The moment he was fully submerged in the water, Yao Jun noticed that a stream of energy flooded into his body, sealing up all his Qi and preventing him from using it during the trial. After his Qi was sealed up, all light and sound swiftly vanished from Yao Jun's surroundings, the only thing remaining was the sound of his own heartbeat.

Yao Jun let the ocean drag him deeper and deeper into the abyss, an all-encompassing feeling of solitude and isolation quickly starting to sprout in his mind. Looking at how quickly this feeling entered his mind, Yao Jun guessed that there was likely an array hidden somewhere within this ocean, the entire ocean might even be the array. The fact that his Qi got sealed up when he entered the ocean also supported this guess of his.

As he allowed himself to sink deeper into the darkness he was also pondering over just how they were supposed to 'crawl out of' this abyss. As he came up with several different ideas, he slowly noticed that pressure had started to squeeze his body, slowly growing stronger as he sank deeper. It seemed like those who failed to crawl out of this abyss would end up being crushed to death by the ocean.

Shortly after Yao Jun noticed the pressure, a faint oval-shaped light appeared in the distance above him. The light was somewhat distorted and bent, looking like the light of the sun shining down into the ocean. This light was the only thing Yao Jun was able to see in this endless darkness, so he guessed that it had something to do with how they were to clear the trial.

He decided to straighten up his body somewhat, swimming towards the light. His Qi was sealed, so he could only rely on the physical strength of his body as he swam, resisting the pressure that was crushing down on him from all sides. As he got closer to the light, the pressure around him started to slowly weaken, but this only caused Yao Jun's vigilance to rise. He refused to believe that the trial was as simple as this. If it truly were this easy, it couldn't even be called a trial.

He stopped right in front of the light, trying to check if he could see past it. But all he saw when he looked into the light was a blinding brightness, it was impossible to see if the surface of the ocean was past this light. There was nothing else around him, and since the trial was that they had to claw their way out of the abyss, Yao Jun decided to try passing through the light.

He easily swam through the light, the blinding brightness fully overtaking him as all the pressure around him vanished. But the pressure wasn't gone for long, nor was the brightness there for long. The moment Yao Jun's entire body entered it, the light suddenly vanished.

What replaced the light was a darkness that felt even more oppressive than the one Yao Jun had just been in as he sank into the ocean. The pressure also returned, even stronger than it had been when Yao Jun first started to swim towards the light. Yao Jun tried to look around, but just like it had been when he sank into the ocean, the darkness was so thick that it was impossible to see even the slightest thing.

Just as Yao Jun was pondering over what to do now, another faint light appeared above him, this time it seemed to be even farther away than the previous one. Looking at the light that had once again appeared, Yao Jun felt like he was starting to realize just what they had to do to clear this trial.

But he wasn't quite certain in his guess, so he once again swam through the darkness and headed for the light, the act of resisting the pressure as he swam through the darkness slowly sapping away at his stamina and strength. After swimming for a few minutes, he once again arrived by the light, this time swimming into it straight away.

Once again a blinding brightness overtook him, and once again it swiftly vanished and gave way to an even more oppressive darkness and an even stronger pressure. Yao Jun waited for a short moment, sinking deeper into the darkness with each passing second, until finally, another faint light appeared above him. Looking at the light, which was the only thing visible in this darkness, it seemed to call to Yao Jun, like a sweet whisper that promised him all things in existence.

Seeing this scene, Yao Jun grew even more certain that his idea was correct. The voice that spoke up before the trial said 'Prove your determination and worth, sink into the abyss and claw your way out of it'. Looking at what was going on now, it seemed like if one wanted to clear this trial, they had to swim to that distant light time and time again, resisting the ever-growing pressure as they showcased their determination to escape the abyss.

Yao Jun couldn't be completely certain that this guess of his was correct, but based on what he had seen and experienced, he felt that it was the most likely answer. And so, he once again started to swim through the darkness, heading for that faint light in the distance.

He quickly reached the light and swam into it, once again ending up even deeper in the darkness, the light appearing even further away. Once again Yao Jun started to swim for the light, once again entering it and ending up even deeper in the darkness, the pressure crushing down on him. He did this again and again, swimming through the light only to end up even deeper in the darkness.

No matter how many times he entered the light, he would always end up in the darkness, surrounded by nothing but loneliness and crushing pressure. It seemed so hopeless, entering the light only to end up even deeper in the darkness. But Yao Jun didn't give up, he continued to swim through the darkness and entering the light. Even when his bones felt like they were breaking, even when his flesh felt like it was tearing from the pressure, he continued to head for that distant light.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Swimming through the darkness like this reminded him of the first time he met Guo Luo, back when he was captured by the Guo clan and they tortured him in an attempt to force Yun Yantian to go along with their demands. He had come up with two plans for escaping back then, one was using his blood as lubricant to slip out from the handcuffs and then doing his best to flee. The other was to just enter his God Gate and hide within it, hoping that they wouldn't notice him.

But both plans were flawed and poor, highly unlikely to succeed. The first plan was unlikely to succeed as he would have to flee through the compound of the Guo clan, which at the time housed people far stronger than him. And the second one was even worse, as the people from the Guo clan would be able to enter his God Gate if they noticed it. Not only would they get their hands on him, but they would also discover how strong and special his power was, making the situation even worse.

Back then, Yao Jun felt like he had fallen into a horrid abyss, the torture causing him to sink further into it. But even in that abyss, there had been a faint light, Guo Luo. She talked to him, snuck him food, she treated him like a human being. Yao Jun was unable to even guess how he might have turned out had Guo Luo not been there by his side.

But just like the light in this abyss only led into even deeper darkness, so too did the light that was Guo Luo. He had escaped the abyss thanks to her and then brought her away from the Guo clan as he fled, resulting in the two traveling together. And then, then Yao Jun started to fear. What if something happened to Guo Luo? What if she was hurt? What if he was unable to protect her? What if he was forced to watch as something horrid happened to her? These fears mixed together with the fears that he already had, the fear of losing his parents and those close to him, turning into a new abyss. He had escaped from the abyss that was pain but ended up entering the abyss that was fear.

In the abyss that was fear, Guo Luo was both the light and the darkness, her happiness being the light and her pain and torment being the darkness. But even though Yao Jun knew this, knew that even if he ever escaped that abyss he would only enter a new one, he still continued to chase that light. The reason he continued to chase that light was the simple fact that any warmth and light he got from Guo Luo far outshone any darkness that Yao Jun could ever encounter.

There was also another fear that compromised the abyss that was fear, the fear that Yao Jun wouldn't be good enough for Guo Luo. He knew that Guo Luo was actually far kinder than him, had it not been for him, she would likely never have killed anyone. Compared to her bright light, Yao Jun was more akin to the abyss around him, killing without remorse.

He would occasionally save people if he saw them in need, but he didn't save them to be good, he saved them because he himself would feel a bit bad if he just left them. If it were Guo Luo, she would save them because it was the right thing to do. But even though they were so different, Yao Jun continued to chase after that light, allowing it to illuminate his darkness and keep it at bay.

Just like he continued to chase after the light that was Guo Luo, he continued to swim for the sole light that was present within the abyss of this trial. Blood started to pour out of his orifices because of the pressure, but he simply ignored it and continued to swim. If there was one redeeming quality to Yao Jun, it was his unyielding determination that continued to push on no matter what.

And thanks to this stalwart determination, it didn't take long before Yao Jun had entered the faint light a total of 99 times. When he entered it for the 99th time and it vanished around him, he suddenly felt his feet touch soft ground. The area around him was still completely dark, but it seemed like he had reached the bottom of the crimson ocean. He raised his head, his gaze landing on a faint light that was barely larger than a tiny dot. He pushed his tired and empty body, forcing it to swim upwards once again, heading for the dot of light.

After swimming for over two hours, he finally reached the faint light and swam into it for the 100th time. As he swam into it and was surrounded by a bright light, the hoarse voice that announced the trials once again rang out in his mind.

"Gehehe, quite the determination you got there. No matter how hopeless it seemed, how much darker it got whenever you entered the light, you still chased it like a moth heading for a fire. That's the guts a cultivator is supposed to have if he wishes to transcend the heavens, so take pride in those guts. Now you just have to clear the last of the trials I have left here and then you will receive one hell of an opportunity. Give it your best, kiddos!"

After the voice sounded out, the energy that had sealed up Yao Jun's Qi vanished, allowing him to use it to replenish his drained stamina and ease his aching limbs. He could feel space around him distorting, so he guessed that he was being sent to the location of the final trial.

When the bright light vanished, Yao Jun found himself standing on another bloody prairie. This prairie wasn't as empty as the two first ones, there were a few jagged and sharp mountains stretching towards the skies and a few bone-like trees covered in branches that resembled contorted spikes were spread around the area.

There were currently quite a few people sitting on the prairie, resting and restoring their energy, at least 3000 people. The six Earthly Deities that Yao Jun had seen before he entered the crimson ocean were, of course, present, the trial unable to kill them. While Yao Jun was scanning the area, the hoarse voice once again rang out in his mind.

"The last trial will start in 10 days, so make sure you rest up before then. The last trial is just as simple as the second, of all the people gathered here, I want only four to remain in the end. Show your strength and bloodlust, reign supreme over all your enemies."

Yao Jun's expression sank slightly when he heard the voice. All these people had to be reduced to only four? With six Earthly Deities here, just how much chaos would start in 10 days? Yao Jun let out a deep breath and found a spot where he could sit, he would have to make sure he was at full strength once the last trial started.