Martial Ascent to Divinity

"Chu Yan!" A beastman saw his brother die tragically, shouted, turned, and charged at Zhou Leng, wanting to avenge his brother.

Someone in the rear seized the opportunity and suddenly fired a demonized crossbow arrow, piercing straight through his heart.

Three beastmen fell one after another in a short time.

"Retreat!" The beastmen leader gave Zhou Leng a fierce glare, ordered his men to grab the skin bag for the corpses, and led the remaining beastmen to retreat through a randomly chosen passage.

Zhao Le shouted loudly, "Thank you, Zhou Leng, for your righteous assistance. You also have earned the qualification to obtain the Dust Demon Fruit."

Zhou Leng glanced at the Dust Demon Fruit, climbed up the trunk, leapt up, and grabbed a Dust Demon Fruit hanging from a branch in mid-air, before landing steadily.

There was not the slightest slip.

Zhou Leng glanced at Zhao Le and the others, then ran into the next passage.

Lou Fei Qiong and his group were dumbfounded.

"Did you see his footwork?"

"How could we not? It was like walking on flat ground; this is no ordinary ice surface."

"This person, such a brilliant stepping technique, must be at the extreme realm, possibly even... beyond the extreme realm."

"Not necessarily, he probably trained on ice surfaces and mastered some kind of ice battle technique."

"Quite possible."

Lou Fei Qiong felt deeply gratified, and said to the group, "This is the reward of planting good karma; without him, our best outcome would have been mutual destruction, with half of us lying here."

The group nodded slightly.

In the passage.

Zhou Leng continued forward while peeling off the stone skin.

The inside of the Dust Demon Fruit was snow-white, with distinct granules.

Taking a bite, it tasted like a pear, crisp and sweet with a faint hint of dust.

The medicinal fruit entered his belly, transforming into a warm stream, surging within his body.

In this way, Zhou Leng pressed on unceasingly according to the beastman map.

Encountering various dangers along the way, he continuously turned peril into safety.

Minor injuries accumulated, but no major ones.

He even encountered several dwarf teams; they cooperated in battles with excellent synergy.

In the pitch-black descending passage, Zhou Leng turned on the demonized watch for light and slowly advanced.

This passage was unlike any other.

The entrance was very well-hidden; even with the map, it took Zhou Leng a while to find.

There were no glowing plants on the inner walls of this passage; it was utterly dark.

Other passages were either flat or ascending; only this one was steeply descending.

After walking for a full half-hour, he finally saw light ahead.

Zhou Leng slowed his pace, turned off the demonized watch light, and slowly approached the passage entrance, looking inside.

Inside was a majestic hall, self-illuminating without lamps, with a ceiling over a hundred meters high, and an area equivalent to two or three football fields.

The walls had a silver-gray metallic luster, with complex patterns, blending technology, magic, and dwarf architecture, even some ancient oriental styles.

The floor of the hall was a series of interconnected brass-colored metal surfaces, densely covered with runes.

Three white pillars of light stood in the hall, enveloping three dwarves.

The three dwarves sat within the light pillars, holding their heads, as if shouting, but not a sound could be heard.

Suddenly, a dwarf's head burst apart explosively.

In that instant, the light pillar dissipated, spraying blood everywhere.

The headless dwarf fell over.

In the hall, many corpses lay sprawled in disarray.

There were beastmen, dwarves, humans, and even demons.

Some were desiccated, others seemed just entered, their blood barely coagulated.

All were headless corpses.

Zhou Leng felt something was wrong, yet before he could react, an invisible force pushed him, causing his body to float uncontrollably and land in the hall.

He turned to look, and the passage was closed.

A faint pressure emitted from the hall, causing Zhou Leng's heart to pound wildly.

"Hmm? It's you, my excellent little friend."

In the center of the hall, a translucent little elf teacher appeared.

"Hello, Teacher," Zhou Leng greeted in the dwarf language.

"What an adorable little friend. Unfortunately, since you are here, you must forcibly undergo the Divine Text challenge."

Zhou Leng glanced at the headless corpses, faintly understanding why they died here.

The little elf continued, "Over the years, apart from those two innate children who endured the challenge upon entering here, all other little friends perished. You are even the youngest little friend, such a pity... but rules are rules, not set by me."

"Buzz..."

The hall lightly trembled, and then a white cylindrical light descended suddenly from the center of the roof, enveloping Zhou Leng.

The scene before his eyes changed.

It was no longer a silver-gray metallic hall, but an endless expanse of white stone slabs.

At the end of the empty ground stood a gigantic, dark wall.

It was immeasurable in height, reaching into the starry sky.

Endlessly long, its sides unseen.

The wall bore countless large grids, each carved with a Divine Text.

These Divine Texts remained motionless.

The little elf appeared in front of Zhou Leng, saying, "Next, there are three trials. Completing one allows you to live; completing two grants entry to the reading room; completing three bestows the title of 'Apprentice Divine Rune Master'."

"Unfortunately, you are too young, your will power is not yet formed, but passing one trial is still possible."

"The first trial, Divine Text Overload..."

After the little elf finished speaking, one hundred Divine Texts on the nearby part of the Divine Text wall started spinning rapidly, transforming into golden complete Divine Texts.

The Divine Text wall emitted a peculiar pressure, like a giant mountain, bearing down on Zhou Leng.

The hundred Divine Texts slowly rotated, reminding Zhou Leng of his initial experience learning Divine Texts.

Each Divine Text was stirring his brain.

After experiencing the Celestial Tier's consciousness exchange and with the Mountain of Will forming, learning Divine Texts no longer gave such intense sensations.

After mastering the pronunciation of the Divine Texts, the sensation weakened even further.

Zhou Leng's face remained unchanged, only feeling dazzled.

And that was all.

"Huh? Could you be a descendant of a higher civilization? You seem to handle this effortlessly..."

Suddenly, more divine texts on the wall began to shine.

Previously, it encompassed a range of ten horizontal and ten vertical divine texts; now, it expands to thirty by thirty.

Zhou Leng still felt nothing but dared not learn these divine texts, merely sensing them.

"Again!"

Boom...

A hundred horizontal by a hundred vertical divine texts, totaling ten thousand, spun rapidly.

Zhou Leng felt a slight dizziness, somewhat dazed, like the light intoxication after a small drink.

A bit tired, yet somewhat comfortable.

The divine texts he had learned and partially learned in his mind began to rotate slowly, easing this discomfort.

"This young friend is quite remarkable..."

After the little elf spoke, nine thousand divine texts having a range of three hundred horizontal by three hundred vertical whirled in unison.

Zhou Leng immediately felt dizzy, close to nausea.

Biting his teeth, he endured stubbornly.

The divine texts were like knives, slicing the Mountain of Will.

The ice crystal water droplets above the Mountain of Will quickened their melting.

Light ice flakes descended, merging into the Mountain of Will.

The Mountain of Will slowly solidified.

Zhou Leng's eyes blurred, his body swayed slightly, like an intoxicated old man.

"A rare young friend, not even done with the second lesson..."

As soon as the little elf finished speaking, six hundred horizontal by six hundred vertical divine texts lit up, spinning rapidly in the front.

Zhou Leng staggered heavily but still clenched his teeth, holding on firmly.

This time, the sensation returned entirely.

Thirty-six thousand divine texts rotated within his brain tissue.

The little elf was greatly astonished, waving his magic wand.

A thousand horizontal by a thousand vertical divine texts lit up.

A million divine texts spun and gleamed wildly.

Zhou Leng groaned, his body tilted backwards, crashing to the ground, with two trails of blood streaming from his nostrils.

"Oh no..."

The little elf wore an embarrassed expression and waved the magic wand; a droplet of water fell from thin air, dropping onto Zhou Leng's parched lips.

The liquid split into two parts, one nourishing Zhou Leng's body, and another entering the Mountain of Will.

The previously wobbly Mountain of Will swiftly became plump and radiant, further solidifying.

"Actually, holding on until ten thousand texts was enough to pass, but managing to endure up to a million divine texts shows some potential..."

"Unfortunately, this is the world of elementary civilization, except if more advanced civilization ruins are encountered; otherwise..."

The little elf shook his head, not bothering Zhou Leng, just quietly waiting.

Not long after, Zhou Leng awoke.

"Hmm?" The little elf examined Zhou Leng closely.

Having gone through the trial, Zhou Leng's will did not diminish; instead, it had greatly improved.

"Strange..."

The little elf muttered.

"The path to divinity, divine texts are crucial. Without divine texts, it's hard to ascend to divinity. However, the more powerful the divine texts, the more and stronger the power they contain. Only those who can withstand it can read and understand..."

"This kind of power appears harmful but is actually an extension of the cosmic path, tantamount to a powerful cultivation method."

"This second trial is both a test and a reward."

"The second trial is one of the powers formed by powerful divine texts, 'Chaotic God Sound,' elegantly expressed as 'Chaos God's Ode'."

"Work hard, excellent young friend." The little elf took a deep look at Zhou Leng, gently adjusting his glasses.

The little elf had never used such an expression before, immediately making Zhou Leng understand the reminder.

This chaotic god sound may become crucial in the process of learning divine texts, perhaps even more important than the following trials.

Zhou Leng instantly concentrated entirely, prepared himself.

"Chaos God's Ode, first note..."

A distant divine text began to lightly rotate on the wall of divine texts.

Boom... boom... boom boom boom...

The drumbeat started slowly then quickened, from far to near, the sound growing louder, the rhythm faster.

At first, Zhou Leng only felt distant vibrations.

Gradually, Zhou Leng felt his eardrums vibrate.

Then, his heart also started vibrating.

The flow of blood became chaotic, entirely controlled by the Chaos God's Ode.

Zhou Leng experienced indescribable pain, as if his heart was struck by some force, feeling as if it was no longer his own.

Zhou Leng's panic grew, momentarily unsure of what to do.

This panic would instinctively form fear.

The body and brain would instinctively perceive a threat of death.

Zhou Leng strived to think and suddenly recalled the first trial of the Celestial Tier Trial.

At that time, he was cast ashore, directionless and confused.

Well then, attempt Unity...

Slowly taking deep breaths, maintained rationality.

Meanwhile, he carefully listened to the peculiar sound, felt with his entire being.

Zhou Leng seemed to return to the celestial sea, slowly feeling the unique sound.

The little elf glanced at Zhou Leng in astonishment.

"This young friend, could he be inheritor of the Unity Path... It shouldn't be, such an elementary civilization couldn't encounter it, unless... it's probably just a coincidence..."

Gradually, Zhou Leng felt an amazing resonance forming with the Chaos God's Ode.

Though it couldn't be called comfortable, it was no longer painful either.

Suddenly, the Chaos God's Ode intensified again.

Now, it wasn't just his eardrums and heart vibrating, but also all the blood in his body.

Zhou Leng's body shivered slightly, and then, his blood boiled.