The level below the first floor appeared to be a simple corridor. That was what Wu Jian first assumed, but his thoughts soon proved wrong when they came upon a room with six different passages. In the center of this room was a statue. While it was cracked with age and missing an arm, the plaque being held by the other arm was in good condition.

There was writing on it.

“Travel further to test thine courage. Only one may enter. Thine life shall be forfeit if thou shouldst break this rule. Prove thyself righteous and courage,” Wu Jian read out loud. He scratched his head. “This thing is written in a very old dialect. If my clan’s compound didn’t have books written like this, I might not have been able to read it.”

“This is the dialect used several thousand years before the start of the new calender,” Hou Jingshu studied the plaque, then looked at him. “I’m surprised your clan had writings like this.”

“We had a few stone tablets that had this kind of writing. Our librarian had transcribed the tablets in a book format for us. He loved to study ancient literature,” Wu Jian explained.

Hou Jingshu smiled. “He sounds like someone I knew a long time ago.”

Huǒ Shuchang scratched his head. “So, I don’t really care about the writings. What are we supposed to do?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” asked Wu Jian.

“We each need to take one of these passageways. We can’t go together, so we have to take these separately,” Hou Jingshu added.

“I don’t know if I like the idea of you being on your own, Your Highness,” Yin Wuhan said.

“Whether you like the idea or not changes nothing. We must proceed further inside the ruins, and we cannot do that if we do not overcome this trial,” Hou Jingshu declared.

There was nothing anyone could say to stop her. This young woman was determined to press on. In that regard, at least, she had not changed at all from the young girl he used to spend so much time with. She was every bit as courageous now as she had been in the past.

“I’m pretty sure this is a trial to see if we’re worthy of going further,” Wu Jian added.

No one disagreed with him, and so each member of their party chose a passage to move through. Hou Jingshu chose the one on the far right. Wu Jian was about to choose the one next to her, but Yin Wuhan quickly chose that one instead. Huǒ Shuchang patted Wu Jian on the back as he chose one at random, and Zheng Yawen simply walked through another without a backward glance.

“Sorry about Wuhan,” Wu Yong said. “Anyway, let’s hurry up. I hope we’ll be able to meet up again once we reach the other side.”

“Right,” Wu Jian said awkwardly. He still wasn’t used to this kinder Wu Yong.

Wu Jian chose the only remaining passage after Wu Yong vanished. The narrow corridor was dark at first, but it soon lit up as torches flared to life. He was startled. There was no one present to light these torches. Was this some kind of ancient magic? A sealing array perhaps? He couldn’t see anything of the sort when he studied the candles, which was disconcerting.

It did not take long before the corridor opened into a large room. Standing in the center was a shadowy figure. The dark silhouette kept changing shape as Wu Jian walked over to it. Once he closed the distance, it shrank down and changed shape into a young boy with very familiar features. Dark eyes. Dark hair. Fair skin. Wu Jian’s eyes widened as he looked into a face that was nearly identical to his own but several years younger.

“What… is this?”

The little Wu Jian did not speak. He pushed off the ground and appeared before Wu Jian like a bolt of lightning. There was barely enough time to put up a proper defense, but he managed to raise his arms to block the incoming fist.

Yet the attack still landed.

Wu Jian felt both shock and pain as something hard struck him in the face. He staggered back several steps, then barely avoided the knee that tried to attack his groin. Little Wu Jian pressed his attack, throwing several punches and kicks. Wu Jian tried to block them, but each time he moved his arms, the attacks seemed to slip past and strike him like a hammer.

He’s using space principles!

The realization struck him harder than Little Wu Jian’s punches. Once he got over his shock, he felt the space warping around his opponent’s limbs. It was shocking. Truly surprising. Never in a million years would he have thought this tiny version of himself would be capable of using the Dao of Space. He didn’t even look old enough to begin cultivating!

What’s going on here?! How is he using the Dao of Space?! This shouldn’t be possible, should it?

The younger version of himself attacked several more times, but Wu Jian bent the space around himself to fend off the incoming strikes. When two forces of the same element collided, the one with more power always won out. When those forces were of the same strength, they simply canceled out each other.

I need to remain calm and think. This is obviously a test. That’s why this younger version of myself can also use the Dao of Space. His strength is also about equal to mine. But why has this test taken on the form of my younger self?

The answer came to Wu Jian. It was obvious when he thought about it. The younger Wu Jian was around seven or eight years old. That was the time when Wu Yong had begun bullying him. It was a time when he had felt weak and powerless, when everything seemed hopeless and the only bright spot in his life was Wu Meiying. This test was obviously to defeat his past self.

He wondered why the test had chosen his younger self for this, but again, the answer was obvious. It was because of Wu Yong. His half-brother was among their group, and Wu Jian’s emotions had been in flux because of it. He just couldn’t correlate the young man guarding Hou Jingshu to the one who had bullied him for several years of his life.

Now that he understood this, Wu Jian began attacking in earnest. The two opponents bent space around themselves and threw a variety of attacks. Every attack was canceled out and countered. The sounds of fists and feet striking each other echoed around the room.

I’m not the weak child I used to be. I’m much stronger now. I won’t allow myself to be beaten by the person I was back then.

The attacks continued. Space bent around Little Wu Jian’s left fist, but Wu Jian countered by unfolding the space and lashing out with a kick. Little Wu Jian tried to use space to block the attack, but he canceled the technique with his own and finally landed a kick that struck his younger self in the face.

Is he getting weaker?

Little Wu Jian flew backward, rolled across the ground, then skipped back to his feet. A dark bruise had appeared on his face, but it went ignored as he attacked again.

Just like Wu Jian expected, his younger self was getting weaker. It could also be that he was getting stronger. Wu Jian could feel his control over space growing. Fighting against someone who could also use the Dao of Space was forcing him to expand his awareness far more than he ever had before.

Little Wu Jian seemed to realize what was happening. He threw a punch. His fist disappeared. Wu Jian ducked when he sensed something behind him. A fist flew past his head. He grabbed it, then yanked, pulling the hand through the spatial tear until the entire arm was sticking out. Then he created a spatial blade out of his other hand and swung.

No blood emerged as he removed Little Wu Jian’s entire forearm, and the hand he was grabbing soon vanished into black particles that resembled ash. Little Wu Jian backed up several steps. He completely ignored the wound, but if this was really a test, then the figure before him wasn’t a real person. It would not feel pain like a normal person.

Even though it couldn’t feel pain, missing a limb would still hinder its ability to attack. That didn’t stop Little Wu Jian, who threw several kicks, bending space to reach him from a distance.

Wu Jian leapt back and threw a punch. Space bent around his fist as he struck Little Wu Jian’s foot. His opponent stumbled backward.

Not one to let such an opportunity slip by, Wu Jian rushed forward. Little Wu Jian punched at him again. However, Wu Jian finally used Nihility. The fist phased through his body, then he went through Little Wu Jian. After appearing on the other side, he thrust out a hand and impaled his much younger self through the back.

A moment of silence passed before Little Wu Jian burst into black ash. Wu Jian sighed and lowered his hand. Then he blinked when he saw a chest appear before him. It was made from wood and had ornate carvings of a tiger on it. Frowning, he knelt down and opened the chest to find…

“Nothing?” he blinked. Then he sighed. “I see. This must be the reward we’re supposed to get. However, so many people have come through here that all the treasures we could receive for passive have already been taken.”

That was disappointing, but there was little he could do.

He stood to his feet and turned toward the wall opposite of where he had come from. Another passage had appeared. Wu Jian marched toward it without hesitation and entered. Hopefully, the next part of this trial would have something.

***

Hou Jingshu gritted her teeth as she backpedaled to avoid the ferocious swing from the man standing in front of her. His hair was the same color as hers, but it was tied into a topknot on his head. He had strong, masculine features—a narrow mouth, strong jaw, and sharp eyes. Every time he moved, the ornate robes he wore fluttered about him and masked his movements. He twirled a spear in his hand.

This was Hou Jingshu’s father.

Her father from when she was just a child.

Emperor Hou Jun was well-known for his physical prowess. During the time when the Zhou Kingdom had tried to invade their nation, he had led their army from the frontlines and faced off against many of the enemy nation’s most powerful cultivators. His undefeated streak had earned him the nickname Invincible Dragon at the time

Hou Jingshu already understood what it meant for this man to appear before her.

He was her trial.

While Hou Jun had always given her love, he had also been very strict and demanding. She was not allowed to train, not allowed to go out, and not allowed to act in a way that was unbefitting of a nation’s princess. He kept her locked in a cage. So, even though she knew he loved her, and even though she loved him back, there had always been a part of her that was afraid of him.

This trial was about her overcoming that fear.

Raging gold chi glowed along her spear as she thrust it forward, unleashing a powerful blast of energy that resembled a dragon’s claw. It dispersed when her father stabbed it before the attack could land. Reddish-orange chi erupted from his spear. Hou Jingsu leapt to the side and avoided the attack, which slammed against the rock wall, though no damage was done.

He’s stronger than me…

Hou Jingshu had already figured that much out. While not at the same level as her father when he was in his prime, the figure of her father was definitely several subrealms above her.

I can’t afford to hold back!

Knowing that the longer this fight went on, the weaker she would become, Hou Jingshu released all the chi inside of her. She gathered it together and made it flow through her meridians. Gold outlined her body. The color soon seeped into her skin, taking the shape of dragon scales that covered her arms, legs, neck, a bit of her face, and some of her chest. She felt much stronger using this technique than she had last time.

She rushed forward. Her father’s shadow dashed out to meet her. He thrust his spear, and she made it look like that was what she was going to do, but then she swerved at the last second. His spear passed through where she had been. Stomping on the ground, she thrust out her spear.

“Dragon’s Maw!”

The glowing tip erupted with chi that took the form of a dragon’s head. The head clamped down on her father’s torso, fangs sinking deep into her flesh. Even his arms were pinned to his side. Then her spear penetrated his chest, punching all the way through. The figure of her father soon vanished, bursting into particles of black ash that evaporated like water on a hot summer’s day.

She took a deep breath as a chest appeared before her. There was nothing inside, so she stood up and walked through the passage that had appeared before her. Hou Jingshu hoped to meet up with her companions soon.