High Martial: I Grind Professions

Chapter 222: Chapter 156: Ninth Layer Complete, Anomaly Arises

After some brief pleasantries, Li Wen wasted no time. His gaze fell upon the area in the center of the hall, which was shrouded in a soft curtain of light.

That was the entrance to the Illusion Array. The curtain of light was stable, indicating that it was ready for entry at any moment.

Li Wen nodded to the few disciples beside him, signaling the attendants to activate the Illusion Array.

Stepping into the Illusion Array, a familiar yet strange sensation instantly enveloped him.

The scene before his eyes became hazy and illusory, but Li Wen’s consciousness was far clearer and more resilient than it had been a year ago.

He took a step. The illusion’s deceptions were like a gentle breeze, having no effect on him.

He passed fifty steps. All sorts of low-level temptations and terrifying illusions arose, but they could not shake his rock-solid mind.

He passed one hundred steps. The disciples outside, still marveling at the entrance, only saw Li Wen’s speed barely slowing as he steadily advanced.

In just a few short minutes, he had taken a commanding lead, leaving the other six struggling individuals far behind.

”My heavens... So fast! It’s too fast!” a disciple couldn’t help but exclaim in a low voice.

”Incredible... Senior Brother Li’s mental fortitude is on a completely different level compared to a year ago!”

”Yeah, I remember he only made it to step one hundred and ninety in the last assessment. Looking at his speed now, I doubt even step one hundred and ninety-five will stop him... Could it be...”

The disciple’s tone was filled with disbelief.

「Inside the Illusion Array.」

One hundred and fifty steps.

The illusion’s difficulty increased sharply, beginning to dig into the deeper fragments of his memory and emotional fluctuations.

One hundred and seventy steps. A sudden, great fear assaulted him—uncertainty about the future, the possibility of losing everything.

One hundred and eighty steps. The pressure was enough to make an ordinary Super Martial Artist collapse in an instant.

Li Wen’s expression remained calm, his eyes as sharp as a blade.

For the past year, he had endured the painful torment of drawing down lightning. He had faced the baptism of the void’s wind tribulations during his Primordial Spirit’s nocturnal excursions. These trials had long since forged his will into steel, tempered a thousand times over.

Although these illusions were powerful, they were like waves crashing against a reef. The reef remained solid.

One hundred and ninety steps!

A year ago, when he reached this point, his spirit had been under immense pressure. In the end, the string of his willpower had snapped, and he had failed at the final hurdle.

At this moment, he only paused for a fraction of a second.

The terrifying illusion that had stopped him before reappeared—a vortex of ultimate destruction and despair, threatening to swallow him whole.

He clenched his jaw, veins popping on his forehead as sweat instantly broke out. But deep in his eyes, the flame of will, forged from countless sufferings, suddenly blazed to life.

’Break!’ It wasn’t a roar that escaped his lips, but a silent bellow on the spiritual plane.

One step. He firmly strode past the one-hundred-and-ninety-step mark.

Without the slightest pause, he continued forward.

One hundred and ninety-one steps... one hundred and ninety-three... one hundred and ninety-five!

At this point, the look of ease finally vanished from Li Wen’s face, and his brows furrowed tightly.

Every step forward was like climbing with the weight of an entire mountain range on his back.

The illusions before him became bizarrely fantastical yet incredibly real. They no longer just simulated pain and fear, but began to weave exquisite, perfect falsehoods tailored to the deepest desires of his heart.

The power to protect everything, the peace and comfort after humanity’s crisis was resolved, and even... a kind of eternal, great freedom.

This immense temptation, disguised as fulfillment, was more lethal than pure terror.

One hundred and ninety-six steps!

The deceitfulness and tenacity of the illusion rose by another order of magnitude.

He had to spend a long time Focusing his Spirit, mobilizing all of his mental faculties to analyze the illusion’s flaws as if solving a puzzle. This was the only way to find the true path through the layers of temptation.

It took him two minutes to take a single, difficult step.

One hundred and ninety-seven steps!

This step was like falling into an endless cycle of reincarnation, experiencing all kinds of familiar and profound scenes of ”failure,” repeatedly battering the foundation of his indomitable faith.

He guarded the core of his Primordial Spirit, like a man in a raging storm desperately clinging to a ship’s anchor. Sweat soaked through his back.

It took a full five minutes before he gritted his teeth, broke free, and took another step.

One hundred and ninety-eight steps!

The illusion at this step returned to the source, pointing directly at the most primal fear of survival—the verge of death.

Not just the annihilation of the physical body, but the dark nothingness where the soul and consciousness would be completely erased.

This ultimate fear, which struck at the very meaning of existence, sent waves of cold and a tearing sensation through Li Wen’s Primordial Spirit. On a spiritual level, it felt as if countless steel needles were piercing him simultaneously.

He drew upon his experience of facing destructive energy every time he drew down lightning, igniting the will to find life in death that was ingrained in his very bones.

He resisted, he analyzed... Fifteen minutes felt as long as a century.

Finally, his left foot lifted with agonizing difficulty, incredibly heavy, and fell onto the one-hundred-and-ninety-eighth step.

Now, only two steps remained! The end was within reach!

However, this step had consumed an unprecedented amount of his Spiritual Power, and his will was pushed almost to its limit.

When he set foot on the one-hundred-and-ninety-eighth step and a new illusion immediately descended, Li Wen felt an unprecedented wave of exhaustion and dizziness wash over him. His will to resist faltered for an imperceptible instant.

It was this momentary hesitation that allowed the tide of the illusion to instantly overwhelm his final mental defense.

BUZZ! A faint tremor emanated from the Illusion Array.

Li Wen’s steps finally came to a halt at the one-hundred-and-ninety-eighth step, moving no further.

Brilliant light flowed, and a gentle white radiance slowly sent Li Wen out of the Illusion Array.

He staggered a step before steadying himself. His face was pale from excessive exertion, and lingering terror remained in his eyes, but it was overshadowed by solemnity and a trace of... profound relief.

Outside, the minds of the few spectators absolutely erupted.