High Martial: I Grind Professions

Chapter 225: Chapter 156: The Ninth Layer is Achieved, a Phenomenon Arises

The voice wasn’t loud, yet it echoed clearly through the silent plaza.

After a second of absolute silence, the viewing area for the Nine Heavens Peak disciples erupted in cheers and applause far more fervent and proud than before.

A barely perceptible ripple passed through Peak Master Fang Qinghan’s deep eyes as he gave a slight nod.

The Peak Selection Ceremony had come to a perfect end.

With the ceremony over, the crowd began to disperse.

Li Wen didn’t linger. After a quick word with Fang Chenghong, he turned and headed for the airship hangar.

The plaza remained abuzz as each peak crowded around to welcome their new disciples.

Just as Li Wen was about to step off the edge of the plaza, a sharp gaze—filled with scrutiny and a powerful sense of challenge—landed on his back.

His senses sharp, Li Wen stopped and slowly turned around.

Dozens of paces away, Sun Rui—who had just made his choice and was now surrounded by several senior disciples from Nine Heavens Peak—was watching him from a distance.

There was no malice in the look, only the sharp spirit of a young prodigy testing his edge. It was like a newly honed blade drawn from its sheath, flashing with the burning fire of someone who refused to be left behind, vowing to catch up and even surpass him.

Time seemed to stand still.

The clamor of the crowd seemed to fade into the background.

A calm, gentle smile graced Li Wen’s face.

His smile held no condescension, nor the slightest hint of anger at being challenged. It was the look of a senior watching a spirited junior, a look of appreciation, of a clarity and conviction forged through many trials.

His eyes, deep as an ancient well, calmly reflected the sharp glint in Sun Rui’s.

Sun Rui seemed taken aback by the sharpness of Li Wen’s Spiritual Sense. A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, and his piercing gaze faltered.

Li Wen, however, gave him no opportunity to probe further.

Meeting Sun Rui’s gaze, the smile on his lips deepened. It remained gentle, yet seemed to carry an unspoken depth.

Then, as Sun Rui watched in surprise, Li Wen casually withdrew his gaze, turned, and walked away. His steps were unhurried as he crossed the white jade ground, his figure receding into the distance.

It was as if the defiant gaze of the young prodigy behind him—a gaze that could capture the attention of the entire plaza—was nothing more than a gentle breeze, failing to stir the slightest ripple on the calm lake of his heart.

To Sun Rui’s eyes, that departing figure seemed to be cloaked in an aura of profound mystery.

...

Time flew. More than two months had passed since the Peak Selection Ceremony.

「September 25th, 227th year of the Galactic Calendar.」

The first light of dawn streamed through the window, waking Li Wen.

His eyes opened, clear and profound, with no trace of morning grogginess.

After more than two months of daily tempering in the illusionary realm, the rock-solid barrier of his will had reached a state of perfection.

A profound premonition, clear as day, lingered in his mind.

’The breakthrough is today.’ Li Wen rose from the stone couch, his eyes flashing with sharp anticipation.

Three months of tempering and torment—all for this very moment.

After a special, energy-rich breakfast, Li Wen set out immediately.

He took an airship straight to the mountain peak where the Heart Mirror Hall—the place where countless disciples tempered their will—was located.

Inside the Heart Mirror Hall, the entrance to the Illusion Array stood silently, shimmering with a faint, flowing light.

Li Wen stepped inside, his expression serene. The familiar pressure of the illusionary realm surged toward him like a tide.

But now, his will was like tempered steel, utterly unshakable.

The myriad illusions built from past failures, fears, and temptations crumbled layer by layer before his absolute clarity and resilience.

With each step, it was as if his soul was being forged anew, the impurities burned away to leave only the purest essence.

Finally, as his Spiritual Power neared its boiling point and his consciousness was stretched to its absolute limit, the barrier that had blocked him for three months—the one between the 199th and 200th steps—shattered.

He took a single step forward. The illusion before him shattered like stained glass, revealing the true sight of the Heart Mirror Hall.

VMMM—

The instant he stepped out of the Illusion Array, the world itself seemed to clear.

Li Wen clearly felt a wave of sublimation, originating from the depths of his soul, wash over him.

His Spiritual Power, as if breaking free from invisible shackles, surged dramatically, growing far more condensed and pure.

Within his sea of consciousness, the three-foot-tall Primordial Spirit had silently grown a size larger. Its spiritual light was more brilliant, its form significantly more solid, and the power contained in its every gesture felt far more immense.

This moment marked his will’s true entry into the incredibly difficult Great Sun Realm.

It also fulfilled the prerequisite of will required to advance the Nine Heavens Divine Body to the Ninth Layer.

The surrounding disciples, who were either finishing their own tempering or waiting to enter the array, turned pale with shock as they witnessed Li Wen emerge successfully from its deepest part. Their eyes filled with disbelief and heartfelt admiration.

A will at the Great Sun Realm! That was a level that many even in the Bright Moon Realm could never hope to achieve!

Li Wen paid no mind to the astonished stares.

The opportunity for his breakthrough was here, and he wouldn’t waste a single second.

He swiftly left the Heart Mirror Hall and boarded the airship again, setting a direct course for Nine Heavens Peak.

Ten minutes later, the airship landed smoothly at the hangar at the foot of Nine Heavens Peak.

The hatch opened, and Li Wen shot out like a streak of pale cyan light.

His feet barely touched the ground before he launched himself forward. Without the slightest pause, he raced up the winding mountain path, moving so fast that he left only a faint afterimage in his wake.

Instead of heading directly to his destination, the Thunder Attraction Tower, he changed course and went to the training grounds first.

The grounds were wide open, and the morning wind howled.

Li Wen drew his long saber. He moved through the Dawn Five Forms as his heart willed, the light of his blade flashing—one moment like the silent daybreak, the next like a surging rainbow.