was no longer a biting cold, but instead the feeling of being emerged in something heavy.
The scent of blood assaulted Hui Yue's nostrils as he felt his mouth fill with thick, warm blood. Although Hui Yue had his mouth closed, it was still being filled with blood, and all of it started to enter his throat. It slowly made its way through his body.
A heaviness affected Hui Yue as he felt the sudden change in the punishments, and his body was convulsing as a result of not being able to breathe. Although he was a God, and he could survive without breathing, this beam of light truly made him feel the pain of drowning, drowning in warm, thick blood.
Out of t
he three punishments so far, this was by far the most painful as it was impossible just to ignore it. This pain was also the one which had stayed the longest so far.
Although the pain was severe, Hui Yue kept his mind clear. He might be dying, but Yanluo had guaranteed that even though the pain was severe, no one would die. With this in mind, Hui Yue could persevere through the pain. Even when the world around him turned black, he stayed calm, and moments after, the scent and taste of blood completely vanished. The pain subsided, and Hui Yue could breathe normally for a short while. He had passed through the punishments of the First Court of Hell.
Chapter 560 - The Trial Continues
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Chapter 560: The Trial Continues
As the break in pain allowed for Hui Yue to catch his breath, Hui Yue was unsure if it helped to have this short time to breathe or not.
Although it was possible to take a breath and not be immersed in the pain, it also made it more difficult to face the pain that he knew was coming. If he had gone from this pain of suffocation to another pain it would be much easier to become numb to it, but this was obviously not allowed to happen; this small break in pain only served to make this trial all the more difficult to endure.
Hui Yue did not have any more time to think as his body tensed up, and he felt a knife cutting through his chest carving out his heart. Although the pain was indescribable, Hui Yue did not utter a sound. He was in the same seated position since he had sat down, but if one looked at his clenched hand, it was obvious that despite his calm appearance, he was in fact in severe pain.
By now the members of the Celestial Sword Sect were starting to falter. Some had already given up, but by the time their hearts were starting to get cut out many of them gave up.
Pei Ze and Pei Feng both had incredibly pale faces, and the palms of their hands were filled with sweat. Sweat was streaming down their foreheads, but even so, they persevered.
The head elders were not allowed inside the room because they were not participating in the trials, but they were all standing outside together with the elders of the other families. All of them were bragging about their geniuses of the younger generation saying how they would definitely pass the first trial.
"Tell me, this new member of your family, the bastard, how do you think he'll manage?" An elder from the Nightcrawler Sect asked curiously. Hearing the question, the elders from the Celestial Sword Sect, alongside the elder with soulforce, snorted in unison.
It was one thing to see scorn in the eyes of the Celestial Sword Sect after hearing this, as they would never doubt a member of their family, but to see the most esteemed head elder of the Nightcrawler Sect do the same puzzled everyone greatly. Had this head elder perhaps understood some of this Pei Yue's secrets?
"If we are talking about the younger generation then our hopes are on Pei Ze and Pei Feng." Pei Ziqi said honestly, "As for Pei Yue, no one knows how far he will go. Pei Yue is new to our sect, and although he has many means and abilities we don't know the nature of the first trial; thus we don't know if he can use his many abilities to pass it."
Pei Ziqi did not go into details about Hui Yue's abilities, but her words made everyone alert. It appeared that he had made a head elder acknowledge his abilities which was quite astonishing at such a young age, but when thinking about it, they too had to admit that Pei Yue actually had some ability. He had used some force to suck out the energy of other experts, something which could only be done with an overwhelming disparity between their powers. Thinking about that incident again, they realized he did, in fact, have some ability.
While the elders were busy discussing the capabilities of their younger generation, the youngsters were suffering immensely. Those who had not already given up were desperately hoping that the first trial was almost over.
Those that gave up all left the room, and their beams of light were taken by another hopeful cultivator wanting to become the new Judge of Hell.
As the members of the Celestial Sword Sect left the room, they entered the ground outside where the elders were waiting.
"Tell us, what is the trial about?" One of the elders asked, and all the other elders from every sect looked over as they were filled with curiosity.
The Celestial Sword Sect had arrived before all the other main sects, and thus their young generation was the first to enter the room and experience the trial. All the others were curious about it and hoped that they could get some information so that they could warn their youngsters and tell them how to prepare for the trial.
"It was hell," one of the young men shuddered as he remembered the pain he had to experience. "We experienced unspeakable pain. The trial is to endure through all the punishments that are administered in the different Courts of Hell."
"We only managed to get through the Second Court of Hell and had to give up when the third court’s punishment came. By the time we left only Pei Ze, Pei Feng, and Pei Yue seemed as if they would able to persevere past this court. Although Pei Feng and Pei Ze were covered with sweat, their determination is not normally strong, but... For Pei Yue, that freak, he did not even have a drop of sweat on his face. He looked as if he were just cultivating. Who knew he had such crazy willpower."
The young man was not used to talking with the elders, and he just blabbered about everything he had seen. He was proud of the two geniuses from the Celestial Sword Sect, so it was natural that he praised them unendingly. Though, the more he thought about the appearance of these two geniuses compared to Hui Yue’s, the more astounded he was by this newcomer’s endurance. Perhaps there really is a reason for him to be ranked higher than Pei Ze and Pei Feng in the hearts of these head elders thought the young man.
Everyone who had been in the room and seen Hui Yue’s face was able to see that Hui Yue was of another caliber than Pei Feng and Pei Ze. It was clear that his performance was many times more astonishing and although Pei Feng and Pei Ze were considered peerless geniuses of the Celestial Sword Sect, now a young man had appeared who might actually be more outstanding than them!
This shocked the young members of the Celestial Sword Sect and caused fear to appear in the other sects as they heard this youth recount his time in the trial. Even the Nightcrawler Sect was no exception; they were rather nervous because of the sudden emergence of a genius.
One peerless genius was all it took to make a family leagues better than another. If this Hui Yue truly became a genius amongst geniuses, a dragon amongst men, then he would bring the Celestial Sword Sect to newfound heights, heights gained by stepping over other sects.
Although the other sects were worried, none of them even thought about killing Pei Yue. These sects held sparring matches against one another and were always fighting to be the strongest sect, but in truth, all of them had a great friendship and alliances with one another despite their outward appearance of animosity. They needed their alliance not to be taken over by other sects and families, and because of this friendship, they did not fear that their sect would be overrun by the Celestial Sword Sect either. Although this sect could possibly climb to the top, they would still remember their friends.
Inside the chamber, the kind of pain that Hui Yue was going through had changed. He no longer felt his heart being carved out of his chest. Instead, he was feeling a scorching heat on his back, and his body was incapable of moving.
This kind of heat was different from the first. In the first punishment it felt as if his body had been thrown into a volcanic pit, but now he could feel his skin being roasted. He could smell the scent of roasted meat, and it was as if he were strapped to a furnace that was roasting him.
The pain was at first almost unbearable, but even so, Hui Yue held his voice and did not scream out. He imagined that the pain to come was even more severe, and he could not give up.
Soon he became numb to the pain, but even so, it continued. At the start of the trial, the pain would have subsided as soon as one overcame it mentally, but now that was no longer the case. One had to truly
experience the full penalty of the courts, and their bodies died time and time again only to be restored by the powerful Ancestral Worldpower within the beams of light.
This grilling was the longest of all the punishments so far. Hui Yue had been cooked for a full three hours before the pain started to subside and a moment of respite arrived. Hui Yue had managed to get through the Third Court of Hell, but although he could take a deep breath and relax for a moment, he knew that he still had quite a long road ahead of him. He had only managed to get through a few of the punishments.
As Hui Yue had a pause to breathe, he looked around only to see that the majority of the people he had seen in his last break were gone, and now new experts had replaced them. Some were familiar faces from the banquet while others were unknown experts. While he was looking around, he spotted a few experts from the Celestial Sword Sect looking very pale and distraught.
Pei Ze and Pei Feng were both still feeling the punishment of being grilled while the others had not gotten that far. It seemed that the amount of time one took in each punishment truly was different from individual to individual. Looking at Yanluo, Hui Yue noticed that the supreme expert was looking at him with a slight smile on his face. His eyes were sparkling with expectations, and Hui Yue understood that this King of Hell had a lot of expectations of him.