Chapter 161: A Test Beyond Truth and Lies — Inheritance or Livestock Farming?

At this very moment, personal grudges, the desire for secret manuals, the craving for elixirs, and longing for opportunities—

All became meaningless.

If they couldn’t get out of here, they would die. What use were treasures then?

“OPEN FOR THIS POOR DAOIST!!”

Tong Xue could no longer hold back. He roared and launched another spell at full force.

But when the spell landed on the stone door—it was as effective as a tickle.

Despair flashed in his eyes. “What now!?”

The rest were also visibly anxious despite their varied expressions.

Clack clack clack…

Before they could even discuss a solution, a rumble echoed through the hall.

Everyone turned their eyes toward the suspended coffin.

The eight iron chains binding it began to twitch. The enormous coffin slowly descended from the air!

Instantly, all seven—including Yu Xian—turned pale and retreated three steps without a word.

Each of them instinctively summoned their magical treasures.

The grand hall burst into dazzling brilliance.

All seven wielded fifth-grade magic treasures!

Especially Jiang Xiaolong and Qi Xuan.

A treasure wheel and a treasure pagoda glowed brightly, radiating mid-grade fifth-tier power.

A mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator possessing mid-grade fifth-tier artifacts?

Extremely rare!

It showed how deep their backgrounds were.

Others held various low-grade fifth-tier treasures—either offensive or defensive.

Yu Xian, too, revealed his hand: the Sea Suppression Pearl in one hand, and a jade-green ring radiating light on the other. The Jade Spirit Chisel was ready to strike at any moment.

Only the Spirit God Shield was left untouched—his ultimate life-saving trump card.

Revealing a near-sixth-grade defensive treasure now would only invite greed.

Even the Sea Suppression Pearl in Yu Xian’s hand had already stirred unease.

A mere early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator wielding a fifth-grade artifact?

Where did he get the spirit stones for that?

They had spent decades, even centuries, scraping together everything to afford one full set of fifth-grade artifacts. Each piece could cost hundreds of thousands, even a million spirit stones!

But this wasn’t the time to think about it.

Whatever chance he had, let him have it.

Right now, the falling coffin was the real issue.

Boom!

The coffin landed, shaking the entire hall.

As it did, all the extinguished candles and lamps in the palace inexplicably lit up again.

A deep, ancient voice echoed:

“More visitors…”

The seven’s pupils shrank. They scanned the hall—but could not locate the voice’s source.

It came from nowhere—yet filled every inch of space.

“Who are you!?”

“Are you a senior’s heroic soul? A remnant spirit? If you need anything, just say the word!”

Jiang Xiaolong, Qi Xuan, and Tong Xue spoke quickly and respectfully.

But no reply came.

Moments later, a table reappeared in front of the coffin—it had vanished before, but now it was back.

“I reached the end of my lifespan… and buried myself here. If any fated ones enter, they must complete three trials.

Success earns my inheritance.

Failure… means death for disturbing my rest.”

That voice spoke again.

Yu Xian’s eyes narrowed. He turned toward the rows of… dried corpses on both sides of the hall.

Inheritance for the successful.

Death for the failed.

Clearly, those corpses might have once been challengers—who failed and died!

A chill crept up his spine.

Everyone else had the same reaction, pale-faced, staring at the corpses.

Then, the voice spoke once more:

“First Trial…”

Everyone held their breath.

“Within ten days, learn the first layer of the Clearblood Spirit Refining Art.

Fail, and die.”

A manual floated up from the table.

Light beams emerged from its pages, forming characters visible to everyone.

Clearblood Spirit Refining Art—Ten days to learn the first layer!

“Time starts now.”

There was no time to think.

Everyone immediately sat down and focused on memorizing the technique and channeling their spiritual energy.

—Ten days to live.

They had no choice.

Yu Xian didn’t sit down.

Instead, he stared at the technique with doubt.

“Learning this saves your life? Or… only gives you the qualifications to be consumed?”

“Would someone who wants to kill you offer inheritance?”

He didn’t buy it.

This wasn’t inheritance. This was a trap.

The entire tomb screamed of malicious intent.

From the moment they entered, the ominous atmosphere had grown heavier.

And now, Yu Xian was sure—the true source of this malice came from inside the coffin.

There must be some powerful evil sealed within.

He recalled everything—from the five-grade pills at the entrance to the peculiar reactions when refining alchemy—everything pointed to one thing:

It only wanted alchemists.

The others were just bonus fodder.

He stared at the coffin.

“With so many spirits sealed and corpses cultivated, is this a tomb… or a corpse-refining farm?

Using ghosts as medicine, corpses as ingredients… for corpse-pills? Is this thing trying to revive itself?”

Everyone else immersed themselves in studying the technique.

It wasn’t complex—most of them were already halfway there.

They believed in their own talent, confident they’d master the first layer in ten days.

Yu Xian didn’t bother.

He stood up.

“Yu Junior Brother, what are you doing? Time is running out!”

Jiang Xiaolong called out, concerned.

Yu Xian replied, “Senior Brother, I’m too dumb to understand it. I’ll just look around for another way out.”

“…Fine.”

Jiang Xiaolong nodded reluctantly.

He liked Yu Xian and wanted to protect him, but now was not the time to argue.

The others treated Yu Xian like air.

As long as he didn’t disturb them, they didn’t care.

Yu Xian walked straight to the coffin.

It was black as night, its surface emanating cold, lifeless energy.

Touching it, he felt his vitality slowly drawn away.

“Corpse-nurturing rebirth… Do you really think you’ll come back to life?”

Many powerful cultivators who reached the end of their life attempted this: preserving their body, feeding it, waiting for rebirth.

But…

“Even if the body lives again… is it still ‘you’? Or just a refined corpse turned monster?”

Yu Xian sighed and began investigating the grand hall.

He wasn’t just pretending—he really hoped to find an exit.

But the palace was massive, and he was alone in the search. It took him a full day, but… nothing.

No treasures. No secret doors. Not even a single useful item on the corpses.

Even the storage bags had long decayed due to time—low-grade bags disintegrated after 100 years, mid-grade lasted 500, high-grade lasted 1000, and supreme-grade maybe 10,000.

He returned, bored, and glanced at the glowing technique.

Still, he refused to cultivate it.

He merely memorized its content, then turned to his own art—the Grand Elixir Body Refining Technique.

Warmth spread through him as heat coursed through his veins.

He became like a living pill, refining himself from the inside out.

He was already at the Core Pill Flesh stage.

This inferior art—Clearblood Spirit Refining—couldn’t compare at all.

No one noticed, but…

The coffin… moved.

Ever so slightly.

Something within was awakening.

Time passed.

On day 6, Qi Xuan laughed aloud.

“HAHA! I’ve mastered it! The first layer of Clearblood Spirit Refining!”

His shout was calculated—to disturb the others.

Because the voice said “survivors”, not how many.

The fewer survivors… the better chance for him.

Sure enough, several frowned, their focus disrupted.

Qi Xuan pretended it was excitement.

One more noise, and the others might kill him first.

He stood and began exploring the tomb.

Soon, he also noticed the corpses…

Their decay was uniform.

They all died at the same time.

They weren’t adventurers from different eras. They were a batch.

Just like Yu Xian suspected.

Days passed.

Su Mofeng, Kang Xinping, Ge Xiyu, Jiang Xiaolong, and finally Tong Xue all mastered the first layer.

Eight days had passed.

All seven—except Yu Xian—had succeeded.

“Trial one: complete.”

The voice echoed again.

Yu Xian’s eyes flashed.

He hadn’t cultivated the technique—but his body already exceeded its requirement.

What they really needed…

was a Foundation Establishment-level body.

Not necessarily the technique.

He passed anyway.

Then, the voice rang again:

“Trial two:

In twenty days, each of you must condense a Dao Pill in your body.”

A new manual opened—Dao Pill Secret Art—its content displayed mid-air.

“Time starts now.”

Yu Xian sneered.

“Are we pigs now? Fattening ourselves up to be butchered?”

“Everyone,”

Qi Xuan suddenly spoke.

His expression serious:

“I urge you—do not cultivate this Dao Pill Secret Art.”

The others turned to him.

“You suspect something?”

Qi Xuan nodded.

“These techniques are not inheritance. They are refinement recipes.

We’re being raised for slaughter.

Once we have strong bodies and internal Dao Pills, we’ll be prime ingredients.”

The hall fell silent.

He might be right.

But what could they do?

“Any solution?” Tong Xue asked.

Qi Xuan shook his head. “No. It’s only a guess.”

“A guess…”

Jiang Xiaolong sighed and spoke:

“Even if it’s a guess, we must choose one path.

I choose to cultivate this Dao Pill technique.

You all can decide for yourselves. In twenty days, life or death will reveal the truth.”

He sat down and began cultivating.

But then—

“Senior Brother Jiang,”

Yu Xian’s calm voice cut through the air.

He looked at Jiang Xiaolong and said seriously:

“I believe Senior Qi is right.

And I… advise you not to cultivate it.”