Divine King of Honour

"He actually made it to the third level,"

A wave of surprise rippled through the crowd.

In nearly a hundred years, only three people from the Artifact Refining Sect had made it that far.

Others had either failed at the first level or the second.

Anyone who could reach the third level was considered a prodigy.

Among these three, Xu Nian had taken the least amount of time.

At this moment, Nangong Qing's face turned red with rage, his eyes brimming with intense fury.

He had been humiliated once before, and now it happened again, infuriating him.

Now, whenever he spoke up, the people beside him looked at him as if he were a fool.

Yann Hong and Yann Xi both showed surprise on their faces, clearly taken aback by Xu Nian's unexpected performance.

"Look, Brother Bai Feng has arrived; even he has been drawn here by the commotion," someone exclaimed in the crowd just then.

Everyone turned their heads in the direction pointed out.

A man with a beard was seen approaching from afar.

Though he looked older because of his somewhat decrepit appearance, he was actually only twenty-seven years old.

"Brother Bai Feng!" the crowd around him greeted.

However, the young man seemed not to hear, just standing to one side, staring blankly at the third level of the Sky-reaching Tower with a complex expression in his eyes.

He had failed at this very level three years ago, never managing to recover his stride.

Not only had his Nine-star War General Level cultivation made no progress, but his artifact refining skills hadn't improved in the slightest either.

"That Bai Feng kid seems to still be fixated on his failure," the old tower guardian sighed.

He had once had high hopes for this young man, but in the end, he was disappointed.

"Don't worry, he'll come to terms with it soon," the Artifact Refining Sect Master said with a smile, though his gaze once again turned towards the third level of the Sky-reaching Tower, displaying a seriousness he seldom showed.

...

"Uh, where is this? Shouldn't I be in the Sky-reaching Tower?" Xu Nian opened his eyes, staring blankly at the dilapidated temple.

The moment he had entered the third level, he had blacked out.

When he woke up, he was inside this ruined temple.

"Ah... it hurts so much!" A sudden and intense pain shot through Xu Nian's body.

"My Dantian is ruined, my spiritual energy is gone, and my legs, why are they broken?" It was only then that Xu Nian realized he was not only devoid of any cultivation, but his legs were also completely fractured.

"What on earth is going on? Could the Sky-reaching Tower have been a sham? Or have I already failed the challenge, become a cripple, and been thrown out by the Artifact Refining Sect?" Xu Nian was filled with confusion and doubt.

His situation was dire, and the pain in his body was tearing him apart.

"Ha ha, my dear brother, you've finally awoken. How's it, comfortable in your new home?"

Just then, a voice laden with sarcasm arrived from outside the temple, followed by a young man walking in, flanked by two other youths.

"Qin Hen? You're not dead?" Xu Nian's eyes widened in surprise.

Hadn't he killed Qin Hen?

Why was he here?

What was going on?

"Dead? My dear brother, didn't you get knocked silly? I'm really sorry, brother, I accidentally went too far," Qin Hen continued in a sarcastic tone.

Xu Nian glanced around and realized he was in a decrepit temple at the corner of Tianhai City.

And his current condition was exactly like when he had been crippled and expelled from the Qin Family.

"Could it be that everything I've experienced was just a dream? Impossible, how could a dream feel so real?" Xu Nian muttered to himself, panic surfacing in his eyes.

If everything before had truly been just a dream...

"Wouldn't that mean he ultimately still became a waste?"

"Ha ha, it seems I've really knocked him silly, babbling nonsense here," Qin Hen laughed heartily, his eyes brimming with mockery.

The two lackeys behind him also revealed wanton smiles.

"It can't be, this absolutely can't be a dream, a dream can't feel this real. I'm still inside the Sky-reaching Tower, this place is the Illusion Realm," Xu Nian muttered excitedly to himself.

He refused to believe that everything he had experienced before was just a dream.

"Dream? Sky-reaching Tower? What nonsense are you spouting? I don't care what grand delusions you've had, today you must die. If it weren't for the ancestor's interference yesterday, you'd already be dead before me. Now, I'll torment you bit by bit until you wish for death from the pain," Qin Hen said with a smile.

After he spoke, his hand clenched on Xu Nian's broken leg.
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"Ah..." A piercing pain shot up from his leg, a pain so intense that Xu Nian couldn't help but cry out in agony.

"Ha ha, scream louder, the louder you scream, the more excited I get," Qin Hen said with a ferocious grin.

His two lackeys laughed loudly along with him.

Xu Nian was in unbearable pain, his reason told him that none of this was real, but the severe pain was undeniably genuine.

"Ha ha, scream, scream louder," Qin Hen laughed heartily.

"Qin Hen, even if this is the Illusion Realm, I will kill you once more," Xu Nian roared with rage, the intense pain contorting his face, his voice trembling.

"Illusion Realm? I think you're living in a dream! Ha ha, then let me help you wake up," Qin Hen chuckled heartily.

After saying this, he increased the force in his hand, and Xu Nian was in so much pain he nearly passed out.

"I can't pass out, if I pass out, I may never wake up again," Xu Nian warned himself internally.

However, the pain spreading from his legs made him wish for death.

Qin Hen and the two lackeys were all savagely laughing, their brazen laughter constantly echoing in Xu Nian's ears.

Xu Nian was on the verge of unconsciousness, about to completely succumb to the pain.

"Hmph!"

Just then, a cold snort suddenly rang in Xu Nian's mind.

The sound wasn't loud, but as it landed in Xu Nian's mind, it was like a clap of thunder.

"It's Emperor Ye Tian's voice, no doubt about it, it's Emperor Ye Tian's voice. It's the Illusion Realm; everything at this moment is an illusion," Xu Nian excitedly muttered to himself.

Qin Hen was still laughing wildly, the intense pain was still present.

However, Xu Nian was feeling exceptionally clear-headed at this moment; he simply closed his eyes, forgetting everything around him.

...

"What's the matter? It's been three days already, how can Xu Nian be staying so long on this third level?" The crowd outside the Sky-reaching Tower expressed their perplexity.

That's right, within the Sky-reaching Tower, it seemed as though only a short time had passed for Xu Nian, but in reality, a full three days had elapsed.

"I think he's already died inside the Sky-reaching Tower. Three days have gone by and he hasn't cleared the third level; there's no hope at all," Nangong Qing sneered once again.

However, Bai Feng, who was standing beside him, suddenly glared at Nangong Qing and harshly reprimanded, "A piece of trash like you doesn't even have the right to step into the Sky-reaching Tower, what right do you have to mock others?"

Upon hearing this, Nangong Qing's face turned pitch black.

He couldn't understand what he had done to offend Bai Feng.

But just thinking of Bai Feng's status within the Sect, he didn't dare express even the slightest grievance and could only obediently shut his mouth.

This induced snickers from the surrounding crowd, further embarrassing him.

Bai Feng, on the other hand, paid no attention. He knew the third level of the Sky-reaching Tower better than anyone else present.

The third level was different from the others; the longer the time, the more excruciating the pain.

Whether Xu Nian succeeded or failed, having persisted so long on the third level was respect-worthy.

"Quick, look, there's movement!"

Just at that moment, someone in the crowd exclaimed.

Everyone raised their heads, gazing toward the third level of the Sky-reaching Tower.

Then, their faces revealed surprised expressions.