The clouds behind the barriers dispersed, and broad stairs appeared in front of everyone’s eyes.
The stairs looked like a bridge that connected the sky and the earth; the end closest to them was at the garden, but the other end was in a temple of the divine residence thousands of kilometers away.
The world inside the divine residence resembled the void. Lonely temples were floating like islands. They were mysterious and glamorous, with vague starry formations appearing now and then.
The divine residence wasn’t as beautiful and enjoyable as everybody had expected. Instead, it was eerily quiet, as if it were already a wasteland!
“The divine residence… isn’t close to us at all!”
“It must be the power of a law. No, it may be the power of a deeper level, something we can’t comprehend…”
“Why am I feeling the scent of death? My ghoul is agitated. Something seems to be hiding here!”
“There may be ancient traps in these remains. Everybody, be careful,” someone reminded the group.
All the Star Lords were suspicious and solemn. They didn’t see any danger, but they somehow felt the chills, as if they were in the middle of a graveyard at night.
There’s another barrier!
Inside the small world, Su Ping keenly noticed the traces of an invisible array.
At this moment, there was a change in the faces of the two Star Lords who had just cracked the barrier. One of them whispered, “There’s another barrier!”
“Huh?”
A few of the other Star Lords were stunned, their faces showing concern.
The rest, however, didn’t show any surprise; they also seemed to have noticed it.
“Since you’ve already charged us for the service, why don’t you crack that too?” suggested one of the Star Lords.
The other Star Lords quickly nodded; all of them were unwilling to pay a second time.
The two men didn’t intend to charge either, mainly because they realized that the second barrier wasn’t as complicated as the first one.
“Let me do it,” said the fatter of the pair and instantly broke the array.
Astral runes appeared and fitted the ripples in the void like keys. The revolving streaks looked like a huge plate.
The ancient illusion array was dissolved in only fifteen minutes.
As the array was dispelled, the world revealed its true appearance, as if a curtain had just been lifted.
The noisy crowd became silent when they saw the real view.
Everybody held their breath and widened their eyes in disbelief!
The views were the same!
The palaces were still there, and a bridge-like flight of stairs.
The only difference was that bodies were scattered everywhere in the void!
All those bodies had died in battle, or other miserable ways!
Some were small humans whose blood was already dry, and some were beasts that were as massive as mountains; the blood covering their furs was already rigid!
Only skeletons remained of other bodies, while others looked half rotten.
This silent place of the deities was full of bodies!
Everybody felt like their blood was freezing. Is this the true view inside the divine residence?
Some of the less courageous men in the Star State trembled, weak in the knees.
Su Ping had a stern look. What happened in this ancient divine residence? Did all the owners of these corpses perish together with this place? Or do they belong to previous intruders?
Far in the distance, the rogue Star State cultivators who had dug the soil in the garden approached them and were just as astounded by what they saw.
After several minutes of silence, a Star Lord stepped forward and said, “Since the barrier is already broken, I’ll go first!” Then, he jumped across the void into the area where bodies were floating.
He pushed the still bodies away with his astral power, before he flew towards the temples.
The bodies moved away easily, giving way to his prodding. They couldn’t be more dead.
The others snapped out of their stupor after seeing one of them take action. Although shocked and intimidated, their greedy nature made them move forward at a fast speed.
The world behind the barrier was vast. They didn’t have to stick together any longer, and could search for their own treasures.
Boom!
Suddenly, a thunder rumbled, and someone roared.
Everybody looked. They saw that the Star Lord who had moved first had flown above a cliff; a lightning bolt appeared before him and struck.
The Star Lord performed multiple attacks to offset the lightning, but he was still thrown back hundreds of meters.
“What’s going on?”
Everybody was surprised by the uncanny lightning strike. Other than Su Ping and the purple-robed young man, all of them were in the Star State and could easily tell that the lightning contained the strange Heavenly Tribulation power. It wasn’t normal lightning.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
More and more Star Lords pushed the bodies away and reached the cliff. Some Star Lords quickly noticed the anomaly and said, “There seems to be a strange law locking this space. No, to be more exact, this is the space of another world that we’re not allowed to enter!”
“How is it possible? When a person dies, his small world collapses, unless the master of this space is still alive…”
“Maybe he sealed his small world in this place when he was still alive. Maybe… We’re already in the small world that the master of the divine residence constructed.”
“I heard that Ascendant State small worlds exist forever. This should be an example.”
The Star Lords gathered at the cliff and whispered to each other.
“Why has nothing happened to the bodies?”
Someone noticed that a lot of bodies—including those of dragons, phoenixes, humans and giant beasts—were floating above the cliff. All of them had been mutilated; some had broken wings, some had a hole on the chest, and some looked like specimens in iron water.
“Weird…”
“Is it because they’re dead? This law can distinguish the living and the dead. It seems that it’s not just one law, but a complete path that contains many laws.”
“Let me have a try.”
A Star Lord suddenly invoked a creature that emitted the horrifying air of the undead. It was hideous, made of rotten flesh and bones.
The pet roared, and several skeletons rose from the ground. The skeletons had wings on their backs and sabers in their hands; all of them were strong, senior skeletons.
It was also of note that the summoning didn’t use the bodies on the ground; it was an advanced technique.
Whoosh!
The summoned skeletons instantly flew beyond the cliff.
But the moment they did so, several lightning bolts struck them to pieces; their remains fell deep under the cliff.
A cold wind was raging from the depths, as if some horrifying being was blowing at them.
“All of them were undead creatures, but they can’t move forward. Why?”
Some Star Lords frowned, as their conjectures had just been disproved.
The summoned skeletons were no different than the other non-breathing creatures. It was weird to find that they had also triggered the Heavenly Tribulation.
Inside the small world—
Su Ping frowned and looked at the floating bodies with horrified expressions.
“Is this even a divine residence? I feel like it’s no different from hell.”
“So many bodies have been preserved for such a long time. Is it because of the barrier, or because they were too strong when they were still alive?”
Shennong’s Three Punches and the others whispered, slightly intimidated by the bodies around them.
I think that all those bodies… died by suicide.
Su Ping observed the bodies and felt cold.
At this moment, outside of the small world, the Star Lords tried many different methods. Some who mastered the laws of darkness attempted to cover themselves with the power of the undead, but they were still seen through and struck back.
Some tried to weather through the Heavenly Tribulation. It worked at first, but when they moved dozens of meters forward, the lightning strikes became so powerful they had to go back.
At this moment, some Star Lords noticed the stairs above the abyss.
“Huh? There’s Heavenly Tribulation on the stairs too, but not as powerful.”
Some Star Lords started to climb the stars and were moving forward.
The same Heavenly Tribulation was affecting the stairs, but it was less powerful and could be resisted.
The rest decided to try the stairs upon seeing that.
Boom!
A Star Lord was trying to climb, but then a fierce lightning bolt struck him. It was as powerful as those near the cliff.
The Star Lord’s expression changed quickly as he resisted the strike. He had to retreat.
The other Star Lords were puzzled, as the previous Star Lords didn’t suffer such a fierce attack.
Boom!
A Star Lord that was next to the guy was also struck by lightning, but the attack had no power.
“Haha, I said I was the lucky one, but you didn’t believe me!” The Star Lord was none other than the leader of the Ouhuang Alliance, who casually repelled the lightning strike and laughed at the man who was forced to retreat.
Then, he strode on.
The other Star Lords looked at each other in bewilderment. Was it really a matter of luck?
The Star Lord who had been forced to step back moved forward again, only to encounter the same fierce lightning strike!
The Star Lord couldn’t help but roar in fury after having to step back again, “What is going on?”
He could not believe it!
He might be unlucky once, but why twice in a row?
Was the Heavenly Tribulation biased these days?
Nearby, the leader of the Thousand Feathers Alliance remarked casually, “Let me tell you, it’s all about handsomeness.”
He had walked six stairs before he was met with the first lightning strike, but it wasn’t powerful; he easily handled it with his fan.
The leader of the Overlords’ Alliance, who was a female overlord, laughed and said, “Haha, I think so too.”
Although she was tall and strong, she did have a charming face.
“Is that so?”
The leader of the Heavenly Fist Alliance was suspicious. He had been struck by a powerful lightning moments earlier. Is it really all about appearances?
He instantly adjusted his muscles and changed his face; his face became much more handsome. He got on the stairs again.
Boom!
Another fierce lightning struck and forced him to retreat.
“Damn it!”
The leader of the Heavenly Fist Alliance was exasperated. Am I being singled out?
Isn’t the Heavenly Tribulation supposed to be a lifeless thing?
The people inside the small worlds were also surprised. The situation on the stairs was too weird. Some Star Lords walked ten stairs before they encountered the first lightning strike, while others couldn’t even take the first step no matter how many times they tried. Obviously, it wasn’t a random situation.
There seemed to be some sort of pattern, and some people were being targeted!
“Something’s wrong. Why are they fine?”
“Damn it!”
The Star Lords who were being discriminated against jumped in fury near the stairs.
It would have been fine if everyone would have suffered equally.
And yet, only some of them were treated unfairly. It’s so infuriating!
They were all anxious when others were striding forward, as the treasures further ahead would be taken first.
The two Star Lords who had cracked the barriers were gloomy. They had also fallen prey to the Heavenly Tribulation; the further they went, the more powerful the lightning strikes were. They could only go back.
Otherwise, they felt they would have been killed.
It was even more powerful than the Heavenly Tribulation they endured to become Star Lords. They were completely unable to catch up with the others.
“What’s the difference between us and them?”
“Is it our background?”
“That can’t be true. How can the Heavenly Tribulation tell a person’s background? Besides, their backgrounds aren’t entirely the same. As far as I know, the leaders of the Ouhuang Alliance and the Thousand Feathers Alliance are from different galaxies!”
“That’s odd. Have they eaten the same food?”
“That’s impossible!”
“Wait, does the Heavenly Tribulation depend on your strength? The stronger you are, the more powerful the lightning strikes will be? Isn’t it like what happened during our advancement?”
“Huh? It does make sense. So to speak, all those who are forced to retreat are stronger?”
“That’s music to my ears. However, let’s hope that the truth isn’t the opposite. If the lightning strikes are more powerful for those who are weaker, then…”
The Star Lords who couldn’t do anything had to wait in front of the stairs.
Very soon, the leaders of the Thousand Feathers Alliance, the Overlords’ Alliance and the other alliances were forced to step back by the escalating lightning strikes.
Dozens of steps ahead, the leader girl was still stubbornly moving forward.
The Heavenly Tribulation she had gone through was dreadful enough. It contained such great horror that everybody in her small world including Su Ping was frightened.
Su Ping was not frightened by the lightning strikes, but of the possibility that the girl couldn’t endure them.
Besides, the corpses in that place gave him a creepy feeling. He felt like someone was watching him.
“Damn it!”
After moving dozens of steps forward, right when she finally reached the 38th step, the leader girl couldn’t endure any longer and had to retreat.
She looked at the divine residence ahead of her. At first it seemed to be as distant as if it were thousands of kilometers away; but the divine residence was really close when standing on the stairs, as if just a hundred steps away!
And yet, those hundred steps were exactly the most difficult!